Who inspires you?

If you want to help people it's important to share your thoughts, knowledge and skills.  However, sometimes it's hard to feel inspired when you sit down to write.

I like Sarah Arrow's blog where she quotes Peter DeVries 'I only write when I'm inspired, and I make sure I'm inspired every morning at 9am'.  What inspires you?  Do you know?

In today's busy world many of us simply don't have time to think.  We process information, make decisions, analyse situations, but don't stop to think creatively.

A great place to start is to find blogs that you really like to read regularly.  My personal favourites are Seth Godin, Dinah Liversidge and Michel Fortin, just because they give me food for thought and start me thinking in a different way to my normal logical left-brain approach.

But it doesn't have to be a blog, it could be a YouTube video, an AudioBoo recording, a piece of music or - dare I suggest it - a real book!  A friend of mine used to say "I need to read something motivational every morning for about 20 minutes to have a really good day."  Her take on motivational included people like Zig Ziglar and Morris Goodman.  I know other people who swear by Tony Robbins, Tom Peters and Joe Vitale; everyone has their favourite stimuli.

If this is something you haven't discovered yet, the secret is to find the people who resonate with you and explore their thoughts regularly.  You'll find it triggers ideas, your own spin on things and gets those creative juices flowing.  When you start to see things from a different perspective your own creativity will blossom.

Don't ever underestimate the value of just sitting and thinking - or even daydreaming - it will power your progress and performance!

Don't be a one-way street!

If you're using social media for marketing then you should be:

• Creating and publishing content that has value for your readers - e.g. hints, tips, advice
• Encouraging people to visit your website by giving them a reason to go there - e.g. interesting content, useful information
• Telling people what they could achieve with a little help (subtle promotion) - teaser posts that dangle a possibility.

If you've been mentally adding a satisfying tick to each of these, then what about these activities?

• Retweeting or sharing posts from other people that you find interesting or of value.
• Commenting on other people's posts to add value.
• Promoting other people's blogs that you've liked.
• Getting into conversation about something that interests you.
• Demonstrating you're human!

Of course, the first batch of activities require a little effort to create the content, but then this can be reused and posted automatically using a scheduling tool (like Hootsuite).  The second list requires you to be active in real time and to make the effort to read content, posts and blogs and comment or respond in some way.

If you're wailing "I'm too busy"; you are telling me that you're too busy to market your business.  This is all part of your marketing activity and need not take more than 10 minutes a day.  The problem is that, if you only send information out and don't interact, people can get fed-up with trying to communicate with a 'Broadcast system'.

Most businesses are built on relationships and you can't have a relationship with an automated system.  It doesn't mean you shouldn't use one; it does mean you shouldn't ONLY use it.  Start building your relationships and people will not only connect, but, in time will also recommend and refer.

Is social media a marketing tool?

The views on how social media should be used are wide-ranging from 'it's a social network and people don't want to be sold at' to 'it's a great way to get your marketing message out to a huge audience'.  I think both are right!

Although some social media networks are more business-oriented, such as Linked In, nobody wants to be sold at; you don't, I don't, so why would anyone else?  However, marketing is not just sales, it encompasses education, knowledge sharing, information and opportunities.

The secret is to take the time to get to know the social media platforms you use and build your network on them up. Providing good quality information in a form that is appropriate to the platform is an excellent way to develop your reputation as an expert.  Facebook is fun, personal and light-hearted, whilst Linked In is more business focused, Pinterest is highly visual and Twitter is focused on the short, highly focused bite-sized comments.

Choose your social media platforms and get to know them and the people you connect with and you'll find that most people appreciate good quality information.

Having a social media strategy regarding what you post, where, when and how often is essential and, even if you are using it for marketing it's important to interact with people.  If they comment or connect with you, respond, don't just be a broadcast-only person.

Look at the comments on your Twitter feed, Facebook wall, Linked In status update feed etc.  Be generous in retweeting, recommending, liking and generally acknowledging  content you like or have something to say about. Get involved - it need not take hours, a few minutes a couple of times a day should be enough.

When you've developed your presence people won't mind if you occasionally post special offers, teasers (find out how to ... or did you know that ...) that link back to your website.

Make sure that your short posts connect with more in-depth information on your website or blog.  Capture interested people with an offer of a free report or tips sheet and your list will grow, giving you a database to whom you can send more marketing messages.

Social media is a marketing tool, if you use it intelligently as a funnel to bring the people who have an interest in your products and services to your website.