Organizing Your Social Marketing Efforts

If you are just entering the arena of Web 2.0 also called social marketing or social networking, it may just feel like you’ve stepped into chaos.  One day of social marketing…and you have 1,000 new passwords and log in links. You probably generated some affiliate links along the way, too.  If you’ve gone and joined 10 networks and 6 forums, is your desk and monitor plastered with post it notes of your log-ins?

Here’s a coupla things I learned on the yellow brick road of Web 2.0 -

1) Write all of your profiles in Notepad or other text editor. If you do it in MS Word, it (Word) will add extra HTML that you can’t see, but could wreck your formatting. Copy and paste. That way, if your server crashes, you haven’t lost your work. (OY! the hours I’ve lost!!) Use the same basic profile. Social sites, like Facebook, want a little more of the hobby and favorite movie type stuff, more business oriented sites like Linked In or Fast Pitch want more professional associations and your achievements.

2) Put your contact info (like phone or skype or EM addy) in the NAME field when you are setting up your profile. That’s especially important in Linked In so that people outside of your network can contact you. If you look more accessible…you will network more.

3) You can use something like ROBOform (www.roboform.com) for your passwords. Firefox and IE7 have features that memorize your log ins. I also keep an Excel spread sheets (just the columns) for my Log in, password, log in site links and any affiliate links and commission info. You can organize your links by category, how you use them, or by Alpha order.

4) Schedule your “route”. You might do Facebook, OPEN and Linked In on Mondays, schedule your tweets and plurks early in the day, and write your articles and blogs over the weekend. You might do forum posting on Wednesdays. Most blog formats allow you to schedule publication dates. Insomnia is great for social networking . So are weekend afternoons. I tell my team to NEVER to their online promoting stuff during peak calling hours.

5) Get some submitters!  If you are very active in numerous forums and communities there is no way you can keep up.  I use Forum Fortunes by Russell Bronson to organize my forums, Web 2.0 submitter by Jack Humphrey to manage my profiles and comments, Comment Kahuna and Comment Sniper for blog commenting.   You could do it one by one if you don’t have a life .  All of these submitters are free or have resale rights which you can use to fund your advertising, or at least get your initial investment back.

Online networking comes after face to face (F2F) and phone contacts. Online networking has some short term returns, but it is a long term strategy.  Work social marketing strategically, and you will never run out of leads and prospects again.

Let’s Connect!
Skype: karen.m.hurd
MEEBO: healthnut
YAHOO: Lifestylcreatr
Twitter: www.twitter.com/karenmhurd
Karen
About the Author:
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Karen Miner Hurd has owned a home business since 1988 when she retired from her Public Relations career to stay home with her 5 children. Her secret passion is Foxtrot books. She and her husband Dale live in Virginia Beach, VA.  To learn more about partnering with her current business venture visit: The Freedom Project
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Tags: operating a home business, social marketing, time management