What does Social Media, Rebels and Doritos all have in common?

By Lissa Duty

Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012

Photo Credit: Scott Bratt

So, I am browsing my Facebook Newsfeed, commenting on others updates, giving out some “Like” love and posting status updates when I happened to notice a picture that came up in my Newsfeed from my nephew!

It was a bag of Doritos that had been opened from the side of the bag vs. the top. He included this phrase:

“We’re Rebels”

It immediately inspired this blog post … BTW, he was at school when he posted the photo – don’t worry, I doubled check he was on lunch break!

I have never been considered a “Rebel” by my family or friends! I’m a rule follower for the most part. Just ask my clients that want to have a Facebook Contest that breaks their Terms of Service or my mom who has accused me all my life of “starching my underwear”.

There is one thing I always do rebelliously – I tell it like it is! No ifs, ands or buts! I am a bit more tactful then I was in my early twenties. Thank goodness! You want the truth – ask Lissa. I don’t worry with what people want to hear, but rather what they may need to hear! This is how I live my life and manage my business! People trust me because I am bluntly honest!

Find the rebel in you and capitalize on it … a little bit of rebellion can go a long way in achieving success.

Here are 5 things you can do ONLINE to “Be a Rebel” and get social media results:

– Take up a cause. Not a cause that everyone else is doing, but something that is perhaps a little different, but has meaning for you.

Blog about your cause and ask others to comment and share about their cause on the post. The more interaction you get on your blog post, the more people that will share the post on their social media profiles, which will mean, more people will see, read and comment on your blog. (Just look at RedHead Writing. It worked for her.)

– Give your opinion. Share the good, the bad and the ugly. People want feedback. Do it nicely though!

When you share your opinion with others they usually appreciate it, thank you, ask you for future opinions, plus when others want an opinion, you’ll get recommended.

– Ask for feedback. Take a poll, ask others what they think! People want to share and help you. It’s in their nature.

When they comment / interact with you providing their feedback others will see it, wonder what they are commenting about, click to go read and usually comment also. Now you have made a new connection.

– Share photos that make people think. Don’t post the same photo that everyone else does. Be unusual.

Take photos of stuff around your office / in your home. Weird things you see at places when you are out and about. Example: Post a photo of a USB cable that you took with your iPhone and add the caption “Name 10 things you can do with this cable besides hook up your printer”. You’ll get comments back like hook up the scanner, take photos off your phone, tie myself to the desk, strangle the UPS guy if that package doesn’t arrive, etc.

When you post something different than every one you get comments and shares! Comments / shares equal interaction, which means higher preference in the Newsfeed of your friends / those that “Like” your page, which gets you a further reach on Facebook.

– Stand out in the crowd. Easier said than done? Not really. All you have to do to be different is BE YOURSELF.

No one person is alike. We all think somewhat different and look somewhat different. Stop worrying so much about what everyone else thinks and be who you are! I practice this day in and day out and it has got me to where I am today. The more you are unique the more friends you will attract. They will have conversation with you / about you that their friends will see / hear about and want to know YOU!

“Be A Rebel” and start a cycle which goes viral for you, which will in turn go viral for your business!

I can’t wait to hear your thoughts, but one last thing first:

If you live in / near Dallas, Texas – Check out the DFW Rocks Social Media Day Conference on June 30^th. Some of the who’s who in Social Media is speaking, which includes Andrea Vahl aka Grandma Mary, co-author of Facebook Marketing All-In-One for Dummies, myself of course – Lissa Duty, Robin Moss, Patty Farmer, J.R. Atkins, Fred Campos, and to end the day – a Social Media Q & A Panel featuring Giovanni Gallucci, Neil Lemons and Mike Merrill. Social Media Day Conference is $30. Register NOW!

This all day social media event will be followed immediately after with a Mashable community event – Social Media Day Happy Hour at 4 pm in Addison, Texas. Social Media Day Meetup is FREE! RSVP Now!

It’s your Turn … tell us about the “Rebel” inside you! Comment below.

Categories : Branding

Tags : DFW Rocks Social Media, Doritos, facebook, Facebook Newsfeed, Facebook Page, mashable, Rebels, Social Media, Social Media Conference, Social Media Day

A must read … 10 Powerful Social Media Tips for Authors and everyone else!

By Lissa Duty

Wednesday, March 21st, 2012

Social media marketing is an important part of a successful book launch.

Authors that don’t know how to use social media need to either hire someone to help them define a social media strategy for them to implement or hire someone to implement a successful social media strategy on their behalf.
I have had the privilege of managing social media marketing campaigns for several book launches, training and define marketing strategies for authors to implement themselves. You could say I have some experience in this area. I don’t recommend to anyone that you jump into a social media campaign to launch a book, or any other product or services without a plan, but hopefully this blog post will give you some ideas where to start.

In the past, authors would simply write the book and the publishing company would do all the work in making sure it was well known and a top seller. In today’s world, as an author you need to not only write a top notch book that meets an important need / trend, but you must be savvy in social media. It’s just as much your responsibility to promote your book and make it a success, as the publishing company. Think of you and the publishing company as a team in the book launch. The success depends on both of you doing your part. You have stiff competition from other authors that are promoting their books – the cream of the crop rises to the top! Help your book to be the cream!

10 Social Media Tips for Authors

Optimize your Amazon Author Profile. This includes uploading a professional headshot, adding your bio (don’t forget your SEO keywords), adding your website blog feed, Twitter account, adding videos and don’t forget to customize your Author Profile link for easy sharing on social networks. You can even include events that you are appearing at to promote your book. I recommend completing the event section if you are having a physical / blog radio book tour. (Also, while you are on Amazon, sign up to be an affiliate. You might as well make a little commission when promoting your book.)
Create a Facebook Author Page. You can use this Facebook Page to promote your current book, but also use it to promote future books. You’ll want to make sure and create a great Facebook Cover Photo to market your book. Create a custom tab where you can include your author bio, headshot and also include a Buy Now button, which will drive the user to either purchase your book via your website or Amazon, etc. Import your Tweets into a custom tab and your blog posts in another custom tab. (Also, you can use the Facebook YouTube app and a video tab to your Facebook Page.)
Register a Twitter account. Put this Twitter account in your name, not necessarily the name of your book, because you’ll want to use this account to promote future books and business endeavors, not just this one book. Write 100 character tips that relate to your book to tweet. Tweet book reviews, blog post links and other content that your reader would want to follow.
Blog about your book. That is right – I just said blog about the book on your website. I am not talking about pitching repeatedly on your blog over and over, buy my book, buy my book, etc! What I am talking about is share stories, excerpts, tips that relate to the content in your book. Of course, you always want to include in the blog that it was an excerpt from [book title] with a link to purchase your book from Amazon or your website.
Guest blog on other websites. Ask other websites that have a large reader audience that would be the ideal reader of your book if you can guest blog fro them. Write an important article that ties to your book focus and book title that links to a location to read more, purchase the book, etc. Also, make sure and include in the bio that you are author of [book title] and link to the place to purchase your book. Give the owner of the blog a copy of your book for them or to giveaway to a random winner who comments / shares the post with their network.
Blog talk radio. Seek out opportunities to appear on blog talk radio shows as a guest. Discuss important topics that relate to your book. Of course, you always want to make sure you are adding value for the listener – this isn’t about selling books, it is about validating yourself as an expert to the ears of the listener, so they want to go to your website to read more about you and buy your book.
Video campaign. Make a few short videos – no more than three minutes that the viewer would find of value that relates to your book. A quick tip that is discussed in the book perhaps. These videos don’t have to be perfect, they need to be real. Make sure and include in the description of the video your name, keywords, book title and link to the book information on your website.
Ask for reviews. People want to help people, it is part of their DNA. However, they don’t always think to help. You have to give them the idea. Ask your readers that give you feedback via email, Facebook, Twitter, etc. to give you a review on the different review websites. Make it easy – give them direct links to where you would like the review to be. Ask permission to post the review on your Review page for the website, Facebook Page, tweet about it, etc.
Social Bookmarking. Register accounts on social bookmarking sites, such as StumbleUpon, Digg and Posterous. Make friends with others that use these sites and social bookmark their content, so they will want to social bookmark your blog posts. The purpose is to drive traffic to your website where people can read more about your book / purchase the book.
Have Contests and Giveaways. Encourage your Twitter followers, Facebook Page “Likes” etc. to contact you if they would like a book to giveaway in one of their contests, in a blog they are publishing that is a review of your book, etc. Donate books to events that have your ideal reader in attendance for giveaways in exchange for a mention, sponsorship, etc.

When I started writing this post I thought “10 Tips on Social Media for Authors – Can I come up with 10?” Wow! I surprised myself. These tips came easy to me once I started. I have one more tip I can’t end this post without sharing!

BONUS TIP: In the tips above I discussed ways for you to promote your book with social media. The most important thing for you to remember with your Facebook Page Status Updates, Tweets, Videos and Blog posts is that you are adding value! Selling is ok, but you need to do it in a way that is tactful, strategic and from the perspective of branding yourself as an authority on the topic that is the main focus in your book. The hard sell will only get you unfriended, unfollowed, unliked, bad reviews and no sales! Don’t forget this final tip! It’s very important!

It’s your turn …. What tip did you come up with that I didn’t mention above? I am sure ideas started popping into your head as you were reading along.

Need help with creating / optimizing these accounts, or learning how to manage them! That’s ok … you are not alone. I’m your Online Social Coach and I’m here to help you! Read more about my social media coaching services or perhaps you would prefer social media maintenance services.

Categories : Social Media

Tags : Chris Forbes, Facebook Cover Photos, Facebook Timeline, Guerilla Marketing for Non-Profits, social media coaching, Social Media Tips, Social Media Tips for Authors

The New Facebook Timeline … Four Ways to Improve Your Facebook Page Right NOW

By Lissa Duty

Thursday, March 15th, 2012

Does your Facebook Page need a little zip? Chances are it could be a little peppier.

I know how it is, you are busy busy working away and don’t always have time to make some changes. Well here are some great tips to make some little tweaks that can give you big results.

Use Your Apps Wisely

With the new Timeline you have 12 apps available to showcase but only the first 4 show on the first line. One of those Apps has to be the Photos App. Take a look at what EasyLunchBoxes has done with their Apps! Fantastic!

Powerful stuff to make you stand out from the crowd. Also make sure you have your website address in the About section. The About section is now very prominent on your Timeline and can have a call to action in it (unlike the Cover photo which can’t have a call to action)

These custom images for Apps are easy to add (just click the down arrow to show all your Apps, click on the pencil in the upper right corner of the App, then click Edit Settings – you’ll see the place where you can add the image) Designing these App images doesn’t have to be hard either. Use a tool like Paint, or Photoshop if you are handy with those. Even take a look at how I created my Cover photo using PowerPoint in this tutorial: https://andreavahl.com/facebook/hot-tips-on-facebook-timeline-for-pages.php

Or, if you are working with a graphics designer, use their services to have a cohesive branded look across your website and other social media sites. But don’t let budget stop you from getting a new graphics. There are designers that do a decent job on www.fiverr.com for just $5! Such a deal.

Highlight Posts

Use your new Timeline to tell your Story. Now that Timelines are here, use this valuable real estate to showcase good things that have happened or products that you want to draw attention to. All you need to do is click on the little star in the upper right corner and the post will be bigger.

Talk to Other Pages

If you are having some trouble getting engagement on your Page, go out and talk to other Pages as your Page. Be social, people! All you need to do is Like their Page as your Page, then watch your Page News Feed and comment. See how social Professional Carpet Systems is? Very nice! And it only takes a few minutes a day to connect.

Post More

Are you just posting once a day? Once a week? Well I have some news for you, more is better. Studies have shown that posting 2-5 times a day is ideal. But it may depend on your audience. You need to vary your posts to appeal to different segments of your market. Some people like videos, some like photos, others want links to articles. Now it sounds like a lot of work, but it really doesn’t have to be bad. Remember those other Pages you Liked as your Page? Share some of their posts. Don’t be stingy. Spread the love.

Find articles on Twitter or post some of your best blog posts from time to time. It’s ok that some people have seen those posts. If it’s evergreen content it’s still relevant! Have an editorial calendar so that you know what you are posting when. Post a question or something fun and random. Mix it up. You will be surprised with your results. More engagement, more Likes, and more fun!

If you want to take your Facebook Page to the next level and use it to get leads for your business, you might be interested in my new product How to Use Facebook to Get Leads for Your Business.

Special thanks to Grandma Mary for this guest post contribution! (The 2nd guest blogger I have had on my blog – I’m flattered and honored to have made such great connections and Twitter friends. As I say and teach “Ask for what you want – all they can say is NO!” This thinking has paid off for me over and over again. This is absolutely one of those times. ~ Lissa

Grandma Mary is a slightly cranky Social Media Edutainer, helping small businesses leverage the power of social media. She provides entertaining how-to videos on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn and more. Her alter ego, Andrea Vahl, is the co-author of Facebook Marketing All-in-One for Dummies. You can find Grandma and Andrea at www.AndreaVahl.com.

Categories : Facebook

Tags : Andrea Vahl, facebook, Facebook Page, Grandma Mary, linkedin, Social Media, Social Media Strategist, twitter, Ways to Improve Facebook

Have you taken the Social Media LEAP?

By Lissa Duty

Wednesday, February 29th, 2012

Have you taken the Social Media LEAP? Taking a LEAP is sometimes what using social media is all about.

Are you LEAPING today? Have you taken the big LEAP? What’s LEAPING for you? What is the big LEAPING deal? I can sit around all day thinking of LEAPING puns (ahhh! There was another one!), but what would be the good in that? Waste of time perhaps …. Wrong… you need to be different … stand out from everyone else ONLINE!

Taking a LEAP, otherwise referred to as being creative, entrepreneurial, inventive, etc… with WHAT you say and HOW you say it, is exactly what you need to be remembered by your prospective clients and current clients ONLINE and OFF!

Using Social Media when you first start out is about taking a LEAP of faith. There is so much out there about ROI – Return on Investment. Let’s call it Return on Influence for the sake of this blog post!

I tell all prospective clients your ROI is going to be new friends, followers, connections initially when using social media. There are not any promises or golden ticket to success as some social media professionals promise. Social media is about branding yourself ONLINE. (I am not going to go into this topic more at this time – been there, done that! Read it here. )

Before I go forward on LEAPING Social Media, I must mention the importance it is to have your ONLINE and OFFLINE presence in sync from your logo, your business card to your website design and layout. The image you present to your customers needs to say Who You Are and Give them a Message that will help them to remember you! See my friend Robin’s blog post – 7 Marketing Tips for Leaping into your Customers Hearts and Minds for more on this important part of branding yourself and your business.

The questions I get most often from someone using or considering use social media are:

Where should I be? i.e. Should I be on all the social networking websites
What do I post?
Why would someone want to Follow, Subscribe, Friend, Like or Connect with me?
How can I do it easiest?
When should I post?

I am going to give you the quick self promoting answer first! Yep! I am getting straight to it – Hire me – I do social media coaching and I will answer all these questions and more in a private training hands-on!

Now for the long answer, that I will try and make not to confusing!

1. Where should I be? — What social networking sites do your customers use most often? That is where I would start out. I can’t answer this for you as I don’t know your product/service.

2. What do I post? Content that would interest your ideal client (usually that means it interests you also). Use Alltop.com as a resource to find content that would interest your audience.

3. Why would someone want to Follow, Subscribe, Friend, Like or Connect with me? Because people are hesitant to say right off they are interested in your services/products. They are concerned you’ll try and sell to them. They want to get to know you, your products and services before they put themselves out there with the “I am in interested in knowing more commitment.”

4. How can I do it easiest? First, I must say here “You only get out of social media what you put in to it, the less you put, the less you get”. With that being said, using a social media tool such as Hootsuite or Tweetdeck to update your Facebook Profile, Facebook Page, LinkedIn and Twitter is the easiest method. (This blog post links you to social media tool reviews for doing this easier.)

I actually recommend in my social media coaching sessions, that you do a little of both. You definitely want to use a social media tool to monitor Twitter all the time, but because Facebook groups updates from other 3^rd party tools together during high volume times, I recommend you post directly on Facebook when you can from your computer or Smartphone with the Facebook App. LinkedIn doesn’t do this grouping yet, but I just think it looks better for people to see you care enough about LinkedIn to actually log in and post a physical update now and again. Using Hootsuite to post in your LinkedIn groups is just awesome and easy! Ask my dear friend, Ana, if you don’t believe me. She loves it.

5. When should I post? That is always a difficult question to answer quickly. It depends on who your audience is and when are online. With Facebook I post at random times and see which posts gets more comments/likes and interactions. With Twitter the best time is usually between 10 am EST and 12 pm EST from my experience. There are 3^rd party tools you can purchase to optimize this for you. I recommend checking out the free ones first – Tweriod is a Twitter tool and Buffer is another tool you can use to do this analyzing for Twitter, Facebook and more.

Now that I have given you the Where, What, Why, How and When to get you moving forward successfully I am going to close with some advice I gave in a blog post – Is your Social Media in the RED or the BLACK? I published almost two years ago!

Learn the best way!
Increase your followers/friends/connections!
Stop with the obligatory updates!
Share tips, content and resources!
Ask for help!

It has stuck with me, but perhaps that is because it spells my name L – I – S – S – A! LOL!

It’s your turn … Let me know what you are going to do on this LEAPING day, tomorrow and every other day to keep you LEAPING forward for social media success!

Categories : Social Media

Tags : facebook, Hootsuite, linkedin, Marketing Tips, Social Media, social media coaching, Social Media LEAP, Social Media Questions, Social Media Success, social networking, Social Networking Sites, Tweetdeck, twitter

Do You Love Yourself Enough?

By Lissa Duty

Tuesday, February 14th, 2012

How do you love yourself? Do you give yourself permission to seek training, education and resources to expand your knowledge base and online presence?

As a social media coach that has trained privately and in groups’ adults since 2009 on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter, I’ve been told over and over how the style of my social media coaching, the patience and focus I extend to the participant during the training pays off in dividends. Unfortunately, many have spent countless hours in time, and often financial investment before they ask for help! Are you one of these individuals / small business owners?

So many adults in today’s world know they need to be online, but don’t give themselves a chance to learn before diving in full force. You wouldn’t jump in a lake without swimming lessons would you? What about skiing? Lessons for that too … right!

Often times, you dive in unprepared and become overwhelmed, discouraged and intimidated. You spend day after day using social networking sites, getting limited or no results and all they are getting is nowhere fast!

This is where loving yourself comes into play! You need to give yourself permission to not be perfect in everything. You worry about what other professionals think if you don’t have all the answers, so they don’t seek out the training, education, information and ask questions to help you succeed online.

You can’t be all things at all times – at least not without some training to get you started. Perhaps the investment isn’t monetary. It’s an investment of your time.

Reading blog posts is a great way to learn more about the power of social media. I recommend Social Media Examiner, Social Media Today, Windmill Networking and of course my own blog, LissaDuty.com, to get you started. There are countless other ones out there that I love and read.
Google – use Google and search out your questions! Seriously, I use Google all the time and ask it questions like “HTML Code to change Link Color”. Google will come back with tons of references that I can review on how to complete this action.
Follow Other Social Media Influencers and see what they are doing online. I have to add here, realistically, you are not going to be one of these influencers anytime soon, just follow them and learn. You will get ideas to incorporate into your social media strategy.
Seek out a Social Media Coach. This is where I come into play. I teach individuals and small business owners step by step hands-on how to use and understand these social networking sites. The 1^st part of each one of my trainings focuses on understanding what each aspect, link, word, etc. means to the individual / small business owner. To effectively use a social networking site, you need to understand what everything means and does – no assumptions! The 2^nd piece of that is teaching them how to use the site for their purpose.

So do you LOVE YOURSELF enough to INVEST in yourself?

If you need some social media coaching and have decided to invest in yourself I can help you.

Your turn …. What steps are you taking / have taken in your business and online to expand your knowledge. What kind of training have you taken?

PS. Those that follow my blog know that stuff that happens in my day to day life is my inspiration … a friend (a guy – not a date, but kinda, maybe a date – if that’s possible) cancelled on me for tonight – Valentine’s Day of all days! He had a last minute business trip – duty calls – I guess! I must thank him since he inspired this blog post – he’ll remain anonymous at this point. I knew I wanted to write a Valentine’s Day post, but wasn’t quite sure how to spin it. When he cancelled – I loved myself enough to tell him “Ok. Be safe” and move on. I didn’t spout off any tacky comments to guilt him. (Notice, I didn’t say I didn’t think any tacky comments! I came up with a few! LOL!) Hence, the title of this post, “Do You Love Yourself Enough”!

Categories : Business

Tags : do you love yourself enough, facebook, linkedin, love yourself, Social Media, social media coach, social media coaching, social media training, twitter

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