How much Social Media do you need??

[Ron Lindeboom]

[Milton Hockman] “What social media outlets do you use for you business? And do they help bring clients? And, are they expected nowadays?”

There is a bigger issue than just social networking, in general, and I see it with many media professionals…

I know businesspeople that ignore the net, and I believe they do so to their own eventual demise. I know that sounds apocalyptic and too doom-and-gloomy for some, but here is why I think that…

We are ultimately in the communication business. And, if as communicators, we do not learn to use the tool that is (beyond even that of the printing press) the most massive and expressive communication explosion in human history, then how will our clients eventually see us? Especially when they look us up and we are not to be found, as we are not in attendence.

Personally, that sends a message to clients that I would not want to be sending. Especially the good-paying clients who want to trust the fat contracts to the people that they trust they can follow, as it’s clear that they know how to lead these clients to success.

That is my opinion. Others may think differently.

Best regards,

Ron Lindeboom

Creativity is a type of learning process where the teacher and pupil are located in the same individual.

Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
– Antoine de Saint Exupéry

[Tim Wilson]

[Ron Lindeboom] “then how will our clients eventually see us? Especially when they look us up and we are not to be found”

Clients are not to be trusted. How can they be, when they don’t do exactly what you tell them to do? You can only raise them right, and hope they grow up to make their own decisions wisely.

So start by building the kind of marketing that you want your clients to deploy. To use one obvious example that ties directly to social media, are you really going to advise your clients not to have a website? Are you going to advise them to make sure it stays out of date?

No? Then make sure you have a website good enough to serve as an example to them, at least in form and timeliness. Here’s how to use text, here’s how to use pictures, here’s how to use video. Here’s how to update it. The specifics will vary widely, but best practices are best practices for a reason.

re: social media in particular, learn enough about it to have something wise to offer. Not just your own experiences. Learn why and how specific forms of social media can play a role in marketing, maybe even sales.

We have observed in many other threads in this forum that there was a time not that long ago when the web was solely the domain of UFOs, Elvis, kitties and vacation photos — often some combination of all of them.

Ron was actively and aggressively derided for stepping onto that ridiculously shaky platform that NOBODY would EVER use for professional communication. Seriously. It rained down like brimstone. That has obviously changed as the web has become “use it or LOSE” for most businesses…

….and many people have never forgiven Ron for being right.

This pattern will absolutely repeat for the tools that extend networks in new directions…because networking ain’t going away. Virtually nobody needs to use EVERY outreach platform, yet virtually nobody can afford to dismiss social media out of hand.

Which is a typically long-winded way of asking in return, how much outreach to other people can you afford NOT to make? People are using social media because they WANT to make connections. That includes your current and future clients. Will you be there to meet them?

The idea is not to find reasons for rejecting new outreach platforms, but to find ways to exploit them to your benefit.

[Kai Cheong]

Social Media has worked quite a bit for us. We have a fairly small market with many players – a mix of experienced production houses that have been in he business for more than 10 years and run by people well-connected to he industry and also many tiny startups and one man bands doing work of all quality.

Where we stand size-wise is on the tiny side but quality-wise, I’m fairly confident we’ve been punching above our weight.

I’m kind of in-charge of all our web activities but unfortunately, my web building skills are stuck in the 90s, when HTML just came out. So our website
is still… Under construction.

BUT it seems like having a blogspot blog is giving us even more exposure than a traditional website would have. We’re getting pretty good hits (I’ve been tracking with a counter) and has received calls from potential clients who googled. We also have production stills up on Flickr and a regularly updated YouTube channel. I’ve also begun uploading our recent works on Facebook, tagging my cast and crew.

If anyone searches for ‘Singapore production house’ on yahoo or google, we’re within the 1st two pages. Same term on Youtube finds us filling up the first page.

I’ve never really read up intensively on SEO but just relied on many years as a net geek to pull these things together… Seems to be working!

Kai
FCP Editor / Producer with Intuitive Films
https://kai-fcp-editor.blogspot.com
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At Intuitive Films, We Create: TV Commercials, Documentaries, Corporate Videos and Feature Films
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[Tim Wilson]

[Kai Cheong] “BUT it seems like having a blogspot blog is giving us even more exposure than a traditional website would have.”

As you may have noted when I talked about Molecule in New York, I find blogs to be generally more effective. Easier to update, that’s for sure. Especially when combined with things like Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, etc…even good old email updates…to drive current customers to regularly check out your new stuff. We all know that repeat business is the best business, but too rarely directly market to our customers. Social media is PERFECT for that.

FWIW, searching on your name, the Cow is #3, behind Kai Cheong Trading Company, and the Forbes Magazine profile of Kwan Kai Cheong, executive director of a high-powered telecom company in Hong Kong. You’re in fine company!

Searching on Intuitive Films, your Cow services page is behind only your own site (of course), a stock footage company with the same name and YouTube – and that’s with only one clip at the Cow! Add the rest of your portfolio to make a Cow channel, and I think we can put you ahead of YouTube. 🙂

In any case, you guys are doing great work. I’d love to see it at reels.creativecow.net. (We also host shorts, spots, trailers, etc.)

Best,
Tim

[Grinner Hester]

I pitch ad campaigns much of the time. I leverage social networking sites to do this. It’s very easy to explain that their paying for tv advertising is paying for folks to pee, hit the fridge and tivo through their dollars. A presence on myspace, facebook and twitter that uses content from a custom youtube channel offers hella more bang for the buck. This is why my social networking sites are listed on my website. Most of my new clients for this don’t know anything about em other than than their daighter spends a lot of time on em. I can then get paid to update these and it becomes the gift that keeps on giving.