Recently, I have noticed that the more the economy has changed the more people are selecting the Internet as a way to supplement their income. In this article, I wanted to discuss a few steps that are key for beginners to the internet business. One of the biggest issues, is how to use social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and My Space and many other networking sites to market their businesses online.

One of the biggest complaints is that these sites aren’t bringing them enough real traffic to their business for them to make sales. In essence, these sites were a waste of time to market on because they didn’t produce any immediate marketing results. I know this to be true because I was once in their shoes with the same results.

As someone who uses Facebook, Twitter, or LinkedIn, as well as several other networking sites to market my business, I believe that these marketers missed the point. Blatant marketing on these sites won’t work. Your approach has to be far more subtle.

Your goal should be something different; building an internet presence, building backlinks from major traffic sites and blogs, and building your brand so that your potential customers find you.

1. Building an Internet Presence

This is especially important if you are new to marketing your products and services on the internet. You have to build a presence, and a big one, if you want to be found by your market. Building an internet site and just letting it sit doesn’t work! You have to put your egos aside and get out there and promote yourself if you want to sell your products and services. The Successful marketers know this to be true because social networking sites are a source for high traffic; and you have a better chance of being found if you take the time to build a presence.

2. Building Backlinks

I mentioned briefly in my previous articles on how backlinking to other blogs is important. Well a similar principle applies with backlinking from a social media site. The search engines are constantly spidering these sites. Getting your site spidered is what you want? Then building a profile on these sites will help the search engines find you and then ultimately, your customers can find you.

Remember not to sell your products directly to the customers on these sites. Believe me I’ve tried and I received lousy results. Therefore, create a profile that tells everyone about you and your products or services. Include links to your website, or if you have more than one site to all of your sites. Make your profile keyword rich with keywords from your topic.

3. Branding Yourself as a Leader

When you use the social media sites branding is key to your success. Whether you are a writer, or you are simply selling your own products and services, you will need to resort to shameless promotion if you want to make the sale. Like I mentioned before in my earlier videos; when you brand yourself, you have to decided what is going to be your area of focus and then become an expert in that area. Writing articles and making videos and then posting them on your own personal blog or on the social networking sites can help others become aware of your products and services.

It has been well documented that if you follow the steps mentioned above, this will help you in building value; In other words, by contributing to these sites, you are not only building value for them, you are building value for yourself. This will go a long way in establishing your credibility and expertise. If you get others to trust you and believe in your products, you just have made the sell! Congratulations!

LinkedIn or Left Out?

Power Workshop on
Using Online Networking to Get a Job

How to Maximize Your Use of LinkedIn, and Twitter and Facebook to Stand Out in the Crowd

Heard the buzz about online social networks like LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook?

Did you know many people are using these networks to get jobs? Yes, even Facebook!

Online Social Networking was ranked by recent hires as the #1 job-getting strategy, beating in-person networking by a wide margin!

Attend this Power Workshop and learn how you can use Web-based social networks to build professional relationships – even if you don’t know the first thing about them – and learn how to use these relationships to find your next job.

This fast-paced three-hour comprehensive workshop will teach you:

• How to improve your job search using LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook
• How to use the Three Power P’s™ of Social Networks: Profiles People, and Probing
• How to connect with prospective employers
• How to get others to talk about, and recommend you
• How to manage your online reputation
• Do’s and Don’ts of using social networks
• Power tools that expert networkers use to find and manage connections
• How low-cost Web advertising can raise your profile and get you job leads

BONUS! Each participant will receive the free Google CheatSheet, a Networking CheatSheet, a List of Twin Cities Networking Groups, and a copy of Linked InSolutions’ LinkedIn CheatSheet, a $30 value! This is a hands-on workshop and we encourage you to bring your laptop computer (if you have one) and use what you learn right away. If you don’t have a laptop, we are providing 10 workstations on a first-come, first-served basis. Or, attend online from the comfort of your home or business!

We have two upcoming sessions at 2 pm and 5:30 pm on Thursday, May 28^th. Sessions are held online, and in person at:

The Commerce Building, 2^nd Floor Conference Room
8200 Humboldt Avenue So.
Bloomington, MN 55431

Who Should Attend

·          If you’re out of work, facing a layoff, or just looking, you can benefit from this power workshop

·          If you’re a social networking newbie, or if you’re an experienced user, this workshop can help you build your skills

·          If you’ve been wondering what all the fuss is about social networking, come and find out

·          And even if you’ve taken the introductory sessions available elsewhere, you need the Power Workshop to get the real skinny on the tips, tools, and techniques that can make you successful

Why Attend the Power Workshop?

·          Cover all three major job-seeking social networks in one power session

·          Get the in-depth insight, the strategy, and the intimate knowledge of online job seeking techniques

Your Instructor

Mike Ellsworth is an entrepreneur, trainer, and speaker with 15 years experience on the Web, whose day job is running a huge, national career information Web site. 

Mike has been a LinkedIn user since 2003, a Facebook user since before old folks could join, and an active Twitter user for the last year. You’ll gain the benefit of Mike’s 24 years in IT, 5 years as a trainer for the Nielsen Company, 6 years as an IT strategy consultant, and 3 years running a massive Web site that helps job seekers.

Logistics

·          Each Power Workshop session is limited to 25 attendees to enable personal attention

·          Attend the simultaneous Virtual Power Session over the Web – unlimited number can attend

Classroom rate: $125
Webinar rate: $65

Sign up at www.LinkedInSolutions.com  

For more information – contact register@LinkedInSolutions.com

Employers and groups:

Customized private versions of this workshop are available at your site. Contact custom@LinkedInSolutions.com.

Many people are now aware that the power of web 2.0 exists but are unsure of the following issues one two make commercial gain and two if some aspects of Web 2.0 provide opportunities for criminals to gain access to our personal data.

Many sites have sprung up under the banner of Web 2.0 two that I belong to are Facebook and Linkedin these two sites are termed as social book marking sites and have many features for you to help promote your self and your business. These sites are also having to guard against internet marketers who use the site to spam out various bad techniques to entice sales of a particular affiliate product.

The Web 2.0 sites are now very much against this use and have drastically taken action to limit the use of there traffic potential so as not to allow internet marketers to gain advantage. Most internet businesses that want to survive have got to learn the power of web 2.0 but use it in a sensible manner and adhere to the policies of the social book marking sites this way they will benefit from a much better customer response and feel the power to begin to tap the rich traffic market they provide.

I find on Linkedin this has been a great source of advice from fellow professionals in the groups I have joined and only a few times have I come across blatant spamming for an affiliate product. The way forward for business is to be honest in all aspects, set your stall out carefully.

You want to use the power of Web 2.0 then let people know who you are, where you are, what you are good at and back it up with real testimonials then you will gain credible customers and respect. Business will be very tough in the next few years and these sources of traffic may make the difference between success and failure.

The reputation I have online is very good with the people I have worked with giving me recommendations on the services I provide. By using web 2.0 I have been able to promote myself and my services across a number of social networks. The key to the success is down to honesty and giving a service that your customer wants and then going the extra mile.

Being on the internet and saying this is what I do I can help you with the following making sure your customer understands what you stand for the terms and conditions that apply. Make sure that if you are selling a product or service and promoting via Web 2.0 that you provide a bonus something that is not expected in the original contract.

Many people who search the market bank for a product or service will look harder for the best deal, what am I getting for my money does it cover my requirement, what if it goes wrong, how many people have bought from him before.

Some businesses just slap up a product or service hoping that the passing traffic will take notice. No they won’t today’s traffic want to hear a good review, see the proof of a product or service. Try to contact the original supplier of a service if possible as this can save you money.

I have been doing both Internet websites and racketeering as well as the day job for over four years now and although I don’t make my entire living online I can give up the day job. It is important though that it has taken an incredible amount of learning to get to this level and it is not something I would recommend for most people.

There are short cuts but they don’t last long so If your business is online and you want to be successful then getting the power of Web 2.0 behind you is an essential resource but more importantly if you use social networking sites to promote business or service remember you are only on there as a guest so obey the rules and a secure amount traffic and profit will head your way.

Business needs to be honest with the way they use social networks and handle customers by not doing so they will get banned by such Web 2.0 sites and lose out in the business race. Web 2.0 can be very powerful tool but also can be very bad weapon if your customers spread the word that you can not deliver the goods or services you promise to provide.

Like many people, I was not quick to join LinkedIn. As a matter of fact one of my friends invited me and it took me 2 months to accept his invitation and join. I was thinking: “Not another time wasting social network”. When I finally joined the network I added people from my outlook and found that several of them where already on the network, a total of 30. I thought, “Cool, I know some people here” so I added them to my network on LinkedIn. After that I joined 4 different groups that where of interest to me including one on venture capital, one on marketing, another for book authors and the last one on keynote speaking.

Now I was on LinkedIn and had my 30 connections, my 4 groups and I thought I was done. Then I asked myself: “What next?” I already know the 30 people I added to the network I don’t need them to contact them. So what’s the value of this? What’s the difference between this and Facebook, or MySpace, or Hi5? What’s the buzz on LinkedIn?  Can you use Linkedin for marketing?

For months I did nothing, thinking this was a place to socialize with people you already know. One day I was looking on Google the keywords “Venture Capital” as I was advising one of my customers get some funding. I then visited LinkedIn and logged in. Then I did a search on Venture Capital once more. It was great, more than 50,000 came back. Quickly I noticed that these where not just company names, I was getting the name and many times email and phone number of actual people, with photo, title, interests, hobbies, all what you would wish for.

The bad news about my search is that none of the venture capitalists where in my network. Nevertheless I started to understand the value of this network. Imagine if of these 50,000 I could have a few hundred connected to me directly. I could call them and ask for advice. I could email them and see if they are interested in my project or ask them to point me in the right direction. Now the task was connecting to them.

I found a handful of third level connections in my search. This means that I know someone that knows someone that knew lot’s of people in Venture Capital. This one contact was my friend Tony. My friend is an software programmer and one of his business associates is a Venture Capitalist executive. That one person connected me with 300 people at a third level. If I really wanted to speak with one of those 300 people I could ask Gustavo for an introduction through his customer; but that was not my idea, I did not want just one connection, I wanted hundreds, or thousands.

I researched LinkedIn more to learn how it worked. On the search I looked under the zip to see the contacts close to me. I also searched for keywords like “beverage” and “consumer goods” as the company I was working with was a beverage company. For every search I got great contacts. I thought this could turn out to be my very own private rolodex.

Jorge Olson is an author, speaker and entrepreneur.  You can find his latest book on self promotion and marketing “The Unselfish Guide to Self Promotion” on Amazon.com  You can read more about how to use social media and social networking from his books and blogs.

Like many people, I was not quick to join LinkedIn. As a matter of fact one of my friends invited me and it took me 2 months to accept his invitation and join. What I thought was “not another time wasting black whole of a social network”.When I finally joined the network I added people from my outlook and found that several of them where already on the network, a total of 30. I thought, “Cool, I know some people here” so I added them to my network on LinkedIn. After that I joined 4 different groups that where of interest to me including one on venture capital, one on marketing, another for book authors and the last one on keynote speaking.

Now I was on LinkedIn and had thirty connections, my four groups and thought that was all I needed. Then I asked myself: “What next?” I already know the 30 people I added to the network I don’t need them to contact them. I wondered what the value was? What’s the difference between this and Facebook, or MySpace, or Hi5? What’s the buzz on LinkedIn?  Can you use Linkedin for marketing?

For months I did nothing, thinking this was a place to socialize with people you already know. One day I was looking on Google the keywords “Venture Capital” as I was advising one of my customers get some funding. I then visited LinkedIn and logged in. Then I did a search on Venture Capital once more. Wow, more than fifty thousand came up. Quickly I noticed that these where not just company names, I was getting the name and many times email and phone number of actual people, with photo, title, interests, hobbies, all what you would wish for.

The bad news about my search is that none of the venture capitalists where in my network. Now it was clear that this web 2.0 site called LinkedIn had value for self promotion. Imagine if of these 50,000 I could have a few hundred connected to me directly. One of the things we can do is call people and ask them for their advice. I could email them and see if they are interested in my project or ask them to point me in the right direction. Now the task was connecting to them and network.

I did have a few connections at the third level. This means that I know someone that knows someone that knew lot’s of people in Venture Capital. This great connector happened to me my cousin Frank. My friend is an engineer and one of his is a Venture Capitalist Exetive. That one person connected me with 300 people at a third level. If I really wanted to speak with one of those 300 people I could ask Gustavo for an introduction through his customer; but that was not my idea, I did not want just one connection, I wanted hundreds, or thousands.

I researched LinkedIn more to learn how it worked. On the search I looked under the zip to see the contacts close to me. I also searched for keywords like “beverage” and “consumer goods” as the company I was working with was a beverage company. For every search I got great contacts. I thought this could turn out to be my very own private rolodex.

Jorge Olson is an author, speaker and entrepreneur.  You can find his latest book on self promotion and marketing “The Unselfish Guide to Self Promotion” can be found at Amazon.com and www.UnselfishPromotion.com