It has long been thought that content is more important. In the old world of advertising, we relied on print, t.v., and radio ads. There was no need to be concerned about whether the public was able to communicate and interact with the company in question. In today’s market creating relationships in social media is the key to establishing a flourishing business.

At the heart of every campaign, relationships have always been important, but not always attainable. Social media makes them accessible. Instead of wining and dining a perspective client or customer, we must now create thought provoking and interesting content. Interacting with your customers or clients is still as important as ever because now you have thousands upon thousands of perspective consumers looking at your company; not just the local market.

Content in and of itself means nothing, however what you do with that content means everything. Cultivating the relationships that stem from the content is the key to success in the digital age.

Google now has a feature whereby; when someone searches for a product or website and someone you follow is connected with that company through social media, it will show up high in the search results. The same happens for your company when someone searches for your product, etc.

This is only available if someone is logged into the Google network though. The same search inquiry while not logged into Google could result in the link being further down the page. This encourages businesses to build their social network ‘net’ to as large as they can. This ensures that your links will be recommended more often by your social media followers.

In short, if you are not an active participant in social media, you won’t see as much activity in search results.

Rumors abound that each Facebook user will be given their own email address as “Project Titan” rolls out.  However, sources have said that there may not be a rush to accept the facebook.com email address.  There is more likely to be a gradual increase in use than a massive exodus from other email giants, such as Gmail and Yahoo.

Currently Facebook users are able to converse with each other by posting messages on each other’s Wall, chatting, or sending messages through the Facebook only messaging service. “Project Titan” will update this internal messaging service to evolve into a complete, robust email service.

With the current number of Facebook users topping 500 million, roll out of an email client makes perfect sense.   Facebook users are already happy with the way they can communicate through Facebook; this just gives them a more well-rounded option.  There will be even more ways to interact through games, virtual gifts and even Skype now that Facebook has struck a deal with the instant messaging developer.  It is anticipated that with the integration of email, Facebook will now be able to give you a more personalized experience and even push their mobile features to the forefront of use.

With the roll out of this new service, Facebook rivals, Yahoo and Google are starting to block access to their database and are starting to block automatic retrievals of contact data into the Facebook interface. Facebook has been accused of data-mining Google without allowing for reciprocal import of information to Google.   Another issue at hand is finding and keeping engineering talent in Silicon Valley.  To keep their engineering staff at home, it has been reported that Google is planning to boost salaries by 10%.

On the tails of Facebook’s announcement, AOL announced the launch of “Project Phoenix.” “Project Phoenix”, set to launch next year, will be a web-based mail client that will make it easier to send a quick email with the use of a toolbar or “quick bar” at the top of the page.  Initially, there will be a beta-test version released that AOL users can sign up for.  “Project Phoenix” is offering a vast smorgasbord of options, from integrating Map Quest to the ability to interact with addresses in email messages, to pulling in Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn messages, plus the ability to link all the user’s on any given email accounts together.

Another “quick” feature associated with “Project Phoenix” is the ability to reply straight from the inbox without having to actually open the mail item, like MS Outlook. Lastly, thumbnails of pictures attached to the message will show up beside it so you can immediately see what an attachment contains.

Let the email wars begin!

Fame. Fortune. Recognition. Legacy. Success. Love…

How do you get it?  Many would argue it begins with living the lifestyle that you want.  A lifestyle where you are free to choose how you spend your time.  A lifestyle where you you can focus on the things that make you happy.

A great way to get started is to build up your brand online so you can sell your products on autopilot.  And how do you build your brand online?  Through social media – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and Blogs.  However, if you are going to use it there are some simple ways to stay focused…

Here are 3 simple steps about how to save time using social media:

1. Create a Plan of what you want to achieve – This will allow you to have focus and avoid items that are not on your plan.
2. Prioritize your plan – Don’t be tempted on only doing the things that are fun versus the tasks that are needed.
3. Log out of your accounts once you have posted your update – Most of these networks are set to auto update with applications that will pop up and easily distract you from your work.

Use your time wisely or else it will use you.

Here are the Pros:

1. It is very easy to set up and will only take you a few minutes.  Then you can immediately invite people to join.
2. You have no limit to the amount of followers.
3. Pages have many more applications than your normal profile page or a group and is much more engaging to a user.
4. You can collect names and addresses via opt-in forms that can be placed on your page. This will mean that YOU will be in charge of your database rather than facebook.
5. A page can host applications which will give your page a very professional feel.

Here are the Cons:

1. You can’t email all of the people that ‘like’ your page directly. Your message will appear on their wall rather than their inbox.
2. You can’t control complete access to a page and therefore can’t choose who is allowed to “like” your page.
3. Spam can easily end up on your page so you will need to monitor it carefully and unfortunately, manually.
4. You are unable to change your Facebook Page name once you set it up so make sure that you choose your page name carefully.
5. No Notifications are sent to you whenever someone posts on your page. You will need to be watching for comments as this can often be missed. (or you can get a Virtual Assistant to monitor this for you daily)

So, what is the “bottom line”? Is creating a Facebook Page worth it?

Here is why we say YES!  Pages are great for businesses, products or services, or individuals wanting to brand themselves as an expert.  Pages are a great tool to interact with your fans or customers without having them connected to any of your personal accounts.  Pages are a great move if you are getting close to exceeding your 5,000 friend cap on your personal profile.

If you are ready to create yours make sure and check out our FREE Facebook Page tool (yes, it is free!) HERE.

Here are the Universal Laws of using Twitter to attract more clients than you ever imaged by giving value and being authentic.

Law #1: Be Natural
Be yourself.  Keep it real.  Social Media works because you get to know the human being behind the brand or message.  Scripted, perfect messages just don’t cut it if you want to build long term relationships with potential clients. Remember, people want to do business with people they know, like and trust.

Law # 2: Don’t Spam!
People get turned off really quickly if they see you just pushing your message without offering any value.  Make sure you are out there adding real value to people’s lives or you will be out of business before you can click “tweet this”.

Law # 3: Add Value
It is not about YOU, it’s about THEM. They are investing their time in your information, so give them value. Make it unique and honest with great tips, tools and ideas they can implement whether they do business with you or not.  Social Media is all about word of mouth and you never know when someone who used your free stuff will refer you to a paying client.

Law # 4: Re-Tweet often
People love it when they are acknowledged and the best way to do this is by re-tweeting a message you like. It also brands you as an authority if you are constantly re-tweeting interesting stuff from other experts in your industry. Remember to NEVER copy and paste someone else’s tweet and try to make it your own without giving them credit.

Law # 5: Use Shortened URL’s
Using the full link takes too much space and detracts from your message.  Shorten the link you want to share by using some of the amazing URL shortening services such as Bit.Ly, Hootsuite or TinyURL. You can also use these tools to get great stats about which of your tweets are most popular.

Follow these laws and more people will follow you!

Even if you wanted to have someone else manage your social media accounts for you where would you start?

Here are the 3 main reasons why you should outsource your social media marketing:

1. There is so much information to learn and it is constantly changing.
   Although you can manage your accounts yourself and learn how to for free, pro-actively managing everything and continuing to learn new online developments is like working a full time job.  If you are spending all of your time managing your accounts instead of arming someone with the tools to manage them for you, then how are you growing your business?
2. It can take a long time just to build a following and keep them engaged.
   To build a following and keep them active you need to stay active by commenting and asking and answering questions.  There are plenty of virtual assistants who can do this for you.  After all, doesn’t a traditional secretary, receptionist or PA manage your brand for you already by talking to clients on behalf of you?  How is this different?
3. It is extremely easy to lose your focus using social media.
   After all, social media is there to inspire you to be social in the first place.  Many people go in with good intentions and come out with a farm animal Facebook application or have spent time building Twitter lists of people which they will never use again.  Your time is valuable and outsourcing this to an expert means the expert will stick to the brief, and therefore the results you need.

Think about these three reasons…consider them. Shouldn’t you outsource your social media marketing?