Sign in

Courtesy navigation

Blog posts tagged reputation

Do I need social media monitoring?

May 13, 2010 by Nigel Legg

So you want to get involved in social media – you’ve read about it, about how it’s going to help your business, and you’ve got some time at the end of the day to do something with Twitter and Facebook. But now the guy says you ought to be monitoring – and that could well cost you money.  Do you need to do it? I say monitoring of some sort should come before you make your first post, and this is why.

A while back, there was an idea going round that social media was like a cocktail party, and you had to find the right people and talk to them.  But when you got in front of the girl, it was like speed-dating with the next guy trying to muscle in on her – you had to act fast.  Though I haven’t heard the analogy in a while, it is as true now as it was two years ago – if not more so, as the number of people on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn has grown, and the forums and networks have multiplied.

In today’s crowded online space, it’s more important than ever that your message goes to the right place. But when you are starting off, how do you know where the right place is? You may join Twitter and Facebook, but how do you know who is interested in what you have to say? Who is blogging about your particular area of business?

And that’s where monitoring comes in. When I go to a function, or a networking event, I stand in the doorway for thirty seconds, looking around, checking who’s there and who I want to talk to.  In the same way, with social media, you should listen first – for mentions of your business area, for people talking about your subject.

Online there isn’t a doorway that you can hide in and watch; you need a tool.  Plenty of others have listed the wide range of social media monitoring tools, from Social Mention, Giga Alerts, or Google Alerts, which are free, through Simple Web’s MediaGenius, Alterian SM2, and all the way up to Radian6, with many more on the side. These tools – to carry on a tired analogy – will help you to identify which part of the cocktail party to head to, and who to talk to when you get there. But without them, you’re going to be standing around, a lost and confused Billy-no-mates, on your own.

  • Nigel Legg is an independent social media monitoring and marketing consultant based in Bristol, UK.
Posted in Internet marketing | Tagged Twitter, social media monitoring, reputation, monitoring, mentions, LinkedIn, facebook, Alterian | 2 comments
Add this

What makes up a brand?

February 10, 2010 by John Hayward

So if it's not just your name and logo what is it? A brand will be made up of a collection of different perceptions that will have been built up after exposure to every aspect of your business. This can be a myriad of different things:

  • Product design and experience
  • Packaging
  • Sales experience - your sales people or distributors
  • Service experience - during the sale and after
  • Advertising messages and straplines
  • The way you look and sound - imagery, colour, fonts, personality and tone
  • Your website, blogs or mentions on social networking sites
  • The price, and how you discount
  • Your reputation
  • The shop, office or factory experience
  • Uniform, badges, vans and trucks 
  • Your people
  • The logo
  • Your name

Any one person could be exposed to all or just one of these variables, that when mixed together form the brand in their mind. There are many ways you will be able to influence what the brand means to people, so you can steer its direction.

Left untouched and uncared for, without clear direction, your brand will take a course that will lead to fewer and fewer customers. So have a think about the list above – and see what sort of brand you’re presenting across the board.  Is it all working to a common direction and goal?  Is it the direction you want it to take?  If not, you may just need to get clarity and some help setting the direction.  It doesn’t take long and will be well worth the effort.

John Hayward of Brand Glue

Posted in Advertising | Tagged reputation, image, experience, design, branding, appearance | 1 comment
Add this

So you think you don't need PR?

April 15, 2009 by Georgina Harris

Like it or not, no matter what your business, you have an image. And you're selling that image of yourself, your products and your services. PR, in all its forms, takes control of your image and boosts your firm’s reputation by getting you good media coverage and publicity.

Good media coverage for a firm is worth its weight in gold - and only a Public Relations campaign can create that. Done well, good PR develops and creates the fine reputation your business and products deserve with your public and customers, and at its best, drives your sales.

PR works because the public give it more credibility than advertising. Getting the media to say a good thing about your product or service is smart marketing.

Naturally, getting good PR is notoriously difficult - but our Donut experts, including PR Agency owner Edwina Hughes, SME adviser Debbie Leven and PR supremo Sarah Walker, exclusively share their insider secrets in a range of articles, checklists and toolkits created for the site.

Packed with professional’s tips and tricks of the trade, our PR Section shows you how to write great press releases and create good media relations as well as, crucially, how to get good, free publicity for your business. Access it on April 20 to create a comprehensive PR pack for your business.

Posted in PR | Tagged reputation, publicity, media coverage, image | 0 comments
Add this
Syndicate content