There’s a growing interest in social media marketing in the wedding community if Wednesday’s iABC meeting is any indication. You could’ve heard a pin drop as I shared my insights, strategies and tools for growing your business with the big 3: Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. It’s amazing how much has changed in just six months. So, I thought I’d update you on what’s new today.
What’s Up in Social Media Now?
LinkedIn Rules! The positions of the big three are changing. It used to be that Twitter was the fastest growing network, but that title now goes to LinkedIn. So, if you followed my party analogy, the Twitter cocktail party is ending and people are ready to go to the business meeting atmosphere of LinkedIn. That doesn’t mean to stop using Twitter to make new contacts and gain brand exposure. Instead, it’s time to explore how to use LinkedIn in a deeper way beyond just having a profile like Linked in Answers or the new Follow feature, which lets you stay updated on a limited number of people. What I’m still learning LinkedIn so I’ll keep you posted. If you’ve gotten good results in your wedding business with LinkedIn , definitely share that in the comments, please.
Facebook Ads Work! At least if you do them right. A friend of mine actually gained over 1000 fans using Facebook ads for, unbelievably, under $100. That inspiration, and my total failure with my own ads, prompted me to find and share a terrific Facebook coach, Brandi Hamrick, and share her success secrets for easy, irresistible Facebook ads on a call this past Wednesday. We all learned a ton. Like that you have to write full sentences for your title or that you can use the interests section and the geography section to target very specific folks. Did you know you can target users that are within 25 miles of your wedding biz? Or, that Facebook favors ads that promote internal FB pages with lower bid ranges? The ads are so easy to use and inexpensive compared to traditional advertising I hope you’ll give it a try (or second or third try). If you grab Brandi’s program, I’ll support you with two pretty sweet bonuses.
Twitter Gets Down to Business! Finally, Twitter is recognizing businesses with its Twitter Toolkit. The new Toolkit, which isn’t widely available yet, allows your business to send and get direct messages from people who may or may not be followers. It also allows you to have someone else manage your account; a boon to you if you want to spend your time planning weddings instead of tweets. I tried to sign myself up 
but hit a dead end. What this means for you, I think, is that you’ll be able to access leads (brides) a little more directly. When I learn more, so will you.
MissNowMrs Contest is over today but the survey lives on. I’ll announce the winner on Monday. Can I tell you a secret wish? I’m desperate to reach over 100 respondents. Not only because it makes the survey statistically accurate, but because my husband was skeptical that I could do it. Shall we prove him wrong? Please take the survey!
