Social Media 101
A Tutorial for Executives
www.mavenagency.com

What is social media?
Social media is an umbrella term that defines that various
activities that integrate technology, social interaction, and the
construction of words, pictures, video and audio.*
A social network is a group of people of that are members of
a community for the purpose of connecting, learning and
interacting within the context of a shared interest
*http://www.wikipedia.org

What is social media?
 Allows people to connect and form personal and
business relationships
 People are connecting with each other - not brands
 The conversation is happening - with or without you!

What is Social Media?
 Blogs & Micro Blogs
 Online Chat
 RSS
 Widgets
 Social Networks
 Social Bookmarks
 Message Boards
 Podcasts
 Video Sharing Sites
 Photo Sharing Sites
 Virtual Worlds
 Wikis

Who uses Social Media?
Social Networks and Blogs are
now used MORE than Email:
 Twitter = >5M users
 Linked In = >40M Professionals
 Facebook = > 200 million users
 Facebook’s fastest growing
demographic s are aged 35+

What do they use it for?

What are the benefits of Social Media?
 Targeted increase of website traffic
 Creating positive brand association
 Growing brand awareness
 Conversions and sales
 Control of the search results
 Business development
 More loyal users
 People prefer doing business with those they know!

Recommendations &
Suggested strategies
How can Executives use Social
Media?

How can businesses use social
media?
Executive Positioning: Demonstrate thought leadership and become an expert
Sales and Marketing: Post links to press releases, company news,
relevant community news, speaking events
Human Resources: Prescreen candidates on LinkedIn;
foster better internal communications through internal communities
Market Research: "Listen" and gain insight into trends or opportunities
Community Relations: Raise awareness for community relations projects and
corporate giving initiatives

What are business uses for...?
: Company profiles, groups, answers
: Company pages, fan pages, groups, widgets
: Micro blogging with 140 characters or less. Search and attract
followers, send updates of value to your community
: Video marketing, event marketing, fundraising opportunities,
product demonstrations
: Demonstrate thought leadership, create expert positioning,
help connect with customers, generate media interest
: Internal social network to identify employee issues,
communicate news, build relationships

Why Linked-in?
 Recruiting
 Expert positioning
 Expand contacts
 Get PR visibility
 Reinforce business brand
 Conduct market research
 Integrates with Wordpress,
slide share and RSS

Why Facebook?
Why Facebook?
 Facebook fan pages & groups
industry groups allow for easily
sharing content
 Paid Demographic targeting:
Facebook ads
 Distribute Company news
instantly into your company
“fans” news feed
 Connect with media and other
industry related groups
 Set up corporate fundraising
pages for charitable initiatives

Why twitter?
 Largest growing social media tool
 Create your name @yourbusiness
name (brand recognition)
 Discover industry trends
 Drive traffic to web site and
create face-to-face networking
opportunities (“tweet ups”)
 Request instant feedback
 Build connections & reach
prospects

Video, Presentation & Photo Sharing
Why YouTube, SlideShare & Flickr?
 Video is the #1 online activity among internet users
 77%* of internet users watch video online - businesses can take
advantage!
 Use interactive media to promote
 Presentations, speaking engagements and panels
 Share videos and photos of recent community
fundraisers and events to increase participation for next
year
 Use video and photos to promote product demos
*Source: Media Post News, July 7, 2009

Blogs
Why a Blog?
 Create thought leadership opportunities by positioning
executives as experts
 Shape the conversation - determine key messages and share
company Point-of-view
 Generate awareness for the "softer side" of a corporation
 Generate leads and referrals
 Attract media opportunities
 Increase search engine ranking

How to start a blog?

Linking Your Content
RSS

RSS: Creating content
RSS makes it easy to maintain social media
HOW?
 Integrate RSS Feeds into
all social media platforms
 Identify relevant RSS
feeds to generate content
for your blog, Facebook,
Linked-in and twitter
accounts.
 Follow your competitors
and important industry
news

Example RSS Feeds
 Blogs and blog comments
 Web site updates
 Slideshare presentations
 Photos through Flickr
 Events through Google
Calendar
 Press Releases and current
news
 Twitter updates

Next Steps
How do we get started?

How do we get started ?
Do Your Homework:
 Set clear, measurable objectives. Is your objective to:
 Drive traffic to the website?
 Raise money?
 Raise awareness around a speaking engagement?
 Target your audience: who, what, where?
 Listen to the conversation
 Follow on Twitter
 Socialmention.com
 Google Alerts
 Set Guidelines

How do we get started ?
Execute
 Setup accounts at Facebook, twitter, linked-in,
YouTube, etc.
 Reserve your names now - you can always use them
later
 Allocate appropriate resources - Networks need
regular maintenance to keep them valuable
 Create content worth talking about
 Link blogs and other social media accounts to your
website to ensure seamless integration

Measurement
 Google Analytics
 Facebook fans
 Twitter Followers
 Comments on blog
 Web traffic
 Number of media outlets
engaged
 Employee engagement
 Blog entries
 Feedburner

Tips for Social Media Success
 Transparency & authenticity
 Develop relationships & encourage the conversations
 Try to add value to your industry and community
 Connect with the influencers / help them find you
 For maximum ROI: “Build communities” instead of
“doing communications”

Discussion
Contact Rebecca Devine for more information :
rdevine@mavenagency.com or 267-546-9009