Social Media… a term we are hearing more and more but what is “Social Media”, and how can it work for your company?
Social Media describes the technologies, platforms and methods in which users share content online. This basically means online sites and activity which rely on user-generated content. It allows users to share in the conversation and to discuss and interact. From a business and personal point of view it also allows people or businesses to become both readers and publishers of the content. Participation and Interaction plays a key role in Social Media with communication between fellow users increasing content levels and interest and in further spreading the word.
Social Media is fast moving with a constant stream of new technologies being created allowing for greater interaction and new ways to share and promote content online. The content can come in many forms including; posts, text, images, videos and audio. Online communities are also created through Social Media sites as like-minded individuals discuss their common interests. The most popular Social Media platforms or network examples is Facebook, My Space and the hugely popular YouTube.
Blogs and forums are also forms of Social Media, usually maintained by an individual, a business or an online community. The way in which a blog differs from a standard static website is in the regular updates or entries made. These can be made up of a multitude of things be it a running commentary, event updates, latest news or rich media. Of course at Redline we have not missed this trend – read our new and fresh blog!most recent phenomenon in the blog world is called micro blogging allowing users to post very short text posts on a regular basis – Twitter is the best example of this. And finally Social Bookmarking where users can comment on all types of content whether it is an overall website, a blog post, a news article or even a photo or video. By publicly bookmarking this content it becomes suggested to other relevant users who in turn read and can also bookmark the item spreading it across the internet. Popular social bookmarking sites include: Digg, StumbleUpon, Reddit and del.icio.us.
This is certainly not a definitive list of all things Social Media, but it gives you an idea of the wide range of online mediums which are all grouped and incorporated into the common phrase “Social Media”.
SO HOW CAN SOCIAL MEDIA WORK FOR YOUR BUSINESS?
The answer is in a number of ways depending on your business. Search Engine Optimisation is just one way that Social Media can be of benefit to you – being involved in other types of online media is wonderful for your SEO ratings. But there are so many more benefits to it. It allows you to target your potential customers directly, keep them updated on what´s going on within your business, draw other similar users to your site. There is no doubt that Social Media is the newest thing in promoting your business and getting more customers to you.
Call us today – with this and all other aspects of marketing, we can help you find the best way to take your business forward.
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