May 12, 2009
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Some of the most effective advisors are marketing using blogs, internet radio, video blogs, e-books and Web-casts to attract clients and gain exposure. But what about those advisors who would like to dip their toes into social media marketing without too much fuss? For those advisors, social media enhance and expand marketing already in place.
The Strategy
The basic social media marketing strategy is simple: connect with people and then provide them with compelling content that will make them want to learn more about you and your business. That’s really all there is to it.
You can accomplish this strategy in just two steps. Choose the right social networking sites to reach your target market, and create content to motivate the audience to learn more about your business. While tactics will vary, this general strategy can be applied to most forms of social media.
Step 1: Find Your Target Market
Unless your target market is over the age of 65, you should be able to find plenty of networking sites with potential clients. Even if your target market is over 65, there is still a chance of finding some prospects on social media sites. If you are not a social media marketing guru and don’t have the time to maintain profiles on several sites, you should find one or two sites that work for you. Wikipedia has a list of major social networking websites you can browse to determine which ones might be the best for finding your target demographic.
Once you have picked a few sites that sound like they might be good, visit Quantcast for specific demographic information. You will find information about users’ age, gender, education, and income which will help you determine if a site is right for you. Don’t assume that just because a site is popular, it will be effective for you. If your target market is Baby Boomers, a site like Eons, which is designed for Boomers, will probably be a lot more effective than a popular site like MySpace.
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