Social Media & Networking
If you're new to social networking (using websites like Facebook or Twitter) this page is for you. It is not intended to be a comprehensive "how to" but rather an introduction to the world of social networking for the small business owner. You may also want to consider having custom skins, backgrounds, and other imagery created for your profile pages that match your website, to create a consistant look and experience for your customers.
To set up your own personal Facebook page, just go to facebook.com and fill out the form. To set up a page for your business, go to facebook.com/pages/create.php. (We recommend that you do both.) If you're having trouble, there's a comprehensive help page set up at facebook.com/help.php.
What to use Facebook for: Expand your network of personal connections, and make your business more personable and accessible. People like doing business with a business they can relate to. Advertise events, demonstrate the ties your business has with your local community, and get in touch with how others perceive your business.
A nice easy to use form at twitter.com/signup to get started. You can also use your cellphone to read and post tweets. (Great for those of you not in front of a computer as often as others.) If you're the creative type, you can find all kinds of great custom backgrounds for your Twitter page at twitterbackgrounds.com or twitter-images.com. For additional help with the technical side of things, visit help.twitter.com/portal.
What to use Twitter for: Offer your customers one central location to learn about updates with your services or products. Provide a personal voice to your professional recommendations—become the source of information your customers trust.
Flickr
Owned by Yahoo!, the sign up process is a bit more complicated than the others. If you already have a Yahoo! ID you can sign up for Flickr at flickr.com/signup (and you can get a Yahoo! ID from that page as well, though will need to jump through a few hoops.) Once signed up and logged in, you can follow the many tips Flickr includes on their pages to get acquainted with the website. If it seems a bit overwhelming, it's likely because it's geared toward sharing photos and creating interactions between people. Don't be surprised if you get distracted and click your way through photo after photo that others have posted. (But keep in mind that others will do this and find yours!)
What to use Flickr for: A free place to store your online portfolio (easily linked to from your website.) Use Flickr's slideshow feature at meetings to project your images without having to build yet another PowerPoint presentation.
Sign up at linkedin.com, and search for people you know—start requesting links, and recommendations. You can customize your profile pretty extensively. You can edit your public profile address, which lets you create a user-friendly link for others to follow to find you. (This is a great link to include in your email signature.)
What to use LinkedIn for: Connect with other business owners, professionals and entrepreneurs. You never know which direction your next big opportunity will come from! This of course goes both ways—you may find your next employee, business partner or mentor through this site.
YouTube
Viewing video on YouTube doesn't require an account, but to upload your own you'll need to go to youtube.com/create_account and sign up. Once you've done that, there's an easy to use 'upload' button toward the top right of the screen. You can upload your videos, and even tie in your YouTube account with Facebook and/or Twitter for maximum coverage.
What to use YouTube for: Save money by hosting your video on YouTube instead of your own website. You can still embed the videos on your website, but without eating up your own bandwidth and disk space. Humorous videos do particularily well when it comes to getting others to advertise for you. Here's a perfect example: youtube.com/watch?v=_PHnRIn74Ag
