A permission asset is simply a marketing database (be it an email list, a Twitter following or a selection of RSS subscribers) that has given you permission to market to them. There’s no bad blood, no spam, and no hustle.

Prolific marketing author and entrepreneur Seth Godin is credited with inventing the term almost ten years ago. However, the concept itself has been around much longer. What separates a permission asset from a standard marketing asset is that your audience appreciates being part of a permission asset. You have their permission to market to them, they expect quality, and they’re very happy when they get it. In return, you have a large group of people that aren’t just open to trying your products — they’re eager to try them, talk about them, and independently promote them.

Establishing this kind of asset has become remarkably simple since Twitter, Facebook and RSS came into the mainstream attention. In fact, it’s become so simple that it can be easily divided into three very clear steps:

The first step is building the following. By far the most effective method for building an online following is by using Twitter in combination with a long-form content tool. The most popular combination (and, thus far, the most successful) is a Twitter account paired with a popular blog. Develop quality content on your blog, offer follow up information on Twitter, and build your following on the two-way transmission of quality content.

The second step is translating that following into a permission asset. The difference between the two is in the quality of the bond. While a Twitter following is valuable, it’s ultimately thin and lacking in long-term commitment. If a follower doesn’t like you on Twitter, they only need to hit the ‘unfollow’ button to leave you behind. Converting that thin trust into the thick trust that builds permission assets requires a constant supply of quality tweets, relevant blog posts, and valuable information. In short, help your followers and you’ll win their trust, their interest, and their purchases.

Finally, a permission asset needs ongoing attention and affection. Keep in touch with your permission asset but don’t spam it senselessly. There’s a fine balance that needs to be maintained. This fine balance favors short and easily digestible content. Think about the gray area between your blog and your tweets — short and simple content that’s massively valuable. Combine this with exclusive offers and promotions that you believe in and you’ll keep your permission asset ready to buy, eager to discuss your products, and willing to promote your brand.

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

Building a Permission Marketing Asset with Social Media Platforms

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You were smart to start a craft business online. Low overhead, flexible working hours, and complete creative freedom. But you need another element for success: a good marketing plan. Make sure that social networking is a core part of that plan. Facebook and Twitter are no longer optional add-ons for a good marketing strategy. They’re at its heart.

Getting started on Facebook couldn’t be easier… or more essential to panning online gold. Create a profile that contains the best copy possible to make your business look not just good, but hot, hot, hot. After your personal profile is in place create a Facebook Business Page for your company.

How? Easy. Scroll to the bottom and click “Advertise”. And, get ready to jump for joy… it’s absolutely free! Click on the Pages tab and upload a logo and input some copy that portrays your craft business in the best possible light.

Then, just as you would in other venues, start reaching out to potential customers by “sharing” your business.

Your first contacts, or “Facebook Fans” as they’re called, will probably be real friends and family. But even the most social of entrepreneurs will need to expand well beyond that right away.

Don’t be indiscriminate, though. One of the worst things that can happen to an online business is to initiate a spiral of negative word of mouth. Spend some time tailoring your message and your list to optimize your chances of positive word of mouth.

You can reach out to crafters with similar interests – jewelry designers, doll makers, potters… whatever your business line(s) happen to be. Some will be competitors, others will just be interested amateurs who love crafts as you do. Ask them to spread the word, and give them helpful tutorial content, free samples, and more to encourage them to follow through.

Twitter is another superb way to spread your message, and can sometimes work even quicker. But you trade off speed for volume. Twitter is intended more for real-time communication. It’s sort of like Internet chat on steroids.

Twitter is a great social networking tool for online craft business owners who want to announce things that are happening right now. Having a sale? Tweet it. Discovered a new material or technique? Share your enthusiasm in up to 140 characters of text.

Use Twhirl to manage multiple accounts if you have multiple craft-related businesses, such as glassware and textiles. You don’t have to be tied to the computer all day, though. Use Twuffer to queue up tweets that will go out whenever you want.

In all these cases, you want not only to reach the audiences that populate these sites but drive them to your websites. Here again, use a little discretion, but always make sure your friends know where to find your business. After all, there’s no point in building a better mousetrap – or mouse earring – if no one knows where to buy it.

Both Facebook Pages and Twitter are where you can -

• Share pictures, pictures, and more pictures! Let me say it one more time: PICTURES. Use the Facebook Photo application to create and update photo albums with wonderful images displaying your skill and creativity.
• Step it up a notch by creating videos of your most popular and newest creations. Zoom into the details of your products that make them stand out from the rest. Record all sides of them as you’re describing what they’re seeing. If you haven’t done it already, invest in one of those very affordable Flip camcorders. Become familiar with downloading them to your computer, and uploading them to Facebook.
• Provide tips on how to store the products when not in use or being displayed.
• Provide tips on how to ship the items
• Do you offer a repair service if something gets broken? Remind them how they can get the product back to you for repair.
• If not, perhaps you can offer some repair tips for them so they can take care of minor repairs. How about providing some repair video tutorials? Even written tutorials will be helpful.
• Provide gift ideas – the holidays are close. Do you offer a special discount if someone purchases more the one item (one for themselves and one or more for gifts for others). This is a great time to encourage multiple purchases.
• Give an incentive if you can, perhaps you can provide free shipping if their order is over a certain dollar amount. Or throw in gift wrapping as your freebie.
• Craft businesses typically had/have origins at craft and gift shows. Maybe you could provide a list of shows in your area, your state…even better – multiple states or regions.
• When you’re attending a show, take pictures or even videos. Take your Facebook Page Fans along for the ride. Tell them about your plans, your experiences, the excitement, the surprise bonus you never expected to find. By all means, if you’re going to be displaying your products at some shows you’ll want to let everyone know where you are going to be at. You might even get some unexpected visitors that happen to be in the area. How great would that be!
• Share ideas about the best ways to display and use your products.
• Don’t forget to share a nice backstory. Let your visitors know how you got started, what inspired you, a timeline of your progression.
• Inform visitors of product options you provide when someone orders from you. A variety of colors, sizes, shapes, special features, etc.
• If you’re interested in doing this sort of thing – how about turning your knowledge into revenue? Hold workshops and classes, even create video tutorials. Then you can announce your new offerings to your visitors.
• Do you donate to a charity? Why not get your visitors involved and offer a percentage of their purchase to the charity or cause. Here’s another idea on this front. What if you organized a donation drive with your online community? Perhaps you could be the gathering place for handmade toys and other objects that could benefit those less fortunate. You and your fans could come together to support a common cause.
• Don’t forget to describe to your visitors how your product fills their need. What is it going to do for them?
• Since you have products, you’re in a prime position to hold a monthly contest where the winner receives something you’ve made. Perhaps for every 50 new Fans you pick a new winner. Keep running this for as long as you like.
• What about sharing a list of online craft directories? Ask for input from your page fans, see if they can contribute to this list.
• I’ll bet you’ve tried quite a number of materials to finally get your products just right. How about providing some reviews on materials that have not lived up to their advertising, or those that have made your crafts come to life and were exactly what you needed. This could also be a great conversation starter with other crafters visiting your site.
• Do you have any tips on what to do with your leftover materials? Is there the possibility of providing your visitors with ideas on how to recycle what they don’t use from projects?
• I’d like you to think less “online craft store” and more “online crafting community”. Encourage the sharing of ideas, materials, issues, troubleshooting, resources, etc. It should be a place everyone wants to visit so they can participate in conversations and contribute some of their valuable content. It could be one big happy family! When like-minded people get together, wonderful partnerships and joint venture opportunities happen. Doors open. Deeper connections are made. Doesn’t that sound like the community you’d like to build?
• If you know of some other crafters that have products which compliment yours, why not share these resources with your visitors? Perhaps the other crafters could refer visitors to you as well. Now would be a great time to set up a referral or affiliate program. What a win-win situation all around.

Next blog post in this series will be: Social Marketing Ideas for Writers and Authors

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

Social Marketing Ideas to Promote your Craft Business

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Here are some ways having a blog could help generate more interest, leads or bookings.

It Exhibits Your Expertise

It is alright to put up videos and pictures on web pages to show others what you can do for them, but I’ll bet you have more and newer videos and snap shots. Also, some orders are unique. These are all good reasons to show off, and what better way than to use a blog because it is so easy to update. A belly dancer can display videos where a client has requested something unique which forced her to think outside the box and come up with some creative choreography.

It Can Demonstrate How You Will Solve Client Problems

You know the old saying, people buy solutions, not products or services. You can explain this on a regular web page but on a blog it all becomes more believable, more tangible.

It Shows You Are Actively Using Your Skills

If you are currently working with clients, any post you make about your job is a good testimonial. It shows that there are people who already trust you to do what you claim you will do. Better still if your customer can contribute to your blog or allow you to quote them.

You Can Get To Know Your Prospects And They Get To Know You

This is true particularly when you offer a service because people usually want to work with others whom they can get along with. Because a blog is interactive, through the comments people can begin to experience you and get a feel of how the company handles their customers.

It Can Help Increase Website Traffic

When you write good content that is relevant and also promote it, people will take notice. When they do, they are more likely to share it on their own blog and their social networks and even decide to email it to their newsletter subscribers. All good ways to get fresh traffic.

It Can Reduce The Need To Answer Questions Over And Over

There are questions in every business that people tend to ask again and again. Whenever you answer these questions on your blog, you help your prospects out by giving them the information they are seeking, you plant the seed of trust, you add fresh content to your website, stuff that search engines and people alike love. And finally, you reduce your work because now you don’t have to type your answer again and again.

Blogging can be a quite rewarding. The down side is, keeping it going with fresh new content can be tough. Private label articles are good, but you still have to re-write them. The people at Blog Energizer have an alternative idea. Blogging prompts. Sometimes what you need is a jump start. Instead of staring at a blank computer screen, prompts help you write 100% original content. Blog Energizer provides you with 30 blogging prompts every month, one for every day of the month. They will also help you promote your posts, contests or any viral report you may have. Worth taking a look at.

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

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In fact, you’re likely using it for your blog or website, like me.

Am I right?

If that’s the case, then you probably discovered many unique ways you can use WordPress – especially when you start adding various plugins.

If you ever wondered how you can use WordPress to create a membership site or build a community, take a look at this:

It’s the entire audio recordings of a sold out WordPress workshop.

Here’s the “catch”…

The 50% discount ends on November 4th, 2009. So if you want the 50% discount, get it now. Otherwise you’ll end up paying double for the exact same set of recordings.

If you do anything with WordPress, it’s worth taking a look.

P.S.  You can get all the details of this special offer by going to here

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

WordPress training 50% off until November 4th

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Our colleagues at the training center VAClassroom.com recently launched their newest two-week mini-course, “Fantastic Facebook Fan Pages.” In conjunction with this program, they are running a contest called “The Great Facebook Fan Page Makeover Contest.” If you would like some practice applying the content learned in VAClassroom’s live Fan Page Course PLUS an opportunity to win a full makeover of your own Fan Page, here’s your chance! All you need to do is submit either a video or audio clip explaining “why a Fantastic Facebook Fan Page would impact your business.” The winner will receive a full makeover of his or her Fan Page, including custom landing page, page formatting, applications and some tips on how to better engage his or her audience. The winner will also receive a free one-year VAClassroom membership or a one-year credit towards his or her current membership.

Deadline for submission is November 7^th, 2009.

Please post your entry on our VAClassroom Facebook Fan Page wall. (You must first add yourself as a fan.)

Get involved in the “Great Fan Page Makeover Contest” by submitting your 2 minute videos to their Facebook Fan Page wall.

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

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If so, then read on.  These 7 tips will help you improve traffic to your site for years to come.  And traffic is the lifeblood of every website.  If your site has no visitors, then you’ll have nobody to do business with.

Many new website owners spend much time, effort and money on the look and layout of their site, on selecting great products and creating easy-to-use shopping carts.  All important activities, but without traffic all your hard work is for nothing.  But if you plan in traffic generation from the beginning you’re laughing!

And what if you already have a website?  Despair not.  Implement these 7 tips and traffic to your site will soon pick up.

1    Content, Content, Content!
Most website traffic these days is generated by search engines like Google, Yahoo, MSN or Ask.  These engines spend all their days crawling websites, reading their content and matching it to queries from surfers.

And what do surfers look for? Information.

Provide that information and the search engines will send traffic to your site.
Provide information that your visitors love and they’ll come back.

And when the engines notice that your site is popular with its visitors, that it gives them what they look for, then they will rank you higher and send you even more traffic.

So look at your site and ask yourself: do I provide enough interesting, topical content for my visitors?  And if you’re not – then write some!

2    Links Rule!
Imagine the delicate web of a spider:  threads linked to other threads linked to other threads … making the whole construction stronger than each thread will be alone.

And that’s exactly how search engines view websites.  Standalone websites, with no connection to any of the other 100 million sites on the web, will hardly be valued and ranked highly.

So as part of your traffic generation action plan, you must develop links with other sites, with directories, with forums, with good blogs in your field.

Exchange links with other good sites in your field.  Encourage visitors to link to your site or to bookmark it.

But always be aware that search engines judge your site on the quality and relevancy of its links!  Don’t just link to anyone for the sake of having links.  This will hurt you in the long term.

3    Go Viral!
Facebook, Digg, StumbleUpon, Furl … the list of social bookmarking communities grows almost daily, as does the number of people using them.

These communities are an excellent way to spread the word about your site and your products.  Millions of people are already participating in social networking and – like a virus – information spreads between them at an astonishing rate.

So join in, share your enthusiasm for your field or your product and see your traffic rocket!

4    Share your Knowledge!
You’re passionate about your product and your field.  You know how it will benefit people, how it can improve their lives or save them money.

Sharing your passion, knowledge and experience is a simple, effective way to increase traffic to your site.  Why?  Because surfers look for information.  And who could provide this better than the expert in the field!

So become an expert and build credibility for yourself and your site or product.  Join forums and discussion groups in your field, offer help, answer questions.  The more pro-active you are, the more people will respond to you and recommend your site or product to others.

5    Update, Update, Update!
If you don’t feed and water your plants, they’ll die.  Visitors are just the same.  If you offer them the same old information week in week out, they won’t come back.

But there’s much you can do to keep your visitors interested in your site and your products.  And the same effort will also bring in new visitors.

Keep your site fresh by adding new content.

Write a blog and offer RSS feeds.

Write short articles about your topic and submit these to article directories.

Write press releases.

And – often overlooked – keep your existing customers informed by publishing a newsletter.  Add interesting tidbits and special offers.  Add a link to your subscription page at the bottom and don’t forget to ask readers to pass the newsletter on to people with similar interests!

If your website suffers from low visitor numbers, there is no need to despair.  With but a little effort and imagination, your visitor numbers can soar.  And there’s no need to spend a fortune on advertising, either.  The internet is a natural traffic building tool – just use it and reap the rewards.

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

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Coaching businesses run the gamut from Life Coaching to Business Coaching to Physical Fitness Coaching and beyond. They all share key elements. Educate, Inspire, Encourage.

Fortunately for you, social networks are all about developing the same type of relationship you already have with your clients. They are the perfect extension of what you currently do.

Central to your business success is the ability to engage and excite people about what you have to offer. How? Whatever flavor of coach you are you can profit big time from the creative use of social networking tools like Facebook and Twitter.

After you’ve created your Facebook Business Page, be prepared to visit every day, and interact with those that are making comments. Create posts around your particular business, whether it’s from your website or a related website. Then, get set to show your stuff. Become the go-to guru for all things coaching in your specialty.

But to do that you have to reach your target market, no? You’ll have a blog to help you, of course. Make it more visible using Facebook’s RSS feed feature on your Facebook page. But beware of overexposure or overselling. Self-promotion is expected, but avoid the hardsell. Instead, add content of value to your audience to establish relationships. Sales will follow.

You can accomplish that many ways. In fact, the number is limited only by your own creativity. Add videos and audios to both encourage and inform. Update your company Facebook Page with the latest events of interest to those who represent your potential customers. That can be a city by city calendar of upcoming events, an invitation to an online seminar, or… the list is endless.

Now make your coaching business marketing efforts more dynamic by folding Twitter into the mix.

The long-term goal is to expand your online presence, of course. The intermediate goal that will help get you there is to follow and be followed. Since Twitter is more real-time oriented you can generate a lot of buzz quickly by pursuing those two methods.

Follow the gurus already established in your business to get tips and to share your own. That may sound like giving away the candy store to the competition. But, in reality, what goes around comes around. Once you get known, you’ll begin to get more than you give, guaranteed.

Use the search tools that are part of the Twitter site to track down those gurus and their businesses. Become a follower. Retweet their interesting messages. People always appreciate a little free advertising and will be more inclined to reciprocate.

When you make your own original tweets you want, here again, to avoid the hardsell. Twitter users have seen all the come-ons and they’re not greeted cheerfully. Get to know people before offering them any kind of product or service.

When you do offer one, say, by Tweeting a URL where they can find them, stay subtle. Don’t spam your following by posting the same URL over and over again. And reply to their tweets. People like to be acknowledged.

Target your audience on both platforms as selectively as you can. Those interested in organic hair care products are not going to get enthused about content discussing hunting gear. Both those could be part of a course about Lifestyle Coaching, but they clearly appeal to very different audiences.

Avoiding negative word of mouth on social networking venues is as important as generating positive buzz. Thoughtful use of Facebook, Twitter, and the others out there (like LinkedIn, for example) will help you do both at the same time.

Both Facebook Pages and Twitter are where you can -

• Share valuable content about ways to improve themselves each day.
• Offer thought-provoking content and encourage your visitors to reach inside and explore.
• You’re in the ideal business to have a membership site and/or audio podcasts. Share with everyone what you’ve got going on in those areas. Let them know the benefits they’ll see if they subscribe to your podcast or if they sign up for your membership site.
• How about doing a “5 Simple Steps To xxx” series.
• Talk about why it’s OK to reach out and get help from a coach.
• List the biggest benefits one can achieve when using your coaching program.
• Share some of the most heart-warming stories that you’ve experienced with clients (excluding names, of course)
• If you’re also a speaker, post your schedule in Events and encourage a conversation about your topics.
• Offer daily or weekly affirmations.
• Create contests and special offers
• Get a little crazy and creative – loosen up and have a bit of fun.
• Upload motivational videos and pictures.
• Announce your new products / services – I don’t suppose you’ve authored a book or e-book? If so, post information about it. If it’s not published yet, post that too. Get people excited about your publish date. Make an entire event out of it.
• Share stories of places you’ve visited that inspired you or made a difference in your life. Encourage visitors to share their stories.
• If you’re going to interview someone, be sure to announce it and then let everyone know how they can access the recording.
• Are you looking for some guest bloggers or someone new to interview? Post about your needs and see if you get some takers.
• If you’ve spotted a particular article, website, or video that you feel is important for your fans to look at – post a link to it and get a conversation started.
• Inject some humor – through stories, insights, pictures, etc. What is it they say about laughter? What a great way to put a smile on someone’s face.

Next blog post in this series will be: Social Marketing Ideas to Promote your Craft Business

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

Social Marketing Ideas for Coaches

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Travel agents, or anyone involved in associated businesses, have recently been handed a gift on a golden platter: online social networking. The travel business has long been driven by good word of mouth and similar forms of personal interaction. Facebook, Twitter, and the many other new venues raise those methods – and their benefits – to new heights.

In days past, travel agencies relied chiefly on newspaper ads and the recommendations of a relatively small network of existing customers. The old “she tells two people, and they tell two people, making four, sixteen…” and so forth, could really only go so far. The problem is that the threads of the ‘people web’ got broken in too many places, crippling the spread.

Today, that amplification effect is, well, amplified many times over. There are millions of people on MySpace, Facebook, and the rest. That ups the odds quite a bit that word of mouth will continue in one direction, even if it stops in another.

Facebook is an excellent example. Create a Facebook Business Page that perform multiple tasks for you and you’ll soon see. You have an opportunity to “soft sell” your travel business in a myriad of ways. Here are just a few…

The travel business frequently offers advice on places to go, things to do. But it’s easy for travelers to get information overload. It’s like drinking from a firehose. The travel agent provides a service by sifting through that gold mine, panning for the gold and discarding the stones.

Using Facebook, it’s possible to become the go-to guru in your niche. Announce a series of online seminars. Think about using sites like BlogTalkRadio to do a weekly travel show and post your upcoming topics on your Wall. Create some audios and direct your potential customers to a place they can learn how to get the most out of travel at the least cost or hassle. Use your ‘Wall’ in your Page to post great photos, newsfeeds, and links to articles from a variety of travel experts (including you, of course).

You could let them in on the secrets experienced travelers know about how to find the cleanest, safest hotels. You can direct them to helpful information on relatively quiet hostels. Fill them in on places that offer the best opportunities for getting to know an international crowd.

Twitter offers still more chances to target your audience and create a unique brand in double-quick time.

Since the travel business is filled with exciting one-time events, you have a golden opportunity to pass them on to your followers in real-time. That gets the buzz going in your direction. No need to pump it with a hard sell. This is one place where “build it and they’ll come” really works.

You can provide wary travelers with lots of advice on places to avoid in otherwise exciting and desirable countries like Mexico or Egypt. Such places sometimes get an undeserved bad reputation as countries to skip, when there are really only a few easy-to-bypass cities or regions that are risky.

The travel business is, maybe not quite unique, but certainly distinctive in depending so strongly on trust. You gain your customer’s trust by providing reliable information on places to go and how to get there. The casual, friendly nature of the travel business syncs perfectly with Twitter for building that trust.

Extend that genial atmosphere as you share your personal passion for travel. All kinds of people travel with all kinds of interests. Share some of your other passions besides travel and you’ll find they’ll become inclined to come to you first for all things travel related, too. Let them get to know you in multiple ways.

Lucky for you, Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIn, and all the rest make it simple to expand “them” to include millions.

Both Facebook Pages and Twitter are where you can -

• Build a community surrounding your business and gain extra exposure
• Inform visitors of what’s going on in the travel industry. Where are the HOT vacation spots? Where are the best destinations for the deepest deals?
• Ask fans for input and comments about their vacationing experiences. What have been the most exotic, the most kid-friendly, the most historic, the scariest, the most eco-friendly. This list could go on and on.
• Create contests and special offers
• Get a little crazy and creative – loosen up and have a bit of fun
• You could provide valuable information for those that want to do a road trip with their children and/or pets. Hotels that have special amenities for kids and pets are a huge hit with this crowd. Even if you don’t know much of the information yourself, I’ll bet you know of websites you could link to in Twitter and on your Facebook Page. Remember, you don’t have to be the one creating all the content yourself, but that doesn’t mean you will not be providing extreme value when pointing your visitors in the right direction.
• Announce your newest or best services
• In this economy, extensive travel to exotic places may be out of reach for many. What if you do a series of posts dedicated to “staycationers”. Provide ideas on ways budget travelers can pamper themselves.
• What about other related topics your audience is interested in? Could you provide information for them about: packing tips, pet boarding tips and alternatives, travel games, house-sitting resources and related information, trip planning and how/when to start saving for the big trip, eating do’s and don’t s while you’re traveling – and related information. I’ll bet there is a light beginning to shine above your head right about now, right?
• Upload your videos and pictures of hot vacation spots, near and far. Encourage your Facebook fans to upload their funniest vacation picture and have people vote on it. Pictures and videos will be your best friend. We all like to dream about taking great vacations. Help your visitors realize that dream.

Next blog post in this series will be:  Social Marketing Tips for Coaches

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

Social Marketing Ideas for the Travel Business

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The Real Estate business… what could be less online oriented? Sure you can look at pictures, but your clients have to see the home, walk around, get the feel of the place. How can Social Marketing tools help you there? What’s Facebook or Twitter got to do with selling property?

Lots!

Every real estate professional knows that selling homes isn’t about buildings, it’s about people. And between advertising and networking, the pros spend 50-75% of their time trying to reach and interact with them. Present clients, potential clients, and past clients form the core of a realtor’s social network. Naturally, every active agent wants that network to grow.

But how?

Even at the most basic level, a site like Facebook lets you reach out to, contact, and interact with many more people than you could ever see face to face. It simply has a wider reach even than your phone. Something as simple as creating a Facebook Page instantly puts you in the pool where you can swim with lots of others.

Expand your web presence and build an online community through Twitter and Facebook Pages for your business. Then reach out. Explain what you do, and do it in a way that shows your Facebook Page fans how you can help them. It’s not about you, but your clients.

Hit that theme in a dozen ways. Create a Poll to find out their biggest gripes when shopping for a home. Post relevant news stories, offer photos, use the discussion board to generate buzz. Let everyone know about upcoming events.

Nothing wrong with self-promotion, though, done the right way. Tell your Facebook Page fans how you just closed a deal and made a young newlywed couple ecstatic over owning their first home. Talk up your town, about how it has unique features. If it’s made a Best Places to Live list, even better. Tell everyone!

Now, take it to the next level with Twitter. Twitter is much more focused on real-time interaction.

You’re in the middle of an exciting deal. A family has just moved to your area and you’re showing them some of the unusual properties that are newly on the market at historically low prices. Tweet your enthusiasm to everybody out there. Passion breeds passion.

Invite all your online friends to visit at the first opportunity. Give free tips on how to find a great carpenter or gardener or plumber. List open house information. Inform everyone of local market trends. Everyone today is interested in how the economy impacts real estate and vice versa. Be the go-to guru on Twitter for those insights.

Real Estate pros can keep in touch with their current client list, and considerably expand it, by taking advantage of the latest social networking tools. Real life, meet virtual reality. See how one enhances the other.

Both Facebook Pages and Twitter are where you can -

• Build a community surrounding your business and gain extra exposure
• Share valuable content about DIY resources and ideas. What’s new in the “green housing” arena? What are the biggest benefits of using a real estate agent over doing it all yourself.
• Inform fans of what’s going on in the real estate industry. Are home prices going up? Down? Is it a buyer’s market or a seller’s market. Tell them how they can best approach house-hunting in the current market. How can they best stretch their dollar? Don’t forget about sellers – let them know the top 10 things they can do to increase their chances of selling their home in the current market. Or what they can expect when they first put their house on the market.
• Ask fans for input and comments about their house-hunting experiences. What have been the biggest obstacles, and how did they overcome them? Could they list their best resources they used for their renovation projects?
• Create contests and special offers
• Get a little crazy and creative – loosen up and have a bit of fun
• Announce your upcoming events, such as Open Houses, etc.
• Upload your videos and pictures of homes you’re selling. Encourage your Facebook fans to upload “Before and After” renovation pictures and videos.
• Announce your new products / services
• What’s going on in your town and nearby areas? Get people excited about moving to your town. Think about the different ways you can do that. Explore what the various neighborhoods are doing for fun and excitement. Why not share these with your social network visitors?
• What about other related topics your audience is interested in? Could you provide information for them about: home decorating tips, green home project ideas, flooring options, diy resources, ROI for typical renovation projects, how to recycle their old material from renovation projects – both inside and out in the garden. The list goes on and on when it comes to topics dealing with home and garden.

Next blog post in this series will be: Social Marketing Tips for the Travel Business

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

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October 19 – 30, 2009 launches the newest mini-course from VAClassroom – “Fantastic Facebook Fan Pages“

Are you currently running a Facebook Fan Page, but feel like you have not yet optimized this powerful social media tool?

Are you looking for new tricks and techniques to build successful Facebook Fan Pages for your clients?

Are you a business owner who is interested in an easy to implement system to build your online presence with Facebook Fan Pages?

The great thing, is that this is not only for virtual assistants, but it’s also perfect for any other online professionals who want to have a better Facebook Page. Don’t be fooled by the name “VAClassroom”. Everyone is welcome to participate in courses that fit your need.

One of the HOT, HOT, HOT bonus items includes templates for you to use for Welcome pages, Product pages, Testimonial pages, Portfolio pages, Meet the Team pages, etc. AND a To-Do checklist for creating a great Facebook Page and community.

It also includes a variety of banner images to give you a head start in creating a more professional look, especially helpful if you don’t have image creating skills or the money to spend on getting header images created.

OK, so maybe I sound a little biased because I’m a co-instructor for this course. But it IS truly a rock-solid training!

Many of the seats are already taken, and since I look forward to “seeing” many of you there, you might want to run on over to their website and sign up as soon as you can. I can’t wait to dig in and help you guys!

Article by Andrea Kalli

Take a stroll over to my Facebook Page and become part of my community. I invite you to become a fan and participate in the conversation.
Certified Internet and Social Marketing Assistant
Editing for your Podcast / Audio / Teleseminar / Audio Book

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