tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11222355.post4451459390610696373..comments2023-08-09T06:42:11.278-04:00Comments on ScLoHo's Collective Wisdom: Advice I Don't Agree WithScLoHo (Scott Howard)http://www.blogger.com/profile/06845134204599222869noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11222355.post-87498827551330687932008-12-07T13:20:00.000-05:002008-12-07T13:20:00.000-05:00Thank you Jennifer for your additional comments on...Thank you Jennifer for your additional comments on both your original article and my added words.<BR/><BR/>It sounds like you and I agree on more than you might realize.<BR/><BR/>MySpace and Facebook can be great tools for creating word of mouth and taking advantage of the thousands that are already there.<BR/><BR/>However, I believe they should be tools to bring people to your website and not used as your primary presence online.<BR/><BR/>Any business needs to go where their customers are, and as you've pointed out, MySpace and Facebook have lots of potential customers. Use them as ways to bring people to you, on your turf, to your site.<BR/><BR/>Get involved with social media, but don't neglect why you are there.<BR/><BR/>I have found lots of business owners who were told they needed a website and they went to the expense of having one built and they expected an increase in business, just because they were now online.<BR/><BR/>It doesn't work like that. You have to invite them to visit you.<BR/><BR/>And now with the advent of Google into website development, I believe it is not as complicated to build a basic home page. For more impressive websites, their are also plenty of students that have the capabilities to build it a step or two above the basic level. Finally, if you are going to be a web based business, I advise people to pay a pro by finding a site that you like and then contacting the business owner about who did their site, the cost and if they would recommend the website designer.<BR/><BR/>Use every tool available to get people to visit your website and have a reason for them to go there too.<BR/><BR/>Put your website address on everything:<BR/>email, outgoing voicemail, signage, business cards, snail mail letterhead, etc.<BR/><BR/>It will take time to build traffic to a website and social media sites are a way to speed things along.<BR/><BR/>More on this can be found here:<BR/><A HREF="http://sclohonet-thebook.blogspot.com/2008/12/do-you-have-what-it-takes.html" REL="nofollow">A</A> http://sclohonet-thebook.blogspot.com/2008/12/do-you-have-what-it-takes.htmlScLoHo (Scott Howard)https://www.blogger.com/profile/06845134204599222869noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11222355.post-15231548114386963742008-12-07T11:02:00.000-05:002008-12-07T11:02:00.000-05:00Scott, I think you're doing your readers a disserv...Scott, I think you're doing your readers a disservice by suggesting that businesses who have a presence at sites like MySpace and Facebook diminish their professional reputation because, in your opinion, those two particular networks are for the socially-minded, not the business-minded.<BR/><BR/>I wholeheartedly disagree.<BR/><BR/>For starters, there are more than 28,000 groups at MySpace (as an example) dedicated to Business and Entrepreneurship. Of those 28,000 groups, many have tens of thousands of members, ranging from small business owners to employees at multimillion dollar corporations. Perhaps they didn't get your memo?<BR/><BR/>What's more, you suggest folks build their own websites or use tools like Blogger or Wordpress to create an online presence, yet you and I both know – as website owners and marketers – how absolutely unbelievably difficult (and expensive) it is to generate enough traffic to have a substantial online presence that grows your brand. At MySpace and Facebook, on the other hand, you're immediately "in the mix" among people who may very well be existing customers or who may very well turn out to be new customers – for no money and minimal effort. Talk about Marketing 101.<BR/><BR/>Finally, we agree on one thing – having an unprofessional online presence can be damaging for any business. However, that's where our mutual understanding stops. The beauty of sites like MySpace is that you control the content of your profile, including its messaging, its overall look and feel, the products and services showcased, the content of blog posts, the content of bulletins sent, even the comments other users post. <BR/><BR/>In my opinion, having done this for a very long time now, the best online marketing campaigns consist of not only having your own professional website, having your own professional blog, and having a presence at professional networking sites like Linkedin, Plaxo and Ning (such as the ones you mentioned), but also of having a presence at sites like MySpace and Facebook. You need to be where your customers are and since Facebook and MySpace are behemoths in the social networking space, ignoring them is akin to ignoring your customers.<BR/><BR/>I appreciate your comments and your feedback on my initial article. However, I respectfully disagree.<BR/><BR/>Sincerely,<BR/><BR/>Jennifer LangeJennifer Langehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08299431077210498477noreply@blogger.com