For the next in our series of case studies looking at how small businesses are using social media, we caught up with Melanie Mackie, Consultant at Scarletta Media
In no more than 50 words explain what your business is.
Scarletta Media is a digital marketing consultancy helping start-ups and SME organisations understand what digital marketing and social media is, how this fits with their marketing strategy and ways to maximise online tools and techniques to promote a service, product or converse with their own community.
How do you use social media as a business?
As a small start-up business I actively use social media and digital marketing to seek out new business opportunities, raise awareness of my own business and give an insight into Scarletta’s approach and personality. I use WordPress for Scarletta’s Blog and network and collaborate with like minded people and talent on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn.
What are your business/marketing objectives for social media?
My business objective is to continue to raise awareness about the social media phenomenon and demonstrate to other business owners that social media can have a positive effect if used in a constructive way. If you are completely brand new to Facebook, have no idea what a Tweet is or why anyone would want to share information with people they have never met or are ever likely to meet, then before setting up a profile on any professional or social media website, I will always advise to lurk and observe, find out more about web culture and develop an understanding of how quickly information spreads online.
Do you measure the success of your social media marketing? If so, how?
Yes in several ways, by monitoring and reviewing on a daily/weekly basis all the analysis reports for trends, click-throughs, and keywords searches. For Twitter and Facebook I review the relevance of fans and followers and record every lead I have received through a social media source.
For me the most import measurement of my success is someone telling me they have enjoyed reading my blog and got something out of it. That means I am doing my job and not just talking to myself!
How does social media fit in with the other marketing your company does?
Social media is the overall marketing aim, however offline networking is as important as online networking and I actually enjoy meeting people face-to-face too.
Do you have plans to increase your use of social media in 2010?
I don’t believe it is an increase as such, just a concerted effort to keep up with the latest trends and news. I am fascinated by social media and the speed at which things change and evolve, I am constantly looking to learn and expand my expertise of social media and online platforms, for my own business and to pass on to clients.
What would be your top 3 tips for businesses looking to get involved in social media?
My 3 top tips are:
- Review and decide what do you want to achieve by using social media before you start
- Commit and take responsibility for regularly creating and developing engaging content
- Join in and participate, it takes time but it is definitely worth the effort and you will reap the rewards
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