Mar
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Social Media One Bite at a Time
Filed Under Facebook, Networking and Marketing Strategy, Ning Sites, Social Media and Social Networking Sites, Twitter
Short Version of My Story
Today I tell some of my own story and share some of my own social media strategy.
This article is about an idea that was planted in my head and how I nurtured that idea. The article is slightly longer than usual, so please hang in there with me.
Creative problem solving has been a forte since my teenage years as a math whiz and chess champion.
Once I started working, I was able to apply my problem solving abilities and help companies to improve their business processes and to get a better handle on many different types of business and scientific data.
Thirty years into my career I learned about the social media and Web 2.0 revolution from Time Magazine’s December 2006 cover story, Time’s Person of the Year: You. I saw that while I could no longer be one of the earliest adopters of social media, it wasn’t at all too late to position myself at the forefront of an enormous trend.
I had previously experienced and benefited to a small degree from online social networking and social networking sites such as Ryze and Direct Matches, but the Time Magazine article opened my eyes to a world of possibilities bigger than I had imagined. I made a decision in January 2007 after reading the Time article to master social media and to see where that mastery would lead me.
Online Social Networking
Rather than master all social media concurrently, I elected to focus on social networking and to develop a first version of my online social networking strategy. These early conclusions I based on my observations at MySpace, Direct Matches and Yuwie, social networking sites that I have since largely abandoned.
By September 2007 I was contemplating my next step.
Blogging and Search Engine Optimization
At MySpace and Yuwie I experimented with blogging. The next step for me was to start an independent blog, and I chose Wordpress.org as my blogging platform in connection with my web hosting at Go Daddy.
Before launching my Online Social Networking blog I spent a couple of months reading about blogging and SEO and a short time conducting keyword research. The time I had invested reading and researching paid off, because it got me started on the right foot. Keyword research had joined online social networking to become an important area of competence.
I began blogging in November 2007 and devoted a year to learning how to write, promote and optimize my online publication. By October 2008 I no longer viewed myself as a novice at blogging.
At present Online Social Networking has more than 350 Feedburner subscribers, receives more than 2,000 search visits per month, and is ranked in the top 100,000 websites by Alexa.
Ning Social Networking Sites and Twitter
First Ning social networks and then Twitter captured my attention. These two social media platforms are very powerful and are both growing rapidly in popularity.
Just as I had done with online social networking strategy, search engine optimization and blogging, I set out to master Ning and then Twitter, writing articles on each that have since been read many times and featured by top new sites.
I created two Ning social networking sites:
- Outside the Box is a companion site to my blog where members can network with each other, present their own ideas and brand themselves. Outside the Box has 265 members.
- Let’s Follow Each Other is a companion site to Twitter where members can network, make new friends and share ideas. They can also promote themselves and their other social networking sites. After only three days Lets’ Follow Each Other already has its first 146 members.
My @larrybrauner profile on Twitter has more than 20,000 followers, and thousands of Twitter members have explored my blog.
“One Bite at a Time” Works
The key to my progress is internal motivation coupled with focus.
Rather than go off in many directions and spread myself too thin, I apply the 80/20 Rule taking a bite at a time out of the social media giant. This strategy has worked well for me and can work for others.
What’s my next bite?
Stay tuned, but Facebook is at the top of my social marketing list, and along the way, I’m building my personal brand, helping a few clients, and looking for more clients.
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14 Responses to “Social Media One Bite at a Time”
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Great advice.
I tried to add you to my feed.
Sorry, don’t know if I did or not. Working on it.
Hi Larry!
Thanks for the history lesson. I think I jumped into your story during your Ning days. Thanks for being there with your insight.
Deb
Hi Deb,
This is more than a history lesson. It’s insight into how I went from a social media nobody to a social media thinker and leader.
You can see in practical terms the role that determination and focus play in major achievements.
Thank you for your consistent participation in the conversation on this blog.
Hey Larry,
Some really great tips for others like me who are starting out with their social media careers. I always look forward to your twitter updates.
Well I read this on the right day - thank you for this very affirming read.
Larry, you are so right to lead us by example. Keep up the good work and be our mentor!
Hey Larry,
I consider you a social networking expert and I enjoy your blog quite a bit. I would be honored if you watched my latest music video called Social Networking Blues and let me know what you think.
Peace,
Mike
@livelife365
Hi Larry,
Tell us more about why you left Yuwie and MySpace, please.
Hi Debra,
Great to hear from you!
Let me clarify one thing first. When I say that I have largely abandoned Yuwie and MySpace, I mean that they are no longer part of my overall social networking strategy, and not that I never log into them.
I left them primarily because the options they offer for communicating with a large following are ineffective.
A second reason is that both sites have annoyingly high levels of user spam.
And finally Yuwie’s ads make site navigation quite a chore.
I haven’t closed the door on Yuwie and MySpace forever, but for now, Twitter, Ning and perhaps Facebook are more appealing to me.
It was a pleasure to read your methodical progress to social networking success. You should write an e-book.
All the best.
Thank you.
The main problem with writing an e-book on social media is that by the time you finish, it’s already outdated.
The traffic I get from social media is far more certain and personal than from any other means. Its the traffic I can rely upon and that is worth gold (quite literally) to me.
Larry … thanks for sharing your story. How refreshing to have someone my age also diving into Internet marketing and social media. You’re an inspiration! I loved hearing how you are using Ning sites and applying your genius at problem solving to social networking. Three questions for you …
1) What specifically about keyword research helped it become an important area of competence … like online social networking?
2) What are the primary ways you’ve been able to make money using online social networking?
3) What advice would give for people of our generation for why they should get interested in social networking sooner rather than later?
Thanks!
Phil Johncock
Thank you for your questions Phil.
Keyword Research
As I indicated in The Long Tail and Social Media, search-ability of social media adds long term value to your content.
Keyword research helps you choose your wording so that you maximize the number of search visitors who view your content.
Sometimes a small adjustment in wording will make a huge difference in traffic.
Monetization
The main ways that I make money using online social networking and social media are through selling my services as a web marketing consultant and through affiliate sales.
Advice for the Baby Boomer Generation
Social networking online is more convenient than attending offline networking meetings, and you can meet people from all over the world.
It also provides for richer communication than e-mail.
See my blog’s site map for a listing of all my articles.