4walls Blog

Why it's so important to "get" social media and "apply" it well.

Transparency:

I was on another forum when it was noted that some chap was copying "written content" and "paste-ing" it without any recognition for the original writer.

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As many of you are aware, Nick and I are big exponents of social media. We see it as the future of business and marketing.

We attend many different meetings and talk to many different people about this relatively new phenomenom that now accounts for over 15% of all global internet traffic.

One of the most common things people say to us on this subject is: "I don't have time to engage with social media. I'm too busy!".

Well, in our book, that's a bit of a self-defeatist answer. You can find time. Would you find time to go and collect winnings from the lottery?! Of course you would! Would you find time in your busy day if a long-lost friend phoned you for a catch up chat? Yes, you would. Time is far more elastic than most people appreciate. You always make time for the things that matter to you and the things that bring results. That is why you can find time to engage with social media.

In fact, we believe that you must find time to engage with social media. You see, business and the way people communicate is changing at a faster pace than ever before in the history of commerce, and no one knows the new rules of the (business) game ... yet. However, those that are engaging in social media are on the pitch, limbering up, ready for the ball to be thrown in. Those of you that are not, are not even on your way to the stadium to watch the match!

We were at a meeting earlier this week, and the discussion was about "time management" and making long lists at the beginning of the day about what you wanted to achieve. Then work through that list, and ignore all distractions including email, phone calls etc. What an out-dated way of thinking! One person even recommended a book called "Do It Tomorrow" which recommends that you put off everything that is not a "priority" until the next day! That in our book is a sure-fire recipe for disaster!

Social media dictates and demands instant results, instant feedback, instant and consistent action to be successful. Whether you like it or not, we are living in an "instant" world, where people expect an instant response. If you do not engage with people quickly, they will take their business elsewhere.

Example: I sent an email to my solicitor instructing them to start conveyancing on a new property transaction. I did not receive a reply straight away. I then began to wonder if the person had been made redundant, or had left the company. Meanwhile, I sent another email to another solicitor who answered straight away, so I instructed them instead.

In business, you can and should act with imperfect information. Start the ball rolling immediately. Even if it's just a quick email to acknowledge the communication and say you will revert back later. Remember: everything starts with a conversation. So, the sooner you start a dialogue with someone, the better the business outcome for you.

It's also vital to embrace the random-ness of social media. I like to say that I didn't know that I wanted to marry Nick before I met him! You have no idea what a conversation can lead to, so don't close your mind to it. A closed mind is the most expensive thing you will ever own! Be open to everyone and everything. It is the people furthest from you in your network, who will have the greatest influence on your success! We have people that we have never met recommending us to others! How amazing is that? And it's all thanks to social media.

Taking that off-line, I regularly get emails from people asking me if it is "worth" them turning up to our networking event. How could I possibly answer that? It depends who turns up on the day, and who they engage with. The famous actor Woody Allen once said "80% of success is showing up". So true! If you are not even in the room, how could you know that there are people there who would love to know about the service you offer or who could share with you a nugget of information that saved you money, or who could connect you to someone who you could JV with?

This is why Twitter is so effective. Twitter is like being at a world-wide cocktail party. You're in the virtual room, engaging with all sorts of people who can influence or contribute to your business success. So dive in and join the conversation! Who knows where it might lead. Places that you never imagined is my bet.

So when is the best time to start a conversation? The answer is NOW. Successful people take sustained and consistent action. That is the key to making social media work for you.

Three years ago, Nick started writing his blog (http://www.nicksays.typepad.com/). At first, only two people read it. Then 4, then 8, then 24, then 50, then 100. Now, nearly three years later, he has over 30,000 readers. But he had to start. His today was nearly three years ago.

The brilliant American marketeer, Seth Godin, recently wrote:

"This is my 3,000th blog post. (In a row).

Within a week of starting this blog, I had a feeling I wouldn't be giving it up any time soon. It's a difficult habit to develop, but an even harder one to break.

The impact of having one's own personal long tail is huge. It's not about googlefu (at least it shouldn't be) but your footprint expands nonetheless. Do a google search on seersucker suit and there I am, listed third, with a vaguely relevant post. Do one on advice for authors and there I am again. Drip, drip, drip, it adds up. The hard part, as you can guess, is the first 2,500 posts. After that, momentum really starts to build.

Of course, given the lack of ads here, traffic isn't the goal, spreading ideas is. With that in mind, if you'd like to celebrate this milestone (there won't be another like it for three years or so) please go ahead and start a blog. If you already have a blog, please go ahead and post something really interesting today".

Seth is spot on, as usual! Do a search on Google for "Ikea in Cyprus" and you will find Nick's blog in the top ten on the FRONT page. This is something he wrote nearly two years ago, and yet it reaches a top spot in the natural listings. Pure, organic content. Not paid for. There in perpetuity. Drip, drip, drip ... it all mounts up to a long "tail" on Google that leads back to you and your business.

Ironically, it was almost to the day five years ago, that Nick and myself were a couple of property green-horns attending a property seminar to learn how to buy our first BTL investment. The rest as they say is history ....

So, please do not put anything off until tomorrow. The only time any of us have is NOW, as tomorrow never comes.

Write your first blog. (http://www.typepad.com/) It's free to use.
Join Twitter. (http://www.twitter.com/). It's free to use.
Use Google calender to schedule the next three months of networking events you want to attend.
Set up a Facebook account. Free to use.
Join ecademy. Free to join.
Join and contribute to our forum http://propertytribes.ning.com/forum/topics/www.propertytribes.ning.com. Free to join.
Set up a Google Reader as your "content filter".
Join Nick's "geek" forum at http://www.nicktadd.ning.com/ to learn more about social media.

But do it TODAY. In a year from now, you'll be glad you did.