Online social networks and communities have been another important online tool for companies to consider when creating an overall online marketing strategy. This extends the reach and effectiveness of your basic web site by adding connected accounts on LinkedIn, Facebook, and depending on your business, MySpace. You can create a LinkedIn Group as well, if your business would benefit from an interactive space for your customers or user’s group. LinkedIn also provides an easy way for you to invite your clients to join your network, get introductions to potential clients they may know in their network, and to solicit and post customer reviews, testimonials, and recommendations.
Starting and making regular postings to a business web log or blog, would also increase your web exposure. It is important that you make regular contributions, and invite your clients to become followers of your blog. Quality is better than quantity, just make sure you are posting something regularly, perhaps shoot for weekly postings in the beginning. I follow several blogs and email newsletters, and many of my posting ideas are suggested by those sources.
Be sure to provide cross links to your online resources, so that visitors to one site and jump effortlessly from your web site to your blog and then to your LinkedIn profile or group. In my own case, I have 5 business web sites, starting at The WyzCo Group, and my web log, and my LinkedIn profile. I am members of 3 LinkedIn Groups.
My total cost? Aside from the annual fees for hosting my web site, absolutely nothing. My blog is hosted by Google on BlogSpot for free, and LinkedIn and Facebook accounts are free as well. This has helped greatly in my efforts to make my small business website produce useful leads and new business opportunities. And who wouldn’t enjoy a little more of that?
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About the Author:
I am a cybersecurity and IT instructor, cybersecurity analyst, pen-tester, trainer, and speaker. I am an owner of the WyzCo Group Inc. In addition to consulting on security products and services, I also conduct security audits, compliance audits, vulnerability assessments and penetration tests. I also teach Cybersecurity Awareness Training classes. I work as an information technology and cybersecurity instructor for several training and certification organizations. I have worked in corporate, military, government, and workforce development training environments I am a frequent speaker at professional conferences such as the Minnesota Bloggers Conference, Secure360 Security Conference in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, the (ISC)2 World Congress 2016, and the ISSA International Conference 2017, and many local community organizations, including Chambers of Commerce, SCORE, and several school districts. I have been blogging on cybersecurity since 2006 at http://wyzguyscybersecurity.com