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Social media has recently become recognized as an important tool for any organization or business which wishes to have direct access to its consumers or clients. Here is how Wikipedia briefly describes social media's role in internet marketing: "The term "Social media" was used first after LinkedIn created their social network application around 2004. The term has risen steadily since July 2006.[2] At that time, this Wikipedia article on "social media" defined it as a term "used to describe media which are formed mainly by the public as a group, in a social way, rather than media produced by journalists, editors and media conglomerates." [3] Ever since, the term was used by people who built applications that supported the concept, spoke at conferences to help embrace the idea of social networking and communicating with others through the newly available technology rather than through print and other industrial media. ... Primarily, social media depend on interactions between people as the discussion and integration of words to build shared-meaning, using technology as a conduit. Social media has been touted as presenting a fresh direction for marketing by allowing companies to talk with consumers, as opposed to talking at them.[5]" As more and more people have become comfortable with doing business online, brick and mortar operations have closed and moved on to cyber space. Rayela Art is an example of a business which once had a physical presence in a Chicago community and now operates online with a world wide customer base. (See About) Financially, this makes complete sense to businesses that are product based. The overhead generated by brick and mortar businesses can be prohibitive in communities where rents or real estate are high, where the cost of utilities continue to escalate and where banking takes a significant cut of generated sales. A small business can effectively run a similar operation if they have the technical knowledge to get their product to market. This includes skills such as photography, ability to write, inputting data, and timely delivery and customer service. Even mediocre skills have been enough to make a concept like eBay successful beyond anyone's dreams. What is missing is the the community aspect. When I had my stores, I was deeply impacted by the difference my shops made in the neighborhoods where they were located. I had regular customers that would stop in daily to shop, to chat or to play with my dog.
Mitchie at Dara Tribal Village Just a few year ago, businesses were scrambling to get their websites online. That is no longer enough. Websites are sterile and static. They speak at the customer. When blogging came on to the scene, expectations changed so that now customers and clients want to be able to contribute their two cents of opinion, if they have them. Large marketplaces like Amazon or Best Buy have their static websites with customer input built in to product reviews. Customers can rate their purchases and service, creating the appearance of accountability and reliability for the product. I see all of this as a thirst for community. "OK, we can get whatever we want online, but who are you? How can I trust you? Where are the Mom and Pop operations that used to be in my neighborhood. Oh, now you are in another state, but why should I buy from you?" The demand for community thrusts the small business into a quandary. Although it may appear to be relatively easy to get your products online, every step involves time-consuming activities that easily evolve into a full-time job. Now time has to be built in to address this need for getting to know the real person behind the product. So, a blog is started. Then, you realize that over 50,000 blogs are started a day. Now that blog has to be listed on the many blog networks. Oh, and your people want you to get on facebook, and linked-in and plaxo, and on and on... Finally, you have a community who loves to chat with each other (same as petting the dog), but then you don't have enough time to focus on your product. A quandary indeed. Social media is relatively new, yet it has changed the nature of doing business online permanently. A business or organization that wants to run with the wolves will have to jump in and make its cyber-face known. There are definite advantages to this, too, that go beyond developing customer loyalty or product branding. Immediate feedback on new designs or programs can help a business or organization decide where to invest its resources. One of the challenges I have experienced in my business is that as technological access has grown worldwide, so has competition for my product. When I started selling on eBay, there were a handful of us selling ethnic crafts. Back then we were all on dial-up and digital cameras were still a fortune. So, we used real film for product photos and scanned them in. We were the avant-garde. Now, literally, competition comes straight from Timbuktu, Kathmandu and all those "exotic" places of yesteryear. They can undercut me on anything I sell that is from their country of origin so I have to rely on my other qualities that will make up for the price difference: prompt shipping, excellent product descriptions, and a historical record of doing good business. Above all, I have to sell myself. That's the danger of making business too personal. What if something silly is said on facebook? How many customers will be lost? Well, like in a brick and mortar store, social media provides the soul and in that give and take, there may be fall-out. I don't worry too much about this as I both love my product and what I do, but that is something to consider when the small business owner might have a bumpy personality. Social Media already encompasses a vast network of sites that offer businesses and organizations that elusive promise of being found in the universe of cyber-space. This will only continue to grow. Some will fail, others will thrive. Social Media has replaced traditional advertising venues with the hopes that a product or idea will be so well liked by the public that it will generate viral marketing. As the name suggests, this nugget is passed on from one group to another through links which make it easy to share the information for free with one's peers. A sneeze and the others catch it. Widgets and gadgets in personal blogs are added in the hopes that the reader will like the post, send it off to all the favorite places, and generate business because I am beloved. That is the hope, anyway... The following list is identified by Wikipedia as the current hot spots for social media venue. You will find Rayela Art next to the ones where I have a presence with my business. Click on it to see what my business looks like on that platform:
What business person has the time to sit around and get on all of these sites and seriously promote their business and pet everybody else's dogs? Fortunately, many of these sites are integrating themselves with each other. I personally have no patience for Twitter, yet I know many of my friends really enjoy thumbing through their Tweets. I'm on there, but not really. All of my Rayela Art Facebook posts get sent on over to Twitter and to LinkedIn. These sites are only the tip of the iceberg as there are forums and other sites where folks gather to pet each other's dogs. I have a hate and love relationship with this cyber world. I hate being tied to the computer all day (and it has had some physical ill effects), but I truly value the relationships that have developed with people who I may never meet in real life. I liken it to enjoying a really good book and corresponding with the author. Every business person needs to seriously evaluate how they can best use these tools to promote their products and services, build community and still have a life apart from that screen. I have tried to structure my days so that I work on my business in the mornings, do something active in the afternoon and go back to the monitor in the evenings and nights. I have friends who take their laptops to cafes or other public places so that they are engaged with both their immediate and cyber communities at the same time. (Yikes!) I have decided that my best use of time is on my blog and on facebook. As my blog developed, I also felt the need to have a more interactive community of fiber artists and textile people who were interested in multicultural dialogue. Thus, The Fiber Focus Group was born. Over 300 members shared their work and ideas with each other, relationship building that carried over to the other social media sites. In February, 2010, I launched TAFA: The Textile and Fiber Art List. Members from Fiber Focus were the first to join TAFA and a few months later, Ning, the hosting site for Fiber Focus, announced that it would start charging $20 a month in hosting fees. I was already having a difficult time managing both groups so I decided to close the Fiber Focus Group. It was a shame as it had served a great purpose in giving me the insight into the social media needs of the group. I try to keep up with the trends and use many of the other social media sites to do research and to build on what I am doing. It has been interesting and almost frightening to me to see that the world has become divided into literates and illiterates on many levels now, not only on the basic one where reading and writing simple text is required. Many of my peers resist using social media to promote their work and I believe that to do so is equivalent to advertising in your local neighborhood rather than to the world. That may be fine, but it also may be the death of an online business. Are you overwhelmed with all these choices? As a technical assistance provider, I can help you evaluate a plan of action that will work for you. I can help you develop an online presence for your business and train you how to use these tools to your advantage. email me
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