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Business Women's Cafe. Online networking for women in business and female entreprenuers. Join us!
What is Social Networking for Business?
Social networking is the ability to communicate with an extended contact group. You initially build a group of contacts that you know and add to this group using the contacts of your initial contacts.
Businesses can use the extended contact network to target other businesses. The extended contact network is built using the internet. This means that you can talk in sound bytes directly to the contacts of your contacts which increases your overall reach and influence.
The social part of ‘social networking’ describes how the relationships need to be based upon more than business. In the same way that you would not go to a face to face networking meeting and do nothing but sell, you don’t only sell in a social networking environment.
Share information and contacts as well as personal things about yourself – allow people to get to know a part of you (remembering that it is a global environment).
There are a number of applications that assist in the social networking process. Popular examples are LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. And the Business Women's Cafe! Each site has its own use and allows you to reach your extended contacts in its own way. I use a combination of different social media sites in order to reach different audiences.
There are a number of common themes between the sites however.
Strategy - Before you start social networking, work out your strategy. What do you want to get from the networking? Contacts, brand building, feedback from your customers, hits on your website, information or what?
Policy - You will need to check whether your company has a policy on social networking. If you are the owner, you can decide whether you want your employees to engage with the sites and if so, which ones and how.
Profile - You must register with a profile. This includes information about your business, a picture of you – probably not your business logo and a link to your website or blog. Your profile will be used to find you initially and once found, to promote your business and to encourage people to go to your website. Some sites only allow you 160 characters, others are limitless. It is worth crafting a number of different paragraphs containing your SEO keywords to use with different sites.
Etiquette - Your online presence should reflect your business, just like your face to face presence. If you would talk politely and thank your customers or contacts in a face to face environment, you should do the same online. I am amazed at the number of people that don’t thank me if I promote them through online media or in fact people who think it is OK to swear in an online environment.
Communication – Remember that you are talking to people – have conversations, share information and share contacts. Generally, I find “what goes around, comes around” is true for online networking as well as face to face networking.
Business versus Personal - There is definitely an overlap between personal and business networking. Some of your business colleagues may also be personal friends, but it is up to you to decide right up front how far you want that crossover to go. Some people share stories of their children and family – they will display pictures of their family on their facebook page for example – that’s not what I choose to do. Do whatever you are comfortable with.
Global - Remember with all these sites that if you are using them for business, you need the world to be able to see them. There is no point using social networking to market your business, if you hide your profile so nobody can see it. But remember that everybody can see what you say – both positive, negative and personal!
There is no ‘right’ way to use Social Networking – just give it a go to benefit you and your business!
Mary Thomas.
Please do connect with me on twitter @concisetraining and become a fan of my facebook page www.bit.ly/ct_facebook
If you would like more information, contact me on 01865 522658 or
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Mary
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Business Women's Cafe online netwokring for women in business and female entreprenurs.
Netbook or Laptop?
As my netbook stopped working after TWO power surges in my office, I had no choice but to get another one fast!But should I get a laptop or stick with a netbook?What sort of memory, do I want to stick with Windows Vista or get the new Windows 7?
Well with the help of hubby we sat down and narrowed the search to three!
Acer Aspire 5732Z, 15.6 inch WXGA LCD, Intel Pentium Duel Core T3400, 3GB RAM, 250GB, DVD-RW, Windows 7 Home Premium, WebCam – the one I bought!
This is a fabulous laptop and even though it is bigger than the notebook I had, I really enjoy the bigger screen. This is really great value and comes with the new Windows 7 (to be honest I did not know anything about it). So what does this laptop do – well:
Windows 7 which is really easy to use and you can gain access to your files more easily when they are open.
Pentium Dual Processer which means that all your favourite applications will run faster than ever (this is amazing as I used to turn on my previous laptop and make a cup of tea for it to open apps and connect to wifi!)
· 250GB Hard Drive – so plenty of space to add all your music and favourite movies
· Integrated webcam for your video conference calls on Skype or with family and friends.
· 5-in-1 card reader – this is brill as I can just remove my camera memory card and upload the images direct to my laptop.
· CD ROM drive
· 2 USB ports
· Microphone
· Headplugs
· Battery life up to 2.5 hours (a real plus for me!!)
Overall I am very pleased with this purchase and it is very good value especially as it includes Windows 7.
Here are the links to find out more:
ACER ASPIRE 5732Z with Webcam - £431
ACER ASPIRE 5732 without webcam - £384
For the extra £50 it is worth having the webcam, for work – conference calls and for home with some many family and friends abroad! Just load up SKYPE – and its free to talk with your family and friends and see them at the same time.
Sue and I are always on Skype doing our conference calls!!
Acer Aspire One D250, 10.1-Inch Netbook, Intel Atom N270, 1.6 GHz, 1 GB RAM, 160 GB, XP Home, up to 3 Hours Battery Life, Webcam, Wifi (Blue)
I also looked at this one as it is cheaper at £234.00 but as they say you get what you pay for, so below I will list the difference between the ACER D250 and ACER ASPIRE 5732Z:
· 1GB of memory as opposed to 4GB
· 160GB Hard Drive as opposed to 250GB
· Smaller screen
· No CDROM
· Windows XP Operating System and not Windows 7
· Its a netbook as opposed to a laptop and therefore much smaller ie screen and the keys. This may be a better option for occasional use rather than an every day computer.
· May be better suited to students for coursework etc
· Good value for money
Karen Margerison
www.bloomhost.net
Helping your business grow through Internet Marketing
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Here are some handy tips to make your online networking effective;
- Profile; Spend time on your profile – make sure members know what you do and the benefits you offer. Update when you have something new to say.
- Business Messages; Consider your business message and make sure that your online output ( blogs and forum postings etc) is consistent to it.
- Call to action; what is it that you want members to do? Visit your website, call you, visit your profile? Define this, and then ask them, giving them the information they need to do so. Otherwise members won’t know what you want them to do.
- Time; Decide how much time you want to spend networking online. Too little can result in low results and too much may stray into mindless surfing territory!
- Objectives; Stick to your objectives and review progress – if something is working do more of it, if not change tactics – one way to improve your online success is to ask the community what works for them by posting questions in the Discussion forums!
- Tools; learn how to use the online tools then decide which to try. If you are not that IT savvy, learn them one at a time!
- Security; review what information you are comfortable in sharing, about yourself, and your business details, and make sure your profile gives only the information you are ok with the world knowing. If you do choose to meet someone offline, make sure you know they are who they say they are.
- Connect; make contact with other members, you can expand your network this way, and on the principle of ‘Six Degrees of Separation’ you never know who you may know who knows someone very useful to you!
- Community; Give as well as receive; communities benefit by all contributing in some way and by playing your part, however small, can ensure the community grows successfully for all.
- Offline; online contacts can become offline customers , suppliers or new business opportunities, so get to know people online, make your decision that you want to progress the contact, then take the next step and arrange to meet or talk on the phone.
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An online business networking website said that it took 10 years to build it’s first 100,000 members, and it has doubled that number in the last year.
What this means is that online networking, whether it excites and inspires you, or makes you want to throw your PC out of the window, it is a growing media and is set to become even more significant in our lives.
What’s all the fuss about, and how do you, as a woman in business, decide to take advantage of this growing media to further your business aims and objectives?
Definitions
Firstly, a definition; online networking can be defined as a web-based activity where individuals come together to build communities for shared interest and like minded activities. So, Business Women's Cafe is an online networking for women in business and female entrepreneurs.
Put simply, online networking is about knowledge and opportunity; sharing and receiving the first, and making the most of the second.
Benefits.
There are lots of benefits of online networking, for women specifically;
- Cost Effective; It reaches large numbers of people for little or no cost; so is a very good investment of your time and revenue.
- Time Efficient; It is a fast way of growing your business community; inviting others into the community or connecting online is a very quick way of saying hello and as a first contact, with a new customer or supplier, can take seconds via your keyboard. Which means that it makes the best use of your time.
- Convenient; you decide when you are going to network online. We have a saying at the Café; Networking in your Pyjamas! What this means is that online networking can be fitted into your business and home schedule, which is what makes it particularly useful for women in business, as many juggle work and family commitments.
- Community; recent research has shown that women’s enterprise can develop if women are mentored to meet the challenges they face. An online community of women can provide the support and knowledge that women need.
To learn more, carry on reading…
Your Objectives?
If you are networking online for business growth, the first rule is to treat it like any other marketing activity, and decide what your objectives are.
You may of course want to network online for social reasons with likeminded women to sound off, get some support or to have fun. It’s up to you, and at the Café you can do either or both.
In defining your objectives, remember my point about online networking is about knowledge and opportunity; so your objectives may be a mix of both, so consider;
- What can I learn?
- What can I share with the community that would benefit it and me?
- Who would I like to meet?
- What kind of customers am I looking for?
- What kind of suppliers do I need to find?
- What support and advice do I need both in business and holistically?
- Am I working on a push or a pull strategy?
That last point may be key to your online business activity – do you want to spend time approaching others, either by connecting with them or visiting their websites, or do you want to create an online presence that delivers members to connect with you? This point can determine your actual activity online, so consider what you are comfortable with.
Online marketing is one part of your marketing mix, so make sure that your objectives are consistent with the rest of your activity to get the best business result.
Example Objectives;
- If your objective is to drive members to your website, then make sure you put your web address at the bottom of every blog or posting, mention it in the posting and also check once you have posted that the links work!
- If your objective is to get potential clients to call you, then make sure your phone number is clearly displayed at every opportunity and let people know when you are available.
- If your objective is to raise awareness so people visit your profile and connect with you, then make sure you are regularly posting, blogging, and creating and joining groups.
- If your objective is to find new customers then make a list of your ‘ideal customer’, and blog about this subject regularly – so members can identify with it and connect with you. Plus search the member database for members who fit the profile, and connect with them.
- If your objective is to learn, then make time in your schedule to spend time online doing so.
- If your objective is to be known as an expert, then upgrade to Gold, post your own articles, pictures and become a Café Expert in the Forums.
Once you have decided on your objectives, then you can set up your profile and begin using the many online tools available to you.
Help with Internet Marketing - recommended books
Business Women's Cafe: women in business and female entreprenurs netwokring online! ... |
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Business Women's Cafe; women in business and female entrepreneurs networking online. Join us here!
KEYWORD RESEARCH ON A BUDGET
Over the past three years I have written about Keywords several times. I make no apology for this as it is still as true today as it was when I first wrote it in September 2006 - Keywords are King!
But nearly three years ago I would not have said anything positive about Google's own keyword tool. That has all changed now.
Google's Keyword Tool is free and it is one of the easiest and cheapest ways to quickly pull together several hundred highly relevant keywords for a Google Ad campaign.
It can also be very useful if you are looking for the best keywords to use on your website and you don't want to subscribe to one of the paid tools (e.g. Wordtracker).
There is a lot of valuable information available to you, but I think the following two features are particularly useful . . .
· Keyword Local Search Volume (monthly number of searches in the UK)
· Advertiser Competition
‘Competition' refers to Google Ads competition, but generally keywords which face stiff competition in the paid results also face stiff competition in the organic results. So these results can give you a reasonable idea of where to do more research.
For example, when researching the phrase ‘winter clothing' and related keywords, we see the main phrase ‘winter clothing' had 6,600 searches in the UK in April but faces stiff competition, as indicated by the green bar graph - see below.
However, the search term ‘ladies winter clothes' doesn't face nearly as much competition. So it may be a better keyword phrase to target even though it gets far less traffic.
Also notice that ‘winter baby clothing' is much less competitive than ‘baby winter clothes' and yet it is used as a search term nearly as often. So it would be a much better keyword phrase to target on your website.
You can repeat this research for all the keyword phrases you believe are relevant and create a short list to consider.
The next step is to find out how many website pages are competing for each of your shortlisted keyword phrases.
To do that you need to go to Google's search page and type in your candidate phrase inside double quotes – “winter baby clothing”
The number of results is the number of website pages in the UK which have been well optimised for this phrase – in this case only two!
Then repeat for each of your candidate keywords.
By the way, this is what the paid Keyword Research tools will do for you automatically and for a long list of keywords rather than one at a time.
But if you don't want to pay for a tool you will only use now and then, Google's Keyword Tool will do what you need.
This author is the most respected adwords expert and his books are the place to begin for your own education.
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 As well as traditional means of communication with customers, you may want to try social media.
According to Robert Kozinets, associate
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Those of us who run networking websites get very exited about all the great tools we provide to our members, however as we have spent ages developing them, that means we know all about them and you, unless you are a seasoned online networker, may be wondering what they are all about!
Here is a simple rundown of the main online networking tools available ;
- My profile; is your space online to tell people who you are and what you do. Also included is ‘my last visitors’ which tells you who has visited you, so you can follow up with chat or more information.
- Private message; messages that you can send to other members online- the benefit is that you can send and receive so building up an online dialogue with potential new customers or suppliers. And when you have mail, it makes you feel good!
- Connections; a way of saying hello and introducing yourself. Expands your network for business or social reasons.
- Blogs; a way of letting the community know who you are and what you do. Blogs can be short or very long, can be specifically business topics or about you and your life in general. Very useful as a way of members getting to know the person behind the profile.
- Communities; groups that members can join for specific interest, so you can meet with women who are interested in the things that you are. Gold members can create groups so be leaders of discussions and set agendas.
- Discussion Forums; the public chat rooms for the community, can be used to ask questions of other members (Gold members can be Experts) or just discuss what’s topical for women in business and our lives. Very useful also for asking for advice or to meet a particular supplier or contact.
- Articles; available to Gold members, a space attached to your profile so you can upload more information about your business, or case studies, or information that helps members decide to choose you.
- Gallery; available to Gold members, very good for uploading pictures of your products or your events.
- Marketplace; accessible to members and visitors of the website, this is your online business listing .Free to Gold members.
- Development; for a learning experience for all members, or to promote your learning information if you are a Gold member.
- Member Events; Gold members advertise their events here so you can learn or meet with like minded women
- In The Spotlight; front page PR for Gold members and where members can read and be inspired by the stories of fellow businesswomen!
And Finally
Online networking is like any other business or social activity – you get out of it what you put in. And there is one way to learn, as a famous sports company advert says – just do it!... |
Business Women's Cafe - women in business and female entrepreneurs networking online! Register for free here!
Blogging Basics
A recent study showed that 53% of women use social media weekly and that their favourite source of help and advice was by reading blogs.
Women like to communicate and share, and so here is a handy guide so you can contribute to your blog community
What is a blog?
Blogs are either online diaries or commentaries,for personal or business use.
In a business context, blogs are usually used as a PR or advertising tool.
Everyone has their own style - some people write blogs as an extended advert, others include more personal comments.
It’s really about what works, and the only way to find out what works for you is to write one!
Why would I bother?
Lots of people in business are doing it, so there must be some benefits! Such as;
· It’s a free or low cost way to communicate with customers. Traditional advertising costs money, as does PR, and a blog can do both. Registered members of Business Women’s Cafe can blog for free.
· It’s a way of people getting to know you – and people buy from people ( that’s why networking works)
· Blogs showcase your particular knowledge and expertise- building trust, so business relationships.
· You can actually make money out of it – yes, get paid for advertising your business rather than pay for it! This happens when you have a blog website that other companies will pay to advertise on.
Where can I blog?
1. On social business networking sites - like Business Women’s Café!
2. On special blogging websites
3. By creating your own blog website
4. By having a blog function within your existing website
As this is a ‘blog basics’ guide, we’ll focus on the social business networking option for now. Within your membership profile, there is something called a ‘blog dashboard’, which is a tool that lets you write and publish your blogs on Business Women’s Café.
Blogs on our website are not just read by members – they are linked to the front page and can be browsed by all our visitors to the website – so a good opportunity to be read by lots of people.
How do I blog?
To find out how to actually use the blog dashboard and other tips, you can read a posting in the forum by clicking here.
Here are 10 top tips to begin your blogging career;
1. Be yourself. It’s your voice people want to hear, people buy from people!
2. Decide on your topic and stick to it! You can tell it as a story, however rambling off will have your readers doing the same! And if you keep it simple, it means if you are not brilliant at writing you only have a small piece to do – 150 words is fine if that’s all you can manage.
3. Write it offline first, in either Word or Notepad or similar. Gives you time to read it, save it and amend it.
4. Read other people’s blogs to find out how! When you read them, you’ll soon decide if you are interested or not, then ask yourself ‘ why do I want to keep reading this?’ and then do the same things in your blog.
5. Grab your reader’s attention in the first paragraph, by putting yourself in their position and asking’ what’s in it for me?’ What are they going to get out of reading your blog. Which leads on to…..
6. Add value for your reader, by giving away top tips, advice, useful links, opinions on events or other good stuff that makes them feel pleased they bothered to read you.
7. Include a ‘call to action’. What is it that you want your readers to do? Call or email you, click through to your website, refer you? Decide and then make sure that the blog clearly delivers the call to action. So then…
8. Make sure your blog has; links to your website, your email address , and/or your phone number so readers can contact you.
9. Monitor your visit rate. On ‘my blogs’ in your profile page you can see how many visits you have had. If a particular blog is popular, do more of it! And if you have had lots of visits,
10. Keep doing it! One blog does not make a relationship and if you want to build up a readership that can convert into customers then repeatedly popping up is a good way to do this.
Begin your blog career with Business Women's Cafe - registration is free!
We reccommend from Amazon.co.uk:
Blogging For Dummies - learn the basics, easy explanations and good tips.
Publish & Prosper - Blogging for Your Business - learn the secrets of blogging with a business focus
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Newsletters are a good marketing tool for women in business - cost effective, and keep your business in the mind of your potential customers.
10 Top Tips is a way to begin, or improve on your current performance:
- Have an objective for your newsletter – decide why you are publishing your newsletter and keep to it
- Set a schedule …when your readers know when to expect your newsletter they are more likely to read it
- …. And stick to it – to make sure you keep in regular contact with your readers. Because ad hoc marketing does not work
- Choose the right day, depending on what sort of newsletter you are writing and who you are writing to
- Choose your structure and format. Keeping to it will make it easier to write your newsletter and make it easier for your readers to read it
- Choose the right way to send it that is easiest for you to use and gets your message across
- Plan the way it’s going to look – make it look as professional as possible
- Be selective about who you send your newsletter to – because a small group of loyal readers will do more for you than a large group who do not really know you
- Embrace rejection and don’t take it too personally. Not everyone will want to work with you, but there are plenty
- Work hard at growing your mailing list and spread the word about what you do to people who really want to hear from you.
Need effective email marketing software? 1&1 Hosting have a range of products to help you succeed click here for more details
Produced by Chantal Cornelius - click here to view her profile.
Business Women's Cafe women in business female entrepreneurs networking online
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 Women in business should see advertising as an investment rather than a cost, an expert has claimed.
Speaking at a recent
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