Gain Social Media Followers With Your Email Address

Followers

Why is there such inconsistency in the use of email addresses across social media websites?

In my line of work I connect with internet users across many platforms and social media websites.  It surprises me to see how many times someone linked with Twitter, for example, has a different email address from their LinkedIn or Facebook account.  Inexplicably, some social network users even have a specific address for each service.  If you are guilty of this inconsistency then take heed, it is costing you followers.  Let me explain why.

Many social media websites have a “Find Friends” service.  This often works by connecting to your own address book and linking your email contacts with accounts on the social media website. You will have noticed this facility when signing up to a social media network.  Usually you are first asked “Do you want us to search your address book for users?” before being directed to the “Find Friends” service.

So take advantage of this facility, but use the same address across social networks.  In this way it will be easier for users of Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, etc., to find, follow, and make a connection with you when they in turn use the “Find Friends” service.

The advantage in address consistency applies equally to branding. If you have, for example, a brand name on Twitter, you will benefit by using it not just for general communications but order confirmations.  The likelihood is that your customers will save your details in their address book.  When they subsequently search for connections, your brand will then appear.

If you are a company employee and recognised mainly by your business email address, the same principles in consistency apply. Should you later change employers, update your email address on social network sites.

One last piece of advice.  Whenever you sign up to social media networks ensure you select any options (such as the Twitter setting) of “Allow contacts to find me using my email address.”  

If you want more tips on hot topics, subscribe to AGUK’s Newsletter or follow me on Twitter where you’ll also see details of my Workshop programme.  The next one is in March and will teach you how to become a Twitter Ninja in just 10 minutes a day. Click Here for details.

 

Keeping tabs on your company with Google Alerts

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A piece of advice I frequently give business owners is to keep track of what information is “out there” about their company.  It is vitally important to know what is being said about you, and by whom, so you can respond accordingly.

One of the fundamental ways to do this is by entering your name, or that of your business, in a search engine such as Google.  While this is easy to do, it can be time-consuming if you have to trawl through pages of results to spot anything new.

A faster method, and one I recommend, is to use Google Alerts.  This is a free service from Google, with additional advantages.  You can, for example, set your own search terms so that Google emails you when it finds references matching your criteria.  You can also specify the frequency of your alerts.  The insatiably curious can request an alert “As it happens”, or opt for a more casual notice of “Once a week.”  My preference is “Once a day”.

Google Alerts is beneficial because of its comprehensive search.   Its results will include anything on the internet, including social media sites such as FaceBook, Twitter and LinkedIn. You can use this service not only to monitor what is being said about you and your company, but about your suppliers, customers and competitors.  In other words, it keeps you in the loop.

Let me know how you get on with Google Alerts.

 

How do I add my picture to blog comments and contacts?

This is a question that has been put to me a few times, both in person and online.  In my opinion, adding a picture is another tool in the marketing box.  Here’s why it’s worth doing, and how to do it.

Adding your image when you can is an excellent branding opportunity.  It can appear wherever you make comments, and in other situations too, and provides more of a personal touch than a business logo.

You may have noticed that many blogs now include an image, or “avatar” (wikipedia explanation), displayed next to the comments made by a blogging individual.  The avatar is usually a picture of that actual person.

Avatars are increasingly being used in a variety of ways:  by many forums, on social networking websites and in email systems.  In addition, most modern mobile phones can download avatars into contact lists so that, when you call someone, your image will be shown on screen.

You can achieve these same marketing effects yourself by using the website Gravatar.  This stands for Globally Recognized Avatar.  All you have to do is sign up and upload your image, which is then linked to your email address.  The net result is that whenever you subsequently make a blog comment/forum post using your email address, your gravatar is automatically uploaded for you.  It’s easy and the service is free of charge. 

If you have not already seen it, this is my current gravatar:

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[Picture by Bailey Cooper Photography, now offering social media portraits at £65+VAT]

I highly recommend creating a gravatar account to help increase your personal profile and branding.  I would also recommend using a professional headshot to enhance the image and add more personality.