Measuring the ROI of their social media efforts-the United States Today

Q: like so many small business people get these days, I Suppose my feet wet with social media. I have a Facebook account and me to get involved in LinkedIn, which I very much. That all said, I am not sure that it is worth all the effort. How can I see? Jan — by Nicholas Kamm, AFP/Getty Images fileBy Nicholas Kamm, AFP/Getty Images fileA: this is an important issue for all kinds of reasons. For one, many people are increasingly spending more and more time on Facebook and similar personal reasons, and as such, secondly, it has been the place where people do buy business decisions. Via social media, they get recommendations from friends, to see targeted ads and researching companies learn from.So yes, because you must go to where eyeballs is, you should be on social media, but you must also be equally sure that you get a bang for your buck and time. How to tell:1. the bottom line: how do you know if all of your tweeting and updates and blogs and new videos are making a difference? Because you make more money, which is how. The real danger with social media is as I see it is that it is very easy to get sucked into it, to find yourself spending a lot of time with it because it is fun and exciting, and then tells youthat it is necessary. .. When really, perhaps it is not because it is not servicing financially.Yes, social networks can be a great, affordable way to build a fire and meeting new people (see below), but if you don't make more money as a result, you are doing something wrong.2. Increased analytics: I love this quote from the Mobile Marketing Association — they say that measuring the success of a new marketing campaign requires a new kind of analysis, which includes: "number of eyeballs, shakes and finger swipes. The number of blogs, articles, tweets and diggs. Number of acquisitions, conversions, calls, answer or purchase. Total basket size, withdrawal, the consumer loyalty and recommendations. Check-ins on the shoulder and check out on Amazon.3. increased traffic: quantifiable in a different way to evaluate your results: an uptick in traffic. Of course, traffic can mean all sorts of things: it may be more people reading your blog, more hits on your site, more people shopping in your e-store or more people come in the physical inventory.Here are a few ways to measure your online traffic: • Google Analytics: Google Analytics is the standard for tracking traffic, keywords, inbound links, websites, etc. • Wordpress: If you use Wordpress for your blog or a Web site, their dashboard is another great analytical tool. • TweetMeme: If you have re-tweet button on your site, TweetMeme is very useful.4. Multiple relationships: there are a lot of advantages in order to get a lot of new online friends and supporters. For example, social media at an affordable price will get your business in many new people and in addition, it can look impressive, has many followers, or people who "like" fan page.But the real value, I propose that you actually can meet and get to do business with some new associates; people you wouldn't normally meet. The people who really make money with social media and which have had a special, how you use it to grow their company actually use it to meet and create relationships.Yes, it is called not just social media, also known as the social network. Use it on the network.5. Better brand awareness: real relationships are a valuable way to measure your social media ROI, however, it is also true that another valuable advantage is that more people will learn from your company. Have many fans and supporters or have your tweets re-tweeted, increase brand awareness. Social networks, when done right, it builds your brand.While the ROI on their social media efforts may seem difficult to calculate, indeed, it is not dissimilar to the rest of your business: track it, analyze it, see what works, and do more to.Tip of the day: What does a .com or a .net product value for your company? VeriSign wants to know, and the winner gets $ 25,000. The company recently announced an international competition, who ask for small businesses the question, "where .com or .net takes the company?" Operators can visit www.DotComForSmallBiz.com or www.DotNetForSmallBiz.net submit photos and essays addressing contest theme. Ask the expert appears Mondays. You can send an email Steve Strauss at: sstrauss@mrallbiz.com.For an index for his columns, go to smallbiz.usatoday.com. Steven d. Strauss is a lawyer, author, and speaker specializing in small businesses and entrepreneurship. His latest book is the Small Business Bible. You can sign up for his free newsletter, "Small Business success secrets!" at his website — www.mrallbiz.com. Follow him on Twitter at http://twitter.com/stevestrauss.For more information about reprints and permissions, visit our FAQ. Report corrections and clarifications, contact standards Editor Brent Jones. Publication consideration in the newspaper, sending comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, telephone number, city and State for verification. View our corrections, go to corrections. usatoday.com. We updated conversation guidelines. Changes include a short review of the moderation process and an explanation of how you can use the button "report abuse". Read more.

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