What social media can do for your business

Social media is no longer a gimmick or cool toy for geeks.  It’s an established platform that can advance multiple phases of your business, including marketing, sales, customer service, and recruiting.

Here are a few of its uses.  Of course just because you can doesn’t mean you should.  Social media is a means not an end.  Just like any program, make sure you first have a strategic, operational, and accountable plan that serves your marketing and business goals.

What Social Media Can Do Branding Distribute company news * Learn what people are saying about you Promote Positioning Establish Expertise Internet Increase web site traffic Improve search engine rankings Other Marketing PR & Communications Product updates * Industry news * Competitive news Sales * Increase Leads Run Promotions Improve sales Promote discontinued/distressed sales Retain customers Customers Learn Problems * Solicit Suggestions Enable questions Other Promote open jobs Seek Funding Run background checks * Top 5 small business uses according to a survey in Ad-ology Marketing Forecast 2010