Social Media – What’s it all about, Alfie? Just when you think you’re coming to grips with how, what, where and why – it changes. Blogs, Facebook, Twitter, – that’s fine you say, but then comes along Google Plus, Pinterest and you’re back to the books learning what’s-what and whether it’s worth it. And just as you’re starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, the road bends and signs for something called thefancy.com start appearing. Enough we say. It’s time to turn confusion into clarity. This month we’re not just looking at what social media is about, more importantly, we’re looking at what sites offer the best return for your time and energy. We’ll examine how to create the best social media strategy for your objectives and how to avoid the pitfalls and detours on the path to social media success.

Avoid the Kardashian Effect

Just because they’re everywhere, it doesn’t mean that they’re actually doing anything. Same thing with social media. You don’t need to be on every site – just the ones that will have the most impact to your business and target audience. An empty presence on a multitude of sites won’t achieve anything. There’s nothing worse than seeing an old Facebook page or a Twitter post talking about last year’s Oscars. Your social media presence is a reflection of your image. Do you really want to be perceived as outdated and irrelevant?

Veni, Vidi, Vici

You can’t just jump head first into social media marketing. It takes time, manpower, dedication and perseverance. You’re a jeweler – not a social media expert. Sure there are companies that will create and execute a social media strategy for you, but don’t be tempted to ‘hire’ an expert for what can be a not insignificant retainer. Instead, take some time and check out the sites we’ve talked about above. Ask employees of differing ages what sites they visit. Ask friends, family and chatty customers which social media sites they find most interesting.

How Do You Measure Up?

Just how do you plan to measure whether your social media campaign is working? Sales? Referrals? Visits to your site? Or are you viewing it as a pure ‘getting the message out there’ tool. Let’s be quite clear – social media marketing is not all about sales. Social media is about developing an engaged community, developing relationships and increasing interest. Once you have established a relationship and built a level of influence through being authentic and sharing value to the community, leads and sales will follow.

Manage your expectations….

If you’re expecting over night results – switch off the light and call it a day. There’s no magic button or enchanted site that will produce instant results. It takes time. People need to trust you, decide they like what you have to offer (this might not only be product, but information) and feel engaged enough times that they want to pass on the buzz. That means original content. Not just good, but GREAT images, as well as a twist in the tale. It’s not just about your merchandise – you have to show the added benefits that you provide to the market.

Next week, we take a look at some of the top social media sites and see which you should be buzzing about and which are more hype than help.