Monday, January 24, 2011

Personalize Your Businesses Social Media

I Have A Reputation To Uphold! Developing A Social Media Policy.



In building your business and growing your reputation, social media is always a great way to start; especially with its cost of entry.  In your quest to become a social media star and have the highest reputation in the industry, you’ll learn that its important to mix up the message.  Bringing content to followers is an absolute must; after all, that’s the reason they began following you in the first place.  However, filling people with content alone is about as boring as those old, out of date, history textbooks you were forced to read in grade school.  You must mix up the message and deliver your own personality.

In between article delivery and video productions, add a video that you found humorous or tell about something that you encountered recently that brought laughter to your life.  Talk about things of interest to you, outside of your industry, or deliver an unrelated article to bring motivation to your followers.  Anything that tells who you are as a person and helps others to feel a little relief from their own stuffy lives.

Now, on to the meat of the matter!  Be mindful of what you are posting as your interject your own personal touch.  Saying the wrong thing, delivering the wrong message, the unflattering picture of your gut hanging out under your shirt with a beer bottle in your hand, could all play a big hand in jeopardizing your business’ reputation.  To avoid these pitfalls, it’s a wise move to put together your own social media policy.
According to Entrepreneur.com, there are at least 3 significant reasons to enforce such a policy:
1)   Protect your company’s reputation
2)   Minimize confusion about murky legal issues
3)   Raise awareness of your brand

A policy can go a long way in protecting your reputation by ensuring only appropriate, flattering, and business producing items are published under your name or your company’s name.  With the right precautions taken, you can deliver your message, along with your personality, and still maintain your position as an industry professional.
Have you ever wondered, “That’s a fantastic point, but is it legal?”  We all have at one time or another and the rule of thumb is, if you can’t answer that question, don’t make assumptions.  Yes, the name of the game could very well be, “Ask for forgiveness, not for permission.”  However, when it comes to your businesses reputation and your paycheck, don’t assume; it could destroy you.

Finally, with a clear policy in place, you have to realize that you’ve given yourself clear directions for what you can and can not post or comment.  With this in mind, you can now better direct your message and come across with a keen since of knowledge to raise all important awareness for your brand.
So, don’t kill your followers with boredom that definitely could be bad business.  Murder in the first degree shouldn’t be a goal in life.  However, whether you are or not, don’t let your followers know you are the president of the Redneck Yacht Club.  Create a policy that nails down who you are and what should and should not come out of your mouth (or fingers in this instance).  Find direction, stay safe, and get noticed!
Digg Technorati Delicious StumbleUpon Reddit Facebook Google Bookmark Yahoo

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

2000 Vistors! Thank you

The Business Aesthetic Blog has hit 2,000 visitors with just 7 posts! Thank you! Now lets hit 5,000
Digg Technorati Delicious StumbleUpon Reddit Facebook Google Bookmark Yahoo

New Starbucks Logo- A Brand is Worth a Thousand Words...


It was released today that Starbucks will be unveiling their new logo for their 40th anniversary. At first I was drawn back in thinking oh no here comes another Pepsi logo. But when I took my first glance I was pleasantly surprised. Instead of trying to make their logo 3D to be considered "modern" they took away the words and just went with a clean Siren.
I think it will be pretty clear that when you are walking around with one of these, that you are drinking a Starbucks Coffee. (Or tea, or Juice, or whatever it is they make there) This brings me to a point when I start to think of my own clients who are in the process of designing a logo and their branding strategy. Of course clients always want their logo to include every aspect of their business. Ex. A real estate group that deals with buyers, but would like sellers, deals with short sales, but would like to deal with luxury real estate comes up with a name like- Los Angeles - Westside Luxury Home Sellers, Buyers Experts and Short Sell Specialists LLC. Of course Starbucks has been building their brand since 1971 so it makes sense for them to go sans words, but including every thing you do in your name is just a bit much so take notes!
Digg Technorati Delicious StumbleUpon Reddit Facebook Google Bookmark Yahoo