Introduction to the Connect Locally Series

Many businesses are using social media tools such as Facebook to promote their business and connect with potential customers. Perhaps you are one of those businesses.  In your goal of taking your business to the next level (worldwide and beyond), don’t forget to connect and support your local businesses and community organizations.   This is important for a number of reasons, including the following:

1. To Identify potential partnerships with local organizations.
2. To Share information and resources relevant to members of your community.
3. To Support your community businesses and organizations.  According to the SBA Office of Advocacy, Small local businesses are the largest employers in the U.S. and employ just over half of U.S. workers.  
4. To Gain more local exposure by becoming an active member of your business community.  You can be one of a million businesses selling widgets nationwide or one in ten well known Widget sellers in your community.
5. To Learn of local events and potential sponsorship opportunities for your business.

There are many other reasons, from both a consumer and business standpoint, to ensure that you’re connecting online with your local businesses.   Periodically, I will highlight my favorite local (Richmond, VA) Facebook and Twitter pages.  I encourage you to do the same for your area either on your own site(s) or in the comments area. Feel free to share your list of Favorite Local businesses on Facebook for your area. Even if you’re not located in the Richmond, VA area, study the following pages for tips & ideas on using social media to engage your community.

FEATURING … Five Facebook Business Pages that Richmonders Should Know About

1. MEDIA - RVA Magazine

RVA Magazine offers a unique perspective on life in Richmond, VA. You won’t find run-of-the-mill content here. The bio states that they are “a local, independent publication in Richmond, VA. Our humble little rag puts out 5,000 copies a month with a 100% pickup rate, usually within the first seven days.”
URL: http://www.facebook.com/RVAMAG

2. FOR THE CONNOISSEUR -  Wine and Beer Westpark

If you’re a fan of beer and wine, you definitely want to follow Wine and Beer Westpark. They keep it simple. It’s all about beer and wine. I love the fact that they seem to have a loyal local following and very engaged readership on Facebook. They are also very active in terms of events hosted at their location. They’ve incorporated the use of media, specifically photos, very well on their Facebook page.
URL: http://www.facebook.com/WineandBeerWestpark

3. THE ARTS - Richmond Center Stage

Everyone is excited about the opening of Richmond CenterStage, the region’s new performing arts complex located in the heart of downtown Richmond. Find some downtime and visit the center. This is important in ensuring that the Richmond CenterStage can continue to bring the best talent to the area, as well as for ongoing economic development in the downtown area. The CenterStage’s Facebook page includes awesome photos of the venue, as well as updated information on upcoming activities.
URL: http://www.facebook.com/richmondcenterstage

4.  COMMUNITY PAGE –  Downtown Shortpump

OK, as a resident of this community, perhaps I’m a bit biased. But this page lives up to its mission which states “We are the number one source for news, events, and more in the Far West End of Richmond, Virginia.” Trevor Dickerson, Founder & Managing Editor, has done a stellar job in creating a community Facebook page that serves its members. The content is focused. They’ve included the use of media well, specifically video and photos. This is the page where I obtain news about my community that doesn’t make the local television news. Sponsorship and advertising opportunities are clearly stated on the information tab. If you’re not a community resident, take a note of how you can create tightly focused content for your audience.
URL: http://www.facebook.com/downtownshortpump

5.  SMALL/FAMILY BUSINESS - Pino’s Pizza Italian Family Restaurant

Everything from the page profile picture to the messages on the wall demonstrates why this establishment has been open in Richmond since 1984. Even if you don’t like pizza, you can learn from a bit from their Facebook page. If you have customers, this is how you want your page to look. The wall is filled with testimonials of satisfied customers, new & old.
URL: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Richmond/Pinos-Pizza-Italian-Family-Restaurant-Richmond-VA/177966967952?v=wall&ref=search

Kishau Rogers

Kishau Rogers is the President and Founder of Websmith Group, a web application development company. Her mission is to connect businesses with the information and technologies necessary to meet their goals EFFECTIVELY. Kishau Rogers holds a Computer Science Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and has over sixteen years of experience, which includes web, application and database development. Kishau also speaks, blogs, and writes articles to educate organizations and entrepreneurs on resources and best practices for ensuring effective, dynamic and innovation web solutions.

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Growing a Real Professional Network Using Social Media

If you’re using social media tools for professional networking and to promote your business, strive to make real connections. Do this by connecting with people that have the same objectives and a desire to have your online communications evolve into a real connection.

Advantages

A few advantages to using social media tools for networking are:

1. It allows you to connect with much more people than the average attendance at a local networking event.
2. It allows you to evaluate people and their business activities in a way that in-person networking does not allow. You can immediately view their bio, review their web pages and blogs and even Google them if you have time.
3. It provides a system for automatically organizing your connections. You don’t need to CardScan or type in the information from the stack of cards you would obtain from an in-person networking event.

Disadvantages

The disadvantages are actually the same as the advantages.

1. It allows you to connect with much more people than the average attendance at a local networking event. As your number of connections increase, you will find that it’s almost impossible to connect with everyone on your list. You could lose the opportunity to make a valuable connection because you simply don’t have the time to review everyone’s bio, blog and web page. You have to work too.
2. It allows you to evaluate people and their business activities in a way that in-person networking does not allow. You can immediately view their bio, review their web pages and blogs and even Google them if you have time. This is an advantage and a disadvantage. Some of the connections that you make offline may not have “made the cut” if you had a chance to review their bio, blog and web page. Due to the volume of potential connections that people can make on the internet, most people have developed some hard standards (sometimes subconsciously) for determining when to make a connection. Standards such as the quality of your web page, how often you post to your blog, if there are typos in your bio, your bio photo and how many other connections you’ve made. And if you’re new ‘on the scene’, you have to pass an initiation phase that proves that you’re not a spammer. This is usually accomplished by enlisting the support of friends, family members and former coworkers. God help you if you don’t have friends, family members and coworkers to get you started (sarcasm alert).
3. It provides a system for automatically organizing your connections. This is an advantage and disadvantage because while it saves you time, it awakens the ego. Unless you’re a robot, human nature will prevail and you’ll start to play the numbers game. This is the game where you monitor your connection numbers like your blood pressure and cholesterol scores. Always trying to ensure that you appear “well connected”. The data is right there in front of you and each time you log in, the system will remind you of where you fall on the lame scale. Connections entered locally, on your PC, aren’t compared and measured against someone else’s Outlook database. Connections maintained online are analyzed and evaluated to death and you get to witness the final verdict.

The Problem

Avoid falling pray to the disadvantages mentioned above. This could lead to an over inflated “network” that is essentially filled with a bunch of folks that don’t know you from a can of paint. And some of them don’t even want to know you; your job in their eyes is to stay on their list (so their numbers don’t decrease) and to not start any trouble.

Phony “connections” are simply not effective for professional networking.

Let’s take a moment to be honest and clear, people use social networking tools such as LinkedIn for a reason … not simply for kicks and giggles.

If you plan to use social media tools to promote your business or to build/enhance professional relationships and you have thousands of connections, but you haven’t made it past the introductory phase or don’t feel comfortable emailing them a simple greeting or announcement, you have not made a connection at all. You’ve simple padded your numbers with phony connections that are potentially meaningless. If you’re growing your professional network and promoting your business, what good is there in having 3,000 LinkedIn connections if you’re ignored or tagged as a spammer the moment you send them a message?

The Solution

Be honest about your intentions, find others with similar objectives and reduce your connections down to something that is real and meaningful to get an accurate picture of your network. A good rule of thumb is to send a friendly greeting (“Hello!”) and an open ended question (“What’s going on with you?”) to anyone that you choose to “connect” with on sites such as LinkedIn. UPDATE: Be sure to personalize your initial message so that the receive will know that you actually wrote the message. Also, when you receive a response, respond to it. Many “spammers” use auto responders to automatically send similar messages; you will want to ensure that you stand out from that pack. This message is an attempt to find a common thread and to express your objective to further the conversation. If within a reasonable amount of time, you don’t receive a response, you have my permission to delete them.

Make It Real!

Kishau Rogers

Kishau Rogers is the President and Founder of Websmith Group, a web application development company. Her mission is to connect businesses with the information and technologies necessary to meet their goals EFFECTIVELY. Kishau Rogers holds a Computer Science Degree from Virginia Commonwealth University and has over sixteen years of experience, which includes web, application and database development. Kishau also speaks, blogs, and writes articles to educate organizations and entrepreneurs on resources and best practices for ensuring effective, dynamic and innovation web solutions.

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