When people talk about how they are using social media in the marketing efforts, Facebook and Twitter are often the first answers given.

Sure, they might be on LinkedIn. But they may currently only view it as a way for them to “collect people” – i.e. to amass connections.

If that sounds similar to how LinkedIn is utilized in your business, here is one idea for converting that connection data into a way to build relationships and generate sales.

Connections and Job Status

When someone experiences a change in their employment status, LinkedIn is often the very first social network that they update. Depending on our relationship with that person, taking action on that information can be valuable to them… and us.

I recently talked to a service provider that told me how he acts on that type of data. Here’s his story:

His company helps clients reach their marketing goals with design, print, direct mail, email, mobile, landing pages, and more.

While they have had success launching campaigns for a number of companies, they sometimes run into trouble because of high-turnover among the marketing departments that they work with. Lately, this has often occurred because of budget constraints, rather than performance.  But either way, the path to creating long-term, recurring business with those companies is not always easy when the employees change frequently.

In order to capitalize on the successes that they have helped marketers achieve, this company actively seeks to connect with those folks on social networks. Primarily, they try to do this on LinkedIn.

How LinkedIn Helps Deepen the Relationship

If a once-happy customer experiences a job change, the company still has a connection with them. For example, the company may:

• Use LinkedIn to send a personal note when the job change does occur.
• Offer up a recommendation for the person.
• Refer the person’s profile to companies where there may be a fit.

Along with those one-time actions, they will make an effort to stay in touch with them in the weeks and/or months that follow.

By staying connected and engaged to these folks, they create opportunities to receive future sales and jobs once that person is in place at a new business.

How so? Well, they were already a fan of the services provided by that company. And their appreciation of them will no doubt be deeper because of the conversations and actions that took place during the process of changing jobs. Thus, they may be apt to highly recommend that company’s services to their new employer.

Can it Help You?

Certainly, this effort takes a bit of time and determination on behalf of that service provider! But in their words, “it’s helping me grow my business!”

If you are looking for ways to use social media to create and deepen relationships, paying attention to your LinkedIn connections might be a perfect place to start.

P.S. If you’d like to connect with me on LinkedIn, here I am!

Note: This is Part 8 of a 9-Part series based on the book “Business Transformation: A New Path to Profit for the Printing Industry”

Social networking is certainly one of my favorite passions. I truly believe that it can help print, mail, fulfillment, and marketing services providers in many different areas — including marketing, sales, customer support, and HR. However, many companies still primarily view channels such as Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn as ways to simply distribute press releases.

While there certainly is a place for using social networking channels for distributing news, they can absolutely help companies in other areas.

Here are 3 ways that your company may be able to find success through social networks:

• To Provide Customer Support:We have probably all done it by now. Maybe it was to an airline or a restaurant. Perhaps it was to a manufacturer or retail store. For one reason or another, the company treated us in a way that we didn’t appreciate. Thus, we turned to social networks such as Facebook or Twitter to express our complaint to others. While it might simply feel good to let out some steam, don’t we feel much better if the company does something to react to our public grievance?The same thing could be happening to your business right now. Someone could be displeased with a print job, the time it takes to get a call back from a sales rep, or the lack of information on your website. If those folks complain on social networks, you certainly may cringe. But at least you’ll have the opportunity to know about the complaint and then address it!

  How can you know if someone’s complaining about your business online? There are absolutely tools and services that can help you.  For example, you could use Google Alerts to set up notifications for your company name. You could use Twitter’s search feature. Or you could partner with a 3^rd-party.

  No matter what the case, social networks give you the ability to listen to what people are saying and then quickly take action to provide some sort of customer support to them.

  Of course, social networks also allow you to proactively provide customer support. Through your social networking accounts, you could provide links to how-to-guides that provide suggestions and best practices for ordering a print job. You could provide links to other resources and case studies that may inspire a customer or prospect to do more business with you.

  If your customers are on Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks, then you should absolutely be there to provide support when they need it.

• For Finding Leads:This one may sound obvious, but I do not believe that companies are using social networks enough to actively find and connect with leads.One way that this can be done is to search Twitter for terms and phrases that may indicate that someone needs help with a print job. While you certainly could search for variations of the word “print”, you also could look at companies that are exhibiting at upcoming trade shows or hosting seminars. No doubt, they may have printing needs. Social networks may allow you to quickly connect with them.

  Also, LinkedIn offers plenty of opportunities for sales reps to engage with potential prospects across the verticals that they may sell to. If you take the initiative to join and contribute to the Groups that your target audience participates in, you may increase the chances that they’ll turn to you when they need your services.

• For Finding & Recruiting New Employees: When a printer is transforming their business to offer additional marketing services, they may recognize the need to find and invest in employees that may have slightly different skill-sets than they’ve looked for in the past. You may need someone that has website design skills, that can write prolifically, or that has a passion for social networking! One way to find these people is via social networks.It’s fairly easy to search for students or recent graduates from schools that traditionally produce people that are interested in the graphic arts and printing communities. Once you find them, you may be able to find out what other passions or talents they may have, and then you’ll have the opportunity to engage them in possible employment discussions.

These are just a few of the ways that companies could use social networking to improve their business. If you’ve had any success with these, I’d love to hear about it!

To learn more about my book, “Business Transformation: A New Path to Profit for the Printing Industry”, visit  my book’s website.

LinkedIn has great applications that you can add to your profile that can make it very informational to your online audience.  They help mold your LinkedIn profile into an online portfolio of your past and current work, and what your business is all about.  Here are some of my favorite applications to use for my LinkedIn profile and why:

WordPress: First of all, WordPress is a great web host if you want to manage a blog and a website with little stress.  This application allows your LinkedIn connections to view your latest WordPress blog entries as soon as you publish them.  It is a live feed that syncs up with your blog.  Using this application saves me time promoting it on LinkedIn and it shares Grow Socially’s blog information instantly with all of our LinkedIn connections.

SlideShare: My team and I spend a lot of time trying to prepare great, informative slideshows for whenever we have speaking engagements.  But once the presentation is over, it would be a great waste of time and energy to have the slideshow sit on our computers without sharing it online.  This application allows you to publish it on your profile after the presentation.  So it can be used to share with people who weren’t able to make the presentation and it is helpful to attendees of the presentation because they can go back and review it again on their own time.  We also make sure it says on our presentation handouts that the attendees are able to find the presentation and view it from SlideShare.

Reading List: Some of my employees at Grow Socially and interlinkONE enjoy adding this to their profiles.  After they read a book that is related to their industry, they are able to share that with their network.  It shows their connections that they stay up to date with trends and information of their specified industry and trade.

Tweets: Just like the WordPress application, this syncs up your Twitter feed with your LinkedIn profile.  This saves time and energy for sharing information.  Rather than posting the same information to two separate social media accounts, you can update your Twitter profile which will automatically update your LinkedIn profile.

Events: This works as a public calendar for your LinkedIn profile, so your event and other business occasions can be viewed by all of your connections.  You could use this application for conferences, seminars, speaking engagements, award ceremonies and more.  Let your audience know that your business is active in educating yourself about your industry and staying on the cutting edge of the latest trends.

LinkedIn is the only major social media site that offers these great applications.  Take advantage of them today!  They are free, informative, and they will help promote your business to all of your LinkedIn connections!

Previously I hit a few high points on what issuers and responders face when dealing with Requests for Proposals (RFPs). One factor that can send the whole RFP process downhill is the issuer’s desire to get the best results with the least amount of work.

In theory, if you really want to find the best solution at the best price, you need to talk to a lot of different suppliers and be willing to review a lot of bids. But who wants to source 100 vendors – or even 20 for that matter? In the past, I have always encouraged my clients to issue a short “Request for Information” or RFI in advance of the RFP process. Some possible goals of the RFI may be to:

• Learn about new services available in the area you are searching for bids on – for example, the latest trends in direct marketing, fulfillment or variable full-color printing.
• Vet the requirements for your upcoming RFP. Are you asking for the right services or are you looking for the best price on the leading edge solution from the 1990s? (You’d be surprised how many RFP’s read like the latter!)
• Cull the list of suppliers who will receive the full RFP by asking just a few key Yes/No questions that are critical capabilities or contracting points that you will require from suppliers.

Now that you’ve read this far, let me confess that I don’t think that social media can actually replace the RFI – but, I do think it can help to make the RFI and the RFP process a lot more effective and efficient. There is a wealth of information out there that can be accessed without 16 advance meetings and a full legal and compliance review!

Let’s look at LinkedIn for example. In the Question and Answers area there are over 500 topics on Request for Proposal (from both the issuer and the responder perspectives.) It’s helpful to look at the questions that other people have asked – but it’s also a straight-out opportunity to ask questions of your own. Naturally a lot of the questions will get jumped on by suppliers trying to present their solution – but often they have some good insights on what makes a good RFP. And – you’d be surprised at how many times peers of yours at other companies log on to share their experiences, recommend suppliers, or share what they’ve learned about new technologies. Many times members will also recommend experts on a particular topic which may lead you to articles, blog posts, or even sample RFPs.

There are also discussion groups on particular topics. For example there is the Print and Procurement (International) Group which has 6,936 members from around the world. I would say that there is more Printing (3,478) than Procurement but it still posts some pretty lively topics. If you post a thread saying that you are looking for companies that can provide a specific service your likely to get a quick response. For example, the post:

“I have a 400 Pg + Cover perfect bound book live project. Quantity = 1,500 and involves spot colors. I am looking for a book manufacturer with digital and offset capabilities.”

. . . received 38 responses within a matter of days. The neat thing is, social media sites allow you to drill down on the responses you get. If someone responds to a post you can click over to their profile and see who has given them recommendations or look at the anwers they have supplied to other questions. Click again to look at the company page on LinkedIn – or go directly to the company website.  You can see who else works there and if they have any interesting presentations or recommendations as well. All of this is available before you have sent any formal communication out from your company.

Potentially, you can quickly identify many new suppliers that you might not have considered, identify experts who can help you define all of the things you should ask for in your RFP and identify ways of making the RFP process much more efficient. I still think that you will want to issue an RFI to narrow the field before you issue an RFP – but maybe in some cases you can get what you need from a bit of online research and networking. Let me know what you think.

And, stay tuned (or stay RSSed or something.) Next time I’m going to talk about why you might want to skip the RFP all together!

LinkedIn has always been a business-oriented social networking site. So it’s a natural place to set up shop and create a presence in order to connect with other businesses. It helps you to keep in touch with colleagues and customers, find experts, or show off your own expertise. LinkedIn allows you to interact and network with other professionals from across the globe. So where do you start?

Begin by building your profile; make sure it’s complete. You want to put your best foot forward and further your brand. So upload that logo and in the Summary and Specialties section, use plenty of keywords to make it searchable.

Once your profile is ready to go, it’s time to make connections. You have several different options to grow your network. First up, you can use webmail import to see who you already have in your email contact list that is already on LinkedIn. You can also upload your contacts from Outlook, Palm, ACT! and Mac Address. Then you can search for any companies you currently do business with or have had contact with in the past to see if they have a LinkedIn profile. Once you get connected, you can look at that person/company and their connections and try to get an introduction in order to widen your network. You can also send out invite emails to anyone you can’t find on LinkedIn, but would like to connect with.

Once you’ve got your profile up and some connections are made, look through your connections and see if there are any customers whom you could ask to give you a recommendation. This is basically a testimonial that will show up on your LinkedIn page. You should also take a look and see who you are connected with who could benefit from a recommendation from you. Don’t hesitate to start the ball rolling and spread the testimonial love by leaving positive feedback on the recommendation form for your connections.

Become a joiner and check out the LinkedIn Groups. You can search using keywords to find some groups where you can exchange ideas with colleagues or establish your expertise with your target market. Pick a few and prepare to be active, posting news articles or jumping into the middle of an online discussion.

You can also build credibility and display your business know-how by answering questions. Browse the “Answers” section where you can post a thought-provoking question or find a question that you know the answer to. You can check out the various categories, or use the advanced search feature to drill down for more specific categories of questions.

You’ll also want to check out the LinkedIn Applications page where you can look at the optional add-ons that can spice up your LinkedIn experience. You can add a reading list to show viewers books you suggest. Or you can embed a slideshow presentation. You can even sync your WordPress blog posts to your profile. Adding an application or three can definitely make your business stand out and draw more attention, so take some time to pick out a few that will really complement your LinkedIn profile.

To get the most out of your LinkedIn experience, make sure you log in, update your status and interact with your connections at least 2-3 times a week. You want to make sure your presence is obvious. And if you never log in and engage others, answer or post questions or update your profile status, then you’ll be missing out on the benefits of social media for your business.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard at least some buzz (!) about social media marketing. Everywhere you look online, you hear people talking about using social media to boost their business. In fact, in recent months, you don’t even need to be online- social media is making itself known in Hollywood- think Ashton Kutcher – TV – Oprah did a show about Twitter – OPRAH!

The print industry has headlined social media outlets like Facebook and Twitter time and again. Yet, you still haven’t stepped out and joined the ruckus because you’re a brick and mortar printer who makes physical paper objects and the Internet just isn’t a logical way to promote your business, right? WRONG!

If you’re in the business of printing marketing materials for other businesses, you absolutely need to be utilizing the power of social media to promote your company and build your business. The Internet doesn’t replace print media, no matter what anyone says. It doesn’t operate independently of print; it doesn’t function in a different business world than print. In fact, Internet businesses have a huge need for printed materials- brochures, flyers, invoice materials, packaging materials and dozens of other hard copy paper materials with text and images printed on them.

Where do Internet entrepreneurs look for business partners? On the Internet, of course- and they are using social media to find them.

Grow Socially on LinkedIn

One of the first sites where these entrepreneurs and other prospect may look for you would be LinkedIn. This is the most important social media site you should have yourself and your entire company join. It may appear to be a site that is useful for a job search or a way to rub shoulders with fellow colleagues, but it really has evolved into so much more. You can update your profile page with your RSS feed, be “introduced” to new connections, join groups and ask questions. The atmosphere is definitely more professional in nature than others, and it’s the perfect addition to your social media efforts. Better yet, LinkedIn is a great research tool for prospects and could be thought of as the new way of cold-calling. You can use LinkedIn as a sales lead generator by connecting with prospects, reminding them of what you do, and giving them more information about your business.

Another way of connecting with sales prospects is by joining and participating in LinkedIn groups. Doing this gives you an opportunity to demonstrate your company’s and your own attributes. Engage in a group; show yourself as a thought leader.

Facebook is the big daddy of the social media sites. This platform allows you to create a profile or even a Fan Page. The difference between the two may actually seem quite negligible to the average user, but they make a difference to you as a business owner. The Facebook Fan Page allows you to have a professional business page where you can announce information, promote special deals, or provide other information about your business. You can target your posts so they are broadcasted to all of your fans or just to those in specific demographics, such as location or language. Pages don’t utilize the inbox like personal profiles do, so you cannot send or receive individual messages. Only the administrator or owner of a business can create a Page, but you can assign other administrators to help you maintain and manage the page. You invite people to become fans of your page and build your following when those fans invite their own fans and friends.

Twitter is another big player in the social medial game. Twitter plays a little differently than Facebook by limiting each post to a maximum of 140 characters. While it may seem like the restriction could impede communication, the truth is many people love the challenge of saying what they need to say in a short, concise message and find it a time saver! Twitter is a great way to share links, posts to blogs and short messages with your customer base.

YouTube is another popular social media outlet. On YouTube, you post video for people to watch and share- they even share it on other social media networks, like Facebook and Twitter! By utilizing video, you can show your products, demonstrate unique ideas, let your customers see the person behind the name, and allow a customer to see your facility, equipment, staff or anything else that makes you stand out from your competition.

One of the key features to remember with all social media platforms- is that you need to make sure you are actually being social and not just promoting your products. If all you do is hard sell, you will lose your followers or at best, simply be ignored.