42 Rules of Social Media for Small Business

Jennifer Jacobson has written a book about Social Media for small business. You can purchase the book here, but before you do, let’s review the 42 rules of social media, I think you may be more ready than you think.

So here we go:

1)   Rules are meant to be broken.

2)   Communication is communication both on and offline.

3)   Know your audience.

4)   Thoughtful social media generates thoughtful people.

5)   You don’t need a million friends.

6)   People only blog if they think someone is listening.

7)   If you write a good blog, people will read it.

8)   People recognize bad viral behavior.

9)   When 1 person complains, 100 support you, and 500 don’t even notice.

10)  Not everyone follows the rules.

11)  There’s always a reason to communicate.

12)  Build a great profile.

13)  Not everyone needs a MySpace page.

14)  Meet with your customers virtually.

15)  Use your own media.

16)  Have a username that reflects your business.

17)  Build a virtual home.

18)   Get a real email address.

19)   Edit your media.

20)   Know your social media platforms.

21)   Learn to evolve with technology.

22)   Find social media platforms that work for you.

23)   Eighteen year olds will always be ahead of you with technology.

24)   Your social media page is NOT your website.

25)   Engage customers first. Then sell.

26)   Have enough lifeboats to save your blog.

27)   Real customers are more than just friends.

28)   Be findable.

29)   Flaunt it with a podcast.

30)   Link like there’s no tomorrow.

31)   Spoon feed the press.

32)   Friends don’t let friends pay full price.

33)   Get a guru.

34)   Blog your best blog.

35)   A little planning goes a long way.

36)   Publicize your company events.

37)   Make a killer virtual portfolio.

38)   It’s all fun and games until they find out what you did last summer.

39)   Kevin Bacon is your friend.

40)   Maximize online directories.

41)   Advertise with social media.

42)   These are my rules. What are yours?

These rules are all good advice, and if you’re using social and don’t get what’s being said here, then by all means buy the book. If you have staff handling your social media and content, it’s a recommended read.

Not wanting to sound dismissive, but if you’ve ever been in sales, these rules may seem or sound somewhat instinctive, so don’t be intimidated by social. As I’ve said before (at the risk of sounding repetitive), get your social on! Post, Like, Link, Tweet, Retweet etc. Have some fun, feel it out, and by all means make some mistakes. In this digital age, it’s OK to make mistakes; after all, real life provides the best lessons in sales, in business and in social.

 

Michael Bickerton, Raven5 Ltd, Oakville, Ontario, November 2013

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