Why Bother About a Social Media Policy? Think Twice

You have a business. You're engaging on Social media. So what next? In light of the many social PR fails, consider a policy for your employees.

If you intend to promote your brand and interact with customers through social networks and social media channels – and I highly recommend that you do – you must realize your employees will be there as well, with their own personal accounts. There’s no reason not to encourage your employees to explore and engage in social media communities online, but remember, they are also the face of your company to all their friends and associates – as well as to the customers they know. What they say online or the type of photos they post on their personal accounts may reflect, albeit in a roundabout way, on your business. When they directly talk about you or your business, it will have a cause and effect relationship.

It is your job to guide your business’s online culture and protect your brand’s online persona. Provide guidelines for your employees in the form of a Social Media Policy. This written document, similar to other codes of conduct you have for employees, will let them know what type of behavior you expect from them online and any limits as to what business-related information they can share in the public stream.

Here’s how one of our nation’s biggest companies handled it. Back in 2009, before most people thought about setting guidelines, Adam Brown broke ground by developing a 4R social strategy (review, respond, record, redirect) and spearheaded the development of social media guidelines for the Coca-Cola Company. Aside from designating a code of conduct for their official online spokespeople, Coca-Cola also laid out specific principles for their associates. By taking a look at what Coca Cola deemed appropriate, perhaps it will help you forge a set of standards for your own employees. From Coca-Cola’s Online Social Media Principles, the guidelines below with my explanations outline expectations for any online activities – personal or professional – where employees reference the company or have made their association with the company known.

1. “Adhere to the Code of Business Conduct and other applicable policies” – Coca Cola has several policies regarding specific business activities, including general conduct, information protection and insider trading. All employees (from the CEO to interns) are expected to follow these when mentioning online that they are employees of Coca Cola. 

2. “You are responsible for your actions” – This point is a reminder to exercise sound judgment and common sense when posting online because employees will be held responsible if their actions negatively impact the business or its image.

3. “Be a ‘scout’ for compliments and criticism” – This guideline acknowledges that employees are “vital assets for monitoring the social media landscape.” Coca-Cola even supplies an in-house email for forwarding both positive and negative comments employees observe online, so they can feel confident negative situations will be addressed without feeling like they must be the one to take action.  

4. “Let the subject matter experts respond to negative posts” – This point stresses, again, that should employees encounter a potentially damaging post about the business, the post should be referred to those trained and approved as official online spokespeople to handle responding.

5. “Be conscious when mixing your business and personal lives” – This principle recognizes that personal and business personas often intersect online and reminds employees that everything that is posted online – even when channels or profiles are “private” or “protected” – can still ultimately be seen by anyone at any time 

Be Social - Update your New eBay User Profile

If staying social is the key to connecting on the new Web, your eBay profile is the hub of your eBay user interaction. Your eBay "About Me" and your profile pages are the perfect way for customers and the eBay community to get to know you. We like learning about other people, and your eBay profile let folks know with whom they are transacting.

To get to your new profile page, click your user ID on your My eBay page (or any eBay page for that matter). You'll get there even when you click your name in the “Hi” dropdown at the top right of the home page. When you arrive, the page will be prepopulated with any items you are currently selling, your reviews (if you’ve reviewed an item on eBay) and your bio and profile picture if you have previously posted them to a My World page. (NOTE: eBay's My World has been replaced by the profile page). There will also be links to your recent Feedback, your eBay store (if you have one) a link to your current listings

Take an opportunity to edit the page now, it will just take a moment. Personalize your page after you click the "Edit profile" button that appears under your User ID on the page. Once you click that button, small pen icons appear showing you where you can edit the page:

• Uplaod a profile photo: Click the pen icon in the corner of the square next to your user ID. The page will prompt you to upload your profile image. Choose a profile photo that portrays you and your personality. There are no set requirements for size at this point, so I suggest using a close to square headshot. If you do not select a headshot, your face might be too small for folks to see.
• Cover Photo: Just like Facebook,you may upload a photo for the top of your page. Keep inmind that text covers a good deal or the cover photo, so don’t select a picture where the most important spot is at the bottom. When selecting (or cropping) for use as a cover photo, keep in mind eBay’s recommended 1200 pixels x 270 pixels size for best viewing. Also eBay prefers they be smaller than 5MB in size.
• Add Content: Here you have 250 characters to talk about yourself, your business or the items you enjoy selling or buying.

Click the Done editing button when you're through - this should only have taken a few minutes. It's easy to share a link to your profile, or find other buyers and sellers by typing an eBay ID in a URL: www.ebay.com/usr/. My profile page, for example, is http://www.ebay.com/usr/marsha_c.

Be sure to stop by my Cool eBay Tools website for useful tools and tips. Please post and let me have your eBay profile URL. I can’t wait to see the creativity on your eBay profile page!

The Reader is My Customer: Social Media Commerce For Dummies

by Marsha Collier

To many people, it's not news when I come out with a new book, I write books for a living; I don't write books to get speaking engagements. What most people don't realize is that writing and researching is my passion. Readers can go on the web and get "common knowledge" anywhere. My secret sauce is the pressure I put on myself to delve deeper. There will be no mention of a hot new tool unless I personally have tried it - and have checked out the company who provides the service. Nor will I tout expensive solutions, I know small business needs to run a tight ship. Money is time - and time is money.

The reader is my customer. In over a decade of writing on e-commerce and customer service, I feel a strong responsibility about what I write. I don't want to steer anyone in the wrong direction. When you read one of my books for small business (whether the book is directed at beginners or advanced readers), know you are getting honest and well-thought out advice. My books reflect hundreds of hours into investigation into the tools, strategies and ideas in each book. I try to update my books to a new edition every 18 months, so the information is always fresh.

I especially enjoy, over the years, getting emails from my readers. I put my email address in all of my books - even back in the 90s when people thought I was nuts for doing so. Readers keep me apprised of their successes and failures.

Below is the first review of the book that appeared on Amazon (I'd like to thank "Dad of Divas" whoever he is). I hope you'll give my latest book a look. I think it might clear up some social media misconceptions for you. You will find it here.

Thank you to everyone who has read my books. If you've never read one, I think this book might be a great place to start. (Here is the press release from my publisher - I've never thought of myself as a "blockbuster)!

Wiley Announces Latest Book by Bestselling Author Marsha Collier - Social Media Commerce For Dummies®

Blockbuster author Marsha Collier empowers brand owners to capture customers, sales and revenue using social media

Social Media Commerce For Dummies

Indianapolis, IN (PRWEB) December 13, 2012
Today, the world’s bestselling reference series, For Dummies® announces Social Media Commerce For Dummies (Wiley, 978-1-118-29793-3, November 2012) to help brands and small businesses understand why social media is important to their bottom line and how to adapt their online presence to include social commerce.
The undisputed expert on eBay and a recognized authority on social media marketing, author Marsha Collier delivers another one-of-a-kind For Dummies guide that introduces readers to social media commerce and explains how to use social media to provide better customer service, generate sales online and build a customer base. Social Media Commerce For Dummies helps readers determine where the best market reach opportunities exist, which sites to integrate with, and more.
"Social media enables small business -- even professionals -- the opportunity to compete on a level playing field with big brands. After much research, I've found the strategies in this book will change the marketing game as we know it,” said Collier.
Social Media Commerce For Dummies is now available for purchase online and at retailers nationwide in both print and all e-book formats. For a full list of retailers, visit http://www.dummies.com/buy/9781118297933. Additionally, the Cheat Sheet on Dummies.com includes helpful hints for social media commerce including useful Facebook keyboard shortcuts, Marsha’s Social Media Commerce Toolkit and more. For additional information about this book and related For Dummies products, visit http://www.dummies.com.
About the Author
Marsha Collier (Los Angeles, CA) is the world's bestselling author on eBay topics. Her books combine for over a million copies in print. Leading titles include eBay For Dummies, Starting an eBay Business For Dummies, and eBay Business All-in-One For Dummies. She has recently branched into social media topics, authoring Facebook & Twitter For Seniors For Dummies and The Ultimate Online Customer Service Guide. Marsha is also an in-demand speaker and trainer who appears at over 50 events per year.
About For Dummies®
After 20 years, more than 250 million copies printed, and millions of e-books downloaded, For Dummies is the world’s bestselling reference series, well known for enriching people’s lives by making knowledge accessible in a fun and easy way. Loyal customers around the globe agree that For Dummies is “more than a publishing phenomenon … [it is] a sign of the times,” [The New York Times]. With more than 1,800 active topics covering everything from health to history, music to math, sports to self-help, technology to travel, For Dummies is dedicated to Making Everything Easier. The For Dummies brand presence continues to expand wherever there is a need to know, including e-books, mobile apps, e-learning courses, a corporate custom publishing program, a robust consumer website and a licensed product line that includes consumer electronics, culinary, crafts, video, software, musical instrument packs, home improvement, automotive, game and more. For more information, visit Dummies.com. For Dummies is a branded imprint of Wiley.

via prweb.com

Social Media Commerce: Make it Easy for Your Customers to Do Business with You

December 4th, 11 AM PST / 2 PM EST  - Live Chat with Marsha Collier

Are you struggling to gain new customers or earn repeat business from existing customers? It could be because you’ve made the process of doing business with your company too difficult – everything from product discovery to customer service to ordering, payments, delivery and merchandise returns. Join us to discuss how social media commerce can make doing business with your business easier for customers. 

Submit your pre-chat questions, and add the event to your calendar so you don’t miss the conversation. The conversation will take place at the Endicia Thinking Forward Website on December 4th, at 11 AM PST / 2 PM EST.

This Live Webcast precedes the publication of my latest book, Social Media Commerce For Dummies. It's one that will help your business build revenue and customer base through social media. Please join me - and be sure to post some pre-chat questions on the Endicia website.

10 Things You Don't Know About the Seller Community: Happy Birthday eBay!

In honor of eBay's 17th birthday, I thought it'd be fun to recap some memorable moments from the past 17 years since Pierre Omidyar launched the company during Labor Day weekend 1995. While I'm not (and never have been an employee of eBay), I'm thrilled to have been part of the eBay Community since those very early days! (I’ve also included a few tips below to help improve your selling strategies and operations)

During eBay’s Q2 earnings conference call, CEO John Donahoe stated: “This is the strongest performance we’ve seen out of marketplaces since 2006.” eBay is clearly reclaiming its reputation with buyers as the world’s best person-to-person marketplace. If you’ve been on the bench about selling, it’s time to get into gear and start listing!

1. The most popular auction selling format is the 7-day auction, although auctions generally are losing traction with today’s “on-demand” shoppers. (The best use for auctions is still rare and one-of-a-kind items). Fixed price listings represent the highest revenue-generating format on eBay, accounting for 65% of sales by total dollar volume.
2. eBay has 105 million registered users in 39 markets around the world, and international sales volumes in Q2 2012 totaled close to $10 billion, driven by strong growth in Europe and Asia-Pacific. If you are selling as a business versus a hobby, it’s worthwhile to consider shipping to international buyers. DYMO Endicia’s solution helps make this virtually painless.
3. 600,000 new customers made their first purchase via eBay Mobile in Q2 2012, and eBay estimates that for all of 2012 there will be $10 billion in transaction volume through eBay and PayPal mobile, more than double 2011. As a seller, when you create your listings, this means you should make them concise, but still clear and accurate.
4. While mobile is great for buyers, post your listings from your computer using the full-featured listing form so you won’t leave out pertinent details. When complete, view your listing on the eBay Mobile app to be sure it translates well, then go back to your computer to make any necessary modifications. Mobile apps definitely have a purpose, but take time with your listings so you can get the highest price possible for your items.
5. Customer service, not just listing volume, is a key condition for attaining Top Seller status. Accurate and friendly communication, quickly getting packages out the door and free shipping options are all factors buyers consider when making purchases. Top Sellers now represent 50% of eBay’s gross sales volume, and this number grew 22% over last year.

Networking Your Small Business Target Audience in Social Media

Social networking demands the attention of today’s small businesses... right along with online reviews and customer feedback. But, with time at a premium, where should you go to reach your customers and maximize your social media efforts? Articles all over the web tout one site over another, claiming this one is best or that one will draw your customers’ attention. What’s more, there always seems to be another emerging social media platform around the corner. Is it any wonder that small businesses get confused about where to focus their time?

Even before you make your initial foray into social media, defining objectives should be your first step (hint: stating that you want to increase sales is too general). Return on investment (ROI) will be different for each business depending on your goals. Drawing shoppers to eBay, a Facebook store or your website may each take on a slightly different tack.

Before you start utilizing a social media channel, you also need to understand and know your customers. You find them where they spend time on the Web and reach them with content appropriate for the various platforms. Keep in mind that social media channels are designed for “social networking,” not broadcasting – you must interact with fans and followers. Pepper your promotions not more than one in six of your posts on a particular platform.

Here’s a quick overview of the top social media communities you might want to be part of with your business:

• Facebook. Facebook is personal. Here you need to reach customers on a personal level. Sharing information or facts that relate to your business and to customers’ everyday lives will bring you more likes and shares. Graphics and photographs are very appealing to this audience.
• YouTube. YouTube for ecommerce is all about demonstrating your products. If you have a product that would benefit from demonstration, by all means make a short video. Embed or link to that video on your other social media channels.
• Twitter. The short message service that has taken the world by storm is a great way to build your online community. But to be relevant and build trust on Twitter, you need to spend time online meaningfully contributing to the conversation, not just posting links to your website or to items for sale. Respond to questions and re-tweet comments or facts of interest. Your goal is to sell to a community, not to become a spammer.
• Google+. If you deal in technology and deal internationally, Google+ may be ripe to help you find new customers. The site slants highly to men and the bulk of the participants on the site are in technical fields. The number one occupation on the site is Student, and only 32% of users are in the United States. All that said, it is a perfect platform to interact with those who appreciate technology. Engage with long-form posts and video content. Take advantage of Hangouts to build your reputation as an expert in your category.
• Pinterest. The jury is out as to whether Pinterest is truly monetizing for the small business. Post selected items (by no means every item you sell) and be sure the links are updated to direct to the actual item for sale in your online store.

Ways to Boost E-Commerce Profitability: Free Webinar

I'm going to dish some inside social commerce strategies with DYMO Endicia* Brand Manager, Vivian Li on July 17. We're also going too give you advice on how to achieve success for your e-commerce business in today's erratic marketplace. We will go over the fine points of the importance of social commerce and how to apply best practices for managing your online business. So if you have missed my presentations at eBay conferences lately, be sure to attend. 

During this webinar, we will guide SMB owners how to boost e-commerce profitability by:

• Expanding your web presence through social commerce 
• Delivering great customer service and winning repeat customers 
• Increasing your profit margins and customer satisfaction through efficient shipping 
• Simplifying shipping and mailing while taking advantage of cost savings with USPS 
• Optimizing your online listings  
• Going global and learning about International shipping methods 

Reserve your place by clicking here NOW! By registering you will be entered for a chance to win one of 20 copies of my Ultimate Online Customer Service Guide: How to Connect with Your Customers to SELL MORE!

*DYMO Endicia is a leader in the electronic postage market and a trusted partner of the USPS for over 25 years.

Do Customers Want or Use Social Channels for Service? Reach Your Customer!

Guest post from Mitch Lieberman:

Customer Service using Social Media Channels is a nascent discipline, which is good, because fewer customers than most people think are actually using it – but its time will come.  Just look at the usage from the customers perspective, barely 17%. American Express and ECHO just published some findings that paint an interesting picture. I would also challenge some of the results, or methods, or both. Not because I know better, but because I am confused about what exactly they are asking and how they asked. When these results are compared with some recent research (company perspective) I conducted with  thinkJar, there is a bit of a gap between what companies are spending time and money on, and what their customers are actually using.

50 Good Customer Service & Marketing Strategies For 2012

It's good to know others mirror the thoughts I've written in my books over the years. I'm not sure if Andrew had read anything I've written, but his guest post below make me feel secure that the drum I've been beating for close to a decade is being heard by someone!

This comprehensive guide on ecommerce customer service will teach you how to improve your customer service strategy without altering the structure of your business. It also helps illustrate just how much money you can make from your existing customer base with great customer service.

50 Good Ecommerce Customer Service Strategies

1. Offer a monthly product giveaway to customers that sign up for your newsletter.
2. Offer coupons to your customers for writing a seller review.
3. Add coupons & promotions in your e-mail marketing. Don't have an e-mail marketing strategy set up? You need one.
4. If possible, work to offer same day shipping for customers that need their items in a hurry.
5. Increase your call center hours to take into account extremely early and late orders.
6. Offer free return shipping for a limited time to see if that added feature builds confidence in your customers and leads to more conversions.
7. Give customers the ability to have their items sent gift wrapped, or to purchase their item with gift wrapping for them to wrap themselves.
8. Offer gift cards to your customers so they can easily share your website with others.
9. Implement live chat. Live chat can greatly decrease the number of abandoned carts at your webstore.

10. Give a coupon to each customer that signs up for your weekly newsletter.
11. Let customers apply to become a ‘product tester’ where they get your products for free in exchange for writing about them on blogs and linking back to your website.
12. Throwing a video-submission contest using your products and rewarding the winner, then use those videos for your own marketing.
13. Provide product recommendations or similar items to customers below the items they're interested in to make it easier for customers to find items that work well in sets, and to increase average order volume. Sweetwater does a great job of this:


14. Be upfront with shipping and tax costs. No one likes hidden charges.
15. Invest into your site navigation and search functions. Customers who can't find an item they're looking for quickly is one of the major causes of a high bounce rate.
16. Start a review contest. Whoever writes a review gets entered to win a drawing of $1,000. Roots Canada has a great example below:17. Create a blog where you show off your expertise about your products and interact with your customers.
18. Start a Twitter & Facebook page and promote it on site to share deals and listen to your customers.
19. Throw a Holiday-inspired contest where a winner receives a gift package or makeover of their house with your products. To be entered into your contest you can have users sign up for your newsletter or fill out a short questionnaire.
20. Display McAfee, Better Business Bureau or VeriSign secure badges.
21. Include a personable About Us page. Here’s a great example:
22. Lower shopping cart confusion. Use one of these tools for help: http://www.getelastic.com/8-quick-n-dirty-tools-to-beat-site-abandonment-this-holiday/
23. Increase your return policy time table to increase customer confidence.
24. Give coupons to customers that share their purchases on Facebook. Shopon.com provides a tool to help you do just that.
25. Display positive seller reviews and testimonials on your home page.
26. Personalize your brand beyond your About Us page with interviews and op-eds from your staff. Show off your expertise of your products.
27. Offer delivery estimates so your customers can know when to expect their order.
28. Add additional payment methods like Paypal, Google Checkout, and Amazon Checkout so your customers can checkout with ease.
29. Open a forum where your customers can talk openly about your products. You’ll be surprised by how much you can learn from them.
30. Ask for product reviews in exchange for coupons. You can then use these product reviews as valuable SEO on your website.
31. Create a ‘deal of the day’ or ‘deal of the week’ for your customers.
32. Offer a deals section to your customers. Offer quarterly or yearly clearance sales to clear out old inventory. Wetsuit Warehouse does a great job of this:33. Give your customers free samples of products for signing up to your newsletter.
34. Donate generously to a charity and promote it on your website.
35. Run a special promotion where a certain % of proceeds goes to charity.
36. Offer a ‘best sellers’ or 'popular products' section to your customers.
37. Add a coupon section to your website for easy access. You’d rather keep your customers on your website while they look for coupons instead of on Google, right? Macy's does a great job of it: http://www.macys.com/campaign/social?campaign_id=61&channel_id=138. Offer freebies / coupons for customers that share your products on social networks.
39. Reach out to bloggers with a strong community and let them write about your products. They don't even have to be in your industry – do they have a hobby that your products can service?
40. Give coupons and deals to users who invite their friends to shop at your store. Have them e-mail you a copy of their invetation for a coupon.
41. Have great phone support? Connect consumers directly to a phone representative from a search engine. More: http://searchenginewatch.com/article/2120364/Phone-Through-Rate-is-new-AdWords-Ranking-Factor (Make sure to read the comments- some good insight there).
42. Include any retailer awards on your home page.
43. Host a blog-a-thon where you invite regional bloggers interested in your products to a big party where they are the theme, in exchange for a blog post. Lucky Gunner does a great job of this: http://www.luckygunner.com/2011-blogger-shoot
44. Listen to your customer and talk about it. Offer an easy ‘submit feedback’ button on your website, then talk about any changes you make that take into account customer suggestions on your website or blog.
45. If all of your products are made by people in America, show it off on your About Us and home page.
46. Offer discounts if customers buy in bulk? Let it be known, clearly!
47. Have a list of charities to donate to? Share that list on your website.
48. Offer multiple language phone support for your products? Show it off clearly on your home and product pages. Don't have multiple language phone support? Depending on your products it might make sense to add new language support to your customer service team. Talk with your current team to see approximately how many non-English speaking calls, or calls where the caller cannot speak English very well, happen.
49. List your contact info clearly, including a mailing address, on your Contact Us page. I hate it when I find retail stores that only include a customer inquiry form to fill out on those pages without any information about the company.
50. Advertise your top customer service employees on site to show off your good customer service skills and promote good customer service within your company.

via cpcstrategy.com