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As Social Media gains popularity, we start to see newfangled ways of automating an online presence and creating short cuts to maintaining a virtual existence.

While automation may have a small role in our online strategies, it’s important to remember that good manners and common courtesy have more to do with a thriving online presence than scheduled tweets and automated blogs posts.

Here are four extremely simple points to keep in mind when building your own online presence:

Reciprocity.The heart and soul of social media is the act of reciprocity. If someone says hello to you, take a moment to say hello back. If someone retweets one of your tweets, return the favor. Respond to those who initiate communication with you and do it promptly. It seems simple enough, but you’d be surprised how few people actually take a moment to give back. The art of reciprocity will help you develop relationships with your online community.

Respect. Think twice about sending automatic direct messages. It’s disingenuous and downright tacky. Instead, think about sending a personalized message manually and leave out the business details, allowing people to get to know you first. If Friends and Followers sign up for your newsletter, make sure that you’re not inundating them with emails. We all get a lot of emails and the last thing you need is to get five emails in one day. Time your emails in a way that won’t be perceived as spam.

Courtesy. Without a doubt, a simple ‘thank you’ can go a long way. Take a moment to thank people for posting to your Wall, retweeting your links, and commenting on your Page. Acknowledging people and showing appreciation is the best marketing tool to date. If you want people to continue engaging with you, it’s important to acknowledge them and interact with them on a one-to-one basis.

Consideration. Wish people a happy birthday. Ask people how they are doing. Post links to your friends’ Walls that they might find interesting without any regard to business. Be friendly and help others without thinking about the bottom line. Business will come from these simple gestures. Be consistent and take a genuine interest in people. They don’t call it Social Media for nothing.

“Friends and good manners will carry you where money won’t go”.

Margaret Walker

What a nice surprise I had this morning when I checked my Twitter stream to see this wonderful #FollowFriday shout out from my fellow Twitterer, Peter Mello.

The highlighted link took me to his blog where I found the following:

First and foremost, I have to say a big THANK YOU to you, Peter. I appreciate the generous acknowledgment.

I love how you blogged about it and then tweeted it out accordingly. At times, #FollowFriday can lose it’s appeal and the meaning behind the gesture can get easily skewed for marketing and spamming purposes. You’ve rekindled my hope in the #ff movement. So thank you kindly. All of your efforts are great appreciated.

And just for the record, I’ve only tweeted 7,000+ updates. Seems Twitter’s Glitch of the Week is Update Counts Gone Wild. Okay, okay…7,000 is still excessive, but not quite as manic as 24k. *smiles*

We worry that IM, texting, Facebook are spoiling human intimacy, but Stefana Broadbent’s research shows how communication tech is capable of cultivating deeper relationships, bringing love across barriers like distance and workplace rules.

Teachers are quickly harnessing the power of the Internet to disseminate information and connect with their students quickly and effectively.

I’ve created this blog post as a way to aggregate links as they pertain to Social Media and Education.

• 4 Tips for Integrating Social Media Into the Classroom
  
• 50 Terrific Twitter Tutorials for Teachers
  
• 25 Excellent Social Media Sites for Teachers
• How to Use Twitter on Campus
• Cautionary Tale For My Fellow Teacher
• Connecting Students, Teachers Through Social Network
• 85+ Resources: Educator Guide for Integrating Social Media

• Free Social Media Tools for Educators

Simply put, Twitter enables people to engage with one another in a real-time environment.

Tweeting as a marketing strategy is well worth the effort if you know what you’re doing and how to do it.

Ahhhh, yes. WHAT to do and HOW to do it.

I came across this great article that covers a lot of FAQs in a straightforward, concise way using descriptive examples.

If you’re interested in learning how to develop a social media campaign incorporating Twitter in the equation, check out this article:
Tweeting for Companies 101.

For more how-to tips on Twitter, please see:

• How to Twitter When You’re Brand Spankin New
• How to Leverage Twitter for Business
• The Ultimate Guide to Everything Twitter
• The Twitter Bible: Everything You Need to Know About Twitter
• The Twitter Guide Book via @Mashable
  

If you’re using Facebook and Twitter to generate leads for your business, it’s easy to experience —what I affectionately call— virtual overwhelm.

I’ve developed a valuable e-report called YOUR 15-MINUTES-A-DAY MAINTENANCE FORMULA. This step by step guide will show you how to effectively network on a daily basis in order to sustain your online momentum.

Social Networking doesn’t have to take up your entire day in order for you to reap the benefits.

Let me show you how I maintain my online momentum and generate weekly inquiries using this simple formula.

>> Sign up for my monthly newsletter to receive it instantly.

When was the last time you used the Yellow Pages to find a local business?

Nowadays, people are using the Internet to find what they’re looking for; making the phone book almost obsolete.

If you’re a local business owner and you’re trying to figure out how to utilize Social Media, I’ve created this short list of Social Networking accounts you should include in your overall marketing strategy to help potential customers find you.

1. GOOGLE MAPS. With the majority of the people using Google to find what they’re looking for, it would only make sense to list your business on GOOGLE MAPS. Sign up for an account and get your business listed within 24 hours. Take the time to upload a few pictures and, if you have them, a couple of your videos. Spend a few moments to fill out your profile in its entirety.

GET STARTED HERE: http://bit.ly/j7lc7

Here’s a picture of my own listing on Google Maps:

2. YELP. This is the first place I go when looking for highly rated businesses in my area. Yelp is a User Reviews and Recommendations directory. In other words, customers become reviewers.

Their comments and testimonials can become one of the most effective types of marketing your business can generate: word of mouth.

Create an account, list your business, and review your favorite local picks.

Sign up page: http://bit.ly/sGFZy.

3. FACEBOOK PAGE. Your business Page on Facebook gets indexed on Google. This means that, in many cases, your Page will rise up farther on Google than your own website. My Page on Facebook drives almost all of my business.

Go to http://google.com and type in “Virtual Assistant Facebook”.

My Facebook Page—not my website—generates the majority of my inquiries.

Assuming you have a Facebook profile, you can create a Page by clicking through this link while you are logged into your Facebook account: http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php.

If you don’t have a Facebook account, you’ll need to create one before you can create a Page. If you need help setting up your profile, check out my QUICK SET UP GUIDE for Facebook Profiles: http://acumenva.com/e-products/. If you already have a Facebook account but need help setting up your Page, check out this link for details: Creating and Optimizing Your Facebook Page.

Pick optimum keywords when naming your Page. You can name it after yourself: First and Last Name. You can name your Page after your product. You can have multiple Pages, if you wish. (I recommend one and focusing all of your attention on it.)

Think about what people will type into a search engine when they attempt to find you. I recommend running a search within Facebook AND on Google to see if any of your competitors show up and what keywords they’re using in their Page titles.

Don’t be surprised if you don’t find any Pages in your search. Business owners are JUST starting to realize the significance of Pages for search engine purposes.

4. TWITTER. If you’re currently using Twitter, than you already know the power of micro-blogging and its ability to connect people from around the world. If you’re not on Twitter and you want to find out what the fuss is about, I recommend jumping on board. Here’s a link to help you do so: http://mashable.com/guidebook/twitter/.

Once you’re set up and ready to go, if you want to use Twitter to help promote your local business, here are some applications that will help you find potential customers in your area: http://twitter.pbworks.com/Apps.

Scroll down to Directories to find these links below. Take a moment to create a few accounts on the applications you like the most.

Once you’ve had a chance to connect with locals on Twitter, eventually, you’ll have an opportunity to meet up with them in person. We call those “TweetUps”. This is a great way to establish a growing connection with other like-minded business owners in your area.

While not everyone will become a customer, they can become, what I lovingly call, “referral machines,” referring you onto people who might need your services.

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Social Networking success comes from consistent maintenance. If you haven’t already done so, sign up for my newsletter at the top of my homepage and you’ll receive my once-a-month newsletter filled with tips and suggestions on how to maintain your online energy.

Stick with it and you’ll see business opportunities increase by engaging others through the use of Social Media. It’s not a fad. It’s here to stay and with more and more people using the Internet to find what they’re looking for, it’s the perfect time to jump on board.

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