14 Practical Uses for Social Media

By Jillian Anderson | June 2, 2009

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Social media is all the rage these days. It is no longer just the interest of your 16 year old daughter or the chronicles of life on a college campus. These past couple of weeks, I have had several people (outside of work) ask me about social media – what it is, how to do it, how it works, etc.

Meet Mr. Social. He’s practical, sensible and sensitive.

(Image credit: Allied Newspapers Limited | via letslookupandsmile)

From my cousin asking about Twitter or my boyfriend’s mother about Facebook, to random people I meet that gripe about social media being a waste of time, it seems to be everywhere I turn.

But why?

What makes social media so special?

Whether you look at it from a marketing perspective or simply as a way to stay connected to friends, family and the rest of the world, social media is quite practical in our modern, speed-of-the-web society. Here are 14 practical uses for social media.

Personal:

1. Conversation - You are able to connect with people of like interests and talk about things that matter to you.
2. Relationships – Social media opens up opportunities to build relationships with people you would have otherwise never met in your lifetime, be they from across town or around the world.
3. Connection - People use social media tools to keep in touch with family, friends and anyone else that might be interested – sharing photos, videos, stories and random life snip its.
4. Learning – You might be amazed what you can learn from what other people share, be it links, inspiration, tips, etc.
5. Research - This kind of goes hand-in-hand with #4, but social media is largely dominating the news and information scene. Understanding how to use and filter the information shared can be a major asset.
6. Personal brand/networking - As more companies begin incorporating social media into their business models, many reference the online presence and tone of bid/job applicants. It’s all about the people you know, and the people that know you. A greater online presence can give you both a personal and professional edge.

Business:

7. All of the above, of course. It is quite helpful when social media is used as much personally as for business. Frequent personal use aids in authenticity, and a strong (positive) personal online reputation greatly benefits business efforts.
8. Raising brand awareness - Comparable to #6 above. The more actively your company is represented in social spaces, the more people will know who you are and the more likely you will be the one they think of when they have a need/want that your services or products fill.
9. Customer service – An active business social media presence makes you available to customers where they are. Social media can be used as a fast, efficient and effective component of your customer service regime.
10. Networking - Again, it’s all about who you know. Social media opens up opportunities for partnerships and new business every day. Being actively involved and interacting with others in your industry, or in industries that yours serves, helps keep that door of opportunity revolving. The principles and potential are the same as a local chamber mixer, only on a larger scale.
11. Establish/maintain industry authority – The nature of social media evokes authenticity. If you, as a company, are active in this realm and are truly good at what you do, people will see it. On the other hand, if your competition is better at connecting with people or has a stronger online presence, they could be perceived as the authority.
12. Brand management – This is a pretty big one. With the rise of social media, brand management has moved into the hands and opinions your customers. They will talk about you, good or bad, whether you’re involved in the conversation or not. You need to know when your customers are unhappy. Social media helps you to find their complaints, praise, or whatever it is and empowers you address it then and there. You can now be a part of that conversation and take/keep control of your brand reputation.
13. Attracting search traffic – When social elements are incorporated into your website with the ever flow of fresh and user-generated content, it draws search engine attention and authority. Social media can also aid in link building, but this is generally not the point or main objective.
14. Keep ‘em coming back for more - Visitors are more likely to return when you incorporate interactive and social components on/with your website, keeping it up-to-date with new information and user-generated content.

The social web is a medium of many hats. There are probably many more practical, and not so practical, uses of social media than I have mentioned here. I would love to hear what you think.

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