Three Women Entrepreneurs’ Perspectives On Social Media

For many of us, the words “social media” evoke feelings that run the gamut from exasperation to fear of getting lost in the swirl of Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. and losing touch with the real world as we know it. But, it is clear that social media is here to stay and needs to be a key element of any successful organization’s toolbox of tactics.

On Thursday, April 15, 2010, the Center for Women and Enterprise in partnership with Babson’s Center for Women’s Leadership hosted a panel with three successful women entrepreneurs (Jill Cartwright, President, Go Gaga; Heather K.  Margolis, President, Channel Maven Consulting; and, Kaarina Kvaavik, Chief Officer of ABLE Innovations) who de-mystified the world of social media through the lens of their experiences. The discussion was practical and enormously helpful in providing an inside look at how social media has significantly enhanced the growth of each of their three businesses.

There were so many great nuggets of information derived from this lively discussion. Here are some in no particular order.

• It’s all about relationship and community building through online conversations. You need to hear what your targeted communities are saying so that you can craft a value proposition that will speak to them.
• You can start slow. Just listen and collect information for several months on what folks are talking about in the realms of social media in your area of interest/business. Listen to the chatter!
• Social media can be a great forum for your business’ research and design process. Float ideas out there, and find out what people think. Don’t worry about the competition picking up your ideas. More often than not, you end up partnering with them to everyone’s benefit.
• Whatever you post on social media should add value to the reader’s experience. This will encourage them to come back to you for more. Once they have ‘recognized’ you or your business in the social media, they will be more apt to respond to traditional outreaches through e-mail.
• Consider how you will allocate your resources and time (yours and your staff’s) for social media promotion. There are tools that can help you manage and optimize your time in the social media world.  Laterbro.com, hootsuite.com, and cotweent.com were among those mentioned.
• Create a circular flow of communication through your use of social media that ultimately and always brings your clients back to your website.
• You need to decide on your ‘framework’ or ‘brand’ in the social media outlets. Some social media are more relevant to certain aspects of your business development than others.  For example, Jill Cartwright uses Twitter as her business to business arm, giving her access to other CEOs in her field and awareness of product development. Facebook has been a better platform for Jill to connect with her customer base, her ‘fans’, parents who are interested in her products.
• Twitter is great for ‘trial and error’ in the social media world. Whatever you put up there only lasts about 15 minutes, so you can test things out and not worry about it hanging out in cyberspace to haunt you.
• There are analytical tools to help you determine the impact your social media networking is having on your business.
• Social media compliments your marketing efforts. It creates an “echo.” It is NOT a silver bullet.

Submitted by: Cindy Lauer; Project Manager, Marketing Programs

Filed under: Social Media by jwhalen

http://blogs.babson.edu/womensleadership/2010/05/03/three-women-entrepreneurs%E2%80%99-perspectives-on-social-media/