In 2011, you don’t even need your own website to market yourself (but it can help). Where should you be on the social web, and, more importantly, why?

Why you need social media

Who defines your identity? These days, it’s Google. What is on the first page of Google results for your name?

In 2011, you don’t even need your own website to market yourself (but it can help). Where should you be on the social web, and, more importantly, why?

Why you need social media

Who defines your identity? These days, it’s Google. What is on the first page of Google results for your name?

It’s determined by a number of factors (whether you have a common name, or whether you’re in the news a lot), but you can affect those factors by actively owning your presence in social media.

Google (and other search engines) place a lot of credibility on social networking profiles such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter. So for being “findable”, it makes sense to be there. It also makes sense if you want to reach and relate to an audience.

So where should you be online?

1. Google profile

Your Google profile allows you to say as little or as much about yourself as you like. You can also provide links to the other places you are online. Setting up your Google profile is a one-time event, and the only maintenance needed is when your information changes.

2. Facebook

If you are like half a billion other people, you use Facebook to keep in touch with friends and family. But you may not want your personal life to be shared with your professional contacts, and that’s okay, there are a couple of ways around that.

2a. Adjusting your privacy settings

You can use Facebook’s groups and privacy settings to control who sees what on your profile. Here’s how:

a) Create friend lists. The lists can be anything you want, from cities (e.g. Wellington), to interest groups (Dungeons and Dragons), to relationship levels (people I don’t actually know). Go to the top right “Account” link, and go to “Edit Friends”.

b) Click “Create a list”. Name the list, and choose the people you want to be in that list.

c) Now go to “Account”, “Privacy settings”. What do you want to be seen, and by whom? You can use the “customise” option to choose lists to see your updates. For instance, you can set it so that only people in your “family” list can see your photos.

d) You can also use these lists for individual updates, using the button next to the “Share” button, and clicking “customise”. For instance, I can send an update about an event in Auckland, and choose to send it only to my Auckland friends (but note, I had to set up the Auckland list myself beforehand).

2b. Using a Facebook page instead of your personal profile (the easier/better way)

Facebook pages are public pages used for brands, companies and celebrities (and in the 21st century, everyone’s a celebrity!).

a) Go to www.facebook.com/pages/create.php

b) Choose the category most appropriate for you (you can’t change this later)

c) Name your page (you can change this later, but only if you have fewer than 100 fans. After that, your name is set in concrete).

d) Deck your page out with your logo/photo, bio and links to your website.

Having a Facebook page has a couple of benefits: you can have as many fans (or “likers”) as you like (whereas your personal profile only allows 5000) and you get detailed analytics (known as “insights”) into your likers.

3. Twitter

Twitter is not for everybody, but those who use it tend to swear by it.

In many ways, Twitter is a scaled-down version of Facebook. Updates are limited to 140 characters of text, but those characters can include links to images, video and web pages. Twitter usage is small in New Zealand (around 30,000 users) but it is closely watched by mainstream media who are aware of its “breaking news” potential.

To set up your Twitter account:

a) Visit www.twitter.com

b) Sign up

c) Choose a username (your real name works best, so people can easily recognise and remember you)

d) Upload your picture, and include the one-paragraph version of your bio (maximum 160 characters)

e) Start following people. (To “Follow” means to subscribe to their updates).

f) Use the friend finder to find people you already know who are on Twitter.

People sometimes ask, “what’s the point of Twitter?” Conversation is the point. Twitter is not a broadcast mechanism. Well, ok, it is for CNN and the New York Times, but they already have an audience. To start building an audience, we must engage in two-way conversation. Use the reply and direct message functions to have conversations with other people. You’ll not only build your network, you’ll probably also learn a lot.

4. LinkedIn

LinkedIn has been described as “Facebook for business”. It’s a social site that’s made for business networking. To start yourself on LinkedIn:

a) Visit www.linkedin.com

b) Set up your profile, using your professional photo, and the longer version of your bio.

c) Add all your roles, including voluntary or advisory roles. This makes you easier to find, and enables you to more easily connect with former and current workmates.

d) Search for groups on topics that are relevant to you. Groups are a great way to find like minds, learn more, and get a reputation for being knowledgeable and helpful.

e) When you swap business cards in “real life”, ask people if they’d mind if you added them on LinkedIn. Make it a habit.

f) When you want to reach a particular company or industry, search LinkedIn for contacts. It will show you people that you already have a connection in common with.

5. Go back to your Google Profile

...and update your links to Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

There’s more, of course. If photography or events are a big part of your work, consider photography site flickr.com, or events site plancast.com. If you’re big on powerpoint presentations, get an account on slideshare.net.

Perhaps the most important thing to realise with social networking is that it’s not just about what you put out there. It’s about the conversation you get back. Ultimately, marketing is a two-way process. Who are you talking with, and what have you got to offer them today?