Office Repo» Business

Using Facebook to Market Your Business

josephnilo — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 16:24:08 +0000

It seems the "long tail" is finally starting to get on Facebook. If you're like me (an early adopter), you're probably amazed - it's not just old high school friends starting profiles, it's mom and dad and aunt Judy getting into the mix.

Using Facebook as a networking tool for your freelance or small business can be very effective in meeting new clients. Here's how I use Facebook for my creative business and as a marketing tool for my clients' businesses.

Create a page for your business

You're probably already a "fan" of something or some public figure on Facebook. Well, let people become a fan of you! Go Here to create a page for your business, product, band, or whatever. A page is sort of like a "profile-light" -- allowing you to post information, pictures, videos, have a feed of your Facebook activities.

Then let some of your contacts know about this page. It might only be your high school buddies, mom, dad, and aunt Judy, but it's a start! This is a network, so start networking!

Online Portfolio

As a video professional, I upload all all of my work to my Facebook business page.

Then all of my fans (friends and clients alike) are updated when new work is available to view - keeping my company fresh in their minds. Consider adding a video overview or screencast about what it is you do. Trust me, people like video!

Admins

Do you work with other people? Set them up as admins on your business page. Then they can add photos, videos, and information, as well. And their contacts can see the page & its activity and become fans . . . you see where this could lead? I see too many people opening up a regular Facebook account for their business (like their entity is a person), and then really only one person can update the info on that page. Start a business page and give all your colleagues admin access to keep the page fresh and broaden the network.

Advertise

You have the option to create an ad on Facebook right from your company's page. I'd say Facebook ads, at least in my experience, have a much better click-through rate than Google Ads, because you can set them up to be very targeted. While setting up the ad (very easy to do if you've done Google Adwords before), you can choose very specific demographics to market to. In my case, I chose people worldwide who were involved in Marketing. And the clicks started coming!

Search Your Email

I am a Gmail user and occasionally let Facebook do a search through my gazillion Gmail contacts for people to add as friends. This is a very effective way to connect with clients and potential clients -- anyone you've emailed over the years. And then add them as a friend! Everyone likes more friends on Facebook.

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So get on Facebook and start marketing yourself! After a little bit of setup and creativity, you'll start reaching more people . . . Aunt Judy would be proud.

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How to Not to Lose Yourself in a Steady Gig

josephnilo — Fri, 07 Nov 2008 13:38:04 +0000

Most of us rely on steady jobs to help us make it financially as freelancers. Whether your steady client is a “bread and butter” client, or is a bit more watered down in pay, these gigs can be valuable to tide you over between larger projects.

But there are downsides to working for clients on a regular basis. Especially if you want the diversity of freelancing but somehow find yourself “stuck” in a job that financially supports your freedom to freelance but doesn’t give you the time to explore projects and promote yourself. Read on to learn how to combat these trials.

[From How to Not to Lose Yourself in a Steady Gig - FreelanceSwitch - The Freelance Blog]

I loved this article over at FreelanceSwitch. Very timely for me right now. I'd add a couple of other "downsides" of having all your eggs in one basket.

Un-diversified

The most obvious problem with putting all your energy into one big client is that if something happens to that client's company or the job you're doing for them, you're out of luck. This is an important reality in the current economy.

Portfolio

An unexpected problem I've run into as a creative professional is that my portfolio over the past year contains mostly my one big client. It's almost worth it to get out there and get some other smaller gigs (even pro bono) just to have your portfolio reflect a larger body of work.

Getting Soft

My last 9-5 job had me editing corporate video for a large, diverse group of clients. This kept me on my toes, always learning, always pushing myself professionally. Now that I'm working mostly on one client, my "chops" in different industries and styles of editing are getting a little rusty.

Fear of Being Too Busy

Now, I can't complain about having a regular bread-and-butter client. Sometimes I don't get out there and market myself because it's outside of my comfort zone. And I like my current workload. When I get the random thought in my head that "I don't want/need any more business", I should give myself a quick reality check. What a silly thing to think! Strive for success, and if it lands in your lap, deal with it. It would be a nice problem to have.

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The Secrets to Success in Multimedia or [Insert Tech Industry Here]

josephnilo — Thu, 17 May 2007 12:29:00 +0000

I wanted to repurpose a blog entry I wrote for my blog / podcast Mac MediaCast. I've been thinking about the subject of educating yourself to stay on top of your industry. Though the original article is geared toward multimedia production, I think it can be especially true for any tech-related industry.

After listening to a recent episode of This Week in Media, I was inspired to put in my two cents' worth on what I think is the most critical aspect of success in multimedia - Education. I believe that this is true on multiple levels -- whether you're an aspiring multimedia professional or just a home user wanting to create better music, movies, photos, etc. What sorts of education? I can't discount a college education, but, as a freshman-year dropout, I definitely can attest to alternate methods, such as:

Read the entire article here

Technorati Tags: business, gtd, howto, lifehack, personal achievement, productivity, tutorial

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The Virtual Office: 10 WebOS systems reviewed

josephnilo — Wed, 27 Dec 2006 03:32:09 +0000

I'm very intrigued by the thought of a WebOS-- rumors of a GoogleOS abound. I found an article called Big WebOS Roundup that is quite cool. It's worth checking in on some of the contenders and seeing what's coming. As a video editor, I'll always need to have a powerful computer with which to do my work. But my office duties differ-- if you've been reading my posts, you know that I'm a fan of Google Docs, Google Calendar, etc. and I'd be quite happy doing business from anywhere with a laptop and Firefox.

Technorati Tags: business, webOS

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Mack Collier’s Z-Lister Meme Catches Fire

josephnilo — Wed, 27 Dec 2006 03:00:11 +0000

From startupspark.com - Mack Collier’s Z-Lister Meme Catches Fire:

Entrepreneurs network and seek opportunities. At least successful ones do. I’ve kept an idea on Mack Collier’s Z-Lister Meme for the last week or so and I’ve watched it explode. Makes sense. It’s easy for people to do, and it’s now hitting a tipping point where it’s creating an incredible number of links to all sorts of blogs. And we all know how valuable links are, right? Not as valuable as a buck in the bank, but darn close.

Creative Think Soloride Movie Marketing Madness Blog Till You Drop! Get Shouty! One Reader at a Time 100 Bloggers Critical Fluff The New PR Own Your Brand! OTOInsights bizandbuzz Work, in Plain English Buzz Canuck New Millenium PR Pardon My French The Instigator Blog AENDirect Diva Marketing Marketing Hipster The Marketing Minute Funny Business The Frager Factor Mindblob OrbitNow! Open The Dialogue Word Sell Note to CMO: That’s Great Marketing! Shotgun Marketing Blog BrandSizzle bizsolutionsplus Customers Rock! Being Peter Kim Andy Nulman Billions With Zero Knowledge Working at Home on the Internet MapleLeaf 2.0 Darren Barefoot Two Hat Marketing The Engaging Brand The Branding Blog CrapHammer Drew’s Marketing Minute Golden Practices Viaspire Tell Ten Friends Flooring the Consumer Kinetic Ideas Unconventional Thinking Buzzoodle Conversation Agent The Copywriting Maven Hee-Haw Marketing Scott Burkett’s Pothole on the Infobahn Multi-Cult Classics Logic + Emotion Branding & Marketing Carpe Factum Steve’s 2 Cents Simplicity Popcorn n Roses On Influence & Automation Servant of Chaos converstations eSoup Make it Great! Presentation Zen Dmitry Linkov aialone Urban Jacksonville John Wagner Nick Rice CKs Blog Design Sojourn Frozen Puck The Sartorialist Small Surfaces Africa Unchained Perspective gDiapers Marketing Nirvana Bob Sutton ¡Hola! Oi! Hi! Shut Up and Drink the Kool-Aid! Women, Art, Life: Weaving It All Together Community Guy Social Media on the fly Jeremy Latham’s Blog SMogger Social Media Blog Masey.com Home Biz Notes Small Business Boomers Success From The Nest Levite Chronicles Happy Holidays!

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What's in a Name? Everything You Need To Know About Naming a Startup

josephnilo — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 03:33:59 +0000

From startupspark.com One of the first things people do when they’re starting a new business is pick a name. It’s a pretty important step, because it ends up defining a lot about the business. In the Web 2.0 age we’re getting a lot of whacky names that don’t mean very much. People hope the names are snappy and catchy enough that they take on a life of their own. Some are real words (that still don’t tell us anything about what the company does), but most are just a mashup of letters into something “funky”, or they’re using a word in a foreign language to sound cool. (read more)

Technorati Tags: business, howto, tutorial

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Create and share outlines online with iJot

josephnilo — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 03:55:17 +0000

From LifeHacker: Web-based iJot combines a word processor and a wiki to turn your notes into outlines, which you can then save and/or share. With iJot, you enter notes using a wiki-like browser interface, then organize them with the built-in outliner. From there you can publish them as a standalone web site, complete with blog and feed features. iJot's still-in-beta interface definitely leans toward the cluttered, text-heavy side, and I found it annoying the way that a new window popped open every time I clicked a tab or tried to view an outline. Still, this should appeal to anyone who's been waiting for an online outliner.

Oh, how I love Web 2.0 productivity tools. I'll be happy one day when my laptop has a web browser and nothing else-- everything will be online. Ok, maybe that's a little scary, too. : )

Technorati Tags: business, freebies, gtd, lifehack, productivity, software, web2.0

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2 Blog Articles on the Power Of Paper

josephnilo — Sun, 03 Dec 2006 15:26:37 +0000

I found these two articles today, and I couldn't agree more (my comments below)

From Contract Worker: "It may sound obvious, but a really easy way to increase productivity is to maintain a daily checklist. You’d be surprised at how many (my old self included) fail to do this. A daily checklist helps you remember what needs to be done. Marking each item as they’re accomplished also gives a sense of satisfaction. I’d suggest keeping a small notebook and writing each new day’s tasks on a new page. This makes tracking your achievements over time possible. And you can see if you’re consistently reaching or failing your goals, adjusting your work load or habits to compensate."

From David Seah "Last week I wrote about these flat bookmark pens I got at Barnes & Noble. I finally got a chance to use them “in the field” during Barcamp Manchester, tucking one into a thin moleskine cashier journal. It was quite convenient, and I discovered that the flexing of the pen body was actually an advantage: it doesn’t break when you sit on it! At least, so far it hasn’t."

I'm a strong proponent of the low-tech paper solution-- keeping a notebook with me at all times to jot down and collect bits of information. I call it an "Inbox" a la the GTD method. Then at least once a day, I process all the information in all of my "inboxes"-- the notebook, my email inbox, lingering voicemails-- and figure out what to do next with each bit of information. And then (though you might think me a packrat)-- I keep all of these notebooks in a box or file somewhere as a backup. And sometimes the feel of pen on paper is just refreshing.

Technorati Tags: gtd, howto, lifehack, productivity

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250 Free Office Templates and Documents

josephnilo — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 13:23:36 +0000

I haven't checked yet to see if these are compatible with my preferred NeoOffice and Google Documents but . . . here are 250 Free Office Templates and Documents, courtesy of Microsoft and the Dumb Little Man blog. Address books Analysis worksheets Advertisements Announcements Applications Banners Balance sheets Bills of sale

Technorati Tags: business, deals, gtd, howto, lifehack, freebies

Binder inserts Bookmarks Books Bylaws, policies, and rules Calculators Case inserts Catalogs Charts Coupons Dividers E-mails Estimates Evaluations Forecasts Games Identification cards Instructions Itineraries Job descriptions Journals Ledgers Logs Menus Maps Name and place cards Note cards Notes OneNote notebooks OneNote pages OneNote sections Outlines Paper folding projects Papers Petitions Posters Press releases Programs Proposals Quizzes and tests Quotes Recipes Records Reply cards Scorecards Sign-in and sign-up sheets Signs Stickers Surveys Tags Tickets Tournament brackets Trackers Wills With compliments cards Other templates

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Technorati's Top 10 Blogs Above the Fold

josephnilo — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 13:18:01 +0000

Found a cool page that has a diagram / amalgam of Technorati's top 10 blogs and a virtual overlay that shows what sort of content they all have in common "Above The Fold". Very interesting.
Check it out here

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