How Do I Learn All This Stuff?...

Recently, I have had the opportunity to talk with several moms who are in the process of starting their own business. Like me, they want to be able to create their own hours and work on projects that really inspire them. Even though each of the moms I talked to had different business plans and areas of focus, the one thing that was common among all was the feeling of overwhelm they have when it comes to creating their online presence. Of course, that challenge is not specific to mompreneurs. I think every small-to-midsize business owner feels that same sense each and every day.

One mom asked me pointedly “How Do I Learn All This Stuff?”. That is a great question, and my answer is “You don’t.” It’s not possible to learn and know it all, and as a business owner, you don’t need to. You DO need to have a general sense of what’s going on in the world of social media and marketing, but you do not need to become an expert in all of the specifics. You also DO need to have a clear plan (with the caveat that it will need to be somewhat flexible because things will change as you learn and grow in your business).

So, here are some tips for getting started.

1. Define your target audience. Who will be served by your products and/or services? What are the demographics for your audience, i.e. where do they live, where do they shop, do they work, what are their hobbies/interests, what are the problems they have that you can help to solve?

2. Decide how you want to engage with your customers/potential customers online. Do you want to have an informational website with easy ways to contact you and find you online, e.g. have links to Facebook and Twitter? Do you want to have a blog that you update regularly? Will your blog be your main online presence? If so, how often you do you plan to write for your blog? Do you want to bring on other writers to provide valuable content to your audience?

3. Create a social media marketing plan. Make a list of all of the social networks on which you might want to have a presence. Then, create a priority list for those. Here’s a hint, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are the 3 most popular and widely-used social networks, so start there. Remember that there are many tools, e.g. FriendFeed, that allow you to integrate all of your social networks so you can update one and have it update all of them.

4. Learn how to outsource. As I mentioned above, you don’t need to learn and do everything all at once for you business. And, you don’t need to be an expert in all of it either. But, you want to have a general understanding of what’s going on and how you can utilize it so you can decide if you want to hire other people to help. And, having a general idea of what to do can help you to direct those appropriately to help build your online presence. There are many resources out there for hiring freelancers to help you with building your website, writing your blog, building pages on Facebook and Twitter and helping to implement your social media marketing plan. In fact, there are many moms in business who are great in these areas and would love to help.

5. Stay up-to-date on current trends. One of the really great things about the internet today is that you have control over what information you want to receive and how you want receive it. Make sure you are plugging in to the places where you can stay up to date on new technology and marketing trends that can help your business. You don’t have to read or listen to everything every day, but you can certainly glance at articles or headlines to know what’s going on and then delve in further if you’re interested. One thing that I do that helps keep me organized and not so overwhelmed is to find the Facebook Fan pages for the sites and information sources I want to read and become a fan. That way, I get to see all of the updates in my Facebook news feed and I can decide quickly what information I want to learn more about and what information I want to ignore.

Some of the sources I refer to regularly are:

Mashable – www.mashable.com
Social Media Examiner – www.socialmediaexaminer.com
International Social Media Association – www.ismaconnects.org
TechCrunch – www.techcrunch.com

6. Listen to how others are doing it. There are many people who have been successful online and with social media, in particular. Find out what they’re doing and how they’re doing it. Listen to interviews, like the interviews we do with Web Savvy Moms. And, don’t be afraid to ask questions. I’ve found that people are happy to share what they’ve learned and to help out so don’t be shy.

Remember, you don’t need to know it all, and you don’t need to feel overwhelmed. Create a plan and start breaking it down into manageable chunks and you will start to see the payoff from your efforts.

Looking to bolster your writing skills?...

Looking to bolster your writing skills? Want more experience writing about the web, social media, marketing and other fun topics for mompreneurs? We’re looking for guest writers, so if you’re interested, contact us at mom@websavvymoms.com with the Subject Line: Guest Writer

Thankful...

When I was a young girl, Thanksgiving wasn’t very important to me. For me, it was a just a day when my family’s kitchen became very busy so I just needed to stay out of the way and a time when my house quickly became full with my large extended family. The best part for me was setting the table, something I still enjoy. But the truth is that, as a child, I could have done without the holiday. I didn’t get it and it didn’t seem like much fun.

I have my husband to thank for teaching me to really enjoy the holiday as an adult. Thanksgiving is my husband’s favorite holiday because he has always enjoyed the preparation of a large, overindulgent meal and the look of pleasure on people’s faces after they’ve cleaned their plates.  And, since we’ve hosted now for almost 10 years, he and I both love having our home filled with friends and family who are so important to us and for having a day to slow down and catch up with all of them.

This Thanksgiving, I’m thankful for a great many things and I’m trying to take time even before the holiday to express gratitude for the abundance in my life and the great many experiences that have made my life that much more fulfilling.

In the context of this blog, I want to express my gratitude for the fact that I get to work the way I want, when I want and with whom I want. I have the ultimate freedom because I own my own business and can still be at home and raising and taking care of my family.

And, I’m grateful to all of you who read this blog and those who have shared with me your experiences and insights and thoughts about how moms can be more successful in business by working together and harnessing the power of the internet to build their businesses. Maybe now would be a good time for all of us to stop and just think about all of the amazing mompreneurs out there and how much they do to move our economy and our society forward. Speaking for myself, I’ve met some amazing mom business owners lately and I’m always so impressed by the ideas and drive that these women have. So, I’m thankful that I get the chance to know some of you and share in your brilliance.

This Thanksgiving, I hope you are able to be with the people you love and take time to appreciate the wonderful gifts in your life.  And, if you’re a mom in business and you’re already successful, then congratulations and I wish you continued success. If you’re a mom that is new in business or you’re struggling right now, then I just want to say to you — Hang in there. Keep going. Don’t give up and hold onto your dreams and goals. They can happen if you stay focused and believe that they can.

Don’t believe me? Then, before you sit down for dinner this Thanksgiving, be sure to read this story about Tererai Trent. She was not born in the United States, but she certainly has taken advantage of all the opportunities here. And, I’m thankful that there are other women like her, like you, who are changing the world each and every day.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Stats to remember: Women Rule the Social Web...

Here’s some interesting information about how much women are using the social web. If you’re a mom business owner and you target other women in your marketing efforts, this is great information to have. And, in general, it’s important to see the trends among users and how they are using the latest social media sites out there.

Read the full report here:
Women Rule the Social Web.

The Benefits of In-person Networking in the Era of...

Mari Smith, a Facebook guru and social media expert, recently wrote a post on her blog asking opinions about the benefits of in-person vs. online social networking.  She made compelling points about being able to attend live events and then bring back the experiences from those events and share them online, either through connecting with people you met there using social media tools, or by uploading and sharing photos of the event using various photo-sharing sites. She also described the benefits of building a large online network and then leveraging that to create off-line business relationships. It made me consider the way I go about building and fostering my business relationships.

In the past, I was an active attendee at business networking events and I made terrific business contacts and friends as a result. However, since becoming a mom and running my business, I’ve had less time to attend those events, and so my off-line relationships have floundered a bit. As a result, I’ve felt somewhat pressed to get back out there. However, with social media, I’ve been able to maintain and recapture some of those business connections and even enhance them by sharing valuable information with one another. In fact, two of my most recent clients came as a result of reconnecting with old business contacts on LinkedIn.

I do believe that if I can couple my offline and online networking efforts, I will be able to further expand my network and strengthen my connections. I’ll keep you posted as I expand what I’m doing in both areas.

What about you? Do you like to put your efforts into online or offline networking? Or, do you do both? Do you think one has more success than the other? I’d love to hear what you think.”