Hey guys! I wanted to post our Prezi and video recording of our presentation from this Tuesday. I hope that you enjoyed following our project over the course of this semester and you enjoy watching our video presentation to Andrea Whaley of Wardrobe Interventions!
Author: mkoehle
Personal Learning Network Reflectioin
Through out this semester the personal learning network I put together for Andrea Whaley of Wardrobe Interventions really helped me learn more about the business and marketing world. The professionals I follow on Twitter, Diigo, and bloglines really provided me with great social media knowledge and information that our group was able to pass down to Wardrobe Interventions during our training session. During our training session we used several examples from Rachel Zoe’s Twitter and Facebook account because she is in the same business of Andrea Whaley and does a great job of promoting her brand all across the Internet.
Rachel Zoe’s Twitter homepage has a great cover background, profile picture, and biography. She does a great job on consistently posting relevant content and interacting with her audience. By studying her Twitter and Facebook page over the course of the semester our workshop group was able to provide Wardrobe Interventions with helpful hints and suggestions that could boost her social media presence and could help build up her followers on Twitter and “likes” on Facebook.
If I was given the opportunity to start the social media for a new business I would definitely create a personal learning network for myself to follow. Making “lists” on Twitter and tweeting at different professional relevant to your business is a great way to attract new followers and hopefully get you noticed by other businesses and marketers. I would work on posting up-to-date information and content on my social media platforms in order to keep my audience involved and interested. I would also consider starting a blog relevant to my business and work on building up a following on that platform in order to reach potential new customers and clients.
Overall, I had a great time working with our client Andrea Whaley of Wardrobe Interventions. Even though I learn a lot doing regular school projects I feel like actually putting together a training session someone will actually use made me think more critically about the subject. I definitely used this opportunity to work with a “real-world” client in order to grow and learn more as a student. Since Andrea runs her own business I think we provided great tips to help her engage, brand, and manage all of her social media accounts and even some potential new ones. By putting together this training workshop I learned a lot about the positive and even negative effects social media can have on a small business or even a huge international corporation.
How Social Media Can Change the Business World
I started writing this blog at the beginning of the semester as part of a class assignment and have learned so much through researching and also viewing other professional blogs to search for new tools and ideas that could continue my learning. In today’s society social media is now a must-have if a business wants to make money and reach new customers. Virtually everyone is online in some way and people rely on the Internet more then ever to go about their daily lives. Keeping up with new social media websites and platforms are important if businesses want to stay ahead of their competition and keep the customers they currently do have.
The way we are using social media now has definitely been effective in promoting and marketing business’s goals and ideas. If we continue on the path we are on now, I think we could come up with even more creative and fun ideas to reach customers through sites such as Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, and any other platforms I have mentioned on my blog over the semester.
The great thing about social media is that is doesn’t just have to be used for business. I know through out my blog I have focused on how it could help Wardrobe Interventions, but it is a great tool that people use to connect to each other with. People have found long lost relatives and friends through social media sites which would have never happened just a couple of years ago. Social media is continuously evolving and the fun part is that we can have a huge influence on how it grows.
Once companies realized how effective social media was, they really started to get involved and take charge in how they wanted to brand their image. Even though it is important to be creative and fun when posting things on social media, it is also important to be aware of what you are posting and the lasting effects it could have. The one downside to the Internet is that whatever ends up there, stays there. Even if a business or company tweets or posts a photo for just a couple of seconds and then takes it down, more than likely someone saw it and has already spread it across the Internet. Social media can either make or break a company and I think businesses have started to realize how crucial it is to stay on stop of all of their social media sites and make good decision on what they post and even when they post something.
Thanks for sticking with me this semester and I hope you all enjoyed reading my blog posts about incorporating social media into business!
Using Pinterest to Market your Business
Pinterest is another great bookmarking tool available on the Internet. It is a fun way to upload, save, and sort images, known as pins, onto your virtual pin-boards. Users can browse their friends pins and then choose to save the ones they like, or they have the ability to go to a specific category and browse other people’s pins from around the country.
Since we are working with Andrea Whaley from Wardrobe Interventions, I feel like Pinterest would be a great way to grow her business and market herself even more. The majority of users on Pinterest are women and since Wardrobe Interventions focuses on image consulting and personal shopping, Pinterest would be a great way to market her business to a specific target audience.
By creating different boards, users are easily able to organize their pinned images and name their boards according to what pins they contain. This makes it easy for people to go to different users sites and view specific boards they pinned. This picture is an example of what someone’s “fashion” board might look like on Pinterest.
Businesses, such as Wardrobe Interventions, can create a Pinterest page and then post pictures of products or accessories they like and even pin other people’s fashion ideas to show people what they suggest and what they see as “in-style.” In order for someone to trust you enough to change their wardrobe, it is important that they like your styling choices and feel comfortable enough to work with you. If you connect your Pinterest site to your business website, it gives potential customers an opportunity to view your work and see if they like what you do.
Pinning and commenting on other people’s pins is a great way to gain new followers if you are just starting up and it is also a good way to market your business. Styling and fashion is a huge part of Pinterest so I think it would be a great social networking tool for Andrea and her business. Posting her own models and styling ideas would be a great way to really show off her style and connect her to her followers even more.
Pinterest is a great website to really let your creativity really shine through. This bookmarking website is a fun and fresh way to share your ideas or products with literally thousands of people. I definitely think Pinterest is one of the top marketing and networking sites on the Internet today!
Using Social Bookmarking Tools
Last week I talked about HootSuite and how it can be a great tool for small business owners to use in order to interact with their followers. This website provides a great feature that allows its users to schedule when they want to send out tweets or posts without having to actually click a button or even have Internet access. I have been using HootSuite for the past couple weeks now and it is one of my favorite websites because it has all of your social media sites in one location and it makes it easy to check out your Facebook newsfeed or even your mentions on your Twitter page.
Today I am going to talk a little about the social bookmarking website, Diigo. This website allows users to bookmark and tag web-pages on the Internet. In order to easily bookmark a page you can install a little icon in your web browser that makes it easy for the user to click on it and it provides a drop down menu with actions you can take.
The drop down menu allows the user to share, annotate, screenshot, and save to their Diigo library
Your Diigo library keeps track of what websites you save and the annotations you can make in them. My library is mostly focused on social media, marketing, communications and blogging because our client, Wardrobe Interventions, is an up-and-coming small business that focuses on style and fashion.
It is also easy to find Diigo users with similar interests as you because Diigo has a search engine feature that allows users to type in a specific keyword and it then generates a list of Diigo users with similar tags.
When you type in a keyword such as “marketing” a list of users pops up who all used the tag “marketing” for at least one of their saved websites. This is a great tool because it makes it easy for the user to find similar websites that talk about marketing without having to spend hours on the Internet searching through irrelevant information. Many of the websites users tag in their library are extremely helpful and provide great research and information on a variety of topics.
This website can benefit business owners because it can be a huge time saver. People are constantly busy and don’t always have endless hours to spend on the Internet searching for new ways to improve their marketing, blogging, or any other type of skill. Diigo allows you to save all of your websites in one area while also being able to search through other people’s tags and websites.
Staying Connected with HootSuite
With so many social media sites available for our use it can be time consuming to constantly check every site that you have on a regular basis. In order to grow a small business though it is important to stay on top of your social media postings and to be aware of the latest news stories going on around the country and even world. Recently I found that HootSuite is a great website that can manage all of your social media accounts in one place. This website allows you to connect your Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Foursquare, Myspace, and even WordPress so you do not have to go to each different website in order to view or post something.
Each different section allows the user to view their news feeds from several different social media sites. It also allows you to monitor what people are saying about you or your company and makes it easy for you to respond immediately back to them. For example, on Twitter you can add a “stream” that only shows your direct mentions in someone else’s tweet. This can be good for business’s because it makes it easier for them to monitor what their customer’s are saying about their product or brand and allows them to stay constantly in the loop.
HootSuite makes it easy to click on any type of steam, for example Twitter, and it immediately creates a new section on your dashboard showing you anything you wish to see.
Another cool feature in HootSuite is its feature that allows you to schedule when you want your Facebook post or tweet goes out to your followers. You can create a tweet and then click the specific date and time you want it to go out and HootSuite will automatically send it out for you no matter where you are at.
This can be great for businesses such as Andrea Whaley’s Wardrobe Interventions because she can schedule a Facebook post days in advance to promote something and she wouldn’t have to worry about remembering to do it. It can be hard to be a small business owner and this scheduling feature can make social media posting so much easier.
Keeping up with social media can be hard for some people and I feel like this website is a great way to make people’s lives a lot easier. Using HootSuite allows you to focus your energy on other areas of your life or business without having to sacrifice your social media presence!
How to Incorporate Instagram Into Your Business
A couple weeks ago in an earlier blog post I talked about Instagram and how important it can be for Wardrobe Interventions but today I am going to look at how Instagram can be beneficial for all types of businesses. Instagram is a relatively new form of social media and has really taken off in the past couple of years. I really feel like it has the potential to expand businesses and really allow consumers to connect and understand the company they are buying their products from.
Instagram provides users a fun and fast way to share images with friends, families, or even complete strangers. In order to really connect to their consumers, it is important for companies to post both business and fun pictures. People get bored when their newsfeed is constant branding or products so in order to really captivate the reader’s attention, businesses should focus on sharing images that are cute, funny, and interesting.
Another way businesses can use Instagram is to post videos on their accounts. Almost a year ago Instagram started to allow users to upload 3-15 second videos and I feel like it is a great way to really take this photo sharing app to the next level. For her fashion business, I feel like Andrea Whaley could use Instagram video to post fashion advice, helpful hints, and maybe even do a complete make-over on someone. People do not always check blogs on a regular basis but if she starts posting Instagram videos or pictures, it gives her another way to connect to potential customers. Even though a 15 second video might not be that long, Andrea Whaley could use that to her advantage and show how dramatic and quick one of her transformations could be on someone.
Engaging on Instagram is a great way to network and use your account to your greatest advantage. If someone new follows you or likes/comments on a picture you posted, follow them back or respond! When people feel they are actually being acknowledged they are more willing to try your brand or product and even recommend it to other people. Hashtags are also a great way to connect your Twitter, Facebook and Instagram account. If you can get a hashtag trending people can click on it and link it back to your page.
These are just a few suggestions on how Instagram can be beneficial to your business. With so many products and brands on the market today, it is important to sell to your customers on why your company is the best. Using Instagram allows you to personally share photos and videos while at the same time really connecting you to your customers.
Blogging for Small Businesses
This week I am going to talk about the benefits of blogging! Millions of people every day blog in order to stay connected, teach others about a subject, and most importantly just to have fun. Blogging can serve different purposes for different people but in our situation I am going to look at how it can be beneficial to Andrea and her small business of Wardrobe Interventions.
Blogging can be a great way for a small business owner to really connect to potential customers. Being consistent and knowledgable with your updates will give your readers more of a reason to follow you and interact with you online. Since Andrea is into fashion I think it is important for her to attend fashion events and post pictures of what she sees and what she thinks is going to be “it” thing. Fashion is such a visual business and people want to be confident in your decisions before they go and hire you for a full makeover or closet facelift.
This website does a great job of informing readers that blogging doesn’t have to be stressful and can actually be really fun if you don’t overwhelm yourself. It also provides great tips on how small business owners can go about blogging if they are first time users.
One of the most important things to remember is that it can take time to build a following. With millions of blogs out there you really have to be proactive in your approach to inform your customers that you have a blog and encourage them to follow it. Many people link their business’s website to their blog to allow even more people to be exposed to their brand or business. In today’s society just having a webpage for a business is not enough. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and blogging have all become important pieces to running a successful business.
Since Andrea is considered an expert in her area of business her goal should be to educate and inform her readers of fashion trends and popular accessories. Blogging should be a fun way for her to form relationships with her readers and potential customers. When you have your own blog it gives you opportunities to be creative and really enjoy what you are writing and posting about. So far I have enjoyed my weekly blog posts and I have only just started!
I hope ya’ll have a great spring break and I will update soon!
Creating a Twitter Page
Last blog post I talked about how beneficial Twitter is and how important it is to follow other people that are in the same industry as you. Today I am going to discuss how important it is to create a professional Twitter page for your business. The first thing someone sees when they go to someone’s Twitter page is their picture and brief description. In order to really catch their attention it is important to make sure you have a professional picture of you or your business and a relevant description of your business.
Julia Engel is a professional blogger who focuses on fashion and beauty. She uses her Twitter page to promote her blog and current fashions.
Her Twitter handle, as shown in the picture, is her blog name which gives her readers easy access to her work. One of the most important things in Twitter is having a username that is relevant to your business or brand. Most of the time people search for a business by their name and if your product doesn’t pop up on their search list, it is going to be very difficult for someone to follow you.
Once you have a Twitter name the next step is to add a profile picture and a background picture to your page. Since Andrea Whaley of Wardrobe Interventions has her own personal business I think it is important that she has a professional picture of her self as her profile picture so people can connect her face with her business. Another important part of your Twitter page is having a good background picture behind your profile page and description. People like to be entertained so having a fun but suitable background picture can really brighten up your page.
Andrea does a good job of having a good profile picture but could work on having a more fun and stylish background picture. 
Since she is a stylist in the Austin area she could mix fashion and the city to create a unique background picture suitable for her and her business.
Another important step is creating a brief description outlining who you are and what you do. Most of the time this is the only information someone will get before they go to your business website so including personal information about yourself and business is essential.
Michael Kors does a good job in their description by promoting their brand and at the same time giving the reader an idea of what they sell.
I hope this gives you a better idea of what Twitter is all about and helps you make your Twitter page even better!
Tweeting
Last week I talked about Facebook and how you can use that platform to help build up your followers and really connect to your customers. Facebook is an important aspect of social media but Twitter has definitely changed the way people communicate and talk. Twitter was originally launched in 2006 but not until 2010 did we see how big it could actually be. With millions of tweets being sent out every minute, it is now in the most top ten visited websites in the world.
One reason Twitter has grown so much in the past couple of years is because of smart phones. These tiny little computers we carry with us everywhere we go has changed the way we talk and communicate with each other on a daily basis. With so many websites, such as Twitter, providing apps for our smart phones, it’s easier then ever to connect with and socialize with each other.
Since more and more people are on Twitter then ever before, people and businesses are learning to network even better then just a couple years ago. The best way to learn more about Twitter using social networking is to find professionals already on Twitter, follow them, and see how they communicate with their followers. The people with the most followers are usually the most active on Twitter and really use this website to their advantage to promote their image or product.
A great way to find a wide variety of professionals in your area of interest is to find someone you already know who has a strong fan base and go to look at who they are following. A lot of times professionals follow other professionals in their field to keep up-to-date on the latest trends and products. One person I follow on Twitter is Rachel Zoe. I think she does a great job on Twitter of promoting her brand and also sharing helpful fashion tips and ideas.
One reason she is so popular on Twitter is due to the fact she tweets several times a day. During the New York Fashion Show recently she posted pictures and links every day and gave her followers an inside look at designer’s upcoming fashion lines in the spring and fall.
In order for an up-and-coming business such as Andrea Whaley’s Wardrobe Interventions to grow, it is necessary for her to consistently tweet about current styles and trends happening in our area. If a business is constantly staying on someone’s newsfeed, it gives that person a reason to follow them if they keep their interest. If used correctly, Twitter can be a great tool for people and business’s to use. Later on I am also going to discuss other features of Twitter and how beneficial they can be.