Look – size matters for some things in life, but not social media. Much like a website, and other things in life, if you don’t do anything with it or don’t know how to do anything with it, it’s worthless.

Here are three instances where size does not matter:

Size of blog – I get this one all the time. “How long does my blog have to be?” I refer to the social media rule: Content is King. If you have great content, people will keep coming back. So forget about word count in your blog. Think of content and deliver it with link attribution.

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Size of friends or fans – Bragging about number of friends or fans is like bragging about the number of kids that went to your high school – it means nothing unless you’ve reached out and networked with each and every one of them. Contacts are one thing, but what you do with them is totally another. If you have no foundation and no plan for what to do with them when you acquire them, you’ve wasted your time gathering the friends.

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Number of networks – Having an expanded online presence is fantastic. Having so many online accounts that you can’t keep up with them is ridiculous. Pick and choose the ones you can handle and the ones you can outsource. Stick with those and watch your social media family flourish into sales leads and an awesome tool for feedback.

Keep your social media plan under control and out of your hands. Outsource it to us!

I want to hear in what instances size doesn’t matter for your social media efforts. Comment below!

The debate on hiring and outsourcing public relations, or any position for that matter, is eternal. The cost of benefits is ever increasing and the field of under qualified professionals seems to grow daily as well.

I put a call out to people who have had experience in outsourcing and in-house PR/social media. Below is a blend of my ideas, thoughts and research as well as those of respected professionals throughout the nation (with proper attribution). I would love to hear from more professionals as well, so leave comments below on what your experiences have been with outsourcing or hiring PR/social media professionals.

What type of time commitment can you give your brand? Some businesses are so busy with day-to-day customers and orders that promotions take a back seat. It never should. What’s here today could be gone tomorrow and planning for growth is always mandatory. Do you have a staff member available to run your blog, link building, press release distribution, direct mail campaign and more? Or is it something that a secretary can do on an as-needed basis? Promotions, public relations and especially social media take time if done right.

Who will be accountable for your promotions? Will it be Suzy the Secretary or an experienced public relations firm? Accountability is something that many business owners get caught up with. After spending so much money on launching my business, do I want promotions to be in the hands of a PR firm or must they be someone who works for me that knows the daily obstacles we face?

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How cost effective would it be in-house versus outsourced? Health insurance, office space, a full-time salary and other added perks need to be taken into account when deciding which is best for your company.

“Your time and resources are limited,” says Lindsay Hansen, founder of Phoenix-based LDH Consulting, a public relations and marketing firm. “In today’s economy, many companies have been forced to lay off staff and cut marketing/communications budgets.  Now, more than ever, companies need to maximize their marketing dollars and working with a PR consultant can be beneficial.  Most independent contractors have the ability to work within your budget and not require large monthly retainers.”

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“You want better access and coverage in the media,” she adds. “Most experienced PR consultants have the same access to journalists that large agencies do. They work with local, national and trade media on a regular basis and have the tools, software and programs to find reporters and editors at any media outlet in the world. Additionally, they have established relationships with members of the media and are considered a trusted source.”

“Consistency is key,” Hansen adds. “Often times, companies make the mistake of having different in-house staffers or interns write basic press releases, update web site copy or pitch a story to the media. While some companies view this as a cost savings measure, they quickly learn the smallest projects can impact their image and messaging.  The last thing you want to do is have mixed messages going out to staff, board members, the public or media. It can end up hurting your credibility and that is much more costly than just hiring a communications consultant to work with your business and maintain consistent branding.”

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When Song Division, a company that specializes in teambuilding, conference energizing and experiential marketing, moved to the United States from Australia shortly before 2008, it outsourced its public relations.

“The results were good but in a very specific field of HR press,” said Marsha Sharpe of Song Division. “At the end of 2008, we took that back and in 2009 we've done our own with great results in industry magazines such as EVENT MARKETER and BIZBASH.

“The questions we asked ourselves were could we do a good job of PR without the contacts or knowledge of the industry? Of course money was a concern as well, making sure that we had some type of return on investment. To be honest, we find doing our own public relations better, as we can communicate what we do best... We also know how much time is going into getting PR and what works and doesn't so it’s of benefit in the future.”

Rodger Roeser, founder and president of Eisen Marketing Group, wrote an article on this very topic titled “Agency or In House: The Fiscal and Pragmatic Truth.” Check it out here.

The Voice of Your Customer is a marketing firm that assists clients to penetrate niche markets using surveys, focus groups, secret shopping, customer service training and media campaigns.

“Although we are a marketing and PR firm, in 2009, we consulted with a graduate intern to manage our social media presence and contracted with another PR expert to manage external communications for our firm,” said Crystal L Kendrick, president of The Voice of Your Customer. “As the President, I realized that our area of expertise is in the area of reaching niche and underserved populations. As our business grew, I wanted a person who was experienced in managing communications of small businesses in our region. The PR expert has well established relationships in the local media and was experienced in using blogs, articles, news wires, philanthropy and awards to increase awareness about our firm among our target customers. Additionally, we did not have the capacity to manage our external communications.  We weighed the total cost of contracting with a PR expert against having a less than stellar external communications program.

“The decision was a no brainer,” she said. “We hired the PR expert as a consultant and never looked back.  In the past six months, exposure in the local, national and niche media has been nothing less than phenomenal.”

Come back to our blog Dec. 28 for our End-of-Decade Viral Review and Jan. 4 to kick start a healthy approach to your business’ well-being in 2010 with a Social Media Six-Pack.

I want to hear from you! Which is better and why? Outsourcing PR/social media work or in-house? Leave me your comments below and be sure to share this on your favorite social media sites by using the “Share Article” button below!

Jason M. Rodriguez is creator of JayRodChicago.com, which specializes in social media, PR, marketing, business writing and more. He can give social media presentations to large groups, analyze your website’s SEO and social media efforts and, most importantly, provide promotion for your brand with a variety of different tools.

Get your social media campaign started today! (312) 515-9459

Many, if not all, of us have heard the word “blog.” If you don’t know what it means, think of a diary. But instead of telling your diary what you did today, tell your customers different aspects of the knowledge you have about your business or industry.

People blog for fun (for instance, about TV shows) and others have created a rather lucrative living blogging (do a Google search for Perez Hilton). But did you know that a blog for your site can mean more business in more ways than one?

A recent WAVE3 report, a leading web company, states that 34 percent of active web users blog about their opinions on products and brands and 36 percent think more positively about companies that have blogs.

So here is a list of ways a blog can mean more business for you: 

1)      First off, blog for advice and not promotion. You have a wealth of knowledge. Share it with your customers and potential customers. For those of you who read this blog every Monday [plug], you may remember I talked about this here.

2)      Your blogging can lead to better search engine results. Keyword-rich blogs will help customers who search on search engines find you better. For instance, if you own a plant nursery in Michigan, you may offer tips on what to plant and during what season. You’re not selling your product directly to the reader, but you are offering advice that has brought the reader who searched “when to plant in Michigan” to your site.

3)      New material = More to promote = Happy search engine. It all goes back to content is king. Bring in new material on a consistent basis, promote it on sites like digg, reddit, StumbleUpon and more, and get people of like minds to read your material and promote it to their friends. When a search engine comes across your site, it looks to see if there is new material and it looks to see if your material has been linked to social media sites.

4)      Blogging leads to engagement. You engage your readers and encourage feedback or their thoughts by blogging. Interaction and engagement are two large pieces associated with social media.

5)      Blogging lends well to a Call to Action. Oh great, blogging is fun. But it sure doesn’t pay the bills because I’m not Perez Hilton or Mike Drudge! Blogs lead to business if done properly. At the end of each blog, as you’ll see shortly : ), have a call to action. Something that will tell the reader: “I’ve given you this information. Are you convinced you need my services or product?” This is where the direct sales comes in!

As promised, we have a call to action here. In fact, we’re offering a Ghost Blogging special (we interview you, we write, you approve, you post and we promote) from now until the end of October. There’s more information here.

For all of your social media, public relations, marketing and writing needs, look no further than JayRodChicago. We serve companies across the globe. Call us today at 312-515-9459.

As of last count, there are 105 million domain names registered, and about 183 million websites out there for businesses and people who feel the need to have their own personal website. Many of them are static – useful for a few minutes or less to just a handful of people or current customers. In the business world, that’s just unacceptable. Much like the products in your storefront, you need to remain new and relevant on your website in order to retain current customers and recruit new ones.

Here are reasons why having a static website doesn’t cut it:

1)  If it is unkept, it can look sloppy. Creating a website is a fantastic tool for any business. But, like landscaping outside of your business, if it is unkept, it can look sloppy, unprofessional and be just another thing people walk by without stopping in to say hello.

2)  Content is King. Similar to a new product or service with your business, content on your website is king. If you have useful and informative content, people will come back.

3)  It can keep TOMA. We’re back to Business 101. If people don’t need a spa treatment, catering or legal representation right now, they may eventually. You want to be at the top of their mind.

4)  Raises Awareness. You may have the greatest product in the world. If very few people know about it, you just have the greatest product in the world that few people know about.

So, in the world of the Internet, how do you keep your website relevant, informative and make it a tool for sales? Here are a few tips:

1)    No time to put the information together or you don’t know how to say it? Hire a writer.

2)    Create a landing page that has a call to action. Entice customers with your information, invite them to a landing page and give them your sales pitch to contact you for these services.

3)    Concurrent with Tip #2, hire a social media professional who is proficient in link building, engagement of current and potential customers and recruitment of new customers.

Have a full understand of the top four reasons why just creating a website doesn’t cut it and implement the three tips to launching your internet efforts, and you’re on the right track to becoming a productive and profitable business member of the Internet.

 

Jason M. Rodriguez is the founder of www.JayRodChicago.com, a social media, public relations and freelance writing company based in Chicago. He publishes a new blog every Monday at http://www.JayRodChicago.com/blog

 

Are you convinced that you need a writer or social media expert? If so, click here. If not, click here to get even more convinced. Please use the “Share” button below to post this story on various social media sites!

•1) Link building, one component of social media, has a two-pronged benefit. Those who have learned that building a website is nearly meaningless unless you do something with it will know the importance of link building. Link building takes the various pages on your website and promotes them on such social media giants as StumbleUpon, mixx, digg, reddit, Kirtsy, Fark, Propeller and more. When you submit your website to search engines, such as Google and bing, those engines recognize that your website has credibility because your material has been promoted elsewhere. So, through link building, you are not only raising awareness of your business, you are also building a solid foundation in the eyes of search engines, which means higher rankings. You need someone with knowledge of how to do this at the proper pace, because over-submitting will get your account red-flagged and actually hurt your ranking on search engines.

 

 •2) You need a specialist to show you where your material will work best. The list of social media sites are growing as we speak. Some have been established for a long time, and others are just trying to get their sites off the ground. A specialist will know where to put the best effort to get your business maximum exposure.

 

 •3) Social media specialists can show you how to best write for these social media sites. Much like newspaper writing is different than essay writing, writing for the Internet is different as well. Shorter paragraphs and distinct breaks are just two suggestions a social media expert should suggest.

 

 •4) You need a leader in your inbound marketing efforts. Marketing is changing before our very eyes. Instead of the old fashioned ad in your local newspaper, consumers are now able to sign up for business information on social networking sites like Facebook or MySpace (mostly for bands and entertainers) to receive content. You need to know the right pace and the right message to send your customers. A social media specialist can handle those tasks.

 

•5) A specialist knows what people look for on these sites. Each site is different in its own way, but the common factor they share is the type of information people like on these sites. If you’re selling something, try a classified ad. If you’re providing information or an opinion on something in the news, Welcome to the world of Social Media!

 

•6) Unless you’re a huge corporation, the position of social media specialist can be outsourced. With advertising budgets dwindling and the major growth of outsourcing going on to replace full-time employees, hiring a freelance social media specialist makes the most sense. It gets out your word for an initial cost of the freelancer and the continued costs are nothing but time.

 

•7) In a Wave 3 report published in 2009, 36 percent of people think more positively about companies that have blogs. A social media specialist can assist you in creating, maintaining and promoting a blog. Some of us can even ghost write them with you!

 

Jason M. Rodriguez is the founder of www.JayRodChicago.com, a social media, public relations and freelance writing company based in Chicago. He publishes a new blog every Monday at http://www.JayRodChicago.com/blog.

 

 

 

Are you convinced that you need a writer or social media expert? If so, click here. If not, click here to get even more convinced. Please use the “Share” button below to post this story on various social media sites!