Peter McFeely

14 February 2013, Social Media Week

Whatever your reason for using social media, whether you’re trying to sell products or build a personal brand, it’s all about making the right connections. But you can’t make the right connections without following a few simple steps…

MAKING THE RIGHT CONNECTIONS…

Whatever your reason for using social media, it’s all about making the right connections. Make sure you do it right by following these simple steps

1. TALK TO PEOPLE

It might sound obvious but you have to talk to people. Too many social media users just create profiles and push content out, hoping that someone is listening.

Think about it like this – if you went to a party hoping to meet that special someone and stood in the corner talking to yourself, you probably wouldn’t do too well. It’s important to work your way into the conversations people are already having.

2. SAY SOMETHING MEMORABLE

Once you start talking to people, you need to say something that makes an impression. Everyone else at the party is trying to chat up the popular girls but they’re sick of hearing the same thing.

Your content needs to be original, interesting, funny… and relevant. Think about what is going to impress your target, not what you and your mates like to talk about.

3. STOP TALKING

… and give the girl a chance to talk back. In other words, have a conversation. Nobody wants to listen to you talk non-stop, especially if all you’re doing is talk about yourself. Listen to what they say and let them be part of the dialogue.

Ideally, you don’t just want people to be talking to you – you want them to be talking about you. Independent conversations are a strong sign that you’ve made an impression.

4. MAKE SURE YOU’RE TALKING TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE

Again, this sounds obvious and you’d assume it would be the first step. If you want to meet a nice girl you probably shouldn’t be spending all your time watching football in the pub and talking to other guys. It doesn’t matter how funny or interesting you are, it’s not going to help you meet girls. Right?

You wouldn’t make these mistakes in your social life, but plenty of people make them in social media.

If you want to make the right connections, you have to be talking to the right people. The question isn’t, “should you be using social media?” rather, “where should you be social?”