Social Networking and Small Businesses
Understanding how to use it effectively.
by: Chris Humphreys



“New Marketing is about the relationships, not the medium.” - Ben Grossman, founder and chief strategist for BiGMarK

Uttering the phrase “social media” usually makes folks in my grandparent’s generation scramble for cover, as they fear the onslaught of some crazy radical new thing that’s now “in” and which they feel they’ll never understand. For them, social media is some new element they have to adjust to and learn like text messaging or “the internets.”

Remarkably however, it’s not just “older” folks who are having a hard time adjusting to the new reality of social networking. Even some of my fellow Gen X friends coyly avoid Twitter or Facebook, suggesting it’s just a waste of time or nothing more than “meaningless banter” (an accusation that’s not altogether false at times!) :) Across different generational divides, there’s a core misunderstanding of what social networking is, or perhaps better yet, what it could be, particularly to those of us who run photography business

What Social Networking is and what it can be

As Jeffrey Gitomer wisely states in his book, The Little Black Book of Connections, “friends just want to do business with friends.” When it comes to networking, the misperception is that what we want (and need) in business are contacts. Contrary to what you may think though, a contact is not a connection - at least not a substantial one. What we actually want are friends. If you give someone your business card, you might hold a very small place of real estate in a drawer or in a pile somewhere. If you give someone an “in” into your life, you give them the chance to actually connect with you. Connections lead to understanding, and understanding leads to trust, which is ultimately what we all want. The connection you find with someone could be founded on anything from having attended the same college or the fact that you both went on an Alaskan cruise last summer.

A few years ago, we met with some potential clients who were virtually sold on us from the start because they loved the pictures and videos we had online of our cats! They were cat lovers, we were cat lovers, and because of the window that social networking created into our life, they felt like we were people who were similar to them, even if this thing in common was just our mutual love for four legged furry felines! In the end though, it’s those small connections that lead to trust - friends just want to do business with friends.

A contact is not a connection - at least not a substantial one. What we want are friends.

Misuses of Social Networking

At its best, social networking is an effective way to connect with your network in an efficient way. At its worst, it’s another outlet for spam which nobody likes.

Let’s clarify what we mean by the term “friend” when it comes to the online realm. An online friend is not someone you would necessarily call up on a Friday night to share a pizza and movie with. To be honest, I don’t have a personal relationship with the majority of my Facebook “friends” or Twitter followers. A friend or follower can be simply thought of as someone who you provide value to in some way or another.

In the end, any kind of networking is about helping other people and in a small way, bringing value to them, which in turn brings value to yours. This of course holds true for social networking as well. As much as we would like to think otherwise, people don’t “friend” or “follow” you for your benefit. They do it for their benefit, so if you want a larger and more loyal network, be prepared to give value to others. (As a side note, this is why I’m so against Facebook Fan pages. A fan page is all about you and not about them. Keep the focus and the value on them, not on yourself.)

Remember, social networking is not advertising. In social networking, the loudest voices doesn’t always win.

What value should you be trying to impart to others? Obviously, information to help others in their business is always valuable and a good place to start. If your network is largely comprised of people in your industry, share industry news as you see it on the Internet. If you’re on Twitter, re-tweet other useful information that others share (giving them credit of course).

It’s important to remember however that the trick with social networking is to interject your personality and voice into it. Information by itself can be dry and lifeless. People aren’t looking for public service announcements - they’re looking for information, but with a human element to it. The people who have mastered the tools of Twitter and Facebook do a great job of intertwining humor with useful information, blending personal with business, and mixing superficial banter with reflective thoughts. Ultimately their “feeds” reflect them and their life, and they are leaders that people want to follow for a multitude of reasons. As the internet has started making information a commodity, people look to leaders to bring them that information along with a bit of their personality and voice - something that can’t be duplicated.

Remember, social networking is not advertising. In social networking, the loudest voices don’t always win. The goal of social networking for businesses is not to be flashy or obnoxious - it is to lead, connect, and provide value. Social networking for the small business is a tool - it’s a means to an end, but not the end itself. The goal is not to attract a large following; it’s to serve the following you have. Social networking is so powerful because it enables your fully devoted followers to reach their own respective networks and share the value you are providing with them in an easy and efficient way. Serve your followers unconditionally and you’ll never have to ask them to help you by spreading the word of your latest project - it will happen automatically.

To sit on the sidelines of the social network revolution is not just resisting the latest fad, it’s ignoring a pivotal new way to lead your tribe, enable your followers, and create value in the community. Shrug it off at your own risk. 

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DISCLAIMER : The views expressed in this article are the author's and do not necessarily represent the views of photographik or any member of the photographik organization.