Website or facebook

[ians]

I have to make a decision in the next day or 2 about which method I will use to promote my business.

Do I really need a website as an electrical contractor or do you think face book and forums will do, I know I have to change my approach to replies and new threads.

Like Neville has proved on this forum, be a nice guy who helps people and post the best pics on a forum and you will get a good response or do I get Mark to spice up my really 2 bob website, which by the way only gets responses from people looking for work at this point in time, in the 2 years I have had it up and running I can honestly say there hasn't even been one work related lead.

So any ideas or I suppose could start a south African forum like Dave has done and promote my business, NOT, too much hard work, I will leave it up to Dave.

Lets hear what you have to say, any idea or other options?

[Richard S]

Good morning Ian,

I may have just been lucky, but what has worked for me was to spice up my website (I think virtually every business needs one, at least to refer your prospective clients to) and then advertise that site. Put it onto your vehicles, flyers, magazines, business cards, letterheads, etc. Take any opportunity to list it on any free sites you may find. People love to browse on the net and the more that you can get them to click on your domain, the higher Google will rate it. Adwords and SEO do cost money, but they will both bring visitors to your site. I have had both done, for about six months at a time , and they both work.

I am not on Facebook and have no knowledge of how it works, but my impression is that it is a very busy/noisy time-waster, and I am yet to come across anyone that can convince me otherwise. But of course I could be completely wrong on this.

So, I think you need a website, but you need to promote it at every opportunity.

[Dave A]

If you don't like your current website, at least do a Wordpress site - you just have to follow Workshop's guide in the 30 day challenge thread and you'll have something reasonable in no time.

[ians]

Cant believe I missed that thread completely, as soon as I get a moment I will read the complete thread.

Got a message from hetzner informing me about some changes, I just haven't had time to read the email.

Just got a million and 2 other things I am trying to get up and running at the moment, biggest challenge this week, trying to get all the outstanding money customers owe me, so that I can close that chapter, and move forward.

[ians]

you gotta love Telkom, I sign a 24 month contract last month at R1.50 per minute call rate, I go back to sort out some issues with the iphone and I read the rates have dropped to .95c but I don't qualify for them until my 24 month contract is up.

[HR Solutions]

We use FB, Linked In and our website. FB is not as good as Linked In and our website. Personally I think that FB is a waste of time especially in our industry. We advertise a vacancy with specific criteria and get every tom dick and harry sending their cv's thro to us relating to a specific job posting. The do not read the criteria.

[tommyosmena]

For me i think both are affective and it should be use for our businesses because marketing has there

[Blurock]

Well, how many members of this Forum use its Facebook page, or do we prefer to post here?

FB may have its advantages in certain industries such as hospitality or travel, but like twitter I personally find it a waste of time.

[ians]

I believe that face book or twitter could be a valuable asset, the only problem is it could also work against you, if people don't like your remarks or know a little too much about you it could have a negative impact on you website visits.

I believe any media will work very well if you can be a "nice guy" all the time, but the problem is if you make a slip and your true personality is exposed on face book book or twitter it could make a huge impact on the your website visits.

The problem with social media is you could just be having a really bad day or you word something in a manner which is offensive or someone people just don't know you well enough to know you joke around, it could have serious backlash.

I think if you have a business face book page it is not always a good idea to allow customer access to your personal page.

I am experiencing this problem at the moment, where I have been a naughty boy and speak my mind of things which have happened in the past and instead of just keeping quiet, I have exposed incidents which I don't agree with like cheating on public media and it has backfired on me, I have found people don't mind skinnering behind peoples back but when they get put in the spot light they hide like cowards or then turn the attention on the person who is now in the spot light and forget all about the person who they were just skinnering about.

In conclusion, keep your opinions to yourself, support your the local rugby team, offer free advice, and most important think very carefully before you press enter, if you do this I believe all public media could be a huge asset to your business.

[Blurock]

If I need a plumber or an electrician, will I search on the web or on facebook? I will also look at my local community newspaper, but preferably I would ask the neighbours for a recommendation.

[workshop]

They all work but it's the guy doing the cooking that makes the difference. The balance between each, complementing the different inputs and understanding how much weight to place where. The web is as powerful as it is diverse and the one thing that is still in short supply, that is missing, is that personal interface.

...... but preferably I would ask the neighbours for a recommendation.

This is what we are looking for and don't get from Facebook, Linked In and even Google. And the question I always want to ask but am ignoring, is how relevant is mobi? Maybe I shouldn't. But how does one decide? And I believe the best policy is to wait for the dust to settle and then figure out what should, by then, be obvious.

A web site is an essential business tool and you have to make sure Google knows where to find you. But it is not a stand-alone solution. It is a fishing float that bobs on the water until you take your eye off it. Look at it as just some more sign writing that you have to do, a shop frontage. Keep it current, use it but temper your expectations and understand you want to get to a point where you do as little as possible as often as possible. Advertise in your papers and use your web site to say everything you don't want to pay for in print.

You would be crazy not to use Facebook but it's value is limited. It's a glorified dating site and you have to figure out how involved you get. Find that one in a thousand profile who has the personality to draw the audience you are looking for and hang on to their coat tails. Most of us don't do aimless banter well, so cut what you do, to what you do well and recognise that the chances are, that you are going to waste more time than you should. Linked In is better for business but once again I find it directionless and Twitter is beyond my reach.

What you want to do in your spare time, when you are waiting for clients to call, is to secure leads. Leads are the life blood of any business. They have a value. So whilst you are hustling for the business that will keep food on your table think about spreading your net a bit further. This is what the web allows you to do. Ask yourself who is in a position to feed you business referrals and whilst you are trawling for customers you can service, see if you can't hook a few for them. These you can use to trade. And if it works you might find that it becomes a career changer.

The web with all it's different twists and turns is as fascinating as it is challenging.

[Blurock]

Call me old fashioned, but I still believe that business is built on service and relationships. If you are a shopkeeper, you need to get your customers to visit you as often as possible. If you are a service provider, you will have to follow up on your customers.

Visit your customers, talk to them directly, or by phone or e-mail if they are out of reach. Long term relationships are the result of interaction between people and is essential for repeat business.

[joya]

Hi Ians,
You should join social media sites like twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook.. these sites are helpful for your business promoting.

[pmbguy]

Visit your customers, talk to them directly, or by phone or e-mail if they are out of reach. Long term relationships are the result of interaction between people and is essential for repeat business.

I can't agree more

When I have some time on my hands after driving around to calls, I pop in by a client that is on the way to the office. I greet everybody, shake the bosses hand, find out how thing are going and see if they need anything, ask them if their machines are running as they should. This actually brings me lots of business and I retain clients.

In my humble opinion I don’t think that such questions are either or, its everything and a balance in-between. So think not of the question: Website OR face Book, think rather website and face book, and everything related, including face to face. If one method does not outweigh its effort in profit then drop it for now.
I have found that pushing all the buttons works well.

[workshop]

In my humble opinion I don’t think that such questions are either or, its everything and a balance in-between. So think not of the question: Website OR face Book, think rather website and face book, and everything related, including face to face. If one method does not outweigh its effort in profit then drop it for now.
I have found that pushing all the buttons works well.

Drives me nuts every time someone trots out the "we taking our business online" excuse. The biggest problem one has trying to get the web to work is the perception people have of what it can do for them. It is just another tool. One of many we have to use.