Twitter – useful tips for tweeters!

Here’s some useful tips about twitter, not just for the beginner but also as a timely reminder of good practices with this social tool.  You never stop learning about social media, as it’s constantly evolving.

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/12-tips-to-engage-people-on-twitter/

5 Reasons Why Your Company Needs a Blog

This is a nice article about the benefits of having a blog.  There are still a lot of businesses that don’t use them, but as they point out it’s a good first step into social media.

http://www.penn-olson.com/2009/10/08/5-reasons-why-your-company-needs-a-blog/

Tips for maximising your YouTube presence

This is a useful article about the top 10 tips for small businesses using YouTube.

It includes some basic tips about creating and customizing a channel, and some more detailed advice for example about correct tagging of video content.

http://mashable.com/2010/04/23/youtube-small-business/

Facebook’s new “Like” button

For those who missed this announcement, here is an article that outlines the change by Facebook to introduce the Like button to replace the Fan button on fan pages.  Let us know what you think about this change.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/news/facebook-unveils-new-like-button/story-e6frg90x-1225856723849

When a ‘feed’ looks overfed

If you’re a Facebook user — and let’s face it, we ALL are — then you’ve probably been exposed to Feed Overload. Numerous feeds from friends, applications, fan pages and more can make your Facebook Profile page look like a real Dog’s Breakfast. Here are some great tips to put the feed on a ‘diet’, while still keeping the dog happy.

Deciding when to sell your property

For many people, selling their property when the timing is just right simply isn’t an option. Life circumstances, rather than the mood of the market, will often be the deciding factor. But for those who do have the luxury of time, choosing when to sell presents its own conundrum:

how do you know when to put your property on the market to get the best possible price?

Before you can answer this question with any degree of certainty, you’ll need to get a sense of what’s happening for other sellers in your market. After all, if you’re surrounded by properties with “for sale” signs that have been stuck in the lawn for months, chances are your house could end up in the same situation.

Start by gathering all the information you can about recently sold properties in your area, along with properties that are similar to yours. Property websites are a good place to look for this information, as many will provide recent sales data or at least give you an idea of the prices people are asking. Tracking newspaper listings can also help complete a picture of your market.

The trick here is to check back to these sources over a number of weeks. If someone lists a property just like yours with a price you’d be more than happy with, is the listing gone by next weekend? Or is it still there a few months later?

Of course, real estate agents are another great source of local market information, and will often have an insider’s perspective on where the market is heading. Comparing information from multiple agents will give you even more food for thought, and might even put you in contact with someone who has just the right experience to sell your property when the time comes.

Finally, you can also take the step of getting in touch with a real estate appraisal service to ask for a professional evaluation. If you’re not keen to pay for a full appraisal of your property, some do offer free online tools to give you an estimate of its value. Once you’ve put all this information together, you can start the selling process knowing your timing is spot-on.

Another great slideshow on Social Media

For those of you who are struggling to understand the full impact of Social Media, here’s a great little slideshow that not only describes what Social Media is, but also drives home the benefits of implementing your own Social Media strategy.

Great examples of effective Facebook Pages

Ok, by now you know that having a page on Facebook is important — some say critical — to your business’ success.  But merely having a presence on Facebook isn’t enough. Your Facebook Fan Page is like a mini shopfront, and if you want people to take the step of clicking that all-important “Become a Fan” button, you need to make your page appealing, interactive and informative. Here are five great examples of great Facebook pages that can help you take the next step.

Join the team!

Do you live and breathe Social Media? Want to join the Sobox team? We’re hiring for a Sales role! Great opportunity to join a fast-growing and interactive team.

Facebook Drives Media Loyalists

An interesting report by Hitwise indicates that Facebook users are not only plentiful, but they are also extremely loyal users when it comes to online media. The data shows that Facebook users who arrive at an online news site (via a link in Facebook) are much more likely to be “return visitors” than those who come from Google.

So, when it comes to building brand loyalty — at least in media — having a presence in Facebook is important. We predict, however, that this type of loyalty extends far beyond online media organisations, and that industries like real estate are just as likely to benefit from Facebook users.  Food for thought.