One of the most powerful social media tools for business is featured within LinkedIn, and that’s the opportunity to post questions that other LinkedIn members can answer.  These questions can relate to industry-specific issues, general societal or economic trends, or best of all, specifically to your business needs.

Why ask a question on LinkedIn? It’s simple!

• It’s free market research where you can float an idea and see how others respond.

• It’s a great way to solicit feedback if you’re considering something new, like adding a new product or building a new website or trying a different software package.

• It can be an effective way to generate interest in the topic of your question and perhaps attract strategic partners, investors or prospects with whom you could connect to strengthen your LinkedIn network.

Why would anyone take the time to answer? Lots of reasons, but here are two:

• People like to help others, and by answering your question they can show off their expertise

• You’ll be able to “rate the answers” once the question closes, and if you rank one of the answers the “best answer,” the person who answered gets a badge which shows on his or her profile as a sign of expertise.

What should you ask? We suggest you start by browsing other questions that appear in your industry areas to get some ideas.  Then, keep the primary question as short and to the point as possible, and leave the “details” area for additional context that may be needed to help better focus the answers.  Remember, this is not the place to ask for introductions or to pitch your services.

Here’s a short video that shows you step by step how to ask a question on LinkedIn.   We think you’ll be amazed at the valuable feedback you get!

Today, we want you to think of a local business (or two or three…) that “gets it.”  Who provides outstanding service?  Who went above and beyond to help you with a problem you had?  What business has been a “best kept secret” for too long, and it’s time for you to rave about them?  Who has consistently reliable products that always meet your needs?  Bottom line:  who is doing the job right?

Once you choose your honorees, post a review that tells the world, in specific terms, why this local business does such a great job.  Where should you post the review?  Here are a few options:

• See if they have a Facebook Page, and post a comment

• Go to Yelp.com and post a review (you may have to sign up for a free membership first)

• Post a review on their Google Places page.  How?

>>Google the name of the business, and it should come up next to a map of its location.  Immediately under the name of the business will be a link that says “Place Page”

>>Scroll down the page, and in the bottom third of the page will be a small link that says “Write a Review.”  If you already have a Google account, you can just start writing your review, and if not, you can get a Google account in a minute or two.

• If you’d like to post a review of a professional service provider, you can do so in any of the previous ways, or you could post a recommendation on LinkedIn if they’re within your network.

Let us know who you’re recommending so we can help spread the word, too!

When we talk about generating content, we mean providing helpful information.  Don’t be intimidated, though, because even if you think you don’t have time or talent to write great content, you can always find ways to share your expertise.

You can:

• answer a question on LinkedIn or Twitter

• post a lesson you’ve learned about general business principles, like customer service or management on your Facebook Business Page

• record a short video that explains an aspect people may not realize about your business

• share your expertise by giving advice without pitching your services

• pass along a great resource that others might find as helpful as you did

Today, we’re going to share a link to a resource that is relevant both to your business and to your target market.  Here’s one way to do that:

1.  Search the blogosphere using Google’s blog search tool.

2.  Choose a keyword that’s relevant to your industry, or to good business practices in general, and search blogs to find a post that you like.  Copy the URL of that post.

3.  Go to Ping.fm so you can share this link on your Facebook Page, as well as on Twitter and LinkedIn.

4.  Add a brief comment that explains why you think this link is valuable, and then attach the link.

You’ve just shared helpful content, even though it wasn’t your own, and provided value in several ways.  First, you helped that blogger reach more people.  Second, you demonstrated that you are paying attention to the latest information in your industry.  Third, by adding your own introduction to the link, you make it more relevant to your connections who therefore connect the value of the link to the way they perceive your expertise.

The best part is with practice, you can do this in less than five minutes, which means you could even generate content by sharing links on days other than Wednesdays!  Be sure to keep an eye out for comments on your link so you can respond, and… dare we say .. E • N • G • A • G • E?

We’d love to have you share some of your favorite links in the comments section!  Happy Hunting!

Many of us have a LinkedIn profile, but we don’t visit LinkedIn regularly, and may not even be aware of all of the ways LinkedIn can help us grow our business.  In the coming weeks, we’ll talk more about the multiple facets of LinkedIn, but today, it’s all about the connections.

Chances are you understand that the true power of LinkedIn is the ability to gain access to almost anyone through one or more warm referrals.  What some overlook is that in order to increase your ability to access a wider variety of decision-makers, you need to build your core network so you have more people who know you well and who know others you’d like to meet.

There are two approaches to building your LinkedIn network:  add anyone, or add only those people you know.  There are advantages and disadvantages to both philosophies, but we advocate building your network with people whom you’ve met and who are already on their way to knowing, liking and trusting you.

So, today, spend some time on LinkedIn adding connections.  You can do this in a variety of ways.

1.  Allow LinkedIn to survey your address book in Outlook or whatever email client you use, and LinkedIn will pop up some suggestions of people you know but whom you aren’t connected to yet on LinkedIn.

2.  Go through your database and find the top 10 people that you really want to stay in front of, and then check to see if you’ve added them to your LinkedIn network.  If not, invite them to join.

3.  Use LinkedIn’s list of suggestions of people you may know to jog your memory.

One last suggestion for adding people to your network.  When the window pops up that allow you to choose how you know the person you want to connect with, there’s also an opportunity to customize the invitation to connect.  Do that.  Remind them how you know them, or mention the last time you saw them, or whatever personal touch you can add to emphasize that you want to nurture the relationship you’ve begun with them.

You can connect with Joe and Susan on LinkedIn if you’d like.  Just let us know that you’ve been reading the Cowbell when you send us the invite to connect!

One of the most common fears we encounter from small business folks is that if they adapt social media into their marketing strategy, they’ll be so busy keeping up with LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and blogging that they won’t have time to do the work that directly impacts their company’s bottom line.

While the early stages of the learning curve might take a little extra time, finding tools like this Cowbell can help you manage your social media campaigns more effectively, in as little as 15-20 minutes per day, three days a week.

One tool that can come in handy, especially if you’re trying to manage several social media channels at once, is Ping.fm.  This platform allows you to register multiple social media accounts, and then create one post that goes to all of the accounts simultaneously.  You can access Ping.fm from any computer or from your mobile phone or iPad.

Here’s something to keep in mind about posting simultaneous updates:  every social network has a little bit different culture, so you won’t always want to post the exact same thing at the same time to all of them at once.  For example, LinkedIn is strictly professional, where as your Facebook Page allows you to get in more depth about your brand, and Twitter is conversational and interactive with multiple Twitter users. 

Ping.fm can be helpful for a lot of your updates, but we also recommend that you tailor specific posts to relevant networks occasionally, too.  Also, even though you can post an update from one platform, you’ll still want to check the individual networks for any comments that result from your post.

So visit Ping.fm and add any social media accounts that you’d like to access simultaneously through one update.  We’d suggest that you start with two or three, and add more as you get more comfortable with the tool.  Here’s a helpful video to get you started!

>>How to Make Twitter More Useful for Your Business

>>50 of the Best Twitter Guides, Stats, Tips and Tools of 2010 (so far)

Be sure to let us know if you find additional resources to share by posting them in the contents.  And, as always, give us a call if you have any questions or want to talk more about social media!

Susan Baird >> 402-672-1125, @snbaird

Joe Frost >> 402-960-4969, @omahajoe

The best questions to answer, especially when you’re new to Twitter, are the philosophical questions that don’t require any expertise.  For example, “What’s your best time management tip?” or “What’s a romantic way to celebrate a first anniversary?”

People who tweet questions are hoping for answers, and they welcome them from anyone, so here’s your chance.  Reply with a friendly greeting and a brief reply (under 125 characters just to be safe) and post the tweet.  The original tweeter might reply, or he/she might not, but that’s ok, because you contributed to your first conversation on Twitter.

See, wasn’t that easy?

Today is the day that we connect what we’re doing on our Facebook Business Page to Twitter.  That way, when we post information relevant to our page fans, our Twitter followers can also benefit.

All you need to do is go to http://www.facebook.com/twitter/, and your business page should be listed.  Just click on the link to connect the page to Twitter, and Facebook will ask for your Twitter login information.  That’s all there is to it!

Two details to keep in mind:

1.  This only works in one direction.  What you post on your Facebook Business Page will also post to Twitter, but what you post to Twitter will not post to Facebook.

2.  Because all of your Facebook Business Page status updates will now push out to Twitter, you may want to be more conscious of the number of characters you’re using in your Facebook post.  If it goes over 140, Twitter cuts off the end of the post and substitutes a link.  When Tweeps click on the link, they’re taken to your Facebook Business Page to read the rest.  That can be a good way to bring traffic to your Facebook Page, but it can also be a hassle for people to click, so they may stop paying attention to the posts that don’t fit within 140 characters.

Let us know if you have trouble, and we’ll be happy to help!  And for those of you who already do this, let us know how it’s working for you!

Monday, we set up our Twitter account, and today we’re going to find some people to follow so we can begin to see the tremendous value Twitter can provide.

Who should you follow in this “listening and lurking” phase?  Whomever you want!  Here are a few ideas:

• people in your geographic area

• people in your industry

• people with great tips on how to use social media, especially Twitter, well

• people you’re connected with in other places (LinkedIn, Facebook, your e-mail address book)

• brands you admire or that are local

There are quite a few Twitter directories that will help you find the right people to follow.  Just search for an industry or keyword  or location, and each directory will make suggestions about tweeps that fit the criteria, often ranked according to influence.  Keep in mind that influence is not just number of followers, but also the reputation of those followers, the quality of content posted, etc.

Here are just a few directories to get you started building your list:

>>Twitter Search

>>WeFollow

>>Twellow and Twellowhood

One other tip for finding great folks to follow:  follow other people’s Twitter lists.  We’ll get into more detail in another post about how to set up a Twitter list, but for now, know that you can organize the people you follow into categories that make it much easier to see the tweets you want to see.  Each list has its own unique URL, so if you have the URL of someone else’s list, you can follow the list, which means you’ll begin seeing tweets from everyone on the list without having to follow each of them individually.

I (Susan) have a few Twitter lists established, and would invite you to follow them if you’d like.

Follow Susan Baird at twitter.com/snbaird

>>Follow Susan’s lists:  Omaha Area Tweeps and Mavens

Follow Joe Frost at twitter.com/omahajoe

As long as you’re signed into your Twitter account, all you’ll need to do is click on the link associated with the profile of whomever you’d like to follow, and an option will appear that will allow you to click on a follow button, and that’s it.  And no, don’t worry that these people will think it’s strange that suddenly, you’ve appeared out of nowhere as a follower.  That’s exactly how Twitter works.

Once you’ve chosen a few people to follow (10, 20, 50… whatever you feel like), you can begin observing how they behave.  Notice what they say, how they say it, how often they include links to additional content, how often they promote themselves or their business, and how often they just share helpful tips and answer questions.  Before long, you’ll start to discover your own Twitter style based on these observations, and then it will be time for you to jump in to the Twitter stream!

As we’re sure you’ve heard, Twitter is a micro-blogging tool that allows you to post 140-character messages about whatever you want.  In addition, you can chat back and forth with others, post links to great resources and share your expertise.  In fact, superstar blogger Chris Brogan has 50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business, a post we guarantee will open your eyes about the tremendous value Twitter can have in your marketing and business strategies.

Today, whether or not you believe Twitter has any merit at all, we want you to go ahead and set up a Twitter account.  It’s really easy, and we’ll walk you through the process.  If you’d rather skip the reading, you can watch this short video How to Set Up Your Twitter Account.

1.  Go to twitter.com and register your account.  Choose a username that reflects your brand but that isn’t too long, since the letters of your Twitter name will count as part of the 140 characters if someone is trying to talk to you.

2.  Once your account is set up, you’ll want to personalize your profile, so look at the black bar that runs across the top of your new Twitter screen and click on “Profile,” and when you reach the next screen, click on “Edit My Profile…” near the top of the page.

3.  You can explore the various tabs, but you’ll definitely want to click on the “Profile” tab again, because this is where you can upload your photo and fill in the information that will help people connect with you.

4.  When selecting a photo, choose on that fits your personal brand (professional, or artsy, or avant-garde, or fun, or whatever), but remember that the people you’ll be meeting on Twitter will associate this image with you, so make sure it fits the image you want them to have.

5.  When you write your bio, you only have a few words, so choose a combination of words that make it easy for people to search and find you based on what you do (plumber, designer, teacher, etc.) but that also gives a taste of your personality.  You’ll be able to search others’ profiles for ideas, which we’ll talk more about later this week.  Here’s a great post from Jay Baer of Convince and Convert on how to compose a dynamic Twitter profile.

6.  Once you finish with the Profile tab, go to the Design tab where you can customize the way your Twitter page looks when people click on your @name to find out more about you.  You’ll see that you can choose different backgrounds, and can even upload your own image to use as the background.  If you want to put your logo or a picture of your business in the background, go for it!  Later, once you make an educated decision about whether Twitter is a good fit, you can even develop a custom Twitter landing page, which is more involved than we want to get into here.

We realize that setting up your account is just the first step, but it’s enough for today.  Tomorrow we’ll show you how to take the next step to getting more comfortable on Twitter.  If you have questions now, though, we’re always happy to help, so leave us a comment!