Zuck said it best, “By giving people the power to share, we’re making the world more transparent.” Pardon me for saying it, but I know you’re thinking it – how can we monetize the simple idea of online sharing?
Sharing Versus Selling
As the wedding bells ring and search and social tie the knot, there will be many skeptics out there. It could get very sticky, because social media and affiliate marketing are two completely different beasts. One generates conversation and focuses on building and maintaining meaningful relationships, while the other has mastered the art of overnight sales, and online profit prostitution. The trick is finding a balance between the two and playing up their strengths. Challenge yourself and become a master in balancing the act of engagement and sales.
Purposeful Linking Building
First, leverage the conversation generated among social media communities and become an active participant. If you find the right people who want the product or information you have, then you’ve just met your match. Just don’t drop affiliate links to any random user, but build confidence in your brand with a strong social media presence. Next, consistently provide your friends and followers with relevant, useful information and reviews where you can strategically place your affiliate links. Rule #1 of dating? Never be too available. The same thing applies to link building. Don’t spread yourself too thin. Build links where it matters the most. Quality over quantity definitely wins you a second date.
Social Rankings Do Matter
Here it comes. The social media, affiliate, and online user threesome. As you build credibility among your following the more exposure and higher your search rankings will climb. Now, get your o-face ready. Google and Bing both take into consideration social signals in deciding how pages rank. So, tweet big and tweet hard. No really, use Tweet Big. It’s a great tool for finding relevant users (those who will re-tweet your reviews and articles.) Want to generate hype for a specific product? Tweet Big will provide you with a targeted audience that actually wants to listen and share your links.
Connections Increase Conversions
People want to feel like their talking to a face not a brand. That’s why it’s important to show that you’re real. Whether it’s answering questions in a timely manner or actively engaging in conversation, you will come off as authentic and establish the driving force behind your sales – trust. If your product or service has any backbone, being a human is the easy part. Remember to mix it up a bit with your content. If you constantly are trying to push a sale, followers will drop off. Be mindful of the sensitivity factor that’s linked to social networking. People take this shit way too seriously.
Tracking Your Social Media Efforts
If you want to truly monetize your content and increase your conversions, you should be tracking your social media efforts and building your lists. The bread and butter of your marketing efforts should be your emailing lists, so take the time to grow and maintain them. Argyle Social can track how many conversions come from your social media marketing efforts. Unlike many analytics programs, Argyle Social takes into consideration the importance of both engagement and revenue generation.
Don’t Abuse The Privilege
Let the spamming begin. Just kidding. This is where social media and affiliate marketing can literally butt heads. AM says MORE MORE MORE FASTER FASTER FASTER. And SM says, let’s take it slow and get to know each other. Please don’t cheapen the nature of social media by going on a following spree, and certainly don’t whore your brand to anyone or anything that will bite. Remember, you have something they want – a specific product and they have something you want – the power of influence. What your followers say about you matters. Who gives a shit about your feelings? You will, especially when it affects your rankings, quality of content, and conversions.
