Blogging, microblogging, media, social media or… Which for your business?

You may be wondering, which would be better for me or my business.. blogging, social bookmarking, a social media focus, or ?? A darned good question, particularly as all have a purpose, a time, a place, advantages and disadvantages. So, which one is best? There’s no simple answer here, however, keep in mind that any option you select will require time {lots of it} , patience, and a commitment.

Blogging – like this site, blogging is essentially a medium for informal conversation for writing and sharing interesting content about your business, industry, or niche. Ideally, a commitment to blogging means you want to be established as an “expert”  with your audience and also encourage conversation. Blogging is easy, there’s some really nice, simple, free tools available to you (think WordPress or blogger) and is a great opportunity to build a loyal following. the downside, prepare for a commitment and focus on regular posting of unique and interesting content.

Microblogging – think blogging but “micro”, yes, short, simple blog posts. Everyone is doing it and typically the preferred platform is Twitter. Yes, Twitter is essentially a micro-blogging platform. It offers an immediate way to communicate and interact with your audience. Microblogging is quick, simple, and effective, however, it requires time and a commitment. Being regular is important and offers opportunity to build brand loyalty and even drive traffic to your website or blog. On the downside, you’ll need to be commitment and focus on engagement. Many simply broadcast and forget about the dialog.

Social media focus via a community like facebook – this is a tough one. Facebook isn’t for everyone. Ideally the purpose if to build a community around your brand. The focus is engagement but the downside is that if you expect to generate business via fb forget about it. You need to be engaged and active… think of it as networking… focus on building relationship and not on selling.

social media sharing (Source: goodfellowcreative.com)

Social Bookmarking – you might ask yourself, huh?? This has been around for some time now and still lives on – think reddit and StumbleUpon and. Essentially this is for sharing links and pointers and it can be very effective! The upside is that this is a quick way to churn traffic and is also a useful way to bookmark really cool stuff. The downside is the focus on self promotion and competition with a massive community – to succeed you need to be creative and dedicated. Don’t dismiss this as an option!

Multi-media – This is essentially a social focus on media like videos and photos – HUGE! The platforms here are youtube, Flickr, Instagram, slideshare and Pinterest. Multi-media sharing is very engaging and interactive and these posts are more likely to be shared than anything else that you’ll ever post online. The big plus is the ability to generate a call to action and you can share a ton of information in a small clip or image. the downside, you’ll need some talent, some good tools for media creation, and loads of time and budget.  IF you can only focus on one area discussed here this is it!

There’s no correct answer here and no one quick solution. Regardless of which option you select for your brand or business, keep in mind that blogging and social media for your business will take time and a commitment. Most important, be regular and have fun!

 Suggest resources:

• 42 Rules of Social Media

• Social Media Strategy Workbook

• Your Guide to Social Media Marketing