Creating a Solid Social Media Presence in 5 steps

In May 2011, I started experimenting, reading, researching, and launching the beginnings of a social media campaign for PartingOut.com. After a year and a half of trial and error, I have created a strategy for creating a social media foundation for any new start-up.

One thing I know is you have to like, follow, add, friend, and promote others before they will do the same for you.

1)      The list of social media networks you could potentially create a company profile for continues to expand daily. So what to do first? CLAIM YOUR REAL ESTATE!

•         Claim your company's name for every social media outlet possible (regardless if you frequently use it or not, claim it!) Why? Because you want your company to be the result for any search related to that site.  Create Profiles!

•         A few of the lists that got me started are:  http://www.instantshift.com/2008/10/19/list-of-top-social-media-network-sites/  & of course, Wikipedia has an extensive list as well. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_networking_websites

2) Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Instagram, Pinterest, YouTube, FourSquare, tumbler, and Flicker are some of the best for me because I can share content between them. For instance, taking a picture with Instagram can be shared on Facebook and Twitter. Then I can download that picture and upload it to PartingOut’s Pinterst boards and create a short blog post with it on Tumbler. Less work and more reach for every activity is key!

•         To make this process less repetitive and also to keep your company motto consistent, create a short description (one sentence), small paragraph, and short essay of what your business is all about. You will then be able to copy and paste this information into your profiles, news feeds, short descriptions, etc., and cut down on time.

•         Once these profiles are created the next step is to find and friend/follow people who would be interested in your company/product.  But, how do you find them?

3)      Create Your Master “customer characteristics” List

• This is a list of keywords you believe your customers would contain in their profile names, such as, on Twitter, where user names are not always first and last names. Also, look for words used to describe themselves in their “about me page” on Facebook, or words they would use for board titles on Pinterest. Ask yourself what topics your customers would share on Google+ and what picture titles they would be using on Instagram. Those are the worlds you need to know and keep filed away.

•         For instance, for PartingOut.com, “Mopar” is a common word within users' Twitter screen names who would be interested in our website. I follow them and hope they will follow @PartingOut back. “Speed” was a great keyword to search for on Pinterest Boards that led me to some of my most devout followers (of course, I had to follow them first). And “car guy” was probably the biggest home run to finding potential customers on Google+ and Facebook.

•         Now you have a dozen accounts and are following hundreds of people/boards/profiles etc. How do you get them to take the bait… and follow you back?

4) Interaction! You need to “like” and comment on as many of the accounts you follow as possible. Once people start to notice you, they will be interested in your own profile. Hopefully, the magic will happen, and the number of people following/liking/friending you will grow. 

•         You should split your own updates, with half being about your company/product and the other half being about interactions with others. Repost or comment on news someone else shared about your industry; share others' photos and post questions, or even more importantly, answer others' questions!

5)      See the pattern?

•         Seek out people through words they use in their profiles that tell you they might have an interest in your product

•         Friend/Like/Follow/ them

•         Interact with them!

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Time to Adapt! SEO & Social Media

For the last year, I have taken over as CSO for PartingOut.com. At that time, the social media network for this website had grown exponentially from zero to too many to list. From a geography professor to a full-blown SEO and Social Media campaign organizer and manager, I have adapted to the fast-moving job of updating and managing over 15 social media outlets for the online start-up. The most important are Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+, Flicker, MySpace, and the office blog on WordPress.  I will share the experience of doing these two jobs (SEO and Social Media) in other posts, but to set the record straight: What is PartingOut.com anyways?

PartingOut.com is a new virtual online salvage yard created to bring used auto parts buyers and sellers to one venue.  This project, started by a salvage yard owner five years ago, is founded on revolutionary tools to optimize the used auto parts industry. There is a huge demand for used auto parts that is grossly under-serviced. PartingOut.com satisfies that demand by taking the local auto recycler and expanding its inventory to a worldwide audience.

On PartingOut.com, parts typically not considered when buying salvage are sold without the hassle or attention that would generally outweigh their value. For example, by listing the major parts of a vehicle (motor, transmission, etc.), sellers have opened the entire vehicle up for the market (floor mats, sun visor, console, etc.) due to the image-based platform of PartingOut.com. This is possible through the Buyer Listed Part tool. When a buyer sees a part they need on a vehicle that is not listed, they can create a Buyer Listed Part. The buyer describes the conditions and amount willing to pay, presenting a qualified offer to the seller. That once obsolete part has just sold itself.

“I sold a sun visor for $50.00. I would never have spent the money or time to list that part on any other website. This customer saw the visor in the picture and created a Buyer Listed Part. Then I received an instant alert, and a deal was made: that’s what PartingOut.com is all about:” Kevin Fullerton, CEO. This is one of the revolutionary tools that will change how used auto parts are found, sold, bought, and recycled by creating a market for every part.

The fundamental characteristic that elevates PartingOut.com above other online used parts websites is its visual-based platform. PartingOut.com is based on marketing an entire vehicle on a visual basis (not interchange) and, possibly most importantly, bringing the real-life experiences of walking through a salvage yard, seeing the part you need, and making a deal, but online.

If you think this rocks, vote for PartingOut on MissionSmallBusiness.com to help us compete for a Mission: Small Business Grant! Click "SUPPORT" and then easy log in with Facebook, search PartingOut.com and vote! 

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Three Strangers through the Desert: Vegas to LA

Here I sit in downtown Los Angeles, my back up against the wall, with my luggage separating me from a group of actors and their friends. We all just left the screening room, where we watched a comic independent film based on the idea of Lucifer trying to get back into heaven. How in the world did I end up here with my luggage? It all started when the loudspeakers at the airport gloomily sounded off an apology for a thirty minute delay in our departing flight from Las Vegas to Los Angeles. Supposedly, this was in hopes that a nearby shop would have the “part” our plane needed to successfully deliver us to Los Angeles. Unfortunately, but predictably, it was only ten minutes later that the attendant spoke again, but this time with embarrassment and fear; the flight had been canceled, and the part could not be found. 

As everyone on the floor, including me, quickly gathered our belongings scattered around us, those sitting comfortably in the chairs formed a long line, leaving the floor occupants the line caboose. We are presented with a single option to take our 50-dollar voucher and find a hotel until we can catch another plane tomorrow morning. As I sit and ponder this scenario at the back of the line, I turn around and ask the lady behind me if there was any information I missed. As I turned to ask this question, I realized I was face to face with the woman who I had previously been unabashedly staring at from my comfortable position on the floor. She was clearly Italian, and her voice carried far beyond her pink flip phone, which echoed throughout the entire terminal. As I was reading my Bloomberg Businessweek, I felt a twinge bit impatient with her repeated phone calls, each heavy with, “Oooooohhhh girrrl!” and “You know what I mean?” This prompted me to move initially to a farther location and thus “potentially” missing crucial information on our flight-cancellation situation. Flash forward thirty minutes, and I am now looking into this woman’s face, hoping for more information. Unbeknownst to me, I am now also looking at my second option. 

She quickly reminds me of her heritage, grabs my arm, and loudly and enthusiastically tells me, “Oooooohhh girl! I already called my friend and she is renting me a car online right now! I am going to Los Angeles tonight!”  This, of course, did not answer my question, but her answer left me mumbling something like, “That’s a good idea,” and I am not sure what else as I pondered this newly formed second option. Before I could respond, a young man's back opened up and said, “Really, you are going to drive to LA?” What followed in the next thirty seconds was head nodding, and somehow, overlooking the two people sandwiched between us with confused expressions, the three of us agreed with our eyes. With that, we were off. The three of us, complete strangers, left the line and gleefully smiled at the others, looking on in admiration and caution. This is not something I would recommend, but I believe I am a good judge of character and hoped that these two individuals simply needed a second option as much as I did. We introduce ourselves, and once in our rental car, we quickly become familiar with each others’ pasts and presents. 

For four hours, a brain surgeon from Glendale, CA, a makeup artist from Detroit, and a geography professor from Texas journey across the lonely stretch that so many friends make between the megacities of LA and Vegas. This voyage, however, was not filled with reminiscence but of new discoveries and fantastic conversation. 

  The makeup artist, come to find out, desperately needed to get to LA before 7pm for a movie premier downtown; this was her first special effects, and she was hoping to do some great networking. When we got to Burbank to drop off the rental car, the friend I was staying with was already in acting class, so I asked if I could tag along to the primer to get a little closer to my final destination. The ride, the movie, the theater, and the people were all worth the diversion. But, back to her story: her father had left Armenia during the Turkish-Armenian War and fled to France. He met a Nepalese woman there, and soon they were in love. Shortly after, they moved to Detroit to reunite with the man’s brother, who had fled to Detroit after the Turkish-Armenian War. This is how you get an Italian-Armenian, French-speaking makeup artist from Detroit. Wow, what a fascinating woman with incredible stories. 

One of our elongated conversations revolved around the brain, imagination, and medical history because the man happens to be a brain surgeon. He had to be at the hospital by 11pm for a shift, and thus, the reason for his eagerness to join us in the adventure. Strangely, the woman’s father had been hit by a car last year and had been left in a coma with severe brain damage. He is now fully recovered, and all the questions this woman had of her father’s potential full recovery and other things were answered by our very own brain surgeon – chauffeur. 

Between the three of us, we also discussed North Korea’s future, Christianity and its differences for those who assume to know Christ and those who live with him on a daily basis, the illegal tiger trade and its potential lifeline of territory in the Himalayas, medical history throughout the US Revolution and WWII, and so much more. What a group and what an adventure.

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Saying "yes!" When Moving to a New City

The first month of living in Long Beach, California, without a friend in the world, was tough.  Soon enough, I found myself with an ultimatum: go solo and be active, or become best friends with my TV. I chose the first. I adopted a “yes man” mentality and started doing anything I was invited to, but more importantly, I started saying yes to my desires. One of the first of these was to join a sand volleyball team on Meetup.com. I rode my bike down to the beach and found myself looking at ten courts full of people I didn’t know. I started asking people if they were the meet-up group and finally came to the proper court.

This was scary and not fun at first, but the time I spent on Wednesday evenings on the beach playing sand volleyball was amazing! I ended up with a handful of new friends, great exercise, and was a part of something I’ll never get to do again. When you move to a new place, you must tell yourself to say “yes!”

I have mentioned Izzi, and I hit the road every weekend, and what guided me was my interests. I spent most of these adventures alone, so I could spend as much time there as I wanted, lingering and really experiencing places that moved me. The Getty Villa is one of those places. If I had visited this magical place with friends, I would have been pushed through and rushed. I spend the entire day there on my clock and am so thankful. This is what moving to a new place can give you.

This will not last forever, and you will start building a group of friends. But even then, include them in your “yes” mentality. My friend Kat one day asked me, “I was thinking about going swing dancing; would you go with me?” She initiated the plan, and I said, “Yes!!!”

What happened next still thrills me to say, “I am an avid swing dancer!” When you say yes, you might end up starting a new hobby you will keep with you for your entire life. Kat and I spent the next two years swing dancing at Atomic Ballroom in Irvin every Tuesday and most Friday nights. We also got all dolled up in our vintage outfits and sought out famous swing clubs in Los Angeles that were iconic hangouts for Frank Sinatra, like Cicada Club. That one “yes” led me to many adventures and has given me a passion for a hobby I will always keep up with.

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