I see most businesses approaching social media the same way. The first thing they look for is a standard set of best practices and social media etiquette. Then they might go off and find some case studies or social media marketing examples. If they aren’t overwhelmed by the diverse results they receive they will most likely adopt the best social media strategy for their business.

But is this enough?

Some of the best social media campaigns and strategies are those where someone wasn’t afraid to tread new ground. Social Media is really just the word that describes a collection of websites that help us communicate and share information. It’s what we share and how we are sharing it that really matters.

Be original

Any time you post something, first do the proper research to see if someone else wrote about the same topic. Be sure that your unique point of view is adding to the conversation and not just echoing the thoughts of others. This happens more commonly than people think and a few simple google searches can clear the air and possibly even help you push the subject further.

Experiment

Wordpress, YouTube, Facebook and Twitter aren’t the only social media sites out there. There are hundreds if not thousands of niche networks out there you could be using to target a more precise audience if necessary. Furthermore, there are a number of ways you can use your existing networks to get more exposure and encourage the sharing of your content or message. You often see the more creative of these messages surfacing to the top. Try something different and you will be more likely to be heard.

These tools are all still in their infancy and no one really knows the best way to use them or where they’ll be in a few years. There is no need to leave it up to the “experts” and “influencers” to lead you on your journey when you can very well create your own path to success.

- Photo by Alejandro Hernandez

I often find these extremely in depth communities with a lot of potential however they are all overwhelmed by one unavoidable component. SPAM!!!

Maybe it’s too much to ask for people to genuinely want to connect with other individuals from their industry. I guess there are people out there that think the old method of ‘copy and paste my ad into as many profiles comments section as possible’ actually works.

When are people going to start catching on that people are becoming desensitized to in your face advertising. In an on-demand world … why do I even need to give your ad a second thought.

Here’s how it actually goes down…

• Person wants a service
• Person Googles or asks a friend where to find best service
• Person chooses based off of friends feedback and Google results

THAT’S IT!!!!

So it’s your job to become either the result on Google or the company that person’s friend recommends. Do this through quality honest interaction with other individuals.

FOR EXAMPLE

I had just joined a community by and for printers and within minutes had recieved numerous solicitations to buy peoples service’s. How about instead of spamming you:

• Ask me how I wish to use the community
• Find out what line of work I am in
• Establish in what way you can help me

It’s called a conversation … it goes both ways… so join in

It’s great to see the print industry slowly start to embrace popular social media sites like twitter. I want to take a look at how these companies are using twitter and possibly discuss how they could use it better.

Here are my top 2 printers on twitter:

VPG_Printing – “Owner of a Printing & Graphics CO. in Encinitas, CA. Graphics designer by trade.”

Laura Beulke of Vertical Printing has nearly mastered the art of tweeting on both a business and personal level. She has been tweeting for over 6 months now and found that she could generate quite a buzz by offering freebies to her followers. Laura has figured out that using twitter is less about her company and more about her audience. She has even received referrals from people that aren’t even clients because of her activity on twitter.
(Special Offer: The seventh person to contact Vertical Printing and mention Magicomm will get $50.00 of FREE Printing)

BlueCoast – “Print quality paper print projects, and save your budget.”

BlueCost has a very realistic understanding of Twitter and how they should be using it. Their Relationship Manager told me “People use twitter not to hear what the company is doing, but rather to take something beneficial for themselves“. Their twitter account is reinforced by a well thought out blog with some very insightful posts.

Other printers on Twitter

• TampaPrinter
• hotcards
• ColonialColour
• intouchlabels
• risoprinter
• FosterPrinting
• swiftprint

So how should printers be using twitter for their business?
First lets look at my top 2 and see what they are doing right.

1. They are not pushing their services on subscribers
2. They are maintaining a good ratio of subscribers to subscriptions
3. They are responding to feedback and questions from other twitterers
4. They are providing value to the community (freebies or quality blog posts)
5. They are keeping it personal

I think Blue Host summed it up best in their response to my inquiry when they replied:
“The ones that enter into it with selfish motivation usually gain nothing.”

So what about the larger print providers?

I hold them to the same standards I hold everyone else. That said, I am curious about your thoughts on adobepr, xeroxcorp, xmpie and kodakidigprint. Adobe and Xmpie are still new to the Twitter game but could turn in to very fruitful accounts. Kodak rolled out kodakidigprint as part of a whole social media initiative that included a number of other Kodak employees joining twitter under Kodak branded accounts. All of these accounts have only been created within the last couple of months so there is still a lot of time for growth. (Which companies do you think are doing the best job?)

How else can Twitter help printers?

Twitter is a great way to keep up on hot topics within the industry. It’s also a great way to become the hot topic in your industry. Twitter gives you the exposure and the audience.

Some resourceful profiles out there are:

• PrintPlanet
• printceoblog
• whattheythink
• printworkers

So why should I, as a printer, join twitter?

Between the business opportunities and resources available, the question becomes why shouldn’t you join twitter. You should only jump on the bandwagon if you are willing to commit to it. A failed account looks a lot worse than no account. However if you follow the 5 simple steps listed above, their is no reason why you shouldn’t be up on my top 2.

If you are a printer on twitter and not on this list please feel free to comment below.