This self selected group being both uninterested and unpersuadable is probably a good thing. You don’t want to use your hard earned money to reach people who are inflexible in the choices they make. How would you persuade them to become a customer if they are so set in their ways? The converse of this is, of course, that if a person has elected to delve into the world of social media then it should stand to reason that they would be willing to adopt new and useful items or ideas in other areas of their lives.

Almost one third of Americans became Facebook users as of November 3, 2009. This is a large pool of individuals that are indeed interested in connecting with others, discussing opinions and trying new things. For any business the most important factor in reaching others is their willingness to consider engaging your services or products instead of those they currently use. This is the true value of reaching out on social media

Among the most well known social media Facebook and Twitter have emerged as the most useful for retail users. Facebook is much more oriented toward building on existing relationships and furthering them online. Twitter seems better at initiating contact with those we may have little or no history with. Both offer a set of opportunities and challenges to the business user. None of these challenges is greater than the need to keep your audience interested and invested in an ongoing conversation with your organization. Social media allows you to interact with both current and potential clients in ways that in the past were unavailable to businesses.

It is important though to keep things in perspective.

Offering a more cautious view on social media is Alyssa Dver, marketing consultant, trainer, and author of No Time Marketing: Small Business-Sized Steps in 30 Minutes or Less…. “You should think of social media as you would any marketing tactic: Is it being used by your target audience and what additional value can you provide to them through this method? Social media isn’t right for every business. The target audience may not use it or may not use it for business reasons.” She advises her clients to ask themselves, “Given your limited time and resources and the amount needed to commit to a successful social media initiative, is any one social media method really the best place to reach my audience?” LINK

While it is important to consider this caveat, one must also realize that considering a media mix is always a large consideration. One must not fall in love with any one outlet to the exclusion of others that might offer a strategic advantage. Considering that Facebook has a much younger average age of user, in the 20s, than Twitter, averaging in the 30s, drawing a conclusion based on such limited information may prove problematic. Indeed Facebook has more penetration and persistence with users than Twitter and more users of all ages. Twitter on the other hand has a unique search function and an ability to index updates so that they can be found by new customers that live close to your location.

Tailoring a program to your business is going to be the best method. A mix of coverage in opinion leading outlets, blogs and  social media will likely help introduce your product or service to a new and expanding audience. Finding the right partners to help your firm strike a strategic balance will be your most important step when developing a promotional campaign.

The next step of course, how do you integrate social media with your blog and/or website?