Thursdays are turning into a look at using social networking as a professional tool, so I'm going to continue with the series this week...
On Monday I announced that we are accepting submissions for our first ever IC Holiday Gift Guide. In the past I've submitted our Nest products to similar guides and I really like the idea. So I thought it would be a fun way to recognize all of the creative entrepreneurs in our community.
To demonstrate how social networking entered the picture, let me briefly explain what I did after writing Monday's post.
1. Tweet the post and ask for retweets
2. Post an invitation to relevant groups I belong to on LinkedIn
3. Post a note to members of various creative and professional forums I belong to
4. Send an update to followers of our Facebook Page
5. Continue to tweet the invitation daily
- I received over 20 submissions in the first two days from each of the places I posted the invitation
- Most responses were from people I hadn't yet connected with, so I met new people
- I learned about new products and services that creative entrepreneurs are offering
- I was also introduced to some cool non-profit organizations with holiday giving campaigns (they are creative *social* entrepreneurs)
- I now have the foundation for a diverse gift guide that will contain suggestions for meaningful gifts for the holidays
What shouldn't surprise me, though it continually does, is how powerful networks are. On top of that is how powerful social networking platforms are. Using technology to connect with people brings me a lot of joy and reinforces how useful the technology can be in developing meaningful professional relationships.
What is your experience with using social networks to build your creative business?
It's not too late to submit your product or service for the gift guide. The deadline is Sunday, December 6th and I'll post the guide on Monday the 7th. Read this post for simple submission guidelines.
Snowman Gift Tags from Mae Armstrong Designs
On Monday I announced that we are accepting submissions for our first ever IC Holiday Gift Guide. In the past I've submitted our Nest products to similar guides and I really like the idea. So I thought it would be a fun way to recognize all of the creative entrepreneurs in our community.
To demonstrate how social networking entered the picture, let me briefly explain what I did after writing Monday's post.
My Strategy
1. Tweet the post and ask for retweets
2. Post an invitation to relevant groups I belong to on LinkedIn
3. Post a note to members of various creative and professional forums I belong to
4. Send an update to followers of our Facebook Page
5. Continue to tweet the invitation daily
Results
- I received over 20 submissions in the first two days from each of the places I posted the invitation
- Most responses were from people I hadn't yet connected with, so I met new people
- I learned about new products and services that creative entrepreneurs are offering
- I was also introduced to some cool non-profit organizations with holiday giving campaigns (they are creative *social* entrepreneurs)
- I now have the foundation for a diverse gift guide that will contain suggestions for meaningful gifts for the holidays
Conclusions
What shouldn't surprise me, though it continually does, is how powerful networks are. On top of that is how powerful social networking platforms are. Using technology to connect with people brings me a lot of joy and reinforces how useful the technology can be in developing meaningful professional relationships.
What is your experience with using social networks to build your creative business?
It's not too late to submit your product or service for the gift guide. The deadline is Sunday, December 6th and I'll post the guide on Monday the 7th. Read this post for simple submission guidelines.
Comments