Resources

Why this resource page? I wanted a place for you to go to get our top recommended (and most popular posts) on each of our blog topics..and more. We will add to this and update this page regularly as our favourites change and new posts are added. Enjoy!

A Social Business 101

The information in these articles should underpin a lot of what you do if you are starting out (or even well entrenched) in using social media. They are principles that are set in good old fashioned customer service, relationship marketing and good business practice. I suggest you start here before you get into the “How To” of using different platforms. Enjoy!

The One Social Question That You Need To Ask When Engaging Online - Don’t start engaging online till you get this right! It could turn people away if you don’t!
How to Engage on Facebook – Leave no Fan Behind - What looks like a simple post about Facebook is so so much more. It is about your business and how you run it, especially online. Get this right first, and you will be off to a winning start!
5 Reasons to Get Your Head Out of the Sand and Embrace Social Media - still not sure about Social Media? Read this article.
3 Ways to Use Names to Engage Your Social Media Fans - Sounds simple right? We would have thought so too, but as it turns out, this was one of our most popular posts. Sometimes we need a reminder about how going back to basics in relationship marketing is important. Get this right, and you will be well ahead of many people using social media to market their business.
Have You Invited Your List to the Social Media Cocktail Party - no matter what business you are in, the idea of growing a “list” of readers, subscribers, potential customers and clients is still considered important. But how you view this list and what you do with them is even more important!

Visual Marketing

Why does the use of visual marketing get top billing on my resource list? Because if you use it well, it can make a massive difference to the impact of your social media efforts. These articles have been some of our most popular yet. Check them out!

The Shift to Visual Social Media – 6 Tips for Business [Infographic]
Easy Ways to Create Original Images for Visual Marketing [PicMonkey] - we tell you to use original images in your marketing, so here is a guide to the best tool we know for doing it easily! You will love PicMonkey. Love.
Using Visual Marketing for Social Media Results – 3 Cheeky Calls to Action - 3 ways to get noticed and have people taking action on social media.
Using Visual Marketing for Social Media Results – 3 Simple Content Creation Tools - tools, tools, and more tools for you!
Using Visual Marketing for Social Media Results – How to Use Text Creatively - Believe it or not, it is not all about the pictures. This is a great overview of how to use text creatively to create original images that get noticed across social media platforms.
Using Visual Marketing for Social Media Results – 3 Brands Getting it Right - if you want to see how businesses using visual marketing and social media well – look to these for examples.

Blogging

5 Expert Lessons for Building Your Blog Community - this post, featuring an interview with top blogger Nikki Parkinson may well be all that you need to know in starting your own blog for business. Donna’s article with Nikki is jam packed full of great advice. So much so that Donna refers to it often. Do yourself a favour. If you have a blog, or you are starting a blog, read this!
Does Your Social Media Have Backbone – 5 Reasons Why You Need a Blog - If you don’t have a blog or you are not convinced why you need a blog, then read this! Now!
3 Ways to Get More Blog Comments (and stop Gagging Your Readers)
Does Your Website Have a Social Media Catflap - an old post but still very relevant. Do you have integration between your blog and other social media sites. This is paramount if you want people to find you and engage with you on other platforms..and to find your blog!

Facebook

How to Engage on Facebook – Leave No Fan Behind - there is a reason why we have listed this post twice on this resource page). It matters. If you are on Facebook then please read this post. There is a reason why this post was so popular. Enough said.
Using Visual Marketing to Achieve High Facebook Engagement – A Case Study - want the inside loop on how we have worked with one of our clients to get some great results on Facebook? This article is jam packed full of real examples of how we used images to promote, launch and grow a business on Facebook.
How to Use Images for Engagement and Viral Sharing on Facebook - Jam packed with examples, this is well worth a read if you are looking to give your Facebook page a boost!
A Killer Tip for Your Facebook Timeline - this tip has been used many times by many businesses since this post came out. It works and is so super easy to set up. Try it!
The Best Way to Engage with Other Pages on Facebook - If you are strategically posting on other pages on Facebook, take a quick read of this post to make sure you are doing it right…because doing it wrong can turn people away from your page in droves!
7 Ways to Benefit from Facebook Groups - Facebook Groups have a lot of benefits. If you are in one, or starting one up, then this post has some great tips.

Twitter

7 Ways to Attract and Engage Followers on Twitter - a great guide for getting started on Twitter (this was a guest post that Donna did for Europe’s Social Media Blog)
Make Twitter Work for You – 10 Ways to Rock Your Tweets - Are you having trouble being heard on Twitter? Then use these simple strategies to make your tweets stand out, attract the right people as followers and help you to connect with the people you need to connect with in a sea of Tweets!
How to Find People to Follow on Twitter - A simple place to start when starting out on Twitter.
How to Follow the Most Important People on Twitter for Your Business - This simple strategy is one of our favourites. You need it in your Twitter “Kit Bag” to make this platform successful for your business.
3 Ways to Attract More Quality Twitter Followers - If you are going to be on Twitter, make sure you are being followed by the right people for you and your business. Here are 3 ways to attract the right people to your Twitter Account!

The 10 Commandments of Using Pinterest for Business - now shared approximately 20,000 times (or more, we have lost count) on various social media platforms, this post is still considered one of the most comprehensive overviews of using Pinterest for Business. And there is a fun infographic to help you make sense of it all! (This was a guest post by Donna at AmyPorterfield.com).
How To Set Up Your Pinterest Business Account - Just as it says – a comprehensive guide to setting up your Pinterest Business Account (or converting your current account over to a Business Account). A great place to start.
A Simple Way to Make Images Stand Out on Pinterest - A hugely popular post here. Why? Because hardly anybody does this strategy. Get this in your tool belt from the start and watch your images Pop on Pinterest!
Check Your Source on Pinterest for Better Visual Marketing - If you are going to be on Pinterest, we want you to get it right. From the Start. Be sure to read this post to get your images sourced correctly…back to your website – for better leads and sales to your products and services.
7 Top Pinterest Tools for Business - 7 Great tools to get you started on Pinterest.
7 Top Pinterest Tools for Business – Part 2 - more great Pinterest Tools for you!

You Tube

5 YouTube Channels to Follow (that are all about YouTube) - Don’t waste time wading through YouTube Videos. Follow these – it is all you need to get started on how to use YouTube in your business.

Other Lists of Things we Love

“My criteria for adding a link, product, person, blog or business to this list is simple.

It must provide exceptional actionable content related to social media or relationship marketing.
It must make me want to tell everyone, so much so that I included the link here to stop repeating myself daily!
It must make me get excited when I see that the person/place/product/blog has produced something new.
Their content and ideas must be so good that I can come back again and again and still get something out of it!
That’s it! In fact, I think I may hang out a lot on this page myself….” Donna

Blogs

Social Media Examiner - Social Media Examiner, the world’s largest online social media magazine - more than 600,000 readers/month.
Amy Porterfield - Amy is your go-to-girl for Facebook Marketing Strategy. She provides actionable, innovative content every time.
Social Fresh – The Business of Social Media – get the latest cutting edge case studies, opinions and news about social media.
Michael Hyatt - Michael blogs about Leadership, Productivity, Social Media and Publishing. Always relevant, always useful. A must-read.
Social Triggers - without a doubt one of the most important sites for building a blog that converts and building a list that matters. If you have to choose one or two websites about blogging and building a business to follow, then please include this one! Derek Halpern is brilliant. And his information is backed by research into the psychology of human behaviour (in a fun way!).

Books

Unmarketing (Scott Stratten) – If you work in Social Media and Marketing you must read this book before proceeding.
Crush it (Gary Vaynerchuk) – Gary strips back all the bells and whistles to reveal how good old fashioned customer service really works.
Launch (Michael Stelzner) – Michael Founded Social Media Examiner. Want to find out how to build a platform? Read this book!
Start with Why (Simon Sinek) - Find out how great leaders inspire action, and why knowing your WHY can transform your business!