# Social Networking or Social Notworking?



## lincolnapparel

I see sites like Facebook and Twitter recommended a lot for marketing purposes. I've been doing them for a few months, and while I've had a few sales from them mainly I've found they just eat up time. I've also found it's difficult to get responses on social networking sites, whereas my designs typically generate many comments when I wear them in person. 

Facebook in particular is difficult for me, it takes a lot of time and I have a niche market, and I find it difficult to find people who share your interests on Facebook.

I'm starting to suffer burnout on these sites and I'm starting to wonder to myself whether they're worth it. What are your experiences? Should I continue using these sites?


----------



## BigAssDude

I vote for social "NotWorking". I have spent altogether too much time lately on these sites building "relationships" with a few, but still. I have forums and groups, Facebook and Twitter to distract me from important things like the online store and stitching out portfolio pieces.

Another observation is on social networking, everyone is very quick to post a link of their own, but not too quick to follow a link posted by anyone else. Granted, over half of them are not worth clicking anyway, but still, with over 5 million tweets a day, you would think there would be more click-throughs. 

Also, it takes a lot of time to separate the wheat from the chaff on the social NotWorking. I fear that the more friending/fanning I do on facebook, the more useless my news feed becomes. 

I like forums such as this one. Posts are static and are there pretty much permanently, but it still takes a lot of time to go through all the threads.

Just my two cents (and feeling quite happy that I can contribute, being a newbie and all)

~Rachelle


----------



## Unik Ink

It depends on the way that you use them. I have Myspace, Facebook, and Twitter accounts for brand presence. I occasionally run Myspace bulletins or Twitter posts for current specials. We get some response from them. My most successful use for Facebook has been for our annual St. Paddy's Day t-shirt that we make for a local parade. I usually find the person that creates the group page for the event (which usually has close to 2,000 members), ask them to send a mass message linking our website store to all members in exchange for a few free t-shirts. I actually just did this yesterday for the local parade in March and have sold 30 t-shirts in one day, and we usually sell a total of 100 or so in the 3 weeks before the parade. It is all about reaching the target audience.


----------



## Fr4nk13

I really think it depends on your target market. Myspace is generally populated by students ages 14-20, facebook is mostly college students, and the only way for marketing on twitter to be effective is to have a feed that desirable to follow (otherwise your updates reach no one).

Chris, considering you're selling a very niche product, you might want to try a different avenue of social networking, such as forums (be aware that most forums don't allow self promotion.)

I think social networking has its place. My company thrives off of it, but again, our target markets are people from the ages of 15 and 25.


----------



## Rodney

I think it can be worth it, but it may need to be measured differently than other marketing methods.

You are building brand awareness of your products/services. It won't happen overnight, but there's almost never been such an affordable and effective way to connect with customers and potential customers. 

It doesn't have to be all advertising your message, all the time. People will remember your personality and your company the more you interact.

You control how much time you put into it, so if it feels like too much, scale back some and spend the extra time marketing/advertising other ways.

You don't have to sit and watch the social networking pages all day. Maybe a half hour at most throughout the day checking in, posting interesting things, interacting. It takes less than a minute to make a post or to respond to one. Spread it out and pace yourself.

This is a good article I came across about social networking that might help:
What To Do When No One Cares About Your Business On Social Media | Real Time Marketer


----------



## GAW

Like stated above there are plenty of pros and cons both ways. I would say personally if you don't enjoy using them and your not generating any sales from them then don't use them.

I personally have lots of success with my line out of them but that could be my market that I am gear too also.


----------



## Catspit

I think I have to agree with Rodney on this; some excellent advice there. But it is also about simply having an online presence. It is very difficult and demanding to keep up with blogs and other social networking sites but I think it is beneficial to create these profiles. It helps you with Google SERP’s and can generate opportunity if nothing else. You do have to keep them active but you don’t necessarily have to obsess about them. Think of them more as fishing lures which you can wiggle now and then. Cast all your rods out and then check the lines regularly. 

On the other hand if you can figure out how to use them for your particular niche, then they can be very powerful marketing tools. Use them consistently and see where it leads. You may find one social networking site to be better suited for your product than others.


----------



## Robin

Because Rodney posted this over on facebook.......I seen it.

Business has been phenomenal because of social networking. We've actually expanded in the last year. Yes it takes time to build relationships, but once you get going I dont spend any more than maybe 2 hours total on both facebook and twitter.

Is 2 hours alot? Maybe, but its alot cheaper than putting out ads etc that dont work & waste the money Ive worked very hard for.

Here is a youtube video about social media currency. 

Often I'll have Twitterfall open while Im printing shirts on the brother and put in my topics of interest. You might be surprised how much stuff comes up....and what folks are looking for. I miss alot, because this can move fast, but it gives me something to read and respond to between printings.

just my 2cents


----------



## tdunham

Rodney said:


> It doesn't have to be all advertising your message, all the time. People will remember your personality and your company the more you interact.


I think you hit the nail on the head here. I have done quite a bit of homework on this topic and have found some good information. 

This information came from a book I read on the topic and it makes a lot of sense.

Consider the web to be a large city. Within the city there are many businesses. You have Amazon as your Walmarts of the world, etc. Social networking sites are the retaurants and pubs of the city. People go in to relax, talk, and simply enjoy themselves. Sure, there are business lunches and the exchaning of business cards, but the overall atmosphere(outside the advertisements in the bathroom) is not a hard sell atmosphere. You don't want to go into a restaurant where the hostess greets you at the door and sticks a piece of chicken in your face and gives you 5 reasons to order it. You go to restaurants that are comfortable and you know you can find what you want on the menu or you know the people there.

We use social networking to allow our customers to get a glimpse inside our daily grind. When it comes time for them to make a purchase, we hope that they will give us an opportunity. We have not always had this approach, but are learning.

I hope this helps give you some insight into how it can help your business.


----------



## Retro Campaigns

lincolnapparel said:


> I see sites like Facebook and Twitter recommended a lot for marketing purposes. I've been doing them for a few months, and while I've had a few sales from them mainly I've found they just eat up time. I've also found it's difficult to get responses on social networking sites, whereas my designs typically generate many comments when I wear them in person.
> 
> *Facebook in particular is difficult for me, it takes a lot of time and I have a niche market, and I find it difficult to find people who share your interests on Facebook.*
> 
> I'm starting to suffer burnout on these sites and I'm starting to wonder to myself whether they're worth it. What are your experiences? Should I continue using these sites?


 Facebook is made for narrowcasting. You can literally make an ad that will appear only to women users aged 19 who listen to The Beatles and watch Top Gear while grooming their Shih Tzu_s.
_
But anyway, echoing others' statements: I get a lot of hits/buzz from Facebook and Twitter ... when I'm active. But I've been really lax about keeping up with it, and as soon as you fade away, even for a week or so, it takes a lot to get back into it and sort of build yourself back up. I don't know if we're supposed to give out brand names here, but there are a few t-shirt shops that are really active and I can tell you just as a viewer (or "follower" or whatever), it really makes a difference in name brand recognition.

edit: lol and as Robin said, I saw this thread because it was on Facebook


----------



## alohagar54

I have been using Facebook and Twitter a lot lately. What I'm finding is in how you use it. I guess the main rule is that you don't always promote. Have some light conversation, or just a rambling thought. When you are always selling, it seems to turn people away from you. It's also very time consuming to get followers and fans to your page and can become frustrating. But just because YOU are a fan of your own website or product doesn't mean everyone will be. All social networks take time and it does generate leads, but doesn't happen right away. I think that social networking is just a fact of life and needs to be used, but it can't be the only way of delivering your message. Stay with it, and remember to promote sometimes, and have fun the rest of the time.


----------



## EnMartian

I recently was a panelist for a Stitches Webinar on social media and I'm a professional Marketer so I definitely have an opinion on this subject. Lucky you, I'm also prepared to share it! 

EnMart is on both Twitter and Facebook. At different times I've been skeptical about both options, and I'm definitely aware they won't work for absolutely every business, but I do think, approached properly, they can work for most businesses. If you are interested in trying Twitter and Facebook, here are some things to remember



*It's about community.* If all you're going to do is sell, you won't be successful. You have to give people content that helps and intrigues them and you have to interact with others. If you just show up once in a while and post a link to whatever your latest product is, or if you constantly spam people with what you think are incentives to purchase your products, you won't get much interest or most likely much income from the sites. You have to give to get, so that means commenting, retweeting and sharing helpful information.
*Frequency matters* - You don't have to post every five minutes, and in fact probably shouldn't post every five minutes. You do, however, need to maintain a regular presence and you have to offer fresh content on a regular basis.
*When it comes to followers, it isn't about quantity, it's about quality* - Many people get so caught up in having 5,000 followers or fans or friends that they don't realize that half the people they are linked to have no interest in what they have to offer. Pick and choose who you follow or friend. Look for people who are likely to want what you have to sell. Having 5,000 followers isn't worth anything if only 50 of them are in your target market.
*Everything you say reflects on your business. Everything. * - It always shocks me to see people with business accounts saying off color things or behaving unprofessionally. If you're on Twitter or Facebook in a business capacity, act like it.
*Customers will find you. When they do, talk to them* - Twitter and Facebook can be especially great tools for customer service in real time. If a customer takes the time to ask you a question or seek you out for some reason, take the time to talk back. It always amazes me when companies miss the opportunity to answer a question or respond to a customer right in front of tons of other customers.
Twitter or Facebook are not the nirvana of sales, and simply being there won't bring you millions of dollars or customers. These sites aren't silver bullets for sales. Like anything else, they will most likely bring in business but, like anything else, it will take some work and effort to get that business. 

If you are interested in watching and listening to the webinar on social media, you can find it here. 

And, just so we can keep score, I heard about this discussion on both Facebook and Twitter.


----------



## Robin

Awesome Post Kristine!!


----------



## lizziemaxine

Great post. I attended the webinar and it was fabulous.


----------



## EnMartian

Robin said:


> Awesome Post Kristine!!


Thanks Robin. I didn't even realize you were on this site. How could I have missed you?


----------



## EnMartian

lizziemaxine said:


> Great post. I attended the webinar and it was fabulous.


Thanks Jane. Glad you liked the post and the webinar. I'm hoping to get to do more webinars. We didn't have nearly the time we needed to cover the topics in the depth they deserved.


----------



## Robin

EnMartian said:


> Thanks Robin. I didn't even realize you were on this site. How could I have missed you?


I dont get here as much as I should anymore.


----------



## Rodney

Since it's definitely relevant to this topic, I just wanted to pass along this article (that I came across via Twitter ) that goes into a study about the measured benefits of Facebook marketing:

It's a good read: Facebook Fan Pages May Actually Be Effective Marketing (For Facebook Users)


----------



## JoshEllsworth

I really believe the Facebook advertising is a HUGE opportunity and not to be overlooked. 

What is being tagged as 'hyper targeting' is perfect for apparel decorators.

Consider some ideas...

Creating an ad showing bridesmaid/groomsman apparel for those profiles that mention engaged.

Creating event based/regional ads. So if there is a big concert or game..target the region and the age group with an ad for shirts to wear to the event.

Target women in your local area who mention "pregnant" with maternity apparel or personalized diaper bags.

Target specific college graduates with Alumni decorated apparel.

The options are literally unending. I think for those of us using social networks some of the best value is investing in advertising with a comprehensive hyper-targeted plan.

Another way is to use the Fan Page feature to build something that your demographic will actually become fans of. It may not be your business.

For instance, if I sold custom embroidery locally to residents of my county, I may create a FAN Page called "Fayette County, PA". Recruit the masses and create an ad campaign to target the Fans of this page.

Likewise if my niche is can coolers and fold up chairs, I might create a fan page called Pittsburgh Tailgating. Recruit the tailgaters and run a targeted ad.

I think there are other advantages but ad marketing (in my opinion) should be part of the overall social media plan as it contributes directly to sales.


----------



## lincolnapparel

Wow, thanks for all the replies! Lots of interesting info here that I wouldn't have found if I didn't ask it in the forums.

One of the things that bugs me about the social networking sites is the low signal to noise ratio. Like Rachelle said near the beginning of this thread, I find it difficult to separate the wheat from the chaff - and I assume likewise for other users of social networking sites. If I post something there's a slim chance they'll see it in the hundreds or thousands of messages that scroll by. In other words, the response rate is low because no one can get my signal because it's drowned in the noise, and I can't get theirs because I'm drowned in the noise. The end result is just noise. 

I've tried being interactive on social networking sites, but I find it hard to get replies. I don't always blast links because that would get old. Social networking is often touted as something akin to an online pub in a large city (as Tim said) but I find the "feel" to be less of a discussion and more akin to people just yelling at each other on a street corner.

With Facebook specifically, I have trouble getting any new fans besides people I already know from elsewhere. My fans are all people I know in person (friends or family), other bloggers I know, or from fan page "link exchanges" with people on other forums. Beyond that, nothing. (Also, not all of my friends and family are on Facebook or Twitter, either that or they don't use it a whole lot). I find it very difficult to target by interest. I click on one of my interests and up comes a bunch of groups, each with thousands of people. I join them, but I don't see anyone familiar. It doesn't look like there's a whole lot of discussion, just a lot of posts by different people. Should I try to post something anyway? I'm not sure I'm quite ready to try Facebook ads yet, particularly when I'm still skeptical of social networking (and have heard varying reviews as to their effectiveness). With Twitter I can do a search by interest by searching by topic, so it's a little easier. Facebook is like trying to find the phone number and address for a business in a large city without the yellow pages.

So far I'm finding that forums like this and blogs have a MUCH higher response rate. Because they're structured around a specific topic, they filter out the "noise", so people read things and comment. I read everything in this thread, for instance, but I could not possibly read everything in my Twitter or Facebook feeds (nor would I want to). My blog isn't exactly well known, but I find it easier to get a comment there than on a social networking site. I think something is to be said for old "web 1.0 style" social networking  I'm glad this resource exists. I found it via Google.


----------



## Fur Face Boy

I think that its an ABSOLUTE MUST to have a twitter, facebook and yes, even myspace account! I see these networking sites to be just as vital as my main blog! I mean, what is the majority of people who dont have atleast one of these accounts? And best of all....theyre FREE to have! Sure, it may consume alot of time but you have to look at it as a part of your brand! And theres no way your brand can work without putting in the time and work! I vote YES to social media sites
http://furfaceboy.com/


----------



## lincolnapparel

Came across this article (on Twitter ) today:
Readers Vote to Kill MySpace, Facebook, Twitter

It seems for every article on the benefits of social media, there's one for the drawbacks.

To those of you who have had success using them: how long did it take you to get a following on the social networking sites? 

Doing some research last night, about 75% of the US population has an internet connection, while about 30% has a Facebook account. This means that Facebook is more akin to half of a very large city (the internet) rather than just a pub or a coffee shop. Are there really any benefits to using such a massive social networking site? Is it better just to put efforts into SEO (which admittedly social networking sites can help with), so the 75% of users that have a Net connection can find me on Google and other search engines, and find smaller "niche" social networking sites to promote my T-shirts and chat about topics that interest me?

It seems as though social networking today is rapidly approaching the point that sites like Geocities, Tripod, Xoom, etc. and the search engines like Altavista, Hotbot, Lycos, et al. (remember those sites?) were at in 1999. Too much noise, not enough ways to filter it to get the "signal".

At the end of the day if I'm not mistaken marketing is all about enough of the right people receiving your message (signal). If that doesn't happen nothing is accomplished.


----------



## SunEmbroidery

I'm glad I read about this thread on Twitter because I've been wondering about this topic. I have a Twitter account that I haven't done much with other than a few tweets/retweets and RSS feed from my blog. I had hoped for a few click throughs to my site but that really hasn't happened although I have gained a few blog subscribers. I realise that I haven't given "value" so I haven't received it but I do feel it has helped my business by keeping me more informed of what other people/groups are doing. Most of the people I follow are involved in SEO, web marketing and technology so some of what they say is important to me and my business. For me, I decided that its best to lurk a bit until I get an idea how I can create value (contribute a blended input of new information, individual personality, retweets and company personality) in the limited amount of time that I can spend on Twitter. Maybe that isn't possible. One area that I would like to improve is finding sources for new information on changes that affect the decoration industry. BTW, I'll check the Twitter pages of the people who have posted in this thread.


----------



## Q.

Twitter is my #1 sales channel. Facebook is #2. I have a combined 40,000+ contacts on these two platforms, many of whom have learned about who I am, what I'm trying to accomplish, and are rooting for me. This is something that advertising cannot buy. I do not have a partner in my tee biz - these 40,000 people are my defacto partners. I bounce tee ideas off them. I ask them for biz advice. These two particular networks are so massively valuable to me.


----------



## lincolnapparel

To Rizzo (and any others who have had success using these sites): How do you gain a "critical mass" (part of whom are people who believe in your brand), on social networking sites? 

I'd absolutely love to ask people on my fan page etc. what they think of my ideas, have people give me new ideas or advice etc. BUT it seems as though 99% or more of what I ask goes unanswered. This leaves me discouraged using these sites, as it feels as though I've wasted my time.

I feel like this about social media right now:
_Media overload bombarding you with action 
It's getting near impossible to cause distraction 
Someone answer me before I pull out the plug 

What are words for - when no one listens anymore 
What are words for - when no one listens 
What are words for - when no one listens, it's no use talking at all_
- From "Words" by the Missing Persons 1982


----------



## Q.

There are a range of factors/tools that allowed me to build my network on Twitter. I can tell you it was 100% natural - no automated services. I do send auto-DMs, and there was a short time where I was auto-folllowing back people that followed me. That got ugly though - spammers used it against me.

My tips:

1. Be on Twitter alot - tweet things that are interesting - be active.

2. Interact. Don't just tweet famous quotes and links - interact with people. Answer their "@" posts to you with a "@" post back to them.

3. Be helpful to others. It's not all about you. Retweet, recommend others, offer assistance when you can.

4. Follow interesting people. And you don't need to wait for people to follow you in order to follow them. Follow the folks that are interesting to you and hope that they'll follow you back.

5. If you follow some folks, and they don't follow you back after a week or so, it's OK to unfollow them. In fact, Twitter has limits on how many you can follow. You need people to follow you in order for you to follow others. If you want to hear more about what these limits are, let me know. Long story short, I would give people a chance to follow you back. If they don't, it's OK to unfollow them.

6. If someone follows you, give them an honest chance on the followback - I am personally flattered when a real live person follows me - I will manually go check out their account (when I can keep up with this) and will seriously consider following them back.

7. Truthfully, if you want to keep your numbers up, following back does help. Otherwise, they may unfollow you, since you didn't follow them back. They'll follow the advice I gave in #5 above.

Most of all, remember that Twitter and Facebook are just tools - the rules of real life still apply. If you want people to be influenced by you, you have to spend time with them. You need to get to know them, interact with them, support them. There's no trick to that. I hope this helps!


----------



## Rodney

> Is it better just to put efforts into SEO


There's no reason why you can't do both. 

SEO doesn't take a *huge* amount of effort. 

Being active on the social network (or 2) of your choice doesn't take a huge amount of effort.

But they both will take time. That's something you can't shortcut.

You just have to keep putting the work in (even when it doesn't seem to be doing anything) to get to the point where it starts paying off.



> I'd absolutely love to ask people on my fan page etc. what they think of my ideas, have people give me new ideas or advice etc. BUT it seems as though 99% or more of what I ask goes unanswered. This leaves me discouraged using these sites, as it feels as though I've wasted my time.


I will say that Facebook is MUCH more interactive that Twitter as far as getting responses to questions asked and people seeing your posts.

I have a couple of fan pages on Facebook and it seems like every post that is made has several comments and "likes".

I've found that people spend a lot more time on Facebook, and are much more likely to respond there.

Sometimes, due to the nature of Twitter, not all of your questions will be seen by someone. Twitter is about "the moment", and you can't think of it like email where when you send an email, the expected action is a response back. People generally don't read EVERY twitter post that is made, they read what is happening "right then" when they happen to have downtime to check on Twitter. 

At the same time though, with Twitter, you're interacting one on one with a real person on the other end. It can separate the barriers of communicating with people you may not ever have had access to before. 

For example, RizzoTees took the time to respond to this thread because I asked him directly on Twitter  @ messages are a great way of connecting one on one with people.

One last thing. Like almost any activity/job/sales tool, if you're not totally sold on it and believe in it, you'll be much less likely to use it effectively. 

For example, you could probably talk about President Lincoln all day with a smile, because it's something you are totally sold on. Not everyone could do that. 

But when it comes to social media, it almost seems like you've already made up your mind (or just aren't convinced yet) that it's worth your time. That can come through in your posts. It can also make you want to use the tools halfheartedly.

Not everyone will want to use social media. Not everyone will want to use email marketing. Some people aren't comfortable with making sales calls over the phone. Others don't believe in direct marketing via snail mail.

After all your research, you have to _use the tools you believe in_. Doing it half way (or not the most effective way) can have an effect on the results.


----------



## jimgeddes

I recommend you focus your efforts on Twitter with people who are local to your business. Poeple always like to do business with merchants in the same community


----------



## Rodney

jimgeddes said:


> I recommend you focus your efforts on Twitter with people who are local to your business. Poeple always like to do business with merchants in the same community


This is a great tip for people who are selling services.

However, for people with clothing lines that are selling their own designs retail to the end customer, your potential customers are all over the world. You may miss out on a lot of connections by only focusing locally.

But for someone that is doing t-shirt printing, that is a very smart idea to use Twitter's location features to reach out to Twitter users that are in your local area.


----------



## wetkiwi

you answered your own question dude! your spending a lot of time getting FA sales because you find it hard to connect to people. simple don't do it.


----------



## designnbuy

Social networking sites really play important roles in sending target traffic to your site. But it's very true you can't expect to get immediate results. It needs time. You've to build relationships with other members. You need to make a good profile where you can also tell about your business, products or service. You need to participate in several discussions that are related to your products or service. In the meantime you can advertise but you need to maintain a limit. So that it won't look odd. Join several groups and discuss about their products or services etc. Offer them about yours also. Make it such a way that they can trust you. You definitely can expect to get traffic!


----------



## outrageoustees

I have some luck with Twitter for my rock climbing t- shirt line. I don't with Facebook(but haven't really tried, either). Now I have begun expanding into a "general subjects" t-shirt line(one liners, quotations, stuff like that) and I am floundering. But - I can tell about my perspective from the climbing one.

Here's the thing I "think" works well with Twitter - I'm building "Twitterships" - relationships that fellow Twitterers may post about and may even post about outside of Twitter(like on their blogs or discussion forums they may belong to).

The way I "do" this is by being VERY selective in whom I Follow. I check out their website link - surprising how many are "get rich quick" BS websites. I also look at their Twitter Stream - If they post garbage all day long - I don't follow them. 

When I decide to Follow someone, I do so, and then I look at their recent posts. If I feel I can comment on one of them - a "Oh! That's Funny!" Or "Great link. Thanks!" then I do! They get their profile name "repeated" and they also say "Hey - who's ClimbAddict?(that's me on my Twitter climbing profile). Likely they will follow me and not only that, I will stand out amongst the masses of Followers.

I also thank every Follower for doing so(unless they are spammers, of course), by sending them a simple Direct Message. Something like "Thanks for the Follow. Climb on!" NOT a "Check out MY..." note. That's a turn off.

And I use the "List" feature, to segment the various types of people I follow and follow me. That way, when I feel I need to get in a presence, I can filter the list and read, for example, just from climbers, or just from guide services or climbing gyms or gear manufacturers, as opposed to each and everyone's stuff. It's likely I can find something I want to reply to and say "Nice link" or "Sorry you have a toothache" or whatever....

Best, of course, is to post excellent links that people would want to click on and read, but....that does take efforts to research.

You can't just "Post and Run." You've got to engage your Twitter people or nobody will notice you. With Lists, people also can "Follow You" but put you on a "Twits I don't care about" list. If they happen to also have a "Twits I actually like" list, they can filter out the ones they don't. So - You THINK people are Following you, but you're actually only texting out loud....

I post link to my new designs, and I also do an "Item of the Week Or So" special, which I post links to. And of course I post general crap, just like everyone else - though I TRY not to describe the minutiae of my day! BO-RING!

Anyway - how does this all pay off? Here's one example. I Follow an online magazine, called Wend. I like what they post. I have commented a few times on their posts, and retweeted a few things. Well - I recently did a promotion for ClimbAddict - I was giving away condoms that the package is printed with my logo, and it says "Unless You're Free-soloing, Use Protection!" Climbers call our gear "protection" and rubbers are protection. Free Soloing means climbing with no rope, no gear, no protection. Hence, the pun.

I also give away sticker packs with this promotion - the stickers are miniatures of my t-shirt designs, and climbers like to put them on their helmets and water bottles, and cars. I was also giving away $50 store merchandise to 3 winners. The promo was "send an SASE" and I'll send the condoms/stickers, and choose the 3 winners at random. I had a link to the information on my blog, which is heavily focused on my product.

Twitter was a BIG venue for me to promote this, and I got increases in my website views every time I posted an update (Pre-launch "clues" that something was coming, actually launch announcement and daily re-announcing, updates such as artwork for the comdom packets, link to sticker packets graphic, photo of the condoms once they arrived, reminders that the contest was ending soon. and such...).

People would comment occassionally, but like I said, the views would go up after every post.

Well - what do you know - One day I saw a BIG spike in views! And I was like. hmmmm...where'd that come form?" When I checked my stats, I saw that this Wend Magazine had picked up on my promotion and written a blog entry about it! Including images of the condom packets, links to my website, and really great written content - they did a MUCH better than job at explaining my promotion that I did!

Anyway - I know that was looooong winded. But it's an idea as to how "Twitterships" can work.

Hope it was helpful.


----------



## lincolnapparel

I think I'm getting a better "feel" for how the social networking sites work now because of this thread. Thanks for all the replies so far - I'd love to hear more tips/experiences!



> After all your research, you have to use the tools you believe in. Doing it half way (or not the most effective way) can have an effect on the results.


Thank you for saying this! It seems like everybody recommends social networking sites without regard as to what it's like to actually use them, or use them _effectively_, as if they're a magic tool to generate sales. In fact, I feel like I've been forced into doing them. It can be a frustrating experience trying to use a tool that doesn't "feel" right to market something, since it will just add more obstacles for you to overcome.

I think I might be spreading myself too thin by trying to do too many sites, some of which constantly frustrate me (like Facebook).

Because of this, I've decided to quit Facebook for awhile (while I think about whether it can actually be valuable), and focus on Twitter and my blog more. I think I'm getting the hang of Twitter more now, and I've always liked the simplicity of Twitter. I've started to actively look for people who tweet about things I like, and converse with those people. Thanks for the Twitter tips folks - hopefully I can do it better now!



> I will say that Facebook is MUCH more interactive that Twitter as far as getting responses to questions asked and people seeing your posts.
> 
> I have a couple of fan pages on Facebook and it seems like every post that is made has several comments and "likes".
> 
> I've found that people spend a lot more time on Facebook, and are much more likely to respond there.


This is interesting since my Facebook page is basically dead, and it's always been that way. It doesn't matter what I post there, it just seems like no one wants to look at it. I sometimes wonder what all my fans are doing!

The interesting thing is that I do get likes or comments if I post things about my T-shirts on my personal page. I basically use my fan page as a mini blog to post links to new designs, and to new blog posts.

In any case I've decided to quit Facebook temporarly because it seems to cause me frustration to no end. It was frustrating when I started my page and it's frustrating now, from the bad UI to the silly limitations to the difficulty of getting my fan page noticed. I still don't "get" how it works, so I figure it's better just to focus on things I can understand. No use using sites I have to fight with each time I use them!

I also never liked Facebook's privacy policies, and now there's this:
Facebook News Feed Patent

I never had a good feeling about Facebook (as a company), this makes me feel worse about them.



> But they both will take time. That's something you can't shortcut.
> 
> You just have to keep putting the work in (even when it doesn't seem to be doing anything) to get to the point where it starts paying off.


Thanks again for saying this - perhaps I'm being too impatient with myself. I've been on Twitter for 4 months and Facebook for 3 - any ideas as to how long it takes to build a following on these sites?


----------



## gsr737

I have Twitter and Facebook accounts too but find that Twitter in combination with our blog generates the most interest. The blog in particular has increased our position on Google searches. I put much of my efforts into the blog and then use tweets to steer traffic towards the blog and that seems to work. (I'm not saying that it works overnight but it's a gradual building.)
Everyone is right, it does take some effort, but if you like what your talking about it doesn't seem like work....


----------



## chicabu

I just discovered the world of mommy blogging and give aways thru twitter. They do reviews and giveaways of your product that drive potential customers to your website I just finished my first campaign and am very happy with the amout of traffic it drove to my website. I just found asite that has a database of bloggers that you can send out a request for bloggers for reviews I was very specific of who and what and received 15 responses its a great free service. Im in the kid market so don't know about the adult world


----------



## tip_city

This may be a little off the subject but,For any type of tshirt sells you need alot of people on your Social Networking account and that is the hard part of selling on any Social Networking site I think because It may take a while for people to see what you are doing because I'm still trying to find all the target traffic that I need.


----------



## gsr737

Hey Chris, 
You mentioned "mommy blogging" on Twitter, what is that? 
If you can mention it, what is the site with the database of bloggers?


----------



## outrageoustees

I'm not Chris, but - "Mommy blogging" is moms who blog - about mothering, about their kids, about being a mom...."

For Chris - it's a great audience, since he does kid's stuff, as he wrote.

I found a similar blog network for my hair accessories(I also make ponytail holders from vintage sewing buttons). There are blogging moms love doing their little one's hair up taking photos and explaining how they achieved the effect. Making hair bows, posting about the ones they found online. As well, there are women who blog about long hair, which was an appropriate audience for me.

With my ClimbAddict t-shirt line, there's the climber's blogs and discussion forums. Since I am also a climber, that's really easy for me to access, and I have to be careful about coming off as spammy, since I practically live in the places.


----------



## SunEmbroidery

I'm not sure if "mommy blogging" refers to a particular group but you google that phrase you get this: The Mom Blogs - Directory of Blogs by Moms. Also, google "blog directories" to locate blogs.

A lot of business owners who market to parents use this site Work From Home - Work at Home Jobs, Recipes & Articles For Moms - WAHM.com (there is a forum section).


----------



## gsr737

Thanks, I'll check them out since we sell some kid's shirts as well.


----------



## ShiroiNekoOnline

I think one of the important parts of social networking is building the bond to your brand.
It's quite difficult though.


----------



## chicabu

the site I found was business2blogger.com its a free service ... the blogging world is not just for kid products I met a gal tody at a office I was in who is a writer for online marketing venues by luck I met her and I think there is a blogging venue for all apparel if not just to post blogs/reviews on your website for recognition and PR... just takes lots of research


----------



## TheAve

I say 100% NetWORKING!! My retail store is opening in Venice Beach in a month and if not for Facebook, I wouldn't have a couple hundred friends/family members attending my grand opening, all of whom have expressed their interest in getting a shirt or two. 

Aside from using it to your own network, I think it depends on who your audience is and do you have the marketing skills to get them to listen. I have paid attention to Tweets and Facebook posts when the poster creates some sort of appeal. So if it's not working for you, it may be your approach if the audience is there and they are unresponsive. These sites can be addicting, so if you're spending too much time on them, you're probably doing more than just 'work' on them 

You know your customers, what do they like? What are they like? What is going to create impulse with them? People who overpost are annoying and ignored. It's all about engaging your client base and creating motion!

If it wasn't for Facebook, Twitter or Youtube, the following would have never happened

- I would have never known what a Brother GT-782 is
- I would have not found an investor for my business
- I would have spent HOURS calling everyone I know to tell them about my store and invite them to the opening, instead of minutes creating an invite, and not having to know everyones email address if I was using Evite
- I would have never found this website
- I would have never known about this concert in Hollywood that I went to, where I met one of my biggest soon to be clients

I am sure there is more...


So I am all for the networking sites if you know how to use them!


----------



## the_um

Youtube is also a good way to advertise. You have a profile where you can put your website store, if only you can drag them to your channel and get subscribers. If you upload videos or music, I'm sure it will get notice.

Also posting comments can get you noticed. Maybe if you subscribe to channels where your t-shirt is themed (example: Motorcycle bikes/Bike T-shirts) and post comments on new videos...people will recognize your name because you posted something before yesterday or something. People will think...who is this person, I've seen him somewhere...

Anyone here do youtube advertising?


----------



## TMOGUL

Hello Everyone, my take on it is that social networking has helped me in the brand awareness area, on myspace i actually do quite well getting orders for services and connecting with other clothing designers as well as touching base with other cool boutiques in other cities outside of my own. I own a printing business as well as having my own t-shirt lines so I have a two pronged approach, my retail on mspace just adds buzz and connects with possible buyers and stores, service wise I am doing even better because I don't view other designers *** comp they are also my possible clients so there is a lot of info sharing amongst us. My facebook page is primarily used for brand awareness and it works pretty good especially on the service side, on the retail side it lets people take a look at my upcoming products and keeps me in mind when they are ready to make a purchase. Twitter for me haven't done well prob because I haven't invested the time in but I am optimistic.


----------



## the_um

For me twitter looks completely alien to me. The blog system seems a bit complicated.

I don't get how some twitters have content but no replies, and others have little content and tons of replies making it even more complicated because I can't find the actual content. 

Also the # thing kinda throws me off too, what is that thing do? Judging by reading my post you can tell how stupid I am with twitter.


----------



## Q.

the_um said:


> For me twitter looks completely alien to me. The blog system seems a bit complicated.
> 
> I don't get how some twitters have content but no replies, and others have little content and tons of replies making it even more complicated because I can't find the actual content.
> 
> Also the # thing kinda throws me off too, what is that thing do? Judging by reading my post you can tell how stupid I am with twitter.


I am preparing a blog post that will hopefully explain the proper business use of Twitter. I will be sure to link it up here when it's ready


----------



## the_um

Thanks looking forward to it.


----------



## Rodney

Twitter also has an "official" guide that explains some ways to use Twitter for your business here: Twitter 101 for Business ? A Special Guide


----------



## RideOutWear

myspace has worked for me but i also use twitter and i have not had any sales off of it but i do generate a lot of bonds with others in the business. for instance i built a good friendship with the marketing director of 4 wheel parts which is the largest 4x4 parts store in the country. i now have a link on their page as do they mine all because of twitter. so i would say there are pros and consof them.


----------



## SikWorldTshirts

I find social mediums are better for showcasing your products. For example, social photo sites are cool places to put up galleries of your tshirts and other merchandise. I do not personally break my back with social media stuff unless it has a specific purpose, like showcasing product galleries.

Hope that helps!

SikWorldTs


----------



## SHIROINEKO

It always takes time.


----------



## the_um

If I'm selling themed bike t-shirts, and I want to start getting people to buy it. I turn to tweeter and facebook. When writing these tweets or wall announcements, do I write stuff around the theme? For example, if I find a nice bike article on a website or a interesting video about a bike race, do I say a couple sentences and post the link where I found it? If I was to start with these sites that's the first thing I would be doing, is this the wrong way?


----------



## the_um

hmm.


----------



## GCharb

I learned to use Twitter and Facebook for business watching these videos from lynda.com

Social Media Marketing with Facebook and Twitter

The author gets you through the whole process, from signup, setup and how to manage both networks.

Both are good, if used properly and you dont need to spend your days on them, I usualy spend 30 minutes on each every day, 5-6 days a week.

They have more advanced videos dedicated to either Facebook and Twitter

Well worth the money if you are interested in social networking.


----------



## SunEmbroidery

Thanks for posting that link! I listened a bit and will find time to continue.


----------



## Rodney

Here's a great article one of our members Q (who's doing pretty well using Twitter to promote his t-shirt business) wrote about 50 ways businesses can interact on Twitter:

The Top 50 Tweets That Businesses Should Be Doing


----------



## EnMartian

That is a great article. About the only tip I don't agree with entirely is the one about tweeting what music you're listening too, but that's a personal preference. I think the list is right on other than that.


----------



## ladyumbrella

Yep, it is a great list from a guy who knows how to use twitter like no other..only a matter of time before the 140 page paperback comes out hehe..


----------



## Q.

EnMartian said:


> That is a great article. About the only tip I don't agree with entirely is the one about tweeting what music you're listening too, but that's a personal preference. I think the list is right on other than that.


Thanks for having checked out the article! Cheers


----------



## Q.

ladyumbrella said:


> Yep, it is a great list from a guy who knows how to use twitter like no other..only a matter of time before the 140 page paperback comes out hehe..


Rob, my wife keeps telling me to write a book. I'm like, "That article will be 4 pages of the book - what about the other 200 pages?" LOL


----------



## the_um

Wow, your right. That article is gold!


----------



## ladyumbrella

Q. said:


> Rob, my wife keeps telling me to write a book. I'm like, "That article will be 4 pages of the book - what about the other 200 pages?" LOL


Only 136 pages to go then hehe...and isn't it written somewhere to always do what ones wife tells you to do


----------



## CxCthreads

For me, these 2 applications plus Myspace ARE my business. In this day and age where the cost of entry is Nada, you have nothing to lose but time.
Regardless of your market, you can find them by simply observing your competition as well as through using searches. I think one of the mistakes that most people make is that they set up their accounts and wait. You have to actively seek out your customers or you are literally wasting your time. Also, you definitely want that level of interaction between your fans as it's all about connection. People want to feel a part of the company they are buying from, so your level of interaction is what will ultimately sell your products.

So in a nutshell I'd say 

A. Do some homework on your competition and customers: Come up with some reasons why people buy from them and judge there level of interaction with their fans. Take notes and mirror this (after all, it's working for them right?)! Then look at your competitions facebook fans, twitter followers or use the twitter search feature and facebook group and fan pages. You need to know where they are so you will know where to go when your profile is set-up.

B. Set up your page and make it interesting. Not just "My name is.... we sell blah blah blah, tell your story in the most dynamic non generic manner and you're bound to stir interest, the better you will stand out and touch people, the more of an interaction and future sale seed you will sow in them.
C. Add these people like crazy. Add (at least) 10 a day and once they accept your request, send them a comment, which encourages interaction.

The gist is that interaction and a personable approach will equate to sales and a building of more than just a clothing company, but a brand.


----------



## EnMartian

Great advice Gavin. 

I have to agree with you that the key is interaction, and your advice about touching people is great. So many people hit these sits and do a constant sell, sell, sell and then wonder why people don't buy. Most people don't like hard sell salespeople in person. They don't like them on Twitter or Facebook either.


----------



## Rodney

I just read this story today. The Way of the Dodo — How to Sell 10,000 iPad Cases at $60 Each (and Others Lessons Learned)

One t-shirt company (NASHVILLE FLOOD TEES | Welcome) amassed $200,000 in sales because of the power of Facebook. They sold 800 t-shirts in the first hour of their launch.

From the interview in the middle of the page:



> *2) What were some of the main tipping points (if any) or a-ha moments? How did the tipping points happen?*
> 
> The tipping point was Facebook. There are now 36,970 fans. Google stats show online store visits from 93 countries/territories, with over a 108,000 visits total since we launched 2 months ago.


Now of course, these are t-shirts for a worthy cause, but I really think it's about connecting with a target audience. Who's to say that similar results couldn't be found if you found the right match of t-shirt design and targeted buyers?


----------



## lincolnapparel

> I just read this story today. The Way of the Dodo — How to Sell 10,000 iPad Cases at $60 Each (and Others Lessons Learned)
> 
> One t-shirt company (NASHVILLE FLOOD TEES | Welcome) amassed $200,000 in sales because of the power of Facebook. They sold 800 t-shirts in the first hour of their launch.
> 
> From the interview in the middle of the page:
> Quote:
> 2) What were some of the main tipping points (if any) or a-ha moments? How did the tipping points happen?
> 
> The tipping point was Facebook. There are now 36,970 fans. Google stats show online store visits from 93 countries/territories, with over a 108,000 visits total since we launched 2 months ago.
> 
> Now of course, these are t-shirts for a worthy cause, but I really think it's about connecting with a target audience. Who's to say that similar results couldn't be found if you found the right match of t-shirt design and targeted buyers?



On the other side of the story, I think this sort of thing is really hard to do. The thing about social network marketing is you're giving up control. With these situations it sounds like just the right factors came into place at exactly the right time to create a good viral marketing campaign. Heck, I'd go as far to say even if Facebook and the Internet didn't exist, it probably would've happened anyway. Think selling "I survived the great xxxx disaster" T-shirts in the 80s (where xxxx is the name of the city). Of course people are going to buy them when their emotions run high and everybody wants to help. It doesn't even matter how good the design is, just that relates to the event in some way.

Because you're giving up control, it's hard to make a strategy out of "social networking". All the examples I've seen where it's succeeded seem to be the results of something important happening (outside of most people's control) that generates a large amount of interest in a very short period of time (whether it's a disaster or something related to a hot product). Viral marketing like this is a lot like trying to hit the jackpot in the lottery. And even when you win, you have to do a lot to have any sort of staying power - I doubt anyone will be selling "Nashville flood" T-shirts a few months from now. You get a bunch of cash, but then you're done.

I'd rather be a T-shirt brand whose designs have staying power than one that's old in a few months.

I quit Facebook in February and Twitter is on life support. In the meantime, my sales have grown tenfold just by doing simple local marketing. It takes a lot less time and frustration, too. You may say all it will cost you is time, but time is the most important thing you can spend.

"The habit of uselessly wasting time is the whole difficulty; and it is vastly important that you should break this habit." - A. Lincoln


----------



## NateUGP

All social media platforms are not meant to be used the same way. A lot of businesses are using Twitter for customer care while others are using Facebook for starting discussions. You might want to figure out what it is that you want to use social media for before spending too much time on every one that you come across.

If you're not interested in having discussions about your products then you might want to stay away from Facebook (maybe it'll grow on its own after you get a few customers who are passionate about your brand). If you want a quick way to interact with your customers and promote things then Twitter might be better for you.

If you figure out which one is better for you then spend most of your time building up your brand or creating relationships on that platform. You don't NEED to be on both (or all). LinkedIn is mainly business so you probably don't need that one either. If you want to talk about inspiration for your products do a blog and and link that to Twitter or Facebook (the one you choose).

Lastly, get ready to talk to yourself for a while because it will probably feel that way for at least a few weeks. You have to continuously posts stuff and you might not hear back from anyone. You MAY think that no one is reading (use Google analytics if you have a blog) but you'll have to keep posting regardless. 

Social networking is really just networking online. Networking is building relationships. It's easy to forget that you shouldn't be marketing to people but rather you should be building relationships.


----------



## Ace Money

I'm not sold on Twitter, I personally don't understand it that well. Facebook is the hottest thing out right now, Myspace is still effective but is aging out. I agree you have to find your niche market, if your gonna sell to cat loves, take a moment a look at a friend requests photo to see if them have a cat. Add them if they do ignore if they don't that way when you reach 5,000 friends you have 5,000 cat loving friends who "might" be interested in your latest cat themed shirt. I'm a newbie but I built a HVAC company from scratch with 2 truck magnets, business cards, & some yard signs.


----------



## Sirvivhor

Hi Kristine: I appreciate your post. I just launched my business website 3 months ago. I have been doing social networking through facebook and twitter. I first started having all my facebook updates go directly to twitter until I started seeing lots and lots of tweets from people that hated when others did that - especially one guy on twitter hates it, tweets about it a lot and he looked up to when it comes to marketing. Anyway, when I use twitter, I try to be myself a lot. I make sure I'm not promoting my business all the time and instead, I try to build relationships. However, I think people are still suspicious in that they see I'm a business so, automatically think I'm only there for one reason and thus, not interested in communicating much. So, I'm thinking about staying on twitter just as an individual, because I enjoy the relationships, but only using Facebook to help my business. Would appreciate your thoughts. Also, I think twitter can be harder in that many people see number of followers as a reason to follow you or not follow you. Seems to be a lot about numbers on there. Btw: I used to live in Marquette. Would appreciate your thoughts. Thanks!


----------



## impression4444

Hello,

In the spirit of not creating redundant threads, I thought I might ask here if someone could list the different social medias used (or they use) to sell/promote.

I have opened a Facebook account (which I never was a user of) and a second Twitter account.

Thanks,

P!erre!


----------



## SunEmbroidery

Instagram would make a good third for many people. It depends somewhat on where your perspective buyers hang out. I think Google is most interested in Facebook interaction. I like Twitter the most but I've never spent the time to figure out Facebook. Pinterest is cool from an inspiration point of view.


----------

