7 Important Themes for Professional Practitioners Participating in Social Media

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If you are a financial advisor, CPA, lawyer, business consultant, or someone in the business of selling services to clients, your social media foundation should be built upon the elements that are most relevant to growing your practice.

You have probably read and heard about many generic social media and blogging strategies that the so-called “big brands” are using to attract new customers, but what about those of us who are not in the business of selling products to the masses? Do you really need to capture significant market share, or simply land a handful of high quality clients or customers in order to add to your bottom line?

Below are 7 important themes that matter most for professional practitioners when crafting a social media and blogging strategy:

1. Manage your online reputation – Credibility, authority, and trust are of the utmost importance.  Your online brand has already been defined, and you can see what shows up if you Google your own name.  Taking control of your personal brand and managing your online reputation on an ongoing basis will drive the growth of your influence in your target markets. Your reputation is your lifeline!
2. Develop your unique thought leadership theme – You have a message and a story to tell, so how will you tell it to your target markets?  What makes you different and what will make an ideal client, patient, or customer want to trust you and work with you instead of  your competition?  Leveraging and highlighting your unique strengths and experiences to “tell your story” will help you attract new clients in the age of social media.
3. Focus on introductions and referrals – With professional practitioners, referrals are the key to growing your practice. Focus on gaining new introductions through your existing personal and professional connections who are more likely to refer you to like-minded people.  Forget about trying to prospect the masses through social media and blogging.  We are a nation of niches!
4. Take care of existing clients and customers – Utilizing social media to help with client retention is crucial.  Placing a renewed focus on service, education and communication through social media and blogging in order to build advocates out of your existing client-base is not only smart, it’s good business!
5. Location, location, location - Chances are that the bulk of your business is based on where you currently live and work.  Although you may have national reach, building your foundation around your current location and optimizing your online presence accordingly will enable you to be discovered by target clients in your local market.
6. Capture and cultivate qualified leads - At the end of the day, a successful social media and blogging strategy is measured by one result; generating qualified leads.  If you don’t have a laser-focused strategy, you will potentially waste significant time. Your social media strategy should be an efficient and effective “system” for generating leads in your target markets.  The exposure and reach you can achieve by focusing your efforts will result in new business over time.
7. Get face to face – Getting that first appointment or meeting with a potential client is really the only way to solidify a new relationship.  Social media and blogging can help you capture and cultivate leads as well as build influence in your target markets, but to win new clients in a high-trust environment, you will ultimately have to get face to face!

Generic social media strategies are not effective for individual professionals.  If you are a professional practitioner, your social media and blogging strategy must be consistent with the characteristics that define your client-base, geographical location, and your industry.  Where have most of your clients, patients, or customers come from in the past?  The goal is to meet your ideal clients where they are and match your marketing to their experiences and expectations. With millions of people searching, sharing, commenting, recommending, liking, tweeting, rating, reviewing, shopping, and learning online, you must have a relevant and focused presence through social media and blogging in order to achieve a return on your investment.

Please leave your questions and comments below, and feel free to share with your network!