Prologue

I f you’ve been thinking about taking a class online (it’s all the rage these days), but you’re concerned about getting lost in the electronic fray, worry no longer. Social Media Marketing eLearning Kit  is here to help you, providing you with an integrated learning experience that includes not only the blog and CD you hold in your hands but also an online version of the course at. Consider this Introduction your primer.

Each piece of this eLearning kit works in conjunction with the others although you don’t need them all to gain valuable understanding of the key concepts covered here. Whether you pop the CD into your computer to start the lessons electronically, follow along with the book (or not), or go online to see the course, this kit teaches you how to

✓ Develop your branded look across social accounts through the use of color, style, and conversational tone.

✓ Put together a social media marketing plan and an editorial calendar that keeps your tasks organized.

✓ Tweet effectively and use other Twitter tools, such as hashtags and Twitter lists, to enhance your marketing efforts.

✓ Automate some of your online marketing tasks with HootSuite.

✓ Offer coupons and other special offers on Facebook and incorporate your e-commerce with your Facebook business Page.

✓ Gain social authority and even expert status on LinkedIn. ✓ Promote your business with videos on YouTube.

✓ Claim your venue on Foursquare and Gowalla so that you can start using these services to attract new customers and keep loyal ones coming back.

✓ Use online analytics tools to evaluate your social media marketing success and figure out how to tweak your campaigns to get the most out of them.