Content Matters

After recently reading an enlightening blog post on social media, I checked out the author’s bio and clicked on the link to follow him on Twitter. Much to my surprise, an unattended profile appeared. There was no profile picture, bio or company website. He had tweeted seven times in the nine months, had 16 followers and was following zero. His credibility was shot, and I was completely uninterested.

I went back to the article to close out the window and I noticed there was another location for the author’s Twitter feed. This time, I was directed to the proper profile, complete with photo, bio and website—with 2,000+ tweets and a 600/414 followers/following ratio. This is what I expected.

But what if I hadn’t stumbled upon the correct profile? The damage would have been done. In the world of social media, having an outdated, unattended profile can be more damaging to your reputation than no profile at all.

If you find yourself in this situation, you have two choices:

1. Get Active.

Of course, this is the preferred action, as social media is a powerful communication tool—and one than more and more buyers expect you to have. Don’t say you don’t have time. That’s merely an excuse. If you understand the value of social media and believe in its importance, even the busiest executive can carve out 30 minutes a week to create 3-4 tweets and/or status updates. Use a social media management tool (I use HootSuite) to schedule your tweets/updates in advance (as well as to multiple platforms, if desired), and you won’t have to think about it for another seven days.

2. Delete The Account.

If you have created multiple accounts within a social media site and are only using one of them or if you truly don’t see the value of the particular platform, delete the inactive account and move on. It reduces confusion for your audience while keeping your reputation intact.

Just because a social media site exists doesn’t mean that it is a good fit for you or your business. Evaluate where your customers and prospects are and go there. It’s not possible to be everywhere, so choose the site that appeals to you. Doing something you don’t enjoy is simply a recipe for disaster.

Takeaway: Content matters. This applies to content that is there—and content that isn’t. Inactivity sends a negative message just as damaging as bad content. If you’re not using it, lose it.

Feedback: What are you tips for making time to be active on social networks? Keep the discussion going and share your ideas below!

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Where is the best place to order custom promotional items? Here’s my answer on Quora.

How do you define best? Lowest price rarely means best—in customer service or product quality. To me, best is defined as a company that designs creative promotions that meet your specific marketing objectives. In this case, You need more than an order taker; you need a promotional consultant that works with you to understand your business, customers, branding objectives, etc.

First, I recommend asking your professional network for referrals. Additionally, each year, Promotional Products Association International (PPAI) Pyramid Awards honors the top promotions based on creativity, product usage, ROI, etc. To see the list of winners, click here.

When evaluating any promotional products distributor, look at the company’s website. Is it simply a shopping site or does it offer value-added services? Are there case histories that illustrate expertise and creativity? Has the company won any awards? Is there a blog that demonstrates knowledge base? With the answers to these questions, you’ll quickly be able to separate the true marketers from the basic product salespeople.

What’s your perspective? Do you agree?

To read all the answers on Quora, click here.