It?s official ? social media is now the #1 activity on the Internet. In fact, popularity of social media sites is growing so fast, it?s almost impossible to have accurate statistics to share. But you?ve got to admit the available numbers are staggering: as of January, 2010, Facebook claims that at least 175 million users visit the site every day; Twitter has 75 million user accounts, and the average number of tweets per hour was around 1.3 million. In a May, 2010 study, it was found that YouTube boasts over 2 billion views a day, with an average visit lasting 15 minutes.
?What these numbers mean to funeral homes is simple,? shared Ryan Thogmartin, of Connecting Directors, ?if you?re not using social media in your marketing, you?re simply out-of-step; you?re falling behind, and every day you get further behind.?
?In my opinion, an effective funeral home marketing plan must have a social media component,? declared Ryan. ?After all, social media is free ? and there?s something it can do that your yellow page ad can?t: foster and build strong relationships.?
But where do you begin?
That?s the question which prompted Connecting Directors to launch a Social Media Coaching program. ?We want funeral home owners to embrace social media, and our team will help them do that,? shared Ryan. ?They don?t have to worry about finding the time to learn what they need to know on their own. Our team will set up their accounts, and then help the funeral home to oversee and manage these accounts effectively. We can even help them to launch a blog if they want to; many funeral home websites have a blog to be an effective way to promote their expertise.?
?Social media marketing programs create content that attracts attention, generate online conversations, and encourage readers to share it with their social networks,? commented Ryan.
?And that?s where most funeral directors roll their eyes. They don?t have the time, energy ? or often the desire ? to create the content they need. That?s where we come in; we?ll help them establish a clear marketing message, generate related content if they need us to, and post that content consistently.?
But, they don?t necessary want to do it all for you. ?My goal is to educate members on using social media in promoting their businesses. That?s why we?re focusing on coaching. To give them real, actionable information, tools, and strategies to fit with the way they work. To facilitate, support, encourage, ensure competency, and help them evaluate the outcomes of their social media marketing efforts ? in an on-going process of education and skill development.?
It?s easy to see that it?s no longer a question of ?if? you should be using social media; it?s now a question of ?when.? The CD Social Media Coaching team will help you discover the ?how? of social media ? and then apply what you?ve learned ?successfully.
If you?re interested, call Ryan Thogmartin directly, at 740-617-0599, or send him an email at ryan@connectingdirectors.com.
