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Mar 16 2015

Why small businesses NEED to tweet at events

Evelyn

I recently attended a networking event for small business owners in Toronto. The theme of the evening was digital marketing. Overall the event was well organized with informative speakers, good raffle prizes and a nice mix of marketers and small business owners.

But what surprised me was how few people were tweeting at the event. Perhaps it’s just that I’m used to going to events packed with social media managers and non-profit communicators, but I was a little disappointed by the lack of networking being done online.

For me, events are always played out on two fields: the action happening live in front of me and the commentary on that action online. Often I find this commentary as interesting, if not more so, then the speakers I’m there to see.

Live-tweeting events is a great way to give your business a boost online. Hashtags organize the conversations taking place, making it easy to follow the action. Plugging into hashtags makes new followers, mentions and retweets much more likely than your average day-to-day Twitter activity, especially if the event becomes popular and trends.

But there are a few things you need to do before you even arrive at the event to make sure that you get the most out of your live-tweeting experience.

Know the hashtag. This seems obvious to those more seasoned tweeters, but it’s important to mention anyways. The day of the event the organizers are probably promoting the event online. Visit their Twitter account to find out both the proper hashtag and their Twitter handle. Once you have that information do a search on Twitter and save the search so that you can access it easily later.

Follow the speakers. Find out who the speakers are going to be (event emails and websites usually have this information) and then find out if they are online. Make a note of their Twitter handles and be sure to follow them. Then at event time you won’t have to scramble to find them or worry about misspelling their names.

Prepare some tweets ahead of time. This is a great way to let people know that you will be at the event and gives them the opportunity to follow you. It also increases your visibility once the event starts. Tweet about your attendance on the day and days leading up to the event. Shout out to the speakers how much you are looking forward to their talks. On the day of you can prepare some tweets to be sent out during the event so that you have more time to actually enjoy it.

Know when to put the phone down. You need to balance the benefits of tweeting with real world networking. Send enough tweets and retweets to gain visibility and make a meaningful contribution to the conversation, but make sure that you also talk to people face-to-face. That’s the reason why you’re there!

Evelyn Senyi is the owner and chief marketer for Recurve Marketing, a Toronto-based digital marketing agency that offers creative, effective and affordable marketing strategies for Canadian small businesses and non-profit organizations. Follow Recurve on Twitter @recurve_ca and on Facebook www.facebook.com/recurvemarketing.ca.

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Written by Dwania Peele · Categorized: Evelyn Senyi · Tagged: business development, Business Woman, Canadian Small Business Women, comunicators, conversations, digital marketing, entrepreneur, Evelyn Senyi, follow, hashtags, live tweet, marketers, networking, online, raffle, Recurve Marketing, retweets, small business owners, social media, speakers, Toronto, trends, tweet, Twitter, Twitter handle, website

Feb 16 2015

Ingredients for a shareable social media image

Evelyn

Images rule the social media landscape. Photos are shared 128% more than even video. So if you’re not using images in your daily social media marketing, it’s time to start. Creating visual content for your Facebook page or Twitter feed can be tricky. You want to capture your audience’s attention, while staying true to your voice and message. You want to entertain your followers but still give them something of unique value. How do you do all of this, and make an image that is shareable? Here a few key ingredients you should include in your image design.

Choose a good photograph

This one seems obvious, but many people are not sure what constitutes a good image. Simple aesthetics, clean patterns, intense colors, landscapes and pictures with lots of depth and light all make for shareable photos. Good images should be clear and crisp, in focus and adhere to the rule of thirds. Avoid images that are cluttered, poor quality or too bright or dark.

Photos of human interaction and emotion can be powerful storytelling tools. Animals are also great, but be sure that they fit your brand and messaging. Don’t just use an image because it’s popular. Stay true to who you are – that’s what your followers are expecting!

Use clear, easy to read text

Quotes, advice, stats or statements on photos are a popular and highly shareable trend. If you use text on your image make sure that it can be read! Use easy to read fonts and ensure that the text stands out from the background using a contrasting colour, a grey box or a text shadow. Constant Contact’s blog has some great advice on this subject.

Make sure that the text you use is short. Too much text takes away from the image. Always be sure to spell-check and proof your work before you post. Errors can make your followers question your credibility.

Brand your image

Be sure that your images fit with the look and feel of your brand. Standard colours and fonts ensure that your marketing materials look alike across different platforms for easy brand recognition. Also don’t forget to add your logo!

Include a call to action

Images that have a call to action are more likely to get shared. Use your visuals to tell a story and also point your followers in a direction where they can take action. If the image is of a spring collection of products, make sure that you include a link to where they can buy these products. If you are launching a fundraising campaign make it clear what you want your followers to do: share the image, donate, volunteer, or all three. Always give your followers a way to become more involved.

Evelyn Senyi is the owner and chief marketer for Recurve Marketing, a Toronto-based digital marketing agency that offers creative, effective and affordable marketing strategies for Canadian small businesses and non-profit organizations. Follow Recurve on Twitter @recurve_ca and on Facebook www.facebook.com/recurvemarketing.ca.

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Written by Dwania Peele · Categorized: Evelyn Senyi · Tagged: blog, brand, brand recognition, business, business development, call to action, Canadian Small Business Women, Constant Contact, entrepreneur, Evelyn Senyi, Facebook, followers, image, Ingredients, photograph, Recurve Marketing, small business development, social media, social media landscape, Social Media Marketing, Twitter, visual, visual content

Jan 18 2015

Networking Events and Vendor Opportunities

Upcoming-Events

Feb 3rd, 2015 7:30AM – 6:30PM

Ontario Science Centre

Slide1BUSINESS CONNECTS NETWORKING CONFERENCE TUES FEB 3 ONTARIO SCIENCE CENTRE

FOR INFO AND TICKETS, CLICK HERE

February 7th, 2015 @9:30AM

Workshops

NETWORKING AND VENDORS 1PM – 6PM

Canadian Small Business Women presents our Small Business Seminar

Various Workshops, Networking Opportunities and Vendors

FOR TICKETS AND INFO: CLICK HERE

February 16th, 2015

ILUVTHIS Bootcamp BE[CAUSE]

In support of rescuing victims of Human Trafficking in Canada

9am – 12:15pm

FOR ADMISSION AND INFO: CLICK HERE

February 20th, 2015

You Inspire Me Women

Quarterly Networking Event

FOR TICKETS AND INFO: CLICK HERE

March 6th & 7th, 2015 

iwaa image

International Women Achiever’s Awards

Toronto Congress Centre

Summit, Awards Gala, Bazaar and much more

FOR INFORMATION AND TICKETS: CLICK HERE

April 26th, 2015 @11:00AM

VENDOR OPPORTUNITIES AVAILABLE!!

Toronto Caribbean Newspaper presents their Toronto Caribbean Expo

Various Workshops, Networking Opportunities and Vendors

FOR VENDOR SPACES, Email: info@canadiansmallbusinesswomen.ca or canadiansmallbusinesswomen@gmail.com

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Written by Dwania Peele · Categorized: Events · Tagged: Analytical Engine, Bazaar, Be[cause], business connects, Business Expo, Business Woman, Canada, Canadian Small Business Women, Christine McGlade, entrepreneur, Evelyn Senyi, Events, Gala, human trafficking, iluvthis, iluvthis bootcamp, International Women Achiever's Awards, Investor's Group, IWAA, James Elliot, Jason Ried, Jennifer Beale, Lisa Cherney, Lisa Kember, Mario Turchetta, My Empowered Living, networking, networking event, networking opportunities, Ontario Science Centre, Oshawa, Ralph Weekes, Recurve Marketing, seminar, small business, small business development, Summit, Toronto, Toronto Caribbean, Uchechi Ezurike-Bosse, women, You Inspire Me Women

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