As you are browsing around the Internet, whenever you read a blog post or forum post that catches your eye, or ends up being helpful, or perhaps you have some helpful comments to add, be sure and post a comment.

Now here’s the trick: Do NOT put a link to your site in the body of your comment, or it will likely be tagged as spam and deleted.

However, you can and should list your site when you register to post your comment (when they ask for your name, email and website). The blog comment software will then automatically hyperlink your name to your website (hyperlink means it will be a live, clickable link). This means that the person reading your comment can always click on your name to get to your site – if you peak their interest or they are curious about you.

Some sites do not ask or allow you to enter your website anywhere. In this case, be sure and use your full name, so someone can Google you. And of course, even if you can enter your site, use your full name as well (or whatever name you publish under).

Another way to drive traffic to your site or YouTube channel, is when you post a review for a product or service – include a creative way to let people know where to find you if they want more info. Most reviews will not allow you to post an URL (website address), but there are ways around that. You can tell people to go to Facebook and then search ‘ListenToYourGut’ for example, or whatever your Facebook page is called. Or you can do what I did recently on Amazon to drive people to my daughter Zara’s YouTube channel (MissZaraPT):

NEVER miss an opportunity to tell people about who you are, what you’re doing, and what you have that can help them.

Always have this in the back of your mind when you are on the Internet and just drop little comments or notices wherever and whenever you can. BUT remember: Do not sell! This will just get you banned and blacklisted. You have to offer something that will help people, and best if it’s free.

Remember too that the quality and thoughtfulness of your comment or review tells people who you are – so make sure that whatever you post on the Internet (whether in a private or public space) reflects the authentic you.

So reflect now on the places you tend to shop on the Internet. Or the forums you visit, or other people’s blogs or videos you watch. Either allot some time each week to making a few comments in these places, or just make a mental note to comment whenever the opportunity presents itself.

Facebook comments are another easy way to leave your comments, or helpful offer or advice – because they always automatically link back to your Facebook page, making you very easy for people to find.

Let’s plan how you can spread the word about what you’re doing and the great stuff you have to offer people…

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Take a moment now and make a list of the social platforms, blogs, forums etc. you hang out on, and the online stores where you shop – these are all places you can ‘stealth market’ your site:

 

 

If you are NOT doing this yet, then do a Google search for forums or blogs you can start commenting on and write their URLs (web address) here. Remember: Do NOT sell yourself, use your comments to authentically help others, entertain, or o er support or encouragement:

 

 

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If you use any social media right now, you’re probably used to seeing ads all over it, usually targeted somewhat at you. A lot of people get anxious about knowing how to use social media “properly” to promote their business. The truth of the matter? Social media algorithms change, and the tricks you learn or figure out or pay for become less effective or obsolete over time. And even though you get instant feedback in terms of likes, comments, views and shares, none of that necessarily contributes to making an actual sale. What people see on social media is momentary, and then they’re on to the next thing. And if the formulas change, they might not even get to see your content. There is still absolutely nothing that compares to a really good email list. Whatever you do on social media, you want it all to point back towards your site, where people can engage more thoroughly with you and sign up for your freebie in exchange for their email. So take the anxiety out of social media marketing and try to remember the one rule that stands while the others change: just post engaging content that can link back to your site.

At the end of the day, it’s not so much about which social media platform performs better than others. It’s more about which one resonates with you the most. Which one do you feel is easiest to use and thus you’re likely to use it the most?

Some people live on their cellphones, so Twitter and Instagram are the backbone of their social media marketing. Others prefer their computer, and others adore video. You will have the most success if you use the media that you feel drawn to and that feel easy and natural to you, or that you feel the highest degree of satisfaction with.

For example, for me, Twitter annoys the crap out of me and I really don’t see the point. If I didn’t have a VA (virtual assistant) I wouldn’t bother with it at all.

I barely spend any time on a cell phone because I want to minimize my radiation exposure – as currently the technology is not safe (for many reasons – see my blog!). So again, I outsource Instagram to a VA.

I also outsource much of Pinterest, because although I enjoy choosing and pinning pictures, my time is better spent creating the in-depth content on my blog and videos. My VA then grabs this content and pins it to Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Google+ and Twitter.

After using my VA (virtual assistant) to do these tasks for a couple of years, I then moved everything to a social media manager who posts everywhere on my behalf, twice per day, seven days a week. I just approve the posting content (and correct any errors) at the beginning of the week and then I don’t have to look at any of the social media, or even think about it, for the rest of the week! For me, that is awesome. So I can focus on what I love and am good at, which is creating the content (videos, blog post, books, programs, products, etc.).

But until you can afford to do that – and it is likely sooner than you think – just pick whichever social media appeals to you and use it to drive traffic (visitors) to your website. Google+, LinkedIn, StumbleUpon… I think there are over 300 social media tools now! Use whichever ones you think reach your unique, defined audience. For example, if you’re a budding pop star, you’re not going to use LinkedIn, you’re going to use YouTube. Use whichever ones you like, feel free to try out different ones, use them for a while and see if they feel ‘easy’ to you.

Daymond John is the founder and CEO of the $5 billion clothing company FUBU and he manages his own twitter account – because he’s always on his cell phone and he enjoys tweeting!

The easier and lighter something feels, the more you’ll use it and that’s what good marketing (telling people about your stuff) is all about. When you’re building your business, always go with the flow, go with what feels natural, light, fun, or exciting.

If something feels like drudgery, it’s a waste of your energy to force yourself to do that. Either outsource it, don’t do it, or think outside the box and come up with a workaround that accomplishes your end goal, yet keeps you feeling light and expansive.

The Social Media Golden Rule

Whichever social media you choose to use – and there will be new ones popping up all the time – always, always, always use it as a vehicle to drive people to your site where they can sign-up to your email list.

Your email list or database is KING. It doesn’t matter if your video has a million views, or you have a million Twitter followers; until those people opt-in to your list, you do not “have” them and your sales (or lack thereof) will reflect that.

Email marketing is covered in detail over here, where I show you exactly how, when and why to email your list. For now, just remember to ALWAYS post a link to your site, or a specific blog post when posting to social media. This is so that people will come to your site, and then hopefully sign-up to your email list.

Every graphic you post should link back to your site in some way. If you post a photo of your cinnamon buns, make sure it links to your recipe or story about cinnamon buns on your site. If you share an image on Facebook or some other place that doesn’t allow you to embed a link, then add your website or name to the image itself, so that your website, name or branding is part of your photo.

Remember, that people do not buy your product from Twitter or LinkedIn or YouTube – the point of all these social media is to introduce you to new people, who then follow your link to your site, then opt-in to your email list and THEN you begin building the relationship with them that eventually results in a sale. Let’s get you started…

 

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Write down which social media platforms you like best and think you would like to use to get started:

 

Now go and sign up for accounts with each one of them. List your account info here, along with your URLs (website addresses) for each social media account you now have (Note: but keep all passwords secure!):

 

 

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TIP: Here’s the super simple way I keep all my account information organized, from my blog login, hosting account, Amazon account, Facebook account, YouTube channel, and so on. I have a file saved to my desktop called Internet-Accounts and I copy/paste all login URLs, usernames and passwords in alphabetical order. For example – see how I bold the account name so I can scan and quickly find what I want:

Amazon Affiliate
https://affiliate-program.amazon.com/
Username:
Pswd:
Email:

BigCommerce
https://shoppe.listentoyourgut.com/admin/
Username:
Pswd:

And so on…

Or, download a password manager like LastPass to manage large lists of passwords automatically.

 

Add Social Media Icons to Your Site

Now that you’ve decided which social media you like and want to use to build traffic (visitors) to your site and you’ve set up your accounts. It’s time to add those little social media icons, or links, to your site.

If you’re not sure what I’m talking about, then look at the social media icons here, at the top of one of my sites – see the little graphics representing (in order) Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram and YouTube?:

So if you were to click on the Facebook icon on my site here, it would go to my Facebook Page.

Where you could then LIKE me, take a look at my posts, maybe share some of them, and post your question.

Remember, people have their preferred way of interacting. Some prefer to comment on blog posts, or post their questions at the end of your blog, others like to email you directly, others live on their Facebook page and only want to interact with you there, etc.

So you want them to sign-up to your email list and then after that, they can continue their relationship with you however they wish using the social media you enjoy. Meanwhile, your social media continue to drive fresh, new traffic to your site, where they can sign up for your email list.

Many WordPress blog themes come with a social media plugin or widget installed and ready for you to just add your page or account links to. But in case yours doesn’t, or you don’t like the graphics your theme has… it’s Pressie time again!

I’ve put together six different social media icon design sets that you can choose from – depending on which style of graphic you like best. So head on over to the next Module and choose your favorite set – all free.

Yay! It’s gift time again and thanks to some talented and generous designers, I have a number of sets of social media icons (graphics) for you to choose from that you can use on your site – free of charge, now and ongoing.

Pick the set that best matches your existing site look and feel. You will either be able to upload these directly to your blog – your theme may have a social media widget you can customize. Or, you can install a social media plugin first and then upload the icons you like the best. Here’s exactly how to do this easy-peasy:

How To Add Social Media Icons To Your Blog

However, be sure and take a look at whether social media icons already come with your WordPress blog theme, as you might like those just fine. In that case, there’s no need to replace them with one of these.

But if you do already have social media icons installed on your blog, and you would like to change them to different ones, here’s how to do it:

How To Change The Social Media Icons On Your Blog

So whether you’re installing social media icons for the first time, or changing the icons currently on your blog to new ones that match better with your design or theme, here are six different sets of social media icons you can choose from:

1. Basic Icons set – this set only contains the basic social media platforms discussed in this Module. These are the same ones you saw earlier:

Click here to download this set…

2. High Detail Glossy set – this is a full set of all the social media icons you’ve ever heard of, and some you likely haven’t!

Click here to download this set…

3. Fabric Grunge Set – these are really cool if they fit the design of your site:

Click here to download this set…

4. Glossy Metallic Set – very slick, with a bit of 3D going on here:

Click here to download this set…

5. Old Bottle Crowns Set – Another funky one for a cool design esthetic:

Click here to download this set…

6. Clean Metal Set – A very clean, sophisticated set:

Click here to download this set…

Okay, you’re all set! Now you just need to implement: Choose your fave social media platforms, set up your accounts, install the social media icons on your site, and begin the process of getting fluent using them. Don’t worry, the last unit in this Module will give you your action steps checklist to make the implementation easy. But before we get to that, let’s also get some more detailed social media guides into your hot little hands…

 

Jo Barnes (one of my husband’s friends and a fellow Brit) is doing exactly what I keep telling you to do: Give great stuff away for free!

Jo’s specialty is social media, and what I love about learning from her is that she is so down-to-earth, quick and fun. She has provided us with these free eBooks to get you started in whichever social media appeals to you – download as many as you wish! They are fantastic tutorials and packed with really useful tips gleaned from many years of trial and error. Thanks Jo, you rock!!

DOWNLOAD Facebook Marketing: The Essential Things You Must Know to Generate Leads Through Facebook By Jo Barnes

DOWNLOAD Pinterest Marketing by Jo Barnes

DOWNLOAD LinkedIn Marketing by Jo Barnes

LTYF Breakdown: Now that we’ve sent gratitude to Jo Barnes for being so fabulous, let’s break down the components behind these freebies to see why they make such great marketing platforms for Jo.

Jo is offering great stuff for free, but she knows that the free stuff will likely lead to some actual sales. If you the broad strokes of your solution for free, you can still charge for the details. Here are some other examples:

Example 1:  So if you have a health business, your free course (PDF, eBook, or video) tells people which herbs to use to cure acne and then briefly tells them about each herb (constituents, history, extraction, picture) and gives a few people’s stories. Your monetized course or eBook (the one they have to pay for) gives this same information, but also gives the exact dosages and application instructions along with more detail, more photos and more stories.

Example 2:  If you have a fitness business, your free course (PDF, eBook, video, or audio) gives people a brief outline of the top 5 most popular workouts to lose weight and sculpt different types of physiques (big and muscular, lean and sinewy, strong but smooth, elegant muscles, etc.) and a photo of what these physiques look like. Your monetized eBook, or training package has people select the type of body they want from the 5 physiques and then they receive a more detailed eBooklet on that specific training method along with an instructional workout video where you lead them through three workouts (beginner, intermediate, advanced) to create that physique.

Example 3:  If you are a financial planner, your free course (PDF, eBook, video, or audio) has outlined the Top 10 strategies for maximum growth with varying risk levels. Your monetized package includes an instructional video on 1 to 3 of these strategies (walking them through real life application examples), combined with a one-hour private consult to apply the strategy of their choice to their own portfolio in a way that will maximize their results.

This is exactly what Jo has done here with these free eBooks. She has given you enough to give you a better understanding of each social media, she has helped you, you have received value, and you have a good sense of who she is and whether you jive with her now.

But if you really want to go full speed into developing your Facebook page, or LinkedIn profile, then you are going to want her in-depth course.

And guess what? Each of these free eBooks contains my affiliate link, so if you end up purchasing her paid course, I will receive a commission on the sale. And remember that all LTYF affiliate commissions are donated to charity ♥

This means that Jo will have people thrilled to give her eBooks away to their email list, or run a promotion on their Facebook page (because they will receive an affiliate commission). You see how all these elements tie together? Swipe away, my friends!