BLOG: Social media sites and apps for business needs

By Jennifer Karpus, Tire Business staff

AKRON – Tire Business' Sept. 14 print issue has a focus on young tire dealers. Online, Tire Business has been running a “Generations in the Workplace” series that details tips for managing and working with all the different generations. I decided for this social media post, I would jump on the bandwagon of these topics and detail some social media sites and apps that young professionals may be using. These sites and apps are business centric and can be beneficial to anyone, not just younger demographics, but since younger demographics are technologically savvy, these may be where they spend some time online:

• LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/

LinkedIn is a popular social media site for business because its entire platform built for it. There are individual pages, company pages, etc., that business professionals sign up to use. While Facebook is a great place for personal use or for businesses to promote themselves, if companies are looking for new employees LinkedIn may be the place to go. This can also be useful for sharing professional content and following other professionals for words of wisdom.

• Evernote https://evernote.com/

One characteristic of millennials is their ability to multitask. Additionally, this generation merges their professional and personal lives into one. For instance, I am able to watch my favorite television show while answering work emails or finishing up stories, while dinner is in the oven and I'm catching up on daily events with my now-husband. (I say “now-husband” as we just got married on Saturday!) However, I would not be able to do this without technology, which includes electronic note keeping and alerts that pop up to remind me of my “To-Do” list. Evernote has a lot of tools that help people stay organized across their devices. There is a free version along with paid versions that provided enhanced features.

• Google Analytics http://www.google.com/analytics/

Google Analytics is a place where anyone in marketing or in a decision-making position in a company may spend some time. Taking a look at these types of analytics can help a company determine how and where to post content, if their content is being shared and other trends.

• GoToMeeting http://www.gotomeeting.com/

As technology keeps advancing, it allows for more on-the-go work. GoToMeeting is a Web conferencing tool that can be used for a variety of presentation, webinar and conferencing needs. For instance, if a member or two of your team is out of the office for one reason or another, they can jump on the call still because GoToMeeting can be activated on a desktop computer, smartphone or a tablet. Do you ever feel the need to run to Starbucks but need to call into a meeting? With this type of Web conferencing tool that is now possible.

Using technology to make life easier is key for many young professionals. Professionals are busy and need to be able to connect quickly. Tools like GoToMeeting allow for that ease of communication to occur.

• Pocket https://getpocket.com/

Content curation is important for a business' social media presence. In the previous social media blog post, I explained that more people are clicking into a news site from Facebook than from Google these days. Understanding what kind of content your customers/followers want to see is important, however, there are some apps that make this a little easier.

Pocket is one of my favorite content curation sites. It's simple: if I see something I like that I may want to share later, I put it into my “pocket.” You can put articles, videos, etc., into Pocket and you can also pull them directly from a web browser or from other apps.

• Scoop.It http://www.scoop.it/

Another popular content curation site is Scoop.It. This site helps you discover content that you are interested in, make it your own and then publish it on social media. One thing that is nice about this format is that you can easily add your insight or comments into a post before sending it out.

People want content. If you want people to follow you and/or your business, you need to be sharing content that is relevant to them. Using these types of sites, such as Scoop.It or Pocket, it will help you get relevant content quicker than if you did a simple Google search.

People may wonder which site is better or if you should use these two or others. It is all a matter of personal preference and what works best for you. I would suggest using the one you feel most comfortable with so that you can use it efficiently. 

• HootSuite https://hootsuite.com/

Just like with content curation, another time-saving measure online is a social media dashboard. HootSuite and Buffer are two dashboards that I use, but for this, I would also suggest using the one you feel most comfortable with.

Time-efficiency is key to being a successful professional. Everyone has deadlines to meet and meetings to attend, so anything that can save time you time is a bonus. It can be simple to forget to post to social media when you have so many other things on your plate. However, you also do not want to just post five things to your social media sites all at once and call it a day. With websites like HootSuite and Buffer, you can post five things all at once, but schedule them for later.

• Buffer https://buffer.com/

One thing I really like about Buffer is that you can schedule posts for a specific time or you can preset times each day you would like posts to go out. For instance, if you want a post to go out at 9:05 a.m. and 2 p.m. each day, as you add in posts, it will automatically schedule for those times. This is helpful if you do research for the best times of day to post on different sites or to target different demographics.

• Humin https://humin.om/

This app fascinates me because it allows you to search through contacts in your phone the way you think about people in your brain. You can search within the app for where people live or how you met them, etc. Before starting this job with Tire Business I always thought I was good with people's names and faces, however, when you go to industry events — such as the SEMA Show in Las Vegas — where you can easily meet 100 people a day, remembering everyone can be tough. I am hoping this app will help with those types of situations!

• Twitter https://twitter.com/

According to a Sprout Social report, 37 percent of the users on Twitter are between the ages of 18 and 29 and 25 percent are between ages 30 and 49.

This information shows us there are many members of younger demographics on this social media site. While Facebook still reigns supreme over the number of active users, for business purposes, I think Twitter has an edge as a user. Twitter creates a “no muss, no fuss” environment, which can be great for the professional on the go. With the 160 character limit, Twitter posts get right to the point and it is easy to share and click to other content from the site.

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 To reach this reporter: [email protected]; 330-865-6143; or Twitter: @jenniferkarpus