Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses

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Social media marketing for small businesses is often something that comes way down the list of priorities for owners who haven’t the time or inclination to delve into this new mysterious concept.

Many are not exactly sure what it is. Some are confused by the jargon and hype. And there are those that assume it’s the preserve of spotty teenagers in locked bedrooms. Yet for most small business owners a lingering doubt remains, a concern, that this is something important that should be on their radar.

I recognise this anxiety because I used to run a small business and I know for sure that you can’t do both successfully.

The truth is, if you’re in business, you absolutely have to been in the social media mix, as that’s where your customers are.

I missed a lot of opportunities by not keeping on top of my Facebook page. But after a long day working on the core business, who has the time or energy to be a dynamic and witty Facebook rock star?

I know all about SEO, PCC and web marketing and used these traditional methods to drive sales, but I now realise I left out one very important piece of the jigsaw – social media – as I mistakenly thought it wouldn’t lead to direct sales.

But social media marketing is not just about sales, it’s there to create awareness, gain brand recognition, build credibility and complement other strands of the marketing mix.

Somebody once likened social media to a giant world cocktail party. You don’t want to be a wall flower, but at the same time you don’t want to be leading the conga when everyone else is quietly talking. Conversely, when it is time to conga, you’ve got to be ready to join in! The skill is knowing what to do and when to do it.

Large corporations are well aware of the benefits and have teams of people keeping their online brand alive, social media marketing for small businesses is more challenging but the rewards, if done correctly, can be substantial.

Well written and keyword rich blog posts can deliver excellent search rankings. Backlinks from Facebook and Twitter can be valuable to your main site, in addition to the positive vibe that you are creating about your company.

It’s worth noting that many large companies, which use tv or press adverts, now send customers directly to their Facebook page, rather than their own website. It cannot be emphasised more than this, how important the social media phenomena has become.

Social media completes your marketing and pr mix, and has become an essential part of it. The downside is that the company name needs to be protected at all times, and every post or comment has to be written with the utmost care and forethought. Social media may seem informal and almost throw away, but one bad post or derogatory remark can damage a company’s image overnight.

That’s why a social media campaign should be initiated by a professional, who can take care and patience building your online presence, and who can protect your brand when needed.

Social media marketing for small businesses is growing, and is something that no company can now afford to be without. So If you haven’t got a campaign, or if your present one is lacklustre, it’s time to jump in, as you’re leaving potential profits dangling in cyber space.

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Using Real Estate Leverage For Wealth Building

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Real Estate Leverage is simply the used of borrowed money used in purchasing real estate. Equity is the amount of money that the real estate is worth above the amount of money owed. For example, let’s say that you have $100,000 available to invest in real estate and the average price of a home in your area is also $100,000 and the average rent for that home is $1,000 per month just to keep the numbers simple.

You could purchase one home for $100,000 cash and then rent it out for $1,000. This would give you a return on investment of 1 percent per month 1,000 / 100,000 = .01) or 12 percent a year. The average real estate appreciation since 1968 has been 6.34 percent per year. Some years it is less and some years it is more, but for this demonstration we will use 6 percent to keep it simple. Add 12 percent and 6 percent and you will have an 18 percent Return On Investment (ROI) for your $100,000. Not a bad return and much better than you would get at a bank or deposited in a CD.

Now let’s add leverage into the equation. If you purchase the same home with only 10 percent down ($10,000) with an interest rate of 6 percent then your Return on Investment would look like this. $1,000 rental income minus $450 interest divided by $10,000 down payment for a return on investment of 4.5 percent per month or 54 percent per year plus 6 percent in appreciation is equal to 60 percent ROI per year. Remember you only used $10,000 of your own money and you leveraged $90,000 and your profit per year would be $6,000.

Since you still have $90,000 in case available you could purchase 9 more homes. Then you would still have a Return On Investment of 60 percent but your profit per year would be $60,000 instead on $6,000 and you would also have leveraged $900,000.

I have not discussed taxes, maintenance, insurance or any other expenses associated with owning real estate. The expenses would be proportional for each home that you owned whether it is one home or ten homes.

The amount of money that you get from your real estate investments is always offset by the amount of debt you have; rent checks from tenants need to go toward mortgage payments and other debt. With real estate leverage it’s important to make sure that the income generated from real estate is enough to cover the negative cash flow of the real estate debts during the bad times. Renters can and will damage properties, vacancies will happen from time to time.

If you finance with a variable interest rate mortgage or if the tax appraiser raises the value of several of your homes, you could be in a negative cash flow within just a couple of months with no way out.

Investing in real estate without significant cash reserves is, shall we say, not recommended. An investor without reserves might as well send an engraved invitation for disaster. Investing in real estate is a daunting task. There are hundreds of elements which must come together in harmony for a transaction to close.

Using real estate leverage is a great way to increase your own personal wealth and to build a large and healthy portfolio if it is done wisely. The more real estate leverage you have the more property you can acquire by using this debt or leverage.

It’s not difficult to understand the concept of real estate leverage and if used properly can not only make for sound investments but can also make for a healthy financial portfolio.