Freelance Confidential - Amanda Hackwith [16]
Eventually, I loosened up and found my voice. I realized I could be authoritative by the knowledge I shared and also by the things that make me unique—what interests me, what makes me curious or excited. I realized that I was much more interesting to my audience as a person. Along the way, I learned a few important lessons.
Pick the Network Right for You
There are lots of options to choose from: Twitter, Dribble, Forrst, LinkedIn, Facebook, Tumblr—the list goes on and on. Large corporations seem determined to cover their bases—there's a new CNN account each week, according to whichever service is in vogue. Just as quickly, old accounts on services are ignored and forgotten, caught up in the race to be active on the Next Big Network.
Don't do this. Please.
Rather than slavishly signing up and littering your site with social icons to show you're connected, take the time to think about which social service is right for you and the most efficient use of your time and your clients' time. Things to consider:
Why do I want to join in? There are many virtues and positives to engaging with your clients, fans, or prospects on a social level, but you have to know your goal going in. Do you want to drum up new business? Associate with other experts in your field? Promote your latest product? Your goals here are going to shape your intended audience, what service to use, and how to deliver that content.
Who do I want to reach? As an experienced freelancer, you probably already have a very good idea of who your typical client is. Are you looking to further engage your typical client, or are you targeting a new, untapped market who might need your skills? Or are you communicating with fellow professionals? Pick a venue that will best target your ideal audience. Which leads us to…
Where are my readers already? So you've identified that you want to target a new source of clients—stay-at-home moms who frequent Facebook. Then why lose time building up your Forrst profile? Forrst is a fantastic service for communicating with fellow designers, but non-designers or average businessmen will likely never see it. Research the characteristics of different communities. If possible, ask your clients or representatives of your audience where they spend most of their time. Go where your clients are.
What do I want to share? Every social network is geared towards a certain kind of content. While many services will allow you to include multiple types of media in your updates, usually the service can only feature one or two types well on a consistent basis. Twitter excels at short, instantaneous bits of text. Tumblr excels at multimedia photos and videos. LinkedIn features your publications and accomplishments. Also consider the tone of your content: Facebook fans are going to expect a much more casual conversation than LinkedIn professionals.
How much time do I have to devote? Participating in any one of these social communities is going to require some kind of time commitment. Do you have several five minute increments throughout the day, or is a single block of an hour a week better? Can you respond instantly to a follower or should they expect a delay? Select a service that works with your schedule.
People Want to Like You
As a species, humans are wired to be social creatures. We genuinely want to like new people. Business should not be viewed as a popularity contest, but being "liked" is a powerful tool. Being likeable requires putting yourself out there, sharing your personality beyond your business. There are plenty of examples of experts who balance the professional and the personal well. We'll look at Twitter users as an example:
@envatowebdev (Jeffrey Way), manager of NetTuts and CodeCanyon. Jeffrey's built a brand around his technical knowledge shared with