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Social media is essential to businesses and anyone who already has, or wants to have, a career in business. Through social media you can talk to people, learn new information and gain new clients. You can build a business brand across international boundaries, cutting out middlemen and saving costs.

My own background in business began when talking to clients around the world meant sending letters, taking long flights or making very expensive phone calls. The advent of emails made communication easier but still limited contact to a targeted list of clients. Social media has changed everything.

When social media first came along it seemed to be just another form of entertainment. People quickly realized that it was fun to have conversations with strangers, post pictures of their cat playing the piano or comment on a newspaper blog. However, businesses soon realized that social media could be used as advertising. Now social media has progressed even further and become a vital part of any business strategy. If I want to find a client I no longer need to identify them one by one. Once I have clients I don’t need to phone or visit them. Instead, using social media, I can keep in touch with anyone anywhere in the world and show them what I have to offer using words, pictures and video. Social media is now a gigantic global conversation and a global business must.

Business Secrets: Social Media consists of 50 secrets in total, divided into seven chapters.

▪ Plan. Start afresh. Learn how the world has changed and that social media is the most effective tool for the success of your business.

▪ Promote. The whole world can become your marketplace. Think how you can build a community of followers who will turn into customers for your business.

▪ Post. There are so many different social media tools now. Discover which ones you should use and what the best ways are to use them.

▪ Position. Use social media to build a long-term brand on the web which will grow your business for years to come.

▪ Monitor. By keeping in touch with what your customers want you can consistently tweak your social media presence and make it effective.

▪ Be real. Social media is entertaining and fun. Don’t just have a business conversation: be human. Be entertaining.

▪ Follow web etiquette. Observe some basic guidelines and legalities online just as much as you do in your offline business.

If you follow these seven chapters, you will know everything you need to know in order to use social media effectively for yourself and your business. People will know about you and your brand and, more importantly, they will want to become your clients.

Social media isn’t just fun, it’s also the future of your business.