{"id":6984,"date":"2014-05-28T09:03:54","date_gmt":"2014-05-28T13:03:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.theweekinimaging.com\/?p=6984"},"modified":"2014-05-28T09:03:54","modified_gmt":"2014-05-28T13:03:54","slug":"social-networking-with-applied-imaging","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/feature-articles\/2014\/05\/social-networking-with-applied-imaging\/","title":{"rendered":"Social Networking with Applied Imaging"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Caitlin<\/a>

Caitlin Cheevers, Applied Imaging’s social media guru.<\/p><\/div>\n

When Caitlin Cheevers joined Applied Imaging in Grand Rapids, MI as marketing manager last July after graduating from Central Michigan University in May, the dealership was struggling to figure out how to best integrate social media into its marketing efforts.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s not that Applied was blowing off social media. They had a Facebook page, but they needed a dedicated person to manage the dealerships social media initiatives and develop strategies to better leverage it. Prior to Cheevers, that responsibility was the domain of Casey and Kyle Lowery, the sons of Applied\u2019s owner John Lowery. The two were busy enough already and social media was a task often neglected because there were higher priorities on their to-do lists.<\/p>\n

Although Cheevers has plenty of other responsibilities besides social media, she\u2019s been able to carve out the necessary time and is achieving results. Last July Applied Imaging had 200 Facebook \u2018Likes.\u2019 Today, it has more than 400 thanks to Cheever\u2019s efforts. Meanwhile she\u2019s working on strategies to raise that number along with expanding Applied\u2019s social media initiatives onto Twitter and Linkedin.<\/p>\n

Cheevers\u2019 asset is her youth and plenty of self confidence along with a background in journalism, public relations, and marketing. \u201cI\u2019m young which means I\u2019m pretty good at social media,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

Applied also received a boost to its social media efforts when they were approached by Ricoh to test out Ricoh\u2019s beta feed. From that feed Applied receives Ricoh-related Tweets, Facebook posts, and Linkedin posts and can choose what they\u2019d like to post that would be of interest to their customers and then Ricoh automatically posts them for Applied.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can then track if people are clicking through to those and find out where this info is coming from and where they\u2019re hearing about Applied,\u201d adds Cheevers.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s found this social media option particularly helpful, especially for those times when she\u2019s focused on marketing projects not related to social media. \u201cI know that it\u2019s being taken care of whenever social media is a back burner item for me,\u201d notes Cheevers.<\/p>\n

While doubling Facebook \u201cLikes\u201d to more than 400 from 200 doesn\u2019t sound like a big jump, it\u2019s a step in the right direction. One important change Cheevers made to the Applied\u2019s Facebook posts was making them less employee oriented. Now one sees fewer posts and images related to internal events and culture even though that\u2019s not bad to include from time to time as it puts a face on the company. However, what was happening was for most of those Facebook posts the majority of \u2018Likes\u2019 were coming from Applied\u2019s employees rather than clients.<\/p>\n

Now you\u2019ll find more how-to type posts as well as promotions for various services offered by Applied. \u201cBefore there was nothing that promoted the different things we do that would be helpful to clients,\u201d explains Cheevers.<\/p>\n

You\u2019ll also find posts about the various awards Applied has received even if some of those are employee oriented. But that\u2019s okay. \u201cIt helps our credibility by showing customers we\u2019re good at what we do,\u201d states Cheevers.<\/p>\n

Internships during her college years were helpful in educating Cheevers about different strategies for raising the number of Facebook \u2018Likes\u2019. Giveaways and promotions are often helpful and one of the more successful promotions of late was a giveaway for tickets to a Detroit Red Wings game.<\/p>\n

The promotion ran for four weeks and included e-mail blasts to clients informing them that if they \u2018Like\u201d Applied on Facebook they\u2019d be entered into the contest. And if they shared the post with their friends and their friends subsequently shared it, they received an additional entry.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt helps when a client sees it, signs up and shares, then people who work for other businesses see it and learn about Applied,\u201d notes Cheevers.<\/p>\n

One thing she\u2019s learned about social media is that not every social media site or application is appropriate for everyone. \u201cI know from my experience that Pinterest it\u2019s not a social media site we\u2019d benefit from because the people on Pinterest aren\u2019t looking for a copier or printer,\u201d acknowledges Cheevers. \u201cThat\u2019s the biggest part of being on social media that I\u2019ve been able to transition over to the B2B side. Knowing what social media sites can actually work for B2B.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now that Applied\u2019s Facebook \u2018Likes\u201d are growing, Cheevers is focusing on future initiatives. Monthly meetings with Applied\u2019s social media team, which consists of employees from different departments in the company, provides her with fresh perspectives.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving people from different departments\u2014sales, service, parts & supplies, customer loyalty center\u2014they know all the different parts of the business collectively and can come up with some really great ideas,\u201d says Cheevers.<\/p>\n

And when she\u2019s out of the office or away on vacation, social media team members handle the social media posts.<\/p>\n

Cheevers has been fortunate in that management and co-workers have been supportive even if they don\u2019t totally get this social media thing or are concerned that these social media initiatives might interfere with their existing job duties. \u201cI explain that people can help me with blog posts outside of the meeting if they want to, but it\u2019s by no means required. I\u2019m just looking for the social media team at first to provide brainstorming.\u201d<\/p>\n

Time is of the essence when plotting and implementing social media strategies. Cheevers has a difficult time pinpointing exactly how much time she actually spends on social media mostly because she always keeps her Facebook and Twitter accounts open. She estimates about an hour a day or five hours a week. By keeping those accounts open she receives a notification whenever somebody interacts with Applied on social media, allowing her to respond immediately. She also receives notifications on her phone so even if it\u2019s after hours or on the weekend she can respond.<\/p>\n

In the age of social media, that\u2019s time well spent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When Caitlin Cheevers joined Applied Imaging in Grand Rapids, MI as marketing manager last July after graduating from Central Michigan University in May, the dealership was struggling to figure out how to best integrate social media into its marketing efforts. It\u2019s not that Applied was blowing off social media. They had a Facebook page, but they needed a dedicated person to manage the dealerships social media initiatives and develop strategies to better leverage it. Prior to Cheevers, that responsibility was the domain of Casey and Kyle Lowery, the sons of Applied\u2019s owner John Lowery. The two were busy enough already and social media was a task often neglected because there were higher priorities on their to-do lists. Although Cheevers has plenty of other responsibilities besides social media, she\u2019s been able to carve out the necessary time and is achieving results. Last July Applied Imaging had 200 Facebook \u2018Likes.\u2019 Today, it has more than 400 thanks to Cheever\u2019s efforts. Meanwhile she\u2019s working on strategies to raise that number along with expanding Applied\u2019s social media initiatives onto Twitter and Linkedin. Cheevers\u2019 asset is her youth and plenty of self confidence along with a background in journalism, public relations, and marketing. \u201cI\u2019m young which means I\u2019m pretty good at social media,\u201d she says. Applied also received a boost to its social media efforts when they were approached by Ricoh to test out Ricoh\u2019s beta feed. From that feed Applied receives Ricoh-related Tweets, Facebook posts, and Linkedin posts and can choose what they\u2019d like to post that would be of interest to their customers and then Ricoh automatically posts them for Applied. \u201cWe can then track if people are clicking through to those and find out where this info is coming from and where they\u2019re hearing about Applied,\u201d adds Cheevers. She\u2019s found this social media option particularly helpful, especially for those times when she\u2019s focused on marketing projects not related to social media. \u201cI know that it\u2019s being taken care of whenever social media is a back burner item for me,\u201d notes Cheevers. While doubling Facebook \u201cLikes\u201d to more than 400 from 200 doesn\u2019t sound like a big jump, it\u2019s a step in the right direction. One important change Cheevers made to the Applied\u2019s Facebook posts was making them less employee oriented. Now one sees fewer posts and images related to internal events and culture even though that\u2019s not bad to include from time to time as it puts a face on the company. However, what was happening was for most of those Facebook posts the majority of \u2018Likes\u2019 were coming from Applied\u2019s employees rather than clients. Now you\u2019ll find more how-to type posts as well as promotions for various services offered by Applied. \u201cBefore there was nothing that promoted the different things we do that would be helpful to clients,\u201d explains Cheevers. You\u2019ll also find posts about the various awards Applied has received even if some of those are employee oriented. But that\u2019s okay. \u201cIt helps our credibility by showing customers we\u2019re good at what we do,\u201d states Cheevers. Internships during her college years were helpful in educating Cheevers about different strategies for raising the number of Facebook \u2018Likes\u2019. Giveaways and promotions are often helpful and one of the more successful promotions of late was a giveaway for tickets to a Detroit Red Wings game. The promotion ran for four weeks and included e-mail blasts to clients informing them that if they \u2018Like\u201d Applied on Facebook they\u2019d be entered into the contest. And if they shared the post with their friends and their friends subsequently shared it, they received an additional entry. \u201cIt helps when a client sees it, signs up and shares, then people who work for other businesses see it and learn about Applied,\u201d notes Cheevers. One thing she\u2019s learned about social media is that not every social media site or application is appropriate for everyone. \u201cI know from my experience that Pinterest it\u2019s not a social media site we\u2019d benefit from because the people on Pinterest aren\u2019t looking for a copier or printer,\u201d acknowledges Cheevers. \u201cThat\u2019s the biggest part of being on social media that I\u2019ve been able to transition over to the B2B side. Knowing what social media sites can actually work for B2B.\u201d Now that Applied\u2019s Facebook \u2018Likes\u201d are growing, Cheevers is focusing on future initiatives. Monthly meetings with Applied\u2019s social media team, which consists of employees from different departments in the company, provides her with fresh perspectives. \u201cHaving people from different departments\u2014sales, service, parts & supplies, customer loyalty center\u2014they know all the different parts of the business collectively and can come up with some really great ideas,\u201d says Cheevers. And when she\u2019s out of the office or away on vacation, social media team members handle the social media posts. Cheevers has been fortunate in that management and co-workers have been supportive even if they don\u2019t totally get this social media thing or are concerned that these social media initiatives might interfere with their existing job duties. \u201cI explain that people can help me with blog posts outside of the meeting if they want to, but it\u2019s by no means required. I\u2019m just looking for the social media team at first to provide brainstorming.\u201d Time is of the essence when plotting and implementing social media strategies. Cheevers has a difficult time pinpointing exactly how much time she actually spends on social media mostly because she always keeps her Facebook and Twitter accounts open. She estimates about an hour a day or five hours a week. By keeping those accounts open she receives a notification whenever somebody interacts with Applied on social media, allowing her to respond immediately. She also receives notifications on her phone so even if it\u2019s after hours or on the weekend she can respond. In the age of social media, that\u2019s time well spent.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":6985,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[82],"tags":[368,1441,375,335],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6984"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6984"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6984\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6986,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6984\/revisions\/6986"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6985"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6984"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6984"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.enxmag.com\/twii\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6984"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}