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Cassidy is totally right - it nails your professional online identity. In any case, there's always the account settings section and the save changes button :)

Absolutely - If you aren't prepared to do what it takes to make it a success..  If you don't have the confidence that you can really make it... There are lots of people and lots of reasons.  

I believe the biggest question is why are you looking to hire a company to do the social media marketing for you?

Is it because you are not sure what is involved?

You don't have time to do it?

You expect a quick ROI if you pay someone else?

There are a number of tools available to help people with social media marketing. Tools that allow you to post on multiple social sites at the same time, track comments and likes etc.

If you expect a quick ROI chances are that may or may not happen even if you hire a company to do it for you. If your business is not yet active on social media you will have an instant result by starting to be active.

What are the first steps:

Before you hire a company to do it for you I would recommend starting yourself, that way you can measure the success more accurately.

If you are not sure what is involved in social media marketing call the companies that offer the service. Ask them what they will do, what type of results you can expect. They will tell, it is part of their sales pitch. Once you have called a number of companies you will know the basics of what they do.

With this information you should look at the different social marketing tools that are available. Try some of the things the companies told you they would do then look at the success you have achieved.

Now you have something to base their success on. And most importantly you now know what they should be doing. I have never hired a company to do something that I don't know how to do. The main reason is I want to know if they are doing their job!

If I don't understand the job I have hired someone to do, how could I possibly know if they are doing the right thing. It doesn't mean you have to be a professional at everything, it just means you understand what they are doing and you will quickly be able to work out if someone is just taking you for a ride or not.

So the best questions you should ask them? None! Let them do the talking and explain the industry to you. Whoever gives you the best explanation will most likely know what they are talking about.

You will know if the company is a good fit if you understand what they do and they take the time to explain what they do in clear and simple terms. If you are happy with how they treat you and don't feel pressured into signing up, they will probably look after you and do the right thing.

Good to know about Ozbargain. Nowadays, many entrepreneurs start a business without programming experience and background. For one, the skill can be learned if they have the drive. And another reason is the abundance of local and overseas programmers available. In this growing gig economy, you can easily hire app developers, website programmers, UX designers to build the product you need.

Yes i too believe that it's worth the time. You should focus on a good strategy and while doing advertisement focus on a/b testing it will save your budget.
 

One of our long term clients buys from China on a frequent basis and in relatively small orders. They have built an excellent long term relationship with an independent local buying agent who places orders, supervises quality and shipping (usually by mail) and advises on new products emerging.

This is both cost effective and efficient

I think the answer is somewhat dependent on the type of products you are selling, who you are selling to and where they are located.

If you are selling digital products, ensure that after the customer pays they get an email link or are moved directly to the download page. Make it as automated as possible.

If you are selling physical items to local people (clothing, accessories, etc.) use either part time workers or freelance / contractors to hand deliver items via car, bike or walking depending on the location. It will be faster and probably less expensive than sending through traditional post. Also, it shows a touch of personality with hand delivery.

If you are selling physical items to people at a distance (across the country or in another country) you may not have many options for cutting out traditional delivery. However, you could look into Drop Shipping, which I admittedly know almost nothing about. But I know it can be a way to shorten delivery time for customers.

One last idea for reaching customers at a distance, would be partner with another business and try to send your shipments out together (if you can get a bulk rate or discount). I'm not sure that is available, but it is at least worth considering.

Hi Kathie, thank you so much ffor these recommendations!

I'd love to hear if you have any thoughts on this @Daniel Rouquette @Chris J "The Only CEO with a Mohawk" Reed - 1,600 LinkedIn Recommendations !