Social media networks are pretty darn hot right now and if you thought it was just a phase…you were dead wrong!!  It is here and it is here to stay! We are in the mist of a massive online shift and the way marketing and promotion is done has changed forever. As a network marketer or internet entrepreneur you have 2 options: take advantage of an opportunity of a lifetime or stand by and watch your business fall behind while other serious and savvy marketers capitalize on the power that is SOCIAL MEDIA.

My point is this, if you are a network marketer, internet marketer or small business owner, leaving out social media networks as part of your marketing strategy is INSANE. It’s simply not an option…it’s a necessity.

If you understand social media and how to use it the right way, you can position yourself ahead of the millions of network marketers in this industry who will be transitioning online. It’s what I like to call SOCIAL MEDIA CLOUT!

If you don’t approach social media networks the right way, you can kill your brand and your business before it even gets off the ground, so you’ll want to make sure you pay close attention to the information in this guide. At the end of it all you’ll be a social media expert that will be light years ahead of everyone else.

The two most important goals to marketing your products or business opportunity via social media are:

1. Choosing which social networking communities deserve your focus
2. Building a credible and recognizable online presence

There are dozens of social networks on the internet with new ones popping up every day. Communities such as Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Digg.com, Foursquare and Del.icio.us, just to name a few, are running rampant with wanna-be online entrepreneurs all trying to get a piece of the pie. They are jumping from social network to social network requesting followers and friends, spamming groups and Fan Pages with affiliate and business opportunity links and most are getting little to no results at all.

…and it doesn’t help that these internet marketing “gurus” are offering social media training that is questionable at best just so they can make a quick buck on naive and eager marketers who don’t know any better. Now don’t get me wrong there is some great content out there and many legitimate marketers showing people how to make money online the right way…and that is what this guide is all about…to help you discern what is worth your time and what is garbage.

Turning Social Media into Profits

Let me share with you a story…I was one of those naive, eager network marketers that jumped online following what every one else was doing, wandering from one social media community to the next without a solid marketing strategy and subscribing, purchasing and listening to any and every guru who told me I could make a million dollars in the next 6 months if I just bought their course.

The Moment That Changed It All

So what changed? I came across a video by my friend and mentor, Nicole Cooper, and she discussed the fundamental principles to what it truly takes to make money online.

I remember she covered the concepts of building your own brand, sharing your story and how important it was to show others how you solved or overcame your own challenges. It was all about relationships first, marketing second.

She stressed the importance of being transparent and honest. That you should be open about your struggles, failures and success. People in our industry who are having massive success are doing so because they are able to do what most can’t…and that is connect with their audience in an authentic and genuine way.

Then it all clicked. I realized that all the tricks, techniques and marketing secrets don’t matter if I didn’t have the ability to make personal connections with other people in the social media world. With thousands of entrepreneurs pitching and literally slapping people in the face with the “next big thing,” I realized that the only way people where going to listen to what I had to say was if they knew, liked and trusted me.

What it boils down to is this. When it is all said and done it’s all about relationships and connecting with people on a personal level. It’s the only thing that is going to get prospects to let their guard down.

From that moment on, all of my focus went into being genuine, a person of value and someone who was accessible, ready and willing to help others. How did I do this? I contributed the most valuable information I knew in every single video, article, or post I made in the social media communities.

And like magic, my results and traffic started to improve.

People were actually contacting me and leaving messages asking me for my help and mentorship.

It was reassurance that I was moving in the right direction. I continued pushing forward, using all of the traffic methods I could learn (SEO, Article Marketing, Video Marketing, Social Media, among others) to drive traffic to my site, build my email list, always with the purpose of providing incredible value.

By consistently posting amazing content, not promoting or selling a single thing, I was able to attract top tier leaders in this industry. Many of them have become great friends and we started sharing ideas and information. A couple of them I have even done joint ventures with.

By NOT promoting my opportunity, by not spamming my affiliate links, I attracted more attention from the right kinds of people. The kind of attention that puts you in the right place at the right time and in the position to take advantage of opportunities you only thought well connected marketing insiders where privy to.

The social proof these kinds of industry leaders offered by commenting on my content and praising it, attracted other people in the social media communities. The exposure and traffic I was getting started to snowball. It literally went from a drip to a downpour. My list started growing by as much as 25 leads a day!

All I had done was led with information that helped me solve my problems and shared it with others. It made me unique and it set me apart from the spammers, wanna-be’s and opportunity peddlers.

Here is what I did and why it works so well. Understanding that there are a few basic principles makes all the difference. Here’s what they are:

1. Speak to a targeted audience
2. Share information that they want to hear, info that they care about
3. Actively distribute your content
4. Engage, Engage, Engage
5. Build an alliance and mastermind with other leaders

These 5 steps are fundamental to success online.

When you can locate, speak to and attract an audience that has common interests, common challenges and are all attempting to accomplish very similar goals, you have a winning formula to making money online.

Your opportunity lies in being able to promote your business opportunity as well as your products via social networks such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and even forums such as Viral Networks, WarriorForum and Better Networker.

Becoming a reliable and credible authority in this industry starts with YOU being an active participant in these communities and overwhelming them with VALUE. There is a direct correlation to the amount of value you contribute and the amount of success you have. If you are not getting the results you want or making the type of money you want to make then you need to look at yourself and re-evalaute the value that you are contributing.

The information provided on The Gold Medal Marketer Blog is designed to teach you the strategies and techniques you need to promote ANY product or business regardless of what social media platform you choose.

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Andrea Bolder has built a massive brand as the Gold Medal Marketer by combining her winning mentality in Athletics with her entrepreneurial instincts. A track and field Gold Medalist in the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Andrea brings an intense determination to the network marketing community. She now coaches and mentors Network Marketers across the globe on the most effective strategies for Branding and Marketing using the Internet. To Get The FREE Tips and Tricks That Makes Her Team Thousands of Dollars Each Month ===>http://thegoldmedalmarketer.com/internet-marketing-success-secrets/com<===

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