Alba Innovation Centre client Sysnet moves their business up a notch through Twitter!

How social networking can become an important part of any small business

Forward thinking IT solutions provider Sysnet are embracing the power of social media to grow their business.  Looking at new opportunities to evolve their client base and service their existing customers, Sysnet turned to Twitter and Facebook as a means to do this and have now adopted social networking across all parts of their business.

The need to grow their rankings in Google and enhance their brand awareness around the world forced Sysnet to sit up and take notice of all the new tools that were being forced on them from a social media perspective.  MD, Peter Burtwistle, a keen technology entrepreneur, and a tenant of the Alba Innovation Centre, was a bit sceptical at first and like most small businesses wary of the amount of time he would have to set aside to manage and update all the various social media tools on offer.  He realised quickly that there were key ones that were pertinent to Sysnet's business

Twitter for instant regular messages

Facebook for creating a community and uploading images/videos/case studies

YouTube for uploading their videos

And LinkedIn for building a professional network of contacts

Peter said, "I knew we had to do something to get our name out there.  When we started work in this area, the Sysnet UK brand was quite far down the Google rankings which meant we couldn't be found by anyone searching for our business - now we are No.1.  We started slowly and uploaded content that we already had on a weekly basis over a 6 month period.  It's made a tremendous difference to our business as it is driving people to our site (hits have gone up from on average 150 per month to over 700 per month), customers are able to access regular updates on the business and our products and we can reach a much wider audience that is specifically interested in what we do".

Sysnet use a simple calendar idea to plan their activity, posting two pieces of information to facebook weekly, a statement on twitter once a week, videos on YouTube when they become available and updates to their linked in profiles as they meet new contacts and identify new contacts via their other social media sources.

Dawn Player, marketing graduate at Sysnet highlights there are 5 main points you should consider when devising your social media strategy (for any size of business)

1. Plan your activity for 4-6 weeks in advance and keep a calendar of activity.  Have one person in your business to update the information but ensure the key decision makers are providing the ideas/content
2. Start slowly and ensure you target the social networking sites that are right for your business
3. Keep on top of your social networking sites and answer any customer queries or complaints immediately.  Even if you can't resolve them, make sure you make contact!
4. Keep your business social networking away from your personal social networking as clients don't want to hear that you are ‘sitting on a train' on twitter
5. Ensure your videos/photographs have captions that relate to the ‘key words' that clients search for you by to increase your Google rankings

Sysnet are an 11 person company.  So if they can develop a social media strategy to help grow their business, so can any company!  Sysnet are already looking at developing their next social media step and utilising LinkedIn groups to discuss the practical issues associated with their IBM product.  

Peter's Burtwistle presentation on how Sysnet are using social media at http://www.scottish-enterprise.com/interactivescotland/is-knowledge-centre/is-event-reviews/Social-networking-for-business.aspx

Follow Sysnet on Twitter at www.twitter.com/sysnet_uk

Facebook group at www.facebook.com/pages/Sysnet/319282618020?ref=ts 

YouTube site at http://www.youtube.com/user/SysnetAdmin1

ICS are planning a series of social media training workshops in Glasgow and Livingston in Aug/Sept 2010.  If you would like more details, email us at forums@innovationcentre.org