Social media marketing is vital for every business professional. The Internet is, after all, a social medium in which people interact. Stimulating interactivity is the key to attracting interest to a product or service.
I’ve always viewed message boards as the original form of social media. Web sites that host their own message board forums are able to build a dedicated group of customers. Popular forum software applications include phpBB and vBulletin.
I’ve built on-site and off-site message boards for companies, and I’ve found that they generate large amounts of traffic and sales.
The key is to treat a message board like an affiliate program. Offer your members incentives to participate. For example, give out free T-shirts or other items to the member who reaches 300 posts within a specific period of time.
It’s also a good idea to offer rewards to members who refer new message board registrants. There are plenty of affiliate tracking solutions that can be used to facilitate this process. Get started today.