Speaker - Carmelle Desrosiers, @MissCtheBoss, Pure Logic Solutions

A successful business starts with a great product and outstanding customer service; social media can help spread the word about your business faster than you can blink an eye.

Rather than asking yourself if you should or should not use social media for your business, the question should be - How can social media help you achieve your marketing objectives?

The truth is that social media is continuously evolving. While many others try to keep up with these ever-changing factors, the savvy business owner should be creating a social media presence that covers the essential areas of social media and creates a solid foundation for future growth.

In this section, Carmelle will review the importance of incorporating social media marketing into your overall marketing plan. You will have a better understanding of what your goals and objectives of using social media should look like and you will see successful examples of how each can be achieved.

Carmelle Desrosiers, Online Marketing Strategist for Pure Logic Solutions is passionate about working with companies to develop creative marketing strategies to reach their ideal target markets. Her professional experience includes 10 years in marketing and public relations- allowing her to effectively develop successful marketing campaigns for clients in a variety of industries.

Speaker - Jerry Aulenbach, @ZoomJer, Royal LePage

When you’re trying to develop your online marketing strategy, there’s one thing you have to ask yourself about what you’re doing: what do you have to offer that makes you stand out from the crowd? Marketers like to describe this strategy as ‘creating a meme’, but let’s call it what it is: a gimmick. The dictionary describes a gimmick as “an ingenious or novel device, scheme, or stratagem, especially one designed to attract attention or increase appeal”.

In this section, Jerry will share his incredible success story with you. You will learn what he has done to successfully stand out, and how he is able to generate 2/3 of his income- directly through the use of social media.

Jerry Aulenbach has been a licensed realtor since 2004. He grew to love and appreciate social networking and as a result of his efforts he has met hundreds of new people, raised thousands of dollars for the Royal LePage Shelter Foundation, branded himself as the “Bacon Man” and entirely changed the way he does business – all because of using social media to his advantage.

Speaker - Carla Howatt, @TricmStrat, Tricomm Strategies

Social media gives businesses an incredible opportunity to connect with their customers in a comfortable and convenient environment that allows bad experiences to turn into positive marketing.

Negative feedback exists in all business. The stronger your business becomes, the more subjected it may be to negative feedback. The most important thing is not the negative feedback- It is how you deal with it. There are many ways to respond constructively and appropriately and still continue to build credibility and trust.

Excellent customer service is more important now than it ever has been, however when using social media to improve your customer relations properly it is easier to achieve and you are able to produce much larger results.

In this section, Carla will teach you how to properly deal with negative customer feedback to ensure a positive result and customer experience. Great customer service results in more repeat business- which can result in higher sales.

Carla Howatt, Owner of Tricomm Strategies has more than 11 years in the communications profession. She has created a business that emphasizes the three pillars of effective communications - assessment, planning and implementation. She works with companies to assess what they are currently doing to determine the best way to get their message across.

Speaker - Kathleen Smith, @KikkiPlanet, KikkiPlanet.com

Kathleen has recently started a business with her two hands, ingenious thoughts and views on the world. Her inspiration for her business came from the success of her efforts on Twitter.
The world is watching you. Your world. Your family, your friends and your community have their eyes turned to you waiting for you to show them who you are. What does your life revolve around? What do the choices you make everyday say about who you are and where your heart is? KikkiPlanet.com is about getting involved, giving back, celebrating who you are and the city you live in. It’s a fresh look at your city and yourself, the best you and Edmonton have to offer.

In this section, Kathleen will share her success story with you. She is nothing short of entertaining and inspiring. You are sure to take away a lot of fantastic tips for your business's Twitter account.

Kathleen Smith has met hundreds of inspiring people through Twitter, which was her motivation to start KikkiPlanet.com. KikkiPlanet.com is an online magazine about getting involved, giving back, celebrating who you are and the city you represent. Her web site is meant to inspire Edmontonians to be more and do more, and the response she has received thus far has been unbelievable.

Speaker - Dave Warawa, @RadioSalesGuy, NewCap Radio

Your company has started to use social media. Do you have the strategy in place to meet your company’s objectives? How should social media be used in the context of your other marketing efforts?

To address the many questions around how social media fits into your overall marketing plan, you need to ask yourself; How do I make social media work for my business?

Marketing is a very broad term and can include pretty well everything needed to market and sell products or services. So before jumping into setting up a Facebook page or a Twitter account, some work needs to be done to develop an integrated marketing plan.

In this section, Dave will review the importance of consistency in your marketing efforts and will provide you with ideas and guidelines on how you can integrate your social media strategy into your overall marketing plan.

Dave Warawa, General Sales Manager for NewCap Radio has been in the media industry for 25 years. Dave has worked with hundreds of businesses, developing their marketing and advertising campaigns based on needs analysis and return on investment. His latest focus has been advising businesses to implement media mix, where traditional forms of advertising integrate with social media.

Speaker - Carmelle Desrosiers, @MissCtheBoss, Pure Logic Solutions

Many businesses believe setting up Facebook and Twitter profiles will do a world of good to them and that’s their validation for joining the social media bandwagon. However, the truth is that using social media requires a careful thought process, strategic planning and focused follow-through.

Social media incorporates everything from blogging, microblogging, social networking, events, forums, to articles and press releases and the list goes on. So where to begin?

In this section, Carmelle will break down the process of developing a successful social media strategy. You will learn what steps you need to take to give you the best opportunity to succeed in your social media marketing efforts.

Having a marketing strategy is good, but having a marketing strategy that works is great!

Carmelle Desrosiers, Online Marketing Strategist for Pure Logic Solutions is passionate about working with companies to develop creative marketing strategies to reach their ideal target markets. Her professional experience includes 10 years in marketing and public relations- allowing her to effectively develop successful marketing campaigns for clients in a variety of industries.