Integrating Social Media

So we all see the little social media icons in the footer or the side bar of other websites, but what do they mean and what are the benefits? The most common is the Facebook blue "F", but there are some sites that have social media buttons that span the entire web page!

Whatever social media you use should be the platforms you integrate with your website. Do not just add social media buttons because you want to seem up to date with all the different types. Stick to the social media you use and promote social interaction with your traffic. If you have a twitter account and don't use it, someone who uses twitter could link with your account and think you’re out of business.

If you love to use Facebook like Elizabeth Curran and her Dental Laboratory Technicians page, then Facebook is the obvious choice in adding to your site. If you're not using any social media and you would like to start then do some research and find out what your target market (ie dentists in your area) and join their network. Don't worry if you don't understand how to use it in the beginning - no one does. But as you play around, make some mistakes and then learn the platform you'll be posting comments and starting valuable conversation in no time.

There is a significant difference between the buttons you can use. Some connect people and others share the content the button is placed on. Remember this when your adding your social media and always test the buttons out to confirm they're doing what you want.

So when you have identified which social media your target dentist market is using, how do we put it on our web site? – I’m glad you asked!
Here are some handy links for the main social media buttons that will help you or your tech savvy nephew put them on your website:
Facebook - http://developers.facebook.com/docs/plugins/
Twitter - https://twitter.com/about/resources/buttons#follow
LinkedIn - https://www.yola.com/tutorials/article/Adding-a-LinkedIn-button-1285944420001/Adding_and_editing_content
I chose these links because they show easy step by step actions to put the buttons on your site or they give detailed options of all the different types of buttons. These links were researched in Sept 2012 so if they are out of date when you find this, a quick Google search for “add Facebook/twitter/LinkedIn buttons” will do the trick.

Ref: http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/9-tips-for-integrating-social-media-on-your-website/