Extra Credit

 

Week 12 Part A

    It was really interesting to research the different online business tools options aside from social media that we don't typically think about.  I was already familiar with LinkedIn and review sites like Yelp and have already used them for personal use.  The next one that sounded the most interesting to me was the Meet Up groups.

    What caught my eye about Meet Up was that the description stated there is a group for women entrepreneurs that helps connect you with people that are interested in supporting women-owned businesses. I didn't realize it at first until I opened the Meet Up website, but I have actually used it before as well but not for business use, just personal to find fun local holiday events to take my kids to. 

    Once I was on the Meet Up website, I used the search bar to search "women entrepreneurs" to see what would come up.  I like that you can filter by certain days, distance, and in person or online.  It defaults to "any category", but I also like the fact that you can filter by specific categories to narrow down your results.  For this search, I chose the category of "career & business" and there were many more options than I was expecting for online meetups, which is really great and convenient for someone like me with kids.

    After looking through the list, Meet Up is the tool I would be most interested in using. However, I will also use LinkedIn, Yelp, & Google as well as potentially some of the others as my business grows.

Week 11 Part B

 The classmates I commented on are: 

Week 11 Part A

 After looking through the list of other types of social medias, I realized I have used a few of them, just not for business purposes. Personally, I have used AI, LinkedIn & Reddit. And of course, everyone is familiar with social media influencers now.

I used AI for the first time in this class to create my fictitious business logo.  It turned out much better than I had anticipated.  At first it wasn’t exactly what I was envisioning, but I tried it again with some more specific details and it came out even better than I had imagined.  I don’t know how to use graphic design tools to make my own logo so that was a life saver and definitely something I would consider using again when I have a real company. I have also used AI to help generate caption ideas for social media posts when I have an idea of what I want to say but can’t think of the exact words and it has given me some really great options. Personally I have only had good experiences the few times I have used it so far, but I can see how it can be a slippery slope if used too much or improperly though.

I have a profile on LinkedIn, but I haven’t used it for much of anything.  To be honest, I’m not entirely sure when or why I even made the profile. I do remember watching some educational videos through LinkedIn Learning so maybe that is why I made it.  If I have a business that requires employees in the future, I would probably check out LinkedIn for potential employees first. 

Reddit I have used just as a reader. Either to pass the time or specifically when I have a question about various things and search Google, most of the time there is at least one Reddit thread about the topic. I have seen people promote their businesses/products on there so that is an option I would keep in mind.

I haven’t used social influencers for my own business, however I have seen them used successfully so that is something I would be open to using for my future business as well.  I have worked for a couple companies that used social influencers.  Also, personally I have purchased products because J have seen certain social influencers and even regular customers post positive reviews. I think user generated content/reviews are really helpful and are like social media’s version of word-of-mouth recommendations. 

Week 10 Part B

 The classmates I commented on are: 

Week 10 Part A

 Personally, I get a lot of emails and unless it is something I'm really interested in, I will unsubscribe if they email me more than once weekly. For my business, I would utilize email marketing once or twice monthly as I wouldn't want to risk overwhelming or irritating anyone.

Some information and content ideas for my company's e-mail newsletter would be our new product offerings, special limited time products, sales, and education for example regarding the different materials used in jewelry. I think my customers would enjoy those content ideas because they would want to be alerted of new and limited-time products before they sell out, sales so they don't miss them and and most people enjoy educational content and learning more about the products they are purchasing.

Week 9 Part B

      I have encountered many businesses that do not have their own website and some of them don't even have social media pages either.  I would never have found out about them if it weren't for their business being listed on Google.  Even companies that do have their own website, I don't usually end up visiting their websites because I can see everything I need right on Google including hours, address, phone number, reviews, etc. 

    I think my company could use and benefit from Google even though we don't have a physical location so wouldn't utilize the map feature.  There are plenty of other great features we would use.  The reviews are such an important aspect and were what I thought would be the most beneficial for my business.  

However, after researching further, I learned that there are a lot of great features! One feature that I don’t remember noticing in the past is Google tells you the current weather at the business you are searching for which is really convenient. The ability to post photos by the business owner as well as customers is another great feature.

I don't know much about running advertisements, but I know I have seen sponsored ads on Google.  Advertising through Google in addition to the other social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram would be a great benefit as well.