I spoke with one of my clients this past week about social networking—Facebook, Twitter, etc. We, like everyone else in business, are still experimenting with social networking sites, trying to find the best way to use them to not only communicate but also drive traffic to our own websites and generate new revenue. Green Lodging News was recently asked to be part of a new social networking website for travel and other topics. I spent quite a bit of time setting up my community. I backed off however, when after numerous attempts, the organization would not return e-mails or phone calls. Lesson learned. Sometimes it is better to wait before investing one’s time in a new venture.
Admittedly, I was a little bit late to the game with Twitter but I have found it to be a great tool to share breaking news and inform followers about new articles posted on Green Lodging News. (Click here to access our Twitter page which now has 783 followers.) In an online world, of course the greater the cross-linking and networking, the better.
While I have been on Facebook with a personal account for quite a while—along with 500 million folks now—it is only in the past couple of weeks that I have created a Green Lodging News page. (Click here to access it.) The primary purpose of creating such a page is to offer a space for conversation about green lodging topics, and to post comments, questions and links to helpful sites and videos. If you already have a Facebook account, go to our Facebook page and “Like” us by clicking on the “Like” button at the top of the page. If you have a Facebook account, that will be the only way you will see my postings. With just eight people liking Green Lodging News so far, we have a long way to go to catch Coca-Cola with its 26 million followers but you have to start somewhere.
I know far too many people who spend too much time on Facebook posting the most mundane information—what they are making for dinner, wedding wishes for Kate and William, etc. There is an opportunity on our page, however, to create a space where problems can be solved, best practices shared, and questions answered. If enough of you join the conversation on Facebook, powerful things can happen. Facebook can also be a place to have fun with green lodging—a topic we all take far too seriously most of the time.
Links to the Green Lodging News Twitter and Facebook pages will always be available on the Green Lodging News website and newsletter. Please be sure to participate. And, if you have success stories to share regarding how you have been able to use Twitter and Facebook to your benefit, e-mail me at editor@greenlodgingnews.com or call (440) 243-2055. I will share those stories with readers in a future column. I will look forward to hearing from you.
See You at HD Expo & Green Day?
I will be attending HD Expo and its opening Green Day from May 17 to May 20. The events will be held at the Sands Expo and Convention Center in Las Vegas. Click here for details on the events.
Advertising Opportunities
Green Lodging News is accepting reservations for advertising spots in 2011. Several new slots have opened up on the Green Lodging News website—two skyscraper ad spots on the right hand side of the site, and the Featured Product ad spot in the weekly newsletter and in the lower center area of the home page. Be sure to contact me as soon as possible at (440) 243-2055, or by e-mail at editor@greenlodgingnews.com if you are interested in these ad spots. There are also many Green Supplier Spotlight dates available, and other spots on the website and in the weekly e-newsletter. The 2011 media kit is available by request or by clicking here. Thank you to all of those companies that consistently support Green Lodging News.
Green Lodging News Blog, Twitter & Facebook
Be sure to bookmark the Green Lodging News Blog in your browser. More importantly, participate with your comments. As mentioned above, Green Lodging News is also now on Twitter and Facebook. To follow my postings, go to http://twitter.com/greenlodging. Be sure to add Green Lodging News to those tweets that you follow. Also be sure to “Like” us on Facebook. Green Lodging News now has 783 Twitter and eight Facebook followers.
As always, I can be reached at editor@greenlodgingnews.com.
