Not long ago, businesses had no idea what social media was.
But with the onset of Facebook, Twitter and other social media sites, businesses not only know what social media is, they know it is an essential part of marketing their business.
Ruby Media Group in Mt. Kisco is a full service PR firm and social media agency that markets its clients on various social media platforms, getting the word out to bloggers and to digital sources like PRNewswire.com. Ruby Media Group recently expanded into Fairfield County, Conn.
Kristen Ruby started the company in 2009 as social media was starting to take off. While majoring in public relations at Boston University, she noticed the curriculum was changing, with more of a focus on social media.
“It made me want to get into social media,” Ruby said. “I could see that the social media revolution was taking place.”
Upon returning to Westchester, Ruby felt she had a unique skill set and could use her social media skills to help the businesses of Westchester.
For Ruby”™s clients, she lays out a 30-day approach that includes events and various marketing techniques, taking advantage of current trends to maximize the awareness. Ruby serves about a dozen clients at any given time, and recently signed Equinox Group and Crowne Plaza in White Plains. She is a regular correspondent on FOX Business discussing the latest social media trends.
“There has been a real shift in communication,” Ruby said. “Social media has become a whole new way to communicate. It gives your clients more transparency.”
Ruby”™s clients typically range in age from 40 to 60.
“They trust our guidance,” Ruby said. “I”™ve been watching our clients get really invested into social media and begin to embrace it. That”™s what we love doing.”
Since she started, businesses that used to question whether websites were worth it are now managing their Twitter feeds.
“Businesses wonder how social media can help their core business,” Ruby said. “They work with someone who can bring their social media presence to the next level. That”™s where I come in.”
Working with her clients, Ruby has seen the power of social media firsthand. A jeweler will regularly post jewelry deals exclusively on Facebook and will find customers coming inquiring about that particular piece of jewelry.
Another success story involved Benjamin”™s Steakhouse in White Plains and Stacy Knows, a travel and lifestyle blog run by Stacy Geisinger. Benjamin”™s and Stacy Knows teamed up for a holiday party that later turned into an event to mark 26 Acts of Kindness, an initiative started by journalist Ann Curry after the Sandy Hook shootings. Social media got the word out and Curry showed up, having heard about it through Twitter.
“A producer found out all because of social media,” Ruby said. “The power of social media is amazing.”
Ruby has not completely abandoned traditional media like print newspapers, radio and television.
“Social media cannot be the only way you market yourself,” Ruby said. “You need to have a well rounded marketing strategy. Our focus is on public relations with a social media component.”
With the onset of social media, a social media expert like Ruby is no longer unique, and firms like Ruby Media Group have popped up throughout the area.
“I”™m a digital native,” Ruby said. “I was not pushed into it. I started doing it out of school. I haven”™t switched careers because I thought it would be profitable. I just want what”™s best for my client and to help them grow their business. Sometimes I don”™t think social media is the best. Getting bloggers to write about you is a skill set and most people can”™t do that.”
For businesses looking to get into the web, Ruby said some of the best advice is to secure domain names. Businesses should also look at how other businesses use their Twitter feeds and map out a content calendar of what they want to talk about and when. Many of her clients have embraced image-sharing websites like Instagram and Pinterest.
“Sell less, engage more,” Ruby said. “You want to get customers engaged in your brand. Everything is visual storytelling, you need high resolution digital images for when you”™re ready to launch.”
Not everyone is a believer in the power of social media. Ruby recently debated the merits of social media with Brandon Mendelson who wrote a book “Social Media is (Expletive).” Mendelson argued that social media is a buzzword created by corporations to retain the balance of power.
“I don”™t think there”™s merit to that opinion,” Ruby said. “They are using the same social media tools to get whatever they are trying to sell. Everyone has their own opinions, but there have been proven case studies. These tools work. These tools are even more powerful when mixed in with an overall integrated strategy.”
Thank you, Sam!