
Excel4College

Sundt
I met Carol via social media. She has served as a mentor and ally to me. She is a true social media expert. Carol lays out a plan and theme for each week, leaving herself time to engage with her followers. An excellent mentor, partner and friend. It has been a pleasure working with Carol and I cannot thank her enough for her help and guidance!
Wendy LaPlaca
Twitter 101: How to Create an Inspiring Profile
Here are some real examples:
@YouTooCanBeGuru
I offer my opinions, unsolicited advice, and #socialmedia tips. I’m not an expert; just opinionated. Love, @gidgey FB Page:http://on.fb.me/no7tJL
Dana Point, CA · http://youtoocanbeaguru.wordpress.com
Notice @YouTooCanBeGuru’s profile says she’s “not an expert.” And although her Twitter name is meant ironically, she actually is an expert, and does offer good advice.
@TheBloggess
I have friends in spite of myself.
Texas Hill Country · http://thebloggess.com/
People love to follow @TheBloggess because she’s funny. And human. And a lot of other things. And yes, in case you were wondering, hilarity does ensue.
@ToyotaEquipment
Toyota Forklift Dealer Engaged with our followers – From manufacturing to sales. Find us on Facebook http://on.fb.me/h7DCCU ~ Kyle Thill
Minneapolis MN · http://www.ToyotaEquipment.com
Add URLs: Add your website address in your profile so that others can find you and learn more about you. In addition, you may want to add a Facebook, LinkedIn or Pinterest URL. You can shorten your URL (bit.ly is a good URL shortener) and then add it, since the space in your profile is very limited. Note that the example profiles above all have their websites listed.
Add Hashtags: Hashtags are those pound signs (#) that you see all over the place on Twitter. You can use them in your bio to highlight something that interests you, like this: #SharkLover or #Bicycles. However, if you overdo hashtags, that can look spammy (and unfriendly!).
Add @ Signs. If your Twitter account has more than one person tweeting for it, add your @ signs so people know who’s tweeting. For example, if you look at the @oLyfe account, you’ll see my @ sign there (along with two others) so that people know who is tweeting for that account. @Kred does a great job using a carat sign (^) as a mini-signature, since they have multiple tweeters.
Add Your Location. While “Spaceship Earth” is great for someone into astronomy, adding your real location helps followers determine whether to follow you. If you’re in a tiny suburb, you can reference the larger area nearby, such as “Boston Suburbs” or “San Francisco Bay Area.” Some people will only follow people who are local.
Creating an Awesome Twitter Avatar
An avatar—that little picture that appears next to your tweets—represents you and your brand on Twitter. The success of your profile can hang at its weakest point. Your audience will initially look at your content and numbers (followers/following) to get a feel for who you are, but the real hang-up can be upon whom, or what, you chose to use as the face of your business.
You want your avatar to be instantly recognizable so that you and your brand can be seen as professional. Putting in a little time to create an avatar provides clients with the confidence they demand from a product or service they will invest their time and energy in.

People Like to Talk to People: The number one choice for all social media avatars is a picture of your face. People like to know that they’re talking to another person, not an object. That said, you still have some decisions to make.
Use a Drawing: Some people have created caricatures or drawings of themselves. Remember that time you were on vacation and that guy made a caricature of you? Maybe you could pull it out and use that. Since you don’t have a lot of space in Twitter, make sure to use the entire space up to the edges. Or maybe you have a talented graphic designer friend who could create a line drawing for you.
Use a Photo: One of the benefits of using a photo is that you probably have one that you can put up relatively quickly. Make sure it looks good on Twitter—that it’s in focus and there is good contrast. You don’t get a lot of space, so make sure it fills the entire space. If the photo looks unprofessional, that could reflect on your business. Consider using a professional makeup artist and photographer to get a really great shot. It really is a good investment.
Use a Group Photo: How about a group photo of the people who work in your business? Just make sure that the photo isn’t too small.
Logo: Although I like faces best, a logo or symbol could be terrific, too. A logo allows your business to look professional, multiple people can tweet from the same account, and other professionals will want to connect with you. If you already have a logo, that’s great! But don’t let getting a logo stop you from getting started on Twitter. Put up a photo and get going. You can change it later.
Mascot: A mascot is a fabulous way to get started. If you have a shop, you could have a shop dog. People identify with animals and will say things they wouldn’t say to a person or to a logo. (My cat, @Purrsilla1 has an account, and people love to chat with her.) Downside: a mascot might not be seen as “professional” in some businesses.
Anything But An Egg: If none of the choices above call to you, don’t worry. The main thing is that you get away from the default egg. If you keep the egg, a lot of people will look at you like you’re a spammer, and that’s the last thing you want. Any random picture (Easter bunny, daffodil, smiley face) is better than an egg.
Promoto Marketing
Carol Stephen has provided excellent advice and coaching for our company to get started and to prioritize our online marketing efforts to develop our understanding on how to effectively build our audience.
In taking the time to understand the nature of our work she has maintained a proactive approach in keeping us up-to-date and connected. We also found Carol to be extremely knowledgable: adapting her system to best complement our abilities; while being sensitive to the constraints we are facing.
Sam Lee
Business Arts Workshop
Unbelievable. Carol is a pleasure to work with because she’s productive & adaptive at the same time. She is dedicated to her work ethic and her craft: her ambition projects loyalty and stability a client deserves.
Always professional, once she is turned loose on a project she’s a self-starter that knows how to deliver content and customer engagement. She attracts a larger audience by making the right posts, gains the attention of your audience by saying the right thing, and influences your audience with the voice you want your company to project. If ROI is your priority, then she is your priority.
Joe Romero
Abreeze Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning
Riggins Construction & Management, Inc.
Carol has exactly what it takes to make social media work within the trades. Her management of @SanJosePlumbing has been phenomenal and we interviewed her for our Featured Tweeter series on the Riggins Construction due to her ability to perform. She is a gem, unselfishly helping everyone who surrounds her with grace and humor.
Bridget Willard
Office Manager/Social Media Manager
Combotronics Inc.
Carol has been a mentor for me, I met her through Twitter when I was just beginning; she always makes sure she is engaging with people as well as sharing wonderful content that coincides within her accounts. I highly recommend her abilities as a social media expert, and can say nothing but great things about her.
Roxanne Roark
Social Media
Follow Carol!