Number thirty of our weekly interviews in which we discover how real businesses are making Social Media work for them. Please meet Paul Dean.

Who are you and what do you do?

My business is Crimson Leaf and I write for businesses in the UK and overseas specialising in online marketing.  This includes website content, blogs and social media updates.  I also write brochures, business letters and other marketing collateral.

Paul Dean

How do you use Social Media?

I get all my business from working online.  I share useful information on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest and LinkedIn to get my name and brand out there.  I am careful not to advertise my services too much but find by sharing and adding value, business comes to me.  I used to use forums but don’t use them as much now.

I find Facebook is the tool I use most.  I use my personal profile for personal and business use.  My Facebook page is all business but whatever I post on my Facebook page, I share on my personal timeline.  I did use Twitter but have found it difficult to be as constant as I need to be to make myself visible.

I have joined Wealthy Affiliate – a internet marketing group – and have written a number of articles for the group to help others which have resulted in enquiries and work from people within the group.

I use LinkedIn on a more ad-hoc basis than I should.

I have started using Pinterest recently to pin images that I have included in my articles as well as images from others.  I’ve started to get repins but I’m not sure how much business yet.

I like Google+.  I think once I fully understand it, it will be better than Facebook.  I’m sure already that Google Authorship has helped my website rankings.

Can you share a Personal Success Story?

I used LinkedIn to share a link to an article I wrote.  The article was read by one of my contacts who knew me in a completely different context. As a result I have won a significant  amount of recurring work.

Can you give our readers a top tip?

I have two main tips:

  1. Stay active
  2. Give stuff away for free

Contact Information

You can contact Paul on Twitter, Facebook Personal, Facebook Crimson Leaf Page, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Free Tutorials, Crimson Leaf