Business Tools: Sharing is Caring with ‘Add This’
It’s often said that the simple things in life are the best. Last week I wrote about Twitter, an excellent application that is so simple it’s brilliant! This week I have turned my attention to another simple ‘social media’ tool called ‘Add This’. Every business should consider ‘Add This’ as part of their web marketing strategy.
How ‘Add This’ Works
Add This is a tool that most people who regularly read news articles online will have seen. It is the little button that appears below or above articles and allows the reader to share the article.
- Once the user mousses over the ‘Add This’ button they are instructed to ‘Select a Service’ from a list including Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and a comprehensive list of lesser known social media sites.
- The user then selects the service, for example ‘Facebook’.
- ‘Add This’ contacts the users account in Facebook and opens a window allowing the user to post a link to their Facebook status.
- Once the link is posted to the users Facebook status the users’ contacts will see that they have recommended the article and can click on a link to that article.
The process is similar for other social media sites listed on ‘Add This’. The power of the “Add This’ button is that it allows users to easily share articles with their networks.
So how could it work for business?
The traditional application for ‘Add This’ is for news articles and blogs but there is no reason it can’t be applied to many other web pages. For Example, The ‘Add This’ Button could be added to Real Estate property listings allowing for the easy sharing of properties for sale. Retailers and wholesalers of products can add the button to product descriptions for the easy sharing of product details resulting in possible sales. Add This is free, easy to install and highly effective for:
- Increased traffic to your pages/site.
- Better search engine ranking.
- Increased site popularity, awareness and possibly sales.
Setup Add This on your Site:
To setup ‘Add This’ on your website visit www.addthis.com and follow the simple steps in the presentation below:
Add This was launched in 2006 and is used on hundreds of thousands of websites including FOX, ABC, CBS, SAP, TIME Magazine, Entertainment Weekly, PGA Tour and Lonely Planet. With over 20 billion views per month, the Add This button could be a welcome addition to your website. To test how it works click on the ‘bookmark’ link below and forward this article using ‘Add This’. I also welcome any of your feedback on this great tool.