You missed some good coffee and free doughnuts if you skipped this morning’s social media workshop hosted by the Wenatchee Downtown Association.

Oh, and you also missed some great tips on how to work the web without getting tangled up, how to tweet without sounding shrill and how to use Facebook without losing face.

Mike and Jackie Endsley — they run Endsley & Company, a local marketing and project management outfit — gave an informal but info-packed talk on what the social media scene is all about and how business folks can use it to their advantage.

The couple (in photo) will be posting soon an abbreviated version of the presentation on their website, endsleyco.com. But until then, here are a few of their key points on how make social media work best:

• Think of social media — the whole shebang of email, websites, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, etc. — as an extended process rather than a specific tool. It’s more of a conversation between you and your customers rather than a slick in-yer-face sales pitch.

• Social media affects you, and maybe your business, even if you snort derisively at the mention of it. That’s because even if you aren’t using it, one of your competitors is probably using it to win new customers. Maybe yours.

• Benefits of using social media? It builds awareness of your service or product. Used smartly, it can drive business to your website. With analytics, it provides insight into who your customers are and where they live. Like this morning’s doughnuts, much social media (and connected tools) are free. Yep, free.

• Most important thing to remember about using social media effectively? Make a plan and stick to it. The Endsleys recommend: 1. a strategy document that details your mission and goals, 2. a brainstorming document that’s essentially a list of good marketing ideas, and 3. a planning calendar that maps out when you’ll do what — thrice-weekly blog posts, daily Facebook entries, monthly newsletter.

• And here’s an excellent tip: Use the 80/20 rule when it comes to content. That means 80 percent of your content should be on broader topics other than your service or product. (Nobody likes repeated, desperate attempts to make a buck.) Only 20 percent of content should be self-promotion, and that’s probably best when it’s low key.

• One more thing: The Endsleys say keep plugging away. Using social media to boost business isn’t a short-term process. It’s about establishing relationships with customers and clients, and the best relationships take work.

Details: Endsley & Company, (360) 223-3683.

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