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Posts Tagged ‘social media marketing’

3 of the Biggest Web Trends from 2009 That Will Shape Your 2010

Wednesday, January 6th, 2010

Looking back on 2009, it seems there has never been a year full of more change, excitement, and shocking news – and if there has, I wasn’t alive to witness it. We saw the death of Michael Jackson, arguably the biggest pop star in the world, fall of the US economic system, inauguration of the first African-American President and fall from grace of a hero, Tiger Woods.

We looked on as North Korea detained journalists Laura Ling and Euna Lee, the swine flu epidemic sent an already anxious nation into further panic, and health care reform drew sharp lines in the sand between haves and have-nots - and we’re barely scratching the surface.

In spite of all this, life goes on, and so does business. In the online sector, we saw just as many developments, and at times it became difficult to keep up. Things on the web change at such a rapid pace it can be tough to nail down what matters now and what will tomorrow, but that is part of the fun. Working in this business you have to keep up with trends, and after a year as action-packed as 2009, with the Yahoo/Bing merger, Google’s constantly shifting ranking algorithm, and the double-sided impact of SEO on relevancy in search, cherry-picking the most ‘influential’ developments seems silly – there truly were too many to count!

Instead, let’s kick-off 2010 with a recap of three related industry trends that picked up speed in 2009 and show little signs of slowing down.

Information spreads like wildfire, but advertisers and search engines
are still learning how to keep up

1 - Real Time Search

When someone says ‘real-time,’ the first thing that comes to mind may be status updates on Twitter, GPS-capability on your mobile device, or the ability to perform an Internet search and get the information you need immediately – but we’ll be addressing the social networking craze and massive growth in the mobile sector later; when we say real-time, we’re talking about a sensibility.

The advent of the Internet, PDA’s, and Social Networks has revolutionized our lives. No longer are we content to visit the library when we have a question – we consult Google. Just left the theater and loved the movie? Update your Facebook status. Witnessing a riot and want to alert the world? Tweet it.

Amidst all of this real-time sharing, the Big 3 are scrambling to keep up. While real-time search has been integrated by Google and Yahoo/Bing, it’s hard to say what this will look like in a year from now, and if search engines can’t prioritize real-time data without damaging user experience, people will migrate elsewhere in their search for information.

What does this mean for advertisers? Pay attention. People are the new media, and they are sharing information via various online outlets. Throwing up a PPC campaign the way one used to may no longer be enough; advertisers may be forced to capitalize on real-time communication by integrating mobile and social ads into their marketing mix while adjusting the way they approach regular search.

Mobile devices already outnumber personal computers - is your site
built for mobile

2 - Mobile Web and Advertising

If you haven’t caught on by now, mobile is big. All that sharing of and searching for real-time data discussed above? A lot of that happens via mobile phones. Likewise, with the mobile advertising market expected to grow to 3.3 billion by the year 2013 it’s time to start thinking about your mobile presence.

We touched on the need to integrate mobile search into your marketing mix above, but there is more to mobile than capitalizing on search. Advertisers must consider whether or not their website works on a mobile device, but only after considering whether it matters.

At first glance it may seem some advertisers may not have to worry; if you are a business-to-business service provider, you don’t expect your clients to find you on their mobile phone, but rather, at work – but all of this is changing.

We already have the ability to access office documents on PDA’s, and mobile devices outnumber computers worldwide. In fact, it is predicted mobile devices will outnumber computers by 3:1 in 2012 and some say we’ve already reached that point. Regardless of who has more accurate statistics, developing your website with a mobile mindset is a must. Allot resources in your budget for a mobile version of your site and start tracking activity on it just as you would your regular site. There may soon come a time where business is being done primarily on mobile devices. Start now.

It’s no longer a trend - social media is here to stay (at least for
now).

3 - Social Media Explosion

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you probably realize social media is no longer a trend, but a tactic. What seemed like a novelty at first has now become one of the most effective yet most challenging ways to market and brand your business online.

What makes social media so powerful? Word-of-mouth. It’s more reliable than an advertisement, friendlier than a pitch, and has the ability to spread like wildfire with little to no effort once the initial seed is planted.

What does this mean for advertisers? If you don’t have a social media presence, and your competitors do, now is the time to create one. Not only are more people relying on social networks and peer recommendations to make decisions about what they purchase and how they spend time, search engines are starting to integrate social data into their results (see #1 above), and if you aren’t controlling the conversation about your brand, you are opening yourself up to potential disaster.

Take the time to figure out how social media fits into your marketing mix, and realize that with social and real-time data being integrated into regular search results, negative word-of-mouth can spread faster than you ever imagined. Be proactive about starting conversations with consumers and listening to what they have to say, or you will leave the fate of your brand in the hands of fate – never a good strategy.

We hope this trend recap helps put your 2010 marketing plans into perspective! If you would like more information on search or social media marketing, please email sales@wpromote.com. Last but not least, have an amazing year!

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Tags: 2009 Internet trends, 2009 web trends, 2010, 2010 web trends, mobile advertising, mobile web, real-time search, social media explosion, social media marketing
Posted in Business, Internet News, Online Advertising, Social Media | 3 Comments »

5 Social Media Don’ts to Avoid If You Want to Make a Positive Impression

Monday, September 14th, 2009

Social media is a savvy and cost-effective way to connect with consumers.

With the popularity of social media on the rise, more and more companies are entering the fray. Many recognize the value of branding themselves online in a low-cost, transparent way and engaging with consumers in their target demographic, many of whom have become accustomed to ignoring traditional advertisements and basing their purchase decisions instead on word-of-mouth recommendations from friends and peers. For this reason alone, any brand seeking a foothold in the future can almost not afford to leverage social media on some level; the problem is many brands simply don’t know how.

If you are a business looking to get started in social media, you are on the right track. But just as social media done well will help expose your brand to the right consumers, committing social media faux pas can leave you worse off than before you started. Don’t let this happen.

To help you get a handle on navigating what is still very much a new frontier, we have compiled a list of five social media don’ts and what to do instead.

1. Don’t use an alias

When conversations about your brand are taking place online, valuable knowledge can be gathered regarding what the consumer wants and how your company is stacking up against competitors. While it may be tempting to eavesdrop on these conversations without revealing your identity, doing so would defeat the entire purpose.

Identify your social media profiles with your company name rather than an alias and you will have taken the first step towards creating a lasting relationship with consumers by enabling them to connect with you online. In addition to the branding benefits you will reap, using your real name will help your social media profiles rank in the search engines for keyword searches related to your brand, giving you more control over valuable online real estate.

2. Don’t use a hard sell

Social media is about conversation, and leveraging these conversations as marketing tools requires a delicate hand. Using a hard-sell approach in your communications is almost guaranteed to fail and should be avoided no matter what. This is not to say spreading the word about your new priuct launch dr 50% sale is prohibited, but the majority of your communications should be focused on engaging consumers.

Rather than focus on selling your products and services, devote your energy to culling and sharing interesting and useful content (articles, blog posts, quotes, etc.) that doesn’t directly benefit your brand. Make sure this content is aligned with ideas and values that matter to your demographic and consumers will form positive associations with your brand.

3. Don’t ignore your users

Talk to your users. It lets them know you care and gives your brand a voice.

Setting up your profiles on popular social media sites like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter is important, and sharing proper content is key, but it doesn’t stop there. If you do the first two things well, you are likely to amass a network of interested consumers who want to talk to you. Let them.

Succeeding in social media requires active participation from you, the brand. Failing to engage in real, 2-way conversations with your users will hinder your efforts online and hurt your brand offline. Users expect interaction, so make it a priority to respond to messages, comments, and posts. Doing so will let users know you ‘get it’ and help brand your company in a tangible, transparent, and memorable way.

4. Don’t neglect your profiles

Once you setup your initial profiles, build your network, and begin conversing with users, it is easy to get bored. Results may not be obvious or immediate and taking the time out to engage with your network may not seem like a priority – after all, you’ve established a presence online and you own your brand name across all the important networking sites, so what more is there to do? The answer is a lot.

Continue updating your profiles with fresh content and engaging with users even after the initial push. Not only does failing to update your profile make your brand look bad, it prevents your brand from reaping all the rewards of social media such as access to valuable market research and strong relationships with consumers. Likewise, being lazy about updating your profiles can undo the good work you did initially by making your brand appear behind the curve and giving consumers a reason to engage with competitors.

Help yourself stay on track by scheduling time each week to maintain your social profiles and then stick to your schedule until it becomes habit. Consistent interaction is the only way to make a real impact!

5. Don’t be an island

Maximize your opportunity to connect with consumers by building profiles on all relevant sites.

Not every social media site is the same. Demographics skew differently on individual sites and messaging can be tailored accordingly. Once you identify the social media sites relevant to your brand and create profiles on each, don’t forget to connect the dots.

Include links to profiles on other networks on each of your individual profiles and you will pave the way for more users to discover you online. Even if users don’t visit you on another site, making it clear you have a presence elsewhere will raise awareness for your brand and generate word-of-mouth, maximizing your chance to reach users who would not have found you otherwise.

We hope you enjoyed these tips. If you have any questions, or want to learn more about social media marketing, please email viral@wpromote.com!

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Tags: 5 social media don'ts, how to succeed in social media, smm, SMO, Social Media, social media do's and don'ts, social media don'ts, social media marketing, social networking, social networking for businesses, what is social media optimization
Posted in Social Media, Viral Marketing | 3 Comments »

Tweeting to Transparency: 4 Reasons to Be Who You Are in 2009

Friday, February 27th, 2009

I know we’ve discussed social media tools like Twitter here before. We’ve even got a blog post on intermediate tweeting from our Director of Viral Marketing, Josh Tauber, in this month’s issue of The Wprogram.

But the more I think about it, I realize there is a lot more to say!

While the meaning and implications of Web 2.0 have been discussed at length, and some will even say the mere mention of the term is cause to be tarred and feathered, the business world is only beginning to harness the power of social media – and some brands are reluctant to harness it at all.

I’m not sure they get it.

I know many of us reading this may scoff. ‘What do you mean,’ you may say, ‘I’ve been tweeting since 2004?’ and I get that. But you are tech-savvy. And while some who follow business trends may argue social media has entered the mainstream of corporate communications, there are corporate giants who have yet to take advantage of all that social media has to offer, and others still who missed the boat on claiming their brand name on influential sites like Twitter (brands like Coke, for example).

The brands who fear the transparency (read: accountability) that social media tools like Twitter bring to the party are living in a simpler and far more private time. In a market where competition is fierce and communication is a commodity, consumers require more information than they have in the past. If brands are lazy about building relationships or less than forthcoming, their reputation will likely suffer, with their profit margin next in line.

But I won’t be banging down any doors to convince anyone otherwise.

In 2009 when transparency is the name of the game, anyone who refuses to take part is shooting themselves in the foot. In the meantime, brands who understand are out there getting naked and taking advantage of new opportunities to improve their bottom line.

Want proof that social media is valuable? Need an example of how transparency can open new doors for your business, maybe even help sales? No problem. I’ve got four. Read on.

1 – Twitter Makes It Easy To Identify Partnership Opportunities (And Act on Them)

Since becoming active on Twitter, I’ve quickly discovered that 15-20 minutes per day spent on the site tweeting, reading tweets of people I follow, or (my favorite) searching Twitter for research purposes can translate into huge benefits. In just a few weeks, I’ve connected with key influencers in my industry with considerably less effort than it would take to send an email, make a (cold) call, ask for a referral, or attend an industry event. Smart tweeting has expanded my professional network exponentially and made it unbelievably easy to get in touch with fellow bloggers and industry experts to forge mutually beneficial partnerships.

2 – Transparency Paves the Way for Potential Customers to Find You

If you’ve read our blog, worked with Wpromote, or become acquainted with me in some other capacity, you probably know I’m a woman who wears many hats – copywriter, online marketer, filmmaker, DJ, and activist – and makes no effort to hide this fact. While such candor may have been professionally risky in the past, authenticity is what matters in the present, and being transparent can lead to valuable connections when you manage your interactions to reflect the way you want to be seen. Being open about my identity personally and professionally has created opportunities for those two worlds to merge: personal contacts have become prospective Wpromote clients and coworkers have become lifelong friends.

3 – Social Media (Done Well) Leads to Better Exposure and Hotter Prospects

We’re not saying you can sign-up for a Facebook profile, pretend to be Joe Shmoe, and invite people to taste test your new product that tastes like Coke but with half the calories. We can almost guarantee this will not work. What we are saying is that social media executed in a savvy way can bring pre-qualified prospects directly to your door, which is precisely what happened when one of the members of Wpromote’s SEO team showed her friends our vlog channel on YouTube. They watched a candid interview with a key member of our company, were taken with the obvious lack of pretense, and decided they wanted to work with us.

4 – Authentic Tweeting Draws Potential Clients and Customers to Follow You

I tweet for mostly for professional reasons. Even though I have friends who aren’t in the Internet game following me on Twitter, I rarely hear from them, and vice versa. I tweet mostly blog posts, business advice, and industry news, and despite my friends’ disinterest, my tweeting has drawn entrepreneurs and small business owners to my list of followers. Not all of them have marketing in place and some are looking. The next step? Make a list of these folks and hand it over to our sales team. If they find some interesting prospects, they won’t have to cold call. I’ll simply tweet.

In the end, the value of transparency in today’s climate is clear, and the power of social media tools like Twitter and YouTube should not be overlooked. There is incredible potential to drive business once you get comfortable engaging with the public. What are you waiting for?

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Tags: 2009, 2009 business tips, 2009 sales tips, Brand transparency, Social Media, social media marketing, Transparency, Tweeting, Tweets, Twitter, Wpromote
Posted in Business, Editorial, Social Media, Yahoo! | 3 Comments »

The Intermediate Tweeter - Intertweetiate?

Friday, February 20th, 2009

by Josh Tauber
Director, Viral Marketing & SMO
twitter.com/JoshTauber

OK, we get it. Twitter is amazing and it can do amazing things. We have all jumped on the bandwagon and are posting a few times here and there, but now what? Here you will find a few examples of what those symbols and weird words mean, as well as some resources to bring you to the next level - an “intertweetiate”. There is no real true way of tweeting but a bit of a standard is being formed. Hopefully this will help you with some of the top twitterizms.

@Username: This allows you to tweet at someone. If you see that someone you follow asks a question about something, you can respond to them directly(or if you spied on someone through a third party app like tweetdeck.. more on this below). To do this, simply hit the respond arrow (on the web) or type @(their user name) and type away. Once you post the tweet the user is notified directly!

Retweet: A retweet is just that. If a person finds that someone has an interesting tweet and feel the need to spread the word, they simply retweet. A retweet is noted by either “RT” or “RT:” then the copied tweet is pasted afterwards. See example below:

#word: This is called a hash. It allows you to keep track of certain topics or tweets from an event such as a conference. To really maximize your tracking capabilities you should follow @hashtags. Hashtags is a great tool that will keep an aggregate of all your tweets from each hash. See example below:

Once you have learned the language of twitter you might find these applications more than crucial as a tool for any SMO’er or heavy twitter user.

Tweetdeck: Tweet Deck takes information from Twitter and breaks it down into smaller, more manageable pieces. Tweet Deck can split there main feed into different columns such as @replies, direct messages, and multiple searches. These columns will continually update as Tweet Deck runs on your desktop. http://www.tweetdeck.com/

Twhirl: Twhirl is a desktop application that allows monitoring of multiple accounts on multiple microblogging websites. It’s compatible with both Macs and PCs. Twhirl notifies users of new messages, shortens URLS, cross post updates to sites like Facebook and MySpace, post images to TwitPic and searches Twitter via Twitter Search. http://twhirl.org/

Splitweet: Splitweet is a web-based application that allows users to manage multiple corporate Twitter accounts at once. Tweets can be sent to multiple accounts at once time. Splitweet can also show you when someone else tweets about your brand. http://splitweet.com/

FriendorFollow: FriendorFollow uses Twitter profile pictures to breakdown the differences in your followers to who you follow (and vice versa) on one screen. You can easily manage your list of followers and friends based on the information given to you by FriendorFollow. http://friendorfollow.com/