4 Ways Brands Are Still Getting Social Networking Wrong (And What to Do About It)

By now everybody (unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past 10 years) is aware of how relevant social media is to brand-building and brand awareness. Not everyone has yet embraced its usefulness, but each day, more and more people get onboard. Facebook alone now has 1.5 billion users. Just think about the potential reach! If you’re not using social media to generate brand awareness, you’re not doing yourself any favors.

That being said, if you are using social media, but not using it effectively, you’re wasting your time. Here are 4 ways that brands are doing it wrong – and how they/you can get it right…   

1.      Boasting & Hard-Selling Rather Than Engaging

Stop being so narcissistic! People don’t care about how wonderful your products or services are nearly as much as you think they do. At least not if you’re shoving it down their throats at every given opportunity. Take it down a notch. Engage with your social networking audience. Post things that are relevant, interesting, fun, engaging and most of all, useful. Not just things that tout your brand as being the best thing since sliced bread. You know the old expression, “If you build it, they will come”? Well, build your brand by engaging your audience and making them want to engage with you – and customers will start rollin’ in. Remember, people don’t like to be sold to – they like to be intrigued and informed and entertained.

2.      Trying to Make Use of Every Social Platform Known to Mankind

There’s such a thing as overkill. Are you aware of just how many social platforms are in existence today? It’s not just Facebook and Twitter anymore. Not by a long shot. Here’s a list of just 21 of the most popular – and that’s just the tip of the iceberg. No matter how large your staff is, you couldn’t possibly have the resources to keep an engaging social media campaign going on each and every platform. Sure, your brand would be represented on all of em’, but not well and not effectively. So, focus on the sites where your most of your customers are – Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are good bets, but do your research – and limit your social networking endeavors to the sites that will bring you the most traffic.

3.      Not Responding to Customer Comments – the Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Ah – now this is a biggie! What’s the good of being on social media if you’re not going to be social?? When a customer or prospective customer comments on one of your posts, whether it be on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or your blog, whatever you do, RESPOND! And not just to the positive and happy comments. And none of that automated bull that so many brands like to make use of. Social networking is for being human – not for being a brand stuck somewhere in the vast cyberspace. Remember the part about engaging? Well, it’s a two-way street. If someone says something glowing about your product or service, or even just makes a nice comment on one of your posts, thank them and tell them that you appreciate their input/insight. And if someone posts a comment that’s not quite so complimentary or that voices a complaint or opposing view, thank them and tell them that you appreciate their input/insight – and then (if it’s a complaint), let them know that you’re sorry that their interaction with your brand wasn’t as positive as it could have been and offer them something that will hopefully rectify the situation. But whatever you do, don’t ignore people on social media. And double whatever you do, don’t engage negatively on social media. Telling someone to take a flying leap because they were less than satisfied with a service you provided isn’t the way to make social media work for you.

4.      Creating Boring, Useless Content Rather than Helpful and Fresh Content On Facebook, you know the guy who constantly posts what he had for breakfast or that his new baby just learned her fifth word? Well, don’t be that guy. No one wants to engage with that guy. No one, other than his mother, cares! What you want to post is useful content - helpful content that’s relevant to your brand and to your industry. Can you post the odd joke or general interest story? Of course. No one’s saying that you have to be all business all the time, but for goodness sake, don’t start boring the stuffing out of people, or you’re not only going to lose your social networking audience, you’re going to lose your customers due to lack of credibility – and boring people to death. Keep it fresh and upbeat and engaging and useful. Answer questions, offer solutions and keep people coming back to read your posts because they’re acquiring information there that they’re not going to get elsewhere. If you’re not already blogging, consider starting a blog – it’s one of the best ways there are of imparting relevant information to an audience who’s going to appreciate it. Don’t know what to blog about? Well, what questions are you asked by your customers? Most of those will make for wonderful blog posts that will be read and enjoyed.

Social networking isn’t rocket science, but it’s certainly something that requires attention, research, time, thought and strategy. And when done right, the rewards to your brand can be exponential.

HOW TO MANAGE YOUR TIME WISELY ON SOCIAL MEDIA

A very commonly asked question about using social media for business is:  “How much time does it take?”  Lots of people mistakenly believe that a good social media strategy for their business is a total time suck and not worth the effort.  Not so!  If you are one of the people living under that misconception and not taking advantage of what social media has to offer, you are missing out on important conversations and networking opportunities that can greatly benefit your business’ bottom line!            

                                                        

I’m not going to lie to you and tell you that it takes no time at all to implement, develop and maintain a viable social networking strategy, but I can tell you that it’s not as daunting an undertaking as you might think - the risk of missed opportunities far outweighs the risk of time lost.  And, you are in complete control of how much time you put into it.  Here are some tips to help you manage your time wisely on social media activities for your business:

First, focus on why you want to use social media.  Depending on industry and company mission, business owners use social media for different business purposes.  Do you want to use it for research? Networking? Sales?  Or, a combination of all of the aforementioned?

If research is your aim, you’ll want to source out blogs and relevant news sites that provide you with the quality information you require.  You can subscribe to their RSS feeds (news feeds) so that you can keep up with any updates posted that are of importance to you.  Imagine having all of that information literally at your fingertips?  If you ask me, it sounds like this will actually save you some time!!

If you want to use social media for networking, it’s imperative that you build a community or audience.  This is easy to do on sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Once you have created your accounts (a snap), it’s just a matter of building your communities by posting on a regular basis (again, this does not take a whole lot of time) and interacting with your audience.  Depending on how much engagement you’re interested in, this can take anywhere from only minutes a day to a couple of hours – not necessarily any more than that, unless you so choose.

If your motivation is sales and marketing, it’s important that you get your brand name out there.  You’ll want to let people know what your brand is all about – what services and/or products you offer – how these services and products can benefit people.  Again, engagement with your audience via Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Blogging will be key here.  Social media sites are currently the most innovative methods of marketing your brand’s products and services.  They provide an unprecedented means of getting the word out.

Secondly, it’s important to develop a strategy to manage your time wisely.  Once you gain perspective on your purpose for using social media for your business, it won’t be difficult to determine how much time per day or per week you’ll require.  Here are a few ideas that can help:                                          

-          Create a schedule.  Set some time aside each day (at least at first) to check your Facebook, Twitter & LinkedIn accounts.  Take a few moments on each account to post something relevant and especially to respond to any inquiries or concerns that people in your communities may have.  Make it a point to join in on conversations/dialogue wherever you can contribute something meaningful.  (Remember, it’ll take a bit of time to build an audience.)   If you decide to blog, ensure that you post something at least once every other week or so.  Blog posts take on average anywhere between an hour to a few hours to research and compose, but unless you’re a very ambitious, avid blogger, a post a week or every other week should suffice.

-          Focus on activities that will have the most impact.  A crucial thing to remember here is that you have to be where your customers/clients are.  If you have identified that they are mostly on Facebook, then by all means, concentrate a good chunk of your social networking time there.   But, you don’t want to neglect the other networks, as they are all beneficial.

-          Although you want to garner a wide audience, it’s not necessary to overdo it. You don’t have to be friends with or follow each and every person with whom you come into contact.  If a relationship will be mutually beneficial, you want to be connected to that person, if not, then don’t be afraid to be selective.  If you’re connected to absolutely everyone, you will be spending more time than you have to on social media.

-          By the same token, it’s imperative to stick to your purpose.  It’s easy to get sidetracked with irrelevant activity on social media (do you really have to watch that YouTube video right now??).  Stay focused on your business purpose and you will spend your time much more efficiently on social media.                       

                                                                 

If you use your time wisely and keep your focus in mind, you will find that you social media endeavors significantly pay off and that you actually enjoy your time spent with your connections. 

Need help putting together a social media strategy for your business?  We’d like to see you at our Social Media for Business workshop.  We can show you how to use your time wisely and effectively to make social media work for your business’ bottom line.  Please click on the link below for a schedule of workshops in your area.

https://escomputertraining.com/socialmedia

21 Social Media Statistics for 2014 (So Far)

Social media continues to be a widespread phenomenon – it continues to grow both in terms of the number of people and businesses who use it as well as the number of social media platforms it encompasses. Insofar as its relevance to business is concerned, well, let’s just say that if you’re not social, you can’t possibly be competitive in the market as it exists in 2014. Why? Here are some stats, courtesy once again, of Jeff Bullas, social media guru and author, that will illustrate the importance and astonishing reach of social media...                                                                                                      

An Overview of Social Media:                       

• 72% of all Internet users are now active on social media

• 89% of those between 18 and 29 years old are social media users

• 72% of individuals aged 30 to 49 are engaged in social media

• 60% of people between 50 to 60 years old are active on social media

• 43% of those 65 years old and above are engaged in social media

• 71% of users access social media from a mobile device

Facebook:

·      Facebook now has over 1.15 billion users   

 ·         One million webpages can be accessed with the “Login with Facebook” feature

 ·         23% of Facebook users login at least 5 times daily

 ·         47% of Americans say Facebook is the top influencer of their buying decisions

 ·         On average, Americans spend %16 of each online hour on Facebook

 ·         70% of marketers acquire new customers through Facebook


Twitter:
 
·         Twitter now has over 550 million registered users and 215 million monthly active users
 
·         Between 2012 and 2014, Twitter achieved a growth rate of 44%
 
·         34% of marketers use Twitter for lead generation


Google+:
 
·         Google+ now has over 1 billion enabled accounts and 359 million active monthly users
 
·         Google+ is has a growth rate of 33% per year
 
·         People aged 45 to 54 years old have increased their Google+ usage by 56% since 2012


Visual:
 
·         YouTube has over one billion monthly active users
 
·         Pinterest has 20 million monthly active users
 
·         Instagram has 150 million monthly active users
 
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Regardless of which social media platforms on which you engage (some work better than others for different businesses – it’s crucial to do your research to find out where your customers and prospects are), the bottom line is, there’s no denying that social media can actuate real sales and marketing results! 

  

HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY TO FACEBOOK!

Today Facebook hits the double digit mark! It’s almost inconceivable that it’s been 10 years since the inception of the most powerful social networking site on the planet. That’s 10 years of sharing, liking and commenting. I doubt that even Mark Zuckerberg himself had any idea of what was to become of his little idea, Facemash, when he was just a kid in a dorm room at Harvard. 

But with a decade under its belt and no signs of slowing down, Facebook has undeniably become a phenomenon that even its harshest critics and skeptics worldwide have come to, if not adopt, then at least recognize for what it is: the way the world communicates. 

Today we use Facebook to connect, re-connect and keep in touch with friends, classmates and neighbors. And that’s just on the personal side. Facebook has become an integral part of doing business – buying, selling, marketing and just plain connecting with clients, prospects and colleagues. Contact management at its finest! Facebook has revolutionized the way we relate and connect on all levels.

In honor of Facebook’s milestone anniversary, here’s a brief look back at how it came to be what it is today…

2003 – Before Facebook, it was Facemash, and simply a means of comparing two photos of Harvard students to choose which one was hotter. (Okay, so Facebook came from, shall we say, less than altruistic beginnings. But, hey, look what we can do with it now!)

2004 – Then came Thefacebook, an “online directory” that connected college students via their own social platform.

2005 – As anyone who has seen David Fincher’s brilliant film, The Social Network, is aware, Thefacebook soon becomes Facebook when Justin Timberlake’s character, Sean Parker, suggests to Jesse Eisenberg’s Mark Zuckerberg that they drop the “The” and just call it Facebook.

 2006 – The News Feed is born. Let the real sharing begin! Also in 2006, everyone who wants to, gains access to Facebook. Prior to September of 2006, Facebook's still just a way in which students connect with other students. In this year, however, Facebook becomes accessible to anyone with a computer and an email address (oh, and you have to be over the age of 13).

 2008 – The phenomenon just gets bigger and bigger… 100 million users worldwide!

Also in 2008, Facebook goes mobile…There’s an app for that…

2009 – The “Like” button is introduced…

2011 – The new Timeline is introduced – bigger and bolder than ever before! To mixed reaction, Facebook changes its look and some of its features. I have to admit, I wasn’t a big fan at first, but I’ve since grown used to Timeline and now don’t even remember what life (or Facebook) was like before Timeline!

 2012 – Facebook and Instagram join forces. In April of 2012, Facebook buys its budding rival, Instagram, for a cool billion.

February 4, 2014 – Everyone’s favorite social network turns 10! And a very Happy Birthday to you, Facebook! Now, off to check my News Feed...

It’s 2014: Is Your Business Social Yet?

If you haven’t yet begun to implement social networking as a means of brand awareness and connecting with clients and prospects, it’s gotta’ be because:  a) you’ve been doing a stint in prison; or b) you’re afraid / resistant and you still don’t get how & why social media can be your business’ greatest asset.  Well, WAKE UP!! It’s 2014, and if you haven’t implemented a solid social media strategy for your business, you pretty much don’t exist!

There are all kinds out there now: Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr (and all the wonderful blogging sites), Google+, Pinterest, Instagram and, well, I could go on for a while. So, for the purpose of brevity, I’ll just give you a quick rundown on why and how Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and blogging, if nothing else, are essential to the well-being of your business.

Let’s start with the basics about social media as a whole.  What do social media do for you? They keep your name in front of clients and prospects – on a regular basis. They're second to nothing else in terms of community building. They provide you with platforms through which you can easily and quickly maintain regular contact with your business connections. They allow you to effortlessly share and disseminate crucial information, via both text and images (not to mention video).  And last but not least, they promote brand awareness – in real time. 

Here, briefly, are some ways that social media can work for your business:

1.  Facebook – Facebook is the perfect place for you to connect with clients & prospects on a human level – a personal level. The first rule of using Facebook for business? Don’t try to blatantly advertise or sell your business on Facebook. That’s not what it’s about. You want to make lasting connections. You want to let people know what’s in it for them. Facebook allots you a forum within which you can mix the business and the personal. Let’s, for argument’s sake, say you’re in the real estate business. What can you post on Facebook? Photos and details of your listings, changes to mortgage lending rules, home improvement & décor ideas, links to informative industry related articles and videos, helpful hints & tips (for example, on how to ease the pain of moving), getting your home holiday ready, etcetera, etcetera, etcetera. Facebook also allows you to do really cool things, like form Groups (a home decorating group?) and create Pages (how about a Page for your listings?) that will take your business to the next level. Try to post on a regular basis – once twice a day – or at least several times a week. Keep your posts informative, engaging and entertaining to garner tons of “Friends” and “Likes” and “Shares”. And, most importantly – have fun on Facebook. It can be a great way to engage people and communicate!

2. Twitter – Twitter functions as an effective broadcast medium – you can think of it as a ‘micro-blog’. Twitter allots your customers/ clients a forum within which quick and easy access to your business is possible.  In business, communication with your clients is key – not only do you want to reach out to them, but they want take comfort in knowing that you are accessible to them NOW. And that’s what Twitter can do. Tweet about relevant industry news and information. Tweet links to important articles and news items that you know will be of benefit to your clients. Ask for feedback about new products and services via Twitter. It’s fast, it’s easy, it’s completely interactive and it’s always there – in real time.

3. LinkedIn – LinkedIn is the business connection place within the realm of social media. A LinkedIn profile not only lends credibility to you and your business, but much like Facebook, it becomes an integral means of communication and connecting with people – with business-minded professionals. It provides a platform within which you can promote your services as well as the services of others. And others, in turn, can promote you and your business. Use LinkedIn connections to find jobs, people and business opportunities. Use it to find quality employees for your expanding business. Follow other companies within your industry on LinkedIn to keep up to date on news, important information and available offers. Research companies and people with whom you are interested in doing business and ensure that your profile is complete so that others can research you. Take advantage of features like LinkedIn Answers, LinkedIn Groups and LinkedIn Direct Ads to position your brand in the forefront of people’s minds.

4. Blogging – Blogging is an innovative and creative way of giving people a glimpse into the confines of your business. Your blog is the voice of your brand.  What to blog about? That’s easy! You don’t have to be Ernest Hemingway or Mordecai Richler. As a professional with years of expertise and knowledge, you may not be aware of the depth of information that you have to offer your clients. What’s common knowledge and taken for granted by you is not necessarily available information to the average person. The blog is a place that is easily accessible to your clients, where you can disseminate this information. So go for it – showcase your knowledge – be a smartypants – and an industry leader through your blog!                                                                                   

There’s just SO much information I could share with you on how you can effectively use social networking to your business’ advantage. I could actually teach a whole day’s course on the subject. Hey, wait, I do teach a full day course on the subject. If you want to join, we’d love to see you. Here’s our link: http://escomputertraining.com/socialmedia

Twitter Ads – A Brief Overview

The idea behind Twitter Ads is to “Get your Tweets and your account in front of more people who are interested in your business” -business.twitter.com.

The Twitter ad platform magnifies your presence on Twitter while allowing you to maintain control of your messages.

Here’s a quick explanation of the elements of Twitter Ads from business.twitter.com:

4 REASONS WHY IT’S CRUCIAL TO KNOW YOUR SOCIAL NETWORKING AUDIENCE

Social media is all about engagement and connecting with people.  To successfully run any customer-facing business, the first rule is:  Know your clientele.  And, in social media speak, that means: Know your audience.

Why is this so important?  Because your audience (hopefully comprised in large part of your clients and prospects) is your sole reason for being active on social media sites from a business standpoint.           

Here are four definite advantages to knowing who your audience is and what they’re all about:

1. You’re Able to Better Focus – If you can focus intently on whom you are targeting, it makes it easy to create content that resonates.  And that’s important because generating valuable content that allows you to engage the highest number of people is the essence of your social media business strategy.  

2.  The Walls Come Down – You’re able to listen to what people have to say about your business – the positive as well as the negative – and respond in kind.  Social media is all about, well… being social.  And interactive.  Social networking affords you the opportunity to effortlessly communicate with your audience in an unprecedented manner.  Make communication with clients and prospects a priority.

3. You Can More Readily Respond to Specific Needs – Imagine being able to get to know clients so intimately through social media that you come to the point where you’re able to offer them what they require prior to them asking.  You can make valuable suggestions to them and can tailor your services to fit their specific needs simply because you have made the effort to communicate with them.  Ask lots of questions and interact often.   The ultimate in customer service.

4. You Can Position Yourself as an Industry Leader – When people in your audience have industry related queries or need to be apprised of current information, you want to be the one they turn to.  Make yourself readily available to people on your social networking sites – be the expert. Blog, blog and then blog some more.  Blogging is a prime way of showcasing your wealth of industry knowledge.  And, don’t forget to post links to your blog posts on your other social networking sites.  

For more information on social media and the importance of getting to know your audience through social networking, join one of our Social Networking workshops.  For a schedule of upcoming workshops in your area, please visit: http://escomputertraining.com/socialmedia

MORE PROOF OF THE IMPORTANCE OF A FACEBOOK PAGE FOR YOUR BRAND

If you’ve been reading this blog, or any informational content pertaining to using Facebook for business, you know that Facebook is a meaningful and useful forum within which to promote your brand.  A Facebook page for your business is free of charge, it’s interactive and, of 1000 people surveyed, most (82% of those people who “like” brands) feel that, “Facebook is a good place to interact with brands…”  This is according to an infographic put forth by market research company, Lab42.  In fact, the infographic cites that “87 percent of people Like brands on Facebook”! 

I have included the infographic below for you to see, but just to cite a couple more very interesting findings:

75 percent of respondents felt more connected to a brand on Facebook and 50 percent of respondents feel that …”The brand’s Facebook page is more useful than its website…”  Furthermore, 77 percent agree that they have actually saved money as a result of Liking brands on Facebook!

So, if you don’t think that a Facebook page is relevant for your business, think again!  Time to get started.

Here’s the infographic in its entirety – enjoy…

GRAPH SEARCH: THE “THIRD PILLAR” OF FACEBOOK

And, the Facebook vs. Google rivalry rages on:  First, Google implemented Google+ as a means of making itself more social (and removing itself from the solitary rank of “just a search engine”), in keeping with Facebook’s social networking status.  Then, this past Tuesday, Facebook (commonly known as the largest social network on the planet) implemented “Graph Search” as a means of making itself more useful in the “search” category (although not in the traditional sense – read on…).

The new Graph Search is what Facebook is calling its “third pillar” of service, standing alongside the already implemented News Feed and Timeline.  The concept behind Graph Search is that it allows Facebook users to effortlessly search their “friends’” photos, locations and interests.

But, does Google really have anything to fear?  Probably not.  Graph Search is not a traditional search engine, insofar as it doesn’t search the Web based on keywords.  Graph Search searches are more refined than that and what you’d be searching for on Graph Search would likely not be found on Google.  It’s more ‘friend’ or audience specific than that. In other words, most of the content you will be searching for isn’t public.

Facebook users can now conduct searches that are more personal or intimate, for example, if you want to know whether or not you should shell out twelve bucks to see a just released film, you can search how many of your ‘friends’ have seen and liked the movie.  You can search things like “photos of ‘friends’ taken in the 1970s” or, “’friends’ of ‘friends’ who are male, single and live in Toronto”.  You get the idea.

"Graph Search is a completely new way for people to get information on Facebook," Mark Zuckerberg said at a press conference at the company's headquarters in Menlo Park on Tuesday.  "Graph Search is a really big project. Eventually... we want to index all the posts and all of the content on Facebook. I thought it couldn't be done. This is just some really neat stuff. This is one of the coolest things we've done in a while."

It sounds like it’s all well and good for those who have been waiting for something useful to tap into the wealth of data supported by Facebook, but as with anything else Facebook does, Graph Search has its critics – most of whom are concerned about privacy issues.  Facebook, however, has been insistent that Graph Search will not compromise privacy, claiming that the search feature will not surface any information that is not already publicly available on Facebook. 

Facebook officials stated that, “We’ve built Graph Search with privacy in mind, and it respects the privacy and audience of each piece of content on Facebook.  It makes finding new things much easier, but you can only see what you could already view elsewhere on Facebook.”

So, I’ll look forward to giving Graph Search a try before I pass judgment.  As of right now, Graph Search is available to only a handful of users, but will be rolling out slowly over time.  What do you think?  Ready to give it a try?

Want More Twitter Followers? Here’s What to Do!

I know that by now you’re all using Twitter as a means of branding and getting your business’ messages heard, right?  Good for you!  With Twitter now boasting a whopping 700 million + users worldwide, you’d be remiss in not implementing everyone’s favorite microblog site as an integral part of your social media marketing strategy.  So, how do you ensure that people will actually see and share your posts?  How do you garner a broad Twitter audience?  Read on!     

First and Foremost, Always Remember that Content is King

It’s been said before, and I’ll say it again:  Engaging content is the single most important thing you will require to garner and retain a loyal Twitter audience.  It has to be interesting, informative and even entertaining.  It has to be unique, so be creative and keep coming up with fresh, engaging content.   How do you do that in 140 characters or less, you ask?  Make the short bursts (commonly known as Tweets) your teasers lines and include links to your pertinent blog posts or other interesting and relevant content that your readers will want to devour.  Why not make a game out of it – challenge users with trivia questions and even consider rewarding users who actively engage with recognition as some added incentive.

Post on a Regular Basis

If you want to retain and grow your Twitter audience, people have to know that they’ll always be able to count on you for fresh content.  By fresh, I don’t just mean innovative, but also regular and consistent.  Tweet often!  And, by often I don’t mean 60 times a day.  While you want to keep it interesting, you don’t want to inundate. 

Engage your Followers in Conversation

Literally.  A great way to do this is to ask questions.  People will respond and you can take it from there.  You can ask questions about your services or products to gain insight into what’s working and what’s not.  Encouraging people to talk (or tweet) favorably about your services and products creates brand ambassadors!  You can also sometimes ask questions completely unrelated to your business, for example about a film you’ve just seen or the NHL lockout – whatever interests you and whatever you feel might be of interest to your Twitter followers.  Encourage people to share their thoughts and opinions – most of us love to get the opportunity to do that!  Getting regular, intriguing conversations going is a great way to keep your Twitter followers coming back for more and a great way to garner more followers.  And, a very important thing to do:  Always respond to your followers when they ask you a question, or whenever they post something that warrants a response.  Never ignore your followers!

Make Use of Directories

Did you know that you can list your Twitter account in such directories as Twibes.com and Twellow.com?  Well, you can!  Why not entertain the idea of building lists on key communication streams, making it easier for prospective followers within your industry or with shared interests to find you. 

Make Good Use of Hashtags

Use Hashtags (#) to allow your tweets to be searchable, further enabling them to be seen by other users who share similar interests.  Just stick a Hashtag in front of any keywords within your tweet!

Follow to be Followed

It only stands to reason that the more users you follow, the more users will follow you. When you follow someone, they have the option to follow you.  Not everyone that you follow will want to follow you, but the more you follow, the more that will follow you!

Retweet Quality Content

Retweeting posts that are of interest to you will increase your visibility on Twitter.   People following those that you retweet will view you as someone who shares common interests.  Ensure that you include the @name when you refer to other users, as this will develop relationships.  And, other users who monitor themselves will be sure to notice your retweet!

Tweet at Optimal Times

Yes, there are better times to tweet than others.  For the full scoop, here’s a link to a previous post: http://escomputers.blogspot.ca/2012/01/why-timing-your-tweets-can-pay-off.html

Be Personal and Personable

I mentioned above that using Twitter for business doesn’t mean that all of your tweets have to be business related.  In fact, it’s actually a great idea to sometimes include content that has nothing to do with business.  You want to come off as personable and human, not as a goal-oriented machine.  No one likes to read only industry stuff; everyone likes to read entertaining content.  Don’t be afraid to crack a joke; don’t be afraid to post something controversial and thought-provoking.  But, most importantly – never use automated tweets!!  Oh, yes, people can tell when you do this and it makes you sound impersonal. 

The purpose of social media is to be warm and engaging – social, in fact!  So, be sure that your tweets come off this way and people will want to follow you.

4 WAYS TO INCORPORATE HALLOWEEN INTO YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING STRATEGY

Who doesn’t just love Halloween – horror movies, scary décor, trick or treating (and all that free candy…)!  I know some people (yes, adults) who go more nuts at Halloween than they do at Christmas.  According to Statistics Canada, we spent 331 million dollars on Halloween candy in 2009!  And, according to Value Village’s 2011 annual Halloween shopping survey, the average Canadian planned to spend $300.00 on this very special occasion last year!   

 

Think it might be time for you to scare up some social media marketing tactics to take advantage of this ‘spooktacular’ (sorry, I couldn’t resist) time of year??  Here are a few tricks and treats you might want to try:

1.  Post some Halloween related photos to get yourself and your fans into the spirit.  You can change your profile photos out for something Halloweenie, too, but try to still relate the photos  as much as possible to your business to keep up your branding efforts.  Change out your Facebook business page’s Timeline cover photo for maximum effect. 

2.  Hold a fun Halloween contest for all of your fans, employees and clients to enjoy.  You could have a “Best Costume” or “Wildest Jack-O-Lantern” contest, whereby you could have fans post photos of their costumes or jack-o-lanterns to your page and whoever has the best, wins a prize.  The prize could be anything from a big bag of treats to tickets to a horror movie.  This is a great way to engage with your network.

3.  Post a whole Halloween-related campaign.  A great example of this:   Mike’s Hard Lemonade’s  “Zombie of the Day” campaign.  They used a Facebook application called the “Zombifier”, with which users could upload photos of themselves, and transform themselves into zombies by choosing from a series of horrifying eyes, noses, mouths, wounds, scars and splatter, and clicking & dragging these features over their photos until the desired horrifying effect was achieved.  Every new zombie was featured in a photo gallery and the company posted a new and different “Zombie of the Day” each day. Very cool and so much fun.  And, very smart:  you had to “Like” their page in order to participate!!  

4.  Host a social, Halloween-themed event to network and generate buzz.  It could be a costume party or haunted-house tour.  Promote your event on Facebook and LinkedIn – it’s so easy to do.  Get a bunch of people in your network together and enjoy.   Another great way to engage, engage, engage!!

HOW TO WRITE A FACEBOOK POST WITH AN EFFECTIVE CALL TO ACTION

When using Facebook for business, strategy is everything.  The timing of your posts is relevant, what you post is relevant and how you post is relevant.  Sure, it’s okay to post here and there about the frivolities of life, even when posting for business purposes.  But, it’s also important to remember that your Facebook business page and its posts represent the identity of your business.  And, the end game of your strategy on Facebook is to generate productivity.   So, what’s the most important thing a Facebook post can do?  Provide a call to action, of course! 

Here are some tips on how to create an effective call to action within your posts:

1.  Outline the Benefits – In order for someone to complete a call to action, they should be given the incentive and the benefits to doing so.  Make it clear what your audience will get out of completing the call to action – for example, will your product or service solve a problem?  If so, identify that problem and display how your service or product can serve as a specific remedy.

2.  Don’t be a Bore – This one’s a no-brainer, but mention-worthy just the same.  Ensure that your posts are engaging and interesting to people.  You want to grab their attention and entice them to use your services and products.  So, make your posts fun to read!  And, it’s never a bad idea to add some visual stimulation – include photos wherever possible.  They can exponentially complement your posts.

3.  Keep it Encouraging and Optimistic – As with anything you post on Facebook, the idea again is to try to engage and even entertain.  Your posts should excite and inspire people to want to use your CTA (call to action).  Positive feelings will encourage users to share your posts!  More sharing = greater virality.

4.  Ask a Direct Question – An under-utilized tool when creating Facebook posts, asking questions encourages participation and engagement of your Facebook community.  People will be more inclined to respond by clicking a link or by commenting when asked a direct question – something that they really want to answer.  You can also ask a question that can be answered ‘yes’ when people ‘Like’ it.

5. Be Sure to Include a Link – Not each and every Facebook post requires a link, however, a post with a call to action should contain one (unless the only call to action you’re looking for is a ‘Like’ or a comment.  When your purpose is to direct people to other content, a link is definitely in order.

6.  Sweeten the Deal – There’s nothing like a little extra incentive to encourage people to complete a call to action.  You could, for example, offer a discount on your products or services; you could offer a free token gift (a T-shirt or a water bottle emblazoned with your logo would do).  People are generally more likely to respond when there’s something in it for them.

7.  Follow Through – Okay, so your call to action is effective and people are responding.  Now what happens?  It’s absolutely imperative that the rest of the process be as well laid out as the call to action itself.  The single most important thing to remember is to keep it relatively simple.  You don’t want to make people jump through hoops – don’t ask them to provide any more information than is necessary and don’t make it difficult to navigate once they’re there!

Your calls to action are one of the most vital components within your social media marketing strategy.  When created correctly within your Facebook posts, they can be a very effective means of maintaining a primary objective:  generating business for you!

Just When You Thought LinkedIn Couldn’t Get Any Cooler: Targeted Status Updates Is Now Available to All!

With a gazillion cool features, LinkedIn is by far one of the finest tools for business networking.  And, just when you thought it couldn’t get any cooler – yet another brilliant feature:  Targeted Status Updates.  This feature essentially enhances the relevance of conversations between LinkedIn users and companies.  Originally launched in April, but only made available to a few companies, Targeted Status Updates is now open to all businesses that have LinkedIn Company Pages.  And, that’s over two million!

Targeted Status Updates facilitates the flow of pertinent information between users and the companies they follow.  In the words of LinkedIn project manager, Mike Grishaver, “...companies can now communicate with their followers in a very personalized way and provide content tailored to specific audiences.”

   

Now, when you follow a company on LinkedIn, information, news and updates (industry trends, job opportunities, product & service information, etc.) are sent to the activity stream.  And, the amount of relevant content that you receive is proportional to how much and how often you engage with a company. 

Businesses can target their status updates to users based on company size, industry, function, seniority and geography.  It streamlines the information that you receive and makes it much easier to follow companies.

Here’s how it works:

Log into your company’s LinkedIn page.  Type the content you want to share into the “Share an update” box.  Click on the dropdown menu beside “Share with: All followers”, then click on “Targeted audience”.

The next window you see will read, “Specify a target audience” at the top left.  Select the criteria for your target audience from the options listed across the top of the box:  “Company size”; “Industry”; “Function”; “Seniority” and “Geography”. 

It’s as simple as that!  Now, not only will your status update be visible on your company page, but it will appear on the homepages of followers whom you have targeted via the criteria you selected.

 

And, it doesn’t end there.  Analytics for each post are available following a twenty-four hour period.  The company page admin will be able to see these analytics, which include how many impressions the update received; how many clicks it garnered; how many times it was shared and the engagement percentage, underneath each post. Targeted Status Updates is a brilliant means of streamlining what and to whom you post on LinkedIn. 

According to an article on brandchannel.com, “LinkedIn found that 67% of members follow a company to gain industry insights, 61% for company news, and 49% for the peer community.” 

Targeted Status Updates is a brilliant means of streamlining what and to whom you post on LinkedIn.  Just another way that LinkedIn makes social media marketing a breeze!

About the LinkedIn Breach....Change Your Password, but Enough with the Fretting

There are so many dumb ideas out there about computer security and account security.

Yesterday’s news of a LinkedIn security breaching (of ~6.5M accounts) at 4 p.m. created panic amongst many of the 120 Million+ users (roughly 5% of users).  A day later, I am wondering at the big deal.  If someone logs into my LinkedIn or Facebook account, they can make friends with people I don’t want to know, draw a mustache on my photo.  In reality, there is very little that they could do that you or I wouldn’t notice.  The damage is minimal.  – My advice on social media passwords:  Use one for the social media sites you use, write it down on a piece of paper and put it in a desk and have it safe so you can remember it.  (Most breaches are digital, and not a result of the guy next door rummaging through your belongings.)

As I said, the damage from the LinkedIn breach is minimal.

--Unless of course, you use the same password for bank accounts or confidential information.  These passwords are a different matter.  I will concede, these must be

- changed regularly,

- include numbers and letters,

- not be the name of your dog or honey

- not be an obvious piece of information about you

- be kept in a safe and secure place (not digitally on your laptop).

All in all, take the time to change your LinkedIn password.  Remember though, your life isn’t in jeopardy like the media may have portrayed it,  and cheers to smarter security!