Social Media Explained
By Camille Rodriquez Social media networks are so very different. Each has a distinct set of characteristics, reasons why some folks use it and others do not, and best practices for marketing tactics. If you employ one strategy across all networks, or automate your posts from one platform across others, you will find that your results diminish on some networks. Therefore, it is very important for each business marketer to determine how and why they will strategically use each social network. Your brand reputation and character are at stake. To demonstrate this, we pared down the distinct...
read morePurpose and Goals in Social Media Marketing
By Camille Rodriquez No one would argue that marketing a business is optional these days, but many would debate the methods. The methods and the success stories vary from industry to industry, but is social media one of the successful methods of marketing? A recent survey by Manta, outlined in USA Today, came to the conclusion that “social media is a bust for small businesses.” But when a closer look is taken at the conclusions, some interesting assessments can be made. According to this survey, some of those goals are as follows: 36% want to acquire new customers, 19% are hoping to...
read moreSocial Media Basics – Two Strategies (Part 2)
By Camille Rodriquez In our previous blog, we began exploring two basic strategies for social media marketing – the Search Strategy and the Content Strategy. To review, the Search Strategy is the process of getting your business “found” through SEO, backlinks, and website development. The Content Strategy is about creating or sharing relevant blogs, articles, or videos to create credibility, thought leadership, or referral opportunities. Both are good strategies, and both create numerous options when it comes to social media use. The best marketing actually uses both methods. In Part 2,...
read moreSocial Media Basics – Two Strategies (Part 1)
By Camille Rodriquez When it comes to marketing your business with social media, there are essentially two basic strategies. They are intricately connected, but the methods used in the different strategies are different. To explore this concept, we’ll make a few assumptions: 1. All businesses want to make money. 2. All marketing, even social media marketing, should contribute to lead generation. 3. All lead generation is not equal. Now, let’s take a look at these two strategies. We’ll call the first method a “Search” Strategy, and the second, we’ll call a “Content” Strategy....
read more7 Tips for Improving Your Social Media
No one is perfect. That’s true in every area of life, even social media marketing. The rapid-fire changes to social networks, and how we use them, make it very difficult to be a perfect user of all of the tools or to even know what all of them are. However, everyone has to begin using social media somewhere. We’ve watched the “big” names and the little unknown folks hit home runs at various times with strategies, tips, and helpful information for the social media marketer. But no one does it every time – not even the “big” guys. Largely, that’s because the first “rule”...
read moreMarketing Your Business Is Not About You
Whether we’re talking about social media marketing, print marketing, radio or television advertising, or a combination of all of them, marketers must remember that marketing is not about you or your business. At the most basic level, if all you do is talk about your product, you will bore the audience to tears. Not only that, but your business or brand’s reputation will suffer for it. This is why advertisers such as Budweiser or Dodge spend millions of dollars to create a compelling Super Bowl ad, one that you’ll remember, that may not have anything to do with their product. However,...
read more3 Effective Uses for Promoted Posts
Promoted Posts on Facebook have been around long enough now that most marketers and social media consultants have experimented with them in a variety of ways. As a business owner, whether you’re trying to do your own social media marketing, you have a team of marketing staffers, or you have outsourced your social media, there are a few things you’ll want to understand about Promoted Posts. Specifically, how can you maximize them for your Facebook business page? What Is a Promoted Post? First, let’s review what a Promoted Post is on Facebook. Every time you post a status update, share a...
read moreEffective Media Buying in 2013
By Frankie Rodriquez Business owners will need to pay closer attention to how they handle media in 2013. Today’s business methods require owners to spend with the best return possible. Social media marketing (SMM) is becoming a more prominent player in brand marketing of most businesses by engaging the customer. If you want your business to keep up with industry trends, you are compelled to reach more people through the use of ever-increasing social media channels as part of a comprehensive marketing strategy. The goal of successful media marketing is, of course, a return-on-investment...
read moreSocial Media – Is It Valuable?
If there is one thing that comes up repeatedly in working with clients in a variety of industries, it’s the question of “value.” However, this word is seldom used in these discussions. Words like ROI, cost per platform, time, expense – these are the words most frequently used. But at the heart of them another word is really at stake—“value”. Is there value in social media? That’s really what business owners are asking, whether they hire someone to manage their social media, seek out a consultant, or delegate the task of social media marketing to an existing employee who...
read moreSocial Media – Seasonal Impact
Anyone who has been involved with social media marketing for any length of time will tell you, there are seasons to social media. That doesn’t necessarily mean Christmas and Fourth of July specials, although it might. More likely though, it may mean trends or times of the year that your audience undergoes a significant shift in their attention span. That shift can be upward or downward, but social media marketing needs to take into account seasonal impact and be able to distinguish that type of shift from larger trends or patterns in your audience. As your audience grows, you will...
read moreSocial Media – Adapting to Growth
No matter how vibrant your social media presence is today, you will at some point experience a slump. Your outrageous and “gone viral” post today is only good for today, because social media users have the memory of a butterfly…unless you really mess things up! In cases like that, you’ll likely be in the news for a while, but that’s not the kind of attention most businesses want. With social media, generally speaking, you’re only as good as your last post. That is especially true as your social media presence is growing. Think of it like a party where you’re the...
read moreSocial Media – Don’t Shoot Yourself In The Foot
At some point in every social media campaign, someone on the team suggests a shortcut to the goal. It can come from innocent motives but invariably someone will decide that it would be “easier” to do things a different way than was originally planned. Marketing is a very fluid process, and changes are customary, but do you know the difference between normal changes to a fluid plan and shooting yourself in the foot? In the same way that you would get bored if you ate the same thing for lunch every day of your life, social media thrives on “mixing it up” a bit. Trends ebb and flow...
read moreSocial Media – Patience Always Perseveres
Social media marketing is a fascinating endeavor. Social networks can change overnight, without warning, and new tools are constantly being touted as the “latest and greatest”. There is no end to the challenges that face business leaders trying to stay up-to-date on social media marketing trends and strategies. This can be both exhilarating and frustrating-depending on how many other things are put on hold while figuring out the latest “it” network or tool. Sustaining an interest in this process is difficult. Many business owners jump into social media with lots of...
read moreSocial Media – Creating a Culture
“You gotta’ get your business on social media,” goes the opening line. Whether it comes from a social media marketing company or another charismatic business leader who’s found online success, you’re talked into a new “reality.” That reality tells you that if you just set up a Facebook or Twitter account for your business, the revenue will start rolling in. Overnight…Yesterday, in fact…And if you believe that, we’d love to show you some ocean-front property… Social media-generated revenue doesn’t happen overnight. In...
read moreSocial Media Diversification – 3 Things to Consider
Social media marketing is not a passive activity. It’s true that it doesn’t have to take all of your time, but it’s also true that you will get out of it what you put into it. A little social media for your business is better than none, but more is better than less – assuming that you’re contributing valuable content that serves your customer and fan base, not just yourself! Having said that, most business leaders are either overwhelmed by the choices of social media networks, or they’re over committed on too many networks and marketing poorly. So how do you effectively diversify...
read moreSocial Selling
Business-to-Business (B2B) sales present a unique challenge. Because we’re in the business of doing business, we can see right through a, “Hi, this is so-and-so, and I’m wondering if you have a few minutes” phone call. Don’t come at us with a cold call either, because while we might be interested in what you have to offer, we probably won’t have the time to really hear what you have to say. We’re busy with our own sales goals. And, B2B selling requires a lot of trust, and there’s just no way to do that in an instant with a stranger on the phone. Typically speaking, that kind...
read moreHas Facebook Gone “Pay to Play” for Business?
There’s a rumor going around on Facebook again…yes, again…If I only had a dime for every Facebook rumor… As with all rumors, there is some truth in it, but only some. You’ve probably seen this post by now, but essentially it says that in order to have your posts seen, you have to pay for them. Here’s a screen shot of a business page that posted this message earlier this week – one of at least 6 or 7 of these that we’ve seen: What IS true about this message? It is true that your posts are not seen by all of your Fans. That’s also true for your personal Facebook posts,...
read moreConverting Goals Into Value
Pete Cashmore, founder of Mashable, has said, “Attention is the new currency.” That is certainly true for marketers. When folks pay attention to what you’re saying – via any method of marketing – they are giving up time to listen to you. Time is a valuable commodity, and therefore if you’re using social media for marketing, make sure it’s worthwhile for others. Are you offering value? Are you “being” social or just “doing” social? There is a difference, and it will show in everything you’re doing online. It’s important to have specific goals with your marketing, and...
read moreWhat’s New In Social Media?
This week, I’ll have the opportunity to join the ABWA Fort Bend Chapter for their regular meeting, and I’ll be addressing that very question. If you’re in the area, please consider joining us. Social media is changing all of the time, and there’s a lot to keep up with! While there won’t be time to cover everything, we’ll go over each of the major social media networks and the most recent strategies that are working for that network. Attendees will leave with a “punch list” of steps that they can take to maximize their social media efforts with a...
read more5 Favorite FREE Tools for Social Media Marketing
There are lots of tools out there to stay on top of social media marketing. Everyone has their favorites. New gadgets and gizmos come out all the time, too, so what we like today may be old news tomorrow. So, with some hesitation knowing that this post could be stale before it goes live, here are just a few of our favorite free tools for staying active with social media. (There are other good ones that have fees, and all of these below have Upgraded fee-based options, but we are only addressing free services here.) 1. Hootsuite/Social Oomph – Both of these services have free options as long...
read moreThe Best Marketing Advice Ever
People love to give advice. Sometimes you ask for it, and sometimes it’s just “offered.” The world of social media is full of advice. But, the key to advice is in taking action on it. Agree or disagree, advice is just a bunch of words if you don’t do something about it, and taking no action on it is as good as saying you disagree with the advice given. So recently, when we asked a Facebook question, we were surprised by the similarities of the answers to the question, “What’s the best piece of marketing advice you’ve ever been given?” See if you don’t notice some...
read moreSocial Media Marketing In 15 Minutes Per Day
Business owners may feel that social media marketing is a giant black hole in which employees and staff get sucked into, never to return. There is no question that this can happen if time isn’t managed. Social media is fun, it’s entertaining, and it wouldn’t absorb the attention of millions if it weren’t engaging. However, the business owner usually has one purpose in mind for social media marketing – promoting the business, not playing games. So the question becomes how you can engage in social media marketing for your business without it taking time away from other important...
read moreThe Difference Between a Facebook Strategy and a Google+ Strategy
For the business owner, marketing with social media has its challenges. Among the questions that face you in your marketing, is how to best use the different social media platforms – Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, etc. – to promote your business and your services. There are many reasons to be active on all of the major platforms, but in this article, we want to address specific differences in marketing strategies on Facebook versus Google+. This is not about SEO. This is about content marketing. Yes, SEO is a part of an overall marketing strategy, but that’s where we want to make...
read moreTop 3 Things I Love About Pinterest
Pinterest was a social media platform that I went into with much skepticism. In fact, I had to be talked into it by my children. Let’s not forget that I am in the social media business and they’re not. However, at about the time they were “working on me,” I began to see more and more businesses get involved with Pinterest. Sheepishly at first, I began to play around with it. I am now a fan, and for the business owner, Pinterest has several very powerful advantages. Here are the top three things I love about this network, from a business perspective. 1. Graphics Based – Pinterest is...
read moreThe “One Thing” Rule About Social Media
There’s much to say about social media, whether you’re talking about using it, marketing with it, connecting with it, or all of the above. Recently, however, I was asked to sum up all that I would convey to others about social media into “one thing.” What would that one thing be – the one thing that I would want everyone to know about social media? Assuming that brevity is the point here, here’s how I would sum up “social media.” Pay Attention. Pay attention to what you post, what others are saying, or not saying by their robotic use of social...
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