HowDoIMarketMyBiz.com

Posts Tagged ‘Media Marketing’

Have you seen any Twitter hashtags on your favorite shows lately? I’ve started noticing this myself and then read a great article in TV Guide Magazine about the introduction of hashtags (#) scrolling at the bottom of your TV screen for certain shows.

Just last week, “#Glee” was shown throughout the entire episode of Glee and “#AmericanIdol” is loving their real time Twitter Tweets from devoted fans during the show itself.

Many broadcast and cable networks are now starting to add Twitter hashtags to the bottom of their shows: Fox, CBS, NBC and Comedy Central included. Fox marketing president Joe Earley says, “We thought if we provided the official hashtags, then more posts would aggregate.” Joe is right. If you want to aggregate information to view real time activity on your brand, name, product or service, hashtags are the way to go.

Monitter.com is a great online resource that lets you monitor hashtags in real-time from their website. You can even monitor up to 3 hashtags at once, which appear in three columns with the newest tweets in each column popping up at the top. It’s a powerful way to see trends and get in on the conversation that people are having, real time!

As DVR’s become more popular, social media is now helping TV networks drive people to watch their favorite shows in real time so they can be part of the conversation. In fact, NBC just launched NBC Live, a whole site devoted to promoting its shows via social media, while CBS just recently held its own “Tweet Week” devoted to its shows.

Social is starting to weave itself into the daily fabric of our lives, from the computer to our phone, to the way we search for information online and watch TV (which you can also do from your phone). So much cross over is very exciting for those of us in the social media industry. If you are not using the power of Twitter or Facebook to promote your business, you need to take a look at these results below and then ask yourself why not?

Last month, Comedy Central jump-started the hashtag trend with its Comedy Central Roast of Donald Trump. The network reports that the show became it’s “most watched in history” and credited some of that success to its decision to run a “#trumproast” hashtag at the bottom of the screen throughout the special. Analysis shows that the “#trumproast” hashtag was used more than 27,000 times on Twitter during the telecast. That’s a lot of social activity for a 1 hour Television show.

Think there is no power in social media? Think again!

I’m speaking at the Good Ol Gals Women’s Business Networking meeting Tuesday October 26th at 7:30 – 9am regarding the very important topic: Why Keywords are your Key to Online Marketing Success.

Online marketing is here, now. A business must have an online presence to survive and if you do not know what your keywords are, you don’t know how people are searching online for your products and services, so, you can’t be found.

And, if you are aware of what your keywords are, do you know where to use them online for optimal results? Come to this meeting and learn how to identify your keywords and where they must be placed online to improve your Search Engine Rankings.

The Good Ol Gals Scripps Ranch/Poway meeting meets every 4th Tuesday morning of the month, at Mimi’s Café on Mira Mesa Blvd. When you join us on October 26th, you’ll get to meet a great group of women, network about your business, and learn how to improve your online marketing results through knowledge and placement of keywords.

I hope to see you there. Sign up at Good-Ol-Gals.com.

Joann Whetstine
Social Media Marketing Consultant

I’m so excited to attend the Facebook Success Summit #fbss10 this month. I’ll be posting to my blog with a recap of the key takeaways from the presentations. It’s very important to me to stay current on what is going on in the dynamic space of social media marketing, and that is why I am taking part in this virtual webinar series through the month of October. With people spending a 55 minute average amount of time on Facebook, you want to make sure your page is a great experience for fans and also “sticky” enough so they will want to keep coming back.

How to Create a Compelling Facebook Presence that Generates Profits
Social Media Marketing guru, Mari Smith gave a wonderful presentation with a 6 step Facebook strategy. Once you have set your goal for using Facebook, these are the steps to follow to achieve it:

1. Design – Make sure your Facebook Welcome page is designed to meet your goal (ie. Are you trying to get more people to opt in to your list? Make sure to include your email collection box.)
2. Content – Decide how often (frequency, time of day) to post good content to your fans and what kind. (links, videos, other people’s content.)
3. Promotion – Decide how often to run special offers, coupons and promotions.
4. Engagement – Make sure you are engaging your audience with questions and fun.
5. Conversion – Are the fans buying or doing the action you’ve requested of them (ie. Joining your list, commenting on your wall). Track as much as possible.
6. Scalability – When your fans grow into the thousands, do you have the internal support staff to continue your current level of service?

How to Build and Manage a Loyal Fan Base
Amy Porterfield and Cindy King, managers of the Social Media Examiner Facebook Fan page, gave a great talk outlining how they keep their fans engaged and happy. Here are their 5 tips:

1. Engagement – Respond to every post and use their name so it is personal.
2. Ask Questions – You don’t always have to ask something specific to your brand (ie. What is your favorite frosting.)
3. Use @ Tags – If your fan page has a personal profile behind it and you are “friends” with the fans, you can “tag” their name in a post to build relationships.
4. Use 3rd Party Articles – Reference someone else’s article and then pose your own question or comment about it.
5. Negative Comments – If you receive negative comments, don’t ignore or delete. Use it as a time to shine.

The Power of Facebook Advertising
Facebook has exceeded Google in the weekly market share of total internet traffic. Facebook is now the largest display advertising in the world as of 1st Quarter 2010, surpassing Yahoo. Chris Treadaway told us about how you can easily test Facebook ads and how extremely targeted and cost effective they are.

Chose to show your ad based on geographics, gender, age, birth date or marital status. Pick keywords people display in their profile. Choose to exclude those already following you. You’ll see the estimated reach numbers before you make the ad live. You can choose from the self service option spending as little as $1 per day or sponsored ads, with a $5k minimum. Be sure to run your ad for at least 7 days to get results, before deciding to change copy, headline or photo images. Track results over time to determine the ad that works the best for conversion.

Again, before you can get the results you want using Facebook for business, be sure to set a clear goal then follow some of the suggestions above to achieve it. If you need social media training or help with social media strategy, I can help.

I’m excited to be interviewed on by the team at Conscious Social tomorrow with their webinar “5 Keys to Social Media Success”. On the webinar, I will be sharing tips and showing examples of how businesses are being successful using social media marketing.

Conscious Social is an online community that offers FREE Social Media Webinars hosted by Laura Rubinstein & Karriann Graf. You can find them in Twitter at @KarriannGraf and @CoachLaura. Visit ConsciousSocial.com to attend my webinar for free and keep coming back to them to hear other experts reveal their marketing tips every week. You’ll also have access to time leveraging tools, and learn insider social media tricks.

Learning to navigate the Social Media spaces is definitely something you need to be taught in order to use your time efficiently. I highly recommend Conscious Social webinars as a great online resource. And, if you are looking for one-on-one, in person, Social Media training in San Diego, I can help. Or, if you are a small to medium sized business that does not have the in-house resources to facilitate your own social media campaign, HowDoIMarketMyBiz.com provides monthly social media services, speaking as your company voice.

YouTube is now the second largest search engine, next to Google. Four times as many small biz owners now have video on their websites as they did one year ago making video not only the present but also the future of social media marketing. If you are not taking advantage of video in your social media campaigns, you need to be.

YouTube is another great social media site that is free to use, all it takes is your time. I recommend to all my clients that they set up their own keyword rich YouTube channel and post with frequency to their Facebook page and embed video in their own blog posts.

On websites that have video, the average viewer stays 6 minutes. On websites without video, the average viewer stays 57 seconds. Video is great for engaging your prospective customer for LONGER, which can boost your conversion rate.

It’s important to not only have a professional video created, but, also to get a flip cam and create your own quick messages on the spot. Both are effective and achieve the goal of allowing your potential customer a way to learn more about you and become pre-sold on your products or services.

Plus, video can help you make that all important PERSONAL connection with your prospective clients and in this day and age of social media, building relationships is what it’s all about.

Visit my friend at http://jilladdison.com to learn more and get a top quality, professional video created at a reasonable price.

Contact me today for a FREE Social Media Marketing Report!

• Do you know how to use Social Media to get new customers?
• Are you looking for better and easier ways to market your business online?
• Were you aware that Facebook, Twitter and a Blog can help your business be found in Google search when you use your “keywords”?
• Did you know that Social Media is new newest way to network online?

Don’t miss your opportunity to get new customers and get the word out about your business, products, services or fund raising efforts using social media.

If you are in business you need to be using online marketing. If you are not yet using social media marketing or you have created social media accounts in Twitter and Facebook and are saying to yourself… “Now What?”, please email me to receive my FREE Social Media Marketing Report: “Top 5 Reasons Businesses Should Use Social Media Marketing”.

“I don’t have time”… “I don’t know how”…

If you know you need to start using social media but “don’t have time” or “don’t know how” to use these tools, I am here to help with training, consulting or implementation of your social media marketing campaign. I have over 15 years of experience in corporate Direct Marketing and I am trained in social media. I am dedicated to helping businesses add social media marketing to their traditional marketing plan for increased results.

Call or email me today for your FREE report.

And, if you don’t have time to read my free report, call me for a free 1/2 hour consultation via phone or in person (if you live in San Diego, CA) and I’ll tell you why your business MUST be using social media marketing!

Contact Joann Whetstine
Social Media Marketing Consultant
#858-212-8185

joann@howdoimarketmybiz.com

http://www.HowDoIMarketMyBiz.com

twitter.com/howdoimarketbiz
facebook.com/howdoimarketmybiz
linkedin.com/in/joannwhetstine

Here’s my last installment of notes from the Social Media Success Summit webinar. These are great social media marketing tips from two top bloggers. Blogging is so important to getting your keywords found online and having a social media marketing strategy in place BEFORE you begin your social media efforts in Facebook, Twitter and your blog will help you achieve your business goals.

“Making Your Blog a Social Media Destination”
There are 1.8 billion people online which equals 26% of the world population. You’ve got to be found online and dominate search results for your keywords. So, what can a blog do for you? Technorati’s “State of the Blogosphere” reports these numbers about blogging:
71% = Blogging provides greater visibility for your company
63% = It gets clients to purchase
56% = Helps you be regarded as a thought leader
40% = Makes you more visible so you are asked to speak at conferences on your product/service

If that’s not enough, here are more reasons why you should blog: Enhances reputation, Establishes your brand, Builds credibility, Helps you get traffic (SEO), Helps you build your list and most importantly, it Brings you more business! Be sure to create great content, use your keywords, and tap into what your readers want. Via @denisewakeman

“Easily Integrate Social Media Into Your Marketing Mix”

Some people are just broadcasting in social media spaces and not responsive to customer service and replying to people. Don’t create a social media account unless you have a strategy in place to support it. Social media is about the pre-sale and relationship building. Once they love you, they will refer. Find out what your audience is interested in and give it to them in the way they want it. Talk to people about their problems then direct them to your articles that solve that problem. Network with those people who influence your audience for a bigger reach. Via @chrisgarrett

I love learning more and more about the dynamic, ever changing landscape of social media marketing. As it is still a relatively new industry, keeping current on what other companies are doing is essential to building your own strategy. Here’s some additional notes I’ve complied from the recent Social Media Success Summit #SMSS10 webinar series that can help you with your social media marketing efforts.

“Facebook Engagement – Building a Loyal Fan Base”
You have 420 characters to add compelling content to your Facebook page that adds value to your readers. Mix up the media of your content by using: blogs, articles, podcasts, videos, photos, interviews or slide shows. Post tips, questions, How-To Tutorials, polls, quotes and info on events. You can even post other people’s content. Make use of the FBML app and add a custom Welcome Page to your site. You could see a 45% improvement in conversion! The new “Like” app adds the element of social proof and when someone clicks it, it pushes out into their news feed. Very powerful marketing! Via @marismith

“Using Social News Sites to Grow Your Audience and SEO”
Using social bookmarking sites, such as the largest one, Digg.com with 350 million users, can support your SEO efforts when you publish content that gets shared. The top 50 users there provide 41% of the content. To participate in this space, you need to research the community you are interested in and become part of the subculture. Your headline should include a number, an adjective and a keyword for the best success. You should plan to build a relationship with a top user in Digg to have them post your content. Do your homework. Approach them with what they are interested in. Via @msaleem

“Twitter Power Panel”
@problogger @copyblogger @chrisbrogan Shared their strategies for using Twitter. Great stat: 44% of twitter users are the 1st to buy or try a new product before others. Build relationships before asking for the sale: send @ messages to people, get involved in the conversation. Twitter is a great tool for: promotion, info sourcing, conducting search, listening, promoting others, finding business opportunities, building your brand, building trust and authority, driving traffic! Make your posts useful, personal, relational and regular.

The Social Media Success Summit #SMSS10 continues to deliver powerful information on how you can utilize social media marketing in your business.

“8 Steps to Creating a Winning Social Media Strategy”
@JayBaer wants us to remember that tools change, so, start with a strong strategic plan for your social media efforts. Make sure you have a team at your office to support it. Decide who your audience is and don’t forget to listen to them. The best way to break through is make the company human. Tell stories or your customer’s stories (remember Jared from Subway?). Get beyond the features and benefits and make people feel your passion.

“How Mobile Marketing Can Improve Social Media”
@kimdushinkski wants you to know that even if you don’t think you are mobile, if you are sending email and someone checks it from their phone you are! You should even consider having a web page to your main site that is optimized for mobile so people can easily see how to contact you on their 2 inch phone screen. If you are ready to dip your toe into the mobile marketing waters, both Twitter and Facebook offer SMS test message feeds your fans and followers can subscribe to.

“The Future of Social Media”
@steverubel says that trends develop slowly but are timeless. Remember that people need to hear your message 3 to 5 times from 3 to 5 different sources for it to sink in. Tap into free tools online and become a data junkie to figure out what unmet needs are on the rise that you can provide the solution for and create content that will be passed around. All roads to content lead through Google, so, make friends with Google Insights. You could rise to the top of a search category if you are digitally visible in enough places. Klout.com is a great place to find out “who the world is listening to”.

As the Social Media Success Summit #SMSS10 webinar series continues, I wanted to share with you some tips and ideas to consider for your social media strategy.

“5 Social Media Case Studies”

@marketingprofs Ann Handley spoke about companies using social media and what they were doing well. Her main point was that your social media efforts should be Friendly, Focused and Fertile. Make sure you reach people on a lifestyle level, not just focusing on your products and services. Find out what people care about and create your social media campaign around that. A great example was a Fan Page from FiberOne called “Coping with Disbelief Clinic”: the disbelief is that the product is “high in fiber, but still tastes great”. They use videos and the branding for the product is low key, but, it’s very creative and 22,000 people are participating and creating characters to interact at the “clinic”.

“How to Bring Raving Customers to Your Local Business”

Groupon’s @andrewmason and Four Square’s @tristanwalker were on the panel for this discussion. Groupon harnesses the power of group buying with a daily offer to their subscriber list of 5 million people, in 60 cities. This service is great for a business because Groupon only gets paid if the deal goes live, which is set by the response rate. So, it’s a great alternative to newspaper ads. Something to look into if you are a brick and mortar.

Four Square is a mobile social application which “makes cities easier to use”. You are incentivized to explore your city and “check in” where you are. Consumers get points and businesses offer special offers to the “mayors” or, those who visit most frequently. Starbucks saw a 15 – 20% increase in check-ins when they launched a Four Square campaign offering free coffee.

“Creating Buzz With Social Media Contests”

@mike_stelzner spoke about why to hold social media contests. They: drive traffic, sell products, excite customers, increase exposure, provide goodwill, engage customers and are fun and memorable! Bottom line is that it should offer a compelling reward and make them very easy to participate in. To see big results, you need partners and those with a large following to help spread the word.