November 2012

Going Social on Thanksgiving

November 27, 2012/by Corey Padveen

How did Thanksgiving play out on social media?

First of all, we would like to wish everyone a happy Thanksgiving! We hope you enjoyed the long weekend and got some much needed rest. We thought to get you back into the swing of things we would post a coupled of little fun facts showing how Thanksgiving manifested itself in the form of mentions on social media. Take a look at some fun stats below:

Turkey: 36,684 mentions
Pie: 7,891 mentions
Wine: 4,530 mentions
Potatoes: 2,951 mentions
Ham: 1,875 mentions
Apple: 1,807 mentions
Soup: 1,617 mentions
Marshmallows: 1,231 mentions
Sweet Potato: 997 mentions
Squash: 948 mentions

Did you think these would be the top keywords mentioned on social media for Thanksgiving? What other ones can you think of? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

10 Reasons to Use Social Media

November 24, 2012/by Corey Padveen

What reasons can you think of to justify your use of social media?

An effective social media program takes time, an investment and ongoing devotion of resources in order for it to be successful. When launching a social media program, it is often easy for a business to look at what will be involved and reconsider the launch. DON’T! Social media is a crucial element to any business’s success, and here are ten reasons why that is true.

1. Garner Exposure

Thus far in the progress of both mankind and marketing, there is only one place that allows you to market to a billion people with the click of a button (theoretically). Social media networks are one place where hundreds of millions of people gather on a regular basis for the sole purpose of seeing your content. (OK, maybe not all of them are there to see yours specifically, but you understand what we mean.)

2. Generate New Leads

The beauty of these hundreds of millions of users is that each and every one is, in theory, a potential customer! Take advantage of this untapped reservoir of potential clients and use social media to generate new leads that can be nurtured and eventually converted into clients.

3. Build an Online Community

Brand advocates are gold in any business. The best way to turn a lead or customer into a brand advocate, you ask? Give your brand a personality by building an online community of people who love interacting with your brand. This online community will extend far beyond the number of ‘Likes’ of followers you have, and that’s great for business.

4. Target Niche Audiences

People everywhere know from experience how hard acquiring a phone number might be in a social setting, but on a social network, it’s just handed to you along with so much more! This gives you the perfect opportunity to target specific audiences with different campaigns in a much different way than what had previously been done – and for a far lower cost of management!

5. Integrate CRM

Social media provides a perfect environment in which to nurture leads through engagement. Integrating your CRM with your social media will allow you to streamline all of your efforts when it comes to converting leads.

6. Monitor Your Activity

One of the beautiful aspects of social media is the ease with which one can monitor one’s activity. Insights and analytics are available for almost every aspect of your social programs. Analyzing these help you maximize your efforts and minimizes redundancies so your social media programs are optimized for maximum success.

7. Effective Marketing

People are willing to share much more with strangers than they might be with your brand, and social media is a great way to monitor the success or failure of a marketing or advertising campaign. Did you think your edgy politically-themed campaign was going to strike a chord with your audience? Well, they might think differently, and monitoring sentiment and reception on social media allows you to know exactly what your audience is thinking and how to target them appropriately.

8. Increase Your Reach

Extend beyond your immediate networks and explore new audiences which, in turn, will expand your business into new territory.

9. Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

We noted in a post earlier this month that social signals as a result of social media efforts play quite a role in search rankings. So take advantage of what social media has to offer when it comes to getting found.

10. SELL!

It goes without saying, but the goal of every business is sales (of whatever it is you are offering). Businesses that are highly active on social media note in overwhelming number an increase in sales as a result of their efforts on social networks, so don’t let your skepticism get in the way of increased sales.

What other reasons can you think of that support launching a social media campaign? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

ROI from Infographics [INFOGRAPHIC]

November 20, 2012/by Corey Padveen

ROI generated from infographics is impressive! Just check out the infographic below that explains it!

What Does SEO Cost? [INFOGRAPHIC]

November 17, 2012/by Corey Padveen

Ever wonder exactly how much SEO really costs? This helpful infographic breaks it down nicely:

Measure ROI from Social Media Strategies

November 13, 2012/by Corey Padveen

What is the best way to measure a return on your social media strategies?

Perhaps the most frequently asked question when it comes to developing social media strategies for a client is how they can expect to measure a return on their investment. There are a number of factors one can look to when determining what the return might be on social media strategies, and we’ve detailed a few of those below.

Growth of Your Networks

One of the simplest measurements one can look to when evaluating a brand or client’s social media strategies is the growth of one’s networks. Yes, this is a superficial measurement and it seems like a given, but people often forget about the non-fiscal measurements of a return. If a strategy is in place, then the growth of a follower base on Twitter or ‘Likes’ on Facebook means that a very targeted audience is interested in what you have to say, and that is certainly a valuable return. Nearly every one of those contacts is a lead, and knowing how that pool is growing is important to the next steps of any program.

There are number of areas one can look to in order to determine what this growth looks like. For example, Facebook insights offer a tremendous amount of information about your followers. Self-reported demographics like age, gender, location and education are made available to brands on Facebook, and this can help you tailor offers and content to those groups.

Carefully Monitor Your Campaigns

Facebook and Twitter campaigns are a great way to generate some quick sales and new customers, but make sure you are not simply implementing the campaign and watching sales come in. You need to know exactly what your rates of return are in order to maximize the profits generated from the campaign. This, again, should be carefully planned using some of the insights at your avail on different social networks. If, for example, you find that nearly all of your fans are females under 25, don’t offer a product geared towards older males. You might want to start attracting that demographic to your page, but that’s best saved for content as opposed to spending on a campaign.

The last point to consider is when you are not able to monitor your return in a fiscal manner. How do you show a return from social media strategies when there is no direct measurable return from your efforts?

Noting Intangible Returns

Time for some statistics! It’s not going to get terribly complicated, but you will need to do a little research to measure intangible returns from social media strategies, but trust us, it will all be worth it. Intangible returns tend to be the most impressive, and if you can show them properly, it will get your client on board with your social media program no questions asked.

The easiest way to go about this is by taking into account increased benefits as a direct result of the campaign. Say for example, you go through some numbers and deduce that the customer lifetime value (CLTV) for you or your client is X dollars. How this is determined depends on what you or your client offers. You can then study the number of new customers acquired as a direct or indirect result of social media (easily monitored with a Google Analytics Social Dashboard) determine the overall value brought to you or your client’s company as a result of social efforts and implement the following formula:

[(total value added-program cost)/program cost]x100=% ROI

If this generates a positive number, you have gone to show that percentage value added of your social media strategies. (Good job!)

Can you think of any other measurements for the return of social media strategies? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

Top 10 Industries Spending on SEO

November 10, 2012/by Corey Padveen

In which industry should your agency be focusing its efforts to find new SEO clients?

A recent article by Larry Kim on SEOmoz detailed some of his findings after conducting research on a billion dollars of paid advertising spend. The article is packed full of tons of great information on AdWords spend and the future of AdWords spending on Google, and he concluded with a breakdown of the top 10 industries spending money on paid advertising. This is a powerful list if you’re looking for the right industry in which to find your next SEO client, so have a look at the industry, some key players, and the average cost per click below.

Finance ($3.09) — State Farm, Geico, Quicken Loans, Capital One, Bank of America
Travel ($0.29) — Expedia, Hotels.com, Booking.com, Priceline.com, Kayak
Shopping ($0.25) — Amazon, eBay, JC Penney, Walmart, Sears
Jobs & Education ($1.80) — University of Phoenix, Monster.com, ITT-Tech, Devry, Kaplan
Internet & Telecom ($1.11) — AT&T, Sprint, T-mobile, Verizon, Comcast
Computers & Electronics ($1.39) — Bestbuy, Apple, HP, Microsoft, Newegg.com
Business & Industrial ($1.67) — Yellowpages, Staples, uline, Vistaprint, Office Depot
Home & Garden ($0.76) — Lowes, Home Depot, Servicemagic, Kohls, Pottery Barn
Autos & Vehicles ($0.97) — Edmunds, KBB, Autotrader, Ford, cars.com
Beauty & Fitness ($1.11) — QVC, Walgreens, Sephora, Underarmor, Maybelline

The Importance of Social Media in SEO

November 5, 2012/by Corey Padveen

How much weight is given to your social media efforts when it comes to improving SEO?

This has been a major point of debate in the world of online marketing. What value do search engines give to social signals, and how will your social media efforts affect your search rankings? Social media has been around for a few years, social media for business a little less, but search has dominated the web since (or close to) its inception. When social media began to pick up steam for companies a coupled of years ago, the focus when it came to improving search rankings was link building. However, right around the 2011 new year, Matt Cutts revealed that social signals do play somewhat of a role in search rankings. How much? Well, we’re not exactly sure, but whatever it is it should not be ignored.

So, how exactly do social signals factor into your search rankings to help you get found? There is no one answer to this question, as we do not have all the insight into how search engines rank these signals, but it would be sage to assume a few factors that play a role. Facebook Likes, Google+ circles and Twitter followers are one aspect, but the real driving force when it comes to social is your content being seen. Facebook ranks atop the social networks most closely watched by Google for increased rankings. And if your content is floating around Facebook with links, you are in a great position. Searchmetrics posted an article a few months ago that detailed some correlative data between search rankings and social signals. One of the graphs they put together can be found below:

Time and time again we stress that content is king, and this statistical analysis shows it. When your content is shared or retweeted (particularly if it contains links to your website) you stand to benefit greatly when it comes to search. Of course, there is still the issue of keywords and backlinks outside of social media, and top brands stand to benefit the most from this, but if you choose your keywords properly and get your content circulating on social media, you could end up seeing some incredible results with your search rankings skyrocketing.

Community review sites like Yelp! are also a major factor when it comes to search rankings. The number of reviews and the positivity of those reviews is something that search engines take into significant consideration. So in addition to getting your brand on social networks like Facebook and Twitter to increase your social rankings, get fans to post on review sites. This will help increase search rankings in the best way possible: happy customers touting your brand!

So, what should you be watching for when it comes to social signals in determining your ranking on search engines? Google is still working on their ever-evolving algorithms to optimize social signals in their search results, but within a few years, we can expect social signals to be the most dominant factor when it comes to Google rankings. While links are still the dominant factor, social is well on its way to surpassing it, and should certainly not be ignored by any company looking to get found.

Have you taken all the steps necessary to maximizing your social media efforts so as to increase your rankings potential on search engines? Tell us about your strategies below or on Twitter!

Great Halloween Campaigns Using Social Media

November 2, 2012/by Corey Padveen

Who used Halloween to their advantage with social media?

With Halloween having wrapped up, there is no shortage of sweets in everyone’s home. And for some brands, there is no shortage of the sweet use of social media over the course of the month. Below are a couple of great campaigns some brands executed this Halloween.

1. Angry Birds

Millions have played this gaming favorite, and those who haven’t have surely heard about it. Angry Birds is known for its themed versions, and their latest is a Halloween edition of the beloved game. While this is not a conventional campaign per se, we think it is safe to say that the attention this version has generated coupled with the ever-growing fan base of Angry Birds makes this one of the more notable efforts by a brand to use Halloween to their advantage. If you garner attention in some way that intrigues both new and existing customers, then your marketing efforts are paying off.

2. Mike’s Hard Lemonade

Zombies are the new vampires, and Mike’s Hard Lemonade knows it. That’s why they have created an app that allows visitors to their Facebook page to ‘zombify’ themselves by uploading a picture. Once you have been ‘zombified’, you are able to tweak every little detail to show the world your undead self. But that’s not all. In order to increase engagement among users, Mike’s Hard Lemonade allows visitors to see everyone’s pictures and vote for a top zombie. Halloween themes are generally enough to attract some new attention, but to offer people the opportunity to engage with both each other and your brand makes it all the more successful.

3. Progressive

Every loves Flo, the television spokesperson for Progressive insurance, and that was shown last year when people began dressing like her for Halloween. Progressive noted this and decided to capitalize on the success of the character by allowing people to download and use branded knickknacks for their Flo costume. When you can get people to advertise your product just because they want to, you have struck gold, and that is what Progressive saw with this year’s campaign.

Can you think of any other brands that used social media effectively this Halloween? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

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