Social Media for Business Archives

10 Best Brands on Social Media in 2013

December 30, 2013/by Corey Padveen

The end of the year is all about the best of the year, and these are the 10 best brands on social media in 2013.

One of the best things about the end of the year is that the web is populated with endless “Best Of” lists to commemorate the year we have experienced. 2013 is no different. And thanks to Starcount, we have a great infographic telling us about the best brands in 2013 and how they pushed boundaries and made their mark.

Every brand on this list is recognizable, and understandably so. As icons in social business, these companies have leveraged social media in the past year to expand their reach into new markets – both domestic and foreign.

Have a look, see which brands you think did the best job on social media in 2013, and have a very happy New Year!

10 Great Resources to be Reading Over the Holidays

December 27, 2013/by Corey Padveen

If you have some down time, have a look at these ten excellent resources that every digital marketer should be reading over the holidays.

1. Mashable

It’s no secret that we love Mashable. There is a ton of great content constantly being uploaded to inform marketers about updates to networks, as well as how-to guides and industry news. It is definitely a resource to check out periodically over the holiday season. We have even included it in a list of great resources for sourcing blog content.

2. Hubspot

Another blog that every marketer should be reading over the holidays (and during business-as-usual) is the Hubspot blog. The largest inbound services provider is always sharing great information that can be used by a marketer in any field.

3. Social Media Today

If your looking for a great set of content being shared by social media industry experts, then Social Media Today has you covered. With articles being published regularly, you can expect to find some brand new content over the holiday season.

4. Search Engine Journal

If you want to know about search, then Search Engine Journal should be one of your top stops. There is always a selection of great content to choose from covering everything from organic SEO to paid search tactics.

5. Alltop

Guy Kawasaki’s content curation site is always pulling in some of the best content from around the web. While it is not limited to industry content, you can easily filter your searches to include only results in search or social.

6. Moz

The Moz blog is a little more technical, but highly informative. Though the core discussions of the blog are primarily search-based, you can expect to find a lot of information about social as well.

7. Social Media Examiner

At this point, most social marketers know about Social Media Examiner. The website won’t miss a beat over the holiday season, continuing to share great content every day that marketers can really use.

8. Occam’s Razor

Although Avinash Kaushik’s blog is not updated on a daily basis, there is plenty of content (relaying information at a very high level) that marketers can use. Why is this a good resource for reading over the holidays? Well, simply put, articles are not easy reads. There is a ton of information here, but with this down time it is a perfect opportunity to absorb what he has to say.

9. Jeff Bullas

Again, Jeff Bullas is not publishing new content every day, but what is available is years of published content with a ton of great information. Jeff Bullas focuses primarily on lists and statistics, and what you can find on his blog can lead you to more great content all over the web.

10. Top Rank Blog

Lee Odden’s blog is another great resource being updated regularly over the course of the holidays. Be sure to stop by to see what great new information he has to share.

And there you have it. Ten great resources that you should be reading over the holidays. We hope you are relaxing and getting some much deserved R&R. Enjoy!

Social Media Holidays Wishlist [INFOGRAPHIC]

December 23, 2013/by Corey Padveen

What were people asking for most on their social media holidays wishlist this year?

Social media is a place where people go to talk about things they like, want, need and, around this time of year, a place for people to make social media holidays wishlists. Just look at what happened to one lucky girl on Reddit when Bill Gates was her Secret Santa!

So what were some of the most talked about gifts this year on social media? Take a look at the breakdown in the infographic below, and see if anything you hope to get made it onto the list.

What do you hope to find under the tree or in your stocking? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

Tips for Tumblr Beginners [VIDEO]

December 21, 2013/by Corey Padveen

If you’re using Tumblr, then you should follow these helpful tips for Tumblr beginners!

Changes to Google in 2014

December 20, 2013/by Corey Padveen

Google updates its algorithm roughly 500 times per year, so we can expect some significant changes to Google in 2014.

Changes to Google are not uncommon. Very recently, Google completely overhauled their primary algorithm and introduced the world to Hummingbird. In 2014, we won’t necessarily see a move quite as significant (the last time Google implemented such an update was over a decade ago) but we can surely expect to see some changes to Google and the way we, as marketers, should adapt for it.

Focus on Conversation

If we know one thing for certain about Hummingbird, it is that it focuses on the conversational aspect of search. The assumption should no longer be that people are looking for, “Buy black winter hat cheap,” but rather, “Where can I buy a cheap black winter hat?”

The latter is referred to as a ‘soft search’ and this is the direction in which we need to focus our efforts as search and social marketers. Google made it clear when they introduced Hummingbird that it will integrate very heavily with Google’s social layer, which focuses on conversation in Google+ and other social networks.

In 2014, we should expect this focus to increase and optimize our content for these kinds of soft searches as opposed to focusing on keyword density (but that’s nothing new).

Focus on Social (Even More)

Expanding on that point about the social layer, changes to Google in 2014 will surely include an even greater focus on social activity. The reason why Google has transitioned to a soft search approach is because of how many people turn to social media in order to conduct their searches now.

When over 95% of people trust the recommendations made by friends and family, you know they are more likely to quickly post a question (like the winter hat example above) to Facebook while conducting their own research on Google. Considering links on social networks contribute (quite significantly) to improved search rankings – and we can expect that contribution to rise in the coming year – this should continue to be a focus for your brand in 2014.

Focus on Mobile

The world is going mobile. In fact, estimates suggest that by the end of 2013 (so, in other words, now) there will be more mobile devices than there are people on Earth. And by 2017, there will be an estimated 1.4 mobile devices on Earth per person. Suffice it to say that mobile is important.

As mobile devices become smarter and more user-friendly, people will increase their use of their mobile devices and slowly move away from their desktop. Not to mention the fact that in the developing world, mobile devices are much more readily accessible than desktops. One of the major changes to Google in the coming year is going to be an increased focus on mobile.

Ensure that your website, app and all of your content are optimized for mobile in order to ensure that it is easily shareable and discoverable. Over the course of the year, Google will be sure to incorporate mobile readiness into search rankings in a much bigger way.

Focus on Google+

The fact that there are still detractors from the platform is mind-blowing. This is a social network owned an operated by a search giant that openly tells people to focus on social media. What better place to share your content than on that platform’s social network?

Every year, Google+ becomes more important to search. Bit by bit, Google is transforming their business structure to become a more social company. Doesn’t it behoove your brand to be active on the networks they own?

These are just a few of the changes we can expect to come from Google in 2014. What will you do differently? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

Why Your Facebook Posts Organic Reach is Down

December 19, 2013/by Corey Padveen

A lot of brands have noticed that their Facebook posts organic reach is down and many are asking why.

More and more, brands are noticing that their Facebook posts organic reach is down, and continuing to drop. This is not the first time companies have noticed a dip in reach and engagement, but there is something unique about this change: Facebook is acknowledging it.

Yes, it’s true. The reach of your page posts is not going to be quite as far without some financial stimulation. After all, Facebook is a business with a valuation roughly ten times its revenue, and they are going to have to find a way to even that out. So what is their answer? Make brands pay for their marketing efforts.

What is happening?

About a year ago, Facebook’s EdgeRank algorithm underwent some changes and brands started to see a decrease in reach. According to Facebook, this was their way of providing people with the best possible experience and removing spam from individuals’ news feeds. This time around, Facebook is being much more blunt about what they are doing.

It is no secret that brands use Facebook for marketing efforts. Sure, the approach on the network is a much softer sell than say, on their website. But still, Facebook is a marketing and advertising medium, and the social network realizes that. So, another recent overhaul of the Facebook algorithm has resulted in this: brands have to pay to play.

The paradise of ‘free’ (and I use that word very lightly) marketing is over. With over a billion users, Facebook is no longer letting brands access these pools of potential customers without paying for permission. In a recent publication by Facebook, it was revealed that brands are going to need to consider investing in the network in order to reach fans in their news feeds.

Why are brands upset?

This is pretty clear. Brands have spent a tremendous amount of time and resources building loyal fanbases. Now, Facebook is telling them that that they are going to have to pay to reach that audience.

So naturally, companies are asking, “What was the point of building up my audience if I was just going to have to pay for people to see my content?” Well, that’s a fair point. But there are certain benefits to advertising that very few brands have taken advantage of to date; they’re going to have to now.

What’s so great about advertising?

Facebook advertising offers a whole selection of great targeting options. In addition to the usual demographics, brands can also choose to target users by device (FYI, mobile is the way to go), pages liked and even interests!

Even if you had built a large audience on Facebook, you still would not have been able to specifically target these users. All you could do was post to your page and hope for the best.

What’s more, advertising on Facebook is still very inexpensive. Currently, only 4% of companies on Facebook are leveraging the power of ads. Facebook needs to keep them affordable if they want people to take advantage of them. So, before prices skyrocket (look at Google AdWords for competitive categories) your brand should take advantage of the great advertising platform.

Have you noticed a drop in your Facebook posts organic reach? Tell us if you plan on advertising in the comments below or on Twitter!

The Best Holiday Video Campaigns of 2013

December 18, 2013/by Corey Padveen

Creative holiday video campaigns are always something people look forward to, and 2013 did not disappoint.

This year, quite a few brands decided to take a crack at the viral route and create a holiday video campaign that they felt would touch the hearts of the millions that watched and make these brands top-of-mind – if they weren’t already. But there is something different about marketing during the holidays that not every brand understands.

While the holiday season is make-or-break for many companies, it is also a time of giving, sharing and coming together. So, the aggressive salesperson angle will usually fall flat. This is the time of year when creativity needs to reign supreme, and these five brands did exactly that.

Instead of approaching the season as a time to sell, they approached as a time to give, laugh and, perhaps most importantly, make people feel good. The holiday video campaigns put together by the five brands below are certainly among the best this year, and some of the best we have ever seen.

Have a look and pick your favorite!

WestJet Christmas Miracle: Real-Time Giving

This is as heartwarming as it is impressive. A lot of thought went into creating this brilliant campaign and it does a lot to make you seriously consider abandoning all other airlines for WestJet.

John Lewis Christmas Advert 2013 – The Bear and the Hare

As noted above, this time of year is all about friendship and coming together. John Lewis, a UK-based retailer, made the millions of people who watched this video feel something very strong without using a single word.

Heineken – Carol Karaoke

Taking chances isn’t necessarily the first thing one thinks of when asked what comes to mind at the holidays. But Heineken managed to make that the focal point of this holiday ad.

Apple – Misunderstood

With an alternative perspective on today’s glued-to-your-phone culture, Apple helps people relate to technology on a much more personal level with this moving ad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ImlmVqH_5HM

K-Mart – Show Your Joe

Last but certainly not least, we all love to laugh. This funny advert from K-Mart leaves viewers with a chuckle again, without the use of a single word. It takes great creative minds to make people react without a blatant call-to-action.

And there you have it! These are five of the best holiday video campaigns of the 2013 holiday season. Which one is your favorite? Did you love one that wasn’t listed? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

Landing Page Best Practices for a Google AdWords Campaign

December 17, 2013/by Corey Padveen

Your landing page is the first impression people get of your business when they click on an AdWords ad, so stick to the best practices.

For anyone who has ever looked into running an AdWords campaign, it is no secret that Google tries very hard to filter out the “bad eggs” by forcing users to adhere to certain guidelines. That extends to landing pages. But even if your ad and landing page are approved, you still need to ensure that you have stuck to some landing page best practices in order to drive conversions with your campaign.

Your Homepage is Not a Landing Page

Technically, your homepage is a page on which visitors can land, but that does not make it a suitable landing page.

You should not be directing people to your homepage. Generally, people click on an AdWords ad because it relates to their search. You are advertising a product, service or bit of information about something relevant to the person searching on Google. Send them to the page that is most relevant to that search’s keywords.

If you expect people to start searching through your website after you have directed them to your homepage, you’re wrong. You’ll see a much higher bounce rate and lower time on site and pages viewed if you place the burden of finding relevant information on the visitor.

Include a Clear Call-to-Action

It might seem sales-y, but if you do not provide people with a clear means of getting in touch with you or letting you know that they want to take the next step, they won’t.

The process needs to be made as simple as possible. Show them a clear space designated for their email address, name, phone number or any other bit of information you want to collect. Again, make it as easy as possible for visitors to take the next step will result in a much greater likelihood that they do.

Give Plenty of Information

People hate being confused. There is a reason why Google best practices for ads does not let advertisers create ambiguous ads with lots of flash. (For example, an ad that reads, “Do you want to make money NOW?!?!” will certainly be rejected.) The same concept applies to your landing page.

Put yourself in the shoes of the visitor. You see an ad that looks enticing. You click on it. You arrive at a page with lots of big text and flashy images, but everything is cryptic in nature. Sentences like, “Looking for the next big thing?” and “You could retire when YOU want!” will scare people off. They scream scam.

Focus on providing people with as much information in the simplest format possible. They clicked on your ad because it appealed to what they were looking for. When they get to your landing page, it should tell them what you are offering and give them a chance to find out more. (See the CTA best practice above.)

Test Your Landing Pages

You should always test different landing pages to see what strategies work best. Little things like the placement of your call-to-action can make a big difference in your conversion rates.

Let each page remain active for enough time in order to determine what is working and what is not, then take what you have learned into account when creating a new campaign or landing page.

Allow for Social Sharing

When you include social sharing buttons on your landing page, you give your audience the opportunity to do some of your work for you.

If you are running a cost-per-click or cost-per-acquisition campaign, your costs can start to pile up. If you give your audience a chance to share your content to social networks, or invite their friends to sign up for your service, you are both cutting your AdWords costs down and creating brand advocates to create awareness for your new product or service.

Follow these landing page best practices in order to get the most out of your AdWords campaigns. The ad is just the first part of the process!

What other best practices can you think of when it comes to running a Google AdWords campaign? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

What You Need to Know About Instagram Direct and Snapchat

December 16, 2013/by Corey Padveen

Late last week, Instagram launched Instagram Direct and now the world wants to know how it compares to Snapchat.

Instagram Direct comes just a short while after Snapchat turned down Facebook’s almost surreal offer of $3 billion. Well, if Snapchat thought they were holding all the cards, it seems as though they never considered Facebook’s contingency plans.

Instagram, as we all know, is a mobile photo-sharing app. Originally, users could tag friends in captions and make their profiles private. This was the only way to privatize the public network. Now, with Instagram Direct, users have the ability to send pictures to a select group of friends that only they can see. Sound familiar?

Well, if it does, that’s because the premise is very similar to Snapchat’s model. The difference rests in the fact that Snapchat’s appeal is the disappearing nature of images sent. They will only stick around for at most ten seconds (or thirty, if you are using the Story function). However, Instagram offers a few things that Snapchat does not and vice versa.

The Similarities

When one looks at Instagram Direct, it is clear that the feature was designed to compete directly with Snapchat. Users can take pictures, select a group of friends with whom to share the images, reply to images shared and filter their friends lists with both services.

The popularity of visual content is no secret. (There is a reason why Facebook bought Instagram for $1 billion and offered Snapchat $3 billion.) Offering users a way to communicate with pictures? Priceless. It makes sense that apps like Instagram and Snapchat are so popular. But it is the differences that will determine a winner in this battle for photo-conversing supremacy.

The Differences

Snapchat images disappear. That is perhaps the biggest appeal of the app. You can feel safe knowing that any picture you take will disappear from viewers’ sight in at most ten seconds. With Instagram Direct, images will remain archived in a conversation. The benefit here is that Instagram Direct is designed for an actual, ongoing conversation to take place between a select group of friends either through comments of shared images. On Snapchat, images might be fun to share, but there is no way to like them, comment on them or maintain an ongoing conversation without simply sending a disappearing image back to the original sender.

As for editing, Snapchat allows users to post comments directly on an image and draw with their fingers. Instagram Direct allows for filters to be applied (as with traditional Instagram photos) and captions to be written. Once again, in terms of a conversation, Instagram opens up the possibility of conversing either through images or written responses. Snapchat, on the other hand, relies on a user responding with an image.

Snapchat is still ad-free and that makes people happy. Instagram has started sharing ads, and that makes people sad. (Or mad, if you have had a chance to read some of the comments.) But the reality of the situation is that these apps are businesses. Billion-dollar businesses need revenues. Ads generate revenues. Apps need ads. Snapchat had the option of remaining ad-free (for now) and integrating with Facebook as a free feature of the network. They chose to decline the acquisition request and are now left to figure out how revenues will be generated. Instagram will presumably make its money from ads on the public feeds, and Instagram Direct will remain ad-free so that friends can have uninterrupted conversations while staying on the network.

The Winner?

Time will tell.

Snapchat might see this move as an attempt by Facebook to quash the photo-sharing app after they rejected their offer. At least, that is how they will see it for now. Hundreds of millions of snaps might be sent every day on Snapchat, but you have to wonder if the investors that just fed Snapchat with another $50 million are a little nervous now that they see this new feature on Instagram. There is no revenue being generated by Snapchat and now there is what appears to be a very serious competitor emerging.

Do you use Snapchat? Do you plan on using Instagram Direct? Why or why not? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!

Google’s Latest Patent: Taking the Social Out of Social Media

December 13, 2013/by Corey Padveen

One of Google’s latest social media patents promises to make the automated features of social media so realistic, you would never know the difference.

Late in November, Google received their latest social media patent. According to the filing, the new platform is designed as, “A system and method for automatically generating suggestions for personalized reactions or messages.” What does that mean? Well, for individuals and businesses, Google is now making it possible for you to be active on social media without ever being active on social media.

The program is designed to adapt to your voice and activity trends in order to react to posts, share content and essentially run your social profiles without you ever having to do a thing (once it has gathered enough information about your activity, of course).

No matter how you look at it, there are going to be two basic, extreme schools of thought: those that love the idea and feel as though it is going to make running a social business easier, and those that hate it. (NOTE: Those that hate it are probably the ones with an actual social business.)

The Secret to a Successful Social Business

It might not sound like a secret, but it seems so many people are still in the dark when it comes to understanding what it takes to run a successful social business: work. Hard work, investment and dedication are the most important tools you will need in order to succeed with your social business.

So many people know that social media is crucial to the longevity of their brands, but they keep looking for shortcuts. Shortcuts will not get you anywhere. Using a tool that automates your brand’s presence on social channels might work for Google rankings, but it won’t work for customers.

Bringing automation into the mix is exactly why so many people have moved away from conventional customer service avenues (like the phone and even email) and towards social. And how often are we shown examples of an “Epic Fail” when a brand sends out an automated response on Twitter? People want to interact with people. Even when it is a big brand, the human component that social media offers is why people continue to choose it over other means of communication.

Creating Your Voice

There are some forms of automation that work. Some brands choose to automate tweets in order to ensure that important messages are seen by the broadest audience possible. For those that use Hootsuite, some brands might choose to upload a content schedule for a number of networks. This is all fine once you have established your voice in a market. But it is the real-time responses and comments that people react to most.

Recycling your articles might be a great way of getting fresh eyes on old content, but if social has taught us anything, it is that real-time marketing is where you find your greatest success. People want to see that your brand is active on social channels. They do not want you to simply be present.

Running a social business is a serious commitment. No matter how many shortcuts are created, people are still going to want to talk to you. It is hard for any brand to call itself a social business when they are actively trying to avoid the social part of the term.

Would you use a product like this? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!