Social media engagement is at the heart of any good program, but a few seemingly harmless mistakes can mean severe repercussions.
Are you taking advantage of the huge benefits that accompany social media engagement? It is supremely important that you are. After all, engaging with your social audience is the key to any good campaign. People are reaching out to you, and want to hear back. But be careful, there are a few mistakes that brands make when it comes to social media engagement, and they could be very costly.
Below are three mistakes that are easy to make but very costly to your brand.
Watch Your Grammar!
If you’ve ever watched your Twitter feed populate, or read through SMS threads among friends, you might come to the conclusion that good spelling and proper grammar are dead. Far from it.
A recent study by Disruptive Communications found that – get ready – 42.5% of customers felt that poor spelling and grammar on social media would damage their perception of a brand. This issue was, quite surprisingly, the most damaging to a brand’s image, with content being all about sales coming in second with only 24.9% of consumers finding it the most damaging to a brand’s image.
Grammar and spelling are still very important, particularly when you are trying to portray a professional image and convince potential customers to choose your brand when conducting business. Pay attention to those commas, and make sure you have the appropriate spelling of there/they’re/their, because your audience certainly is.
Sometimes You Have to Let It Go
Arguing is never fun. Arguing on social media is never smart. So why would you do something that is sure to be a no-fun-no-smarts activity?
It is more likely than not that at some point there will be a past, present or future customer that takes issue with your brand on social media. What is the best course of action? Well, whatever you choose to do, don’t blow it up – that’s very bad for business.
You would be better off acknowledging a complaint and rectifying an issue – even if you feel as though you are in the right – than getting into a public argument with a customer. Imagine how that would be perceived by other customers. Would you do business with a company that appears to have a ‘customer is always wrong’ mentality? Probably not.
Address issues in a professional manner and cater to your clients’ needs. Taking the conversation offline might be the best move in cases like these. But, while you might love your brand, don’t shoot yourself in the foot by berating the people that make it possible for your brand to exist.
Respect Your Social Activity and Audience
Sure, social media is a little more lax and informal than conventional marketing or communications channels. The idea of incorporating social into your business is to create a personality for your brand with which users can engage. But it is important to remember that while social media may seem a little less formal, it is still a serious part of your business, and should be treated as such.
You might create your social channels and hit the ground running. But a lot of brands tend to neglect their social networks after a while, and that means neglecting customers. People are talking to you on social media and leaving them without a response, feeling alone and unimportant can be harmful to your brand’s image online.
Treat your social customers like you would any other – they are really no different.
Keep these three mistakes in mind and you will find success on social media much easier to achieve.
What other social media engagement mistakes can you think of? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
Social Media Case Study: Greenpeace
/by Corey PadveenGreenpeace – among the more high-profile charities – recently took to Pinterest, and with some impressive results.
Of the charities using social media, Greenpeace is among the more recognizable. Furthermore, the Greenpeace social media initiatives are not simple Facebook posts or tweets, there is a very calculated effort on the part of Greenpeace to use social media to their benefit.
Among the channels used by the Greenpeace social media marketing team is Pinterest. The popular photo-sharing network is not being used to simply share images, however. Campaigns are extended to the network and it is used to drive traffic to landing pages for specific campaigns and initiatives at the Greenpeace website.
The results have been outstanding for Greenpeace, with thousands of images on over 50 boards and over 7,000 followers, and there are three important lessons that social marketers can learn from the Greenpeace Pinterest strategy.
Plan Ahead
Never venture into a new network blind. Looking through the Greenpeace Pinterest page, it is clear that there is a well-defined strategy behind the initiative.
In order to find success on a network like Pinterest, you need to know what you plan on accomplishing and how you intend on achieving those goals. Though it is easy to use, a carefully laid out strategy is needed for Pinterest in order to generate your desired results.
Keep that in mind, as Greenpeace did, and you will find it much easier to succeed with the network.
Understand Your Audience
Though the boards on the Greenpeace Pinterest page focus on campaigns and initiatives, the images are carefully selected by the charity in order to generate interest and clicks. The focus of the images range anywhere from fashion and celebrities to nature and animals – all categories that are among the most-shared on the network.
It is important that you understand your audience on any social network in order to properly generate engagement with them. Pay attention to your demographics and understand network trends before incorporating them into your social media strategy.
Keep Your Goals in Mind
Pinterest is one of the leading social networks for referral traffic. Last year, it surpassed Twitter and its meteoric rise shows no signs of slowing. With that in mind, you always need to remember why you are using the network in the first place.
Click on nearly any image on Greenpeace’s boards and you will find yourself at the Greenpeace website. You may start to generate some traction, but if you lose focus of what you are doing and, more importantly, how you are doing it, that traction will quickly disappear.
Keep these pointers in mind next time you are using Pinterest for a campaign, and you will surely find success!
What else impresses you about the Greenpeace Pinterest initiative? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
3 Fatal Social Media Engagement Mistakes
/by Corey PadveenSocial media engagement is at the heart of any good program, but a few seemingly harmless mistakes can mean severe repercussions.
Below are three mistakes that are easy to make but very costly to your brand.
Watch Your Grammar!
If you’ve ever watched your Twitter feed populate, or read through SMS threads among friends, you might come to the conclusion that good spelling and proper grammar are dead. Far from it.
A recent study by Disruptive Communications found that – get ready – 42.5% of customers felt that poor spelling and grammar on social media would damage their perception of a brand. This issue was, quite surprisingly, the most damaging to a brand’s image, with content being all about sales coming in second with only 24.9% of consumers finding it the most damaging to a brand’s image.
Grammar and spelling are still very important, particularly when you are trying to portray a professional image and convince potential customers to choose your brand when conducting business. Pay attention to those commas, and make sure you have the appropriate spelling of there/they’re/their, because your audience certainly is.
Sometimes You Have to Let It Go
Arguing is never fun. Arguing on social media is never smart. So why would you do something that is sure to be a no-fun-no-smarts activity?
It is more likely than not that at some point there will be a past, present or future customer that takes issue with your brand on social media. What is the best course of action? Well, whatever you choose to do, don’t blow it up – that’s very bad for business.
You would be better off acknowledging a complaint and rectifying an issue – even if you feel as though you are in the right – than getting into a public argument with a customer. Imagine how that would be perceived by other customers. Would you do business with a company that appears to have a ‘customer is always wrong’ mentality? Probably not.
Address issues in a professional manner and cater to your clients’ needs. Taking the conversation offline might be the best move in cases like these. But, while you might love your brand, don’t shoot yourself in the foot by berating the people that make it possible for your brand to exist.
Respect Your Social Activity and Audience
Sure, social media is a little more lax and informal than conventional marketing or communications channels. The idea of incorporating social into your business is to create a personality for your brand with which users can engage. But it is important to remember that while social media may seem a little less formal, it is still a serious part of your business, and should be treated as such.
You might create your social channels and hit the ground running. But a lot of brands tend to neglect their social networks after a while, and that means neglecting customers. People are talking to you on social media and leaving them without a response, feeling alone and unimportant can be harmful to your brand’s image online.
Treat your social customers like you would any other – they are really no different.
Keep these three mistakes in mind and you will find success on social media much easier to achieve.
What other social media engagement mistakes can you think of? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
4 SEO Tips for Blogging Beginners
/by Corey PadveenBlogging can be fun and help drive traffic to your site, but there are a few crucial SEO tips for blogging beginners.
Keywords Matter…but in the Right Places
Keyword density has become less relevant with all the more recent changes to Google’s algorithm. Filling your article with keywords will not only look bad, but Google will penalize your post (and possibly your site) for this black hat SEO technique. That said, keywords are still quite important in certain areas.
On your blog, get a keyword in your post title, your meta description and alt tags (in photos). Though packing your article with keywords is no longer an effective technique, knowing where your keywords matter still is.
Always Use Images
A picture is worth a thousand words – and in the case of SEO, a picture can be worth a thousand more visits.
With the proper alt tags (with a keyword) in your photos, you stand to increase the chances of having your blog found by people searching images with your designated keyword. Not only do images make your post look better, there are also some crucial SEO benefits as well, so don’t overlook their importance.
Write for Your Audience
Are you writing for engineers with a highly technical understanding of your subject matter, or do-it-yourselfers with little to no idea how to screw in a lightbulb let alone rewire an electrical system? It is important to identify your target audience and write specifically for them.
Sure, this might mean that the average individual will not relate to your content, but if you are trying to find customers that fall into certain demographics, you need to appeal to them directly. Take a look here for a few more of these blog writing tips.
Do Some Research
You might have a baking blog and want to optimize for the term ‘cake’. Bad news, your post will likely never hit the top spot on Google (not in the foreseeable future, anyway). To get the real benefits of keyword optimization, you are going to need to do a little bit of research.
Find out what your competitors are ranking well for and where there is room for potential. You will want to mix it up, optimizing for keywords that have little competition and occasionally jumping into the mix with the more competitive keywords.
Also, focus on long-tail keywords (‘vanilla frosted layered cake’ instead of ‘cake’). There may not be as many monthly searches for your long-tail keywords, but when people do search for them, you know they will be finding you.
These are just a few of the more important SEO tips for blogging beginners. There is plenty more to learn about SEO along the way, but these should help get you started on the road to blogging success.
What other good SEO tips can you think when it comes to blogging? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
Social Media for B2B Companies [INFOGRAPHIC]
/by Corey PadveenCan there be a place for social media for B2B companies?
There is a lot of debate over whether or not there is a use of social media for B2B companies. Why? Because many people do not see just how important social media is – for any industry!
There is a very important place for social media when it comes to businesses in the B2B world. The reason there are so many skeptics is simply due to a lack of understanding of how to properly use social media, a hesitancy to take on the task and, most importantly, not knowing the phenomenal results that other B2B brands are already achieving!
In the infographic below, some insightful data is provided by Clearpoint that illustrates just how important social media is for B2B companies. Perhaps the two most interesting sections of data are the reasons why B2B companies are using social media, and how they are measuring their results.
So many marketers – particularly those in the B2B field – fail to see the benefits of social media marketing outside of brand awareness. While this may be the top reason for the use of social media by B2B companies, the four additional uses are extremely important, particularly thought leadership.
With regards to measurement, there is no shortage of criteria that can be used to measure your success on social media. Again, this applies to any industry.
Take a look at the infographic and let us know which data you find to be most interesting. Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
Social Equity: Crisis Management on Social Media
/by Corey PadveenCrisis management on social media can help prevent devastating consequences to your brand.
While it may be a little nerve-racking to deal with a crisis in media as public, active and real-time as social networks, it can be a very valuable feature that should not be ignored.
Get a Handle on the Situation
The ability to monitor conversations on social media about your brand means that when a crisis does break, you will be able to know about it at the same time as everyone else. After all, social media is one of the first avenues people are using to spread the word nowadays.
Waiting until after the issue has evolved beyond your control can be far more detrimental than engaging at the outset of a crisis. Thus, you have a much better chance of quelling issues by taking control of it with an active, live audience.
Show People You Care
It might be for legal or PR reasons that you are not engaging with an angered audience on social media. But whatever it is, your brand stands to sustain far more damage when it does not engage.
People tend to think that when they are ignored by a brand on social media – particularly when they are speaking specifically to that brand’s social personality – it is because that brand does not care about the small, singular customer. That is not only an insult to the customer, but a bad representation of your brand to the customer base as a whole.
It is important to plan for crises on social media in order to know how to engage your audience when one does come up. (No brand is immune to these sorts of issues!) In this way, if a crisis should arise, you can have a legal department-approved approach to handling the issues.
This will show your audience that you care and will go a long way with them.
Social Equity of Crisis Management on Social Media
So where is there value added to your business? The Social Equity derived is both in the form of long-term value to your company and in terms of what your brand stands to lose without such a plan.
In the long run, your brand will have a carefully laid out strategy that can be applied to prevent issues from shooting beyond your control. With regards to what stands to be lost without such a strategy, think of crises you have witnessed in the past where brands did nothing to engage their audience.
In a recent case study about Nutella, we pointed out that the backlash which resulted from doing nothing to handle a crisis that broke out on social media meant some significant repercussions for the brand. Don’t let the same thing happen to you.
What other incidents can you think of where crisis management on social media has helped (or could have helped) a brand? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
Social Media Case Study: Standard Life
/by Corey PadveenStandard Life provides savings and insurance services and has been doing so for nearly 200 years – nothing so exciting to warrant a social media case study, right?
Though the company took a crack (with some success) on Facebook and YouTube, they have found their true social media calling on Twitter and LinkedIn. Why? The marketing team took the time to develop a strategy, target influencers and reach out to very specific audience. The results have been outstanding.
Standard Life wanted to use Twitter as a means of providing additional resources and to engage with influential advisors. Well, after creating a functional content strategy and targeting the 30 users they deemed most influential to their target audience, they managed to garner nearly 67% of them as followers, and are now sharing content with them (and their clients, future prospects) on a regular basis.
On LinkedIn, Standard Life also wanted to reach out to influencers, so they created a private group for advisors and reached out to several they found to be most influential. By speaking to these individuals on a personal level, they managed to persuade many of them to join the group, which prompted several others to join (without an invite) as well.
There are quite a few great points that marketers can learn from this program.
Find Out What Works
This goes for both your industry and your brand. Facebook has a billion users so it must be the best network for you, right? Not necessarily! Maybe you will find that YouTube is where you generate the most referrals and social media success.
What is important is testing each market (with a clearly defined strategy, of course) in order to determine which one is going to work best for your business.
No One Is Bigger than Social Media
This is not saying that social media should replace your other marketing efforts. However, as we pointed out in an article about Social Media Marketing Myopia, thinking your brand is above the consumers’ preferences will leave you clamouring for business you once took for granted.
Insurance may not be the most exciting field, but there is still room for a social media presence. Johnston and his team realized this, and it is important that other marketers realize it as well.
True Value Rests with Brand Loyalists
The longevity of a company rests with its brand advocates. When word-of-mouth spreads far beyond product evangelists, you can feel safe in the future success of your brand. As Johnston notes, “The funnel has now changed so we are always trying to drive advocacy. Companies have to offer customers free stuff, such as information and advice, to add value and help encourage a purchase.”
Showcase your expertise and keep them coming back and wanting more.
What other examples can you think of where companies in relatively unsocial industries found room for social media? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
The Biggest Social Media Mistake Companies Are Making
/by Corey PadveenThere is one major social media mistake companies are making and it can cost them big time.
What is the biggest social media mistake companies are making? It is not misspelled words or sharing unprofessional content (which are both still bad, by the way). It is leaving their social media marketing efforts in the hands of unpaid interns.
Like it or not, social media is a very serious part of a marketing strategy. No – it does not replace your other marketing initiatives; those are still very important. It does, however, compliment them considerably and add an entirely different and important feature to your marketing efforts.
A recent graduate’s ability to share content to Facebook or tweet statistics about their favorite athlete does not qualify them to run all of your social branding initiatives. A major airline would not ask a video game enthusiast to pilot a passenger aircraft across the Atlantic – for free. Sure, lives may not be at stake when it comes to social media marketing, but your brand’s reputation and perception are. Now, marketing departments are not entirely to blame – a lot of executives simply do not understand the power of social media.
Why They Make the Mistake
For some companies, they have limited budgets. For others, they simply do not understand how powerful this platform can be and are therefore willing to entrust it to the most junior of staff.
Take Taco Bell’s recent social media hiccup, for example. A picture leaked of an employee doing something somewhat distasteful to a stack of taco shells. Bad for business and what’s worse, it went viral. As if the picture were not bad enough, many of the comments went beyond the one incident to criticize the establishment and its practices in their entirety.
‘PR crisis’ does not even begin to describe what this was for Taco Bell. Considering the fastest means of communication is to talk to everyone where they are in real time, it would make sense that for any brand, social media would be the right avenue to use when dealing with this kind of issue. How would things have turned out for Taco Bell if an intern with no marketing experience, no financial dependency on the company (unpaid intern, remember) and no understanding of brand and crisis management had been in charge of their social media channels?
Social media is not a fleeting phenomenon with no staying power. The proof is in the (ever-growing) numbers. Companies need to take their social presence seriously – that is where their customers are. Take the situation offline: you wouldn’t rely on a home printer to produce thousands of product catalogues.
Treat your social media efforts the same way you would any other aspect of your marketing initiatives. It is much more important than a lot of people give it credit for.
What are your thoughts on having an unpaid intern in charge of your social media initiatives? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
Facebook Marketing: 8-Step Checklist to Getting Started
/by Corey PadveenWhen it comes to Facebook marketing, there are a few steps that need to be taken when getting started.
But in order to find success with your Facebook marketing, there are a few things you need to do right at the outset.
Below is an 8-step marketing checklist for getting started on Facebook (in order).
1. Pick a Page Name (if possible, with a keyword)
If you are John Smith and you own a steakhouse, try and name your page ‘John Smith Steakhouse’. Keywords in the page name are among the few areas on Facebook where they can benefit SEO, so try and get it in there when you choose your name.
2. Create a Vanity URL
A long Facebook URL with a bunch of numbers at the end of it is not very nice to look at. Go to https://www.facebook.com/username and create a vanity URL for your page to maintain professionalism.
3. Optimize Your Sections for SEO
Your About section and your mission statement should have links and keywords close to the front in order to optimize your page for SEO. Do not leave any sections blank. It simply does not look good when people come by.
4. Add Photos and Videos
This includes your profile picture (Hint: 180X180px) your cover photo (Hint: 851X315px) and your page photos (Hint: They fit into 400X400px space on your Timeline). Get content up quickly so you do not have an empty company page.
5. Add Tabs to Your Page
A ‘Like’ box and a selection of photos is not impressive. People want to see that you pay attention to your Facebook page the same way you would pay attention to your customers. Add some custom tabs to your page and make it look great! (Note: Tabs should highlight your goals and expertise.)
6. Promote Your Page
It may sound silly, but people are generally a little hesitant to ‘Like’ a page that has no activity. Reach out to friends and existing clients and invite them to ‘Like’ your page in order to get the ball rolling. You might also want to create a promotion of some of your content for a few bucks to a targeted audience and build your audience that way as well.
7. Familiarize Yourself with Insights
Facebook recently updated their Insights, and there is a lot to learn. As a page owner, you should know what Insights are available, what they mean and how you can use them to increase the business you drive from your page.
8. Start Engaging!
Ask questions, share updates and encourage conversation on your page. Though the average engagement rate on pages falls somewhere in the 0.5%-1.5% range, you should be aiming to shatter that number with your page!
These 8 steps are crucial to getting started with Facebook marketing. However, once they have been taken, it is time to start watching business grow with the help of Facebook!
Which step do you think is the most important? Do you have any others? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
What Makes Good SEO Copywriting? [INFOGRAPHIC]
/by Corey PadveenWith so many changes to Google, it can be hard to tell what makes good SEO copywriting.
There was a time when keyword density was the key to SEO copywriting success. Then came the day of the backlink (still in existence).
With so many ongoing changes to Google’s much feared and praised algorithm, it is always hard to tell what kind of copy will land your page in the top spot, and what will have you scraping the bowels of Google’s tenth page in search of light.
Luckily, the folks at ContentVerve have put together an excellent infographic detailing the features of high-quality SEO-friendly copy (at least, so far in 2013).
Among the great tips to note when drafting your content with SEO in mind are the social implications of search today. It is not secret that Google+ weighs heavily in search rankings on Google. After all, Google have described themselves as a social company, and their changes have concreted that statement.
Take a look at these ten tips and let us know which one (or ones) you think is most important to SEO success. Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!
Social Equity: Real-Time Marketing
/by Corey PadveenWhat makes real-time marketing such a valuable asset to business?
So how exactly does real-time marketing generate Social Equity for your business?
Increased Lead-to-Buyer Efficiency
Imagine the ability to engage with a lead the moment they express an interest in a product or service you offer. Then imagine the value of reaching out to that user before any of your competitors in the hopes of beginning the nurturing process, leading to a conversion.
That is real-time marketing.
By monitoring social media effectively, you can find conversations as they are taking place and engage with users on different platforms in real time. Thus, as the intent to buy is made clear, there is little time lost in nurturing the prospective client. This helps to make the conversion process more efficient and much faster.
Increased Market Share and Presence
As with the point above, the ability to actively participate in conversations surrounding your industry as they are taking place opens an entirely new opportunity to increase your brand’s presence and share in the market.
If, as users of social networks are discussing industry keywords, you (appropriately) participate in conversations and make them aware of your brand, you gain a significant competitive advantage over other industry brands.
Now, it is important to ensure that you are engaging properly, and not deterring potential clients from your brand. However, if done the right way, the results can be your brand coming to mind before any other when buyers are faced with a decision.
Increased Brand Loyalty
People prefer a humanized brand. The big corporate image simply does not work for people. They want to know that the company with which they have decided to do business will care about their needs, help them in any way they can and present themselves as more than a logo or a product.
Real-time marketing offers potential clients that kind of security. By responding to comments, questions and concerns in real time, or engaging in conversations around your industry across the social web, you can reassure prospective clients that your brand will out-serve any of your competitors.
Real-time marketing can have tremendous benefits to your business. Though the advantages are clear, few brands are properly participating in the practice. Be among the first in your industry, and see your success levels increase dramatically!
Is your brand engaging in real-time marketing practices? Tell us in the comments below or on Twitter!