Written By Sumer » Social Media Marketing

The Future of Social Marketing

Michelle Salater — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 13:30:04 +0000

Let’s start by saying that we love Brian Solis. After all, he’s considered a global thought leader in the field of new media and we, the humble producers of Copy Doodle, are among his followers.

Last week Mr. Solis published a particularly juicy piece on the state of social marketing, adapted from a report from the Pivot Conference, which takes place in New York next fall. The piece contains some insightful facts and figures about how businesses are using social marketing—and how they could do it more effectively.

Here are some highlights with suggestions for how to get on the right side of next year’s trends.

Your Social Marketing in 2012

It’s no secret that the traditional producer / consumer model has shifted since the rise of the Internet. Social consumers are unlike consumers of the past in that they turn to their peer groups (social networks) first when they’re considering a purchase.

Even though most business owners understand this basic concept, it seems they aren’t always clear about the nitty-gritty of social consumption, including the following…

Social consumers follow an elliptical, rather than a linear path to make buying decisions. They consider a purchase, do independent research, ask their social network about suggestions, and eventually provide feedback to their own networks for people looking to make similar purchases.
Most businesses think they know their social customers…but more than half haven’t asked these customers what they want. A study conducted by IBM found that, while nearly 77% of businesses indicated that they knew their social consumers “very well,” 53% had never actually asked their customers what they wanted from social platforms. Perhaps not surprisingly, the IBM study also discovered a “Perception Gap” between what consumers wanted from businesses on social media and what those businesses assumed their customers wanted.
Social consumers span age groups and income levels, but tend to be wealthier. Many business owners assumed most social consumers were in their 30s and 40s, and, while that proved accurate, the IBM study also found significant numbers of consumers both younger and older than that. Perhaps more interesting? The majority of social consumers tend to have incomes on the higher end of the spectrum, with the bulk of households earning $60,000 and above.
Businesses cited a number of reasons why they think social marketing hasn’t yet gone mainstream. The top reasons business owners cited were insufficient budgeting, a lack of clarity about the outcomes of social marketing, a lack of understanding about the potential benefits of social marketing, and unclear direction about the direction to take with social. Despite these factors holding back growth, most business leaders agreed that social marketing would go mainstream by 2013.

Taking Charge of Your Social Marketing in 2012

The Brian Solis article (which, again, we highly recommend) ends with a list of actionable steps business owners can take to improve their social marketing outlook in 2012 and beyond. Essentially, the advice boils down to this: it’s time to get to know social.

Start understanding how it works, defining outcomes, and setting a clear plan for how social marketing will contribute to your overall marketing strategy. As the IBM study shows, social customers are out there, and they’re ready and able to spend. The time has come to start giving them what they want.

What do you think the future holds in store for social marketing?

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Strengthen Business Relationships by Going Offline

Michelle Salater — Mon, 28 Nov 2011 12:30:03 +0000

One of my friends from college worked as an events planner at a non-profit right after she graduated. Planning for a major fundraiser, she spoke regularly with a board member of her organization who was also a corporate contact at a bank. At one point, he mentioned to another board member that she was taking up a lot of his time.

When she got wind of that, she sent him a card that included a gift certificate to Starbucks, a bunch of plastic bugs, and a note that read, “Sorry I keep bugging you—thanks for all your help!” When he got the card, he called her laughing. And then he offered her a job.

Why did this work? Because my friend mastered one important thing: the know, like, and trust factor. Here’s how to make it work for you.

The Magic of Offline Networking

Online networking is great for a lot of reasons: it’s efficient, tidy, and it allows you to connect with people you might never have a chance to meet in person. But it can also be impersonal and cold, which is why it shouldn’t be the only way you reach out to your business contacts.

The good news is that a little offline networking goes a long way. Try some of these networking strategies to really connect . . .

Pick up the phone. We all know that email is convenient, but it can also be frustratingly inefficient when you’re trying to work out details. Next time you need to have an in-depth conversation, plan a phone call—you’ll save all parties the hassle of sifting through clogged inboxes and trying to decipher typos. Plus, voices can communicate nuances that emails can’t, meaning you might be able to head off problems you wouldn’t have seen coming on the screen.
Send a card. Bug-filled or otherwise, a simple card (thank you note, birthday wish, congratulations, etc.) communicates your commitment in a way that email does not. A brief, genuine message will stand out in any batch of mail.
Go to a live event. Find out what your clients do for fun and join in. You may not meet any prospects, but you’ll learn about the people you serve—and that will help you serve them better.
Meet up. In the same area? Meet in person. Even though you’ll have to invest extra time up front, you’ll spend that time getting to know your client better, which will help you invaluably down the road.

The Know, Like, and Trust Factor

In medicine, they call it the “bedside manner.” In business, we call it the “know, like, trust factor.” What it boils down to is that, unless you have a monopoly in your field, your clients have a choice between you and someone else.

They’ll choose you if they feel like they know, like, and trust you more than the competition. The best way to get your clients to feel that way is to genuinely cultivate those three things . . .

Network online and in person so that you know them.
Be your best self so they can’t help but like you. Manners go a long way.
Keep your word so they trust you. If you say you’ll call at a certain time, call then. If you say you’ll send them something, send it. Look them in the eye. Smile.

In many cases, non-digital interactions can build the know, like, and trust factor more quickly than digital ones. Take advantage of the full arsenal of networking available to you!

Tell us about your most successful offline marketing experience by commenting on this blog post. We would love to hear about it.

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Effective Tips for Measuring Social Media Success

Michelle Salater — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 12:27:13 +0000

WebProNews interviews Dave Fleet, the Vice President of Digital at Edelman Toronto, on what it is that businesses should measure to determine social media success. See below for the interview:

More WebProNews Videos

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How to Add a Personal Touch to All of Your Marketing Materials

Michelle Salater — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 12:30:15 +0000

People love to work with those they know, like, and trust and will be more willing to purchase from you if they feel a connection. One important way to build this trust is to add a personal touch to your marketing materials.

Be yourself.

Above all, be authentic in everything you do. If you’re not, your readers will know it immediately, and it will turn them off. They want to know that companies they partner with will be honest with them.

Allow your personality to shine through all of your communications.

Don’t be afraid to take a stand and articulate it—even if readers don’t agree with you, they’ll respect you. This is not to say you should pontificate about current events or sensitive topics every time you communicate with your clients and prospects, but do let them know whom you are and what you stand for. Those who want to do business with you will, and they’ll be raving fans. Those who don’t wish to do business with you won’t, and they don’t matter.

Let them see you.

Be visible. Put your photo in your marketing materials and regularly feature photos on your blog or website. Don’t hide behind your business. Make sure you have an email address that appears to go directly to you, even if you have someone else answering your emails. Appear at company-sponsored events.

Go the extra mile.

If you receive a personal phone call, email, or LinkedIn or Facebook message, answer it yourself within one day (two at the latest). People like and trust those who return messages promptly, and it strengthens their connection to you.

If you receive a complaint, respond immediately and do everything possible to resolve the situation to the client’s satisfaction. While you may not be able to do exactly what the client wants, often coming as close as possible and adding an extra touch or two will make him or her happy. And if the client is satisfied, don’t be afraid to ask for a testimonial to use in your marketing materials!

For example, you may have a client who is unhappy with one aspect of your service and demands three months of free service to make up for it. Perhaps you can offer 6 weeks of free service and sweeten the deal with one free month of a different service or a new product offering that appeals to the client. You’ve made him or her feel important, and you’ll be surprised at how many clients you retain by doing something so simple.

Click here to see how we add a personal touch to our online marketing materials.

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Have You Forgotten About the Networking Power of LinkedIn?

Michelle Salater — Fri, 14 Oct 2011 12:30:55 +0000

With so much buzz about Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube, it’s easy to forget about (in my opinion) one of the best networking tools out there–LinkedIn.

In the video below, WebProNews interviews Nicole Williams, LinkedIn’s Connections Director, on how to utilize LinkedIn as an effective networking tool.

More WebProNews Videos

Do you use LinkedIn as much as your other social media networks?

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Want a Successful Business? Get Yourself to Love Social Media

Michelle Salater — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 12:30:31 +0000

Image to the left taken from Amazon.com.

I am thrilled to share with you yet another post from our series on Business-Transforming Books. Today’s interviewee spotlights Jeffrey Gitomer’s book, Social Boom!.

If you missed any part of this series, click the links below:

Part I
Part II
Part III
Part IV
Part V

See below for Part VI:

Response 1:

From: Sandee Hemphill

Website: marketwyze365.com

What ONE book has changed how you do business and why?

Social Boom! by Jeffrey Gitomer

I love social media! I was an early adopter to LinkedIn and camped out there for a few years. And I love the relationships. Yes, relationships I’ve built with people from all over the world. But I was a little reluctant to delve into the outer limits–Facebook and Twitter. And don’t even talk about YouTube.

For me, Facebook was the new one-eyed monster. I avoided it like the plague. This meant Twitter was the evil twin. When asked if I tweeted, my response was always “No. I don’t get it.” YouTube was unthinkable. It couldn’t possibly be appropriate for business. Or so I thought.

After reading Social Boom!, I upgraded my social presence. Here are the actions I took:

• Updated my LinkedIn profile
• Redirected my Facebook energies
• Started Tweeting (@fastforwardin30)

In the meantime, I’m lining up YouTube promotions and I expect to launch them within a few weeks. And as if that wasn’t enough, I’m proud to say I’m loving it!

Here’s what Jeffrey’s book taught me:

1. It’s not social MEDIA. It’s SOCIAL media!
2. For an entrepreneur, social media isn’t optional—it’s mandatory!
3. In the world of social media, YOU are a personal brand.
4. You can’t just do it; you must do it well.
5. Form follows function.
6. Start conversations; find conversations; stay in the conversations.
7. Post relevant messages.
9. Quote yourself.
10. Paint your own social wagon.

The most compelling question I found in the book was, “Is social media right for every business?” Jeffrey’s answer is worthy of an Academy Award. He stated, “If Charmin can make social media work using toilet paper, what’s got you all blocked up?”

Now when I think of pulling back on any of my social media marketing, this response comes to mind. I simply stop all activity, take a deep breath, and get back in the conversation.

*Quotes taken from pages 47 and 52, respectively.

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Five Tips on How to Avoid a Social Media Disaster

Michelle Salater — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 12:30:16 +0000

While it’s important to be actively posting and communicating with your audience on social media, it’s equally important to do so in ways that aren’t insulting to others or that negatively impact your brand. One irresponsible tweet or an inappropriate YouTube video can quickly spread like wildfire and turn into negative publicity for your brand.

Following these tips can help you avoid a social media disaster.

Have a social media policy. Before you upload your Facebook logo or send out your first tweet, make sure to have a social media policy. This should not only cover how your company uses social media, but also how employees use it as it relates to your brand. Try to be as clear as possible, outlining the dos and don’ts and any specific guidelines. Once it’s been drafted, sit down with your team to make sure they understand it. Remember, it’s not enough to simply have a policy—you need to create a way monitor the conversations online and also know how you plan to enforce your policy.

Be consistent. Whether your company is active on Twitter, Google+, and/or Facebook, be consistent. Don’t start strong for the first few weeks and then have social profiles that sit dormant. Each day may create opportunities to connect with potential new customers or appropriately respond to problems or complaints. To start and then slack off sends a negative message to your network about your brand. It’s important to also have a consistent voice across all platforms you are active on. If you have a Facebook page with daily marketing tips, make sure you’ve communicated this to your network, and then actually post about marketing, and not irrelevant information.

Don’t fight fire with fire. When responding to complaints or problems from users, respond appropriately. If the user comes across angry, don’t engage them with anger or sarcasm. What ignites a social media disaster is often when a brand responds to others strongly, without considering the potential effects.

Respond appropriately to complaints. Similar to the point above, it’s important to appropriately respond to users who have a complaint or problem. It can be easy to just ignore it, but the problem doesn’t go away and could compound the problem. When you receive complaints that are new in nature, don’t be afraid to gather your team or discuss with others the best possible solution before responding.

Be a sound proofreader. While building relationships on social media requires good communication, the most important skill you can use is that of proofreading. Read the post aloud before publishing it. Missing one word can be the difference between saying what you mean and communicating something that is completely off base. Not to mention you’ll be taken more seriously when you’re consistently publishing sound content.

For other helpful tips on social media marketing and PR, visit us on Facebook!

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5 Types of Social Media Tools You Should be Using

Spencer Spellman — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 12:30:24 +0000

Guest Post by Spencer Spellman, freelance travel writer and social media expert

Social media comes with a whole host of tools to help you effectively use it for your business. Many third-party applications have tapped into Facebook, Twitter, and other social media channels to help users be more efficient. While I could have discussed some of my favorite social media tools, I instead wanted to discuss the different types of social media tools available and how each one can help your company.

Directory. I don’t recommend just randomly picking people and companies to connect with on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and other outlets. While you can do a search for people, you’ll be much better served by using a directory to connect with the proper brand. While Facebook and LinkedIn have one directory for browsing, there are many different Twitter directories available. I recommend Twellow, which features a wide-range of users classified by different categories.

Scheduler. One of the ways you can be most efficient on social media is by scheduling out some of your posts. However, I don’t recommend scheduling out all or even most of your posts, as this takes away from the real-time conversation features that social media is all about. Instead, consider scheduling out things such as blog posts. HootSuite and CoTweet are just a few tools I recommend for scheduling posts.

Cross-platform publishing. Similar to using a scheduling tool, I recommend using a tool that allows for posting across multiple social media channels. Some tools, such as Hootsuite, allow you to post across a few different outlets, such as LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter, while services like Ping.fm allow you to post to many more websites. Instead of going to each of your social websites to post something, you can, instead, post something once and Ping.fm publishes it to the websites you designate.

Search. Search can come in very handy for finding relevant information about topics or people. While many social media sites have their own search feature, there are some tools that search across multiple channels at once. Websites such as Topsy and Social Mention search across multiple platforms for posts that include users, topics, and multimedia.

Analytics. One of the most important parts of social media isn’t the execution itself, but measuring the success of the execution. While many companies choose not to use social media because they don’t believe it’s measurable, many tools are available to track metrics such as page views, visitors, and conversions. If you’re already tracking your website and / or blog’s analytics using Google Analytics, consider starting with that. There are other available tools that exclusively measure social media.

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The Importance of Human Interaction on Social Media

Michelle Salater — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 12:30:00 +0000

Lee Oden, SEO genius and founder of Top Rank Marketing, interviews Mel Carson, Microsoft Advertising Community & Social Media Manager, on the importance of human interaction on social media platforms. See below for this exceptional interview:

Is this a topic that interests you? If so, let us know, and we’ll be sure to feature more posts on the subject.

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Are You Wasting Precious Time on Social Media With No Results?

Michelle Salater — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 12:30:10 +0000

One of the questions I am asked most frequently is: How often should I be on social media? There’s a fine line between using social media too much, and therefore spamming your followers, and not using it enough and missing opportunities to connect.

So where is the happy medium? The answer lies in creating and implementing an effective social media strategy—one that will ensure a more efficient work day while still connecting with your audience.

My first recommendation is to close your social media windows and turn off notifications. As you grow your readership on social media platforms, an increase in interaction follows. There’s nothing worse for productivity than going to Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn every time you have a new notification. If you’re thinking, yeah, but it’s only for a few minutes—consider this: a few minutes here and there adds up at the end of the week.

The best way to manage your time is to choose set times during the day to interact and update, such as first thing in the morning, lunchtime, and at the end of the day. Consider your audience’s social media behavior and when they’re online, and tailor your schedule around it.

While social media is real-time conversation, you can also automate posts and updates to increase your productivity using scheduling tools such as TweetDeck, HootSuite, and Ping.fm. I’m not advocating you let automation replace real-time conversations. Doing so causes disconnection between you and your social network and causes overall inefficiency—why bother connecting on social media if you are going to just automate everything?

Schedule your posts with caution. Since social media is about connection and personalization, scheduling most of your posts can in turn disconnect you from your audience. Schedule items such as blog posts, but make sure you’re monitoring social media on a daily basis for questions and comments from followers.

Many third-party tools, including HootSuite and Ping.fm, also allow you to post to multiple platforms at once so that you don’t have to go to each of your social media and blogging sites to share information. Ping.fm lets you post to 30+ different social media and blogging sites.

Similarly to scheduling posts, I recommend using this with caution, especially if you’re posting to platforms such as Facebook and LinkedIn. The last thing you want to do is to spam your network of followers. Ping.fm is best to use when you have something you want to publish to all of your networks, such as a blog post.

Lastly, keep in mind things such as peak times and the geographical location of your audience. If most of your readers are on the west coast, but you’re located on the east coast, then you don’t want to publish a Facebook post at 7 a.m.

Peak times for Twitter are typically during the day, Monday through Friday, while peak times on Facebook are evenings and weekends. However, when using social media, begin by posting at various times during the week, as the impact of posts can vary significantly.

Did you find these tips helpful? We’d love to hear from you in our comments section.