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Habits of Successful Internet Marketers

BIMSDo you struggle with getting results from your online marketing campaign? Do you often wonder why some marketers make it big while others continually fall short?

In this blog post, we’ve listed down 4 habits of highly successful marketers. If you take action and execute these habits, you are more likely to succeed.

Continuous learning

Being a successful internet marketer is not just about using the latest tools or following the right systems for generating traffic. Rather, it’s about continuously improving your skills.

Successful internet marketers keep on reading new articles about social media, search engine optimization etc. What worked today may not work next month. That said, you need to stay up-to-date. Otherwise, you’ll be wasting your time, effort and money and still fail to achieve your desired results.

Establish goals and milestones

It is important to define your goals before you start working. This way, you have a clear vision of what you want to achieve and take the necessary steps to reach that goal.

Delegate and collaborate

When you first started your business, you probably filled many different roles – marketer, salesperson, storekeeper, accountant, founder etc. But as your business grows, you can no longer do all these tasks on your own.

Time is of the essence. If you want to get things done, you need to learn to delegate tasks. Surround yourself with highly capable people and get them to do what needs to be done on your behalf.

Never quit

Some of the world’s most successful people have failed at first. Things may not work out fine during your first few attempts. Your posts will not go viral. No one is going to be interested in your first video or blog post. Your first website is going to look ugly. That’s fine.

No one is expecting you to have a perfect website or a viral post. Go ahead, share what you have now and try to improve it along the way.

 

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Tips for Proper Social Media Etiquette in the New Year

BIMS_1.5As 2015 draws to a close, many of you are probably preparing for the biggest party of the year. Whether it’s a family event, work party or a purely social gathering, there’s a social media embarrassment waiting to happen.

A careless Facebook post or tweet can alienate your loved ones and damage your social and professional image. Start the year right by paying close attention to your social media profiles and activities.

Take a good look at these tips for proper social media etiquette.

Take your complaint offline

We understand that you’re frustrated about a company’s customer service or the long lines, but you don’t have to post it on social media for everyone else to see. Rather than slamming them on Facebook or Twitter, it is better to contact them privately and settle the issue offline.

Avoid over-sharing

It’s okay to share how awesome your dinner was or what your cat is up to occasionally, but sharing every single bit of activity you did all day is the fastest way to lose your friends and followers. You are free to share a few times a day, but be sure to space your posts.

Use caution in posting and tagging photos

You may look good on a particular picture, but if a friend’s hair looks like a rooster and your sister’s skirt is twisted, then you shouldn’t post it. No matter how good looking you are at that picture; please think about the others before posting and tagging them. You probably don’t like it when someone tags you in candid or unflattering photos, so why would you do that to them? If you really want to post the picture, then crop it. Your friends will thank you for it.

Be respectful

Avoid engaging in aggressive debates online and sending out potentially offensive tweets. Remember, there’s another person on the receiving end. If you wouldn’t speak to the person that way face to face, then you shouldn’t do it online.

 

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Choosing the Right Social Media Platform for Your Business

BIMS_12.29Over the years, I have seen a lot of business owners who have accounts on almost every social networking site. While there’s no harm in maintaining a number of social media accounts, you may notice that you’re not getting the results you want either.

Because it takes time to do social right, it may be best not to be on certain social networks. How do you decide which platforms are best for your needs? Here are some important criteria to consider that will help you determine which channel is right for your business.

Your target audience

Social media activity varies by age, geographic location, profession and more. Once you have identified your target audience, the next step is to determine where they spend most of their time online. What’s the point of maintaining an Instagram or Pinterest account if your target audience are not there? That would be a waste of time and resources.

Your goal

People who have clear, measurable goals are 50% more likely to achieve their desired results as compared to those people without goals. Without a clear idea of what you want to achieve, your program may not reach its full potential.

Attract new customers, increase engagement with current customers, drive website traffic and increased conversions are just some of the possible goals for your social media program.

Your budget

Budget is a major concern for small to medium-sized businesses. That said, you need to be very careful where you spend your marketing budget. For starters, a $100 budget could cover social media scheduling, advertising, graphics or photos, sharing buttons and analytics.

Metrics

In order to determine if you are achieving your goals, you need to follow up on your social media efforts. Constantly analyze your metrics to help you identify which social channel gives you favorable results.

 

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Tips for Creating an Effective Facebook Ad

facebookadsThere are 890 million people signing in on Facebook every single day. Given that number, it is safe to assume that your potential customers are a part of this massive community.

Facebook ads have enormous potential to drive traffic and grow your business. But how do you get people to click on your ad and get them to buy your products? Here are a few tips.

Define your goals

You first need to define your goals before you spend a single cent on Facebook ad. What are you hoping to accomplish? Do you want more fan engagement? More Facebook likes? More website visits? More sales? The type of ad you should use depends on what you want to achieve.

Choose images that stand out

If you’re planning to promote a post, be sure to use powerful images. Remember, your ad photo is the first thing people are going to see. These photos can make your ad be more eye-catching.

According to studies, ads that use pictures of people do really well. Take a look at the ads, and you’ll notice that most of them use pictures of people. Why? It’s because people likes people. If you want to promote your products, you might want to use a photo of a person using your product.

Include a call to action

An ad with high quality content and powerful photos is great, but without a call-to-action, people might not understand what’s in it for them or don’t not know what to do next. As a result, your ad fails. Adding a call-to-action encourages people to take your desired action. Plus, they won’t waste time figuring out what to do next.

Ad placement

When it comes to where your Facebook ads will appear, you have 3 options: right column, mobile and news feed. Instead of going for all news feed ads or just choosing right column ads, why not test the different placement ads? This allows you to determine which one performs better.

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Social Media Tips for the Holiday Season

BIMSThe holiday season is the busiest shopping time of the year. According to the National Retail Federation, the average American adult usually spends about $810 during the holiday season. Because of that, retailers and brands are fighting for consumer’s attention to drive up their sales.

Incorporate the excitement and spirit of the holidays into your social media campaigns. Here are some tips on how to take advantage of the holidays with the help of social media.

Help your customers get into the holiday spirit

Most people are sprucing up their homes and putting up lights and ornaments around their home. Why don’t you do the same and add some seasonal touches to your website and social media pages? Update your Facebook cover photos, Youtube channels, Google+ images and Twitter backgrounds where possible.

Holiday promotions

While the shopping season usually starts in September, most people don’t start until November. Others would wait until the first week of December before they start shopping. It’s never too late to capture a holiday shopper.

Share holiday promotions with your followers and give them something to look forward to.  Take advantage of social media advertising options such as Twitter sponsored tweets and Facebook offers if you really want to bank on your sale.

Give back to the community

Truly get into the spirit of giving by adding a charitable element to your holiday campaign. Use your platform as a business leader to draw attention to a cause. Get your employees on board and give back to your local community.

Give away prizes

The holiday season is a time for giving. Since people interact with businesses more frequently during the holiday season, this is also the best time to run a contest.

Contests and giveaways are a great way to create buzz around your product. They also help increase social sharing, engagement and fan base. Ask for shares and likes for entries into the contest for a chance to win. The monetary value of the prize is totally up to you, but make sure that you provide them something they will value and appreciate.

 

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How to Get More Followers on Instagram

BIMS_12.8Instagram is an amazing photo-sharing network and it is gaining popularity day by day. When used correctly, you can use it to promote your brand and business as well.

According to studies, getting more likes on social media makes you happier. Since we want you, our dear readers, to be happy, we thought of sharing with you some tips on how to build a massive following on Instagram. Read on and can create a stronger presence on this social channel.

Get in touch with other users

If you want your images to get more comments and likes, you need to get in touch with other users. Responding to comments and questions is also essential to maintaining your follower base. There’s no point in building a following if you won’t even talk to them. If you stay active, you’ll see a steady stream of new followers.

Use the right hashtags

While posting engaging and interesting photos on Instagram is a must, using the right hashtags also has its advantages.

Hashtags are pretty much a staple of social media. Just like twitter, Instagram users use hashtags on their photos. With the right hashtags, you are more likely to reach your target audience. Plus, users who are searching for specific keywords will find it easier to find your photos.

Timing is everything

It is important to stick to a schedule so that your followers will know when to expect your posts. If you started posting every day, then stick to it.

It is also important to post them at the right time if you want to reach a larger audience. Morning and after work are usually the best time to post photos. People are usually online during this time.

Quality vs. Quantity

No one would be interested to follow someone with non-sense or random posts. If you’re running a restaurant and wanted to get people to actually eat in your restaurant, it’s a good idea to provide people a photo of mouth-watering dishes you offer. Make sure there are no irrelevant or low quality photos in your feed. Edit your account and leave only the best photos.

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Dos and Don’ts of Using Social Media for Business

socialMediafroBusinessBy now, you already know the importance of leveraging social media to grow your business. However, it can be a waste of time and money if you don’t know what you’re doing. Instead of connecting with your target audience, your existing clients may be having second thoughts and potential prospects may get turned off.

These dos and don’ts will help you in building your social media community and start seeing results.

DOS

Be active

Active social media profiles can help build your brand. You can’t expect results if your page is inactive. Create great content that your audience will want to share. Post different things. Share tips on how to use your products, industry news and fun stuff. Make sure majority of your posts are non-promotional in nature.

Define your target audience

It is important to know you’re targeting audience if you want to maximize your sales. Learn as much as you can about your target audience.

Your customers are concerned about what you can do for them. Make sure your contents are tailored to your customer’s need.

Interact with your audience

Communicate with your target audience on a regular basis. Social media is about relationships so try to converse with your audience as much as you can. Don’t talk too much about your brand. Stop and listen to what people have to say. It should be a 2-way conversation, not a one-sided dialogue.

DON’TS

Share too much

Don’t overwhelm your feeds with too much advertisements or promotions. This can cause your followers to stop following your posts. People don’t want to be bombarded with advertisements and promotions.

Forget your spelling and grammar

What you put out there becomes a representation of who you are. Consumers value proper grammar and spelling. Grammar mistakes could hurt your brand’s reputation and turn off potential customers.

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How Facebook Ads Can Grow Your Fan Page

fcebook ads

Increasing Facebook likes can be a tricky process. With the algorithm changes, Facebook page engagement decreased over time; thus, making it difficult for business owners and marketers to reach their fans.

Since Facebook is one of the biggest and most popular social networks, you should be looking for ways to increase the number of people who like your page. Advertising using Facebook ads is one of them.

Facebook ads are the easiest and most effective ways to increase your likes. If you don’t already have some good Facebook ads strategies, you better get started.

Ability to reach smartphone users

Facebook has about 1.20 billion active mobile users as of December 2014. That’s a lot of people, and the number of users is increasing over time. Because of that, mobile should be your priority. By advertising on Facebook, you’ll be able to reach your audience right at the palm of their hands.

Enhanced audience targeting

There are billions of people on Facebook. That said, you need to make sure that you use at least the most basic of targeting when you set up any ad on Facebook. Otherwise, you’ll end up advertising to the wrong people and waste money in the end.

Facebook advertising allows you to target a specific group of people based on their age, gender, geographical location, interests and more. This gives you the chance to be more precise in your audience targeting. Think about your ideal customer and what they’re interested in. Decide who you want to reach before creating an ad.

Heightened audience engagement

Before, you only needed to come up with great content and wait until you get all the likes you deserve, but all that has changed over the years. Now, you have to promote your content to ensure that your existing and potential customers see it in their newsfeeds.

Your primary goal is to capture the attention of your target audience and get them to engage with your posts. In addition to ads, you need to make sure that your content are interesting because users only see posts from pages they engage with. Build trust with your followers and get them to share, like or comment on your posts.

 

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Tips for Getting Great Photos for Your Blog Posts

bimsImages are important. Adding images to your blog posts can help make it stand out and effectively convey your message. It also helps craft a visually-memorable experience. That’s why all top bloggers make sure they incorporate visuals and try to make them as vibrant as possible.

Here are some tips for getting great photos for your blog.

Use images legally

Before using any image on your blog post, make sure that it’s copyright-free. Legally, you’re not allowed to use any images that you got from the internet. If you do, the owner of the image may file a complaint against you and your post can be removed.

Don’t just go and take any image you like. Check the copyright restrictions of photos and obtain permission before using it on your blog.

Create your own images

There are a lot of sources of ready to use images on the web, but it would be a lot better if you can add original images on your blog. You don’t have to be a professional photographer to capture great photos. Just bring your camera with you wherever you go and capture images you can use for your future content.

Not only does it add a touch of personality and uniqueness to your site, it also increases the likelihood of someone sharing your post. According to studies, people are more likely to share images they haven’t seen before.

Flickr

Flickr is an amazing resource for photo lovers and photographers alike. Here, you can find billions of different photos that you can use for your site. But you have to understand that not all photos from this site can be used.

Only photos with Creative Commons license can be used. Copyrighted images cannot be used. If you really wish to use a copyrighted image, you may try your luck and ask permission from the photographer directly.

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How to Measure Social Media ROI

BIMS_11.10We all know what ROI stands for. Unfortunately, not everyone understands its meaning and importance.

If your company is spending money on social media marketing, you want to measure your ROI. This is important so you have an idea what exactly it is you’re getting out of the time, effort and resources you commit to your campaign. It helps you measure the efficiency of your social media marketing efforts.

To show you how you can track your social media ROI, here are the steps you should take to help you gauge the effectiveness of your social media marketing campaign.

Identify your goal

Different organizations will have different goals. Before you can track and measure your ROI, you first need to identify your goals. Is it to generate more product trials, get signups for your newsletter or increase traffic to your site?

Track your goal

Each of your goals can be measured using specific metrics such as traffic, engagement, reach, lead generation etc. It all depends on your goal.

There are certain tools that can be used to measure the effectiveness of your actions. You can track follows, likes and share in Buffer. Website actions such as signups, downloads and sales can be tracked in Google Analytics.

Quantify social media return

Add up all the expenses, including the cost of boosting a Facebook post, running a promoted ad and everything that go into generating content and maintaining social media presence.

Determining how much you have spent will help you determine whether you’re getting a positive or negative return on your social media marketing efforts. Now, calculate your ROI using this formula: (Earnings – Costs) x 100 / Costs

Adjust tactics

Monitor the impact of your social media efforts using the formula given above and then adjust your tactics as needed to improve your social media ROI.

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