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Twitter and the Power of the Hashtag

As Social Media sites are growing, so is the use of the hashtag. If you didn’t already know, a hashtag is a word or a group of words after the # sign. Whether it be Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest etc., hashtags are popping every everywhere. On Twitter especially, the hashtag has proven to be an extremely powerful tool for marketing businesses. But, how do we use this strategy properly? Hashtagging can either help you reach your target market and expand your business, or it could be a waste of your time. It is crucial to learn the power of this social media marketing tool and how to use it properly. Here are some useful tips:

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Tip#1: Defining Your Brand

The first major step to using Twitter and hashtags effectively is defining your brand or business in a few specific words. Twitter is one of the most widely used social media sources, so you want to make sure your posts are being seen by the right people. Your central business tag should be a word that is unique to your business. You can make it your company name or a tagline that people will know about your business. For example, Red Bull uses #givesyouwings which is their company slogan. Doing this will help your business become recognized.

 Tip #2: Use Trending Hashtags

It is also important to understand trending hashtags. A trending hashtag is a topic that has become very popular. Keeping an eye out for trending hashtags that have to do with your business is a great way for your posts to get noticed. This can help your post be seen by a large audience, but still focuses on your business. Your content can be seen by more than just your followers, so it’s important to get yourself out there by using a trending hashtag. Trends on Twitter can be found on the left hand side of your computer Twitter feed.

Tip #3: Use Content Tags Properly

Lastly, using the right content hashtags is another crucial step for your business success on Twitter. These tags are not branded, and aren’t necessarily popular or trending, they are just simply unique to your business. Using these enable you to get seen by your consumers who are searching for those specific hashtags. One of the biggest mistakes people make when using hashtags is not being specific enough to your business. For example, using #food if you run a catering business will end up working against your favor. Millions of people a day use #food and that is never an acknowledgeable hashtag for a business. Instead, using something more specific like #foodcatering will get your post noticed by your consumer. Finding common hashtags by checking out what tags are being used by your followers and your competition is a great way to make sure you’re using them effectively.

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Tips for Long-Term SEO Success

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The world of SEO is constantly changing. SEO experts around the world are watching the search engines like a cast of preying hawks, taking note of what Google is going to do next. That being said, the tricks you are using today may not have the same impact a year from now.

What do you need to do in order to make sure that you are focusing on long-term optimization and results?

In an attempt to help entrepreneurs and marketers succeed, we have put together some tips that would guarantee long term SEO success. Here are some of them.

Create and manage a blog

Even if you think that your business is not the most appropriate platform for blogging, it is imperative that you create and manage one. This is because your blog will act as your command and control center.

Think of categories and topics that are related to your business and start writing. The best articles are the ones that answer your audience’s questions such as how-to guides, top 10 list, industry news, company updates etc.

A high quality blog is more likely to bring more leads and attract your target audience. Plus, it gives Google more contexts to index.

Create a social strategy

Search and social used to be 2 entirely different things. Now, having a strong social media presence plays an important role in high search engine rankings.

Don’t rely on just one social media platform. In order to expand your SEO reach and build network connections, it is important to use various social media platforms. As long as you stay active, you can reap the SEO benefits.

Encourage good reviews

Positive reviews are great strategy for any business. This is especially true if your business relies on local customers.

The more positive reviews you have, the more traffic you’ll get. Plus, you’ll have more authority in Google’s local ranking algorithm. The most effective way to get good reviews is by giving your customers a great experience.

 

 

 

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Tips to Maximize Your Youtube Marketing Results

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YouTube might try to wow you with the latest statistics by revealing that 48 hours worth of video are being uploaded every minute. By the time you finish reading this article, we’re guessing 3 days’ worth of videos have been uploaded on the site.

With the competition getting tougher, you’re probably thinking if someone would be interested enough to watch your videos. If you are doing this to capture the attention of your target audience, you have to make sure that your videos standout from the rest and focus on conversion.

Here are a few tips to help you get the most from your Youtube marketing campaign.

Keep it short

Whether it’s in TV or the Internet, no one is interested to watch ads anymore.

Most Youtube ads allow users to skip the ad after 5 seconds. Majority of the users would take advantage of this option and click on the “skip ad” button immediately and proceed to watch the video they came to Youtube for.     That being said, you only have 5 seconds to capture the attention of your target audience and get your message across. Otherwise, it’ll be out of the picture. Make sure to keep your ads short and watchable. Don’t go beyond the 60-second mark.

Selecting the right keywords

Youtube is the 2nd largest search engine in the world. And the fact that Google owns Youtube cannot be overlooked.

Videos appear on search engines. To make your video more findable, you have to make sure that it lands on top of the search results page. To do that, you need to select the right keywords and use them in the first few words of your title, description and tags.

Create compelling videos

When individuals are searching online, they are looking for quick information. That said, each one of your videos should be relevant, valuable and educational to your prospective and current clients. Create content that addresses your audience’s needs.

 

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Pinterest for Your Business

Did you know that there are over 70 million Pinterest users worldwide? After Facebook and Twitter, Pinterest is the 3rd most popular social networking site. The question is, what makes Pinterest stand out among the rest? How can it be beneficial to your business? If you don’t already know the ins-and-outs of using Pinterest for your business, now is a good time to get on board!

What makes Pinterest so special is that it is so new(only 4 years old!), easy to use, and generates more traffic than most other social media sites. Along with that, there is an endless amount of opportunities and marketing strategies available through Pinterest. Here are some tips on how to get started with strengthening your businesses through Pinterest!

  1. Create A Strong Business Profile: Taking time to set up your account properly is the first step to success. By accessing business.pinterest.com, you can find all the resources you need including Pin it buttons for your website, follow buttons, tools, and a Pinterest for Business Guide. It is important to be aware of what’s happening in order to establish an active profile. Keep track of who is searching your brand name, product names, and who is pinning your pins. Actively commenting on pins where you brand is mentioned is also extremely beneficial to creating a strong and active presence to your audience. It isn’t the amount of content you have that strengthens your profile, but more the quality of attention you pay to the consumer you are reaching out to.
  2. Create Boards to Represent Your Business:  Once you’ve set everything up, it’s time to create your Pinterest boards! Promote your products and services in fun, intriguing ways that makes it easy for the audience to grasp. You can do this by posting interesting facts about your business, photos relevant to your industry, and showcase your previous work to give your audience an overview of your business. Become a go-to source for information by providing infographics, training videos, tutorials, and tips from your own business as well as others. Creating boards with an ideal client in mind with easily accessible information is a crucial step to using Pinterest to help your business thrive.
  3. Use Various Tools Offered: There is a wide range of tools to use for Pinterest that can be found at the Goodies Page including Canva, PicMonkey, and Pixir(to name a few). Canva is a Graphic Design Tool that simplifies the image creating process. Canva has a variety of templates that are made specifically for Pinterest, and overall helps strengthen the images you promote through your business. PicMonkey is a photo-editor that is fun and easy for every to use. Pictures make up most of what Pinterest is, so it is important to make sure your images catch the eye of the consumer. Pixir is another extremely useful tool available for Pinterest. It is a photo editor, a screen grabber browser extension, and a photo sharing service. Taking advantage of the variety of tools available for Pinterest is a key step in strengthening your business.

 

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How to Reach Your Target Audience Online

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In the competitive world of online marketing, it takes more than a persuasive copy and a beautiful website to truly connect with your target audience. Your brand’s competitive advantage relies on your ability to stand out from the crowd and develop a genuine relationship with your prospects and current customers.

But before this, your first have to determine where these people spend majority of their time online and make sure that your brand has a presence in those channels. Read on for tips on how you can reach your target audience and grow your business in the digital world.

Speak with your audience

Thanks to social media, communication is now two-way and asymmetrical. Join group discussions on Facebook, LinkedIn and other sites where people are conversing about a topic related to your business. Participate in these discussions and feel free to provide answers to certain questions or share your opinion.

Start local

To get your message out to potential clients, begin with the idea of narrowing down your audience. This is especially beneficial for starting businesses that don’t have enough advertising budget.

Limit yourself geographically. Choose a specific section of the city and focus your efforts there. As your business grows, expand your selected zone.

Blog about your customer’s interest

Blogging is one of the best ways of connecting with your target audience and driving them to your site. If you want to attract visitors, you need to create blog posts that are in complete alignment with their areas of interest. Pay attention to the comments section of your blog. If anyone throws a question, you can use this as an inspiration for your next blog post. Fill your blog with informative and relevant topics and position your company as a though leader and expert in your industry.

 

 

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Tips to Boost Your Email Marketing Efforts

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With the internet spreading its wings all over the world, most business owners and marketers are choosing to switch from the physical aspect of business promotion to email marketing.

Email gives you a direct line of communication with your customers. However, in today’s world of cut-throat business competition, people are being bombarded with emails; thus, making it increasingly difficult for marketing messages to get through. Remember, your marketing efforts won’t do you any good, unless your emails are read.

Listed below are some of the most powerful email marketing tips. Give some of these tips a try and enjoy more productive campaigns.

Develop and maintain the email list

It is important to develop and maintain well-searched email list in order for your marketing campaign to be successful.

Email list is not a one-time thing. You have to remove people who do not respond to your emails or does not seem interested, at least every 3 months.

Longer lists should also be broken down into smaller segments – the openers, the new subscribers, the responders and the deadbeats. From here, you can plan your next move and get the desired results.

Creating the message

Most people skim past the vast majority of messages on their mobile devices. So you have to make sure that your subject line stands out.

Once an email is opened, you only have a couple of seconds to grab their attention. So keep the message short, to-the point and easily readable. Also, don’t forget to add a signature at the bottom of the email.

Build a relationship

When scanning your inbox, the first thing you usually see is the sender’s name. If the recipient does not recognize who the email is from, there’s a great chance that your message won’t get opened.

If that happens, then the rest of these tips won’t even matter. So, try to build a relationship with your subscribers and carefully earn their trust.

Personalize

Your subscribers will appreciate your messages more if they are personalized. You can use data analytics to generate emails and provide personalized recommendations based on the subscriber’s purchase history.

 

 

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Tips for Planning Your Social Media Holiday Campaign

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The holidays are just around the corner. With the Halloween rapidly approaching and Thanksgiving just a few weeks away, this means marketers are solidifying their holiday campaign for the most wonderful time of the year.

The holidays are the busiest time of the year. And you might find it difficult to stand out in the marketing frenzy if you don’t plan ahead. Since most people start shopping for Christmas presents after Halloween, it would be a good idea to start hanging the social media ornaments as early as now.

Incorporate these tips into your social media campaigns and make sure that your holiday campaign gets noticed.

Strategize early

The holiday season is slowly creeping up on us and will be there sooner than you think. The key is to plan ahead and get creative. Use social media to create a buzz around your brand leading up to the festive season.

Stand out from the competition

With the holiday season comes a horde of advertisers desperately vying for your attention. Think outside of the box. Remember, majority of marketers are planning to use some sort of promotional offers to capture the attention of their target market. Differentiate yourself from the competition and think of something that would get the public interested and excited to engage with your brand.

Offer coupons

Studies suggest that consumer spending increase by 11% during the holidays. Since it’s the most wonderful time of the year, give your customers a reason to shop by offering discounts or coupons.

Share holiday tips and tricks

Increase your social media engagement by throwing a bunch of informative and interesting content into your social marketing mix. With so many brands flooding the market with discounts and deals, sharing information about DIY home decorating projects or winter recipes for baking desserts will help you get noticed.

You can also ask questions to get people talking about their activities during the holiday, purchases and traditions.

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Social Media Tips for Bloggers

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While a lot of people believe that blogging is just about creating unique and interesting content, the truth of the matter is that you need to promote your content in order to ensure that each blog post reach its widest possible audience.

When it comes to driving traffic and building an audience, bloggers are turning to social media with record results. To get more clicks and promote their brands, successful bloggers know that need to develop a following on key social networks. It is ideal for accomplishing this goal since social media feeds on a never-ending stream of content.

Follow these tips and your blog will blossom in this new era.

Be on social media

You have done almost everything, yet you’re still not driving traffic. This can be quite frustrating, but you also have to consider all the links you have seen, but didn’t click on.

Spend some time on social media platforms. This way, you can find inspiration for that next blog post, keep up on industry news and build relationship with your followers and fellow bloggers.

Add social media sharing buttons on your blog

Make it as simple as possible for your readers to share your content by adding social media sharing buttons at the top and bottom of your blog. Reduce reader’s hurdles. If they have to hunt around just to share your content, then you’re hurting your content’s sharability.

Join blogger groups on Facebook

Participate on social media beyond sharing your own content. Join some active blogger groups on Facebook and become part of the community. Help others by answering their questions or sharing a link to a relevant blog post.

Once people get to know you, they are more likely to share your content.

Share other blogger’s content

Feel free to check out what other bloggers are posting and give them a repin, share or tweet whenever you can.

Be generous to your fellow bloggers by sharing their content. Hopefully, they’ll return the favor and share your content, too.

 

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Choosing the Right Channels to Reach the Right Market

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Choosing the right channels to reach your target market is a crucial decision. It is important that you know where your prospects and customers are spending their time online.

With Twitter, Instagram and Facebook leading the pack, most businesses are tempted to use more channels and to have a presence on multiple social media platforms. Of course, the more social media sites you use, the more customers you can reach. But it also increases cost. If building presence in multiple channels does not bring about extra sales, then you’ll end up spending more for little or no benefit.

Here’s a quick set of considerations as you select the right social networks to reach the right market.

Twitter

You should use this channel if are looking to reach younger men and women. Since Twitter appeals to information junkies, it is also a great choice if your business lends itself to the provision of timely insights or topic-based news.  It is also a two-way platform wherein you can engage and interact with your followers.

LinkedIn

If you are seeking to make business connections or are in B2B and you wish to provide useful insights to people thinking about their work, then LinkedIn is right for you.

It is optimal for industry-specific information and peer networking since most users are in work mode on LinkedIn. Given the educational levels and high income of the average LinkedIn users, this channel offers a distinct audience worth targeting.

Facebook

If you are looking to reach as broad a network as possible or wish to build a community presence, then Facebook is right for you.

Despite the introduction of new social media sites, Facebook is still one of the most popular sites, with more than 70% of online adults actively participating. However, since most people use this platform to connect with their family and friends, it may not be the best channel to reach your target market.

Instagram

If you have a visual aspect to what you do and what your customers are interested in, then Instagram is the right channel for you. Given its popularity among urbanites and its appeal to specific ethnic segments, Instagram can also be a good choice for certain market targets.

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Content Marketing: Tips for Generating Fresh and Relevant Content

BIMS blogYou only have a few seconds to capture the attention of your target audience. Think about the books you’ve began and the articles you’ve read in the past. Through the first few sentences, people will decide whether they want to spend more time to read your content. With so much articles posted on the web, you can’t expect people to invest so much of their time trying to overcome a tepid introduction.

Despite the intense competition, some people were able to generate thousands of laser-targeted visitors to their sites. If you’ve ever wondered how they did that, then you’re in for a real treat.

Here are some tips to help you generate fresh content and increase the popularity of your site.

Find other blogs to read

Set aside 10 minutes of your time browsing through other blogs in the same niche. This will help ensure that you have fresh content ideas when you’re ready to sit down and create new contents for your site. Take what you find and make it even better.

Don’t be afraid to dedicate more time everyday to read other’s blog posts. Mind you, the best writers spend majority of their time reading and learning how to inject different voices into their work.

Pinterest

If you’ll be hanging out on the same platforms as your competitors, there’s a good chance that you’ll be writing the same old stuff.

Pinterest actually drives more traffic as compared to Youtube, LinkedIn and Google+. So, focus there and use it for content mining.

Pinterest pins are ranked according to likes, comments and repins. So, keep an eye out for topics with the most number of repins.

Check the comments section

If you have an active community on your blog, then make it a point to read the comments.

Your site should focus on your visitor’s interest and address the question of what’s in it for them. By listening to what others have to say, you’ll be able to pick up some ideas to write for your next blog post.

However, if no one is commenting on your posts, we suggest reading the comments on other blogs within the industry.

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