Posts

Twitter’s Updated Search Feature

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Twitter has recently announced new changes to the way users search on their database. This could have a measurable impact on how brands compose their tweets.

The new search update appears to resemble the Google search engine in some ways. As a user types in a keyword, it attempts to guess what they’re searching for, as options that are trending will appear below in a drop-down menu. This lets the users view options before they finish typing. The Twitter search now also fixes spelling, similar to the “Did you mean” Google feature.

In addition, Twitter now will take your search and provide you with options of similar search terms. For example, when searching, “Social Media Strategy,”

Twitter might suggest, “Social Media Agency” as another good search option. This will be very useful when users are trying to follow a trending topic or find new content.

Another new aspect to the Twitter search is its ability to filter search results to the people users follow. This helps users when they’re searching their feed for older tweets they meant to favorite, or messages from friends. This is a fairly small update, but it personalizes Twitter in a new and interesting way.

Twitter is the go-to place for breaking news. News tends to hit Twitter before appearing on television, in the papers, or on websites. Because of this, Twitter is trying to become the go-to place for people to search for news. The new Twitter search feature still only lets user search things within the Twittersphere (as opposed to the Bing/Facebook partnership). However, search results will be free of Internet junk and full of more relevant and recent tweets.

Perhaps the most important aspect of this updated Twitter search is how it will affect brands using strong Twitter promotions. Brands need to start adjusting their tweets for searches since the site itself is now being structured for searches. Just like blog posts and websites are composed to show up in Google, tweets must be optimally composed for Twitter. This new optimization will impact Hashtags and Keywords on Twitter. Hashtags will be even more important in tweets because they will now have more of an impact in searches. Companies should start utilizing their hashtags with popular search terms. With regards to keywords, tweets should contain keywords to help them show up in Twitter searches. But companies need to be careful not to go overboard with hashtags and keywords in their tweets!

This new way of tweeting should help brands see increased consumer engagement on Twitter overall. It is likely that there will be more organized conversation and detailed tweeting within the site.

This new real-time search feature is available to all users on Twitter. The updated Twitter search will provide for a more efficient social site. Keep in mind just how important keywords and phrases used by brands within tweets will become with this new Twitter search. If you are managing your company on Twitter, always think about which search terms people might be using on the site and try to appropriately incorporate them into your tweets without coming off as spam.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Marketing Your Business On LinkedIn

 

 

 

 

 

 

LinkedIn is a very prominent social media platform for B2B and B2C marketing. Here are some unique features to utilize on LinkedIn in order to successfully market your business.

1. Company Pages

LinkedIn is a very intelligent network in that it monitors other social sites and uses features from them that will benefit its users. Company Pages for example, let LinkedIn members follow a company, then share and recommend their products and services and directly connect with business employees in their network.

A Company Page lets you use hot links to highlight products and services that link back to landing pages. You can also add in pictures and videos within the product and services section of the page. The page acts like an online brochure, and you can even offer special discounts to followers.

In order to grow your marketing reach, you should promote your Company Page by adding a button on your website and email. Company Pages are easy to set up and maintain, so take advantage of them.

2. SME Groups

LinkedIn now has over 1 million groups. These groups are becoming the most used feature on the site. However, smaller companies that are not well known may not be able to get many users to join a group they’ve created on LinkedIn.

So, the best way to market by using Groups is to begin a Subject Matter Expert (SME) group. In a group like this, you can post discussions about the latest and upcoming trends in your industry, and invite other experts to join and post their comments. Try not to post news releases from your own company in these types of groups.

Position your company to be subject matter experts and your brand will grow in the industry it represents.

3. Group Discussions

Many marketers on LinkedIn will join a group of fellow business partners and end up posting only to that group. While it is important to interact with your peers, it is important in marketing to interact with potential consumers.

Try joining groups that your customers belong to. Join the groups that you feel could be the most relevant to your company. Don’t immediately begin posting about your company’s products and services, but rather offer insight and become a group member who people can go to if they’re interested in the services you offer.

4. The Status Bar

The LinkedIn Status Bar feature is helpful in notifying the network about company news, events and blog posts. In 140 characters, the update on your Status Bar can be updated to Twitter at the same time. Any person in your network can view your posts on the Status Bar and share, like or comment on them.

5. Answers

With the LinkedIn Answers feature, you can ask a question and promote that question within your network. You can even email a link to that question. Pose questions that let you market your business in a subtle way and it will help increase your network reach.

This feature lets you respond and comment to your own question, and interact and communicate with those who answer privately.

It is very valuable to learn the features of LinkedIn, as the site can be a great marketing tool for almost any business. Utilize these features on your LinkedIn account today and boost your social media success.

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Marketing Your Business On LinkedIn

morethanmarketing

 

 

 

 

 

LinkedIn is a very prominent social media platform for B2B and B2C marketing. Here are some unique features to utilize on LinkedIn in order to successfully market your business.

1. Company Pages

LinkedIn is a very intelligent network in that it monitors other social sites and uses features from them that will benefit its users. Company Pages for example, let LinkedIn members follow a company, then share and recommend their products and services and directly connect with business employees in their network.

A Company Page lets you use hot links to highlight products and services that link back to landing pages. You can also add in pictures and videos within the product and services section of the page. The page acts like an online brochure, and you can even offer special discounts to followers.

In order to grow your marketing reach, you should promote your Company Page by adding a button on your website and email. Company Pages are easy to set up and maintain, so take advantage of them.

2. SME Groups

LinkedIn now has over 1 million groups. These groups are becoming the most used feature on the site. However, smaller companies that are not well known may not be able to get many users to join a group they’ve created on LinkedIn.

So, the best way to market by using Groups is to begin a Subject Matter Expert (SME) group. In a group like this, you can post discussions about the latest and upcoming trends in your industry, and invite other experts to join and post their comments. Try not to post news releases from your own company in these types of groups.

Position your company to be subject matter experts and your brand will grow in the industry it represents.

3. Group Discussions

Many marketers on LinkedIn will join a group of fellow business partners and end up posting only to that group. While it is important to interact with your peers, it is important in marketing to interact with potential consumers.

Try joining groups that your customers belong to. Join the groups that you feel could be the most relevant to your company. Don’t immediately begin posting about your company’s products and services, but rather offer insight and become a group member who people can go to if they’re interested in the services you offer.

4. The Status Bar

The LinkedIn Status Bar feature is helpful in notifying the network about company news, events and blog posts. In 140 characters, the update on your Status Bar can be updated to Twitter at the same time. Any person in your network can view your posts on the Status Bar and share, like or comment on them.

5. Answers

With the LinkedIn Answers feature, you can ask a question and promote that question within your network. You can even email a link to that question. Pose questions that let you market your business in a subtle way and it will help increase your network reach.

This feature lets you respond and comment to your own question, and interact and communicate with those who answer privately.

It is very valuable to learn the features of LinkedIn, as the site can be a great marketing tool for almost any business. Utilize these features on your LinkedIn account today and boost your social media success.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Tips For Successful Social Media Marketing

 

 

 

 

Businesses everywhere are finding new opportunities to engage with consumers through Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Pinterest. It’s known that Twitter gets about 460,000 users to sign up per day, and Facebook is expected to reach 1 billion users by August, so it’s easy for businesses to realize that each and every one of these users have the potential to be a customer.

But social media marketing is more than just making an account and adding friends and followers. It is critical to have a well-established strategy and to do your research so you can develop the best social media plan for your company.

Follow these tips before you hit the social media highway.

1. Have A Plan

Too often Facebook becomes littered with inactive company pages. These pages are the result of marketers making a company page without a goal in mind.

It’s important to understand your objectives. State what it is you want to accomplish. This might be to create brand awareness, to provide a platform for consumers to give input and ask questions, or to build customer loyalty with promotions and specials.

Also, you’ll want to make a plan for measuring your ROI. It’s very helpful to be able to tell if your efforts are paying off. If your efforts aren’t getting results, then you can have a plan set to help you modify your marketing tactics.

It’s also wise to know you’re target audience. Define the demographics of who would be most interested in your products and services so you can send your brand message to those specific people.

Finally, make sure you have the time necessary to run your social media marketing plan. If you can’t make the time needed for your social media marketing, your attempts will not get very far. Consider hiring someone to help you so you can have the time to make a successful social media marketing campaign.

2. Keep It Simple

After you’ve got a basic plan set up, don’t go overboard and try to join every social network site out there. That will only end up fragmenting your efforts. What you should do is focus on creating one or two accounts on social media sites and grow your audience there.

3. Don’t Spam

With social media, it can be tempting to start promoting your products and services like crazy, but advertising should not be the main focus of social media marketing. Facebook users don’t go on the site to just look for something to purchase, so make sure you’re engaging with followers and fans on a level beyond advertising and promoting.

4. Communicate

Silence is not golden in the social media world. Communication is a must for any business, especially social media marketing. If you are not able to maintain ongoing communication with your customers, you will lose the value of having a social media presence. So be “social” and make contacts and boost your reputation.

5. Build Your Fan Base

It’s easy to gain customers by building your fan base. If you communicate well through your social media sites, your fan base will grow, and the potential for more customers will grow as well. Be sure to post interesting and unique information often, and follow people who are relevant to your brand, and they might just follow you back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Twitter Marketing Strategies That Work

 

 

 

 

 

Twitter is one of the most important sites to use in any Internet marketing campaign. To strengthen your Internet marketing, it is crucial to understand the latest and greatest strategies to use in your marketing campaigns, especially those that work for Twitter. To stay ahead of the Internet marketing game, use these tips on your Twitter account regularly.

1. Focus On What’s Important

A major problem social media marketers might run into is not being focused and precise. You must keep in mind that your followers like your brand and want to read your updates because they are in your target market and are interested in the topics you tweet about.

Don’t tweet mindlessly; tweet about the things you know your consumers are interested in and the things that complement what your brand represents. Having targeted, precise tweets will keep your brand focused on reaching those who are most interested in what you have to offer.

2. Be A Professional

On Twitter, being able to write snappy headlines is key. You only get 140 characters to tweet, so it better be meaningful and interesting in order to excite followers. Your content should be quality and attention grabbing, so that traffic to your site will continue to grow.

Don’t worry about how many followers you have. It’s better to have a fewer number of followers that are followers who are clearly in your target market. Your tweets should address those real customers who enjoy visiting your site and are likely to retweet your posts, which will then lead to new consumers who also share the same interests.

3. Communicate With Your Followers

Remember, Twitter is a SOCIAL media; therefore you must be social for it to work for your company. Twitter is about connecting, sharing and communicating. If you interact with your followers, you will get to know them better and as a result, you will be able to create tweets that you know your followers will be interested in and appreciate.

Start commenting and asking questions to your followers about things that are relevant to your brand, and that you know they’re interested in. Then take it a step further and try interacting with your followers’ followers as well, so you give your brand more exposure to others who could become potential customers.

These tips are easy ways to help make the most out of your Twitter account. They must be part of your Internet marketing campaign in order to see results. Twitter is hugely important in increasing traffic, so use it efficiently and your campaign will be successful!

 

 

 

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Twitter Marketing Strategies That Work

 

 

 

 

Twitter is one of the most important sites to use in any Internet marketing campaign. To strengthen your Internet marketing, it is crucial to understand the latest and greatest strategies to use in your marketing campaigns, especially those that work for Twitter. To stay ahead of the Internet marketing game, use these tips on your Twitter account regularly.

1. Focus On What’s Important

A major problem social media marketers might run into is not being focused and precise. You must keep in mind that your followers like your brand and want to read your updates because they are in your target market and are interested in the topics you tweet about.

Don’t tweet mindlessly; tweet about the things you know your consumers are interested in and the things that complement what your brand represents. Having targeted, precise tweets will keep your brand focused on reaching those who are most interested in what you have to offer.

2. Be A Professional

On Twitter, being able to write snappy headlines is key. You only get 140 characters to tweet, so it better be meaningful and interesting in order to excite followers. Your content should be quality and attention grabbing, so that traffic to your site will continue to grow.

Don’t worry about how many followers you have. It’s better to have a fewer number of followers that are followers who are clearly in your target market. Your tweets should address those real customers who enjoy visiting your site and are likely to retweet your posts, which will then lead to new consumers who also share the same interests.

3. Communicate With Your Followers

Remember, Twitter is a SOCIAL media; therefore you must be social for it to work for your company. Twitter is about connecting, sharing and communicating. If you interact with your followers, you will get to know them better and as a result, you will be able to create tweets that you know your followers will be interested in and appreciate.

Start commenting and asking questions to your followers about things that are relevant to your brand, and that you know they’re interested in. Then take it a step further and try interacting with your followers’ followers as well, so you give your brand more exposure to others who could become potential customers.

These tips are easy ways to help make the most out of your Twitter account. They must be part of your Internet marketing campaign in order to see results. Twitter is hugely important in increasing traffic, so use it efficiently and your campaign will be successful!

 

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Marketing With Pinterest

 

 

The social media site Pinterest has over 11.7 million visitors a month now, and about 17.8 million registered users! It has become one of the most popular social media sites for a few main reasons.

The visually appealing aspect of the site draws in viewers and keeps their attention. The fact that users sign into the site using their Facebook or Twitter account allows them to be automatically integrated into their existing social network sites. So, sharing across social media sites is already built into Pinterest. The site has a clean and simple interface, so people are able to use it easily, with little confusion.

However, compared to other leading social media sites, Pinterest does not offer as many discovery methods. It can take a little effort to trace a pin to the user who initially pinned it, making it somewhat harder to directly engage with fellow users. Pinterest also does not yet have a way of recommending or directing pinners to other pinners or boards based on activity. This can be a little inconvenient for brands trying to build and grow an audience.

Another key aspect of Pinterest is that its demographics are quite unique compared to those of Twitter or Facebook. Half of all Pinterest users are parents, and 68.2% are women. Facebook and Twitter have a more evenly split gendered audience. This means that for brands with a predominately female target market, Pinterest might be the best sight to utilize to engage with fans.

For companies who have passionate followers across several platforms, like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, you can bet that those followers will also engage with your brand on Pinterest. Pinterest can be a great site to engage on a personal level with followers because you share your own, personal interests with your users. While the site clearly helps build relationships, it is not so efficient in “selling” products to followers. But, remember that engaging, not selling, is the ultimate goal of social media!

Pinterest is also a great platform in terms of sharing. You can easily post pictures from your own site, or pin images from other sites. A “Pin It” button can be installed on the Safari browser, making sharing images and information across the web easier than ever. You can also place a Pinterest button that links to your Pinterest account on your website or blog. Facebook even allows you to add a Pinterest tab onto your timeline.

The fact that fans can pin your images onto their own boards is another way that fans engage directly with your brand. You can use the “Pin It” button next to images on websites that you would like to share with your fans. This provides a chance to make viral connections, as followers of your fans will see their pins.

Additionally, there are a few apps available to help you to build a community on Pinterest. The app, Shareasimage, converts text found on the web into an image that can be shared on Pinterest. The app also works for Facebook and Twitter. Another app, Url2pin.it, lets users “screenshot” a picture of a website then share it on Pinterest. This could be a great way to share interesting sites with your fans, or it could be used as a promotional tool for your own site.

Pinterest is a site that truly models the purpose of social media: to be social! The site does not sell; it shares. Sharing with your consumers is how you must market with social media in order to gain brand loyalty and expand your fan base!

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Marketing With Pinterest

 

 

The social media site Pinterest has over 11.7 million visitors a month now, and about 17.8 million registered users! It has become one of the most popular social media sites for a few main reasons.

The visually appealing aspect of the site draws in viewers and keeps their attention. The fact that users sign into the site using their Facebook or Twitter account allows them to be automatically integrated into their existing social network sites. So, sharing across social media sites is already built into Pinterest. The site has a clean and simple interface, so people are able to use it easily, with little confusion.

However, compared to other leading social media sites, Pinterest does not offer as many discovery methods. It can take a little effort to trace a pin to the user who initially pinned it, making it somewhat harder to directly engage with fellow users. Pinterest also does not yet have a way of recommending or directing pinners to other pinners or boards based on activity. This can be a little inconvenient for brands trying to build and grow an audience.

Another key aspect of Pinterest is that its demographics are quite unique compared to those of Twitter or Facebook. Half of all Pinterest users are parents, and 68.2% are women. Facebook and Twitter have a more evenly split gendered audience. This means that for brands with a predominately female target market, Pinterest might be the best sight to utilize to engage with fans.

For companies who have passionate followers across several platforms, like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, you can bet that those followers will also engage with your brand on Pinterest. Pinterest can be a great site to engage on a personal level with followers because you share your own, personal interests with your users. While the site clearly helps build relationships, it is not so efficient in “selling” products to followers. But, remember that engaging, not selling, is the ultimate goal of social media!

Pinterest is also a great platform in terms of sharing. You can easily post pictures from your own site, or pin images from other sites. A “Pin It” button can be installed on the Safari browser, making sharing images and information across the web easier than ever. You can also place a Pinterest button that links to your Pinterest account on your website or blog. Facebook even allows you to add a Pinterest tab onto your timeline.

The fact that fans can pin your images onto their own boards is another way that fans engage directly with your brand. You can use the “Pin It” button next to images on websites that you would like to share with your fans. This provides a chance to make viral connections, as followers of your fans will see their pins.

Additionally, there are a few apps available to help you to build a community on Pinterest. The app, Shareasimage, converts text found on the web into an image that can be shared on Pinterest. The app also works for Facebook and Twitter. Another app, Url2pin.it, lets users “screenshot” a picture of a website then share it on Pinterest. This could be a great way to share interesting sites with your fans, or it could be used as a promotional tool for your own site.

Pinterest is a site that truly models the purpose of social media: to be social! The site does not sell; it shares. Sharing with your consumers is how you must market with social media in order to gain brand loyalty and expand your fan base!

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Avoid Harming Your Social Media With Poor Web Design!

 

 

 

Lots of companies today are putting in a lot of time and effort to create their business’s social media platforms. They are creating engaging campaigns, producing quality content and making a true effort to communicate with consumers.

But, after creating a strong social media presence, you MUST have an equally strong website that is easy for consumers to navigate otherwise all your social effort could be lost. Consumers who are initially interested in your brand after engaging in your social media platforms will be turned-off by your brand if your website rubs them the wrong way.

Too many companies get too focused on elaborate web design, and in the end their website can end up being too flashy, hard to navigate and confusing. Try to avoid these issues by creating a simple design strategy to compliment your social media efforts.

One of the major mistakes when designing websites is that there is no distinct call to action. Before making your site, ask yourself, What do you want consumers to do once they come to your site? Do you want them to contact you? Buy from you? Ask for more information? After you address these questions, then you have a set purpose in mind and you can design your website around that purpose to get the results you want.

Another mistake is confusing navigation. You do not want your potential consumers to arrive at your site and end up wasting time trying to find what they’re looking for. You want your site to be easy for users to navigate. Design it so that they are able to conveniently go back and forth from their location. Set up your site as if it’s a department store: you want clear signs shown obviously so users can see exactly where it is they want to go.

Additionally, you want to try out different browsers before settling on one. You might find a browser that looks great in Internet Explorer, but consider how it will look in other applications like Safari or Chrome. Before choosing your website design, test it out in a variety of different browsers so it is appealing to users no matter what application they’re utilizing.

Poor readability is another common issue with website design. Green and orange may be your company’s colors, but they might not read so well on the Internet. Make sure your visitors are able to read the text on your site by avoiding clashing colors. Also make sure that the size of the text is not too big or too small. If you have text that’s placed over images, check that the text is still readable.

The final mistake made when designing websites is enabling too much Flash. Websites that highlight important information with Flash elements are likely to run into several issues. One of these issues is that the design ends up being harder to read. Flash elements also slow down the load time of your site and consumers might end up leaving the site before it’s fully loaded. It’s also important to know that Flash is not good for SEO. Anything in Flash will not be indexed in search engines.

By avoiding these common web design mistakes, consumers enticed by your company’s social media will be more likely to stay interested in your brand by creating a well though out website. A simply designed website will be attractive to consumers and traffic to your site will ultimately increase!

 

 

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Avoid Harming Your Social Media With Poor Web Design!

 

 

 

Lots of companies today are putting in a lot of time and effort to create their business’s social media platforms. They are creating engaging campaigns, producing quality content and making a true effort to communicate with consumers.

But, after creating a strong social media presence, you MUST have an equally strong website that is easy for consumers to navigate otherwise all your social effort could be lost. Consumers who are initially interested in your brand after engaging in your social media platforms will be turned-off by your brand if your website rubs them the wrong way.

Too many companies get too focused on elaborate web design, and in the end their website can end up being too flashy, hard to navigate and confusing. Try to avoid these issues by creating a simple design strategy to compliment your social media efforts.

One of the major mistakes when designing websites is that there is no distinct call to action. Before making your site, ask yourself, What do you want consumers to do once they come to your site? Do you want them to contact you? Buy from you? Ask for more information? After you address these questions, then you have a set purpose in mind and you can design your website around that purpose to get the results you want.

Another mistake is confusing navigation. You do not want your potential consumers to arrive at your site and end up wasting time trying to find what they’re looking for. You want your site to be easy for users to navigate. Design it so that they are able to conveniently go back and forth from their location. Set up your site as if it’s a department store: you want clear signs shown obviously so users can see exactly where it is they want to go.

Additionally, you want to try out different browsers before settling on one. You might find a browser that looks great in Internet Explorer, but consider how it will look in other applications like Safari or Chrome. Before choosing your website design, test it out in a variety of different browsers so it is appealing to users no matter what application they’re utilizing.

Poor readability is another common issue with website design. Green and orange may be your company’s colors, but they might not read so well on the Internet. Make sure your visitors are able to read the text on your site by avoiding clashing colors. Also make sure that the size of the text is not too big or too small. If you have text that’s placed over images, check that the text is still readable.

The final mistake made when designing websites is enabling too much Flash. Websites that highlight important information with Flash elements are likely to run into several issues. One of these issues is that the design ends up being harder to read. Flash elements also slow down the load time of your site and consumers might end up leaving the site before it’s fully loaded. It’s also important to know that Flash is not good for SEO. Anything in Flash will not be indexed in search engines.

By avoiding these common web design mistakes, consumers enticed by your company’s social media will be more likely to stay interested in your brand by creating a well though out website. A simply designed website will be attractive to consumers and traffic to your site will ultimately increase!

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