Month: February 2014

Categories
Social Media Marketing

3 Visual Social Media Marketing Tips

Did you know that images featured in social media updates have engagement rates 600x higher than written content? It’s true. People enjoy viewing images far more than reading text.

 

If you’re looking to revamp your social media posts, check out these three tips for adding visual content to your social media marketing campaign.

 

  1. Take a picture at the office.  Your social media followers want to know you’re a real person. Show them!

 

  1. Create infographics. Instead of a bulleted list, create an infographic to visually display your information. It’s a lot more fun and interesting to view statistics and helpful tips when there are corresponding pictures.

 

  1. Pinterest, Instagram and Vine. Gone are the days when simple Facebook posts and one-sentence Tweets drove engagement. Now, top brands are relying on social media platforms designed specifically for visual content to increase brand awareness and boost engagement.

 

Given these tips, which do you plan to use in your social media marketing campaign?

 

Categories
Blog Tips and Tricks

From the Experts: Tips for Increasing Brand Awareness

Boosting brand awareness online is a primary motivator behind launching an internet marketing campaign. What steps has your company taken to spread the word about your brand? Take a look at these expert tips from a recent survey:

Go beyond the blog. Pat Flynn, a successful entrepreneur, recommends going beyond the blog to incorporate videos, podcasts and webinars.

Become the customer. According to Declan Dunn, acting like a new customer and searching the internet can provide valuable insights into your next brand awareness strategy.

Focus on value. One tip from Kristopher Jones is to “focus on adding value” to your content. It’s not all about the sale.

What tips do you have for increasing brand awareness online?

Categories
Online Marketing Web Development

Does Your Website Play Well with Mobile Devices? It Should

In 2014, mobile advertising spending is set to hit $18 billion.

 

What does this mean? It means that brands are waking up to the fact that consumers are relying on mobile devices to connect and make purchases.

 

Does your website play well with mobile devices? If not, here are three reasons it should.

 

  1. In 2013, over 90% of adults owned cell phones. If your business’ audience consists of adults, you need to make sure your brand reaches them wherever they are.

 

  1. Over 70% of mobile shoppers place importance on mobile-friendly sites. Brand sites that load slowly or incorrectly are quickly shunned by mobile users.

 

  1. Nearly 3 out of 4 mobile users rely on their device to conduct searches for local businesses. If your website isn’t accessible on a mobile device, your customers will move on to the next business on the search results page.

 

What steps will your brand take to connect with mobile users?

Categories
Online Marketing Tips and Tricks

3 Ways Your Internet Marketing Efforts Can Improve

Internet marketing is almost too broad of a term. With so many pieces to the puzzle, many companies are struggling to measure the effectiveness of their efforts. A recent study polled over 200 marketers in various industries about their progress. Let’s take a look at the areas needing improvement:

1. Nearly 33% of survey respondents are not measuring the value of individual pieces of content.

2. Two-thirds of those surveyed view the largest challenge as creating targeted, relevant and engaging content.

3. Over 25% of survey participants post fresh, original content once a month or less.

Compared to these statistics, how does your company measure up?

Categories
Social Media Marketing

Have Crickets Taken Over Your Facebook Page?

If your Facebook profile is so quiet you can hear a pin drop, your social media engagement techniques might need a little work. Take a look at these tips for creating a buzz about your brand:

1. Use emoticons (sparingly). Strategically placed emoticons let your customers know they’re interacting with a human – not a computer.

2. Post images. On average, posts that contain images receive more than 50% more likes, shares and comments.

3. Spread the word with hashtags. Adding a hashtag, or two, to your Facebook posts gives your content more exposure across social media channels. Don’t waste this opportunity!

What do you do to get a conversation started about your brand?

Categories
Tips and Tricks Web Development

WordPress Web Development: A Smart Choice for Businesses

WordPress is not just for bloggers anymore. In fact, nearly 20% of the top websites across the globe are powered by WordPress. Why is WordPress so popular, you ask?

1. It’s free. One of the best features of WordPress is that it’s absolutely free. Though you can get fancy with your widgets and plug-ins, a basic WordPress launch will cost you nothing.

2. It has powerful CMS. With WordPress, there’s no need for a secondary content management system. WordPress has everything you need to manage your website’s content right from the dashboard.

3. It has robust tools. Since WordPress is an open-source platform, new tools are becoming available each day. WordPress’ SEO tools help your website play nicely with search engine algorithm changes, which boosts your site’s visibility.

4. It’s quick & easy. WordPress is ideal for businesses that need to launch a website quickly and have little knowledge of web development.

Does your business use WordPress? Why or why not?

Categories
Email Marketing

Are Your Emails Headed for the Trash?

It’s easy to get caught up in the strategy and analytics of an email marketing campaign. But have you thought about your readers? What motivates them to open your email?

If your emails are getting deleted, check out these tips for increasing your open rate:

1. Make sure emails are optimized for mobile. If they aren’t, you may be losing 50% of your business.

2. Create an eye-catching subject. Ask a question or state an interesting fact, but remember to keep it short.

3. Quit trying to sell them something. Customers are growing weary of sales tactics. Instead, provide helpful information or ask for feedback.

How do you protect your emails against the fate of deletion?