Persuasive Picks For Week Of 6/10/13

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SOCIAL-MEDIA1-300x3001Every marketer expects a return on their social media efforts, but many still struggle with prioritizing which social networks to use – and how to allocate resources. In Social Media ROI for Business: Facebook Versus LinkedIn, business strategist and Business2Community contributor, Daniel Burrus explains that when you understand the psychology of social media and the various types of networking that fall under each umbrella, you can make smarter social media decisions for your business.

Many see content marketing as just that—marketing. But smart marketers know content simply provides the avenue for storytelling. MarketingProfs‘ Jay Pinkert provides some advice on how to grab attention and connect with potential customers, through those stories, and to do it authentically in his post Make Content Marketing Authentic: The Case of Customer Stories.

influencersEveryone preaches about building relationships with online influencers, but no one ever shares tips for how to do that. So, How Do You Find Influencers in Your Area to Help Grow Your Business?  SocialMediaToday contributor, Jennifer MacDonald, explains how to identify and build relationships with influencers in four simple steps.

It’s an age old question that nags all marketers at one time or another:  “How can I get more followers on Twitter?” While quantity shouldn’t trump quality, like it or not, people can and will judge you on the size of your Twitter network. If you want to know how to make your Twitter content more attractive to potential subscribers check out Shea Bennett’s post on AllTwitter: 7 Tips To Get More Followers On Twitter [INFOGRAPHIC].

Persuasive Picks For Week Of 6/3/13

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many-suited-businessmen-300x168Knowing how to convey tone in your online writing – including blogs, Tweets, Facebook posts, pins, etc. – is to know your business inside and out. SocialMediaToday’s Kylie Robertson asks readers “If your business were a person, what would it look like?”- stressing the importance of personality, because that’s what your company will be perceived as online: a person. Read more about writing with the right tone in mind in Who Does Your Company Sound Like? Finding Your Tone in Social Media Writing

Social media and blogging has gone from being an activity we started just for  fun and pleasure, to a more serious business. If you need to market and monetize your business, personal brand, website or blog to take advantage of the opportunities, then you need the right tools, resources and advice to guide you. But the explosion of websites, apps, tools and resources online is often confusing. Business2Community contributor Jeff Bullas narrows it down to 39 Awesome Tools and Resources for Blogging and Social Media Marketing.

emailA recent survey of more than 1,000 mobile device users found that for the first time ever, email is the primary reason people are using smartphones. What’s more, emails from brands are second only to personal recommendations when it comes to influencing purchasing decisions on mobile devices. What does that mean for marketers? Michael Truby at PRDaily explains Why Email Is A Key Element Of Mobile Marketing and notes a few key factors to keep in mind.

When marketers list the types of content they’re producing, many put a check next to the box titled “webinars.” These online presentations have been used effectively for many years, and the webinar’s popularity has surged with the decline of tradeshows during the recent recession. But Marketing Automation Evangelist Mathew Sweezey points out that Only 16 Percent of B2B Consumers Prefer Live Webinars, and suggests that implementing three essential techniques will help you earn more ROI out of each webinar and increase lead generation significantly. – via ClickZ

Persuasive Picks For Week Of 5/27/13

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Screen shot 2013-05-31 at 11.10.35 AMA recent survey indicates that more than 60 percent of Fortune 500 companies use some form of social media marketing, but most companies still don’t fully understand the benefits of social media. So Marketing Consultant, and Business2Community contributor Phil Lauterjung takes a closer look at how Social Media Marketing Is Changing The Way We Do Business.

One of the most common issues plaguing social networks is that anyone can create an account and use whatever name they wish. In fact it’s common to recommend that a business owner stake their claim on their profile on every possible social network just to ensure that someone else doesn’t take your “name” first. That’s why networks like Twitter and Pinterest and Google+ have put verification measures in place to help users know that they’re engaging the person or company that they think they are. This week Facebook threw its hat in the ring and Mike Allton at SocialMediaToday ponders whether verification really matters on social media in his piece; Facebook Verification: Why Do We Need It?

social-media-chalkboardWant more retweets on Twitter? Sure, who doesn’t, right? So… have you tried asking for them? The truth is, calls to action may not be sexy, and they may not be good social etiquette, but they work, and they work on Twitter. And Facebook. And blogs. Find out Which Social Calls To Action Really Work on Facebook, Twitter And Blogs in this informative infographic posted by Shea Bennett on AllTwitter.

The rapid growth of social media platforms sometimes outpaces the ability of businesses to get their arms around how best to use it. Before you can use a new channel, you must create a strategy around it. But many marketers struggle with how to create strategies. MarketingProfs‘ Rachel DiCaro Metscher reminds readers to Ensure That Strategy, not Tactics, Drives Your Social Media and gives some helpful tips to help you begin to chart a successful social media route.

Persuasive Picks for week of 5/20/13

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twitter-bird-white-on-blue3Shea Bennett, Co-editor at AllTwitter, has been writing about Twitter on a near-daily basis for more than four years. Over that time-period, Twitter has changed considerably and continues to evolve. Accordingly, so has the way that Bennett thinks and writes about Twitter. There are some valuable tips to be found in her lessons learned – What I Have Learned From Writing 2,000 Articles About Twitter

If you’ve done any marketing on Facebook, then you’ve probably seen both successful fan pages and not-so-successful fan pages. So there must be some sort of “secret” to successful Facebook pages, right? Business2Community contributor Scott Ayres sure thinks so, and that’s what he set out to discover when he asked a few Facebook experts for the inside scoop in The #1 Secret of Successful Facebook Pages – 5 Experts Weigh-in

business_bookAs more businesses continue to enter the blogosphere, they run the risk of publishing clichéd, outdated articles in the hopes of attracting a wider audience. Business blogger and MyCorporation CEO Deborah Sweeney explains that she has seen plenty of business blogs that continue to publish material that is either uninteresting or unprofessional and, to stem the flow of poorly written postings. She recommends Five Topics to Avoid When Writing Your Business’s Blog on SocialMediaToday.

4 Social Media Tips Businesses Can Learn from Celebrities – Although most lists of “things we can learn from celebrities” include more don’t’s than do’s, there is definitely one thing they can teach us: the art of social media. Celebrities, much like big businesses, have huge name recognition and fan loyalty. Also, like the corporate world, they have new projects, products and ventures they’re promoting via the social web. Social Media Consultant Lisa Parkin provides a few lessons businesses can learn from social media-savvy celebs in her piece at The Huffington Post.

Persuasive Picks for week of 5/13/13

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5-Google+-Insights-Resources-and-Tips-for-Business-Plus-InfographicGoogle added 41 new features to their social network darling, Google+. Yes, 41! With 190 million monthly active users, Google+ is still not as popular as other social communities, but interactive expert Bernadette Coleman thinks that with these updates comes a more appealing, more competitive network. She explains why social media marketers and small businesses should pay special attention in New Google+ Features Hit the Web – via SocialMediaToday

Yahoo announced that Tweets have become an important information source for many and will now be featured in Yahoo’s news feed. While few details have been revealed, it’s probably safe to assume that Yahoo will feature tweets that are popular, influential and of course meet certain criteria for authenticity and newsworthiness. Business2Community contributor, Victoria Harres, helps communicators prepare and provides 4 Best Practices Brands Should Implement, Now That Twitter is a Yahoo News Source

emotionsKing Fish CMO Gordon Plutsky wants to remind brands that people buy for emotional reasons. So while the digital marketing revolution has enabled companies to communicate directly with customers, it’s how companies choose to communicate with customers that will determine their ability to create emotional connections. Check out Gordon’s picks in  4 brands that emotionally connect with consumers – a look at leading companies that are moving past transactional relationships to better connect with empowered customers on iMediaConnection.

When Did Social Media Lose Its Way? In the early days of social media, users interacted like real people do. However, in time, social networks evolved into pits of broadcast messages. MarketingProfs‘ Verónica Maria Jarski posts an infographic from Hubspot that demonstrates the history of how brands lost their way in social media, and how they can find a path back to their roots.

Persuasive Picks for week of 5/6/13

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toolsBehind every successful social media marketer is an arsenal of marketing tools that help to ideate, implement, and track the success of a social media campaign. But social media tools are a dime a dozen, and keeping up with the latest offerings can be an overwhelming and frustrating process. Fortunately for us, Social Media Strategist Rebecca Debono has posted her Top 5 hottest social media tools on iMediaConnection.

As a marketer, brand manager, PR practitioner, or executive you have likely figured out that in this new, content-driven, multichannel environment your brand is now, among other things, a content publisher. With more than half of US consumers using smartphones, it is now time to plan your mobile content strategy. MarketingProfs‘ Frank Sinton gives some helpful tips to get you started in Seven Steps You Can Take to Capitalize on the Mobile Video Viewing Shift

Traffic to your websiteIf you are looking at LinkedIn as your next digital marketing project, then don’t forget to spend a decent amount of time focusing on your ‘company page’. If you are looking for some guidance, then check out LinkedIn Tips and Advice Part 2 – Company Page Optimisation for some sound recommendations provided by Business2Community contributor Kerry Dye.

Social media is 24/7. Someone is always tweeting, posting on Facebook, or uploading a new picture to Instagram. However, for social media managers and businesses alike, this can be quite a challenge. Brianna Smith at Social Media Today explains that there are a couple different ways to determine when your audience is online, and points to an insightful infographic to help you determine the Best Times to Post on Social Media [INFOGRAPHIC].

Persuasive Picks for week of 11/5/12

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MarketingProfs‘ Molly Glover Gallatin illustrates how to tie the kind of rich, actionable customer intelligence you can glean from social media into five overarching marketing decisions in Five Marketing Decisions Social Media Should Be Shaping.

The term “content marketing” includes two intimidating words that can be difficult to hear lately, due to the increased amount of content being shared on social networks by just about everyone. Viral Traffic Specialist and Content Creator Amanda Ryan posts 5 Content Marketing Tips That Will Give Your Business a Competitive Edge on Business2Community.

Just because online marketing is a digital medium does not mean it has to be cold and impersonal; rather, as marketing continues its rapid shift online, businesses must learn to personalize their digital assets in order to stay competitive. Strategic Marketing Consultant and SocialMediaToday contributor Chris Horton provides 3 Simple Ways to Connect with Your Target Audience.

An emerging social media trend is creating fresh ways for companies to engage with customers. With the rise of the visual, social web, clever brand ambassadors and marketers are breathing new life into contest marketing. Evan Vogel explains that the visual web is giving digital contests a major shot in the arm in How visuals are reviving digital contest on iMediaConnection.

Persuasive Picks for week of 10/29/12

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Did you know that, according to a recent study by Nielsen, around four out of every five smartphone owners now use their device whilst watching television? Shea Bennett posts an interesting infographic that takes a closer look at social television and the rise of the second screen on AllTwitter – TV Goes Social – The Rise Of The Second Screen [INFOGRAPHIC]

Michael Cohn reminds Business2Community readers that relationships are at the heart of social media success for your business. He writes in Relationship Building Through Social Media that your online strategy must include the concept in some form and you should keep track of how much return on investment those relationships are bringing to your business; and offers several other principles to follow.

Are you using LinkedIn to generate leads or referrals? Brad Friedman at SocialMediaToday is guessing that there are features you may not be aware of in LinkedIn Company Pages: 5 Things You’re Probably Not Doing and thinks it’s time that you take advantage of the feature-rich LinkedIn Company Page.

Online video can engage an audience, help viewers retain information, and assist customers in remembering a brand. But how can you go one step further… and make your videos social? MarketingProfs‘ Jeff Fissel explains in Six Ways to Make Your Video Strategy More Social that video actively engages the users by soliciting comments, questions, and feedback; it creates conversations that take your videos to the next level.

Persuasive Picks for week of 10/22/12

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In every industry there’s a bellwether that points to future trends. Do you know what it is for digital marketers? And more importantly, are you paying attention? Digital marketing industry insider Shelly Palmer speaks to iMediaConnection about the the changing technology landscape in How to predict the future of digital marketing.

Brand pages aren’t necessarily a new feature on LinkedIn, but recently the professional networking site revamped their brand pages in an effort to better connect the business to the customer and job hunters, with several new features reminiscent of what Facebook and Twitter are currently offering. Deborah Sweeney, CEO of MyCorporation explains Why It’s Time for Your Business to Get a LinkedIn Brand Page on SocialMediaToday.

With the rise of social media, word-of-mouth marketing is becoming a more tangible form of consumer influence. And, brands are out there in strong force tapping the digital space for “influencers” of all kinds. It sounds intimidating, but Nick Cifuentes, Global Social Media Director for Ancestry.com, offers some insightful guidance to Understanding Digital Influence and How to Engage – via ClickZ.

One of the reasons many businesses do not create and publish online content to serve their communities is the assumption it has already been done. Business2Community contributor Jeff Korhan writes that this assumption ignores the fact that most problems are chronic and original perspectives are the only way to slowly break them down to develop sustainable solutions, and provides 3 Ways Content Marketing Makes Every Business Better.

Persuasive Picks for week of 10/15/12

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The key to being a good consultant of any kind is to ask the right questions, writes Michael Teitelbaum in a recent post at Marketing Trenches, and provides a list of 5 Questions Marketers Need to Ask Prospective Clients to get to the heart of a prospect’s challenges and aspirations – via MarketingProfs.

Visual networks are now changing the rules of engagement and agencies and brands need to find the best ways to measure and understand their customers cultures. Laurent Francois of SocialMediaToday explains How Instagram, Pinterest and Tumblr are Blasting Social Media Monitoring tools because there’s a fantastic bias supposing that people express themselves only through words, sentences and syntax.

LinkedIn has rapidly become the number one B2B social networking tool with over 175 million users from around the globe. So why would someone in your target audience choose to do business with you in LinkedIn? Online Marketing veteran and ClickZ contributor Jasmine Sandler says it’s not as easy as one-two-three, but provides some helpful tips on Creating Solid Business Relationships Through LinkedIn.

First impressions matter! Blog readers generally pay attention to the title and the first two paragraphs of any given post, and then decide whether to read the rest. Lydia Di Francesco gives content marketing tips to bring more attention to your posts in 6 Easy Ways To Write Headlines That Get More Clicks on Business2Community.