top 10 restaurants on social media

Top 10 Restaurant Chains on Social Media

 

We all love to eat. While we may not agree on which is better, spaghetti or tacos, we can agree that food is generally a very popular topic and may be one of the most popular topics on social media

What do I want to eat? I will just Tweet out the choices and see which wins.

If I check-in to this restaurant on FourSquare could I get a coupon?

I’m such a good cook! I’m going to post a picture of what I made for dinner on Facebook!

Where should we eat for dinner? Let’s see what has the best reviews on Yelp!

I would totally make this awesome dish on Pinterest, and it would look JUST like the picture!

These are statements that we have probably either said ourselves or heard someone else say. Social media has become so engrained in our lives, that it can even become part of our dining experience. Whether it is choosing what/where to eat, sharing a great meal with all our friends/followers, or browsing for fun new recipes to use in the future, social media is creeping into our kitchen’s territory.

Check out the infographic below to find out what restaurant chains are most popular on social media. The infographic breaks down the top 10 limited-service restaurant chains by social media platform, including: Continue reading

How Marketers Will Use Social Media In The Future

Each year the Social Media Examiner publishes the ‘Social Media Industry Report‘. The report is based on interviews with over 3,800 marketers. This year, one of the big questions that they focused on was:

“How will marketers change their future social media activities?”

Overall, marketers plan on increasing their use of social media in the future. However, the tools that they utilize and how much the use each tool will change.

YouTube

YouTube and other video platforms are leading the pack, with 76% of marketers planning on increasing their use of YouTube and/or video marketing in 2012.

Facebook

Not a big surprise, Facebook came in #2 with 92% of marketers planning on using Facebook in 2012 and 72% planning on increasing the activities on top of that. Only 4%Facebook Usage 2012 Social Media Industry Report of marketers do not plan on using Facebook at all; however, this is most likely due to the industry that their client is in. Clients in industries such as healthcare or manufacturing are less likely to include Facebook in their social media strategy.

I found it very interesting that Facebook is the #1 focus of those just getting started in social media. This makes sense because it is most likely the platform that they are most familiar with. In addition, B2C companies plan on increasing their use of Facebook much more than B2B companies. B2C companies are able to reach in customers more easily using Facebook than B2B companies. However, B2B companies can use Facebook for building and monitoring their online reputation. For more information about how B2B vs. B2C companies use Facebook, check out this infographic.

Twitter

Overall only 69% of marketers plan on increasing their activities on Twitter; however, this increase will most likely be by enterprise level companies and local small businesses. Marketers realize that due to the real time nature, maintaining and monitoring a Twitter account effectively requires a significant time commitment. As such, marketers currently dedicating 21 hours or more per week on social media are more likely to increase their use of Twitter.

Blogging

Blogs are great for driving site traffic and increasing search rankings. Due to the benefits of blogging, it is no surprise that 86% of marketers plan to either continue or increase blogging. Similar to Twitter, blogging requires a significant time commitment to write, edit, and post articles, as well as monitor comments. Due to the necessary time commitment, marketers who are currently dedicating 11 hours or more a week to social media are more likely to increase their blogging efforts.

Google+

The platform that most of us are aware of and probably have an account on, though we probably don’t use it much, is Google+. Some interesting statistics on Google+ usage include:

  • 67% of business plan on increasing their Google+ activities
  • 1 in 5 businesses have no plans on using Google+ in the future
  • Men are more likely to use & increase usage of Google+
  • It is the #1 platform that marketers want to learn more about

LinkedIn

In 2012 B2B companies are more likely to increase their usage of LinkedIn, while only about 1/2 of B2C companies will increase their usage. As a tool for networking, LinkedIn definitely has more benefits for B2B companies than it does for B2C. B2C companies will most likely use LinkedIn as a tool to increase brand awareness in their industry and search for potential employees.

Photo Sharing

The industry report states that only 60% of marketers even plan on using photo sharing sites such as Pinterest, Instagram, and Flickr. Photo Sharing Site Usage 2012 Social Media Industry ReportHowever, I believe that these numbers no longer accurately reflect where usage is going based on:

  • Rapid growth in the popularity of Pinterest
  • Facebook’s acquisition of Instagram

I think that there will be a much larger increase in usage, as well as a decrease in the percentage of marketers who have no plans of utilizing photo sharing sites.

 

Geo-location Services and Daily Deals

Of all the statistics in this section of the report, I found the information on Geo-location services and Daily Deals the most interesting.

Only 23% of marketers plan on increasing their use of geo-location services like FourSquare in 2012. This is particularly interesting since FourSquare just hit their 20 million user mark this week. (Check out more information here)

72% of marketers have NO plans to use daily deals, such as Groupon or LivingSocial. This percentage really surprised me since Groupons were recently very popular. The decrease in usage may be from lack of repeat participation by companies or lack of profitability.

The Future of Blogging

What should your focus be for your online marketing strategy? The infographic below breaks down what online medias companies will be using in 2012.

Takeaways 2012

  • Start or increase blogging – 43% of companies will have active blogs in 2012, up from 39% in 2011
  • Create an email newsletter – 77% of companies will use email marketing in 2012
  • Find your next superstar- 57% of companies will use social media to find new employees

The Future of Blogging Infographic

Why Your Klout Score is Important

So what is a Klout score and why should you care?

Klout.com is becoming one of the most popular sites for understanding and growing your online network successfully. Klout was created to measure and understand, as well as leverage your brand’s influence online.

A recent article on Forbes.com by Dorie Clark breaks down why your Klout score is important for your brand. It also includes great tips from Alex Lightman, a high ranking Klout member, on how to increase your score.

Why You Should Care About Your Klout Score – Forbes.com

Your brand’s online influence can not truly be measured solely by the number of Twitter followers or likes on Facebook you have. True influence (Klout) is measured by the content you share and how frequently you interact with your community, as well how often they interact with you. Klout has created a process to convert your brand’s online influence into a number on a scale of 1 – 100. Some of the factors that influence your Klout score are:

  • Twitter: Retweets and Mentions
  • Facebook: Comments, Wall-Posts, Likes
  • LinkedIn: Comments, Likes
  • Foursquare: Tips, To-Do’s, Done
  • Google+: Comments, Reshares, +1

Even though the list above mentions “likes” and posts, Klout is not measuring your level of “activity” it is measuring your level of influence!

My favorite feature on Klout is the “Klout Style” report. The report measures:

  • Whether you share or create content
  • If the information you share is focused or broad
  • If you are more of a listener or if you participate in online conversations
  • Who you influence and who influences you

Based on these factors and more, your brand is categorized into one of 16 categories, including:Wendy's Facebook Page Timeline Format

  • Curator
  • Broadcaster
  • Dabbler
  • Conversationalist
  • Networker
  • Observer
  • Specialist

For example, Klout categorizes me as a Networker. Klout defines a Networker as:

“You know how to connect to the right people and share what’s important to your audience. You generously share your network to help your followers. You have a high level of engagement and an influential audience.”

Also, you can find out what topics you are most influential on, compared to those you assume interest your followers. Klout helps you better understand your brand and determine if your strategy is successful. Check out my Klout profile to find out more about what you can learn about your online community Being Your Brand Klout Score

Have you already signed up for Klout? If so, where you surprised by your score or how Klout categorized you? Leave a comment below, I always appreciate your thoughts.

Social Media Marketing By the Numbers

Via Scoop.itBeing Your Brand

You can not argue with the cold hard numbers on the power of social media marketing (well you could, but it would be a losing battle). This infographic from Mashable shows the power of social media marketing in regards to Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and location based services (such as FourSquare) strictly through numbers.

So what can a strong social media campaign do for your brand? Well for Old Spice, one month after they launched their “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” social media campaign they saw HUGE jumps in their followers/fans:

  • 60% increase in Facebook Fans (approx. 650,000 new fans)
  • 2700% increase in Twitter followers
  • Doubled YouTube subscribers

I would definitely classify the Old Spice campaign as more than successful!

In addition, this infographic breaks down the success of the Katy Perry Purr, EA Games Bulletstorm, Free the Children, Nie Widen Bohren, and Under Armour social media campaigns. How can you deny the power of social media when there are over 4 billion “things” shared on Facebook each day and almost 400 million Foursquare check ins during 2010 alone.
Via pinterest.com