Tag: Marketing

How to Harness the Power of Hashtags

Twitter is a unique platform, in which you are only able to have a conversation with the world using 140 characters. So how do you make your tweets stand out from the rest, and be found by engaged followers? One word…#HASHTAGS.

Hashtags are one of the most powerful tools you can use to increase the visibility of your tweets. Twitter is a real time feed that changes every second, so it is crucial to create tweets that stand out not only in the feed but in searches, as well. Hashtags can help to increase the number of followers, and in turn increase traffic to your website.

So here are some basic rules for using hashtags:

  • Do not use more than three hashtags in one post, more than that and you start to fall into the category of a hashtag spammer.
  • If you have two words you want to use for hashtags, you should combine them to create one hashtag (example: #Summer #vacation becomes #SummerVacation)
  • Only use hashtags that are relevant to your post, do not add the top trending hash tag to your tweet just to gain followers. (Example: You are tweeting about puppies, but the top trending hashtag is #worldseries, do not add World Series to your tweet.)

Creating a Campaign Around a Hashtag
So, using hashtags seem pretty simply, right? Well…yes and no. While they can be a tremendously powerful tool to increase followers and website traffic, preparation for creating a campaign around a hashtag is a requireHow to Use Hashtags on Twitterment, in order to advert disaster. The main reason a brand would use a hashtag is to try to start a conversation with the online community and build brand awareness. Powerful but generic hashtags tend to be more successful for brands because there is less chance that it could turn into negative publicity or a hashtag hijacking. It is not recommended that the company name is included in the hashtag.

Coming up with the best hashtag for your company can sometimes be a challenge. I know I just said that a hashtag should be powerful, yet generic, but it is also essential that it is not too generic. You do not want a hashtag to be so generic that it could be hijacked and used by another company, or for the meaning to be able to be change entirely. As with all social media campaigns, it is vital to have a crisis management plan in place. It should include details on how you plan to respond if your hashtag campaign is hijacked, or if it spins off in a negative way.

When beginning a campaign around a hashtag it is important to be ready for constant monitoring of how the hashtag travels and evolves in the “Twitter World”. Setting up a buzz feed to show all mentions of your hashtag could do the monitoring.

Hashtags can be very powerful tool and should definitely be used. But, please don’t just throw them into every tweet. Hashtags should be relevant to your brand, post topic, and your campaign.

Image: Master isolated images / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How a Subject Line Can Make or Break Your Email Marketing Campaign

Via Scoop.it – Being Your Brand

Next time you pen an email subject line think twice about the words you’re using.   Click the link below to see a great infographic showing the best times to send emails, when people read emails most (6 a.m. surprisingly!), and what words to use in the subject line. Using this info you can increase the number of responses and create a successful email marketing campaign. Make your email stand out from the hundreds which flood our mailboxes everyday.

Each day we spend about 2.5 hours emailing, both reading and writing emails. We also are quick to delete emails, selecting ‘delete’ for more than half of the emails we receive. Our emails typically fall into the following categories:

  • 1/2 of emails are quickly deleted
  • 1/4 of emails are archived to reference later
  • 1/4 of emails we open, read, and respond (or follow the request)

It’s all about the subject line when it comes to emails, using the right keywords can increase your opening rate drastically:

  • Instead of “speaker” use “conference”
  • Instead of “join” use “apply”

Via mashable.com

Why Wikipedia Is Important For Your Social Media Strategy

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Many times Wikipedia is overlooked as a tool for both branding and social media. Wikipedia at its core is a collaborative information source and a social media. It is often one of the first listings that appears in search results, and is many people’s first choice when they want quick information.

A big reason that Wikipedia should not be overlooked is because Facebook pulls information and images directly from Wikipedia pages for the info sections of community pages. Community pages are Facebook-administered and auto-generated. Community pages were auto-generated from keywords Facebook users  often used in reference to their “likes”, interests, and work. So, there is probably at least one (if not more) community pages out there with your company’s name.

Since community pages are Facebook-administered, it is important to keep content up-to-date on your company’s Wikipedia page, or create a Wikipedia page for your company so that the community page is not blank.

The majority of Facebook users are  unaware that companies do not actually control community pages, so your brand can still be damaged by incorrect content pulled from Wikipedia. In addition, only a certain amount of content will be pulled from the Wikipedia page. (Approximately 250 words though this number varies greatly across pages)

Below are screen shots of the Macy’s Department Store Facebook Community page and the Macy’s Department Store Wikipedia page – Same content!

Macys Facebook Community Page

Macys Wikipedia Page

How to Brand Yourself Online and Offline

Brand strategy is not limited to businesses anymore; it is now expanding into the idea of branding yourself. I was introduced to the concept of branding yourself during my senior year at Tulane when everyone was getting ready to apply for jobs, specifically the idea of branding your online identity.

Personal Brand StrategyBut, when I thought about it a personal brand does not exist solely online. Actually, a personal brand strategy can be applied to networking (online and offline), applying for jobs, and career goals.

It is important remember when you are developing a personal brand strategy, that it is just as important for you to monitor your online brand as it is for companies.

Also, don’t forget to keep your brand information up-to-date (job position, promotions, or new skills) and to build an active community around your brand (make sure your Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook posts are relevant to your personal brand strategy).

If you are interested in developing your own personal brand strategy, check out this infographic about things to remember when creating your strategy.

How To Create Your Personal Branding Strategy? #infographic

Image: nokhoog_buchachon / FreeDigitalPhotos.net