While many companies are focusing on integrating social media into their marketing strategies (as they should), they are tending to also over look tried-and-true practices to reach customers, one of which is email marketing. While other online medias, such as Facebook and Twitter, continue to grow in popularity, I think that there may be a growing assumption that email marketing is becoming passé. But, this is assumption is very far from true. Email usage and reach is actually growing and is still a powerful tool for any marketer, and can still offer companies various insight into their marketing efforts, including: Continue reading
Tag: Social Media
Social Media’s Biggest Blunders Infographic
With millions of people using social media every day and growing, it is more crucial than ever that you are prepared for any difficult situations that may arise, such as Facebook post or Tweet that was never supposed to have been published. Luckily, there are a many examples of social media screw-ups that we can learn from. Continue reading
Agile Marketing: What is it and Why is it Important?
The following is my most recent blog post for Mudbug Media entitled “What is Agile Marketing and Why is it Important?”.
Agile Marketing…Is it just a buzzword or a new way of marketing that could have a big impact on productivity and creativity?
Agile originally began as an approach to software development, but the ideas and practices have been adopted by those with a variety of skill sets, including design and marketing. By using an Agile approach, marketing becomes about being adaptive and responsive. The following are a few of the key components of the Agile approach to marketing: Continue reading
Top Cities for Social Media Savvy Small businesses Infographic
Check out this great infographic on the top cities in America with social media savvy small businesses. Leading the way is San Francisco, Los Angeles, Washington D.C., Seattle, and San Diego.
The Power of Social Media for Small Businesses
Manta recently completed a survey of 600 small businesses across the United States to determine level of activity from small businesses on social media, and how valuable it is to the growth of their businesses.
The following infographic breaks down the findings of the small business social media survey, including: Continue reading
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
The Pluses and Minuses of Google+
The following is my most recent blog on Mudbug Media’s Blog au Roux about how to determine if Google+ could benefit your social media strategy.
The buzz about Google+ has revved up again lately, possibly due to the negative press that has been recently circling around Facebook, like the sharks in shark week. The press around Google+ is also driven by recent changes to the social media platform, including custom URLs, social integration into Chrome iOS app, and the debut of the “slider” feature, which will unclog homepage feeds by allowing users to choose what and how often new posts from other users they have circled appear in their feed.
Even though Google+ is a known and changing platform, there are still a lot of unknowns when it comes to using it as a tool for marketing businesses and brands. Google+ is still a fairly new social media platform, finding its footing and place in the social media community. In addition, business and brands have only been on the social media platform since November, when Google+ unveiled Google+ brand pages. Even now, we are continuing to learn how best to use Google+ as a tool for connecting with customers.
So, how do you know if Google+ is right for your business?
The following breakdown of some of the pros and cons of using Google+ brand pages will hopefully help you decide if this tool could help promote your business.
Pros of Google+ Brand Pages:
- Hangouts: Businesses can use video chats to talk directly to their customers. Hangouts can be used as a customer service tool to assist customers when they have questions or conflicts, as well as add a personal touch to customer service.
- Circles: This allows businesses to target customers by demographic, interests, etc., so that they can better target promotional information and posts. Circles allow companies to reach the “right customers” with the “right message”.
- Posts: Google+ posts are much larger in size than Facebook wall posts, which is beneficial for posting images and videos, items that frequently increase user engagement. For example, videos in Google+ posts are full sized, and do not have to expand in order to be viewed.
- Google Search Results Love Google+: Using a Google+ brand page to promote your business has the possibility of a very positive impact on your position in Google search result:
- Google+ brand pages are indexed by Google’s search engine
- +1 clicks on your Google+ brand page can help to increase you search engine rankings because Google ranks +1 items higher
- Connect your Google+ brand page to your website by adding a Google+ Badge, a customizable widget that helps grow your Google+ audience and shows more recommendations for your page in Google search results
- Social reports: Google Analytics is connected to Google+ pages. The social reports in Google Analytics provide metrics and insights into brand page activity.
- Google direct connect: If your business has a Google+ brand page and someone types “+Company Name” in the search box, it takes him or her straight to your Google+ brand page.
Cons of Google+ Brand Pages:
- Limited Audience:While the Google+ audience consists of almost 40 million users, only 17% of those users are considered “active” or “frequent users”
- The Google+ Demographic shows over 60% of users are male
- Majority of users are between the ages of 25-34
- Largest group of Google+ users is males between the ages of 24 and 25
- While circles allow brands to separate customers into targeted groups, brands are only allowed to “circle” customers who have “circled” them
- Google+ brand pages are tied to ONE personal account and additional admins cannot be added, so it is critical that companies carefully consider who will “own” the brand page because transferring or changing the connected account is not allowed. Ask this question: “What will happen if the person whose account is connected to the brand page leaves the company?”
- A verification process for Google+ brand pages does not currently exist, so it is possible that someone else or competitor could create a false brand page for your company
Like other social media platforms, Google+ has its limitations and challenges, but it also offers features that other platforms do not. This changing platform can help businesses connect with customers through features like Hangouts, and understand their customers with Social Analytics. Based on the demographic of your customer base and social media goals, Google+ may be a perfect match with your current social media strategy.
If you think that Google+ may be a beneficial component of your social media strategy, check out my post on creating an integrated social media strategy for your company. Also, check out more great articles on design trends, application development, and marketing strategy on Mudbug Media’s Blog au Roux.
How to Create a Successful Email Marketing Campaign
With a massive amount of emails delivered to our inboxes everyday, it can seem like a daunting task to get your email blast to stand out from all the rest. In addition, there are many factors to consider when developing an email marketing campaign, including:
What platform will your end users view the email in? (Apple Mail, Gmail, Outlook, or on their Mobile Device)- What day of the week should you send your emails to get the highest click through rate?
- What is the desired action you want recipients to take upon reading the email? (Also known as your conversion)
- Are you sending the “right” message to the “right” people? (Not all customers are alike, so not every email campaign should target every customer.)
However, when done correctly, email marketing is a powerful tool for reaching your audience. Email campaigns are targeted, allowing you to reach a section of your customer base with a focused message. Based on research from HubSpot, targeted and segmented emails have a higher CTR than mass email communications. For example, these emails can focus on an action that the recipient has already taken, creating a more personal connection.
How Fortune 100 Companies Use Social Media
Each year Burson-Marsteller, a leading global public relations and communications firm, completes a social media check-up examining how Fortune 100 companies use popular social networking platforms including: Twitter, Facebook, YouTube. This year, the study also included a review of how the world’s leading brands are using the newest game players, Google+ and Pinterest. Continue reading
Mad Men vs. The Modern Marketer
Matt Wesson, a very talented Marketing Content Specialists at Pardot (and someone I am honored to call my friend), recently created a very fun and creative infographic that analyzes the evolution of the marketing and advertising profession, from Mad Man to Now.
In the infographic, Matt breaks down each aspect of both the 50’s/60’s marketer and the modern marketer; from the clothes they wear to the tools they use to reach consumers. Check out more about the evolution of “the art of influence” below! Continue reading