Tag: YouTube

Who Has the Better Ad Network? Facebook Vs. Google

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The internet has been a buzz this week with discussion of Facebook’s IPO, and rightfully so. It seems like we have all been try to guess when and if it was finally going to happen. But, the loudest rumblings about the social media giant going public have been about the value of the company. There are lots of questions about the validity of the company’s worth, especially in regards to its advertising revenue source. While many stand by Facebook’s advertising offerings, I wondered if they were truly valuable and how they compared to the global internet leader Google.

Below is a great infographic that breaks down the advantages and disadvantages of the two biggest internet giants: Facebook and Google.

Who Brings the Most Value to the Table? Facebook vs. Google

In the Battle for Best Online Display Advertising Network

To determine which company offers the most value, they were judge on five categories: advertising reach, revenues/growth, advertising performance, ad targeting options, and ad formats. The following are a few takeaways from the competition:

  • While both companies have extensive reaches, Google’s network (including YouTube and Blogger) offers advertisers the ability to reach over 90% of the entire online audience
  • Every month, Facebook gets over 1 trillion pageviews
  • On average, Google ads have a click through rate 10 times higher than that of Facebook ads (sometimes even 36 times higher!!!!!)
  • Only Facebook offers targeting options for customer interests, education, likes, and work
  • Facebook and Google both offer demographic and location-based targeting for advertising campaigns
  • Facebook does not currently offer any mobile advertising options; however, Google does offer mobile advertising
  • Google offers advertisers multiple ad types and sizes, including text, image, video, and mobile game ads
  • Facebook ad’s are a “one-size-fits-all” format with a very limited number of characters

And the winner of the title for most valuable online display advertising network is……….

Really you had to ask?

Google wins this competition by a landslide. In all actuality, after reading these facts, I can’t help but wonder if Facebook wants to be a real competitor in the online display advertising network. Because it doesn’t really seem like it.

Do you think Facebook could even be a strong competitor to Google’s ad network? Have you done a Facebook ad campaign before, and if so did you see positive results?

Facebook vs. Google Display Advertising - Comparing the value of the world's largest advertising venues. [INFOGRAPHIC]

W© 2012 WordStream, Inc., a PPC and Search Engine Marketing tools company.

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

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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

Hunger Games Social Media Strategy Breakdown

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The promotion of the upcoming Hunger Games movie is a great example of a multidimensional online campaign incorporating an interactive website and social media. Fans are not located on just one social media platform, so it is important to develop a multi-platform strategy. The strategy should also include ways to drive traffic across platforms and ultimately to the main website. The online promotion of the Hunger Games movie has successfully integrated multiple platforms, driven traffic across platforms and to the website, built a community, and created an on-going conversation about the movie. Below is a breakdown of the four social media platforms incorporated, how each was used, and how they connect to each other.

Facebook

A Facebook page has been created for each of the 12 fictional districts of Panem. Each page includes the following:

  • Information on the tributes selected from each district
  • Possible opening ceremony costume designs for the tributes
  • Information on the district

Check out the District 12 Facebook page here!

Tumbler

An online Capitol fashion and culture magazine was created using the social media platform Tumblr. The online magazine is called Capitol Couture and is meant to be a realistic representation of what a Capitol fashion and culture magazine would be. It includes pictures of the extravagant shoes, clothes, and hairstyles that would be all the rage in the Capitol. Hunger Games Tumblr Capitol CoutureArticles about different characters such as Effie Trinket, Cinna, and President Snow, as well as articles predicting what the tributes will be wearing in the opening ceremony cover the pages of the site. The writing has both a superficial and light-hearted tone, just as you would expect from a fashion news source in the Capitol of Panem. As expected, all the articles are pro-Capitol and make sure to portray life in the Capitol as fabulous. All the authors write as if they are actual Capitol citizens, and as if the games have not yet happened. There are even articles on how to throw a “capitol style” party to watch the opening ceremony. The content writing is perfect at creating a realistic world. This is exactly what one would expect to find Katniss’ prep team, Octavia, Venia, and Flavius, to be reading as they wait for the tributes to arrive in the Capitol. As this is a multidimensional social media strategy, the Capitol.PN Twitter feed has been incorporated into the page to drive cross platform traffic.

Twitter

Twitter campaign is probably the most complex component of the social media strategy. Twelve Twitter users have been assigned as the twelve district recruiters and tweet daily about Hunger Game topics and news. Twitter fans can follow each of the twelve district representatives, as well as the main District Discussion RatesCapitol account @TheCapitolPN.

The list of district representatives can be found here.

Hashtags have also been assigned to help fans follow the Hunger Games on twitter:

  • #District1PN (corresponding hashtags for each district)
  • #HungerGames12
  • #HungerGames24 (Tweets including this hashtag are displayed in a “Panem Citizens Discussion” feed on the Capitol.PN Network website)
  • #LookYourBest

Twitter followers can also check out the Capitol.PN Network website to see a chart depicting the current discussion rate of each district. The discussion rate is based on the usage of each districts’ hashtag (example: #District12PN). I think that this strategy is more complex than that of the other platforms because there are 13 Twitter handles and multiple hashtags to monitor, in addition to it being a 24/7 real time feed.

YouTube

There are two official YouTube Sub-Channels for the Hunger Games: Capitol TV Productions and the District Citizens Reel. Capitol TV Productions includes all the official videos of the movie, including the official trailers and scenes. The page even states, “These videos have been officHunger Games YouTube Channel CapitolTVially sanctioned by the Capitol for the consumption of District citizens”. The District Citizens Reel includes only user-created videos that are related to the Hunger Games and include the tag “CapitolTV”. The District Citizens Reel gives the illusion that the videos were created and uploaded by the citizens in the twelve districts of Panem. They have created a great balance between the Official/Propaganda tone of the Capitol channel and the authenticity of the Districts channel. Each channel also connects users to the each of the twelve district Facebook pages and the Capitol.pn Network website. Keeping with the basic purpose of social media, to create a conversation, a question is included below the videos for users to comment on. I really like the idea of posing a question instead of just asking for comments. Sometimes it is difficult to decide what to include in a comment, but a question opens up the conversation.

Related articles

Banana Republic In Flight Fashion Show

Banana Republic is doing an amazing job of promoting their new Mad Men collection. Their newest promotional effort was spontaneous, innovative, and buzz worthy.

During a Virgin America flight from New York to Los Angeles, Banana Republic held a spontaneous fashion show right in the middle of the airplane. Using the aisle as the runway, they featured the new styles from their Mad Men collection for both men and women. They combined the video of the event with the tagline “Add a little glamour to your flying” and posted it YouTube, where it became a viral sensation. This event was perfect, down to the fact that they coordinated having five popular bloggers on the flight. The bloggers were under the assumption that they were attending a fashion show for the Mad Men collection in Los Angeles and were caught by surprise as well.

Customers no longer respond to traditional advertising and marketing efforts. It is more important now than ever to find a way to create buzz about your brand and shock your customers. Make Them Remember Your Brand!

Should My Brand be on Pinterest?

Atomicdust, an agency in St. Louis, posted a great blog on how to determine if your company should be using Pinterest.  As of now, Pinterest is driving more referral traffic than Google+, YouTube, and LinkedIn combined (10 million monthly visitors and growing).

I really enjoyed this post because it asks three straight-to-the-point questions about Pinterest and your brand:

  • Are there compelling images associated with your brand?
  • How much time do you have?
  • How well do you know your brand’s core values?

Takeaways:

  1. Use compelling images that link out to great content, this will not only promote your company but it will improve your website’s SEO with more inbound links.
  2. Social media is important to your company and requires time, and Pinterest is no different. Set aside time to not only find images but to also to respond to followers and repin pictures from your followers.
  3. Create a multi-dimensional brand image by creating multiple boards on varying topics.
  4. Pinterest is about expression not content, though it can drive traffic to content.

Use the link below to check out the full blog and learn more:

Should My Brand be on Pinterest? – Web Design and Marketing Blog.

Social Media Marketing Trends

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Social media is constantly evolving and changing, including:

  • How individuals use the different platforms (Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, etc)
  • How companies communicate with customers
  • How to measure success and ROI
  • How much to invest into a social media strategy and implementation (what is the value of social media?)

The Social Media Examiner published a great article on how to prove the value of social media for your company based on new research studies. In the article, they breakdown the five newest social media marketing trends:

The Benefits Derived From Social Media are Increasing

The top benefits of social media from a marketing perspective are increased brand awareness and the ability to engage in dialogue directly with their customers. Also, the amount of small businesses using social media has been constantly increasing the last two years. I definitely expect the amount of companies using social media to continue to increase this year. So, if your company has not started to develop a social media strategy to implement, this would be the year to start.

More Businesses are Investing in Social Media

It is estimated that both small and medium sized business will at least double their budgets for social media in 2012. Based on this estimation, I would predict that there would be an even larger budget increase for large and global size companies, who are already seeing the benefits of social media.

Measuring ROI is One of the Top Challenges Face by Marketers

A concerning trend is that approximately half of marketers are not measuring their social marketing to determine its’ success. Simple ways to measure the success of your social media strategy are tracking

  • Twitter Followers
  • Tweets are Re-Tweeted
  • Facebook Likes Shares
  • Comments on Facebook posts
  • Blog post views and comments
  • YouTube video views
  • Re-pins on Pinterest

More advanced measurements that you could calculate are lead generation and sales directed from social media, but this will require specific goals set implementing strategy.

Marketing Agencies View the Value of Social Media Differently

I am not surprised that research shows that blogs have the best benefit for increasing search results, especially when social sharing buttons are included. The more shares of an article the higher up it will appear in search results. Also, blog posts increase the amount of content on your website (the amount of content that search engines will crawl) so this will greatly benefit your rankings.

An Integrated Social Media Plan Leads to Greater Financial Results

In 2012, I hope to see more companies begin to fully integrate social media into their business process. Many companies are just beginning to use and understand social media, so it often falls into this “side project” category. In order for a social media strategy to be successful in increasing conversations, brand awareness, and financial goals, then social media must be fully integrated into a company’s marketing efforts.

It is going to be very interesting to see how these trends play out in 2012. Check out the full article and all the infographics here: 5 Social Media Marketing Trends: New Research | Social Media Examiner.

Image: Master isolated images / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

How To Drive Traffic Between Social Media Platforms

A social media strategy involves the collaboration of multiple platforms, using the best features of each platform is necessary to create a successful strategy.

While Twitter should often be used as an “announcements” platform, Facebook can be used to build conversations through sharing more detailed and insight based content.

Example:

You find an interesting article on an industry trend that your would like to share. How you share the content will vary by platform:

  • A tweet would include the article title, a link, and a hashtag.
  • A Facebook post would include the article title/link and 1-2 sentences on what the article is about/why you think the industry trend is important.Pinterest
  • A pin on Pinterest would include the image in the article and a blurb about the article/trend.

Mashable posted a great article on how one platform can be used to drive traffic to another; how to drive traffic from Pinterest to YouTube. Pinterest has become one of the top 5 sites for referring traffic, now tied with Twitter. As we begin to understand the power of Pinterest, and how to use it best (in relation to the other big social media powers) we will learn how to best feature content on each platform.

Check out the Mashable article here:

Need More YouTube Views? Try Pinterest.

Pinterest, the Newest Game Changer

Pinterest is truly the newest game changer. Since they launched (10 months ago) more than 13 MILLION users have registered. So why is Pinterest a game changer? Here, are a few reasons why they are not a forced to be messed with:

In the U.S., the majority of users are female, but in the U.K., they’re male. Like I discussed in a previous post, International Social Media Trends, platform use can vary greatly by  country. While you may be using the same platform to reach customers all around the world, your audience may be very different in France than it is in China or the U.S.

Though Pinterest has not rolled out official brand pages, there are over 100 brands that are leveraging the new platform to reach customers. A feature that makes Pinterest a great marketing tool for companies is that it allows the ability to control who can pin to your boards.   For example, as a company you may not want followers to be able to pin to each and every one of your boards, so Pinterest gives you the option to can create some boards in which pinning is restricted to the admin, others that allow multiple users to pin, and community boards in which anyone can pin.

So why should your company join Pinterest? Because Pinterest is driving more web traffic to other sites (such as your company’s website) than Google+, LinkedIn, and YouTube COMBINED! Just because Pinterest is the new “fad” doesn’t mean you should disregard its power. If you haven’t tried it out yet, I recommend it (though be prepared, it can be quite addicting).

Via blogs.constantcontact.com

Via Scoop.it – Being Your Brand