Time Consuming Pac-Man Social Media

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 08-06-2010

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To celebrate the 30th Anniversary of Pac-Man, last month Google changed their home page to a working game of Pac-Man for the public to enjoy.  This week I read that this little change cost society $120,483,800 in lost productivity.  That is a crazy number to me that one little game placement can be that distracting or fun or time-consuming.

This little social experiment reminds me a lot of social media marketing.  Social media marketing can be a very effective means of promotion and advertising.  But, social media can also be a time-suck if you aren’t careful.  There are constantly new interesting tools coming out on the market.  There are interesting social media news sites to read about new trends.  There are social networks to interact with potential customers, but these social networks are the same social networks where your personal friends hang out.  If you are not careful, hours and hours can be spent attempting to do social media marketing.

For the previous reasons, it can make a lot of sense to hire an Internet Marketing firm to conduct social media for your business.  Good Internet Marketing companies know the tools that work, know the places to look for links, and can help you navigate through the “busy” world of social media.  If you need help with your companies social media marketing, please contact us.

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Social Media and Your Favorite TV Shows

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 12-05-2010

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Social Media is popular.  TV shows are popular.  So, I got to wondering, what commonalities can be gleaned from comparing social media to television.  According to the website By the Numbers the top rated TV shows so far for May 2010 are Dancing With the Stars, American Idol, Glee, NCIS, and the Mentalist.  Here’s how social media compares:

  1. Dancing With the Stars – Social Media can make us feel like we are “Dancing With the Stars”.  Especially on social networks like Twitter and Facebook, these social realms can make us feel like we are interacting to some degree with our favorite stars and brands.  Young fans can hear what Justin Bieber is doing at any given moment.  We can see by Ashton Kutcher’s Tweets that he just went to the dentist.  Fans of Starbucks can be the first to get a notice about the latest coffee coming out.  It is a level of “interaction” that just a few years ago we could only get from reading the tabloids or favorite celebrity magazine.
  2. American Idol – Twitter and Facebook can make us feel like an American Idol. Social networks give everyone the ability to be a publisher.  Control is now with each individual user as to how much information, content, and branding they want to put out for people to view.  Doing a good job of this can make you/your company into or at least make you feel like the next American Idol in your own right.  Social networking users can foster thousands of Twitter followers and hundreds of Facebook fans.  I once heard from someone, “Twitter makes you feel more popular than you really are”, which may be true, but don’t all of us need that little boost that makes us feel popular every day?  Just like American Idol, social media also gives people the ability to “vote” for products and people that they like the best.  Facebook Open Graph is a tool that Facebook just integrated so that users can “like” websites and products across the web and it will be documented in their Facebook profile.  It also personalizes the experience for the Facebook user showing the user results based upon what they have specified they like through their Facebook account.  Lastly, social media gives us the ability to literally become a star.  There have actually been new stars found through videos on YouTube.  This was the case for the above-mentioned Justin Bieber.  He was on Oprah yesterday with a girl named Charice who was discovered in part by YouTube and plucked out of the Philippines.  Charice‘s new album is currently number four on iTunes due to YouTube and a healthy dose of the “Oprah Effect”.
  3. Glee – Besides the obvious comparison that Glee is a word for happy and social media can make you happy (hey, one blog author even said that social media is better than making love), social media is also like Glee because everyone can be a team player.  In the end, social media is all about building relationships and connecting with people.  You can form online communities around people who have similar interests to you.  Just like the Glee high school, you can form a group talking about cheerleading with all of your cheerleading friends.  You can follow a Twitter list of people talking about little league baseball, because your son plays and you are interested in what these people have to say about that topic.  Find people who are different than you and connect on shared topics of interest via Twitter.
  4. NCIS and The Mentalist- Just like NCIS and The Mentalist, social media can be a great tool to investigate what customers and potential customers are saying about your product/service.  Use social media to listen to what people you have never met think and then tailor your business message to fit.  Use Facebook as a listening tool to see what customers and potential customers are saying about your product or business.  I saw Chris Brogan speak recently at Free State Social and as Chris would say, if you spend 2 hours a day on social media spend “30 minutes listening, 60 minutes connecting, and 30 minutes publishing.”  Answer their questions, solve their problems, and remedy any situations quickly and you will have loyal customers for life.

What are your favorite TV shows?  Do you have another parallel that wasn’t thought of above?

About the Author:  Jenny Russell is the owner of JenRus Freelance, Internet Marketing.  Jenny is available for speaking engagements and Internet Marketing questions.  Please feel free to contact JenRus Freelance, follow us on Twitter, or connect with us on Facebook.

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Three Social Media Points – Learned from NPR

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 05-05-2010

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Last week I went to a social media conference called Free State Social in Lawrence, Kansas. One of the people that I met there was Chandra Stauffer (@kmuw on Twitter) who works for National Public Radio out of Wichita, KS. Out of our conversation came some great points that apply to social media and also to business in general. So, I want to share with you three social media points that I learned from National Public Radio (NPR):

  1. Promote Your Good Work- Many of my classical music-oriented friends (and some who aren’t so classical music-oriented) will comment every so often on Facebook that they heard something great on NPR on their way to work in the morning.  Meaning to offer Chandra a compliment, I told her this in our conversation.  What she said was a  good reminder to all of us.  She basically commented that yes, her NPR station offers great content like that every day, but some may not attribute that content to the station that she works for.  You see there is another NPR station close by with an overlapping territory and most people aren’t distinguishing that station from the Wichita NPR station that has different programming.  How is your company distinguishing itself?  What makes you different from your closest competitor?  Promote your strengths through social media.  Announce your new product on Facebook and give a discount to your Facebook followers.  Did your company sponsor a food drive in the community?  Let people know about it through traditional advertising and Twitter.  Make sure customers and potential customers know that the good work came from your business.  Some businesses might be afraid to “toot their own horn”, but it’s OK to do that every once in awhile.  If you don’t promote yourself, your competitor might get those potential customers or customers might confuse your product with another company’s.
  2. Sponsorship Can be a Good Thing-  As you probably know, NPR gets much of it’s income from those who underwrite programming.  A business can sponsor a specific program in return for recognition around that programming.  That same name recognition can be obtained by sponsoring events and community benefits.  As Sarah Evans would say, “do something for a cause”.  Don’t only think about social media advertising for your business, think about sponsoring a cause as well.  Customer’s appreciate a business which cares about community and often will reward that business with their patronage.
  3. Facebook’s new “Like” system is going to be powerful – Another lesson learned from NPR is that, a Facebook “Like” is going to be a powerful social media tool.  Even I took notice and mentioned NPR’s interesting content here, based upon my friends opinions.  Now not only are your Facebook fans more likely to buy your products, your customers can now “like” your business and basically recommend you to their friends.  To quote an interesting excerpt from WebPro News, because of Facebook’s new “Like” system:  “It’s not just about getting links anymore. Links will always be of use, but social interactions may equal them in importance, and in some cases may be of greater use to your visibility, and ultimately getting people to your site, your content, your store, or your shopping cart.”A study by the social networking site myYearbook showed that:
  • 81 percent of respondents said they’d received advice from friends and followers relating to a product purchase through a social site
  • 74 percent of those who received such advice found it to be influential in their decision. (Click Z, January 2010)
  • 90% of consumers online trust recommendations from people they know
  • 70% trust opinions of unknown users. (Econsultancy, July 2009)

So, there you have it, the top 3 social media lessons that I learned from NPR.  Get out there and learn some more from things in every day life.

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What is Social Media? Two Minute Video

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 25-04-2010

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What is social media?  Why should you be on social media?  What is Facebook and why is it important for your marketing efforts?  How important will social media be in 2010 and 2011?

All of these questions are answered pretty well in the following video.  Enjoy!:

To get started on your 2010 Internet Marketing campaign (or get a jump on 2011 marketing), contact JenRus Freelance.

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Social Media and SEO -Conversions just as Important as Visitors

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 23-04-2010

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Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is used to get people to a business’ website.  But, once the potential customer has been attracted, it is just as important to get those potential customers to convert (make the sale or perform the desired action) once they get to the website.  A conversion involves a combination of an ad that is fun/interesting and that post being relevant to the user.

If I love to shop and I see a cute dress on a Facebook ad, I might click on it and buy from a company that I have never bought from before.  (This actually happened)  If I have extra time on my hands and my kids see the “Elf Yourself” promotion from Office Max at Christmas time, I might click on the promotion and make an Elf.  Interesting/attention-getting message + item that I am interested in = conversion.

There’s is also another component with brands that people already know and like.  For instance, if a customer really likes to shop at Target and then signs up to be a Facebook fan of the company.  This customer is pursuing an on-going relationship with Target, potentially looking for fan-0nly discounts, and this will hopefully convert to a sale at a later date.

Google Analytics has a way to track conversions by setting up goals in the program.  Facebook also has analytics associated with Facebook fan pages which will show important information about visitors to the page.

Facebook users actually specify their likes through posting their interests in their Facebook profile.  By using this available information, businesses can buy Facebook ads that are very tailored to the demographic that their product or service serves.

So remember, search engine optimization components like an increase in website visitors and higher rankings are important…but, conversions actually make the sale and help your website to generate money for you.

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Four Different Social Media User Approaches- Business vs. Personal

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 07-04-2010

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In social networks, like Facebook and Twitter, people tend to have four separate approaches.  There are social media users that -

  1. Have a personal account and a business account separate from each other
  2. Combine their business and  personal accounts
  3. Only have a personal account and do not participate in social media for business
  4. Don’t participate in social media at all

In my opinion, approach number one is the best approach to social media accounts.  You should keep your personal and professional lives separate on Twitter, Facebook, and other social media.  Keeping your personal and business brands separate, also means keeping your business and personal contacts separate. When you have your social media contacts separate, it is much easier to tailor your social media message to the social networking audience of your choice.

Social mediums should be treated like any other advertising or networking medium in the “real” world. In marketing you always have to consider who your audience is and what message would be most affective to reach that audience. Twitter and Facebook should be no different. Your business colleagues probably don’t want to know what you had for breakfast (or might be offended by your personal opinion of who should get voted off American Idol) and your personal contacts probably don’t care about the new accounting system that you just launched. Protect your brand by carefully selecting the message – keeping your business and private lives separate in your social world.

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Internet Marketing and Advertising – Business Solution to a Bad Economy

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 16-03-2010

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The United States economy shows signs every month of a possible upswing, but not all companies are ready to jump back into the market with reckless abandonment. Many businesses are cautious until they see customers knocking down their door or visiting their website in droves. Hopefully, we will see this stampede of customers starting in 2010, but until then, what are some things that your business an do. How about advertise? Yep, I said traditional marketing, Internet marketing, social media marketing, traditional advertising.

While, I know traditionally marketing and advertising are some of the first things to go when a company is trying to trim it’s budget, but it maybe shouldn’t be that way. Marketing and advertising are often intangible pieces of the business which are psychologically easier to get rid of than the tangible things like employees, equipment, and products. But an article that I read the other day suggests that getting rid of your marketing and advertising budget, might not be the smartest thing that you can do during a recession, it could actually be the dumbest thing that you can do.

The article by Apryl Duncan points out that:

  • A McGraw-Hill research study of U.S. recessions from 1980-85 showed that 600 businesses who continued to advertise during the 1981-1982 recession hit a 256-percent growth by 1985 over companies who decreased spending during that same period.
  • An American Business Press study during the 1974-1975 recession showed that among 143 companies who advertised during that recession, the businesses saw their highest growth in sales and net income during the recession and two years that followed.

In the article, Duncan also goes on to point out that some of the reasons that marketing and advertising during a recession works is because:

  • Your competition will probably stop advertising
  • You waste no time in building your brand and standing out
  • You can establish a more personal contact with the advertising channels because you have more exclusive access/less competition
  • Your business gets a better deal on advertising because of the down economy
  • Great discounts can lure bargain-ready new customers into your door or to your website

The great news is now your business has even more advertising options than businesses did in the 1970′s and 1980′s. From search engine optimization (SEO), to Google Adwords, to Facebook, to other forms of Internet Marketing….there is an array of ways to keep your advertising going no matter what the state of the economy.

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Back to Basics – What is included in Social Media Marketing?

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking | Posted on 10-03-2010

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There are people with varying levels of SEO, social media, and Internet knowledge out in the world today. For some of the younger crowd, Facebook and all-things-Internet are old hat. For some of us that are a little older, all-things-Internet can be kind of….err…new hat. Here is some actual information about how different age groups use social media. As you can see:

  • 12-25 year-olds tend to use more mobile devices
  • 25-45 year-olds tend to prefer E-mail and Facebook
  • 46-55 year-olds tend to blog more but not use Twitter
  • 56-65 year-olds do use social media but tend to stick with Facebook because they most often want to keep up with family

Because of the above statistics, we realize that not everyone knows as much about Internet Marketing as JenRus Freelance does, so we thought that it might be helpful to business owners and the general public to give you some ideas of what some of the main social media tools currently are and how they can be used in marketing:

1. Google – You probably know this one, but Google is a search engine (basically like the phone book of “old days”) that people use to find different websites and topics around desired keywords. This category also includes Yahoo! and Bing search engines. For search engines like Google, businesses want to rank high in organic keyword searches (non-paid, not Google paid advertising, more on that in a minute) because 79% of searchers click on one of the top three search engine results. This is why search engine optimization (SEO) is so important, to get you to rank in these top results. Google also offers Google Adwords, in which you can buy advertising on Google. Google Adwords is good for businesses who want to drive sales.

2. Facebook – There are now over 350 million people using Facebook. These people include people of all ages and a larger percentage of women than men. Users can post pictures, add friends and family to their profile (so they can see their posted updates), and follow their favorite things. Because of the shear number of people using Facebook, it is definitely the place to be for personal use and for business use. Businesses can set up a Facebook Page or if you are an organization, a Facebook Group page might be a better fit. Social Networking sites are better for building relationships with followers/clients. Google and search engines are better for direct selling. However, Facebook does offer advertising opportunities that can be very affective because they are extremely targeted to what Facebook users specify that they like.

3. Twitter – Twitter is all about saying things in 140 characters of less. The every day people that I have talked to about Twitter, usually don’t get why you would use the service. I don’t find as much meaning in Twitter for personal use, I guess that I am just not that interesting. What I am going to tell people? “I am sitting in the chair.” An hour later, “I am still sitting in the chair.” You see what I mean. But, I do find Twitter very useful in business. I like to use Twitter as my news stream (think your national newspaper or specialty newspaper of the “old days”). Instead of going to say CNN, my regional newspaper, and all of my favorite websites, I just follow all of those organizations on Twitter so that I only have to go to one place to stay informed. Alternatively, Twitter can also be used by a business or organization to aggregate news to people who are interested. Even people that don’t follow you might find your content by a search and start following you, thus getting your more people who might be interested in what you do.

4. Blogs – Blogs are basically on-line journals. Studies have shown that often, high school age kids don’t blog, mostly because they often don’t have the life experiences to talk about. A blog can be a great way to keep your website current and to keep your customers informed about happenings around your business or organizations. Paired with a Twitter account and a Facebook presence, this can be a winning combination in building the community around your brand.

There are many other social media tools out there, but the above are a few of the main ones. We hope that we have taken some of the mystery out of what all of these tools are and what they can do for you.

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Google Buzz- Will Google start using it for Search Rankings?

Posted by Jenny Russell | Posted in Social Networking | Posted on 13-02-2010

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Google this week came out with a new product meant to compete with social networking giants, Twitter and Facebook. The product is called Google Buzz and it runs on a lot of the same premises as Facebook and Twitter currently do. You can update your friends and followers with websites you like, what you are doing, and where you are going through status-type updates. All of the technology integrates with the contacts that are currently in your Gmail address book. So, you have to have a Gmail account to take advantage of Google Buzz. Here is a video that shows how Google Buzz works:

Google Buzz will surely become an important social networking tool for businesses to take note of. With Google’s huge power of information, it will be advantageous to reach customers by Google Buzz, just as it is important right now to leverage Facebook and Twitter to communicate with customers.

The question that the emergence of Google Buzz creates for me is, because of Google’s tremendous power over Internet searches and information in general, will Google now start using Google Buzz participation as a ranking factor for Google search? Google already came down with a list of five new components for 2010 that they will now take into consideration of search rankings. (more on that in a later post) Will Google Buzz be the next addition to their Google algorithm? What do you think? We here at The Face of Internet Marketing will keep you posted.

If you would like to start using Google Buzz for you business or are interested in getting into any other social networking or social media, please contact JenRus Freelance for more information.

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