social media platforms Archives - Social Media Explorer https://socialmediaexplorer.com/tag/social-media-platforms/ Exploring the World of Social Media from the Inside Out Wed, 01 May 2024 05:25:26 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.7.1 4 Social Media Tips for Attracting Those in the Logistics Industry https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/4-social-media-tips-for-attracting-those-in-the-logistics-industry/ Mon, 29 Apr 2024 14:26:04 +0000 https://socialmediaexplorer.com/?p=45711 In the social media-driven society that surrounds us today, it’s vital to connect with your...

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In the social media-driven society that surrounds us today, it’s vital to connect with your audience by utilizing the proper marketing techniques for that niche. However, unless you have a background in social media marketing, you might not know where to begin with the industry you’re focused on. Instead of trying a guess-and-check method or wasting too much time testing, follow these four social media tips to attract those in the logistics industry.

1. Have an Engaging Content Strategy

It doesn’t matter what industry you’re looking into engaging in; an effective content strategy is a must. When you’ve niched down to a very specific industry like the logistics industry, it is a little bit easier to make a plan and then implement it. Ideally, you want to focus on the latest news, information, trends, and high-density keywords that people might be searching. It makes it much more likely that when they’re scrolling social media, they’ll land on your profile and explore what you have to offer.

2. Create Enticing Video and Imagery

If you spend time on various social media platforms, you’ll likely come across videos, photographs, memes, infographics, and other imagery in multiple categories. To attract those in the logistics industry, you’ll want to publish images, videos, and other imagery most likely to catch their eye. An effective way to see what’s working is checking out your competition to see what people use and engage with. Provide similar options, but never copy the work of someone else. You want your information to be uniquely your own to help make you stand out.

3. Prioritize Active Engagement

Social media platforms were made for people to be social. So when they visit your posts, videos, and other content, you want to make it available for them to comment and interact with you and others in the logistics industry. It’s important to allow people to express their voices on your pages and profiles, and engaging with them when they do is equally important. Don’t disappear too long, or you’ll likely very quickly lose your audience.

4. Utilize Data and Insights

Finally, share any data or insights you can access with your logistics industry audience. Although social media is often considered a place to go and be entertained and essentially waste some time, it can also be very helpful for those looking for information, news, and data surrounding their interest. The only way they can do that is if someone publishes that information regularly. Why not let it be you? The more often you share any details about the industry you might have, the more engaged your followers will ultimately be.

By connecting with your audience in the logistics industry with an engaging content strategy, videos, and other visuals, you’ll see how quickly you gain and retain the attention of those you’re focused on reaching. Continuity of active engagement is essential to keep people interested and coming back. Finally, supply your audience with useful information that they can use, and you can rest assured they will revisit your social media platforms to expand their knowledge in the logistics industry.

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Exploring the Best Social Media Platforms for Social Media Marketing in 2024 https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/exploring-the-best-social-media-platforms-for-social-media-marketing-in-2024/ Tue, 16 Apr 2024 03:20:24 +0000 https://socialmediaexplorer.com/?p=45672 Social media marketing has become an indispensable tool for businesses worldwide. In an era dominated...

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Social media marketing has become an indispensable tool for businesses worldwide. In an era dominated by digital connectivity, leveraging social media platforms effectively can significantly impact brand visibility, engagement, and ultimately, revenue. As we step into 2024, the landscape of social media continues to evolve, offering new opportunities and challenges for marketers. Let’s delve into the top social media platforms for social media marketing in 2024.

In today’s hyper-connected world, social media marketing has emerged as a cornerstone of digital strategy for businesses of all sizes. With billions of active users across various platforms, social media provides unparalleled access to a diverse audience, making it an essential channel for brand promotion and customer engagement.

What is Social Media Marketing?

Social media marketing involves using social media platforms to connect with your audience, build your brand, increase sales, and drive website traffic. It encompasses a range of activities, including posting content, engaging with followers, running advertisements, and analyzing results.

Importance of Social Media Marketing

Social media marketing offers numerous benefits for businesses, including increased brand awareness, improved brand loyalty, higher conversion rates, and cost-effective advertising options. Moreover, it provides valuable insights into consumer behavior and preferences, allowing businesses to tailor their marketing strategies effectively.

Evolution of Social Media Platforms

Over the years, social media platforms have evolved significantly, catering to the changing needs and preferences of users. From text-based platforms like MySpace to visually-driven networks like Instagram, the landscape of social media continues to diversify, offering marketers a plethora of options to connect with their target audience.

Criteria for Choosing Social Media Platforms

When selecting social media platforms for marketing purposes, it’s essential to consider various factors to ensure maximum effectiveness.

Audience Demographics

Understanding the demographics of each social media platform is crucial for targeting the right audience. Different platforms attract different age groups, interests, and demographics, so it’s essential to align your marketing efforts with the platforms where your target audience is most active.

Engagement Metrics

Analyzing engagement metrics such as likes, shares, comments, and click-through rates can provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of your social media marketing campaigns. Platforms that drive higher levels of engagement are often more conducive to building brand awareness and fostering customer relationships.

Advertising Options

Evaluate the advertising options available on each platform, including ad formats, targeting capabilities, and budgeting options. Some platforms offer sophisticated advertising tools that allow for precise audience targeting and performance tracking, while others may have more limited options.

Top Social Media Platforms for 2024

In 2024, several social media platforms will continue to dominate the digital landscape, each offering unique features and opportunities for marketers. Let’s explore some of the top platforms for social media marketing:

  1. Facebook

With over 2.8 billion monthly active users, Facebook remains the largest social media platform globally. Its robust advertising platform, detailed targeting options, and diverse user base make it an ideal choice for businesses looking to reach a broad audience.

  1. Instagram

Instagram boasts over 1 billion monthly active users and is particularly popular among younger demographics. Its visually-oriented interface and engagement-focused features like Stories and Reels make it an excellent platform for showcasing products and creating brand aesthetics.

  1. Twitter

Twitter’s real-time nature and concise format make it a valuable platform for timely updates, customer service interactions, and engaging in industry conversations. Its advertising options, including promoted tweets and trends, can help businesses amplify their message and reach a broader audience.

  1. LinkedIn

LinkedIn remains the go-to platform for professional networking and B2B marketing. With over 700 million users, it offers robust targeting options for reaching decision-makers and professionals in specific industries.

  1. TikTok

TikTok’s explosive growth has made it a powerhouse in the social media landscape, particularly among Gen Z and Millennial audiences. Its short-form video format and viral trends present unique opportunities for brands to showcase their creativity and connect with younger demographics.

  1. YouTube

As the second-largest search engine globally, YouTube offers unparalleled reach and engagement potential. Its video-centric platform allows businesses to share informative content, product demonstrations, and brand stories to captivate audiences and drive conversions.

  1. Pinterest

Pinterest is a visual discovery platform with over 400 million monthly active users. Its highly engaged user base seeks inspiration and ideas across various categories, making it an ideal platform for businesses in industries such as fashion, home decor, and DIY.

Comparison of Platforms

Each social media platform offers its unique strengths and weaknesses, making it essential to assess which platforms align best with your marketing objectives.

Strengths and Weaknesses

  • Facebook: Wide reach, robust advertising platform, but declining organic reach.
  • Instagram: Visual storytelling, high engagement, but increasing competition.
  • Twitter: Real-time updates, customer engagement, but limited character count.
  • LinkedIn: Professional networking, B2B marketing, but higher advertising costs.
  • TikTok: Viral content opportunities, young audience, but limited advertising options.
  • YouTube: Video content, SEO benefits, but high competition for attention.
  • Pinterest: Visual discovery, niche audiences, but lower overall user base.

Target Audience

Understanding the demographics and interests of each platform’s user base is crucial for effective targeting and content creation.

Advertising Effectiveness

Assess the advertising options available on each platform and evaluate their effectiveness in reaching your target audience and driving desired actions.

Tips for Successful Social Media Marketing

Regardless of the platforms you choose, implementing a strategic approach to social media marketing is essential for success.

Content Strategy

Develop a cohesive content strategy that aligns with your brand identity, target audience, and marketing goals. Create a mix of content types, including images, videos, articles, and user-generated content, to keep your audience engaged and entertained.

Consistency

Maintain a consistent posting schedule to keep your audience engaged and build brand recognition. Regularly monitor engagement metrics and adjust your strategy as needed to optimize performance.

Analytics Tracking

Utilize social media analytics tools to track the performance of your campaigns and measure key metrics such as reach, engagement, and conversion rates. Use these insights to refine your strategy and improve results over time.

Future Trends in Social Media Marketing

As technology continues to evolve, the future of social media marketing is likely to be shaped by emerging trends such as augmented reality (AR), influencer marketing, and personalized content experiences. By staying informed and adapting to these trends, businesses can stay ahead of the curve and maintain a competitive edge in the digital landscape.

Conclusion

In conclusion, social media marketing remains a powerful tool for businesses seeking to expand their online presence and connect with their target audience. By carefully selecting the right social media platforms, implementing a strategic approach, and staying abreast of emerging trends, businesses can effectively leverage social media to achieve their marketing objectives and drive business growth in 2024 and beyond.

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3 Ways to Integrate Social Media into Experiential Marketing https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/3-ways-to-integrate-social-media-into-experiential-marketing/ Mon, 18 Sep 2023 08:42:04 +0000 https://socialmediaexplorer.com/?p=42710 Experiential marketing, often referred to as engagement marketing and/or ground marketing, involves the use of...

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Experiential marketing, often referred to as engagement marketing and/or ground marketing, involves the use of hands-on experiences developed with the purpose of deeply engaging consumers in an event or experience. More recently, experiential marketing strategies have become closely intertwined with social media. For an experiential approach to be effective, marketing professionals should give consumers an experience that is worthy of sharing on the internet. You can do this in a few different ways.

1. Utilize Influencer Marketing

Influencer marketing and experiential marketing work well together. In-person experiences provide great content for social media influencers to share and allow them to interact with your brand in a meaningful and memorable way. In addition, they allow them to participate in an interesting activity, rather than simply discuss your product on their platforms.

When looking for influencers, try to choose those who are a natural fit. People who are already tagging or engaging with your brand on social media will serve as the most authentic salesperson. You don’t always have to choose the influencers that have the biggest following. Micro-influencers often help boost your organic reach on social media since their followers tend to be far more engaged with the content they post.

2. Create Interesting Content That Promotes Sharing

Content that is shared is very effective at driving sales, particularly among millennials who are more easily influenced by what their friends post. If done well, an experiential marketing strategy can go viral and drive consumers to your website to take action.

Experiential marketing campaigns also give you the opportunity for personalization, which can help consumers view your brand more positively. The more you can involve people in your content and its creation, the more excited they’ll be to share it and get others involved.

3. Develop a Social Sharing Plan With Structure

It might be tempting to share your content on all of your social media platforms, but investing your time and energy in the ones that will generate the best results is typically a better strategy. Decide which platforms you will be using the most and develop creative hashtags and filters that your followers can use in their own content.

Although it is great to build shareability into your event or experience at the moment, it’s also a good idea to encourage your consumers to share your content throughout the day and beyond the initial experience to keep the momentum going. You can make use of social media scheduling and targeting tools to achieve this.

In order to turn consumers into life-long brand loyalists, you need to spend time fostering real connections and sharing them on your social media platforms. It pays to invest money and time in creating genuine connections with people. Experiential marketing is one of the most effective ways to do this because customers will be able to feel the brand and products through social media posts and stories. To achieve great results, do everything possible to captivate your audience and provide them with experiences that they can’t wait to share with their friends and followers.

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3 Social Media Strategies to Help Sell Landscaping Products https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/3-social-media-strategies-to-help-sell-landscaping-products/ Wed, 21 Jun 2023 00:57:44 +0000 https://socialmediaexplorer.com/?p=42265 Social media has become essential for companies to promote their products and reach a wider...

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Social media has become essential for companies to promote their products and reach a wider audience. This goes for the landscaping industry as well. If you sell landscaping products and want to harness the power of social media to increase sales, this article will provide you with three effective strategies.

1. Visual Story

Visual storytelling is another way to engage with audiences on social media. Landscaping is inherently visual; high-quality photos and videos can help showcase its beauty and functionality. Here’s how you can use visual storytelling:

a. Showcase product apps: Share photos and videos of how landscaping products can transform outdoor spaces. Emphasize different uses, such as walkways, balconies, or retaining walls, to motivate your audience and demonstrate the versatility of your product.

b. Before and after changes: Visualize the impact of your landscaping by sharing before and after pictures or videos. This approach allows potential customers to differentiate your products and make outdoor spaces more attractive and functional.

c. Content: Encourage customers to share experiences and projects that showcase your landscaping products. By reposting and featuring user-generated content, you’re building social proof and engaging with your audience authentically and interactively.

Use platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest to share engaging content that engages your audience and inspires them to explore your landscape products.

2. Educational Resources

The educational content is invaluable for buyers looking to improve their outdoor spaces. You establish yourself as knowledgeable and trustworthy by providing informative and helpful geographic information. Here’s how to add educational content to your social media strategy:

a. How to create instructions and tutorials: Create step-by-step instructions or video tutorials on installing or using your landscaping equipment properly. This may include building garden beds, installing pavers, or installing water features. Share these tutorials on platforms like YouTube or Facebook to provide valuable guidance to your audience.

b. Tips and Discussions: Discuss practical tips and tricks for landscaping and outdoor design. These range from seasonal gardening advice to plant care or environmentally friendly landscaping. By sharing valuable insights, you establish your brand as an expert and build trust with potential customers.

c. Respond to customer questions: Monitor your social media platforms for customer questions and concerns about landscaping. Respond quickly and with helpful feedback. By making yourself available and providing valuable information, you establish yourself as a trustworthy source and increase your chances of converting potential customers into customers.

3. Conversation and Influence

Partnering with influencers and industry experts can increase your reach and brand awareness. Here’s how to benefit from collaborating on social media:

a. Identify influencers: Find social media influencers or bloggers with a strong following who align with your target audience. Look for those interested in landscaping, gardening, or outdoor design. Work with them to promote your geographical features through promotions, reviews, or offers.

b. Guest blogging and cross-promotion: Look for guest blogging opportunities on relevant websites or blogs in the geographic niche. Showcasing your products by sharing your expertise can attract new audiences and drive traffic to your social media channels or website. Similarly, expand your craft by advertising with other businesses or landscape professionals.

c. Contests and giveaways: Organize contests or giveaways on your social media platforms in partnership with influencers or affiliated businesses. This encourages participation, increases brand visibility, and attracts new fans interested in landscaping.

Using these social media channels, you can effectively promote landscaping products, engage with your target audience, and drive sales.

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The 7 Best Social Media Channels for Business Marketing https://socialmediaexplorer.com/content-sections/tools-and-tips/7-best-social-media-channels-business-marketing/ https://socialmediaexplorer.com/content-sections/tools-and-tips/7-best-social-media-channels-business-marketing/#comments Wed, 06 Dec 2017 14:00:43 +0000 http://socialmediaexplorer.com/?p=32892 Social media platforms are increasingly being used by businesses for the acquisition of new clientele....

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Social media platforms are increasingly being used by businesses for the acquisition of new clientele. With so much variety currently on the market, it can prove challenging to select the right social media channels for your business needs. Social media is more than a fad; it is a viable solution to lead generation, higher ROI, increased CTR, and better engagement with customers.

The ROI (Return on Investment) of social media marketing is significantly high to warrant careful consideration. For example, some 92% of marketing professionals agree that social media marketing has generated more exposure for their companies. Even more impressive is the fact that some 72% of marketing professionals generate higher levels of loyalty from their clientele through social marketing. Some 50% + of marketing departments who have been engaged in at least a year of social media marketing indicate that new partnerships were achieved.

A little more than one hour of social media marketing work per day can result in enhanced lead generation with greater revenue streams, greater customer loyalty, and wider exposure. The issue is not so much whether social media is an effective means of engaging customers for your business marketing purposes, it’s which social media channels you should be using. If you need more information on setting up your company name, Logaster has put together a full guide on how to crate your brand identity and gives you 50+ Free Company Name logo ideas.

Social media is ideal for increasing lead generation, and enhancing brand awareness. You may wish to consider what your competitors are using, what type of content you wish to create, and how many social media channels you can effectively manage. For example, some 91% of retail brands utilize 2+ social media channels. It’s important to only work with what you can manage—any more will result in an inefficacious marketing strategy. Here are the top 7 best social media channels for business marketing:

1. Yelp

The ideal social media platform for businesses, with Yelp your customers will provide reviews of your business products and services. Since credibility is such a big part of a business’s image and its ability to sell its wares, it’s always a good idea to encourage feedback from your clients on Yelp.

The benefit of this social media platform is that any negative reviews can easily be minimized by the large number of positive reviews you can generate on site. To encourage customers to post reviews on Yelp, promotional offers may be provided.

2. YouTube

By all accounts, YouTube remains the most important audio-visual search engine and platform for social media use. It is second only to Google, but it is owned by Google. With respect to SEO (search engine optimization), YouTube offers maximum traction, and plenty of behind-the-scenes content optimization possibilities (plus you can buy real youtube views) to boost your company’s rankings online. YouTube pre-rolls, dynamic video retargeting and remarketing initiatives are highly effective means of increasing your exposure on social media platforms.

3. Instagram

A picture is worth 1,000 words, and this universally popular photo-sharing platform does the trick every time. Customers, clients, delegates and attendees routinely love to post pictures of their experience on Instagram. The hashtag option is particularly useful, and customers can be incentivized with raffles, giveaways, prizes, and other promotional offers.

4. Pinterest

Companies that have high quality (HD) images will find Pinterest to be one of the most useful professional marketing channels for social media sharing. Owing to the incredible viral abilities inherent in Pinterest, your marketing message can reach millions of users in double-quick time. Adding URLs to your images can serve as the perfect redirects to your website to boost sales, ROI, CTR and engagement.

5. Twitter

Much has been made of the waning popularity of Twitter, but nothing could be further from the truth. The 140-character microblogging platform is hugely popular. Tweets that are catchy and exciting will go viral instantly.

Hashtags must be used to enhance the quality of Twitter posts, and retweets bring the message home in spectacular fashion. The goal is always to increase the number of followers, and enhance the levels of engagement on your social platforms.

6. LinkedIn

LinkedIn is great for business to business marketing. It is a fantastic social media platform that allows you to post professional content about your company’s achievements, goals and objectives.

Since you will be competing with a pool of skilled professionals, it all begins by building connections—not sales pitches. LinkedIn Groups is a great place to begin.

7.Facebook

Last, but not least is the world’s biggest social media platform. Facebook has a myriad of marketing features available to clients, including the Facebook feed, where updates can be posted. Dynamic video retargeting campaigns are highly effective on Facebook, and paid advertising is routinely used by thousands and thousands of companies around the world. With billions of users, Facebook is the most effective social media marketing channel of all, and it is growing fast.

Remember, it’s one thing using a social media channel like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube or LinkedIn, it’s another understanding the list of the best social media tools that you should be using. This includes analytics-based tools, monitoring and engagement options such as Hootsuite and other popular social media tools. The should be used in conjunction with your preferred social media channels to hit home with the right message every time!

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Where To Draw The Line With A Social Media Agency https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/where-to-draw-the-line-with-a-social-media-agency/ https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/where-to-draw-the-line-with-a-social-media-agency/#comments Thu, 30 Aug 2012 13:00:51 +0000 http://socialmediaexp.wpengine.com/?p=15071 Social media is a long term marketing effort - not a campaign. It is best handled in-house by permanent staff.

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An agent is an entity that acts on your behalf.  When you are hiring a social media agency, you are hiring someone to provide any of a range of services for you that you either don’t have the time or the ability to handle.  In other business matters, you may hire a lawyer or an accountant to handle matters you are not capable of dealing with.  No one can be an expert in everything.

But in our interpersonal relationships we rarely hire agents.  You can’t very well hire someone to discipline your child or date for you or grow your social circle.  Well, in some cases you can, I suppose, but long-term your not being in the relationship becomes an issue.

So if social media more closely replicates personal, rather than business relationships, where do you draw the line with the work you hire out?

Agencies are ideal for handling work that is campaign-based.

Short-term projects require short-term help.  Longer term projects should be handled in-house. That’s my general belief about staffing.  You may need outside help to set up the social media accounts — people who know the principles and the legal aspects and can steer you in the right direction.  People who can explain what it means to create relationships online, and a myriad of other things, like brand voice,  that you need to know to make your social media efforts a success. Most companies just don’t have the expertise to set up their social media accounts in an optimal way.

But what about the day-to-day conversations?

Social media is a long term commitment, taking time to develop a critical mass of followers and then, the effort goes on indefinitely.

Social media is not a campaign. It’s a way of life for business, so once you get the expertise to launch, you need to take the helm.

© DOC RABE Media - Fotolia.com

What if you are ready to get serious about social marketing but you don’t have anyone in-house who can handle it?  

In those situations, the agency may need to jump start the process. They do the posting. They do the listening. Your team watches and learns. But the goal is to ultimately turn it over to one or more people in-house. The agency’s representation of your brand should be temporary and there are three main reasons, outlined below.

If the agency’s job is anything more than providing expertise and training, this is where the line should be drawn. Yet training is not a minor matter.  There are nuances to communicating with the public that can’t be outlined in a book of rules. Good judgement is an important skillset and training the team in the what-ifs is a challenging job.

Success will be determined by the people involved.

If you are launching your company on social media platforms and you don’t have people in-house who are good communicators; who are capable of grasping social media principles and who you are comfortable sending out into the Wild West world of social media, you have a staffing problem.

Four Reasons You Shouldn’t Outsource Your Day-To-Day Social Media

1. There is no proxy for personal relationships.

Social media is about nurturing relationships in the service of building your business.  The relationships are between you and your community. Having an agency employee do this is like asking your friend who is a good shopper to buy your spouse a birthday gift.

The names and faces of the people who represent your organization should be shared with the the audience so they know who is talking to them.  At Lion Brand, the people who handle podcasting, blogging, Facebook and Twitter are named. Then, when we attend face-to-face events like conferences, and people meet them in person, the relationship deepens. Meeting the virtual voices of your social interactions in person is exciting to people.  Our customers love meeting our bloggers and podcasters person.  You can’t put a company t-shirt on an employee of an agency and take them in tow to conferences.

2. Your best shot at social media success may not come from a marketing person at all.

One of the greatest opportunities to connect with, and excite people about your content comes when the people outside of the marketing or p.r. departments tweet and blog. The backstory of your business from the point of view of your CEO, chief engineer or creative director is where the most golden content can come from.  Michael Hyatt, Matt Cutts, Mitch Joel., and Bill Marriott are examples of people whose position, expertise, or access to specialized information draw readers, commenters and fans.

An agency may be able to tweet for your marketing department, but no agency can step in for these masters in their fields.

3. Great content on real-time platforms, is spontaneous.

Social media is always on. Great stories happen in the moment. Like the best photographs, great social media is candid, not posed. It is spontaneous, not scheduled. (That is not to say that it is never scheduled. Scheduling is a fact of life.)

The moment of the tweet may be a spontaneous thought or observation but it results from being in the right place at the right time not scattered by social media commitments by other brands.

4. You can’t outsource passion.

Great social media community managers, bloggers and podcasters love what they do. They love the community. They are passionate about the topic and about sharing it.  Show me a person working at an agency on your behalf who passionately lives and breathes your business.

These are the reasons I’ve come to believe that social media should be done in-house. But there are many reasons why companies outsource the day-to-day social media interactions. Sometimes their strategy is to outsource as much as possible. Sometimes it’s a financial matter.

What has been your experience? Do you outsource your day-to-day social media interactions successfully?  I (and I think everyone who reads this blog) would love to hear a virtual roundtable discussion in the comments about what your practice and experience has been.

 

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Please Do Not Friend Me On Path https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/do-not-friend-me-on-path/ https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/do-not-friend-me-on-path/#comments Thu, 08 Dec 2011 18:00:09 +0000 http://socialmediaexp.wpengine.com/?p=10499 Path is a useful social networking application but only if you build small, personal social networks with it.

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The hot new social media network du jour this month is Path. The mobile app which allows you to share your life’s path with up to 150 friends (up from its original limitation of 50) got a shot in the arm recently with a new user interface (which is quite lovely) and an ensuing round of good publicity. Shortly after its profile in the USA Today last week, I noticed a big surge in people wanting to friend me there.

I’ve been experimenting with Path for about a year now. It’s a neat concept, but its the concept that people don’t seem to get. Instead of friending everyone you know like you do with other social networks, Path is built so that you connect with just the people you really know. As such, it’s a place where many users share much more unfiltered versions of themselves.

Path Screen CaptureStill, I’m getting friend requests from people I’ve only come into contact with in cursory fashion — not to mention people who probably don’t want me all up in their business.

Stop it.

Just because there’s another social network out there doesn’t mean you have to be the fastest to 10 million friends. You also don’t have to figure out how to use it for business purposes. The first person who comes out with a Path ranking can kiss my ass and is forever launched into the Hall of Fame of Dumbasses.

It might just be that Path is your own little family and friends network away from the big playgrounds of Facebook and Twitter. It might just be that here you share your family pictures and notes about your kids and not worry about who might see them because the 60 people you’re connected to are people who may babysit for you at some point.

The point of Path is to carefully select and curate who sees your stuff. Maybe this is a chance for you to reset and grow into a social network naturally rather than trying to be Johnny Marketer on the Spot.

If I friend you on Path (and yes, I went an curated a bunch of people last night), it’s because I know you personally. You’ve probably met my family. I would trust you to watch my kids. If you’re not in that circle, don’t friend me there. Or at least don’t expect me to friend you back.

It’s not personal. The app is.

Note: Hat tip to Aaron Marshall for inspring this post.

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The Paradox Of Social Media Tools https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/the-paradox-of-social-media-tools/ https://socialmediaexplorer.com/social-media-marketing/the-paradox-of-social-media-tools/#comments Mon, 16 Aug 2010 10:00:54 +0000 http://socialmediaexp.wpengine.com/?p=3883 For the better part of the last five years, companies, agencies, consultants and managers have...

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For the better part of the last five years, companies, agencies, consultants and managers have been sifting through all sorts of different platforms, softwares and programs, looking for that one social media tool that will solve their company’s or client’s problem. I have personally wasted about 57 aggregate days of my life sitting through hour-long demos on everything from Twitter clients to social media monitoring platforms and CRM solutions to WordPress plugins.

For the record, and for all you sales and marketing tools out there … er, um … people who sell and market tools, let me give you a few suggestions for your demos. First, keep it to 15-20 minutes. We’re busy. Second, get rid of the company background slides. I don’t care who founded or funded you. I care about the thing your stuff does that I can’t do better without it. Third, show me a real use case using a real client that outlines their problem and shows how your tool solved it. If I can’t connect your tool to a real solution, I won’t remember it.

But then there’s the age-old paradox of tools. They really become useful when someone figures out a different reason to use them.

Standing Ground Hog
Image by tcd123usa via Flickr

It’s like my Cousin Johnny’s method of getting rid of a ground hog. To rid his backyard, garden or farm of a pesky ground hog, he uses three tools: a shovel, a five-gallon bucket and a six-pack of beer. Think about those tools for a moment and make assumptions on how he would use them.

To get rid of a ground hog, Cousin Johnny places the bucket, upside down, beside the ground hog’s hole. He drinks the six-pack of beer. By the time he’s finished, the ground hog pop his head up. He whacks the varmint on the head with the shovel.

Social media tools, too, can have a paradoxical nature. Social media purists have claimed for years that you blog to engage your audiences. Compendium Blogware (a client) has proven time and again that you can also use a blog to win search results and drive leads to your business, even without any measurable level of engagement. Those same purists claim Twitter is a conversational platform and one-way blasting of messages doesn’t work. Still, many mainstream Twitter users enjoy the fact they can follow feeds of companies or media outlets to just get the news of the day. (See @cnnbrk, @NBA, @MarthaStewart or @GStephanopoulos, all top 100 Twitter accounts, or even a feed like @BayerUSNews, which keeps media and pharma industry folk updated on the corporation’s goings on.)

More importantly for brand managers and companies buying tools, there’s the paradox of expectation. You expect a social media monitoring tool to monitor the Internet and take that burden off your shoulders. But the tool monitors nothing. It only presents information in an organized fashion so that you may monitor it more efficiently.

You expect a market research firm to tell you how to run your brand or make marketing decisions for you. But it only presents information about your audience, brand, market or competitors that enable you to make smarter decisions. An enterprise management system like Valuevine will not manage the Facebook and Twitter presence for the 150 separate locations for you. It will give you a mechanism to manage them, however.

The tools, in and of themselves, are not important. What you do with them is.

So the next time you’re suffering through a product demo, listen through the sales pitch and propaganda and ask yourself, “How can I use this tool? Who will manage its use on my team? Can I afford it in both fiscal and human resources?”

Those answers will help you pick the right tools for your social media marketing efforts.

NOTE: No actual ground hog was harmed in the writing of this blog post. While you’re welcome to complain about the violence Cousin Johnny uses to get rid of ground hogs, he hunts deer, too, so your concerns will probably fall on deaf ears. Sorry if his methods offend you. For good measure, here’s an article that explains more humane ways of ridding your property of a groundhog.

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