The new Timeline format for Facebook pages brings new opportunities for marketers and advertisers on the platform. Optimize your Facebook page for the new format with the April 2012 edition of the Facebook Marketing Bible: The Leading Resource for Marketing and Advertising on Facebook.

Source: insidefacebook.com → | ∞ Permalink

I have to be completely honest here. &Up until 2 weeks ago I had no clue what "The Hunger Games" were. &I tend to stay away from the trendy book/movie scene.....ahem....Twilight. &But something about this movie completely lured me in and I gave in Friday night and downloaded the book and began reading. &By noon on Saturday I am starting the second book in the series and on Sunday on to the third. &So needless to say I thoroughly enjoyed this series.

Because of how much I loved this series I thought this blog post was interesting when I stumbled across it. &Content marketing plays a bigger role in digital marketing everyday. &This post gives 5 great content marketing lessons that one can learn from The Hunger Games such as be authentic, tell a story, produce fresh content regularly, have a goal, and the fact that actions truly do speak louder than words.&

Source: spectate.com → | ∞ Permalink

Would you still trust your social network if it were filled with the spam that hit your email folders everyday? &Businesses interested in successfully using social media as part of their digital marketing campaings to leverage their brand must think about this and avoid filling people's social media stream with things that they do not want to see. &Avoid sending messages that are viewed as spam by considering the things detailed in this blog post and infographic.

Source: blog.neolane.com → | ∞ Permalink

All anyone seems to be talking about these days is how much they dislike Timeline, Facebook's new user interface for business and brand Pages. Fortunately, the social networking giant also offered a couple of new advertising options that might just ease the tension surrounding the new look and feel. During Facebook's Marketing Conference in New York last week, the company announced its plan to launch new ads, which will look less like advertisements and more like content. The revamped ads will appear in the right column of a user's page, a user's News Feed, within a company's Timeline page and on Facebook's log-out page. Currently, ads appear only on the right side of a user's Facebook page.

Source: entrepreneur.com → | ∞ Permalink

Facebook Inc., the world’s largest social networking service, will begin displaying advertisements on its smartphone and tablet applications as soon as early March, the Financial Times reported late Sunday.

Seeking higher revenues in advance of the blockbuster US$5-billion initial public offering the Palo Alto, Calif.-based company has set for this spring, Facebook plans to introduce what it calls “sponsored stories” into mobile news feeds within weeks, several people familiar with the matter told the FT. Advertising agencies have already submitted proposals for the new feature, the people said.

Making money from mobile was highlighted as a top priority for Facebook when the company filed documents for its highly anticipated and long expected IPO last week. Half of all 845 million Facebook users globally accessed their account through a mobile device last December, yet a lack of advertising means Facebook makes no money from those visits.

&

Do you think that adding advertisements to help monetize their digital marketing is smart or will it discourage you from using the service?

Source: ottawacitizen.com → | ∞ Permalink

&Would you be willing to try out the following with your facebook fan page?

Before you go, there, can we talk you into liking our Facebook page? That’s the basic premise behind Like Chat, a new tool from Virtual Person. Like Chat replaces the traditional like button on websites with a chat window in an attempt to better engage users and increase total likes. Its features include: Virtual Person Founder and Chief Executive Officer Tomer Sasson believes the next step for search engines will be to emphasize social searching, increasing the demand for Facebook likes.

Source: allfacebook.com → | ∞ Permalink

February 29 only appears on the calendar every four years, and the 2012 edition may include Facebook’s official announcement on timeline for pages. A source told Business Insider that the social network may use its invitation-only Facebook Marketing Conference that day to make the announcement, saying: At Facebook, they pushed back the launch of timeline for brands to the end of February. Those two pieces of information are too much of a coincidence. Another source told Business Insider: Timeline is coming to brand pages. Most people don’t even know.

Source: allfacebook.com → | ∞ Permalink

&

Facebook has linked up with moo.com to use your Timeline cover photo and contact details to produce a business card. You can select from the cover photos you’ve used and most fields on the card are editable in the straightforward design process. The arrangement is only available to those who’ve switched to Facebook’s Timeline, which is a complete revamp of your Facebook Profile. It uses your historical data to create a digital scrapbook of your life. Go to http://www.facebook.com/about/timeline to find out more.

Best part? First 50 cards are absolutely free! &I just requested mine and can't wait to see them. &No CC card info was required, and no shiping charges either.

Source: intranetfuture.com → | ∞ Permalink

As digital marketers, we’re frequently reminded that magic formulas don’t really exist. Still, our experimentation and experiences often lead to insights about “what’s next.” Hopefully, the following insights and sample tools mentioned in this article will inspire your consideration (and actions) for 2012.

Source: searchenginewatch.com → | ∞ Permalink

Facebook is testing a mechanism for brands to communicate privately with consumers via their Facebook Pages, said a Facebook spokesperson on Dec. 19. &How do you think this will help your Facebook business strategy?

Source: dmnews.com → | ∞ Permalink

What is the best time of day to post Facebook page updates for your business? There are certain times of the day and days of the week that are statistically more active. Read this article to learn what would be the best business strategy for you.

Source: faceitpages.com → | ∞ Permalink

As a search engine marketer Pinterest has fascinated me since the first time I laid eyes on it. My first visit to Pinterest resulted in 6 hours of searching through delicious sounding recipes, hilarious pictures, inspiring quotes, and beautiful landscapes. It brings out the creativeness in everyone and I am just the type of girl to eat that stuff up.

What is Pinterest? It is the newest craze in social media. It is a virtual pin board, or a personal web collage, of all things you find inspiring. Pin images for your own reference later or just to share with your followers. This website has yet to make a dime, but it was called the "toast of the town" by Silicon Valley investors this summer.

If you have any brand that uses interesting pictures in its website then Pinterest is a must. It is a great way to get follow links and get traffic to your site. I might even go as far as to call it an SEO’s dream.

Okay, enough about my love of Pinterest. In this article you will find 20 pins taken from the site, and a glimpse of why I think this social media pin board is so wonderful, and perhaps the next big thing in social media. What do you think of Pinterest? A passing craze? Or a social media avenue worth exploring, either personally or professionally?

Source: businessinsider.com → | ∞ Permalink

A year ago now, both Google and Bing announced that they factor social signals from social media into their organic search algorithms. As the lines between social media and SEO continue to thin, social media will gain importance for SEO. As Google described it, social media is about relationships and relationships prove relevance and relevance is at the core of organic search.

Here are 10 reasons why any business needs a Facebook presence:

1. Google and Bing crawl and index Facebook Pages because they are publicly available. As a result, Facebook Pages do indeed come up in the search engine results pages (SERPs).

2. Google announced in early November 2011 that they now crawl and index Facebook Comments.

3. People are starting their searches at the Facebook search box. Test to see if your brand comes up when you search for it in Facebook.

4. SEO is now about web presence optimization (WPO) and Facebook is a must for any web presence.

5. Your target audience (unless you think they are not included in the 800 million Facebook users) is hanging out there.

6. The “Like” button is the new “backlink”.

7. The “Liker” (the Facebook User who did the “Liking”) is the new “lead” or “contact”.

8. Your Facebook presence adds quality backlinks to your website.

9. Facebook is easily accessible on mobile devices giving your prospects and clients easy access to your content and brand.

10. Your competitors most likely have a Facebook presence.

Source: blogs.imediaconnection.com → | ∞ Permalink

These infographics are amazing. They really put into perspective exactly how important it is for businesses and marketers to be apart of the social media conversation. And not just when discussing Facebook...

There are some surprising results and unexpected networks and social media platforms have made their mark this year with Tumblr now attracting over 90 million unique visitors every month and StumbleUpon driving over 50% of all social network traffic.

YouTube is attracting more than 50% more views than 2010 and threatening traditional TV advertising and marketing.

The role of social media in spreading and sharing of content and improving website and blog search engine optimisation has been never more obvious to the professional social media marketer.

Here are some infographics that simplify the presentation of the facts and figures of Facebook, Twittter, LinkedIn, Content and SEO, Tumblr and StumbleUpon and showcase the implications of social media for marketers.

Source: business2community.com → | ∞ Permalink

Ever wonder what draws the most attention on social media profiles? Mashable recorded actual eye movements to show you.

When potential dates, employers and friends glance at your online social profiles, what do they see? EyeTrackShop, a startup that runs eye-tracking studies for advertisers, helped Mashable find out by applying its technology to the profile pages of popular social networks.

The study used the webcams of 30 participants to record their eye movements as they were shown profile pages from Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Flickr, YouTube, Klout, Reddit, Digg, Tumblr, Twitter, StumbleUpon and Pinterest at 10-second intervals.

These are the key takeaways for businesses dealing with Facebook from this study:

• Profile pictures matter. -It is what gets the most attention, so ensure that you take the time to create a profile picture that is representative of your company.

• Content on top wins. - The further down the page something was the less likely it was to be noticed.

Source: mashable.com → | ∞ Permalink

Small businesses are becoming more comfortable with social media marketing and are using it more when engaging with customers, according to the Fall 2011 Attitudes and Outlook Survey from engagement marketing company Constant Contact. Of those using social media marketing, Facebook continues to be the tool of choice for small businesses: 96 percent report they use it. Of those, 86 percent find it an effective tool (up from 82 percent in the last seasonal study).

This survey was administered in October 2011 to 1,972 small business owners and employees. Of the respondents, 87 percent of are located in the US and 81 percent of these organizations have 25 or less employees.

In the last six months, small businesses using online marketing tools revealed a significant reduction in perceived barriers to adoption of social media, according to the survey. There is increased awareness that social media marketing need not be time-consuming or difficult, which were both obstacles reported in Constant Contact’s Spring 2011 study.

Source: zdnet.com → | ∞ Permalink

We were first introduced to Google+ on June 28th 2011 when it was launched in its invite-only testing phase. 2 months later Google+ threw open its doors and allowed anyone to create an account, but it’s fair to say that since the initial peak in interest the G+ buzz has reduced to little more than a gentle hum. But earlier this week that buzz was revived as Google announced phase 2 in its social domination strategy – Google+ Pages, which aims to expand on people-to-people networking and allow users to ‘build relationships’ with the businesses, brands and products they love.

So what sets Google+ Pages apart from standard user profiles?

• Pages can’t add people to circles unless the page is added first or mentioned

• Pages can be made for a variety of different purposes (brands, shops, celebrity figures, sports teams) whereas profiles are strictly for ‘real people’

• A page’s default privacy settings are public

• Pages have the +1 button

• Pages can’t +1 other pages, nor can they +1 stuff on the Web

• Pages don’t have the option to share to ‘Extended circles’

• Pages don’t receive notifications via email, text or in the Google bar

• Pages can’t hangout on a mobile device

• Local pages include information about a business’ physical location (map, address, opening hours, contact details)

Convincing business owners to join G+ is easy, but convincing the mass audiences to part with the familiarities of Facebook will be a different story.

G+ does have some advantages over Facebook, namely the general web domination and scale of features that Google has in it's arsenal. There’s also the inevitable Google Analytics and AdWords integration. But if If G+ is to succeed it needs to learn from Facebook’s mistakes, and offer a service that business owners just can’t ignore.

What do you think? Bound for success or failure? What do you think about Google+ in general?

Source: browsermedia.co.uk → | ∞ Permalink

Google has recently announced a few changes that absolutely thrill the search engine marketer in me. Yet, the changes also leave me personally wondering if any of my friends on Facebook have a public profile that I may have posted on!

Google is now indexing AJAX and JavaScript content, which means pages that use this programming--for example, Facebook comments--are now open to being searched.

This change to the Google bot search system was first spotted byDigital Inspiration, and later confirmed by Google's Matt Cutts on Twitter. Cutts tweeted the following on Tuesday: "Googlebot keeps getting smarter. Now has the ability to execute AJAX/JS to index some dynamic comments"

Before this implementation, Google's bots were unable to trawl the comments section of sites that used third-party commenting engines such as Disqus, Facebook, and Intense Debate. Now, however, Google can index these comments--which is a boon for webmasters but a potentially sticky situation for people who are hyper-sensitive about privacy issues.

You may not think this is a big deal--after all, it's not like you leave a lot of trolling comments on random public forums, right? But what you should be concerned about are your Facebook friends who might not be terribly up-to-date on their Facebook privacy settings. If one of your Facebook friends doesn't have their page on lockdown, and you happen to make a stupid comment--for example, "I am so wasted right now, totally calling in sick to work tomorrow!"--that comment will now be searchable.

The SEO world should be thrilled with this change, as I most certainly am. But you had better believe that I will be going to do a Google search of my name in about 30 seconds….and I suggest you do the same.

Source: pcworld.com → | ∞ Permalink

Social Media in general and more specifically Social Media Marketing is a hot industry and marketing experts consider it to be the wave of the future. Platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and You Tube, to name a few, are visited and used by hundreds of millions of people every day and growing, making this a potential online marketing heaven. It is challenging for most businesses to keep up with this demand on their own.

To fill this very high need, the era of Social Media Management was born. Currently, Social Media Managers are in extremely high demand, in the job world, with the need far out weighing the availability of experienced Social Media Marketing Specialists. Social Media Managers, partner with individuals and businesses to develop and maintain the company’s online business presence thus allowing the overwhelmed business person to focus on other daily tasks while at the same time, keeping the lifeblood of most businesses—marketing and customer relations, in high gear.

Source: webwire.com → | ∞ Permalink

A week ago Google announced that signed-in users will, by default, be routed to the SSL version of Google (https://www.google.com). Before then, most users used non-SSL Google for their searches.

What does this mean for you and your business? When using the SSL, or secure, Google site we will no longer have access to specific search information. Meaning, if a customer lands on your site from the SSL version of Google we will not know what brought them there. Were they searching for best SEO practices, social media, or perhaps something completely unrelated? As more and more people begin using Google services such as Google + or Gmail, the less free information Google analytics is going to have on your website traffic.

In this emergency Whiteboard Friday, Rand will go over the changes Google has made, why it happened (and why it really might have happened), and what you can do to stay calm and fight back.

Source: seomoz.org → | ∞ Permalink

Unless you live under a rock (or are perhaps drowning in law school) you know who Steve Jobs is and how the news of his death has sent a surprising sense of loss rippling across the country. I myself was surprised at the sadness I felt upon hearing the news. Because of this I felt that it was only right to contribute something to conversational marketing regarding him.

Most people might think of him as a techie, but he was definitely more than that. He was an entrepreneurial and marketing genius who has shaped more careers and lives than anyone will ever know. He infused emotion, technology, creativity, and elitism in order to create a brand that inspired others to do the same.

I found this article to be a touching tribute from those in the marketing industry and it allows you to begin to understand how your career and workplace was shaped in some way by Steve Jobs.
Here are some of the quotes that stood out to me:

“Jobs taught marketers and advertisers that your customers can't imagine what they need because they haven't seen it before.”

“From a marketing perspective his legacy serves as a reminder that marketers cannot simply sell technical features and benefits but rather we can and must convey an emotional benefit to our consumers. Marketers who deliver simplicity and consistency in their relationship with customers honor the legacy of Steve Jobs.”

“He was the North Star that the rest of the company, indeed the rest of the world, could look up to and follow. And this genius translated into consistent marketing success. Future marketers should look beyond the silo of their discipline and emulate Steve Jobs' cross-functional vision, combining technology and art, product and design.”

“Brands that are at the center of human connection garner the largest market share and premium. Steve Job's brilliance as a marketer is he anchored on human beings, not "consumers."

I could actually go on and on. This was a great piece to read. Whether you are a MAC or PC fan, you can’t get around being a Steve Jobs admirer. His marketing innovations contributed greatly to why I am in the industry that I am in, sitting here writing this piece to you. So if you haven’t already, take a moment to reflect on the changes brought about by this man and why the marketing world is forever changed because of them.

Source: clickz.com → | ∞ Permalink

The new iPhone has been released, with its new processor, more megapixels, better battery life and hundreds of new features, yet Apple has so conditioned us to expect the revolutionary that it seems, somehow, like a let-down. There is no new form, after all, just a bit more function. But when you take the cover off, that enhanced function will only accelerate changes in consumer behavior, meaning exciting opportunities for marketers.

Apple has enhanced its voice functionality, its camera, and it has also joined Google and Microsoft in allowing cross screen sharing. With these advances people are going to be sharing even more. Companies need to be forward thinking in what this means for them and the marketing opportunities that may be present.

In the coming months, we'll know more about how the iPhone 4S changes user behavior. If you're already allocating enough of your marketing to reach consumers on the iPhone 4G and other mobile devices, congratulations. Otherwise, when the 4S comes out, you'll have even more catching up to do.

Source: adage.com → | ∞ Permalink

Should Google and Apple be concerned with the huge jump in signups that music streaming app Spotify experienced after it launched its Facebook partnership at F8 last week?

Sean Parker, Facebook's first president and shareholder, has found a great way to market the new music service he has invested in – one that shouldn't have the problems of his first, Napster.

Despite complaints about the app limiting its signup through Facebook, Spotify seems to be embracing the growth of social networking media and turning it in to success. It gained over 1 million new users since f8 a week ago.

This surge in signups certainly shows the power of Facebook and of social media in general. This increase in users is something that has gotten the attention of the app industry and of marketers. This may very well determine where companies will want to spend their marketing dollars in the future.

Source: searchenginewatch.com → | ∞ Permalink

Today, if you don’t embrace the concept that SEOs are marketers too, you might be doing a poor job at SEO. With Google and Bing using social media signals in ranking factors, and Google Panda slapping sites with poor content (or for just being generally poor) in addition to implementing machine learning so analytics, structure, and click-through-rates make a big difference, it is more obvious than ever that SEOs are not dealing with just search rankings and keywords.

You not only need to be knowledgeable about SEO and search engines in general, but it is vital that your SEO is fully integrated into your entire marketing strategy. Whether it is content marketing, company outreach or PR, site design and development, analytics, or even off-line marketing, it can all be greatly enhanced by the touch of an SEO. Ultimately, Google and Bing are working hard to maintain position as “center of the web,” and the best thing to do is feed these search engines from all different angles. As an online marketing manager, it is crucially important that your marketing campaigns are search centric.

As an SEO, it is important to understand that you are a marketer as well. Successful SEOs maximize marketing campaigns to feed the search. It’s no longer just keywords and link mongering, it’s online marketing 2011.

Source: seo.com → | ∞ Permalink

Facebook Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg and others just announced some huge changes to Facebook, right on the heels of yesterday’s shocking changes to the news feed and introduction of the ticker. The new timeline will continue the journey where the Profile has taken us, and apps will integrate new verbs, possibly changing the single-verb culture of like that has predominated.

As a marketer, the changes that Facebook is in the process of implementing seem fantastic. The new timeline has options that will encourage you to tell your friends that you just bought a car, got a dog, broke a bone, or finished your degree. This certainly interests me, knowing that this will make targeting my audience an easier endeavor. The more people know about you, the easier it becomes to effectively market to you.

But, with that being said, I am still very nervous of the changes being made in regards to the news feed. Will these changes make fans less valuable to a business? Will it just be that much harder to be able to use your Facebook fan page as a marketing tool? Will your status updates ever appear in your fan's news feeds? These are questions that have yet to be answered and, although I am not overly concerned, they still do worry me a tiny bit.

Now, more than ever, I believe that it is imperative that marketers have engaging and interesting status updates on Facebook. If not, less and less people will see the updates in their news stream, rendering your Facebook marketing campaign less and less effective. For now all we can do is wait, watch, measure, adjust, and then repeat.

Source: allfacebook.com → | ∞ Permalink

They were some very interesting studies released this week that gave us some insights into Facebook user behavior. These studies aimed at finding out why people unlike business fan pages, and how marketers can better communicate the brand message.

I found it no surprise that the number one reason that fans unlike a particular Facebook page is simply a lack of interest. Perhaps they go through their list of pages and weed out the ones that they don’t find useful, or they see a post from them and question why they are a fan in the first place.

Another big reason is that your fans feel that you are spamming them. If you are posting multiple status updates a day that aren’t useful, people will get tired of seeing it. Then there is the fan that was never really a fan in the first place. Perhaps you roped them in with a contest, or to vote on a friends behalf.

As marketers we must ensure that we walk that line that engages our customer just enough to keep them wanting more, but not tire of our brand. This can be a challenge and there is no magic solution. Interaction needs vary from country to country and from industry to industry. Monitor your weekly page updates, and the feedback you receive on various post, and overtime you will have a picture of what works best for you.

Source: searchenginewatch.com → | ∞ Permalink

Google has launched an API that will allow developers to create and post third party apps that will be able to post and read directly to their new social networking site, Google plus. I am sure that Google is hoping that this new development will reignite interest in the service that was opened up to a limited audience in late June.

Since Google plus launched it has experienced a huge decrease in users. There has been a 40% decline in the service. Sources say that the CEO of Google, Larry Parks, has not even posted publicly to his Google plus account in almost a month.

Only time will tell if the new API development and the persistence of Google will pay off. Will the internet giant ever be able to take on Facebook? They certainly have the resources to do so....but the question is, will they be able to execute? What do you think about Google plus? Will they pull it off in the long run, or will it just be a repeat of Google Buzz?

Source: guardian.co.uk → | ∞ Permalink

We have all heard the astronomical numbers that pertain to Facebook users. We know that the percentage of people on Facebook is high and that the amount of time users spend on facebook is somewhat shocking to hear as well. For some this still isn't convincing enough to take their business's social media stance seriously.

A new Nielsen survey on social media usage turns up six vital lessons for businesses. In this article Nielsen shares some staggering numbers that should make any business owner rethink their stance on social media. For example, forget thinking that there is a typical social media user. Internet users who are aged 65+ are only 9% less likely to use social media than 18-34 year olds. This article stresses, because of factors such as this, that companies should not be asking if they should be incorporating social media into their marketing strategies, but rather, "How should they be incorporating it?"

Source: bnet.com → | ∞ Permalink