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Best trait in a social media communicator? Bravery. No contest. This month I’ve been working with a cool organisation to recruit an outstanding social media and communications professional. It has made me think hard about which qualities are most desirable in a social media manager or communications employee of any kind. Also, various conversations I’ve had, as I spend time with lots of talented teams across the public sector, have led me to notice: the excellent ones are those who fight their fear. There are four reasons I think bravery is the number one factor that marks out the good digital communicator from the splendid one.

Heroism in fighting sign-off I’ve worked for and with enough government agencies to know that communications people often have a ‘mare getting their work approved. There are still many places (in the public AND private sector) that make expert, experienced communicators seek permission before they send tweets. Apparently, 22 people had to sign off on Mitt Romney’s campaign tweets. To do this requires likeability. So there. SmartTools. Easy to use, our new online SmartTools make the implementation of smart, effective marketing programs simple by providing step-by-step blueprints to success. What makes SmartTools so great? They aren’t static Adobe PDF or Microsoft Word documents that lives on your desktop, but rather an interactive online toolkit. As a password-protected Web service, you can access your SmartTools from anywhere at any time.

You can jump around within your project, maintain multiple versions online, and print as much or as little as you like to make sharing and presenting information easy. Downloadable supporting templates are included too (like Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and Microsoft PowerPoint slide decks), because we all know that sometimes you just have to use a real spreadsheet or presentation, right? Although the technology is great, what makes SmartTools really special is the content. SmartTools will help you: Here's How to Use Hashtags on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram AND Google+

2K Shares Facebook 922 Twitter 528 LinkedIn 255 inShare255 Google+ 219 Pin It Share 99 2K Shares × Hashtags are a crucial part of social media marketing. But you have to use them the right way! Luckily, our friends at QuickSprout have put together a comprehensive infographic breaking down the do’s & don’ts of hashtags on 4 social networks: TwitterInstagramFacebookGoogle+ So let’s dive in! Oh… and if you make the hashtag sign with your fingers while reading this, I’ll reach out of the screen and slap you.

Fair warning. >> Click to Tweet << Here’s How to Use Hashtags on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram AND Google+ First off, what exactly is a hashtag? Here’s how Wikipedia describes it: A hashtag is a word or an unspaced phrase prefixed with the hash character (or number sign), #, to form a label. When I was a kid the hashtag symbol was called the “number symbol” or “pound sign” on my phone. And technically, it’s still there on your phone! How to Use Hashtags on Twitter And for good reason. Math rules! Facebook Topic Data: This Week in Social Media. Welcome to our weekly edition of what’s hot in social media news.

To help you stay up to date with social media, here are some of the news items that caught our attention. What’s New This Week? Facebook Introduces Topic Data: “Topic data shows marketers what audiences are saying on Facebook about events, brands, subjects and activities, all in a way that keeps personal information private.” “Marketers use the information from topic data to make better decisions about how they market on Facebook and other channels, and build product roadmaps.” LinkedIn Relaunches Sponsored InMail: The newly revamped Sponsored InMail product is “a direct and personalized way for marketers to reach their audience in their LinkedIn inbox across desktop and mobile.” “Sponsored InMail will now only be sent to members when they’re actively on LinkedIn.” Twitter Rolls Out New Profiles on Twitter for Android: New profiles on Twitter for Android makes it “easier for you to explore and learn about people on Twitter.”

Here's How to Use Hashtags on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram AND Google+ The 7 Steps to a 'Good-to-Great' Content Marketing Strategy. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap… And Others Don’t is a Jim Collins classic that shares an eye-opening study on how top companies managed to manifest great results and maintain them for more than a decade. After the study was completed, Collins found key business traits and strategies that transformed these companies into successful, elite companies. So how do these traits apply to content marketing?

What makes a ‘good-to-great’ content marketing strategy? Here are the seven steps for you to take your content to the next level: Step 1: Reach Level 5 Leadership. Level 5 Leadership, a concept developed by Jim Collins and revealed in his book, is the top spot on the corporate ladder: the executive. As an executive in a company, you have a vision, and that vision is shared with others.

You need the right people to help you create content, no matter what type of content you plan to use. Step 2: Know the who first, then the what. When identifying your target audience, be specific. 29 Social Media Rules You May Not Know Of. How did you end up learning the unwritten rules for social media etiquette?

For me, it was a lot of watching and waiting, a bit of experimenting, and tons of trial and error. When I first started out on social media, I had just the most basic rules and intuitions. Even now, I feel like I learn a new quirk or quibble on a near-daily basis. It’s hard to know which rules exist, which ones are real, and which ones are okay to break or follow. I’d love to help shed some light here so that you can go forth and share confidently. The 29 most common social media rules After digging into a bunch of research from thought leaders and influencers, I found there seemed to be a set of social media rules that most could agree on.

(Thanks to HubSpot, TollFreeForwarding and Gryffin, Rebekah Radice [1] [2], Chris Brogan, and Outbound Engine for their great resources and inspiration on these social media rules.) For all social networks 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. For Twitter 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. For Facebook 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 7 Visual Ideas That Will Increase Your Social Engagement. Do you create visual content for social media? Want to know which types of images get more interaction? The most engaging posts on social media are the ones that include images. Certain types of images receive more shares than others. In this article I’ll share the seven types of images that get the most engagement. Discover 7 visuals to increase social engagement. #1: Visual Bullets Visual bullets are a collection of images that include a headline, at least two pictures and captions with each picture, like this pin from Whole Foods Market.

Visual bullets are images that include a headline, pictures and stand-alone captions. It’s important to pay attention to the anatomy of visual bullets. . #2: Storyboards Storyboards and visual bullets are similar; both of these image types have headlines and captions. In this storyboard, readers learn ways to tie a scarf. Use how-to storyboards like this one from ShowMeNow.com explain something related to your niche. . #3: Illustrated Words #4: Diagram #5: Memes. 26 Social Media Monitoring Tools [Reference Guide] Do you realize how valuable it is to monitor and track conversations online? Are you monitoring the trends related to conversations about your brand? Is all that social media activity paying off? What are people saying that is negative or positive about you or your business? There are many things to consider when looking for monitoring tools but the most important thing is that you are monitoring conversations! In this guide, we go through what you need to be monitoring and how to do it.

You may also be monitored!! 89% of marketers found listening to be effective but only 37% listened -Saleforce 2015 state of marketing reportClick To Tweet The Social Media Monitoring Lighthouse The main purpose of a lighthouse is to serve as a navigational aid and to warn of danger. We have broken down the functionality that is likely to be found in monitoring tools. Conversation Tracking As well as monitoring specific keywords, you’ll also want to monitor conversations that happen online.

Real-time Insights 1. Www.marketo.com/_assets/uploads/Definitive-Guide-to-Social-Marketing.pdf?20130113004536. 44 Social Media Tools Recommended by the Pros. Are you looking for ways to enhance your social media marketing? Do you want new tools to simplify your marketing tasks? We asked a group of social media pros for the hottest social media tools they use today. Check out these social media tools to see if they’re a good fit for you! Discover 44 media tools recommended by the pros.

Listen to this article: Listen now: Play in new window | Download | Embed #1: Discover.ly for Networking Andrea Vahl Discover.ly is a free Chrome extension that allows you to see the social sites of your email connections and even cross-reference other social sites as you browse. So if you’re on LinkedIn looking at someone’s profile, you can see your mutual connections on Facebook and Twitter. Connect with email contacts easily. This is extremely helpful for making sure you’re connected to the people you want to be connected with in multiple places or to see how you might connect with someone new by getting an introduction from a mutual connection.

Laura Rubinstein Ron Nash. Customer Relationships - Three Ingredients You Need to Make Your Marketing More Customer-Centric. It's time for a test, specifically a commerce exam focused on your greatest asset, the customer. Here is some background... Customer X is a longtime customer who plans to maintain his loyalty but has some reasonable demands that must be met for him to stay loyal to your company. He wants your business to get to know him better. Now with that as background, can you answer the following questions? Do you know where Customer X lives (what region and city)? Is he a satisfied client, a raving fan, or likely to switch to a competitor when the opportunity presents itself? How influential is he and will his actions have an amplified impact on other customers? The brand-customer relationship has changed from a one-way conversation to a two-way street, with shoppers revealing personal details at a depth we have never seen before.

Though it's likely that many will view this as a challenge, it really presents a huge opportunity to "wow" the customer like never before. 1. 2. 3. Four Steps to Simplify Your Daily Social Media Activities « Social Media Examiner. Do you engage with your audience on multiple social platforms? Do you want to work more efficiently? Focusing your efforts on the social channels and engagement signals that are most beneficial to your business can save you time. In this article you’ll discover how to create a social media to-do list in four steps. Discover how to simplify your daily social media activities. Listen to this article: Listen now: Play in new window | Download | Embed #1: Rank Your Social Accounts To prioritize your social media accounts, compile a worksheet with key details for each account: 1. 2. 3.

Here’s what a sample worksheet with these details might look like: Prioritize your social media platforms by the revenue they drive. Now, take a look at which platforms are generating the most revenue for your business. In the example above you would likely prioritize LinkedIn first and Twitter second. . #2: Prioritize Engagement Signals Facebook Here are Facebook’s options for engagement and how to prioritize them: Twitter.

5 Tools to Boost Your Social Media Productivity « Social Media Examiner. Are you overwhelmed with your social media responsibilities? Looking for ways to perform tasks more efficiently? Staying on top of social activities can be challenging, but there are tools that can save you time and make your job a little easier. In this article you’ll discover five social media tools to improve productivity. Discover 5 tools to boost your social media productivity. Image background: Flatiron. #1: Resize Social Images Photos trigger better social media engagement. This is where Social Media Image Maker comes in. Social Media Image Maker makes it easy to resize your images for fifteen different social platforms.

Using Social Media Image Maker helps make the process of resizing and retouching your images much less labor-intensive. . #2: Monitor Analytics in One Dashboard To make sure your social marketing efforts are paying off, you need to measure their impact and track ROI. Cyfe gives you a detailed look at your presence across various social networks. #3: Identify Influencers. Five Ways to Create Content That Reigns. How can marketers better create content that achieves optimal results? Here are five suggestions from a Captora infographic. Drive pipeline growth with data: "Research-driven campaigns get results and set your marketing efforts apart from the Internet noise," states Captora. Some two-thirds of marketers say data drives their digital marketing, and 71% say it enables the delivery of more relevant messaging to more finely segmented audience, according to data cited by Captora.

Another suggestion for creating content that rules: play on those heartstrings. The "most viral" emotions are amusement, interest, surprise, happiness, delight, pleasure, affection, and excitement. To find out more about what emotions create the least engagement and other tips for creating content that rules, check out the infographic: 27 Awesome Social Media Marketers to Follow on Pinterest. 808 Shares Facebook 285 Twitter 201 LinkedIn 22 inShare24 Google+ 191 Pin It Share 109 808 Shares × Getting started on a new social network can be a challenge! Knowing who to follow, what to post & how to grow a following are are never easy. And it’s no different with Pinterest. How do you find people within your niche who are pinning super awesome content?? Ask me! If you LOVE social media marketing, that is. I’ve scoured Pinterest looking for the best social media content.

Below you’ll find 27 of the most valuable people to follow on Pinterest for digital marketing & online business advice. >> Click to Tweet << 27 Awesome Social Media Marketers to Follow on Pinterest I’ve listed these awesome people in alphabetical order — and also included a link to my fave board of theirs. So all you have to do is click, follow & start pinning! 1. >> Click to Tweet Alisa is a social media strategist, web designer & brilliant writer. But don’t stop there. 2. >> Click to Tweet With over 550 pins (wow!!!) 3. 4. 5. 6. 7 Goal-Setting Tips and Strategies for Social Media Marketers. “How cool would it be to have 1 million Facebook fans?” This is how I tend to go about setting social media marketing goals. I pull an aspirational number out of the air and go for it. Would it be cool to have 1 million Facebook fans?

Absolutely! Is this the right way to set goals? Coming up with goals for our Facebook page and other social media channels has often been a bit haphazard for me. Keep reading below to see five amazing strategies that I found. 7 Popular Goal-Setting Strategies for Marketers to Try What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals. – Henry David Thoreau I love this quote from Thoreau because it emphasizes the process over the end result. I often find myself wondering what exactly is the best way to set goals … or if having no goals at all might be a possibility! S – Specific – The more specific you can be with writing down your objective, the easier it will be to clearly see what it is you need to accomplish.

Goal: Infographic: How Often Should I Post on Social Media? Science-Based Guide to Getting Social Media Engagement (No Fluff!) 14 of Guy Kawasaki's Best Social Media Secrets REVEALED! #SocialSkim: The Truth About Facebook Reach, a Hashtag Primer, YouTube Turns 10, More! 300+ Awesome Free Internet Resources You Should Know. Content Design: How to Write Articles Your Readers Will Love. How to Validate that your Social Media Marketing Strategy is Working. The Best Social Networks for Engaging Event Attendees. How the Big 4 Social Platforms Differ: Members vs. Visitors.

Parsing Buffer's First Tweets: Social Tactics For New Startups. How to Use 'Alternative' Social Networks in Your Marketing Strategy. Social Media Tools and Social Media Technology Insight. The Anatomy of the Perfect Social Media Post. 10 Interesting Social Media Facts. The Best Days and Times to Post Content. 64 Easy-to-Remember Marketing Strategy Examples for Facebook. Do Social Signals Impact Search Engine Rankings? Content Curation: How to Easily Find Great Content to Share. Why You Need A Social Media Content Calendar For Your Business. The Good and the Bad of Social Media Marketing. UGC Can Strengthen the Relationship Between Your Social Media and Content Mar... 26 Tips for Improving Your Social Media Marketing. How to Manage Multiple Social Media Accounts.

7 Science-Based Reasons to Use Emoticons. Visual Guide to Understanding Paid, Owned and Earned Media. Our Social Media Tools Directory Has Launched. Social Media Tools and Social Media Technology Insight. FINALLY! A Checklist for Social Media Marketing that Actually Helps. How to Increase Traffic to Your Social Media Sites. Dennis Yu answers your toughest Facebook questions. When being the best at what you do just isn't enough anymore. The Anatomy of the Perfect Social Media Post. The Ultimate List of Social Media Acronyms and Abbreviations. The Ultimate Social Network Cheat Sheet. 7 Science-Based Reasons to Use Emoticons. 7 Digital Marketing Trends Social Media Managers Can't Ignore in 2015. 20 Ideas for Content That People Love To Share on Social Media. How to Promote Products With Social Media: 4 Examples. 5 Tips for Running Successful Social Media Campaigns.

14 Social Media Marketing Tools Recommended by the Pros. How to Use Social Psychology to Improve Your Marketing. 14 Tools to Streamline Your Social Media Marketing. 4 Ways to Turn Your Employees Into Brand Ambassadors. How to Check Social Media Privacy Settings. How to Improve Your Social Media Holiday Campaigns. Six Tips for a Killer Hashtag Marketing Campaign. Tools to Centrally Monitor Your Social Mentions. 20 Social Media Marketing Tips From the Pros. Becoming Recommended: How to Build a Business Others Love Recommending. Podcast. Twitter Expands Photo Filters: This Week in Social Media. How to Become a Leader in Your Industry Using Social Media. 7 Tips to Improve Your Social Media Posts. How to Grow Your Leads With Social Media Marketing. New Social Media Research Shows What People Expect From Brands.

36 Tools and Tips for Social Media Marketers. Marketing Partnerships: How to Extend Your Reach With Content Collaboration. How Social Listening Can Improve Your Marketing. 10 Hot Tips for Power Social Media Users. The Downfall Of SEO And The Rise Of Social MediaMint Social. New Social Media Research Shows What People Expect From Brands. How To Decide If You Should Post Something On Social Media. 10 Things We've Learned About Social Media in 2014. 5 Ways to Develop a Social Media Strategy. How to Grow Your Leads With Social Media Marketing. 26 Ways Brands Succeed With Social Media Marketing. How to Evaluate and Optimize Your Best Social Media Content via. Social Media FAQ: 10 Top Questions From Marketers. How to Become a Leader in Your Industry Using Social Media. 29 Must-Read Content Marketing Articles of 2014. 14 Recent Changes Social Media Marketers Need to Know. Why Curation Matters to Content. How to Boost Your Content Reach With Social Media.

The Best Infographic EVER ... Kittehs and Bacon. 13 Can't-Miss Social Media Blogs I Read Every Single Week! How Identity Influences Online Content Sharing [Infographic] How to Get Your First 1,000 Followers on Twitter, Facebook. 3 Ways to Turn Email Subscribers Into Social Fans. 26 Tips to Strengthen Your Social Media Marketing. How to Prepare Your Content Cornucopia [Infographic] 10 Ways to Be a Social Media Boss Like Dan Bilzerian. Getting Started With Social Media: A Resource Guide Social Media Examiner. Podcast.