15 ways to increase your Facebook stature Facebook friends photo grid by Dan Taylor (CC BY on Flickr) Secrets to becoming a Facebook power user: Use the right touch, tools & tactics to build authority This is part 2 of our 4-part series on using Facebook strategically. • Part 1: Demystifying how Facebook’s news feeds work • Part 2: 15 ways to increase your Facebook stature (below) • Part 3: Cheat sheet: Key principles of social media marketing on Facebook • Part 4: 15 ways to increase your brand’s impact on Facebook Most people use Facebook for personal reasons: to maintain contacts, stay in touch with friends who live far away or to stay on top of one’s social life. Only 15 percent of us use it to maintain professional or work contacts, according to a 2010 survey by ExactTarget. But for many of us, our professional and personal lives intersect and blend in deep ways — and this is the new multidimensional public identity we display to the world. As it routinely does, Facebook declined requests to comment for this article.
Inbound Marketing: How to pull in customers without pushing ads by Adam T. Sutton, Senior ReporterResearching a purchase is a wise shopping strategy -- and most consumers realize this. They are more frequently turning to the Internet to investigate what to buy.According to a 2010 Pew Research Center study, 78% of U.S. Internet users say they at least occasionally research products. For U.S. adults in general, 58% have researched products or services online, up from 49% in 2004. On a typical day, 21% of adults research purchases online, up from 9% in 2004. Making Data Relevant: The New Metrics for Social Marketing Prashant Suryakumar is a Social Media Engagement Manager at Mu Sigma and is currently focused on social media analytics. This post was co-authored by Dhiraj Rajaram, the founder and CEO of Mu Sigma. Social media has come of age. However, businesses are facing an uncomfortable truth: There are no “best practices” for measuring a successful social media campaign. A structured approach to capturing, measuring, analyzing and refining marketing strategies in near real time is essential to executing a successful social campaign. Invest in Data Measuring the impact of social media campaigns is systemically different from that of traditional marketing campaigns. Additionally, social media is a two-way communication medium and businesses need to invest in listening capabilities that capture the activities of their existing or potential customers online. While data is abundant, it is by nature unstructured. Real-Time Monitoring Sentiment Analysis New Metrics Testing Mechanisms Behavioral Segmentation
Tutorials on social media A roundup of guides on how to use blogs, Facebook, Twitter & more Here are tutorials our team has created to help show nonprofits, cause organizations, businesses and individuals how to effectively use social media, divided by subject area. For even more, see the Sharing Center, our posts on resources, tools and video interviews. • Social media • Blogs • Facebook • Twitter • Video & multimedia • Fundraising • Mobile • LinkedIn • Google Plus • Pinterest Social media How to build awareness for your campaign Guest post by Mary Joyce March 2013 Tools & tips: Whether you run a nonprofit, a social enterprise or a cause organization, it’s likely that at some point you run up against the barrier we’ve all faced: How do I get the word out about this amazing campaign? Attracting young people to your nonprofit Guest post by Alison Richmond easyfundraising.co.uk March 2013 How to successfully harness your email list for your cause Guest post by Susannah Vila February 2013 Tutorial: Why measure?
2011 Trends: Content Marketing Is Critical Next year, marketers will need to rethink their approach to advertising and marketing and intensify their focus on creating magnetic content that will naturally attract consumers, rather than relying solely on the interruption model of advertising, which consumers are responding to less and less. Think pull vs. push. Magnetic content can include anything created on behalf of a brand—be it an ad, YouTube video, online game, Facebook page, Twitter promo or mobile app—that consumers genuinely want to engage with and pass along to others. This content entertains, amuses, informs, serves a function or satisfies a consumer need. It’s welcome instead of annoying or interruptive. Marketers, especially those working in social media, have seen the proven value of branded content, sometimes also referred to as “earned media.” Creating effective, breakthrough advertising has always been a challenge for marketers, as well as for the agencies charged with the task. Is the content unique?
20 Free Social Media Icon Sets For a More Shareable Website If your blog needs a face lift, the creative types who power the web are here to help. Sometimes a few well-designed, tastefully placed icons can add a little class or creativity to an otherwise neutral theme. Social media links, which we'd argue are a priority for any blog, are a great opportunity to add some texture. To help, we've rounded up some of the most impressive works of social icon art circulating the web lately. If you use a fun icon set that didn't make our list, be sure to share the wealth in the comments section. 1. You don't need a "science" blog to take advantage of these lovely beakers. 2. These are just too cute to pass up. 3. These ice cubes are less practical, but they're so nicely rendered we had to include them. 4. Add these social pastries to any blog for a hint of the sweet updates you'll be posting to Twitter and Facebook. 5. Pining for the days when you'd scribble appointments into a book, rather than your Google Calendar? 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 16.
Social media consulting for nonprofits | Socialbrite Should You Curate Social Media Content? [Chart included Does your social media content need curation? Before you answer consider the following: With the exploding quantity of user-generated content that continues to proliferate across social media platforms and other websites, both consumers and companies are challenged to find the optimal content to meet their needs. In the form of comments, reviews, photographs, videos, presentations and ratings, social media content is growing at an exponential rate, despite the fact that 90% of visitors lurk. Added to this is the challenge that by their nature digital experiences are fragmented. Content marketing: edit versus curate To master the flow of the social media conversation, social media content curation has emerged to host and facilitate the content and increase its relevancy based on context. How do you decide whether your organization should edit or curate your social media content? Have you used social media content curation? Happy marketing, Heidi Cohen Related reading:
5 Website Designs That Blew Us Away [MASHABLE AWARDS] As part of the ongoing Mashable Awards, we're taking a closer look at each of the nomination categories. This is "Breakthrough Website Design." Be sure to nominate your favorites and join us for the Gala in Las Vegas! Sponsorships are available. Please contact sponsorships@mashable.com for more information. Lately, we've been pondering some of the better web designs that have popped up over the past year. When we say "web design," we're looking beyond the pretty face of a well-laid-out page, beyond color and typography, beyond trends. As greater bandwidth, new file formats and new markup specs make it easier, cheaper and faster to deliver high-quality digital images, sound and video, groundbreaking web designers are making visually and aurally intensive sites that change our point-and-click expectations of what the web should look like. Here are a few of the websites we think showcased excellent design work this year, both in terms of form and function. 1. 2. U.S. 3. 4. 5. Win an iPad!
16+ Facebook Tips You Don't Want to Miss! It’s good to be home! For those of you who missed my last post, I was taking a short break from the net due to health reasons. Glad to start writing again, but I won’t be force feeding you with lengthy posts just yet. 16++ Facebook Tips You Should Not Miss! #1 To Control Facebook Font Size for Readability To enlarge: Press ‘Ctrl’ and ‘+';To minimize: Press ‘Ctrl’ & ‘-‘ #2 To Bold and Underline your text in Facebook Chat For Bold text –> *your message*For Underline –> _your message_ #3 To Bypass 420 characters limit for Status Updates Add a photo to your status update and enjoy the limit-free characters. (Suggestion: use photo that is related to what you’re sharing, see here for the example) #4 To Increase the number of Pages or Friends to appear in News Feed At News Feed > Most Recent > Scroll down to bottom, click Edit Options > Increase the maximum number of friends (or pages) shown in Live Feed OR, insert your own selections of ‘Recommended Friends (or Pages)’. #10 To Browse Directory by Name
Get to the Point: Three Ways to Optimize Content Across Channels and Platforms Before you optimize your next piece of content, Ann Handley and C.C. Chapman have some advice. "Bust your content silos!" they write in their new book Content Rules. "Do you have a print newsletter? In other words, you amplify the power of optimization when you create and repurpose content across channels and platforms. Use smaller components to create a larger whole. Use a larger whole to create smaller components. Use the same stuff in a different way. The Po! Looking for great search marketing data?
The Rise Of Facebook’s Valuation From 2004-2011 [Graphic] Click image to enlarge. The panic at absurd rumors of Facebook’s demise over the weekend, coupled with the Goldman Sachs Facebook investment frenzy at the beginning of this year got us thinking; Did initial Facebook investor Peter Thiel, who invested 500K early on and still thought Facebook was undervalued at $30 billion back in September, actually make the most impressive investment call in tech history? So artist Audrey Fukuman, our rockstar intern Rip Empson and I set out to capture what the Facebook valuation trajectory looked like. And while trudging through all the speculation on this has raised some discrepancies concerning exact valuations, (I’m seeing anything from $4.9 million to $5 million for the Thiel financing but rounded up for consistency’s sake) I did my best to capture the zeitgeist through consensus, leaning heavily on reports on TechCrunch through the ages.
Top 10 Facebook Pages Does your business have a Facebook page? Have you ever wondered what successful Facebook page owners are doing right? Well, look no further. This article examines 10 of the top Facebook pages from brands you’ll likely recognize. Regardless of the size of your business, you’ll discover great ideas that will help you take your Facebook experience to the next level. Each of these pages has incorporated unique features that have attracted hundreds of thousands (sometimes millions!) There is no need to reinvent the wheel. #1: Red Bull The team behind the Red Bull page is extremely in tune with their target audience. Red Bull knows what their audience will respond to best and they deliver it. In addition, Red Bull created a web TV program that’s highlighted on their Facebook page. Another smart feature of Red Bull’s page is their welcome tab. Tip: One area you might want to consider spending a little money on is creative design for your page. #2: Burt’s Bees #3: Uno Chicago Grill #4: LiveScribe
How to Find Stories for Your Brand Within Your Organization Help where do I find stories for my marketing? While it’s easy to say that stories are at the core of marketing, finding these stories may not be so easy. For many marketer’s, your company’s narratives may not be obvious. Or, they may be so familiar to you as an insider that you regard them as “ho-hum” or they may be tucked away in an obscure corner of your organization. You need to get into an inquisitive mindset, like a child listening to a bedtime reading, and think about what is notable in the various aspects of your company, products, brands and employees. To get started mining your firm’s stories, here’s a list of questions to help get you develop some workable concepts: Company How did your company start? Products How did your products come into being? Brands What is your brand’s history? Employees What did your company founders do? Getting these ideas to percolate is the first step. Happy marketing, Heidi Cohen Photo credit: KatieB50 via Flickr