Website Design, SEO and Social Media Blog from Liqui-Site

Starbucks Simplifies Social Sponsorships

noreply@blogger.com (Karelisa Falkner) — Fri, 01 Jun 2012 20:06:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

In this week's Feedback Friday: Weekly Social Media Round-Up From Liqui-Site Designs, Starbucks gets a new social cause, Facebook goes automated, and Google Places is no more.

Whole latte' change

Starbucks is partnering with RED (leading non-profit that “harnesses the power of companies and people to help fight AIDS”) to launch the largest non-profit check-in campaign via Foursquare. VentureBeat reports that from June 1-10, the coffee megacorp will donate $1 to Global Fund (RED’s financing institution) ) for every Foursquare check-in at any Starbucks location in the U.S and Canada. The initiative is part of RED’s ‘Rush to Zero Campaign’, which seeks to eliminate the mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 2015. Foursquare has not received as much attention as other social sites recently, but is still a formidable social platform. However, it’s curious to note that while Starbucks has 435,779 followers on Foursquare, it has 2 million on twitter! Regardless of the platform, social media sponsorships cannot be emphasized enough, especially social causes. You may have noticed some other corporate social sponsorships lately, like Tacobell’s teen ‘Graduate to Go’ or Dove’s ‘Self Esteem’ for young girls campaigns (both of which integrate social media but do not target social check-in). The key to a successful social sponsorship is having a good fit between cause and company, and some would add delivering the message from the organization’s side so as not to appear that it is driven purely by sales. It should be an interesting and worthwhile 10 days for Starbucks addicts.

Facebook releases scheduled posts

Facebook has finally released an update that allows admins to set their own timed, automated posts, which is a great time saver and more importantly, makes users less reliant on third party management apps, like HootSuite. The new update also allows page admins to assign permission levels to other employees to varying degrees for management, content creation, moderating, advertising, and analyzing insights. From the Facebook help center, here’s how to schedule posts (up to six months in advance).

Admin can view and edit their scheduled posts in the Activity Log. This is a must have addition, and should really help businesses whose key engagement hours don’t align with their store hours. Or employers who were previously skeptical about delegating social media responsibilities to staff.

Google's new interactive business listings

Google Places are no more. Google announced this week that Google pages have been entirely replaced by Google+ Pages for Business. If you have a Google+ page, you’ll notice a new tab on the left panel, under ‘Circles’ labeled ‘Local’. More than 80 million Google Places pages automatically rolled over into Google+ Pages. What do the changes mean? Business listings are all rated on a 3 point scale determined by user reviews- which Google averages for an overall business score. You can read more about the point system here. For food establishments the change is entirely beneficial, as the new Google+ Pages for Business integrates a new Zagat 30 point rating system (based on the Google-Zagat merger from nearly a year ago). The design also has an improved interface over Google Places (looks very similar to Yelp) and enhanced searching and SEO capabilities. Obviously, certain businesses like restaurants or retail have the upper hand as far as getting reviews. Other businesses will have to get creative to generate reviews. Some tips: make sure your business profile is complete and descriptive, and includes targeted keywords. Incorporate special offers or incentives, even if they are minimal. Be active about getting reviews, even ask your customers directly since they are shared within Google+’s social circles. And because the design is so streamlined, adding high-quality pictures of the business, service, or products is essential.

Have something to say?

Liqui-Site Designs wants to hear your feedback! Tell us about the social media moments that caught your interest this week, or your thoughts on any of the latest social media trends and products. Leave a comment below, tweet @Liqui_Site , or leave a comment on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Liqui.Site. For more information on Liqui-Site Designs visit us at http://www.liqui-site.com

See you next Friday!

The Big Picture

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Tue, 29 May 2012 16:25:00 +0000

by Mathew Ell
Web Designer, Producer

www.liqui-site.com

How Data Visualization brings stats to life, and helps website owners along the way.

Wikipedia defines Data Visualization as "the study of the visual representation of data, meaning 'information that has been abstracted in some schematic form, including attributes or variables for the units of information'.” Basically saying that data visualization (or information graphics) make it easier for us to understand complex information. One of the earliest and most famous information graphics ever created is Charles Joseph Minard’s depiction of the collapse of Napoleon's Army in Russia, created in 1869, and shown here:

Minard came from a background in mathematics and eventually moved into civil engineering, all the while collecting statistical information and displaying it graphically. Minard's information graphic of Napoleons' Army later became the inspiration for Google's Flow Visualization, which enables users to visualize and quickly find insights about how visitors flow through their site.

Modern Infographics

Early forms of information design were adapted into the "information age" and used in modern digital applications. Web site analytics, stock charts and public opinions all use various forms of graphics to organize and display complex information in a way that has never been communicated before. Visual.ly, an online community where people contribute and share their own data visualizations (ranging from The Evolution of the Geekas pictured right, to Communication Through The Ages), elevates data visualization to a truly artistic level.

As you can see, people are finding all different types of ways to display information and make sense of an incomprehensible amount of data.

Here are a few more examples of data visualization to explore:

Balloons Of Bhutan (http://balloonsofbhutan.org)

Jonathan Harris traveled to Bhutan in 2007 to collect data about happiness, of all things. Harris mapped people’s happiness using surveys and used balloons to paint a picture of the happiness level of that country. The result is absolutely stunning.

Feltron (http://feltron.com) Nicholas Feltron, a one-man census of sorts, creates ‘tapestries’ of annual activity, represented in a series of graphs, maps, statistics, and more. Feltron is also a part of the design team at Facebook.

VistorVille (http://www.visitorville.com)
VisitorVille, a web traffic monitoring program for Windows, lets page owners view their traffic in a real-time, virtual street grid. Owners not only visualize traffic, but are able to glean detailed information about each unique visitor.

Facebook Plots A Comeback

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 25 May 2012 17:00:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

Welcome back! I took a brief hiatus from Feedback Friday last week to talk about social media plagiarism, but return with this week’s Social Media Round-Up.

This week’s focus is Facebook. Let’s talk about three things Facebook is considering to restore its competitive edge and regain profits.

Timeline Redesign

After seeing its stocks plummet on its IPO launch, Facebook is considering a re-design of Timeline. Now in beta testing, the new look will showcase basic user info like age, city, and occupation in the cover photo, and in large, white text. The redesign will also change ‘Likes’ into ‘Favorites’; add a summary tab of the major events in a user’s life; and condense the Friends, Photos, Map and other apps into a smaller space below the cover photo. Facebook issued a mild response to the news, saying “We can confirm this is a small test, but don’t have anything further to share at this time.” PC World has a first look at how the new Timeline might appear, and I personally have to say it hasn't changed enough. It looks dated and sort of reminds me of a bad PowerPoint presentation. What do you think?

Pictures and Mobile

AdAge reports today that at the same time Facebook shelled out $1 billion dollars to acquire Instagram, it was working on its own photo app, Facebook Camera. And days prior to its IPO, the site also acquired LightBox, a mobile photo-sharing app for Android. Looking to photo and mobile technologies is solid thinking. Facebook became notable in part for its photo uploading and tagging capabilities, and with the IPO failure, experts speculated investors should move their money to mobile. Facebook’s major struggle is profit, as a majority of users have switched to the largely ad-free Facebook mobile app in place of web browsing. One idea for growth is that Facebook team up with certain photo-centric tech startups to make photo sharing more interactive, functional, and applicable to both consumers and businesses. Facebook will need extreme crowdsourcing in order to roll out a deeper photo-sharing program, meaning it will need its users to actively tag products, outfits, other people, literally anything, in order to achieve functionality at the Facebook-level. AdAge foresees this being a problem, but I agree with Luminate CEO, Chas Edwards, that people feel rewarded for tagging because it offers a sort of “social currency”. (If you need evidence, look at the Library industry, which has successfully used crowd sourcing to share entire digital collections). The big question is will people want to tag products? If Pinterest is any indication, I think, yes.

Privacy

On Tuesday, Facebook agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by angry users who claim their privacy was violated when they were featured in Facebook’s ‘Sponsored Stories’ without their permission. The users allege that checking in to a location on Facebook, or using the sites “Like” button could force users to take part in Sponsored Stories advertising. Facebook says the intent of Sponsored Stories is to “broaden your reach by allowing your fans to help their friends discover your brand.” But earlier this month, Facebook's head of privacy policy, Erin Egan, hinted in a Web chat that Facebook would begin serving targeted ads to users on third-party websites- meaning the “Your Friend Sam likes Liqui-Site Designs” could be seen not just on Facebook, but across the web. Facebook is clearly mining and analyzing data beyond what users typically believe they’ve consented to in its Privacy Terms. Why is Facebook not addressing changes to its Policy alongside other announcements of redesign, mobile, and photo plans? Privacy was one of the biggest concerns to Facebook’s investors pre-IPO and they are likely to be more critical of possible Facebook lawsuits during the next phase of Facebook.

Lastly, Mark Zuckerberg got married this week! So maybe some of that newlywed bliss will lead to creativity and innovation (and user privacy) at Facebook. Here’s a picture of his wife, Priscilla Chan, and their dog Beast—who has his own Facebook page!

Have something to say?

User Experience, From Search to Shoes

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Mon, 21 May 2012 14:25:00 +0000

by Kelly Campbell
www.liqui-site.com

I talk to clients every day about the importance of user experience (UX). Because, after all, the experience that their customers have online directly correlates to conversion rate and sales revenue.

Recently, I had two VERY different experiences when buying from two similar online stores. One experience solidified my loyalty to an online brand, and the other experience left me frustrated, annoyed and vocal about it. And it all came down to user experience, from the website interface itself, shipping cost and checkout, to email notifications and delivery of my purchase.

Experience A (www.Zappos.com): The very best interface when wanting to sort by size, color, style, you name it! Free shipping both ways, so there's no risk on my part if something doesn't fit or if I just don't like it. I phoned with a question about returning a winter jacket for a larger size, and the customer service rep could not have been more helpful. I actually told three people what a pleasure the experience was! I'll definitely continue to be a customer for life.

Experience B (www.AldoShoes.com): A limited sorting ability forced me to spend more time navigating the site than looking at shoes and adding them to my cart. When I found what I thought was the perfect pair (okay, it was actually 3 pair!), I went to check out -- only to find that I had to pay for shipping. Very few sites make you pay for shipping anymore, so that nearly made me abandon my cart. But, the rate was only around $5 so I proceeded, but would not have if it was any higher. I paid and hoped the shoes would arrive quickly. I received a confirmation email immediately, as expected. Then, another email came through a few hours later... to let me know that the company cancelled one pair of shoes that I ordered because they had since sold out. Wait, what? I spent valuable time shopping for shoes for an upcoming business event, I ordered, I paid, and now they've cancelled part of my order? Why wasn't there a low stock notice on the site? Why wasn't I compensated for their error or the inconvenience? When the shoes arrived, I kept one pair and sent the other pair back. Even that was a pain, and I had to pay for that as well. My user experience from search to shoes was so frustrating that I've let others know that Zappos.com should be their first destination.

So, not only will I never revisit or order from Aldo Shoes again, but when the exact same experience was had by my wife, she said in response, "Where is Zappos when you need them?!" I laughed and said, "One click away".

Social Media Plagiarism

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 18 May 2012 17:53:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

Why it’s so important to be original in social media

The other week I was reading an article on Social ROI case studies to give me some ideas for a blog post. I jotted down the major points and the best examples, and moved on to the comments section to see what other people were saying.

A number of commenters took issue with the fact that the writer had “borrowed” a phrase without crediting the original author. The phrase was “media agnostic” and it belongs to Oliver Blanchard- a pioneer and sort of social media scholar (and publisher of “Social ROI: Managing and Measuring Social Media Efforts in Your Organization”). The term refers to putting social media metrics in context.

This begs my question: should we be concerned about social media plagiarism?

There are some major challenges to being original when writing about social media. One is that many readers are looking for guidance- or best practice- to elevate their own social media, or their company’s. Social media “experts” should be working to craft social media advice that is based on direct experience, studies, or analysis. But as you may have noticed, a lot of so-called social media guidelines are vague, offering tips like “listen” or “engage”, without showing how to actually do so (or not do so).

Then there is the fact that people reading about social media are probably the same people who share social media. The New Yorker did a parody of this phenomenon this month:

“Hmm . . . What kind of ominous, doctored statistic can I make up? Did you know that twenty-four per cent of Facebook users have unwittingly divulged their credit-card information to third-party venders? Or that iPhone owners are more likely to suffer from thumb-stress-induced depression? Or that having an Android means you possess the gene for racism?”

The American Library Association- ever the sticklers for proper citation-even tried to curb uncited tweeting. This year they established a formal citation for referencing tweets. Meaning that in the off chance this blog post was ever used in some college student's paper somewhere, it should technically be cited as:

Falkner, Karelisa (@liqui_site).

“Social Media Plagiarism”. May 18, 2:00 P.M. EST. Tweet.

But not citing the source in a Tweet or Facebook share is more forgivable than in an online essay (even if it is just published on a blog).

The biggest challenge to being original in social media writing, as I see it, is vocabulary. There simply are not enough words in the social media lexicon. And unfortunately there is no social media thesaurus (that I know of!). Writers who make up their own terms come across as out of touch and not credible.

I think these few terms have stuck simply because so much of the social media language is buzzwords, trends, and catchphrases- they all have a short life. And information is not distributed like it used to be a decade ago. Content farming means that a handful of big media companies are generating the bulk of web articles. That content circulates through search engines and the source gets lost with each new "reporting". You can’t expect language to evolve in this scenario.

Every industry has its own “speak” and social media is no different. But in other fields, like medicine, when the research changes, so too does the terminology. Will we still be stuck with same social media lingo 5 years from now because we were too busy to share the message without the messenger?

I think social media would benefit greatly from being more transparent about where ideas come from, what they’re grounded in, and who the true influencers are.

“That’s OUR Policy!”

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Mon, 14 May 2012 14:42:00 +0000

by Melissa Finnigan

www.liqui-site.com

How to Engage and Retain Clients or Customers Online

So many companies spend so much time crafting their brand message, developing new ways to drive revenue, stretching every advertising dollar to receive “the most bang for the buck”, striving to close more business – but fall short when it comes to customer service.

Once you get the customer, how do you treat them when an issue arises? In other words, how do you retain customers and clients?

When a question or challenge arises, a customer never wants to hear “well, that’s our policy” which invokes a complete disregard for your business. Clearly not the best approach, considering that a client may already be dissatisfied.

Most companies do not have a “customer retention policy” in place when dealing with a dissatisfied customer, but use phrases and terminology to simply get the customer off the phone.

In a world where social media is part of our daily communications landscape, you may not lose one customer but countless numbers. This concept leads to Social Media PR / Brand Management – finding out what previous and existing customers, prospects and affiliates are saying about your brand.

Creating a strategy as to how to handle those comments, positive or negative, is an essential component of social media marketing strategy.

In order to service clients effectively first you must be a good listener and address the issue, challenge or need of the consumer.

Engagement in valuable discussion also prevents negative situations from reoccurring, if handled correctly. If a particular issue is not something that can be corrected, then you may want to consider offering discounts on products or services to show appreciation, for example. With this backup policy in place, even if the customer writes about his or her experience on any social media or opinion site, they would be more inclined to also explain what the company offered in terms of correction or compensation.

This turns a negative experience into a positive one.

It is important to learn how to solve issues as they arise rather than to wait for a “PR nightmare” to occur. Unfortunately, many brands fail in the face of the digital landscape (which is clearly here to stay), but it doesn’t have to be that way! Be proactive, do the right thing, and your client/customer retention rate will be impacted positively and significantly.

That’s OUR Policy!

Social ROI In Dollars, Social-Search & More

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 11 May 2012 17:36:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

In this week's edition of Feedback Friday-- your weekly social media roundup: best and worst times to tweet; Bing pairs with Facebook; and software that measures Social ROI with dollars.

The best of times, the worst of times – to Tweet

Is there an optimal time to tweet or update Facebook? Link shortening service bit.ly released new data on the best and worst times to share data on Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr. According to the study, the prime time to post on Twitter is between 1 and 3 p.m., with the most potential between those hours on a Monday. For Facebook, shoot for 1-4 p.m., ideally on a Wednesday. Tumblr differs though, showing peak engagement between the hours of 4-7 p.m. And Tumblr is the only site that sees engagement carried over into the weekend. Although this is a nice nugget of information, it’s important not to apply it across the board. Knowing your brand audience and where, and when, they spend time online is much more worthwhile. Mashable has a great list of 5 tools to better time your tweets. Here’s a look at Liqui-Site’s Twitter engagement for example from a free service called WhenToTweet—and notice, it doesn’t match the bit.ly data.

Bing to launch social-search engine

Bing and Facebook are teaming up to boot search engine giant, Google, according to a release on the Microsoft News Center. Google is facing criticism over their foray into the social media world with Google +, as well as their new "Search Plus Your World" initiative—both of which muddy the waters of Google’s promise to deliver unbiased search results. Microsoft unveiled yesterday that Bing will be rolling out a new version of their search engine (available to US users as early as June). The new Bing will include a “social sidebar” that pulls in related information via Facebook (pictured right), and a “snapshot feature” that makes listings appear more vibrant. Microsoft believes the new features and layout will help users “leap from finding information to making quick, informed decision.” Accompanying the release are some key findings from Microsoft's “Internal Survey Research, Fall 2011” which attempt to support the new Bing design. One of the findings claims, “57 percent (of 1,400 customers surveyed) say their search sessions last longer than a day.” That’s a bit of a generalization! Obviously search time varies considerably depending on the task at hand. What Microsoft is trying to do is repackage search as the means to “get things done” vs. the means of quality information retrieval. Bing has a prime opportunity to differentiate itself from Google right now, but the social-search combination is more following in its footsteps. Social-search may be more than a trend, but I think people will tire of having their social network hanging around when they are trying to get things done, so to speak.

Dollars, not engagement with new Social ROI tool

A new CRM platform called AgoraPulse now analyses Facebook brand page ROI in terms of actual dollars. This is big news, considering the latest social media surveys and reports indicate the number one question marketers have regarding social media is Social ROI, or how to measure the results of their social media efforts. I previously talked about different ways to measure social media efforts (including that vague term “engagement”) and some of the Social ROI software available to marketers (ranging from the most basic conversation monitoring tools to the truly algorithmic discovery programs). But none delivered Social ROI currency. AgoraPulse is the best Facebook-specific Social ROI software I have tested to date, mainly because it segments Facebook brand-page data into key areas and offers pointed suggestions that enable brands to revise their social media strategy. AgoraPulse measures Social ROI in terms of qualification, interaction, reach, sentiment (that’s a new one), and yes, dollar return (in a one month period). The app has full social media marketing management capabilities including automated posting and analysis of business competitors. I highly recommend exploring this app. You can scan your company brand page for free by visiting their webpage and logging in with your Facebook user info.

Should dogs have their own social media network?

Finally, I leave you with some breaking local news about social media. See you next Friday!

Have something to say?

Social Advertising Gets Aggressive

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 04 May 2012 18:36:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

In this week's edition of Feedback Friday social media roundup: when search and social don't mix; social TV; Facebook fandom; and tablet magazines. Let's begin!

Questions over whether or not Google should be experimenting in the social media world arose this week when Wil Wheaton (admission: I assumed they were referring to the character on The Big Bang Theory and not a little show called Start Trek) ranted on his Tumblr about Google+’s sneaky moves. The company replaced the YouTube “like” button with an icon for Google+, requiring users to join the network first. Google claims it was trying out different interfaces, but the move means that Google+ users will homogenize the popularity of YouTube videos. The misstep is one of many in Google’s social media strategy—the company already implemented Google+ pages into its search results as part of its “Search Plus Your World” plan, which author Steven Levy acutely points out “comes dangerously close to reneging on its original promise to provide unbiased links to those searching for information.” Some commenters are already vowing to switch to Bing.

Have you seen the preview for the new Twilight movie- Breaking Dawn Part 2? Probably not, because you were too distracted by the giant #BreakingDawn scrawled across the screen to actually learn anything about the movie. But this integration of social media and television- Social TV- is a key component of the Fall TV programming schedule according to an article in USAToday. Networks are capitalizing on viewers real-time reactions to TV moments. According to Trenddr CEO Mark Ghuneim, posting comments about TV shows on Twitter, Facebook and other social platforms grew 194% from April 2011 to April 2012. While Fox leads the networks in terms of likes and followers on Facebook and Twitter, NBC, ABC, and the CW have their own apps that let views watch entire shows for free on smartphones and tablets. And interestingly the CW, which is targeted to a younger audience, is dead last in the Nielsen rankings but has a much bigger share of social media interaction. Taking advantage of social media savvy viewers is an obvious choice—it costs a mere percentage of typical TV show marketing, and generates viewership and word of mouth in a more organic way. And since Hulu does not yet offer shows for smart devices, networks are narrowing the divide to attract TV viewers and hype shows.

Forrester Research, Inc., one of the most respected sources when it comes to media analysis and reporting, released a new study called “The Facebook Factor: Quantifying the Impact of a Fan on Brand Interactions” which looks at 4 companies Facebook fan ROI—Best Buy, BlackBerry, Wal-Mart, and Coca-Cola. Forrester’s logistical model assesses how engaging with the brand on Facebook affects purchase, consideration, and recommendation of the brand. Results: a Facebook fan has a considerable higher probability of making all three of these brand interactions. Although Facebook fandom has the largest effect on purchase, marketers would be wise to focus on the “recommendation impact” of fans. For example BlackBerry Smartphone owners have an %87 probability of recommending the product to a friend, vs. %44 of non-fans. Of the four brands, Blackberry shows the most difference between Facebook fans and non-fans (based on 3,187 US online adults who own a smartphone). Forrester’s quantified report is welcome news to the social media ROI debate that is currently clouded with chatter. You can read the abridged blog version or download the full report.

Publishers of tablet-friendly magazine content are being pressured by print media buyers to produce more rigorous data about consumer engagement with tablet-friendly magazines. The 4A’s Print Media Committee (whose members include ad buyers) issued a letter to magazine publishers this week demanding accountability to questions like: how many tablet editions are purchased, how many are actually opened, how does the readership vary per issue, and how much time are people taking to read the issue? Ad buyers want to see data that separates readers who get tablet access as part of their print subscription package, and those who buy tablet-only subscriptions directly. For the record, the Association of Magazine Media (MPA) already developed a set of tablet metrics to drive advertising growth. It’s interesting to think about types of content that literally can’t translate to the tablet medium—like perfume scent seal advertisements. But if these ad concerns lead to quantified third-party data on tablet readership, I’d say it’s a double win.

Have something to say?
Liqui-Site Designs wants to hear your feedback! Tell us about the social media moments that caught your interest this week, or your thoughts on any of the latest social media trends and products. Leave a comment below, tweet @Liqui_Site , or leave a comment on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Liqui.Site. For more information on Liqui-Site Designs visit us at http://www.liqui-site.com

See you next Friday!

Debunking Social Media ROI Myths

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Wed, 02 May 2012 21:49:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

Last week the Liqui-Site team traveled to Mount Saint Mary College in Newburgh, New York, to talk with administrators, faculty and students about social media. We had a free-flowing, energetic Q & A style session with undergraduate and graduate students, who spanned such diverse majors as Communication Arts, Business, and Information Technology.

At the close of the evening, a professor approached us and commented to the effect of “Great presentation, but is there any way to actually measure the effect of social media?”

It was a perfectly timed question. We had just finished an exhaustive search for a competitive Social ROI software system (ultimately choosing Engage121), and in the process came across a number of misleading statements about social media ROI. Let’s debunk some social ROI myths.

Myth #1: Social ROI doesn’t exist.

In my opinion, there are two main reasons why some people still believe social ROI is not a real thing. The first is that they expect the formula to be the same. ROI is traditionally measured in terms of sales, minus the cost and time required in executing the campaign. But social media is not just about sales it’s about engagement. Sure-it’s an overused word, but it holds meaning. Here are two measurements of social ROI that are often not factored into the equation: is your social media bringing in qualified leads, and is your social media staff productive? Engaged employees are more productive, creative, and less likely to leave their jobs. That means money saved on not training new people, and a level of engagement that consumers can tell is genuine. You can’t fake social engagement—your customers can tell that you don’t care. The second reason people believe social ROI is fictitious is that they confuse page visits with true Social ROI. A single person who comments on a company blog and is greeted with an open ear by the company is likely to share the company across social networking sites and be a brand ambassador for life. That is social ROI, regardless of whether or not they bought anything.

Myth #2: Social media and return on investment don’t mix.

Conversely, there are those who believe social media and ROI are at odds with each other. These people believe that the value of social media rests primarily in its ability to facilitate conversation, while ROI is geared with the end result of sales. Social media is not the means to an end. Companies that use strategic social media marketing, integrated into the broader business plan, see results. I would argue that social media is replacing word of mouth, and there is no doubt socialization of a brand leads to increased sales. People are inclined to share their brand preference on a blog or their Facebook and Twitter pages because it’s another opportunity to express their identity. Yes, there will always be negative commenters, but it’s less difficult to extract the positive comments today.

Myth #3: Companies that profit from social media got lucky.

The common thread among companies who saw social ROI is not luck, but customer service. Companies that have used social media as their primary customer service platform are seeing measurable ROI. Take BestBuy for example, where employees have the opportunity to help consumers via Twitter, responding to over 13,000 customer questions, concerns, and opinions. The Twitter feed (@twelpforce) now counts over 43,000 followers. The idea was a key value-add. And it’s not just working for huge corporations. Take a look at Seton Hall University, which relies on tuition for revenue. They took advantage of the fact that incoming freshmen jump to a school’s Facebook page to form impressions. The University actively engaged in conversations to answer questions and guide incoming students. They tagged the web traffic coming from Facebook to their website. Tuitions coming from Facebook are up 18% and tuition deposits are up 25% compared to schools not using Facebook. What about Kinaxis, a B2B supply chain management company that used 18 employee bloggers and focused on category thought leadership to generate over 42,000,000 leads. That’s 2,180,000 per blogger. There are literally thousands of social media ROI case studies. If you don’t think that your business could be a case study, we’d love the chance to prove you wrong! (Hint: it’s all about the three S’s: Strategy, Sound and Software. More on this from Kelly next month.)

Myth #4: There are no tools that produce real metrics.

Acquiring a social ROI portal will not in itself deliver results. A company must first and foremost value collaboration in its company culture. That said there are several programs that gauge social ROI with deliverable metrics.

As I mentioned earlier, Engage121 is capable of complex customer relationship measurements, cross-referencing, and intuitive data that leads to increased traffic and new influencers. But it’s also expensive for a single business, and a big risk if you’re a social media beginner, or don’t have a fully conceptualized social media marketing strategy.

There is also an emerging tier of mid-performing level social ROI systems, such as Sprout Social, Yap Social or Livefyre. These are adequate for a self-employed or professional blogger types, but are really more conversation monitoring tools, rather than discovery tools.

And then there are free services from HootSuite and others that organize your social media activity in one space, but have limited ability to manage a social media campaign.

Those who have dismissed social ROI have likely not had access to high-performance software or social media management services, for financial or other reasons.

Hopefully this clears up some of the confusion. For more information on Liqui-Site’s Social ROI Program, visit http://www.liqui-site.com/Liqui-Site-Social-ROI or to familiarize yourself with social media ROI, I recommend downloading the white paper from SmartBrief at http://bit.ly/JLk4wW that can guide you through establishing Social ROI benchmarks.

Feedback Friday: Is Facebook Shrinking and More

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 19:02:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

Last week we mentioned a study that showed mothers, more than others, had the most brand influence in social media. This seemed in line with the general consensus that middle-aged women in the 45-54 age range, specifically, dominate social media (they are known to use social media more than any other group to stay in touch with friends, and are also strong contributors to consumer reviews). But new data by Netpop Research suggests the landscape is changing. Age, not gender, is driving social media. Looking at those who used the following social media sites in the past week--Facebook, YouTube, Wikipedia, Twitter, and Yelp-- men, ages 18-34 lead the pack in 4 out of 5 (Facebook is evenly used by all, and often). On average, younger Facebook users have two times more friends that older users, but there is virtually no difference between men and women. The 18-24 age group also spends the most time using social media per week of all age groups (25%). And while it is clear that younger people are trailblazing social media, it’s not clear just what they are gaining -- according to the study younger women spend the least amount of time (among the four age groups) using social media to find information. Come on, girls!

Social Media gaming powerhouse Zynga announced this week a plan to start using real moneyin some of its gaming apps. Zynga is the maker of Farmville and Words With Friends, to name a few. How big could the idea be? Zynga is projecting a $5 billion annual revenue, 30% of which would go to Facebook (because they clearly need more money). And Zynga is also in talks to pair up with Nevada-based casino developer Wynn Resorts. Zynga will have some major hurdles in its path, mainly compliance with online gambling laws that vary significantly from state to state. And if Zynga does get into the real-money scene they will have to be regulated scrupulously. This is sure to be a precedent in the intersection of law and social media- updates to follow.

Not shockingly, cell phone behavior between men and women differ, but could it impact the evolution of mankind? A new study published in Scientific American draws some big conclusions about how men and women interact with each other, and the intensity of these relationships over time. The study looked at the calling patterns of 1.95 billion calls, and reveals female relationships change with biological priorities (suggesting that women drive the evolutionary fitness of humans!) In one's 20s and 30s, men and women's “best friend” happens to be someone of the opposite sex and of a similar age. Things change at age 50 though—where the preference for a romantic partner peters out in both men and women in favor of companionship. The real reveal of this study might be that they found 1.95 billion people who use their phone as a phone.

Uh oh—is Facebook headed towards Friendster zone? According to Forbes, Facebook is getting smaller. Its revenues declined %6. Facebook shrugged the concern, claiming the drop correlates with advertising (its biggest revenue source), which typically slows down in the first quarter. Forbes doesn’t buy it, citing the following reasons why they believe Facebook is shrinking: the novelty has worn off; it’s a time-waster; job-seekers and the employed alike can’t risk losing employment over something on their profile; and frustration with so much Facebook advertising. We could make a case for the opposite on almost all of these points, none of which by the way really address the financial decline.

A closer look at the 2012 Social Media Marketing Industry Report reveals some interesting differences in the way B2B Marketers use social media compared to their consumer-focused counterparts. Of 1,900 B2B marketers, over %93 are using social media to market their business. The group also cited a huge lag in being able to develop a loyal fan base, as well as disappointment in seeing their social media marketing efforts correlate with increased sales (a problem of inadequate Social ROI). And of the platforms available to B2B marketers, LinkedIn will likely see the biggest increase in use. Beyond social media, B2B marketers appear to be more creative, embracing SEO, event marketing, and webinars at a higher rate than consumer-based markers.

Lastly, our obsession with the TV show “The Pitch” takes an interesting turn, with digital advertising company Undertone deciding to run a pair of spots during the Sunday night show that will critique online ads. That’s right, a company that makes online ads will now blast their competitors on a television show. Is your head spinning yet? Undertone announced the new ads on their Facebook page, coinciding with a video “campaign” they’ve created called “What’s the last ad you remember seeing online?”-- in which people on the street give some mumbled responses. Shouldn’t a company whose expertise is online ads, you know, run its ad online?

Feedback Friday: Weekly Social Media Round-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 20 Apr 2012 16:37:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

Mom Power
ROI research site Performics released its “Social Media Moms Summary”—a study of almost 3000 women who accessed at least one social media site regularly, to better understand women’s media attitudes and behavior. The study found that mothers were 34% more likely than other women to recommend companies and brands via social networking sites. The study also revealed that moms are more inclined to engage with the brands themselves-- through liking, following, and commenting on the company’s social media posts. And one specific that stuck out-- more than three-quarters of mothers said they have either already participated in company/brand contents or sweepstakes (53%), or plan to do so in the future (24%). The study does not conclude why moms are more likely to buy into brand’s social media, but if you have ever been to Park Slope Brooklyn, then you know that Mommy Bloggers are the first people ever to parent, and its important that we know.

Emotional Intelligence
There is an emerging cultural discussion happening about the emotional aspects of social media. AdAge recently held its 2012 AA Digital Conference, which included Jonah Peretti (CEO of Buzzfeed, the laugh-a-minute site for people with short attention spans) among its speakers. Peretti talks about how emotional intelligence is the real driving force of content sharing on social media sites, and how industry leaders need to move away from the algorithmic mindset that drives search. We’re likely to learn more about this topic, especially as it converges with hard science.

Maybe It's Time To Get Cable
Hulu will begin luring in ad buyers by promising that they only pay for Hulu ads that are watched in their entirety. Hulu showed more ads than any other website or service in the U.S (1.5 billion in February, compared with Google's 1.2 billion). The move will cost Hulu, but the company’s banking on higher rates resulting from competition for fewer available spots. What Hulu did not factor in is that ad time correlates exactly with the time it takes to boil water for that boxed-mac-n-cheese dinner (what ads?).

Paying to be Professional
LinkedIn is now offering “upgrade” packages to its users (perhaps your received an email), and from the looks of it, the “upgrade” includes a lot of features most people assumed were already free. There are three upgrade options offered by LinkedIn which increase your ability to contact people with in-mail messaging, view full profiles of people outside your network, and view unfiltered search results. The plans range from about $20-$80 per month, but even with the priciest “Executive” plan (intended for sales professionals), users can only send 25 in-mail messages per month. For company’s that use databases or social media for recruiting, the new LinkedIn “upgrade” seems like a drop in the bucket. And for the rest of us, it’s a steep price when you could just (direct) message through other social media sites. The packages are just one of the many changes at LinkedIn, along with putting a ceiling on the number of connections, and requiring an email address for some potential invites.

Google Tackles TV Metrics
Google announced this week their version of a TV-like measurement metric that aims to make marketers feel more comfortable allocating money to online advertising. The “Brand Activate” initiative (working title), seeks to make marketers feel more comfortable allocating money to online advertising, and become the industry standard in a post click-through era. A “viewed” impression will now count only if it is at least 50% viewable on the screen for at least one second. The second component of the plan, the metrics part, will estimate how many people saw a given ad and for how long, and allow advertisers to react in real-time. Confused? Watch Google execs tell you more to some very cheesy music:.

Millenial Breakdown
Last week we reported on a new study that claimed consumers in their 20’s switch media 27 times an hour! This week Marketing Charts released a more dimensional report conducted by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) that widened the age range to encompass Millenials (aged 16-34), and suggests some positives of their constant media use. Millenials are more adapt at using technology—that’s a no-brainer. As a result they are much more likely to multitask. They also contribute user-generated content such as product ratings, videos, images, and blog entries, at a higher rate than others. And they use mobile information services in noticeably larger numbers (88% to 57%). The study identified 6 specific types of Millenails, with some interesting demographic details on each, including income status, gender, race, education, and even charitableness. While these types of studies do tend to have similar conclusions (young people are hip to technology), they are getting increasingly more specific, and having direct impact on marketing.

Have something to say?
Liqui-Site Designs wants to hear your feedback! Tell us about the social media moments that caught your interest this week, or your thoughts on any of the latest social media trends and products. Leave a comment below, tweet @Liqui_Site , or leave a comment on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Liqui.Site. For more information on Liqui-Site Designs visit us at http://www.liqui-site.com

See you next Friday!

Feedback Friday: Social Media Round-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 17:14:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

Social Media Examiner released their 2012 Social Media Marketing Industry Report, a survey of more than 3,800 marketers. So what’s changed? Well, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blogs, and YouTube continue to be the power-five in social media tools used by marketers, in that order. This year saw significant decline in use and interest in social bookmarking sites, forums, and geo-location services like Foursquare. Google+ is the breakout star of 2012, with 70% intending to “learn more,” a testament to Google’s brand hold. The driving question most participants wanted answers for regarding social media was time—how to get the most out of social media for the least amount of time. People between the ages of 20 to 29 are committing the most hours per week to social media, followed by those 30-39. (Note- 72% of people who took the survey identified as being in their 30’s, so maybe they hang out with a younger crowd.) And does experience matter? Apparently those with more social media experience (1-3 years) are putting in more hours. So it appears that small businesses will have to start paying that social media intern (or wait for that social media robot to be invented). Read the report here.

President Obama launched a Pinterest account, (maintained by his 2012 re-election campaign), which has since spurred at least 5 knock-off accounts (among them http://pinterest.com/fakebarackobama/, which “Ann Romney” re-pinned from!). Obama’s inspiration boards include recipes, pets, and ObamaArt. Pictures of Portuguese Water Spaniel, Bo, made a splash, along with the Obama family chili recipe (hopefully it meets Michelle’s new calorie guidelines). For the record, President Obama already has Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook and Foursquare accounts. Check out Obama’s imposters here. And speaking of imposters, AGBeat reports that at least 33 copycat sites have emerged since the release of the hugely popular image curration site, with a few finding success.

Reviews for the iPad 3 are streaming in, while New York City continues to reel from the chaos that ensued at Apple’s Grand Central flagship store. The main draw of iPad 3 is the enhanced screen display (9.7 Retina Display) along with a A5X processor and a 5MP camera. TechRadar and others have noted the iPad 3 is actually heavier, and reviewers claim iPad 3 gets too hot if a gaming app is left open for long periods of time. iPad 3 starts at $500 for the16 GB wi-fi version and goes up to $829 for the 64 GB, 4G enabled. At that cost you could buy 4 Kindles.

Path app is the newest social media phenomenon—entering the social media world with the tagline “The smart journal  that helps you share life with the ones you love” or “the anti-Facebook” to those in the know. Early reactions included “Is anyone on this thing?” Path is a combination of Twitter and Facebook, allowing users to provide up-to-the-minute updates on what they’re doing, where they are, whom they are with, and even what they’re listening to. There is no TV share button at the moment, so users will have to spell out that they are watching MadMen. Path users report liking the design and interface, and its functionality for immediate sharing. Path is available for iPhone and Android. Get the app here.

Reports of social media innovation poured in following SXSW, with CNN stating, “this year’s South by Southwest Interactive may be remembered just as much for what happened outside the halls… as what happened in them.” And Radian6 has the data to prove it with the release of their SXSW 2012 Social Media Buzz Report, which monitored the panels, parties, and buzz around the 5 day spectacle. Of note—the surge of new mobile apps for social media connecting and networking. A few apps stand out: Highlight, Kismet, Glancee, Sonar, and Ban.jo. (more on these coming soon). You can read the report here.

And of course, Facebook made Timeline mandatory for all pages, causing headaches throughout the business world. Was the hype worth it? Certainly not for people who adopted it as far back as December, 2011. Users are trying to make it their “own”, looking for loopholes to customize and stand out. Bloggers are already calling timeline “boring”, and the color scheme is being referred to as “hospital blue.” Timeline is going to force individuals and businesses alike to think more creatively as profiles can no longer have a customized landing page. Follow ReadWriteWeb’s suggestions for Timeline customization. Regardless of whether or not you like timeline, from a design perspective it certainly makes you wonder who’s making the decisions at Facebook.

Have something to say?
Liqui-Site Designs wants to hear your feedback! Tell us about the social media moments that caught your interest this week, or your thoughts on any of the latest social media trends and products. Leave a comment below, tweet @Liqui_Site , or leave a comment on our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Liqui.Site. For more information on Liqui-Site Designs visit us at http://www.liqui-site.com

See you next Friday!

Feedback Friday: Weekly Social Media Round-Up

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:35:00 +0000

by Karelisa Falkner
Social Media Marketing Specialist

www.liqui-site.com

~~Mr. Monopoly~~ Facebook Buys Instagram
So Facebook acquired hipster photo-sharing app Instagram for 1 billion dollars (cheap skates) and people went wild with the news. Facebook is on a spending spree—they recently gobbled up a load of patents from IBM, the staff behind the webcam eye-tracking software startup GazaHawk, and the staffs from Momentus Media and Caffeinated Mind. Instagram had about 30 million users at the time of purchase, who are reportedly uploading five million new photos to the service each day. Some Twitter followers lamented the end of Instagram’s “cool" factor”, while others raised questions over security. It remains to be seen wheat Facebook will do with so many ironic photographs. For a laugh, watch The Daily Show’s take on the buy-in.

Secretary of Sass
Similar to the Ryan Gosling “Hey Girl” meme that swept the internet a few months back, TextsFromHillary -- a Tumblr of fake and hilarious text messages Secretary of Sate Hillary Clinton would send, caught everyone’s attention. The blog saw 83,000 shares on Facebook, 8,400 Twitter followers, over 45K Tumblr followers, as well as news stories from round the world. But unlike the "Hey Girl" meme which dragged into exhaustion, the duo behind TextsFromHillary ended on a high-note (like Seinfeld) and pulled the plug when Hillary Clinton herself (with a help from her staffers) chimed in: “Sup Adam. Nice Selfie Stace :-)” “ROFL @ ur tumblr! G2g-Scrunchie time. Ttyl?” Guess the ruse is up!

Generation Multitask
Nope, it’s not a headline from The Onion—a new study actually reports that Young Consumers Switch Media 27 Times An Hour. The study, which was commissioned by Time Warner Inc. and conducted by Boston's Innerscope Research, claims consumers in their 20’s (aka "digital natives") switch media an average 27 times in a non-working hour. All participants in the study wore biometric belts that monitored their physical responses as they used media throughout more than 300 hours' worth of nonworking time. They also wore glasses with embedded cameras that kept track of what platform they used, and for how long. AdAge reported on the study along with comments from some very frantic and concerned advertising execs about the future of youth marketing engagement. But commentators acutely point out that the study only had 30 participants, and is in no way conclusive of young adult media behavior.

Twiiter vs. The Man
Twitter had a power-to-the-people moment when it refused to hand over the Twitter account information of a Occupy Wallstreet Protestor by the name of Jeffrey Rae. Rae was one of several hundred activists arrested during a March 1 OWS demonstration in New York City. Twitter was subpoenaed by the New York D.A’s office seeking Rae’s account activity during the OWS protest, despite the fact that Rae was guilty of minor charges including disorderly conduct and blocking traffic. And even stranger, most of the data sought by the DA was publically available. Go Twitter.

Google Doodle
Cubicle workers got a pick-me-up on Monday morning upon opening Google, when they spotted a Google Doodle celebrating legendary British photographer Eadweard J. Muybridge. Google put its signature colors on the stop-action video sequence of a running horse that Muybridge produced in 1887, by using multiple cameras to take photographs of the animal in motion. Watch this delightful video here.

Show Me The money
The countdown to Tax Day usually has people on edge and in a foul mood, so you wouldn’t expect a tax company to be making (positive) waves in social media. But tax site Intuit (the makers of Turbo Tax) launched a 2-part social media campaign to get people excited about doing their taxes. AdAge reports that Intuit created a charity app (pledging toys if visitors took a quiz), and a poll asking people what they would do with their tax refund. Intuit now has over 34,000 followers on its Facebook page. What’s even more interesting is that Intuit was able to generate this amount of buzz almost entirely for free. Other sites are sure to look to Intuit for inspiration.

SEO Guru
We also came across a web series called “Manta Minute”, where Manta SEO Manger, Reuben Yau, discusses 5 tips to improve SEO when redesigning your website. Short, effective, and to the point, Manta’s message in a nutshell is: list your top landing pages and search phrases; make a list of old URL’s and new URL’s; don’t overwrite the robots.txt file; don’t skimp on testing; and consider hiring an SEO pro. Get enlightened:

The Rise of Pinterest
Last Friday we reported on the release of Media Examiner’s “2012 Social Media Marketing Industry Report”, which listed the top 5 social media sites as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blogs, and YouTube, in that order. In just one week, Pinterest has climbed to the #3 spot, outranking LinkedIn, based on American users. The Daily Mail reported the change, citing Pinterest’s 104,415,903 unique visitors last month alone. And Experian has also reported that in Alabama, Oklahoma, Kansas, Utah and Missouri Pinterest is actually more popular than Facebook and Twitter—who knew?

The Pitch
And lastly, while not exactly social media news, AMC previewed a new series called “The Pitch” Sunday night, about 2 competing advertising agencies vying for a contract. The first episode saw ad firms McKinney, and Los Angeles-based WDCW battle it out for a deal with Subway to promote the chain’s new breakfast menu. This show is absolutely fascinating—we so rarely get insight into the creative processes behind huge ad campaigns. The team that won (spoiler alert) won by capitalizing on the trend of finding an up-and-coming YouTube sensation and creating a faux-organic commercial. Sure, letting your consumers know that you’re hip with the latest social media trends is a positive—but does it really take that many people and that much money to do a Google video search for “breakfast sandwich”?

The Time Has Come: Facebook Timeline for Brands

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Wed, 14 Mar 2012 23:00:00 +0000

by Douglas Lim
Guest Blogger for www.liqui-site.com

In case you haven’t noticed lately, Facebook has recently made some huge changes! Following the cue from Timeline for personal profiles, Facebook has now introduced Timeline for Fan Pages. At first, I was annoyed at Facebook because it meant that all the hard work I'd put into my client's Pages now had to be redone – I bet the same feeling swept over the crew at Liqui-Site Designs. But on closer inspection, I actually love these new changes! And that’s what I want to talk to you about today.

The first thing to note is that Pages will be forced to upgrade to Timeline on March 30th. The main thing you will notice with the new format is that there is no default landing page; Instead you're directed to a chronological timeline from top to bottom. Secondly, the first brand element you will see is the "cover photo", which is an 851 x 315 pixel banner. According to Facebook terms of service, this cover banner should not include:

• Calls to action
• Any pricing information
• References to like or share (such as previous landing pages where you could have arrows pointing to the like button)
• More text than imagery

Just underneath the main cover photo, the description of your page is displayed, followed by a tab for your photos, places map, applications and the rest of your custom apps. This is all in a horizontal banner. The great advantage of this is that when you click on a custom app you now have a full 810 pixels in width rather than previously, where you had 520 pixels. This is one of the great advantages of moving the left hand side bar to the horizontal top position. The benefit? There is now both more room for content and less distraction from a left-hand column.

Facebook has also added the ability to run ads that link directly to one of your apps rather than to the Timeline of your Fan Page. Not only that, you can “Like Gate” these apps, which means you can only allow content to be viewed by people who have liked your page. (This was possible in the previous version of Pages, but not without some serious FBML coding skills.)

Another feature that will benefit businesses and brands is that people can directly message you through your fan page. As a business, you cannot initiate contact with non-fans, but they can send you a message – even if they are not yet a fan! There is a “Message” button just underneath the main cover photo where Facebook users can choose to contact your business. This feature is sure to encourage more interaction with brands, and that’s the overall goal of this upgrade.

In addition, Facebook allows you to pin content to the top of your Timeline for 7 days so you can make certain content more prominent than others to your fans. Think “Pinterest within Facebook”.

Finally, think about Timeline as a way for customers, prospects and enthusiasts to visually see the evolution of your brand in one central location. Put in those terms, it’s pretty powerful! For example, you can see how a brand’s logo has evolved, how services have changes, and the story behind the brand and how that story changes.

Well there you have it: a quick run down of the different features and benefits of the new Facebook Timeline for brands and businesses. Personally, I’m a big fan, but feel free to comment and let us know what your experiences are with it.

Based in Australia, Douglas Lim is passionate about social media marketing and search engine optimization, especially helping others to leverage these two areas. He blogs about different topics within these two niches and has a real passion for the building communities of people online. He does so on a personal level and also for hundreds of clients. For more information, check out his blog at www.douglaslim.org

When Prospects Ask ‘What Sets You Apart?’... Don’t Answer!

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 22:36:00 +0000

by Melissa Finnigan
www.liqui-site.com

How to provide the "wow" response to the age-old question.

Yesterday I received an email article from a sales training company based in the UK and it got me thinking...

If a client were to ask “what sets Liqui-Site apart from its competitors”, would I start rambling about our offerings and what we provide to clients as if reading from a teleprompter?

Clearly not the best approach, considering that a potential client is not concerned with what was done for another company with a different set of issues. The prospective client really wants to know how we can help address THEIR unique challenges.

I’ve actually been on the receiving end of the “standard response” and have, admittedly, completed tuned out.

Ask Questions First
If value is assessed by how you’re going to resolve a problem, you can’t provide much without a vast amount of detail. Unfortunately, this is where many website design and development companies fall short.

Presenting every client with the “takeout menu” of product and service offerings is a recipe for disaster – and a lost lead.

If a prospective client asks you up-front, “What sets your company apart from competitors”, let them know that you’ll “answer that once you find out more about what [their] challenges are”. You’re sure to get a strange look or comment, but that’s exactly what you’re looking for! Now, they’re paying attention because you’ve done something different from everyone else they’ve been speaking with. Guaranteed.

Now you’ve got to ask questions – from every angle. Leave no stone unturned. And don’t be afraid to engage them further, even after the initial discussion.

Listen Second
In order to effectively service your clients, you must be a great listener. And not just in listening to what they’ve described as their challenges or needs, but in reading between the lines, where deeper issues may live. Then think about ways to solve an issue that works best for each unique situation.

In order to find what the exact issues are, you’ve got to put the time in up-front on conference calls, web-based meetings, in-person consultations and email exchanges.

Since you wouldn’t ask a client to figure out how your company can help them, the role of a genuine salesperson or account manager is to figure out how to marry company offerings with resolution to prospective clients’ targeted issues.

Only after you know the entire scope of challenges, internal resources, technological requirements, allocated budget, etc. can you determine the root cause(s) of the issues. And now, you’re better prepared to diagnose and make relevant recommendations!

Conclusion
The best way to sell products and services is not to sell them at all. Converse, engage in valuable discussions, and your recommendations will sell themselves.

Finally, respond to the initial question: “What sets your company apart from competitors?”

“You mentioned that your current lead generation and online sales have been declining over the last 9 months, so improving these two key areas is very important to you. Well, we recently implemented a new e-commerce platform and lead capture forms on specific landing pages for ABC company facing exactly the same problem as what you’ve been describing. We addressed their organic SEO issues, added new content and re-purposed existing content, implemented a more user-friendly user experience (UX) and developed a social media strategy where none had existed. Three months after website re-launch, they have increased lead generation by 32% and online sales by 46% compared to the year prior. That's what sets us apart from our competition when it comes to needs like yours."

Wow.

An Authentic 'Thank You' Goes a Long Way

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 15:47:00 +0000

by Kelly Campbell
www.liqui-site.com

When a "thank you" is unexpected and creative, clients notice.

This past Tuesday was Valentine's Day, so we decided to do something special for our valued clients. Not exactly out-of-the-box, but creative and thoughtful just the same, we sent Godiva chocolates with a simple note: "When we say we love our clients, we're not kidding! Thank you for your business. From Liqui-Site Designs". There was no reference to Valentine's Day – other than the "love" and the fact that it was delivered on that day.

The response was both overwhelming and humbling. Some clients posted on our Facebook Page.

Many others emailed us, saying things like, "Hello and thank you for the nice Valentine's Day / Client Appreciation Godiva treat we received yesterday! It certainly perked up the afternoon!" and "Thank you for the Valentine's Day gift! It was both very thoughtful and a great marketing idea. I am really impressed with Liqui-Site's unique approach!"

In the last two days, we received a wonderful message from almost every client. It just goes to show that being authentic is always much appreciated. Being unexpected is even more powerful.

Unfortunately, most companies don't go the extra mile to show their clients how much they value their business. With most daily communication occurring via email or social media for maximum efficiency, it's the human interaction of a telephone call or the gesture of a special delivery that can further solidify relationships.

Comments, opinions? Would love to how other companies show sincere appreciation to their clients.

Effective SEO… Possible Without Social Media?

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 16:14:00 +0000

by Douglas Lim
Guest Blogger for www.liqui-site.com

Search engine optimization has certainly changed over the years. In the 90’s, it was possible to keyword stuff your on-page SEO and be able to achieve multiple first page listings on Google. But since then, we’ve seen the rise of off-page SEO, or link building, which includes getting back links from various sources. This includes article directories, forums, blog comments, blog networks, social bookmarking and the list goes on.

Then Google came along and changed the whole SEO landscape again with Panda at the start of 2011. Low quality sites with low quality content dropped in the rankings while authoritative sites with original content were pushed up in the rankings.

Now the SEO landscape is changing again with the advent of community engagement (i.e. social media). There were rumblings in the SEO world that Google was going to take into account social media signals as part of their search ranking algorithm. Now, without a doubt, that time has come. SEOMoz surveyed hundreds of the world’s best search marketers in 2011 to present a report on what factors affect SEO the most along with future factors that would have the most impact. You can read the complete SEOMoz report here.

Quite clearly, social media is playing a huge part in the search rankings and will continue to play a bigger part. Alongside this, I’ve found from my own testing of ranking websites, you cannot ignore social media in your SEO strategy. In fact, what we are seeing is that Google are now recognizing that websites ranking at the top which may have thousands of back links need social proof. They need to have had people Facebook like their page, tweet their page, Google +1 their page or share their page on LinkedIn. This is where the human element comes into effect that people can now validate the quality of pages by using social media and sharing it amongst their followers and friends. This is what Google wants. By providing the best search results, more people will continue to use Google as their preferred search engine, and thus Google can continue to make money on their biggest money earner – Adwords.

Now some quick tips to utilize social media in your SEO strategy. First thing, understand that it takes effort! You’re building a brand presence with social media so it’s not set and forget. You need to be doing it daily. Secondly include social media sharing icons on your website for every page. Make it easier for people to share your content by providing this for them. Thirdly, produce great and engaging content that entices people to share your content. Content is king! Fourthly, add your social media links to your brand collateral such as email signatures, flyers, proposals etc. Fifth for a most advanced tip create a viral campaign using video and spread it amongst your social networks.

Based in Australia, Douglas Lim is passionate about social media marketing and search engine optimization, especially helping others to leverage these two areas. He blogs about different topics within these two niches and has a real passion for the building communities of people online. He does so on a personal level and also for hundreds of clients. For more information, check out his blog at www.douglaslim.org

The "Red Thread of Fate" - For Business

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 22:28:00 +0000

by Kelly Campbell
www.liqui-site.com

We're destined to connect. We don't know how, when or why.

I watched the preview premier of a new TV series on Fox, called Touch, this past Tuesday night. I'd been intrigued by the trailers, but the show ended up provoking thought on how the premise of "destined connectedness" was just as applicable in business.

Have you ever considered that "our lives are invisibly tied to those whose destinies touch ours." This belief is an Eastern Asian philosophy called the "red thread of fate" – whereby an invisible red string is tied to each person destined to encounter another sometime throughout their lifetime. This magical cord may stretch or tangle, but it can never break.

Regardless of religious or personal beliefs, I immediately contemplated how this applies to business. We never really know from where the next lead, sale, employee, affiliate or vendor will come, when they will appear, and how we'll come into contact. That's where the strings come into play!

For business, isn't the "red thread of fate" really a combination of (1) maintaining a great brand reputation, (2) client relationship management, and (3) effective social media?

Need a better idea of what I'm seeing? Example time!

- The executive coach I personally worked with years ago became a client, and refers us to her clients, colleagues and friends. She recommended us to her pilates instructor and personal trainer – a husband and wife team. And while I never had the opportunity to meet either of them, I did meet with the personal trainer's new business partners – and we've since launched three new websites for their medical practice and a film production company with offices in NYC and LA. Additionally, one of my executive coach's colleagues, who I last spoke to about a year ago, has recently referred two of her clients, one in NY and one in LA.

- My college professor became a client for a business that she and her husband started. A few years later, she referred a fantastic graphic and website design student to me, who is now one of our lead web designer / production specialists. (Yes, Chris, that's you if you're reading this. LOL)

- I offered value in a discussion on LinkedIn several months ago. From a single comment, a fellow group member contacted me and has since become a new client. (And your CEO says social media has no measurable ROI?!) Anyhow, I recently sent this new client an NDA so that I could discuss an idea with him that another, existing client presented to me days earlier. Who knows where the next idea can lead when put in the right hands!

The "red thread" is real. The "red thread" is real relationships.

Comments, questions, opinions? I'm really intrigued by this concept and would love to hear your thoughts!

Know Thy Social Community Demographic

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Tue, 20 Dec 2011 15:10:00 +0000

by Kelly Campbell
www.liqui-site.com

How to interact with your communities – and track marketing effectiveness

If you’re like most business owners or online marketing managers, you know that you need a presence in the social stratosphere: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn at minimum. But the lesser know specifics about how to determine appropriate interaction with the members of your individual online communities (and track self-promotional results) is rarely written about.

In other words, does the same messaging work for members of each of these social platforms?

The answer is a resounding “no”.

Contrary to popular belief, there are enormous differences between the purpose, functionality and (your company’s own) membership of Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and LinkedIn. Even more important is the need for different, relevant messaging to your membership on each of these platforms.

As an analogy, let’s use a couple of well-known retail stores to further explain how crucial it is to know thy social community demographic. Shoppers at Target will generally fall into a different demographic makeup than shoppers of Neiman Marcus, for example. The advertising departments for these stores rely on demographic information (i.e. gender, age range, socio-economic status or HHI, education level, etc.) to ensure that messaging -- in the form of which products they carry, special offers, sales, store-specific credit card offers (the list goes on...) -- is relevant to their particular audience.

It’s no different in social media.

So, the obvious questions become: (1) How do I gain insight into the demographic makeup of each of my social media communities, and (2) How do I not only craft different versions of messaging that will be relevant to them – but track its effectiveness as well?

First, there are a few great social media software tools that allow you to gain an understanding as to who your audience is, from platform to platform. In a recent blog post, Liqui-Site announced its game-changer, called Social ROI.

Second, crafting relevant, targeted messaging is a bit of trial and error. That said, there are basics that great marketing teams follow based on experience, previous results, etc. It’s important to understand that creative copywriting is critical on a platform like Twitter, due to its 140 character limit. On Facebook, you have more freedom with character count, attachments of photos, videos and so on. Regardless of platform though, a link to a landing page on your website (if the post is self-promotional) is the #1 priority. Without that, there’s no way to track the effectiveness of your posts, tweets and messages.

That brings me to the second part of question #2. Web-based software programs like Social ROI allow business owners and online marketing managers to create campaigns, push different messaging to their individual social media presences, and then run a report on the results. Return on investment is then measured by taking your cost per campaign, cost per conversion and value of conversion – calculating it based on actions taken from those posts, tweets and messages by your community members, and reporting on the results.

Pretty sweet, huh? If you’re interested in learning more about Social ROI in 2012, we’d be happy to answer any questions you may have. There’s even a no-obligation 30 day trial of the program. Post questions below or contact Liqui-Site Designs, Inc. at 855-WEB-PLUS.

Happy Holidays and Best Wishes for a Prosperous New Year, from our family to yours.

Kelly Campbell
President & Creative Director
Liqui-Site Designs, Inc.

Facebook Page Reviews and Discussions

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 06:51:00 +0000

by Kelly Campbell
www.liqui-site.com

An Honest Update on the Newest Facebook Page Changes

On October 31, 2011, Facebook disabled two features on Pages: the Reviews tab and the Discussions tab. Personally, the Discussions tab never did much for me. The action is on the Wall, we all know that. But Reviews? Those are super important, not only for the credibility of the business but also for the prospects who want to know what previous clients or customers of a particular company had to say – in their own words. And as another blogger so aptly put it "I don't think 'Recommend' is the best description for this, because you are basically giving a review, which could even be negative." He's right.

And now we have what Facebook deems a better, more engaging solution called Recommendations. I'm not sure about that, but I do know that (a) it's harder to find on the right hand side of the Page (when all of the other tabs are located on the left), and (b) all of the previous content has vanished into cyberspace.

Facebook issued this notice shortly before making the change:

“We’ve found that the best way to encourage conversation and feedback is through posts and comments on your Wall, so we’re removing the Reviews and Discussions tabs for now. We’re working on tools to help you moderate, filter and manage content in one powerful place. Stay tuned.

You won’t be able to access your reviews and discussions once they’re removed, so please save this content if you’d like to keep it for future reference."

If you didn't get the memo, as was the case with most Facebook Page owners, you'll have to reconnect with as many customers and clients as possible, and ask them to write a Recommendation (again).

Recommendation on facebook.com/Liqui.Site

Now, for the worst part. You can no longer comment on your own Recommendations as your business. If you select the option to "Use Facebook as [Your Business]", the Recommendations are automatically made invisible to you as the administrator. So, if you want to comment at all, you must first personally "Friend" your customer or client. That's right, you're forced to connect and comment as you, under your personal profile! To me, this is the biggest oversight in Facebook history. We're hoping they change this one – and fast! What do you think?

As the Page admin, you still have the ability to either hide Recommendations or report inappropriate or abusive comments. But don't get too excited about either of those because hiding comments only hides them from your front Page; Users can click to see all of the Recommendations you've hidden. Plus, Facebook has been known to ignore reports of inappropriate comments.

Of course, a better way to handle this – on Facebook's part – would have been to simply move Reviews over to the Recommendations section, since they basically work the same way. No harm, no foul.

But these are the changes, for better or worse. Now, it's up to us to garner new Recommendations, think of fun and engaging ways to build our brand awareness, and keep up with every drastic change at Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Google – to name a few.

Let us know if you need any help navigating these social waters. Questions or comments? Please tell us your thoughts!

Kelly Campbell
President & Creative Director
Liqui-Site Designs, Inc.

Website Been Hit By Panda? You Need UGC.

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 20:56:00 +0000

by Richard Feldman
www.liqui-site.com

Your customers are more important than you. Google says so.

If you’ve noticed a big drop in traffic to your web-based business during 2011, then you may have been hit by the big, bad Panda. The Panda update is Google’s latest series of algorithmic changes. In early 2011, Panda affected what it considered to be "low quality, web-based content farms". The result was lost traffic, millions in lost revenue, and lost jobs for many SEO consultants.

Briefly, the main triggers of the Panda Update included duplicated content, excessive use of manufacturer or non-unique content, RSS feed issues, incorrect canonical tag implementation, excessive on-site ads, poor on-page optimization, and other issues.

Back in February, when Google rolled out the initial Panda update, they provided very little concrete, actionable advice that Webmasters and business owners could use to directly reverse the drops in traffic and rankings they were experiencing. Finally, in May 2011, three months later, Google Fellow, Amit Singhal, published a detailed post on it’s Webmaster Central Blog. In it, Singhal described what constitutes a quality site and then lists twenty-two content-related issues Webmasters should be aware of when reviewing their site content going forward. I won't list all those questions here, but the full list above should be reviewed by ALL site owners (and not just those already affected by Panda).

It’s critical to understand "Google's mindset" about what they may be looking at specifically when reviewing a page in a post-Panda world. It’s called User Generated Content.

What is User Generated Content?

User generated content (UGC) is content that your audience adds to your site or which you add as a result of discussions with your audience.

UGC is all about connecting with a niche community, engaging that community to add content to your site, while promoting and sharing that content with others in and outside that niche. This idea of community content creation is nothing new.

The biggest take away here is that publishing new content isn’t enough anymore. You’ve got to create it for relevance and to provide something of value: create it for humans (not spiders). That’s the only way to truly engage your audience and incentivize your community to share, comment and engage over and over again.

Follow @Liqui_Site

Introducing "Social ROI": Part III

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 14:59:00 +0000

by Richard Feldman
www.liqui-site.com

Experience how social media efforts truly impact your business.

In Part II, Social Media Measurability, I talked about the missing link in social media – the almighty measurable ROI.

For the last few years clients have known they needed to be involved in key social media channels, though they haven't been sure why or how to truly leverage it. Many still aren't. And with no way to track each aspect of their collective efforts across all channels, the challenge was in proving that social media was a sound investment of resources.

Enter Social ROI

Now, those days of quasi-accountability are gone. Enter Social ROI – a social media analytics solution that allows businesses to monitor individual social channels and the demographics of their entire network, track promotional efforts, discover conversations by keyword – and measure the conversion results in actual dollars.

Just as Google Analytics measures and reports website statistics, Social ROI provides granular demographic information on your membership (community fan base, followers, subscribers), including gender, age, interests, geography, education, employment, referring links and more. More importantly, Social ROI enables businesses to create goals and campaigns, promote their offerings through their social channels – and measure the conversion results in real dollars.

Discovering conversations by keyword across all channels saves time and can lead to providing value, cherry-picking prospects or see who's talking about your brand to better manage "online PR".

Get a 30-Day FREE Trial of Social ROI

Liqui-Site announces a 30-Day FREE Trial of Social ROI (no credit card required), for either our "Lake" or "River" plans. As an exclusive offer, now through November 23, 2011: Sign up for the "Lake" plan and Liqui-Site will set up all of your social media accounts within the Social ROI solution for you at no additional cost! No risk. All reward.
Learn more about Social ROI and View Plans & Pricing >

Richard A Feldman
Senior Account Director
Liqui-Site Designs, Inc.
[T] 845 353 7771
[C] 845 548 9679
[E] rfeldman@liqui-site.com
www.liqui-site.com

Follow @Liqui_Site

Social Media Measurability: Part II

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 21:18:00 +0000

by Richard Feldman
www.liqui-site.com

What's the point of social media if you can't measure the effort?

In Part I, Social Media Monetization, I shared a few examples of how to directly increase a brand's revenue using social media. It was a direct answer to a direct question a client had asked me.

But, there's a bigger, more important, long-term piece to the social media puzzle. And it’s called measurable ROI.

Driving prospects to a website (or landing page) and seeing an immediate revenue increase is the easiest and fastest way to understanding the power of social media. But a well-crafted strategy could take that one-time revenue increase and allow you to take what you learn and apply it to similar or brand new campaigns across other channels (new channels mean new prospects). While at the same time, the relationships you build with customers or clients allow you to sell them on other products or services once you’ve established that your brand is trustworthy, provides quality and value, and is committed to its customers needs and overall satisfaction.

Now, increasing exposure through social media leads me to think about how to measure and track results. Seems to me you'd need an analytics solution that allows you to track your social network channels just the same way you would track the performance of your website -- you know, something like a Google Analytics clone, but designed to analyze and report on your social media efforts. I mean, just like GA tracks visitors, time on site, keywords, geography and many other aspects of web performance, an integrated social media measurement system would allow you to track all aspects of your brand’s social media presence.

Hmmm... Imagine being able to get real-time reporting on your social network accounts to overlay with your other (i.e. traditional) marketing initiatives – to zero in on membership trends, activity and engagement, thoughts and feelings of your customers and members, their interests, their geographical distribution, education levels, gender, employment, and countless other metrics. If you were able to compare your social media channels and understand the difference among them and their impact on your business, you might even improve your ROI by being able to adjust spends.

Imagine learning the real-time answers to questions like these:

1 - Which social channels are most effective for us?
2 - What are the accurate traffic patterns/trends?
3 - Which customers and segments are most valuable?
4 - Where are my customers and members located?
5 - What is my demographic (age, gender, education, HHI)?
6 - What's our level of activity, engagement, membership?
7 - What are they talking about; what motivates them?
8 - Who's talking about products / services we can offer?
9 - Which networks produce more response and better ROI?
10 - What kind of ROI are we getting, in real numbers?

Now, imagine having these answers presented to you as intuitive, thorough, visual reports. As I wrote in one of my last blog posts, Brand Monologue? Try Brand Dialogue Instead!, social media is about an exchange with customers and prospects, not a one-way street of self promo. A dialogue makes communication more satisfying, fulfilling and much more profitable. Successful brands have given creative thought to the process of communicating with customers – and to their social media strategy, making it a viral engagement.

Interestingly, just like traditional media, social media requires testing to learn what works and how to improve results to build a genuine community around YOUR brand.

Richard A Feldman
Senior Account Director
Liqui-Site Designs, Inc.
[T] 845 353 7771
[C] 845 548 9679
[E] rfeldman@liqui-site.com
www.liqui-site.com

Follow @Liqui_Site

Social Media Monetization: Part I

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 15:08:00 +0000

by Richard Feldman
www.liqui-site.com

What's the point of social media if you can't monetize the effort?

More and more, each day, I hear from business owners, executives, and online marketing professionals “If social media doesn’t influence the sales process and the effort can't be monetized immediately, then what’s the point?” I understand their frustration and how overwhelming both social media strategy and questionable ROI can be. Looking for ideas on how to test social media as a revenue generator? Here are a few real-world examples:

Burt's Bees is perhaps a little more well-known for its lip balm than its Facebook Page, but Facebookers can buy products directly from Burt's Bees Facebook Page’s Shop & Share feature. The company has become one of the leading manufacturers of natural personal care products. With more than 150 products to sell, Facebook is the perfect space for the company to connect with its fans and customers. “Through Facebook, we can introduce new products more interactively than in print or banner ads…and provide a space where [our consumers] can connect with one another,” says Melissa Sowry, the company's social media and content manager. Burt's Bees, nearing 700,000 fans, prides itself on its ability to engage with its customers on Facebook by responding to comments – and allowing customers to lead the conversation. In 2010, the company reported that its Page has doubled the traffic from Facebook to its e-commerce site, and the increase in sales and overall brand awareness from their online marketing test was enough to make it a must-have for future fiscal budgets.

The NY JETS launched their Ultimate Fan social game in September 2010, which was the first revenue-generating Facebook app to be backed by a pro sports team. The application lets football fans do online what they would normally do at home and in stadiums — root for their favorite teams and players, predict game scores, hold a virtual tailgate party and purchase promotional wear. Ultimate Fan sells banner advertising to other firms like Ticketmaster, and has since lured four major sponsors integrating their brands: MetLife, Motorola, SportsNet NY and HotelPlanner.com. Monetize much? Let’s just call this game-changer a blowout.

Whitecaps Foul Weather Gear is a great example of engaging a smaller, niche audience in order to monetize social media. Testing effective email marketing, coupled with social media engagement, Whitecaps saw an increase of $5,000 in less than 30 days, using Facebook to drive sales via a promo code. Now, that really gave folks in the global sailing and boating community something to "Like". The offer was hugely successful using a single platform as the test. (See my blog post "Viral Messaging Spreads Like Wildfire".) Recently, we learned that Constant Contact will promote Liqui-Site's email marketing and social media customization work for Whitecaps Foul Weather Gear, nationally. According to company president, Mark Kamen, “We were thrilled with the test success and we plan to greatly increase our exposure through social media in 2012 and beyond.”

The next question is “Now that we’re increasing revenue through social media, how do we ensure that increase for the long-term – and improve upon it?”

I’ll answer that very question in my next blog post, Social Media Measurability: Part II. To make sure you’re the first to know, you can either bookmark us in your browser, subscribe to our blog via RSS feed or follow us with Google Friend Connect at right. Since this IS all about social media, we’ll also post a link in our social channels on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Any way you see fit, connect with us. We’ll provide tremendous value, just keep the comments and questions coming!

Richard A Feldman
Senior Account Director
Liqui-Site Designs, Inc.
[T] 845 353 7771
[C] 845 548 9679
[E] rfeldman@liqui-site.com
www.liqui-site.com

Follow @Liqui_Site

Brand Monologue? Try Brand Dialogue Instead!

noreply@blogger.com (Liqui-Site Designs) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 17:03:00 +0000

by Richard Feldman

www.liqui-site.com

Communication via a massive amount of one-way media is called “brand monologue”. Even though we just made that up here at Liqui-Site, the point is that any brand that only talks at consumers probably won’t be heard. Real interactive communication takes place when both sides pay attention to the other, react to one another, and abra-cadabra: a brand dialogue is born.

Yes, technology has changed how brands and their audiences communicate – across all channels. The explosion has occurred and reoccurred especially in the social media sector. (And your CEO said it was all just a phase!) Going forward, the mega social marketshare of blogging, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn will continue to expand the interactive brand dialogue, and that needs to be at the heart of the marketing communication strategy for every successful brand, large or small. But more than that, it needs to be measurable. OBTW, we can calculate ROI for social media... In real dollars AND sense!

Behavioral marketing, search engine marketing, and performance-based marketing are concepts too big and amorphous for most corporate laypeople. Email marketing is the only vehicle of the bunch that means something to people, yet many suits think their nephew’s college roommate can do that for their business AND have it be successful. (If you haven't yet, read my blog post, "Does Your Webmaster Wear Tightey-Whities?")

On a broad scale, blogging, social networking and viral media are the foundations that stir people to take action. This is where your call-to-action truly takes shape. Messages need to be communicated and, when appropriate, sold.

Did you happen to see the huge email / blog blunder of Netflix CEO, Reed Hastings? He really pissed off his devout users – and thousands of them (including me) really let him have it. Check out Reed's post. (Though, my favorite lines from the post were “Companies rarely die from moving too fast, and they frequently die from moving too slowly.” AND “Actions speak louder than words. But words help people to understand actions.”)

So, social, viral or any form of online marketing can’t be "sold" or measured unless you embrace and understand the basic tenets. Yes, companies want an ongoing, interactive brand dialogue with consumers. In fact, they hunger for it... But they must do it right (not like Netflix).

Contact me to learn more OR comment below to get the conversation started.

Richard A Feldman
Senior Account Director
Liqui-Site Designs, Inc.
[T] 845 353 7771
[C] 845 548 9679
[E] rfeldman@liqui-site.com
www.liqui-site.com

Follow @Liqui_Site