Will Facebook’s IPO Change Anything?
Two days ago Facebook files papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission to make an initial public offering (IPO). That means the company is committing itself to making its profit and loss statements public for the rest of its life. But will that change the way the world networks?
Likely not.
Facebook has already become the 800 million pound gorilla (it has 800 active million users worldwide). It will likely grow and the money it collects from its IPO will likely help it reach some strategic goals, but the core aspect of its product will likely not change much if at all.
Maybe it will get better and maybe it will get worse, but change? Let’s see …
- Facebook offers personal profiles to anyone willing to sign up for an account and provide certain specific private information to the company based on its user’s term of service.
- Companies can set up a brand page and promote themselves to users through that page.
- Developers can build apps that interact with Facebook and allow users to engage with marketers, businesses, and savvy development agents.
- Facebook also offers paid advertising models for businesses wanting to reach new prospects.
- You can interact with Facebook through you desktop computer, laptop, smart phone, or tablet.
What else could Facebook offer? What else likely to be offered as a result of the private company becoming public?
Of course, new technologies could lead to Facebook expanding its offerings to its consumer base, but that would happen anyways. The company already has made billions of dollars so the money it collects from the IPO will not likely give it much more financial clout that it already has. So why go public?
It is likely that investors and shareholders realize that certain information is going to end up public anyway so why not be the first to make the disclosure? It’s a good political move for Facebook to go public, but don’t count on the IPO changing the service in any drastic way. Social networking will continue as it has for the last five years.
How McDonald’s Slashed Its Foot With A Hashtag
McDonald’s decided to spend its money buying a hashtag on the popular social media website Twitter.
First, I’d like to know how you can buy a hashtag, but that’s an aside. The real issue is what happened after McDonald’s changed its hashtag from #MeetTheFarmers to #McDStories.
The original hashtag was meant to introduce McDonald’s Twitter followers to the company’s promotion of fresh produce. It worked well. Then, in a flash of brilliance that turned out to be not so brilliant, the company’s social media manager decided to open the door to the universe by expanding its Twitter promotion. Enter #McDStories.
Who doesn’t have a positive McDonald’s story, right? Indeed. And who doesn’t have a negative one. Duh.
You can probably guess what happened next. Followers started using the new hashtag to relate their own McDonald’s stories – chipped molars, regurgitation, food poisoning …. The list goes on.
I think the big lesson here is not how to respond to negative reactions on Twitter or some other social media site. Rather, the real lesson is how to prevent it from happening in the first place. This all could have been prevented had McDonald’s not insisted on opening the door to the universe. All they had to do was keep running the promotion that was working.
When things are going well, don’t change them. Rule #1. Rule #2 is, always ask what might go wrong.
Had McDonald’s social media manager lived by those two rules we wouldn’t be talking about them right now. That second question is particularly important. In social media – and on the World Wide Web in general – once something starts spiraling out of control, it’s hard to get a handle on it. If it’s out there, it’s out there. So put some thought into your moves before you make them. Ask, what can go wrong with this? If the answer is something too big to control or too embarrassing to let go on, don’t make your move. Do something else, or nothing at all.
Online Coupons And Social Media
Online coupons are starting to become a big deal. They are much like their off line counterparts, but they have the potential to be found online by casual searchers using a search engine or social media. That’s a good thing for you, the business owner.
Like old-fashioned coupons, you can use online coupons to drive new business to your storefront or website. And it works.
One of the things that makes it work is social media. If your offer is so good that your prospects want to share it with their friends, then they will share it will their friends. They’ll share it on Facebook, Twitter, and through e-mail. They’ll share it on any social network where they have a presence, and they’ll use it too.
Online, you can offer the types of coupons that you can off line. You can offer 2-for-1 deals, minimum purchase discounts, coupons that are good only for certain days, perpetual coupons that are good any time of the year, and you can be as creative as you can be with your traditional off line coupons. Your customers can print the coupon and bring it to your business, download it to their mobile phones, tell you the coupon code when they call in their order, or enter the coupon code into a field on your website form.
If you think it through all the way, you’ll see that online coupons are another opportunity for you to reach new customers and increase your business. And they’re as social as other online tool.
Twitter’s Trickle Down Policy
On February 1st, you’ll be able to buy yourself a Twitter brand page – if you have $25,000. I don’t know about you, but that price seems a little steep to me.
Twitter had originally accepted a minimum of $2 million from 20 large companies on the scale of Coca-Cola and Disney for the privilege of being the first companies to have brand pages on the microblogging platform. The pages look quite nice.
The big question is, when will the rest of us gain access to Twitter brand pages and how much will it cost us?
It’s obvious that Twitter is using this opportunity as a way to raise operating funds. But the problem, as I see it, is that the companies spending the most amount of money and getting in earlier will have an advantage over companies with smaller pocketbooks. They’ll effectively be the Twitter users that set the policy for the rest of us. They could use Twitter to shut the door on their competition, and may already have.
Has Twitter sold out to the highest bidder? Has it become a haven for big brands? Will it go by the way of eBay and alienate its smaller, less wealthy users?
Only time will tell or provide any answers to these questions. Meanwhile, if you’ve got $25,000 in your pocket, then you can buy yourself a Twitter brand page. Someday, you might be allowed to establish a Twitter brand page for your company for a monthly or yearly fee. Average that over a lifetime and you could very well spend $25,000, or more, for the privilege of tweeting 140 characters at a time.
Let’s hope that Twitter doesn’t become the social media website of the rich, for the rich, and by the rich.
Get Your Google+ Badge
You’ve likely seen those social media badges on your favorite blogs and websites. Facebook has the Like button. Twitter has the Tweet and Retweet button. And Google+ has the +1 button. Except now, it just got better.
That’s right, Google+ has improved its +1 button.
The new options include:
- Choosing a width for your Google+ button that works for your website’s design
- Finding a badge that works with the dark background of your website
- Using a badge that also shows your Google+ profile’s circle count
Google+ pages can also display a Google+ badge, which makes them a lot more attractive as well.
It’s already been proven that websites with social media badges get more shares, Likes, tweets, and +1s. Social media sharing is a great way to connect with new followers and potential customers. Google+ is a new social media site that also carries search engine marketing benefits so you can no longer discount it. I highly recommend using it.
Another thing you can do through your website that you should do is encourage your website visitors to add you to their circles on Google+. It’s easy to do and it carries a ton of benefits. I think those benefits are going to get better.
If you’ve been wondering about using social media badges on your website, start with a Google+ badge. Work your way up from there.
How Pinterest Is Kicking Up A Dust Storm
There’s a new social media site in town. It’s called Pinterest. And in the last month the site has gained 7 million new visitors.
Pinterest is an interesting social media experiment. And it looks like it could become one of the powerhouse websites, especially for women, its largest set of users.
The cool thing about Pinterest is that it is highly graphic. Take a look at its home page and you’ll see all the photos and images, and it isn’t cluttered.
The way it works is you set up your own pinboard. You can have one for your company just like Mashable has. And just like Mashable’s, it can be branded.
Notice how Mashable’s pinboard has the Mashable name in it. That’s great for reputation management and branding. Then, on the left, you can see the big Mashable logo with the website URL underneat. Again, that’s great for branding, but the URL back to the website provides a useful inbound link for SEO purposes.
If you look at the pins that Mashable includes on its pinboard, they’re not all self-promotional. They spend a great deal of time promoting other items around the Web. That’s great stuff. It’s the way that it should be done.
You don’t have to be a rabid self-promoter to be successful in social media generally or at Pinterest in particular. You just have to have a solid strategy for your online content, a strategy that includes promoting others while branding yourself. That’s the best social media strategy in the world, and your company can make that happen.
Is Google In Trouble?
Perhaps one of the most controversial moves Google has made in its history is the introduction of Google+. Since its inception, Google’s social network has been the subject of a lot of talk – some good and some bad.
It has its fans, to be sure. Among them are some of the Internet’s biggest voices.
On the other hand, there are some pretty big voices that have criticized it sharply. And they make some good points.
One of the things that has people concerned about Google+ is Google’s policy of favoring Google+ results in its search engine index over its competition. Until now, there has been no real solid proof that is happening. But a new bookmarklet titled Don’t Be Evil is showing the proof in a very uncanny way. You can preview and drag and drop the Don’t Be Evil bookmarklet to your web browser by visiting the Focus On The User website.
The interesting thing about this bookmarklet is its development team. The Focus On The User website says it was built by engineers at Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, “in consultation with several other social networking companies.”
John Battelle, one of those sharply critical voices who is also an Internet journalist, writes about it on his blog.
So here’s the million dollar question: What does this new information in this social media war mean to Google’s, and the Web’s, future? Will the U.S. Department of Justice see Google’s ranking practices as a violation of antitrust laws?
It would be interesting if they did. The result would likely be, at the very least, a forced change in Google’s ranking policies that cause it to rank websites without a preference for Google+. The question is, would that be better for searchers or worse? Google already claims to be doing what is best for the user, but their competition disagrees. What do you say?
5 Types Of Social Networks
Social networking has become so important today that you’ll hardly find an Internet marketer not doing it. If you do, they probably aren’t very effective. But you can get a leg up on your competition by spending some time doing a little social networking. To do it correctly, it’s important to identify the right type of social network for your need.
Here are 5 types of social networks you might consider for your online marketing needs:
- Plain Old Vanilla – If you haven’t heard of Facebook, then you probably live under a rock. It’s not the only plain old vanilla social network online, but it is the most popular.
- Social Bookmarking – These sites, like Delicious.com and countless others, allow you to save a link with a summary of your favorite web pages.
- Question & Answer – Getting more and more popular every day, sites like Quora and Yahoo! Answers allow users to log on, ask a question, and get an answer from the crowd. Sometimes you’ll get several answers that you can choose from. And the community can often vote on the best answers.
- Video Sharing – These sites – sites like YouTube and Vimeo – allow users to upload videos that others can view online. And you can use them to drive traffic back to your website.
- Blogging Communities – Blogging has become the trend of the decade. So why not join a blogging community. There’s one for women called BlogHer and then there are more generalized communities like LiveJournal. They are places for bloggers to meet, share their ideas, and network over conversations.
There are plenty other types of social networks as well. Pick the type that best suits your needs and jump right in.
How Many SMM Accounts Do You Need?
I was surprised to read that the average number of social media accounts for businesses doing marketing online is somewhere around 178.
Really? Do you need that many?
Personally, I think one account at the popular social media websites is enough. If your employees want a personal account at LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook, then allow them the privilege of their own personal accounts. You might even give them some leeway in promoting corporate events and products – with some guidelines, of course. But you don’t need multiple social media accounts.
In a word, it’s overkill.
I would add that it is time consuming and costly to manage more than one account at any social media website. If you have 30 Twitter accounts, you’ll need that many employees to monitor and manage them. Maybe – MAYBE – one employee can manage 3-5 of those accounts, but that would be a full-time job. You still have to pay their salary.
A better use of time and resources is to have one account at each social media website. You have your marketing team manage those accounts – one manager per account. And make sure they talk to each other. You want your social media accounts to work in tandem, not against each other. Make it easy on yourself, not more difficult.
Are You Discussing Or Dictating?
Media today is not what it used to be. For most people, media is a conversation. John Battelle says it’s not TV.
As Seth Godin has been known to say, “Markets are conversations.” Are you discussing, or dictating?
With the rise of social media, websites like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+, marketers now have to get good at holding conversations. Your audience expects a dialogue. Are you providing it?
I like John Battelle’s distinction between dependent media and independent media. He places sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ in the “dependent” category because bloggers and members of a market niche depend on them for delivering their messages. And receiving those of others. “Independent” media consists of blogs, niche communities, and other websites owned by individual bloggers and website owners.
If you are still dictating your message to your audience, then you are likely alienating them. This is the age of conversations. Join them or start them, but don’t shun them.
Savvy marketers in 2012 use their blogs as launching pads for conversations. They then invite their audience to engage and join that conversation where it is happening. Sales take place only after the marketer has built up trust. You earn that trust by respecting your audience.
Today’s media is social media. You aren’t on TV any more.
Google+ Hangout Marketing
Thanks to Marketing Pilgrim for pointing this out. Google is marketing its new social network Google+ on TV. The Muppets have a hangout, which is one of Google+’s best and most popular features, and hold a concert performing the cover “Under Pressure” by Queen and David Bowie.
Awesome!
This makes me wonder whether Google+ Hangouts can be used for marketing purposes. I don’t see why they can’t. In fact, I know they can.
Brands can set up a Google+ page, but to do so they first need to have a Google+ account. That account has to be a personal account.
So let’s say your CEO gets a Google+ account then sets up a Google+ page for the business. As a page, he could start a hangout and invite anyone he wishes. What he invites all of the page’s circles into a hangout and while inside the hangout he entertains a little while providing a bit of an uplifting marketing message?
The hangout could just last for a minute, but during that minute the CEO could field questions from the people in his circles providing for an interactive marketing moment.
Welcome to the new world of marketing and advertising. Social media is getting better all the time.
Should You Tweet On Behalf Of Your Employer?
It was bound to happen sooner or later. A lawsuit over who owns the Twitter account of an employee (technically, a former employee) who used the account in part to tweet on behalf of the employee. Sidebar: There was contract.
In the absence of case law, a case like this is far from open-shut. In fact, it could get dirty. But I suspect that PhoneDog Media saw an opportunity to bully for money.
Ask any lawyer and he’ll tell you that a business should “aggressively” protect its trademark and other business interests. Otherwise, the company could lose them. It’s a standard line, and its one that is often interpreted to encourage business owners to pursue litigation for even the most extraordinary and awkwardly absurd situations.
I’m not saying this situation is “extraordinary and awkwardly absurd,” but if you read the company’s response to The New York Times, it smacks of legal double-talk.
“The costs and resources invested by PhoneDog Media into growing its followers, fans and general brand awareness through social media are substantial and are considered property of PhoneDog Media L.L.C. We intend to aggressively protect our customer lists and confidential information, intellectual property, trademark and brands.”
When employers and employees begin to make handshake agreements regarding the latter’s social media accounts and using them on behalf of company business, it’s an area of law is very murky. It is in both party’s interest to get a contract. It could save a lot of headache in the long run and spell out the particulars that could make a lawsuit unnecessary and avoidable.
Disclaimer: This blog post is not intended to be legal advice. Seek an attorney before making decisions about your social media accounts.
Is Social Influence Real?
Here’s an interesting take on an old saw. Your so-called social influence may be a sham. But that doesn’t mean it has no value.
I like the last paragraph of the article cited above:
If the Harvard Study is right and “peer influence is virtually nonexistent,” that doesn’t mean it’s time to throw in the social media towel. All it means is that you may need to adjust your thinking. Instead of pushing to bring new lambs into the fold, sell to the ones you already have corralled.
First, it’s long been a business principle that it’s easier to upsell to current clients than it is to sell to prospects. Nothing new there.
But the study that says that people become friends because they are already interested in the same stuff more than people interest their friends in new things isn’t really new information, is it? I mean, isn’t that how it works in the real world? You become friends with people who have similar interests. You may, once in a while, talk a friend into taking an interest in something new on the basis of your existing relationship. So what?
The so what here is that, though rare, social influence does happen. While it might be savvy marketing to put some money into that influence, there are more cost effective online marketing techniques. And they’re not hard to find.
Facebook Timeline Is Now Available
Back in September Facebook outlined its Timeline feature. Yesterday, Timeline went public.
Timeline has been billed as a new way to use social media. Instead of the traditional profile, your entire life story will appear as photos, videos, posts, stories, and whatever else you post on Facebook. There are two ways to get Timeline right now.
- You can go into Introducing Timeline and click the green “Get Timeline” button at the bottom of the page; or
- You can wait until you see an announcement at the top of your profile.
If you’re in a hurry to get your Timeline active, go to Introducing Timeline and get started. But beware. You have 7 days to review your Timeline and remove anything you don’t want to be seen publicly. After that, it’s live and you won’t have a choice any more.
Now the question is, can you use your Timeline for your business? And the answer is, Sure, why not?
The Timeline can essentially be used the same way you currently use your profile for business. The difference is you can now include prominent photos and videos. Everything you upload or post will go into your Timeline. That includes business-related and personal. This could be a great tool for sole proprietors, freelancers and entrepreneurs.
Facebook is moving forward. Are you?
Twitter Brand Pages Come To The Fore
First, Facebook rolled out brand pages for businesses. Then Google+ hit the scene and within three months had introduced brand pages. Now, after several years of successful operations and climbing usage, Twitter is introducing brand pages.
Unfortunately, not everyone can have one just yet.
But with 76% of small businesses saying they use Twitter, that open-to-public launch could come soon.
Currently, Twitter brand pages are only open to a few big brands such as
- American Express
- Best Buy
- Bing
- Chevrolet
- Coca-Cola
- Disney
- General Electric
- McDonald’s
- Nike
- PepsiCo
- Staples
- Verizon Wireless
- Heineken
- Subway
- and Paramount Pictures
just to name a few.
Once Twitter’s brand pages go public, it looks like small businesses will have a troika (triumvirate?) of social media brand pages to promote. So the big question is, what will be the most effective way to promote all three brand pages for maximum effectiveness?
It’s become apparent that each of the social media websites cater to specific personality types. Marketers have discovered that Twitter audiences and Facebook audiences do not line up as the same. Therefore, promotions to each service need to be unique.
That will undoubtedly be the way going forward as well. When you run your brand page specials, you’ll have to have one for Twitter, a separate one for Facebook, and then one for Google+. Are you ready?
How Many Facebook Pages Can You Have?
Is it a good marketing strategy to develop multiple Facebook pages? It depends. There is a lot riding on your ability to manage multiple pages. Here are some thoughts to ponder.
- Do you have the resources to manage multiple pages? For every page you have you’ll need at least one administrator. Does your administrator have time to manage those pages while also attending to their other duties within the company?
- Do you have the money to outsource the administration of your Facebook pages? If you cannot have someone inside your organization manage your pages, then you’ll have to pay someone else to do it. Is it affordable?
- Does each Facebook page have a strategy? It’s conceivable to have a Facebook page for each product you sell or each division within your company, but you also need a strategy for each page. Who is responsible for developing that strategy and is implementation feasible for each page you want to develop?
- Do you have enough content to fill each page you want to develop?
Facebook marketing has become a strategy all on its own. Make sure you have the proper resource before you implement a Facebook marketing strategy, including multiple pages for your business.
The Latest Facebook News
Facebook has been in the news a lot lately. Here are some of the biggest headlines regarding Facebook and what they are up to in these times:
- Facebook settles privacy dispute with FTC. Of course, there were no fines levied, but Facebook will have to undergo a biannual privacy audit for the next 20 years. Will that change anything? This specific ruling may not change much in the near short term, but I’d expect to see more privacy laws in place to protect online consumers and Internet users.
- Did Facebook purchase Gowalla? Neither Facebook nor Gowalla are confirming these rumors, but CNN reported it as true.
- Facebook is opening an office in New York. The office will be an engineering office and they are now accepting applications.
- Facebook Insights includes negative feedback. If you have a business page on Facebook and you want to know when someone has left negative feedback, you’ll now be able to see that in your page metrics through Facebook Insights.
- Facebook will run a mini-web series. Looking for entertainment? It’s supposed to be a documentary.
With all this talk of Facebook, if you run a business and you want to know the best practices for marketing through Facebook, talk to someone who knows how to meet your needs.
The Essence Of Conversational Marketing
Conversational marketing is a concept that has been around for about as long as the Internet. First outlined in a book titled “The Cluetrain Manifesto,” it espouses that idea that markets have always been conversations – with the exception of that brief period in the 20th century that was dominated by mass media.
Unfortunately, some businesses – big businesses, in particular – are still trying to play the mass media game. But it doesn’t work. Not in conversations.
The Internet allows consumers and marketers to enter into a conversation where they can mutually agree to terms that benefit both parties. That’s what commerce has traditionally been based on. Both parties receiving a benefit in exchange for a benefit. And that’s what the Internet fosters as well. You and your clients can enter into transactions that lead to mutual benefit. But it starts with a conversation.
Online, conversations generally take place through social media.
If you’ll open up accounts at the popular social media hot spots – Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Google+ – then you can enter into conversations with your customers, or prospective customers. Then you can take those conversations to your blog and ultimately to your internal communications – videoconferencing, phone, e-mail, etc.
Don’t overlook the power of conversational marketing. It is a two-way street that offers untold benefits in the digital age.
In The Age Of Social Media
Internet marketing is an ever changing discipline. How to effectively market your business and manage your content today is nothing like it was ten years ago, or even five years ago. If you plan to do business online, then you’ve got to adapt to the changing landscape of online marketing. That means adjusting your aim and trying new things from time to time.
Social media has only been around a short while, but it’s undoubtedly the way to market your business online today. And I don’t mean in the usual way that most Internet marketers today think of as social media.
The big secret in this industry is that most Internet marketers are about five years behind the times. Yes, five years.
They’re still trying the hard sell. They’re still pretending like SEO is the holy grail of online marketing. And they’re still banking all their social media coin on social bookmarking. But that’s not what social media is all about.
What it is about is building relationships. It’s about attracting the type of person you want to do business with. Nothing more, nothing less.
When you employ a successful social media campaign, you’ll know in the gut that you’ve made the right connections. And many times that translates into positive SEO. But if that’s your end goal, then you’re doing it wrong.
What’s The Most Effective Social Media Website?
According to a recent survey, Facebook is the most effective social media website. Surprised?
A look at the numbers is really telling:
Very Effective:
- Facebook = 36%
- Twitter = 14%
- Video sharing = 14%
- LinkedIn = 10%
- Review sites = 7%
- Google+ = 5%
- Local/daily deals = 5%
- MySpace = 1%
Moderately effective:
- Facebook = 47%
- Twitter = 32%
- Video sharing = 23%
- LinkedIn = 24%
- Review sites = 12%
- Google+ = 7%
- Local/daily deals = 6%
- MySpace = 2%
Don’t use the site:
- Facebook = 4%
- Twitter = 24%
- Video sharing = 47%
- LinkedIn = 38%
- Review sites = 65%
- Google+ = 70%
- Local/daily deals = 76%
- MySpace = 81%
I don’t think anyone is surprised that more than 80% of small businesses aren’t using MySpace. What is surprising is that 76% of small businesses aren’t using the local and daily deals websites. Or that 65% aren’t using review sites.
While it’s easy to say that Facebook is effective for the small businesses that are using it, it’s really difficult to compare it to sites they aren’t using. Can we really compare?
Who’s to say that review sites and local deals sites wouldn’t be more effective if more businesses didn’t use them?
The question on everyone’s mind is whether or not there is a social media site poised to give Facebook a run for its money. Right now it seems that Google+ might have the mojo, but getting small business owners to try it seems to be the challenge.
If you are a small business owner and you’re ready for social media, are you going to try Facebook? Do you see an alternative?
And Google+ Marches On
The latest development in the Google+ saga is that the search engine is telling searchers how many +1s a particular search result has in their local area. That’s pretty awesome.
The question is, How can this benefit your business?
I look at it as like a metric. It’s nice to know how many +1s your content is getting around the world. For instance, let’s say you write a blog post and within 30 days you discover that it has 200 +1s. But what if you found out that 125 of those +1s were local to you? That would be a useful metric, right?
I think it would certainly be a useful metric if your business is a local business. It can tell you how effective you are at reaching your audience and that’s always good knowledge.
Another thing Google is telling searchers is who shared a particular page of content through Blogger. This could potentially make Blogger a much more valuable piece of real estate for SEO purposes, and for social media marketing purposes.
If Google keeps making these kinds of changes to its SERPs, then Google+ could become a much more valuable social media outlet than people are currently giving it credit for. This is worth keeping an eye on.
Google+ Business Pages Will Improve
It’s just been about three days since Google rolled out business pages for Google+. Already, some people aren’t happy.
It’s not that people don’t have legitimate beefs. They do. Google+ can certainly improve. In fact, many users agree on the top 10 things they’d like to see on Google+.
But let’s get real. Google+ will improve.
I don’t remember a time in its history when Google didn’t make an attempt to continuously improve a product or service it introduced to the public. They may not have succeeded, but they tried. The company has a long list of failures, particularly in the social media realm. But they always try to improve what they’ve made available to users. That’s the way Google operates.
I for one believe that Google+ will improve. Business page for Google+ will improve. There’s no reason to go crying that we haven’t arrived just yet. Perfection is a nebulous goal.
The big question that every business should be asking right now is, Do I need a Google+ account or a Google+ business page right now? I think it’s safe to say that you will likely want one at some time. When you jump on the Google+ bandwagon is up to you and your staff. But now is the time you should start discussing it.
Google+ Rolls Out Business Pages
Google+ Pages for Business are finally here. Some of use have been waiting for these for awhile.
If you’re wondering just what a Google+ business page is, think of it as a Facebook page for Google. There are, of course, some subtle differences between Google+ pages and Facebook pages. One such difference is that you must have a Google+ personal account before you can add a page. But that’s a minor hurdle. I recommend that you get a personal account as well.
So what can you do with a Google+ business page?
For one thing, you can post to Google+. If you’re not sure if that’s a benefit or not, consider these points and then make up your mind.
- Google+ is owned by Google, the largest search engine online. While SEO benefits are currently unproven, you can bet that Google will eventually provide greater weight to personal profiles and business pages for brands.
- Increased online reputation management opportunities.
- Better targeted marketing as you can create circles around your different market segments and communicate with each segment more easily.
- Multiple pages possible, which means you can have one for each product or brand you support as well as each location you serve.
- More effective video marketing since YouTube and Google+ are integrated allowing you to share videos more easily.
- Google+ is the fastest growing social media website in history.
- You can schedule hangouts with your clients and partners and communicate for free with them via video right inside Google+
This is just the tip of the iceberg. Google+ is only going to get better. If you haven’t joined yet, I highly recommend that you do and set up your business pages now.
Is There A Clear Social Media Winner?
Social media sites have risen from nowhere to be the most popular sites online. Facebook is currently the most trafficked website online. It used to be Yahoo! Then Google.
YouTube is the second biggest search engine online. But it’s more of a social media website due to its viral video nature.
Twitter and Google+ are both in the top ten most trafficked sites online as well. And LinkedIn isn’t too far behind.
But the race isn’t over yet. All of the social media sites are working hard every day to improve themselves. The latest, Google+, is constantly improving and growing fast. It could become the second most trafficked website online in a matter of months. And Google is already suggesting that it will be the face of Google in the future. How that will affect its traffic numbers is anybody’s guess.
Who will ultimately win this war between social media websites is indeterminable. What is important for business owners is that you have menu options. You are not stuck using one social media site for your marketing and branding.
In fact, if you aren’t using multiple sites to establish a social media presence, then you aren’t getting the full benefit of social media marketing. The best approach to social media is to analyze the sites for their strengths and determine which ones make most sense for your business, niche, and situation.
How Google+ Ripples Can Expand Your Network
Social networking has become a big part of a lot of people’s day-to-day activities. The latest social network to hit the scene is Google+ and they’ve just added a couple of new features that make social networking even better. One of those features is called Ripples.
Ripples allows you to see what the share trail of a particular item is. You can see who all has shared the post. If you shared a blog post from your own blog and several of your circle friends shared it, then a few of their circle friends shared it, Ripples allows you to see which Google+ users have shared the post.
So why would you want to do that?
First, you can see at a glance, with a graphical representation, just how many shares your post has. But you can also find those Google+ profiles and find new connections. Sharers who are not in your circles can become a part of your circles. I think that’s pretty nifty.
Social networking is not all about linear connections. I think Google understands that more than any other company – even Facebook.
So which social network do you think is stretching the limits on social sharing? Is it Facebook, Twitter, or Google+?
Klout Changes Its Metric
Influence is a measure of your ability to affect others, either for the positive or the ill. Klout is a social media metrics company that attempts to measure influence across a broad range of social media. They’ve recently announced a change in how they measure influence.
The question, are these changes good or bad?
Some people are reporting a drop in Klout score. These are usually social media marketers who started with a high score – in the 70s or 80s. Other social media marketers – mostly those with lower scores – are reporting an increase in their influence. Klout is claiming the changes make its scoring more accurate.
I guess time will tell whether that’s true or not. In the mean time, do you know your Klout score?
I’ve been pretty impressed by Klout. It determines a score of influence based on the number of people you reach, how much you influence them to take actions such as Liking, retweeting, and sharing, and how influential the people you influence are. It isn’t perfect, but it’s a darn sight better than most other social media metrics I’ve seen.
It makes me wonder, though, will we soon be making decisions about who we follow on social media based on their influence scores? I hope not.
Google+ Allows Pseudonyms
If you are an author, artist, performer, or other creative business person who uses pseudonyms in your business for legitimate purposes, then you might be interested to know that you can now use Google+ as your alter ego.
This is a new development for Google+, however, Vic Gundotra, head of Google+, makes it sound like they’ve planned this all along. Maybe they have.
Google+ users have been asking for the ability to use fake names for some time. Now they’ve got their wish. But how does this benefit you?
Anyone who uses a pseudonym for normal business (for instance, Samuel Clemens used the name of Mark Twain), then you can have a Google+. Before now, if your public persona was wrapped up in a pseudonym, then you couldn’t use Google+. You had to use your real name.
This brings up the question, how will Google be able to tell the difference between a legitimate pseudonym and a fake name used for spam? That’s a good question. I suspect that Google has it figured out. If not, we can all expect an onslaught of fake spam accounts to hit our Google+ streams soon.
Business accounts haven’t been rolled out yet on Google+, but Google says they’re coming. When they do, that should boost your social networking abilities.
11 Reasons To Give Google+ A Try
If you’ve had one eye on Gogole+ and the other trying to figure out why you’d try it, let me give you 11 reasons why you should try it. You don’t have to leave Facebook and Twitter behind, and you don’t have to spend all your time on Google+ checking out your friends. But if you run a business, Google+ can be your friend.
11 reasons to try Google+ now:
- Every time you use Google+ your Google profile rises in search. Give yourself more search prominence.
- Because Google+ is owned by the largest search engine online you can bet there will be search benefits in some fashion.
- There is a built in local component with the tie-in between Google Maps and Google Places and Google+
- You can use your Circles for better targeting of your prospects.
- Google+ business accounts are soon on the way.
- Sharing YouTube videos is much easier through Google+
- Google Picasa allows you to share photos easier through Google+ and you have unlimited photo storage.
- Google Hangouts.
- Google+ allows you to add hundreds of new people to network with one click through Circle sharing.
- You can set the privacy for each component of your Google+ profile.
- It’s easy to use.
So how many more reasons do you need? Google+ offers you the best in search and social. Try it.
What’s A Good Social Media Metric?
It’s funny, but if you go to many marketing conferences or read marketing blogs, then you’ll soon find out there is no real consensus among online marketers about what makes for a good social media metric. Some marketers talk about “return on influence” while others talk about “reach.” And others don’t have a clue. But what’s really important?
Should you measure how many Likes you have? What about Retweets? Is it important to keep an eye on the number of shares or followers you’ve acquired?
While it might be nice to see that you have ten thousand followers, it doesn’t really make much sense to pat yourself on the back if none of those followers translate into sales. The only real metric you should be concerned about is what affects your bottom line. Are your social media efforts leading to an increase in business?
Contrary to what some social media marketers teach, you can measure your effectiveness. But you’ll never figure it out by counting your followers and fans or your retweets. Instead, set concrete goals for your social media marketing and measure your results according to those goals.
For instance, set up a landing page just for your social media marketing efforts and measure how much traffic you drive to that landing page through social media, then see how many conversions you get.
Social media measurement doesn’t have to be hard. It just has to be done.
Is StumbleUpon Headed For Greatness?
Ask any Web marketer and they’ll tell you 100% growth in one year is fantastic. Ask them if 100% growth for a website that already has 10 million users is fantastic and they’ll tell you it’s phenomenal. This is the boat StumbleUpon is in. The site has reached the 20 million user mark.
So what’s that mean for you?
If you haven’t started using StumbleUpon yet, then now may be a good time. And I don’t mean just as a user. I also mean as a Web marketer.
Share your content, discover other people’s content, and give a big thumbs up to the content that you like. That’s how StumbleUpon works. It’s simple, it’s streamlined, and many people are finding it to be fun. I think you will too.
If you do use StumbleUpon, keep in mind why you are there. Don’t get lost in the shuffle of great websites. Spend a few minutes each day making friends, sharing content, stumbling sites, and thumbing up what you like. But don’t go overboard. You do have a business to run, you know.
I’d say add StumbleUpon to your regular routine of bookmarking sites to visit on a regular basis. It now is one of the most trafficked websites online.