Social Media Marketing, How Shopping Has Come On In 10 Years

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Social Media Marketing, How Shopping Has Come On In 10 Years

Who would have thought that 2010 would come so quickly? 10 years ago we were gearing up for the biggest New Year’s Eve party ever. I imagined by 2010 there would be jet packs, flying cars and alien abductions (did I mention I was 11 years old 10 years ago?). I couldn’t have been more wrong. However times have changed a massive amount especially when it comes to the internet. I remember our family buying our first computer; we all had to share it. We all must remember the slow dial up connection, having to unplug the modem from the phone socket whenever anybody wanted to use the phone or planning your time to make the most of the pay as you go time you had. How times have changed, imagine if we had to do such things now. I mean speeds are so fast you can download full movies in a matter of minutes in some cases.

As the times have changed and internet speeds have become faster, more people are buying computers and laptops. Our house for instance has 2 PC’S and 2 Laptops with an extremely fast connection. We are all constantly on the internet and I especially am partial to a spot of internet shopping and seem to always be on Facebook. Millions of people like myself shop online, sometimes it’s easier as people are unable to leave the house but I personally like the choice you have online. It extends so much further than the shops I could go to in my area, most of which are now out of business due to the global recession. The internet is becoming the preferred way to buy and I personally think will wipe out most shops in years to come.

Many people are noticing this too, and are taking full advantage of the opportunities you have starting an online business (Ecommerce store) and the larger scale of people you can target. Back to what I mentioned before, I use Facebook a lot as well as Twitter and YouTube. These are massive social networking sites with millions upon millions of members. They have massively grown over the past 10 years and are now being fully taken advantage of by businesses wishing to market their brand and gain new customers. I get a lot of attention from businesses using social media marketing but it is all relevant to what I like. I chose who I follow on Twitter and chose what I watch on YouTube and Facebook cleverly markets to you by what you talk about and what you state your interests are. It does work and I often click through adverts and links presented to me.

If you are a business owner and are thinking about starting an Ecommerce store to generate more sales you will need to work hard as it isn’t just about making a website and BOOM! Rich!

You will have to market it correctly. This means optimising your site and using adverts to gain the right audience. Lots of companies specialise in Internet Marketing and can really push you in the right direction.

Now I bet you didn’t predict this 10 years ago. It’s obvious to think about flying cars and jet packs but come on! We are far more intelligent than that, they have probably been invented but are highly impractical when you think about it. This is something I doubt anybody would have predicted and it’s quite exiting to imagine what I will be writing about in another 10 years time.

Physicians Use Social Media to Generate Business

admin    Social Media     Business, Generate, Media, Physicians, Social

Physicians Use Social Media to Generate Business

In these tough times for every industry, healthcare continues to add jobs. And while these numbers may suggest that healthcare is recession proof the facts reveal this may not be the case. Despite continued job creation in the healthcare industry, the bad news continues to mount massive layoffs at pharmaceutical companies, multiple hospital closings, health plans struggling, etc. And with the uncertainty surrounding the impact of new legislation, many healthcare providers are fearful for their futures.

These are unsettling times for every industry, but the overall outlook for healthcare is still positive. You already know the reasons for the projected growth aging baby boomers, technological advances, longer life spans, even healthcare reform. These long-term forces will continue to drive job growth in the industry, but it doesnt mean physicians arent worried about the impact that the recession and other circumstances may have on future earnings.

Around the country, patients are facing financial hardships affecting their ability to seek medical care. According to a recent MDsearch Income Survey, 61% of physician respondents have seen a decrease in patient traffic, and 64% have seen a decrease in elective procedures. The downturn isnt surprising because for most patients, job loss is accompanied by the loss of health insurance, and even those who still have coverage are facing rising co-pays. The recession is causing a shift in patients priorities, and money now seems better spent on gas and groceries than anything less than emergency medical services.

While most physicians are not worried about losing their employment, they are concerned about the drop in patient visits and what that means for their income. Nearly half (47%) of the MDsearch survey respondents earned less in 2008 than they did in 2007, and 57% projected that they would earn less in 2009 than they did in 2007.

Can Social Media Save the Day?

Physicians of all specialties are concerned about their incomes, and many are taking matters into their own hands. In an effort to promote themselves and their practice or facility, physicians are using free online mediums like Facebook, Twitter, and blogs to engage with current patients and reach out to new ones. One of the most popular physician bloggers, Dr. Kevin Pho, author of KevinMD, has this to say about why doctors and nurses should engage in social media:

Its to a health professionals benefit to have some sort of online presence. Not only to engage and provoke discussion, but also to make them pro-active in the information associated with them when their name is Googled.

More patients will be searching for doctors and hospitals via search engines, and being active in blogs, Facebook and Twitter allows you to define your online reputation. Going forward, this will be one of the more important reasons why doctors, nurses, and medical institutions should have a robust social media presence.

But physicians arent acting alone. According to a recent article in the Jackson & Coker Industry Report, at least 367 hospitals have created accounts on Facebook, Twitter, and/or You Tube, and a number of hospitals have blogs authored by their CEOs in an effort to personalize their message.

The overwhelming popularity of social media has certainly not gone unnoticed by the healthcare profession. Physicians are just beginning to explore how these new tools can help them create an online presence. Healthcare may not be totally recession proof, but with the help of tools like Facebook, Twitter, You Tube and blogs, healthcare providers and facilities have new ways to engage with consumers and foster growth in the industry.

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Alex Mandossian Uses Social Media Marketing to Boost Productivity

admin    Social Media     Alex, Boost, Mandossian, Marketing, Media, Productivity, Social, Uses

Alex Mandossian Uses Social Media Marketing to Boost Productivity

Alex Mandossian serves as an example of the ultramodern marketing guru who knows the power of one of the Internet’s most potent phenomenon—Social Media. Social Media started as a way for friends to connect with friends and for people to find new friends. But now it’s one of the most viral methods of marketing available on the Web that can boost your productivity. For Mandossian, Social Media is for those who want to take command of the Internet and use Social Marketing to be discovered, get seen, attract traffic and make cash.

Social Media and Hits

If you’re using Social Media sights, then your chances of being found escalate as these will help enhance your presence in searches. The more people you can attract to the Social Media sites you use the better your chances of being found by others in Internet searches. A good example of this is Mandossian’s Facebook site that is subscribed to by thousands of people.

Social Media and Views

Utilizing Social Media will allow people to not only find you but also to view your information, access any helpful content you provide and follow links to your primary site. Providing content rich pages that will attract people to your Social Media sites will help drive traffic to you.

Social Media and Traffic

Once you start getting found and people begin viewing you via Social Media, as Mandossian shows through his Facebook site, then you can point them in the direction of your primary site. In this way, Social Media sites create a sort of natural flow to you, allowing people to garner more information about you and your product or service.

Social Media and Profits

Following his Facebook link to Mandossian’s primary site, you’ll discover plenty of free, useful information. That’s an essential part of using Social Media as a marketing tool. When people get to your primary site, as well as your Social Media site, it’s important that it is content rich. The fact that you’ve given visitors important information for free will help convince them to purchase your products or services. By using Social Media, as Mandossian has, you’ve created a direct link to your online business and products.

Alex Mandossian: a Practical Example

Mandossian’s use of Social Media marketing works in a straightforward manner with the result being a rise in productivity. Those who find him on Facebook have access to helpful content and can then follow links to his site where they discover a very useful blog that’s updated on a daily basis. They can also purchase his products easily and quickly.

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Your social media marketing success starts now

admin    Social Media     Marketing, Media, Social, starts, Success

Your social media marketing success starts now

Just getting started in social media? While the concept of trial and error is accepted and even encouraged as you consider which channel works best for your business, it doesn’t diminish the importance of first impressions. Here are three areas you need to get right first time and they’re non-negotiable.

1. Consistency in branding

I’ve been pimping it out a lot lately, but namechk.com is indispensable for trans-channel/multi-platform planning. You can check the availability of usernames across all the popular social networks and ensure your usernames and URLs are consistent from day one. Pick a name that is clear and concise over cute and creative. Remember platforms like Twitter benefit from short, snappy handles so think about how you can abbreviate your username to suit.

2. Give good name

Endless hours of brainstorming and brightly coloured post-it notes may have secured you a funky/cheeky/hilarious/rhyming/inspiredbyyourcat name for your latest project but does it pass the Facebook test? Before you enter your FB page name, consider how it will share across news feeds. If a fan has “John Pickle likes pagename” in their news feed, will they be inspired to click it? You can’t change your page name and it’d be a shame to waste thousands of fans once you realise your name isn’t conducive to organic growth.

3. Acknowledge your toe dipping

Twitter can be a slow start for many – you signed up for an account but everything else seems a little overwhelming. That’s fine, most people take their time to settle into the swing of things. What you should do is make sure you’ve got a profile picture, a bio, a link to your website (or any site that is in full swing) and a first tweet acknowledging that this may be a slow process yet you’ve got plans to do great things. A blank account gives visitors nothing so set a good foundation. Each network has its intrinsic quirks that require a carefully considered plan of attack however keeping these three points in mind will be a step in the right direction.

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Succeed in Social Media Marketing through these 4 Steps

admin    Social Media     Marketing, Media, Social, Steps, Succeed, These, Through

Succeed in Social Media Marketing through these 4 Steps

Information about search engine optimisation (SEO) and social media marketing (SMM) have been overflowing that an average reader will really be confused on what strategy works best. If you’re just starting out in internet marketing, you’ll probably be baffled by the different tips being offered by different websites. In the end, it all comes down to understanding the basics of it. Once you’ll know the basics, knowing new techniques and strategies will now be easy.

These steps are composed of: Listening, Creating, Connecting, and Measuring. Everything should start with “listening” though. By this, it means monitoring trends, doing your research, and finding out what people are up to. Below are other details about the four steps:

Listening – there are a lot of research tools that can let you mine valuable data from online consumers. Don’t let these free, or sometimes paid, tools go to waste if they can be useful for your company. Keywords that are useful for your company should be identified and used. Additionally, the data on social sites including Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter can be analysed effectively. Take particular note of influencers in their network of friends and fans. When you get them to talk about you, brands can grow organically.

Creating – it has been said many times but we’ll repeat it here “content is king”. It is true in more ways than one. Content has been identified as the key ingredient to achieving and maintaining high search engine ranking. It is way of creating, optimising, and marketing text, images, videos, and other forms of information. Depending on the niche you’re in, success can go either way. Some sites are focused on timeless content while others are geared to providing the latest news.

Connecting – the internet is inherently a social place so go socialise! Find out what your target market is doing on the internet and become part of their network. It becomes simpler to know them after that. It is also essential not to fall into the mistake of ceasing to grow. That is, when you start, you painstakingly grow friends, fans, and followers. But once this is established, you stop. Invest the time and effort in socialising with more people.

Measuring – the results of every effort should be gauged. How else will you know whether you’re effective or not? There are different metrics that can be used. Some of these include the number of followers you got, the extent of your network, and the improvement in web traffic.

No matter if your company is small or large, the four steps to social media marketing is still helpful. The cycle should repeat itself many times over throughout the duration of your campaign.

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Digg as a Social Media / Branding Platform

admin    Social Media     Branding, Digg, Media, Platform, Social

Digg as a Social Media / Branding Platform

Social bookmarking, or the activity of highlighting and categorising interesting content for general consumption, has proved extremely popular, especially over the last few years.

Sites such as Digg can be very useful in finding information and even more convenient as a news feed or RSS feed. You are able to customise your favourite topics and enjoy relevant content in your chosen format, whether it be videos/images or written text.

While social bookmarking may still be a strange concept to many, the potential for social engagement and conversation is unavoidable. The communities on sites like Digg not only power the service, but are more active than you may think – sharing links across Twitter, Facebook and various other social media platforms.

The Social Digg Community
The Digg community is convenient when it comes to sharing and discussing links and stories with old friends, or even branching out and finding a new audience. Here are some ways to improve your diggability:
– Add a Digg favicon to your blog template. This will allow readers to submit your blog or individual posts to Digg and share your content with their social circle and beyond.
– Add a link from your blog, website or LookupPage profile to your Digg profile. Digg have embeddable badges which make it easier for you to be contacted via Digg.
– View your friend’s activities and see how they choose to participate, not only in the Digg environment, but across the entirety of the web – this can be very handy when it comes to understanding your audience and broadening your perspective.
– Click and connect. Easily import your friends from your contact list on other platforms such as Gmail or Outlook, and invite your friends who aren’t yet on Digg.
– Comment on the submissions and listings of others, and spark up interesting conversation or debate to be noticed in the online arena.
– Create your profile with your Personal Branding guidelines in mind, and link between your current social media profiles. Technically, these outgoing links won’t be a vehicle for search engine spiders, but will allow you to be found and contacted easily between social media platforms.

4 Ways To Use Social Media Effectively

admin    Social Media     Effectively, Media, Social, Ways

4 Ways To Use Social Media Effectively

Social media is a powerful medium to disseminate information on the internet. No one should ignore the power of social media when it comes to current trends and spreading the “in” thing going on. It was once said that social media will transform the way things work on the internet many years ago. Over a period of time, a huge number of social media platforms and networks mushroomed and populated almost every corner of the internet.

Today, almost none of us can live without social media. Are you skeptical about this statement? Then ask yourself are you using Facebook? If you are not a skeptic of social media, let me explain to you briefly in 4 ways how to use social media effectively.

Generate Fresh Content

Apart from being the driving force of the internet, content is very important for social media. Content not as in factual or informational content but more of what sets the trend for any niche in the social media universe. Understanding what is popular amongst the masses can greatly help with generating content. It is no longer effective to tweet 140 characters of generalized content but much more effective to tweet 140 characters of specific content to your followers.

In addition to that, keep your content fresh and current. If you have a blog, add snippets of your blog posts on the internet. This is also a great way to introduce people to your blog from social media networks. Again, remember get it targeted for your blog niche.

Tagging and Bookmarking

Tagging and bookmarking helps brings out the word to social media networks easily and instantly. This feature is an essential part of social media networks. Although Facebook has now infamously brought this feature to a whole new level with their “Like” feature, Digg and Stumbld are among the other popular ones you should use.  Be sure to bookmark good content and add the tag feature to the bottom area of your article or blog.

Reward Those Who Promote You

If you have a blog with a big following on twitter chances are your followers might really like what you are doing and promote your blog on their social network. Reward them by placing their contact or recommend them on your website. You are not only helping to build backlinks for them. This way of rewarding them will secure a more lasting relationship with them.

They might also be people who would like to publish content on your website or blog. I’m sure you must have seen retweets. Retweets are totally acceptable and they can spread info like wildfire on social networks. You can do this for tags. If I find something interesting about a tag, I will surely re-tag it and this will then get distributed across the social media network.

One word of advice is to be careful about rewarding those who only to scam and tarnish your name. You are better off finding good quality followers then going for quantity of followers.

Be the Source of All Information

Some people stand out amongst the huge crowd on Facebook or Twitter simply because they are the source of all information. They’ve become such an authority with what they are doing, people simply gravitate to them. Of course this takes time to achieve and you might need to build your reputation. On the other hand, you can build your reputation along the way by turning yourself into a valuable asset that people would not want to resist.

Turn your talents, gifts or experience into a resource in your niche. Developing your site and making it a place where people would go for helpful information about your topic will increase your credibility and make you the invaluable resource.

A lot of people use social media but the 4 ways explained above is a good guide to helping you use social media effectively.

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Make Social Media Marketing Work For Your Real Estate Agency

admin    Social Media     Agency, Estate, Marketing, Media, Real, Social, Work

Make Social Media Marketing Work For Your Real Estate Agency

Many real estate agents find social media marketing is not a very effective tool for them since they do not use it well. By learning how to make it work for your real estate agency, you can see an increase in your web traffic and potentially get more clients.

Facebook is useful, but instead of making a fan page for yourself, create one that is information focused and sponsored by your agency. You’re more likely to get fans this way and more people will share your links to the information than on you alone. If you want to have one for yourself, just make a general page and not a fan page.

Videos and podcasts can also help you increase your value within the community. These short videos are useful to people and they can be important since it can help identify you as an expert in your topic. The more of an expert you are, the more potential clients remember who you are and will share the information to others. Always make sure that you have a link to your own website on every video and podcast that you have.

Use blogging to your advantage. You can add the videos to your blog which can make it more interesting to a greater number of people. Make the blog have useful content as well, since this can help you increase your web ranking and can make you more likely to have your name associated as the go to agent.

Useful content is so important to have on every post that you make because it gives people information instead of just an advertisement. This can also help make you known as an expert in the real estate business which in turn makes your posts more important to the people that need it. Search engines also use content to rank your web page on the results and you’re more likely to get your links for your site shares which makes your web presence grow.

Back linking is also important because you’re more likely to add traffic to your web sites with them. Add them to places like digg and Stumbleupon so that people can discover them and search engine spiders can find you easily.

Social media marketing is an affordable and easy way to get your agency to the public. You’ll be able to allow potential clients to find you and gain a larger web presence using this undervalued marketing plan.

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5 Social Media Secrets That Work Effectively For Offline Networking

admin    Social Media     Effectively, Media, Networking, Offline, Secrets, Social, Work

5 Social Media Secrets That Work Effectively For Offline Networking

Social media has created an Internet phenomenon and has taken online networking to a dynamic level. Do you ever wonder why social media is so successful? It’s viral and it spreads quickly – just like word-of-mouth spreads quickly in offline networking.

When you meet people for the first time, take a few lessons from the social media gurus and apply their secret tactics to your offline networking strategy.

Secret #1- Social means both talking and listening. Listening is just as important as talking

When you interact on a forum or leave comments on a blog, you first read what the other person wrote and then you comment. If you constantly leave comments about yourself and don’t interact and comment off-topic, you will make a bad first impression.  Other members will ignore you.

This same philosophy applies when you are first introduced to people. You want to learn about them and ask questions. How can you learn about a person if you are constantly talking about yourself? Pay attention, listen and ask appropriate questions according to the conversation topic.

Secret #2- Widgets that instantly find thousands of followers don’t always give the best return on investment

Social media gurus always tout the benefits of handy widgets that automate Facebook and Twitter followers. Do you realize that the 5,000 people you just added probably won’t be interested in your products or services? You just wasted time and money adding people who don’t care about what you’re pitching.

Use this same social media approach when you attend networking events and collect business cards. Don’t just pitch your products/services to just anyone you meet. Talk to people who might actually benefit from what you offer. It doesn’t make sense to attend a networking event filled with seniors if you are a nightclub owner whose target audience is 21 year-old college students.

Secret #3- Freebies don’t always mean more subscribers, BUT worthwhile freebies make all the difference

Freebies don’t always mean instant success. Contests don’t always draw thousands of new members to your site either.  In the social media world, if you make your prize too abstract or unappealing, you will drive away visitors.

This social media tactic also applies to freebies offered in the offline world. If you attend networking events and conduct raffles or contests, make your prizes worthwhile for guests. Target your audience and get inside their heads. You want your guests to actually use the product or service you’re giving away.

•    How will this freebie benefit the contest winner?

•    Will this freebie make them contact me for more services or products?

Secret #4- Don’t scare away others with the “me me me” syndrome

If you start every blog comment or tweet with “I did” or “I want” then you are headed down the “me me me” syndrome path.  Social media is all about helping others. Being an expert in your field doesn’t mean acting like an egomaniac.

If you start every networking conservation with “I” you will be met with glazed over expressions. Don’t be surprised when people make excuses to leave the conversation. Remember the “social” in social media and apply that to your offline conversations. Social means give and take – social doesn’t mean a one-sided, it’s all about me conversation.

Secret #5- Always use professional Net-iquette

Don’t come across as rude or condescending in your Facebook or Twitter updates. You never know who will come across your updates in the cyber world, and how it can come back to haunt you.

This tip should always be applied to offline networking. Always remember to practice professional, ethical etiquette whenever you meet new people. Think before you speak, and remember that you represent your company/business. First impressions make a lasting impression, so always put your best face forward.

If you liked this article, tell all your friends about it. They’ll thank you for it. If you have a blog or website, you can link to it or even post it to your own site (don’t forget to mention www.meetingwave.com as the original source).

John Boyd is a professional networking expert and founder of MeetingWave, a community where people connect online to meet offline: http://www.MeetingWave.com

Social Media: Changes in Online Communication

admin    Social Media     Changes, Communication, Media, Online, Social

Social Media: Changes in Online Communication

Evolution occurs in all areas of life, including technology. As shifting factors merge, we begin to see an evolution in communication patterns. In order to follow the growth and evolution of communication, Charles Darwin’s survival of the fittest theory must be factored in. In the simplest of terms, which of the following forms of communication is the fittest for today’s world: newspapers or social media? The answer is quite obvious.

Now that most of us have converted some—if not all—of our marketing strategies from print media to online platforms, we can delve deeper into the evolution of communication and discover key strategies for surviving in the social media marketing world.

Most companies and social media users only skim the surface of social media marketing. We know how to post a tweet, post on Facebook, write on our friends’ walls, and bookmark a post we love. But these activities are merely skimming the surface of social media. The average posts and tweets aren’t going to cut it; there needs to be a level of value and intelligence in your posts.

As more and more new forms of social media arise and older platforms continue to grow and change, it’s difficult to understand each and every one in its entirety—especially when you have a business to run.

For this reason, many businesses seem to be following one specific generic formula: post a video, post a picture, post company updates, and interact with others. That’s great and all, but what does that even mean?

There needs to be a deeper analysis of these elements in order for you to survive and stand out above your competition (who is most likely following the same generic formula).

What makes an engaging photo? What inspires consumers to watch your videos and take that extra step to contact you? And what’s the point in interacting with others, and how can you build a relationship from this interaction? The answer is simple. Use your brand message in all that you do as a way to connect to your target audience’s needs and desires. The implementation of broadcasting your brand message, on the other hand, is not as simple.

Below are two steps required to break free from the generic social media marketing formula, evolve with communication, and rise above the competition:

1. Don’t chase the crowd—stay on top of it: Imagine running in a race. Those with more endurance and strength are going to lead the pack. The stragglers are holding onto the end of the line with dear life, but will eventually get tired and fall. Anyone can stay at the top of the race—you just have to have the right strength and the endurance to continue to succeed.

Your strength in social media marketing: Knowledge. Understand how social media works and how social media users behave. Specifically, understand how your target audience behaves on social media sites, and engage your prospects with your unique brand message. When you stop learning about new social media sites and the capabilities that all social media sites have, you’ll move further and further back on the chain.
Your endurance in social media marketing: The right attitude and the ability to believe in the power of your brand message. Never stop.

2. Refine your brand message and tactfully embed it in all you do on social media: You have two options: continue to market your business on social media based on a generic formula, or break outside of the box and showcase your unique brand message. Option two is the way to go if you want to succeed in today’s world of communication.

If you’re not projecting an accurate brand message on social media platforms because you are unclear about what your brand message is, it’s nearly impossible to connect with your target audience and engage them. The key to engaging your target audience is understanding your brand message and incorporating this messaging into everything you do and say online.

Our conclusion: The people who are looking deeper into the capabilities of social media are the ones who are going to survive in the world of online communication and marketing. The ones who continue to skim the surface of these complex communication realms are the ones who will vanish along with the outdated forms of media.

Discover simple marketing strategies to attract and convert prospects. My bimonthly ezine, Sumer’s Secrets is packed with tips on how to improve your web copy, promote your website, and market your brand.  Sign up and receive a FREE report on creating web copy that will increase sales and site traffic.

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