Posts Tagged social media trends
Put a Public Face on Your Social Media Strategy
Posted by Rory Martin in Social Networking on November 27, 2012
Here at RoryMartin.com, we talk a lot about branding as part of a good social media strategy. At a very basic level, branding is about how we want a potential customer to feel, and what we want them to think, when they see our company out and about – in advertising, on Twitter, being interviewed…
Being interviewed? How can a ‘company’ get interviewed?
When it comes to branding there is one school of thought which believes that people are more likely to connect with a person, than with a faceless corporation. You will most likely agree with this theory, but it’s probable that you will also have ‘good’ feelings when you see a Coca-Cola advert. Of course, Coke have millions of dollars to spend on advertising and marketing, and their branding is all pervasive.
Small to medium companies with rather smaller budgets for getting their brand in front of people may benefit from having a spokesperson or public face of the company. This way, a company can go the usual branding route with online networking and information dissemination but also send their public face out to meetings, networking events, and conferences to relate to potential customers on a personal level. Having a spokesperson, who is represented as an expert in their field, also provides the opportunity for guest-posting, and being interviewed!, on other industry blogs and websites, which then creates link-backs to the company website, as well as positive feeling towards the spokesperson, and therefore the company.
There can be a downside to have a public face on a company, however. Firstly, what if they were to leave the company! Some fashion companies have avoided this by having anonymous public faces, such as @OscarPRGirl who ‘reports’ from inside Oscar De La Renta, and which could be authored by anyone. Secondly, the public face on a company should live according to the company’s ethos at all times when they are in public. As a representative of the brand, it would be hugely detrimental for them to be found acting in such a way as did not represent the brand. This is ultimately quite a responsibility.
What do you think? Do you have a public face for your company? How has it worked for you? Have you ever had any problems with this marketing route?
How Much do Social Signals Improve Page Rank
Posted by Rory Martin in Search Engine Optimization on September 4, 2012
At RoryMartin.com we stress the importance of a fully-integrated social media strategy for your company’s branding. Social media improves customer relations, draws in potential new customers, and allows your company to discover where improvements can be made to your business, directly from your customers. Social media increases the trust that your current and potential clients have in your company, and increases the liklihood of positive and immediate referrals from customers to their friends and followers.
However, a recent article on the SEOmoz blog asks the question “Do Improved Social Signals Cause Improved Rankings?” which is clearly a contentious issue for many social media consultants! The comments range from skepticism, to outrage, to full-on agreement.
The keyword in this question about social signals is ’cause’. How do you determine the final result of social signals?
Many of you will already be saying to yourselves that you’ve seen your website, or certain pages, go up in page rankings after having a link tweeted by a few influential tweeters, but as the article says – correlation does not equal causation. It’s often true that after a week or so, once people have moved on to the next fresh and exciting piece of content and have stopped tweeting and retweeting your piece, that you see search engine rankings drop once again.
The Freshness Factor
Some social media experts attribute this to a ‘freshness factor’ – the idea that search engines prefer new(er) content. Some say that during the period in which a link is being retweeted, it will also be linked to from websites. This may even be due to people who have their tweets displayed on their website. If they link to you in a tweet, it will appear on their website – but only until their new tweets push yours off.
It’s a complicated piece, and a complicated argument to make! When we see a number of social signals, or see an influential social signal coming into a website, and then see the page rankings shoot up, we want to attribute one to the other – whether this is true or not.
There are a couple of important takeaways from this in-depth research on social signals.
The first is that regardless of how many influential people you can ask to share a link, most people will only share good quality content. It may even be that what causes both the shares and the improved page rank is the quality of the piece. Focus on creating top quality content and your piece will garner a wide range of social signals, and move up the page rankings.
The second takeaway is that whether or not Google follows Twitter or Facebook links and uses them to attribute better page rankings to sites, social signals are still important. Having an integrated social media strategy means that more people will see your new piece sooner than not. This then leads to, not only social shares, but also links from websites – links which we know do affect SEO. The more people who view the piece, the more people are likely to create SEO-affecting links.
At RoryMartin.com we work to create integrated social media strategies for companies which involve top quality content that is infinitely shareable. What do you think of this research?
Make the Most of Linkedin for Your Business
Posted by Rory Martin in Social Networking on July 28, 2011
As a web design and web development, search engine optimization, search engine marketing and social media marketing firm, we like to keep on top of the trends – and exploring trends on LinkedIn is no exception. We stumbled across this article that boasts 10 LinkedIn Tips for Professionals, that says:
Despite the hype over Twitter and Facebook, Linkedin offers the greatest opportunity for professionals to make connections that lead to business.
We agreed with Ian Brody’s article, especially the following tips
1. Don’t make your profile look like your resumé. Brody says that the number one temptation when setting up a LinkedIn profile is to fill in all those prior job slots, but that’s ineffective where LinkedIn is concerned. The business connections that you’re looking for are going to want to see solution-oriented details. Add the business name and title, leave out things like, “managed four people who perform business-related tasks.” Explain where you went above and beyond the basic job task, improved something, saved money, or where you were excelled and were just plain awesome.
2. Find Connections – Know your Strategy. LinkedIn is social, and there are a lot of professional networks on LinkedIn, where you can flex your knowledge and show off your skills – for example, you might find us in the LikeSocialMedia.com group. Of course, like any social network, it’s best to get a feel for the pulse of the community. Listen, watch and learn; find out what other pros in your industry are doing and saying and be cautious at first about sharing dissent. Like anywhere (or any social network) first impressions are lasting impressions. And Ian Brody notes, “Create a connection strategy to build valuable discussion.”
3. Ian Brody suggests updating your status to remind people what you do, and what you’re currently working on. If you connect with a lot of people, staying current with status messages can do anything from help you connect with someone who’s looking for YOUR expertise to keeping you up to date on news in your field, to helping you and your brand grow in ways that your clientele are looking for.
What do you think readers? Have anything to add to Brody’s tips for LinkedIn?
If you’re curious about how to use LinkedIn for your business, contact RoryMartin.com to find a strategy that fits your social networking needs, as well as the social tools that simplify your social media integration. We offer a comprehensive set of services from website design and web development to search engine optimization and search engine marketing and social media marketing. If you need creative ideas, easy implementation, and a limited investment into your social media campaign, RoryMartin.com has experts available to assess your needs, provide excellent customer service and innovative marketing tactics before you’ve even signed a contract.
The State of LinkedIn
Posted by Rory Martin in Social Media Marketing, Social Networking on July 12, 2011
Have you ever wondered how LinkedIn actually affects your business? Ever asked yourself why LinkedIn is important to your company’s potential? At RoryMartin.com, we’ve been researching ways for businesses to use LinkedIn to build a better social media strategy.
Having your business profile out there on the web WILL help increase your organic search results, so if you’re not optimizing sites like LinkedIn, you’re not fully optimizing your search engine potential. LinkedIn also helps your business look more complete, and is an established tool for reputation management – especially through customer testimonials.
LinkedIn is also a powerful tool to analyze your company and its connections through your employee network. An article on Mashable notes that, “…it will automatically calculate your company’s median age, top schools, and other companies that they are well-connected to.” This can be effective for recruiting job candidates, and networking in your industry. Through LinkedIn you have the ability to post polls, and receive answers, letting your business know what your clients are interested in, and keeping you up to date on industry standards.
If you’re curious about how to use LinkedIn for your business, contact RoryMartin.com to find a strategy that fits your social networking needs, as well as the social tools that simplify your social media integration. We offer a comprehensive set of services from website design and web development to search engine optimization and search engine marketing and social media marketing. If you need creative ideas, easy implementation, and a limited investment into your social media campaign, RoryMartin.com has experts available to assess your needs, provide excellent customer service and innovative marketing tactics before you’ve even signed a contract.
Time Your Social Media Efforts for Maximum Effect
Posted by Rory Martin in Social Media Marketing, Social Networking on June 30, 2011
We found a cool infographic on the best times to send out social media posts. We like to couple this with the Problogger strategy for blog postings when we’re considering the best way to send out social media messages. This is a great infographic to keep in mind – especially if you’re using something like HootSuite to schedule your posts. The original post says,
Included are stats for Facebook and Twitter on what days and times are best to maximize the audience size and the possibility that your content will be both found and shared.
As a Seattle Web Design company that specializes in Seattle Search Engine Optimization and Seattle Social Media Marketing, RoryMartin.com can help you build a Social Media Strategy that reflects your unique brand, draws and keeps visitors on your page. We help implement exciting content and social tools that will make your business stand out. From a one-time site analysis to full search engine optimization strategy and execution, RoryMartin.com can help your business grow.
The World, in Social Networks
Posted by Rory Martin in Social Media Marketing, Social Networking on June 24, 2011
We found a cool infographic from Vincenzo Cosenza’s blog (Vincos.it) showing the world in Social Networks. Vincenzo says,
Facebook is slowing gaining users around the world (almost 700 millions) establishing its leadership in 119 out of 134 countries analyzed (in this edition I’ve added Ethiopia and Tanzania).
Europe has now became the largest continent on Facebook with 205 million users…
It’s interesting to look at how these numbers have changed this year.
Facebook is by far the social network winner here, so we encourage our clients to make sure they have a solid presence on Facebook and are actively engaging their customers. Need to know what goes into your Facebook strategy? In this article we tell you how to make an impact on Facebook.
RoryMartin.com is that secret weapon that will revolutionize the way you engage with your clients and end-users. We offer a comprehensive set of services from website design and web development to search engine optimization, search engine marketing and social media marketing for companies large and small.
The New Landscape of Social Media Marketing
Posted by Rory Martin in Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing, Social Networking on June 20, 2011
Navigating the new marketing landscape means knowing which marketing tactics are effective, and which tactics are outdated. Improving the visibility of your website has become a marketing priority, yet it can be frustrating since competition for rankings is intense. As many businesses lack the time or cashflow to continuously monitor, report and adjust their strategy, the results of many social media marketing campaigns are often poor. If you’re struggling to boost your page rank, you may need to adapt your SEO and social media strategy to reflect the new trends in social media marketing and search engine optimization.
If you’re not embracing social media as a business, you’re missing out on one of the biggest marketing tools available. Using tools like Facebook and Twitter actually boost your search engine rankings, making your website more visible to search engines like Google. Consider how much content is shared on Facebook each day – users spend approximately 22% of their Internet time in social media, making social media a priority for any company that wants to be visible.
Of course, just hiring an intern may not do the trick. While social media can be a valuable marketing campaign tool, it’s often a commitment. Hiring a professional will ensure that you get the best results from your brand’s digital communications. You want someone who can represent your brand and company, not just the message behind your brand. Social media has become an avenue for customer service, sales inquiries and ongoing questions – you want someone who understands your audience, and can think out of the box in a way that is both specific and familiar to your client base.
Hiring a professional will ensure that your message, and your core product do not get lost in a sea of irrelevant information. Anyone who’s been on the web knows just how much junk the web holds – having a true professional on your team will ensure that your relevant keywords and terms drive traffic to your page. A professional can tell you which information to include and which information is irrelevant. They can help you streamline your content, showing off your product’s benefits in a straightforward way. A social media professional can also help you determine terms that are broad and wide reaching, and help you optimize key words and phrases so that your site gets a good SEO ranking.
Content is still key on the web, and having someone who knows your brand, your clients and your company will ensure that users come to your website because you are an authority. Social media is all about providing something of value to your customers. You need interesting and relevant content, you need high-quality inbound and outbound links. You need customer interaction that is fun and info-rich. Monitoring industry key words and phrases will continually provide feedback on what your customer or audience is interested in, making a tailored social media strategy easier to attain.
RoryMartin.com is that secret weapon that will revolutionize the way you engage with your clients and end-users. We offer a comprehensive set of services from website design and web development to search engine optimization and search engine marketing and social media marketing. If you need creative ideas, easy implementation, and a limited investment into your social media campaign, RoryMartin.com has experts available to assess your needs, provide excellent customer service and innovative marketing tactics before you’ve even signed a contract.
The Periodic Table of SEO
Posted by Rory Martin in Search Engine Optimization on June 10, 2011
We found something cool today – from the folks over at SearchEngineLand, who say:
Search engine optimization — SEO — may seem like alchemy to the uninitiated. But there is a science to it. Search engines reward pages with the right combination of ranking factors, or “signals.” SEO is about ensuring your content generates the right type of signals.
They put together the Periodic Table of SEO to help readers get a visual idea of what goes into producing the right ranking factors that make your website shine. At Rory Martin, we take all the factors into consideration when we’re building a strategy for SEO, online marketing and social media management. Since we often talk about how important SEO and Keywords are to your website’s value, we figured you (our readers) would be interested in this graphic too! (Click the image for a larger view)
As a Seattle Web Design company that specializes in Seattle Search Engine Optimization and Seattle Social Media Marketing, RoryMartin.com is dedicated to helping you find the right tools to optimize your website, and bring you the most exposure to help your business succeed.
Trend Forecast: Social Media’s Immediate Future
Posted by Rory Martin in Social Media Marketing on June 7, 2011
There are big trends happening in Social Media right now, from the use of scanned location check-in points, to social commerce. It can be hard to navigate the trends but we’ve compiled a few of the most common themes into 3 predictions on where social media is headed in second half of 2011.
Social, Mobile Entertainment –
Games have moved onto mobile devices, now that smartphones are relatively inexpensive, prevalent and readily available. Social media is giving users a way to take their entertainment on the go. Now instead of filling out a crossword while commuting, you may use Words With Friends. Or you might make a game out of being in the right place at the right time through Foursquare – ousting your friends, and letting people know where to find you. It’s a way to stay connected with other users while managing a busy lifestyle, from Facebook gaming to sharing last night’s football or Mad Men highlights over Twitter, even watching YouTube videos via an Android application. It’s entertainment to go, and integrating more social technology into your business and website will make it much more appealing to social media users.
Scanning, Scanning, Scanning –
When you’re using check-in services like FourSquare and the Facebook places application, you may be able to scan a barcode or QR code, checking you into your location on relevant social sites. With the emergence of social scanning, it’ll only be a matter of time until you can scan a barcode, which adds a “Like” to the business’s Facebook Page, or pulls up the latest Yelp Reviews and Groupon coupons for the location you’re at. It’s a business strategy – integrating social media and marketing in an easy-to-use way.
Mobile Workplace –
As smartphones become better and faster, we’re seeing users move from laptop to mobile (as desktops have been pushed out of the way for smaller, lighter ways to work-on-the-go). This means websites need to plan for mobile content that will load quickly on a mobile network. Businesses should start looking for ways to accept mobile payment, and will have to consider dynamic pricing to keep up with supply and demand. And since smartphones often double as media storage devices, it won’t be hard to keep your PowerPoint presentations handy for your next business meeting.
These are a few of our predictions for the coming year – companies will want to work these trends into their social media marketing strategy. At RoryMartin.com we do the research on tips, tricks and tools of the trade when it comes to SEO, online marketing and social media management. As a Seattle Web Design company that specializes in Seattle Search Engine Optimization and Seattle Social Media Marketing, RoryMartin.com can help you build a Social Media Strategy that reflects your unique brand and meets your business goals.
Social Media Marketing – The Value of Business Blogging
Posted by Rory Martin in Search Engine Optimization, Social Media Marketing on April 29, 2011
There is a common misconception among business owners as to the value of business blogging. Many believe that they do not have time to effectively implement a Social Media Marketing campaign or that there is little return on investment. RoryMartin.com a Seattle Web Design company that specializes in Seattle Search Engine Optimization and Seattle Social Media Marketing can help you build a marketing strategy that reflects your unique brand and meets your business goals.
A corporate blog is a marketing asset and therefore, an asset to your business. Properly executed, a blog will continue to drive traffic and leads to your business over time and should be viewed just like Search Engine Optimization, a due diligence process that is not a short term experiment, but a long term investment.
There are many reasons to consider a business blog. By delivering fresh, compelling, keyword-rich, original content you will bring users back to your site on a regular basis, helping increase awareness for your brand and driving your site up in ranking. In addition to gaining search engine ranking and generating leads, blogs engage your current customers and place you in a position to provide thought leadership to your industry, strengthening your brand.
Optimizing a blog that engages customers and prospects while furthering your company’s mission and business objectives, is much like optimizing a website. By implementing search engine optimization, your blog can rank much higher than static website pages in the search engine results. Over time, this drives up the ranking of your company website.
In order to measure Social Media ROI you must define clear measurable goals. RoryMartin.com’s online marketing campaigns deliver both measurable revenue as well as ancillary brand building benefits for your company. It is important to understand the value of a visitor. Each visitor becomes one of three things; a browser, an influencer or a transacting customer. A transacting customer delivers immediate financial impact which can be measured as ROI. Browsers and influencers are measured as ancillary even though they directly affect your financial bottom line, just not in the immediate sense. Their value falls into the category of non-actualized potential.
Some of the most substantial benefits of a social media campaign will be difficult to measure directly. There is no concrete financial value that can be assigned to reputation management, branding and customer service. However, every business owners knows those values are indispensable.
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