B2C Instagram Best Practices

I attended an International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) luncheon earlier this week to learn about B2B Instagram best practices. I was a bit skeptical that Instagram can show ROI and measurable results with regard to B2B marketing.

In the end, I felt the speaker, Rochelle Coles of Sister Act Media, proved there are ways to utilize Instagram to engage B2C clients, but not as much for B2B clients. Much of her presentation seemed to focus on basic best practices for social media, but she did recommend Iconosquare for Instagram measurement, which was helpful. In all, Rochelle's shared 5 "proven strategies" for increasing Instagram followers and engagement, website traffic and sales - which can be used for most social media marketing:

1. Make the most of every opportunity on your profile. Visuals are incredibly important on Instagram, so be sure you have a profile photo that accurately represents your brand and is attractive to your target audience. The only space you can put a live link on Instagram is in your user bio, so make sure that you have a URL to your website, Facebook page, or LinkedIn profile so that people can find you and make a purchase. 
2. Post images that reflect what your target clients post. This applies to all social media channels, but it's a good thing to keep in mind. If your target clients are animal lovers, make sure that you are posting platform-appropriate content that appeals specifically to that interest.
3. Leverage your words to establish and reinforce your message. Be sure you're utilizing the brand voice in all company communication regardless of the platform. Additionally, write like a human. Consumers do not respond well to corporate speak on social media platforms.
4. Use video to connect. Digital marketing is becoming more and more about a complete user experience instead of just text or just images. When appropriate, post behind-the-scenes video, clips of ads, etc. on your Instagram feed.
5. Invest in current followers and proactively pursue new ones. Like images your followers post that resonate with your brand. A recipe for success is to spend five minutes a few times a day liking five images and commenting on three images for one user so that you come up prominently in that user's feed. This is a great tactic if you're trying to empower brand evangelists or get noticed by local media contacts.

What the Facebook News Feed Changes Mean for Businesses

Chances are you've heard that Facebook is changing their News Feed settings to improve the consumer experience based on feedback from user surveys.

Starting sometime this month, Facebook will be reducing visibility of posts that are "too professional."  Moving forward, Pages that post promotional content can expect their organic reach to fall significantly over time. So, what can you do about it?

Employ a social media strategy that generates content that is not deemed "too promotional" according to Facebook's algorithms. Apparently, surveys have  found three things that make organic posts seem "too promotional" to users:

1. Posts that solely push people to buy a product or install an app
2. Posts that push people to enter promotions and sweepstakes with no real context
3. Posts that reuse the exact same content from ads

Okay, Facebook, challenge accepted.

In theory, this would mean that witty, creative, insightful posts would continue to garner the same reach as they have in the past. Of course, many people suspect Facebook is simply rewarding companies who spend advertising dollars since that's now the only way to ensure your content is being viewed by your followers and potential fans. 

The reality is that while I suspect that was a huge bonus for Facebook, I highly doubt that this is a purely self-serving move. As a consumer, I completely support algorithms that improve the user experience and ensure brands are proving me useful content in my News Feed. Of course, I am very likely to unfollow any company that abuses the privilege of appearing in my feed, and one hopes that concern is enough reason for businesses to hold themselves to higher standards of content creation.

How Many People See Your Content?

Mitch Joel published a really interesting post on his Six Pixels blog, (Almost) No One Is Seeing Your Content.

As a marketer using social media as a platform for dissemination, nearly nothing scares me as much as the idea that my message is lost and never reaches my intended audience.  The unfortunately reality is my fear is most likely a reality.

"We used to tell ourselves a very powerful narrative about how the cream always rises to the top, and the struggle that most brands face when it comes to content marketing and social media is that they struggle to find a true sense of human-ness in the content that they are creating... so many brands actually have great content, but have a sub-par content distribution strategy where the vast majority of the work resides behind their own walled garden."

Mitch makes the rather disappointing observation that despite the money and time brands pour into social media marketing, their messages are filtered by third parties (the platforms themselves) and are often never seen by their fans and followers.  

As a marker that really bursts my bubble.  As an individual it is even more upsetting.  I hated when Facebook decided that it was only going to show certain people in your newsfeed based on who you interacted with most frequently.  The whole reason I am friends with people on Facebook is so I can follow along with their lives as much or as little as I want to.  I now am completely cut off from several of my connections and might not even remember that we're Facebook friends.  I was so much happier when I could control my newsfeed by "show more" and "show less" and specifying what kinds of news I wanted to see, e.g. (relationship status updates, photos, etc.)  The sad part for me, is that the social media platforms are so worried about becoming irrelevant they keep tweaking their algorithms and I worry they are going to end up like Joan Rivers' face... too altered too remotely resemble what they started with, which was what drew the users in the first place.

Ken Mueller Sparks Google+ v. Facebook Debate

Ken Mueller wrote a very open letter to Mark Zuckerberg requesting that Facebook stop tweaking their newsfeed algorithm and let users shape their own experience.  I personally think Mueller makes some great arguments as to why this is a win-win situation for everyone - users, businesses, Facebook, etc - and I encourage you to read the letter in it's entirety.

What sparked the latest flare up in the Google+ v. Facebook debate was a post by Mueller in the comments section of his blog.  Mueller said, "I still think you can do a lot more on FB due to the sheer number of people. My clients' customers aren't on G+, at least not as regular users. And they don't want to be. Most people, I think, still want to be on FB."

People went on to comment that their client base was engaging just fine on Google+, an article was written supporting Google+ over Facebook as the social media marketing platform of the future (Google Plus vs Facebook: Why G+ Should Dominate Your 2014 Marketing Strategy), and debate among social media specialists sparked anew.  

What I can't understand is why anyone would suggest that Google+ dominate your 2014 social media marketing strategy.  We call it a "marketing mix" for a reason!  

Mueller never goes so far as to say that Google+ isn't a strong platform, he merely says he isn't going to abandon Facebook because his clients' target audience is more engaged on Facebook than Google+. 

I can related to that!  My experience with Google+ has been very challenging to say the least.  Although I have many friends who are registered with the G+ platform, most of them continue to use only Facebook to connect with each other.  

Even still, as a marketing professional with some knowledge of search engine optimization, I think it's pretty intuitive that Google will favor Google+ engagement in it's search engine results pages.  In fact, there is already proof that this happens, some of which is mentioned in the Google Plus v. Facebook article.  I encourage my clients to incorporate Google+ into a robust integrated marketing social media strategy that includes other platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.  With a holistic marketing strategy in place, we see the greatest return on our 

Find The Right Voice For Your Brand

As a millennial, I have been crafting my image on social media for longer than I've been of legal US drinking age.  Finding the right voice for a brand comes relatively easily for me, and there are a couple of things you think about to help you find the right voice for your brand.

1. Define your target audience - Are you talking to men, women, children, or a combination of all three?  Do you want your brand to appeal to males, females or both?  Do you want to target people in a specific geographic location?
2. Set your tone - Are you having a serious conversation or is your brand lighthearted?  Even if you're dealing with sensitive or professional issues, it's good to try to lighten the mood in a tasteful and appropriate way when you can.
3. Provide value - fans of your brand do not want to hear you talk about how great you are on your social media platforms just like you don't want to hear your friends brag about how great they are.  If you think you might be getting annoying, take a step back and evaluate your brand.  Are you posting interesting, relevant industry information?  Useful tips?  Short cuts?  How To videos?  Make your social media platforms a place that your target audience wants to go.
4. Treat your fans like friends - No, you should not (in most cases) offer to take your social media followers out to happy hour.  But you should talk to them in the same way that you'd talk to your friends, in an authentic and genuine way.  
5. Be consistent - all of your posts should sound like they are coming from the same person... the persona of your brand!  You want your fans to know what to expect when they come to your social media platforms so be sure that your team knows the brand's voice so everyone is working toward the same cause.  

If you follow these five steps you'll be well on your way to creating a voice that reflects the personality and values of your brand that will help drive engagement with your fans.

Promoting the Brand Called "You"

I'll admit it, I struggle to promote my personal brand, which is pretty ironic when I think about how well versed I am in digital and social media marketing.

I'm told this is a struggle many millennials experience because we grew up hearing how special we were and received far too many "participation trophies."  We use digital media - Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc. - on a daily if not hourly basis for all kinds of mundane announcements and yet we keep the really important stuff offline... and I'm guilty of this just as much as the next person. 

I started this blog as a way to comment on the digital media trends I experience in my professional life and I have yet to share this blog on my Facebook or Twitter for fear of making myself look stupid in front of my peers.  Yes, I know that if I don't invest in me and share my posts, nobody else will either.  I'm caught in a lack of confidence catch-twenty-two.

Luckily, I was catching up on Six Pixels of Separation podcasts and came across Mitch Joel's conversation with Dan Schawbel, the Managing Partner of Millennial Branding - a Gen Y research and consulting firm. He has authored two bestselling business books, Me 2.0 and the recently published, Promote Yourself - The New Rules For Career Success. Dan is also a contributor for Time and Forbes magazine, as well as being a sought-after media pundit on the topic of personal branding and Gen Y.

Dan is an authority on the practice of self-promotion and everything he mentioned in the podcast resonated with me so much so that I purchased both of his books on my nook as soon as I reached my computer.  Stay tuned for the reviews!

Avoiding Project Apocalypse

Seth Godin's blog post today, The three toxic stooges of the project apocalypse, really resonated with me.  Seth names the three components that contribute to project failure: over promising, under sharing and lack of polish.

I cannot agree more with the first two components: over promising and under sharing or lack of communication are fatal to projects.

In my experience, people who excel at managing expectations and have strong communication skills tend to be good project managers because they minimize the chance for disappointment.

In my own career I have often been faced with the unpleasant task of bringing a team - or my boss - back to reality.  This is probably partly because I have been a part of companies that aren't well versed in digital and social media marketing, and so the constraining resources are less obvious to those around me.

It comes back to under promising and over delivering, which is an easy way to manage expectations.  When you under promise just a bit and communicate clearly what your objectives are, your clients are more likely to have realistic expectations for their project.  It also gives you just a bit of wiggle room to impress your clients, which tends to make them happy.  And happy clients are usual return customers who are more likely to refer you new business.

The Importance of Google+

Don't take my word for it, check out Mitch Joel's radio clip posted on the Six Pixels of Separation blog on Monday:

Google + Is Still More Important Than Most People Realize

How Google's Hummingbird Impacts Social Media Marketers

Jeff Bullas posted a very concise explanation for how Google's recent Hummingbird algorithm update is going to impact social media marketers.

Check it out here: How does Google’s Hummingbird Update Impact Social Media Marketers?
Hummingbird isn't something to ignore.  It sounds like it's now more imperative than ever that we make Google+ a strong component of our social media strategy.

How to Choose the Right Social Media for B2B Marketing

So your company wants to start a social media marketing program, that's great.  Have you thought about which platforms you'll include?  The order that you'll launch them?

It's not as easy as drawing straws, there should be a method to your madness.

The best social network for B2B marketing depends on the following factors:

1. The audience of the social site

2. Your target audience

3. Type of content on the social site

4. The purpose of the social site

5. The tone of the social site

Read an in-depth analysis of each of the leading social media networks to evaluate their features and suitability here.

When I Grow Up

Tomorrow is my birthday, we don't need to go into how old I'll be.  

I ran across an interesting blog post by Seth Godin and find it very appropriate as I reflect on growing up... maybe I was destined to be in marketing all along.  

I didn't know what I wanted to be when I was growing up, in fact I would argue that until about 4 years ago I was still trying to figure it out.  Even now, there is one thing that drives me professionally - I want to make a difference.  

It's what motivated me to go to school at night and learn as much about marketing as I could while I was employed as an inside sales representative.  

It's what drives me now, as I grow social media strategies for businesses that don't have someone with the skills, knowledge or experience than I have.  

I want to make a difference. 

Fight Club

Here's a new take on the very popular "Everything I Need To Know About Social Media I Learned In Kindergarten" post.

For your entertainment:

Everything I Know About Social Media, I Learned From Fight Club.

Side Note: I don't actually like Fight Club.

Balancing Story and Selling in Social Media

Guest Blog by Marlena Ryan

I got into my job because I’m a writer. Not only do I not have a marketing degree. I kind of loathe marketers. I think of them as phonies. Professionals adept at playing a good mind game. And I like to think that writers are the opposite. Writers are good listeners, honest, and exacting.

However, both of these are generalizations. Marketers are not the devil and writers are not saints. And since I’m a social media community manager for music clients it’s important that I walk the line between providing figurative value and monetary value. (Which is like the most market-y sentence ever. I blame my boss… he likes that line)

But what I mean by that double speak is, I try to make my social pages compelling to a reader but also keep in mind that my company is paid to make fans buy more albums and tour tickets. I keep the balance by creating a social strategy that can balance these sometimes competing interests. The three main tactics I employ are:

1) Develop Narrative Tactics

For every client, my fellow community managers and I develop 20-30 social creative tactics. Creative tactics are tailored to a brand. We think about the audience and what they would engage with on social. For example, for a country music boy band, we include Pinterest inspiration quotes based on the band’s lyrics and acoustic performance series.

2) Geo-Targeting and Smart-Urling

For all our music clients, we use smart urls and geo-targeting to generate ticket and album sales. Geo-Targeting on Facebook is great because you can “guard” posts to hit certain markets you specify without inundating other fans with tour dates that aren’t near them. Smart urls help you see if all that geo-targeting is successful and if an album is making an impact with certain online retailers. We create smart urls for each ticket link and online retailer so we can track the click through rate for our analytics.

It’s not sexy, but like I said, it’s a balance and extremely important to remember we’re getting paid to sell records and tour tickets.

3) Social Graphics

The main differentiation between my company and the competition is our design team. Our in-house designers create gorgeous social skins, cover photos on Facebook and other social channels, and unique social graphics… like lyric cards and fan story graphics, our graphics set our pages apart with a look and feel completely different from other brands and artists.

Building a Podcast Audience

My favorite podcast is Six Pixels of Separation, the Twist Image Podcast, by Mitch Joel.  I love most of what Mitch and his guests have to say about marketing, and I can easily listen to Mitch's voice for 40-50 minutes at a time.  

Episode #368 went live at the end of July and Mitch had comedian Marc Maron on the show to discuss podcasting and building an audience.  

It's useful information that you can apply to all aspects of your social media marketing strategy.

Tend Your Gardens

Too often life is about creating things by a deadline, handing in the project and walking away.  It doesn't matter what happens after you deliver, whether your work is solid or comes apart at the seems with time.  Seth Godin calls this method of thinking: buildings. 

But that's not really what life is about.  Seth says a better way of thinking about projects is to equate them to gardens.  

Gardens are living, breathing and changing.  They have to be tended and nurtured and we have to be willing to switch up our game plan and strategy to roll with the punches.  

Just like projects. 

So many brands start social media programs without realizing that they are taking on a life-long project that will need to be nurtured, managed and tended regularly.  It takes a real commitment, there is no set it and forget it option with social media.

Gardens, not buildings, is an amazing post by Seth Godin, and he has some real gems... I seriously suggest you subscribe to his blog.

Social Media: Where Do I Start?

There's no simple recipe for social media success... well there is, but it's not really a secret and it's definitely not a shortcut.

When people ask me where they should start with their social media marketing plan, I tell them to find out where their audience is and start there.  If your clients are big Twitter users, your first social media platform should be Twitter.  If your target audience is engaged on Facebook, your first social media platform should be, you guessed it, Facebook.

It's not rocket science, but it can take a little leg work.  You can do a social media analysis to see where your competitors are online, what their presence is like, and then make a judgement call as to whether or not you want to go down the same path.  You should also research where your clients are congregating and take that into consideration.

Ultimately, you'll have to tweak your social media marketing mix so that it's always reaching the target audience you define.  You may find that one or more of the social media platforms you launch doesn't fit the needs of your clients, is a waste of your resources or just isn't a good platform for your brand's message.  In that case, it may be time to throw in the social media marketing towel.

Market Yourself using Social Media

Social media marketing isn't just for your business, it can be a great tool to help you market yourself.  Instead of trying to cram all of your accolades and achievements onto one eight and a half by eleven inch piece of paper, embrace a digital resume using LinkedIn.

LinkedIn has come a long way from being the social media platform for jobseekers and headhunters. Savvy professionals are embracing digital marketing for their own personal brand.  

Not only does LinkedIn store the text associated with your resume, it allows you to add rich media to as well.  My LinkedIn profile showcases PDF documents created by vendors to highlight excellent service provided to clients, YouTube video testimonials and recommendations from clients, vendors and coworkers. 

How To Turn Customers Into Brand Ambassadors

Scott Monty is the global head of social media for Ford Motor Company. He has a very interesting personal blog, where he shares his perspectives on business, technology, communications, marketing and the vast changes in the industry that impact leadership.

This week's post is particularly important for people who are looking to cultivate brand ambassadors.  Scott says:

"A surprising number of people won’t take action based on TV ads, the progress of social business, WeChat is in the sites of Chinese telcos, measuring sponsorship effectiveness, the role of PR in sponsored content, the #2 concern of the C-suite and more, it’s This Week in Social Media."

Throwing in the Social Media Towel

Many brands are hopping on the social media bandwagon.  At first, social media marketing is new and exciting, so teams are likely to generate lots of content and new ideas during the launch phase of social media marketing.

The trouble is that as time goes by, content creation reaches a plateau and the appeal of social media marketing begins to wear off.

Social media marketers often suffer from writers block, building a list of followers and persisting when it feels they aren't making any headway.  The pressure of generating fresh content and staying top of mind with an audience can drain the motivation right out of the social media team.

That said, how do you know whether it's time to take a vacation or throw in the social media towel?

Here are three signs that you might need to throw in the social media towel:

You aren't posting anymore
One of the most important things to consider before starting a social media campaign is whether or not you'll be able to maintain a posting schedule.  Once you establish your following, they'll expect to hear from you on a regular basis.  If you find your social media strategy going stagnant, you either need to put in more effort or throw in the towel.

You're not succeeding 
There are lots of reasons you may not be succeeding - perhaps you're trying to promote your company, but nobody is buying what you're selling.  Obviously, if you've just launched your social media program you may need to give your efforts more time before you write them off.  If you've been at it for a while and you're still not seeing the results you want it's time to either switch up your strategy or throw in the towel.

You're too busy
Whether you're overwhelmed with new business or job creep is reducing the time you can devote to your social media program, you may reach a point where you just aren't able to find the time to sustain a successful social media program.  If your social media marketing strategy has become a chore rather than something you want to do, it's time to seriously evaluate the benefits and costs of your marketing efforts.  You have three choices: find the time yourself, delegate the responsibilities to someone else or abandon your social media program.