Online Video Streaming Options: Easy or Control
Video Marketing for small companies is growing in importance in the media-rich, entertain me society we now live in. That much we know. To show your videos on your website, there are a number of details you need to consider for how to dish out your videos, because they tend to get large and load slowly, so utilizing a service in the cloud to host your videos that has mega-capacity and specializes in streaming video is a great idea. It inevitably comes down to ease of use versus control, with a tad of quality and user-experience mixed in.
Services for Your Videos
There are essentially dozens of competent video hosting sites available you can use, and this is not the venue to review them all. Some you’ve heard of, some you haven’t. I’ll detail and link to some of the big ones here for both cost-free and paid video sharing sites. You can click on the links and try them out and create your own opinions.
Free Sharing Services
- YouTube– Granddaddy of all. The premiere video sharing site. At first videos limited to 15 minutes (used to be 10) but if you put enough of them up, you can get allocated unrestricted length rights.
- Vimeo — Similar to YouTube, but less popular.
- Revver — Permits you to profit on your video with tactical ad positioning.
- Viddler — Free service offered, a bit more customizable than YouTube; paid B2B service as well.
- Google Videos– Part of the Google suite; lets you to sell your video downloads.
- Yahoo Videos– Yahoo’s variation, also integrates a search across hosting platforms.
- Metacafe — Highly rated free service for product service and formats used.
- Daily Motion– Categorized videos into social networking.
Paid Video Sharing Services
- Playstream– Larger volume storage video streamer.
- On Stream Media– Akin to Playstream.
- Amazon S3– Not a video sharing site in essence, but remarkably inexpensive large cloud storage that works in combination with EZ Player or other players for quick video streaming on your website.
- Viddler B2B — Made for business, secure white-label, unbranded options, but starts at $ 100/month.
Options for Small Businesses
If your business is not video production but something else, in most cases you can stream video to your website using any of the free video sharing options listed earlier, YouTube is the most common. A lot of my clients are consultants, engineers, attorneys– people in white collar services, and they use video interviews or some other format to feature their value for site audiences. There are details you should know about free and paid video streaming solutions and questions you should keep in mind.
Free Video Sharing: What You Need to Know
I’ll use YouTube for this discussion as it is where I am most of my video clients store their videos for streaming on their websites.
- Free video sharing sites are typically simple to set up an account and upload videos.
- YouTube takes most file formats and converts them to. mp4 or. flv (flash) for playback.
- In YouTube’s situation, it has a huge search engine and is adored by its parent, Google, so getting your public videos found is more certain from an SEO point of view (which also helps your site). You can regulate access to videos such as items only offered to members.
- Decent analytics and ability to style your channel.
- Easy to embed player for your site.
- Recognizable with the YouTube logo in the corner and can literally lead to more clicks.
These are all advantages, but like all FREE services, they get paid one way or another, and if you’re not cautious can pull visitors away from your video to other videos. You also relinquish a bit of control when using a free service like YouTube or Vimeo.
- YouTube restricts videos to 15 minutes. Often for high users they will upgrade you to unlimited video upload file size, but you don’t know when this will take place. I was fortunate and use longer videos for my Vlogs on the Smart Blog.
- As a standard feature YouTube displays other people’s videos at the end to yours next to a “replay video” option. The good news is that you can disable this in your embed code.
- If a viewer clicks through to your channel, the blog comments are beyond your control, so unhappy customers can post ill will and weaken your rep
- YouTube is in absolute control. Make sure all your videos are backed up on your device because people have been closed down, even large users, for no apparent cause. This is a rare occurrence but a possibility.
The good news is, for small businesses with just a handful of videos to promote products and services, these dangers are manageable. Most people will watch the video on your blog if you properly embed the player code (and not link away to the YouTube site) you prevent the distracting other videos that might lure users off.
What to Keep in Mind with Paid Video Hosting
In this case I’ll use as an example the progressively popular Amazon S3 hosting possibility, suggested to me by my buddy Phil Montero of The Anywhere Office. S3 stands for Simple Storage Service and is a nice control solution to free video hosting services.
- Any size video uploads right out of the gate.
- Video is protected so it is only available where you provide the player and stream it. S3 is a storing option, not a video sharing website of itself.
- Very economical for a dedicated storage solution, as in $ 0.14 / GB per month.
- Your video is your video, with no links to other people’s videos to contend with, ads, etc…
However, Amazon S3 has downsides as well…
- S3 isn’t so simple, and there is some tech stuff needed to get set up, upload files, and install what normally is a paid player on your site to get the videos. Not for the do-it-yourselfer unless you are a geek.
- It’s not a search engine nor catalogued so in and of itself S3 doesn’t aid your off-site SEO.
Tips for Small Business Video Hosting
For most marketing video, you want it seen by as many people as possible. Complimentary sites like YouTube make that simple, as well as providing a fairly high-speed streaming embed for hosting on your website. In social media profiles, you may have to link away. Your YouTube channel itself can be searched and rated by Google, and the video on your page supports its Search Engine Optimization also. Because of its ease of use and find-ability, I suggest using YouTube for your promotional videos.
However, if you are creating paid video content like course material, you may prefer to restrict access to your paid members and serve up the professional, won’t link away capability produced by a service like Amazon S3, where you are in control yet get the same speed of stream (some say it’s quicker) than your free hosting option.
A combined strategy offers you with the best of both worlds of control and public accessibility hinging on your small business usage.
About the Author: Karl Walinskas is the CEO of Smart Company Growth, a business development firm that helps small to mid-size professional service firms build competitive advantage in an online world of sameness. He is author of numerous articles and the Smart Blog on leadership, business communication, sales & service, public speaking and virtual business, and Getting Connected Through Exceptional Leadership, available in theSmartShop. Get your FREE LinkedIn Profile Optimization eBook & Video Course, Video Marketing video and course, or Mastermind Groups e-course & video now.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
Not Just a Name: How to Name Your Small Business
As the title suggests, there is quite a lot at stake when deciding on a name for your business. Your business’s name is its most visible asset, and is what will immediately attract or repel potential customers, even at a sub-conscious level.
Almost any name can be successfully marketed, but some succeed on what seems like the virtue of the name alone while it takes months of marketing efforts and money to shoulder to fame. The difference? Successful names target and communicate your expertise, your niche, and the value that your company brings to that niche.
So how do you come up with the perfect name for your small business? Here are a few possible routes you could take to get you to the name that your customers will remember from the first time they see it and to shorten the length of time you have to spend playing the name game:
1. Hire a Naming Expert
There’s such a thing as a naming expert? Yes, and they can help you pinpoint the intersection of cleverness, relevancy, complexity, and universality that makes great names great. Furthermore, naming firms will consult with you about which names will fail, which will succeed, and why; plus, they’ll be able to navigate around the murky trademark waters that prove such a hazard for small businesses. They’ll come up with a dozen names for you company quickly, and most of them will be great. Beware, though, naming firms charge for their services, sometimes far more than you could afford, or would want to pay for. Still, it’s an option, and one that has almost guaranteed positive results.
2. DIY
Most small business owners will go this route — it’s free, and more importantly, the finished product will represent your business more personally than a name generated by a consulting firm. There are several factors to consider, though, when naming your business, and they all play an important role in the success of the name:
- Meaning — What does the name of your business mean to your customers? Will that meaning appeal to them?
- Specificity — How specific is your name? Remember, there is such a thing as being too specific when naming your company. A bike shop called “Woodville Bikes” might be too specific, for example, especially if your business expands beyond Woodville and bikes.
- Complexity — Don’t befuddle your customers with a bizarre name. Keep it simple enough that it has character, but doesn’t intimidate your clients.
- Originality — A little creativity goes a long way. Again, there is a balance that needs to be kept, because names can easily get too clever, precious, or punny.
Once you’ve decided on a name, make sure it isn’t already taken by another company. Researching any trademarks on your name early on will save you potential headaches and fortunes in the future. Finally do a test run with your name with your customers — ask around and see what fits better with your target market. After all is said and done, you’ll be able to answer that age-old question: What’s in a name? Everything!
About the Author: Jemima Lopez is a freelance blogger and writer who writes for Zen College Life, the directory of higher education, distance learning, and online degrees. She welcomes your comments at her email: lopezjemima562 @ gmail.com.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
The Best Ways to Market to a Senior Audience
No matter what you’re marketing or who you’re marketing it to, your first step in reaching your audience is to know that audience. If you try to market to “everyone,” you’ll sell to no one.
Marketers make one of two big mistakes in marketing to seniors. They either treat seniors like everyone else, or they treat seniors like old, closed-minded people.
Seniors don’t think, act or feel like anyone else in any other target market. They have different needs and priorities, and they’re interested in different ideas and products. That’s not a reason to not market to seniors, though; it’s a reason to understand how to market to them.
As for the belief that seniors are old and closed-minded, Seth Godin discusses this in a blog post on marketing to seniors. He says that there are open and closed people. Open people are “seeking out things that will make their lives better,” and closed people are “trying to maintain the status quo.” Seniors have traditionally been seen as closed, but Baby Boomers changed all that. Seniors today are looking for a great life. They’re open to anything, from fashion to travel to life experience.
Remembering that you have to know your audience, and understanding that today’s seniors are looking for ways to live fully and improve their lives, here are five tips to help you market effectively to seniors:
1. Build a relationship
In all of your marketing, show that you understand what your prospects are going through and that you are there for them. Use social media to reach out and build relationships with your prospects. You’d be surprised how many seniors use Facebook and Twitter. Create a community on your website where your customers and prospects can interact and support each other. Above all, build trust with your prospects and customers by doing what you say you’ll do and being who you say you are.
2. Be senior-friendly
This is about more than offering a senior discount, though that’s a start. Be easy to understand. Use plain English, not jargon and technical terms that make seniors feel left out. Make all of your documents easy to read, with high-contrast colors or black type on white and easy-to read type. The best type-styles for seniors are 12 or 14 point sans-serif styles like Arial and Verdana. Make sure your website is easy to read and easy to navigate, and that it contains the information you want to convey, based on your goals. If you have an office or store, provide clear directions on your website and over the phone. Make sure your building provides ample parking near the door, and that there is a clear, obstacle-free path from the parking lot to the door. Provide comfortable seating and plenty of light. Gear everything you do to making things easy for seniors, including everything they’re required to read, write, or do.
3. Be accessible and helpful
Provide information about your field that seniors can use. You can put this information on your website or blog and share it on social media. Publish a free newsletter, either print or email, that answers seniors’ most common questions and fills them in on new developments and information they may not know. Teach a class or seminar, or offer free consultations. Use any means possible to position yourself as knowledgeable, accessible and helpful. Become the go-to person for anything related to your field.
4. Communicate well
The most important thing to remember here is that seniors don’t respond well to interruption marketing, and will probably reach out to you after seeing your website or social media. “In your face” advertising doesn’t work with seniors, but interaction works very well. Create a website with informative, useful content. Consider writing a blog several times a week. Use social media to reach out to seniors in your market. Make your print communication informative and useful, not just marketing-oriented. If you reach out and interact rather than interrupting, seniors will respond.
5. Use community outreach to build relationships
This may include speaking at libraries or local senior groups. Consider speaking at local companies to provide information that employees might share with their parents and grandparents. Guest blog on senior-related blogs. Volunteer at senior-oriented charities. Network with people who can help you reach out through community organizations. The more visible you make yourself in the community, the more seniors will trust you and think of you first.
These tips will help you market much more effectively to seniors and reach your marketing goals for this market.
About the Author: Tom Demers writes for Assisted Living Today, a leading source of information on senior care providing a directory of assisted living facilities in PA..
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
5 Ways Social Media Can Make your Business Look Bigger
Big businesses have always had an advantage when it comes to reaching customers. This was because of their big marketing budgets and their ability to utilise large long-term contracts. Whilst these advantages have not disappeared, they do not matter as much anymore and there is a simple reason for this: Social Media. Social Media has enabled the smallest of companies to compete with the largest of companies and it is all free. This article will consider how you can make your business look bigger and more prosperous than it actually is through the use of clever network management and free social media.
1. Become a Trusted Field Expert
Blogging will allow you to establish yourself as an expert in your field. By providing free and accurate advice you will create an ideal relationship with your customers and trigger an increase in email opt-in communications. This method will help to generate leads for your sales team and demonstrate that you are capable in your field.
Additional benefits come through the promotion of your site through Search Engine Optimisation. Google and other search engines provide great website ranking benefits to those who write blogs.
2. Build a Custom Facebook Page
Facebook provides a huge potential market but it is important that you approach this area correctly. Your Facebook page will need to offer the customer something which will make them want to return to it. Include interesting discussions, engaging materials and relevant information about your business. By including an email communications opt-in on the page, you will be able to generate a greater customer contact list.
3. Professional Videos
Video marketing is easy. What was once out of reach for most small businesses is something which can be produced at a very low cost now. The advent of Youtube allows you to present your business to the world through the medium of video. Video hosting is free, so all that you need to do is create the material to place online. Website visitors who watch an online product video are 85% more likely to make a purchase than those who don’t, so it is wise to seriously consider this option.
4. Give It Up For Free
By providing e-books, tips, guides, and other methods of free help, you will be able to demonstrate your expertise and convince potential customers that your business is the right place to go. Customers are far more likely to utilise a business which has offered them a high quality free trial than they are to trust in an unknown and untrusted source. Providing free services is a great way to generate custom.
5. Dominate the Search Engines
Part of your business’ IT service should focus heavily on Search Engine Optimisation. Social media channels will enable you to optimise your SEO ranking. The number of times that a link or video that you have created has been shared will directly impact on the prominence of your company in search engines. If you can make it so that your business is the first result for your industry keywords then you will be able to easily and effectively get a step ahead of the competition.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
Why Improving Your Business Signage Is a Must (As Explained By An Award-Winning Orange County Signs Maker)
Having an attention-getting sign is critical for your local businesses – no matter the industry. Your business signage identifies your business and location and it establishes your business image. Your business signage is the core of your brand identity strategy, whether it is proudly mounted on the building, on your booth or display at a trade show, or on your company vehicles.
It’s also the most cost-effective advertising you can do. The Small Business Administration says, “…signs are the most effective, yet least expensive form of advertising for the small business.” Building signage is often taken for granted, but signs are always on the job, advertising 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
How Improved Business Signage Will Help You Brand Your Company, Communicate with a Highly-Mobile Society & Leverage Your Advertising Efforts
1 Your business signage is the only indicator that you exist and would like your prospect’s patronage.
2 A frequently-noticed business sign sends your message to more people per dollar invested than any other form of advertising. For example, if you display a $200 sign for one year at a location where 10,000 cars pass every day, you’ve reached over 3.5 million people (not counting passengers), at a cost per person of less than $.000057. (Less than six hundred-thousandths of a dollar.) Even a high-end, lighted or monument sign that costs $5000, still reaches those people at a cost of $.0014, or a little over a tenth of a cent each.
3 95% of retail business is location-based. As consumers pass by your place of business, an attractive and effective on-premise sign will leave a positive impression. When the time comes to make a decision or purchase, consumers will be attracted to you.
4 About 40 million Americans move annually to a new home, all needing to buy goods and services, and looking for brands that stand out.
5 Enhanced sign technology allows sign faces to be easily changed to match evolving marketing circumstances. New developments in lighting, plastics, digital printing resolution, and color profiling mean signs can now achieve the same visual effect as four-color magazine advertising.
6 Your company does not need to be a national franchise with a major advertising budget to “brand” your site with effective signage. If appropriately designed and placed, your sign can develop top-of-mind awareness of your products and services, no matter the size of your business.
7 Many communities and cities have strict sign codes requiring that signage remains attractive and in harmony with the look and feel of the community, while encouraging business activities. Advances in sign design and technology means that via signage, your company can communicate more effectively to potential customers in a way that enhances both your site and the community at large.
8 Purchase habits can be influenced with effective signage. Pricing or product information can influence a purchase decision or prompt an unplanned stop, which is critical, since nearly all businesses rely in part on impulse visits.
9 A well-designed sign can provide a positive perception of quality and service and create the image of a leader, even for the smaller business. For the national franchise or chain, on-premise signage reinforces all other media advertising, and maximizes advertising effectiveness at a low cost.
10 By adding your business signage to your car and “wrapping” your company vehicles with striking vinyl, you can generate over 600 visual impressions for every mile driven At about $0.35 per thousand impressions for a typical vehicle wrap, the cost is almost trivial compared to $3.56 for outdoor advertising or over $20.00 for typical magazine advertising.
About the Author: Orange County Business Signs Specialist Martin Neil contributes value to businesses and non-profit organizations across the United States by increasing their brand awareness with the very best sign solutions. He specializes in custom requirements for commercial building signage, vehicle wraps, office inside signage, trade show displays, promotional banners & flags, and large-size wall graphics. Improve your business signage by going to: http://www.Calibersi.com/Building-Signage.html
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
Mobile Marketing: Seven Tips, Tricks and Techniques for Small Business Owners in 2012
You’ve heard all the stats and read all the news: smartphones are a big deal, right? But with all that noise out there, how can a small business owner actually get customers and make money from those smartphone junkies? Here are seven tips, tricks and techniques to help any small business owner go mobile without busting the bank.
1. Claim Your Business and Your Location
With smartphones, a consumer searching for a hardware store will automatically be shown the nearest hardware stores relative to their device’s GPS signal. That means you want to be sure your physical facility shows up (even if your office is just the location for people to call).
So what can you do to be “found?” It’s pretty simple really – just be sure that you visit each site such as Yelp, Bing, Yahoo Local, Google Places, Foursquare, and Facebook and “claim” your business and its location.
Cost: Free
2. Mobilize Your Website
Mobile searches have grown 400 percent since 2010, according to Google. And when they find you on their phone – consumers visit (59%) or they call you (61%).
So, be sure you can be found. This means making sure the website you initially launched back in 2000 is accessible by mobile phones, or “mobile-optimized.” There are a number of new and reasonably priced tools to help make your site mobile-optimized. But, before you plunk down any money, check out Google’s “GoMo” site that has a testing tool and resources to help businesses with their websites.
Cost: Free (depending on your site)
3. Make Your Coupons Mobile
Have you ever been in line at a store and watched a clerk refuse to honor a coupon on someone’s phone. Claiming “no, you need to print that before I can accept it” just sets the consumer off even more.
Don’t be that business. The days of clipping coupons has come and gone. Now, most consumers would simply prefer to open an email or webpage with your coupon, flash it to you on their smart phone and get the discount. Make it clear that showing the coupon on your phone is sufficient and consumers will thank you for being mobile-friendly. Plus, you’ll avoid an awkward confrontation with your store clerks.
Cost: Free (other than the cost of your coupons)
4. Monitor Your Reviews
Did you know that 81 percent of consumers say they read reviews before making a purchase and 51 percent of consumers say they’ve used the Internet IN SHOPS before making a purchase? If you have a bevy of negative reviews or poor feedback, that consumer may decide to shop, eat, drink or pay somewhere else.
The first step to keep tabs on your reviews is to set a Google Alert for the name of your business. Watch for any reviews, postings or other news that you might need to address. Then, find out the review-focused sites people use regularly to review your business, like Google Places, Yelp, and Angie’s List. For a more detailed tracking service, try Reputation.com for Business that monitors and provides real-time alerts for your business.
Cost: Free (for Google Alerts); Starting at $34.99/mo. (for Reputation.com)
5. Talk to Your Customers
Guess what? Consumers want to talk with, and hear from, brands they like. In fact, 43 percent of consumers “like” at least one brand on Facebook and 53 percent of individuals with a Twitter account recommend products or services in their tweets. And, more and more consumers are using social media on the go.
Both Facebook and Twitter are free to setup and utilize – so schedule time daily to engage. Put links to your accounts on your website and in your facility (if you have a physical location) and talk to your customers: respond to questions or concerns, and consider offering deals for fans or followers. The most important lesson? Talk like a human not a brand. Remember, as consumers are out and about, they are talking to you, about you and with you – so be a part of the conversation.
You can manage most of these conversations using the standard Facebook or Twitter platforms. If you want something more advanced, try Hootsuite.com which can help you manage your efforts, schedule messages and track conversations from a single interface.
Cost: Free (Hootsuite provides free basic social media plans)
6. Be Able to Take Money Wherever you Are
Quick, how much cash do you have in your wallet? Enough to buy something over $100? Over $50? Over $20? People are becoming more reliant on credit cards for all of their transactions, so rather than force someone to run to the nearest ATM (and pay the enormous fee for withdrawing from a non-bank ATM), consider taking payment right on your mobile device.
With services like Square or Intuit GoPayment, providing a device that plugs into most smartphones to take a credit card on the spot is actually quite simple. Plus, new technologies are coming along to allow you to pay without needing any hardware at all.
Cost: Free (other than the credit card processing fees)
7. Tried Text Messages?
According to the Pew Foundation, 73 percent of cell phone users utilize the text messaging function on their phones. And, 44 percent of Americans have opted into at least one text messaging marketing campaign. So, why not share deals, information and updates with your customers via text.
To get started, check out Tatango’s Beginner’s Guide to SMS Marketing.
Cost: Varies depending on the SMS Marketing Software partner
Conclusion
This year, with more people expected to be using mobile than ever before, business owners must think about how they can interact with these potential customers. With the simple actions and activities listed above, any business can go mobile to create a positive environment for their customers, leads and partners.
About the Author: Eric Koester is the founder and COO of Zaarly, a mobile, real-time marketplace. Eric is a former securities lawyer who has testified before Congress on matters of startup and small business financing, immigration reform and business taxation. Zaarly provides tools for small-businesses and consumers to transact right from their mobile devices. For more information or to sign-up for mobile alerts, visit www.zaarly.com/business.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
4 Free Online Marketing Tools Every Small Business Owner Should Use
As the Flying Lizards once sang, “the best things in life are free, but you can give them to the birds and bees – I want money. “ And really, who doesn’t? Small business owners all have paper chasing on the brain, but what many of them don’t realize is that some of the best online marketing tools are free – and they can help you get sales.
Here are four free online marketing tools that will help boost your bottom line:
1. HARO and Reporter Connection
Ever wish you could be quoted as an industry expert in a major media outlet? Now you can – but you’ll have to sign up for HARO and Reporter Connection emails first. These will put you in contact with reporters looking for quotes and information, and if you can type up a decent response email you’ll get placed (and linked to) in a variety of different outlets. If you’re not using HARO and RC, you and your business are missing out.
2. Social Media Management Software
First and foremost, you should have social media accounts set up on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google+. Once you have that all finished, you’re going to need something to manage your updates – and Hootsuite, Cotweet and TweetAdder are all free. It seems like most pros prefer Hootsuite, but if you only have one person managing the accounts you can’t go wrong with any of them. Use the keyword streams to find people tweeting about needing your products/services, and don’t be shy about reaching out (preferably with a coupon code). Hashtracking will tell you which hashtags to target for maximum visibility.
3. WordPress Plugins
You do have a blog, right? If not, that should top your to-do list. They’re crucial for SEO, and the fresh content also gives you a good excuse to link back to your site on your social media accounts. Plugins help optimize your blog, and there are a variety of free ones you can benefit from. WordPress SEO by Yoast is a good place to start, as it’s widely regarded as THE SEO plugin to use these days. SexyBookmarks is also a favorite, since it gives cute little buttons that make your content ridiculously easy to share. Just remember: the more plugins you have, the slower your pages will load.
4. MediaBistro Forums and Quora
Have questions? There’s no need to guess when you can ask an expert and know the answer for sure. The MediaBistro forums are crawling with PR pros, copywriters and all-around marketing mavens who are usually happy to share their expertise. Quora is like a useful version of Yahoo! Answers, sans the spam and poor advice.
As with all things, there’s a learning curve to online marketing. If you don’t get discouraged and keep at it, though, you’ll hone your skills and see serious results over time. It may take you three months of responding to HAROs and Reporter Connection emails before you get placement, but if that placement is in Entrepreneur Magazine or Good Morning America the effort is totally worth it.
About the Author: Kari DePhillips is the owner of The Content Factory, an online PR company that specializes in web content writing and social media marketing. Give her a shoutout on Twitter (@ContentFac) or become a fan of TCF on Facebook.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
Three cost-effective ways to market your start-up in 2012
Friends sneered at you when you said that you are going the entrepreneurial way. You quit your job in that MNC to build this dream product. Now the product is finally out in the open but how do you find takers for your product.
Needless to say, being a startup you always have this financial question mark staring blankly at your face. Keeping in mind the limitations, startups can easily use these three tools to market their product. It is working for us and if you do it right, it will work for you too.
Social Networking might be passé but networking is not :
Start by using your own personal contacts and their contacts. Ask your friends to try and use your product. Talk about your product when you meet each other during social gatherings. You somehow have to ensure that the optimism you have for your product, gets communicated around. And all said and done, Facebook and Twitter are still one of the best ways to talk about your brand online.
Data Visualizations:
A picture is worth a thousand words. People might not be interested in your 1000 words article but they would love to see a nice graphic communicating the same idea. Try exploring infographics to market what your product stands for, what problem it seeks to solve, industry trends in your market, etc.
Blogging:
This is an effective way to make yourself heard online. Post articles that you think your target market would be interested in. Try and establish yourself as the thought leader in your industry. Encourage the idea of blogging within your organization. Ask employees to contribute their own take on things.
All the best and have a rocking year!
About the Author: Shilpi Choudhury is an Inbound Marketing Specialist and Business Blogger based out of Bangalore, India. She is currently working for DiscountPandit, Bangalore, which is a deal search engine that provides users a faster, simpler and a comprehensive deal search experience.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
What New Tools Does the Twitter Redesign Bring to Social Marketers?
Twitter has a new look, and some observers are calling it the single biggest overhaul the site has received at once in its five year history. The update is one that aims to unify both the presentation and functionality of the microblogging service across all platforms, essentially simplifying the experience for the user. This latest move has kept the internet community busy discussing the implications, so lets take a look at the new tools the redesign offers social marketers.??
Enhanced Toolbar
The change you will probably notice first lies in the toolbar. You will now see the following section categories at the top of the interface:??Home – Shows you the tweets posted by the people you follow on Twitter. This category keeps you up to date with the information that matters most to you.??Connect – This new section keeps you connected with the conversation. Through Connect, you can see who is following or mentioning your brand, endorsing your posts, or retweeting and sharing with friends.??Discover – Hence the name, the Discover section helps you find relevant and useful information via Twitter. The results you see are tailored to your location, network, and other areas that match your interests.??Me – This section the “Profile” section found in the old Twitter design. Here you can introduce yourself to the world of Twitter and even communicate with others through tweets and direct messages.??
Embedded Tweets??
One of the most interesting tools to accompany the Twitter redesign is the embedded tweets feature. This option can be accessed directly from the new interface. The actual process is pretty much like embedding a YouTube clip, meaning you copy a snippet of HTML code and paste it into the web page where you want the tweet displayed. Perhaps the best thing about embedded tweets is its seamless integration with Twitter’s new partners Posterous and WordPress. If you use either of these services, you can have your tweets automatically embedded by simply copying the code and dropping it into your web page – no cut and paste required. ??
Brand Pages??
Following in the footsteps of rivals Facebook and Google, Twitter has decided to introduce its very own brand pages. Similar to the feature offered by other networks, these pages will give social marketers the ability to promote their brand on the platform. You can have a promotional tweet on display at the top of your page, and even choose which tweets the user sees upon visiting your page. This is one of the most exciting new tools to accompany the redesign for obvious reasons. Twitter is currently testing the new brand pages with a select few brands, including Chevrolet and Coca Cola.??The redesigned Twitter is slowly being rolled out to the user base. For now, the update is only available to mobile users, though the company says all users will be able to experience the new and improved service over the coming weeks. Adapting to change can often be difficult, but in the case of Twitter, this looks like change both users and social marketers will come to embrace.
About the Author: Aidan Hijleh is a freelance copywriter and serves as the Non-Profit Partnership Liaison for Benchmark Email. Aidan advocates free email marketing services to assist with the flourishing of grassroots organizations.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
How Your Business Will Benefit From A Loyalty Card Program
It seems like almost every business has jumped on the loyalty card program bandwagon. From grocery stores to pharmacies and restaurants, retailers everywhere are launching customer rewards programs.
Have you ever wondered why?
Sure, customers stand to benefit from participating in loyalty card programs. They get discounts, special offers and cash-back opportunities. But the benefits for retailers are just as great, if not better. Even with the cost of a loyalty gift card program, you still end up being a winner in the end.
If you’re considering launching a loyalty card program, here are some of the many benefits you’ll pick up along the way:
1. Better Data Tracking
Every time a customer swipes a rewards card, you’ll get a clearer picture of who is buying what. The data will allow you to examine shopping patterns and use the information to make better business decisions. For example, use the information to make better choices about product selections and inventory supply.
2. Improved Marketing
Armed with all the data you’ll collect from customers who fill out a rewards program application, you’ll be able to develop marketing campaigns tailored to specific groups. Offer customers special, personalized deals based on their age, interests or previous purchases.
3. Better Customer Retention
A few incentives go a long way in creating loyal customers. If your customers believe there’s something to gain from giving you their repeat business, they’ll come back time and time again. Simply by offering a coupon for $2 off the next purchase, you’re dramatically increasingly the likelihood that a customer will come back.
4. More Frequent Business
With a loyalty program, the more often a customer shops, the faster they can start claiming rewards. A customer who’s just $5 away from earning a $25 gift certificate might find an excuse to stop by your store. Customers who used to come in once a month might start coming twice a month or once a week.
5. Increased Product Awareness
Do you offer a valuable product that – for one reason or another – is simply sitting on the shelves? Maybe you’re a retail shop that specializes in handmade goods, but the greeting cards in the back of the store just aren’t selling. By offering items like these as incentives, you can promote items customers may not know you have.
Want to be our next guest author? Click here for details…
