How to be A Social Media Rock Star!

We can’t deny how powerful Social Media is nowadays. The time consumers spend on Social Media has ballooned to 250% in just two years! That’s primarily the reason why every marketer wants to get into the ball game.

To rock it on three, four or five Social Media channels, you have to be at least a practiced Social Media individual. But don’t fret, we have bumped into this great article on how to Rock it on Social Media. Here are some tips we’ve gathered on “101 Companies Rocking it on Social Media” published by Hubspot which is written and designed By Desmond Wong.

According to PWC, 60% of consumers use social media to follow, discover, and give feedback on brands and retailers. Use these examples of companies rocking social media to find out what works best for your own company, and be the social business these consumers are following. Good luck!

ROCKING IT ON FACEBOOK

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    Aside from having great engagement, a page should do a wonderful job featuring its new products and businesses

·         Engage your fans with interesting questions and visual content that link to relevant products on your website

·         You should have customized profile images and cover photos

·         Post links to its APIs and other helpful services that fans can utilize

·         Share a variety of links and create discussion topics that draw in fans. Post statuses and links in a variety of languages to engage fans from around the world

·         Including your website in the cover photo is an effective way to draw some attention to your site and bring in some traffic. Describe exactly what the organization does in the first part of the screen.

·         Aside from the creative cover image, you can include fun games and photos

·         Models, fancy clothes, and fashion shows. Pack your Facebook page with great photos of your new collections and videos to keep your fans up-to date with the latest in fashion

ROCKING IT ON TWITTER

  

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    Do a great job at keeping up with replies, retweets, and hash-tagging. Use a nice set of images on your Twitter background that focuses on your latest product

·         Share a variety of quotes, articles, and media that your followers can easily consume and share

·         Post often and interact well with your followers.

·         Include links in almost every single tweet you send. This will always give followers something to engage on

·         Focus well on including links, tagging other users, and relying on hashtags

·         Feature images and videos of your products

·         Actively retweeting, mentioning, and sharing helpful links and tweets

·         Use your Twitter feed to provide your followers with an assortment of helpful articles, ebooks, links, and quotes that are easily shared and consumed

·         Keeping your followers interested is the key to maintaining a strong social network. Post helpful articles and links related to your product that followers can eat up.

ROCKING IT ON PINTEREST

·         Create a variety of great boards in an assortment of colors and are visually appealing to your followers. With Pinterest being very heavy on visual content, it helps to have a set of pleasantly colored images and products to feature

·         Pin board for almost everything you might want. Provide your followers with a number of interesting categories to keep them pinning

·         Create boards full of educational content. Use interesting games, facts, and information for knowledge hungry followers

·         Have a board just for the team. It’s a great way to put some faces to the company

·         Humor always does well on Pinterest. Create humor focused pin boards for everyone’s enjoyment

·         Have a broad selection of pin boards about design, style, food, and even cuteness

ROCKING IT ON LINKEDIN

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    A big focus of companies using LinkedIn is to use it as a recruiting tool.

·         Keep the public informed on new products, events, and updates about your products

·         Keep your profile up-to date. Feature helpful articles and news about your current products

·         Keep relevant and interesting articles in your LinkedIn company stream

·         Use clean and attractive cover image. Aside from that, use recent updates that includes online education and other helpful articles

·         Utilize employee spotlights or highlight career opportunities within the company. Feature a Friday Trivia question to keep your followers on their toes

ROCKING IT ON GOOGLE+

·         Focus on posting an assortment of visual content targeted at building product awareness. Consistently promote your latest products

·         Keep your circles entertained with images, videos, and interesting articles about the company

·         Do an amazing job on engaging with your fan base

·         Showcase the latest fashion trends and deals. Cover everything from fashion week to street fashion

·         Post images that show the value of your product rather than tell it. Use images that will show off the ease-of-use and optimized capabilities of your product

·         Use your Google + account to share with your circles the newest products coming off its production lines. Share images, videos, and articles about anything and everything about your company

Ella Ritalei Panganiban

Marketing Executive 
Drive Social Media

Sharing Facebook Fan Pages & Posts

Everyone knows how to “LIKE” a Facebook page and a post. But does everyone know how to “SHARE” them?

Facebook fan page is a vital part of a company’s social media campaign. A new way to promote your fan page is by sharing it. If you want to be one of the successful fan pages on Facebook, one cool step is to show and teach your fans how to share your fan page and posts. 

John McGrann, Drive Social Media CEO, thought of creating a step by step video instruction on how to use the Facebook “Share Button” that will benefit the Facebook Page and its Posts. I was assigned to do the task and was very delighted to do something that will help those having difficulties performing it on Facebook. 

Facebook fan pages now allow users to interrelate through Facebook by “sharing”. This was designed for people who want to interact about a particular cause, brand, business, artist or other subject on Facebook without posting directly on their personal account.

You can “Share” a Page and a Post in a snap, and this video will tell you how! Now, when you're browsing Facebook looking for any useful content, you have the knowledge on how to share that content after watching our video tutorial. Take a moment and start having fun SHARING! 

Remember everyone knows at least 100 people on Facebook so sharing is very powerful!

Let me know if I can help :)

Ella Ritalei Panganiban

Marketing Executive 
Drive Social Media

 

Boost Your Business Through Social Media

Gone are the days of sky high advertisement costs. Nowadays, businesses, big or small, can turn to social media for not only a cost-effective advertisement but direct interaction with the almost-24hr-present-on-social-media-networks consumers. 

The power of social media is beyond anyone's imagination. With social media, the only people left to wonder of your existence are those without internet and computer access, which is, roughly a small percent of the earth's population.

What's good about this new medium, aside from being cost-effective, is its power to make your business visible in practically any part of the world, making your presence boundary-less. Unfettered by your physical location, your market will surely soar a thousand fold due to your international online existence. 

Think about endless possibilities, faster dissemination, a worldwide market. The list goes on if you know how to connect and bring your business to the eyes of the social media-dependent population. Your employees, which are included in this population, from the janitors to the management team, should be trained and encouraged to use this media for the faster and wider coverage of your business and not banned from using them, which is what is happening right now. 

To prosper, businesses must go with the trend, with the social flow. Use your employees' insatiable hunger for online socialization in the promotion of your product, your business. No man is an island, that's what they say. We need help and we need to address that need, for our business gain. Changing your whole perspective in the use of social media in the workplace, thinking of it as an asset rather than a liability, will surely put you on top of the game.

Whether we'd like to admit it or not, there's a huge difference when people see your active presence on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and the likes. Use that difference to your advantage. 

In these times, who needs a 30-second TV ad when you can flash your coolness to everyone online? From kids to the tech-savvy grannies, your product will no longer just be a local or a state craze, rather, a trending, instagrammable, and pinterest-worthy topic on the internet and beyond.

Which social medium do you think will work best to promote your business? Take your pick, there's a lot of fish in the water.

 Ella Ritalei Panganiban

 Marketing Executive 
 Drive Social Media

Enchanting - minus the fairy tale... (Part 2)

This is a continuation from our previous post, Enchanting - minus the fairy tale part 1 - an overview of Guy Kawasaki's tips on how to be enchanting with social media.

His sixth tip on how to enchant people is to always be disclosing. Be transparent in everything you do. Let everyone know who you work for and your partners are and those you advise. A lot of people may think that this will eventually reduce people's interest in those brands/organizations but Guy thinks otherwise. He says that the logic behind this is that your followers will be even more interested in the brands or companies that you mention because you have mentioned them. It would make them wonder why you've mentioned or complimented them and if they see that you work for that particular company, they will become even more interested to find out why you have mentioned your thoughts. This will therefore create more interest from your followers, making you successfully able to enchant your followers.

On Twitter, Guy says that you must always remember to repeat the good stuff! Tweets sent only once might not be seen by people living in different time zones. For example, if you live in the Philippines, then the US is almost half a day behind from your time zone. This is his seventh tip - repeat your tweets about 5 times a day to ensure that everyone around the world will get to read them. Kawasaki does mention that it might irritate a few of your followers since they would come across the same tweet more than once, but that would only mean that they spend way too much of their time on Twitter.

His eighth tip to be enchanting is to remember to be subtle. You need to earn the right to promote your content. If you have created it - then you have the right to keep repeating it :)

"Twitter is a link economy", says Guy as he describes his ninth tip, which is to always be linking when you tweet - this helps create interest. Now the question is, where do you get content for the links? Guy answers this too by recommending a few websites of his choice:

• Stumbleupon.com
• Smartbrief.com
• Alltop.com 

These three websites are only some of the many good sources for good information for your Twitter 'linking' needs.

His tenth tip is also directed towards Twitter and he says that you must always be monitoring. Pay attention to what your competitors say about you, and what your fans and followers say about you as well. For Macintosh users, he recommends Hibari - a simple yet effective application that blocks unwanted tweets and filters your friends tweets so you can see only what you wish to see.

As Guy describes Twitter to be a link economy, he describes Facebook to be a picture economy. His eleventh tip is if you want to enchant people on Facebook, you must always be taking pictures and sharing them. Don't forget to be cropping your images though, so the unimportant or irrelevant parts of the image are separated from what's important in the picture.

His last tip that concludes his daily dozen for enchanting people is to always be commenting on Facebook. Thank people who have liked your posts and ask them questions; welcome people who have given you thanks.

Do YOU agree with Guy's tips on how to enchant people?

Let us know in the comment box below if you have any questions or suggestions as well ;)

Ayna Gonzales
Marketing Executive
Drive Social Media

Enchanting - minus the fairy tale... (Part 1)

Guy Kawasaki, the author of Enchantment, gives us a few tips on how to enchant people with social media.
 
He says that there are three pillars to observe when engaging with social media and the first of which is to always be a likable, friendly, positive person when talking to your audience. As in the real world, you would pay more attention, or in his terms, be more enchanted by a person you actually like.

Being likable involves an appropriate smile, something like a duchenne smile, as Guy describes it. Another thing that could make you seem more likable is to dress appropriately. Everyone likes looking and talking to people who are smiling and well dressed.
 
The second pillar is to be trustworthy. Show people you can be trusted by showing them that you trust them, and they will in turn, trust you back. A company that Guy mentions here is Zappos, an online retail company that pays for shipping fees for their merchandise, both ways! By having this unique policy, they have earned the trust of many as when their shoppers are dissatisfied with their products, they can simply send it back for free.
 
The third pillar is for all your products and services to have the DICEE characteristics; which stand for: deep, intelligent, complete, empowering, and elegant. To greater emphasize this, let's take a look at Macintosh. As compared to Windows OS, Macs bring out the creativity in someone and don't hinder their thinking with complex applications and tools; in other words, an example of a deep, empowering brand.
 
Another example is the Ford Mustang; it is described intelligent and complete because of their special 'key' features. Certain keys specifically designed for the youth so that the car can only accelerate up to a certain speed that the parent sets for it.
 
Once you have established these three pillars, then you can start taking note of the other key points for enchanting an audience using social media. They are as follows:
 
You should always be answering, especially on Twitter. This is the fourth tip to pay attention to when engaging with social media; it is one of the easiest ways to enchant people. Make sure to reply to everyone, whether that somebody is a nobody or Brad Pitt. Remember that the 'nobodies' of yesterday are today's somebodies! Replies ensure that you pay attention to your followers/fans and make them like/trust you :) The fifth tip that Guy mentions is to always remember to say thank you. Growing up, our parents always reminded us of the simple, yet very powerful act of thanks; the same goes in the lines of social media. A simple thank you to everyone who praises you will definitely go a long way.
 
Are we at Drive Social Media enchanting? We would love to know!
 
More soon :-)

Ayna Gonzales

Marketing Executive
Drive Social Media

Prospects will be IN-TE-REST-ED...

John McGrann

“The truth is Mr Client you are so boring!”

That probably sounds a bit harsh doesn’t it? But in some cases it’s true. Some businesses are boring and lifeless. My guess would be less than 5% of them. They are in industries which attract little interest. I wouldn’t care to name them though. 

As for the rest, they have no excuse. They are interesting to many of their stakeholders.  Their products, services and people are interesting. So why do many of these businesses still complain that people are not interested in their Facebook page or LinkedIn group or blog, for example? In other words they are boring!  In fact, they appear boring – although in reality and offline they can be very interesting. Simply, they are boring online only – it is just their online content that is boring.

Great content is essential for success in leveraging social media for business. Yes you need a strategy and you need to be out there in the right places. Growing a large social media network is a must so you can connect with your targeted audience. But connections alone are of little value. You have to engage your connections – talk to them. Great content facilitates that engagement – now we have something to talk about.

Some clients are slow about opening up and that is understandable. They are cautious. That’s fine, as over time confidence will grow. When their content is shared online the benefits can be magnified many times as fans and followers share their content. 

So what is Great Content? Here is an aid my team use to generate it themselves and from our clients.

What do you think?

More Soon!

John McGrann

CEO Drive Social Media

The Final Steps

This is the fourth and final series of posts on business blogging initiated by the blog post:
‘Don’t make your blog a slog!’

The previous blog post shows you how to create your own blog and how to add content to it, but the next question is… How do you attract followers to your blog? You want people to read your posts, but how would you do this?

Always remember that people will be interested to follow you, if they find you interesting.

Writing insightful articles will help people understand what you, or your brand is about, and will keep reading to learn more about it.

Add other blogs from your niche - follow other blogs that you find interesting, and they will hopefully follow you back. Engage with your followers; converse with them so they can get to know you better. You could also refer to other similar blogs in your blog posts, and then comment on their blogs to inform them that you've mentioned them in your post.

RSS feeds, like Google Reader or Outlook, are also very powerful tools you can use to help you generate followers for your blog. RSS feeds (also known as Really Simple Syndication feeds) help you keep track of other blogs and let you know when they've posted new content, so you can easily read them and comment on their posts.

So are there any other ways of letting people know about my blog?

Social Media Sites are also very useful when you want to attract followers. For example, you could let your followers on Twitter know that you've posted a new blog post and encourage them to follow your blog after visiting it.

Use Linked In to update your friends and colleagues there about your blog posts. Don't forget to direct them to your blog by adding the URL in your update as well. Linked In has a lot of groups; join the ones that are in your field of interest and inform them about your blog.

Facebook is also very useful as you can post on people's walls and kindly ask them to share your update with their friends whom they think will be interested in your blog. If you have a Facebook Page, you could post the same message you posted on Twitter and Linked In to keep your fans updated on your blog.

NetworkedBlogs is an application for Facebook that when added to your blog and Facebook page, will automatically pull through your blog feed and post it on your wall. You will have a separate list of followers for NetworkBlogs too.

Another website that's useful for generating followers for your blog is Technorati - one of the most famous search engines for blogs and blog posts. Find and follow similar blogs and promote yours there too.

What are the business benefits of blogging?

Blogging certainly increases your credibility and lets everyone read about your passion and what you're all about. Over time, with an increasing number of followers, people will trust you more and this in turn, leads to an increase in sales for your business.

All your posts will always be available in your archives, so even new users, or new visitors to your blog will be able to go back to those posts to read about you.

Using social media sites correctly will ensure that people will be able to see your blog on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn.. etc. Good brand awareness leads to trust from your target audience and customers.

Any widgets that can help?

Google Friend Connect, LinkedinABox, My Blog Log, Feedburner and Shout List Icons are great widgets to add to your blog to make it easier for your readers to connect with you, so make sure to add a few.

If you have any questions, please feel free to let us know :)

Ayna Gonzales
Marketing Executive
Drive Social Media

Just Step Out!

The words that cause a tremble for young paratroopers the first time they jump from an aircraft. Followed by an encouraging size 11 to their rears!

This is the third in a series of posts on business blogging initiated by the blog post:
‘Don’t make your blog a slog!’

Getting started is all about taking the first step - the hardest step. So how do we get started? Is there any help available? What are those first few steps? For many people the biggest issue is what to blog about.

Start by reading other blogs especially in your industry or area of interest. This will give you ideas for subject material and enable you to follow other blogs and comment on the same. Some bloggers focus solely on responding to other bloggers’ posts.

Think of a name for your blog. Yes you can use your own name if you’re a key person and leader. But for many it is the industry, interest, profession or trade which attract followers. Be inventive and not to serious. It needs to indicate your subject matter yet be interesting. I was quite pleased recently to think of the title ‘Desert Geeks’ for an IT services client in the United Arab Emirates.

Now choose a blogging platform. There are several good ones including these:

• Typepad
• WordPress.org
• Blogger
• WordPress.com

My own preference is for Blogger as I can use my Google login there.

Once you sign up for Blogger, for example, quickly get it configured. Choose a theme and layout. Add your biography and photo which should be your regular social media photo. Add your blog title and define your easy to remember hyperlink. Each blog has its own url link just like a website. There are lots of gadgets available such as social media links, share to Facebook and Twitter etc. So choose some and get some help if necessary. Images and video are powerful too! Now you are ready to write your blog post and get it published.

Ok and ready to go? So what should I blog about I hear you say... Here are a few ideas:

• Write about your passion – it will just flow
• Write something informative – add value to be enjoyed by readers
• Write about your expertise – bear the audience in mind and no jargon
• Write of topics that personalise your business – reveal a few secrets
• Add some humour – write with a smile on your face
• Comment on others’ blogs – start the conversation and generate ideas for blogging
• Tell great stories – we all love great stories!
• Lots of shorter posts is better – keep readers in suspense too
  

If you are getting the same question about your work or interest then write a blog post about it. Then when you asked again simply refer people to the blog post on the subject. It will save you time for sure.

Then paste it in the body of your blog, add a title, save and publish!

Have you done it yet?