Archive for the ‘Twitter’ Category

Who’s behind your social presence?

July 23, 2012

Is it someone who’s smart, connected, and understands your business?  Or is it this guy?

#Aurora is trending, clearly about our Kim K inspired #Aurora dress ;)

This was posted under the heading “Worst Tragedy Related Misunderstanding You’ll Read All Day.”

Yeah, pretty much.

We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: you can outsource writing, you can outsource scheduling, but you can’t completely outsource content marketing. This is what happens when you do.

Posted in Facebook, Marketing, Social Business, Social Media, Strategy, Twitter, Web 2.0 | Leave a Comment »

How to Get More Traffic, Part I

May 30, 2011
Get more traffic

Photo by Michael Loke

You want more traffic, right?  So how do you get it?

There are lots of ways, but one of the most effective is by creating sharable content.

“But Ann!” you wail. “Wouldn’t it be easier just to show up at the top of the search engines?”

Ah, young padawan, one result begets the other. More on that later.

Why You Should Care About the Social Web

So, the web is social.

That means that one of the main ways we’re exposed to new content is through our online friends.

I have a niece who always finds the most interesting and/or thought-provoking and/or unabashedly feminist stuff on the interwebs.  She’s also really good at finding adorable cat videos.

Every time she posts on Facebook, I’m right there, because I know she serves up quality content.

Well, quality to me. And that’s the beauty of the social web:

1. Shared links are embedded with social proof.

When a person shares your content, whether it’s a blog post, or a video, or a tool, that share comes with built-in social proof.

That person is saying, “I found this useful/interesting/hilarious and I think you will too.”

When the person sharing the content is someone I trust, that makes me trust you.

Cha-ching.

2. Your target market sorts itself.

You create content. You put it out on the web.  It gets shared.

Sure, some people click on it, and some people don’t.  But the people who clicked on it self-selected.

Look, you’re a big kid, right?  You know that getting everyone to like you is impossible.  What you do just may not appeal to everyone, and that’s okay.

The clickers looked at your content, evaluated the person who shared it, and decided it was worth a click.

Hopefully many of them then shared it with their networks, of their own volition and with no strings attached.

You didn’t force anything on them. And that’s a good thing.

By creating consistently sharable content over time, you will create a dynamic market that’s pre-disposed to receiving your messages.

Cha-ching, part deux.

This target market may overlap with the target market that buys your products or services, or it may consist of influencers or referral sources.

It’s up to you to decide who you want to go after and to create content that will appeal to that market.

Have I convinced you?

Come back tomorrow, and I’ll show you how to create sharable content that gets you noticed.

Posted in Blogging, Facebook, Marketing, Social Business, Social Media, Strategy, Twitter, Video, Web 2.0 | 1 Comment »

The Content Conundrum

January 26, 2011

You can’t outsource content marketing.

This is a problem that has been plaguing me for months, if not years.

I’m a very good writer in a world where many people struggle with writing. I should be able to make crazy money ghost blogging and ghost tweeting and ghost facebooking.

Oh, damn you, scruples! Why can’t I convince myself that’s okay?

Because it isn’t.

Because you can’t outsource content marketing.

“People can smell a poser from a mile away”

That’s a line from Gary Vaynerchuk’s book, Crush It. So true.

Listen, I can spin a pretty yarn, but I am not you.  I’m not passionate about lug nuts or rocket boosters or pizza kits.  You are.  That’s why you do what you do.

Say you outsource your blog to me.  It’s my job to invent the topics, write the posts, and promote them. You approve them from afar.  That’s what you want, right?  Approval, with no effort.

Now imagine you’re one of 30 ghost blogging clients, all of whom are in completely different industries.

Here’s a clue: under those circumstances, I will never sound like you do when you talk about the thing you love. I don’t know your subject matter well enough. And I don’t care enough, because I’ve got 29 other posts to write today.

(You’re starting to see why I can’t condone this).

If your blog is written by someone who doesn’t care, who doesn’t know her stuff, who is punching a clock…no one will read it.

You might as well throw your money out the window.

The only way I can truly manage your blog with so little input from you is if I spend a lot of time with you.  A lot of time.

Which means you’d better get ready for a big fat salary and a sharp uptick in the coffee consumption in your office, because I don’t come cheap.

What if you’re not a writer?

Easy for me to say.  But what if you’re not a writer?

Hang with me here, because I’ve got an important distinction coming.

DON’T: outsource your blog or twitter stream to a writer (or, god help us, a “social media expert”)

DO: hire a writer to draft and edit your blog posts, or cull your content for tweets.

What’s the difference?  When you outsource your content, you’re handing the whole process over to someone else.  Topics, research, writing, execution: it all goes to a third party.

If somebody promises you that you won’t have to do a thing but approve it, run away.

The content for your blog, or your tweets, or your facebook page HAS to come from you.  That means you have to write articles, or at least write outlines. You have to find the intersection of what matters to you and what matters to your audience and spend some time there.

That’s the heavy lifting of content creation, and it’s your responsibility. Once that’s done, feel free to hire someone like me to make it sound good.

Creation vs. Distribution

Here’s another way to think about.

YOU: Content creation

ME: Content distribution

You are the creator, the source of the original thought that will appeal to your audience.  I’m the conduit for that thought.

I can take your ideas and whip them into shape. I can blast them out through any number of channels.

But they’re your ideas.  They have to be.

What do you think?  Tell me in the comments.

Posted in Blogging, Facebook, Social Media, Twitter, Writing | 2 Comments »

What Social Isn’t

January 6, 2011

When you walk around day and night with social literally attached at the hip, talking to other social-savvy people, it’s easy to forget that the vast majority of business owners still have absolutely no idea what they’re doing.

Don’t be ashamed.  I’m here to help.

Three Things Social Media Isn’t

There are many common misconceptions about social media, and I’ve heard them all.  Here are a few things social media is NOT:

  1. A megaphone. As I’ve said before, the term “social media” starts with social for a reason.  You’re not going to get very far in this space if all you do is broadcast propaganda about yourself.

    This is counter-intuitive if you’re interested in social media primarily as a marketing tool.  But successful social marketing requires engagement, also known as “talking to people.”

    (You remember how to do that, right?)

    Social requires you to listen, ask questions and respond to others’ content in a meaningful way.  There’s no way around it.

  2. A one-way street. SO many of my clients get stuck here.  The common lament:

    “I can’t open up my wall on Facebook! People will complain!  And then other people will complain!  And it will all be a big mess.  I’d rather just use it to make announcements (read: to broadcast propaganda).“

    Guess what?  When people complain, that’s an opportunity.

    You don’t like our packaging?  Wow!  Can you tell me more about that?  It’s difficult to open? Huh, we didn’t realize that.  Or maybe we did, but other options are more costly.  Would you pay $2 more if our product were in a better container?

    Etc.

    People pay thousands and thousands of dollars for market research like that.  Suck it up.  Open the wall.  Listen and respond.

  3. Too technical for you. In fact, technology has nothing to do with it.

    Can you turn on your computer?  Can you navigate to a website?  Can you recognize the letters on your keyboard and press the keys in the right order, thereby creating a string of characters that is recognizable to other people who can read your language?

    You can do social media.

    The problem with social – the reason people don’t do it – is that they don’t have anything to say.  Or they’re afraid that what they say will make them seem stupid.

    Or, to put it another way, people don’t do social because creating content is hard.  So stop telling yourself that story and man up.

And One Thing That It Is…

Yes, using social media is time-consuming.

Committing to a blog or Twitter or LinkedIn or Facebook means that you will have to think about your customers and what they care about on a regular basis.  You’ll have to learn what others in your industry are doing. You’ll have to listen and respond.

Yes, it’s going to take time.

Do you have something better to do?

 

Posted in Blogging, Facebook, Marketing, Social Media, Strategy, Twitter, Web 2.0 | 1 Comment »

2011: The Year of Not Waiting

January 3, 2011

I spent much of 2010 waiting.

I waited to have surgery. I waited to get better. I waited for my vacation. I waited to get home. I waited for bedtime.

And then there were the more insidious waits – shorter in duration but, taken together, adding up to more lost time. I waited for replies. I waited for comments. I waited for follows.

In 2010, I waited to be noticed.

Introverts are tricky. We don’t like to be the center of attention. But, at the same time, we want to feel special. We want to be admired.

We could spend our whole lives waiting.

How Do You Know You’re Waiting?

There are two types of waiting:

1. Distracted Waiting

Distracted waiting is when you try to pretend you’re not waiting by watching television, or noodling on your guitar, or making another pot of coffee.

Distracted waiting sometimes looks a lot like “being,” or mindfulness, which is a focus on the present moment.  That’s good for you. The difference is expectation.

If you think you’re being still, but you’re carrying around expectations about what will (or should) happen next, you’re not really focused on the present. You’re focused on the future. You’re waiting.

2. Busy Waiting

Busy waiting is when you pretend you’re not waiting by doing things that ostensibly serve you, but really they’re just busy work: checking your mentions on twitter, balancing your checkbook, crunching data ad nauseum.

You’re waiting, but you’ve convinced yourself you’re not waiting by doing anything but the thing that will move you forward.

Be brutally honest with yourself.  We rationalize a thousand ways.  This thing you’re doing right now, does it serve you?  Or are you waiting for something better to come along?

How to Stop Waiting

It’s January 3.  All this is new to me, but here’s how I’m thinking we might escape the waiting game:

Create

“The whole difference between construction and creation is this; that a thing constructed can only be loved after it is constructed; but a thing created is loved before it exists.” – Charles Dickens

The act of creation is a great way to move yourself forward.  Keep plugging away at your blog.  If you’re lucky enough to work in a creative profession, take joy in your work.

Not challenging enough?  Create a personal blog.  Or a community. Or a book club.  Or a recording.  Or a video.

Create anything.

Engage

I had coffee with my friend Michael today.  I told him, “I’ve been tweeting and blogging for a while now, but I’m not getting the sort of response I’d like.”

He said: “What’s your ratio of talking at versus talking to?”

That prickly beast, social media, starts with “social” for a reason.  You are probably not the sort of celebrity that people will follow whether they reply or not.  If you want people to engage with you, engage with them first.  Be authentic. React and respond.

Be vulnerable

The other day, I came across this amazing talk by Brené Brown.  In her talk, Brené says that, although many people see vulnerability as something to be feared, others (“the whole hearted”), don’t see it that way.  They don’t think of vulnerability as good or bad, just necessary.

Whatever you do, don’t try to be perfect. Don’t be afraid to create work that is ambitious.  Don’t be afraid to publish it, even if it sucks.  Especially if it sucks.  Comment with abandon. Appreciate others by reacting to their work.

2011 Is the Year of Not Waiting

If I have anything close to a new year’s resolution it’s this: 2011 is the year of not waiting.

Not waiting will require vigilance.  It will require me to determine what’s really rest and what’s just more waiting.  I will have to do things I’d rather not do in order to be the person I need to be.

What are you waiting for?

Posted in Blogging, Facebook, Marketing, Motivation, Personal, Social Media, Strategy, Twitter, Video | 5 Comments »

Compare and Contrast: Twitter vs. Facebook

March 18, 2010

It’s funny how the universe throws things at you.  Over the last few weeks, I’ve come across several different sources that all recommend updating your Twitter account and your Facebook status separately.  That was news to me.  I’ve been allowing Twitter to post my tweets to Facebook for a long time and thought it was just too convenient to pass up.  Of course, I supplemented my facebook feed with additional, more personal information, but I couldn’t see the harm in letting Twitter updates show up there too.

Well, I thought about it some more, and now I’m a convert.  Let’s explore in some detail how Twitter and Facebook differ and why you just might want to take the time to post to each site separately.

Tone

140 characters?  Seriously?  Yep, that’s all Twitter gives you to make your point.  Personally, I think Twitter helps you become a better writer for this very reason.  However, it also forces you to be concise.  Maybe clipped.  Woah, I’m doing it right now.

Facebook, on the other hand, is conversational in tone.  You can type for a quite a while in that status box before it cuts you off.  You can use this to your advantage by taking the long way around.  Work up to something, or tell a more sophisticated joke, if that’s your thing.

Here’s an example from my very own stream:

Tweet
Should you market your business on facebook?  http://bit.ly/buRUQg

Facebook Status
Thinking about setting up a facebook page for your business?  Not sure if you’re ready to take the plunge?  Gauge your readiness here: http://bit.ly/buRUQg

How do these posts differ?  The tweet gets to the point a whole lot quicker, while the Facebook status provides more context and sells the link a little more.  This is important because Twitter users are really just scanning while Facebook users tend to take more time to review the items in their streams.

Frequency of Updates

When I first stated using Twitter, I couldn’t stop.  I bet this happens to a lot of people.  It’s the crack of the social media world.  Why is it so hard to get off?  You click one link, then you click another link, then another, and by the time you’re done with that, you have 12 new tweets to read.  I couldn’t comprehend how people could use Twitter and still get their work done.

Then I got this advice: you cannot consume Twitter.  Twitter is a raging river, and from time to time, you stick your toe in to test the temperature.

Facebook is more like your backyard swimming pool. You know everybody in the pool.  In fact, you know them so well you don’t mind letting them see you in your swimsuit.  You can duck into the house for a margarita and, when you get back, you haven’t missed much. For this reason, you really need to curb your enthusiasm on Facebook.

On Twitter, it’s common to see a user pop on, tweet a couple times, reply to a couple people, re-tweet three or four links, then get off.  If all of these posts (except the @ replies, obviously), show up in your Facebook feed, you have just consumed way too much of your friends’ day.  It’s just not considered appropriate to post that many Facebook status updates within a few minutes’ time.  It’s a sure way to alienate your friends in a hurry.

Timeliness

On Twitter, timing counts.  If a topic is trending, you want to be in on that topic now.  If a link is flying around and you decide to re-tweet it tomorrow, well that’s just so yesterday.

On Facebook, not so much.  If you find a really interesting resource that you want to share with your fans, it’ll still be there tomorrow, and that’s just find with them.  You don’t need to overload your fans by updating your status 20 times an hour, because that news is just as fresh the next day.

So what’s a girl to do?  I keep a Word document with interesting links that I find on Twitter and pick one per day to share with my Facebook friends.  In fact, I shoot for one external link and one Collective update per day.  And if I don’t have a Collective update, I just drop it.  One to two status updates a day are more than enough to stay in front of friends or fans without overwhelming them.

Hopefully that gives you more insight into why it isn’t a good idea to keep your Twitter and Facebook accounts linked!  What are your experiences with marketing on Twitter and Facebook?  Any faux pas to share?  Tell me in the comments!

What bugs your customers most about email marketing?  Think you know?  Think again: http://www.baseonegroup.co.uk/beyond/2010/03/marketers-misconceptions-part-2—90-of-marketers-dont-think-spamming-is-a-big-problem.html

Posted in Facebook, Marketing, Social Media, Twitter, Web 2.0 | 2 Comments »

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