I have a little girl who is just fascinated with the Disney Movie "Frozen" at the moment. (I’m gently using the word 'fascinated'…but frankly its bordering on obsession and she is on a strict withdrawal diet as we speak). Anyhow – this Disney movie, more than any in the past (so far), has absolutely captured the imagination of kids and adults alike. But when my sister passed this YouTube video on to me (below) – it firstly made me giggle, but then I focussed on the daughter sitting in the back seat and it made me think…. Sometimes when we are crappling for topics and subjects to share with our social media audiences,we can revert to what we think is funny, interesting or applicable to … [Read more...] about Entertain your audience and not yourself
Social Media
The following blog posts cover a variety of topics within the area of social media. We share insights into some of the platforms themselves, the strategy behind using them or simply how to blend this channel into your digital marketing strategy.
The Growth of Visual: Images, Infographics & Videos Are High on Marketers Lists
Now, more than ever before, information is coloured by how well it is presented. The attractiveness of the piece of content you are sharing will determine how much or how little people will connect with it. In the last 6 to 8 months I’ve noticed how massively visual website and blog design has become. Look at the re-design of Mashable.com – that alone shows how things are moving. I have to say that some of it is a bit too much for me – in that I have no idea where to look to find what I want and I have to step away from my screen to actually see what I am looking at. (Oversized visuals for my 15” screen). So I guess “balance” in design, as ever, is still key. What I do like about the move … [Read more...] about The Growth of Visual: Images, Infographics & Videos Are High on Marketers Lists
Short Social Video Sharing: The Value in Vine and Video for Instagram
With smart phones and tablets being mainstream, capturing photos and video 'on the go' is now a part of many people's every day lives. Unless it's a special occasion why lug a camera and laptop around if your device can shoot HD video, decent still photos and much more besides? With this significant shift in everyday media capture, Facebook and Twitter have made sure that their users are able to share video too. Vine and Instagram are two applications you may have heard of, and may be using. These are currently the leading services to use when sharing video content to your social media platforms via portable devices. What does Instagram or Vine do that YouTube doesn’t? The main difference … [Read more...] about Short Social Video Sharing: The Value in Vine and Video for Instagram
Instagram vs Vine – Which Micro Video Platform Should You Use in Your Business?
Video continues to be a big growth area and most businesses should be looking at ways to leverage this very “search friendly” medium. Video has always been a great medium for communicating your business message but 2013 heralded the rise of a new wave of video capturing with video sharing applications like Twitter's “Vine” and Facebook’s “Video for Instagram”. Mainstream adoption of smartphones and tablets to record these video snippets and the importance Google now places on video content in search rankings means video is very much back in focus for 2014 too. So how are short video clips are being used in Social Media for business? The best way to answer this question is to give you two … [Read more...] about Instagram vs Vine – Which Micro Video Platform Should You Use in Your Business?
The Ease of Auto-posting vs Devaluing Your Content | Efficiency Myth
We are all busy. That is a given, right? Now - what we are busy with - could be debated until the cows come home. Sometimes I have met business owners who are so "busy" with things that in the scheme of things are (a) not productive, (b) won't make a difference if its not done, and more importantly (c) someone else should be doing. Of course, the natural inclination is to look for the easy route when it comes to social media. "What could I do with one action - that could be replicated and look like "more"?" In the context of managing your social media content - the perceived easy route is automating all of you social posting (i.e. one status update being shared on Facebook, Twitter and … [Read more...] about The Ease of Auto-posting vs Devaluing Your Content | Efficiency Myth
How to Download an App From a QR Code | A Simple Trick to Smart Phones
Mobile technology married with the maturity of the use of social media has really driven the design and use of that little brick in our pocket. Well – to be honest, they used to be “bricks”, but nowadays they are lightweight, super smart and like mini-computers in your pocket. The tiny thing that does seem to stop people actually using them to the fullest advantage is fear. So I thought that it may be useful to nail down some of the “techy” words / functions and break them down for you as I come across them...so that maybe you can clearly see the advantage of taking the leap and really getting to know your SMART phone. It may give you back some time in your day; make some tasks a lot … [Read more...] about How to Download an App From a QR Code | A Simple Trick to Smart Phones
Profound and Prudent Pinterest Planning Pointers | 7 Hot Tips to Action Today
Business owners the world over are flocking to Pinterest to build their online profile, tell their brand story, and attract new customers. The diverse ways that you can use Pinterest naturally lead to many exciting types of online marketing materials. In this post I'm going to give you 7 profound and prudent Pinterest planning pointers on how to translate your brand into visual story PIN magic: Pinterest pointer 1: Create a profile of your clients This is where you take the time to do 21st century style ‘target market’ work. Look through data you have gathered from other online platforms and find keywords related to your business. Now, take this information and start to organize it under … [Read more...] about Profound and Prudent Pinterest Planning Pointers | 7 Hot Tips to Action Today
A Dangerous Misperception: You Will Get a Quick Financial Return from Social Media
Every business owner (especially in tougher economic environments) will look at the activities in the operation and say 'But how much revenue will that bring in?' Unfortunately if you go into social media with this at the forefront of your mind, you will be severely disappointed. It is not a quick fix to bring money in. Participating in social media means (in a nutshell) that you have a long term investment in being consistent in your presence - however your success is ultimately measured in what you set out to achieve by being on any of the platforms in the first place. Your planning and strategy is completed in the short-to-medium term - so any resources are planned according to this … [Read more...] about A Dangerous Misperception: You Will Get a Quick Financial Return from Social Media
Common Mistake in Social Media: Sell Before You Listen
Any communication trainer will tell you that the best quality of a great communicator (and actually a salesperson) is one that LISTENS - before anything else. A good salesperson uses TWO ears and ONE mouth - the priority is on listening to what your prospective client or existing client is saying and asking of you. Time and again we find businesses jumping into social media platforms like Twitter and Facebook and all they do is 'bump up' how fabulous they are and they have exactly what you want and at the right price. This is just as annoying and counter-productive in the online environment as it is on the offline one! The simplest advice I give to anyone who will listen (no pun intended) … [Read more...] about Common Mistake in Social Media: Sell Before You Listen
My View on Facebook as a Social Media Platform
The Facebook platform is very mature in development and is at the same time a dichotomy of constant change. Posts are weighed by viewing popularity - so you may not always see the updates as they are sent...but rather it will depend on whether anyone has interacted with the content....and perhaps even more specifically whether you have been interacting with that particular page or person. Personal vs Business use You may need some guidance initially in order to know the differences in a personal use and business use (functionality wise) – because you can quite easily use your personal account for both uses. I seriously advise avoiding breaking Facebook rules and creating two “human being” … [Read more...] about My View on Facebook as a Social Media Platform