Not Being Online is Like Playing Hide and Seek

"Hey, honey, what's the name of that pizza place we ordered from last time?"

"I don't know. Just Google it."

This is a conversation all too common inside households, as Google, other search engines and the internet in general continue to gain traction and popularity; because of this, for many consumers - if you're not online, you just don't exist.

That's why it's startling to read statistics such as this one on Statisticbrain.com: a 2012 survey found 75 percent of businesses still did not have a website. Statistics also show that just being online isn't enough - your presence should be built strategically, using sound search engine optimization and other tactics that will get your page found. Google searches account for 80 percent of searches, according a Forbes.com article, so creating your website with strategies that increase its presence on Google is important.

There's also more than one way to create an online presence, and being available in multiple places will not only increase your audience but it will also have a positive impact on your website's traffic. Enter: social media.

A Facebook user who is following your brand on the platform, may be so inspired by the relationship you've developed using that platform that he or she will click right through to your website. Boom, visitor. Potential business lead. Platforms such as Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and YouTube will have similar effects.

So, what are you waiting for you? Join the world wide web, and create more opportunities for you and  your customers to connect.

For more information about web design, contact Ron Wurm at DesignWurm.com.

Looking for help with your social media strategy? Connect with Clever Dog by e-mailing clvrdogmarketing@gmail.com.

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What's Up With #Facebook #Hashtags?

No matter your personal feelings on the trend, Twitter's use of hashtags quickly caught on among Facebook users, with hashtagged run-on sentences often popping up in many newsfeeds.

#isthisannoying? #youbethejudge.

Recognizing the popularity of its use and citing the power a hashtag holds in organizing a conversation, Facebook finally launched hashtag functionality on its site in June. Users can now click on a hashtag to find other users talking about that topic, and businesses can strategically position a particular post to be captured by an audience under a particular hashtag. 

#3monthslater, the use of hashtags on Facebook has been met with mixed results. Some marketers are touting it as a great tool: as it was put on Salon.com, Facebook has opened a "huge door" for marketers because of the increased ease of finding categorized content.

#ThatBeingSaid, a report released this month by Facebook analyst Edgerank Checker showed that hashtagged posts had no better chance of reaching its intended audience then a post that went out sans-hashtag. In fact, the report even showed a possible decreased reach when using hashtags. 

#SayWhat?

I initially react to this in two ways: 

1. Well, Facebook users probably need much more than 3 months to adjust to using hashtags effectively. Just think back on all of the war cry statuses that people often post when unhappy with changes the social media platform has made to their pages. 
2. Facebook plans to rollout deeper insights that would reveal hashtag trends, much like Twitter, which can't hurt in helping the site's users implement Facebook #hashtags effectively.

Time will tell whether the hashtag trend on Facebook grows or fades, but in the meantime I can't imagine it being a bad practice to at least play around with. Perhaps you'll find the opposite results of Edgerank's study. 

Besides, hashtags aren't going away everywhere — and, as this funny graphic shows — hashtags have been in use since the 12th century!

Need more help with your business' social media accounts? Contact Clever Dog Media Relations & Business Marketing.

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Time: Allocating Your Most Valuable Resource Can be Tricky When it Comes to Social Media

While there's a lot of elements that go into creating an effective social media strategy, one of the basic aspects to consider is time commitment.

Time can be broken down into a few elements: time spent responding to commenters, therefore engaging your social media audience; time spent connecting with with other businesses and organizations in your industry or area; and time spent posting original content.

Showing personality and engaging your social media users
means your on track to implementing a successful strategy.

The importance of engaging with your audience cannot be stressed enough, however it's hard to measure exactly how much time will be spent on this task. A simple suggestion would be to start with a simple 20 minutes a day, checking your page at two, 10-minute intervals to see whether there were comments, and draft an appropriate response. As you get to know your audience, you'll see whether you might need more time to respond — but as a start a morning and afternoon check will be sufficient, and appear responsive in your users' eyes.  (Read more about the two-way street on social media.) 

Time spent engaging other businesses and organizations in your industry or area is a great way to increase your reach on Facebook. If you "like" or "share" something from another business, they are more likely to "like" or "share" something of yours. What this means is that all the fans of that business page now see the content on your page, and perhaps they will decide to like your page, too. This could almost be considered a back-alley, two-way street, if you will.

Time spent posting original content — this one can be tricky depending on the industry your in. A survey on Socialbakers.com found that brands such as iTunes, Skittles, Disney and Starbucks were averaging just one post a day on their Facebook pages; posting less than two times per week is very ineffective for any brand according to the survey. Put two-and-two together, the moral of the story is to post at least every other day in an attempt to be effective.

But then you have to consider that different people are logging onto their social media accounts at different times of the day. If you can easily figure out when your target market might be using social media, you can then determine what times of the day to post. For example (warning, this is a hypothetical example and not researched): Perhaps mom's of small children log on shortly after 8 p.m. when their children are asleep — and you're trying to sell diapers, formula, etc. Then scheduling posts for after 8 p.m. on a regular basis is a good idea. However, if you can't determine that this is when moms are logging on, perhaps you also want to post during the lunch hour, and perhaps in the morning from time to time.

My best advice is to post morning, afternoon and evening — because you'll hit varying groups of people and increase your odds for a return on investment. If you really want to get nit-picky, here's a pretty cool sheet from Business Insider that shows the best and worst times to post on a variety of social media platforms.

Need more help with your business' social media accounts? Contact Clever Dog Media Relations & Business Marketing.

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Facebook 'Likes' it When There's A Person Behind Every Page

Social media is a great platform to expand a business' audience (read, customer base), but many organizations struggle with how to do so.

Starting up a Facebook business page merely takes a few clicks of the mouse, fill in some basic information and - *vwoila* - welcome new business to the social media world. But, then what?

There are two main tips that every business owner should keep in his or her back pocket: 1) be personable, and 2) remember that it's a two-way street.

Social media is about being engaging, it's about creating an online relationship with a potential customer. Successful relationships have give and take components, they work together and thrive off of interaction. A business running a Facebook page that merely touts its products or services is not effective. Period, point. Give your Facebook audience more than just a list of the ways you're trying to make money, and you'll see the greatest return.

Mara Boo Schmeyer is the inspiration behind Clever Dog's name.

 

So, how do you create a personality? Don't be afraid to post status updates that show human element: Here's a recent example from ClvrDog showing just that - an artsy picture of a frog enjoying Wisconsin's summer. Does this have anything to do with the Media Relations & Business Marketing firm? Well, no. Will it foster a relationship with those who "like" its Facebook page, resulting in possible business leads? More likely than not!

So what's this two-way street all about? If you've got someone commenting on your business' Facebook page posts - by all means, comment back! Do not let any stone go unturned. Social media is increasingly becoming a popular outlet to show off superior customer service skills, so let this be an easy platform to demonstrate your business' ability to respond to customer comments and complaints.

Yes, complaints. Even if the customer has something negative to say, always address the issue. Leaving a question unanswered will result in more customers seeing the question, and wondering why the business didn't respond. Maybe there really are flies baked into all this restaurant's burgers. At the very least, invite the complaining customer for a private chat via e-mail or phone call.

Another great way to leverage Facebook's platform is by interacting with other businesses nearby that are also on social media. You support each other in person - why not share the wealth online? 

Need more help with your business' social media accounts? Contact Clever Dog Media Relations & Business Marketing.