Social Media 101 for 2012

By Rich Lewis at Burlington Press
www.burlingtonpress.com | www.burlingtonpresswebservices.com 

I spend a lot of time reviewing articles and blog posts to keep up with what is going on in the ever-changing world of marketing for small business. One of my favorite things to read are the lists. You know, 10 best practices for… or 25 reasons why… They are great summaries of a number of ideas and focus in on what could be a vast topic.

Recently I read a list of 30 predictions for social media marketing in 2012. What I thought would be a really interesting topic turned out to be kind of boring. Thirty experts in social media were asked to give their perspective on marketing in the New Year.  They all seemed to say basically the same thing. I will provide you with a summary of that article in a little bit.

Social media marketing is different from other forms of marketing because the consumer drives it. With direct mail, advertising, etc. you tell your customers and prospects about a particular product or promotion and hope they go out and buy it. With social media the idea is to get your customers and prospects to become a fan of your company, products or services and then possibly buy something and then recommend you to their social media network.

In the marketing world, we love to measure the return on investment (ROI) and with most forms of marketing it is relatively easy to do that. However, Social Media is not like most forms of marketing. No matter what some experts will tell you, ROI is difficult to measure. How many likes on a Facebook page turn into a sale? Social media is about building good will, sharing insights and expertise in order to start a conversation with your customers and a create a new level of comfort and trust.

Now for that summary of what you can expect in 2012 with social media.

1. Social media is still growing, changing and expanding. The big players like Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin are treading in each other’s territory.
2. With the addition of new players like Google+ and specialized networks, social media continues to become more complicated.
3. Because of the changing nature of Social Media, it is not necessary to be everywhere on social media but to be where it is matters and to be consistent and engaging.
4. Content is more important then ever. I always thought it was the most important thing and now others are coming to the same conclusion. A lot of these social media experts are a bit younger then me so I guess they are still learning this.
5. Don’t limit your content to just words on a page. It is wise to consider communicating visually with video and photos. Some people receive information better visually. Plus it is no longer necessary to spend tons of money on video production. Simply speaking into a camera will be well accepted if what is said is interesting.

This summarizes what a lot of experts in social media are telling you to expect in the New Year. You may notice that it is mostly plain old common sense. Using common sense isn’t new, but it should be applied to every great new “innovation” in marketing.

A New Years Lesson

By Rich Lewis at Burlington Press
www.burlingtonpress.com | www.burlingtonpresswebservices.com 

A New Years Prayer: Grant me the skills to master all weapons of war and the wisdom to create a life where they are never needed.

I thought of this after a meeting with a client. We were in dispute over a bill and as a result it was not paid. As we discussed this issue I knew I had the upper hand. The job was for a website we built and I could have easily just said, “Pay your bill buddy or the site gets shut off!” If I used this tactic, I would have quickly walked out with a check. However, this doesn’t take into account the other side’s feelings and understanding at the time. It would have most likely left the client feeling like they were strong-armed and taken advantage of. They probably would have started looking for another marketing company or at least started to speak ill of us to what could be our perspective clients. Add to this the damage that can be done with social media and you might start to see that this little victory could ultimately become a defeat.

As we talked, we uncovered a misunderstanding in our original agreement. He was a reasonable guy and we ended up coming to a conclusion we both agreed with. There was no need to threaten, no need to play the ace up my sleeve. It took a lot longer but we both left the meeting shaking hands and starting to plan the next step of our relationship together.

If negotiation is war, I had the ultimate weapon to win it. But after devastating my opponent I would not have won their hearts and minds. After the negotiation is over, you have no control over what the other party will do. Our military just ended a long tenure in Iraq because of this fact. We can argue over whether this war was a success, but did it cost us more then it could have if we used a different set of tactics?

So I guess my new years resolution is to try and think through things I do when dealing with other people. I will try to learn what the other person’s perception is and us that to forge an agreement instead of using any means at my disposal to get what I want. In the words of Dale Carnegie, “Learn to see things from the other person’s perspective.” Have a Safe and Happy New Year.

6 Suggested Uses for QR Codes

By Rich Lewis at Burlington Press
www.burlingtonpress.com | www.burlingtonpresswebservices.com

Every business has the potential to use QR codes in an unexpected way. If your business innovates its marketing campaign with QR codes, you’re bound to enjoy a healthy ROI in addition to increased customer interaction. Keep reading for our list of six interesting places we’ve found QR codes.

Menus
Print a QR code on your menus to engage restaurant diners. The QR code could direct them to a video of the chef preparing an entrée or even nutritional information. Somewhat obvious caveat—if the food’s fatty enough to make guests lose their appetite, stick with a server bio or something else to spark a diner’s interest.

Invitations
Event invitations with QR codes can link to a landing page where invitees can RSVP or check out directions to the venue.

Real Estate Lawn Signs
Realtors are attracting passersby by printing QR codes on their listings’ lawn signs. The link leads potential buyers to sites with video walkthroughs of the house and all the details included in a sell sheet. QR codes help realtors hook prospects before they walk past the home and forget about it. Sold!

Receipts
Most consumers research a business online before patronizing it. Make sure your online presence is strong and then print QR codes on your business’s receipts. Link to a landing page inviting them to comment on your stellar service and enjoy a boost in your number of online reviews.

Coffee Bags
Starbucks recently rolled out a QR code campaign that takes an educational approach to the QR code trend by linking to videos of coffee experts or music samples from the region where the coffee beans are picked. Faithful sippers now have even more reason to congratulate themselves on drinking coffee.

The Back of Your Head
We don’t really expect that you’ll have a QR code shaved into your head, but it’s been done before and it gained a lot of attention. The entire starting lineup of the UK’s Bromley football club had shockingly realistic QR codes shaved into their heads for a recent match. No word on whether any fans actually tried to scan them. But don’t limit it to your head, QR codes can fit just about anywhere like on t-shirts wrist bands, and anything else that will attract attention.

One last work on QR Codes. They are designed to be used with mobile devices so if you use QR codes as part of your marketing, please please please make sure you have anyone scanning your codes connect to content that is formatted for mobile viewing.

 

The Trouble with QR Codes

By Rich Lewis at Burlington Press
www.burlingtonpress.com | www.burlingtonpresswebservices.com

The biggest problem with QR codes is that they are really cool. Their second biggest problem is that they are very easy to create. So now we see them everywhere on billboards, brochures, posters and more. I was at a museum exhibition and there were QR codes on the walls that could be scanned in order to get more information about the art.

Why is this a problem? The coolness factor and ease of use makes it too easy to jump right into using them without any forethought as to the result.  QR codes are designed for use with a mobile device. If that is the case, why do most QR code scans take a user to a desktop formatted webpage? Sending a mobile phone, especially a smaller screened Blackberry, to a desktop webpage is inviting a less then stellar experience with your website. If fact, it is inviting a really bad one by providing the user, who is your potential customer, a lot of frustration as they try to read the content and click on tiny buttons that require surgical skills to reach.

The use of mobile devices for web browsing is growing at a rate that is almost too quick to measure. It is estimated that 40% of all web searches are done on a mobile phone and by next year it probably increase to more than 50%. Add to that the fact that 100% of all QR code scans are done with a mobile device and you might see a problem if you are not providing your web content in a mobile friendly way.

QR codes can be a really great and inexpensive marketing tool. But don’t use them the wrong way. What is really cool and really easy might end up as really bad and really difficult if your web site is not easily viewable on the device that scanned the code.

Give them what they want and they will respond

By Rich Lewis at Burlington Press

www.burlingtonpress.com | www.burlingtonpresswebservices.com

Marketing today is being able to offer content to prospects and customers in a medium they prefer. That medium can be in print, web, email, social media and mobile. Mobile is growing very quickly and has grown to a 9% share of all online sales. Plus by next year, which is in a few weeks, over half of all web searches will be done using a mobile device like a phone, iPad, tablet and whatever else gets invented.

CLICK HERE for more information on Mobile Websites and how they can change your business.

Mobile Websites are Different!

By Rich Lewis at Burlington Press
www.burlingtonpress.com
www.burlingotnpresswebservices.com 

Almost half of all web browsing is done on a mobile phone.

Can your website be viewed easily on a mobile phone?

ARE YOU SURE?

Having your website resize itself for a smart phone screen is not enough. The text can be too small to read and the size of the images and graphics on your site can make it very slow to load.

It is one thing for your website to be visible on a mobile phone and quite another to be useful. Creating a mobile website is more then reformatting your pages to be readable on the smaller, more vertical Smartphone screen. It takes understanding how surfing the web on a mobile device like a smart phone is different from the way it is viewed from a desktop computer. We understand this and have a variety of tools in our arsenal to help you not just create a mobile website, but to create an amazing mobile website. Here are some mobile website tips:

Define the Purpose – Mobile sites need to be brief and concise. You need to get to the point quickly. If you have a lot to say on your website, we need to help you get to the heart of the message and make sure it is easily understandable when viewed on a mobile phone.

Keep it Simple – Both the design and content need to be simple. Smartphone operating systems are not as powerful as desktop computers so a streamlined website loads faster. The trick is to create something that looks great yet is still simple and attractive without sacrificing style. In addition, your mobile site should complement your desktop website. The same users may access your desktop and mobile websites at different times based on where they are. They should never feel that the two sites are completely different from each other.

Be Interactive – Being able to access your website anywhere from someone’s hand is a much different experience from visiting a website from a desktop computer. It is a much more personal, even fun, experience. That will influence how someone wants to interact with your website. You have an opportunity to connect with your customers in a uniquely different way. Some of those ways are:

• Integrating with your social media
• Location based information
• QR Codes
• Games and Contests

Testing – There is nothing that will frustrate a user, who happens to be your customer, more than a website that doesn’t work right. A mobile phone magnifies this much more. We don’t know if it is that the phone is easier to throw out a window when frustrated or that the mobile web user expects things to happen faster, but if your website works great on an iPhone and not a Droid, that is a big problem. This is why we test and test to make sure the content is easy to understand and that it actually works on the variety of operating systems available on smart phones.

You need to make sure your website is mobile-friendly, useful, engaging and designed for the difference in both the environment and attitude of the mobile web and the mobile web user. Nothing will turn off your customers more quickly than a bad experience on their Smartphones involving your website. The web is changing, as are the devices that get users there. We can help you succeed on the web whether your customers find you on a desktop computer at work, a laptop in a coffee shop or a Smartphone while sitting on a train.

Show Your Customers That You Care

By Rich Lewis at Burlington Press
www.burlingtonpress.com  |  www.burlingotnpresswebservices.com

October is a great month to get your company’s name out there. Instead of a sale or a typical promotions, show your customers that you care about the community.

Create a Quality Promotion
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Many companies have found ways to team with breast cancer research organizations that create mutually beneficial promotions. Take a lesson from those cause marketing pros and work with a charity that you care about. Develop special promotions with a certain percentage of revenue benefitting your nonprofit organization. This shows that you care about your community while still thinking of your customers.

Hold a Fundraiser
Nonprofit organizations aren’t the only ones that can hold fundraisers. This month, consider putting on a fundraising event with your partner charity. Invite your customers, prospects and community to the event. This helps you connect to your community on a more personal level. A good community event will surely help you gain trust.

When planning, be creative. Partner with an organization that fits your culture and how your business operates. Just because you’re doing something to benefit others doesn’t mean your business shouldn’t benefit as well. But keep in mind that you need to put yourself second in a cause marketing promotion.