by Subcriber | May 13, 2017 | Marketing, social media
Big blue (facebook) made streaming video fun again with facebook live last year. To my surprise they took over the live streaming service overnight. I am surprised because youtube had the advantage for years but for many reasons beyond my control the service didn’t stick or was utilized like fb live. The same goes for periscope twitters live streaming service. Twitter had a great start with periscope but again for some reason people just didn’t grab on to the idea that a live stream is cool or can make them money until fb live.
Now while I am a huge fan of youtube live and twitters periscope I have seen countless success stories coming from fb live.
In this post I wanted to share why I think fb live works better for now and why anybody who wants an audience should start using fb live today.
The main reason fb live is so powerful is the live map and the integration for fb profiles helps as well.
More importantly the benefit to fb live is that when you stream your content will make it on the map and get you noticed. Also it seems for now the algorithm favors videos and live video over posts and pics.
Psychologically there is a big reason why live streams are so effective. The simple answer is choice and content. People want to feel connected and they want to be entertained. With fb live people just feel more comfortable sharing their opinions and engaging in the event.
Combining engagement and offers gets sales. No matter how bad the presentation or how aggressive the sales pitch is you will find someone who may connect with you and your offer.
With 2 billion people on big blue and an emphasis on live video this medium will only get bigger and better.
If you need help getting started promoting through your fan page follow these instructions:
https://www.facebook.com/business/help/community/question/?id=10153367581440069
After you are live just start talking, be expressive, and get specific about what you are trying to get.
As long as you follow the fb community guidelines this will be a great and quick opportunity to get the message out.
Here are a few tips to go by.
- Watch http://www.qvc.com/ for examples
- Be consistent with your presentation
- Forget the past performance and focus on improving as you go
by Subcriber | May 13, 2017 | List Building, Marketing
Recently I spoke with a marketing genius who reminded me of three awesome list building techniques.
What he also did was share a few resources that I could use to automate the list building strategies that I am going to go over.
Before I jump in with all this info I want everyone reading this post to know that building an email list is the best way to grow your business. This system of communication is here to stay and hopefully will be around for many years to come.
The simple strategy is create a landing page, collect emails, send info.
So now that I have covered the why let’s talk about the how. the part that everyone gets stuck on when list building. Most of this strategy involves commenting with an offer.
TIP #1
Comment on forums that will exchange an email for a service or offer you provide.
You can find forums like this at https://stackexchange.com/sites
TIP #2
Comment on social media sites. The most effective social media sites to use are Instgram and Facebook. The tip is to answer questions in groups and send people to your optin page so they subscribe to your list. There are two services that automate the process are http://instaeasy.com and http://slacksocial.com
TIP #3
Comment on popular Youtube Videos that RELATE to your cause. Answer questions on the comments and suggest they visit your site and subscribe to your list for an answer. I don;t have a tool for this currently.
The goal is to be helpful and relatable. If you sell cakes. join a cake page or group, find youtube videos on cakes. create a pdf on how to make a cake, and get people to join your email list and use that as the solution to build your list.
by Staff Writer | Mar 14, 2017 | Marketing, Networking
Recently I was at a networking event where the speaker was describing the contrast of authentic in person relationships vs social media relationships. While I agreed with the basic premise that personal relationships are more powerful than media based relationships. I will argue that the influence is not as great as we might imagine. Before I explain why the rest of my experience will illustrate the biggest disconnect I see between social relationships vs personal relationships.
In this networking meeting the speaker continued to argue that his results from using Linkedin as a relationship builder and influencer were very weak in comparison to calling someone and asking for the same thing. This speaker continued to share that he hired someone to connect and send messages to people regarding an event he wanted them to go to. From his results he said it was a failure. His conclusion was that you get a better result by meeting people in person and developing real authentic relationships.
Now while this speaker had valid points I saw him as an example of why people give up on social media as a networking tool and as an influencing medium. The simple explanation is “delayed response” A majority of people want instant results, they want instant reaction and if they don’t get it they move on. When we are in front of someone speaking to them our non verbal reaction provides an instant response. When social media was first introduced people reacted quickly and that was an expectation. As time moved on more social networks divided our attention and as a result the effectiveness decreased.
To combat the influx of social media options the simple solution that I have discovered is “be authentic”
Using Linkedin as an example I will identify how social media can be as effective in influencing people as traditional belly to belly conversations. Before I begin I want to explain that Linkedin is a plain and boring platform to work with and most people are not responsive; but with a few simple tweaks Linkedin has been a valuable asset in my efforts to curry influence.
I have listed the top 3 things that are required to make the most of this social network.
- Build a Real Network – I have about 15k connections on Linkedin. About 14500 are worthless to me, when I started out I missed the true purpose of social media and the best way to use it. Now everywhere I go I send a connection request to everyone I meet. When they connect I send a message, and I keep sending messages that are specific about them and are not selling anything other than a meeting depending on what I can do for them.
- Communicate Value – When I send a message through Linkedin it can be about our last meeting something I learned about them, or something that we can laugh about together. Over time I communicate my interest in them, but over time if I am consistent I not only am developing a real relationship but my past conversations will help me to be more specific when I have a large request.
- Communicate Often – By posting through your feed and sending personal messages when appropriate the result will be that you will have a stronger and lasting impression. Because you will probably see these people in the future at another event when you speak in person you the reaction to you will be more favorable.
Common mistakes in using social media is that it’s just for fun, politics or causes. The truth is that social media is a reflection of who you are. So the big takeaway is be wise about who you invite into your network and be smart about what you post. The other mistake is believing that every social network is the same. Linkedin is designed for people who want to do business, or be apart of a business. Facebook is designed as a social information center. It’s best use is for personal use, but with fb ads it can be used to influence people like commercials influence people on TV. Twitter is designed to help people share short messages and media with little filtering.
Finding your voice is the key to success using social media and being consistent in how you build and communicate will give you the advantage when you meet or speak in person.
by Staff Writer | Dec 15, 2016 | Marketing, Video
Youtube is making some huge changes going into 2017. Youtube vloggers are going crazy because things are changing and this is affecting their pocket book, viewership and subscribers. What makes this interesting is that changes on youtube are infrequent and usually are beneficial for youtube producers.
If you are not on youtube or think this won’t affect you if you are looking to market with videos, think again. From the information that I am getting this update is actually a huge opportunity.
The opportunity that you can be apart of is this. With expert youtube channels losing value and the perception that youtube is dead gives the newbie an opportunity a level playing field.
If you have ever thought of using youtube as a marketing tool this is the perfect time to get started building simple videos to reach your audience.
Watch this video from my pal Derral Eves, a certified youtube expert gives details about the latest update.
The lesson from this update I am taking away from this is that change is constant and youtube is still effective.
What I learned from the video …
METRICS
a channel
b recent upload
c relevance
d title description and tags
e recommendation meta info
f viewership history
g engagement with viewer history
h where you go before and after video
i Watchtime
TRIGGERS
a velocity of the video being watch
b Time people spent watching videos
c Traffic upload
d Subscriber Growth
SOLUTION
a Leverage
b Repackage
c Be creative
d Scale
e Behind scenes
f Bonus Info
g Compilation
h Interviews
CONCLUSION
a Try and Test
by Staff Writer | Dec 6, 2016 | Content, Marketing, SEO
Two of my neighbors recently reminded me of what the separates a a quality site that will rank vs ones that don’t. The simple direct answer is CONTENT. The currency of search.
My neighbors have dabbled in internet marketing and revealed to me that they were pretty smart when it came to online marketing. It made me wonder if online marketing was either so easy that anyone could do it or if my skills and expertise made the difference when I helped someone.
In our conversations I was reminded of the biggest challenge with marketing that I face and what separates a quality campaign is “CONTENT’.
When new content is created online search results categorize the information. This information if written well converts into action. When this idea is simplified and you look at competing to get your message out with millions of other people at times you and myself may get overwhelmed and give up before you give yourself a chance.
The big takeaway for me was that the difference between success and failure online is CONTENT. The internet the way it is now has broken the barriers for mass communication by simplifying the systems that now the difference between a a winning marketing campaign comes down to the quality and quantity of the content.
While I have simplified the value of content the complexity is how to turn your content into online currency. The reason you will need to collect this currency is that when you have enough content the exchange becomes influence.
In other words when you have quality content and you are competing to get in front of more people (specifically getting your website ranked) the quality and quantity of your content that is searched for will normally rank better and in more locations.
There are many roadblocks to creating content so as a reminder to me since I am always creating content for every type of medium and I wanted to share the way I generate my content consistently and four of my favorite tools I use to consistently produce relevant and original content; because for me I am always looking for the unfair advantage, and when I really take a close look at my successes and speak with the everyday marketer I am reminded that the advantage in search queries comes down to having content on your websites and on your social platforms.
Generating Content
Tip #1
Write your thoughts everyday. Either in a blog or a journal, or social platform.
Content Resources
Idea Tool #1
My Spin Rewriter Software spinrewriter.com
Idea Tool #2
Get Ideas Here answerthepublic.com
Idea Tool #3
See What Is Trending socialmention.com
Idea Tool #4
See the most popular posts on social media trendhunter.com/socialmedia
For more info on messaging and content visit another post of ours below:
13 Elements Successful Sales Message
by Staff Writer | Sep 8, 2016 | Marketing, Reputation
Recently there was an SEO company that made an announcement that they would not accept clients that were affiliated with the Republicans. Overnight he went from a 5 star rating to a 1 star rating.
Every year there is a story of a company that makes a misjudges public perception and goes from 5 stars to 1 star. While this is the exception and not the rule the big takeaway is that a good reputation takes effort and time to build but losing that status can happen overnight.
Most business owners don’t understand the value of a positive review online and they believe that the old fashion word of mouth is a bigger factor than online reviews. The truth is that personal recommendations are still powerful but can be reversed if your potential customer sees a negative review, or your only review is 3 stars or lower you need help.
Don’t think that people don’t read online reviews because they do. The latest survey from Bright Local reinforces the reality that online reviews are important when it comes to word of mouth opportunities. Plus the big takeaways are this:
People with excellent reviews understand these principles and they pay alot of money to get reviews. If they have had a set of negative reviews in the past a smart company will set up a system to keep getting reviews, and they will also know that to remove a negative review you need to drown it with positive reviews.
With that said there are solutions available that are expensive and those that are affordable. If you know who to go to and they have a good strategy and system for the right price you can fix a bad reputation online and you can defend your company from future negative reviews.
For an affordable solution see what your reputation score is at reputationfeedback.com for free. Because just knowing your reputation score is a starting point to keep those personal recommendations and strengthen your current marketing efforts.
