The 5 Unspoken Rules of Social Media Marketing

8Jan

It seems like this social media marketing thing just clicks for some people. Their content is perfect, they connect with the best people, there are “likes” aplenty- you get the idea. For others, however, it takes more time and effort. Some people just can’t seem to grasp some of the most elementary concepts when it comes to Facebook, Twitter, and the other platforms. And that’s OK. If anybody – even those who are social media masters – say they’ve learned it all in a single day, they’re lying.

The sad truth is that there isn’t an official “Social Media Marketing How-To Manual.” We’ve all figured out what works and what doesn’t through trial, error, and a TON of hands-on experience.

Luckily, my team and I have been there and done that. I can say that there are many unspoken rules of social media and how things work, but these are without a doubt the most essential. So let’s get started on everything you need to know.

1. Don’t like your own content. It’s nice to pat yourself on the back every once in a while, but don’t do it on social media. If your only engagement is from yourself, well, that will look a tad pathetic, won’t it?

2. Respond to customers ASAP. Don’t forget, it’s SOCIAL media. That means these are channels of communications between you and your customers. Keep things positive, informative, and professional.

3. Be involved in the community. Apart from having good customer service, you need to be social in other ways such as sharing other business’s content (as long as they aren’t competitors). You should also be hosting engagement-heavy content like contests, polls, and Q&A sessions.

4. Abide by platform rules. Each social media platform connects people in different ways. LinkedIn is all about professional networking. Instagram is heavily focused on images. Twitter does best with news and current events. Make sure you “do as the Romans do” and shape your content to match what people flock to.

5. ALWAYS, ALWAYS, ALWAYS use an image. It’s been proven time and time again that social media updates do significantly better with some form of visual. Whether you want to use a picture, video, GIF, 360-video, live broadcast, or whatever is next in the world of marketing, you need something to compliment your copy.

So, while there isn’t any go-to manual, these rules are a great starting point for marketers who are trying to hit the ground running with social media. As you abide by these unspoken laws, take the time to plan, write, create, strategize, and revise your methods. Trust me, your efforts will go a long way.

Click Here to Subscribe

5 Strategies For Sharing Facts On Social Media Marketing

By Christopher Tompkins

7Jan

Copywriting, Social Media

When my team and I work on our clients’ social media marketing campaigns, we know that balance is a big factor in our success. Whether you’re talking about balancing text V.S. images, promos V.S. news, or curated V.S. original content, everything has to be just right. It’s all part of the job. But one aspect that many companies fail to execute correctly is educational V.S. entertaining posts. Things end up leaning much heavier towards the “fun” side of content because of two reasons. 1- They think it will gather more engagement. 2 – Well, they don’t know how to do it right. But we do!

So, here’s a secret from the pros. Educational and fact-based content have proven to be some of the most engaging material on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. In 2016, the most popular posts were from fact-based industries such as science, medical, or political landscapes. And here you thought it was going to be those silly cat videos! People are taking social media much more seriously these days, which is great news for professionals. Here are the most popular strategies for spreading the wealth of knowledge with your followers:

1. Infographics – There’s nothing quite like a ton of pictures to make a complicated concept more understandable. The truth is, visuals always help us learn. That’s why infographics are so effective. You can transform large concepts into digestible chunks that are accompanied by interesting graphics.

2. Videos – Video is dominating social media right now. Sure, when we think of internet videos, we think of funny cats running around or how-to recipe guides. But you could actually utilize the video medium to explain a complicated educational subject. Captions are your friend in this instance, as you can add important notes to the visuals. Now with live videos, you can offer your followers tutorials and lessons “in the moment.” Live is also a fantastic way to answer customer questions as if you were face-to-face.

3. Blogs – Blogging continues to reign supreme as one of the most effective ways to inform your followers about important concepts and topics. A blog is a fantastic companion to your social media marketing efforts as it will establish your brand in a professional light and give you a whole slew of original content to share on your various accounts.

4. Trivia and “Did You Know?” – Break down a complicated fact into a simple form in the form of a trivia or “did you know?” post. These are a great way to implement a bit of fun into the facts and draw your audience’s attention. They won’t have to spend much time with this content, but they can still learn something big. In other words, a big pay off with not a lot of effort on the follower’s part. Perfect for the average internet user.

5. Content curation – As always, it’s important to share other’s work from your online community. But it doesn’t have to begin and end with what they’ve said. You can share your own thoughts about the subject in the form of Quote Tweeting or comment on the post when you share on Facebook.

As you can see, it’s time to face facts – you need to create and share educational content! Social media isn’t just about fun material or even promotional marketing. Serious content like blogs, videos, and infographics will attract a significant amount of engagement and in the long run, conversions.

Click Here to Subscribe

6 Steps To Catching Your Viewer’s Gaze On Social Media

By Christopher Tompkins

5Jan

Copywriting, Graphic Design, Social Media

We’ve all done it. Scrolling through social media, ignoring some of the more “blah” looking posts is only human nature. But it’s a social media manager’s job to create compelling enough material that followers will stomp on the brakes to take a closer look. Once we get them to pay attention, engagement is the next natural step.

This is exactly why visuals are so important on Facebook, Twitter, and other platforms. You need that figurative (or literal) red flag to get eyes to lock onto something entertaining, stunning, stimulating, or heart-pumping. We’re not saying you should post an explosion GIF, but something to make the ADD-stricken masses pay attention.

Here are our suggestions on how to get those stunning visuals rocking:

1. Colors – Keep them bright, catchy, and complimentary. If noir photography is your type of thing, then I hope you have an audience for it since the flashier, the better is usually the correct line of thinking. Color is a BIG deal when it comes to marketing and design. Our minds automatically lock onto a vibrant shade or swatch. This is why it’s also important to choose your brand’s colors and stick to them. Consistency is a big deal. For years, Coca-Cola has used the same exact red for everything – and for good reason. People remember it and mentally link it to the famous product. Now go on Coke’s Facebook. Everything’s red, isn’t it?

2. Videos – Whether it’s live or recorded, video is huge in the world of social media right now. Even if they are simply a collection of pictures in the form of an animated slide show, you need some form of video in your content strategy. Videos show up very prominently on social media timelines and feeds, so take advantage of this medium!

3. Original photographs – Take snapshots of your business, employees, products, and more. While repurposing and curating content is an essential cog in the social media machine, you need to have an array of original content as well!

4. LIVE – We briefly mentioned live video above, but it most definitely deserved its own category. Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram all offer live services so you can broadcast to your followers in real time. This is a real game-changer, and we’re going to see much more live video integration in 2017.

5. Motion (even if it’s still) – Use action shots in photographs, offer demonstrations in live video broadcasts, add quick-moving animations, etc. Keep things moving and exciting!

6. People- Here’s a secret – people like people. If there’s a way to integrate a real person into your imagery, do it. Even if it’s just someone using your product, it’s worth the extra effort.

7. Text – While you have a whole separate area for text in the “anatomy” of your social media post, compelling copy is a fundamental element of imagery. Keep it simple, concise, and clean.

8. Clarity- Speaking of keeping things simple, people should not have to try to decipher what you’re posting. Do the hard part for them and make things unique, albeit recognizable.

You don’t need to be Dali or Picasso to make people stop in awe of your social media images. But you DO need to put in effort and creativity. Trust me, it’s worth investing your time into creating outstanding images. Your brand’s recognition will increase with each post in which you integrate dazzling visuals.

Click Here to Subscribe

7 Essential Social Media Marketing Life Savers

By Christopher Tompkins

4Jan

Advertising, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Marketing, Pinterest, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Twitter, Uncategorized, YouTube

HELLO?! Is anyone out there? Millions upon millions of people are online, why don’t they see my page? Social media marketers might be asking themselves this if they do not see the desired engagement on Facebook, Twitter, or other social media marketing platforms. It doesn’t mean you’re terrible at marketing. You just need a little help.

As a professional in the social media marketing world, we spend a lot of time on official social media sites. We can’t type in the letter F into an address bar without our browsers compulsively prompting us to go to Facebook! However, to be truly effective and engaging, you need more than just the basic sites. Here are the top social media marketing life-saving websites, tools, and apps that will ramp up your marketing game.

1. Hashtagify – Let’s face facts. A hashtag is only good if it’s popular. This is where Hashtagify comes in to save the day. Type in a hashtag to see if tons of people are talking about it or if it’s dead. As you’ll quickly learn, a hashtag is a very time-sensitive tool, and I’m not just talking about calender-centric ones like #ManicMonday or #MerryChristmas. They focus on trends and hot cultural topics and should be used accordingly.

2. BuzzSumo – While Hashtagify helps you see what hashtags are popular, you will still need a tool to help you find the best content. You should note that BuzzSumo Pro is not cheap, but the free version will help you discover the best shareable and popular content on the web.

3. BundlePost – Bundle Post’s tagline is “Stop managing your posts. Spend more time engaging.” This tool can help you with the quantity side of social media marketing. Sharing and curating others content is essential, albeit time-consuming. Bundle Post can automate a personalized bundle of content for your social media accounts. It even works alongside Hootsuite.

4. Hootsuite – Speaking of Hootsuite, it’s rare to find a marketer who isn’t in love with this tool. You can find content, schedule your posts, and study analytics inside one lovely tool.

5. StayFocused – Here’s a secret. Our brains do not automatically block all distracting content. We work on the sites many go on to play, so we must ignore a whole lot of enticing content while we’re trying to execute marketing strategies. StayFocused will help you stay on task by limiting the amount of time you spend on distracting websites. This is great so you can keep moving and complete your task. A Google Chrome extension is available for free.

6. Grammarly – Ah, the typo – destroyer of worlds. Luckily, Grammarly has the power to fight back. This handy tool will help your copy become sharper, more engaging, and grammatically correct. Remember your English teacher in high school? It’s like her, only nicer.

7. OneTab – Social media marketers need to research and do A LOT of web browsing. On average, most managers visit 200 web pages a day. That sounds like a nightmare for those who only like one or two tabs open at a time. Well, OneTab is here to help. It’s a fantastic tool that will combine all our pre-existing tabs into one, shareable web page that adds a bit of convenience to a chaotic day.

So, next time you shout “HELLO?! Is anybody out there?” You can rest assured, there are tons of people out there, and these tools well help them notice your brand. Your company’s visibility has the potential skyrocket and your following to increase exponentially. Try a few today and get back to us and tell us what you think!

Click Here to Subscribe

How To Tackle Facebook Video’s Mute Trend

By Christopher Tompkins

3Jan

Business, Facebook, Live Video, Social Media

It’s time to crank up the volume – or is it? Over 85% of Facebook video viewers watch their favorite video content on mute. Why is this? Well, to be honest, it’s because people are watching where they shouldn’t be, like in the office, in line at a store or in class. The ethics of WHERE to watch is a different subject entirely. Instead, marketers need to focus on how to accommodate people’s desire to keep things quiet.

There are two main elements that the most popular and engagement-heavy videos possess.

Strong visuals – Okay, so people don’t want to use their smartphone or computer’s speakers. That doesn’t mean your content has to be any less compelling. You can give them quite the spectacle if you know how. If you’re telling a story, make it so dialogue or sounds aren’t needed to successfully relay the message. The best way to do this is a strong focus on action, bright colors, and an obvious focal point.

Captions – If people aren’t listening, you might have to make the message more obvious. Captions are an extremely popular way of executing social media videos. This is especially important for those who are trying to express more complex ideas such as a news story, recipes, or professional tips. This essentially takes away the need for an audio element.

All that being said, no video should be without sound completely. The follower should have the option of enjoying music, narration, or more. Just because many people aren’t watching with the sound pumping, doesn’t mean that everyone likes a silent experience. When picking sound, you should have something people will remember as much as the visual!

Did you know our team of marketers make eye-catching videos for our clients every day? And yes, we have mastered both audio AND visual elements of a video for Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram!

Click Here to Subscribe

Is Your Business Using FUN Social Media Marketing Content?

By Christopher Tompkins

2Jan

Advertising, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Marketing, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Twitter, Uncategorized

Yes, it’s true – you can have fun at work. For social media marketers, it’s one of the core elements of our efforts. Not that we play board games and go bowling in the middle of the day, but the concept of fun, positivity, and inspiration need to be incorporated into content. It’s all about a friendly back-and-forth conversation between brands and customers. Companies need to send out a healthy dose of light-hearted content onto their platforms to achieve the friendly and potentially sales-boosting engagement we all hope for.

While there is a ton of ideas out there, there are particular posts that are reserved for when your audience is really rocking. After you spend time growing your Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram community, then you can drum up some real conversations, engagement, and – dare I say it- FUN with the following ideas.

1. Contests. Obviously, contests will only work if you have participants. That’s why it’s important to hold off on hosting one until you have an active audience. But when you have enough people watching you, these fun contests get everyone talking. Neither the prize nor conditions need to be elaborate. Usually, entrants just Like the post and page, but there can always be fun and simple twists.

2. Polls. Looking for some honest feedback? Ask for it! Polls are helpful tools that aid your company in a variety of ways. On Facebook, you can take advantage of the reaction system. For instance, you can say “React with a heart for option A. React with an angry emoji for option B!” For Twitter, many marketers use the “Quote Tweet for option A, Retweet for Option B” method. There are also more sophisticated polling methods such as customizable widgets. A quick Google search will land you today’s most popular software.

3. Word games. Add some fun to your content by adding a caption contest or fill-in-the-blank post. Everyone will smile when someone enters a funny response, but they will roll their eyes if there are no responses. This is why you need an active audience for these kinds of posts.

4. Pro tips. If you are a professional, you should share your wealth of information. Choose a specific day of the week and share a tip for customers and fellow colleagues in your industry.

5. User-generated content. Ask your fans to share pictures of them using your product or service. This instills humanity into your feed. You can even create your own, unique hashtag and request people to use it when sharing. For example, the fine folks at Prisma, an image filter app, share and like most posts that have #Prisma.

These five content ideas are sure to get people talking about your brand online. They will enjoy your content and look our for your next post. After all, social media marketing isn’t a “stick in the mud” method. People should smile when they see you’ve posted something new!

Click Here to Subscribe

5 Mistakes Business Are Making on Instagram Stories And Snapchat

By Christopher Tompkins

31Dec

Advertising, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Marketing, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Twitter, Uncategorized

When Snapchat first came out, the whole point was to send a pic, and it would be gone in an instant. Just think of the possibilities! But the platform grew up and took itself seriously as a potential platform for social media marketing and communication. In fact, the folks at Snapchat made such an innovative app that Instagram began to take some notes. As they say, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery.

One of the most attractive features of Snapchat and Instagram is “Stories.” Users can upload pictures or videos and they can be viewable as much as possible – but only for 24 hours. It’s being used by a huge number of businesses now, but many of them aren’t using this tool right. Here are the biggest “Stories” pitfalls to avoid:

1. Using the same content that you see on your main account. The point of the “Stories” feature is to have content on there that’s exclusively available for only that day. There’s no sense in it if you’re just posting the same content on your regular Instagram or Snapchat stream. Make your Story worth that extra step!

2. Rarely posting. Post at least one thing a day to your Story. It’s supposed to be a chronicle of your brand, and no blank spaces will do!

3. Not promoting on other platforms. Use Facebook and Twitter to promote your Story. This is an excellent way to spread the engagement of a popular profile.

4. Making boring posts. One thing about your Story is that they tend to be original content. They both solely rely on a smartphone’s camera, so many companies tend to take pics from the office such as behind-the-scene shots and snapshots from events.

5. Not using it at all. If you already have Instagram and/or Snapchat, there’s no excuse for ignoring this feature. In fact, both versions of Stories is gaining a ton of momentum and are quickly on their way to becoming the “go to” spot for users. Make sure you adapt and roll with the trends!

Stories is a brand new way to get your customers coming back for more exciting content every day. Because the content expires in a day, people need to keep in constant contact with your brand in a new and exciting way. Don’t pass this up!

Click Here to Subscribe

5 Social Media Marketing Situations To Avoid In 2017

By Christopher Tompkins

29Dec

Advertising, Business, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Marketing, Pinterest, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Twitter, Uncategorized, Video

2016 had a lot of controversies. Let’s try to make 2017 a bit better, shall we? As marketers, it’s your responsibility to keep your brand out of hot water. Social media marketing is an essential communication tool and a PR dream, but if you start problems online, your business will suffer. Stay away from the following pitfalls and shine bright!

1. Politics. The Presidental Inauguration is on January 20th and will be talked about absolutely everywhere. Except for your page…right? As a business, you shouldn’t post your personal feelings on your page. You’re bound to offend someone.

2. Putting down competition. At its core, social media is a tool for communications. You have the potential to speak about whatever you want. That doesn’t mean you get to put down your competition and spread slander. You would be surprised at how much of this is out there.

3. Inappropriate content. Do you swear like a sailor? That doesn’t mean you have to market like one. Remember the brand you’re representing!

4. Spam. Sure, you should promote your business. It is marketing after all. But you shouldn’t sound out ONLY promos and ads. Add entertaining and educational material to the mix. Also, don’t push empty promises or sound “too good to be true.”

5. Ignoring customers. As we just said, social media is a tool for communications. So, communicate! If someone asks you a question, answer and do it quickly. If someone gives you a negative review, resolve the issue at lightning speed. Don’t be a faceless and voiceless brand!

Social media marketing is a way to improve your brand’s recognition. However, you don’t want your brand to be recognized as a business full of jerks either. Make sure you approach everything as professionally as possible.

Click Here to Subscribe

Are You Guilty Of These 8 Instagram Crimes?

By Christopher Tompkins

28Dec

Facebook, Instagram, Marketing, Social Media, Social networking, Uncategorized

Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms around. Marketers need to learn how to use this site as well as Facebook and Twitter due to its high volume of daily visitors.

That being said, Instagram isn’t just a clone of pre-existing platforms. It has a unique infrastructure and culture. There are certain rules you need to follow and big mistakes to avoid. Because of the amount of people online, mistakes are noticed easily. Here are the top seven errors to steer clear of on Instagram:

Posts without captions. Sure, Instagram is all about the images. Regardless, you need the space they give you to write a compelling message. Be sure to write a specialized caption for each post you write, as you would for Facebook.
Hashtag abuse. Speaking of captions, hashtags are extremely helpful for Instagram users that are looking for specific content. On this platform, you want to use 7-10 per post after the main caption. Any more tags will make your content look like spam, and less will narrow your reach too much.
Silent posts. Don’t forget about the “social” side of social media. Engage with your followers! Customers wouldn’t be on social media if they didn’t want to communicate with their favorite people and brands in a unique way.
Inconsistent branding. Take a step back and look at your Instagram account. Does it look look and feel like your brand’s other marketing? If not, fix it stat! Make your current logo the profile image, fill out your bio, and make sure your tone is consistent with your other marketing material.
Promo only content. You aren’t one of those spam accounts, are you? If not, then be sure to add compelling content that pulls in your audience. Don’t worry about sales as much, but rather building an online community. Then, sales will come.
Ugly images. Instagrammers like bright, eye-catching visuals. This is especially important for brands who are trying to market. You have to generate creative and appealing imagery and, perhaps most importantly, make sure it looks good on a smartphone! Don’t forget these pics will be viewed primarily on Instagram’s app.
A private account. Is your account optimized? Is your content eye-catching and engaging? Are you using hashtags? Then why isn’t this Instagram thing working? It may be as simple as your account is set to “private”. This mistake needs to be fixed immediately. It’s the social media equivalent of having the lens cap on a camera after a photo shoot. Your work will be all for nothing if not everyone can see what you’re sharing.
Ignoring Instagram Stories. Instagram Stories is not only an innovative tool, it’s in a premiere spot of screen real estate. People immediately see the Stories section when they open the app. These are fleeting moments that only last for a day, so you can put exclusive content and sales inside!

Instagram is a fun and effective tool to raise brand awareness online. At this time, there are more young users on this platform than Facebook. Be sure to tap into this market as soon as possible!

Click Here to Subscribe

Use Social Media To Project Your Work Culture

By Christopher Tompkins

27Dec

Business, Content Creation, Copywriting, Facebook, Instagram, Marketing, Pinterest, Snapchat, Social Media, Social networking, Uncategorized

Wouldn’t it be nice if your business could take a selfie? Well, it can through your employees. Emphasizing your company’s unique and vibrant office culture through social media is a great way to humanize your business. It appeals to the very core of social media, which is person-to-person communication.

Social media marketing is quite a bit different than traditional methods. It requires a human element. Otherwise, you’re just posting a bunch of ads. The most successful social media campaigns projects work culture through the following methods:

1. Pictures from around the office/events. Christmas party? Post (non-embarrassing) pictures! Methods like Snapchat Stories and Instagram Stories have even proven to be great with this so you can show behind the scenes shots of your office.

2. “Staff Picks.” Whether it’s an interesting article, a book of the month, the movie of the year, etc., what your employees like is always a fun way to add a bit of humanity and caring into your brand. This is also very effective when talking about the products and services you sell.

3. An employee of the month. Fairly self-explanatory. By spotlighting an employee, your social media will show your brand is people-driven. This is important for customer relations so your brand can come off as approachable.

Be real with yourself- do you like your office and your coworkers? Let the good vibes show on your social media marketing! Your Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram followers will love these types of posts – and so will your team!

Click Here to Subscribe

Tag : Content Ideas For Social Media Marketing