Showing posts with label digital marketing. Show all posts
Showing posts with label digital marketing. Show all posts

Tuesday, April 22, 2025

Blogs YOU Should Know?


5 Social media blogs that you need to know about..

Social media marketing is, undoubtedly, an ever-changing medium. Whether it’s keeping abreast of new developments in social media, such as new social media features or new algorithms, or whether it’s educating yourself on new social media strategies and emerging statistics and data, digital marketers and business owners need to constantly keep up to date and educate themselves.


And the best way to do this? By reading the best blogs and news sources, religiously.

In this blog post, I’m going to share five social media blogs that you need to know about.

Tip: Get an RSS reader like Feedly to subscribe to multiple social media and digital marketing blogs so that you can easily check them whenever you have a spare moment.

All you need is either your smartphone, tablet or laptop/desktop computer to read the latest articles.


Social Media Examiner

Social Media Examiner is one of the best known and popular social media marketing blogs in the world and for good reason: their content always provides value.

With articles from social media experts like Michael Stelzner and Lisa D. Jenkins – as well as a collection of other social media specialists who contribute regularly – beginners and experts alike can learn all about social media marketing strategies.

As a beginner, you can use Social Media Examiner to learn with step-by-step instructions how to leverage social media marketing and how to use various social networks to your advantage.

As an experienced marketer, you can use their blog to learn new strategies and improve on your knowledge.

And for both beginners and experienced users, you can check Social Media Examiner for information on the latest features and developments you need to know about, as well as for keeping up to date on the latest findings in social media marketing (relevant research and statistics) and the best social media marketing tools that you need to know about.

Frequency: They usually publish about an article a day, forsaking weekends.


Social Media Today

Another top social media marketing blog that should be bookmarked is Social Media Today; this immensely popular blog is an impressive library of social media marketing content, whether it’s news or tips.

The blog relies on a huge network of regular contributors who post content on any and all social media topics you can think of.

One of the biggest reasons why it’s such a great source of social media marketing content is that they’re constantly reporting on the latest news and developments in social media so that you can stay abreast of the latest features, algorithms and releases that you need to know about when planning your social media strategy.

Furthermore, you also get other useful content, such as tips from top social media experts, listicles with useful social media marketing tools that can help you implement your strategy more effectively and opinion articles from specialists and experienced marketers.

Frequency: They usually update with new content several times a day, every day.


Convince and Convert

Convince and Convert is a content marketing blog – and one the most popular ones of its kind – but it also hosts some of the best content on social media marketing. Written by founder Jay Baer and other top social media experts, their social media marketing blog offers new content regularly, with a focus on value: how to guides, useful tips, case studies, opinion pieces and useful tools.

While beginners can certainly learn a lot from this blog, it’s better-suited to those who have some experience with social media marketing already; there aren’t as many articles written specifically for beginners – their articles are usually about very specific topics that require some existing knowledge and experience with social media, such as how to create an influencer marketing agreement that protects you and how to leverage different psychology strategies as part of your social media campaigns and strategies.

Frequency: While on the main blog you get several articles a week, social media articles usually come at least weekly, although he frequency does oscillate.

Related Article: YOUR Video Content Is King?


Social Media Lab, by Agorapulse

Social Media Lab is a social media marketing blog powered by social media management tool Agorapulse that’s all about case studies and experiments.

The premise is simple: every month, they invest $15k of their profits into creating various interesting experiments for all major social networks. In most cases, they look at popular and lesser-known social media strategies, as well as social media myths and rumors and test them for an extended period of time in order to find out whether they actually work or not.

You can browse through their experiments easily by selecting the social network you’re interested in (Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Twitter) or whether you’re interested in organic versus paid strategies.

There is quite a bit to learn from these experiments; not just finding out which strategies work and which don’t, but also understanding how to create such types of tests (if you want to try experimenting by yourself), as well as discovering new strategies that you might not know about.

To give you a few examples of the type of experiments that you can find on the platform, you can learn whether using emojis to your tweets actually helps improve your impressions and engagement, whether Facebook has a problem with 3rd party scheduling apps and whether it’s worth investing in Twitter Promote or not – among many others.

Plus, if you prefer listening to podcasts, you can also listen to their experiments and findings via iTunes, Google Play and other popular podcasting platforms.

Frequency: They usually post new content weekly, or a few times a month.


Socially Sorted

Socially Sorted is social media expert’s Donna Moritz’s creation, a social media marketing blog that has been named 3 years in a row one of top 10 social media blogs by Social Media Examiner.

Most of the articles on the blog are written by Donna Moritz herself, although there are occasional contributors who bring their own knowledge to the table. As for what type of content you can find on Socially Sorted, the focus is on visual platforms and content (such as Instagram and Pinterest), although any social media marketer/business can get valuable content even if they don’t use the 2 platforms.

Read it to learn about different tools that you can use as part of your social media content strategy, to learn how to create amazing social media content and to download useful resources such as social media holiday calendars, among others. Plus, while there might be a bigger focus on the visual aspect, there is plenty of content on other topics relevant to marketers who use other mediums (blogs, LinkedIn, Facebook and so on).

Frequency: She usually publishes one article a week.


Guest Authored By Lilach Bullock. Lilach is an entrepreneur and passionate blogger for over a decade, during which time She has written thousands of articles on her blog and many other publications.

Her Forbes column is all about helping businesses market themselves, whether entrepreneurs or start-ups, enterprises, and everything in between.

If she's not blogging, she loves speaking at events all over the world, spending time with her daughter, and when time permits, she's also a big fan of Zumba. Follow Lilach on Twitter.






Digital marketing in general – and social media in particular – requires constant learning and self-development.

It’s not just about keeping up to date with news such changes to the Facebook algorithm or new forms of social media content, but also about knowing what tools you should use, what strategies perform best and what digital marketing trends you need to know about.

Ideally, subscribe to several top social media marketing blogs and read them regularly – knowledge is one of the best tools you have at your disposal to help you grow and evolve..

  • Post Crafted By:
    Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at GetMoreHere.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, CO. where I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
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Monday, December 17, 2018

Harness YOUR Social Media And Win Clients?


4 Tips for harnessing social media to win clients and grow revenue..

Social networks have, to a large extent, defined the way we work and live. Not only do these conversational tools ignite debate and broaden networks, but in a very real sense they nourish a collective consciousness, an understanding of what it means to be alive in the world right here, right now.



From a business standpoint, there’s never been a better time to harness the power of this 21st-century medium to gain clients and generate leads.

We’re not talking about showy brand waving: we’re talking about using social media to get clients on the phone and through the door. To leverage apps used by billions to acquire new business and make meaningful connections.

Sounds easy, doesn’t it? But the truth is, while the rewards are great, getting social media marketing right can be a challenge. There are a myriad of powerful management tools and services available, an array of techniques and stratagems which promise to put your brand in front of prospective clients and capture their interest. Social media platforms, lest we forget, are crowded spaces. How can you make yourself heard above the noise? How will you differentiate your brand? And is landing your dream client actually realistic?

Here are 4 actionable tips to ensure your social media strategy gets the results you crave.



1. Build Your Following

It may sound obvious, but growing your audience online is fundamental if you wish to attract real world clients. And not just on one platform either, but across all key channels (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn etc). Do market research, find out where your audience is, and tailor your online strategy accordingly.

Nurturing organic reach is certainly possible but requires time, effort, creativity and consistency. Mainly it demands an appreciation for what constitutes valuable content (Analytics is your friend), as well as an intrinsic knowledge of your audience’s expectations. Few businesses do organic search well, and social media is increasingly becoming a pay-to-play platform, necessitating investment if you want to appear in the feeds of those out of your network. According to a recent study carried out by marketing firm HubSpot, Facebook users now see just 2% of followed organic pages in their feeds, with the rest coming from paid advertising. If your goal is to make introductions, kickstart conversations, generate leads and get referrals, social advertising is a must. Which brings us nicely to Tip #2.



2. Use Ads


Promoting your business via social media can seem overwhelming, but if done correctly you’ll quickly realize the net gains to be made.

By carrying out highly targeted campaigns, you can reach the people you want when they’re most active, and garner a steady stream of likes, comments, shares and sales.

How? By serving them highly relevant advertisements influenced by data, of course. When you throw money into paid promotions and advertisements, you’re essentially purchasing prime digital real estate, an opportunity to impress or otherwise engage with a potential client on their chosen medium.



Russ Ruffino, founder of ClientsOnDemand, sees Facebook ads in particular as an invaluable client acquisition tool.

"The whole idea that you need to spend 6 months or even a year building an audience, creating trust and inspiring loyalty, is somewhat outdated – you don’t need to do any of that stuff if your social media marketing is proper. You can take someone from click to client in less than 48 hours. It’s become the backbone of our business and we’ll do 15 million dollars or more this year using that strategy. It’s the best and most powerful one out there."

Ruffino isn’t the only one crushing social selling. Cohesive, visually appealing ads are a mainstay for both Fortune 500 companies and small growing businesses. Social advertising has gone from strength to strength in recent years, with increased conversions and reduced cost of acquisition. According to a report by Zenith Media, global social media ad spending rose 21% to $58 billion in 2018 while video ad spending shot 19% to $32 billion.



3. Interact And Engage

While ads are obviously your best bet for sales and leads, overlooking the nuts and bolts of daily social media management would be a huge mistake. Sending content out into the ether, then expecting to relax while the requests or sales roll in, is similarly fanciful. Communication, after all, is a two-way street and particularly on social media, followers expect to partake in a dialogue. This doesn’t mean you observe impeccable etiquette and respond favorably to every single comment you receive, but it does mean cultivating your audience by taking a more active role and driving positive interactions.

Keep the likability factor in the forefront of your mind, and make a concerted effort to stimulate engagement by adding value to conversation. Post consistently, including at weekends, and capitalize on the enthusiasm that greeted previous updates. Avoid simply spamming by showcasing a diverse catalogue of educational or informative content, paying particular attention to tone of voice, and make use of imagery and videos which bolster click-through rate. Follow a schedule that fits into your workflow and doesn’t overwhelm your followers. Lastly, streamline your various endeavours with a comprehensive social media management dashboard such as Agorapulse, Hootsuite or Buffer.

Your responsiveness, friendly manner and suite of interesting, humorous or otherwise share worthy content will ensure that followers remain engaged with what you are doing and will, over time, build both brand loyalty and your own credibility.



4. Become An Industry Expert

Whatever your business, you probably want to be the best. If not the best in the world, the best in your area, the best in your sector, the best among your closest competitors. Conveying that on social media channels is essential if you hope to compel prospective clients to sit up, take notice and buy.

Content, therefore, should exhibit what you can do, explain why you’re different and relate why your experience lends you a distinct advantage over others in the field. This is particularly important in a highly competitive industry.

You can gradually establish yourself as an expert by posting useful, on-topic content such as blogs, webinars, podcasts, e-books, graphics, quotes and YouTube presentations. Content that offers genuine value to potential customers and is crafted in such a way as to reinforce your brand messaging and underline your USP.



Selling a product is one thing, but the old adage about “buying a story” is relevant on social media, which is essentially one long, sustained story unspooling across the vast digital landscape.

Make yours worth hearing..

Guest Authored By Lilach Bullock. Lilach is an entrepreneur and passionate blogger for over a decade, during which time She has written thousands of articles on her blog and many other publications. Her Forbes column is all about helping businesses market themselves, whether entrepreneurs or start-ups, enterprises, and everything in between. If she's not blogging, she loves speaking at events all over the world, spending time with her daughter, and when time permits, she's also a big fan of Zumba. Follow Lilach on Twitter.





"Investing your ad money in social media is a no-brainer. Getting it right requires more thought, both in terms of intelligent targeting and compelling content creation.

The great thing about social selling is that there’s no barrier or limit to impede progress, providing you go about growing your audience the right way. Find your niche and exploit the right platforms: your dream clients are just a click away.." -LilachBullock



  • Post Crafted By:
    Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at GetMoreHere.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, CO. where I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
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Location: Loveland, CO 80538, USA

Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Justify YOUR Social Media Marketing?


8 Ways to justify your social media marketing program..

New opportunities from the shifting tides of digital transformation.



Demonstrating value and ROI from social media marketing campaigns has been challenging since marketers first began using the platform to target prospects and customers.

But should ROI even be a major social media justifier? Some say social media marketing success means looking beyond ROI, while others adhere to the age-old advice that says your company's business objectives prove social media worth. "Social media actually goes beyond ROI," said Hariraj Rathod, social media analyst at Numbertank. "It helps in achieving good branding effect on audience and also helps to showcase products and services by segmenting and targeting the correct audience. Social media marketing also helps a brand understand how well their products are being consumed or liked by certain demographics."

Is social media even worth it for your organization? If it is, where should your focus be as a marketer? To answer these questions, we caught up with digital marketing pros who offered a number of social media marketing tips that can help you make the most of your social programs.



Understand Younger Generations and Their Growing Mistrust

Deciding which metrics matter isn't the lone challenge for marketers using social media. Some say it's deciding whether to invest energy and resources into it in the first place.

After all, marketers face a growing mistrust of social media platforms in light of data breach scandals like Facebook-Cambridge-Analytica and shrinking social media audiences.

Shama Hyder, CEO of Zen Media, a marketing and new media consultancy, noted in a Forbes article last month that Millennials and Gen Z are annoyed with brands taking up space in their social media feeds, and a third of them have deleted their Facebook account.



Know Social Media's Place in Your Digital Ecosystem

Using social media is a thing of the past, according to Hyder. Companies should shift from a mindset of "using social media, to a mindset of adapting and thriving in an ecosystem where a highly connected, social, empowered consumer is now the norm, and traditional econometrics and data are no longer adequate to measure and track the success of content and campaigns," Hyder wrote.

ROI is not the be-all and end-all for measuring success, she added. It's more effective that metrics match the "complexity, ambiguity and dynamism" of a customer's journey, she said.

Integrate social data and metrics with other KPIs from web analytics, CRM, etc. and view social media platforms beyond just a "marketing channel, and leverage it instead as one prong of a larger strategy and source of customer insight."



Support Engagement and Education, Not ROI

Belinda Alban agrees. Alban, the founder of Your Virtual Assistant Service, said the focus of social media should not be on ROI but on growing your following to increase brand awareness, engaging with your customers to create raving fans and educating your potential customers about the benefits of your product. "The bigger your platforms are the more opportunities you have to do this," Alban said.

Social media may or may not lead to an increase in sales, but it will give you the opportunity to build relationships with your audience and deliver "amazing" customer service.

"On the back of the relationships and trust and confidence your brand has built with social media you should see an increase in the reputation of your brand," Alban said. “And it is your reputation that can make or break a company."



Know Thyself, Know Thy Company

As long as your brand matches its social media playbook to its company objectives, you're on the right track, according to Maria Burpee, a B2B marketing consultant for MB Consulting. "The ROI -- and the metrics -- comes from the board and company objectives," Burpee said.

Do you want to be the most well known or favorite brand or build a community or movement? Social media, even if it doesn't lead to sales, is key. Are you looking to generate leads? Social media listening is key. Are you trying to create high loyalty and referrals? Cultivating social media "love" and responsiveness is important.

Do you want to have the best customer service and hang your hat on that as a differentiator? Social media can be part of the mix. Social media metrics wouldn't be found in a high-level executive dashboard, Burpee added, but rather the metrics are important to support a broader KPI dashboard.



Consider Using Unique URLs

One way to capture and track ROI on social media is using unique URLs. "Any time we post content that includes a link, we use a unique URL so we can track where the traffic is coming from and not for social media in general, but each channel specifically," said Tiffany McEachern, social media specialist for PSCU, which provides solutions for credit unions.

"Each social channel has a unique URL so you can see where your clicks are coming from and spend your time and efforts on those social media platforms," McEachern said.

"Even if social media isn't giving your company a strong ROI, it builds brand awareness and in today's day and age, companies are expected to be on social media."



Assign Specific KPIs, A/B Tests

James Bray is a social media marketer who works for the Equal Opportunity Community Initiative (EOCI), a nonprofit that relies on donations received from fundraising activities. Bray said his Board takes spending decisions more seriously than most, whether the costs are incurred by outright paid advertising or through the staff's efforts to create and manage social media content. "The return on our social media marketing investment is therefore calculated in terms of engagement: profile views, click-throughs to the website, email subscriptions and volunteer recruitment," Bray said. "These measures are a great deal more important than, for example, simply counting the number of Instagram followers, because they reflect the degree to which someone is interested in partnering with us."

To ensure the nonprofit receives a return on its social media investments, Bray said the team needs to be clear about its objectives and how much time it can afford to devote to each. It then attaches KPIs to those goals to ensure they are met. "The EOCI's communications team is constantly A/B testing its social media strategies, using a combination of each platform's own insights along with Google Analytics to determine what sources constitute the best outreach and result in the most beneficial conversions," Bray said. "Based on these results, the EOCI Board feels that our social media engagement strategy has a positive effect on our ability to connect with our target audience and reach our objectives."



Listen on Social, Execute in Customer Service Channels

Clair Jones, chief strategy officer and co-founder of Witty Kitty Digital Marketing, said monitoring how your audience is talking about your brand through social listening is vital.

You can use the data to inform your customer service programs. "You can learn so much about how to improve customer service and experience, tap into audiences you didn't know you had, and hone your branding and messaging," she said.

Guest Authored By Dom Nicastro. Dom is a Boston-based staff reporter at CMSWire. The former editor-in-chief of a daily newspaper, he reports on a wide range of topics, including social business, digital asset management, customer experience management and web CMS. Follow Don on Twitter.





"Balance Between Organic and Paid Social Efforts Matters

If your organization is going to invest in social, consider the aforementioned tips and also strike a balance between paid and organic social media marketing. "Advocate for smart social that communicates the organization's mission and engages the audience," said Maria Mora, content director at Big Sea Design.

"And layer a strategic paid social plan over that for a stronger return and more targeted presence on social platforms." -DomNicastro


    • Post Crafted By:
      Fred Hansen Pied Piper of Social Media Marketing at GetMoreHere.com & CEO of Millennium 7 Publishing Co. in Loveland, CO. where I work deep in the trenches of social media strategy, community management and trends.  My interests include; online business educator, social media marketing, new marketing technology, skiing, hunting, fishing and The Rolling Stones..-Not necessarily in that order ;)
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    Location: Loveland, CO 80538, USA
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