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Archive for August, 2011
08/31/2011
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08/20/2011
Big numbers vs. engagement: Which is better?
12:40 pm by Aaron
Google+ is growing like gangbusters, but SEOptimise says that growth in users doesn’t equal growth in engagement.
Users vs. engagement- — it’s a battle that not only exists in social networks, but in every social media presence. There is a fine line between user base and engagement base.
For example, if my brand creates a Twitter presence, is it better to organically grow a following or try to “buy” followers? If I organically grow a following, I might have a hundred or so engaged followers that are interested in my brand. If I buy a following, I might get 1,000 followers that aren’t as active.
What’s better: the smaller, engaged following or the larger, less engaged following? While it looks good to have thousands of Twitter followers, most will tell you its not about how many followers you have but what type of followers you have.
Confusing? That’s because the line is theoretical. It’s different for each brand, and it is up to the brand manager to figure out where it is.
Of course, the goal always needs to be to get every user engaged.
08/17/2011
Mobile Requires a Strategy that Understands Users
09:53 am by David Haase
Do you have a mobile strategy, or are you just using mobile?
Yeah, I thought so.
Pew (more specifically, the Pew Internet & American Life Project) found three things in its latest survey of cell phone users that we found intriguing and that you must know about.
- 51% of all cell phone owners use their phone to get information right away.
- 20% of all cell phone owners felt frustration because their phone was taking too long to download something.
- 42% of all cell phone owners use their phone for entertainment when they are bored.
Lessons learned:
- Cell phone users are impatient. (Hmm, I believe we’ve seen that before going all the way back to dial-up modems.)
- Users rely on their cell phones when they need information right now, as I did on Monday when I was lost and looking for my lunch partners.
- Cell phones are like bright shiny objects that keep us quiet when we are restive.
Things you can incorporate into your strategy:
- Optimize for mobile use. Make it easy – and FAST!
- Put the important stuff first. (I’ve been preaching this since I was a newspaper copy editor … a few years ago.)
- Give your audience something to amuse themselves. It could translate into a sale, donation or whatever you ask of them.
Read that Pew study. It’s not that long, has big charts and will help you remember what people are actually using their phones for.
08/12/2011
Q&A about QR
01:59 pm by Max Fose
QR codes — you may not know the name, but you know the look. In fact, we have a picture of one hanging in our office:
These codes are specifically made for smartphones. The code contains data, much like a bar code, which can be scanned by a smartphone’s camera. Once scanned, the smartphone can access specific information. This includes:
- Linking to digital content
- Activating phone functions
- Directing the phone to a specific Web location
These QR codes serve almost as mini-applications, but instead of downloading from an app market, they can be scanned from print and digital locations.
Before you dismiss QR codes as too niche for your business, realize that 14 million Americans scanned QR codes in June alone. Of these 14 million, a large majority tends to be young professionals with six-figure incomes.
The most frequently scanned QR codes appear in print magazines and newspapers. Print media taking the lead in a digital marketing technology? That’s worth your attention as well.
08/05/2011
Android for President?
02:35 pm by Aaron
TechCrunch posted this interesting map today about smartphone adoption in the United States. Kind of looks like a political map to me:
If they were awarding electoral votes, Android would have a comfortable lead, iOS would be scrambling to re-invent its campaign and BlackBerry would play the role of the feisty, third-party candidate.
Who’s got your vote?
08/03/2011
How to Use Google+
08:45 am by Aaron
We’ve been arguing among ourselves about whether, and how, we should be using Google+. Who do you add? Who do you leave off? How do you make time for yet another huge social media platform?
We know we are not alone. Every social network user faces the same problems.
So here’s my take on it.
LinkedIn is the easiest; in fact, it shouldn’t even be in the discussion. You add anyone you want to connect with professionally. The only information I, or most people, ever share on LinkedIn is professional in nature. Twitter is a bit different; acceptable to add people you’ve never met, as it is people you actually know.
Facebook is the big debate. Personally, I have no idea what to do on Facebook anymore. I am constantly wondering how to manage my friends, acquaintances and colleagues on Facebook. I first joined Facebook in 2004, when it was restricted to college students. I loved the service because I could keep tabs on my entire social circle. Facebook still serves this function today, but it has become incredibly hard to categorize your social circle. I don’t want my co-workers seeing conversations I am having with my family. I don’t need my mom having intimate knowledge of what I did on my Saturday night.
Google+ is an accelerated social network. It started in the mainstream, which means that there are already a wide variety of people to connect with – not just one small niche. Who do we add?
My opinion: Add everyone! Google+’s circles feature makes the sharing of information easy. Google+, unlike other social networks, is built around controlling your flow of information. Circles allow your Google+ stream to display different content from different people, as well as control who sees your status updates. Have a photo from your late night last night that you don’t want family or professional contacts seeing? Make sure you only share it with the circle that contains your friends. Have a link that you want to share with those in your professional network but know your friends won’t care about? There is a circle for that too, and for any group of people you want. It’s the fantastic merger between your public and private personalities online.
Add everyone! That’s what Google+ is built for.
08/01/2011
What Is Badoo?
09:37 am by David Haase
Every so often we like to step out of character and try something new and different.
So let us introduce you to Badoo. Bad what? If you live in the United States, chances are you haven’t heard of Badoo.
It’s a social network without much presence in the greater 48, but in Latin American and European countries like Italy, Spain and France, Badoo is a big deal.
- 120 million members
- Adding 300,000 users a day
- 4.3 million daily photo and video uploads
- Seven billion monthly page views
- Facebook’s fastest growing app, with over 570,000 new daily users.
- $2 billion IPO being discussed
While Facebook brings your entire social network into one platform and LinkedIn channels all your professional contacts into one service Badoo specializes in … sex. NOT porn. Sex, as in linking up two people to do stuff (not just sex) together.
Badoo’s lack of presence in North America and England, our two favorite English speaking regions of the world, hurts its value as a marketing hub. It may not be a boon to your business yet, but just look at those numbers above . . .
How can you ignore something that size? You can’t, especially if you are in the fashion or entertainment industries.
My thanks to my new colleague, Aaron Thuringer, for pointing this out to me. (I guess we know where you are taking your first vacation.)
