She Owns It

Celebrating, Connecting, and Supporting Women Entrepreneurs

Social Media Trends to Watch For in 2019 by @donnaamos

by Leave a Comment

Social Media Trends

by Donna Amos | Featured Contributor 

Social media is here to stay in a big way. One of the best ways for businesses to connect with a target audience is to maintain an active presence on social media channels. The era of, “My business is open, come and see me” is long over. Now, savvy business owners know they must go where consumers are and establish a relationship. Social media is THE place to do that, easily and relatively cheaply.

Therefore, as you embark on planning your social media marketing strategy for 2019, get on board with these important trends. They either gained popularity or became firmly established during 2018, and will play a vital role in how you connect with your audience in the coming year.

A “Pay to Play” Strategy

In the early days, companies could fully expect that 16% of their followerswould see their Facebook updates. By the end of 2018, that reach had plummeted to about 6% or less. Other social media platforms have followed suit. The day or organic reach has ended. Social media platforms will not give away what they can reap a huge benefit from – your followers. Now, you must pay to play.

Now, in order to reach your target audience on any social media channel, you must invest in sponsored posts, boosted posts, and social media ads. Fortunately, social media advertising is one of the most affordable means of marketing available. If you handle your own keyword research and audience targeting, Social media marketing is much more affordable than pay-per-click advertising.

Video is the Preferred Media of Most Users

Now is the time to get on board with video marketing, if you haven’t already. According to research by Wyzowl, “97% of marketers say that video has helped increase user understanding of their product or service, and 76% indicated that it has helped increase web traffic and sales.”

That is easy to accept when we also realize that 95% of Internet users have watched explainer videos to learn more about a product or service, and 81% have bought a product or service as a result of watching a company’s advertising video. No other form of media can boast these high use and conversion percentages.

Video is the absolute best way for a company to put a face to their business. It enables prospects and customers to get to know who leads and works in a business. Video gives businesses an opportunity to show not only what they do but also “who” they are. In our current climate where users seek a personal connection, this is a critical factor.

The Rise of ‘Live’ Video

Live-streaming will continue to emerge as a powerful way to engage people on social media. According to statistics compiled by Go-Globe, two-thirds of all internet traffic in 2017 was streaming video. By 2020, 82% of internet traffic is expected to be video content. And most of that will be live streaming. The interactivity of live video makes it a powerful tool for marketers to engage with their audience and strengthen the relationship between a brand and its followers.

The authenticity of ‘going live’ is a key factor that audiences want, as it helps build trust and loyalty with your company. Even if problems arise when you are ‘live,’ followers are likely to understand that and it may even further strengthen their trust in your company, as only authentic content leaves room for genuine mistakes.

Quality Long-Form Content

Word count isn’t everything when it comes to ranking high on search engines like Google, but SEO experts agree that long-form content can give you an edge. Users and search engines alike want to see high-quality content of more than 1,000 words, and we see that such content consistently outranks articles with 500 words.

Therefore, more publishers are requiring writers to submit articles over 1,000 or 1,200 words, and more company blogs are beginning to embrace similar long-form content. These comprehensive articles that are rich with information and insight, will go far to both attract readers and give Google and other search engines a reason to rank them more favorably.

Building Community

Building a community in social can help you to build trust with your followers. Groups on LinkedIn and Facebook are being encouraged on both platforms. And once you begin building that following you have to immerse yourself and be engaged.

Using hashtags in Twitter and Instagram can help you to find conversations that your community are having and allow you to join in.

Communities can also help to segment your audiences and customize your messaging. By the way, building community is the perfect way to build your personal brand and can be the beginning of influencer marketing!

Personal Branding

Particularly for small businesses, putting a real, human face to a brand name helps to build loyalty. A brand that’s more relatable, and has the human element, naturally garners more trust, and trust is essential for building relationships. Many companies have used the tactic of promoting their brand by promoting the business owner.

His or her face essentially becomes the brand, closely associated with the company logo. He or she personifies all that the company is about, or at least what they wish to portray. By enabling your audiences to get to know the character and expertise of company leadership, your business can strengthen its brand reputation.

What other important social media trends do you see emerging for 2019? Share your thoughts and insights with our readers in the comments below.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Why Community Matters Now, More Than Ever by @annamcafee

by 2 Comments

by Anna McAfee | Featured Contributor

“What tribes are, is a very simple concept that goes back 50 million years. It’s about leading and connecting people and ideas. And it’s something that people have wanted forever” says Seth Godin.

You’d have to be living under a rock to not have recently heard the words ‘community’ and ‘tribe’. But why does it matter so much, and why does it matters now?  We need to take a look at the world, where we are as individuals, and where we are as a collective.

But what is a community?  As individuals we are members of multiple groups of people, which are defined by geography, work, study, interests, online social networks, and online group participation.

The lack of real community

As humans we have a basic need for community but modern lifestyles are squeezing this out.  Community is more and more absent from the way we live our lives.  We have evolved in tribes, always lived and hunted as groups, but we are living more isolated lives online and not interacting with individuals and groups around us.  Social change has meant that many of us have moved away from where we grew up, and we don’t have a support network around us. Its alarming that for many its becoming the norm to go for days without seeing another human face to face.   

The internet and social media have created unprecedented opportunities for connection across the globe.  A hyper-connected world, always online, has provided considerable advantages, with greater opportunities for remote work and flexibility, in particular for women.  We have information at our fingertips and the ability to find customers and build business relationships remotely. 

At what cost though? 

Where there is an upside, there is also a downside.  Social media is eating humans. Estimates show that 2.95B people on earth (one third of humanity) will use social media by 2020. It connects us in ways we’ve never before seen or imagined. It disconnects us in ways we take for granted. In a time when social media shapes our world view and drives our daily interactions, we need to define a new balance between online and offline, between global and local, between virtual and reality.  Modern life is creating a human connection gap, there is lack of social cohesion around us, and less of a sense of belonging.

What we can and are doing about it

Photo by Slava Bowman on Unsplash

In recent years there has been a shift towards authentic connection in what has become a fast, technologically advanced world. Social media has added so much to our world and our businesses but we have lost something in the process. We have become accustomed to define ourselves by the job we do, who we know, how many likes we get.  Yet we are so much more than the superficiality of all those things.

As a result of change we are seeing a shift in consumer demands, a craving for a more human experience.  In our DNA there is a desire to be a part of a community, or multiple communities, that support us and help us grow.

Brands and companies are being expected to deliver a more human experience to its customers and followers.  We now have #O2O movements (online to offline) and #H2H (human to human) delivery of content, products and services. 

Another example of this change is the #letsgethonest campaign in late 2017 and re-run again in 2018.  26 million people shared their failures and weaknesses via content, on the basis that what we share as humans aren’t perfections and successes, but universal flaws and failures.

Online brands such as Fiverr and Asana are now delivering a community experience to customers and contributors.  #LinkedInLocal, a campaign to take online connections offline and come together to meet in groups face-to face, has spread to over 85 countries in less than two years.  We continually see the rise and growth of Facebook communities for like-minded people, anything from mothers groups to soul-centred entrepreneurs, there is a Facebook group for literally everything.

Bridging the Human Connection Gap 

Even in a digital world it is so important to build our own “villages” to support us. Social isolation is damaging to health, education, business and society.  As humans we need to find the balance between an increased need for privacy, and shutting ourselves off from the world.  Human interaction must be meaningful and when we recognise this we need to picture what our own ideal in-person villages look like, and use technology for good in order to seek them out.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

How the LinkedIn Algorithm Works by @donnaamos

by Leave a Comment

linkedin algorithm

by Donna Amos | Featured Contributor 

When you visit LinkedIn or the LinkedIn app, you see your homepage feed. This page acts very much like the Facebook feed, where you see updates from your friends or Pages you follow. However, your LinkedIn feed does not show every post from your entire network. It only shows content that LinkedIn judges to be relevant to you. You can, of course, use the setting at the top right of the page to see posts based on recent activity instead of relevance. 

That’s because LinkedIn has implemented a process for content distribution across its network that utilizes four filters, in order to reduce spam and/or inappropriate content. If you include LinkedIn in your content marketing strategy, you need to understand how the LinkedIn algorithm filters your posts and chooses whether to show them or not. 

Filter #1 Quality Level

Every time you post any type of content, the LinkedIn algorithm judges it to be spam, low quality, or quality. In a blog post describing the strategies used to keep the newsfeed relevant, Director of Engineering, Rushi Bhatt explained: “Our online and nearline classifiers label every image, text, or long form post as “spam,” “low-quality,” or “clear” in near real time.

Filter #2: Level of Engagement 

If your content passed the initial round, it appears in the LinkedIn feed temporarily. This is when the LinkedIn algorithm watches and measures the amount and types of audience engagement your post earns. If your post is gaining likes, comments, and shares, you will likely pass this stage. However, there is no definitive number of likes, shares, or comments that determine a pass or fail. 

Filter #3: Your (and your Content’s) Credibility 

At this third filter, the LinkedIn algorithm will look beyond the content of your post and more at who you are to determine if your post should keep showing up in user feeds. According to Hootsuite, “This stage is also when the algorithm decides whether to ‘demote’ your content, sending it backwards in the queue for another chance at winning credibility. 

If your post looks ‘suspicious,’ but the algorithm doesn’t want to make a definitive call on it (giving you the benefit of the doubt), it will remain in the feed but not show very highly or very frequently.” Basically, LinkedIn looks at you and your network to determine whether or not this is a spam post and whether your network will find it valuable. 

Filter #4: Human Editors

It is at this point that human LinkedIn editors take a first look at your content. Up until now, only a small batch of people have been allowed to see and interact with your post. Most of the other determinations are made by LinkedIn algorithm bots that are preprogrammed to search for unpublicized factors. 

At this point, editors review your post to determine whether it should keep showing, if it should be included in a particular channel, or whether they can derive any takeaways from it for future algorithm tweaks and product development. As long as it keeps getting engagement, your post stays in the mix, continuing its algorithmic journey through the feed.

Here is a great infographic that details how the LinkedIn algorithm works. 

How to Optimize Your Posts for LinkedIn 

Follow these three tips to optimize your posts around the LinkedIn algorithm. 

  1. Create Great Content– Vary between text, images, videos, tips, opinions, quotes, and simple sharing links to other great content. Be sure all your content is optimized for mobile users, since about 60% of LinkedIn users access the platform on their phones.  
  2. Leverage the LinkedIn Bias– Since LinkedIn is a more professional-leaning social network, you should focus your posts around topics that LinkedIn admits a bias toward: 
    1. Career Helps
    1. Industry Relevance 
    1. Credible and Trustworthy Sources 
  3. Grow Your Network– A large network of followers spells credibility on LinkedIn, so use these tips to expand your network in 2019: 
  4. Ask all your employees to follow your company and set it as their workplace on their profiles.
  5. Follow influential people in your industry who are prominent on LinkedIn.
  6. Join and participate in relevant groups, sharing your content when appropriate.
  7. Comment on content relevant to your industry.
  8. Set up links to your LinkedIn page on your company website and careers page to encourage more relevant follows.
  9. Mention people when you post something and they’ll like or share if you’ve named them in your post. 

What are some other suggestions you have for optimizing your content to take full advantage of the LinkedIn algorithm and get your posts viewed? We’d love to hear your suggestions or ideas in the comments below. 

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

5 Tips For Organizing Your Social Media Over the Holidays

by 1 Comment

by Chelsea Tobin

We all know that getting everything prepped in time for the holiday season (both in life and in business) can get a bit overwhelming and hectic. One of the last things you want to be thinking about is making sure your business’ Instagram channel is updated over this period! So here are 5 tips for preparing in advance and organizing your social media marketing over the holidays.

1. Schedule in advance
Make use of a scheduling tool to plan out and schedule all your social media posts in advance. Popular tools include Buffer, Hootsuite, Later, Sprout Social and CoSchedule – to name a few. Taking the time now to get these all your posts in place means you’ll only need to check in on your social media channels ad-hoc to make sure everything is running smoothly.

2. Minimize the amount posts
If your regular posting schedule usually involves 5-10 posts per week, your business probably doesn’t need to be posting this much over the holiday season. This will of course depend on your kind of business (and whether you have an e-commerce store making the most of holiday specials!), but I recommend cutting the posts back to 3-5 per week if you’re a small-medium business.

3. Factor in key dates
If you’re stuck for social media content ideas during this period, don’t forget that you can utilize the key dates over the holiday season (e.g. Christmas, Boxing Day, New Years) and create posts around these. Even a simple “Merry Christmas” post will likely be appreciated by your audience – and will help keep your page active to keep the social media algorithms happy!

4. Let your audience know you’ll be less active
You don’t need to tell your audience exactly when and where you’re going on holiday, but a courtesy notice to let them know that you (or your business) will be less frequent and available on your social media over the holidays will set expectations for if/when some people do decide to get in contact with you.

5. Set time to respond and engage
Even though you’ll be enjoying a break from business (and even social media), make sure you designate a bit of a time each week to not only check your channels, but also to respond to any comments and messages. It’s important not to abandon your social media entirely; a little of engagement will go a long way when it comes to maintenance and growth of your channels.

———————————————————————

With the desire to go “digital nomad” and help businesses with their social media marketing, Chelsea founded her boutique social media agency, Queen of Swords Media, in 2018. She attended Auckland University of Technology in New Zealand, where she graduated with a Bachelor of Business (Marketing major) and a Bachelor of Communication Studies (PR major). She enjoys speaking and writing about her journey so far in the world of business, self-development and mindfulness as a young millennial woman navigating her way through life, and of course social media. You can find her on Instagram here – https://www.instagram.com/queenofswordsmedia/

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Crafting the Perfect Social Media Story for the Holidays by @DrRKayGreen

by Leave a Comment

by Dr. R. Kay Green | Featured Contributor

More and more platforms are unveiling “stories” — ephemeral social media posts that disappear after a set amount of time. Snapchat is arguably the platform that first had success with this format, but Facebook and Instagram have also unveiled their own story platforms.

Businesses are taking note of this feature, with more organizations than ever turning to story functions for holiday marketing. The reason they are doing this is because consumers are engaging with this content in a way that they simply do not do with natural posts. Which begs the question: why?

Why are social media stories so popular with consumers and businesses alike? What makes this format so conducive to holiday marketing, in particular? And, perhaps more importantly, how can your business leverage social media stories to make your holiday marketing a success?

One of the main features of social media stories is that they are humanizing. When done correctly, they come across as more friendly, less like an ad than your typical campaign.

Also, with natural posts, it is difficult to do more than one post in a row. When consumers follow a lot of friends, family and businesses, their dashboards become clogged, and even if a business posts one post right after the other, it is unlike that they will show up this way on someone’s news feed.

Stories are different. Your consumers can easily click from one video to the next. This makes it so that you can tell a cohesive narrative. This, in turn, allows you to make an emotional connection. This is critical when it comes to reaching modern audiences.

Allowing viewers to click through also engages them. Instead of traditional posts, in which they are more or less passive consumers, stories allow your followers to get involved.

Today’s consumer does not want to be treated like a tool, and they do not want to be pandered to by faceless entities. Instead, they want to get to know the people behind the brand. And what better time to do this than over the holidays, when many are gathering together for parties and fun?

This is why holidays in general are a perfect time for social media story campaigns. Holidays are the perfect time for engaging, humanizing stories that treat followers like family instead of business leads.

There are, of course, right and wrong ways to create a social media story. Above all, social media stories should be fun. Take advantage of the temporary nature of these stories to be more witty and easygoing than you would be with your typical posts.

When crafting a social media story, focus on two things: emotional and personal.

Stories that focus on emotion will be far more engaging to your consumer. You should aim to make them feel something.

In addition, you should be personal. Give your followers a look at who you really are — not just as a brand, but as individual people. Does anyone in your department have an inspiring story related to the holidays? Now is the time to ask.

Avoid creating a “sales pitch,” and do not make a story that is so long that your consumers will get bored and click away. If you do all of this, you will be able to create a social media story that engages and makes an impression on your followers. And that will last even after the holidays are over.

———————————————————————-

Dr. R. Kay Green – Marketing Expert from RKG Marketing Solutions Inc. from Atlanta, GA.

Dr. KayDr. R. Kay Green is the CEO/President of RKG Marketing Solutions Inc. With over 190,000+ Twitter followers, 35,000+ Facebook Likes, and the Top 1% LinkedIn profile designation, Dr. Kay, a self-motivated trailblazer, is the Quintessential “New-Age” Professional Woman, and PhD Marketing Pro. She earned a Doctorate of Business Administration in Marketing, and has completed PhD coursework in Leadership and Organization Change. She also holds a Master of Business Administration in Marketing and Management, a Bachelor of Business Administration in Marketing, and an Associate of Arts in Marketing Management.

She is affiliated with several prestigious universities and has instructed over 350 courses online. A popular speaker on Marketing and Business topics, Dr. Green is currently featured on Huffington Post, Black Enterprise, Black News, The Network Journal, Business Review USA, Digital Journal, College View, Business New Hampshire Magazine, Bay State Banner, Reader’s Circle, North Dallas Gazette, Harlem News, Top News Today, One News Page, NE Informer, Women in Business PR News, Consumer News Today, Women PR News, San Francisco Chronicle, Houston Chronicle, Chicago Daily Herald, The Miami Herald, and Book News Articles.

Twitter – Facebook – LinkedIn

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

How a Facebook Livestream Series Empowered Me to Become a Better Entrepreneur by @HeidiLynneCo

by 1 Comment

by Heidi Lynne Kurter

19 months ago, I quit my corporate Human Resources job in Boston to travel Asia and start my own business. I’ve always lived life a bit impulsively and craved massive challenge, so while this seemed impossible, it wasn’t out of character for me. Last month, after wrapping up my tour of Asia, I traveled back to one of my favorite European cities, Berlin, to bring calm to the chaos and establish some roots for my business.

The journey of entrepreneurship forced me to do a lot of self reflection, deconstruct and rebuild habits and routines, and face the inner demons that became a part of my identity from a lifetime of suppression. As women, we are amazing multi-taskers with the determination to exceed our own expectations in everything we put our minds to.

As an ode to the amazing women entrepreneurs who are pursuing their dreams of entrepreneurship, I launched a live-stream interview series in my Facebook group The Global B.L.E.N.D. interviewing women entrepreneurs and their journey exposing the transparent and raw truths of the struggles and challenges they’ve faced while building and scaling their business.

This series has been incredibly eye-opening for not only myself, but the members of the group. It’s easy to fall into comparison syndrome and lose motivation because we feel inferior to those who rose to success almost instantaneously since declaring their decision to start a business. My goal was to bring to light the reality of the powerhouse women we admire and respect and level the playing field in a way that connects us to support and empower one another.

Here are the things I learned that helped me to enjoy the global entrepreneur life and become successful in my life and business:

 

-> Be Selfish with Your Time

Everyone has their own definition of self-care, but the end result still remains the same. It’s the maintenance of your physical, mental and well-being by treating yourself kindly. This can come in the form of reading, making time with girlfriends, scheduling a spa appointment or any feel good activity that nurtures your soul and brings life back to you again.

-> Make a Date with Yourself Daily

It’s easy to get caught up in the distractions that come with living a life of travel. We cram so much into our days that we gloss over our emotions and needs. I’m a professional at jam-packing my days so I get a generous mix of the local experience and business tasks. The quickest way to burnout is by neglecting yourself. Make sure to schedule daily check-ins with yourself even if it’s setting aside a half hour to grab some tea and people watch at a local cafe.

-> Dial into What Feels Right

As a former corporate robot, I lived a life of burnout. It became the new normal. If I wasn’t feeling stretched thin, stressed out or on the verge of breaking, I thought I wasn’t doing enough. By listening to my body, I learned when stress becomes too much my sleep is the first to be impacted. Start to tune into your body and know when it’s time to take a break. Take breaks often and be mindful of when your sleep starts to fall short.

-> Take it Down a Notch

While others plan for the upcoming year, I get attached to a vision six years in the future. I became so future focused that I couldn’t take in the now. Taking the time to focus and appreciate the now has allowed me to slow down and take advantage of every second. Slow down, breathe and take the time to appreciate the here and now. It’s the most simple acts that bring us back to reality and allow us to be grateful for where we are and the progress we’ve made.

 

——————————————————————–

Heidi Lynne Kurter is a coach and consultant helping creative women entrepreneurs scale their businesses as smoothly as possible. She is the founder of Heidi Lynne Consulting where she brings 8+ years of experience in human resources working and living in America, Asia and Europe. She recently launched a program where she walks entrepreneurs and small business owners through everything they need to know to hire the right talent, attract high ticket clients, increase their productivity and bring in more money.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

5-Step Pinterest Promoted Pin Traffic Plan by @donnaamos

by 2 Comments

by Donna Amos | Featured Contributor 

Advertising on various social media channels requires a different approach for each channel. Google+ handles things differently than Facebook or LinkedIn; and their audiences vary. If your audience is mainly female and attracted to visual demographic categories like fashion, home decor, or fitness, you’ll likely find them on Pinterest. 80% of Pinterest users are female. 88% are between the ages of 18 and 54.

Therefore, you should build a quality profile and use it to connect with your audience there. Pin visually attractive links to your profile boards. But, Pinterest offers a great advertising option called promoted pins. This can not only grow your following faster but also send more traffic to your website. Below are the five basic steps to constructing your own Promoted Pin Traffic Plan on Pinterest.

These basic steps will get you started, but you should spend some time exploring and experimenting with the many options. Discover what works best for you and your business. No two companies will benefit from the exact same combination of choices and settings. Build your own profitable plan on these foundational steps.

Step 1: Choose from Two Promoted Pin Types

Before you begin using Pinterest ads, spend a lot of time working inside the ads manager. Be sure to convert your existing Pinterest account to a business account for a few extra features. Within the ads manager interface, you’ll see that you have two options for your promotion type.

  • Build Awareness– Promote brand awareness and boost views of your videos.
  • Drive Consideration– Drive traffic back to your website.

Choose the option you want, give your campaign a title, and enter a budget. I always recommend starting small as you experiment with advertising. Begin with $30-$50 total budget. You can always increase it later if your efforts are successful.

Now you must choose a pin to promote in your advertising. Click the red button, which will show you all the previous pins on your account. Click one of those to select it. If you chose to boost engagement, one of your previous pins would be fine. To drive traffic to your website,

create a new pin, pin it to one of your boards, then return to the ads manager and choose it for your ad campaign.

Step 2: Set Up Audience Targeting

Pinterest ads targeting is similar to what you find on many other PPC platforms. There are two sections you’ll need to fill out: interests and keywords. Interests is much broader in scope, which usually isn’t ideal for PPC campaigns. However, if you’re just trying to build a following while targeting a general audience, it can work.

If your ad campaign is intended to drive traffic to your website, you should focus on the keyword section. Type in keywords you want to target in the search box of this section, then click any of the grey keywords that appear to add them to your campaign. The keywords you select will appear in blue at the bottom. Searching the site is one of the main ways that users find content, so you can get quite a few impressions on popular keywords. When someone searches for any of the keywords you select, they may see your ad, depending on your budget and settings.

You can also choose other targeting options besides keywords and interests.

  • Locations – Choose over 210 specific places in the United States
  • Language – Target specific languages
  • Devices – Target desktop users or specific types of mobile users
  • Gender – Target males, females, and/or people with unknown gender

Targeting only works well when you narrow down the potential audience so that it consists of your target demographic. But, avoid targeting so narrow that you only have a few hundred targeted users in your audience. You should choose targeting guidelines that represent your best possible client audience.

Step 3: Budget Considerations

Initially, you set a low total budget while you experimented with the ads and site. At this point, you must set your maximum CPC bid before the ad goes live. Often, you won’t have to pay this amount; sometimes far lower. But, after a few days, if you’re not getting the results you expected, increase your bid to allow more potential target users to see your ad.

Step 4: Track and Analyze Your Ad Results

Many want to skip this step because it’s boring. It isn’t as fun as creating the ad or choosing a targeted audience. But, if you don’t track your ad campaign results, you’ll never know whether advertising is actually profitable for you. And, you’ll never be able to increase the effectiveness of your ads. You won’t know what works and what doesn’t.

Pinterest provides some basic analytics for your ads. It covers all the basic stats like impressions, clicks, CPC, and total amount spent. So, you can keep up with how the ad performs. For conversion statistics, you will have to go to Google Analytics and set up specific plans for tracking what you consider to be a conversion from your Pinterest ads.

Step 5: Keep Experimenting

Even really experienced advertisers don’t get everything right on their first try with a campaign. Or even the second or third. That’s why tracking your results is so important. Once you have a set of baseline results, it’s a good idea to start split testing different promoted pins.

Try different variations of:

  • The pin picture
  • The ad headline
  • The targeted landing page

Keep trying different variations, tracking your results, and optimizing your campaigns until they become profitable. Even when you achieve a winning ad, continue to optimize it as much as possible. And of course, when your ad is doing well, scale up its advertising budget to take advantage of the ad’s popularity.

Pinterest is a huge social media site, and advertising on it is still a process of experimentation. You can create and run a profitable promoted pins campaign on Pinterest. It just takes persistent experimentation and optimization to hit the right combination of factors.

What are your tips for using Pinterest promoted pins for advertising? Share your wisdom and experiences with us in the comment section below!

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

How to Skyrocket Your Traffic By More Than Double Thanks to This Platform by Caz Wilson of @socialkitchenlv

by 1 Comment

by Caz Wilson | Featured Contributor 

This platform is one of my favorites for driving traffic to a website and for growing brand awareness.

No doubt you know this platform well, but probably you would not think to use it for business. Or maybe you do and you’ve seen how well it can work. In either case, I hope here to make a compelling argument for why, Pinterest is something you should be using to drive traffic to your website.

Although Pinterest isn’t a social media platform in the traditional sense, Pinterest is thought of more as a search engine, almost like a visual Google. Because of this, Pinners have a certain bias and are in a searching frame of mind when they come to Pinterest. They’re looking for a solution, for help, for ideas, and for inspiration. If your business is what they find, and they like what they see, they’ll go ahead, click through on the pin and more often than not, continue to buy your product.

Pinterest is a must if your business targets women, operates in the wedding or the fitness industry or is very visual (think home decor, party planning etc.). When set up correctly and used consistently, Pinterest can be the greatest driver of traffic to your website allowing you to remarket to these highly interested people and overall provide great value to them.

Thyroid Refresh, a lifestyle support platform for thyroid patients, attribute a significant amount of their daily traffic to Pinterest. They launched their membership site in the Spring of 2018 and prior to their launch, we worked to build their audience with useful, helpful pins and a strong identifiable brand. One of the amazing things about Pinterest is that, unlike other social media which you might be using, a pin lasts forever and can gain momentum. We, therefore, created consistent, eye-catching pins to establish Thyroid Refresh in the market. Useful, value-adding infographics also worked well, all of which pointed to the website.

As Thyroid Refresh grew on Pinterest, it started to establish more and more traffic from the pins and the re-pins. After they launched, Thyroid Refresh published more content which their audience just loved. Pinterest is the perfect platform for a pre-launch strategy.

Hopefully, I’ve convinced you about the power of Pinterest. If you’re looking to get started, here are some quick tips to get you started, or to get your Pinterest working harder for you:

1. Create boards and content which your audience will love

Have a clear idea of who your target audience is and what content they will enjoy. Then curate boards with that audience in mind. Your goal is to be a resource, a place for inspiration for your audience.

2. Have a strategy to consistently pin content

As with most platforms, Pinterest loves consistency. Plan to pin once a day, or better yet, set a scheduler like Tailwind to do the heavy lifting for you!

3. Create incredible pins

As with anything online, quality content is king and this runs true for Pinterest. Great headlines, eye-catching pins and quality content will go along way on Pinterest as people read, pin and then repin your content

Putting these super simple tips will work wonders for your Pinterest efforts and get you started to maximizing this platform for your business.

What questions do you have about Pinterest? Leave them in the comments below…

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

How to Use Facebook Live to Grow Your Business by @donnaamos

by Leave a Comment

Facebook live for small business

by Donna Amos | Featured Contributor 

Since being launched in April 2016, Facebook Live rose to overtake YouTube as the #1 video streaming service on the Internet. Facebook also has 2 billion monthly users as of June 2017. That’s more than any other social network. So, using Facebook Live to grow your business seems like a no-brainer.

Most businesses recognize the importance of video. By 2019 it’s anticipated that 80% of the Facebook news feed will be video. Perhaps you thought about using video in the past, but the high costs and complexity turned you against it. True, storyboarding, writing, shooting, and editing a professional video can be extremely costly.

That’s the beauty of Facebook Live video. All you need is a smartphone and an idea. The online marketing world is praising live video like crazy because of its simplicity and versatility. Opportunity can meet innovation at any moment to produce a live video stream to promote your brand in any number of ways. All on the largest social media platform available. And FREE.

 

Video Storytelling

The essence of all good marketing is storytelling, and that is the prime focus of video. Storytelling applies to any business or industry, no matter how large or small. Anyone can tell a good story. We tell stories all the time as we talk about our product or service and the people with whom we interact.

Four primary types of storytelling:

  • Informational: Drop knowledge bombs and tell people what you know.
  • Inspirational: Speak to the heart, stir emotion, and motivate others.
  • Entertaining: Engage with people, make them laugh or cry.
  • Experiential: Show people who you are, where you are, and what you are doing.

 

As you tell your story, remember these important tips:

 

Always Be Authentic

The hook of live video streaming is the connection with a real person. This doesn’t mean you don’t want a clear idea of what you’re doing or want to say. It does mean you show authenticity. Be real. Speak to the camera as you would speak to an individual in front of you. Reflect real emotions. If what you’re talking about upsets you, it’s OK to appear a bit upset. If you fumble a word or two, keep going. It’s live, remember? It’s supposed to be real and not completely scripted.

 

Engage with Your Audience

Another great hook with live video streaming is the ability to engage with your audience, and for them to engage with you. This is more than acknowledging when participants join the broadcast or comment. Ask questions for your audience to answer and interact with them as the video continues. The unscripted nature of live video is one of its huge drawing points, so capitalize on that and have fun.

The engagement doesn’t have to end when the video ends. Leave an offer at the end of the broadcast and include an engagement button on the post so viewers can get more information or simply connect with you. Leave the live post available on your Facebook feed for more users to view and engage with later.

 

Promote Live Events in Advance

Covering a live event for your brand is huge, and you want as many people watching as possible, so advertise the live video in advance. Set a time and location when you will be streaming live and promote it on every social media channel and your website. Invite local fans to come and be included in the live video audience.

Consider giving away some freebies to the live audience and allow one of them to choose a remote viewer to win as well. Encourage interaction from your streaming audience and share that with the live audience. This is especially helpful if you have regular online events, like auctions or product showings.

 

Brand Your Content

Always have a purpose in going live on video, and tie that purpose to promoting your brand. You can produce a moving live video session about the homeless in your city that engages thousands of viewers without benefitting your brand in any way. Always tie your video to your brand. What are you showing? Why? How does your brand connect to that event, project, or need?

As you tell your story, include the why. Why is your brand showing this? What makes it important? Why should viewers care? How can they connect your video to your brand? Live videos don’t always have to be about promoting your business; but they should always promote your brand values and showcase your brand.

Do you currently use Facebook Live in your business marketing efforts? What are some of your best tips for using it successfully? Share your suggestions and stories with our readers in the comment section below.

 

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post

Why Your Facebook Ads are Costing You More Money Than They are Making by Caz Wilson of @socialkitchenlv

by Leave a Comment

by Caz Wilson | Featured Contributor 
Something I get asked often is “Why isn’t my Facebook ad converting” and “why are Facebook Ads costing me more money than they are making?”
I truly wish that figuring out poor performing Facebook Ads was a simple process, but unfortunately, it isn’t. Facebook Ads are ever-changing but once you have figured out a couple of key factors, they can be a great tool for building your business.
Despite their complexity, at this time, they remain great value for money and a great place to put your marketing dollars. Facebook Ads have incredible targeting capabilities thanks to the data which Facebook has about its users. Therefore having an effective Facebook Ads campaign is incredibly important to ensure that you do not waste money.
Typically you can break down why your Facebook Ad is not working for one of three reasons:
1. Inaccurate Audience
A common problem I see is that business owners go far too broad with their audience selection.
Being selective about your target market will help you narrow down who the ad should be served to. It’s important to mention though that targeting “Interests” doesn’t necessarily mean you’re targeting an audience who directly like the page of a brand, celebrity or influencer. Selecting a particular interest will choose an audience that showed interest maybe by visiting their website, interacting with their social media or liking a post at one time.
It is therefore not recommended to select many audiences when setting up your Facebook Ad. Instead, pick one or two and test those out and see how your ad performs.
2. The image used in the ad
It is worth remembering that when you run a Facebook Ad, you are interrupting somebody scrolling through the newsfeed on Facebook or Instagram. People go to these platforms to be entertained, to catch up with friends and family or to see what is happening with their favorite influencer. Your image has to be incredibly compelling to interrupt somebody’s day-to-day distraction and to make them take notice of your business and what you have to offer.
Bright colors work well, so does a compelling call-to-action within the image. Also remember that when it comes to images on a Facebook Ad, your text has to be at 20% of the image. Click here to use Facebook’s Text Overlay Tool to make sure that the image you are going to use is compliant with Facebook’s rule.
3. Your copy
Even though people love images and video in their Facebook and Instagram feed, they do also read the ad’s copy.
I have tested different copy lengths for ads and have found short copy with headlines that are to the point work well. Conversely, long copy which paints a picture and tells a story works well also.
If you are finding that your Facebook Ad is not performing as well as you would like take a look at these three areas and test different alternatives to your audience, your copy and your image. Do not, however, change all of these at once. Be careful when tweaking your ad, otherwise, you will not know what change produce what result. Instead, adjust one of these and see how that goes. If your ad is literally getting no response after a few days of running, it might be time to go back to the drawing board with your audience, your image and your copy.
Facebook Ads remain one of the key ways to build an online business, a new audience or get your name out into the marketplace. While you should not turn your back on Facebook Ads if you have not had a good experience, you have to be smart and pay attention to these 3 variables as these are the difference between your ads being a money maker, rather than a money pit.

Post to Twitter Tweet This Post