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Digital Marketing: Targeting Your Audience [Infographic]
Digital Marketing will be used to some degree for practically every marketing campaign moving forward. Whether we go with a campaign that includes video, slides or social media channels, digital marketing now is a huge aspect of marketing now. One of the most important things we can do when deciding which digital marketing channel that we utilize is deciding which platform(s) may target our audience best. This is becoming increasingly more important with so many digital marketing channels available now.
If we want to be successful in our Digital Market campaigns it is very important to stay abreast of all of the channels but also to be aware that all channels do not fit the needs of all audiences. For instance Pinterest is primary geared toward a female demographic so if we are marketing services that are geared mostly toward men, this may not be the ideal platform to use.
Take a look at the Infographic below to give you an idea of HOW to target the proper digital marketing channel for your target audience.
Digital Marketing: Targeting Your Audience
Please Include Attribution to InternetServiceProviders.org With This Graphic
Public Shaming In Social Media: Is It A Form Of Bullying?
Social media and its uses have grown substantially in the past few years. Most people log in to social media channels several times per day and some just log on and never log off. I’m not admitting to this but I’ve HEARD that it happens. :-) Social Media has become so huge, as a source of information that news breaks on Facebook sometimes, quicker than traditional news media channels. I was literally watching breaking news live on TV and news still broke on Facebook and Twitter at least 5 minutes or so before traditional media. That is astounding and quite frankly still surprising, in a very cool way of course.
Social media has a variety of uses, it is a great way to catch up with old friends, meet new friends, extend your network and make business connections. It is also a great way to get involved with social good ventures and this is one of the most wonderful things about social media. I’ve found that social media has been for the most part good and this is primarily due to the circle of friends in my network. I’ve met so many people that have hearts of gold that it allows me to believe that there are still lots of amazing people in the world. We all need proof of good in a world, when we all see so many bad things.
I believe that social media is still primarily good because I am surrounded by so many amazing people that are involved with social good projects that really have helped so many people. These people throw themselves into causes selflessly and quite often. So much so, that I am in awe about the power of social media and how it can and is being used for great causes. With so many good things happening I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that sometimes good can be offset by some things that are not so good. One of the not so good things that have reared its ugly head is the growing trend of public shaming.
A few years ago I noticed an incident of public shaming in social media, which escalated into something quite ugly. There was a situation in which a few people felt as if another person was spamming. I cannot definitely say if the incident was true or false but I do remember that the entire situation was extremely ugly and brought out a lot of meanness in a lot of people involved. Everyone is very entitled to his or her views but what escalated this issue was how so many people jumped on the bandwagon and formed a Salem Witch Trial sort of hate mongering mob campaign against this one person. Ok, say if this person was in fact guilty of spamming, which is not a great thing but why would that person be deserving of the mob of people that went after him as if he were an abuser of animals or something equally heinous. What is most disturbing about this is the mob mentality and the willingness of people to jump in the fray for negative actions against another without finding out any details. At the time of this incident I believed it to be an isolated incident and proceeded to push it to the back of my mind in hopes that I would never witness a repeat of such unnecessary nastiness. Unfortunately this was not an isolated incident.
I’ve noticed a surge in these online behaviors starting with a restaurant and others resorting to public shaming. I also noticed a repeat in how quick others jump on the bandwagon of negativity, even when some don’t even seem to understand why they are doing so. There seems to be a new wave of people, organizations and restaurants that have resorted to public shaming for a variety of reasons.
I am not claiming that I have never taken a shot at an organization with less than desirable customer service utilizing online channels. I admit that I had a very open online divorce from Comcast, so maybe I am just as guilty as others. Although I have never gone after in individual with the goal of publically shaming them, I have had negative online dialogue about a company or two. Maybe they were wrong or maybe not but I think that I should now analyze and revaluate how I handle things. This realization is prompted by how ashamed I am of the behaviors that I have witnessed lately.
When we utilize an online platform as a means of public shaming, is that NOT a form of bullying? Could there possibly be a better way to make a point or let your displeasure with another be known? Is ruining a person’s reputation and possibly shaming them publicly the best route to take? Are we at the point that when we feel wronged that we are justified somehow by automatically jump on social media as a means to, not only voice our displeasure but round up the troops of our followers to jump on our bandwagon as well, in a lynch mob fashion?
Maybe we should ALL revaluate our usages of social media. How about we bring the human element back into social by reaching out to have a conversation [privately] with someone that we feel has wronged us instead of rounding up our loyal followers and creating a lynch mob. It needed to be said….
I will start with addressing my online behaviors….
That guy just posted some stuff to #Facebook, He’s obviously an EXPERT. I’ll hire him said no company ever!
I often have conversations about Digital Marketing and how things have changed. We have gone from focusing on Social Media and toward focusing on Digital Marketing all within a year. Although there has been a transition in dialogue and definitely a shift in consciousness, one thing that has not shifted is the degree of people claiming to be experts.
I’ve had a number of people say, “ I am a F-ing Expert.” Oh, I’m sorry seriously? I wonder if these people realize that I’ve been following them on a variety of social media channels AND I have a permanent echo in my mind of some of the dumbazz questions that I’ve seen in their feed. So, um yeah you post some stuff to your Facebook page but a Digital Marketer, that does not make you.
We have really reached the age in technology that companies are searching for more than a person that can post a few cute animal photos to their Facebook feed. I have always said that Digital Marketing is about way more than just posting content to Facebook. The social media aspect of digital marketing is about posting content that reaches out to touch readers/views and engages them enough for them to respond and share. This is of course all WITHOUT tagging 200 friends with the highest Klout score.
Not only do the peers of the so called experts KNOW that these people are no such thing, so do employers looking for talent in the Digital Marketing space. It’s NOT enough to post some stuff to Facebook, you must be on your game now that capabilities in this space is high. The first indication that a person is NOT on their game is those that claim the loudest about their expertise in an industry are usually the ones that aren’t. How can you be an expert in a field that is growing at super quick speed? The people that are dominating this space are those that quietly go about their way doing their thing while continuing to learn their craft.
It is not even a question about companies diving into this space; it is a must if they want to stay in business. Guess what, if you really think that claiming that you are an expert is going to be enough, good luck with that.
I read a statistic that said 90% of content consumed occurs in front of a screen. This means that most of the content that is being read, which has to be created by someone will probably be created by someone in the Digital Marketing space.
A huge part of being a Digital Marketer is creating engaging, relevant shareable content NOT just posting some crap on Facebook. Although the creation of this content is very important, there are so many more things that define what digital marketing is all about. Those that GET THIS, will be the ones that will be in demand in this space.
Right now we are at a pivotal moment in history and in the growth of this industry and it’s the ultimate Shit Got Real moment. NOW is a time when the Marketers that are so in demand move to the top of the pack and the chest beating, “Im a F-ing expert” Gurus fade to black.
If you want to compete in this space it’s time to start doing and stop yapping. Some of the in-demand skills are any combination of the following:
- Social Media Marketing
- Social Media Optimization
- Search Engine Marketing
- Search Engine Optimization
- Content Management Systems
- Web Analytics
- Customer Relationship Management
- Web Usability
- Mobile Web
- Mobile Marketing
- Direct Response Marketing
- Content Marketing
- Content Optimization
- Product Marketing
- Branding
- Marketing Agency Experience
- Project Management
- Video Editing/Creation
- Video Marketing
- Social Media Analytics and more
This list includes just some of the expectations of a Digital Marketer that I’ve read about. So needless to say you MUST be on your A Game, beyond just posting stuff on Facebook and boasting about your perception of your own expertise.
Hiring within this Digital Marketing Space is at an all time high and I expect that it will be continuing it’s upward growth. This growth is primarily due to the opinion that traditional marketing is failing in the area of producing tangible results. There was a huge report conducted by The Harvard Business Review, which states that CEO ‘s are tired of traditional marketing that lack results. This opinion is probably a huge factor in the growth of the Digital Marketing Industry. Take a look at the graphic below to display the growth in this field.
![[Source: WANTED Analytics] Digital Marketing Employment Growth](http://anisesmithmarketing.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/digital-marketing-employment-growth.jpg?w=500&h=131)
[Source: WANTED Analytics] Digital Marketing Employment Growth
So if you are on your game in this digital marketing space, you are holding a winning hand right now. Take a look at the areas in which companies expect to place organizational focus in the graphic below.
Digital Growth Areas 2013
If you are NOT holding a winning hand in some of these area, brush up on your skills, stop bragging and get on your game. Because really no one wants to hear about what a rock star, guru, maven what-ever-the-hell you are calling yourself this week, especially if your game AIN’T TIGHT.
As usual, I welcome comments, good, bad, ugly or indifferent. I can be reached by Facebook, Google+ or Twitter. I’m pretty sure the GURU’s will be the first to comment.
Are Women Falling Behind In The #Digital Marketing Space? [Infographic]
We are indeed in a new era now and yet there are still organizations that haven’t really fully grasped that times have changed. There are still remnants of what the world was before The Digital Marketing Revolution, but much has changed. A huge example of exactly how much has changed is TIME Magazine’s decision to go totally digital with their magazine. Pay attention!
Digital Marketing has literally changed the world in the past few years and will continue to alter the things that we have become accustomed to. We are moving past what once was to a new reality in the digital marketing space. Digital Marketing has changed how content is created and how content is consumed. So many things have changed from tradition to digital. We now consume most of our media, news and other content digitally. We are now moving toward mobile payments by way of our mobile phones. Advertising will soon be virtual and visual by way of Google Goggles or a similar device. Semantic Web is moving close to our reality, nudging us into a world where all of our devices will have the ability to communicate with each other. WE are literally in a brand new world and it’s happened so quickly.
Organizations’ door of opportunity of denial about the importance of digital marketing is closing swiftly. ALL organizations should be embracing this technology, no exceptions! I believe that the full transition to digital marketing is not only mandatory but inevitable. As an individual you can continue to deny the importance but on an organization level, it is NOT the wisest move. Women, unfortunately may be in denial more than others. C’mon ladies step it up!
Back in the day people started their day with coffee and a newspaper. NOW people start and END their day with their Facebook feed. HELLO!!!! That means if you are NOT on Facebook and other digital marketing channels you are missing the opportunity to float your company content through the newsfeed of hundreds maybe thousands of people. Can you afford to miss that kind of opportunity, as an organization? Believe that your competitors (at least the ones that HAVE stepped their game up) are willing to embrace the technology that you are NOT willing to embrace. So, RIGHT now your competitors are reaching YOUR customers. Awkward.
We MUST start to think about Facebook and all digital media channels as the source of news that was once totally dominated by traditional media sources like newspapers and the local news. PLEASE DON’T WRITE ME, MISUNDERSTANDING WHAT I AM SAYING because I am not saying that those venues are no longer relevant ONLY that there is now competition and that those channels no longer dominate media as they have in the past. People can and are tuning in to Facebook on a regular basis, maybe more so than traditional news channels. I know personally when I get a bit of a buzz about a breaking story, I don’t run out to buy a newspaper, or wait for the 6:00 news! I pull out my iphone and check my Facebook newsfeed. Every FACEBOOK page and Facebook friend are discussing news that hasn’t yet reached the televised media channels. Why would you NOT want your organizational content floating through the newsfeed of people that feel a need to have information FROM YOUR ORGANIZATION at their fingertips? Even if you have a rockin’ website social media is the vehicle that will push your web content to your readers and present an opportunity for readers to share that content with their friends. Umm WIN!
As an organization it is not important to be savvy in the digital marketing space just to say you are, but it is important for the well being and continued growth of your organization. Think of digital marketing channels as the VEHICLE that will drive your content to current and future clients. It’s just that simple. If you EVER doubt the importance of the digital marketing space and why you your organization needs to play an active role, again, take a look at the choice that TIME magazine made to go totally digital. YOU need YOUR ORGANIZATION to be a part of this revolution. Adapt or DIE!
Although there are many women business owners that have really embraced digital marketing, there are still some that really don’t see the big picture about the digital marketing space, it seems as if women are ignoring the importance to a greater degree than men. This is unfortunate especially in organizations when men tend to rule, this could be an opportunity for women to move ahead of the pack. Although women that are NOT business owners are affected more by the lack of movement in the digital marketing space, there are unfortunately women at all levels that are lagging behind. There seems to be a Digital Marketing and Internet usage disconnect about the importance of this technology that is affecting women more than men and this could have devastating consequences to women business owners if not addressed sooner rather than later.
Take a look at the infographic below to see how much women of all educational and economic levels are falling behind in the digital marketing space. On a personal level women may be able to bounce back from this but women business owners may have more of a challenge ahead if they chose to continue to ignore the importance of Digital Marketing to the wellbeing of their organization.
Digital Marketers: Your Digital Footprint Is NOW Your Resume
I admit it! I am a bit of a Social Media Guru basher, only because the self proclaimed gurus place themselves in a position to be ridiculed by giving themselves a silly little title like Guru. As if the title Marketer, consultant or similar title is just NOT good enough. The title Social Media Guru minimizes the importance of the Digital Marketers role in this new digital driven world. Social Media Gurus…Silly Rabbits.
The title of guru not only, will not improve your credibility but it also will not give you the skills needed to succeed in this increasingly digital driven world if you are in fact one of those gurus that have not stepped their game up beyond just playing on Facebook. I’ve said before, 2013 will make or break the people in the digital marketing space and expose those that are just playing from those that are really on their game. There are increasing numbers of organizations that are looking to take their marketing strategy to the next level. These organizations are looking for people that are ON their game not those that are playing games, social media guru games.
One of the biggest things that 2012 displayed was that more skills were needed in this space beyond just playing on Facebook. The Digital Marketing space is maturing and with its maturity so is the growing expectations of more, from companies that are looking for skill sets beyond just social media. Companies need cutting edge strategies created by cutting edge marketers that are on their game because now is the time for some companies to utilize these newer marketing strategies to pull ahead of their competition. So for businesses, it’s All About The Benjamin’s and NOT about the gurus.
Additionally, as organizations realize the importance of adding digital marketing to their strategy, some are realizing the need to have more control over the content that is being released to represent their brands. This is starting a trend of organizations hiring internal digital marketing staff to handle their marketing strategies as opposed to outsourcing. Stuff just got real!
So, when companies select to hire staff to work onsite it creates a more opportunities ( and more competition) for the Digital Marketers that are on their game. In an increasingly competitive space that is separating Digital Marketer from Social Media Guru, it’s time to be on your game. That is if you’d like to out-compete the social media gurus of the world. One of the things that i’ve noticed that separates the legitimate Digital Marketers and the Gurus are the impressive digital footprint of the digital marketer, and lack there of for the guru. THIS will be the game changer in this industry in 2013.
A marketers digital footprint or online presences will be what allows them to stand head and shoulders above their guru counter parts, when competing within the digital marketing space. It is NOT an option it is a requirement if you want to excel as a Digital Marketer, it really is your resume because it displays to the world YOUR presence. If a person does NOT have a noticable if not exceptional digital footprint wouldn’t that be an indication of the effectiveness or lack there of, in regard to their digital marketing strategy? If I were in search of a Digital Marketer to create a campaign strategy for my organization, the first thing I would do is to check out their digital footprint by Googling them. It they have an impressive presence on Google this would be an indication that they could theoretically create an effective presence on Google for my organization. If they didn’t, um well I’d think, YUP Guru and keep it moving.
I’m not saying that there’s no hope for our friendly neighborhood social media guru, I’m just saying that NOW is the time for the gurus to step their game up. Get your skills in order, learn some new things, learn a bit of web design, maybe even graphic design and more to compliment what you know. Step your game up! We are at an amazing time in history, a time of change from traditional to digital and its a great time to be in this industry.
So, if you are pursuing a career as a digital marketer or if you want to move your game beyond the social media guru status the thing that you should do AFTER you step your skill level up is the following:
- Work on creating a brand for yourself, because after all you are marketing YOU. If you want to be taken serious as a digital marketer make sure your brand is tight! Be consistent with the look of all of your online presences and websites.
- Creation of a great Social Media Strategy to market YOURSELF. When marketing oneself you MUST think of yourself as the BRAND, you really want to step beyond your competition and surpass them. So creation of a successful social media strategy for yourself is ESSENTIAL. If your social media strategy is weak that’s what will be displayed for all to see. Be the Digital Marketer that YOU would want to hire.
- Not all Social Media Channels are right for your brand so take a look at the channels that are out there and utilize those that best fits your needs.
- Create a blog if you don’t have one because a blog is a GREAT way to get the word out about what you have to offer and to display that you are on your game.
- If you have a blog, focus on creating great content. Go for creating a content rich presence for yourself, after all you are branding YOU. Content is King does apply and probably always will so you should always think about providing great content.
- Great content by way of original material, curation and content sharing are terrific ways to provide great content.
- Build followers! If you have great content people will follow you. It is just that simple, there is no magic bullet. If you provide content that can be of use to people that follow you in the very busy world, people will depend on you to provide informational that is beneficial to their lives. Again, they will follow you.
We are at such a pivotal period in the growth of online technologies now and it we are in a time when companies and organization recognize how essential an online presence is and the importance of having digital marketers as a part of their marketing team. It is time for the Digital Marketers to stand above the rest and that starts with having an impressive digital footprint because YOUR Digital Footprint IS YOUR Resume in the Digital Marketing space.
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5 Platforms That Will Help With Time Management And Balancing Your Workflow in 2013
As platforms are introduced to the digital marketing space we continue to be spread thin in trying to embrace them all. At a certain point, as Digital Marketers we must really look at the amount of time we are spending on platforms. Then we should decide which ones we need to keep, make priority and decide which ones we might need to reevaluate.
It’s not as if we are discarding platforms but more like be realistic and making a conscious choice to stop spreading ourselves thin. This is exactly what can happen if we continue try to embrace every new platform that presents itself in this ever-increasing digital marketing space.
I wrote a blog post about the 13 Digital Marketing Platforms That We Must Embrace in 2013 and I am a firm believer in embracing those 13 platforms successfully and minimizing my interaction with some others. I am not going to eliminate them just reevaluate how much time I need to spend on them and utilize platforms which help to manage time more effectively.
A few really essential platforms that help me to manage my time more effectively is as follows:
This option is by far one of the BEST things that Facebook accomplished in all of 2012. Not only was it a great addition, but it also allowed people to explore a FREE option of scheduling posts. This allows me to exercise my life’s philosophy of “If It’s FREE, it’s For Me!” I love Facebook schedule posts, I utilize this often because I manage more than a dozen Facebook pages and this is a GREAT time saver!
This continues to be a GREAT option for scheduling social media posts! Buffer has continued to improve by adding analytics and additional social media channels that can be utilize through this platform. One of the things that I really love about buffer are that the toolbar and WordPress sharing plugin that allows you to add posts to your Buffer schedule at any point in your online travels. So this continues to be a GREAT platform whether you go with free posting or expand into the extended options offered if you decide to upgrade. If you go with the upgraded options you will have the ability to add unlimited posts and share to up to 12 social media platforms. Whichever option you chose Buffer should be a part of your digital marketing time management strategy.
I have been using Laterbro for quite a while and I cannot say enough about this platform. Although not as popular as some of the other scheduling tools, Laterbro is still a winner. It is FREE and allows you to schedule content to Facebook and multiple Twitter accounts. If you have not had a chance to give Laterbro a run, you should make a point to do so.
I am a HUGE fan of Triberr and I can never say enough about this amazing platform. Triberr is a platform that allows you to team up with other people in tribes to share content through Twitter and other social media channels. One of the things that I really LOVE about Triberr is that it allows you to determine how you’d like the schedule sharing the posts of your tribemates. You can share in15-minute increments or up to 24-hour increments. Although not officially a scheduling platform, Triberr allows you to schedule information of your tribemates with your content to create a very nice flow of content through your Twitter feed.
If you are using a self-hosted WordPress platform for your blog take a look at the plugin Tweet Old Post. This allows you to share some of your WordPress blog posts through your Twitter feed automatically using this plugin.
So, lets start 2013 off right with the right social media platforms, making 2013 a happier year, saving more money in 2013, and NOW effective time management ! Lets get excited about 2013!!!
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13 Things Digital Marketers Should Master In #2013
Last year I created a post about 12 Platforms That We Should Use in 2012 and my goodness what a difference a year makes. So much has happened in the world of Digital Marketing in 2012, all pretty exciting. Progress is always a wonderful thing and all of the changes, good, bad or ugly is history altering in this industry.
With so much change occuring last year, we should start 2013 with mastering some things that will alter and enhance our lives within this ever changing digital marketing space. Take a look at the 13 things you should master in 2013.
- Google+: Last Year Google+ barely made my list although I was always a fan. I must admit to being quite guilty of not utilizing this platform as much as I should. So this year I will change that! Google has really stepped up their game with this platform and that is a game changer for social media platforms. Google has integrated all of the Google services, this is HUGE. Google rolled out a great connection with Blogger, Youtube, merged Google Local and added Communities. ALL HUGE, especially when Facebook has been making so many changes that have not been beneficial to brands. One of these changes is the algorithm change almost forcing brands to utilize Facebook ads to get the exposure that they once had for free. Also the new layout that doesn’t allow branded iFrame pages to be the default landing page, again forcing brands to look at other channels for driving website traffic, namely Facebook ads. Finally Facebook doesn’t allow contact information on brand cover pages. ALL of these choices that Facebook has made make it very easy for brands to explore Google+ for their brands.
- Explore Twitter more thoroughly: As Facebook minimized avenues in which brands could expose their contact
information to their followers, Twitter provided an opportunity for brands by way of the new layout and header to maximize exposure. This is reason enough to explore Twitter more or utilize it more, if you currently do not use it as much as you should. - WordPress: If you are not utilizing wordpress and you have an old school traditional website, now is the time to consider looking at WordPress as your website/blog platform. The endless possibilities of this platform is enough to make you take a look at it and go for it. Also venture outside of the templates offered by WordPress, there are so many websites that offer templates that may better fit your brands needs. If you can’t find one suitable, consider getting a custom template created just for your brand.
- Triberr: Is a MUST have this year as it was last year, maybe more so. I cannot stress the importance of this platform enough. EVERYONE that blogs needs to be a part of Triberr for the maximum exposure to their blog. The key to Triberr and being successful is being selective about Tribes. Make Triberr a part of your digital marketing strategy for 2013 NOW!
- Refresh Your Brand: Your digital marketing strategy loses its effectiveness without consistent branding. It is very important to have a memorable and consistent brand across all social media channels. A new year is a great time to freshen your old brand or even start from scratch.
- Monetize Your Content: If you have a decent blog following you should consider monetizing your content. Look at Google ads, affiliate marketing and other monetizing options.
- Go Visual: Even if you are currently put off by Instagram don’t let that stop you from diving into other visual platforms. Check out Flickr, Pinterest or both. Don’t forget to incorporated Youtube into your Digital Marketing Mix. The new year is a great time to create a company capabilities videos displaying some of the new services that you offer or emphasize some of the other services that you currrently offer. Incorporate your new refreshed brand while you’re at it in to your Youtube channel.
- Add some traditional Marketing to your mix: All of any one way to market is never a good idea even in this very digital world. I have blogged often about integrating digital into traditional marketing, but there are a few traditional marketing concepts that work well with digital marketing concepts. Although traditional marketing has changed so much it is not totally obsolete. A fusion of traditional and digital marketing is something that should be explored. Consider doing a direct mail campaign to reintroduce your newly branded online presence and wordpress page. This will allow you to tie your marketing efforts together and create some buzz about your newly branded online presence.
- Explore new technologies: There is always a reason to explore new technologies, primarily because we are living through a huge period of change with technologies. Although these technologies aren’t exactly new, they are not totally embraced yet so learn more about Augmented Reality, Cloud Computing, 3D Printing and more.
- Explore Mobile: Just in case you haven’t noticed yet a lot of people utilize their mobile device probably more than their laptop and/or desktop. Make your site mobile ready, if you haven’t done so yet. Also consider getting a mobile website if you do not have the ability to make your site mobile ready and create a redirect from your traditional site to your mobile site. This would allow people that are on mobile devices to automatically go to your mobile site if they are on a mobile device.
- Explore QR Codes again: Mobile devices aren’t going anywhere, if anything usage will increase as the years go by.
QR Codes are a great way to create great campaigns to get people to your website. Make sure your QR code campaign is well planned and executed. A few tips, you must have a call to action. You must give a person a reason to scan and make sure your QR Code scans to a mobile device. Finally have a GREAT QR code scanning App. I am currently using Scan.Me and It is the best QR code scanner that I’ve used as of yet because you just move your mobile device close to the QR code and it scans. That’s it, no fiddling around, minimal steps. Tie your QR code campaign to your new direct mail campaign! WINNING! - Social Media Time Management: Time management is essential with social media, which can honestly be a huge time suck which could lead to burn out without effective time management. Social Media burn out is not even an option, if you are a Digital Marketer. So utilize tools that will help you manage your time more efffectively.
- Finally, Have FUN! Digital Marketing is FUN especially if you have figured out a way to effectively manage your time!
As usual, I welcome any thoughts or comments, good, bad, ugly or indifferent! Feel free to check me out on Facebook or Twitter!
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Social Media Gurus -vs- Digital Marketers: Gurus Your Days Are Numbered!
It has been a few years now of companies venturing into the social media marketing space by way of different online channels. The past few years have been a huge transition by individuals and companies from utilizing traditional marketing almost exclusively, to venturing into the online marketing space. This transition has been filled with growing pains i’m sure and although the transition has not been seamless, it is progressing.
At one time It seemed as if companies just didn’t get it, that they really didn’t understand the importance of the online presence. The transition from what was once was exlusively traditional marketing to mostly digital and now a bit of a fusion between the two is lending itself to a willingness by organizations, to embrace this new era of marketing.
Two years ago there was a huge avenue for people to present themselves as SOCIAL MEDIA GURUS to the unsuspecting organization that felt a bit of urgency to run head first into the online marketing space. Now that some have done that and are experiencing it, they are now realizing that working with a Social Media Guru is just not enough. This is primarily because it’s NOT just about social media, it is about Digital Marketing which is a much more diverse combination of Internet strategies. Exclusively utilizing JUST social media is like using only print catalogs in traditional marketing, it is just NOT enough. This is the same philosophy that has to be embraced when thinking of Digital Marketing, utilizing JUST social media is just not enough.
At one time it was ok to utilize some traditional marketing and have a website. Now a fusion of those strategies mixed with social media is making way for the Digital Marketer, which utilizes a combination of these strategies and more to create a total online /offline fusion that will move brands beyond the single dimension of just traditional marketing or just social media.
In 2013 the Digital Marketer will be more in demand that ever, because progressive companies have realized the importance of having marketers that skill sets embrace all digital strategies not just certain aspects of an online presence. Some tradition web design purist haven’t embraced social media integration and are stuck in what they have learned in a traditional sense. Additionally some social media gurus have not moved past just posting information to social media channels. However, there are some web designers and social media marketers that HAVE embraced both and those are the Digital Marketer that will be in demand in 2013 and beyond.
Ultimately the goal as a Digital Marketer is to bring value to your clients, customers and employers. This will not be done by any of the following:
- Tagging 100+ people on Facebook everyday to boost your Klout score. Your employer, client and or potential client/employer probably could give a rats you know what about your score. Most employers or clients don’t even know what Klout is or what is involved with the scoring process. Do you even know?
- Connecting to random influencers and NOT becoming an influencer yourself. Your influencer is an influencer for a reason. You will make out better trying to analyze what they are doing right and emulate them.
- Posting 1000 pictures every day of random things. Although these photos may be beautiful, if this is ALL you do, how can that contribute to the value of your potential employer, client or customer? Or put you in a position to gain customers, clients or find employment in the Digital Marketing Space?
The goal in this increasingly savvy digital marketing space, should be to provide services of value to potential and current employers and clients to increase their brand exposure, place them in a position to interact with THEIR current clients/potential clients and increase their chances of increasing revenue. This will involve YOU doing NONE of the above bulleted points but WILL involve you creating custom strategies for potential employers and clients in which to accomplish these goals. The lack of ability to do this WILL separate the Gurus from the Digital Marketers, that are really on their game.
As we move forward in the Digital Marketing space we have to be willing to continue to grow and embrace new technologies that provide added value to clients, potential clients and employers. It has been an amazing few years in this space that is continuing to grow at an amazing rate of speed. 2013 will be the the year of many exciting changes to the people that are on their Digital Marketing game and challenges to those that are not on their game. Either way, get ready because I have a feeling its going to be a helluva ride!
If you have comments, good, bad, ugly or indifferent I can be contacted by subscribing to my Facebook public updates or finding me on Twitter! I shall see you soon, I’m sure!
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This Is Your BRAIN On Social Media [Infographic]
Last weekend I was having a bit of a technical issue with my router and it’s failure to communicate effectively with my modem. This created a HUGE issue with my need to communicate by way of social media. Not that I was having a social media withdrawal issue or anything.
I really think that we have grown so accustomed to tuning in to social media because it allows us to gain access to so many things that are going on. We tune in to find out what’s going on with our friends, the latest news and everything that is going on in the world. Social Media has literally become our one stop shop news source. So it is understandable the it has become very valuable to most. With that said, it seems that social media has become a bit of an addiction for many. I’m still not admitting that I have an issue or anything ONLY saying that I understand. 
However, take a look at the infographic below which displays how many other people may be having a social media issues.
Please Include Attribution to OnlineCollegeCourses.com With This Graphic 
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Why You MUST Ignore Your Social Media Scores
Social Media as we know it is still in its infancy and has a lot more growth in the works. We are still learning and growing in the digital marketing space because the industry is still evolving. The scoring of social media creates an almost old school atmosphere due to its push to GRADE the quality of our engagement.
There are a few different social media platforms that I am involved with that actively score content based on the companies preformatted algorithm. Klout, Empire Avenue and Kred all have some form of ranking, grading, or number placed upon YOUR social media activity. I am not saying that any of these algorithms are wrong in general but should we base OUR engagement and or activity on ranking higher with any of these platforms? Shouldn’t we instead focus upon providing content that is of interest to our friends and followers?
Like I said, I am involved with these platforms but I do not base ANY of my online activity on increasing any of these scores, ANYMORE. It is very easy to allow your own competitive nature to dictate the types of content that you promote from your brand based on increasing your score. I have been down that road and it really is not a good path to be on. This is primarily because it diminishes the purpose of social media to a degree and cheapens the value of your content because the focus becomes about increasing your score instead of providing content of value.
I’ve notice that due to a change in whatever algorithm Klout is using these days, people have begun to “game” the system with mass Facebook photo tagging. I’m not speaking of an occasional tag from a friend that you interact with on a regular basis, I am speaking of mass tagging, everyday from acquaintances whom you have little or no interaction with on a regular basis. I just had to block a person that tagged me on 6 photos all within 3 minutes and the kicker is that I very seldom had any interaction with this person. It was so bad that I couldn’t find my own content or content that was shared by legitimate engaging friends and followers.
I am NOT speaking about friends or people that I engage with, I am talking about random acquaintances that tag you on multiple photos on a daily basis. I love getting tagged on genuine content that is of interest, that’s engaging or friends think that I would like. This post is not really about that, but more about the person that specifically tags with the purpose of a score boost.
How does this kind of behavior increase your social media engagement, legitimately? The score gamers, post content and tag you on the content, so the person tagged either feels that they shouldn’t be rude by not responding or they automatically “answer when called” as we innately do. So does this increase your ability to produce engaging content that has the ability to speak to people, touch their heart or is though provoking? Umm NO! However they did increase their Klout score because they tagged the same 45 people that they tag every day and the people that were tagged responded, which creates dialog on the post. So, since there were a high percentage of people to comment to the post, they get a Klout score bump. Oh yay! This, to me displays that the person creating the tags do not have a firm grasp on what social media is about and the purpose of creating content. I will even venture to say that it is a n00b move for the so called social media gurus.
As a Digital Marketer that is listed on Klout, Kred and a player of Empire Avenue I am aware of my scores on all platforms but I am not driven to perform any action to increase my numbers. It simply takes away from the genuine ability to engage and create content that I believe people are looking for when they follow me on my social media channels. Additionally, it takes away from the enjoyment of social media when it becomes a game to get the highest score at all costs.
I am not a hater of any of these platforms because they do have value in the social media arena. However, I would like to see less gamed content with the exclusive goal of chasing a score and more genuine sharing of content that is of value to readers.
The take away:
Simply, provide great content and people will respond.
What are your thoughts? Am I on point? Am I off base? Or Meh? I welcome thoughts, comments and questions, good, bad ugly or indifferent.
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