Monthly Archives: January 2011
Weekly social media news and views
What’s new in the world of social media this week?
This week I have been mostly reading Twitter tips and online engagement advice.
In Tweet Success: How to Dominate Twitter, we see evidence that sometimes having a conversation with your followers can mean more than the actual number of followers you have (according to Klout, a company that measures Internet influence).
Corbett Barr tells us if we want to build a thriving online audience we have to have vision.
And who are your followers and how do you reach them? Jacob Morgan explains that there are 3 types of communities that we need to consider when establishing our social media strategy and each type serves a different purpose.
How to set up Facebook notifications
Do you find yourself having to constantly check your Facebook business page to see if anyone has left a comment or posted to your wall? It seems like a bit of an oversight on the part of Facebook that, unlike a personal page, you receive no notifications of comments from fans.
But there is a solution to this oversight with a simple (and free) app called Hyper Alerts.
Just register with your contact information and the URL to your Facebook page, and choose the frequency of notifications, and hey presto - no more constantly checking your page for responses.
Taking social media from talk to action
Interesting results from the Harvard Business Review study The New Conversation: Taking Social Media from Talk to Action.
The survey was conducted among HBR magazine and newsletter subscribers during July 2010. The participating organizations were mainly based in the US and in Asia.
The following is a summary of the main findings
- The average amount of time spent on social networking sites increased 82 percent last year and two-thirds of the companies in the survey predicted their use of social media would grow significantly over the next few years.
- In many companies, social media will move from a “one-off initiative” to an important, integrated tool in marketing and communications strategies.
- 75% of the companies in the survey said they did not know where their most valuable customers were talking about them.
- Nearly one-third do not measure effectiveness of social media.
- Less than one-quarter are using social media analytic tools.
- Only 7% of participating companies are able to integrate social media into their marketing activities.
So we can clearly see that use of social media within organizations will require a shift in thinking about how to measure the effectiveness of their social media strategy.
Those companies who are most effective in social media now are using multiple channels, creating metrics to measure effectiveness and using new tools to understand how to enter into a new conversation with their customers.
Win A Customised Facebook Landing Tab
Spiderworking is running a fab competition giving away a Facebook landing tab for your Facebook page.
According to Amanda Webb, “setting up a customised landing tab for your Facebook page could increase your conversion rate (the number of people who visit your page who click the ‘Like’ button) by 100%” (ref. brandglue study)
Click this link to find out how you can enter this great competition and check out this video for more details on Facebook landing pages.
Facebook insights now in real time
Hot off the press!
If you run a Facebook page for your organization, you will have been able to monitor your post insights directly from your page over the past few months. However, you will have had to wait a day or more for those insights to show up.
Now from today, things have changed and you can view the statistics in real time, giving you instant access to more accurate and accessible performance measurements.
Weekly non-profit news and views
What’s new in the world of non-profits and social media this week?
Ever have to give a presentation on the workings of Twitter? Check out Colleen Young’s tips on what worked for her in her latest Twitter workshop.
Applications are now open for Social Entrepreneurs Ireland 2011 Social Impact Programme. Click here to find out how to apply.
Despite the recession, most companies are staying involved in charitable work, writes Ronan McGreevy in the Irish Times this week.
And if you are wondering how to motivate others to become involved in supporting your cause, then check out Katya’s post Things that put people in the mood for… doing good.
How to add a newsletter tab to your Facebook page
March 18 2011 – Important update to this post!
The Static FBML application that helped you create custom Facebook landing pages is being phased out. You will be unable to create new FBML applications. Check out this post from Spiderworking for further details of this change.
Do you routinely send out a newsletter to your subscribers? Do you have a Facebook Fan Page? Would you like to incorporate your newsletter with your FB page?
Follow my step-by-step guide to adding a newsletter tab to your FB fan page
Step One
1. Go to the Static FBML application (facebook markup language or FBML for short)
2. Click “Add to my Page”
Step Two
1. Click on “Edit Page“ on your own FB fanpage
2. Select manage applications
3. Click on FBML – ensure the tab setting is added
4. Under FBML click on “Go to Application”
Step Three
1. Add the html code that you would normally use on your website to the FBML box
2. Change the title to Newsletter
3. Save
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Tip: You can use the static FBML widget as many times as you want to customise your Facebook fan page. Once you’ve added it to your page, simply go to “edit page”, then under Applications click “edit” under Static FBML. This will give you the options you need to paste in your code.
How to SEO your headlines
Do you remember in an earlier post when I explained the importance of headlines for grabbing attention?
I wrote that users will decide to stay or leave your website or blog in 8 seconds or less – so it makes sense to draw in readers with a great headline.
Today let’s look at headlines again, but this time from an SEO perspective.
The title of your blog post is one of the first things Google sees when indexing your site. And let me add another SEO tip here - Google will take the first words of that title as your most important. So it’s worth your while thinking carefully before you write that headline.
Use my earlier tips on how to maximise your blog’s SEO with keyword questions to find the most sought-after keywords for your subject, then include those words in your title.
Simple when you know how!
7 ways to encourage more comments on your blog
Jan 31
Posted by Editor
Encouraging comments mean encouraging engagement and engagement is the engine that drives your social media vehicle. You want your community to feel actively involved in the work of your organisation. You want to give them a voice and a feeling that their voice is worth hearing. Social media is all about two-way communication with your audience – you listen as well as talk, and comments are a way to make this happen.
Encouraging comments can drive the conversation along and it will make your site look more lively, interesting and the place to be. As Ivan Walsh put it in The Right Way To Market With Blog Comments
You get the picture? So now we know the why, let’s look at the how-to.
7 ways to encourage more comments on your blog
1. Write great content
This goes without saying, but I shall say it anyway for the first step in getting readers to comment on your blog is to give them something worth commenting on.
2. Prompt
Often readers need a little prompting to start commenting, so finish each blog post with a question to help things along. Something as simple as “What do you think” or “Would you agree” should do the trick.
3. Highlight
Make sure your question stands out, so highlight it by italicising and/or putting it in bold at the end of your post.
4. Be Topical
Although I usually caution care when it comes to controversial posts, (it’s a delicate balancing act, and if you get it wrong you can damage your brand), there is always something topical which you can invite opinion on. Write in a way that gets people to reflect on a topic and expands their knowledge in some way. Then ask them for their comments.
5. Acknowledge
If someone has taken the time to leave a comment, please acknowledge their effort. I have seen many blogs where the owner ignores the comments. Apart from being the courteous thing to do, you miss out on the opportunity to extend the conversation and engage with your audience. So always, always answer any questions you receive, clarify any points that have been raised in the comments and thank your readers for taking the time to comment.
6. Make it easy to comment
There is nothing more off-putting and more likely to lose you comments, as requiring your reader to register on your site before they can leave a comment. Make it as straightforward, quick and easy for people to comment.
7. Comment on other blogs
Make sure you always take the time to leave comments on other relevant blogs and add value to the conversation. Chances are the blog owner will be encouraged to visit your blog and will in turn join the conversation there.
Ok over to you now. Can you add an 8th way to encourage blog comments? You know what to do – leave a comment below
This post is also available as a powerpoint presentation – click here to view
Posted in Blogging, Social Media Marketing
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Tags: blogging, comments, social media marketing