Erik Qualman's Blog, page 621

Infographic: Battle of the Internet Browsers

The following infographic was shared with our team from a freelance graphic designer, Paul. Take a look at the different internet browsers and some unique stats about how consumers are using each browser. Below are a few of the highlighted stats in the infographic.

Chrome has the largest percentage of the market share with 43%
It takes internet explorer a mere 1.4 seconds for their cold start-up time
While Chrome may win the market share competition it is the 2nd slowest browser on the cold start-up time

Do any of the statistics in the infographic surprise you? Which ones?

Courtesy of: www.centurylinkdeals.com
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10 Things Musicians Need To Do to Prepare for the Holiday Season

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By Chris Mooney

Director of Artist Promotions, TuneCore

The holidays represent a lot of things: time with family, a break from work or school, food, gifts, and some more food.  But something that may not be so obvious is that the holidays present great opportunities for musicians.

It may seem early to begin thinking about the holidays, but if you plan accordingly you will have a successful end to your year. We have the top ten things musicians need to do to prepare for a successful holiday season. If you start gearing up now, your music will be front and center when the holiday season is in full swing.

1. Create Something New for Your Fans 

The holidays are the largest music-buying season, so distributing a new album or single gets your name in the game.  If you don’t have time to release a holiday album, distributing a holiday single can help get your music out there.  Think of it this way, someone may search for “Silent Night” and find your cover of it, and then want to check out the rest of your music.

Just keep in mind, that while holiday songs are great, they are seasonal, so it might make more sense to have a focused thematic release, and not to include a Christmas carol on an otherwise non-holiday album.

If holiday music isn’t your cup of cider, consider releasing a remixed single or deluxe version of an older album as a way to offer your fans new material.

2. Do Your Research

If you’re releasing an album that covers holiday classics, research the tunes to determine if they’re in the Public Domain.  If they aren’t, you’ll be responsible for securing the necessary licenses before your music hits stores.

3. Don’t Miss iTunes Holiday Deadlines

Get your music in iTunes before their holiday shutdown!  iTunes takes a holiday break like the rest of us, so it’s important to plan accordingly.  While the iTunes store will remain open for consumers to purchase music, movies, TV shows or podcasts, new content won’t be going live during this time.  If you want your music to be available in iTunes for your worldwide fans over the holidays make sure you get it in before the deadline.

iTunes hasn’t announced their holiday schedule, but just to give you an idea of what to expect, iTunes was closed last year for the week of Thanksgiving and again from December 22ndthrough January 1st.

4. To Give Is Better Than to Receive (to some degree)

‘Tis the season of giving! Promote your music by giving away a free track on Amazon MP3 during the holidays.  Check with your digital music distributor for help in setting this up. (Note: iTunes does not permit free tracks.)  If you’re not sold on releasing a free track (pun absolutely intended), think about setting up sale pricing during the holidays.

5. Expand Your Reach

For many people, the holiday season means more free time to discover and purchase new music.  Make sure your current releases are live in as many services and territories as possible, so they can be discovered and bought all around the world. Similarly, if you have older releases that have previously only been available for download, consider adding streaming services to help generate additional revenue for past titles.

6. Build a Holiday Playlist

Make it easy for friends, family and fans to hear your music on any digital device by building and sharing holiday playlists in Spotify, Rdio and other streaming partners. Mix your own music with holiday tunes from other artists to change things up and reach a variety of music fans.  If you have time, create a separate playlist for each holiday you celebrate.  More playlists means more opportunities for your music to be heard.

7. Think Outside the Box

Consider submitting your release to non-traditional sites and outlets for reviews and features during the holiday season. Mommy-blogs, electronics sites, local online magazines, and many other partners are looking for material for their seasonal gift guides. Just remember, lead-time is important, since many sites start planning their holiday gift recommendations months in advance.

8. Be the Life (and the Music) of the Party

Holidays are a time of celebrating. Celebrating = parties. Ask around about holiday parties happening in your area, and offer to be the musical guest.  You never know which party guests will go on to tell their own social circles about your acoustic set.  Bonus: holiday parties usually have great snacks.

Can’t find any parties that could use a live performance?  Consider throwing a holiday party yourself and turn it into a small concert.  Invite other musicians to play a few songs each so they encourage their fans to come as well.

9. Go Local

There may be many more performance opportunities right under your nose.  Look into local fairs and other town events to see if there are open slots for musicians.  Or use your music to bring joy to others by volunteering some time at an elderly care facility or hospital. Music can be the best medicine.

10.  Plan Ahead: The New Year Is Coming

Finally, if you’ve got some free time in between the family board games and (spiked) hot cocoa refills, do a little planning for a successful 2014.  Expand your touring plans to cover new ground and reach new fans.  Let your trend reports help in your planning by seeing which cities have had high sales of your music, and think about booking gigs at venues in those areas.

The holiday season is packed with new movies and commercials, most of which need background music. Wouldn’t it be cool if your songs were selected for these revenue-driving opportunities?  Ask your publishing administrator if they’ll work with you to license your music.

Looking to grow your team?  Research managers, meet with PR and marketing companies, hold auditions to fill that empty mandolin player spot in your band…you get the point.  Use downtime to set up 2014.

The holidays may still seem far away, but with all of the opportunities for musicians, it’s important to start planning now.  Here’s to a 2013 holiday season packed with music from independent artists.

 

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Snapchat Executives Criticized for Turning Down $3 Billion Offer from Facebook

Snapchat Logo

If you aren’t familiar with the latest “talk of the town” mobile messaging platform of Snapchat, then let me fill you in on all the deets.

Snapchat, a photo messaging application developed by a group of Stanford students is ruffling lots of feathers in Silicon Valley by turning down a reported all-cash $3 Billion offer from Facebook last week, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Snapchat provides users with the option of sending photos and videos with text and drawings to a select group of recipients. Users select the time limit for how long the recipients can view the content (Snaps range from 1-10 seconds) after which the Snaps self-destruct from the user, the recipient, and the Snapchat server. The app has become most popular for users between the ages of 13-23 and is available on both Android and iOS versions.

Snap Example

The main controversy surrounding the latest news from the tech mogul is—should  23-year-old Snapchat co-founder/CEO Evan Spiegal and his team taken the money and ran? It wasn’t too long ago that fellow Standford students Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger did take Facebook’s offer of $1Billion for their creation of Instagram.  Adding to the argument pot is the fact that Snapchat has not earned any revenue since it launched in September 2011.

Today, the Snapchat community encompasses more than 100 million users and 350 million snaps sent daily. It should be no surprise to find that a majority of the Facebook community is branching over to Snapchat because of the increased popularity and perceived privacy of the app.

In my personal observation and interviews with Snapchatters they all indicate the same thing:

“Facebook is getting old. We want our conversations to remain private and hidden from our parents and networks. Snapchat allows that freedom without potential FBI questions of “Why am I friends with so-and-so on Facebook? Who are the rest of these people tagged in that photo, etc.”  

Nosy Mom

Despite the controversy and criticism surrounding Snapchat’s recent decision to turn down Facebook’s offer, I believe they did the right thing. Facebook has the capital and the resources to potentially “bully” smaller tech companies to bend over and lay down. However, if Snapchat’s Executive Team play their cards right, there is no doubt with the recent worldwide explosion of Snapchat and social media usage, it will surpass the $3-4 Billion net worth. The reason I believe this is because someone on Spiegal’s Executive team has counseled him on the financial potential of the company and why waiting for the right opportunity to sell is important. It’s not everyday a 23-year-old is offered $3 billion cash, unless Facebook believed that through their vision they could triple that amount. According to the WSJ article, Spiegal said he will not consider any acquisition offers until early next year. I hope he is right, if not maybe Google may be interested in making an offer.

YOUR OPINION MATTERS!

Do you think the Snapchat team made the right choice in turning down the offer?
What do you propose their financial forecasts predict?
What would you have done in their situation?

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Social Media Moves Full Speed Ahead With Employee Auto Insurance

Insuring company drivers can be a pricey business expense. Finding the best insurance at the best rates can seem like a daunting task for any businesses owner.

However, many small businesses are turning to social media to help them locate the best insurance to cover their company drivers.

Insurance Considerations

Insurance rates vary greatly depending on how your company operates.

For example, your rates will be affected by who owns the cars that employees are driving. If you provide company cars, you’ll likely receive a different rate than if your employees used their own vehicles for business use.

Also, the place where vehicles are parked at the end of the day can make a difference in your rates.

If your employees take the company vehicles home, you may pay a different rate compared to businesses where company drivers leave their vehicles at the office at the end of their shift.

The type of driving your employees do will also impact your insurance rates.

A driver who delivers pizza will receive a much different rate compared to a driver who transports passengers.

The quality of your drivers can also impact your rates.

If you hire mature drivers with clean driving records, you’ll likely receive a much lower rate than if you hire drivers with a lengthy history of traffic violations or accidents.

Therefore, it’s important to get direct quotes from companies based on your specific circumstances. Social media can be a great place to get your research started, however.

Connect on LinkedIn

Connect with people who own and operate businesses that are similar to your business on LinkedIn. Join or create groups for people with similar businesses as well. Inquire about how other businesses operate in terms of company drivers and learn more about their insurance recommendations.

Reach Out on Twitter

Twitter can help you research your insurance options in several ways. Follow insurance companies or independent insurance agents to see what they’re recommending for small business. Be proactive by sending tweets that inquire about insurance rates and options as well.

Join the Conversation on Facebook

Most major insurance companies have Facebook pages where they promote conversations about car insurance. AIS insurance, for example, welcomes questions and feedback from fans. Be willing to jump in and join the conversation to learn more.

Read Blogs

Check out what bloggers are saying about car insurance options for small business.

Many small business blogs can provide a wealth of information about insurance options. Read reviews and learn more about how other small business owners are saving money.

Also, check out blog posts from various insurance companies. Many of them offer helpful tips and suggestions for small business.

Ask Questions in Forums

Forums can be one of the best ways to learn about the pros and cons of various insurance options. Post questions and read what other business owners are saying about how they’re insuring company drivers.

It’s likely that you’ll gain a wealth of information as other business owners are likely to post helpful suggestions based on their mistakes and successes with various insurance companies.

Shop around for insurance companies to cover your company drivers. It’s important to find just the right amount of coverage for your business.

Photo credit: drivingstrategies.com

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Be More Social to Find Work

A big part of finding a job is who you know. But that’s not all of it.

Another key factor is where you go. And that means hitting social media. You need to be social to find a job – you’ve got to be involved in social media. But where?

Do you need to hang around Facebook all day? Pin boards about finding a job?

Here’s a look at the hot social media sites for job searchers.

LinkedIn

We all know LinkedIn is a smart place to be when looking for a job. It’s even smart to hang out there a bit before you’re looking for a job. You can form great connections with anyone, not just those in your field and you never know who knows someone who could be helpful to you.

Follow these tips while putting your profile together:

• Make sure you have a good profile picture. People are more apt to look at a profile with a picture, and make sure it is at least semi-professional. No bathing suits or martini pictures here.

• Fill out the profile to the fullest you can. The more information the better, and detail is good.

• Let your personality shine. Don’t be too stoic or inhibited, though maintain professionalism. Make your profile representative of you.

Facebook

Because people usually have lots of Facebook friends, it’s a great place to network.

As long as you are okay with the public knowing you are job seeking, post it on Facebook. One of your friends may have a strong connection to the field you are seeking, and your friends can share your status so their friends will see it. It’s an excellent network tool.

However, make sure you clean up your page a little before hitting the post button.

Whether it’s enhancing the privacy settings or deleting some previous posts, make sure if a potential employer takes a look, you’ll be all right.

Twitter

Twitter is another valuable venue for job seeking.

The first thing you may want to do is hyperlink your résumé and then tweet it. Mention your field and/or level, like “technology sales” or “locating bachelor degree jobs” in the tweet and off you go. You may end up getting it in front of just the right people.

Involve yourself in chats and conversations related to your field.

Follow some big and little names in the field, companies you’re interested in and any other job seeking contacts, like career experts or résumé writers. Don’t forget to use hashtags; it will help narrow down and categorize what you’re looking for.

It can be a tough market out there so you want access to the best tools possible. Social media is one of them.

Stay active on these sites and make connections. Get the word out that you are job searching and in what field.

Be smart on social media and it may be just the thing for helping you land the right job.

Photo credit: expatica.com

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Tips for Social Media Marketing in Foreign Languages

Social media marketing is considered as an important strategy for a number of global marketing communication strategies for different businesses. The online marketers simply understand the importance and benefits of social media know the ways to leverage on these for their business marketing and promotion. But most of the English speaking marketers are now seen missing the huge amounts of potentials of foreign language social media marketing. There are so many reasons, which can work from the back; however, the most common one is the lack of knowledge regarding the right social networks to target abroad and ways to chalk out the right social media marketing strategy for different foreign language market places.  There is no two thought about the fact that social media is one of the best ways to build a brand, create the right kind of awareness and engage your potential clients and current customers.  Also, if you are able to tap this market and embark with effective social media marketing strategies in foreign language, you are bound to go in the search engine rankings. Before embarking with your social media marketing strategy in foreign languages, consider few important tips and tricks as discussed below:

Keep it local and personal

The best basic tip to remember while embarking with your social media marketing strategy is to keep things as per the local market. You are therefore supposed to create Facebook pages and Twitter Feeds for each and every targeted market. If you plan to mix two different languages in one social media profile of your brand, you would simply make your potential market confused and disappointed, such frustrated people would never become your clients at the long or short run. But at the same time simply avoid translating the whole English stuff into the targeted market language. Take your time to research on different topics, which are trending in each and every target nation in order to produce relevant and timely updates. Lastly, to be a safer side, you can even think of employing a native speaking translator or competent social media manager from the same country to implement your social media marketing strategies in the chosen country.

Understand the linguistic difference

Do you check the meaning of city block in the Latin American Spanish language, it is called as cuadra but the very same thing is known as pigsty or stable in Spain. You are therefore supposed to use different accounts for each nation rather than opening the same as per languages. By treading this path correct the message you want to convey to the target audience will never be lost in things like translation. Avoid assuming that just one French feed would cover for both the Quebec and France. At the same time know the way your target audience of any country spells different words than the ones you know in English language. By understanding the way the number of cultures is seen using social media and their networking sites can help you in getting the keys to success.

Knowing your target audience

You will find people of different cultures use social media in their own different methods. As per the study conducted on this issue at a Californian institute called Palo Alto Research Center the users from France and Germany while using Twitter are seen using hastags a lot while sharing any info but if you check the Koreans or the Malay users, they are often seen holding up the conversations. Also as per the Translation site called Bab.La, the users from Portugal and Russia often love to like the Facebook pages similar to the users from Sweden. So before you target your market, make sure you understand them properly then only your social media marketing strategy would prove out to be effective.

Knowing your networks

The popular social media platforms include Facebook, Twitter, Google Plus and LinkedIn. But make sure you know the fact that these sites may not be very much popular in your targeted nation. For example, if you talk about Japan the social network site like Mixi is very much popular here while similarly in South Korea you have the site Cyworld dominates and lastly in China the site called Renren and Qzone are extremely popular than the above four named social sites. In northern European countries, the business users are seen active over a site called Xing rather than LinkedIn. So, before you embark with your social media marketing strategy it is very much important to know the right network popular if the chosen market place.

Final word

You may see the social media marketers assuming English as the only language to communicate for their business promotion. However, when you are dealing with global market where English isn’t popular then you are supposed to understand these barriers and differences so to embark with the right set of marketing strategies on social media for your brand. The above tips can help you in chalking out the things right.

Kelly Marsh is a freelance journalist who has been writing about mobile technology, customer relationship management and women’s health for more than a decade. These days she is busy to contributes on amplify

 

 

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Being Authentic and Geeking Out on Social Media

Social media has revolutionized how we connect, share, and gather information. Pew Research Center recently noted that 72% of online adults are on some sort of social media. For a geek like me however, it has transformed how I partake in the greater geek community. We post videos, retweet the latest rumors, and record podcasts on everything from movie reviews to computer hardware breakdowns. I know back in the day, my nerdy forefathers (and mothers) had a harder time even learning about new stuff much less sharing their passions with other people. I appreciate their sacrifice in the form of ridicule and ostracizing which paved the way for nerds like me to be able to see Thor on the big screen. Also, for the record, I’ve blogged on this before but I think everyone “geeks out” about something, so I hold no ill will towards sports nerds or car geeks or whatever else anyone is into. Being passionate about a hobby is awesome and everyone needs to feel that way about something where you can’t help but talk about it endlessly.
More on this, I am personally a fan of a lot of different, nerdy things but whenever I can connect with someone else about those or just get some authentic attention from my favorite brands, whatever they may be, it just multiplies the geek out moment. If I’m sharing thoughts about your latest product and you start a conversation, I’m far more likely to speak positively about my experience to my friends. Business is relationships so if I can feel like I have a relationship with the brands I care about, it makes it so much more impactful and creates a lot more loyalty from me based on that experience. Also, I trust the word of people I know more than the advertising I hear, so being authentic, positive, and approachable on social media will create a word of mouth about your brand that is invaluable to your business. Just in interacting with brands on Facebook, it was recently reported that 77% of companies reported getting customers through this social media stalwart, and 80% of customers preferring to interact with brands there as well. There is definitely more room for growth on Twitter, Instagram, and Vine too.
So, I think what my personal strategy overall has been when operating on all the various channels of social media is to just be my real self. This person is a professional, a nerd, and a human being who has many interests. I hate it when I see people I know who are super private or have separate accounts for their work life apart from their “real” self when they clock out. I feel like being open, honest, authentic, and genuine on the digital landscape makes far more sense than trying to hide parts of yourself when there seems to be no reason to be. You’re just duplicating your efforts and making it harder to connect with others who want to genuinely engage with you. All it takes is just having some quick critical thought when posting so that it is something that is relevant and appropriate for your audience. I don’t find it hard at all to showcase a holistic picture of myself on social media that isn’t scandalous or muted in some way.
My experience so far with this has been somewhat limited but I feel like I’m connecting with people who share my interests and appreciate what I put out into the world. I can get the latest scoop on everything geeky, read thought provoking professional articles, and just see all the cool things my friends are up to. I have definitely finally found my voice in the digital forum, which I hope is one people respond to and has a positive impact. I’m a bit biased but I think it will. So fly your geek flag high, take down those walls, and get out there being your authentically awesome self!
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Laying Down the Law with Social Media

Whether you yourself are looking to get into law school or you are the parent of a student looking at law schools, social media can be your best friend.

What? You may ask – you thought you should stay away from social media during any kind of application process – who wants admissions seeing all those pictures of you out with your friends?

But it’s not what the admissions people can learn from your social media page (that’s another whole story); it’s what you can learn from the law school’s social media.

Narrowing Down the Choices

Take a look at Facebook pages. Not only can you check out the law school themselves on Facebook, but you can also narrow that down even more.

Many schools have pages devoted to admissions, including answers to frequently asked questions. You can find good timelines and stay abreast of due dates during the admissions process.

Dig a little further and you can probably find some pages devoted and started by first year students, another great place to find answers to questions, as well as life on campus beyond law school. Here’s where someone fresh on the other side can be of help, even if you don’t know them.

Careful With Your Actions

Be careful on Facebook, though, about liking and following certain pages, because these can always link back to your own.

For instance, don’t scout out certain professors and send them friend requests. That may not look so good at application time.

Blogs and School Pages

Blog sites and school pages are another great form of social media during the application process.

You may find not only great information about the school and what you’ll be doing (classes, events, scholarship opportunities) but also pages devoted to admissions.

The University of Georgia’s Law School has a page on its site devoted to prospective students. Here you can register and find relevant information as well as dates and deadlines. You may find forums with discussions of the very things you’ve been wondering about.

Link Up With Information

LinkedIn is a great place to take a look before an interview.

Remember, admissions people are learning about you – take a few minutes to research them as well. Who knows, you may find you’re from the same home town or share a favorite hobby with your interviewer. You never know when a connection may make a big difference. Don’t contact anyone via LinkedIn, just as with Facebook, you don’t want to look like you are crossing any boundaries.

Tweets Can Be Beneficial

Twitter is another good venue to spend some time watching.

If you are interested in a particular school, follow their Twitter feed. Not only is it fun to receive updates, but you can learn a lot.

Even between acceptance and the start of school, you can learn about certain professors, clubs and organizations, study groups and more. It will help you feel a part of the school before school starts, and if you are still in the decision making process, Twitter feeds could help you decide what’s right for you.

General sites can also be a big help, like Yahoo Education, offering tips on application processes, where to get started and salary information.

Law school is a big decision. You want to find the one best for you and while admissions are narrowing down their choices, you should be doing the same.

Just as you can learn great insider information to help on your application and interviews, you can also learn what the right place is for you through social media.

Photo credit: startribune.com

 

 

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Consumer Activism this Holiday: Online Shopping for Social Good

We live in a society where there is a growing population of socially conscious adults. Nearly six-in-ten (57%) Millennials say that they have volunteered in the past 12 months, which is no higher than the proportion of Gen Xers (54%) who said they had done this. Consumer activism is another way that this population is engaging in social good. Approximately one in three millennials report buying products because they agree with the social or political values of a company. Also, there is a rise in online shopping. In 2012, retail e-Commerce spending in the U.S. surged 15% to reach $186 billion, its second consecutive year of growth in the mid-teens. Combine this consumer activism with the substantial increase in online shopping habits and you get a 2013 holiday season that will be big for social good brands with a strong online presence.

That all being said, I wanted to highlight some of the websites out there that consumers can use to buy presents with a purpose this holiday season. In addition, if you’re brand is looking to build in a social good campaign for the holiday season, here are some great examples to inspire some new ideas.

Supporting Social Good

TOMs Marketplace: This is a virtual showroom of products sold by small businesses pushing for social change.  TOMs is giving other social entrepreneurs a platform on their site to help them succeed. The Marketplace is a new destination for making a difference.

Shop With Meaning: They are an online community resource that connects consumers with companies like TOMS, Warby Parker and the growing number of socially responsible companies that support worthy social causes. Their focus is on highlighting those companies across the globe that provide consumers with a tangible opportunity to support worthy causes through everyday purchases.

Homemade Goods

Etsy: As an Etsy Shop owner, I personally want to help other crafters that have shops on Etsy. If you are looking for custom or unique gifts, Etsy is a great place to shop. Plus, you can support small business owners, entrepreneurs and crafters when you buy on Etsy.

Ten Thousand Villages: This is an exceptional source for unique handmade gifts, jewelry, home decor, art and sculpture, textiles, serveware and personal accessories representing the diverse cultures of artisans in Asia, Africa, Latin America and the Middle East. One of the world’s largest fair trade organizations and a founding member of the World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO), the company strives to improve the livelihood of tens of thousands of disadvantaged artisans in 38 countries.

Supporting Innovators & Inventors

Kickstarter: Kickstarter is a great site to check out the latest inventions, art, media and publications. Many of these projects have a social good element whether it be a documentary about a social issue, a technology designed to help the disabled, or an art project to beautify a city.

Indiegogo: This site is very much like Kickstarter in that it connects ideas with a fan-base/donors. However,I ndiegogo has much looser guidelines regarding what projects can be listed on the site. Indiegogo also offers more choices when it comes to raising funds by offering Fixed Funding and Flexible Funding campaigns. More on the difference between the two sites can be found in this helpful post on Forbes.com.

 

This is only a highlight reel of websites for socially conscious consumers this holiday season, so what would you add? What are some other sites or social networks for socially good shoppers to bookmark as they prep for the holiday season?

 

Photo Credit: net_efekt via Compfight cc

 

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Killer Social Media Marketing Strategies to Leverage Your Online Presence

Businesses and Entrepreneurs have been using diverse marketing strategies to leverage their online presence. The best among the various marketing tools is Social Media marketing. Online marketing provides entrepreneurs with a strong platform to communicate effectively with the consumers. Facebook, Twitter, Digg and many other social media websites have been used to stay connected with the customers on a personal level. However, social media marketing and the businesses that utilize it have become more sophisticated. Unlike previous times when social media marketing was used only by large enterprises, more and more small businesses now have started taking interest in understanding what it takes to leverage online presence.

However, most of them fail in their effort to realize what the next step should be. Therefore, this article is for all those who understand that there is something more than merely relying on social media marketing. There are five strategies which will help you build a strong online presence. However, prior to taking a step forward, it is important that entrepreneurs understand the importance of social media marketing and experience engaging customers.

1. Increasing Multimedia Usage



It is wisely said that, “A picture can speak a thousand words”. It is important that you have the pictures and videos of your products and services for the consumers to have the look and feel of your product. Most consumers have started using the web to search for product images to see what they will be receiving as an end product on their doorsteps. Well, there a good news for all the entrepreneurs: You can now easily create and publish videos and pictures and even more easy to upload it on social media.

There are many other things that you can do in addition to taking images and videos. You can highlight the corporate events that you have participated in. One more interesting thing that you can do is join a community where your consumers interact with each other about various products and services. This will not only give you an opportunity to interact with your consumers, but also allow you to create an impact in the minds of the customers.

Videos also serve the purpose usefully. They easily and simply explain complex concepts to the customers creating an effective impact in the minds of the end users. And the great thing is that you are not required to dig holes into your pockets. This will help in building a strong consumer community, further increasing your online presence.

2. Leveraging Social Reach



Online platforms will help in improving your presence. Once you have built a strong presence, it is necessary that you manage the social reach well. You will be required to complete your profile with updated information. This will also help you in finding new customers.

Remember that social reach is extremely crucial because it allows your to have a besieged customer base and prospects all over the social media networks. That means, you have the social media websites to market your brand and build a strong customer relationship. Also be careful, because if you don’t have enough reach, you won’t have traction too.

Your websites should carry social media buttons, so that people are encouraged to share, implant, tweet, and email to help your website gain social traction. Although your brand building will require people following you or liking your posts and sharing them on their wall, it is a two way process. Being socially active, liking others content, sharing posts and following others will further help in leveraging your brand image and give your brand more visibility on social media platforms.

Growing your social channels can be highly beneficial and will ensure that you have a genuine social identity for people to trust your brand.

3. Quality Content is the Path to Increase Fan Engagement

If you are expecting your visitors to take some action towards your content, you must ensure that you post quality content on the social media. Quality content will induce your audience to take some actions. It can often be difficult to engage customers and their friends; that is why you will need content, which is written in a way to provide insights.

Multimedia will help you in achieving your goal. Visitors are more likely to follow, share and like videos and pictures, further spreading it to their friends. It is necessary that you create at least one quality content per day on your social media sites. This is a social media marketing strategy to increase your brand visibility and invite potential customers to visit you.

Offline advertising also helps in some way or the other, whether it is radio, print, or cable. Social media marketing strategies help entrepreneurs in extending their offline sales pitch. The amalgamation of online and offline advertising also helps in the conversion process, as well as build a strong community.

4. Increasing Lead Generation

You might have definitely heard of generating lead on traditional platforms. But now, you can also generate leads on social media. The key to using social media for lead generation is a careful thought process. You need to smarty position yourself as a resource provider. This will create a sense of dependency in the minds of the customers thus keeping you on the top of their minds.

So how exactly will you do that? Well, you need to be updated with the latest trends that the customers are looking for. Keep yourself updated with the needs and requirements of the customers so that you can provide them with something that they have been looking for.

You should also be able to serve quality content to the potential customers. Understand that the focus is on building strong relationship with the customer. Be well-versed with what your competitors are doing. This will again help you in knowing what your customers want and what is it that no-body else is giving them.

5. Contests and Discounts

It is necessary to be intelligent when dealing with social media marketing. Only building a strong community won’t help. You will have to add something extra to it, in order to make it more effective and reliable. Discounts, sweepstakes, contests are something that keep your customer engages and build a sense of excitement while browsing your profile. These don’t only build a buzz organically but if contestants need to, for example, publish an article that gets the most comments in order to win, the contest itself becomes viral.

Everyone likes being rewarding and this is exactly what you need to do to leverage your online presence. Give your customers discounts and reward them so that they feel special and closely connected to you.

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