Follower Fail: Like Us ... Or Else

In between creating marketing strategies for clients, launching new projects, and spending time with the hubs and kidlets, I've developed a bit of a secret stress-relief habit that I'm really not too proud of and certainly didn't ever want to share with my friends and clients.

But, for the sake of my clients and helping them learn from bad social media marketing examples, I'm coming clean. Here it goes ...

I am a fan of those certain "real" housewives. Doesn't even matter which town - the OC, Beverly Hills, New Jersey, the ATL, or even the completely dull DC cast, I turn off my brain and happily watch their over-funded, often near-hysterical antics.

In fact, every now and then during the work day, I would even go to a certain gossip website that dished the dirt on the "characters" of the Beverly Hills cast. I liked to quickly peek in there, like when you're on line in the grocery store and you browse the tabloid headlines when you think no one is looking. (Come on, you do, don't you?)

And this is where I encountered that really poor example of social media marketing I mentioned.

After perusing the home page list of salacious headlines, I selected one, clicked, and received the following page:

As you can see, after just a few lines, a little purple ad box with no "close" button covered the copy. Not paying much attention and not even reading the ad box, I back buttoned it to the home page headlines, selected another, clicked, only to have the same thing happen again. Looking at the box more closely, I realized it said this:
Basically, to read the article, the website was forcing me to "like" them on Facebook. Where the whole world would see that not only do I like those real housewives, I tend to frequent a gossip website that discusses their important issues - like getting a nose job before season 7 begins. The humiliation - right?

Then, I began thinking about it like a marketer. First, this little ad was literally forcing me to do something I didn't want to do, giving me a bad feeling about a brand I had been fond of; effectively giving me an instant negative opinion of that brand.

Then I thought, what if you switched the venue from an online site to a brick and mortar store? Say you like specific type of underwear from Kmart, or you like bargains at TJ Maxx, but don't want people to know. One day you go to the store and before you can enter, an associate bars the way and makes you yell at the top of your lungs, "I like Kmart's 100% Cotton Beige Granny Panties and am about to purchase some right now!"

Which brings me to my point - we must always remember that communicating with our target audiences online is as personal an experience as communicating with them in real life, because even though they can't be seen through the monitor, they are still real people.

To be successful in online marketing, the same rules for professionalism, courtesy, and dare I say it, discretion and privacy, must apply when we communicate with customers and potential customers online.

Have you ever had an experience online like this? How did you feel? React?

Five for Friday: Facebook Edition

It's been a while since our last Five for Friday, so we're bringing it back with a special Facebook edition. Here are four informative run-downs of the recent Facebook changes and how they will impact your small business Facebook page. And of course, one fun link. Happy Friday!



"Like" Is Not Enough"
Getting many followers to "like" your page is no longer enough. If you already have a Facebook business page, over the past couple weeks you've probably noticed that announcement telling you that as of October 31, key tab features as Blog, Discussion, and Review are going away. Users can also now click a little tab located to the right of each post, and mark it as a "top story", "hide it", report it as spam, or worst of all, "hide all." Users can now sort their Facebook friends and likes into groups, creating further need for engaging content to win their eyeballs. This means that what was a best practice just a few weeks ago - providing content that users actually want to communicate with - has now become the only way to remain relevant and have your marketing messages touch your consumers. This Mashable article, "What Facebook's Changes Mean for Marketers" is a great overview to what your business page will need to do to move ahead sucessfully on the "new" Facebook.

Contextual Sharing Is Key
Contextual sharing is the buzz phrase of the day, but go ahead try and find a (not so) concise definition of it. Simply put, in the terms of this Facebook discussion, it means that when a Facebook user is using a specific app, such as the digital music service Spotify, they can click a setting prompt once and then each time they listen to Spotify, it shares the title of each song they listen to in the new Ticker in real time. To find out what this can mean for your Facebook page and your followers, here are two great articles, "How Facebook's Features Will Affect Digital Marketers" and "Facebook Changes Again: Everything You Need to Know".

Timeline Will Change the Face of Facebook
Timeline is the new graphic interface/content layout that all Facebook profile pages will soon share. Upgrades include a great new "cover" image in addition to your little profile head shot, a two column content layout, and an actual timeline navigation tool that lets people see a chronological chart of all your Facebook posting.

I downloaded the beta version for my personal profile and think it holds a lot of potential for small businesses.


The whole point of Facebook marketing is to build relationships with your Facebook followers, and the new Timeline offers a wide range of opportunities to do this. To get up to speed on Timeline, try reading "Tell Your Story With Timeline" , "Facebook Timeline" , and "Facebook Timeline Redefines User Profiles". As for the launch date, there is still some mystery around that ...


Subscribe Button, Confuses But Could Be Useful
Have you noticed the new Subscribe button or people complaining about it? Applied on your Facebook page in a strategic manner, it could be a useful way to share secondary content and like followers, in such a way as the "followers" and "following" users features work on Twitter. A great run down of this feature can be found at "Introducing the Subscribe Button" and "Facebook Launches Subscribe Button for Following Anyone's Public Updates".

And Finally, The Fun One!
No matter how Facebook changes, creative geniuses will find fresh and exciting ways to make the best use of those changes - and hopefully inspire you to find new ways to communicate visually through your own Facebook business page. To see the creativity in action, check out "10 Facebook Timeline Designs That Will Blow You Away" and "Facebook Timeline: 10 Stunning Designs".

Cobbler's Shoes and Client Success

There's an old saying along the lines of "the cobbler always has the worst shoes," and if the last post date of this Simple blog is any indication, our Simple shoes are looking a little worn.

It's something I see with my clients all the time - the actual work of customers and sales takes precedence over your own marketing. That's where Simple swoops in, produces great plans and work, and frees up our clients' time to do what they do best.

This week, we're taking the time to do a little marketing for ourselves, by sharing a great case study on the value of living your brand and charitable marketing to create real relationships with your customers.

The Case Study
Insignia Engraving is a company that creates highly detailed engraved stone and glass commemorative items for Virginia Beach military commands and community. The owner/artist is herself prior military and a military spouse, so a huge part of starting her business was to fulfill this brand promise: "for the military by the military". And from the start, a big part of her business plan was to donate part of her sales to charities that support military-related causes.

On August 6, a helicopter carrying 30 SEAL, EOD, and SWCC team members, the majority from the Virginia Beach, was shot down in Afghanistan with all on board lost. This tragedy spurred Insignia Engraving into action to put its time and talent where its mouth was.

Within 24 hours of the tragedy, the owner had created the For The Families They Left Behind fundraising program.

Within 48 hours, we worked together to:
-- Create special products for the fundraiser
-- Program, populate, and launch an online store
-- Work with suppliers to get discounts on materials
-- Add content to the website announcing the fundraiser

Within 72 hours:
-- Create Facebook posts, notes, and links discussing the fundraiser
-- Gather and post links from other Virginia Beach volunteer/fundraising opportunities
-- Placed Facebook ad announcing the fundraiser
-- Update followers on fundraiser sales status

So, what happened? Within six days of launching the fundraiser:
-- Multiple sales of fundraiser items made at local retailer
-- Half a dozen online sales of fundraiser items
-- Insignia Facebook page audience doubled (and continues growing as I type)

But the most important thing that happened is something that you can't measure in analytical terms: Insignia established and grew their relationships in a real, meaningful manner with old and new customers alike.

How? They proved that they are "for the military by the military", not by what they were saying - but by what they were doing. And even more important to those relationships, they gave their customers a way to do something they believed in as well.

So beyond buying a mug - customers and followers became a part of doing something good. Not just by buying a product, but also by following links to learn more about the Navy SEAL Foundation, by learning when a local Sunday school group was gathering donations, by being inspired to donate their time to answer phones at a helpline. By taking a tragedy and becoming a helpful and hopeful part of the community - even from many states away.

The part of all of this that is most remarkable is that huge corporations do charitable marketing all the time, but this particular case study proves that small business owners can it just as effectively; perhaps even more so, as they provide opportunities closer to the source of giving, of local communities, less removed from layers of corporate structure.

Moving forward, Insignia will deepen its relationship with its customers, not because it is a clever marketing scheme, but simply because it is built into this small businesses code of ethics and their marketing has found a way to communicate that code to like-minded customers and potential customers.

It makes you think, doesn't it? What is the brand mantra of your small business? Are you living it? Are you building better relationships with customers with it?

Five for Friday

Time again for the Simple round-up up of this weeks most useful links to small business marketing resources and one fun link to inspire your creative marketing imaginations. Have a great weekend!

Study: Good Customer Service Earns Rewards

Big business is finding out what small business owners have always known: great customer service means more money in your pocket. This MediaPost article reveals the numbers behind that truth. With social media outlets and good old-fashioned interactions, like how you communicate with customers on the phone and in your shop, you have more opportunities than ever to offer excellent customer service - and make more cash.
(Source: MediaPost)

BtoB Networking Secrets of the Fabulously Connected

If you're a business-to-business entrepreneur than this free webinar sponsored by the national chapter of SCORE (Service Core of Retired Executives) could be an hour well spent toward getting more sales in the door. Led by Jeanne Rossomme (MBA Wharton, 20 years industry marketing experience with Fortune 500 companies) the webinar will cover networking with a purpose and effective networking online. Registration is free and easy; webinar is scheduled for Thursday 12, May at 1:00pm.
(Source: SCORE)

How To Sign Up Users Even Before You Launch

You might not believe this, but if you have an intriguing enough business offering and you announce it in the right way, people will rush to get involved with it, even before its ready to go live. This Mashable article looks at four start-up companies that are using social media marketing to do it and might inspire some good ideas for how your own small businesses can gain new followers.

(Source: Mashable)

How To Poll Customers on Facebook

Want to know what your customers are thinking? Ask them. Last month Facebook made its polling funcaitonality more robust and there are several services available for polling on social media. This Open Forum article shows you not only how to do polling, but how to do it in a strategic way that results in data you really can use to help build better relationships with your customers.
(Source: AmEx Open Forum)

5 Easy Ways to Liven Up Your Facebook Stream

The key thing about social media isn't that its just a new way to reach customers - its a new way to communicate with customers. Not just tell them about your company - but learn more about them and, as a result, create lasting relationships that turn followers into loyal customers. This article offers five "conversation starters" that you may want to try for your small business social media. Just remember: base your conversations on your own branding/marketing strategy.
(Source: AmEx Open Forum)

And now for the fun one:

Can Advertising Be Art?

Way back in 2005, Sony hired ad agency Fallon London to create a spot that would launch their new BRAVIA LCD televisions. The resulting ad was unique for many reasons - it's debut airing ran 2 minutes 30 seconds long, an entire commercial viewing segment, and it literally shows the launch of 250,000 rubber bouncy balls down a San Francisco street. But perhaps the most notable thing about it is it's staying power.

Today, six years after it's initial launch, the ad is often found on Best Ads of the Decade type awards lists and you can find links to dozens of versions on YouTube with tens of thousands of views for each entry. Personally, I tend to re-watch it every month or so and oddly, when my two-year old was having a particularily nasty meltdown the other day, I happened to bring it up on the iPad. It immediatly calmed her down and she watched it twice.

So, we're wondering - can something as seemingly crass as advertising transcend its medium and become something more? Why not take a look in the post below and tell us?

Sony Bravia Ad: Art or Advertising?

Five for Friday

It's hard to compete with streaming Royal Wedding festivities and tornado tragedy in the South, but if you are ready for a coffee break from your coffee break, here are today's Five for Friday:

SCORE Launches New Website

Today SCORE (Service Core of Retired Executives) national launches their new website and new branding. SCORE is a free service organization that provides small business owners with expert advice and assistance in starting up and running their companies. The new site features a cleaner, more contemporary look and feel and easy-to-scan copy and navigation. SCORE has also introduced a new theme line, "For the Life of Your Business" which is marvelous because it points to two great facts about the organization: they help bring your business to life when you're just starting out and they provide continued resources and support as your business grows. Yes, Simple is both a client and a fan.
(Source: SCORE.org)

How To Start Marketing on FourSquare

Like Gowalla (which we discussed last week) FourSquare is a location-based app that people use to let their friends and followers know where they are and what they're up to. There are rewards for the users (like badges, awards, and special savings for frequent check-ins) and for business owners alike. With a community of 8 million users, a new interface that makes it easy for businesses to participate, and the fact that it is FREE to use, there are some good reasons why you should consider adding this tool to your small business marketing strategy. This easy-to-follow How To article has screen shots and simple overviews of how and why to use the tool.
(Source: Mashable)

Small Business Marketing and Community Service

"Charitable marketing" is a hot buzz phrase in marketing these days, especially for the "big guys." But chances are, as a small business owner and a part of your community, you've been engaged in charitable marketing for years. Buy an ad for the local high school yearbook? Allow the Girl Scouts or Boy Scouts to hawk their fundraising treats in front of your shop? You're doing it. This brief, easy-to-scan article has some good tips for taking it to the next level and some reasons why. (One word of caution though: the article mentions paying bloggers to help you spread the word. Before offering bloggers cash to write about you, make sure you know what their particular policies on the subject are. Many bloggers would consider being paid to write their opinions a conflict of interest.)
(Source: SmallBizTrends)

7 Facebook Contest Ideas for Small Business

When you're creating your social media content strategy, looking for "conversation starters" or ways to engage people into communicating with you is key. This article presents seven fun and effective strategies for doing just that. Again, with minimal cost outlays and a moderate effort posting content and really communicating with your followers, social media proves to be a cost-effective brand and relationship builder that pays off in the long run. In fact, a current Simple client began running a promotion this week that is similar to one of these concepts. We'll be posting her results in a case history soon.
(Source: AmEx Open Forum)

And now for the fun one:

Foodspotting

Whether you're a fanatical foodie or just someone who wants to find the best burger or burrito in your area, Foodspotting is for you. Touted as "a visual guide to good food and where to find it," Foodspotting basically enables people to take and easily upload pictures of their favorite restaurant food to share with their friends and the whole Foodspotting community. With a website, smartphone app, and Facebook page, Foodspotting provides many access points and ways to interact, or play with your food. They also have different themed days and topics, which keeps the content fresh and topical. Bon appetit!

Small Business Spring Cleaning?

In most states (sorry Michigan!) it is finally becoming warm and as they say, spring has sprung. Now that it is here, have you considered doing a little spring cleaning for you small business?

Being organized is a powerful tool that small business owners can use to head toward success, and a good spring cleaning can give you a jump start of motivation for the coming months.

Here are a few short-cuts Simple uses:

List. Before Spring cleaning make a few lists of the different areas of your business that need your attention, such as billing, filling, merchandising, marketing, new business development, purchasing, and so on. Under each heading, bullet point the tasks you need to knock out.

Schedule. Once you have your lists, pick one week and then one hour of each day of that week to devote to knocking out the tasks on your lists. Put it on your schedule for each day.

Prep. Take a look over your lists and see what materials you need. Need more file folders and storage boxes? Jot all the things you need down and make one shopping trip before you begin.

Note. As you are spring cleaning, you'll probably get ideas of things you want to do to move forward in the year ahead. Keep a notepad or iPad handy to jot down your ideas.

Plan. At the end of your week of spring cleaning, review your notes and enter these ideas as action items into your schedule so you actually do act upon them in the coming weeks.

Here's to a successful spring and summer season to our small business owners every where!

Five For Friday

Five For Friday is Simple's new blog feature that presents four bits of small business marketing-related inspiration and one link that's just for fun.

Culled through the week from the resources we use everyday, Five For Friday will strive to fire your imagination and enhance your own small business marketing efforts. And bring you some fun. Here's to Friday!

11 iPad Apps for Meetings And Presentations

Get concise descriptions, feature lists, and pricing for 11 useful apps that can help with your new business and client communication efforts. Simple's favs? Corkulus and Penultimate.

(Source: Mashable)

How To Start Marketing on Gowalla

Gowalla is a location-based service that people use to let their social media followers know where they are and what they're up to. This clearly written how-to provides you with both a overview of the Gowalla services and how you can use them to interact with customers. As the guide says, "Gowalla offers brands seven main ways to connect with its users. As a result, the platform is quite inclusive of just about any type of brand, big or small." Intrigued how you can take advantage? Read on.

(Source: Mashable)

How To Make The Most of Facebook Sponsored Stories

Simply put, Sponsored Stories are a way of advertising to the followers of people who have liked your Facebook page ... your followers' followers. According to the article, "Assuming that someone's friends are in the same demographic, you can reach out to that group of people sharing similiar interests." With camapaign budgets as low as $5 per day, Sponsored Stories are a great entry point for small businesses to get involved with Facebook advertising.

(Source: AmEx Open Forum)

The Wisdom of Friends (And Others Too)

Notice more polls on your friends' Facebook status updates lately? It's because, at the end of March, Facebook rolled out a wider release of its "Questions" feature. The tool let's you pose polls to your followers, getting their feedback and often the feedback of their followers. Could be useful for finding out what your customers really want. The article explains the tool and links to where you can try it and learn more.

(Source: Facebook Blog)

And the fun link ...

First Listen: Bombino, 'Agadez'

If you're in the mood to hear " an ultra-repetitive, almost meditative facsimile of psychedelic rock" sung in the Sub-Saharan Tuareg language of Tamasheq, then you're in luck. NPR provides a free listen of the entire album 'Agadez' by Omara "Bombino" Moctar. Don't let the description scare you off. Listening to the album in the background while writing this, the music is oddly both soothing and energetic.

(S0urce: NPR)

About That "VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE" Going Around Facebook Recently

The world of the Internet in general and Facebook in specific is a world filled with true oddities and full-on hoaxes. Sometimes, based on just the message alone, it can be hard to determine which is which. For example, although it screamed "hoax!", my curious side really wanted that video of a whale blown into a building in Japan to be true.

Recently, a client sent me a message and Facebook event request she had received from a friend entitled:

"PLEASE READ - THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT TO EVERYONE WHO USES FACEBOOK FOR BUSINESS OR PERSONAL REASONS!!"

The message goes on to say that if it seems like FB friends are ignoring you, it is because your "Most Recent" news feed default settings have been changed by Facebook.

Because of the tone of the message, the multiple exclamation points, the all caps title, and the hoax-like dramatic way in which the message is written, my client wondered if the message was true or not.

Turns out, this one is true.

Back in February, when Facebook launched the newest profile page updates, this settings change did actually happen to some users.

Tech-blog Justin's Blog gives a nice, layman's term explanation of what happened and provides supporting links to the Washington Post, AllFacebook blog, and Inside Facebook blog for further details.

If you are experiencing this problem, or didn't even realize the problem the problem was happening to you, the solution is a simple, two second setting change:

1. Click on the Most Recent header on top of your newsfeed to get a drop down menu

2. Click the Edit Options button

3. In the new window that opens, select the Show Posts From option of All of Your Friends and Pages

4. Click Save

If you are a more visual person, here is a handy YouTube video from "Metrotorful" that shows the full message and how to change the settings. (I'll embed the video here in my blog, but am working remotely and the free wireless can't handle the upload.)

Also, if you get the message and you want to pass it on to help out your own friends, consider rewriting the message in your own words or removing some of the drama from the message.

In the meantime, keep bringing the questions!

4 Social Media Pitfalls to Avoid

I've said it before and I'll say it again ... and again ... as a small business owner you are the best person to implement your own social media. Why? You've been talking directly with your customers for as long as you've been in business. You know your business better than anyone because you are the one who created it. You know your branding better then anyone because you created that, too.

All you really need to implement your social media is a little time, a little discipline, and most importantly - a strategic plan.

When small business owners start doing their own social media without these three simple factors, the pitfalls arise. Here are four that are easy to avoid:

Once a Quarter Poster. Relationships are built over time. When you have long gaps of time between social media postings, it is hard to build those customer relationships. It's almost like you're starting over each time; reintroducing yourself, your company, and your marketing.

Hard Sell. You probably wouldn't walk into a social gathering, start handing out business cards without introducing yourself, and without listening to peoples' responses, start shouting at them, "All red shoes are half off, get yours today!" By providing your social media followers with content that allows them to get to know your business better, gives them entertainment or educational value, and invites them to communicate with you in return, you're building better, lasting relationships. Followers will look forward to your postings and interacting with your business - online and in-store.

The Personals. Creating a defined line between your personal social media and your company's social media is important. You as a person have a brand and your business has a brand. While your personality is intertwined with your company's brand, the messages you share with your family and friends are going to be on a different level than those you share with your customers. Over sharing can lead to a perception of a lack of professionalism and most often these posts are not working toward achieving your marketing goals.

Links, Links, and More Links. Sharing information with your customers via expert links that you find helpful, interesting, or in some way in-line with your strategic marketing goals can be a simple and effective content source in your social media. The pitfall is when links become your main source of content. Or the links are commonly found. Or are entirely unrelated to your business and marketing strategy.

It's easy to understand how these pitfalls occur. Almost unanimously, in my first meeting with new clients they say, "We don't know what to write. What will we post each day? Each week?"

Once we create a strategic social media marketing plan for them, and they have the answers to these questions, they begin to feel confident. As they begin to see results, such as a growing number of followers, customers comments, and even sales increases, most begin to look forward to doing their own social media.

Do you have a question about social media pitfalls or problems? Post them in the comments and we'll respond back in our next blog posting.

Facebook HTTP vs HTTPS: The Whole Truth

When on Facebook, have you seen a recent, recurring post that advises you to look at your URL bar and see if it says "HTTP:" or "HTTPS:" and if you only see "HTTP" you can be "hacked"?

While this is partly true, it is also a bit misleading, so we researched some resources, including the venerable hoax busting site Snopes, and here is the whole story.

First, know that HTTP is shorthand for the "language" that is being used between web servers and clients, and anyone that wants to could "eavesdrop" and read that language. HTTPS means that the language is "Secure", meaning the HTTP language has become encrypted with a code that others cannot read.

So, what does this mean on Facebook? According to our sources, the HTTPS is going to be most useful if you are on a shared WIFI network, such as a cafe with Internet connectivity, where there is a technique that can allow nefarious people to hijack session cookies and gain access to your account. The HTTPS will prevent them from doing this.

But here is the rest of the story: Just because you have changed the security setting to HTTPS, you are still not immune from all Facebook security threats. Hoax spotting site That'sNonsense.com recommends not reposting the message in order to avoid lulling friends into a false sense of security.

What does Simple recommend?

1. Be on the safe side and go ahead and change the setting to HTTPS.
2. If you want, tell your friends about the HTTP vs HTTPS, but be sure to also mention it won't protect them from all Facebook security issues.
3. Be aware of posts that may or may not be hoaxes and check them out yourself before reposting or acting on the message. Snopes.com, thatsnonsense.com, and the Facebook group Hoax-Slayer are good resources for hoax checking.