Is Your Company’s Digital Identity Invisible?
By Anne Roos, Director of Content Development
What is your company’s online footprint? What makes your business stand out on the Internet? This is known as your digital identity, or how your company is perceived in the digital world. In other words, it is your online branding.
Factors that contribute to your online identity can range from your logo, your URL (website address), and even the style of fonts and graphics on your website. Social networking takes the temperature of how your company is perceived online.
With over 3 billion worldwide Internet users, your goods and services can’t afford to be invisible on the worldwide web. Build a digital presence for your business and you’ll increase sales and have power over your online reputation.
Here are 4 steps to creating your company’s searchable identity:
1. Take over the reigns—When someone performs a Google search for the kinds of products and services you sell, your website and social media profiles must be on display. Get listed as a viable choice against your competition and don’t be invisible in the search results. Establish a powerful website for your business, and utilize best SEO practices to define your company in social media.
2. Use consistent branding across the internet—Develop the logo, graphics, and tag lines to brand your company’s representation on your website and on each social media profile you create. Discover the best keyword phrases that will lead people searching on Google to your company. Single out your company’s niche–Always include tags in your blog posts and META information on your website and blog pages.
3. Mingle, mingle, mingle—Don’t be a wallflower. Discover where your target customers converse online and make those social networking platforms your go-to places to schmooze. Post regularly, and include meaningful, interesting info that attracts readers to your website and blog. Reply to posts immediately to demonstrate that your company cares about the opinions of your customers. Join LinkedIn and Facebook groups that are relevant to your company’s best interests, and chime in on topics that are in your business wheelhouse. Online mingling, or social networking, drives customers to your website and strengthens your branding. It gives you control of what people are saying about your company.
4. Keep the discussion about business—Use social media as an educational forum, sharing information about the newest trends and how-to’s of your industry. Don’t use it as a carnival barker for hard selling your products, and don’t use it for posting what you had for lunch (unless, of course, you are in the food industry). Be professional and always take the high road to help potential customers find what they are looking for.
It takes time to build a successful online digital identity. It takes a delicate balance of website, blog, and social media finesse. The process is never finished—maintaining your digital identity is dynamic and requires constant updating, because the online conversation about products and services is never static.
Rely on the content experts at Moore Than SEO to curate and create the social media posts and profiles, blog articles, and web pages that attract attention and make your company a rock star in your own niche. We’ll help you create and maintain the digital identity that makes you shine against your online competition.
The Non-Writer’s Guide to Creating a Digital Identity
By Anne Roos, Director of Content Development
The Internet world expects business owners to be great writers, even if it isn’t their cup of tea. Rules of grammar, spelling, and punctuation reflect on your business just as much as the information you share. And it gets even more confusing, because some of the standard rules of writing were made to be broken for social media posts, blog entries, and web pages. For creating a digital identity, a unique voice online that attracts clients and customers to your brand, you also need to mind the rules of Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
SEO websites will have you believe that there are hard-and-fast formulas to follow to get on the first page of search engine results for your specific keywords. It’s a soft science, and because Google frequently changes its algorithms for ranking, no set formula is going to work.
Follow our 3 standards that apply across-the-board for anything you are writing online:
1. Write for human consumption.
Forget about stuffing keywords into paragraphs and pages—one or two mentions will do. Focus on the information that interests your customers and clients.
2. Never copy content from another source, even if that source is a page on your own website.
Search engines like original content, and they’ll drop your page in rank, or remove you from search engine results altogether, when you duplicate content.
3. Text is more important than graphics.
The major search engines place high importance on content that is relevant to your website visitors. They also pay attention to your website’s layout. Find out Why Content Trumps Design.
How your content looks on the page is important, because most people scan an article with their eyes before delving into its contents.
Follow these 8 standards of formatting to entice your readers:
1. Put the good stuff at the beginning. As of May, 2015, Google announced that more searches are performed on mobile devices (smartphone, tablets, etc.) than on desktops and laptops. Therefore, you need to concentrate the important texts in the first few sentences to avoid scrolling on small-screened devices.
2. Focus on one idea per paragraph, use shorter sentences, and include 6 lines maximum per paragraph. Content is digested in small bites, not big meals. Make it easy for your readers to pick out important points. Embolden key sentences and key phrases within the paragraph.
3. Add lists and bullet points for variety. They are easy to read, easy to write, and everyone loves lists. Try to limit your lists to a manageable number of items—If you have too many items, add subheadings. Speaking of which…
4. Employ subheadings to shift topics. Lengthy blog posts and web pages are ever so much easier to read when each new topic is introduced by a cleaver subheading—Think of them as mini-chapter headings for your article.
5. Always insert links within your content. They stand out from the rest of the text, because they are underlined and highlighted. Use more inbound links (links to your web pages) than outbound links (links to other relevant websites). Use inbound links within your social media posts to send your friends and followers to your blog posts and web pages.
6. Rely on the 7-minute rule for blog posts and web pages. Each blog article or web post should take no longer than about 7-minutes to read out loud. If you’re counting words, they should be no shorter than about 300 words. Each social network has rules for maximum numbers of words or characters—Stay within those rules to avoid truncation of text. Including media with your social network posts reduces the amount of text you can use.
7. Be conversational. Unless your copy is of a highly technical nature, keep to simple sentences. Proof your copy by reading it aloud. If you find yourself stumbling as you read aloud, or each sentence is taking up more than two lines, split up sentences and paragraphs so that your information reads like a friendly chat.
8. Get to the point. Always include a call-to-action: a website to visit, a phone number to call, a product to check out. What’s the point of writing if you don’t create sales?
The entire reason for building a web presence is to increase your bottom line. You can have a gorgeous website that attracts customers, but they need to know what to do once they’ve arrived. Your content wins over customers when it engages them and moves them to buy.
How do you engage customers? Follow our 6 insights of what to say in social media and on your web and blog page and you’ll see a return of investment (ROI) in your website costs:
1. Keep both eyes on your competitors—Building a digital identity is about developing an online and offline brand strategy. See our Beginner’s Guide to Competitive Intelligence for a primer.
2. Publish consistently—Fresh content sends website visitors and social media fans back for more. Plus, Google wants to direct searchers to new, interesting content. Post regularly; at least once a month on blogs, and at least once a week on social media platforms.
3. Establish a goal for each post—Do you want to get website visitors to sign up for your newsletter? Do you want to tell your readers about your company’s next public event? Do you want to introduce customers to your newest product line? Hone in on your goal, and then answer the question, “Why is this important to write?” when you begin writing.
4. Write an irresistible headline—Touch an emotion. Draw the reader into your article, your story, and your post.
5. Activate action verbs—Can you envision what that verb says to do? This is what defines an action verb. You can visualize the words drive, hit, aim, get. You can’t visualize verbs like be, was, and were. Action verbs get readers to move, respond, and buy.
6. Use a different mode of storytelling for each post—Ask a question, tell a tale, reveal secrets, challenge assumptions, offer a different point of view, alleviate fears, disclose a mystery, educate your readers, and more. The path of storytelling is only limited by your imagination.
Is this content writing task overwhelming? Staring at a blank computer screen with no idea where to start on your content writing journey? Too busy getting your business off the ground to focus on writing for the web?
Here’s the answer: Partner with a team of professional, seasoned online marketers, and avoid cheap alternatives. Going outside the U.S. for content and SEO assistance may look like a money-saving idea, but you’ll want to stick with American SEO.
Be careful when hiring content writers. Everything you publish online reflects your business reputation. Why trust the empty promises of SEO websites that don’t take the time to get to know your company, products, and services before creating content? Here at Moore Than SEO, our writers build custom content that attracts your target audience and gives your competition a run for their money.
Contact us for a free assessment of your online content.
How to Spread Love for Your Brand Through Social Media
By Anne Roos, Director of Content Development
February is the month of love. It’s the perfect time to reach out to your target audience, to get them to fall head over heals for your brand. It’s also the perfect time to solidify customer loyalty to your current clients. Regardless of your specific business industry, use social media as your matchmaker.
Consider these statistics:
• 200 Million Internet Users Employ Ad Blockers—Website visitors aren’t seeing your pop-up ads. But your message will get through to your intended customers through social networking.
• 37% of Online Businesses Increased Customer Retention through Word-of-Mouth Compared to Paid Advertisements—Imagine your cost savings by going social versus paying for print, radio, and TV ads.
• 71% of Consumers are Likely to Buy a Product or Service Based on Referrals in Social Media—Create a buzz in your customers’ favorite social hangouts, and watch the sales pour in.
• 81% of Consumers Receive Advice from Colleagues, Friends and Loved Ones Through Social Networking Sites—When customers fall in love with you, they tell the world about it online.
But how do you get customers to fall in love with you in the first place?
1. Know Your Customer—Ask yourself whether you are fulfilling a need or solving a problem for your target customer. What can you offer that your competition cannot?
2. Keep In Touch—Share new product information, interesting trivia about your company, invitations to events, and exclusive online coupons to your Internet fans. Treat them to more in-depth information in your blog. Give every opportunity for your prospective clients and customers to get to know you.
3. Get Personal—Let your fans and subscribers in on deals they’d never see elsewhere. Give them a behind-the-scenes glimpse of how your company operates, profile key staff members, and let them in on upcoming product launches.
4. Return the Love—Put the “social” into social networking. Build relationships online and bring them beyond the Internet. Send birthday offers and handwritten thank-you cards. Host a “locals” day discount or a customer appreciation day. Provide free tickets to events that you are hosting. Use these tools to get to know your loyal customer base.
5. Bend over backwards—Always offer more than is expected. Quote extra services or products at a discount. Do something entirely unexpected to create faithfulness to your brand while blowing your competition out of the water.
The goal: To get customers to break up with your competition and fall in love with you.
Regardless of your industry, you can get in on the Valentine’s Day love, before, during, and after the holiday. Connect with customers through social media management. Create a strategic plan that rewards your clients on a consistent basis, and they’ll tell their friends. Then, they’ll return that love with purchases.
Here at Moore Than SEO, we know the laws of attraction using Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, and other social network platforms. Contact us at 559-978-4096 for a free consultation. We’ll measure your current reach and design a social media blueprint that will produce long-term customer loyalty and measurable results.
* Statistics from Business2Community.com
Why Are Google Analytics Important for Web Development?
By Anne Roos, Director of Content Development
How do you know where your website visitors are coming from? How did they find your site? Which keyword phrases did they insert into Google to find you? Google Analytics answers these questions and more. It’s your web development tool for discovering how to maximize your site’s ability to attract customers.
By monitoring how traffic gets to your site, who is visiting your site and sticking around, and which pages interest them the most, you’ll know how to tweak your website so that it can reach its full potential.
Here are just a few of the questions that Google’s powerful analytical tool can solve:
• Which pages do your visitors initially land on when they enter your site? Your website visitors may not always start on your home page. Perhaps they clicked on a link to one of your products, or a link to your blog, or a link to another interior page on your site. Armed with this information, you can increase the appeal of individual pages.
• Do your visitors continue to explore your site once they enter your site, or do they leave to surf elsewhere on the net? The Bounce Rate is an indicator of your website’s staying power. If this rate is high, you are not engaging visitors, and you’ll need further investigation to determine why.
• When your website visitors explore the pages on your site, which pages interest them the most? The Top Pages report will reveal the content that is working successfully on your site.
• When is the most traffic visiting your site? The Visits tool will tell you when to publish to your blog and launch new products. It will also tell you when to make site updates without presenting any downtime for visitors.
• Which pages are referring the most traffic to your site the most? This information can reveal volumes about your visitors and what attracts them to your site, just by knowing what other sites draw their attention.
• How often do visitors complete their purchases, sign up for your newsletter, download a brochure or e-book, view your videos, and fill in forms requesting more information? This data is found with the Conversion Rate tool. If you have a low rate of conversions, you’ll need to examine the content and design of the pages where you invite visitors to take action.
The speed of your site has a major influence on all of the above Google metrics, particularly the Conversion Rate. If your site is not mobile ready, or if it takes too long to load, you’ll lose visitors. From a web development aspect, the download speed of your website must be addressed in order to adequately assess the results of your Google Analysis.
To get a full picture of how your website is performing against your online competitors, contact our SEO experts. We’ll go through your Analytics with a fine-tooth comb and offer recommendations to improve your website’s bottom line. Contact us at 559-978-4096 to receive your custom-fit website performance review, or drop us a line at info@moorethanseo.com.
5 Fast & Easy SEO Growth Hacks to Improve Your Website in 2017
By Shel Moore, Co-Owner & Chief Marketing Officer
Here is our team’s short-list of fast and easy SEO growth hacks you can apply to your website right now:
1. Install Google Analytics for your website. GA will help you to understand how you’re doing and where you’d like to go. If your website does not have GA installed, you won’t have a clear picture of what’s attracting readers to your website, what pages they prefer, how they dropping off, etc. This information is critical for growing your business and brand presence online. Don’t be afraid of the data – it will only make your marketing smarter. Kick start your 2017 by installing Google Analytics right now. There is a great walkthrough on the GA site here.
2. Make sure your meta titles and descriptions include power keywords and that each page on your site has an original set. Don’t copy and paste the same titles and descriptions from your home page to everything else. And, don’t simply enter only your company name in this important text. A web page’s meta title and description provide the text that will compel someone searching for relevant information to visit your page to learn more. Tell them what they’ll find upon clicking-through the link. Include good keywords for improved SEO – but the text must flow nicely and not simply be chocked full of keyword phrases. Do you need a brief overview on finding good SEO keywords? Download our free white paper, “Launching a New Website – SEO Marketing Advice to Get It Right the First Time.”
If you’re using WordPress, we recommend the Yoast Plugin for better search engine optimization of your pages. This plugin makes it easy to enter titles/descriptions for each page and provides you with a simple red, yellow, or green light score to indicate the overall optimization of an intended page. Not sure where to start? Check out this complete walkthrough by WPBeginner.com and get started today.
3. Integrate social media links throughout your site and share your social business pages. If you’re using WordPress there are a ton of plugins that make this connection a breeze. Social signals are also considered when evaluating the overall quality of a website. Today, it’s possible for some social media posts to show up in SERPs (search engine result pages). Communicating on social media provides greater reach and encourages more traffic to discover your business website. Integrating social media accounts throughout your website offers a necessary channel between the two and provides important social proof that your business is trustworthy and valued. Read some great tips for social media integration for your website on the Hootsuite blog here. Are you searching for specific WordPress plugins? Check out this awesome updated list by Adam Connell at BloggingWizzard.com.
4. Detect and remove any duplicate content on your website. This includes stuff you might have innocently copied over from a manufacturer or parent company’s website as well as text you may have duplicated throughout your own website’s internal pages. Use Copyscape.com to quickly check every web page for free. Identify any problem areas and make a plan to revise any flagged text for originality. Then make it happen. Duplicate content can be a real drag on the overall quality perception of your website. Curious about the how and why to this? Read more about how duplicate content hurts a website’s performance.
5. Don’t forget to include your location on several key pages of your website & even in some page titles and meta-descriptions. Most businesses need to compete for local search as well – for some this is a primary focus of their online marketing. Make certain you include text that describes the local region your business services on your home page, on the about us page, and any other place you feel is relevant. Just be sure you make the text original every place you use it. (No copying & pasting this info on multiple pages – remember duplicate content hurts.)
Don’t Take a Vacation from Social Media Marketing Over the Holidays
By Anne Roos, Director of Content Development
Many of your potential clients make last-minute purchasing decisions before the end of the year to include their investments in this year’s taxes. This means that the holidays are no time to slack off on your social media marketing efforts.
In fact, potential clients may actually have more time to read your posts as their work winds down for the holidays. Make the most of this time of year to reach customers who need a year-end tax write-off, as well as customers who are considering investment options for their budgets in the New Year. This is also the perfect time of year to express thanks to your current clients for their loyalty. Here’s a brief guide to making the most of your holiday social networking:
- Stay the course—Keep your current social media plans while dressing them up for the holiday season. Add holiday graphics, and include photos demonstrating that your company is still open over the season. Offer clients ideas of how they can use your products and services this time of year.
- Inspire shopping ideas—Make your content visually appealing. This time of year, most people are in shopping mode. Utilize Pinterest, even if your company offers technical services rather than products. Infographics, for instance, are still of interest over the holiday season.
- Personally thank loyal customers—Use social media to send special holiday greetings. Make a video thanking customers and post it on your website, YouTube, and Facebook. Mention the years they have been with you while social networking. Post links to their pages and spread the goodwill. If you send customers to them, they are bound to refer customers to you.
- It’s the time to talk about supporting worthy causes—If your company is a non-profit, or if it regularly puts aside a portion of profits for charity, this is the perfect time of year to mention this in your social marketing. Use social media as a force for good while cementing your company’s online reputation.
- Continue creating interesting, relevant content—Offer suggestions that are of interest to your customers, and add a seasonal holiday slant on them. If you are offering specials, hosting events, exhibiting at upcoming seminars, and have other news, weave this information into your posts. Always use original copy, and you will continue to meet SEO goals.
Keeping your social media marketing fresh and original, geared to reach new clients and customers over the holidays, is a special craft. Turn to our marketing gurus here at Moore Than SEO to create social networking posts that produce results through the New Year. Reach us at 559-978-4096. Seasons Greetings from Chris, Shel, Anne, and our entire staff at Moore Than SEO.
Looking to Create Social Media Content that Engages?
By Shel Moore, Co-Owner & Chief Marketing Officer
Check Your Twitter Audiences Analytics for Useful Insight
If you haven’t taken the time to check out your Twitter Analytics, you’re missing out. As with Facebook, the amount of data revealed is dependent on the total number of followers an account possesses – more followers equal more insights.
In this post, we’re only going to focus on the Audiences portion of Twitter Analytics. There is so much good stuff in here that you can use to fine-tune your social media marketing. It’s high time you dug in and learned more about what you might be missing.
At the lowest end of the scale, new accounts and those with less than 199 followers won’t see much more than general follower growth. However, this starts to change once you hit the 200+ mark. Accounts with over 200 followers will gain the ability to view:
- General interests
- Gender
- Country
- Region
If you have 600+, then you’ll enjoy a wide range of deeper insights, including:
- General interests
- Gender
- Country
- Region
- Wireless carrier
- Language
- TV genres
- Wireless devices
- Household income
- Net worth
- Marital status
- Home ownership
- Political
- Credit card holders
- Aftermarket auto buyer types
- Consumer goods purchases
As with many platform insights, much of the data reported is based on an estimate and not intended to be considered official. Yet, there is so much that can be learned in reviewing this detail. Twitter even enables the addition of a comparison audience with a variety of filters. See how your followers compare to other Twitter users by personas, demographics, lifestyle, consumer behavior, and mobile footprint.
Are you posting content that aligns with the interests revealed? Can you discover some relatable content topics that you might not have considered? Let’s look at an example together and consider how you might put this information to use in your marketing.
In this example, we can see that the top three interests of this account’s followers include business & news, comedy (movies & television), and politics & current events. Consider the stream of information you regularly post and share then determine if you’re right on the money – or perhaps missing the mark a bit. By the interests provided here, it might be worth considering the inclusion of content focused on health/mind/body and entrepreneurship due to the evidence of interest in such topics.
Here is a glimpse of the Lifestyle tab for a different account. Upon reviewing this example, it’s easy to see that followers are interested in technology, tech news, and business news primarily. However, there are some opportunities to appeal to those with interests in entrepreneurship, politics, and marketing. This account may wish to bring more of these topics into their posting mix for improved engagement. Additionally, viewing the TV Genres reveals that it’s likely this follower audience would enjoy some sports content as well as posts related to current drama and reality shows.
Dive in today & start evaluating the effectiveness of the content you’re actively posting. Are you providing a stream of information that’s aligned with your followers? Or, do you need to tweak your efforts to greatly improve engagement for your brand? It’s free to establish a Twitter Analytics account & log-in. Once you’ve completed the basic setup, you’ll be able to access this anytime from the Profile & Settings area of your account. Spend some time becoming familiar with all the analytics available inside Twitter and become smarter with your social media marketing.
Why is Social Media Content Development Necessary?
By Anne Roos, Director of Content Development
You can’t afford to ignore marketing your business and products on social media. The top two benefits are increasing exposure and increasing traffic. These activities lead to improved sales. In fact, even with a small investment of time, a whopping 85% of marketers report that their social media efforts gain more exposure for their business. Whether you’re looking for lead generation or increasing brand loyalty, going social does the job.
Social marketing reduces marketing expenses!
Almost 50% of those who spend at least 11 hours per week on social media marketing see lower marketing expenses.
How does marketing on social platforms reduce marketing expenses?
• It costs far less to create meaningful content. Posting to social networks is free! Compared with ad campaigns on TV, radio, magazines and newspapers, and direct mail, advertising for free beats them all. Sure, you could pay for a full-time employee and get the word out via tradeshow exhibits and telemarketing. But will you see a return on your investment using these expensive marketing methods?
• Target specific customers and clients on social media. Trying to reach your customers with TV spots, print advertising, and telemarketing is like shooting a fire hose to put out a match—It’s a lot of extra resources spent to accomplish this task. On Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google+, and Pinterest, you’ll connect with your specific audience without extra expense.
• Track followers and learn what engages them. Specifically target your message to different audiences to see what turns them on. Run contests, distribute coupons, announce promotions, and update your messages, all for free. Analyze and fine-tune your content for maximum response.
To guarantee monetary results, invest in a content development plan aimed at your social media audience. Align your strategy with your goals and post to the social platforms where your customers frequently inhabit. You’ll experience a wide ongoing market reach that increases customer loyalty and brand awareness exponentially.
The copywriting experts at Moore Than SEO will develop a plan to help you reach over 400,000 local social media users daily. We create consistent copy that is custom-fashioned to connect with your target audience. It’s real-time, lightning-speed marketing.
To receive a free assessment of your Internet presence, your social media program, and all your online marketing efforts contact us at 559-978-4096.
Have You Made Your Social Media New Year’s Resolution Yet?
By Shel Moore, Co-Owner & Chief Marketing Officer
Here’s how you get more social in 2015!
It’s that time of year again and everyone’s excited about a fresh start with endless possibilities. As experienced digital marketers, we feel it’s our duty to remind business owners of the importance of branching out socially in the new year. Make certain your business commits to social media promotion this year and beyond – you won’t believe what you’ve been missing.
If you live in the Clovis or Fresno, California region, you’ll likely be astonished to know that over 400,000 locals engage socially every day on Facebook and LinkedIn! Instagram is fast-becoming a popular platform to share and communicate both personal and business matters. If you’re curious, just do a quick search of the hashtags #clovisca #fresnoca #cloviscalifornia #fresnocalifornia to see a variety of local updates. If you’re somewhere else in the United States, then you should know that social media participation is growing exponentially all around America and beyond. Don’t miss out on this unique opportunity to increase your branding reach.
One of the biggest questions we encounter from others is how to create content that is engaging and meaningful for prospects and customers. We thought a list might be helpful in getting you started on the right foot this year. Let’s make this the year we spread more awareness, gain increased engagement, and ultimately grow our business profit for sustainable success!
Here are some great idea starters for your social media planning:
- Create content that addresses a subject-area that provides solutions for common customer pains.
- Share behind-the-scenes photos, stories, and information from your internal team.
- Create helpful infographics and visual content that simplify complex processes or provide brief explanations of benefits.
- Create a monthly editorial calendar to plan your social media postings each month. Make note of upcoming holidays, events, and other dates that require special attention and promotion.
- Share links to helpful resources, articles, and more.
- Post interesting information on products and services – especially highlighting those with unique applications or uses.
- Post a trip down memory lane – participate in “Throwback Thursdays” by sharing throwback photos of your internal team, business milestones, and more.
- Recommend your followers check out another expert on social media.
- Share humor – it’s always appreciated.
- Connect socially with co-marketing partners by commenting, liking, and sharing relevant information.
- Profile an employee or team member – everyone enjoys learning more about the individual personalities behind a brand. This adds more authenticity to your posts.
- If you’re a retail business, hold a flash sale – share exclusive coupons and offers via social media.
- Do you have a service-based business? Why not offer and promote a free download for a white paper, e-book, worksheet, or other useful resource?
- Respond to a popular FAQ (Frequently Asked Question).
- Ask your fans for help and ideas. They will appreciate the involvement and that you respect their input.
Best wishes from all of us for a wonderful & prosperous New Year!
Social Media Advertising
By Shel Moore, Co-Owner & Chief Marketing Officer
Don’t Be Afraid To Play! Experiment With Social Media Advertising Menus To Learn A Lot!
Ever wondered how many relevant users exist on a particular social media platform? If you’ve been tempted to explore the potential of such online advertising resources, we encourage you to give it a shot. It’s absolutely free to investigate the target audience on Facebook, LinkedIn, and even Twitter. What better way to fully understand a brand’s online potential then to uncover the mystery of target prospects and where they regularly hang out, socially speaking that is.
There is much to learn when going through the motions of setting up an advertising campaign on any social media platform. You can get a feel for the number of relevant users by a geographic location as well as interest. In fact, today, most social media advertising comes with the ability to specify very granular filters that drill-down to the most relevant target audiences with a few simple mouse clicks.
We recommend keeping notes as you go through this process. You’re likely to think of several interests and keywords that you will want to recall in the future. Jot these down on a Word doc or notes file for future reference; besides you may even decide that you’d like to give a real advertising campaign a try. It’s possible to execute test advertising on both Facebook and LinkedIn for as little as $5 to $10 dollars.
Many people have received emails from Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter offering free credits for advertising. Take advantage of these offers when they come around. Quite often these email promotions give you $50 of free advertising. Why not take advantage of this free promotion for your business? Additionally, many ISPs also provide a series of special promotions for new accounts and may include credits for free advertising on Google AdWords, Facebook, and other popular online venues.
As we enter a new year, take this time to get off the fence about experimenting with online advertising. Do the free research to gain insight for connecting with your best prospects, understanding where they hang out online, what interests they have in common, and any other useful psychographic detail you can glean from social behavior. Use that Facebook or LinkedIn ad credit the next time the opportunity rolls around. What have you been waiting for? There’s really nothing to lose – and truly so much to gain.