Does your PR Agency Know How to Connect?
May 15, 2013 - Posted by Stephanie Graves
“We need more people talking about us!” As a CMO, or PR director, how many times has someone at the top come to you and said those exact words? Did you immediately start to feel the heat? When an organization decides it needs PR representation or that their current PR strategy needs an overhaul, it usually starts with a desire to create more buzz. And many times, this desire is motivated by a positive article in the local news about a competitor, or a look at another company’s thousands of seemingly engaged Twitter followers eagerly and happily interacting with their brand online. THE GOAL Simply creating buzz should not be the end goal for ramping up PR efforts. In the past, the end goal of public relations for brands may have been limited to raising brand awareness, but as the digital age has caused a major shift in how we… read more
Creating “Share-alicious” Content to Build Your Online Community
April 30, 2013 - Posted by Stephanie Graves
Ever wonder why some organizations seem to have no problem at all building and engaging their online communities when your company spends a great deal of time working to get more fans, to no avail? Does it seem like no matter what you post, tumbleweeds blow across your page. Very few, if any “likes” or comments are happening, with the exception of the one super fan you can always count on (read: your mom) who “likes” everything you post (because she loves you). You’re not alone. Many companies struggle to find the sweet spot in content creation. But if you listen closely, your audience is telling you what they want to hear. Deliver it, and you’ll see your online community start to take shape. First understand what moves your audience If you don’t have a deep understanding of who your audience is then you’ll have a difficult time figuring out… read more
When Tragedy Strikes, Tweet Responsibly
April 16, 2013 - Posted by Stephanie Graves
Many of us remember the morning of September 11, 2001 vividly. Depending on where you live, you may have been driving in to the office and hearing cryptic reports coming out of New York City about some kind of plane crash. But it didn’t take long for it to become clear that something really bad was happening as we all scrambled to get as much information as we could. News sites were overrun; many of them were simply crashing altogether. At times, several minutes went by with no new or updated information. So we waited. Fast forward to yesterday. Breaking news alerts start popping up: Explosions heard near the Boston Marathon finish line. But initially, there’s not much more information available. And much like during 9/11 several news sites weren’t loading including Bostonglobe.com. Next stop: Twitter — arguably the best source for breaking news. The dissemination of news through the… read more
Avoiding Bashtags and Other Twitter Disasters
April 12, 2013 - Posted by Shama Kabani
Early last year, McDonalds created the Twitter hashtag #McDStories. The restaurant chain wanted to introduce “some of the hard-working people dedicated to providing McDs with quality food every day.” What happened next was one of the biggest corporate blunders in social media (Twitter) history. Twitter users turned McDonald’s hashtag into a bashtag, using it to promote their own stories about the fast-food giant — and those stories weren’t exactly the happy, endearing tales that the company had hoped for. Here are a few selected by London’s Daily Mail as among the best that appeared on the first day of the campaign: @JohnGarrett tweeted: So PETA and McDonald’s got into it today. I was surprised. I didn’t know there was real meat at McDonald’s. #McDStories @JKingArt: Lost 50 pounds in 6 months after I stopped working & eating at McDonald’s. #McDStories @SkipSullivan: One time I walked into a McDonald’s and I… read more
Tips for Getting Better – Or Getting Started – With Twitter
January 22, 2013 - Posted by Amanda Norris
In her best-selling book, The Zen of Social Media Marketing, Marketing Zen Group founder & CEO Shama Kabani calls Twitter “The Grand Bazaar of Social Networking Sites” because it really does have something for everyone. If your business is already using Twitter, we’ve got some tips that will help you maximize your results this year. And if you’re not already using Twitter, the question is, “Why not?” Why Bother with Twitter? In a nutshell, the reason your business should bother with Twitter is because it delivers results. Twitter users fall into every demographic category, and it’s the fastest way to get your message into the hands of a truly huge, global audience. Twitter has over a half-billion users, and continues to be one of the fastest growing social networking sites. Just after midnight on New Year’s Day – January 1, 2013 – Twitter reached a new record volume with 6,939… read more
The Great Social Customer Service Race – 14 Top Brands Tested on Social Support Savvy
January 8, 2013 - Posted by Amanda Norris
Guest post by Ashley Furness. Ashley is a market analyst with Software Advice, a lead generation and research advisory firm that offers software reviews and comparisons. Today, consumers tend to base their purchase decisions on reviews, social media and referrals from friends. They are interested in marketing, but only if it matches their expectations about the brand. If anyone had a handle on social customer service, I assumed 14 of the nation’s top brands – such as Coca-Cola and Pepsi – would be among them. But recently I completed a research project that tested this theory, and I came up with some surprising results. The five-week project, dubbed “The Great Social Customer Service Race,” assessed the how quickly and often the companies responded on Twitter. Four Software Advice employees used their personal Twitter accounts to send messages to the brands, sometimes with the @ symbol and sometimes without the @. When the @ symbol… read more
Can Your Social Media Profile Be Both Personal And Professional?
October 4, 2012 - Posted by Rilee Chastain
Blurring the lines between business life and personal life with social media. Back before the immense growth of the internet and social media, it was never too difficult to keep your business life separated from your professional one. Intense sport and political talk was reserved for passing moments around the water cooler, and live commentary of your favorite television sitcoms were reserved specifically for whoever was in the room with you at the moment. However, as we saw just last night following the first presidential debate, more and more people are turning to Facebook, Twitter or Google + in order to share their thoughts and opinions on everything from politics to pop culture references. And while this may a great platform to banter back and forth with friends or dive deep into the thoughts of your favorite celebrities, where should you draw the line when your business and personal social… read more
Celebrate Social Media Week With These Fun and Interesting Facts
September 26, 2012 - Posted by Rilee Chastain
A few fun facts that you may have known about social media marketing. All week long, we here at The Marketing Zen Group have been celebrating one of our favorite weeks out of the entire year―Social Media Week. Given our teams passion for social media marketing and the web, it should come as no surprise that we jump at the chance to celebrate the power of Facebook, Twitter, Google +, etc. on marketing in our current society. But other than being a chance for us to geek out about our love for social media, what exactly is Social Media Week? This worldwide event was held for the first time in February 2009 and has since become a global platform that connects people, content and conversation around the many growing trends in the worlds of social and mobile media. It is predicted that over the next 10 years, 3 billion new… read more
How To Get The Most Out Of Your Twitter Hashtags
September 20, 2012 - Posted by Rilee Chastain
Using hashtags to further your businesses Twitter marketing campaign. In the world of social media, it is not simply enough to create a profile page or account for your business in hopes of reaching out to clients and furthering your online marketing efforts. Instead, you must take advantage of the many elements and features that these sites offer as a way to help your company create a unique identity for itself, while also connecting with your audience in a way that you are unable to do through traditional marketing. If you already have a Twitter account that is dedicated to your business, there are several tools that you can incorporate into your existing social media strategy to improve your engagement among readers and also increase your Twitter following. One of the best ways to do this is by using hashtags. Designated by a number sign (#) at the start of… read more
How to Change Your Twitter Header Image
September 18, 2012 - Posted by Amanda Norris
This morning, Twitter rolled out a slew of new updates and features. These changes include new options for customizing the appearance and layout of user profiles, as well as mobile app updates that support these profile changes while adding speed, functionality, and a more user-friendly design. The profile changes are designed to look great on both the website and on mobile apps, emphasizing shared visual content by prominently displaying the last six images uploaded by a user. However, the biggest change announced earlier today is undoubtedly the ability for users to add a header image to their profile, much like the ones that currently exist for Facebook and Google+. These aesthetic changes may seem minor at first, but for brands – or individuals – seeking to establish a defined, unique identity on social media, the ability to add more eye-catching and identifying visual elements to their profiles can help… read more