Social Media Roundup - August 2013

Facebook marketing: myth vs. reality
Knowing what works and what doesn't is crucial for social media marketers. There are a lot of misconceptions, mistakes, and just plain misinformation out there. Four Facebook marketing "myths" that we hear over and over:

1. "Boosting" a post doesn't work. Actually, it provides an easy and inexpensive way to "cheat" Facebook's Edgerank algorithm. Try it.
2. A brand should post only once a day. Nope. Many successful Fan Pages are much more prolific than that. Of course, if you post a lot of stuff your fans don't like, you're going to have a problem keeping people involved.
3. A business needs a content schedule. Well, a content schedule can help, especially if you find regular posting a challenge. But it can also lead to forcing out dull, dutiful content to make the schedule work. And what do you do if something really good (or really bad) happens unexpectedly and your schedule doesn't allow for spontaneity?
4. Every business needs a Facebook Page. If your customers aren't using Facebook, your business doesn't need one. What you need to do is find out what they are using and engage with them there, whether it's LinkedIn, Google+, Twitter, e-newsletters, or old-fashioned forums.

Local marketers need to use Google Maps
Google continues to change its Maps user interface. Here are seven things one smart local marketer figured out to get the best out of Maps. Three examples:

• Buy an ad to stand out on the map of your area. Surprise! Google highlights the locations of ad buyers on the map for a local search.
• Get to know the local reviewers. Do a little research into the folks in your area who are reviewing a lot of businesses, especially your competitors'. Get to know them and be nice to them.
• Google gives you a nice presentation of related search queries as part of the search box. Take advantage of it to find keywords to add to your business listing (and your website).

Advertising on Facebook
You've seen the ads that appear on Facebook. Advertising there has grown to be a big business: Facebook's revenue in the three months ending in June grew 53 percent year-over-year to $1.9 billion. Facebook knows a lot about its users' interests and demographics, making it easy for marketers to target advertising very finely. Is Facebook advertising right for your business? This article can help you determine if advertising on Facebook is for you.

Why you should invest in email marketing
Email is the oldest form of social media on the Internet (human beings have been networking since we lived in caves, they just didn't have the web). In many ways email is still one of the most effective forms of connecting. If you haven't tried email marketing, here are some reasons you should:

• Everybody has email. It's the first thing almost everybody looks at in the morning. Why shouldn't your communications be the first thing they see?
• It's cheap. Some of the major email management services have remarkably generous free offerings, and even the paid ones are very cost-effective.
• It's easy to measure your results. Marketers who struggle with imprecise social media metrics will appreciate the clarity and quick turnaround of email marketing.

Social buttons: how many do you really need?
Like too many things in this confusing online world, the answer is "it depends." A marketer for a casino portal in the U.K. explains how they decided which social buttons to include on their website. They consider social buttons for Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, StumbleUpon, Delicious, Digg, and Reddit. Having too many buttons on the site just confuses your users, so figure out what they really want and need and give it to them.

Getting started with Vine
Vine, the mini-video sharing application, is currently the sixth most downloaded free mobile app, outranking the very popular Instagram service (ranked thirteenth). If you haven't seen or tried Vine, it's a service that allows the capture and sharing of short (6-second), looping videos on Twitter and Facebook. It was acquired by Twitter in October 2012, and has been available for Android devices since June. Learn how to use Vine's fun, spontaneous videos to your best advantage with the tips in this piece.

Pinterest anyone?
Pinterest continues to be a great opportunity in both consumer and B2B markets. Remember: Pinterest drives more referral traffic to websites than LinkedIn, Google+, and YouTube combined. Whatever your business is, you should take a look at Pinterest and see if it's right for you.

Who creates your content? (Do you need a writer?)
Small-business owners have many talents and fill many roles, but they're usually not professional writers. For many business owners who need content for blogs and social media, the right answer is for them (and their employees) to stick with what they do best and hire a professional to do the writing for them. Here's why.

Video marketing success tips
Small business marketers considering video are often discouraged by high costs and the challenges of promoting and distributing their offerings. After all, how do you make a video go viral? No one can teach you how to do that, but this article has 10 solid tips to get help you get started with video marketing.

Google+ is the second-largest social network; Should you be there?
With 359 million monthly active users, Google+ has the numbers to belie its reputation as a social media "ghost town." The one big fact that makes it almost a no-brainer for all marketers is that it belongs to Google, and use of G+ has been proven to boost ranking in Google's search algorithm. But how does it stack up against Facebook in terms of engagement, how do you get followers, and what are the best practices for using G+? Get the facts you need to make your decision about Google+ here.

Daniel Lieberman is the founder of Daniel Lieberman Digital ("I speak Geek - You don't need to"). Based in Shelburne Falls, Mass., he helps companies, organizations, and individuals learn to use the Internet to communicate, market, and brand themselves using the most up-to-date tools and techniques. Contact him at 413-489-1818 or daniel@daniellieberman.org.