Social Media Platforms Take the Internet by Storm

In today's internet related society, social media platforms have taken the world by storm. But social networking has been around for much longer than most people think. It all began with bulletin board systems (BBS), online meeting places that allowed users to communicate with each other. But of course, social media has come a long way since then.
 
We now have the ability to make low cost phone calls, and video calls over the internet using Skype; the ability to upload, edit, and share photographs with Instagram and Flickr; the ability to 'pin' images and content to share with our friends and family via Pinterest; make, upload, and share videos via YouTube; and so much more.
 
In fact, there are so many different types of platforms that many have become much more than simply social media. For example, Linkedin and Google + are both platforms that many businesses and professionals use to help promote, and increase their client base, and to keep in touch with other professionals. Foursquare is a location based platform primarily used on mobile devices that can help you find fantastic places to visit. Then there is Second Life, a huge virtual world where you can create your own person (avatar) and live a life that you choose, or a life that you couldn't live in real life, all while interacting closely with other avatars.
 
There is also Ustream, a social platform where you can broadcast live video and watch events all while chatting to other users. Another platform that has taken the internet by storm is Wikipedia, an online encyclopedia that anybody can contribute to.
 
Of course, we mustn't forget the two giant social media platforms; Facebook and Twitter -- both allow you to keep in touch with family and friends while posting thoughts, pictures, videos and much more. An article about social platforms would not be complete without mentioning MySpace, although it has lost the popularity that it once had. Recently, however, Myspace was sold for $35 million dollars, which Justin Timberlake was a major investor (at an undisclosed amount). After this purchase it has been redesigned and is now geared toward musicians. By creating a target niche they may have an opportunity to come back on top.
 
All in all, there are dozens of social media platforms at your disposal...but the question I pose is how many should one be a part of? Thoughts?
 
 
Sources:
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1739601,00.html
http://articles.cnn.com/keyword/skype
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2011/jun/30/myspace-internet

Blogging and Social Media

Marketing: Blogging & Social Media Combined
New companies/organizations have to get the word out about their services/products somehow. The best way to market in today’s society is to implement blogging and social media to insure that your business is getting the maximum amount of exposure.
 
Why Companies Cannot Just Post On Their Blog
Having a company blog is something that is very important yet at the same time it cannot be your only form of marketing. In order to make sure that you are always attracting new customers it is important to implement social media marketing into your marketing plan as well.
 
Anyone can write a viral blog post. However, the post is not going to go viral unless it is spread around. The best way to attract potential customers to your blog during this age in time is to go about doing so via social media. Some of the more popular social media networks are Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Pinterest. However, joining other social networks can be beneficial as well, if you have the time to do so.
 
Why Does Social Media Increase My Company’s Exposure?
Social media is a great marketing tool because you are literally able to expose your brand to millions of users each day. Not to mention the fact that if you are giving your audience something that is genuinely useful or interesting they are going to share it with their audience and the chain of marketing will be continued numerous times. However, to make sure that your marketing efforts do not go to waste you are actually going to have to connect with your social media audience. This means you are going to have to interact with them online in a timely manner and even share some of their relevant posts/statuses from time to time so they will be inclined to do the same for you.
 
Basically, if you combine blogging and social media together in an appropriate way your marketing plan is going to be bullet proof and bring you a lot of success.

Sources:
http://searchengineland.com/guide/what-is-social-media-marketing
http://socialmediatoday.com/tara-hornor/1154256/tips-better-maximizing-your-reach-content-marketing

Quantitate my Qualities & Qualitate my Quantity

What does that title even mean? In short: RESEARCH! Now to some, “research” seems like a boring, daunting, and just plain uninteresting word, let alone task. It doesn't have to be! There are two types of research (quantitative and qualitative) and when done together you gain the most valuable insights. If you are using social media marketing then you may or may not know that you can track both quantitative and qualitative data. However, it can be very difficult to track both.
 
Depending upon what is important to you in your social media goals when starting out; you should either concentrate on qualitative data of trending and buzz around your brand, or quantitative data of numbers and facts generated from your marketing. Your goals are what should determine which path to take.
 

Qualitative Data

Qualitative research is the more "fun" out of the two. This is the type of research most often undertaken by large companies who depend upon a stellar reputation to make and sustain customers. Companies who use qualitative research want to know the honest opinion about their brand and use this information to correct and maintain their image. They use customer feedback and surveys to track the type of buzz they are receiving.
 

Quantitative Data

While tracking qualitative data may be fun, the reality is that businesses are driven by the bottom line. By using hard facts such as graphs, tables, and metrics, you can track what is working and what isn’t. Numbers can tell you a lot about the success of a campaign or new release compared to other time periods. If you have any questions about what works or doesn’t work, all you have to look at is the quantitative data to give you those answers. The buzz may be great on a new product, but until you see the cold hard facts and numbers, then it isn’t truly a success. There are some interesting ways to measure quantitative data in social media. A great example is Twitter and Klout. Klout measures diversity, reach, and velocity of Twitter. These are cold hard numbers that can measure the effectiveness of a user.
 
If you are able to reach a median with measuring the appropriate qualitative data and quantitative data, then you will have a great idea of your level of success in social media. As a company or organization who wants to be competent in social media be sure you are able to measure these factors to get the best "bang for your buck"

• Growth of fans, followers, friends
• Frequency of mentions
• Engagement
• Influencers
• Reach

Now...go out a search!!!
 
 
Sources:
http://argylesocial.com/blog/2010/12/01/qualitative-vs-quantitative-measurement-in-social-media-marketing.html
http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/social-media-analytics-twitter-quantitative-qualitative-analysis

SWOT Away The Competition

Now you may be thinking “this dude is a fool…he can’t even spell SWAT right!” In this particular case I am not swatting away the competition as you would do to a fly (however exciting that may be), and I am definitely not talking about a group of policemen who are trained to deal with violent and dangerous situations (thank you Webster’s for that definition).

I am however referencing a S.W.O.T. Analysis, the strategic planning method created by management consultant Albert S. Humphrey. In just about any venture, whether business, sports, finding a great place to eat, or even dating – you will want to analyze the competition. A S.W.O.T. Analysis is one such way of doing this. SWOT Matrices come in various form and fashion, but what is most important is the content.

I could ramble on about exactly what this is and how it is used, but instead I will focus on how this handy dandy tool can be used in social media (if you want to know what just do a quick Google). As soon as you define what your objective or goal is you can use this tool to figure out which factors impact that goal.

Strengths and Weaknesses are Internal Influences; 
Opportunities and Threats are External.

eMentorMarketing discusses how important it is to understand your strengths when creating a social media marketing strategy. Areas of strength may include:

• Large Market Reach
• Great Customer Service
• An Engaging Community
• You Are the “Go-to” Person
• Your Customers are Open to Future Offers

All of these strengths tie into the overall importance of having a clean, overall objective in what you are trying to accomplish. No matter what the content ends up being, it is important to ask yourself “Self…do my strengths match up with the desired end results I want?” As you begin to assess all areas of a SWOT Analysis you can see where you need to most work and where you have a competitive advantage.

Despite what you think your advantage may be, Channel Ship suggests that strengths can also be weaknesses. For example, “being very personal.” If you do not have the right people at the helm of creating your social media content, it could become a liability rather than a strength. How do you make sure you are not committing social media suicide? You get a plan…and I suggest starting with a SWOT Analysis THEN make your plan.

As Antoine de Saint-Exupéry said, “A goal without a plan is just a wish”