Social Media: It’s Not Just About The People - 04/29/10 10:38 PM
There are a lot of people out there who are using social media to help boost their brand without knowing the complete potential of it.  This lack of knowledge can be very damaging to the point where many people may actually give up on social media, even though it is providing indirect benefits.  That being said, did you know that when you post something on a social network, it is seen by much more than your Twitter Followers or your Facebook Friends?
Bots (also known as spiders) are the methods in which search engines ‘crawl’ and insert content into the search … (2 comments)

Small and Medium Businesses Double Leads With Blogs And Twitter - 04/28/10 09:20 PM
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Here is a pretty impressive statistic:  the inbound marketing platform HubSpot reports that not only can inbound marketing make as an extremely cost-effective way to generate leads, but it can also double the average monthly leads generated by small and even medium-sized businesses.  While anyone would be interested in doubling the amount of leads they generate on a monthly basis, what do they mean when they say  “inbound marketing”?  Well, seeing that the theme of this blog is primarily focused towards social media marketing, the term “inbound marketing” comes from creating communities and a constant stream of … (4 comments)

Consumers Are Following Social Brand Referrals - 04/27/10 10:39 PM
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It seems like social media marketing is receiving more promising results on a weekly basis.
This week’s social marketing benefit?  Well, according to research and marketing firm Morpace, two out of every three Facebook users state that they will more likely purchase a product if referred to by one of their Facebook friends.  Almost half of these referrals are from brands who have Facebook Fan Pages.

As you may have already figured out, Facebook Fan Pages are a great way for people to tell their friends about your product or service.  The question is, how are … (5 comments)

Twitter Gets Creative - 04/26/10 09:35 PM
...Ad creative, that is.
The micro-blogging giant has finally taken the step forward to bring advertising to their platform. If you are familiar with Google AdWords, then you will be able to relate to what Twitter is trying to accomplish.
Just like AdWords, business will have the opportunity to bid on keywords. When a user searches for those keywords through Twitter's search, they will show up at the top of the results as 'Promoted Tweets'. So now, whenever you do a search on Twitter, be sure to keep this in mind. I would assume they would mark the advertised tweets as … (5 comments)

Viral Video Friday: Compilations - 04/24/10 11:19 AM
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I know this is a day late, so I apologize. I was out all day yesterday and never had a chance to post these. In short, a viral video is a video which gets widespread popularity throughout various online (social networks, email, instant messaging, etc.) and mobile devices. But what defines a viral viewing? According to research conglomerate Millward Brown, a high viral viewing consists of a video receiving more than 1,000 U.K. or 5,000 U.S. views per week.
And how do you create a viral video? In a 'Face the Nation' interview with Jennifer Feikin (director … (1 comments)

How To Leverage The New YouTube Updates - 04/22/10 09:39 PM
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Ever since January, YouTube has been gradually introducing their new design.  It is now fully integrated across the entire video service, and has shown some promising results.  With the redesign leading to a 6% increase in playbacks and a 7% increase in viewing more content (according to MediaPost), you can assume the new design is here to stay.

Hence, the focus of this article.  The redesigning of YouTube has led to a lot of changes that every marketer should know about.  Below, I will discuss some of the primary changes with the new YouTube design and … (3 comments)

Measuring Your Social Media ROI - 04/21/10 09:39 PM
As we make our way through the second quarter of 2010, many industries are still working on ways to quantify the results of using social media.  Even though this topic has been discussed for years, many marketers still do not believe they will see quantifiable results in their social media efforts.  According to a report conducted by Datran Media, one in four marketers are unsure as to whether or not they’ll see social media results.

While this is still a very controversial topic, one can’t help but to ask the question: “How much effort is being put into measuring social … (5 comments)

Facebook Toolbar, Are You Using It? - 04/20/10 08:56 PM
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For those of you who are power users of Facebook, this is something that may be of interest to you.  If you use Internet Explorer or FireFox as your primary browser, you can get all the features of Facebook right in a toolbar, which is free to download.  This is an excellent way for you to constantly stay updated on everything that is happening, which can have a very positive impact on your social marketing strategy, depending on your objectives.

So, why would you want to use the Facebook Toolbar anyways?  Well, it gives you the … (23 comments)

Privacy Complaints on Google, MSN and Yahoo May Be Seen In A Different Light - 04/19/10 09:13 PM
As indicated by an article published by AdAge, various privacy groups have filed complaints to the FTC regarding the potential privacy issues with advertising exchange systems, particularly with Google, MSN and Yahoo. The argument of these pay-per-click (PPC) and behavioral advertising exchange systems violating end-user privacy is nothing new. But, with the appointments of two new commissioners, this complaint may be getting a little more focus.
After the Obama White House appointed Julie Brill and Edith Ramirez as commissioners of the FTC, they indirectly gave the FTC a new makeover.  With the appointments of both Brill and Ramirez, this is the … (1 comments)

Viral Video Friday: How Cute! - 04/16/10 09:51 PM
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In short, a viral video is a video which gets widespread popularity throughout various online (social networks, email, instant messaging, etc.) and mobile devices.  But what defines a viral viewing?  According to research conglomerate Millward Brown, a high viral viewing consists of a video receiving more than 1,000 U.K. or 5,000 U.S. views per week.
And how do you create a viral video?  In a ‘Face the Nation’ interview with Jennifer Feikin (director of Google Video), she states the following:
“You can’t just create a viral video.  It needs to be very organic; it needs to be … (2 comments)

How Appropriate Is Your Social Media Communications? - 04/15/10 09:42 PM
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Every day when I check my various social media channels for updates and contacts, I quickly discover the extreme amount random, irrelevant chatter going on in each social space.  While I understand that social media is intended for socializing, it really got me thinking about the utility of social networks for business objectives.  If  you are interested in expanding your brand’s reach across the social media, should you really be discussing everything going on in your life?
As I view wall posts, tweets, and even blogs of real estate professionals, I can’t help but be surprised at … (12 comments)

[VIDEO] Navigating The New YouTube - 04/14/10 10:04 PM
As many of you have probably witnessed, YouTube has received a pretty dramatic face lift within the past few days. While the video service now has more of a web 2.0-friendly interface, there have been a few changes that you should know about, especially if you plan on using YouTube for your social marketing endeavors. Instead of just writing everything out, Philip Defranco made a very thorough video on all the changes done on the new YouTube. You can check it out below:
Even though it may take you some time to get used to this new interface, it’s a good … (0 comments)

Why Are People Flagging You As A Spammer? - 04/13/10 07:48 PM
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As a real estate professional, chances are you have an email list of some sort.  Whether it be for direct communication or just an autoresponder campaign, the ability for someone to voluntarily give you their email address these days is incredibly significant.  They expect you will provide them valuable content, and as unfortunate as it sounds, that is entirely up to the recipient to determine.
It is a fact of life that people will opt-out of your email list.  If you are one of those people who intentionally make opting-out a tedious task, then you may be … (1 comments)

7 Buzz-Generating Ways To Ignite Events With Social Media - 04/12/10 07:44 PM
Sharing is caring! There is no question that social media can have a very influential impact on strengthening your brand.  Unfortunately, since social media is still a new endeavor for many people, the potential of this new marketing medium may seem limited.  A lot of people just see social media as a way to communicate and meet new people, but there is so much more to it.  One such way to leverage social media in a unique manner is to promote your events.  And not just promote them, but get people talking about them as well.
Jay Baer recently created a … (2 comments)

Your Participation Is Requested - 04/09/10 01:02 PM
I just wanted to take a quick break from the usual articles I post here and request your feedback on something.
We recently created a short survey for real estate professionals, and I thought this would be an appropriate place to post it.  The survey is 11 questions and is primarily focused on online marketing and time management.  It shouldn't take you more than 5 minutes to complete, and all your answers are submitted anonymously.
The survey can be accessed at: http://www.realeflix.com/survey/timemgmt.php.
Thank you very much for your participation, and if you know of any other real estate professionals that may … (2 comments)

Viral Video Friday: The Beginning - 04/09/10 10:46 AM
Sharing is caring! This is the first of what I hope to be a weekly series of ways to get those creative juices flowing for creating “viral” videos.  I thought this would be a fun and informative way to learn about real-life techniques and ideas that are generating large viewer bases.  The goal of these articles is to provide you up to 3 (hopefully thematically-based) examples of videos that have recently gone viral.
To make sure you can view them from your office, I also hope to stay away from all viral videos that are NSFW (not safe for work).  There … (2 comments)

SEM: Are You Being Left Behind? - 04/08/10 01:47 PM
Sharing is caring! When the “State of Search Engine Marketing 2010″ report was released, it appeared to provide evidence that Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and Pay-Per-Click (PPC) advertising is recession-proof. As businesses of all sizes decreased their spending budgets in various advertising avenues, investing in SEO and PPC increased. Not only has this kind of advertising increased, but it is forecast to grow even more this year according to Econsultancy and the Search Engine Marketing Professional Organization (SEMPO), the groups behind this report.

Are You Watching The Bandwagon Go By?
There is already $16.6 billion being invested by companies in … (2 comments)

Using The F-Word To Strengthen Your Brand - 04/07/10 10:37 AM
Sharing is caring! In pretty much all of the articles I have written here, the focus has been about utilizing primary social networks such as Facebook and Twitter to build your brand.   There is another type of social network out there though that can have an even stronger impact than your efforts on Facebook and Twitter.  While many people may not consider them social networks, they are in fact one of the first social networks ever created.  Can you guess what it is?
It is Forums.  Were you expecting something else ?
Some of the first forums have been created in … (44 comments)

Getting The Most Out Of Your Advertising Dollars - 04/06/10 11:21 AM
With all of the different advertising opportunities available for you to take advantage of, it can be pretty mind boggling.  From social networks like Facebook and Myspace; to social bookmarking services like Digg and Delicious; to everything in between; there is a lot of advertising space you can use.  If that isn’t enough, there are also a variety of different advertising mediums (banners, text ads, etc.) you can use for each of these services.  Wouldn’t it be nice if you could just know what mediums worked best in which networks?
Even though this is a pretty complex topic with a ton … (0 comments)

Do You Know What People Are Saying About You? - 04/05/10 10:05 AM
Whether or not you use social media on a daily basis, your audience does.  By audience, I don’t just mean people who voluntarily pay attention to what you have to say, but rather your past clients, present clientele, and most importantly, future prospects.  Now, add the fact that most people enjoy publicly expressing their opinions, and you have a formula for word-of-mouth marketing.
While this may sound great to many, it’s important to remember that word-of-mouth marketing is a double-edged sword.  Just because people like to tell others about their opinions doesn’t mean it is going to be positive.  Seeing how … (4 comments)

The Most Retweetable URL Shortening Service - 04/02/10 05:13 PM
If you have any experience on Twitter, you know that URL shorteners are the fundamental method for sharing clickable links with others.  While they have completely revolutionized the way links are shared on Twitter, one can’t help but ask “Which one is the best to use”?  Before we get into that though, let’s explore URL shortening services in a little more detail.
What Are URL Shortening Services?
A URL Shortening Service is a service that allows you to take a long URL (such as the URL to a specific blog article) and dramatically reduce its size in characters so that it … (1 comments)

7 Tips To Help You Create A Powerful Facebook Username - 04/01/10 10:59 AM
Facebook has the potential of being a great avenue for you to build relationships and generate business if set up properly.  While there are a variety of elements needed to create a powerful Facebook profile, this article is going to cover one that many people may not have thought about: your username.
Your Facebook username is one of the most important parts of your profile, as it is what people need to find you.  To check if you have already set up your Facebook username, log into your account and then go Account > Account Settings and click the “change” link … (4 comments)

 
Provides a combination of current trends and findings I think are worth sharing in the realms of online and social marketing strategies.


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