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Posted by DBC Digital on

June 12, 2012

Social Media Marketing – Part 2

In our last post, we discussed the importance of developing a social media marketing strategy. Everyone knows social media contains a virtual gold mine of communication opportunity.

But, with so many platforms to convey your message across the vast and seemingly tangled universe of the web, how does one know what’s working and where?

How to Measure What’s Working

The following are 4 easy ways to determine whether your social media marketing efforts are working:

I. Referrals, referrals, referrals…

Look at the number of referrals your site is receiving. At DBC Digital, we use HubSpot as our primary tool in measuring the quantity of traffic being referred to our website via the social media that we use.

Another effective resource to measure traffic to your site is Google Analytics. With this free tool, simply click on the Traffic Sources tab, then on Referring Sites, then type in the name of the social network your want to measure (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.), and you’ll immediately discover how much traffic is being generated from that platform.

II. Content Quality Review

Quality content is what drives your social marketing growth. If it’s not meaningful to your prospect, then it’s only another vehicle jamming the Internet Highway.

The best and clearest ways to determine the success of your content efforts so far are to count:

The number of unique page views your site is receiving
The time a visitor spends on your site
The number of pages of your site being viewed by visitors.

If you are using Google Analytics to track your site’s metrics, click on the CONTENT tab and then select Overview. This gives you a total picture of your highest ranking content, along with the necessary statistics to determine what’s actually striking a chord with your target market.

III. Share of Voice (SOV)

Your SOV is just what you probably imagine it is; simply: how many people are talking about you (or your company) measured against the number of people talking about your competitors.

SOV is calculated by dividing the number of mentions of your brand against the total number of conversations about all the other brands in your market.

There are free resources like SocialMention which can help you with that analysis. Making this action a piece of cake…or share of the pie, if you will!

IV. Determine the “Love Me, Love Me Not” Factor

This measurement is almost purely subjective, but it’s vitally important to your success. Social media is about PEOPLE – emotions, motivations, likes and dislikes. For this measurement, simply look at the individual mentions of you (or your company) in each social media platform, and then mark each mention as either positive or negative. When you’re done, add up each group and compare the total number in each to see where you are on the LMLMN scale.

Use this measure over a defined period of time to help you determine where you are now and what the trend is.

Want more information and direction in succeeding with social media? Here’s our eBook that goes into more detail and specifics to help you get started the right way:https://dbcdigital.wpengine.com/enhance-your-internet-presence/

We wish you the best of success!

Categories : SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

Posted by DBC Digital on

June 7, 2012

Social Media Marketing – Part 1

Like traditional marketing, social media marketing in Denver requires that you connect with your potential customers in a way that is meaningful to them.

The first step in creating a foundation for success in any marketing approach is to identify who you want to reach and then tailor your approach and message to that profile.

If you want to maximize your reach with your prospects, social media marketing is one of the most effective methods available. But you do need a strategy. The challenge is that Social media marketing isn’t linear (see chart below). You will need to consider where your prospects are finding and sharing their information and how your prospects are using the various social media platforms. In other words,

What’s the Plan, Stan (or Mary or Phil…)?

Step One

The above chart is only a sampling of the myriad of ways you can connect with your prospects, so Step One is to create a profile (or persona) of your targeted prospects. (Just like an FBI agent. Well, not really like an FBI agent, but you get the idea.)

The easiest way to do this is to research who your best customers have been and create a “persona” for each of these best profiles. In other words, identify your primary audience, what their interests are and how they like or want to be communicated with.

This step will tell you the best Social Media platform to use to build your connections with this group.

Your plan will be specific to your business requirements. In virtually all cases though you will need to:

Establish realistic objectives (be ready to adjust these objectives based on the success of your plan)
Focus on your offer’s content. (What value you offer in exchange for their business.)
Use the most effective social media platform based on the profile you have created
Track your results, adjust, repeat.

The Beauty of Social Media Marketing

Your prospects are going to be so inspired by the power of your message, and by the value that you offer with your brand, that they will want to share their new-found knowledge with friends. Or not. If not, be patient and keep to your schedule and maintain consistency. You will get there.

Perhaps your research was so thorough that you’ve already established a presence in your prospects’ friends’ virtual neighborhoods. If you’re not there yet, don’t worry. Most of the heavy lifting is going to be done for you by your newfound followers as they share and spread the word about your business.

Your new followers and clients will bring you credibility in their circles and give you a foothold to pursue a more engaged presence with them and their connections. You will learn their buying behaviors and you will better understand their motivations and their needs.

Your social media marketing message should be constantly adjusted as you learn more about your targets’ profiles and personas. Be bold, but be consistent in your efforts. While social media marketing doesn’t usually explode overnight, be prepared for a steadily increasing level of success in this new arena.

In our next post, we’ll take a closer look at the mechanics of successful social media marketing. Until then, go ahead and let yourself get a little carried away with the possibilities that social media can bring to your business.

Categories : INTERNET MARKETING, SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING, STRATEGY

Posted by DBC Digital on

May 29, 2012

Jump in to Social Media, Denver!

Ho-Hum Words, Exciting Concept

Boring words? “Content marketing.” Exciting concept? Content marketing. Yep. Same two words. It’s almost impossible to escape social media marketing’s dependance and effectiveness content marketing.

Content marketing is perhaps the most pervasive and, some would say, really one of the few effective marketing approaches still available for Denver-based clients.

What about all the other media options?

Think about that for a moment. Newspaper ads? As fewer people read actual print newspapers (Strike 1!), fewer advertisers use newspapers to market their products and services (Strike 2!) resulting in less ad revenue for newspapers, shuttering or diminishing many of them (Strike 3). TV advertising? Are you using your Tivo or DVR to record commercials? In fact, last week Dish Network announced a new service called “Hopper” that allows you to completely skip commercials on recorded prime-time shows.

All in all, traditional marketing, while still effective in some areas, is losing its effectiveness in others.

So, what do you do?

Can you utilize social media for marketing? For many in Denver, the ability to effectively use Social Media may ultimately determine the profit margin, if not the very survival, of their business.

So, now what? How do you create compelling, persuasive content for your social media marketing? The most important rule here is to write to your niche audience and make sure they can find it when they need it.

Here are 8 things to remember, plus a bonus one for free. (Wait, what? We’re giving free advice? Who’s idea was that?). Here we go:

They’re called “social” networks for a reason. Short of joining several associations and attending gala affairs at the Denver Hyatt each night, these networks enable you to connect with potential customers on a social, interactive basis. Find out which platforms your “best” (most active, most profitable) customers are engaging with and communicate with them there.

Tip: While there are over 400 categorized Social Networking Sites active globally, the most useful ones are probably Facebook (if you are focused in a Business-to-Consumer category), and LinkedIn (if you are Business-to-Business category) with Twitter and YouTube helping to grow your connections with either group).

Remember, social media credibility takes time to show results (because you are building relationships which don’t happen overnight).

P.S. Don’t forget that your own blogs are one of the most effective things you can do to be found on the internet.

Cross pollinate social networking platforms. If you are active on more than one platform, make sure your messaging is consistent across all of them. otherwise you’ll have some ‘splainin’ to do when people start to blog about inconsistencies in your messaging (and they will).
If you build it, they will come. Consider social media success as much art as science. Research popular blogs and websites that focus on your topics and determine why they are popular. Then use what you learn for your own success. Remember, we all want to be amused, entertained, educated, and engaged.
Create. Whether you write a blog or produce an instructional video, the idea is to make it entertaining/beneficial enough so that people will keep coming back for more.
Pump up the volume! Maximizing marketing effectiveness requires attention-grabbing headlines, subtitles, keywords that fit the story you’re trying to tell and tools that enable people to share your content (e.g., hyperlinks). Social media marketing without pop is like a shark that stops swimming-it soon dies.
“Mobilize” your efforts. Your content must be accessible (formatted) for PC/Mac desktops, laptops, and smart-phones, tablets and other PDAs.
Don’t rest on your laurels. Wrote a great piece? Posted an awesome video? Well, only if your audience thinks so! Monitor your feedback (are you seeing increases your followers, “likes” and connections?) and make keep making improvements based on that feedback.
Rinse and repeat. Determine what works. Get rid of what doesn’t. Give your prospects and clients what they want.
And the bonus tip? Your ego is not always your amigo. No matter how intelligent, competent, creative, revolutionary your ideas are, “they don’t mean a thing if they ain’t got that swing” that your clients and prospects want to dance to!

Categories : INTERNET MARKETING, SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

Posted by DBC Digital on

May 21, 2012

Social Media: How to Use Twitter to Help Your Business Grow

If you’re a Denver-based business owner who thinks Twitter will never work for you—too time-consuming, too complicated, and not enough measurable data (besides, I’m a grown-up and I don’t “tweet”)—think again. The fact is, Twitter can become your new best friend, if you do it right.

Start the Conversation

Every successful business owner knows that you need to start conversations with your soon-to-be customers as well as maintain ongoing conversations with your existing customers. Consumer buying decisions are increasingly based on these conversations—and the information that prompts them.

So, where are these conversations happening? Where is this information? More and more, consumers are turning to Twitter and other social media sites to find out what’s valuable and what’s not. Maybe you’re already engaged in inbound internet marketing and are wondering how to incorporate social media into the plan. Maybe your competitors are already using Twitter and it’s making you a little nervous because you’re not. Whatever the reason, you can start using this powerful tool to market your business and make it work.

The following tips for Twitter success will get you on the road to inbound Internet marketing success. Here are 7 smart tips:

1. Start with your keywords.

Optimizing your social media content starts with search engine optimization, and SEO starts with keywords. A solid list of effective long- and short-tail keywords is crucial if you want your tweets to be found and forwarded by both humans and search engines.

2. Plan ahead.

It’s not a bad idea to plan out and write your tweets in advance, then post them on a schedule. For instance, create topics for each day of the week in the same way you would a blog, to get conversations going or release interesting information. Planning ahead gives you direction, gives you time to check for proper voice and keeps you on track.

3. Check your retweets (RT).

If you write a post that is retweeted a lot, congratulations! It’s popular! Keep these popular tweets in mind, as they give you important data about what topics people find interesting, and which ones you should focus more of your time on.

4. Optimize your “handle.”

Your Twitter handle is your identifying name for Twitter users (i.e. @dbcdigital), so ideally it would be your company name. However, if you can’t use your company name, use your best keyword. Since your handle precedes each tweet, this boosts your SEO power.

5. Don’t oversell.

If your tweets are all about you, people will soon go away. This is part of inbound Internet marketing 101. So, use the 80/20 rule when posting material on Twitter. This means 80% pure information, 20% marketing material. Include keyword-optimized links to other useful resource sites, and leave personal comments and answers. Remember, this is social media marketing, but your followers don’t want it to feel that way.

6. Create good hashtags. (#)

Hashtags are designated with a pound sign (#) before a key word. These were developed by Twitter users to tell others that they’re talking about a specific topic and to be able to search for and track who else is discussing the same topic. So, be sure to use your keywords in hashtags whenever possible. This will help lead people to your account.

7. Time your tweets.

Be smart about which topics you introduce and when you introduce them. If your business is seasonal, for example, start talking about the topics relevant to the season. Or, if you just attended an important trade show or convention, be sure to talk about it right away (on site, if possible). Include your keywords for these specific seasons or events.

Apply these Twitter tips and see what Twitter can do for you!

What’s your opinion? Do you agree or disagreee that Twitter can help a business grow? What are some ways you use Twitter in your business?

Categories : SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

Posted by DBC Digital on

May 1, 2012

Inbound Marketing: 5 Keys to Developing Your Buyer Personas

They May Look the Same, But…

Many CEOs and marketers know that targeting your best (most profitable, most frequent, most referring, etc.) prospects can make you more effective and your company more profitable.

Customer personas, (also known as buyer personas), are a great way of identifying and then creating marketing messages tailored to your ideal buyer(s). In a nutshell, personas are the characters that represent the various people who need and will use your products and services. For instance, you can create a persona named “Charlene” who would represent a senior product buyer and another persona named “Max” that represents the characteristics of your best small business buyer, etc.

Creating accurate personas is a technique that, as part of your content marketing and social media initiatives, helps you target qualified buyers.

Developing Your Client Personas

While the concept is simple, it’s not as simple as just imagining who you think might be your ideal customers. To create accurate customer personas, you need to ask yourself some specific questions for each type of your best prospects:

1. What are this person’s job responsibilities and activities?
2. How is this person’s success measured within their company and by the people they report to?
3. What are his or her greatest challenges and pain points in their job?
4. How does she or he make purchasing decisions? What are the driving factors?
5. What would prevent this person from purchasing from you or your company?
6. Where does this person go to get their information?
7. Is he or she the decision maker? If not, what do they need to present to the decision makers?
8. What groups of professional and social networks do they belong to? How big are these networks?
9. What is her current level of interest in working with your company?
10. Generally, how can you help them?

What Is the Message?

Once you have this information, you can begin to create content marketing messages and other content that is tailored to each of them. The true value in customer personas lies in the fact that they help your company create a content marketing initiative that is not “one size fits all”. Your personas steer you toward someone rather than everyone.

This is important, especially in a marketing environment characterized by tight budgets and limited resources. Companies can no longer afford to waste precious dollars and manpower on untargeted campaigns that cast a wide net, looking for anything that happens to fall into it.

For best results in developing your customer personas, remember the following tips:

Create ideal customer profiles. What problems do you solve and who has these problems?

Identify industries and titles. Which industries, and which people in those industries, will be interested?
Ask the right questions. See above.
Get information from other sources. Use tools to help you gather information about your ideal customers. Ask your social networks, create surveys and utilize inside sales calls to get a 360 degree view.
Always tweak. Once you’re created your personas, revisit them periodically to make adjustments. Your business is always evolving—and so are your customers!

Always remember—what may motivate the marketing manager is probably not what motivates the head of the purchasing department. Everyone from the gatekeeper to the CEO may well be involved in the buying process. You may need to develop a customer persona for each one, and ensure that none of them fall through the cracks during the sales process.

Don’t let a lack of clarity about your customers’ buying process hamper your content marketing efforts and limit your success. Use these tips to develop customer personas that accurately represent the people you want to reach, and you’ll get better results with your content marketing campaign– and spend a lot less time, effort and marketing resources doing it!

Categories : EMAIL CAMPAIGNS, SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

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