To many, the revolution in social media networks may seem like a fad that will fade out just as fast it appeared.  Yet, the truth is that social media is one of the fastest ways to reach out to prospective consumers. Between Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other similar social media platforms, everything that can be said about you, whether good or bad, is transmitted almost instantaneously across the globe. With over 300 million users, Facebook is by far one of the biggest social media networks out there.  While it may have begun as a tool to keep college students in touch, ...

With everyone jumping on the social media bandwagon, it is easy to get caught up in the hype and lose focus. Tapping into social media requires more than just a single idea, it requires an effective plan to help your company and brand create opportunities for community and engagement. Follow these tips to help you get started on your social media campaign. Create a vision Develop an idea of what you want your brand or company to be in social media. Will you be offering special deals or coupons? Is it to personalize your brand? What is the message you ...

With social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter becoming the latest word-of-mouth venue, it is becoming more pertinent for businesses and companies to have a presence on these sites. According to the report Social Commerce on Facebook, Twitter and Retail Sites, almost 75% of the merchants in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide have a presence on at least one of the major social networks or social shopping sites. Social networking users of all ages are more likely to make online purchases, so they are considered a highly sought-after group by internet retailers, according to a May 2009 survey by ...

It all started just a few years ago with Facebook. While it began as a private social networking site, Facebook has served as a template for a variety social networking sites that are becoming ever more popular not just among users but also marketing experts. Today, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Bebo, LinkIn. and MySpace are just a few of the many online social networking options available. You may ask, “Why bother?” There is a reason why major companies are using them. Next time you’re visiting a website look for a “follow us on Facebook” or similar message alerting ...

On October 5, BuddyPress 1.1.1 was released to offer WordPress MU users the benefits of social networking, launching WordPress into a new era. The new version is a social networking layer that can be added to any existing installation of WordPress MU making WordPress sites social. Here are some of the benefits of the new BuddyPress. With the help of this new version of BuddyPress, WordPress administrators can create specific profile questions for members to fill in. This allows other users and followers to view information about the members. Extended profile capabilities for members gives each member a unique ...

The amount of time Americans spend on social networking and blogging sites as tripled in the past year. According to the Nielsen Company, time spent on social network and blogging sites, like Facebook and MySpace, accounted for 17 percent of all time spent on the Internet in August 2009. With an increase in the amount of time people spend on social networking and blogging sites, it is important for your company to adjust its advertising and marketing campaigns. Estimated online advertising has increased from approximately $49 million in August 2008 to $108 million in August 2009, a 119 percent increase. ...

Times are tough, but slowly the economy is working its way back to normalcy. Now is a great time to start reexamining your marketing efforts, or whether there are any efforts at all. Maybe the budget isn’t where you want it to be. Maybe your vision of how to market doesn’t match the size of your wallet. Obviously marketing is worth the investment, but if you’re on a tight budget, consider these low cost ways to market your business: E-mail Campaigns: Send a market specific, dynamic, message-effective e-mail. Sending an e-mail to 10,000 people will cost you very little. You ...

Facebook hopes to provide accurate advertising measurements with its latest deal with Neilson. Many have claimed that Facebook's advertising techniques are not successful, but with this partnership, Facebook will be able to provide more reliable data. Facebook will poll users about the display ads on its site and then provide that data to Nielson who will package it for advertisers. It will also include responses from people who did not see an ad. By teaming with Nielson, Facebook will give more credibility to its advertising data. Some brands have already begun conducting intent-to-purchase tests on the site. According to ClickZ, Procter ...

In part 1, we looked at just the first basic steps you should talk when starting a brand new blog. Now that you have been blogging for a bit and have a few posts up, it is time to gain a readership. These are just a few ways to help you gain a loyal readership for your blog. RSS Feed One of the most basic things you can do to help improve a loyal readership is by keeping the link for your RSS feed readily accessible. If people like what they see right away, then they'll most likely add your blog to ...

With Twitter growing at rapid rates, it is quickly becoming the latest way for companies to market themselves and get in touch with current and possible future clients. Approximately 18 million adults in the United States will access Twitter at least once a month, according to the latest report from eMarketer, making up around 11 percent of total Internet users. They estimate that percentage to increase to 15.5 in 2010. With a high number of people now flocking to Twitter, this can become a new way for your company to get its name out there. There are multiple ways to use your ...

With new social networking sites popping up and burning out every day it can be a challenge just to break through the piles of pop ups and product links. Getting your message heard on the social networking scene is more difficult than ever but there are a few ways to make sure you get the most out of your advertising budget. Know Your Audience While there are some in the older demographics enjoying sites like Facebook, the audience mainly ranges the 10-25 age group (unless you count parents checking up on their kids). If you are trying to sell insurance you might ...

The marketing world has never changed more than in the past five years.  Today's biggest marketing discovery is social media marketing.  Relying on spheres of influence and the viral nature of social media networks, social media marketing has become not just the next "in" thing in marketing but also the new generation of marketing. Social networking sites such as Facebook reach millions of people all over the world on a daily basis enhancing brand awareness, brand loyalty and of course, advertising.  The concept of social media marketing is simple.  Imagine that you stumble upon a great new an exciting ad on ...