Even Google Admits Social Media Advertising Is Superior To SEO

New Google+ “Search plus Your World” Eliminates Other Social Media Results

By now you’ve certainly heard of Google’s new search personalization tying in their fresh faced Google+ social media outlet to your search results to make them more relevant to you. This recent addition to integrate Google+ results with the normal paid and organic search results as “Search plus Your World”. Part of this is a push to get more people on Google+ if they aren’t already but, as they personal results are placed above the organic results. Google is basically telling us that the search results that they strive so hard to maintain and refine should just be replaced with social media results.
Proponents of other social media networks such as Facebook and Twitter have slammed Google for their new search features because they claim they unfairly exclude other social outlets besides Google+. Ordinarily, this would be an issue of jealously by competitors but with Google’s massive 65%+ market share, it could very well bring up some anti-trust or monopoly issues. Forget free web and SOPA, if Google is allowed to dominate all aspects of the internet, users will have to play by Google’s strict often ambiguous rules.
What we have known for a few years is essentially true now: search engines suck. Too many times users search but can’t find what they are looking for. In theory, they are great omnipotent powers that serve up exactly what we are looking for. In practice, search engines deliver paid ads in the most prominent visual spots and gamed “organic” results below which have played the system up to get their high rankings. Despite recent updates to Google’s ranking algorithm, such as the Panda or Farmer update which eliminated low value content farms, search engine optimizers have steadily adapted to the changes, feeling out by split testing what works and what doesn’t. Putting aside the blurry ethical lines many use to market and promote their links, this system has been broken long enough that casual internet users know a lot of the web is spam and ads.
If social media didn’t look promising before to businesses for advertising and marketing, it must look like the holy grail now. Because of the unsavory search engine results experienced on a daily basis, more and more people will rely on sharing links socially and it is only a matter of time before Facebook truly gets into search themselves. And then it is only a matter of time until Google gets out of search.

Top 3 Mistakes Businesses Make In Social Media Marketing

Costly Mistakes Your Company Must Avoid In Digital Advertising

Social media outlets have massive potential to reach droves of new clients with much less effort and expense than traditional marketing. In the US, internet users spend as much time on Facebook as they do on Google. In addition, social networking sites allow your to brand your company and maintain your online image in real time while allowing consumers (your fans and followers) to communicate and give feedback. The accessibility of social media marketing allows anyone to create content without technical hangups and has a pervasive reach into virtually any demographic. It is easy to get started but there are points of etiquette and general business rules that need to be followed for digital advertising campaigns to be successful.
The following is a list of the top 3 mistakes made by companies in their social media ventures:

1. Using your personal profile as a business profile.

The number one rule violation may seem obvious but this is the biggest mistake most companies make, especially those that are new to social media marketing. Sharing personal and business information on the same feed is not only unprofessional but can become harmful to your business by creating an unfavorable image. Simply create a separate profile or page for the company and post only business related content. Facebook allows you to create unlimited fan pages and lets you switch between your business and personal profile on the same account. These steps were taken so that there was no need for more than one account. Most other social media sites have not picked up on this method yet so you must create separate accounts for you business and personal use.

2. Churn out lots of valueless content.

Excluding social media marketing, this is the biggest mistake businesses make when trying to establish themselves online. Creating valuable content is what will initially get your brand attention from users and it will keep them coming back for more. Make sure you update your posts frequently to keep your page fresh and not forgotten. Blogs are a great way to provide relevant, unique content that will give you a group of daily viewers. Content is king and needs to be thought out carefully. The goal is to provide your customers with something useful that they can’t find anywhere else. Why else would they come to you otherwise?

3. Not actively marketing their page.

Many people create a fan page and they think the work is done. However, this is only the beginning of the journey. Now you need people to like and follow your page. Unless your brand already has an established and loyal following, you will have to market your company’s fan page before you will see many people liking the page. There are endless ways to market your social media pages and profiles but paying for placed ads is the easiest if not the more expensive route. Otherwise you can do similar marketing yourself. It is complex to set up but provides a ton of value when it is set up correctly. Many websites offer services that promise to get you 1000 fans but usually provide likes from fake profiles they created in bulk. Have your potential hire explain how they get their fans to like your page before you buy their services.
Keeping in mind these three tenets when creating your social media profiles and pages will go a long way in helping you to establish your company online. The power of social media allows you to acquire many new customers who are interested in your product or services. Your company’s fans will share your links and ask their friends to like your page providing viral word-of-mouth marketing.

The Only 3 Social Media Sites To Market With

Social Sites To Begin Marketing Your Business

The Only Social Media Sites You Ever Need To Advertise On

Social media and networking sites have a firm grip on millions of people who use the internet everyday.  Much of the time spent online these days are on social sites like Facebook where people share messages, links, pictures, and videos.  User are more likely to trust these messages because of the personal nature of the interaction.  Marketing and advertising using social media outlets are powerful avenues to stand out among your competitiors.
(I know this list is probrably obvious to most but the point of this article is to highlight the top 3 social media sites along with demonstrating their potential to businesses worldwide.)

#1. Facebook (Alexa 2, PR 9)

Facebook is prevalent in everyday life.  Over 200 million people in the US alone have active Facebook accounts.  Facebook has become an amazing social media service where people share messages, videos, and links all the time.  Smart phone users have to abliity to use Facebook mobile allowing them to stay connected anywhere they go.  Facebook collects vital statistical information from users establishing demographics that are customized for your products and services.  Users let their guard down on Facebook and are more likely to follow a link or read an advertisement if they are presented by one of their Facebook friends.  For many Facebook users, seeing your message posted by a friend on their feed is as if that person recommened it directly to them.
Business fanpages created on Facebook can serve as a mini website representing the company.  These fanpages allow business owners to post important information such as locations, hours, and contact as well as status updates to everyone who likes the page and become a fan.  Be sure not to use your personal profile as a company fanpage as this is against Facebook terms and will get you reported and banned.  It is important to keep your fans updated with useful updates and avoid blasting them with lots of ads.  As in other aspects of business, you want to create value to your customer and sell only once that value is established.

#2. YouTube (Alexa 3, PR 9)

While Facebook engages the users personal home space, YouTube takes it to another level by engaging users visual through video sharing.  While other social media sites allow video sharing, YouTube is unique in that users come to and search for video only content.  YouTube has grown rampantly from it’s early days and has been the favorite and most used video sharing site since 2007.
A YouTube channel for your business lets you communicate directly to your demographic and people consume video much more readily than text or images much in the same way that TV advertisements trump radio and print ads.  Subscribers to your channel are updated when you post new content.

#3. Twitter (Alexa 10, PR 9)

Twitter is the newcomer of the group but is as widely used as the top 2 social media services. Twitter serves as a fast and user friendly way of broadcasting messages to your followers. Again, this service shouldn’t be used to spam advertisements but short messages with links to valuable or entertaining resources like your business blog.

Why Use Social Media Sites For Marketing?

Social Media sites like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube are potent vehicles to increase your web presence and market your products or services to millions of people.  Over 800 million people and counting use Facebook.  That’s almost the number of people that use Google search.  93% of US residents under the age of 30 have Facebook.  Looking at Alexa rankings, Facebook and YouTube rank 2 and 3 behind #1 Google and Twitter comes in at 10 making them the most used social media sites.  As indicated by thier higher rankings, each of these sites carries alot of authority and are used daily to share personal media.  The personal nature of social media translates into word of mouth marketing (long considered the most effective form of marketing) and gives immense value to these websites.
Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube recieve the lion’s share of the market much like Google search does.  Each of the services are unique enough that direct competition can only imitate and niche competition has a very limited user base.  It is important that any marketing be focused to these three social media services to have an effective marketing campaign.