by winstonbromley | Jul 5, 2012 | Google+, Social Media, Social Media Management, Social Media Tools
Google Plus (Google+) is a great option for a business looking to get noticed and wanting to standout from other pages. Easy to create and easy to use, it is a growing platform for business sharing. The following explains just some of the great aspects why Google Plus is becoming a must for business leaders and webpage designers and just how it might benefit your business.
Easy Distribution of Ideas
Sharing is important and your business needs to take an active role in doing this with their webpage or website. This act is not simply about promoting a product or idea but actually creates an interactivity between the consumer and the business itself. With Google Plus for business this can be completed quite easily. One of the greatest tricks to get a response from clients and potential customers is to share photos and other images and messages that help to promote the brand without overtly doing so. It leaves the client interested, gets them talking, and thus builds the brand from the backend of the business rather than overt advertisements all the time.
Clarity
Google plus is a great way to tailor your business to the individual or client themselves. With Google plus in business, the beauty is that there can be clearly delineated separations between different aspects of your business. This means that if an individual is interested in one area, they can focus on that while others can find exactly what they are looking for in another section. This is a highly touted point as described by business webpage owners who say that clients respond better to the ability to find what they are looking for easily without getting lost in a web of other information that is unneeded. In this way, then, Google plus for businesses provides a clarity and ease of specificity that business webpage designers thrive upon.
Social Media
Social media is an ever growing platform for recommendations and discussions in customers’ lives. For this reason, Google plus has made it easy to share and promote your business through easily navigable and usable social media sharing options. Just one share can lead to a trickle out affect which holds the potential to get your business noticed even more. There is also a button on Google plus that allows customers to actually make a recommendation, all with a simple click of the mouse. Be sure that your webpage has this as this is one of the best tips you can know to really getting a mass discussion and recommendation for your business page.
What is your take on Google+?
by winstonbromley | Jul 3, 2012 | LinkedIn, Social Media, Social Media Management, Social Media Tools
LinkedIn is a professional networking service that allows people to create professional contacts. Currently, LinkedIn has more than 120 million members and allows people and businesses to exchange ideas, contacts, and more to help grow their businesses. LinkedIn is a tool that needs to be utilized by business owners. This is a free social media service that can be used by anyone.
- The first reason business owners need to utilize LinkedIn is that there are a multitude of small business owners and entrepreneurs searching LinkedIn for connections with others. These businesses owners are actively seeking to network with others who are in small business. These connections can allow business owners and entrepreneurs to meet others who can provide ideas and feedback on creating a better business.
- A second reason for joining LinkedIn is that customers are already on LinkedIn. With a business looking to sell a product or service, the more visibility to customers provides more sales. Customers are leaning on social media more than ever before and being visible on LinkedIn allows customers to come to you rather than you seeking out customers. There are many customers out there that you may never reach without utilizing social media.
- Third, you are able to control the voice of your business. It allows people to find your business on Google searches and other social media searches, but it allows you to control what is said about your business. You are able to promote your business the way you want to and not have all opinion based on reviews of others.
- A fourth reason is that you will be able to say that you are an expert in a certain area. By networking with other people, you are going to learn more about your business and in the end, be able to say that you or your business provides expert service.
- The fifth reason to get LinkedIn profile is that it is the future of business. Social media connects entrepreneurs with each other and with customers. It is the new way of doing business and by not moving into the technological future, companies get left behind and stagnate. To keep current, it is important to join LinkedIn.
There are many reasons to join LinkedIn, but there benefits are endless for promoting a company and finding customers. Business success depends on social media and it is the new norm.
What do you think?
by winstonbromley | Jun 26, 2012 | Pinterest, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media, Social Media Management, Social Media Tools
As I mentioned in my article last December “Pinterest: An up-and-coming Social Media Network worth looking into” Pinterest is Growing in Massive Numbers, and Your Business Can Too! This is a Must Read For Large and Small Business Owners Alike.
Pinterest is even more incredible than ever. It has acquired over 10 million users in a record amount of time. It is the single fastest growth of any website in history even though it is still an invite-only site. The explosive growth of Pinterest.com only goes to show that any one looking to enhance their brand, their business, their services or their products should consider having a strong presence on it.
Pinterest is the best choice for internet marketing. It has grown at such rapid rates that it even blew Facebook’s notorious beginning out of the water. It is a really clean cut site that allows all businesses small and large to increase their exposure and generate more customers. We all know that all adds up to more money.
Social media is a very essential marketing tool. It is a guaranteed way to get the exposure that you need to keep up in these competitive times. All businesses will benefit in abundance through maintaining a strong presence on Pinterest.com.
Most of the users on Pinterest are females, and women are known to be the bargain hunters and shoppers in the family. You will be able to target an audience much easier than on any other social media site. People come there looking for specific services or products. Your time is much more fruitful when you use Pinterest.
It is based theme is on a post it method. You can generate deals or specials and even have contests to lure potential buyers in. You are going to get results on Pinterest without as much time, money or effort you will have to invest on other sites.
This is a fantastic opportunity to get your business on the map. Whether you have 100+ employees or you are working alone to build your company this is a great place to advertise. Your company’s name is more likely to show up in Google results with every post, and you will find that it all really makes a difference.
Marketing strategies can get expensive, however with Pinterest you can dramatically decrease overall costs. It can be a fun and effective way to interact with your customers while offering them the best deals. Nothing beats Pinterest, and if you have not seen what it can do to boost your sales and reputation, you are really missing out.
If you want to be invited (as Pinterest is set to INVITE ONLY right now), email me at winston@artbox.ca with the Subject “Pinterest”.
**** I will post at a few tips on Pinterest every week. Just sign up for my Newsletter on the right side of the website and you will get those tips sent to you in your Email box. ****
by winstonbromley | Jun 23, 2012 | Facebook, Google+, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Social Media, Social Media Tools
Almost every business has realized the potential of social media. If not, now is certainly the time to get on board.
However, social media is almost always used just as a marketing tool by itself. There are marketing benefits of using social media which I am fan, trainer and user of, however creating a social business can do a lot more and reap huge benefits in the long run.
Social business is a fairly new term on and not many entrepreneurs would know what it actually means. It definitely does not imply a business using social media for marketing purposes. It has far more utilities and benefits lined up for any business.
A social business is typically a business that uses social media in all facets of the company’s modus operandi. It is being widely believed, and rightly so, that social media is all set to become a focal point for any business. Right now, social media is just at the peripherals of any business whereby some marketing efforts yield fruit while others are simply futile attempts at conducting promotions and special sales.
Here are some of the benefits of doing social business.
- A social business puts much more focus on the value that social media can offer a business rather than only the marketing rewards.
- Social business calls for an inclusive involvement of social media and internet users which offer a wider platform to share and discuss almost anything about a business. Right there, a business gets to build a foundation for employees to interact with online citizens and gauge popular opinion. The opinion, feedback or thoughts can then be taken back to the boardroom for illustrations and a business can take appropriate steps to enhance a positive feedback or to curtail some criticisms.
- Several major corporations in the world are mulling over an idea to get the consumers involved in the creative process of product development or in the conception of an idea and developing it as per popular sentiments. In fact some companies have already started this process with various degrees of success, such as Nike.What this does is, it offers any business the leverage to do prelaunch market research and also gain specific product feedback even before something has been created or developed.
- Being a social business can have far reaching effects in terms of brand value. With social media gaining more acceptance as a common mode of communication and interaction, customers are more likely to interact with individuals and trust them rather than a brand. With people getting more exposure to social media from businesses and brands they like, it is upon the shoulders of the the entrepreneurs and executives to drive their brand value using their own reputation and skills.
Let me know what you think.
by winstonbromley | Jan 19, 2012 | Facebook, Google+, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), Social Media, Social Media Tools
I will make a bold statement here: If you are not on Google+ now, you should be as it is an important part of your Social Networking and Marketing toolkit, as it will change how we interact, purchase things as well as rank in the Search Engines.
If you haven’t heard of Google+ or have been sitting on the fence, Google+ is a newer social media platform from Google that brings together the best of Social Media networks as well as Search engine optimization and a lot of great features. A bonus is that the layout of the site is very clean and easy to read.
There are quite a few things that separate Google+ from it’s rivals. Here are the key ones in my mind as a Business owner leveraging Social Media.
Circles – Laser Focused Marketing:
One of the features is the introduction of Circles. Circles are clusters of your Contacts placed into a group that you would like to address separately. You can put your Family into the Family Circle, your Friends into a Friends cirlce, Boat enthusiasts into another circles, Joggers into another one, etc.
What this allows you to do is to be able to broadcast your thoughts or messages to select groups, such as a timely article to only the Jogger Circle. That way you are not telling your whole list about the activity that will not relate to most of your list.
By having Circles, it helps to organize the people you have friended, into circles that are easy to give them a name that is easy to remember.
As a business owner, this is a great thing to have. What you can do, is as you find people on Google+ in an area that you are looking to target, you can place them into a circle. Let’s say you are looking for Musicians to be part of a festival and you only want local musicians. All you have to do is search for them via the search features and when you find them, without leaving the page, you can Add them to the appropriate “Musicians” cirlce. From that point on, if you have an item you need to say or market, all you have to do is click on the SHARE button and pick that Circle, and voila!, only those people will see it. Again you are not “spamming” the rest of your list so people will appreciate this.
To invite people to Google+, you simply add them into your Circle that you would like them to be part of. There is a button that says “Add a new person”. Next, you need to put them into a circle. Pick multiple ones if that person should be in 2 or more circles. Type in their Email address. Once they are located and they will get an invite from you.
+1 – Increase your Popularity and SEO while telling people that others like your stuff as well:
As you can see pretty much everywhere on the internet, a lot of sites are showcasing the +1 Button. This is the Google+ button that allows you if pressed, that you appreciate this article and find it valuable.
So if you like an article, even this one (hint hint), you can click on the +1, to show you like what information is being provided.
From a Search Engine optimization point of view for our Business or personal sites, Google is the king of all search engines. We all know that. Well, since it’s their social network, you are starting to see (if you are logged into Google+ while searching around – and usually unless you log out, you stay logged in), as you are logged in, Friends and contacts in your Circles that have +1’d an article and this provides the magic component of Social proof. Social proof is a way of showing others like your stuff, and makes it more appealing to like as well.
An example is if you +1 an article, and your friends on Google+ go searching for that items, say a restaurant review site, they will see that you +1 or liked it and that will make you more want to click on it as it’s like Winston likes this page, I will check it out as well.
The other MAJOR thing about the +1 is that for Google, once again the biggest Search Engine in the world, is starting to arrange the algorithm from how it indexes now to more of Social engagement. Put another way, the more that pages are +1 from Google+ users, the more it will help to move up the rankings.
Example: Bob pulled out all the tricks with SEO (search engine optimization) to create a top ranking page for a product on an Event in his town. Tim, another local person has a page for an event on the same day and wants to beat out the ranking of Bob’s site. Tim also does a great job but is behind Bob’s site. Leading up to the event, Tim gets quite a substantial number of +1’s and comments on his page. Since Google tracks this and the social input, it will cause Tim’s site to rise to the top, as it’s social proof that people are finding and enjoying that page.
This is crucial for SEO, development of sites and marketing from this point on. Google and other search engines see that basing rankings on what people like is truly the best way to rank pages.
Business Pages:
On Google+ you can create Business Pages for your Businesses, Brands and other non-personal items.
Agan, the main benefit is that Google is running the show and this will lead to be indexing of your Brand and better page indexing than Facebook could ever do.
NOTE: Facebook is not indexed in google other than personal page indexes that link to you, if at all.
Video Chats:
As a Google+ user, you can bring together your team on the site in a video chat area, called Hangouts. You can have up to 10 people at one time.
Facebook created a deal this past year with Skype however on FB, you can only do 1 person at a time on Video conference mode. They are still catching up and keep adding in features that look a lot like Google+.
In your Account Profile:
Once you have setup your Profile (and you can even transfer over all of your details from Facebook to Google+), people can see your Stream of conversation (or if you assign status updates for specific circles, on those can see it), About you, photos and videos as well as all the articles you have +1. I like that viewing of +1 as it allows me to bookmark sites I like with the +1 and then can refer to my profile to review them or re-read them.
URL Shortener:
There is a great site, called http://www.gplus.to that will take the ugly URL that links to your page and make it into a short URL for you. Just go onto the site, enter your long URL, add a nickname, as shown above and it will create a shorter, easier to use URL. I use this as it’s a lot cleaner in my Email signature.
This is mine: http://www.gplus.to/winstonbromley
Why Google+ Matters:
As there are many Social Media sites out there to be part of, I highly recommend for all it’s benefits, that you get a Google+ account today and start building your Network. It’s a very intuitive Site and poses many features that will help you and your Business to succeed in Social Media, SEO and whatever else Google thinks up. Google is the king of Content so let’s be part of their system and get the results we want.
Come and find my on Google+ and add me to your Friends circle.
http://www.gplus.to/winstonbromley
See you there!
by winstonbromley | Jan 12, 2012 | Facebook, Social Media
A few months ago, Facebook rolled out a Beta version (and now it’s a regular part of FACEBOOK) of what is called the Facebook Timeline. If you haven’t seen them yet, you can see an example at: http://www.facebook.com/winston.bromley
The Facebook Timelines are being pushed a lot these days and they have some really great benefits to a Business Owners if used correctly. As I teach at my online seminars or at live Events to Business owners like yourself, I always show how Social Media ties into your Business most effectively. After all, that is in the end why you are using Social Media in your Business – to create Engagement and in the end, make a profit from it.
Facebook Timeline is for personal profile pages only at the moment. They are not being rolled out yet for Business or Fan Pages.. so why am I writing about Facebook Timelines for personal pages?
The new Facebook Timeline is a PERFECT place to showcase what you do as a business owner as well as who you are a person. In the Timeline, there is a thing called Cover Banner, which is a 849 x 312 pixel cover image placed at the top of your profile which is a prime location for you and what you do.
Facebook is very strict on what you can post on these Facebook Timeline Covers Banners (as you see with mine: http://www.facebook.com/winston.bromley). You are not allowed to put up advertising banners or make it too salesy of what you do or only about your Business. The trick is to showcase yourself as a person AND as someone who can help others (in your Business)
Here are 3 main benefits to Facebook Timelines that you can get now:
- The ability to post a Cover Banner image that gives you a chance to personalize your profile as mentioned above showcasing your life and your Business. Don’t be too salesy….
- You can add in the Life Events that meant a lot to you, from the past, such as a wedding, a divorce (you never know what people will post on FB), a special event, etc. Right now the events fall in five categories – Work & Education, Family & Relationships, Home & Living, Health and Wellness, Travel and Experiences.Note: You can also add a year to your posts that will re-post a status in the year that that Event happened….even if you were not on Facebook at the time!… Such as pre-2003.
- By using the Life Events, you can showcase all your Talents that you did in the past such as organizing events or putting on Seminars. It can be a great tool for new job or career opportunities.
The Down Side
Right now, there are scammers are taking advantage of some users’ desire to revert back to the old profile and do away with the Timeline. Pages and apps have appeared that claim to be able to deactivate the Timeline and they ask users to click like buttons, share things with friends, etc.
The only thing they do is gain access to your Account and then Spam all your Friends, so don’t get involved with them.
Setup of a Facebook Timeline: Step by step
First off, to move over to a Facebook TIMELINE is now super easy, even for the non-techy people out there… and I know there are a few.
Version 1: Easy as pie, if you have a great Timeline image.
1. Go to http://www.facebook.com/about/timeline
2. Click on the button to the right that says “Get Timeline.” It’s now enabled, but not published yet.
3. Click “Publish Now.” You’re done.
Version 2: Easy setup with a few extra steps so you can preview what your Timeline page will look like
1. Log into your Facebook account and go to the About Timeline page at http://www.facebook.com/about/timeline
2. Click on “Get Timeline”
3. Scroll down on your new Timeline and remove or Edit any items that you don’t want shown. To do this, simply hold your cursor over the upper right of the item you want to edit, and pick a choice on the drop-down list.
4. From that drop down list, you can hide it from the timeline ,change the date of the item, add a location, or delete the post.
5. To“Feature” a post (as mentioned above), click on the star icon to the left of that pencil icon. This will make that item expand all the way across the page, so more people can see it
6. Once are done with all the edits, either go back to the top of your profile/Timeline page and click “Publish Now”. There is also an option that it will do the posting in 7 days.
As a side note; If you want to get a Custom Timeline Cover image created specific to your Brand, we can help you out. Email us at artbox@artbox.ca with the Subject Timeline Cover and we will get the process started.
