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October 11th, 2011 -
Call me crazy, but I’ve worked in Marketing for 12 years and in Business for even longer and I’ve never heard any of my clients say, “No thanks, I have more than enough customers. I’m not really interested in getting the word out, possibly breaking into new markets or strengthening my brand’s position.” So imagine my surprise when I came across an article in the RV Daily Report telling dealers not to pursue Social Media.
Being the experienced professional I am, I could easily take what the author was saying at face value. I understood the bigger concern for this Website Coordinator was that she was under the impression that Social Media directs potential customers away from your website. In actuality, nothing could be further from the truth. One simple line of HTML code can keep that from happening.
Social Media is a sophisticated hybrid of Relationship Selling and Guerrilla Marketing designed to drive people to your website who may not have found you otherwise. It represents the best of both worlds. In other words, Social Media brings you new customers!
Guerrilla Marketing
- Low cost, unconventional promotions
- Rely on time, energy and imagination rather than a big marketing budget
Relationship Selling
- Long term value of customer relationships
- Extends communication beyond intrusive advertising and sales promotional messages
An well-integrated Social Media strategy will keep customers and prospects engaged with your brand for longer. In an independent 2010 survey, the Social Media Examiner asked marketers how social media has affected their businesses and the results were mapped into the graphic below:
Now, I could infographic you to death, our I can give you cold, hard facts from other RV and auto dealerships just like yours:
On average, our RV and Automotive clients receive well over 250,000 impressions a month (even with as little as 150 Facebook fans – because, let’s face it. Social Media is more than just Facebook.). Throw in a contest and that amount can double or even triple! Throw in a text ad and those impressions can almost top 2 MILLION.
When was the last time your website got 2 million pageviews in a year? Unfortunately, simply having a website doesn’t keep your dealership competitive. You must implement an Integrated Marketing strategy to continue that pace. If and when it did reach 2 million pageviews, wouldn’t you need help to handle the influx of customer questions, demonstrations, etc.?
Think of how much 2 million impressions would cost in any other medium? Or here’s another scenario, what would happen if you contacted your local TV station and told them you’d like to triple the impressions you receive for the same media dollars? Smart companies know that Social Media is now what websites were 10 years ago. And just as your business would not be able to thrive in 2011 without a website, it will have a hard time staying competitive into the next decade without Social Media Marketing.
So the next time you hear or see someone join the ranks of companies who think Social Media is “just a fad”, remind them they’re really saying, “No thanks, I have more than enough customers.”
-Shalanna Clark
August 2nd, 2011 -
Sometimes when I tell people what I do for a living they don’t really get it. I mostly get responses along the lines of, “So you play around on Facebook all day?” or “All you do is write a status update?” or “You better start looking for a new job, because that won’t last.” While all of those statements are vastly untrue, the worst is the assumption that I will be out of a job when this “social media fad” is over. Social media is not a trend or something like Giga Pets that we will all get really excited about (I wont lie. I had a dog and a pony..it was awesome.) and then discard and completely forget about after a few years.
Admittedly social media is entertaining, it is fun to see what your high school friends are doing or to be able to watch your cousin’s baby grow up from 500 miles away, but social media has also changed marketing and the way you can build relationships with your customers. Here are a few reasons why social media is going to stick around (especially for businesses):
• Simple to Learn.
Unlike other forms of marketing online that require a lot of technical details and understanding, social media is relatively easy to implement once you learn the basics. It’s just a matter of defining your message, finding your audience and spreading the word. And most importantly, being social!
• Can connect you directly with your target market.
Small business owners are always looking for ways to meet the needs of their market. It might take months or years to develop a relationship with a member of your target market via email marketing. But social media is like personal networking on hyperdrive. You can connect with your market in real-time on issues that they care about and become part of their trusted network of friends and advisors.
• Helps build consistency.
When it comes to marketing your business online, consistency is key. Inconsistent marketing efforts will produce disappointing results. Fortunately, social media makes it easier than ever before to be consistent with marketing. You can set up your updates ahead of time – a week at a time – and let them run automatically. This consistent presence helps build your brand and produces better results.
• Makes businesses more personable and approachable.
Other forms of online marketing can put layers between you and your ideal customers. But with social media – you’re right there! You get to see what they are up to, what they are reading and what they care about, and they get to know you too. It’s win-win!
What does this mean for your business? When used correctly, social media can create more visibility, opportunity and profits for your business. Take the time to research your target market and see how they are interacting on social media so that you can determine how best to use this tool to achieve your goals.
If you aren’t using social media for your business. Run – don’t walk – to the nearest computer and if you need a little help along the way we would be happy to help you get started.
Are you using social media to promote your business? What do you think is the value of having your business on social sites?
[Source: Ezine Articles]
July 28th, 2011 -
 Ron Kody of Richmond Ford Lincoln in Richmond, VA RICHMOND FORD LINCOLN JOINS FORCES WITH SOCIAL.MOTIVE
Arlington, TX, July 28, 2011 – Social.Motive, an Arlington, Texas-based Social Media Marketing company, recently announced the signing of its newest client, Richmond Ford Lincoln, a 5 time Ford President’s award winner . Effective immediately, Richmond Ford Lincoln has retained Social.Motive to integrate its Social Media platform with Traditional Advertising and grow its Social Media Marketing program.
“We’re excited about working with Richmond Ford Lincoln because they carry a great selection at great prices, and that gives us something to talk with customers about.” stated Ron Wheeler, Owner of Social.Motive. “Social Media is a great fit for their business, because building relationships is key. We are excited they have selected our company to deliver their message.”
About Social.Motive
Social.Motive provides Social Media Marketing expertise including: Facebook, Twitter, Blogging, Newsletters, Social Events, Social Promotions, SEO, Reputation Management and other social networks for business. For more information, visit social-motive.com
###
Contact Name: Brandi Hodge, Social Media Director
Telephone: 800.678.7822
Email: bhodge@wheeleradvertising.com
http://social-motive.com
July 26th, 2011 -
People from all over the world are diving head first into Google+ and have begun learning and sharing about their experiences on the new mega-site. As we navigate our way through the applications and abilities, the basic function of the Circles can really make or break how you interact on the site. But how do you make the most out of your circles? Stephanie Buck at Mashable has listed 7 Ways Google+ Users Are Getting More Out Of Their Circles:
1. Sourcing
Technology writer +Mike Elgan will directly address people that circled him. He’ll reach out with a personal question like “Where do you live?” Not only do Elgan’s polls help him get to know his followers, but he often uses the feedback from his circles as a resource. His “What should Google users be called?” poll, for example, generated 181 responses. “I’ve crowdsourced some issues for columns I work on and taken polls to get a finger-on-the-pulse idea of what people are thinking or doing,” Elgan says.
2. Learning
+Steve Rubel, EVP/Global Strategy and Insights for Edelman has organized his circles to focus on early adopters and thus access valuable feedback and information. He uses Google+ as a virtual “Junto,” named after Ben Franklin’s original discussion forum. Rubel’s circles are organized by persona, for example, “Pluserati,” “CEOs” and “Clients.” From there, he shares “semi-private posts just to ask questions … we can explore the issues of the day, much as Franklin did.”
3. Deeper Interaction
 Many Google+ early adopters are curious about their followers. Because Google+ doesn’t require mutual friend acceptance like Facebook, many users have gained hundreds and even thousands of followers in the first few weeks of registering.
Mashable‘s +Ben Parr regularly asks his public circles for responses and insight. One recent request, “What’s the name of your favorite Google+ circle?” received funny replies including Purgatory, The Circle Of Trust, The Party Posse, Inbreds, Ppl I’ve Kissed, Ppl I Want to Kiss, People I NEVER want to Kiss, Tila Tequila Wanna-bes, Guys Who Pissed Me Off in High School, Scoblized, People I Call When I’m Dying or Arrested, More Bacon Than the Pan Can Handle, Muggles, and of course, Ubergeeks.
Google+ users are finally able to put faces to their followers and interact with them in meaningful (and sometimes hilarious) ways.
4. Filtering
 Google+ users are two to three times more likely to share in specific circles than in public, according to Bradley Horowitz and Vic Gundotra, Google’s vice president of products and senior vice president of social, respectively.
Google+ circles encourage user etiquette, sparing certain members of your network from updates they can’t relate to or flat out don’t care about. “You share each item with only the people who deserve to know. And simultaneously, you spare the masses from seeing news of no interest to them,” wrote David Pogue of The New York Times.
Technology journalist +Steven Vaughan-Nichols divides his circles into three basic categories: personal, work and interest. He warns about proper circle etiquette on ZDNet’s blog. “Just keep in mind that if you want to keep people reading your words, show some sense about what you post,” he advises. “For example, I can already tell you that a lot of Google+ users are already sick and tired of animated GIF graphics, no matter how cute they are.”
5. Personal Memos
Advanced Google+ users have discovered a way to use circles to save personal memos, drafts or articles to read later. Think of it as a type of Google+ reader, especially when articles that you’ve “+1′d” don’t make it to your profile.
Creating a circle-of-one (just your own profile) can function as a type of scrapbook, a history of interpersonal notes or private memos. Blogger +Charo Nuguid created a circle only composed of herself. “I created two ‘private’ circles, one for private messages and another for my notes-to-self,” she writes. “So far it’s worked out well. The posts show up in the circles. I finally have a way to keep track of my notes and the messages I post.”
6. Organizing
 Technologist and startup advisor +Christopher Allen explains his method for organizing his circles (seen above).
Although Google+ is not yet offering sub-circle organization, Allen figured out a way to organize circles within circles. For example, under “1.0 Kin,” he’s added sub-circles called “1.1 Immediate Family” and “1.2 Extended Family.” All in all, Allen has created 42 circles. It may sound daunting but it does allow him to better target his posts to specific audiences.
Still, that’s a lot of sorting to do especially if you already have a lot of followers. Allen suggests reviewing a few circles every day: “I do so by going to ‘Manage Circles,’ then selecting ‘People in your Circles’ and sorting by last name. I choose that letter of the alphabet that corresponds to the day of the month and hover my mouse over each name … If they’re in the wrong Circle, I move them.”
7. Preparing for the Future
Many Google+ users have already begun to think about future uses for circles. Although Google is still tight-lipped about additions, our early adopters have certainly been chiming in with suggestions.
- Search: Mike Elgan suggests that “standard search, plus a lift on the limit of people in circles (something rumored) would enable me to follow a gazillion people without actually seeing the full stream generated by that gazillion — only the most relevant items.”
- Organization: “I would love to be able to organize my circles any way I want (alphabetical, most used, etc.). I also would love to color code them,” says indie film producer +Adam Cohen.
- Topics: Steven Vaughan-Nichols writes, “At the moment, Google+ circles aren’t ideal for interest circles. For example, if you were to follow me in a dog-lovers circle, I might only mention pups once every other day or two. It’s my understanding though that Google intends on making it easier to post by topics. I certainly hope they do.”
July 12th, 2011 -
One of our clients, Hemlock Hill RV in Connecticut, has embraced social media and are always up for new and fun ways to to interact with their customers and future customers. Since signing up with Social.Motive in November, they have done multiple contests, giveaways, sale promotions, a Disney Sweepstakes, and plan on doing a Facebook charity drive in the near future.
Many businesses pages run contests, but what makes Hemlock Hill RV’s social media program stand out?
Many people think that the more people a Facebook ad is targeted to, the better. And while I think this could apply to some general businesses, many need to target the niche group that would actually purchase what you are selling. In the case of a RV dealership, I narrow down who our ad is shown to by only displaying it to people in their target demographic (which can be narrowed down by age, sex, location) as well as targeting individuals who have listed on Facebook that they like RVing, Road Trips, Camping, etc. This makes the pool of people that I show the ad to significantly smaller, but the chances of the ad catching their eye is much higher than say a 17 year old girl who has never camped before and would not buy an RV in the near future.
- Fun and interactive contests designed to get fans to spread the word about Hemlock Hill Rv’s Facebook page
Everyone knows that contests and giving away prizes are a great way to gain fans to your page. But how do you get the fans to spread the word to their friends and family about your Facebook page and the contest you are running? By getting them involved! Hemlock hill recently ran a recipe contest where 10 fans submitted a recipe to the Facebook page. To determine the winner, the contest participants had to get their friends and family to vote on their favorite recipe, and the recipe with the most votes would win a RV tailgating grill. Hundreds of new fans came to the page to help their friends and family win the grill. We have also done this with ipads and photo contests as well.
- Informative blogs that relate to the readers that are not retail driven
These blog posts provide excellent content to your Facebook and Twitter followers without trying to sell them something on every post. These blogs help SEO, makes the dealership look like experts on many different topics, allows different content to be posted every day and more. Every blog post links back to the businesses website, which helps drive people to find out more about the business.
These are just a few examples on why Hemlock Hill RV’s social media program has worked for them. Social.Motive is constantly evolving and coming up with new and exciting ideas to help businesses shine in social media.
July 11th, 2011 -
I’m a self-proclaimed MSN nut. It’s the first website I look at every morning, and it’s likely one of the last ones I see at night. Throw in my multiple visits throughout the day and you have some idea of how much I need it. The content is refreshed every few hours and it just has a way of being able to read my mind, of knowing what I care about.
So when I saw an article entitled Seven Things Women Do On Facebook That Guys Hate I was more than a little intrigued. That got me thinking. I get questions all the time from people who want to know the difference between this network or that. They always want me to choose sides and I never can. I tell them that both networks are great for different things and very different audiences.
On a personal level, I’m feeling very chatty and random, Twitter’s a better outlet for that. If there’s something I want to broadcast/don’t mind people knowing I post it on Facebook. Facebook has more functionality, but the limited functionality of Twitter makes it more reliable than Facebook. (ie. When someone wants to know if Facebook is down, the first place they check is Twitter) It’s updates are live and I can see what people around the world are discussing at that moment. With Facebook, I have to wait until news reaches my circle of friends.
I could go on and on about both of these, because technically, they’re both my job — along with a bunch of other sites. But I thought it would be more fun to make a list of things you can do on Facebook that Twitter hates!
- Place ads
- Quantify Reach and Frequency
- Track fan demographics
- Send messages to people you’re not connected to
- Download albums or print them via online retailers like Snapfish
- Interact with people’s statuses without alerting everyone
- Go over 140 characters in an update.
For businesses still trying to make sense of Social Media, it takes a little while to “get it”. However, once you do ‘get it’, you can find uses you’ve never considered. With lots of attention and a little elbow grease, sites like Facebook and Twitter can build your business exponentially.
And, in case you’re wondering, here’s the article I was reading:
1. Getting All CIA On Us
“I hate it when women turn into ‘spies’ and go digging into your older posts/pictures trying to find dirt, and then ask you about the women they don’t know. It’s as if they’re trying to catch you in some secret affair! Look, if it’s out there for you/all too see, I’m obviously not hiding anything!”
— Mike, 32
2. Making That Duck Face
“I cannot stand when women post thousands of goofy faced pictures — especially that fake puckered lips pose. It’s sooooo fake. Whatever happened to smiling?”
— Cameron, 30
3. Opening The Vault
“No one wants to know how closely your life resembles the Jerry Springer show. Keep all those ugly details to yourself, please!”
— Daniel, 34
4. Writing Man-Hating Status Updates
“It’s a huge downer when women vent about men in their status updates — how we’re all liars and cheaters. It’s just not true! Cut it out, already!”
— Al, 25
5. Posting Self-Portrait Albums
“I find it really lame when a girl has nothing but pictures of herself on her profile. It makes me think she has no friends. It seems kind of pathetic, and seriously vain.”
— Raul, 24
6. Doing Premature Relationship Publicity
“This one girl I was hooking up with changed her main profile picture to be a picture of the two of us together. It was way too soon — and I was still dating other girls, who had a lot of questions after that!”
— Mike, 27
7. Showing “Artsy” Pictures
“What’s with girls posting pictures of their feet these days? Who wants to see gross toes in a picture of a nice pool or an ocean? It makes zero sense.”
— Jesse, 28
June 30th, 2011 -
 Social Media Marketing is important for an business if they want to be successful. I have some tips here that will help you have a more successful social program. These tips will work for any business. Many companies get into social media on their own and aren’t really sure how they should be using it effectively. Just having a Facebook page doesn’t mean you are in social media. Social media marketing is a hourly, daily thing… You have to pay very close attention to what’s going on, on your accounts.
1. UPDATE UPDATE: This should be common sense but you’d be surprised at how many businesses have a Facebook Page or a Twitter profile and don’t update it at all. You should be posting on Facebook at least 1-3 times a day and on Twitter at least 3-6 times a day. I don’t typically post on the weekends unless it’s a holiday that needs to be recognized. If you aren’t active on your account then what makes you think anyone would want to follow you?
2. STOP PITCHING: Don’t pull a Nolan Ryan! Just because people are following you doesn’t mean they want to buy your product today. Social media is about connecting and building relationships so that when the follower is in the market they think of you first. So try not to pitch them every single day.
3. COMMUNICATION IS KEY: There may be a time when you are overloaded with comments, retweets, likes, replies and more. If you can’t take the time to communicate with everyone who is communicating with you then social media may not be the right place for you. It’s so important to communicate with each and every follower or fan that takes the time to communicate with you. You need to show just as much interest in them as they are you.
4. WATCH WHAT YOU SAY: Here’s the thing… What happens on the internet… Stays on the internet. Therefore it is imperative that you choose your words wisely and make sure that even though something may be funny to you, you could be offending someone else. When you are responding or posting a comment just make sure to slow down for a second and think about what you are saying. On that note if you hire someone to help you, you should make sure that you trust them completely and make them 100% aware of what your company is about and what you are striving for.
5. BE CLASSY: There will inevitably be a time when you will have an irate customer on your hands. The truth is you can’t make everybody happy no matter how hard you try. So when you have a situation on your hands with an angry customer who has taken to the internet in a game to smear your name make sure that you handle it with the utmost class. Again, everything that is on the internet becomes public record. Fighting hate with hate will only make your company look worse. If you can make the situation better that is what should be done. Respond to them in a timely fashion, don’t delete their comments but address their comments, apologize, offer to make it right. When your other fans and followers see you taking this approach they will be proud of you. The one and only reason that I have ever deleted a comment is when foul inappropriate language was involved and that rarely happens.
6. LINKING: Whenever you are perusing the internet and find something fun or interesting that is relevant to your business you should share it. Linking creates a web of networks. Link them to your Facebook or your Twitter and tell the whole world why you are posting it.
7. SHARE SHARE SHARE: People love to talk, and tell others about their lives. So it’s only natural that you would want to brag about your business…. and guess what… people love that! I had a client back in February that had a big BBQ for all of his employees. I was invited to attend so I went with my camera and took 100′s of pictures. I uploaded those pictures to Facebook and our Facebook fans loved it. It gave them an opportunity to see what goes on in our lives when we aren’t working. Think about it! On your own personal Facebook profile you share your thoughts, pictures and such so why not on your business page? This will create interaction and interaction is key in social media.
8. TRENDING: Start a trend… Every Friday for one of my clients Classic Chevrolet I post a picture of a Chevrolet and I have a caption contest. At first it started off with just a few captions and maybe a few likes… Now I am up to 50 comments every Friday or more and people wait for me to post the Chevy Caption Craze. It’s genius! Maybe every Monday you post a picture of some drink that your bar makes. Get your followers to guess what’s in it for a free beer that night.
9: WHERE’S YOUR BLOG: There is a lot of hard work that goes into blogging. Trust me I know…. I have 10 clients I blog for plus my own personal blog. I must admit my own personal blog doesn’t get the attention that it needs most of the time. The point is that it’s hard work and you should share it. Link to your blog from your Facebook or Twitter and show your fans and followers that you are writing entertaining, engaging and informative posts for them to read. They will love it. Just make sure that you don’t post about your blog every day. That will drive people insane… So make sure you mix it up.
10. SPREAD THE NEWS: If you have a Facebook, Twitter, Blog, Youtube etc… Tell people about it! No one will ever know that you are in social media if you don’t tell them. I have it on my website, my blog, my Facebook, my business cards, POP in the office. I’m telling you I let everyone and their mama know where they can find me and you should to!
I hope that you really take these suggestions to heart and remember social media is supposed to be fun!! Don’t stress out, don’t over analyze just engage, entertain, inform and by all means make new friends!
[Source: Ezine]
June 28th, 2011 -
 Have you heard about Google+, which is in the beginning stages of rolling out? It has many ways to engage your connections by utilizing Google’s giant sharing power. Check out this blog post which shows you each of the tools they have created, and how to use them: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2011/06/introducing-google-project-real-life.html
 Here are some early thoughts from Mashable on the site and its features.
- Design: Aesthetically, it’s all Google — minimalist with plenty of white space. Nobody is going to complain about the design, but nobody is going to cheer about it, either.
- Usability: Google+ isn’t overwhelmed by its many features. It’s easy to navigate and its icons speak for themselves. After a few minutes of exploring, I quickly got the hang of it.
- Google+ Stream: The core of Google+ is the Stream, which doesn’t bring anything new to the table. It’s a lot like Google Buzz or the Facebook News Feed.
- Google+ Circles: Circles is well-implemented. It’s far easier than creating a Twitter List or a Facebook Friend List. The drag-and-drop functionality is a welcome addition, and the cute animations that appear when you perform actions give the product personality. That doesn’t necessarily mean users will take the time to create friend groups.
- Google+ Profiles: Google+ Profiles essentially port the existing data on your Google Profile. There’s nothing particularly special about Google+ Profiles, yet. One of the nice things is that it includes a Tabs feature, where users can add content from their Google Buzz or their Google +1s. This feature already exists on Google Profiles, but we bet developers will be able to add tabs to Google Profiles in the future, customizing and personalizing profiles.
- Google+ Hangouts: Hangouts is one of the more innovative concepts of Google+, and we think it’s a cool approach to getting users to accept group video chat. The camera switching feature (it changes who’s on camera based on who’s talking) is far superior to having multiple video feeds open at the same time. That said, it will require users checking their Google+ streams everyday for potential chats to join. If Google+ gains traction, Hangouts will be a killer feature.
- Google+ Sparks: Sparks may end up being Google+’s most underrated feature. The company has essentially created a recommendation engine without calling it one. It’s designed to augment Google+, and if it works as Google designed it, it will create winners and losers in the publishing world, making Google +1 buttons actually matter. Before that becomes a reality though, it needs traction and it should consider acquiring advanced content recommendation technology from a company like Trapit or my6sense.
- Google+ Photos: The photo editor is essentially Facebook photos, but with a photo editor. It’s quick and well-organized, making it a welcome addition to Google+. It should take a cue from Instagram and create simple ways to make photos more “artistic” and personalized.
- Mobile: The mobile version of Google+ is really simple, which is fine for a first release. It only has two unique features: instant photo uploads and Google+ Huddle. Instant photo uploads is a cool idea, but we worry about auto-uploading all of our photos for privacy reasons. We can see some users not being happy about auto-uploads, even if the albums they’re uploaded to are private. This could potentially create a lot of “garbage.”
- Google+ Huddle: Huddle is basically a group-texting feature for the Circles you create. It makes sense as a product, but it isn’t terribly exciting. I’m going to stick with GroupMe for now.
Conclusion: Google+ is a bold and dramatic attempt at social. There’s a reason why Google calls this a “project” rather than a “product” — they don’t want people to think of this as the final product, but as a constantly-evolving entity that permeates every corner of the Google empire.
Source: Ben Parr- Mashable
June 24th, 2011 -
If you log on to Twitter at any time you can find thousands of chats with new ones being developed every minute. Chats form so anyone can follow a conversation about a variety of subjects; chats will be formed around a love for an activity, a feeling, a celebrity scandal, or anything else you can think of. Why set up a chat? It is a free and easy way to talk to your consumers, network, and learn about new developments in your industry.
To get the most out of your Twitter chats check out these tips from Mashable:
Be Clear About Your Goals Going Into the Chat
Some say there are already too many Twitter chats. How does creating a new one (as opposed to joining existing ones) help you or your company? When I spoke to creators of successful chats like #wjchat, #blogchat, #smmeasure and #u30pro, they pointed out some powerful benefits of doing it right. For a company, it can position you as a thought leader and grow brand awareness. For an individual it can help you meet people in your industry and grow your personal brand.
Choose a Topic People Care About
How do you know if people care about your chat? They should already be discussing it informally. “It’s better to build a twitter chat around a topic of interest that’s directly related to your brand,” says David Spinks, creator of #u30pro, a Twitter chat for young professionals. “In the end, the participants will still relate the chat back to your brand because you’re the one organizing it.
Be Authentic
“The key to true reach and success is being authentic,” says Robert Hernandez, founder of #wjchat. “#wjchat is something organic and represents a passion shared by others. … If you have a topic you are passionate about, there may be others that are looking to connect with you.” Don’t do it just because you think you’re supposed to. Do it if you are genuinely looking for a way to engage and communicate with a community. Use that passion to stick with the chat when it starts out slow. Spinks says #u30pro’s first chat only had seven people and 150 tweets. Today, their typical chat includes 150 people and 1,200 tweets. Keep engaging and the right people and community should find you.
Bring In Thought Leaders
Don’t be afraid to get others involved, whether you need a partner to develop and plan the chat (#u30pro is operated by a team of four), or great guest “speakers” to help bring in audience. Twitter chats are successful because of the people in them. Do what you can to get great people involved, especially when you’re just starting.
Thank People Who Participate
If people take the time to engage with your chat, take a moment to thank them individually or in the chat itself. Collier has found huge success by following this strategy. “These are your rock stars, and you need to treat them as such,” he said. “That will simply give them more incentive to spread the word, and help you grow your community.”
Bottom Line: Keep your chats fun and interesting to the audience. Do you have any tips or thoughts about Twitter chats? If you need any more tips or assistance we would be happy to help!
June 10th, 2011 -
Content is key when it comes to your social sites. Whether a reader finds your contest useful, funny, entertaining, boring, or uninteresting can mean the difference in hundreds of fans and impressions. You can make your content funny (and you should), but always make sure the content you choose is relevant to your target audience.
Providing content that people want to read can help increase traffic to your sites and attract and retain a healthy following. Sometimes coming up with fresh and valuable content can be a challenge, but there are a couple of ways/sources you can use to prevent every running out of something new to say.
RSS Reader: Scan It Daily
A great way to get fresh ideas and inspiration is to sign up for a free RSS reader such as Google Reader. Then use the Google Blogs search option and search blog directory sites such as Technorati and Blogcatalog for blogs that are relevant to your product or service. When you find what you’re looking for, simply subscribe by clicking on the RSS feed and adding it to your reader.
Organize your feeds into folders and sort by category for easy scanning; you can combine topics you find in your industry’s blogs with your own commentary to create posts that stand on their own.
Make Every Employee a Marketer
Encourage employees to contribute to your blog by writing posts on a topic of interest in your industry. Ask your customer service and sales teams about their most frequently asked questions, then have them write blog posts about the solutions. Creating a simple blog template for employees to use can be a great tool to eliminate any objections to writing a post.
Forums
If social media has a grandfather, its name is Grandpa Forum. These open and free discussions are a fantastic way to find out what’s going on in your niche. A simple search on Google for “<your topic> + forum” will yield thousands of results.
Crowdsource
Post a social networking status or blog asking your audience for content topics and suggestions. Online survey and polling tools can be invaluable resources for collecting and prioritizing these ideas in an organized way. Embedding a survey or poll directly into your website or blog engages your audience in real time, and lets their voices be heard. You can also launch a survey or poll directly in Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn asking for feedback.
Google News
Want to keep your content relevant to current events and hot topics in the media? Sure you do. Google News aggregates headlines from news sources worldwide, groups similar stories together and displays them according to each reader’s personalized interests.
Simply search for keywords related to your industry and click on the news. Scanning the results will immediately provide you with headlines to tie your topic to what’s happening in the world.
Frankenblogging
“A Day In The Life” is one of the Beatles’ most influential songs and it came together with two seemingly unrelated bits, one written by John, the other by Paul. This is a perfect example of how bringing together two distinct segments written independently of one another can spawn greatness.
Like most bloggers, you probably have a growing number of half-written posts. The idea here is to find a common theme or link between two of them and combine. For example, I took a half-written post about identifying influencers, combined it with another half-written post about using Twitter lists, and came up with a fabulous post about finding influencers on Twitter and following them efficiently using Twitter lists.
[Source: Social Media Examiner]
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About us 
Social.Motive is a collaboration of 3 national advertising agencies. Our sole purpose is to provide the very best social media solutions to companies needing assistance in the vast Social Media world.
Here you can read blogs from our Social Media Directors David O'Hearn, Kate Carroll, Michelle Gamradt, and Shalanna Clark.
If you have any questions or suggestions on how we can improve this site feel free to email us at TheSocialMotive@Gmail.com
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