More and more small businesses are recognizing the marketing power of social media and joining such sites as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Indeed, Facebook alone is anticipated to reach one billion users by the end of 2012. Even those who have been most resistant to joining the revolution are unable to ignore the ability of social media to attract customers via the viral nature of social networking.
However social media networking does not end with the creation of a profile on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn; indeed the creation of a page or profile is just the beginning. It will take time and effort to build a presence and gain brand recognition... - What Small Businesses Can Learn from Big Brands in Social Media
The headline calls attention to everything that’s wrong with how businesses measure engagement in social media today. Businesses that invest any level of marketing resources in networks such as Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and the like (get it?) are being groomed to focus on soft metrics instead of the relevant activity that signals the strength and worth of a community. By weighing conversations, interactions, and views, businesses are fed raw numbers that demonstrate KPIs but they do not offer the insights necessary to glean ROI or deep understanding of what people do and do not want, need, or value. And that’s part of the problem as marketers and developers are focusing on stimulating movement, which by default becomes a game of competing for attention, moment by moment.
A recent study published by Ehrenberg-Bass Institute, an Australia-based research group found that less than 1-percent of Facebook “Fans” actually engage with brands... - Engagement ain’t nothing but a number – why 1% isn’t good enough
Is your business on Pinterest yet? No? Well, what are you waiting for? After all, it’s only quite possibly the hottest thing going in the social media space today. From tasty recipes to artistic photo galleries, this site is showing that it can be incredibly useful for sharing almost everything visual. We have clearly reached the point where we can say this thing is not a fad. Pinterest is a bonafide powerhouse social marketers can no longer afford to ignore... - Why Can’t Social Marketers Ignore Pinterest Any Longer?
Despite the vast and utter hugeness of Facebook, Twitter has a few more Fortune 500 companies on their platform instead of Facebook...here’s an infographic that breaks down the rest of the Fortune 500 social picture... - More Fortune 500 Companies are on Twitter than Facebook
