@BasilPuglisi

Content & Strategy, Powered by Factics & AI, Since 2009

LinkedIn

Inbound Marketing Summit NYC 2012 – 3 Important Tips to Take Home

by Leave a Comment

Image c/o http://inboundmarketingsummit.com/event/new-york/

If you had the opportunity to sit in on the panels at the Inbound Marketing Summit in New York this year, you likely took away a few vital lessons that you can carry to your business. The conference itself has evolved over the last few years. It has held a focus on social marketing strategies, but has also begun a swift evolution to cover other vital elements such as social TV, touch screen devices, and mobile marketing, as well as defining what these technological shifts really mean for professionals utilizing engagement skills and strategies.

While many interesting points were made, there were absolutely three great highlights that every small business owner should consider when focusing on social media and fan engagement.

Social Media Advertising

Most social networks such as Twitter, Facebook, and even LinkedIn have opportunities for advertising at relatively affordable prices. While businesses are building and managing their content in order to break through valuable channels to achieve better engagement, they are finding that advertising can be easy when it is placed where people are hanging around the most. With the many Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn stats we are familiar with when it comes to time spent on social networks these days, there is no doubt that although more affordable than many other types of digital or traditional advertising, they are still highly effective. The IMS panels recommended trying this out on your Facebook Fan page since it is significantly easier to build an audience there.

Responding and Engaging

Image c/o http://socialmarketingfella.com/

You have heard it before here at DBMEI, it is not enough to simply create formats for your consumers to interact with, you actually have to be responsive, and in a relatively short period of time for maximum engagement opportunities. Business owners can either use a team to ensure engagement in a timely manner, or they can use alerts and other monitoring programs to ensure their consumers or prospective customers are given responses before too much time has passed. They should also not wait until there is an issue to engage, even if a visitor just stops by to post or praise your products and services, give them a swift thanks a Like, and a special coupon code when at all possible. Make interactivity on your social media platforms a source of mutual positive reinforcement when at all possible.

Have a Plan

Business owners need to have a plan. You shouldn’t be rolling over, firing up the computer, and tapping your fingers until the content idea comes to you. You need a lot more of a forecasted plan than that. Using a social media editorial calendar can be a helpful way to pre-plan and map out topics so that they are optimized for distribution, coverage, and of course engagement. You should know ahead of time, aside from breaking or important trending news, what type of content will be created and when it will be set for distribution. Knowing your audience and what type of content they can appreciate, combined with a social media editorial calendar will help business owners to better manage engagement with current or potential consumers.

Many other vital points arose that are also swiftly becoming crucial elements in business marketing such as tablets and social TV and their respective places in a full-bodied marketing campaign. Since Americans still watch around 35 hours of TV per week, many now on touch screen devices and tablets, marketing professionals now need to begin to consider how to capture an audience’s attention across multiple devices simultaneously.

However, it is also important to recall that another lesson from IMS included understanding user behavior over in-depth knowledge about emerging technologies.

Author:

@BasilPuglisi is the Executive Director and Publisher for Digital Brand Marketing Education (dbmei.com). Basil C. Puglisi is also the President of Puglisi Consulting Group, Inc. A Digital Brand Marketing Consultancy that manages professional and personal branding for Fortune 500 CEOs, Hedge Fund Managers and Small Business Owners.

Sources:

How to Create a Social Network that isn’t Phony

by 1 Comment

Networking has undergone many transformations over the years, and has now reached a sort of zenith in tandem with the Web 2.0. Before, networking simply meant hobnobbing with industry insiders, perhaps at conferences, perchance over cocktails. Now, with the advent and burgeoning popularity of social media, networking is nothing short of an intricate science, one in which we add and quantify “friends” and “connections.” We hear tips on how to network ad nauseam on the Internet. Indeed, whole blogs are devoted entirely to this one subject. But since networking, at its most basic level, involves people–with all their unpredictability and personal quirks and emotions and passions–then surely networking is also an art. Image representing LinkedIn as depicted in Cru...

Reid Hoffman, founder of LinkedIn, perhaps most cogently brings home the idea that networking is about people in a recent Fortune article. It may seem strange to remind ourselves that networking involves people.  But at the same time, how easily is the fact forgotten, when we may have thousands of friends whom we hardly know, when these social networking sites form loci where other, non-social transactions occur, like buying furniture and finding jobs?

Networking Begins at Home

Hoffman explains in his interview that networking starts essentially at home. If you are looking to build a truly genuine network, then log off from your Facebook profile and think about your closest ties—your friends, family, co-workers, or anybody you see on a daily basis. These ties are what Hoffman calls “alliances,” close collaborators for whom you would gladly do personal favors, and who would in turn, gladly “get your back” as well. It is from these alliances that a more extended network springs. Following alliances are the people with whom you have weaker ties, those who you are friendly with but see only on special occasions. These, too, have an important role to play.
Now of course, this isn’t to say that LinkedIn or Facebook are useless. They both provide springboards for genuine networking. But even the founder of LinkedIn emphasizes the importance of meeting people in person and learning to engage them with conversation that transcends shop talk.
In my own reading of Hoffman’s work, the most important lessons about genuine networking I’ve learned are these—you have to put yourself in other people’s shoes. You must start with the idea that you are going to help other people first. Of course, there will always be an aspect of self-interest in networking. But self-interest should never be your starting point. Secondly, you must realize that effective networking is more than just adding and liking. Networking, just like a garden, must be tended consistently if it is to grow and flourish.
Whether you are an entrepreneur seeking funding for your Big Idea, or you’re a freelance blogger looking for a gig, or you simply want to widen your reach socially and professionally, every minute of your day is a chance to further your influence. Call a family friend you haven’t talked to in awhile. Ask for an introduction to someone whose career choices you would like to pursue. Go out of your way to do a favor for someone else. Above all, put yourself out there, converse, shake hands, and, most importantly, mean it.
Author:
Katheryn Rivas often writes on the topic of online universities and welcomes any direct contact at her email address: Katherynrivas87@gmail.com
Sources:

The New Social Marketing Strategy with Google+

by 6 Comments

As a marketer, your social profile must be thriving on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. But the important question is, ‘Is it thriving over Google+?’ I can assure you that most of you will answer in the negative. However, it is not too late. Grab a business page over at Google+ as soon as you finish reading this.
Google is smart and knows how to beat down its competitors. When Google+ was launched, none had the slightest idea that it will be used as a cutting edge in the market by Google. Yes, Google has merged the search engine and the social network as one. This attempt by Google can be described as ‘Social Searching’.

Search + Your World

It is the new Search plus Your World (Search plus Your World) I am talking about. When you do a Google search, being logged into your Google+ account, you will find that results are being personalized to match your taste. Let us consider that you are searching for ‘body building tips’ and if one of your friends within your circle has written about it then it will be shown to you in the search results. Seems good eh? Here comes the truth.
Google, in the name of personalizing your searches, is forcing the results of Google+ under your throat. How? Let me explain in a more elaborate manner. Suppose you wish to know about a certain brand or celebrity and you would like to give a search over Google. In the search results you will notice that the brand’ or celebrity’s Google+ profile is given preference. Now, do you understand what Google is up to? Yes, it is competing with other social networks taking advantage of its search engine.
Google gives less importance to other social network’s posts and therefore the more urgency in getting your business page over Google+ as soon as possible. A business page over Google+ will help people find your business over search results. However, just a page is not sufficient to boost your business to the required level. Here is one of my social marketing ideas that you can incorporate in your business page over Google+.

Ways to Win at Google +

It is more likely that Google+ posts are to be shown in the search results. Include the keyword in the title as well as the body of the post so that it will help the Google bots to index it and show over the search results. Here comes an added advantage to you as a marketer by including the keyword in posts. Instead of explaining it let me show you with a theoretical example.
Let us consider that you have a blog/website dealing with ‘Diet’ and you wish to optimize a certain article or page for a keyword. When doing a keyword search over any keyword tool you find the keyword ‘diet foods’ has high volume of search and with lesser competition. On the other hand the keyword ‘safe weight loss’ has the same value as ‘diet foods’ to a certain extent. Confused, you optimize your content for the keyword ‘diet foods’ and therefore leave the keyword ‘safe weight loss’.
After posting the article (optimized for ‘diet foods’) over your site, you generally share it to social networks by just pasting the link and allowing the social network to grab the first five lines of the content. In case of Google+ you can try the other way around. The article which was written around ‘Diet Foods’ can also be written around ‘Safe weight loss’, though the latter keyword cannot compensate wholly but it can at least be used as introducer to the content. Yes, write a title and a short description around the keyword ‘safe weight loss’ and manually paste it to the Google+. Later you can include the link of your content and let the social network have its way with it.

What are the Pros?

What is the advantage of doing this extra work? Let me remind you again that Google is going to crawl every post in Google+ and therefore your post which has a short description given by you manually as well as the short description which Google + has indexed for you over its network are both going to be shown over search result. Irrespective of whether a user searches for ‘diet foods’ or ‘safe weight loss’, the chances of your post appearing in the search result will increase.
The odd of the post being shown to the users increases if the user is within your circle. Therefore, it is better that you start focusing on Google+. At the same time do not abandon your audience over other network, because who knows what the future of social marketing will be.

Before I can wrap up, some of you might know that Google provides the ability of depersonalizing your search results. Yes, it’s true. But how many of you will depersonalize your search results and opt for a more global search? Maybe some of us would depersonalize the searches and would like a pure Google search. Will the common user care to do it? I do not think so. When most users find what they are searching for, none will care to depersonalize their search results.
Author:
Richie Richardson is a Social Marketing Expert and SEO Analyst. You can reach him over his blog www.zarrylyms.com where he discusses on current issues regarding Social Marketing, Branding, Affiliate Marketing, SEO and B2B.
Sources:

Start Your Own Social Media Business, Without the Collateral

by 11 Comments

In today’s economy, it is very hard to get a job. Because of all the competition, it’s also very hard to set yourself apart from the rest. If you’re a student living out of a parent’s home and still learning how/struggling to fend for yourself, you will be able to agree that finding a job that suits your circumstances can seem like an endless and pointless mission. Plus, add all the pressure of studying, socializing and still growing up, a pattern of rejection letter after rejection letter can take its toll.  I know it did for me. So I started thinking, I need a job and thus far, I’m having zilch luck finding one, so I steered my original thoughts of corporate climb towards another venture, starting my own business, and working for myself.
Who hasn’t toyed with the tempting idea of owning your own business? And if  your circumstances are similar to mine, I recommend you continue reading. I have put together a simple, 3-step guide for students needed for the initial ‘thinking’ stages of starting a business. All you need is a social media platform (a Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn account), a working knowledge of how it operates and commitment to your interactions (potential clients).
1.     Go with What You Know

As a student, and as a child who was raised by the Internet, one thing I completely blanked on when trying to decide on the service of my business, was social media. And I can’t believe it took me that long to think of it! If you’re addicted to, and can’t live without your Facebook or Twitter and consider yourself a bit of a whizz when managing your accounts, then why not consider a position such as Social Media Marketing Assistant? Every company/organization/individual who understands the importance and benefits of having or introducing a digital media marketing strategy will be interested in your services.
2.     Create an e-Portfolio
Having a electronic portfolio is much more versatile and accessible than a hardcopy portfolio. And by utilizing social media to reach your audience, your work and services will be viewed and sought after online therefore, an e-Portfolio proves to be your most significant asset in the business world. It’s like a resume, just a lot more interactive. An e-portfolio can include multimedia presentations, relevant web pages, work from Adobe, data spreadsheets, reports – basically anything you have created online!
3.     How To get Your Name Out There and Who You Should Be Marketing Towards
If Facebook is what you know and therefore your platform of choice, instead of using your own personal account, set up a Facebook page dedicated to your business and link your professional account to your personal account (this will actually boost friend requests aswell) You must think to yourself; who would use my services? Who needs me?
So students, you’re not alone out there. Flexibility and enjoyment (not to mention good pay!) are all key in finding a successful fit whilst you are studying and the skills you learn & develop in social media are invaluable and will prove to be a significant asset in your professional later life.
Author:
A Public Relations student, born, raised, & studying in Melbourne, Lisa Danielle Carey is currently completing her A.D in Public Relations at Victoria University. As a social media enthusiast, she is active on Twitter, as well as Facebook. Social Media is the face the future, so let’s embrace it together!
Sources:

3 Tips to Synchronize Online and Traditional Marketing

by Leave a Comment

As much as the online community loves to promote the effectiveness of a well-designed online strategy, it’s impossible to deny that
traditional media can be hugely effective. What get’s lost in much of the debate about online vs traditional marketing, though, is how
incredibly powerful they can be when used in tandem. Here are three ways to make it happen.

1. Play Ping Pong

English: Infographic on how Social Media are b...In The Thank You Economy, Gary Vaynerchuk explains how playing a game of ping pong between social and traditional media can launch customer
engagement through the roof.

In the book, he argues that simply including the URL of a Facebook page at the end of a TV commercial doesn’t go nearly far enough. Instead, the commercial should include a genuine call to action that encourages viewers to find out what’s happening online.

Once the users visit the social media page, they should find not an advertisement, but a genuine community of like-minded people. All the energy and excitement surrounding the community can then be harnessed and channeled. It can be used to spark new ideas that can make their way back into traditional media.

When a meme makes the leap from an online community to traditional media, the people who were involved in the creation of that meme will feel vindicated. This further improves the engagement and keeps the community coming back for more.

In the book, Vaynerchuk applauded the success of an Old Spice campaign that, in many ways, accomplished just that. The character from the  commercials was placed into the social media realm, where he interacted directly with the audience. Taking things a step further, he responded to requests from the audience by recording new videos that incorporated their ideas. This resulted in an incredibly successful campaign.

But Vaynerchuk also had some harsh words for Old Spice, because they failed to keep the game going. They eventually stopped engaging with
their audience, treating the social media phenomenon as though it were a TV advertising campaign that could just end without so much as a
farewell. He feels that the campaign should have been used to develop lifetime customer value that would have kept customers coming back for
more for the foreseeable future.

2. There’s More to Social Than Marketing

Chris Brogan is one of the most widely respected voices on social media marketing, so it’s no small thing when he says that social media is about more than marketing. One of the most important changes that social media has brought about is the ability of the customer to talk about you.

What does this have to do with incorporating traditional marketing? Consider the value of actually understanding your audience. In 1998, marketers were willing to pay between four and five thousand dollars to conduct a focus group consisting of less than ten people for two hours.If people were willing to spend this much for two hours with ten potential customers to figure out how they thought and what made them tick, imagine how much they would have paid to have access to a never-ending conversation with thousands of potential customers.

The amount of data available at your fingertips is staggering if you are just willing to listen. Insights gleamed from relationships that were founded by social media can be an incredible source of traditional marketing ideas. Taking the time to really understand your audience and how they think will dramatically improve the impact of your traditional marketing efforts.

Building relationships using social media can also help expand your influence. A phone call only takes place between two people, but social media allows you to have a conversation of comparable intimacy with hundreds or thousands of people at the same time. Do not underestimate the power of influential relationships. They have always been the backbone of a strong business, and the intensity of this has only been magnified by the power of the internet..

3. Reach Critical MassThe social media or the management of social n...

The most important thing that social media has to offer is right in the name: social. It’s about the conversation. It’s that conversation that keeps users coming back, gets the word out, and makes things happen.

A conversation, by definition, demands more than one person. Most people are hesitant to start or join a conversation unless one has already been started. As the old saying goes, nothing attracts a crowd like a crowd.

This is where traditional media can be immensely powerful. By sending enough people your way, you can reach the critical mass necessary to get a conversation started. This can be accomplished without traditional marketing, but it’s often much easier to reach this point using something like traditional advertising.

Social and traditional media can amplify each other in ways that weren’t possible before. By keenly understanding the difference between the two media, it’s possible to reach a wide audience, listen to what they have to say, and appeal to them in new and powerful ways.

Author:

Kathy S. is a freelance writer and car insurance expert. She lives with her husband in Georgia where they enjoy weight training and comparing car insurance together.

Sources:

How to Get the Most Out of Your Social Media Advertising

by 7 Comments

The field of advertisement has changed immensely over the past decades. Online advertisements have replaced almost completely the printed newsletters, which used to be so effective. If, at first, the companies used to advertise online and build their own websites and buy virtual ads, today, social media is the new way of advertising.

Now, I am not saying that billboards, direct mails are not working at all, but the internet advertising takes it to a whole new level.With more than three billion users, more than half of them belonging to a social website or another, the internet is the perfect market to advertise. More than that, social network websites are being seen more as a successful strategy for advertising than a way to find “the perfect match”. The most important social sites are:
1. Facebook: over 800 million users
2. Qzone: 500 million users (China networking website)
3. Twitter: 200 million users
4. RenRen: 180 million users (China networking website)
5. Myspace: 150 million users
6. Badoo: 120 million users
7. Bebo: 115 million users
8. LinkedIn: 100 million users
Talking about social websites, the first things I should mention is, of course, Facebook. With almost 1 billion users, Facebook is the most popular social website. Companies are obviously taking advantage of that, and, as Lon Safko (social media expert and co-author of “The Social Media Bible: Tactics, Tools, and Strategies for Business Success”) said, they try to visualize Facebook as “a huge business watering hole”.
Next stop on the list is Twitter; companies create accounts, get interested people to follow them and advertise through the 140 characters tweets. The strategy is targeting by using hash tags and concentrated tweets.
LinkedIn has revolutionized the social media advertising campaigns. With millions of professionals seeking for jobs, experts, business opportunities, networking opportunities, LinkedIn is slowly, but surely, aiming for a higher spot on the list.
Companies are usually skeptic when taking on the social media advertising. It seems like no one can compete with Coca Cola, Starbucks or any of the well-known brands. But statistic show otherwise. The following list show the main changes companies have observed when getting into social media advertising:
  • 88% – generate exposure for the business
  • 72% – increased traffic / subscribers
  • 62% – improved search rankings
  • 56% – new business partnerships
  • 51% – generated qualified leads
  • 49% – reduced overall market expenses
  • 43% – improved sales
Now here is a fact that may seem odd: small and average sized businesses spend three more times on social media network websites and blogs than the larger ones.
Old-school ads used to redirect you to a new tab, the landing page of the particular website, when clicked. Now, business and brands, redirect their potential customers to their social media sites (Facebook, Twitter etc.) The new ads work like a mini website, giving you the opportunity to read real time Facebook posts and tweets without leaving the page you were browsing through.
The number of companies and business that agree with the fact that social media is one of the best way of advertising is sky rocketing. Whether they just started or are experienced here’s the percentage of them:
  • 30% of those who just started are really considering investing more in social media marketing
  • 45% of business with less than 12 months of experience are happy and eager to continue their social media advertising campaign
  • 68% of companies with 1 – 3 years of experience are extremely satisfied and continue advertising on social media networks
  • 87% of those with more than 3 years in the business have seen great results and are waiting for more
The number of new social media websites is increasing as their users, but there are some websites that every company relies on when it comes to advertising. Some of them are more preferred, some of them are less. Check them out:
1. Facebook: used by 92% of the companies.
2. Twitter: used by 84% of the companies
3. LinkedIn: used by 71% of the companies
4. YouTube: used by 56% of the companies
5. FourSquare: used by 17% of the companies
6. Groupon: used by 7% of the companies
7. Myspace: used by 5% of the companies
Video Marketing – 80% percent of companies see this as a new addition to the advertising strategy and plan to use it as often as possible in 2012. YouTube is the main website preferred with more than 70% of votes.
Outsourcing – More and more company owner are outsourcing their social media marketing. This is not still a trending strategy, but it is very effective and large brand are using it. The tasks that are most outsourced are:
1. Design & development: 17%
2. Content Creation: 10%
3. Analytics: 10%
4. Monitoring: 7%
5. Research: 6%
6. Strategy: 6%
7. Community management: 4%
8. Live tweeting of events: 3%
Be sure to take advantage of this new growing strategy and analyze how are you standing in all the areas from above and which can really use some improvement.
Last, but not least, social media is not used entirely exclusive. When combined with traditional marketing strategies its influence becomes even stronger. The greatest results succeeded when social media was combined with:
  • E-mail marketing – 64% of the users are extremely satisfied and continue using it.
  • Event marketing – 60% plan on increasing their use of event marketing, because of its success.
  • Press releases – 43% are really happy with this old-school strategy.
  • Webinars – Used mainly by small business (42%) this is a great way to “put yourself out there”.

They say 2012 it’s the year when all businesses will start using social media as a powerful marketing and advertising strategy. With more and more apps, video and photo sharing, live events coverage, you will have in your hands a lot of smart tools to choose from.

Author:

Katlyn M. is a freelance writer and car insurance comparison specialist, and personal trainer. In her spare time, Katlyn enjoys swimming, hiking, and helping her friends save money on car insurance.

Sources:

Find A Lifetime of Success in 2012 by understanding “Time” & “Why?”

by Leave a Comment

Ready to understand why some people are far more successful than others?

Brace yourself! I am going to share my perspective on why 2011 was such a success for me and give you something to think about in 2012. Here’s the funny part, I made more money in 2011 than I have ever and that little fact actually has little to do with why I was so successful in 2011.

I have had some great mentors and it’s all due to listening! You see those that know me might think that I am more of a talker, but I do a lot of listening. The fact that I actually hear what I am listening too makes it all the more effective. A lesson that’s valuable for life and Social Media.

TIME

In the movie “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” the Character Gordon Geckko turns to a young man and tells him that “time is the most precious commodity that I know of” a statement of absolute truth! While Einstein argued that time could be something of perception, in the case of the “theory of relativity” scientists make assumptions and simulations that space-time and other aspects of physics and astronomy  do not change the current state of time, in relation to the phenomenon of life.

During my masters program, we studied a concept that fascinated me on its own, supply and demand. The wildcard here was that demand was driven by perception. The concept became even more exciting when later we talked about the monetary value of leisure! The economic evaluation for leisure comes when there is not enough value to make the individual work more, or in the tipping point where the individual is willing to work during a time period traditionally reserved for leisure.

Time is clearly something that holds financial value, and in the case of supply and demand, we have a market where supply is consistent. There is only so many hours in a day, so many days in a week, so many weeks in a month and so many months in a year and so many years that we live. However, what if life is not as long as we believe it to be? The supply may be shorter or  longer then perceived. Demand seems to be the one thing in America that we do not have in this equation.

Whatever you choose for your profession, do not let it dictate your life. Travel, Family, Exploration and the Art of Doing Nothing are just as important and I believe a healthy part of a successful life.

WHY?

I will tell you right now, if you work for or with someone who answers “Why?” with “because I said so” or “that’s how we do it” RUN!

That person is likely, lazy, selfish and/or just plain ignorant! Yes, ignorant! I have had these people just like everyone else and it made for a negative professional career experience in the fields of education, banking and sales. There is probably nothing more dangerous to the health of an organization, its culture, and our economy then these people. “Why?” is crucial to success!

Why is how we learn, grow and develop. It is crucial to success both for individuals and organizations. A supervisor, manager or superior has an fiduciary responsibility to both the organization and the client to teach their subordinate everything they know. I pride my work in student affairs with the notion that I had started teaching my staff from day one what I do and why so. In my absence, everything, for at least a while could run as consistently as if I was still there. If you don’t believe that you should prepare for your absence, then what will you do if you should be promoted? Do you not believe that your people are  more effective contributors to a culture where you have empowered them?

A small business owner should have the same relationship with their consultant and media professionals, if you do not invest the time to teach them about your business how will they be able to understand its culture? If you do not understand “Why?” the consultant or media professional is doing something then how will you know what to do in their absence or to communicate the evolution of the business. You may not be able to do what others due, either because of talent, skills or time, but you still better understand why they are doing it.  

Both “Time” and “Why?” are a crucial part of life, not just business or professional development. Adapt a plan that encompasses learning and educating the “Why?” to those around you, and you will find “Time” which will bring you prosperity in 2012.

It was a great 2011, I am looking forward to an even better 2012! Hope you’ll Join me!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WahafF8Y_E0]

Sources:

LinkedIn: Updates on Ads & LinkedIn Today

by Leave a Comment

LinkedIn is a free, business and social network which was built on the idea that personal recommendations in today’s global village is was people really need. Hence, they created a way for people to connect on a professional level, and create a circle of acquaintances, or Connections as they are called. Somewhere, in the people you invite to connect with you, there is a connection to another circle and group of people you might know as well or want to connect with. That is called 2nd degree connections, and from here on, it can grow exponentially.

From this network people can receive personal recommendations, look for employees and search for jobs. LinkedIn has a privacy policy wherein all the connections have to be mutually agreed, so no unwanted connections will be formed.

With over 100 million users, from 200 countries around the world, available in many languages, LinkedIn is a force to be reckoned with.

There are a numerous programs that have been added throughout the years, to make LinkedIn more social and more interactive:

  • Paid Accounts offers more possibilities and tools to find people.
  • LinkedIn Answers allows users to post business related questions that anyone else can view.
  • LinkedIn Ads – LinkedIn has a paid service of ads called LinkedIn Ads, where users can create a small ad to be shown on the side of the prominent pages on the site, in a similar way to Google’s Adwords. The ad directs people to the website of the advertiser. The advertiser specifies which LinkedIn members will be able to view the ad by selecting a target audience. The payment for the ads is done in a CPC (Pay per Click) method or CPM (pay per 1,000 impressions). There is a bid and a maximum price that the advertiser is willing to pay for each click is set. LinkedIn is now testing social recommendation based ads; they are trying to target advertising based on the keywords in a profile and conversations.
  • LinkedIn Today – In March 2011 LinkedIn added another service called, LinkedIn Today. It is a social news product for business people. The news is aggregated from different established sources like The Wall Street Journal, CNN, NPR, Bloomberg, Huffington Post etc. and is customized to match the industries you and your connections work in. The articles in each industry are organized by how popular the story is and how many times it has been shared on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Most of the success stories with LinkedIn Ads come from job seekers and professional services. B2B is also represented in their ads and businesses claim to have success with creating new connections and receiving orders.

Back in January 2011 LinkedIn filed for an IPO, offering the first glimpse into its finances. In the first 9 month of 2010, LinkedIn turned in a profit of 10.1 million on revenue of $161 million. “We do not expect to be profitable on a GAAP basis in 2011” the company said in its filling.

Four months later, in May 2011, LinkedIn became a public traded company. Its shares went for $45 a pop.  That means the company is estimated to be worth $4.3 billion. Reid Hoffman, the co-founder and former CEO of LinkedIn retained 21.7% of the stock which is worth more than $1.6 billion. (Hoffman is one of the founders of Pay-Pal). The shares soared out of the gate to $87.05, and have reached over $100 for a short period before settling in the high 90’s.

Goldman Sachs, an investor, sold all its shares and quadrupled its investment in 3 years.

Read our article when we did a first look at LinkedIn in Nov 2010 and also our article on the LinkedIn IPO.

Sources:

Social Media For Recruiting

by Leave a Comment

It wasn’t long ago that social media was defined solely as a way to learn how a friend just ate at a great restaurant or who was getting engaged.

However, social media continued its evolution and became particularly useful for companies to locate, recruit, and learn about candidates for open positions. Using social media for recruiting has quickly ignited a hiring fire, lighting the way for many. While sites like Facebook, Twitter and Myspace are still often used for ‘fun’, as well as business, others like LinkedIn have become known as more ‘serious’or ‘professional’ space.

So how does a company effectively search and target potential candidates from such a large pool though?

Recruit from Your Own List of Friends and Followers

Using Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn can all be useful in recruiting by being able to distribute information about open positions quickly and efficiently to large number of people. Recruiters know they’re distributing information to candidates who will take notice, especially since jobseekers are turned off by sites like CareerBuilder.com which have become filled with spam.

There are a number of free resources available. On most social media profiles, companies can use their status box in order to announce open positions, and of course good old fashioned networking is the best tool of all. On LinkedIn, after building connections of industry peers including co-workers, clients, and local companies, one can browse the profiles of each other’s connections, and then ask for introductions.

Link Up with LinkedIn

Another useful way to recruit on LinkedIn is by joining relevant groups and staying active within them by participating in the group’s discussions and keeping their eyes open for those who are active and knowledgeable.

While similar tools are available on almost all social media sites, LinkedIn gives recruiters the ability to not only view a candidate’s resume, they can also see any recommendations the candidate has received from their peers. The ability to give and receive visible recommendations is a tool that’s not as ‘visible’ and specific on other social media sites. Additionally, recruiting companies on LinkedIn can post available jobs and sign up for LinkedIn Talent Advantage, basically a toolbox for recruiters, both for fees.

There’s no reason to be afraid of approaching candidates. A recent survey on Internships.com found that almost 80 percent% of respondents didn’t mind if a company made contact about potential opportunities, so now is the time to make use of the many tools social media has to offer.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=exfA5y4txms]

Sources:

Klout Measures Your Clout On LinkedIn Social Business Network

by Leave a Comment

Have you ever wondered how your resume stacks up against others with much the same experience as you? Fortunately, Klout, the startup that previously only measured a person’s influence across the social media board, and LinkedIn, the business-related social networking site, has now partnered up to allow users to see their own influence when it comes to their professional LinkedIn profiles.

Klout and LinkedIn Action

Klout will now quickly assess a user’s ability to influence action on LinkedIn. It will also measure who users may be influencing on LinkedIn and how they are being influenced.

Now when LinkedIn is added to the Klout dashboard, the LinkedIn connections a user has, as well as their activities on the business networking site, will be collaborated with the user’s Facebook and Twitter accounts. From these three accounts, a Klout score will be generated.

Klout CEO and co-founder Joe Fernandez has shared that LinkedIn has been one of the top request from users who want to expand their Klout scores with information from other social media networks besides the previously integrated Twitter and Facebook sites. Klout also shows on their dashboard that integration for Foursquare is not far behind.

While Klout developers passed up the chance to share the exact specifics on what is analyzed, they have shared that part of the analysis will be formulated by the users interactions on LinkedIn. These interactions include who users are interacting with, the type of content users share with their contacts, and the users influence in relation to the responses from those on their LinkedIn network. Klout has also made it clear that the number of connections have no influence in users Klout scoring system. Quality, not quantity, is what Klout is looking for when determining users scores.

Why Does Klout Score Matter?

Unless you have been living under a digital rock, you are well aware of the role that social media plays in internet business and marketing. However, the common sense aspect may not be all that is important when it comes to your Klout and social media influence scores.

Currently, brands and businesses are beginning to test programs that will provide benefits to social media and network users with higher Klout scores. In addition, Klout is currently scouting to help identify experts on a large variety of topics.

Last but not least, if your career involves working with and managing social media accounts, a high Klout score will obviously give you a leg up on your competition.

Who Uses Klout?

Obviously, anyone in a business that will benefit from a great online presence will benefit from a increasing Klout score, but who is actively using this method of measuring a person’s social networking influence?

One of the most well-known Klout reliant companies is the Huffington Post. They have integrated Klout into their article posts to help them locate the highest influencers. The Huffington Post is known for being on the cutting edge of the integration of social media on their site. Huffington Post viewers gives users the ability to not only know who is mentioning an article, but who the highest influencers are on a topic.

Clout with Klout in Vegas

Who doesn’t want some kind of clout in Vegas?  When visitors check into the Palm Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, they may be surprised at what influences the treatment they receive while checked into this top notch resort.

As visitors approach the check-in desk, and their information is pulled up on the reservation screen, another element is included besides just their credit card and personal request. If a visitor suddenly finds themselves invited to the exclusive Hugh Hefner Villa, they may be entirely shocked to understand that it is their Klout score that garnered them this top-notch invitation.

Palm Hotel and Casino uses Klout scores to judge each visitors worth as a consumer. The Palms’ marketing office, Jason Gastwirth is building the Klout Klub for visitors who have the highest and most influential Klout scores. These influential visitors may be privy to some of the Palms’ most impressive set of amenities.

The Palm Hotel and Casino seems to have the right idea when it comes to their influence on consumers who are likely to happily Tweet, Facebook, Digg, and Stumbleupon their social medias to laud the benefits they received while visiting this highly social media oriented resort. While giving away a few amenities, they are also building some serious Klout for themselves. The praise, @mentions and other comments they receive are well worth the cost of giving away a few perks to highly influential social media users.

 

Sources: