Macy's social media strategy

In this post, Mashable is providing a good description of Macy's social media strategy.

http://mashable.com/2012/03/14/macys-social-media/

Who is using which social media?

This is Mashable's analysis of who is using which social media venue.
http://mashable.com/2012/03/09/social-media-demographics/http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Data transfer speeds are getting faster and faster

Data transfer speeds are getting faster and faster. That is going to increase the new media influence in society.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-17271797http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

KFC's social media strategy

KFC's social media strategy courtesy of PROMO
http://promomagazine.com/socialmedia/kfc_social_media_0220_peo3/http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Networking hunters vs. networking farmers

This is an interesting Social Media Today article on networking hunters vs. networking farmers by Jon Baker.
http://socialmediatoday.com/jon-baker/455315/are-you-networking-hunter-or-farmer

Augmented reality in an airport setting

Using augmented reality in an airport setting:

http://www.psfk.com/2012/02/digital-binocular-augmented-reality.html

Duct Tape Marketing blog on Forces Shaping the Media

This is an excellent post from the Duct Tape Marketing blog on "Four Forces (re)Shaping Media and Their Effect on Small Business Marketing" by Patrick Giammarco

http://ducttapemarketingconsultant.com/four-forces-reshaping-media-and-their-effect-on-small-business-marketing/

Social media that is used by "best-to-work-for" companies

CNN Money talks about the social media that is used by companies that are considered the "best-to-work-for."
http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2012/technology/1201/gallery.best-companies-social-media.fortune/?iid=HP_LNhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Social networks in a hunter-gatherer culture

Very interesting. Research suggests that the structure of social networks in at least one hunter-gatherer culture is very similar to the social networks of more advanced societies. I am thinking insights from the hunter-gatherer culture may tell us a few things about Facebook, Twitter, etc.

http://lightyears.blogs.cnn.com/2012/01/25/origins-of-cooperation-found-in-social-networks/
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v481/n7382/full/nature10736.html
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

IBM uses its "Connections" social media software for internal purposes

This Information Week post on "The BrainYard" blog discusses how IBM uses its "Connections" social media software for internal purposes:
http://www.informationweek.com/thebrainyard/news/social_networking_private_platforms/232301172/ibm-eats-its-own-social-http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifdog-food

Examples of brand ambassador programs

The Ignite Social Media Blog provides examples of outstanding brand ambassador programs.
http://www.ignitesocialmedia.com/lifestyle/brand-ambassador-programs/

SAMMY Awards

The SAMMY Awards are for Social Advertising, Media and Marketing Awards. Check them out at:

http://www.sammyawards.com/

How BlenTec calculates social media ROI

This article from Internet Retailer shows how BlenTec calculates return on its social media investment.

http://www.internetretailer.com/2011/12/21/blendtec-shows-how-measure-effects-social-marketing

Mashable's list of new media jobs

See Mashable's list of new media jobs at
http://jobs.mashable.com/a/all-jobs/list

The Duct Tape Marketing blog addresses geo-location targeting

Duct Tape Marketing on credit card companies and geo-location targeting:

http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/blog/2011/12/16/will-credit-card-companies-cash-in-on-couponless-geo-location-targeting/

Mobile Website tips from Mashable

Mashable provides good tips on mobile websites in the post below:

http://mashable.com/2011/12/16/mobile-website-tips/

Peak Sales on "How to Make Friends and Influence People in Social Media"

Dale Carnegie's How To Win Friends and Influence People has been one of my favorite business books for many years. Salesforce recruiting firm Peak Sales does an excellent job of applying Dale Carnegie's principles to the world of social media in "How to Make Friends and Influence People in Social Media."

http://www.peaksalesrecruiting.com/how-to-make-friends-and-influence-people-in-social-media/

Augmented reality

Perhaps "augmented reality" is the next big thing in retailing?

Lego store augmented reality
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-N85srjA-GQ&feature=related
Grocery and clothing store augmented reality
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XZ5_q2k55Mk
Clothing store augmented reality
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYpxpgyCcns
Augmented reality in South Korea
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=fGaVFRzTTP4
CommonCraft video explantation
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D-A1l4Jn6EY

Good info on business blogging from Hubspot

This e-book on business blogging from Hubspot is short, to-the-point, and worth a read:
http://www.hubspot.com/introduction-to-business-blogging-download/?guid=24ac8179-5d18-4a85-9019-2f24947cc770&submissionGuid=8b692b9a-83f1-4ca9-ac49-9d0a8b9d79c1

Sales and marketing has yet to tap into digital's true power

Sales and marketing people have not yet tapped the full power of digital communications.

http://www.mckinseyquarterly.com/Marketing/Digital_Marketing/What_marketers_say_about_working_online_McKinsey_Global_Survey_results_2892

Groupon can work for small businesses but...

Apparently, Groupon offers can work for small businesses ...but you must be prepared to hold up your end of the bargain.

http://mashable.com/2011/11/23/groupon-cupcakes/

Has Facebook made the world smaller?

This Mashable post suggests that Facebook may have made the world smaller by changing the "6 degrees of separation" to only "4 degrees of separation."

http://mashable.com/2011/11/22/facebook-six-degrees/

"Augmented Reality" by Layar

"Augmented Reality" by Layar appears to be very cool!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b64_16K2e08
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HW9gU_4AUCA

"Brandjacking" of Bank of America on Google+

This post talks about how Bank of America has been "brandjacked" on Google+.

http://idealab.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/11/bank-of-americas-google-plus-page-appears-brandjacked.php

CouponFactory.com

Check out the 5th item from the top about coupon factory.
http://adage.com/article/special-report-media-vanguard-awards/media-vanguard-awards-marketer-media-spotlight/230923/

As the text indicates, “CouponFactory is about keeping things easy -- for marketers and for consumers. The turn-key system, which Rockfish Interactive launched in April, allows marketers to create and distribute digital coupons using simple templates, and then embed them anywhere (including Facebook); consumers can print them out without special software -- and whenever the coupons are redeemed, CouponFactory serves up rich analytics that can be used to tweak future campaigns. National brands using CouponFactory so far include Schick, Mentos, Mott's, Glade, Boston Market and Tyson.”

Case studies from SocialMedia.org

These case studies from SocialMedia.org are quite helpful:
http://www.socialmedia.org/blog/big-list-case-studies/social-media-case-studies-from-amway-radioshack-volkswagen-and-12-more/

Hubspot's e-book on "How to Use Google+ for Business"

Hubspot is offering an e-book on "How to Use Google+ for Business."

http://www.hubspot.com/how-to-use-google-plus-for-business?source=20111109-email-l-googleplus-business-ebook

More great tips from Socialbakers

These are more great tips from Socialbakers:

http://www.socialbakers.com/

http://www.socialbakers.com/how-to/how-to-improve-your-social-media-presence-and-win-customers-for-years-to-come/

Engaging customers with Facebook questions

Socialbakers provides some great ideas on how to engage customers with Facebook questions.

http://www.socialbakers.com/how-to/how-to-use-facebook-questions-to-increase-engagements-and-fans/

Hubspot's e-book on "How to Use LinkedIn for Business"

This e-book from Hubspot does a good job of describing how to use LinkedIn for business.


https://www.hubspot.com/Portals/53/docs/how-to-use-linkedin-for-business.pdf

The use of social media by the Fortune 500 companies

These are interesting statistics about the Fortune 500 companies' use of social media.

http://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2011/6271/fortune-500-adoption-of-social-media-slowing

GasPedal blog post on "How to respond to negative word of mouth."

This GasPedal blog post gives great advice on "How to respond to negative word of mouth."

http://gaspedal.com/blog/


#256: How to respond to negative word of mouth


Negative word of mouth happens to every company. Nobody is immune. But great brands have a plan that helps them convert a lot of the angry critics into happy fans. What you should do:

1. Act quickly


2. Be human


3. Write for the record


1. Act quickly

When a customer is upset, you need to act fast. A quick response (even if it's just to say, "I'm sorry, I hear you -- let me get back to you") helps soothe the original critic and also helps avoid an outbreak of more negative sentiment from others. It's common sense, but it's also been proven in studies: In one experiment, when a single table complained about food in a crowded restaurant, 26% of guests made similar complaints.

2. Be human

A canned response is worse than no response at all. Identify yourself, speak like a real person, and give them a way to follow-up with you. No frustrated customer has ever been won over with corporate speak, and there's no reason to expect it to start working anytime soon.

3. Write for the record

When you're responding -- especially in online forums -- remember that you're not just writing for the original critic, but for everyone else who reads it later. You want people to see that you tried to make things right. Even if you can't fix the problem, it's important to show that you're listening and that you care about keeping customers happy.

Linking social media activities to revenue

This SmartBlogs guest post by Eva Schmatz, president of market research firm Summus, Limited, argues that the best way to justify the social media's use to the C-suite is to focus on cost savings through customer service. According to the post, "The communications benefits will then follow."

I'm not sure I fully agree, but I do recognize that cost justifying the use of social media by making a direct link to revenue generation is an uphill battle at best. It is interesting to note that the challenge of linking actions to revenue is similar for traditional media advertising and public relations efforts.

http://smartblogs.com/socialmedia/2011/10/28/how-to-make-the-business-case-for-social-media/

Google provides data to governments

According to this Mashable post, the US and other countries request, and receive, data from Google.


http://mashable.com/2011/10/25/us-data-google/

800 million active Facebook users

It looks like Facebook is up to 800 million active users according to this Mashable post. It also contains a number of other interesting, and important, statistics.

http://mashable.com/2011/10/21/facebook-infographic/

12 social media tools for business

Here are some interesting social media tools that can be used by businesses, courtest of Social Media Examiner. Thanks to Dr. Joy Roach for posting the link to the MSU Marketing majors and alumni Facebook group.

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/12-social-media-tools-recommended-by-the-pros/

Facebook and Small Businesses

RT: Joy Roach -- Interesting article about small businesses and Facebook from USA Today:
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/news/story/2011-09-16/facebook-small-business-sandberg/50419654/1

Thank you, Joy, for calling this to our attention.

Let me make the following points about the article:

* With 750 million Facebook users, it looks like Facebook is going to be in the middle of social media marketing for the forseeable future.

* This article provides the following excellent example of how small businesses can use Facebook advertising -- "A wedding photographer, for instance, could advertise just to women in a specific ZIP code who list on Facebook that they are engaged. A movie chain could talk just to film fans."

* This is another example from the article -- "Sarah Loveland, owner of Daddies Board Shop, a skateboard shop in Portland, Ore., began using paid advertising with Facebook in 2010, in hopes of growing her business more quickly. She targeted fans of extreme sports and friends of those who ride skateboards and longboards. The result: She says her business shot up, and she attributes much of it to Facebook."

* The article also suggests that 10,000 fans is a majic number for small businesses that want to grow and reach a wider community. I don't know if 10,000 is the right number, but it seems to be reasonable target.

Micro and Macro Conversions

Avinash Kaushik defines Macro and Micro Conversions in this blog post:
http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/excellent-analytics-tip-13-measure-macro-and-micro-conversions/

Occam's Razor post on social media metrics

This is an excellent blog post on social media metrics. Thanks to Daniel Fukuhara for calling it to my attention in our Social Media and Marketing class Facebook group.

http://www.kaushik.net/avinash/best-social-media-metrics-conversation-amplification-applause-economic-value/

Content that goes viral

This is an excellent blog post on content that is likely to go viral:

http://socialtriggers.com/craft-contagious-content/

A new measure of engagement from Facebook

The number of "Likes" has been seen as a key measure of engagement for Facebook pages. Now there is a new one - "People Talking About"

http://mashable.com/2011/10/09/top-facebook-brands-talking-about/?WT.mc_id=obinsite

Optimizing social media for search engine optimization

This blog post from the Search Engine Marketing group provides excellent advice on optimizing social media for search engine optimization (SEO)

http://sem-group.net/search-engine-optimization-blog/seo/how-to-optimize-7-popular-social-media-profiles-for-seo/

Social media and the organizational chart

Where do community managers (and other social media types) fit on the organizational chart? Do they fit in "the PR department? Marketing? Customer service? What skills do they need?" This blog post from WOMMA asks the question.

http://womma.org/word/2011/10/05/executives-and-community-managers-%E2%80%93-not-so-different/

Social media data and anecdotes

This LA Times article provides some good data on the use of social media for marketing purposes and provides some anecdotes about companies that have successfully used it.
Thanks to our our former graduate student, Laeeq Khan, now completing his Ph.D. at Michigan State University, for forwarding it to Department Chair Dr. Terry Holmes.
http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-smallbiz-social-20111003,0,4430023.story?page=1

The market for services pertaining to social media

This blog post contains an excellent delineation of the market for services pertaining to social media. Thanks to Vili Auvinen for bringing it to my attention.

http://mashable.com/2011/07/31/social-media-overload-startups/

Ways to optimize your Facebook page

This Social Media Examiner post on "5 Ways to Optimize Your Facebook Page" is quite interesting:

http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/5-ways-to-optimize-your-facebook-page/

Airlines' use of social media

This Mashable post contains great data about airlines' use of social media. Thanks to Vili Auvinen for calling it to my attention.

http://mashable.com/2011/09/16/airlines-social-media-infographic/

Fed Ex's Social Media Playbook

This Commercial Appeal article on Federal Express' "Social Media Playbook" is interesting:
http://www.commercialappeal.com/news/2011/sep/14/memphis-based-fedex-exec-discusses-companys-playbo/

AMA - engagement is now king

The introduction to this American Marketing Association webinar pretty much sums it up -- "Sales, marketing and customer service have changed incredibly over the past few years – engagement is now king. It’s no longer a question of “if” your customers are talking online, but 'when' and 'where.'"

http://www.marketingpower.com/ResourceLibrary/Pages/Webcasts/UnMarketing_Top_Tools_and_Techniques_for_Engaging_Your_Audience_Online_092711.aspx

Social media tutorials courtesy of "Exploring Social Media"

The following tutorials are provided by Exploring Social Media http://exploringsocialmedia.com/

9 Effective Ways to Use YouTube for Business http://exploringsocialmedia.com/9-effective-ways-to-use-youtube-for-business/

Popular, Free, and Easy Blogging Platforms http://exploringsocialmedia.com/popular-free-and-easy-blogging-platforms/

Groupon vs. LivingSocial: Who Wins the Battle of the Deals? http://exploringsocialmedia.com/groupon-vs-livingsocial-who-wins-the-battle-of-the-deals/