Get Tweeted Well

Here are few quick tips for you business folks that use Twitter. First off, don’t be a Twitter snob! Unless you are a rock star like Michael Jackson, you want to “follow” everyone within your industry. Following others will keep you updated on developments in your market and enable you to network with other professionals…

Twitter or Chatter

Sure, youโ€™ve adjusted your business to the times and have started Tweeting. But social media isnโ€™t just about building a presence โ€“ itโ€™s about creating conversations. That can be tough, even for the more seasoned Tweeters. In fact, without a genuine conversation, your Twitter account may just be a stream of useless chatter that your followers may or…

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The Differences Between Facebook and Twitter

Social media marketing newbies and veterans alike tend to make the same mistake: They post the same content to all of their social networks. There’s a reason for this: Managing multiple social media accounts is time consuming and labor intensive, especially when you consider all the other work you need to do to keep your…

Goal! Tips for Successful Business Goals

While there may still be a few weeks left in 2010, thereโ€™s no time like the present to start thinking about 2011 โ€“ at what that might mean to your business. In fact, December is the perfect time to reflect on the past year and assess what worked for your business and whatโ€”ummโ€”didnโ€™t. And since the New Year…

Driving responsibly? Progressive wants to make sure

Driving responsibly? Progressive wants to make sure.

Car insurance company Progressive has found a new way to give its customers deep discounts when appropriate: Itโ€™s giving drivers tiny devices that plug into their cars; if the devices show the driver is responsible, he or she could get up to 30% off insurance rates. Snapshot Called the โ€œSnapshotโ€ program, this plan is currently…

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Social Media and Sales

Can Social Media really help sales? The simple answer is of course yes, but probably not quite the “yes” that you are wanting. Social media is rarely, if ever, the direct sales channel itself. Social media can increase the likelihood of sales through better targeting, more consistent touchpoints and availability of information, establishing affinities and…

Breaking News (Where to get it?)

U.S. smartphone owners are increasingly turning to mobile to access breaking news over other media, including newspapers, TV and desktop web browsers, according to a recent study from mobile app developer Handmark. In a survey of 300,000 mobile consumers, 88% of whom owned a device running one the five most popular smartphone operating systems, more…

Hire Online Experts

Online Experts

Expertise for Hire. Whether youโ€™re ordering a wedding cake or searching for a new employee, the lesson is simple: People will pay for expertise. Whether painting your home, repairing your car or โ€“ cough, cough โ€“ handling your social media, customers demand things done right โ€“ especially if theyโ€™re paying for it. Thatโ€™s where your business and its expertise…

Black Friday Check-Ins

A tiny percentage of the population uses location-based checkin tools like Foursquare; and in all likelihood, these digital citizens aremore likely to be shopping online than in stores during the holiday season. So numbers gathered by Trendrr and AdAge represent a tiny sliver of what in-store numbers might have actually been. The number-one store by Foursquare checkins was Target,…

Education and Social Media

Don Knezek, the CEO of the International Society for Technology in Education, compares education without technology to the medical profession without technology. โ€œIf in 1970 you had knee surgery, you got a huge scar,โ€ he says. โ€œNow, if you have knee surgery you have two little dots.โ€ Out-of-the-box teaching Technology is helping teachers to expand…

5โ€ฆ 4โ€ฆ 3โ€ฆ 2โ€ฆ Social Presence!

You might have noticed the trend when going to your favorite restaurant, the bakery, the gym, probably even your dentist: everyone is on Facebook, Twitter, Yelp, Grouponโ€ฆ you get the idea. So if youโ€™re ready to join the ranks of the eternally social, listen up. Social Media Today has given us the 411 (or maybe the…

Let's Make a Deal

Let’s Make a Deal

Recently some game changing news hit the social street when Facebook announced “Deals,” which finally explains why Facebook’s “Places” function unrolled earlier this year. Places felt like a Foursquare knockoff that Facebook incorporated just because they felt the need to not only be ubiquitous on the web but in the physical world, too. The functionality…

Google's Got Visuals

Google’s Got Visuals

Google Product Listing Ads are now being rolled out to all of Googleโ€™s advertisers in the United States. The format, which has been in testing with select advertisers for the past year, makes AdWords more visual by allowing advertisers to list specific products with accompanying images. While the ads represent a departure from Googleโ€™s traditional text…

Veterans Day

Today is November 11th, which of course means it is Veterans Day. Social Media is reaching out for our Veterans to help them know that they are amazing individuals who helped our country become what it is today. New generations of veterans are being commemorated, as well as all the Veterans of past conflicts. Here…

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VIDEO: Social Media is Part of the Program

Many cruise along the paved roads of Social Networks without giving much thought to their development or enhancement within our social ecosystem. They are fun, entertaining, and for the most part โ€“ very easy to figure out. Riddle Me This What if we analyze our historical growth in communication or the evolution of us as…

What’s In a Name?

Your business begins with a name. Itโ€™s the cornerstone of your company identity and impacts your branding, company tone, and first impressions. Think about it. The branding of Target would be very different if the retailer still went by its original name, Dayton Dry Goods Company. Selecting the right business name for your company is…

Better Relationships on Social Media

Better Relationships on Social Media

For many companies “Social Media” feels like a phase. It isnโ€™t. In most cases the market stopped listening to them long before Social Media came alongโ€“itโ€™s only much more obvious now. The consumer now has a stronger voice, and itโ€™s not afraid to use it. Itโ€™s also networked in a way that amplifies that voice…

Writing the Wrong?

Unless youโ€™re Sharon Osbourne or any former politician, you might find it difficult to write about yourself. Well, thatโ€™s what makes resumes, cover letters, and personal bios a bit tricky. Am I being too humble? Too arrogant? Do I sound desperate? Am I desperate? Should I fluff it up? Tone it down? Well, you get the…