Social Media News

SM TODAY: Write Blog Content Your Audience Cares About

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 00:29:24 +0000

SEO experts often recommend that business owners write a blog. They do that for a number of reasons, not least of which is it increases your chances of showing up in search results and gives you the opportunity to build trust, authority and exposure with your intended audience.

SM TODAY: 3 Top Tips to Boost Your LinkedIn Profile Visibility

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 06:05:53 +0000

Did you know LinkedIn has its own proprietary search algorithm? The details are top secret, but according to Yumi Wilson, manager of corporate communications at LinkedIn, there are several ways to use LinkedIn to get the most from the platform.

SM TODAY: Top 5 Brand Building Strategies for Professional Services Firms

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 09:11:26 +0000

Brand building can help you win new clients, command premium fees, and attract and retain the very best talent. But how do you do it?

SM TODAY: Pope Francis (@Pontifex) Says Social Media Makes Us Lonely

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 09:36:29 +0000

Pope Francis, on his last day in the United States, delivered a sermon at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary in Pennsylvania that came down a bit harsh on social media, with the statement "I would dare say that at the root of so many contemporary situations is a kind of radical loneliness that so many people live in today. Running after the latest fad, a like, accumulating followers on any of the social networks."

SM TODAY: SMToolbox: Cision Social Masters Content Marketing and Customer Service

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 10:17:53 +0000

Earlier this year, Cision launched Cision Social Edition, a tool to help content marketers and brands simply their social needs, extend the lifespan of content, and reach new audiences using sponsored placements, and more.

SM TODAY: How Much of Your Audience Is Fake? Or Are Your Ads Mostly Being Viewed by Bots?

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 12:01:08 +0000

A study suggest that $6.3 billion of ad spend a year is wasted on fake traffic, or clicks that appear to be views but are actually the work of software. An investigation showed that sometimes as little as 20% of views are actually human.

SM TODAY: Facebook Announces it Now Has 2.5 Million Advertisers, New Ad Features

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 18:01:20 +0000

Facebook has today announced that it now has 2.5 million active advertisers, up from two million just seven months ago. In addition to the milestone, Facebook has announced four new ad features which they’re hoping will help them on their way to reaching 3 million advertisers in 2016.

SM TODAY: The Curse of Invisible Content

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 18:37:15 +0000

Many B2B marketers are either striking out or racking up very low batting averages. What gives? We won’t be able to pin all our problems on a singular shortcoming. However, as we dig deeper into sizable enterprises producing oodles of content, we do tend to uncover a very common problem: People Don’t Know Where to Find the Content They Need.

SM TODAY: All the Social Ladies Podcast: Daniella Nabuco

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 18:44:59 +0000

Daniella Nabuco is the Senior Manager of Social and Digital Marketing at Materne North America, GoGo squeeZ. She oversees digital strategy, content creation, and social media community management for the popular healthy kids snack brand with a focus on engaging consumers in the social and digital realms.

SM TODAY: A Step-by-Step Guide to Working with Influencers to Promote Your Startup

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 22:56:43 +0000

In our rapidly evolving business world, it's become increasingly difficult for startups to differentiate themselves from the competition. One way to do this is to utilize influencer marketing - in this post, Brett Relander outlines how to go about doing just that.

SM TODAY: Millennials Are All on Snapchat and Instagram, Right? Maybe Not [Study]

Wed, 02 Mar 1921 23:50:49 +0000

A new study conducted by Ipsos has examined the social media habits of Millennials ins specific detail, finding that Facebook is the most used network, while all others are well behind in terms of take up and regular use.

SM TODAY: Stop Wasting Time. Create Customers

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 00:43:17 +0000

If you struggle to make and retain new customers, you’re hardly alone. In fact, acquiring new customers is often named as one of biggest challenges facing SMEs. But there are tried and true tactics to acquiring new leads - here's a guide on some key processes to follow.

SM TODAY: US Mobile Browser Traffic Two-Times Bigger, and Growing Faster, Than App Traffic

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 01:20:46 +0000

A new Morgan Stanley report on Google has found that US mobile browser traffic is still twice the size of the app audience, and has grown 61% per year, compared against average app audience have growth of 51% in the same period.

SM TODAY: How B2B Buyers Use Social Media [Podcast]

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 01:56:06 +0000

In this episode of the Social Business Engine podcast, Bernie Bordges speaks with Bryan Jones, Vice President North America Commercial Marketing at Dell, to discuss the new Social Business Journal: Digital Transformation, Social Selling Research, Insights and Best Practices, published in cooperation with Dell.

SM TODAY: 5 Ways to Create Stunning Visual Content Even if You’re Not a Designer

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 03:56:03 +0000

Does the prospect of having to produce visual content make your palms sweat? Does your mouth get dry and heart begins to pound so hard that you think it’s going to break free? Well then, you’re not alone. But it doesn't have to be that way. In this article I will show you 5 simple tools that will help make your content look great.

SM TODAY: Social Advocacy and Politics: In Search of the Holy Grail of Social Advocacy

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 05:18:44 +0000

The search for the Grail has consumed many a person over the past to thousand years, both fictional and real, so much so that “searching for the Grail” has become a meme more universal than even naming every American political scandal “-gate.” What makes the search for the Grail such a powerful meme is its combination of being a lofty goal that no one has yet achieved.

SM TODAY: A Marketer’s Guide to Tentpole Marketing

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 06:59:34 +0000

Tentpole marketing is about centring your promotional activities around big events. The term was first coined in Hollywood to describe the hype surrounding popular movies, as interest levels peak over opening weekend. In an effort to secure bums on seats, marketers devote big bucks when release dates near, and this spike in engagement is said to represent a tentpole propping a canvas of anticipation.

SM TODAY: Facebook, Social Media, and the Persistence of Hoaxes

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 08:58:47 +0000

Social media hoaxes are the 24-hour colds of the internet. You go to sleep with your Facebook feed healthy and hale, only to wake up and find it absolutely festooned (as the screenshot above demonstrates) with paranoid text posts claiming that Facebook will soon be charging its users to keep their content private.

SM TODAY: Secrets to a Perfect Profile Photo [INFOGRAPHIC]

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 09:41:25 +0000

On the one hand, there’s really no beating a set of pearly whites and an outfit that makes you look competent. However, this study from Photofeeler analyzed over 800 photos rated on their database on scales of competence, likeability, and influence and found some interesting details about what works and doesn’t work in profile photos.

SM TODAY: Experience Economy: It’s Where Stories Are Born

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 11:21:48 +0000

The experience era is making it easier than ever for brands to find and cultivate stories. It’s created an environment where they are able to generate additional content by capitalizing on the stories we tell.

SM TODAY: Twitter Looking to Increase its 140-Character Limit – What it Could Mean for the Platform

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 15:45:04 +0000

The inside word is that Twitter is building a new product that will allow users to share tweets that are longer than the company’s 140-character limit. What that means, exactly, is unclear. Does that mean longer tweets? An integrated blogging option? Here's some ways an extension could be implemented.

SM TODAY: Ten Reasons Why Investors Love Shared Transportation

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 15:56:20 +0000

By our count, the Collaborative Economy has been funded $25 billion, one of the highest funded tech industries, ever. For comparison, global social networks have been funded a mere $6 billion, which is just a quarter of the Collaborative Economy. Within the $25 billion funded, $13 billion has been invested in the transportation space, which is 52% of all funding dollars.

SM TODAY: What Kinds of Advertising Do People Trust the Most? [NIELSEN POLL]

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 17:30:08 +0000

Nielsen just released the 2015 results of their Global Trust in Advertising poll. Overall, the numbers are slightly lower than they were in 2013. When you are trying to decide where to put your advertising dollars, you need to know what kind of content and what media people trust.

SM TODAY: 3 Less Common Mobile Video Apps for Social Media Strategists

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 17:59:34 +0000

While nobody is denying the power of YouTube or Instagram’s video-sharing capabilities, there are other outlets—though substantially less popular or commonplace—worthy of not only being made mention, but actually being used to make real mobile video marketing happen. Still a bit lost? Here are three apps that deserve more credit than they’re currently getting.

SM TODAY: Welcome to the Inspiration Age - Are you Ready?

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 22:56:07 +0000

What is the inspiration age and why should it matter to you and your business? We answer these questions and more in episode 170 of the Social Zoom Factor podcast. Take a listen and learn what the inspiration age is as well as 8 solid strategies and tips to inspire your audience.

SM TODAY: Twitter Releases Guidelines on Tweet Copy Best Practices for Promoted Tweets

Thu, 03 Mar 1921 23:51:03 +0000

Twitter has released a new blog post outlining some best practices for tweet copy in promoted tweets. And while the focus of their advice is on one specific Twitter ad element – ‘Mobile App Install’ campaigns – the notes outlined really apply to all promotional tweets, even all tweets more generally.

SM TODAY: Why Every Marketer Needs Empathy: Alicia Jansen, MD Anderson Cancer Center

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 00:41:33 +0000

IN this week's CMO of the Week column, Drew Neisser speaks with Alicia Jansen, Associate Vice President of Marketing at the MD Anderson Cancer Center, to discuss her career and how Jansen approaches her role.

SM TODAY: Study: Top 5 Brand Research Channels [Infographic]

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 01:21:32 +0000

Search engines are the most popular brand research tool, especially among older consumers, while 4 in 10 turn to online reviews and nearly 30% use social networks, reveals a new study from GlobalWebIndex.

SM TODAY: How Online Reviews and Reputation Can Support Your Social Media Strategy

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 01:32:11 +0000

Every day, there are 75 billion items of content posted or shared on Facebook, 400 million tweets sent on Twitter, 2 billion photos stamped with a heart on Instagram, and 4 billion videos watched on YouTube.

SM TODAY: 10 Questions to Ask When Hiring an SEO Consultant

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 07:01:36 +0000

It is not an easy task to find a perfect consultant for Search Engine Optimization especially when you don’t have right questions to ask in your mind.

SM TODAY: Edward Snowden Joins Twitter, Makes Jokes, Follows NSA

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 08:36:55 +0000

Despite exposing the government's most precious secrets and illegal activities, being the subject of an international manhunt, getting called a traitor and accused of high treason, ending up exiled from his own country, and having to make his home in a foreign country hostile to his own interests, it's nice to know that Edward Snowden is keeping his sense of humor about him.

SM TODAY: Lena Dunham Leaves Twitter Because of Body-Shaming, Verbal Abuse

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 09:58:17 +0000

As an cultural influencer in the broader communities of young feminists and millennials alike, Dunham’s decision speaks loudly on behalf of other women who have noted that open forums online are particularly unsafe places for women to express themselves.

SM TODAY: Finally, the Twitter Buy Button Is Here

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 11:55:45 +0000

Sell something via a tweet. Twitter has been testing their buy button for two years. But today Twitter announced that the button is now available “to any merchant in the United States that uses one of three major e-commerce platforms to run its online shopping operations,” according to an article in The New York Times by Vindu Goel.

SM TODAY: Where Should Your Ad Dollars Go Next Year? [INFOGRAPHIC]

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 13:18:40 +0000

If you haven’t already started allocating money for your 2016 advertising budget, you’re sure to start soon. But organizing a budget for the next year takes a little bit of extra savvy, as you have to predict what trends will be driving advertising strategies. If you lack the data, here’s a great infographic from MDG identifying the top trends to keep an eye on when working out your advertising strategy for next year.

SM TODAY: Facebook’s Rolling Out a Major Update to Profiles – Including Animated Profile Images

Fri, 04 Mar 1921 14:14:21 +0000

Your Facebook profile is about to become a lot more... animated. In an official announcement, Facebook has outlined a raft of changes coming to profile layouts, including temporary profile images, a one-line bio and the ability to use animated GIFs as your profile image.

THE NEXT WEB: How much do UX designers earn around the world?

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 21:56:14 +0000

Ever wondered how much other UX designers with similar skills to you are earning elsewhere? As a location-independent designer with a lot of control over my own salary, I was extremely interested in knowing the answer to that question. It seems I’m not alone. Methodology Last time I looked into UX design salaries I based my findings on desktop research, digging through reports, articles and blog posts to try and get a feel for how our market looked. But this time I wanted to get some real data to analyse. This, I felt, would give me some more honest data…

This story continues at The Next Web

THE NEXT WEB: Slack is down. Tech companies: Don’t panic! [Update: It’s back]

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 21:21:01 +0000

When Slack stops, it’s like the very fabric of tech productivity unravels. The company confirmed the service is down for some users. So mandatory coffee breaks it is! The TNW team is enjoying this foreign thing called “the outdoors” in the meantime. Will notify when things change! UPDATE: the outage started around 5:12pm EST and remains intermittent. Slack spoke to soon to confirm things were in working order. As of 5:39pm EST, Slack said problems remain for some users, but it’s mostly back. We survived!

THE NEXT WEB: Addictive quiz game Trivia Crack is now available for the Apple Watch

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 21:01:50 +0000

Trivia Crack, the game that lets you compete in timed knowledge competition against other users, is now available for the Apple Watch. With the update, you’ll be able to play games from your wearable, check ongoing games or create new games. Trivia Crack also uses Apple Watch’s haptic engine to give you a buzz for new game notifications. Gameplay isn’t much different on the smaller screen: questions pop up on-screen with corresponding answers, and you’ve got a limited time to respond. Since it’s a watchOS 2 app, it can also be used without an iPhone around. Trivia Crack is available as…

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THE NEXT WEB: iFixit’s Apple TV tear-down earns it a swift boot from Apple

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 20:31:56 +0000

In the future, you’ll have to wait a bit longer for your Apple hardware tear-down articles. iFixit, whom we look to any time new hardware comes out to see what’s under the hood, lost its developer account after being banned by Apple. The reason for Apple’s decision came after a recent Apple TV tear-down. The crew at iFixit used its developer account to source the hardware, and threw caution to the wind. When a developer is provided with pre-release hardware, they’re not supposed to use it for much beyond making cool apps. If I won the lottery and got my own Apple TV,…

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THE NEXT WEB: Free Microsoft course teaches ‘absolute beginners’ to code Windows 10 apps

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 20:26:58 +0000

Ever wanted to code an app, but have no coding experience whatsoever? Don’t worry, Microsoft has you covered. The company is offering an ‘absolute beginner’ series of video lessons for anyone looking to learn how to code a Windows 10 app. More specifically, it’s a series on creating Universal Windows Platform apps that can potentially work on a variety of devices including PCs, phones, tablets, a Raspberry Pi, HoloLens, and Xbox. That said, Microsoft recommends you have some basic understanding of coding in C#, so it suggests you check out its C# Fundamentals series first. The course is laid out in…

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TECHCRUNCH: Twitter Will Reportedly Name Jack Dorsey As CEO, Bringing Back The Founder’s Instincts

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 18:54:29 +0000

The decisive leadership of a founder could be what’s necessary to bring Twitter’s value to the masses. And apparently that’s what it’s going to get, as Re/Code reports Twitter has made the decision to bring its co-founder and Square chief Jack Dorsey back as CEO. He’d been serving as Twitter’s interim CEO for four months since Dick Costolo chose to step… Read More

FORBES: The Evolution of Social Journalism - Carla Zanoni

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 18:34:00 +0000

I was so delighted to have Carla Zanoni on my podcast All the Social Ladies. Carla is the Audience Development Director at The Wall Street Journal. Overseeing both the social media team and newsroom analytics team, she is responsible for exploring and developing state-of-the-art news delivery and storytelling. Before joining the Journal, Carla’s journalism background led her to be the first Social Media Editor of her kind at New York and Chicago-based publication, DNAinfo.com. Her journalism career makes her a four-time award winner, including an award from the New York Press Association for a two-part series on street prostitution and another from the Newswomen’s Club of New York for her coverage on Occupy Wall Street. She is also a regular panel moderator and public speaker, appearing on Fox News, C-Span, NBC, and WNYC. Her experience in the evolution of social media as a tool in the journalism world makes her an expert and an invaluable source on all things social in journalism.

TECHCRUNCH: Twitter Stock Up 4% On Report That Jack Dorsey Will Become Permanent CEO

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 18:17:31 +0000

Today, Re/code reported that Jack Dorsey would be installed as permanent CEO after many months of speculation. Investors and those close to the company have been calling for Dorsey to take the post, but the board has been going through a process. One that may end as early as tomorrow, Recode’s sources told them. This means that Dorsey will simultaneously run Twitter and Square. The board… Read More

TECHCRUNCH: Google Acquires Jibe Mobile To Help Adopt New Standard For Carrier Messaging

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 17:46:50 +0000

Today, Google announced that it will be adopting a new standard for carrier messaging called Rich Communications Services (RCS), thus eventually moving on from SMS. The company also announced the acquisition of Jibe Mobile to help bring RCS to its Android products. Read More

THE NEXT WEB: OS X El Capitan is now available for download

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 17:45:16 +0000

Right on schedule, OS X EL Capitan is now available for download. It replaces OS X Yosemite, Apple’s radical redesign of its desktop operating system. El Capitan brings in a Notes app that mimics the iOS version, and new features for Maps and Safari. It also has a nice new window management system that lets you evenly split your screen between two apps. El Cap also rolls Metal into the mix, which is up to 40 percent faster than Open GL. If you’re curious what the new OS is all about, check out our review. It’s an iterative update, but one…

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THE NEXT WEB: Software developers need to focus on traits, not skills

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 17:44:46 +0000

Java, Python, Ruby, C#, C++ and PHP. These are a few of the top languages in demand for software developers, but more important than competency in a specific scripting language is having the skills to succeed in DevOps and Agile. It’s not uncommon for a talented developer to cross-train a new language while on the job, moving from Ruby to Python, for example. Besides, there are very few single language shops anymore and developers with knowledge in a new area are usually quite welcome. What’s more of a struggle today is hiring developers who are collaborative, team players, and whom…

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THE NEXT WEB: 7 apps that would make terrible TV shows

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 17:38:08 +0000

Popular gaming app QuizUp is officially becoming an NBC television show, so we thought about what other apps would make great, terrible or hilarious programmings. Completely unfueled by lunch, here’s what we came up with. Shazam Shazam the game show is a family-friendly programming that lets you compete to see who can recognize songs at the drop of a hat. If you can’t tell apart your Bon Jovi from your Bon Iver, consider getting a hearing aid or subscribe to a music streaming service (or three.) Crossy Road In Crossy Road the TV show, you’ll compete to get yourself across a…

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THE NEXT WEB: Microsoft copies Facebook and adds Likes and @Mentions to Outlook

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 17:09:44 +0000

Microsoft wants email to learn some tricks from social media. The company today announced it’s bringing Likes and @Mentions to Outlook on the Web. Indicated by the classic thumbs-up, Microsoft says the Likes are meant to help you endorse a specific email, or bring attention to it. Or as on Facebook, it could simply be used to acknowledge you’ve read something or empathize with it, without having to type a full response. As you might expect, you’ll receive a notification when someone likes an email, and it will show up highlighted a top the message. Meanwhile, you can also tag people…

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THE NEXT WEB: Facebook tests GIF-style profile pictures and a new layout

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 16:59:38 +0000

Facebook profiles for mobile are about to change — for some. In a limited trial for iOS users in California and the UK, Facebook is testing new controls and layout features. In what Facebook calls the “obvious evolution of profiles,” looping videos may be added instead of a profile picture. Users can record a simple greeting, or choose a favorite snippet from a recent event they attended. For static images, Facebook is testing a way to let users temporarily change them. While we’ll still have a go-to image for a profile, it could temporarily change for a small period of time.…

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FORBES: Jack Dorsey Chosen To Be Next Twitter CEO, Report Says

Wed, 30 Sep 2015 15:28:00 +0000

Jack Dorsey, Twitter cofounder and the microblogging site's interim CEO, is expected to be officially named as the company's permanent CEO as early as Thursday, according to a report in the tech blog Re/code. Citing unnamed sources Re/code said it is believed that Dorsey, 38, will also continue to serve as CEO of micropayments company Square, which he founded. Twitter and Square declined to comment for this article.