Why don't we show up on Google?

For many small businesses, this is a popular question.  They have created a website, now where are the visitors?  "People often misunderstand search engine marketing because there's a slew of SEO firms that make it all seem so darned complicated" (Scott, p. 398).  With little understanding of what it actually takes to get better search engine rankings, businesses often fall prey to firms that overpromise and under deliver search engine results.

The key to better search rankings is content. "True success comes from driving buyers directly to the actual content they are looking for" (Scott, p. 399). Let's say you have a lifestyle and recipes blog and you want to drive traffic to your perfect margarita recipe because your are endorsing a new brand of tequila. If users are looking for the best place in their city to get a margarita, your blog is not the place they want to be.  If they are looking for a margherita pizza recipe, your blog won't be of much help either.  Attracting this type of traffic will only increase your bounce rate and won't sell any of that tequila either.

To attract the right visitors, you need to be strategic in your choice of keywords. "Keyword phrases should be as specific to your company as possible and have an easy, conversational sound not a marketing vibe. Just consider how you search for things online" (Demers, 2014). You should strategically sprinkle keywords throughout your site and the landing page you are attempting to direct traffic to.  If paying for optimization through Google Adwords, be careful in your choices. In the case of your margarita recipe, when trying to optimize your landing page, you might want to avoid general search terms such as "best margarita" or "perfect margarita," and consider more specific search terms, such as:

• homemade margarita recipe
• best margarita recipe
• make your own margarita

Do your research.  What is already coming up in these searches?  How can you do better? Using a long-tailed, specific approach will attract the right visitors to your site and lead to conversions, rather than bounces. "You don’t have to spend money on an SEO expert to dramatically improve your search visibility. Simple steps can achieve major SEO boosts. In the end, SEO is all about improving the usability and user experience of your website" (Demers, 2014).

Also, be sure to make sure your landing page is inviting and ready for conversions, as Meredith highlighted in her recent blog post.



References

Demers, J. (2014, Sept 29).  7 Advanced Ways to Improve Your Site's SEO. Entrepreneur. Retrieved from https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237819

Scott, D. M. (2015). The New Rules of Marketing and PR (5th ed.). New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons.

Looking for a job? Make sure your personal brand is consistent.

When looking for a job, we often turn to LinkedIn as a tool.  Users are able to have their own online profile with a photo, description, previous work experience, and accomplishments. Recruiters often use the site to reach out to potential candidates and it's easy to comb through job postings and utilize your connections. But what about the other social media platforms we use every day? 

According to this article, Twitter is the "best job search tool you're not using" (Che, 2015).
While much less structured than the obvious choice, LinkedIn, "Twitter offers a strong network of people in various fields, and companies and hiring managers are increasingly sharing open positions on their accounts" (Che, 2015). By improving you're profile, participating in industry-related conversations, and creating a network of connections, you might be on your way to finding a dream job. This is especially true if that dream job happens to be in marketing or social media.  Create a  personal brand for yourself!

While LinkedIn and Twitter might help in your job search, some of your other social media accounts may do some serious damage.  Have a couple wild nights back in college?  Make sure those Facebook posts don't haunt you in your professional life.  While it may not be ethical, or the policy to look at a candidate's online presence, it has been my experience that... they do.  And who wouldn't?  Our social media profiles offer a glimpse into our lives, the unfiltered, non-suit wearing, real version of who we are. 

According to a recent study, "93% of hiring managers will review a candidate's social profile before making a hiring decision. And that review matters: 55% have reconsidered a candidate based on what they find, with most (61%) of those double-takes being negative" (Davidson, 2014). Apparently drug-related and sexual posts are among the worst offenders.  Frequent alcohol use and spelling and grammar mistakes also count against you.

My advice when looking for a job?  Delete any incriminating posts or photos and set your profile to private.  Look at your profiles from an outside perspective. Do a Google search of yourself.  What are you presenting to the world? If you happen to somehow be connected to the hiring manager's best friend and they still manage to see your profile, is it true to you and the brand you are trying to present? If not, you might want to revaluate your social media activities or the types of jobs you are applying for.

References

Che, J. (2015, Jun 6). Twitter Is The Best Job Search Tool You’re Not Using — Here’s How You Can. Huffington Post. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/06/16/twitter-job-search_n_7571260.html

Davidson, J. (2014, Oct 16). The 7 Social Media Mistakes Most Likely to Cost You a Job. Time. Retrieved from http://time.com/money/3510967/jobvite-social-media-profiles-job-applicants/

Sorry IHOP, it's going to take a little more than pancakes...

In response to Ste-Aira’s blog post on consumer-focused social media, I am in agreement. While it is important to stay true to your brand and drive traffic to your site, it is just as important to intrigue and engage your target audience. The best companies maintain this delicate balance, utilizing both a push and pull strategy on social media.

In an article posted by The Digital Marketing Institute, the author states that, “Brands need to move away from the kind of push marketing that has dominated traditional marketing for centuries. It achieves the very thing you don’t want: repelling your customers, annoying them and causing them to unfollow, unlike and disengage” (Digital marketing Institute, 2017). Rather than solely using your account as a means of shameless self-promotion, engage and interact with your followers.  This will keep them loyal to your brand.

I’ve always agreed with the 80/20 rule, which is also mentioned in the article. The rule says that 80% of your content should provide value, entertainment, or engagement to your audience and the other 20% can be about you. 

One company that does only self-promotion is IHOP.  Their twitter feed is all about the pancakes… and not much else. Well, except for waffles and omelets, and bacon.  The posts also look they are written by a twelve year-old.  While the images are enticing, (because let’s face it - who doesn’t love pancakes?), this kind of account gets really redundant and annoying after a while.  A recent post actually says “don't be mad cause we doin pancakes better than you.” Sorry, but I’ve already unfollowed you IHOP.

IHOP could offer contests, polls, nutrition info, staff stories, share user generated content, anything else but just their own photos with poorly written intros. Upon further inspection of likes and retweets, the brand’s engagement rate seems pretty low for the amount of followers, so I don’t think I’m alone in this sentiment. What do you think?

Reference

4 Signs Your Brand is a Social Media Sinner. (2017). Digital Marketing Institute. Retrieved from https://digitalmarketinginstitute.com/blog/4-signs-brand-social-media-sinner

Are you listening?

In chapter 1 of Dave Kerpen’s book, Likeable Social Media, he discusses the importance of listening.  I believe this is one of the most important lessons in marketing.  Kerpen tells us that “companies can no longer afford to ignore their customers’ specific needs or complaints when the conversation can so easily be made public. Instead, they must listen, understand the issue, and respond appropriately” (Kerpen, p. 14).

Some key takeaways from this chapter that should be applied to any social media program are:

• Listen before you speak. Look around, explore, and see what others are saying before you engage. As Kerpen states, “As tempting as it may be to ‘join the conversation,’ Facebook, Twitter, and other social networks aren’t simply broadcast media – that is, they are listening networks” (Kerpen, p. 14).
• Acknowledge others and make them feel heard. If customers are making negative comments, these should be addressed immediately.  If customers are happy, engage with them.
• Understand what is important to your target audience.  By using social listening tools you can see what your customers are talking about and use that information to build your online presence.
• Depending on company size and reach, check out paid verses free software to monitor online mentions. On pages 16-17, Kerpen provides lists of free and paid tools that can help companies effectively listen.
• Pay attention to what is being said about your competitors and what they are doing online. You can learn from what is being said about your competitors, both positive and negative, so don’t forget to check out their online presence and see what is being said about them.
• Alter your marketing strategy accordingly.  Use the information gained by listening to improve your product, message, or focus.
• Don’t stop listening, even after you start talking.

What happens when companies don’t listen?

In week 2, we had the opportunity to check out some social media failures in an article titled 10 Biggest Social Media Marketing Fails of 2013.  The author prefaced his recap by stating, “A common element to all of these mishaps is that the social media team was not listening. And listening does not just mean talking to customers. It means being aware of the company's place in the Internet's culture and knowing that customers do not appreciate mass-produced responses” (Feloni, 2013).

While Kerpen focuses on listening to industry related news and responding to customer feedback, the article highlights the importance of listening in a much broader sense.  Marketers should pay close attention to anything that might affect the way their brand is perceived online. While some of the failures are due to pure ignorance, others are mistakes that were overlooked because the marketers were not listening.

Lessons learned from these fails:

• Not everyone shares the same sense of humor as you do.  What you might think is hilarious and clever, your followers may find crass and distasteful. Anything that makes light of plane crashes, voodoo dolls, dismemberment... not a good idea. When in doubt, don’t post!
• Make sure you trust the employees running your social media accounts to make good decisions.  Be sure to regain control of the accounts BEFORE firing them.
• Do your research. Before you open yourself up to public opinion, you might want to have a general idea of what your audience thinks of you.
• Be sensitive to current events.  Capitalizing on national tragedies, like the Boston Marathon Bombing, to gain followers and site visits is highly inappropriate and will be frowned upon.
• Sometimes, silence is golden.  Angry and defensive responses to negative comments and criticism will only further damage your reputation. Consider deleting the comments or wait until you can respond with a thoughtful and calm response that addresses the issue and makes your audience feel heard.

Most important of all… Listen to your audience!

Questions for Discussion

Kerpen emphasizes the importance of listening before jumping into the social media conversation.  What do you think a company should do if the conversation is mostly negative?

Can you think of an example where a company effectively used listening as a tool to alter their marketing strategy successfully?

References

Feloni, F. (2013, Nov. 24). The 10 Biggest Social Media Marketing Fails Of 2013. Business Insider. Retrived from http://www.businessinsider.com/10-worst-social-media-marketing-fails-of-2013-2013-11

Kerpen, D. (2015). Likeable Social Media (2nd ed.) McGraw Hill.