Top Blog Enhancements for Maximizing Your Presence

It’s not enough anymore to simply pen an amazing blog post, then kick back and wait for the traffic to roll in. With social media at the forefront of general consciousness, the mindset now is that people don’t search for news…it finds you. While you might think it a daunting task not only to create your brand’s news and updates but to actively seek out willing readers, know you don’t necessarily have to do all the work. If you write compelling copy, those who follow you will spread your gospel. It is up to you, however, to make that task easier.

In Social Media, Who Owns the Name?

The Denny’s situation may give rise to a new breed of squatters, as people claim Twitter handles and Facebook vanity URLs of known brands. Could “social-squatting” become a new term and a new headache for companies to deal with? When somebody registers for a Twitter account, who ultimately has the right to decide if the owner should part with the name – the owner or Twitter? Can or should one be able to sell the rights to a Twitter handle?

Is Your Social Media Agency Working For You?

Some who are just learning their way around Twitter and Facebook may not feel comfortable taking on the challenge of attracting fans and followers, and as one hires an agency to handle print and broadcast campaigns, it’s natural to hand over social networking to a firm that better understands how it works. That said, you want to be certain the agency you hire is the best one to represent you and your brand.

Breaking the Wall: Taking Social Engagement to New Levels

The challenge in making social networks like Twitter and Facebook useful in your marketing strategy is finding the audience you need for them to remain effective. One might wonder why it’s necessary to devote time tweeting links and information to a handful of followers, when their main website pulls in a healthy amount of traffic through organic or paid search. While it’s difficult to argue with hard numbers, you must also consider this: how much revenue is generated from the search traffic as opposed to referrals from social networks?

Choosing and Changing Social Media Handles: What is Best for Your Visibility?

In reading blogs by and interview transcripts with editors and literary agents, one thing I’ve learned about the submission process is that your immediate impression can truly affect the way somebody approaches your query, sometimes even before it’s read. These days, editors and publishers eschew physical mail, preferring to accept novels and non-fiction via e-mail attachments. If you are serious about pursuing a career in, say, penning volumes of academic criticism or political history, you may wish to think twice about sending it from an e-mail handle like “mewanttwinkies”.

Four Niche Networks You Aren't Using for Promotion, But Should

One can use Facebook and Twitter and know that micro-blog posts on products and services should be made, and that the fan pages need updating, but what about lesser known sites where you have accounts, or should have a presence? On the outset, many social media sites may not appear to have potential for marketing, but if you know how to approach people who find you online, you may find you can have your fun and guide others toward what you have to offer without coming on like a hard sell. Depending on your industry – retail or B2B, hospitality and travel or other professional services – you can provide valuable information to those who seek it.

Blogger's New Pages Feature: Turning Your Blog Into a Mini-Site

As far as blogging platforms go, Blogger has always presented itself as user-friendly and quite adaptable…to an extent. If one had to compare Blogger to other instant publishing platforms available, one might have considered them a good start-up or practice publisher for the novice, with the hopes one might graduate to the likes of Wordpress, etc. Indeed, for the longest time it seemed Blogger’s devotion to simplicity – a broadsheet style layout of posts, drag and drop options on the sidebar – might remain for those uninterested in bells and whistles. Recently, though, Blogger has finally introduced page publishing functionality, moving one step closer to equality in the blogging world.

Google Acquires Aardvark Social Search

Mashable has confirmed that it’s been a busy week for Google (when is it not?). This week they not only have launched their Google Buzz social platform, but also acquired Aardvark, a social search engine that allows users to ask questions, which are answered via various social profiles like Facebook and Twitter.

Breaking Down the (Google) Buzz, or Do I Really Need This?

What’s the best way to annoy a novice social media marketer? Introduce one more thing for them to master. In this line of work, one may spend hours upon hours training an entrepreneur or marketing manager to learn the finer points of building and maintaining social profiles in order to achieve high online visibility and, one hopes, an increased customer/client base. With many business owners we encounter, many are peripheral users of Facebook and Twitter – they know these sites exist, and maybe have logged once or twice, but they do understand their importance in new media marketing and work to utilize them correctly.

The Buzz on Google Buzz

Google makes headlines once again with the rollout of Google Buzz, a social platform design to integrate various networks like Picasa and Twitter into your GMail account for easier data sharing. Apparently some accounts are already cleared for takeoff, but if you don’t see it available yet when you log on, have patience. Google certainly won’t leave you out.