Introduction to Social Media

Mendip Media > Modern Communications

Who are we? • Digital Marketing Agency • Based in Bristol and Somerset • Founded in 2005 • Expertise in online marketing solutions and video • Focus on getting the most out of the web for: - Corporates - Public sector

Problem • There are fewer newspapers • We’re getting more direct mail and advertising appears anywhere and everywhere • Consumers are getting tired of it • Mostly, it isn’t relevant to them • More and more people ignore it... especially one particular growth sector...

Generation Y • Generation Y is the biggest since the Baby Boomers, and 3 times bigger than Generation X. • They take the Internet for granted. • They have iPods, iPhones, PDAs, Tom Toms and digital cameras • They don’t watch TV much: “Why let someone else choose what you watch and when? BBCi Player is installed on my desktop thanks.”

Generation Y • They have YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, iTunes and Google accounts • They don’t bother with adverts in newspapers – although clever, passive advertising appeals – but would rather listen to their peers: “My friends know me better than anyone.” • They expect social media to ﬁt around them • They’re just as good at working from home, on the bus, or train, or in the café on the corner.

So what? • Generation Y is coming – soon it’ll be running the most important parts of the country: - Government - Public services - Big companies • Don’t ignore them – embrace them. • But how?

Social Media • What is Social Media? • More than just a pair of buzzwords - a whole new way to communicate. • Now everyone has a voice. • Publishing is no longer the exclusive domain of publisher. • Anyone can say anything that could be read by millions of people.

Social Media • Social media (user generated content) can include: - A slogan or jingle that excites people enough to repeat it. - Grass-roots dissemination, such as public speaking, demonstrations and artistic performances or installations - Print media that is passed on or observed by many, either voluntarily or subversively - sticker bomb, mail shot or ﬂyering - Distribution through electronic channels that allow sharing functionality and interaction. ...and by this, we mean...

Social Media

A spider’s web • Think of social media as a spider’s web • Your website is the middle • Outward spokes - each one is a different platform - these beneﬁt the scope • Links between spokes - each one is a hyperlink - these add the strength

What can Social Media do for people? • It allows a tailored stream of information • We can ignore advertising, not watch the news, read a paper or listen to the radio - and still know everything we need to... • We can share knowledge, information and interests with others in our peer groups • Amongst all the noise, we can make our voices, as individuals, heard • We can become the publishers

What can Social Media do for business? • Unlocks new markets and convert more leads • Makes looking into the shop window easy • Allows us to speak directly to customers, for next to nothing • Customers will tell each other about us - and recommend us • Beneﬁts SEO (search engine optimisation)

Facebook • 200m unique users, spending a collective 7,600 years every 24 hours • People buy from people, and a ‘fan base’ is quick to develop • Celebrities and politicians • Charities and global brands • Entry for SMEs: very speciﬁc PPC targeting • Measurable

Examples from Facebook • Marmite’s 240,000 fans • Cities I’ve Visited: 2.3m (Trip Advisor) • 2,000 Swiss mothers in a week • Into Somerset: 10.2m pages • Stroke Association: 2,884 ‘fans’ How? 250m users, very powerful PPC

Linkedin • Facebook for businesspeople • Easy to use, credible and professional - ‘People buy from people’ • Promote events, start discussions and generate interest • Special interest groups • Give & receive business advice

Examples from Linkedin • Business services: professional membership aids decision-making • Promoted through Linkedin Group continues to grow & discuss project • InControl Technical: tiny business, tiny website, powerful social media • Evan Gotlib: new job as TravelZoo’s Advertising Sales Director • White House: Opinions from 12m US SMEs

Twitter • 1,400% growth year-on-year • ‘Followers’ grow in numbers, communicate with each other, ask questions • Direct mail, but only to those who want it - others can switch off: ‘ﬂuid audience’ • Twitter.com is rubbish - try TweetDeck • Measurable

Examples from Twitter • 25% off PCs, only through Twitter (Follow to participate) • Market research through Twitter (new products tested at one outlet) • Moonfruit 10th anniversary promotion • Media outlets ﬁnd millions of new readers ❝ One high-foam, low-fat, strawberry frappi- mocca-cino please ❞

YouTube • Third biggest website • 60-billion views in 2008 • Anyone can post videos, that can be viewed by millions • Professional channels: branding, cross-association and revenue stream • Measurable

Examples from YouTube • Tell Poker - ‘Bond wins it all’ - doctored Casino Royale scene • Kobe Bryant jumps and Aston Martin (wearing Nike trainers) • Beauty without brains • Flying Penguins introduced BBCi Player • MSI computers: 1.55m views in 10 days ‘Guy catches laptop with his butt’

Social media platforms • There are hundreds more: - Flickr - Tumblr - MySpace - Bebo - Wikipedia - Ning - Second Life

Blogging • Long-hand opinions and news • Speciﬁc to industries, companies and special-interest groups • 250-million blogs worldwide • Write around your subject • Who is the most credible person in your company? Probably not the MD. • A blog is not a mouthpiece for PR

Blogging • “I don’t have time to write a blog.” • Blogs are a great way to get your message across. • Almost instant appearance in search engines • Particularly useful for newsworthy articles • Provides links back to your website

Blogging • Things to bear in mind: • Be relevant to your target audience • Think about who you want to read it • Point readers towards other articles that might interest them • Nurture conversation and participate • Don’t oversell

Social Bookmarking • Useful hyperlinks, stored and shared • By individuals, for individuals • Share your ‘knowledge’ • Popular platforms: - Digg 28m users 18-34 - Reddit 1.3m users 35-49 - StumbleUpon 1m users 50+ - Delicious 1m users 35-49 • Quality content will prevail

The tools you need • A website • ...that is Web 2.0-friendly and SEO’d • ...that allows measurement of trafﬁc • A presence on social media platforms • Regular content • Someone to update the content

The Internet can be automated • What is RSS? • Short for ‘Really Simple Syndication’ • A stream of content from a website or blog • Becomes a mini-newsletter and direct email mechanism, or automatically into microblogging • Leads people to your website • Measurable

The Internet is measurable • Every website should have analytics • Google Analytics is a state-of-the-art tool that can be installed on any website • It tells you: how many visitors, where they are, where they came from, when they visit and how long they stay • Why? So that you can see which bits of your marketing strategy are working • Best of all, it’s free

Why content is King • More content is created every year than in all previous years combined • How? On the Internet - blogs, forums, social media, micro-blogging and Mobile - SMS, MMS • Fresh content keeps your audience’s attention • Constant power struggle to generate more • BUT... it’s quality, not quantity

Why content is King • Poor content switches people off instantly • Good content keeps them coming back... ...again and again • RSS and micro-blogging can perpetuate this automatically. • People will join in with your conversation

Golden rules • Don’t go mundane - nobody cares • Be relevant to the target audience • (...And see who’s interested - it might be a surprise) • Interact with individuals (e.g. BT) • Be regular • Don’t oversell - too much becomes spam and will lose an audience quickly

Pay Per Click • Highly targeted - Geographic regions - Age, gender, marital status - Professions • Extremely cost-effective - you only pay when someone clicks through to your website • Can help SEO • Measurable

Pay Per Click • How does it work? Like ebay. • You bid for an advert of your design to be placed on:- - Google - Yahoo! - Content-speciﬁc pages - Social media sites • The winner gets the top-placed ad • You can set a daily budget

Where can I start? The website. • Match-ﬁt for Web 2.0 (SEO, usability) • Connection to social media • Measurability - analytics • Active content • Delegation of tasks

Don’t be duped • First of all, social media is not expensive • For most people it requires: - A website that’s match-ﬁt for Web 2.0 - A blog - ‘Interactability’ - Social media connections - RSS - Tiny expenditure • Consider seeking professional advice re: strategy

Where is all of this going? • What will the Internet look like in the future? (lots of theories) • All document access and communication through social media - why store documents locally when they’re safer on server farms? • Social media and mobile telephony combined • The end of media as we know it: - TV - Radio - Newspapers - Telephones

Augmented Reality • Today’s technology reconﬁgured - where the real world meets the virtual world • The Internet overlaid on our world • Information available anywhere • Broadband provision and access • Not so far away

Online makes video marketing affordable • Cameras and editing software rival the price of photographic equipment • Why buy media airtime when video hosting is free? • Digital video makes reversioning footage easy • Storage costs are coming down • All you pay for is experience and professionalism

Video as a social media marketing tool • Case study: Lakeland kitchenware • More than 40,000 items in sales catalogue • Plans to convert 10% of e-commerce range to video demonstrations • Why? Detailed analytics show that products with video demos sell better - ROI • Video helps to build brand awareness • YouTube channel pushes trafﬁc to website

Introduction to Social Media

by graham bristol on Oct 07, 2009

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Introduction to Social Media — Presentation Transcript

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