12. n = pN
from Viral Marketing for the Real World, Harvard University Press, Duncan J. Watts
and Jonah Peretti http://hbr.org/2007/05/viral-marketing-for-the-real-world/ar/1
and from alternate version of the same article by Columbia University Press
13. R = Bz
from Viral Marketing for the Real World, Harvard University Press, Duncan J. Watts
and Jonah Peretti http://hbr.org/2007/05/viral-marketing-for-the-real-world/ar/1
and from alternate version of the same article by Columbia University Press
38. I agree with your point about raccoons, but I still think they’re
rodents. You’ll never convince me otherwise.
39. Buy our tandems! BUY BUY BUY BUY!!!!! http://bit.ly/asdfasdf
Some great tandem cycling routes in Napa: http://bit.ly/asdfasdf
Me, my tandem, and 14 raccoons. http://bit.ly/asdfasdf
73. Remember the multiplier effect
Each additional friend/follower in a
network adds to the value of all other
friends and followers in that network.
74. For stalking:
@portentint
www.conversationmarketing.com
www.portent.com
www.fatfreeguide.com
Editor's Notes
This is more social than search - I find these days social is where the most horrific tragedies happen.
A solemn oath: I solemnly promise that I will not ask Ian how to figure out the roi of social media.
- ‘cause Social Media is more like the postal service than like a direct mail campaign; it’s more like a phone than great sales guy.
- so you can’t attach a value
-
How many people here have fond memories of middle school? (see you’re the person I used to hate)
Well, this is our chance for revenge. Now, we can finally get elected class president, cause we can type, and computers don’t make our palms sweat. First, though, you gotta understand a few things.
First, and maybe most important, you need to understand why building a humungous audience via social, and then using it to drive SEO, and using PPC to cover empty spaces, isn’t about bulk. The concept of supply and demand - more = less valuable, is no longer the way it works.
Lots of fancy looking stuff in this section - makes me feel very intellectual.
Social plus seo used to = spam
Social plus seo used to = spam
Social plus seo used to = spam
Because everyone sees social as a link building exercise. But the truth is that 99% of social media is nofollowed links, or links in comments, or blogrolls or some such. If you think that Google and Bing still give those kinds of links the same value, you’re drunk.
It USED to work. But for every good link resource on big social media sites like facebook, there’s 10-20 idiots looking to get a few minutes of fame by blogging about it. So, can social media and SEO affect each other any more?
Yes. Because social media has grown exponentially, and search engines are better and better at measuring all types of citation. And because social media is still a very powerful 2nd- or 3rd-hand link builder. Just think about citation - that’s the key.
If you can get enough people cheering for you, it’ll turn into unstoppable momentum for both SEO and social.
Here’s how the multiplier effect works. You get, say, a single mention or citation on Twitter or Facebook or whatever. Alas, that link is nofollowed, so it passes very little juice (although the citation alone likely effects SEO).
But a bunch of other people pick up the thread and repeat it across their networks.
Some of them are bloggers and link to you from their blogs. Others keep repeating your message/link until it filters down to other linkers and influencers, or it peters out.
Old marketing: n = number of conversions (links/mentions); p = probability that exposure to the idea will lead to it being passed along; N = number of poeple
R = reproduction rate, or the rate at which the cite could spread
B = probability someone will spread it
z = number of people told
But clearly social media + search can do a lot more. Send out a direct mail piece, in most cases it ends up dead-ending with the recipient, even if they buy.
Magazine ads might be a bit better. But just a single mention - a line of text, can explode.
I’ll bet aimee mann AND Ice T sold a lot of songs APril 8th.
More friends = more cites
More friends = more links
The danger of thinking this way, and not taking it another step, is that you start to assume that more = better. That a bigger supply means lower value per follower, or at least that the value of a follower remains constant, so get more, and screw the original followers - they’ll take care of themselves. Just start spamming.
That is NOT TRUE. A larger supply not decrease the value of a follower or friend. Because they build on each other - it’s not just each friend reaching out to other new people. They also talk to each other, reinforcing and rebroadcasting your message.
The thing to know here is the Multiplier Effect.
THAT’s the multiplier effect.
Here’s the mathematical version
Another way of looking at it - every person in your audience leads to exponential growth in your citation potential.
That means each friend/follower is worth a lot.
It does not lower the value of a friend. This is the critical line where social/SEO turn into spam. Don’t go there!
If you act on the assumption that acquiring many friends is what counts, you become a spammer. You know what I mean. That’s why, when Joe Marketer with the profile that reads “Hey, I love all things marketing! Follow me!” retweets your blog post to hist 51,000 followers, you get 3 clicks.
Every follower in your network increases in value when you add another follower. I’m not including Dunbar’s number - the idea that you can keep in touch with 150 people at a time in your network, and after that your head explodes - because these networks are way more complex. Some of the people who get added to your network aren’t added directly. I can explain that more if you want.
Note that there is a ceiling - you can’t just say ‘all people on earth’. I’m no math genius though, so you’ll have to go with me saying there is a ceiling. It’s based on how many interested audience members you really have. When you’ve hit the limit of your universe, you’re done.
Let’s try a little role play.
First, there’s a fair bit of evidence that search engines have a lot of respect for chatter - random, non-linking or nofollowed citations that happen all over the web, on sites like Facebook, Twitter, etc.
But most important, social is a fantastic authority builder.
And, of course, social can lead to exponential link growth, which improves rankings, which leads to more people seeing you, which leads to more cites... You get the idea. This is link growth for one of our clients. What’s hard to see here, though, is the rate of link growth - the acceleration that happens with a determined effort.
This is the rate of link growth over four months, with a constant effort: A fixed number of article postings, etc..
Plus, you can use social to build potential posters of user-generated content.
Enough theory. Here’s how you do this.
First, you pick your outlets. Facebook for consumers (duh). But think about specialized stuff, too. A simple keyword search on Google can reveal all kinds of communities.
For example, Tukando.org, the site for a tandem organization.
And don’t forget blogs. Folks always seem to dive right into Facebook. It’s a lot easier to get the attention of a lone blogger out in the wilderness.
Participate every day
Not like this.
Like this in comments.
Like this on a network like Twitter.
This isn’t a traditional rolodex. It’s more CRM-ish, but keeping track of whose done you a favor.
I’ll keep track of folks who’ve contacted me, for instance.
I keep a record of blogs and sites where I need to regularly participate. And I use a CRM tool to keep track of who I should contact when.
This isn’t cynical. Think about it. You keep track of who gets you a nice gift at your wedding and send them a thank you note, right?
And, my favorite tools for this.
Blog or otherwise add content to your site. I’m not going to belabor this. Do it, or fail. It’s hard work. That’s why it’s called ‘business’, not ‘Money from the sky’.
It just happens - you have an idea for an article or a blog post that’s funny or useful. Or a special sale that’s just amazing. Now you go out there to get value. Write it, build it, set it aside for a day. Then polish it.
Tell our audience. Use that rolodex!
If you’re using Twitter/Facebook then use a tool like HootSuite to resend when other timezones will care.
If you’re using Twitter/Facebook then use a tool like HootSuite to resend when other timezones will care.
Contact your network re: links.
Then go back to your routine. Do not rest on your laurels.
Example: Storkie
Example: Storkie
Example: Storkie
Example: Storkie
Example: Storkie
And the tips to make it all really work
Get some tools to track growth
Get some tools to track growth
Get some tools to track growth
Get some tools to track growth
Track audience size on your various networks, cites, links and conversions. Not just links or rankings. The data you track will change based on the business plus the outlet types.
Build links to your profile in a community from within that community. For example, every Portent employee is on LinkedIn. They all show they’re an employee, so they link to our company page, so it gets a boost in authority and ranks better.
Same goes for Facebook.
This is great reputation management insurance. Plus, you can use this trick in other ways: If you create a Facebook fan page called ‘Tandeming’, and can get 2,000 fans, maybe it’ll rank.
build a quality presence on each network.
Answer folks.
Guest blogging, of course. But also look for sites that just want massive amounts of content. some let you post ‘guides’ (cough) and include links.
And the tips to make it all really work
Buy ads to follow your brand. But don’t stop there.
Also buy ads to show up for ‘disconnected cites’ - things where you’re mentioned, tangentially (this isn’t the best example) but you want to make sure you show up, ‘cause there’s interest.