United States
Ireland

An Integral Part of your Social Media Strategy

February 19th, 2010

The social media race is well underway, and the two major players are running as fast as they can to catch attention and grow their numbers.  Facebook, with its 400 million members, is driving more traffic to the major portal sites today than Google; Google, still the leader with its 67% of the search engine traffic, has rolled out Buzz to compete.

Google made some major missteps in rolling out its Buzz, but that will pass.  Once Facebook introduces its own email product (development well underway), the competition will become even mightier.

What does this mean for your web site marketing strategy, and is there a common element addressing both of these tools to improve your traffic?

Well, obviously, you need a presence on Facebook.  Your presence can’t be static, though.  It is no more true with Facebook than it has always been for your web site.  The “Build it and they will come” Internet strategy has never worked, and it still amazes me that so many think they simply need a web site to make their fortune.

Actually, let’s expand the discussion about social media to include Twitter, because it’s an excellent tool in its own right as a part of an overall social media marketing strategy.  And, the right tool for the right job applies as equally in this mix.

The element common to all of these tools, one so often overlooked or neglected, is actually the starting point in your social media marketing strategy.  The concept that “Content is King” has morphed just a bit, but it is as valid a concept today as it ever was.

Think about this carefully:  Social media works only if you have compelling content and something interesting to say.  Punch up your copy first – then invite guests.

Your strategy in the social media arena will be wasted energy if you have nothing of value to say on your website.  Traffic is one thing; but a clear “call to action” and meaningful content to back it up must be in place before the guests arrive, or the effort you invested inviting them will be for naught.

We’ve preached content growth and content refreshing, carefully planned, strategized and crafted around the most appropriate keywords for your business, for years.  It’s as true and necessary today as it has ever been, and it’s the reason we’re writing this piece to our blog today, as a matter of fact.

We want visitors to find a good take-a-way, something worthwhile and of value.  We want our visitors to find enough of interest in our content to help with their own online efforts, and hopefully something sufficiently useful to make them want to return later to learn something else of use.

We’ll then use our social media strategy (Twitter and Facebook, at least) to promote this piece, and hope it brings those visitors.  Excerpt feeds to our home page place these thoughts prominently for those visitors to see, as does our use of the Twitter Widget in the home page’s right side bar just below those excerpt feeds.

But, it starts with the content of the site.  We’ll say it again:  Social media works only if you have compelling content and something interesting to say.  Punch up your copy first – then invite guests.

By taking that first step, by offering that meaningful content, you’ll be ready to entertain and inform your guests when they arrive.  Neither your time nor theirs will be wasted, and you’ll have a much better chance to engage them in a solid conversation.

That is the point of the exercise, after all.

Privacy Lost – Be Careful What You Post

February 11th, 2010

“Follow the money” was good advice given to Woodward and Bernstein by Deep Throat back in the Watergate days, and if you want to understand why privacy lids are coming off, do the same thing – follow the money.

Facebook is the world’s largest social networking site. Depending on whose statistics you use, it’s either the most frequently visited site each day, or it’s number two behind Google, 400 million members strong.  YouTube, Yahoo and Live round out the top five.  Facebook is moving toward its initial public stock offering, and everything it can think of is being monetized.

If you visit the site, you’ve already seen those advertisements in the right side bar.  More of that is coming, and as it does, your privacy is going.

You know how you’re asked about allowing your profile to be accessed every time you want to take one of those silly “Quizzes” on Facebook, like “How Well Do You Know So-and-So”?  If your email address is listed in your profile, you’ve just been added to someone’s mailing list and can expect to be receiving marketing emails.

Privacy has long since disappeared, and on the Internet, and especially on Facebook, whatever thin veil you think might still exist is useless in hiding any of the good parts.  Notwithstanding Facebook’s published Privacy Guide, your info is not the least bit safe.

Money has everything to do with it.  Currency on the Internet is traffic, and in that sense, Facebook is a currency printing press. Eyeballs on the site in those numbers make the Googles of the world salivate.  Add to that the email addresses for e-newsletter marketing, and, well . . . you get the point.

And lest you think the toothpaste can be jammed back into the tube, try getting that embarrassing Facebook update off Facebook’s server, or out of Google’s cache.  The only option you have is to take comfort in the notion of once burned, twice shy, and vow never to put anything anywhere on the Internet you can’t live with forever.

But, it still comes down to money.  Privacy issues can stand in the way of monetization, and when that choice has to be made, the answer is clear.  Making money is not a bad thing, mind you.  The costs of maintaining sites like Facebook, Twitter and so many others is substantial, and business is business.  It’s why the sites and systems were developed in the first place.

Just be careful.  Forever is a long time.

New Site for Truro Public Library

February 3rd, 2010

The Town of Truro Public Library has a new web site as of January, and KISS was pleased to have helped in that project. The site for Meg Royka and her staff introduces a community calendar, already overflowing with upcoming events, as well as a blog for a multitude of Staff uses being planned for the new year.  The image of the library is a new feature, also, and adds a quaintness to the new look and feel of the site.

We wish the Library and Staff well and hope they will have fun with the new site.  It’s a valuable community resource, and we’re sure they will manage it well.