Tag Archives: Content Marketing

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5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Implementing a Social Media Strategy

by: Jamey Brown

In my head it goes: goal setting – brainstorm – idea pool – checks and balances – strategy – tactics – finished plan. This has been my process for developing strategy plans thus far. Everyone’s strategy development is different, but the overarching themes can be applicable to all. Oh yeah, and strategy (since I see it everywhere and no real description attached) is the high level plan(s) that’s built to achieve certain, pre-determined goals. Tactics are the executional steps that help achieve the overarching goals of the strategy. So, before you make the jump to executional, think of these five questions while you are developing your overarching strategic plan.

1. What are my goals? Short term? And long term?

It’s all pointless if you are not striving to hit certain goals you’ve set. There needs to a be a concise list of short term, immediate goals you want to knock out, and then a concise list of the big, 6 month-ish goals you want to achieve over time. Determining goals is the very first step.

2. Will I need 1 overarching strategy? Or several?

Sometimes, multiple strategies are needed if the client you are working with is a large one and has multiple large goals to achieve on a more corporate branding level. That and the fact that they could have a campaign that seeks to accomplish two very different things. Do I recommend them implementing a bipolar campaign? No. But sometimes several strategies are needed to accomplish different sets of goals.

3. What tactics do I need in place to fulfill the goals of my strategy?

VERY IMPORTANT. These are the mechanical pieces that keep the big machine running. You need actionable steps that say, “this is how you are going to actually do it on a day-to-day or week-to-week basis.”

4. Is my strategy fulfilling BOTH my long term and short term goals?

Always go back and double check yourself. Asking this question forces you to keep your goals on your mind at all times. Sometimes “creativity” can blind people’s strategic thinking and “cool” can take a front seat very fast. DON’T let this happen. Goals are always #1! Let cool and creativity come naturally.

5. What is the lifespan (timeline) of this strategy? 

Simple. How long will this plan be in place? Again, determine how long you think it will take to accomplish the long term goals at hand and build a strategy that reflects that timeline. It could be three months; it could be one year. Give yourself checkpoints along the way.

What are some other steps you implement before developing a new social media strategy plan? 

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We Humans Sure Do Love Repetition

by: Jamey Brown

When pushing out content or messaging it may seem repetitive to you, but the more frequent that message is pushed out (during the campaign duration) the bigger the reach will be.

Do not go overboard (and you will feel it when you go over the line), but repurpose your content and messaging so that it can reach a variety of users in your audience.

Remember, when you feel thoroughly annoyed by pushing out the same content, that’s the same time you have just made a decent impression in the market.

 

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Don’t Let Content Overwhelm You

by: Jamey Brown

This morning as I arose with the sounds of Atlanta’s Midtown outside my window, I already had social on the brain. Today is a busy day in terms of monitoring certain communities and tidying things up simply to be prepared for this week. So, per usual, I got up, flipped on the coffee and plugged in.

Right now, at this very moment, I have six tabs open. One is Gmail. Four are social networks. The last one is WordPress (I guess technically another social network, but let’s not pick over small cookies). With this plethora of content at my fingertips, how do I filter it all to what I want? How do I not have a panic attack because there’s. just. so. much.? Well, it’s easy, manage yourself, not the networks.

Right now, I have too much content available at one time. Space things out into small segments of time. Overload can be detrimental.

Schedule what you want to get out of the next hour. I need to reply to some e-mails. I need to check my Google+ Communities and I need to monitor two specific LinkedIn Groups. These three things are priority for the next hour. So, I can remove my Twitter and Facebook tabs for now (and the WordPress one after I finish writing this on my break! Ha!)

Take your time. Content is much more effectively absorbed if you actually slow things down a bit and digest what you are reading AS you read it. Say it back to yourself.

Take small breaks. Now this does not work for everybody, but I am much more effective if I review something for 30 minutes and then take a 5-10 minute break. Rinse and repeat this and you will be surprised how much you get done by the end of the day.

Breathe. Remember, there’s always a tomorrow. Knock out what is priority for the next 24 hours, breathe and begin to schedule into the week.

What are some other content management tips you’ve found to be useful?  

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YouTube’s Facelift, Just In Case You Forgot

by: Jamey Brown

YouTube’s made some channel changes. Drop a “like” or “dislike” in the comments section.

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An Ode to Community Managers

by: Jamey Brown

You’re a creator. A curator. A communicator.

You’re an editor. A director. A writer.

You’re an analyst. An interpreter. An advertiser.

You’re a sun up to sun down (and then some) worker. A “not leaving till it’s done” researcher.

You’re an orchestrator . A leader. A helper.

You’re a contributor. But most importantly, a listener.

You’re a doer. An observer. A specialist.

You’re a linker. A connector. A seeker.

You’re a Community Manager 

Congrats on being awesome 

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When User Generated Content Goes Too Far

by: Jamey Brown

Ok, so a Community Manager walks into a bar… no, just kidding. But a Community Manager really does walk into his or her office, sits down and looks at the calendar. It’s THAT day. You know what day I’m talking about… the day where you click open the Excel (or Google Doc) content calendar for the next month and a slow tear comes down your cheek as you stare at the unbranded abyss. That lack of future content makes you even more nauseous than the two grande coffees you just had. But then you remember, “hey, we are now crowd-sourcing content from our online communities” (and yes, I will use that buzzword only once. Apologies). The flashbacks of your meeting with the Strategy Director and CMO are coming back to you and the words “we need to start incorporating more user generated content from our fans and followers” blink in bright neon lights. You then take a look at next month’s naked calendar and attack it with no fear. Well, before you do this you need to read the below tips on how to not go nutzo with user generated content. Because as transparent and effective as it can be, it can also be lethal to your brand or organization if overdone or done poorly.

1.  MOST IMPORTANT Research Where Your Content Is Coming From: I know there are other things to do on your list, but take a few minutes to make sure the content you are using is from a credible source. Believe me, if you publish content that is from a sketchy source fans and followers will call you out on it. And you don’t have time for that.

2. Do Not Forget Regular Content Strategy: user generated content can become addictive, especially if you have a large brand who enjoys tweeting, posting and producing videos about that product. Stay the course with your brand’s marketing strategy! Content from the community is an add-on, the icing on the cake. It is a strategy that should be periodically tossed in to spice things up and show everyone that “cool, they are listening to us and publishing our content.” Don’t fall into the trap of becoming addicted to your online community’s content. If you get hooked then all of your walls, streams and pages will become flooded with fan and follower content. Your brand message will be lost, thus creating confusion as to anything you were actually trying to push.

3. Make It Exclusive: this is the point of it all. Make your community members feel as though they are part of the VIP section at the Viper Room when something of THEIRS is published by YOU. To that person, it’s a stamp of brand approval. They will say to themselves (and their friends) “yeah, that’s my video that was RT’ed.” But if your consistency amps up and everything becomes user generated content then this exclusivity is lost. It is no more the “secret lair” you wanted it to be. The zest, the rush of it is lost.

Now, as you put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard), remember these tips when implementing a user generated content strategy (wow, I’ve used this word a lot. Please comment on another word for this. I seem to be getting buzzword syndrome). Finally, have fun with it. That’s the bottom line with all of this. Content, branding, online communities, etc. are supposed to be fun and engaging. Don’t forget that when making things shareable and RT’able.

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Dear Young Social Marketer…

by Jamey Brown

Dear Young Social Marketer,

You are entering a world of conversation, clicks and CTR’s. Don’t be scared, if you do your research you will execute all of these things just fine. Social media is nearing its end of “the new way to market” and is becoming essential to how a brand markets its message and content. You must value time management, creativity and collaboration. If you have an ego problem then you can go ahead and check that at the door – no room for that in this industry. But guess what? You will have to learn how to deal with others who don’t value that. Hard? Very. Good experience? Like you wouldn’t believe.

Know that your days will be spent on a timer and that you will have to not only execute your creativity, but execute it at hyperspeed. Oh, and it has to be good. You will have to write, write and write some more. Content creation is fun, but wait till you sit down to a blank editorial calendar. Get the ink ready! You will enjoy the creativity, but you better love it enough to have days where ALL you do is brainstorm, brainstorm and brainstorm some more. Trust me, midday coffees will be your new best friend. And just when you think you are about to leave, you will have a “quick” stream of work come down the pike that has to be done by EOD.

Be ready to handle a lot of money that is not yours. You will be running multiple social campaigns that must have good CTR’s and engagement. Tell that to your friend who says, “uh, you play with Facebook and Twitter for work?” Don’t worry, they still won’t get it. Be prepared to be on the ground floor for live events that revolve around your social media pushes. You will have to be the most charming person in the room, while also being the best marketer in the digital space at the same time.

But you know what…

It’s all so worth it. When you see your social campaigns surpass their numbers. When you see twitter streams light up like Christmas trees. When people give you feedback that says, “wow, thank you.” At the end of the day you live for this. You are a connector. A creator. A marketer. A master linker between brand and consumer, bridging the two dimensional traditional gap with the three dimensional injection of the all powerful social media. So, pat yourself on the back Young Social Marketer and know that all good word-of-mouth starts with your passion for social media marketing.

Best,

@JamesonGBrown

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3 Reasons Why Vine Will Help Brands

A couple of days ago the new Vine application was released and every digital nerd, including myself, thought we were the new Spielbergs of directing. The stop/go flip book app allows users to easily edit together video content of their choosing and then share socially within the Vine community or to other social networks (Twitter and Facebook). I refrained from writing an immediate piece upon the app’s release date because I wanted to let the initial wave of “OMG, this is awesome” to blow over and really examine the realistic benefits of this program. Is this application a real game changer? No. Will it be a useful, tactical tool for brands? Yes. Below are 3 reasons why.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Transparency: one of the most important staples a brand must embrace when using social media is transparency. This is something that we all know by now. The question now is “how can we further our transparency?” The Vine app will allow users to take a step further into the brand’s internal way of life. Nothing huge, but it will make users connect with the brand further because…ding ding ding…the brand will be further humanized in the eyes of the user!

2. Conciseness: I am sure there were many meetings, debates, brainstorms, etc. on how long the clip’s length. And Vine did a great job with staying in line with Twitter’s mantra of being the salsa dance network of social media. When user’s only have a limited amount of time to make their multimedia content oscar winning they know it has to be good. And it is perfect for people who are on the go (and the majority of us are these days). So if I want a quick “how-to” clip on how to cook a meal or how to put something together then I know Vine can give me the quick video blueprint of how to do that. Hmm… do you hear that brands? “How-to” videos on Vine…not a bad practice to start implementing if applicable.

3. Content: everything in social media will always wrap back around to “is your content worthy?” So, whether it is a “how to” clip or you showing segments of your day, make sure the content you push out on this application is something users will not just like, but benefit from. I can like something all day on Facebook, but Vine takes things a step further in that it will be a competition for good content.

So, future social media directors, go out and start filming. Just know that you should not overuse this app and the content you push out needs to not only be “cool,” but valuable to other users.

Have you used the Vine application yet? If so, what has been your favorite type of content you’ve seen so far? 

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4 Things To Remember When Promoting Posts On Facebook

by: Jamey Brown

So how does content really get out there for users to see? There are the basic strategies and tactics, but it never hurts to put some ad dollars behind solid content. That being said, promoted posts are a content marketer’s dream. I am currently running multiple promoted posts campaigns for a client and so far (knock on wood) the numbers are coming out great. Below are 4 things to remember every time you run a promoted post campaign.

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. Include Links: always always always have this content driving traffic to a certain destination. You’re putting money behind, make it worth the expense! Along with including applicable links in the content, make sure to track these links on the back end. I use bit.ly for all of my link statistics. You can also incorporate promo codes within the copy to make clicking the link more attractive to users.

2. Target Correctly: bottom line, if you don’t target well you WILL be the victim of a spam invasion. I have seen it happen and trust me, it isn’t pretty. Be precise in your targeting because the more precise you are, typically, the better your numbers will be. This is not the case every time, but if you are seeking out a specific group of people to engage with (and trying to get them to purchase something) then you need to zero in on them.

3. Set The Appropriate Budget: the bigger your Facebook community is, the bigger your ad spend options are going to be. The higher the spend, the bigger the reach. The more you invest, the more engagement you will receive, thus resulting in a growing community and more traffic being driven to your digital destination.

4. Oh Yeah, The Content Has To Be Good: Warning! If the content is bad, promoted posts will only help so much. Put yourself in your market’s place and say, “would I click this?” When you pass this test, then click “promote.”

Promoting posts is a real game changer for brand pages because it is a guaranteed way to market good content to the exact people who need to see it. In fact, I would not be surprised to see traditional Facebook ads to start slowly fading out. Why? Well, promoted post advertising is all the gravy of a traditional Facebook ad, but with engagement applications attached to it and it is placed in a news feed as opposed to the side panel (aka the no man’s land of mouse cursors). So the next time you are launching an ad campaign, give promoted posts a thought and watch the results roll in.