New Content Marketing Study Reveals Astronomical Growth of LinkedIn

social mediaIt’s always a good fight in the content marketing arena; in one corner we have the blog and in the other the eNewsletter; while video is getting prepped for the next round, the infographic is making its way into the boxing ring; meanwhile, whitepapers and case studies have been duking it out to no end. Between all of these messy matches, though, appears to be one consistent winner—one content marketing tactic that remains triumphant over all: social media.

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Can You Handle the 21st Century Customer?

customer serviceSpend just a few minutes with your existing and prospective customers—or just two minutes scanning your Twitter news stream—and one sentiment resounds loud and clear: we are in the Age of the Consumer, one characterized by a customer who is more informed, demanding and expectant than perhaps we have ever seen. Just consider the following statistics aggregated in a great LinkedIn post:

  • For every customer complaint there are 26 other unhappy customers who have remained silent.
  • 96 percent of unhappy customers don’t complain, however 91 percent of those will simply leave and never come back.
  • 70 percent of buying experiences are based on how customers feel they are being treated.

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LinkedIn: A Goldmine Filled with Quality Leads

Linkedin_ChocolatesWhen LinkedIn first launched in 2002, it was a small but mighty social media platform used by eager job seekers to connect with other like-minded professionals. Fast forward to today, however, and LinkedIn is the go-to social media vehicle for marketing and sales professionals. LinkedIn is no longer seen as Facebook’s “ugly step sister” but as a valuable tool for gathering quality leads and developing strong client relationships.  Continue reading “LinkedIn: A Goldmine Filled with Quality Leads”

See You at Content Marketing World!

I’ve definitely caught the Content Marketing World bug. 10,000 miles above ground on the way to Cleveland for the content marketing event of the year, I can’t help but smile and think about all the awe-inspiring speeches I will hear later today—from actor and author William Shatner to Coca-Cola’s Global Creative Vision Manager Jonathan Mildenhall (you all know how I feel about Coke!) to the Hershey Company’s Senior Manager Martin Baker.

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Blogging without Social Media is Essentially Futile

social mediaI can’t tell you how many times a day I find some of my most favorite blog entries from Twitter. In fact, I keep Twitter up all day long—canvassing the stream every few hours to catch the latest content marketing news and determining who I would like to engage with in cyberspace today. It’s completely addicting. I no longer have to go out to try to find the latest information about something that piques my interest; rather, that news comes to me.

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Can You Even Find Your Company’s Blog?

If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it even make a sound?

The same could be said about your blogging platform. If you are creating the most compelling, awe-inspiring blog content—unquestionably putting your competitors to shame—but that copy is essentially hidden on your homepage, then does your blog even make a ripple in cyberspace? In short, the answer is no. Continue reading “Can You Even Find Your Company’s Blog?”

The (Unofficial) Ten Social Media Commandments for Content Marketers

social mediaWe all have some set of rules that we abide by. For example, I would consider mine to be treating others kindly, being slow to speak and being quick to listen, among others. But before I get too philosophical, let’s take a look at ten lessons every content marketer should be zeroing in on, inspired by this recent post from Buffer (props!). I now present to you the (unofficial) ten social media commandments that every content marketer should be heeding:

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10 Things Never To Do On Social Media

Social media is a great way to promote your brand, but if you’re making these mistakes, you’re risking send all your hard work right down the drain.

  • It’s been a month since you’ve posted. The frequency of posts often depends on the social media platform, but as a general rule – post daily! If you know you’re going to have a hectic day and won’t have time to post, schedule your messages through services like HootSuite or TweetDeck .
  • You don’t’ respond to comments. Your followers took the time to reply to one of your comments or tag you in a post. Show them the same respect – reply to them, even if it’s simply a quick thank you.
  • Me, me, me. Everyone loves talking about themselves and their business, but not everyone loves to hear about it! Especially when it’s overly self-promotional.
  • You’ve paid for friends. You can find many sites out there offering to sell you hundreds or thousands of fans. Promise me you won’t do it. You’ll get low quality followers who don’t care about what you have to say and may not even be real people. Quality over quantity, friends. Continue reading “10 Things Never To Do On Social Media”

How to Bring Social to Your Business Model

Have you ever noticed that many of your favorite TV shows—especially reality-based ones—have a new reoccurring character each episode? Its name is Twitter. From regular series promoting show-specific hashtags to reality TV programs displaying live tweets, there are very few shows on prime-time television that have not made a main character out of Twitter. The Bachelorette, America’s Got Talent, Extreme Makeover Home Edition, So You Think You Can Dance… the list goes on and on.

twitter stream

We have become so accustomed to Twitter on TV – whether it’s  live Twitter streams at the bottom of the screen  or the redundant plea of TV hosts to follow or vote for contestants,  – that in just a few short years, this type of social behavior has become commonplace.

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Why Content Marketing Makes Sense

If you had the choice to interrupt your customers or to provide them with enriching content which just so happened to capture their attention, which would you choose?

Such is the difference between traditional marketing—billboards, radio spots, television commercials and newspaper ads—and content marketing. Whereas the former aims to grab a hold of the viewer’s attention for a brief moment, the latter seeks to provide the same viewer with multiple forms of valuable content in order to help build and grow a long-term relationship. Traditional marketing is expensive and provides not much more than a distraction. Content marketing offers valuable information and entertainment which lasts longer and can be shared on social networks with ease.

In light of this, it shouldn’t really come as a surprise that businesses are increasingly looking toward upping their content marketing efforts. According to Jonathan Lister, who oversees the North American advertising sales and operations for LinkedIn, 18.9 percent of marketers focused primarily on content marketing in 2012. In 2013, that number has jumped to 34.8 percent. Continue reading “Why Content Marketing Makes Sense”