Instagram recently introduced a new sharing feature called “Photos of You.” This feature allows users to tag other user accounts in pictures, much like Facebook. What many business owners don’t realize is how this could positively impact their marketing efforts.

So you have a Facebook page for your business-you have for a while now. You believe you should be at around a million likes, but you’re not. There are several reasons why this may be, some of which you may not even be aware of. Listed below are some of those reasons.

•    You never or rarely post.
 
The whole point of social media is to be social. If you aren’t posting valuable information for your followers to like, share, or comment on, you’re not going to expand your audience.

•    You post unrelated content.

People usually ‘like’ your page because you belong to an industry that interests them. If you continually post information about other industries, they’re going to lose interest.

•    You don’t seem to be interested in building a relationship.

Engagement and relationships are what a good business page strives for. If you only want to swap ‘likes’, most committed businesses will not be interested.

•    You post a link to your page on my page without my consent.

Most businesses do not want to see your link all over their page. If it’s business related-that’s one thing. If you’re just posting it to post it, your page will lose ‘likes’.

•    All your posts are sales pitches.

The general rule of thumb is 80/20: 80% information, 20% sales.

•    Your posts are loaded with grammatical and spelling errors.

This isn’t professional and will cost you ‘likes’.

•    You don’t follow Facebook’s rules.

Facebook has rules regarding the information that can be on your cover photo, as well as how you can run a contest (click here for details). If you don’t follow the rules, those that do will probably not ‘like’ your page.

 

Instagram is updating its privacy policy and terms of service. The biggest changes are about how photographs users upload may be used by Instagram and its parent company, Facebook.

The changes, which will go into effect Jan. 16, will not apply to pictures shared before that date.
Some of the policy is written in lengthy and hard to understand language. Here’s a summary of what these changes mean for you.

1. Instagram can share information about its users with Facebook, its parent company, as well as outside affiliates and advertisers.
Basically, this means that the information you include in your Instagram profile can be passed around to Facebook and other affiliates and advertisers. Details such as your hobbies, favorites, etc., can possibly be shared with potential advertisers so they can better target ads.

 2. You could star in an advertisement — without your knowledge.
Instagram will also be able to use your photographs and identity in advertisements. “You agree that a business or other entity may pay us to display your username, likeness, photos (along with any associated metadata), and/or actions you take, in connection with paid or sponsored content or promotions, without any compensation to you,” the new terms say. This means that photographs uploaded to Instagram could end up in an advertisement.

3. Underage users are not exempt.
Athough Instagram says people must be at least 13 years old to sign up for the service, the new terms note that if a teenager signs up, they are agreeing that a parent or guardian is aware that their image, username and photos can also be used in ads.

4. Want to opt out? Delete your account.
The only way to opt out of the new Instagram terms is to not use the service. Period.

Guess what? Facebook is upgrading friendship pages! “Friendship pages?” you ask. “What are those?”

Although you may not know what a friendship page is, these nifty little pages have been available since October 2010. Anything that’s every transpired between you and any given friend is displayed on your friendship page with said friend.

To find your friendship page with Jane Doe, for example, you’ll need to go to her profile page. From there, click on the gear button on the right (next to “Message”). You’ll see a list of options. Select “See Friendship”. You’ll see posts that you’ve sent to each other, posts that you’re both tagged in, and photos that include both of you. Yes, Big Brother is watching.

Well, Facebook is slowly rolling out Timeline-style pages to match the Timeline on your profile page. You may or may not have it yet. If you do, you’ll notice a few additional options, like being able to edit the page and remove photos that you may not care for.

If you’ve never perused your friendship pages, go ahead. They’re fun to look through. As a bonus, Facebook is also adding a new page for you and anyone you’re in a relationship with. This oh-so-cute page is appropriately named facebook.com/us.

Staying up to date with all of the Facebook changes isn’t easy. We’ll continue to post updates to try to simplify the process for you. Happy Facebooking!

Is your website sharable? “Sure”, you’re thinking. But, really, is it?

We’re all familiar with a wheel-it has a hub, and it has spokes. This model has been used in business, government, and life in general for ages. There is a focus point in the center from which other components branch out.  

Your website should be your content marketing hub.

This is a great model to use when it comes to marketing your business. Your website should be the hub, with all of the spokes representing other aspects of your marketing plan-Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Groupon, Google+, Pinterest, your blog, etc. The goal is to get people back to your website. Once they’re there, however, is there information interesting enough that they’d want to share it?

Your website may be well-designed, easy to navigate, and pretty to look at, but in the big scheme of things, what matters is the content. This is where a blog comes in handy. Your visitors aren’t likely to share details of whatever product it is you’re selling or information from your ‘Contact Us’ page. If you post a video of something interesting, some fascinating trivia, or a compelling article, one of your visitors might be motivated to share it. Just think-the average Facebook user has 130 fans. If one of your visitors shares your information on their Facebook page, it has the potential of reaching their friends. And so on, and so on…

Many people ask me what kind of blog they should use-one independent of the site, or one that’s a dedicated page on the site. I firmly believe in keeping your blog on your site. After all, those that are interested in your product are already on your site. Give those people what they want: more information. Just make sure that information is unique, interesting, and high- quality. And no, size does not matter-bigger isn’t necessarily better. Use as many or as few words as you need to get your point across, but you don’t have to overdo it. For example, let’s say you’re posting a video. Let that video be the focus of the blog, so only add a couple of sentences or so.

Another benefit of keeping your blog on your site pertains to SEO. The more your content is shared, the better your domain will do in the search rankings. If your blog is on your site, your site’s domain will be the one showing up in the searches.

So, back to the original point-make your content sharable. Post distinctive, attention-grabbing, fun, and valuable information to your blog.  Make it so good that others will be eager to share it.

 

In case you haven’t noticed, another star has emerged onto the social media scene-Pinterest. Pinterest is basically a virtual pinboard where users can organize and share their interests via images. Pinterest’s growth rate has been off the charts. According to Experian Marketing Services, the number of users who made weekly visits to the site hit nearly 29 million in July, up from 1.27 million only a year earlier. In addition, most of these users are women.

In fact, a new report from Pew says that one-fifth of all women in the United States who go online belong to Pinterest. That’s a lot of estrogen! And we’re all aware of how women love to share and shop-so why hasn’t Pinterest developed a way to turn that zeal into income?

Could the site be generating income quietly, though? In a blog written earlier this year, Josh Davis informed us that Pinterest modifies some pins, adjusting the links to add an affiliate tracking code. If someone makes a purchase from that link, Pinterest gets a piece of the pie. Although this is not an uncommon practice, and it is alluded to in the Terms of Service, most individuals are not aware of this.

When it comes to helping other businesses make money, though, Pinterest is a shining star. According to a Mashable study, Pinterest drives more traffic than YouTube, LinkedIn, and Google+ combined and is just about equal with Twitter. That’s a lot of referral revenue for the new kid on the block!

The bottom line is this-if you own a business, Pinterest absolutely has to be included in your social marketing strategy. Period.

 

Have you heard about Tout yet? In case you haven’t, it’s another social media platform that utilizes video-just video-to create posts. It allows users to shoot 15 second video status updates via smartphones and webcams. Touts go out in real time, and you can automatically send them to your Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest accounts, as well as to your e-mail contacts. Tout has a reply feature, enabling you to engage in Tout conversations.

The author of Facebook Marketing for Dummies has revealed that their are 12 errors that preclude most users from successful marketing on the platform.

Facebook is launching new programs and changes that could equate to great things for businesses.  As part of their Premium Ads initiative, they are currently testing a program called Offers. 

Facebook Offers allows businesses to promote discounts that friends can accept with the simplicity of one click.  Users have the option of claiming the offer either from the brand’s Fan Page or from their News Feed.  FB Mobile also supports Offers claims. Once the offer is claimed, the user receives an email with the redemption details.  The email prompts users to share the discount with other Facebook friends.  To redeem Offers, one must merely show the email to store associates.

Facebook Offers is worth a look for business owners.  It’s the newest way to drive traffic to your doors.  Develop an Offer that is clean, simple, and obvious to get your Fan Page buzzing!
 

Social media marketing is constantly evolving and that makes it difficult for business owners to stay current.  Mari Smith, social media expert, has taken some of the guesswork out of the process by compiling a list of 5 key articles that highlight important points for various social media.

1.    WhyIsFacebookInsightsNotWorking:  basic assistance with the new Facebook Insights.  Currently, Insights are 4 days behind.

2.    How To Run Competitions On Facebook By The Rules: contests are a great way to engage old and new fans alike, but you must follow the rules or risk losing your page.

3.    The Ultimate Guide to Mastering Pinterest for Marketing:  Pinterest is the newest social network to enter the marketing world.  Learn all the basics here.

4.    Google+ for Business: 5 Things Marketing Professionals Should Know About Google+:  regular activity on G+ improves your search ranking. 

5.    50 Qualities of the Best Business Blogs in the World: basic blogging tips from standouts on the Web.

Make your marketing plan work.  Utilize the best social media has to offer and you’re sure to reap the rewards.
 

February marked yet another launch of Facebook changes.  Group Admins now have the option of selecting a large cover photo similar to the Timeline option on personal pages or they can go with an interactive member photo montage.

Group Admins choosing to stick with the default view will see an interactive photo strip as their header.  The photo montage highlights the most recently active 8 members strip. By hovering over the strip, you reveal a full color photo and the member’s name.  If you click on the photo, it immediately transports you to that individual’s Timeline.  The interactive nature of the photo montage offers new and interesting potential for the ways we engage fans.

Unlike the photo collage, the large cover photo allows Group Admins to showcase an image of their own choosing.  Like the Timeline, it offers a wide range of options to reach individuals visiting your page. 

For more information about the Facebook Groups new cover image options, visit Mari Smith's recent blog post. 
 

Unless you’re living under a rock somewhere, you’ve undoubtedly noticed the changes on Facebook over the last couple of days. As we in the social media world understand all too well, adaptation is the key. We need to learn about the new features and begin using them-quickly. I began summarizing these changes on paper for my own sanity.  Then I thought that it might be helpful to everyone if I share what I learn. This list is the result…

•    The character limit on posts has increased to 5,000 –this is up from 500. A huge deal for those who want to incorporate blogging into their posts. It also gives us the ability to delve a little deeper into more complicated subject matter.

•    There is a floating navigation bar –this gives users access to notifications, messages, requests, account and privacy settings, search bar and a home page link at all times.

•    Birthday greetings are now streamlined –no more having to visit the birthday boy’s profile. Merely click on the ‘birthdays’ section of the home page’s right sidebar, and a popover will be revealed with wall post entry fields for the profiles of all friends with birthdays that day. You can quickly post your greeting from there.    

•    The ‘Poke’ button has been hidden –actually, buried is a better word. You can now find it in a drop-down menu in the upper right of the profile. 

•    There’s no more friend request messages –up until now, we have been able to include some text when sending a friend request, giving us the option of greeting a potential new friend and explaining how we know each other. Now, we have to send a separate message.

•    There’s a new Facebook page tab for friends –this allows you to see how your friends are interacting with your page. You’ll find it on the left side of your page. It’s called ‘Friend Activity’.

•    Top stories and recent posts are now friends –the News Feed is combining the Most Recent and the Top Stories. Facebook is marking the Top Stories with a blue corner to make them easy to identify.  

•    There is now a ‘Ticker’ –the ‘Ticker’ can be found in the upper right-hand corner. It instantly shows users what their friends are posting in real-time.  This feature can be helpful if you like to chat, almost like an instant message.

•    There is now a ‘Subscribe’ button –this feature isn’t an automatic one. You have to activate it.  This option will allow you to see posts of others without actually being friends. You’re automatically subscribed to your friends, but this addition will allow you to view posts from those whom you aren’t friends with, and vice versa.

•    No more sending messages from your fan page –yes, that’s correct. If you want your fans to know something, you’ll have to put it on your wall and hope for the best.

•    There are now friends’ lists –perhaps following in the steps of Google+, Facebook has given us the opportunity to share or see posts from a group of people on a list at any given time. If I want to share something only with people in my family, for example, I can share it with that list and they will be the only ones to see it.

•    There’s a new ‘View Shares’ link –when you click on this link, you’ll be able to see who has shared your information.

•     Effective October 1st, pages will require an SSL certificate –so, what exactly does this mean? A SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate makes sure information is transmitted in a secure fashion. If you’re an average Facebook user, not much. You’ll probably see some changes in the pages you visit or games you may play. If you’re a business owner with a page that uses custom apps, however, make sure you have that certificate. One can usually be provided by your hosting company.

Well folks, that’s it for now. You may not see some of these changes and new features immediately. Facebook is known for rolling updates out to only some users at a time. Rest assured, you’ll get them eventually.

Happy Facebooking!!
 

By Meghan Peters

When Facebook launched its Subscribe button on Wednesday, many were quick to note its implications for journalists, celebrities and other thought leaders. The new feature allows for users to follow public updates, and these are the people most often broadcasting their ideas.

Yet there’s more the average user can get on board with than meets the eye. The release came with a slew of additional features — including a more customizable News Feed and increased privacy — that users have been wanting for years. The trouble is, there are so many moving parts in this product launch. Users are now presented with a number of options, and they’ll need to dig deep to understand which pieces to take and which to leave.

We hope to make that process a little easier for you. Here are some key points you should know based on what type of user you are:

Super Users & Celebrities

If you’re kind of a big deal, you likely already have a Facebook fan page to update your followers on what you’re up to. The launch of the Subscribe button leaves you with two options:

1. Keep the fan page and continue to maintain two separate Facebook presences: profile and page. This strategy’s main pro is that pages are optimized for marketing. Profiles can’t be updated by multiple admins and fans are more acclimated to updates with an on-brand feel. Perhaps more importantly, profiles don’t have Facebook’s analytics tool Insights — and “they probably never will,” says Vadim Lavrusik, journalist program manager at Facebook and former Mashable community manger.

2. Do away with the fan page and merge your page likers into profile subscribers. By deleting your fan page, you will lose all page content. However, your likers will automatically be subscribed to your public updates. The biggest advantages? Profiles are easier to update via mobile than pages and people are prioritized over pages in search.

With either of these methods, you’ll have direct messaging capability (from your profile to your page likers or from your profile to your subscribers) and neither has a limit on the number of people who can follow your content (subscribers or likers — though profiles do have a limit of 5,000 friends).

Journalists & Artists

The Subscribe button is arguably most beneficial for journalists and artists. Though, in a sense, they’re public figures, these types of Facebook users likely aren’t well-known enough to justify a fan page.

If this sounds like you, the first thing you need to do is actively opt-in to allow subscriptions to your profile. You can then choose to allow subscribers to comment on your updates and control your notifications.

Another change to note is that when you unfriend someone, they stay subscribed to your public updates. This is important if you’ve been accepting friend requests from people you don’t know who want to follow your work. It can be uncomfortable to friend someone without knowing them personally. The Subscribe button allows you to unfriend these people and still reach them via public updates.

Finally, when composing updates you want your subscribers to see, be sure to set the privacy to Public. They won’t see it otherwise.

Parents & Teachers

The relationships parents and teachers should have with their kids and students on Facebook has always been a touchy subject. The Subscribe feature can help to make crossing the Facebook connection threshold less awkward.

Users can subscribe to others without enabling others to subscribe to them. This means teachers can allow their students to follow their public updates about school and classes without actually friending them (and accessing more personal information). That way, students can continue to update friends about their lives without worrying what might pop up in their teachers’ News Feeds.

For parents, this feature may work the other way around. Instead of asking your son or daughter what that Jaime So-and-So they used to hang out with is up to, you could subscribe to Jaime, whereas friending her might be uncomfortable. The feature could also be helpful if your kids aren’t OK with you watching their every virtual move. Brace yourself for a sensitive conversation at the dinner table.

Students & Average Users

For the occasional Facebookers who mostly use the service to keep up with friends and post photos, here’s the bottom line: You never have to see your Aunt Suzie’s FarmVille updates ever again. But, you can still see her photos, videos and status updates if you’d like.

Before the Subscribe button launch, it was either all or nothing when it came to blocking a person’s updates from your News Feed. Now you can control what types of updates you see from a person and how often. That means you can skip the virtual sheep without missing out on engagement notifications and puppy albums.

As of now, the feature is only available for tailoring updates from non-friends that you’re subscribed to. The Subscribe button, and this feature, will be rolled out to friend pages in the next few days, Lavrusik says.

Conclusion

As the virtual world grows, relationships and the ways we’re connecting with others are changing. The Subscribe button addresses issues about the depth of connection the term “friend” implies on Facebook.

Some critics say the feature goes against Facebook’s nature — that it was built on “friending,” not “following.” It’s important to note that the News Feed algorithm weights updates from friends as well as private posts more heavily than public ones. In addition, the Close Friends list Facebook rolled out on Tuesday makes the updates from your strongest relationships more prominent in your News Feed, and you can enable notifications specifically from friends in this list.

With the number of new social networks gaining speed, Facebook is and should be making changes to stay competitive. What’s important is that it doesn’t divert too far from its core. In this update, Facebook is only giving its users more options — which the majority may or may not take advantage.       http://mashable.com/2011/

In the ever changing world of language, the term social media is as popular as ever. It has even been officially added to Webster’s Dictionary. As corporations, businesses and small businesses realize that they have to get on the social media bandwagon in order to keep up with competition, the game is changing again. Businesses are realizing that they have to do more than just add a like button to their websites or post their products on twitter feeds. They have to be able to adapt with the fast paced, ever-changing social media world. 

The future of social media comes down to one word, “value.” Businesses have to be able to provide their followers with quality content. Recent reports have shown that the growing number of social media users is finally plateauing. People are not joining social media sites at the rates that they were, thus creating more of a competition for businesses. They have to be able to keep ahead of their competition and draw their users in. People want to be able to trust the companies they are buying from and actually get something from them. They want to be heard and provide companies with feedback to cater to them.

Consumer engagement is the future of social media and companies have to be able to keep up with them and listen to what they have to say. If companies do not value social media and their consumers, they will be left behind. They have to adapt or surrender to their competition.

Do business owners really need one more social networking platform to promote their services?  The answer to that question is always yes if the return on the investment is high and the manpower necessary is low. 

Foursquare Labs offers an exceptional way for businesses to capitalize on the increasing numbers of smartphone users and the popularity of social networking apps.  Foursquare is a location-based game that requires players to “check-in” when they patronize a registered business.  Customers are encouraged to leave public comments and tips regarding their experience.   What draws players to the game?  Discounts and a chance to be crowned the “Mayor” of each location they visit. Upon “checking-in” to a location, Foursquare users are clued into any coupons valid at their current location and any in the nearby area. 

Michelle Tjelmeland, owner of e-websmart and a Social Media Specialist, says, “Business owners are increasingly confused about the best ways to reach their customers.  Foursquare offers incredible ROI and it’s fun for players.  Not many other marketing tools engage clients in such an interactive way while at the same time offering the business usable real-time feedback.” 

If you’re willing to jump into 21st century marketing, there are some things to keep in mind to make it a winning investment: 

K.I.S.S.  Keep it simple and straightforward…at least at the beginning.  Getting started with Foursquare is as easy as spending a few minutes registering your business and listing your first discount.  Once you’ve learned the ins and outs of the game, up the ante with highly focused discounts and more interactive play.

You must be a player if you want to win.  Foursquare is all about seeing and being seen.  Reciprocity makes you a winner.  Make sure to check-in when you visit an establishment and post valuable comments at each stop.  Your increased visibility and helpful tips will garner your business support.  Make sure to link your Foursquare account to Facebook and Twitter so that your activity gets posted on all your social networking sites simultaneously.

Don’t try to reinvent the wheel.  There is no need to try to customize Foursquare with fancy coding.  This can be time consuming and expensive.  Odds are someone has already done the work for you anyway.  Visit the Foursquare apps page and build your own designer platform.

Pay it forward.  Be generous and give back to your Foursquare customers.  Offer generous discounts and targeted specials.  You’ll be rewarded by customer loyalty and you’ll draw new players as word spreads about your offers.

It’s all about the details.  Use the information that you get from Foursquare.  Pay attention to customer comments and make recommended changes if you receive a valid criticism.    If you’re noticing clients migrate to a competitor or frequent another business, get creative with the owner and develop an affiliate relationship.  Also, notice the times of check-ins.  This may provide clues as to how to better serve your clientele.  Finally, always thank customers for feedback and acknowledge your gratitude for their business.

7.5 million Foursquare users are waiting for you!  Let the game begin.
 
 

Facebook is at it again! More changes to the site's functionality and layout, this time to business pages. The new format is now similar to the new personal profile layout, with a filmstrip of thumbnail pics running across the top. The tabs have also disappeared, and now the navigation appears on the left, under your picture.

One big benefit of moving the tab links to the left side is that you can see them all listed at once. Previously, only 4 - 5 tabs were visible, and users were required to click on the "+" sign to see more. This hid useful information, especially for those fans who were not aware of the "+" sign. Now, the full list of your apps appears on the left, which should make it easier for all users to navigate through your page and find what they need.

Another major change is the "Edit Page" link. It now appears on the right side of your business page. Previously, it was under your picture on the left.

Besides the layout, Facebook's changes also make it possible for you to interact with people and pages as a page name. For example, now e-websmart (the page) can leave comments on other pages' walls, as well as people's walls. You accomplish this by logging in, clicking on Accounts >> Use Facebook as Page, and then choosing which page you'd like to post as. Of course, you can only do this if you are an admin of a page. But, once you make this switch, your post appears as if it is coming from the page, not you. Switch back to your personal profile and be "you" again by clicking on Accounts >> Switch back to (name).

This also means that even if you are an admin on a page, you can post as yourself on that page.

And last but not least, and you're going to love this... you can now get e-mail notifications when fans interact with your page or posts! This is a long awaited change, and it's finally here! This feature is automatically activated, but here's where you find the setting:

• Go to a page that you administer and click Edit Page (remember, it's on the left side).
• From the menu on the left, click Your Settings.
• The check box next to E-mail Notifications controls whether you receive e-mail updates or not.

What do you think? Like it? Hate it? Let us know, and if you need help understanding what all of this means, give us a call!

By now, most small business owners understand why they need a Web site, so they come to e-websmart and ask us to design one for them. However, we often find that, once a site goes live, our clients don't update their information on a regular basis.

From a search engine standpoint, that can hurt. Google, Yahoo, Bing, and other search engines crave new information. When they notice that your site is being updated on a consistent basis, they will reward you by placing you higher in their rankings. That means you'll appear before your competition, and it increases the likelihood that your site will attract new visitors. Stagnant websites aren't nearly as popular.

E-websmart always suggests that our clients make frequent site updates, and our blog component makes it even easier. A blog is essentially a content management system that allows you to organize information into topics and categories. With a blog, you can add updates about your business, post news, distribute articles, and generally make your site a go-to-place for information when people want to learn more about you and your area of expertise.

Today, social media is all the rage. Experts recommend Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and several other social media sites to connect with your customers, and we do, too. But, just like your Web site should be the foundation for all of your online marketing, a blog should be the main component of your social media strategy.

The e-websmart blog module allows you to seamlessly add a blog to your new or existing Web site, And, because it resides within your Web site, you no longer have to send visitors away from your site to read your blog.

The features of our blog component include:

• Ease of use - just enter your title and type your post 
• A special home page section that lists the titles of your 3 most recent entries, keeping your content fresh and always changing
• Readers can leave comments on each post
• Readers can also subscribe to your posts so they are notified when you add new information
• Archives your information so readers can refer to previous posts.
• RSS feed address that you can feed your blog content to social networking sites and feed readers

It's easy to get started with a blog! We can not only install the blog component on your site, but we can also offer tips on what to post to your blog. We will also feed your blog posts to your social networking sites for you! Contact Michelle at e-websmart to get started.
 

Well, Facebook has done it again! Another change to the format of a business page that could cause some confusion for those of you who need to edit information on your page.

What Changed?
On your Business page (not your personal profile), when you click on the "Edit Page" link underneath your picture, you used to arrive at a page with a bunch of options right in front of you to edit your business information, add or adjust applications, add administrators, and so on. Now, when you click on "Edit Page", you instantly arrive at the "Basic Information" page, whether you need to edit it or not.

Now Where Do I Go?
All of your editing options are still available. When you click on "Edit Page", you'll see the Basic Information page, but you'll also see a menu of categories at the left. To find the option that you need to edit, you'll have to look under the appropriate menu category. They are relatively self-explanatory, but here's a quick run-down:

• Manage Permissions: Here's where you decide if your page is displayed publically or not, set age restrictions,  choose your default landing page, and decide who can write on your wall and add photos and videos.
• Basic Information: This is the default page when you click on the Edit Page link from your main page. You'll be able to edit your address, phone number, hours of operation, Web site, parking info, etc.
• Profile Picture: From here, you can upload a new picture to appear on your main page. (You can also accomplish this from your main page by placing your mouse pointer over the picture and clicking on "Change Picture" in the upper right hand corner.)
•  Marketing: Here's where you can establish Facebook ads, get a FB badge, add a Like Box to your Web site, and send an update to all of the users who "like" your page (previously known as "fans").
• Manage Admins: Here's where you can grant or revoke access to people who can make changes to your page.
• Applications: This is where you'll add applications or edit their settings. Many of these are also available from your main wall page by clicking on the Tabs, but if you want to add a new app, this is where you'll need to go.
• Mobile: From here, you can set up mobile e-mail, mobile web, your iPhone or SMS text messages.
• Insights: This page lets you check page stats such as user demographics, number of interactions, post quality, and more.
• Pages Help: This is Facebook's help page, a good page to check if you can't figure out how to complete a task.

In the end, there's really no change in functionality - just a change in the way the information is organized. Instead of crowding these editing options onto one page, they are now spread out and hopefully easier to find, once you get used to the new look.

Have you ever needed to change your e-mail address associated with your Facebook account? It's actually pretty easy! We helped a client with this just the other day, and we thought we'd share the steps with all of our fans.

1. Log in to Facebook (obviously!).

2. In the upper right hand corner, click on Account >> Account Settings.

3. Next to E-mail (3rd section down), click Change.

4. Enter your new e-mail address. Facebook will send a confirmation message to your new e-mail address, and a notification to your old e-mail address.

5. Log in to your new e-mail address, find the message from Facebook, and follow the instructions to confirm.

6. Once you've confirmed it, you can use that e-mail address to log into Facebook. Your password will be the same.

7. Now go back to Account >> Account Settings, then under e-mail, click Change again. Be sure to mark your new address as your contact e-mail or you won't receive any notifications from Facebook.?

That's it! After you know that you can log in with your new e-mail address, then you can go back to your e-mail settings and remove your old one if you want. But, keeping it won't negatively affect you, so long as you don't keep it as your contact e-mail.

If you have more than one active e-mail, you can list them all in Facebook. That way, people can find you under any e-mail address that you have listed, which can help increase the number of friends you connect with!

Still not using social media to market your business? You might not be the only one, however you will be soon! Social media isn’t just used for communicating with your buddies online and meeting new people. Find out ways you and your business can benefit from using social media with the top five reasons listed below!

1 .Brand yourself as an expert- by giving advice, answering questions and sharing information with others you are starting to grab the attention of others and can be viewed as an expert in your niche.

2. Build a rapport with customers- Your consumers are using social media like crazy, even if you are or not. Find out what your customers are saying about your brand, both the good and the bad. Take the information you gather and generate it into action. Ask your consumers what they’d like and see if your business will benefit by delivering requested services.

3. Increase visibility- Twitter, LinkedIN, YouTube, and Facebook are the search engines best friends. All the content you post and tweet about are being pulled into sites like Google, Yahoo, and MSN everyday. You’d be surprised the leverage you can acquire by doing a little keyword research into your posts and profiles.

4.It’s fast and cost efficient- Erik Qualman’s Social Media Revolution video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFZ0z5Fm-Ng) definitely puts things into prospective with how quickly social media can reach out to your target audience.

5.Showcase new products, services, and get feedback before your item hits the market- teasers are great, and feedback before hand is even better. Build up a following using social media and keep your audience on their toes with what products and services you might be releasing next and find out what they think about it.

As I said yesterday, I was recently asked if social media is going to replace traditional advertising. Here's the 2nd part of my answer:

Follow the Do’s and Dont's
Because social media is all the rage and profiles are relatively easy to set-up, many people are jumping on the bandwagon and creating company or organizational profiles on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace, LinkedIN, or YourTube to name a few. Before you get too far ahead of yourself, consider these do’s and don’ts:

• Do Your Research - There are 100’s of social media networks , and signing up for all of them would be nearly impossible. The first step of establishing an effective social networking profile is learning the demographics of each and finding out where your customers are. If your customers are not on MySpace then it doesn’t make sense to invest your time there.
• Don’t Overextend Yourself - A word to the wise - social networking can become all consuming. Most of us don’t have 5 hours a day to commit to blogging, Facebooking, Tweeting or updating our lens on Squidoo. My advice – find the 2-3 social networking sites where your customers are and establish your profiles there. Quality posts in a few places is a far better plan than mediocre work spread out over a dozen social sites.
• Do Understand the Time Investment - I often hear people say that social networking is a must because it’s free. Yes, signing up to be on social networking sites is free. But branding your profiles and maintaining them is not! Creating, engaging, and growing an online community takes time, talent, technology, resources and people. Setting up profiles on social networking sites is easy, building and maintaining these relationships is not!
• Don’t Sell, Sell, Sell – Direct, hard core advertising won’t work on social media because it’s not what people are seeking. They want to know more about your company or organization get to know who you are, not what your selling.

Remember – It’s Social Networking
We are in an era where people expect a more honest and direct relationship with the companies and organizations they do business with. Social media is about engaging in conversations and building relationships – it’s not about push marketing. Think relationships first, business second, because when marketers move into to social networking, members move out.

Humanizing your business or organization by posting transparent, genuine and authentic updates will lead to stronger fans and followers and an increase in word of mouth marketing. Don’t always talk about the products you sell, the services you offer, the money your organization is trying to raise; rather, provide value to your fans and followers by posting industry related tips and tricks they can learn from, humor they can laugh at, or inspiration to motivate them. Your interaction should be informal and conversational. Not only will this help frame you as a thought leader in your industry, it will help produce engaging conversations.

And, oh, don’t obsess about the number of fans or followers you have –just like traditional networking or building a new friendship or business relationship –it takes time if you prefer a quality relationships. The same holds true when building your online network.

Learn By Participating
Not sure where to begin? Start by watching, learning and listening. Find other companies who are already using social media in their marketing strategies, and follow them or become a fan. Read their posts, watch how their fans interact with them, and study their profiles. Makes notes about what you like and what you don’t like, what appeals to you and what doesn’t.

Still have questions? There are lots of companies who can help you establish your profiles, strategize, and consult with you on best practices to take your marketing strategies online. Do your research here, too. Check out their own social media profiles and ask for links to the profiles they’ve established for other clients. Talk to these clients to make sure they were happy with their experience.

With the popularity of social media in society today, it will soon seem like every business is posting a profile somewhere. Certainly, those who aren’t taking advantage of social marketing techniques will be at a disadvantage, but just being on Facebook or Twitter won’t bring success. Businesses and organizations must have a strategy and they must focus on relationships! Thoughtfully developing the “social” side of your company comes with many benefits – not the least of which is increased customer loyalty and a strong network of “word-of-mouth” advertisers that can help bring new customers to your door!

In light of many advertisers who have recently announced they are reducing their traditional advertising budgets in favor of social networking strategies, I was recently asked if social media is going to replace traditional advertising. I wanted to share my response with you! It will be in two parts, so be sure to read tomorrow's post, too, for my full response!

Online Marketing Is Here to Stay
Social media is here to stay. In fact, I read a study by the Center for Media Research that found more than 50 percent of marketers will be using social media this year, and 75 percent plan to increase their social media use.

Business who choose not to adapt to this new culture into their current marketing strategies and advertising budgets will be at a disadvantage. You might not be online but your competitors probably are or will be soon!

I believe social media will become more mainstreamed for business and organizations this next year. You’ll find the companies that were once resistant to social media taking the leap and establishing their profiles. Customers and clients will rely on the information the see on these social networking sites to make purchasing decisions based on who they want to associate and do business with.

Social Media Should NOT Replace Other Marketing, but Work With It
I don’t think social media should entirely replace traditional advertising methods; rather, it should work in conjunction with and complement one’s existing advertising. Your social media profiles should reflect your company brand with colors, logos, and links to your Website. People should easily recognize you on your social media sites, and there are many ways to incorporate your company brand, but they aren’t always obvious. This is where you might want to invest in some help from social media experts, who can design your profiles with graphics and special features.

In addition to appearance, the message you communicate about yourself should be consistent as well. You can certainly do special promotions targeted only at Facebook or Twitter users, but don’t confuse your customers by presenting different images of your company through different mediums. For example, don’t appear trendy to through your tweets but conservative through your blog posts. You’ll only confuse your audience, and they may lose trust and confidence in your message. Be yourself, be genuine, and proudly display who you are at all times no matter who your audience is.

You Must Have Strategy!
I can’t reiterate enough the importance that one’s online and offline marketing strategies sync. Social networking with a plan and strategy can produce amazing results. Social networking without a plan can be a formula for disaster.

Your messages have to be consistent across the board. You can’t post messages on Facebook that emphasize your dedication to customer service and then ignore customers on Twitter who are reaching out for help from you because they have a problem.

Be sure to read the next post to learn more about social networking and the strategies you can take to make it an effective marketing tool for your business!

There are several topics to consider as you prepare to use social media to market your business. You'll want to be sure that you've considered each aspect of social networking as it relates to the content you want to distribute. As you plan your content marketing strategy for social media, here are 10 questions to consider:

• Who is your target market? Write your content to coincide with age, gender, level of education, geographic location, income, and other important characteristics that you've identified. For example, you will write differently to reach a group of 18-21 year olds than you would to speak to a group of 50-60 year olds.
• Which networking site will help you reach that target? Each medium attracts different users, and you should know where you are mostly likely to find your target audience. LinkedIn may be appropriate for some content, but MySpace might make more sense for others.
• Who will write the content that you will distribute? Are they skilled at writing clearly and concisely? You may have experts in your organization that will be your resource for the information, but make sure the person who is preparing the content is skilled at writing with a conversational and genuine style. You want content that clearly presents a message. In general, you want proper grammar, spelling, and sentence structure, but there are always exceptions depending on your audience and purpose. Someone who is familiar with Web content can help you decide what is ok and what is too casual.
• What is your plan for responding to the comments, questions, and feedback generated by your content? Who in your organization is responsible for this task? Someone must monitor your social media profiles for all types of communication. A lack of response to a question or comment could be deadly to your reputation and will hurt relationships. Have someone track the conversation and identify further content ideas based on what others are saying or asking. It's also a good idea to set up Google Alerts with your business name and key people as search terms. This will help you catch the comments that are circling about you and give you a chance to respond quickly and appropriately.
• Is your content honest, sincere, trustworthy, and important to your audience? Write about relevant topics and be genuine in your efforts to educate and inform. Your content should portray a helpful, supportive approach. Eliminate all pretentious, judgmental, and patronizing language.
• Are you writing to sell or writing to educate? Content marketing focuses on education. Inform, don't advertise.
• What is the problem/need that your product or service will solve/meet? Show the potential customer that you can relate to their problems, and that you have a solution that can help.
• How can you position your business/yourself as an expert in your industry? Customers expect you to know your industry and the upcoming trends. Be willing to share and contribute your knowledge to the conversations that occur on social networking sites. Customers will appreciate your input and respect your opinions.
• How will you encourage your customers to share your content with friends and colleagues? Ask your friends, fans, and followers to invite others to be a part of the conversation. Let them know you appreciate their support and thank them for their loyalty. Share you successes and attribute that (at least in part) to their interest and word-of-mouth advertising.
• What results do you expect to see? An increase in communication? An increase in sales? How will you know your strategy has been successful? Be sure to gather benchmark information when you start a campaign so you can clearly see how your customers are responding to your content. Set goals for each campaign and study the statistics to make sure you are seeing positive results. If not, take an objective look at your content and consider revising your strategy.

What tips and topics are important to you when thinking about social media campaigns? How do you plan your content strategy? We'd love to hear your thoughts. Leave us a comment or respond to info@e-websmart.com.

Social media offers an easy and affordable method to market your small business products and services to the world. But without a clearly defined communication strategy, your message might not be reaching the right people through the right network. Marketing is not just about selling, it's also about educating. The better you educate, the more you create a need for your product (or service). By providing accurate and valuable information, you can also build trust and loyalty among your customers and prospects as well.

With social media, you have plenty of options to distribute your message. The challenge today is to create the right message for the target audience that you are reaching with each network. It's important to have a well-planned strategy for content marketing through social media. So before you jump onto Facebook or tweet through Twitter, take time to think about the type and style of content that you will be distributing.

1. Before you use social media to market your business, be sure you have something valuable to contribute. Identify what your customers need and then suggest a solution that will solve their problem. This is not about making a direct sell. Forget about pushing specific products and focus on consumer education. What do they need to know about your industry to make smart decisions when purchasing related products or services? This is your opportunity to show your industry expertise and credibility. Use the social networks to contribute helpful advice and dependable customer service.

2. While you seek to attract friends, fans, and followers, remember that huge numbers here do not necessarily represent marketing success. Are you attracting the right kinds of followers? Are they interested in your products and services, and do they need them? Will they purchase and remain loyal? Ultimately, it's the content that will attract friends, so make sure the it speaks directly to your target audience. Use the appropriate style, language, and tone, and of course, the right message. You are building connections that will hopefully help you spread the word about your business with viral, word-of-mouth marketing. It all starts with content, and quality matters.

3. When you initiate activity on social networks, you are implying that you are interested in customer experiences, willing to listen, and ready to respond. Your content must reflect that. It's all about creating and nurturing relationships, and you can't do that by simply providing content and then ignoring the response. Customer feedback should direct future content. Answer their questions. Provide the information they need. Content that directly helps a customer is likely to be shared with others.

Social media is only a tool to distribute your message. You wouldn't pick up a hammer and start pounding nails into wood with a clear building plan, so don't jump onto social networking sites and start haphazardly posting information. You need a well thought out communication strategy. Remember that you can't take content back once you've posted it on the Internet! Without a clear strategy, you may send the wrong message, and that mistake could take a long time to overcome.
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Facebook. Friendster. Classmates.com. Meetup.com. Orkut…the list goes on and on. With all the different social media sites available these days, it can be overwhelming for a virtual networking newbie to get started. You don’t want to spend a ton of time setting up a profile and inviting people to join your network only to discover you aren’t making the connections you wanted. So, we’ve noted four popular sites that you may have heard about. We suggest that, if you find the premise of these sites interesting, you try them out to see if they’re compatible with your business’ networking goals.

MySpace
As one of the most popular social networking sites today, MySpace is a huge draw to certain groups of people. For musicians, it’s a no-brainer to have a MySpace page. Same for independent artists and amateur filmmakers. But small businesses or non-profit groups? Not so much.

No matter what type of profile you set up, chances are you’ll still be bombarded with requests for matchmaking and dating services. Advertising opportunities are available using banner ads, but they probably won’t do much good unless you are marketing to a younger audience (teens and young adults) and if your product happens to fall in the entertainment industry.

Our take: Unless your company is focused on the arts, hang out at MySpace for entertainment, not business purposes.

YouTube
This site is all about videos, from silly homemade movies to TV show clips to clever independent skits. There are ways for businesses to take advantage of YouTube, however.

When we explored YouTube while researching this piece, we came across a series of clips on how to create simple hairstyles and give certain cuts by a salon owner. Each clip was short—under 5 minutes—and offered bits of digestible, useful information. The segments were preceded by a title page highlighting the salon’s name. Not a bad idea for promoting a business!

Our take: Why not try creating a short informational clip and uploading it? You can then post a link to it on your web site so visitors can learn more about your business. And in the meantime you’ll be offering some valuable and free information, which will be appreciated by your customers. (Kind of like offering a newsletter with informational, helpful content…hmmm….)

LinkedIn
Finally—a site that’s designed specifically for professionals looking to make connections with other professionals! Over 20 million professionals use LinkedIn from all over the world, and more than 150 industries are represented. It’s free to join the site, although for those looking for additional features a paid membership is available. You can use LinkedIn to search for jobs or find potential clients, service providers, and subject experts, all who come with recommendations.

Our take: LinkedIn seems to be highly praised by the professionals who use it …like me. One print production professional has this to say: “I have had great luck finding freelancers. I sent requests for introductions and within a few days I had a few people to discuss opportunities with. I think it is an excellent tool.”

Ryze.com
This site is very similar to LinkedIn, but it’s been known to take on a bit more of an informal, social approach. You can still make business contacts, however. Ryze is smaller than LinkedIn, claiming to have over 250,000 members in 200 countries. And, same as LinkedIn, memberships are free with an option to upgrade to a paid account boasting extra features.

Our take: It’s worth a try…lots of good things are being said about Ryze. If you aren’t satisfied you aren’t out anything except the two minutes it takes to create a profile, especially if you start with the free membership (the wise choice).

So which social networking site is right for you? Only you can make this decision. Go ahead and try different networks and see what works best for your business. Check around and ask colleagues about their experiences, too, asking which sites worked for them, which didn’t, and why. Good luck, and welcome to Web 2.0!

Resources

More on MySpace
Here’s a thorough overview of using MySpace for business. It’s not a very favorable review, but it’s always good to hear varying opinions.
http://www.smallbiztrends.com/2006/05/myspace-not-much-value-to-most-small-businesses.html/

Top o’ the list
Wondering where the social networking sites are? Wikipedia has compiled a list of the forerunners: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_social_networking_websites

Tangled webs
Still not sure what the term Web 2.0 means? Here’s an explanation by Tim O’Reilly, technology guru.
http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/tim/news/2005/09/30/what-is-web-20.html