Pinterest Now # 3 Social Network Behind Facebook & Twitter

The Experian “2012 Digital Marketer: Benchmark and Trend Report” shows social networking has 91 percent of  adults using social media regularly.   Social networking usage has changed dramatically with Pinterest taking over with the 3rd highest usage numbers ahead of Google+, LinkedIn and MySpace.  Pinterest traffic increased 50% in just January and February of 2012 with an average of 89 minutes per month spent on the website.

Facebook still dominates social networking with an average of 405 minutes spent on the website but Twitter is likely to be overtaken by Pinterest as the # 2 social network.  Pinterest has become a huge place for marketing by large and small companies worldwide due to the simple, visual appeal and ease of use.  We started setting up Pinterest accounts for our company and clients in 2011 and advocate creation of accounts for all businesses, products or services.

Contact our SEO and Social Marketing Experts for a complete Search Engine Optimization or Social Media Marketing campaign at 816-842-7774 or online at www.SocialMarketingBuilders.com 

Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet Builder Consulting
Building BETTER Websites, SEO and Social Marketing Solutions since 1995

Websites, Online Marketing, SEO, Social Networks, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Google+, Blogger & Success

The one question every business owner asks when we meet for a consultation is "What do I need to be doing to rank higher on Search Engines and reach more customers?".  The answer is a complicated one since there is no one thing that will lead to online success, it requires specific properly setup and optimized 'Online Building Blocks' starting with the website. 

No Online Marketing will be successful without a properly built and properly optimized website as the foundation.  The website must be readable by search engines, must contain multiple 'calls for action' to entice online suppers to submit a request, question or share information and the format of the website must be user friendly.  A website is "more than Meta Tags" today, the backend code is a requirement (still missed by many bad website companies and Template websites) but dozens of other key elements are required for online success.

This Template Website was produced by a a communications company for the customer and published without META Tags which ranked the website lower and lost the customer sales.  The customer did nothing wrong but noticed months later that old 'marketing websites' were ranking higher on search engines than the main company website.

The website IS THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT ITEM for online marketing success.  Make sure the website is built by someone with experience, expertise, focus (they build and market websites as the primary business - not an ad agency or public speaker or other type company that builds websites on the side to make extra money) and longevity.  There are hundreds of  unemployed people starting website, social marketing and graphics design companies.  There are more with expertise in public speaking, mortgages, ad agencies or even print marketing firms with little to no expertise with websites, Search Engine Optimization or Social Media Marketing that now present themselves as 'website companies'.

The most capable website companies will have a minimum of 10 years experience designing, developing and marketing websites. Any company with less than 5 years experience is still 'learning' how to build a website and anyone working from home is someone to be avoided.

Once the website is built properly, optimized and submitted to Search Engines the next step is building awareness of the new website.  The top algorithm used to rank a website is how many other websites (that have value, not link farms) are linking TO a website and what content those websites have on them.  Search Engines track how many links go to websites over periods of time which brings Social Networking into play as an key role in any SEO success.

Facebook is the # 1 location on the Internet, Facebook is the # 1 source of referral links on the Internet and Facebook has more traffic from people who spend more time on Facebook than any other website or search engine.  The importance of Facebook cannot be overlooked, there are millions of potential customers on Facebook every day.  The few people who do not use Facebook can still find information from Facebook on Search Engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing since content from Facebook is fed to Search Engines.  Setting up a business profile and a business page, optimizing the page and creating a successful social media marketing campaign with regular updates, posts and interactions will help rank websites higher and potentially reach millions of people.

Facebook is like High School where popularity and interactions mean everything.  Setting up a profile ad setting up a page has no benefit unless there are multiple people connected to the page who interact, comment and share information or posts.  This is where it may be worth hiring Social Marketing Experts like www.SocialMarketingBuilders.com to create, optimize and CONNECT everything so that Facebook and Search Engines value the content ranking it higher.  At a minimum all companies need to have a Business Profile setup with a Business Page for their company, product or service.  Ideally it is worth hiring a company with teams of Social Marketing Experts to create, optimize and train you for around $350-$550 so time and efforts are not wasted.

Twitter is the text message wonder of the Internet setup with 140 character length messages with the idea that people would 'Tweet' updates from cell phones.  Twitter users are loyal and there are millions of them so setting up a Twitter account for business is a requirement.  Setup the Twitter account then link the Facebook account to it (do this in Facebook) so that updates from Facebook are automatically sent to Twitter like we have setup at www.Twitter.com/WebsiteExperts.  Connecting the accounts reduces the amount of time spent with updates and ensures everything is up to date across the online board.

Pinterest is the new top player on the Social Networking playground with a simple visual approach.  (View our article explaining Pinterest earlier this month for setup details)  When we first came across Pinterest it seemed like just another annoying social network to learn.  Once we setup the account and spent time to research what items to 'Pin' that would being value to business we started seeing increased traffic on company websites from Pinterest.  The average visit from Pinterest spent nearly 5 minutes looking through the website, 5 times longer than Facebook visitors.  Our company builds websites so the main thing we used on Pinterest was thumbnail images of websites we built with a description of the website.

We then setup another 'Board' for Social Marketing and another 'Board' for company training classes and speaking events.  We removed the default Boards that came with the account and spent time considering what would showcase what we did, who we are or what we can do for customers to create the most effective Boards for business and a few fun things.

Pinterest requires a few hours to create, setup and then locate enough content to 'Pin' so that it is effective.  Spend a few minutes connecting and 'following' other people since they tend to follow you back similar to how Twitter users follow people who follow them.  If your company sells homes then Pin photos of homes for sale or floor plans while others can Pin photos of electronics for sale or any item located on the Internet.  Pinterest is not permitted is not permitted to Pin items from Facebook but Google+ users are welcome to Pin any photo from their accounts.

Google was the 800 Pound Gorilla on the Internet for years until Facebook took the # 1 spot away.  Google tried to buy Facebook and when the offer was turned down Google decided to create it's own Social Network.  Google+ is the result at http://Plus.Google.com with a combination of features from Facebook, Twitter and a few new ideas such as 'Circles'.  The article on Google+ Setup and Optimization outlines the key features and benefits of Google+ if you are just getting started.  One unique benefit of having a Google+ account is that Google announced that websites are being ranked higher on the Google Search Engine based on usage or interactions from Google+ accounts.

When a company has a Google+ profile setup with the company website listed on Google+ and other users connected who 'Like' or '+1' the website then it will rank higher for other users on Google.  In short Google is enticing people and business to use Google+ with the added benefit of ranking higher on the Google Search Engine.  Setup a Google+ account, place contact information, website links and a profile online and spend a few minutes adding people to your circles.  It may not be the top social network yet but Google is spending millions on development so it will only get better.

Google purchased Blogspot and combined it with their other Blog system to create one of the leading online Blog systems today www.Blogger.com.  Setting up a Blog (web log = Blog for short) is free, fast and reaches millions of potential customers online.  If a Blog has enough traffic and the right content it will be republished, shared and even sold online at the Amazon Kindle Store.  A properly written Blog will also help with Search Engine Optimization (SEO), establish creditability for the writers or company and provide fresh content for social networks or websites. 

Creating a Blog is about creating content about your company, services, products or solutions and related information people may be interested in.  There is no wrong way to write a Blog, simply make sure you DO it and always 'sign' the Blog with contact information including a phone number and full website address.  Write articles about your area of expertise, industry news or information and your company.  Once a Blog is setup be sure to link it to Facebook so any updates are automatically sent to the Facebook business page and even the company website similar to how Google Blogger feeds scrolling Blog articles to the Internet Builder Consulting website Home Page.

Last is the LinkedIn Social Network typically used for Business to Business connections.  There are no grandmothers sharing recipes or families uploading photo's of the weekend trip.  LinkedIn is focused on business and company or professional information although it will accept direct feeds from Twitter and Facebook which may contain any sort of content.  The LinkedIn network suggests connections based on mutual places of employment, mutual existing connections and feeds nearly everything on the LinkedIn website to Search Engines.

Setup a LinkedIn profile and then a LinkedIn company page for the best results.  Company Pages and Personal Profiles are both indexed and sent to Search Engines so people may locate you or your business on Google because you have a LinkedIn page.

The list above outlines the very basic requirements for online success today.  Take the time to setup at least the basic profiles with a description, contact information and then practice every week until you are comfortable with each of the social networks.  If your business needs a BETTER built website, Search Engine Optimization or Social Networking setup, training or Social Marketing solutions contact Internet Builder Consulting online or call the experts at 816-842-7774.

Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet & Technology Expert
816-842-7774 Corporate Office
Internet Builder Consulting - Building BETTER Websites, SEO & Social Marketing Solutions since 1995

Social Network Security, Privacy and Productivity

Social Networking interacts with nearly every aspect of our lives today.  The average American spends over 16 hours a month on Facebook with 50% of Facebook users logging on every single day.  Social Networks are used at the office and in personal life although it is sometimes best to keep the two separate. 

When our company receives an application or email for employment the first thing we do is look up the individual on Facebook and other social networks to see exactly who they are.  We have brought on interns based upon their wide use of social networks with positive posts while we have also decided not to interview people based upon what they posted on social networks.  Employers, co-workers, friends and family are using social networking though not everything posted online should be shared with all of them.

One thing our company does to ensure our staff is on top of the latest online marketing, social networking and interaction is creation of 'Business' social networking accounts.  Each new team member is setup with a company email address (myname@mycompany.com) which is then used to create a complete set of social networking accounts for each individual.  The accounts are links to our company social marketing pages, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace and customer accounts.  The staff is asked to login a few times each week to interact, read, learn and communicate with other staff, industry news and customers.

This ensures that the business has a wider reach online while maintaining a consistent online presence for the staff to interact with clients, potential customers and each other in a professional fashion.  Personal accounts are not tied with the business accounts and there is less of a chance of someone being offended or alienated from a personal event unrelated to the company.  The Business accounts are not 'friends' with personal accounts or non-business related individuals to ensure the privacy of the staff and keep any potential fires from starting. 

A few ideas for maintaining privacy and ensuring there are no issues with Social Networking at the office include:

• Lock down your Personal profilesAvoid friending anyone from work including your co-workers or boss - use your Business profile to communicate and interact with them.  Take advantage of the privacy features within Facebook and create lists keeping unwanted visitors away from private photos, tagged posts and information. 
• Private messages are not private
  When it comes to the workplace and the world of employment law, private messages on social networking sites are discoverable in court.  This means that messages between friends and colleagues on social networks can be used as part of the legal investigation process.  These messages are electronic conversations similar to e-mail and are being treated as such.
• Don’t trust Facebook or other Social NetworksFacebook has been known for their privacy issues in the past, and yet we, as individuals, place blind faith in a company who often holds the very key to our digital life.  Avoid providing very personal information including your date of birth, religious information, or other protected topics that companies can use when making employment decision like hiring, promotions or salary increases in the United States.  This information, known as protected classes (age, sex, religion, disability, pregnancy, race/color, and nation of origin), may not be used by employers to make employment decisions, although this information is easily accessible via personal social media profiles like Facebook. Companies are increasingly using social media as a form of an online background check.
• Read your social media policy
  Companies are adding social media policies to their employee manuals.  Take the time to read the policy and understand the guidelines they have put in place.  Use common sense, if you have an issue with the company you work with, a customer or a co-worker DO NOT publicize that information online where it may come back to haunt you. 
• Not everything you read online is a FACT
  Anyone can post anything on the Internet.  Just because you find a profile or information about someone, a business it may not be a fact.  There are countless cases of people impersonating others such as sports stars, celebrates, business executives and even neighbors to generate traffic, obtain 'friends' or market on the Internet.  Anyone with Internet Access can create a profile using any name and post information so be cautious in what you believe or how you may use information found on the Internet because it may not be true.  Sometimes this is done in fun, for marketing or to slander or harm others so be cautious.

Contact Internet Builder Consulting Social Marketing Experts for a consultation on your company social networking policy, Social Marketing, websites or Search Engine Optimization today at 816-842-7774

Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet Builder Consulting - Building BETTER Websites, Social Marketing & SEO solutions since 1995

Google+ Social Network Reaches 18 Million Users in the First Month

New statistics from Experian Hitwise shows Google+ is growing fast, thanks to a young demographic and significant traffic from other Google websites and tools.  The internet analytics firm has released its first set of data regarding Google’s new social network. Although the data only extends to July 16, it provides a detailed picture into the numbers that are driving Google+’s growth.

Below are some of the most interesting stats from Experian Hitwise’s report:

• As of July 16, Google+ is the 42nd most-visited social networking site in the US and the 638th most-visited site on the web. These numbers are amazing since the social network is invitation only at this time - Google+ will gain significantly when it opens to the public.
  
• According to Hitwise, Google+ had 1.8 million total visits last week, an increase of 283% from the previous week. Google+ has grown by a whopping 821% from the week ending on July 2, the first week Google+ was available.
  
• 56% of Google+’s upstream traffic came from other Google properties last week, with 34% of that traffic coming from Google.com. And 37% of its upstream traffic coming from search engines and the final 21% of its traffic driven by email.
  
• According to Hitwise, 57% of visits to Google+ were from males for the four weeks ending on July 16
  
• Google+ is dominated by young adults with the  25-34 age group being the largest age group with 38.37% of all visits and the 18-34 age group making up 38.11% of total visitors.
  
• Los Angeles, New York City and San Francisco are the most dominant metropolitan areas driving traffic to Google+. Other locations with a higher proportion of visitors to Google+ than the general online population include Bowling Green, KY, Portland, OR and Bend, OR

 Internet Builder Consulting and the Social Marketing Builders teams of experts are busy helping customers setup their Google+ and other social media marketing (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MySpace, YouTube and more!).  Contact us today for a consultation or have our experts setup, manage and market your company on social networks for as little as $350

Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet Builder Consulting - Building BETTER Websites, SEO and Social Marketing since 1995
816-842-7774 Corporate Offices

Consumers & Online Buyers Are Tapping Into the 'F-Factor' of Social Networking

Consumers are increasingly tapping into their online social networks of friends, fans, and followers to discover, discuss and purchase goods and services, according to analysis from Trendwatching.com. The consumer trend analysis firm calls this trend the “F-Factor,” with the “F” standing for friends, fans and followers.

Social Sources Become Trusted

As a result of social networking and other online communication technologies, consumers can now use trusted sources they know to obtain information about products and brands, rather than rely on third party advertising or perform extensive first hand research.

Trendwatching.com advises that consumers have always relied on word-of-mouth advice from friends, relatives and associates, but modern technology is greatly accelerating its development as a major influence of purchase decisions.

Facebook Dominates the F-Factor

The F-Factor is currently dominated by Facebook, according to Trendwatching.com. As of April 2011 Facebook has 500 million active users spend more than 700 billion minutes a month on the website and every month more than 250 million people engage with Facebook across more than 2.5 million external websites.

2010 Facebook data shows the average user clicks the “Like” button nine times each month and February 2011 Ad Age/Ipsos data shows 3/4 of Facebook users have liked a brand.

Consumers ‘F-Discover’ Best of the Best

Trendwatching.com has broken down five key ways the F-Factor influences consumer purchasing decisions. The first, ‘F-Discovery’ involves consumer desires to own or experience the best of the best and their desire for serendipity, excitement, interaction and community. People are curious and interested in what their friends and contacts think, do, eat, read, listen to, drive in, travel to and buy, because this will often be similar to how they want to think, act and buy.

Thus consumers are embracing communities, tools and apps that allow them to dive into and discover selections from friends, fans, followers, and so on.

Consumers Want ‘F-Rated’ Products

Consumers sometimes enjoy finding the best of the best through discovery; they are increasingly able to access personalized recommendations and reviews on something they know they want to purchase. Research from trendwatching.com shows more and more websites will automatically serve up friends’ recommendations, ratings and reviews next to goods and services that people are researching.

‘F-Feedback’ Makes Recommendations Personal

Anonymous reviews aren’t always what consumers need or want; they can lack relevance and context, and consumers with many options sometimes just want an unambiguous or finite opinion. F-Feedback involves consumers actively disclosing their purchasing intentions and reaching out to their friends and contacts for personalized feedback.

Trendwatching.com further advises that with more and more consumers increasingly viewing their online reputation as something to enhance as well as just protect, the quality of answers on Q&A services is rapidly improving.

F-Together Makes Shopping Social

While group buying platforms such as Groupon are revolutionizing local, consumers typically do not know the other members of the group that they are buying with. So, while consumers get to leverage the power of the web to benefit from better deals, the actual shopping experience frequently lacks the F-Factor. Consumers have strong incentives to share certain purchases, especially for F-Factor-friendly experiences such as buying event tickets where consumers can now automatically invite friends to a concert or movie right after purchasing a ticket.

F-Me Individualizes the F-Factor

Trendwatching.com refers to the trend of personalized products and services based on the activities and output of one’s social network as ‘F-Me’. This includes services that turn a user’s Facebook page into a daily newspaper and a user’s Twitter feed into a published journal.

Look for ‘Twinsumers’ and ‘Social-lites’

Both of these types of online consumers were identified by Trendwatching.com in December 2010 as critical to spreading positive word of mouth recommendations. Twinsumers are consumers with similar consumer patterns, likes and dislikes, and who are valuable sources for recommendations on what to buy and experience while ‘Sociallites’ are consumers who consistently broadcast information to a wide range of associates online.

Social Networking and the integration of social factors with websites, online marketing and eCommerce are imperative in any Internet Initiative today. Contact Internet Builder Consulting and the Social Marketing Builders social networking experts to build a BETTER website or Social Media Marketing solution today at 816-842-7774.

Robert ‘Dot Com’ Jackson
Internet Builder Consulting – Building BETTER Websites, Social Marketing & Consulting since 1995

Social Media Marketing Assists with Customer Satisfaction & Brand Performance

Retailers and businesses can use social media to turn consumers who have had a negative experience with their brand into brand advocates according to a new report from RightNow and Harris Interactive. Data from “The Retail Consumer Report” indicates 68% of US consumers who posted a complaint or negative review of a holiday shopping experience during the 2010 holiday season were contacted by the retailer. Two thirds (67%) of them wound up taking an action that would be considered positive for the brand.

Out of the 68% that complained and were contacted following a negative social media posting 34% deleted their original negative review, 33% turned around and posted a positive review and 18% became a loyal customer purchasing again. 

These figures show 85% of customers who posted a negative review of a shopping experience and were then contacted by the retailer wound up taking an action that was positive for the retailer. Two thirds (67%) took an action through social media directly removing or improving their original negative posting. 

Excellent Customer Service Improves Online Purchasing

Half of all online buyers shared that great customer service and/or a previous positive experience as influencing their decision to buy from a specific online retailer. After a positive online shopping experience, 31% of consumers purchased again, 21% recommended the seller to their friends, and 13% posted a positive review on a social network.

Effective professional social networking and social marketing will reach more buyers, sell more, improve customer satisfaction and assist with branding.  All business today providing a product or service needs to have professional Social Media Marketing and Social Networking setup and managed every week.  To contact the Internet Builder Consulting Social Marketing Experts call 816-842-7774 or visit us online. 

Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet, Social Marketing & Technology Expert
Internet Builder Consulting - Building BETTER Websites, Social Marketing and Technology Solutions since 1995
816-842-7774 Office

Social Networking Dratamically Increases for Older Users - 3/4 of Working Adults Online

Overall social networking use by online American adults has grown from 35% in 2008 to 61% in 2010.  The increase is even more dramatic among older adults, according to new data from the Pew Research Center with the rate of online social networking nearly quadrupled among Older Boomers (from 9% to 43%) and the GI Generation (from 4% to 16%). 

8 Out of 10 Adults Are Online
79% of US adults 18 and older can be classified as “online” in correlation to their much higher social networking rate.  Millennials are the most active online with 95% participation. 
Online rates drop with each higher age bracket with 86% of Gen X and 81% of Younger Boomers are online. Even 76% of Older Boomers are online, meaning a solid majority of working-age adults are online.
Adults in their retirement years are online at lower levels though more than half (58%) of the Silent Generation are online. This figure sharply dips to 30% of the GI Generation (age 74 and older).
 
Social Networking and Social Marketing are EXTREMELY effective tools in reaching more buyers and managaing your online brand.  It is also important to have 'Social Optimization' similar to 'Search Engine Optimization' by a professional such as http://www.internetbuilderconsulting.com/ and our http://www.socialmarketingbuilders.com/ programs. 
 
Robert 'Dot Com' Jackson
Internet Builder Consulting - Websites, SEO & Social Marketing Experts since 1995
816-842-7774