InternetMarketingClub.org Presents: New Facebook Timeline for Pages

We all know that Facebook is one of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to market your brand on the Internet these days. With over 800 million users and constantly growing, even the most niche of companies have found great use out of the social media giant. Facebook's new Timeline made an introduction last summer to personal pages, making it much easier for friends and family to search deep into the memories of the target user. More than six months later, Facebook is introducing their Timeline to business pages.

Join Margie Schneider, VP of Operations at Ten Golden Rules, as she discusses the ways Facebook's new Timeline has changed and what this means for your business page. While Timeline is not mandatory yet, it soon will be. This webinar will teach you everything you need to know about getting ready and embracing the new layout.

Click here to register (03-14-12 at 12:30pm EST)
http://bit.ly/timelineregister

Margie Schneider has been involved with the interactive medium since 1994. She has participated in everything the Internet has to offer: developing, designing and delivering web sites; online advertising and promotion; search engine marketing: SEO and PPC and community and electronic communication. Her specialties include: social media, search engine optimization SEO, PPC management, online reputation management, project management, personnel management, strategizing web development and design solutions; as well as experience marketing across all media types.

This free webinar will take place this Wednesday, March 14th at 12:30 pm. The presentation will last an hour, concluding with a Q&A section with Margie. For more information and to register, visit the New Facebook Timeline for Pages page. 

KONY 2012 From a Marketing Perspective

How many times have you seen the KONY 2012 video posted and re-posted this week? Like many viral messages, it seemingly popped out of nowhere and suddenly it was everywhere. KONY 2012 is a 30 minute documentary meant to expose Ugandan war criminal and leader of the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA,) Joseph Kony.

While I do believe that it’s a good thing to spread awareness of these atrocities and bring this person to justice, Zoe Fox on Mashablepointed out yesterday that not too many people actually know the not-for-profit behind the campaign, yet they shared their message anyway. Had you heard of Invisible Children prior to this week? 

Right now, the organization’s budget and finances are under scrutiny. Regardless of the criticism, the whole campaign caught my attention for a very different reason.  As a marketer, I want to know the magic formula for creating a campaign that has garnered so much attention in such a short time period.  Here’s what caught my attention:

Invisible Children targeted 20 "Culture Makers" and 12 Policy Makers to help spread their message

• The video is 30 minutes long. My first thought was, “Who is going to sit through a 30 minute video?” And then I watched it. It is well-produced and the story is told in a masterful way, with just the right amount of heart-tugging, history and humanity. It also has George Clooney in it. Half an hour went by quickly.
• They have targeted 20 “culture makers,” or celebrities, and 12 policy makers that can make a difference. They have photos of each of these people on their web site that links directly to the person’s Twitter profile, so you can message them directly. The message is even pre-written for you, all you have to do is hit “Tweet.” 
• The organization doesn’t just have some lofty goal to raise a million dollars or get this guy arrested. Sure, raising money and bringing Kony to justice is the end game, but they give four specific, actionable tasks that anybody can do. They are:

1.       Sign their pledge

2.       Buy an Action Kit & bracelet

3.       Donate money

4.       Share the movie

The proof that the campaign is working? The video has had over 52 million hits on YouTube… since Monday. The film has gotten attention on national news and the filmmakers have been giving interviews on national news. The web site says it is sold out of action kits, bracelets and t-shirts. Obviously, this thing took off well beyond the organization’s expectations and they were not prepared for the deluge of support.  Whether or not you buy into the hype or the criticism, one thing is undeniable and this is what every marketer strives for in a viral campaign: this is a home run.  

New Webinar Series on Google Products

If you are interested in learning more about the various types of products Google has to offer, they have introduced a new webinar series that you will want to check out. This new webinar series will aid you in getting the most out of the suite of Google products. From tips to how-to’s, not only can you attend live webinars, but you also have access to recorded webinars.

The upcoming live webinars for March are:

• March 13 at 10am PDT: 5 Tips to Start Marketing Your Business with Video
• March 14 at 10am PDT: Introduction to the Google Display Network
• March 15 at 10am PDT: GoMo: Mobilize Your Site and Maximize Your Advertising
• March 20 at 10am PDT: Understanding Mobile Ads Across Marketing Objectives
• March 21 at 10am PDT: Reaching Your Goals with Google Analytics
• March 22 at 10am PDT: GoMo for Publishers
• March 27 at 10am PDT: Manage Large AdWords Campaigns with Less Effort
• March 28 at 10am PDT: 3 Tips to Get More Out of Your Video Advertising Campaigns

There are a handful of recorded webinars that are already available for your viewing. Covering everything from AdWords to Analytics, there’s plenty to leverage for your business. This wealth of knowledge is free and available now.

Which webinar is a must-see for you? Please leave any key takeaways that you discover in the comments below.

An Introduction to Pinterest

Does your business have a Pinterest page? If not, you may want to consider requesting an invite from the website, or from any friend or acquaintance who already has an account. Pinterest is the latest up-and-coming social media marketing tool and search engine all rolled into one. It is a search engine that displays visual results instead of textual results, and also allows users to curate their favorite web content. Seventy percent of the users on Pinterest are females under 45, so think about your demographic before you create an account. Click here to view some cool Pinterest infographics.

How Does It Work?

Each Pinterest user is given an account on which they can create searchable galleries, or ‘pinboards,’ of images and videos that they feel have value. There is no limit on the number of pinboards that you can create, nor on the number of images and videos you can add to each pinboard. You can also add relevant text to each piece of media you add. Price tags can be added to a product by simply typing the price into the text box that corresponds with each image. You can pin content directly from the web, but you can also upload your own images. You can also add others to your pinboards to create pinboards curated by multiple users.

You can follow other boards on Pinterest individually, or follow all boards by one user. When you follow boards, the images and videos from each are displayed together in your home screen. You can also find media in Pinterest by browsing each subject listed at the top of the page, or by typing a topic into the search box.

Tips for Marketing on Pinterest

• Don’t just use your own content; get creative and pull content from multiple web sources within your field when creating pins.
• When you upload your own pins, always be sure to edit each pin so that a relevant page on your website has been linked to it.
• Consider whether or not you are going to use a real person’s name or your brand’s name. Pinterest is a social community that doesn’t respond well to what they might consider faceless corporations.
• Get creative with marketing your products and services. Consider engaging your potential customers in unique ways besides just pinning up all of your products, like by creating a pinboard together with a customer.
• Repin relevant content from others. People may come check out your pinboards if they see that you have pinned their media.

InternetMarketingClub.org Presents: Inbound Marketing is the New SEO

As we've familiarized ourselves with search engine optimization tactics, we need to reflect on all these practices. Are they all really necessary? Will they all help to create more traffic — and ultimately, more sales — for my website? Google's search algorithm is constantly changing, and many SEO practices are already outdated and a hindrance on your website. Chad Pollitt, Director of Inbound Marketing for Kuno Creative, presents this Wednesday Webinar on what he knows best: inbound marketing.

This presentation will show you how Kuno Creative improved organic search engine leads by as much as 633%. Also, learn how to take advantage of these changes in order to maximize web visibility and organic leads with inbound marketing.

Click here to register (03-07-12 at 12:30pm EST)
http://bit.ly/inboundregister

Since 2002, Chad H. Pollitt has played an integral role in designing, developing, deploying, executing and tracking robust web marketing strategies for hundreds of companies and organizations and is an internet marketing expert. He holds a BS in Entrepreneurship from the Indiana University Kelley School of Business, an Internet Marketing Masters Certification from the University of San Francisco's prestigious School of Business and Management and is a Certified HubSpot Partner.

This free webinar will take place this Wednesday, March 7th at 12:30 pm. The presentation will last an hour, concluding with a Q&A section with Chad. For more information and to register, visit the Inbound Marketing is the New SEO page.  

Google+ a Virtual Ghost Town

Talk around the office lately has centered on the fierce rivalry for the number one social networking site. Incumbent Facebook is holding on strong so far with no sign of stopping. Heavyweight Google+ would like to think they’re in 2^ndplace, but a recent revelation throws doubt on their self-proclaimed title. On Tuesday, an article in the Wall Street Journal cited a study by comScore, Inc. that put comeback kid MySpaceahead of Google + in terms of the amount of time spent on the site. Users also spent more time on other favorite social networking sites like Twitter, LinkedIn, Tumblr, and even newcomer Pinterest than on Google+. 

The biggest mistake seems to be the search giant’s assumption that people wanted another social networking site similar to Facebook. There is not enough incentive to switch and not enough time in the day to invest in yet another social site – especially when people are spending six to seven hours a month on Facebook versus a reported 3 minutes on G+. With all the money that Google has been spending on mass media to boost the social network’s popularity and practically building their entire strategy around it, will Google survive a failure of this magnitude? 

How much time do you spend on social networking? Which is your preferred site? Tell us your thoughts in the comments section below.

A Research Assistant You Can Rely On: Google Alerts

Google Alerts is perfect if you want to keep up-to-date on all of the most important topics that your business focuses on, as well as a great extra way to track your brand across the web. If you haven’t already signed up for this great little tool, you should do it as soon as possible.

Here’s how it works: just enter the keywords you want to be tracked, for example, ‘Ten Golden Rules,’ and ‘internet marketing florida,’ and Google will send you the latest news, blogs, and other important information via email or your RSS feed. You can choose the frequency of the emails, too – you can get up-to-the-moment alerts, daily alerts, or weekly alerts.

What does this all mean? It means that you don’t have to search for the latest news in your industry; you can have the best results selected for you and delivered to you automatically. It means that if you’re tracking your company name and someone has written a blog post about you, Google will alert you so you can publicize that article as soon as possible. You can even track content theft with Google Alerts by setting it up to track sentences on your website’s high-traffic posts and static pages. Track competitors, too, by using their names as Google Alerts keywords.

The best tools are the ones that are multipurpose and user-friendly. Google Alerts covers both of those bases and keeps the information you want at your fingertips without overwhelming you.