by Belinda Lui | Jan 31, 2014 | Latest, Social Media
It isn’t news that the festivities and anticipation surrounding the upcoming Super Bowl XLVIII is followed none other by the advertising creative that will be airing during the Super Bowl! What follows closely behind these 2 most in virality, however, is the social media activity that is expected to blow up during this annual sporting event. Among these and those who were surveyed, 61% declared that they would share the ads on social media. 41.2% said that they would be active on social media before, during, and after the game. 55.8% of these users planned to share content primarily on Facebook. This event is anticipated to be the most sociable Super Bowl of all time!
What other facts contribute to making this the most sociable Super Bowl of all time?
- 93% of viewers will discuss ads with their peers
- 61% of viewers will share ads on social media
- 1 in 4 viewers will likely post about Super Bowl ads on social media before the game
- 37.6% of viewers will look up Super Bowl ads before the game
- 67.4% of viewers will likely post about Super Bowl ads on social media during the game
- 65.3% of viewers will likely post about Super Bowl ads on social media after the game
- 62.2% of viewers will re-watch ads after the Super Bowl
When CrowdTap asked “After the Super Bowl, which are you more likely to like or follow on Facebook or Twitter?”
The results were: 73% brands, 27% teams.
So, as you can see – the emerging trends in marketing and advertising during the Super Bowl has taken a major turn towards a more sociable strategy. It isn’t enough that people can watch an ad in between watching the game; they will want to watch them before, during, and after the game as well. Given that these brands are successful in getting a message across, they might even gain some new followers on social networks.
Have you ever shared ads in social media before? Come back after the game and let us know which Super Bowl ads were your favourites?
by Belinda Lui | Jan 9, 2014 | Latest, Social Media
A Social Strategy is one that every business should implement — given that we’re well into the digital age, it would be a bad business choice to rule out altogether. Given that you do decide to approach the Social Strategy challenge, there are aspects to every platform that you should consider. There isn’t a one-size-fits-all formula to promoting product or services online. So before you do, take a look at these 8 statistics on social media platforms:
To create a successful Social Strategy, consider these 8 statistics on Social Media:
1. THE FASTEST GROWING DEMOGRAPHIC ON TWITTER IS THE 55–64 YEAR AGE BRACKET.
This demographic has grown 79% since 2012. This is especially important to consider since the prevailing idea that social media is “just for teenagers” is clearly no longer the case. It certainly points to the importance of having a solid social media strategy if these age brackets fit into your target demographic.
2. 189 MILLION OF FACEBOOK’S USERS ARE “MOBILE ONLY”
There are probably more users accessing Facebook from their mobile device than you thought. Consider this fact when you’re creating an ad or content and how it might be viewed in this manner. Mobile use generates 30% of Facebook’s ad revenue.
3. YOUTUBE REACHES MORE U.S. ADULTS AGED 18–34 THAN ANY CABLE NETWORK
Did you think TV was the best way to reach the masses? Well if you’re after the 18–34 year old demographic in the U.S., you’ll have more luck reaching them through YouTube. Of course, one video won’t necessarily reach more viewers than a cable network could, but utilizing a platform with such a wide user base makes a lot of sense.
4. EVERY SECOND TWO NEW MEMBERS JOIN LINKEDIN
LinkedIn, the social network for professionals, continues to grow every second. From groups to blogs to job listings, this platform is a rich source of information and conversation for professionals who want to connect to others in their industry.
5. LINKEDIN HAS A LOWER PERCENTAGE OF ACTIVE USERS THAN PINTEREST, GOOGLE+, TWITTER AND FACEBOOK
Although LinkedIn has a fast growing network of new users, they are also less active than their social media counterparts. Consider hosting contests and surveys on sites like Facebook and Twitter and your news-related content for LinkedIn.
6. 93% OF MARKETERS USE SOCIAL MEDIA FOR BUSINESS
There is reportedly only 7% of Marketers that aren’t using Social Media for their business. If you’re a part of that statistic, it might be time to hop on the Social Strategy bandwagon!
7. 25% OF SMARTPHONE OWNERS AGES 18–44 SAY THEY CAN’T RECALL THE LAST TIME THEIR SMARTPHONE WASN’T NEXT TO THEM
This means that at least 25% of smartphone owners are pretty much always connected. You can reach them through various platforms at any time of the day.
8. EVEN THOUGH 62% OF MARKETERS BLOG OR PLAN TO BLOG IN 2014, ONLY 9% OF US MARKETING COMPANIES EMPLOY A FULL-TIME BLOGGER
Blogging is clearly a big focus for marketers who want to take advantage of social media and content marketing. This is great, because blogging for your business has lots of advantages: you can control your company blog, you can set the tone and use it to market your product, share company news or provide interesting information for your customers. With only 9% of marketing companies hiring bloggers full-time, however, the pressure to produce high-quality content consistently will be a lot higher.
(Information from: Fast Company)
by Belinda Lui | Jan 6, 2014 | Latest, Social Media
In a generation of file-sharing, we may find that the lines that separate innocent enjoyment and online piracy to be a bit blurred. First, it was Napster that took a major hit in 2001 when record labels went after the file-sharing giant for copyright infringement that eventually resulted in its bankruptcy. Now Megaupload, a company that started in 2005, was charged for allegedly operating as a business dedicated to copyright infringement in January of 2012. Like YouTube, Megaupload was a website where users could upload videos and share them with friends. Unfortunately, the videos that were uploaded weren’t always legally owned by the users. Megaupload faced many criticisms about online piracy that eventually led to Kim Dotcom, Megaupload’s owner, being arrested.
You can watch Vice‘s mini-documentary on the Megaupload case here:
This controversial case surrounds the argument of whether it is ultimately the service provider or the end-user’s fault. Kim Dotcom argues that it is not the company’s responsibility to monitor and track the activity of its users in its entirety.In his defense, YouTube offers the same service and gets much less slack for the same type of activity. Albeit, YouTube does a mediocre job at monitoring the activity on its site, there is still plenty of copyright infringement happening without any real consequence, it seems.
The topic of online file-sharing has been a tricky one for years. If I’m sharing a song or video with a friend with the sole intention of expression, should it still be considered a crime? It seems clear that when files are shared for the purpose of making money, it is a crime. What if it’s not? At what point does it become illegal? Who is to blame? As a form of Social Media, what should businesses be aware of to avoid criticism in copyright infringement?
In the case of Kim Dotcom and Megaupload, what are your thoughts on how the trial should pan out?
by Belinda Lui | Dec 20, 2013 | Communications, Latest
The art of communicating, in my opinion, isn’t given enough weight when discussing business success. Being able to formulate questions that deliver useful answers, is a skill that every professional (and people, in general) should hone to ensure a better chance at success. Good questions can move your business, organization, or career forward. They squeeze incremental value from interactions, the drops of which add up to reservoirs of insight.
The problem is, most of us ask terrible questions. We talk too much and accept bad answers (or worse, no answers). We’re too embarrassed to be direct, or we’re afraid of revealing our ignorance, so we throw softballs, hedge, and miss out on opportunities to grow.
But we don’t have to.
The following advice can help you with communicating, not to mention being a better conversationalist:
Don’t Ask Multiple-Choice Questions
When people are nervous, they tend to ramble, and their questions tend to trail off into a series of possible answers. (“What’s the most effective way to find a good programmer? Is it to search on Monster or to go on LinkedIn or to talk to people you know or … uh… uh… yeah, is it to, um…is there another job site that’s good …?”) You’re the one with the question; why are you doing all the talking? Terminate the sentence at the question mark. It’s OK to be brief.
Don’t Fish
“The really ‘bad’ questions are leading ones–the questions where you’re fishing for a particular answer,” says veteran journalist Clive Thompson. First of all, if you know the answer, why are you asking? If you’re seeking confirmation on something you already suspect, ask objectively, and ask directly. You’ll come off as confident (and less of a chump), and you’ll get more honest answers.
Interject With Questions When Necessary
Stopping a conversation to ask the right questions is far superior to nodding along in ignorance. Notice how great interviewers like Larry King or Jon Stewart maintain control of their conversations; it’s almost always through polite interruptions–not with things they want to say, but with questions that keep the Q&A on course. Mature people will rarely be upset by interruptions that let them continue talking. To the contrary, additional questions make people feel like they’re being listened to.
Repeat Answers Back For Clarification Or More Detail
If you’re getting vague responses–or complicated ones for that matter–restate the answers in your own words. (“So, your software will email me any time there are important news stories in my industry?”) This will typically yield either a definitive “that’s correct,” or a clarification with extra detail. Either way, it’s useful for getting a precise answer.
Don’t Be Embarrassed
The worst kind of question is the one left unasked. There’s typically no point in pretending you know something when you don’t. People are much kinder than we often give them credit for. If you are unsure about something, just ask.
And if you ask a bad question from time to time, it’s okay. It happens to the best of us. The advice in this article, however, is a good starting point to asking better questions, communicating more effectively, and moving forward in your professional success.
(Information from: Fast Company)
What other tips can you suggest for asking better questions?
by Belinda Lui | Dec 10, 2013 | Latest, Social Media
Social media is an ever-changing world; keeping up with the trends and statistics can be a full-time job on its own. I’ve compiled a list of interesting facts that may help you design a more strategic marketing plan on Twitter: ten tips that will optimize engagement, reach, and your online presence. A lot of what we thought we knew about Twitter has very well changed in 2013. For example, the fastest growing demographic on Twitter is the 55-64 age bracket. That’s not all, though.
Here is a list of 7 statistics that will help you optimize engagement on Twitter:
1. Twitter engagement for brands is 17% higher on weekends
I guess not many people know about this one, because only 19% of brands tweet on the weekends. If you’re trying to encourage your followers to engage with you on Twitter but you don’t want to work over the weekend, you could use the Buffer app to schedule tweets to be sent while you’re having a sleep-in.
2. Tweets with image links get 2x the engagement rate of those without
Just like on Facebook, photos are more engaging for Twitter users.
3. Tweets with less than 100 characters get 17% more engagement
This is another stat that was similar for Facebook. Shorter posts tend to garner more engagement on both platforms. If you’re posting tweets with links, Dan Zarrella’s research shows that 120–130 characters will be your sweet spot.
4. Twitter’s fastest growing demographic is 55-64 year-olds
If you’re looking at growing your audience, you might want to look at new Twitter users, which are most likely in the older age brackets. As Twitter’s user base grows, you’ll have a wider variety of users to target, supposing they’re all part of your market.
5. Tweets with hashtags get 2x more engagement
Having said that, keep the hashtags to a minimum. 1 or 2 will get you 21% more engagement than if you add 3 or more. This could be because hashtags often connect a tweet to a particular topic or Twitter chat that others are following or interested in. Keep appropriate hashtags in mind when posting, especially if engagement is something you’re looking to improve.
6. Twitter users who mostly use a mobile device are 181% more likely to be on Twitter during their commute
When you’re tweeting, think about where your audience is, and what they might be doing. If it’s early in the morning, they might be commuting to the office–this is actually a great time to get them, as they’re probably bored and looking for something interesting to occupy them during this time.
7. Tweets that include links are 86% more likely to be retweeted
Like photos, links appeal to Twitter users. Links, however, are more likely to increase your number of retweets than engagement rate. This is helpful to keep in mind, as you might want to broaden your reach (get more retweets) rather than engage your current followers (increase engagement with photos).
(Information from Buffer)
What are some of your tips on optimizing engagement on Twitter?
