Social Media for Sales and Marketing

Amy NeumannDirector SEO/SEM/SMO

Cleveland.comFebruary 12, 2013

Amy Neumann aneumann@cleveland.comDirector SEO/SEM/SMO 216.999.5746

Passionate fan of all things tech and media for 18+ years with companies like Yahoo! and AT&T. Currently delighted to be at Cleveland.com doing everything Search & Social

Often seen writing about topics involving social media, search, social good, mobile, developing technology, and similar including for Forbes, the Huffington Post, two personal blogs (Good Plus Tech and Charity Ideas Blog) and numerous other websites and printed publications

Originally hails from Northeast Ohio with a brief stop (16 years) in Los Angeles before returning to the Cleveland area mid-2011

Let’s connect! Just Google me ;)

Social Media for Sales and Marketing

What is the current social media landscape?

Why does social media matter for sales and marketing?

Who, what, when, where, why and how: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn YouTube Pinterest Other sites and resources

What is the current social media landscape?

Social Media Landscape Right Now

Social media is the new “Word of Mouth”

Things are discovered, reviewed, shared and recommended in real time

Credibility is developed by being visible as an expert

Familiarity and trust are created through ongoing interaction, in many places, many ways

Customer service is greatly enhanced by the ability to immediately interact and connect

Highlights -2013 Social Media Users

Facebook: 1.06 BILLION + users (680 mm mobile)

YouTube: 800 million +

Twitter: 550 million +

Google Plus: 340 million +

LinkedIn: 200 million +

Rising *Visual* Stars: Instagram ( 90 mm, now owned by Facebook), Pinterest (40 mm)

5.98 BILLION mobile devices globally

http://expandedramblings.com/index.php/resource-how-many-people-use-the-top-social-media/

Social Media Trends 2013: Mobile, Visual

http://www.ehulool.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/Social-Growth-infographic4.png

Word of Mouth – Global & 24 x7

Visibility at All Times

We “Share This”

We talk about what we like (or don’t like)

People You and Your Company

What do they see?

Is your expertise showing? [Hopefully!]

Positive Interaction Brand “Awareness”

~ 89% of Americans are Online

Social Media is Becoming a Key Element of Search, and Growing – Some Search Stats

92% of online adults use search engines to find information – 256 million people 59% do so on a typical day – 164 million

All ages are included: 18-29 = 96% 30-49 = 91% 50-64 = 91%

65+ = 87%

Pew Research Center, 5/11 . 88.7 % of the ~ 315 million people in the United Sates in 2013 are online: 279 million.

“Social Media”

Social media = people. It’s about being where people are, when they are, how they prefer, with the information they want. On a phone...a computer...a tablet...at work, at home, anywhere.

Humans tend to universally like certain things: to be entertained, to learn, to save time, to save money, to be ahead of the curve, to feel inspired, to help others, to share, to grow.

So how does your strategy fit into the humanness of marketing?

Conversational and Other-Focused

Remember the “social” piece – the more interactive, the more results

Try to keep the conversation 80-90% about THEM and only 10-20% about your company

Sharing content that is helpful and useful to people who might buy your product will drive connections

It’s Art + Science

Social Media Increases “Serendipity”

“If you want more luck, take more chances. Be more active. Show up more often.” ~ Brian Tracy (good summary of Social Media)

Jump In! The Water’s Fine…

Who, what, when, where, why and how: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn YouTube Google Plus Pinterest Other sites and resources

Twitter: @Claire’s Definition of “Tweet”

Twitter

It’s Easy to Start

http://goodplustech.com/2010/11/03/how-to-set-up-twitter-in-3-minutes/

Who Uses Twitter? (% of all online)

Not Just Your Neighborhood

Proactively find people anywhere in the world who are talking about your product or service

Twitter: Proactively Find Clients

[ https://twitter.com/search-advanced ]

Facebook: Friends, Family, Other

Facebook

It’s Facebook! 1 Billion+

680 million are checking FB on mobile devices.

Facebook posts with PHOTOS get 84% more interaction. [That’s why FB bought Instagram for $1 B]

Who Uses Facebook? (% of all online)

Facebook: It’s Personal

Entertainment focus

Photos increase engagement by 84%

Appeal broadly to human interests

Contests and promotions do well

LinkedIn: Brilliant for Networking

Find buyers at target companies

Be discoverable

Keep your profile updated: Professional photo Current title and company Succinct Summary including

keywords Complete history allows for

faster networking Add causes and volunteer work Join relevant Groups and

interact

A Huge Network of Professionals

Who Uses LinkedIn? (% of all online)

YouTube

Also owned by Google 800 million people Mobile is driving visual communication like video Quality is less important than content – it’s a

medium where people are used to seeing “less than network” quality

Stories are relatable ways to connect Helps with SEO

Google Plus

Jump in now! 500 million people have joined Marketing is now focusing on G+ for 2013

and beyond Still less mainstream for now – and it DOES

MATTER from a local, social media, and (SEO) search perspective

Google has all the time (and money) in the world to make Google + a hot item.

G+ already affects SEO – especially locally – in a major way Claim both your Google Plus and Google Plus

Local (Google Places) Page to be Verified

Pinterest: A Virtual, Visual Pinboard

Ideal for retail; 80% women

Bonus Round: Quora

Q & A platform – “Google for what’s inside people’s minds and not on the internet”

Perfect for professional services, consultants, experts

“Blogging” platform with a built-in audience

Can provide insights into authors (potential buyers)

Highlight expertise

Metrics and Measuring

Use a platform like Hootsuite (or Radian6, Vocus, Vitrue, Sysomos, ArgyleSocial, etc.) to monitor mentions, schedule some posts/tweets/updates, and track results from shortened links

Shorten URLs (web addresses) with a link shortener (Hootsuite’s is built it, or try bit.ly or similar) – these track opens on links so you can determine which articles perform best

Monitor keywords like business name, products, and #hashtags in your industry

Summary

A majority of Americans now use Social Media

SM can proactively create a new stream of clients, and enhance customer service for existing clients

Top SM sites to grow and maintain a client base are: Twitter Facebook LinkedIn YouTube Google Plus Pinterest

Questions?

Recommended Resources

http://www.socialbrite.org/sharing-center/tutorials/

http://mashable.com/guidebook/twitter/

http://help.linkedin.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/530

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/internet/tips/how-to-use-facebook.htm

http://support.google.com/plus/?hl=en

Amy Neumann aneumann@cleveland.com 216.999.5746

Amy Neumann is a tech fanatic with a penchant for social good, who has been fascinated with all things internet and marketing since 1994. She’s Director of SEO/SEM/SMO for Cleveland.com and is loving being back home in Northeast Ohio after nearly 16 years in Los Angeles. With almost two decades’ experience in digital media, technology, marketing, advertising, and public relations, she focuses on how technology can solve challenges for businesses and nonprofits of all sizes. Amy has experience at companies like Yahoo and AT&T, as well as her own marketing company Good Plus Tech.

Amy also speaks nationally on topics related to social media and online marketing at events like Dell’s Social Innovation Conference, ASU’s Sustainability Conference, and the Midwest Social Media Summit. She is widely published online, including as a contributor to Forbes, an author of PR News’ Crisis Management Guidebook, a columnist for Huffington Post, and for two of her own blogs, Good Plus Tech and Charity Ideas Blog.

Thank You!