Social media trends for 2012

According to TechCrunch’s Amy Jo Martin, there are a number of emerging trends for Social Media to watch out for in 2012.

1. Social TV Integration

Many shows have already begun to integrate social TV, either through polling or integrating social elements within the show. Social media played a pivotal role in the last US presidential elections, and it will likely be more integrated into political broadcasts.

As each news channel fights hard to keep their viewers engaged, the leading TV have made significant strides to engage their audience, although some would argue that this social media integration has come at the expense of hard-hitting journalism and analysis.

2. TV Is Going Online in a Big Way

The recent Super Bowl was the first time that the mega-sporting event was streamed live to the world. Since the Super Bowl is generally viewed as the mother of all advertising spectacles, it will add a new dynamic into the digital component to advertising and social media integration.

3. Facebook Credits Take Centre stage

Facebook in 2012 has the potential to project its power and truly take Facebook credits into a viable currency. Amy put it well when she says “they’re building an online destination we’ll never need to leave, and my guess is they’re only about 8% of the way through their product roadmap.”

4. Big Business Has Woken Up

The way corporate entities approach social media is shifting. Many companies realize that setting up Twitter, YouTube and Facebook accounts is not going to cut it as their social media strategy. Brands will need to seriously shift their perspective by treating social channels more like communication channels and less like an advertising channel in order to make a difference. 

5. ROI Is Still Huge

ROI will remain a key metric to any social media strategy. The concept of engagement is now becoming more and more an excepted metric. CEO adoption of social media is improving, and more CEOs are recognizing the benefits of humanising their brand by taking to Twitter.

There have been a lot of discussions about social media fatigue and whether brands refuse to play for that reason. With over a billion people on social media it’s irresponsible for any brand not to have some sort of presence. 2012 will be the year for brands to go beyond cookie cutter campaigns and really determine how it not only adds value to their company, but how it adds value for their customers. 2012 will be crucial for companies and social media. 

http://techcrunch.com/2012/01/15/some-key-social-media-trends-to-look-for-in-2012/

A beginner's guide to SEO

This blog post was written by John Straw, VP of Business Development for Linkex, and has been reproduced here with his permission.His contact details are at the bottom of the article.

If you’ve got a website, you need to be doing SEO. It’s as simple as that. Search engine optimisation can help your website to feature prominently on search engines like Google.

So if you have a flower shop in Wigan, it’s about optimising your website so that when someone types in “flower shop in Wigan” on Google, your website is at or near the top of the results list. Without SEO, you may not appear at all.

SEO is a fast-moving discipline and there’s a lot of competition for the pole positions online. So SEO is something that has to be done regularly and it pays to keep up with the latest SEO tools and techniques. And that includes being active on social media as well as optimising your website with keywords.

What is SEO?

We’ve got a whole range of content to help small businesses with SEO — from beginners’ guides to more in-depth SEO strategy.

If you are an SEO novice, start by reading this article — What is SEO and why should you be doing it? by one of our SEO experts James Gurd. It includes all the SEO must-haves for your website. It’s also worth watching this four-minute video — What can SEO do for your business?

Keywords for search engine optimisation

It’s important to understand which words and phrases are commonly used in searches for your type of product or service. The Google Keyword tool can help you find the best words and phrases.

Keyword research — a beginner’s guide by SEO expert John Straw is a great place to learn about keywords. For more advice, read our ten-point guide, How to choose the best keywords for your website.

Building links to boost traffic

Google rewards websites that link to other relevant sites and especially those that attract a lot of links too. You can actively increase the number of good links in and out of your site to boost traffic. Find out how by reading John Straw’s article on Link building tips and strategies. Or check out James Gurd’s article, Building links to boost your website ranking.

Using SEO to improve local search results

The internet may be global, but most small firms are casting their net in their local area and their SEO strategy needs to reflect this. We’ve got lots of good articles on local search issues including: Local attraction: reach the top of the rankings and How to use Google Places listings to find customers.

Improving your SEO strategy

If you are ready to take your SEO strategy to the next level, set aside some time to read this excellent piece by Glen Allsopp, The ultimate guide to keyword research. It’s long but it is well worth it.

Having problems with SEO? Check out these useful articles — Three SEO mistakes you must avoid and Why have my search engine rankings dropped?

Finally, it’s vital to keep up with the latest developments. SEO is a fast-changing discipline. Read John Straw’s recent blog, Reflected glory: the changing face of SEO, to discover the latest thinking on SEO.

About John

Founder, VP business development at Linkdex

MacMillan House, Platform 1, Paddington Station, London, W2 1FT

www.linkdex.com

Contact: John Straw

I have 16 years of helping start-ups with their digital marketing in California and the UK. I've seen how smart businesses benefited from staying ahead of the competition with their digital marketing.

I'm absolutely passionate about what I do and make sure I introduce my customers to the most up-to-date knowledge and the best marketing techniques for their business. I'm lucky enough to have been given a few accolades in my time, too, including winning eConsultancy's prestigious search innovation award 2011 and being named one of the top 100 marketers of 2009 by Courvoisier.

Want to know more? Feel free to get in touch. 

Just two months to take advantage of planning support from CREA

Any business in Cumbria looking to put in a planning application could think about taking advantage of this service from CREA (Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency). In essence they have enough cash in the pot to help around 20 businesses find their way through the planning application minefiled. See their press release below:

PRESS RELEASE

Just two months to make the most of Cumbria’s award-winning planning support

The award-winning Rural Planning Facilitation Service (RPFS), managed by Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency, has funding and capacity to help at least 20 more businesses with their planning applications before the money runs out later in the year.

 “The service has been available since 2002 and has helped almost 1000 rural businesses in Cumbria to develop and grow,” said Lynne Fox, CREA’s Chief Executive. “Businesses get expert input from a professional planning advisor before they prepare a planning application, avoiding any pitfalls, emphasising the benefits of their idea, exploring options and anticipating possible challenges.”

“From our past experience, we know that businesses that have anticipated potential issues and have already addressed planning concerns will be in the best position to win approval and make the most of their business ideas,” said Lynne.  “And we’ve worked with projects within the Lake District National Park and in other sensitive areas over the years so any rural project can benefit from our advice.”

The Northwest Regional Development Agency has supported the RPFS since it began but is not able to continue funding beyond November 2011.  “We are sorry to see the end of the funding but keen to ensure that every last penny is invested in support of Cumbria’s growth,” said Lynne.

“The service is free to businesses and can cover all sorts of work, from innovative new builds and farm building conversions to sustainable energy installations.  But we need people to get in touch as soon as possible so that they can meet with an adviser on site, and get the advice for free before the funding finishes.  After November, the service will still be available but on a chargeable basis.”

 The Cumbria Rural Planning Facilitation Service (RPFS) won the national RTPI (Royal Town Planning Institute) Rural Planning Award in 2008 in recognition of its work with businesses and planning advisers across rural Cumbria.  “The award was a real stamp of approval for a practical approach that has helped so many Cumbrian businesses to develop successfully,” said Lynne.  “Now we just need to make sure that anyone wanting that help now is aware of what’s on offer but also of the urgency to act now.”

 Business owners interested in finding out more should contact Gemma Barnes in CREA’s Kendal offices on 01539 726624 or via gemma@crea.co.uk.

 ENDS

 Caption: Lynne Fox, Chief Executive of Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency

 Case studies

Case studies of businesses across Cumbria that have benefited from the Rural Planning Facilitation Service can be found online at www.crea.co.uk.These include Wasdale Yurt Holidays (west Cumbria), Holmescales Activity Centre (near Kendal), Peter Toaig Furniture (near Penrith) and Castlerigg Camp Site (near Keswick).

Notes

The mission of the Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency is to regenerate and strengthen the rural economy by creating sustainable employment. 

It was established in 1983 with a small team based in Kendal but it now has offices and facilities for small businesses and meetings in both Kendal and Penrith.  CREA’s portfolio of services includes Business Start-Up Advice, the Rural Planning Facilitation Service and Rural Small Building Grant Scheme, the Food Technology Centre, the Cumbria Business Environment Network and the Resource Efficiency Programme.

Since it began in 2002, the Rural Planning Facilitation Service has helped 958 businesses.  Other data, collected since 2006, indicate that it has supported the creation of more than 30 jobs and safeguarded over 40 jobs.

For further information, please contact

Sally Seed                                         Lynne Fox

Stoneleigh Communications               Cumbria Rural Enterprise Agency

01539 624732                                  01539 726624

Don't get caught out by the crazy rules on branding surrounding the Olympics

I originally posted this in July and had a lot of comments and response to it, so I thought I'd draw attention to it again. I've noticed a few companies starting to run Olympic challenges and competitions. It's not for me to interfere with the marketing promotions and plans of companies I don't know - I have to assume they know what they are doing. There's a document you can download: Click here to download (pdf)

The Olympics are not that far away and already we can see and feel the presence of major sponsors ramping up their advertising and promotional campaigns.

That said, any company who is not a major sponsor who tries to get into the 'flag waving' spirit is straight-jacketed into a set of rules and regulations that, quite honestly, if I'd not read the document I would never have believed it.

In short, any company who tries to associate its name or brand with anything to do with the Olympics could be liable for a hefty fine. So say for example you are a restaurant in Manchester, and you decide to do a special menu to celebrate the Olympics using the circle emblem and the word Olympic and 2012 on your menu- you could be in trouble because you are associating your restaurant brand with the Olympics.

If you created a local paper ad with your company's logo and the phrase, 'Supporting the London Games', you would also be in trouble. At a conference I attended last year run by the North West Development Agency, fines in the region of £20,000 were touted.

Anyway, I don't want to get too 'soap-boxy' about it - but how on earth the entire nation is expected to get behind the games and support it with all these restrictions, I don't know. I don't want any small businesses to fall foul of this. So if you were planning to do an 'Olympic special' product or do some kind of patriotic window display in your shop - stop and make sure you read the document from the link below before you spend any money.

Click here to download (pdf)

I'd love to know what you think of all this - so do leave a comment. 

Editing, grammar and proofing software

I've spent quite a bit of time evaluating some of the many software applications out there that aim to help us all write better. As you can imagine, some are better than others. I thought I might share my experiences with you.

I put each software application through a series of vigorous tests...

Before I start, I had better explain my own needs here. As a freelancer, I don't have anyone else to read my work before I send it on. I use my own tips for proofreading such as:

• Printing off and reading on paper - this helps a lot as on paper you often spot things you wouldn't see on screen.
• Using a ruler - I often read back with a ruler under each line which helps me focus on one line at a time.
• Reading backwards - this can be helpful because you read each word out of context.
• Reading out loud - this is good for spotting missing prepositions and clunky sentences.

Even with all that, the odd thing can slip through the net. Essentially it's because my brain works faster than my fingers can type - this means when reading back, I see what I expect to see, not always what is really there.

Let me start with Whitesmoke (www.whitesmoke.com)   This company has a very effective affiliate programme going on - you can't move on Google for different people offering this product for sale. I tried it and quite frankly it failed the first test.  I typed in a sentence, and substituted the word 'by' for 'be', which within the context of the sentence, should have been very easy to spot. Needless to say it didn't. Plus, it doesn't like you evaluating other software at the same time and somehow managed to disable other things I was trying to use in order to draw comparisons. So my view, is not great.

My next one was Grammerly (www.grammerly.com). This is one of those sites where you can't get access to the trial until you put in your credit card details. I don't know about you, but this really annoys me. A good free trial should have no strings attached in my opinion. Anyway, I bit the bullet via Paypal (I thought at least that gives me an extra layer of protection). But it didn't download properly and and after an hour trying to sort it out, I gave up and uninstalled it. I might change my mind and have another go, but I wasn't in the mood to faff about. Easy should mean easy and this was a pain.

Ginger was next. (www.gingersoftware.com) This one I liked. It passed my tests with flying colours. Plus it has this additional nifty little feature that reads the copy out loud for you. The reading is not exactly BBC announcer quality, but it's certainly good enough to allow you to hear anything that doesn't work well.  So I think I'll by buying this one.

Stylewriter (stylewritersoftware.com/) is also good and one I will be purchasing. It's not quite as good as Ginger at spelling and grammar, but it does analyse your work very well and I can honestly say it pushed me to make some changes that created much better copy. Things like the passive use of verbs, and overlong sentences are flagged up. It also gives you a 'bog' score, which tells you how easy or hard it is to read the copy. Other nifty things include a flag on repetitive words, and words which are commonly misused. For example I put in a sentence that had the word 'contemporary' in it. The system prompted me to consider its true meaning. We often use contemporary to mean modern - when in actual fact it doesn't mean that at all, it means 'at the same time as'. I thought that used in conjunction with Ginger, this is a great tool.

I tried a free tool called Paper Rater. (www.paperrater.com/) This is mainly aimed at academic writers. The funny thing about this one was that it told me I had a pitiful score on vocabulary, saying that I should aim to use more complex words. As someone who writes a lot of marketing copy, my view has always been the simpler the better.  Anyway, if you're doing a thesis, this might be great, but for sales and marketing purposes, not terrific.

Perfect is a product from a company called Intelligent Software (http://www.intelligentediting.com/) I have taken a 30 free trial on this but so far I can't work out what it's supposed to do. I tried my benchmark tests of missing and incorrect prepositions and it gave my documents a clean bill of health. I accept that this does not sell itself as a comprehensive grammar checker, but it does claim to clean up common typos. In my mind a missed preposition is a common typo.  It also claims to sort out inconsistencies in documents such as acronyms and capitalisation. Again, I couldn't get anything from it. I'm guessing this tool is best used for situations where you have very long documents with lots of numbering and sub headings etc. The free trial is easy enough to download and the application neatly pops it into the Add ins tab in MS Word.

That's it for now - this blog post is now three times longer than the optimum length of a blog, so I better stop now before someone writes in pointing out all my mistakes.

Anyway, my parting thoughts are that while these tools are very helpful, we are all human.