Social Media for Businesses - Large and Small

One of my former agency managers said "social media doesn't work". That's odd because I see it in action all of the time. Take yesterday for example, I went to a new salon to get my hair done. I learned about the salon because the owner friended me on Facebook. I talked with her yesterday and she said she has gained many new customers through this kind of marketing.

I've learned of chiropractors, new musicians and special promotions at Starbucks, etc all from social networks. All of these businesses have benefited from social media. Big brands can capitalize on community-building for their brands and achieve reach and frequency more often and less expensively. Small brands can build their awareness and their communities just the same - although smaller the principles still apply. The link below is an article I read today on Mashable, highlighting some additional small business success stories.

http://mashable.com/2009/07/28/social-media-small-business/

Additionally, the intelligence one can gather on social networks (especially Twitter) is invaluable.

So to my former agency manager, I have to kindly disagree because I see it working everyday.

Social Media Helps Brands Grow & Yield ROI

I was just reading the results of a study by Wetpaint and the Altimeter Group, which indicate that companies using social media as part of their overall marketing efforts are realizing financial gain. Brands like Starbucks who jumped on the social media bandwagon early are reaping the rewards but they've also invested the time and resources to do it right.

I've been talking with several companies over the last couple of months about social media and the implications for their business. I am an advocate for it because of a number of reasons including but not limited to realizing personal success and also because this is how people are communicating now. It can't be ignored or dismissed as "the latest thing". Growth in social networks has exploded in the last year or two and that trend is not going to change.

The best way to get started personally is just to dive into it, but I will caution you that the time investment initially is great if you are to develop a thorough understanding. If you're interested in social media for your business, start by putting together a plan or have an agency (like WhiteSpace) put a plan together for you. If you create objectives in the beginning, it will be much easier to track success.

DMB Concert Opener is Old Crow Medicine Show

The video below is for a song called Caroline. This band (Old Crow Medicine Show) will be opening for Dave Matthews at Blossom in Cuyahoga Falls on July 29. I've never heard of them but it's a big deal to open for DMB so I would say following the tour they should be getting much more attention.
Old Crow Medicine Show - Caroline Video by Old Crow Medicine Show - MySpace Video

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Ad Agencies: 5 Ways to Find Prospects on Twitter

Interesting article on using Twitter to find agency new business. I love Twitter and think it is a tool worth learning and using for this and numerous other reasons.
Ad Agencies: 5 Ways to Find Prospects on Twitter

Social Media Report Released

A new social media report has been released by Razorfish.

Some of the contents include:

• Explanation of how social media is becoming both a paid and unpaid distribution mechanismfor advertising content.
• A look at how social features are becoming integrated into online display advertising.
• A piece on how tools such as Facebook Connect are moving the social graph out onto the Web.
• An introduction to the SIM Score and what it means for marketing.

To access the report click the link below.

http://fluent.razorfish.com/publication/?m=6540&l=1

Latest Facebook Stats

The latest Facebook stats released indicate an aging demographic for the popular online social network. Facebook at one point was dominated by college students and while many in that age group are still using Facebook, so too are young and middle-aged professionals.

According to new research by istrategylabs, the latest stats show a staggering 513% increase in Facebook users 55+. Facebook users aged 35-54 has seen almost a 200% increase and ages 25-34 have seen a 60% increase. This is according to data analyzed over the last six months. Also, important to note that as the older population increases, the high-school and collge-aged users are decreasing from 15-20%.

Bing Now Bigger Than Digg, Twitter and CNN

Bing Now Bigger Than Digg, Twitter and CNN

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Although I'm not generally a PC or Microsoft user anymore as I love my macbook and safari, it's important to note the progress that PC's and MS are making. I find it interesting that Bing is doing so well.