Twitter in Plain English

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8 Reasons You Need to Stop Ignoring Twitter

Why Twitter is Becoming Increasingly Important to Marketers (from WebProNews.com)

There have been many articles written about why to use Twitter, and we’ve certainly published our fair share of them. However, the landscape is constantly changing. New trends, ideas, applications, and features come out, and they further emphasize Twitter’s place in said landscape. Following are some reasons why it is becoming increasingly important to marketers.

Still not convinced Twitter is useful? Tell us why not.

1. Twitter Lists

Twitter Lists are changing the game. We recently looked at several reasons why, but also consider that with the Lists gadget, your tweets may appear all over the web if you can get onto lists. They will appear on sites and blogs, which are more than likely going to be related to the niche you are in anyway if you have the right audience on Twitter.

2. The Openness of Twitter

The openness of Twitter, social media and the web in general, pretty much means that your messages on Twitter won’t be limited to your Twitter audience. Facebook and other social networks will bring tweets in. People will share them, screenshot them, link to them on blogs, etc. Twitter is a means of getting your message out to more people, but it’s not necessarily only the people on Twitter that will see those messages.

3. Building Valuable Relationships

Laura Fitton, the author of Twitter for Dummies, chalks up success on Twitter to four basic concepts: listen, learn, care, and serve. Basically, if you listen to the community, you will learn, and if you show that you care, you are more likely to get more out of your efforts. Serving means providing something of use to the community. If you what you’re not doing that, you may be setting yourself up to fail, as Fitton talked about in this interview with WebProNews.

4. Traffic That Cares

Twitter can bring you not only random traffic, but traffic from people who are actually passionate about the niche that you are a part of. Retweets are huge in this regard. Guy Kawasaki calls retweeting the sincerest form of flattery. He has a point. He notes thatpeople are willing to risk their reputations by retweeting your content.

5. Staying Current

Being found in Twitter searches (not to mention real time search in general, which is starting to become a main area of focus for all of the big search engines, not to mention all of the standalone real-time search sites) provides a lot of opportunity for exposure. We discussed this here and gave tips for getting found in real-time searches.

6. Connecting with Local Customers

There are a variety of ways you can connect with local consumers and customers using Twitter and Twitter-related tools. There are tools like our own TwellowHood, which let youfind Twitterers in your area, for example. Another thing to keep an eye on is Google’s new Social Search. It’s currently just a lab experiment, but could become more. It certainly has potential.

A recent Search Engine Land article made some good points about the potential of local marketing with this tool, which delivers Google search results based on the communities you are a part of. It draws from Google profiles, which include the networks that people are connected to (based on what any person includes in that profile). If you’re not familiar with this feature, watch the following clip, and you’ll understand.

7. Going International and Multi-lingual

Twitter is expanding into more languages. If you thought Twitter was important to marketing already, consider that for most of its existence, it has only been available in a couple of languages. Now it’s in Spanish, and many more languages will follow. That’s not only going to be huge for international and multi-lingual marketing efforts, it’s going to be huge for Twitter’s growth, and the more Twitter grows, the more potential customers are out there.

8. It’s Still Young

Consider that Twitter is just getting started in the grand scheme of things. It’s still young. There are no doubt going to be a lot more features added in the future. And don’t forget about the thousands of Twitter apps that are already out there that can make Twitter useful in different ways to different people and businesses. Take some time and explore them. Fitton’s site OneForty.com, which is like Yelp for Twitter apps, is pretty good for that. It has reviews, and people tell why certain helps have helped their businesses.

 

5 Ways to Integrate Social Media in Your Marketing

View more presentations from Jason Baer.

The Buzz Mouth Story

Buzz Mouth is an online buzz and word of mouth marketing firm emphasizing social media strategies focused on social media optimized microsites. A microsite is a focused website on a specific offering, service or product. We take microsites and make them powerful conversion machines bringing together Search Engine Optimization, Search Engine Marketing, Social Media Optimization and Email Marketing.

Once we get people to your microsite we build a smart well branded site that guides people through your content and messaging with several call to actions and persuasion architecture. This simply provides a turnkey marketing solution for our clients.

Focus on Microsites

Microsites sound straight forward and simple. Yet, the way we approach them, we make sure we funnel traffic from many sources and give a microsite the best chances for success.

We look to design a microsite around your brand and share your culture throughout the pages. We will create process and flow throughout your site, when you see it, you will know it is unique to anything you have ever seen. The site will automatically move you along as you share your story and engage potential customers in a relationship.

Finally, we take all this and start to develop the socialization of the microsite. We do this with social media, search, email and content. The entire process takes about 10 business days. We develop and implement everything for our clients or give them the playbook, your call.

Integrating Social Media

Content is now distributed across the web, just about any place you look, from email to websites. With this, what makes content stand out? We have created a list of 15 different types of social media and are able to analyze which perform the best for the required outcomes. This intelligence is from over 100 million visitors to sites we have worked on.

Developing several communities around your product, service, political campaign, event or company is smart business. The world is changing as search continues to grow and social networks start to absorb people’s time on the internet. It is important to be where your customer is and share what you want to share with them. Make sure you have a purpose and solve a problem with every interaction. The web is fundamentally shifting and we believe it is shifting towards microsites loaded with specific content.

Driving traffic to your Microsite

Google, Yahoo, Microsoft and AOL direct 90% of the traffic on the web. They scower billions of pages and content and look for relevancy. From our experience, microsites can provide that experience in a smart focused effort. We combine this with social media, search engine optimization, search engine marketing and email marketing and we have a magical solution.

Search Engine Optimization

Learning the behaviors of your customers is our job. We dive deep into what they are searching for to create 5 keywords that will yeild the most results for each page. We take the microsite apart and drive trafic to each page within it. This allows us to take people to their level of interest and the content that is most relevant to them.

Search Engine Marketing

Pay-per-click advertising can be some of the best advertising if created with a strategy and content in mind.

Search engine marketing can provide instant results and change a companies sales pipeline overnight. We have proven this time and time again as companies learn from over 10 years of experience and 100’s of clients. Beyond search, we can drive results through email.

Email Marketing

Email is the most popular feature that the web has brought to us. I would argue it is the killer app. We will build, manage and host all your email communications dealing with the microsites we develop and/or landing pages within your microsites.

We find it very important to share your message in a way that drives traffic and results for your online campaigns. The most important driver for email marketing is a call to action and cotent. For more information about our process and to get started with us Contact us now >

Shortest Tutorial Ever on SEO Search Engine Optimization

Brought to you by our friends at HubSpot.

1) Find keywords. Pick a list of words relevant to your business.  Think about which words are most likely to get people to do what you want them to do (convert into leads) and focus on those words.  Then pick one word (or phrase) to use on one page of your site.  For more detailed info, read: Detailed Internet Marketing Keyword Tips.
2) Put keywords in Page Title. The Page Title is one of the most important things that Google and other search engines evaluate to determine what is on a web page.  Put your keyword or phrase in the title, keep it short.  For more detailed info, read Why a Web Page By Any Other Title Would Not Rank As Well.

3) Put keywords in Page URL. Google and other search engines also use the text of the URL of the page to determine the content of the web page.  You should use your keyword or phrase in the URL of the web page – either the folder/directory structure or the HTML file / page name itself.

4) Put keywords in Meta Data. While the page metadata (Page Description and Keywords) are not nearly as important as they used to be, they still count.  Take advantage of them by putting your keyword or phrase there.  The description should be readable by a person and make sense and the keyword metadata should focus on your keyword or phrase – do not make it long, less is more.  For more detailed info, readUnderstanding the Magic of Meta-Data.

5) Put keywords in your H1 text. The H1 text is usually the title of an article or some larger bold text at the top of your page.  Google and the smaller search engines can see this and they put extra importance on the words in the H1 text.  Make sure your keyword or phrase is there.

6) Use keywords in the page content. Putting the keyword in your page content also signals to search engines that the page is actually about the keyword and should show up in search results.  I have heard from “experts” that you should use your keyword anywhere from 4-6 times to 10-12 times.  My advice is to just write naturally.

7) Monitor your rank. Give the search engines some time to do their thing (couple days) and then keep checking your rank to see what happened and track your progress

What is a Microsite?

Phoenix Events & Groups For Entrepreneurs

Phoenix Events & Groups For Entrepreneurs
Article rom NewAvenue.com by GREG HEAD

In the last two years, there have been a growing number of new organizations and events that provide education, ideas and connections to Phoenix entrepreneurs. If you haven’t visited these groups lately, you’ll be surprised how many local leaders, nationally-known experts and talented specialists show up to these events to network and share ideas.

Whether you are a seasoned technology leader or a startup newbie, there are a variety of well-run groups that have plenty to offer. Here’s a list of the best local organizations and events that support Phoenix tech entrepreneurs.

TiE Arizona
TiE Arizona is the local chapter of TiE, the largest global association of technology entrepreneurs. Useful monthly meetings with networking and interactive sessions on venture funding, growth issues and CEO success stories. Local TiE Charter members (experienced, successful leaders) also help with mentoring and connections for budding entrepreneurs. www.az.tie.org

AZ Tech Council
The Arizona Technology Council is Arizona’s largest technology trade association that connects local technology executives, provides monthly educational forums and represents Arizona tech companies in public policy initiatives. www.aztechcouncil.org

MIT Enterprise Forum
The MIT Enterprise Forum Phoenix is a chapter within MIT Enterprise Forum, a global organization that promotes entrepreneurial networking, inspiration and education. They bring local, national and even global leaders together throughout the year to discuss real issues and hear success stories. www.mitefphoenix.org

Arizona International Growth Group (AZIGG)
AZIGG hosts monthly events with local experts who provide information and resources to Arizona-based business owners as they look to grow internationally. These are effective discussions that appeal to local leaders in medium or large companies in many industries. www.azigg.com

Invest Southwest
Invest Southwest is a popular annual capital conference in Scottsdale that connects local Arizona ventures with knowledgeable angel and VC investors. The annual event each December features investor presentations by 8-10 entrepreneurs, networking, and nationally-known keynote speakers. www.investsouthwest.org

AZ Entrepreneurship Conference
The AZ Entrepreneurship Conference is an annual event for the Phoenix entrepreneurial community, hosted by Valley startup maven Francine Hardaway. The full-day event is held every November and includes nationally known speakers and local expert panelists. Great networking, too. www.azentrepreneurship.com

Gangplank
For the younger, web-savvy tech entrepreneur, Gangplank in Chandler is a great place to get work done, network with other startup junkies, learn from tech and social media experts, and get connected to people who can help market or build out your idea. www.gangplankhq.com

FastTrack
FastTrack is a practical education program that provides existing and aspiring entrepreneurs with the knowledge and skills they need to grow their businesses. Delivered by experienced entrepreneurs, FastTrack is sponsored by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation supporting business enterprise. www.fasttrac.org

Enterprise Network
Local business executive networking group that meets monthly to hear from speakers on funding, growth and other business issues. www.enterprisenetworkaz.ning.com

ASU Technopolis
ASU Technopolis offers several intensive entrepreneurship programs including one-one coaching, an eight week “Launch Pad” course, workshops, and mentoring programs. The program operates within the Office of the Vice President for Research and Economic Affairs at Arizona State University. www.asutechnopolis.org

Women in Technology International (WITI)
Phoenix WITI is the local chapter of the global WITI networking and career advancement group for women in leadership roles in science and technology businesses. Local events cover career development, networking and technical topics. www.witi.com/phoenix

Association for Corporate Growth (ACG)
ACG is global association for the professional financial community. Monthly meetings and events include topics on corporate growth, corporate development, and mergers and acquisitions. www.chapters.acg.org/arizona

Score
The Phoenix chapter of SCORE is a group of experienced businesspeople who advise small business owners on all aspects of running and growing a small business. SCORE counselors volunteer their experience and knowledge to help small business owners in a variety of industries. www.scorephoenix.org

Vistage
For CEOs, owners and C-level executives, Vistage (formerly called “TEC”) is a peer group and coaching organization that allows leaders to share and learn from other entrepreneurs in a confidential group setting an and experienced facilitator. www.vistage.com

Angel Investor Groups in Arizona
There are several angel investor groups that hold regular meetings to hear pitches from selected Arizona entrepreneurs, including ATIF and Arizona Angels. Learn more here.

Ironically, I believe the recent growth in events and organizations is fueled by the explosion of social media conversations and information on the Web. At some point, people just need to have face to face conversations and hear the stories firsthand.

Social Media Revolution

The One Thing You Need to Know

The One Thing You Need to Know About Great Managing, Great Leading, and Sustained Individual Success

by Marcus Buckingham

1. Great Managing = Discover what is unique about each person and capitalize on it
2. Great Leading = Discover what is universal and capitalize on it
3. Sustained Individual Success = Discover what you don’t like doing and stop doing it