Social Networks: Relevance Trumps Size

In a world where bigger is often seen as better, marketers know that targeted impressions are much more valuable than sheer number of impressions.

For example, eMarketer recently predicted that by 2011, half of all adults in the U.S. and 84 percent of online teens will be using social networks. With more than $1.6 billion ad dollars going to social networking this year, marketers are often in uncharted territory when it comes to getting the most bang for their advertising dollars.

The safest and most obvious way to make sure you are reaching your target audience is through smaller, emerging social networks.

Niche sites like meandmybicycle.com and anglingmasters.com (former SOAR client) reach a very specific audience (cyclists and anglers), allowing for some very cool and unique campaigns.

Targeting niche sites that relate to your products and services are also seen by users as less obtrusive because your company is an authentic member of the community or conversation.

Getting the Most Out of Your Keywords

There’s been a big to-do lately about the power keywords hold in keeping businesses noticed. Falling into the realm of search engine optimization (SEO), the proper use of good keywords are a powerful way to keep your Web page at the top of the search engine results.

For those who aren’t as familiar with SEO, it is “the process of improving the volume and quality of traffic to a Web site from search engines via ‘natural’ — sometimes call ‘organic’ — search results for targeted keywords.” So as you can see, keywords play a huge part in driving traffic to a Web site.

So how can we make them more effective? There are a couple best practices that help generate the best keywords. They include:

1. Make them relevant to customers. It may be an obvious observation. But in practice, some people are still not using the keywords their customers are searching. If you’re not sure what they’re searching, ask them. Mr Beldin had a great suggestion. Gather a few family members or friends, and ask them what terms they would search for after you describe what you’re doing. Sometimes you’re too close to what you’re doing to realize that the keywords you’re using aren’t matching the keywords your customers are looking for.
2. Along with making it relevant to customers, think about misspellings, too. Customers aren’t typically spelling bee champions, so there’s a high probability that from time to time they will spell a word or two wrong. Including misspellings in your keywords will help you still reach the customers who can’t spell.
3. Use phrases. It used to be that searchers would only use one term when searching for something in a search engine. But people have realized that using only one keyword will give you too broad of results, and as search engines have advanced, so to have the number of words people use to search for the right Web site. So use phrases as your keywords, too.
4. Don’t limit yourself to a few keywords. There’s a popular saying, “Go big or go home.” That applies to keywords, too. Generate a large database of keywords you can use and you’re more likely to attract Web traffic. Keep in mind rule #1, and keep your keywords relevant. But don’t limit it to a certain few.
5. Localize the search. As much as the Internet enables global connectivity, people still want to use it for local searches. Therefore, make your search applicable to the local market. Use terms like, “PR firm in Draper, Utah” — hopefully that brings up Politis Communications.

As in all things, keep tabs on your keywords to make sure they are working for you. Review them regularly to avoid letting your Web site slip in the rankings. It requires a watchful recognition of what’s happening in your particular market, but doing it right can bring tons of benefits.

Measuring Media Mavens: More Metrics for your Movies

YouTube, a Google property, today announced it launched a statistics/analytics service in conjunction with the online video service.

Makes sense, the name of the game is measurement, so why not set up a way to measure site/video traffic for videos. So my question is this: Why did it take so long to turn this function on?

Don’t tell me this couldn’t have been done some time ago given Google’s advances in technology.

Blogging Can Work for Any Company, Not Just Small Firms

In Monday’s edition of The Wall Street Journal (3-17-08), Shelly Banjo wrote a powerful piece on the benefits of blogging for small businesses entitled “Attention, Bloggers.”

It’s a good read, one that I recommend to anyone connected (even remotely) to any aspect of marketing. I particularly liked this paragraph from her story:

“Businesses of all types and sizes are focusing on the power of bloggers as opinion shapers. But harnessing that power is particularly important for small-business owners who don’t have the money to create name recognition with big marketing campaigns. By connecting with the right blogs, small businesses can generate buzz around their products and services and increase sales dramatically.”

“Attention, Bloggers,” Shelly Banjo, WSJ, March 17, 2008

My one point of contention with Banjo’s article, if any, is that readers might leave her piece and incorrectly believe that blogs are only designed for small businesses.

This is NOT the case, and for the record, I don’t believe this is what she was communicating in the first place.

Rather, I believe it’s becoming quite clear that the ongoing explosive growth of the Internet and the tools/services tied to the World Wide Web have empowered consumers, corporations and organizations in ways never before imagined. One of the most crucial ways that this rising tide of advancing technology has changed our lives forever is the ability it gives individuals to connect directly with corporations and organizations in one-to-one digital dialogues.If such dialogues are conducted in the transparent light of the blogosphere, they can (and in fact, often do) invite expansion into Web-based conversations that can experience exponential viral growth, either the benefit or detriment of the original participants.

Better Media Coverage Requires an Ongoing PR Effort

In a relatively short item posted a few days ago on the Wall Street Journal’s Independent Street blog, Kelly Spors outlines five insights from a small business entrepreneur on “How to Get Killer PR” (see http://blogs.wsj.com/independentstreet/2008/03/13/how-to-get-killer-pr/.)

Specifically, Spors relates how she had “encountered” Sarah Endline several times during a period of a few months, which led Spors to wonder if such encounters were merely the result of a shrinking world or perhaps the workings of “killer PR?”

Although curiosity may have killed the cat, it led Spors to track down Endline, the founder and CEO of Sweetriot (a five-person, NYC-based company) for the story behind Endline’s PR success.

Of the five PR tips that Spors gleans from Endline, I particularly appreciated Tip No. 5:

Devote time. If you think PR will help your company, make time for it. It can’t be just something you try to squeeze into your free time between sales meetings. It takes time, persistence and strategy. 

To me, this is a great insight for any executive, business owner, entrepreneur or marketing type to take to heart.

Politis Pointer: 

I have found that it is VERY RARE INDEED when an organization or individual can come up with that one killer PR, marketing, advertising, promotional, direct response or interactive execution that launches a service, product, person, company or idea into eternal orbit.

Successful marketing communications campaigns are (in my opinion) successful because

• They are campaigns, and
• The people pulling the marcom levers recognize that consistent marketing communications success requires consistent effort.

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One more thing. Having a topnotch PR agency on Sweetriot’s side doesn’t hurt either, as it’s apparently currently using (or has worked with) NYC-based fashion/celebrity PR  shop Think Public Relations.