Since going public a year ago Facebook has been focused on generating Ad revenue with sponsored and promoted posts, Facebook Ads and has recently announced the introduction of Video Ads.

Testing will begin with various brands on Facebook’s Client Council who will begin rolling out 15 second Video Ads that will appear in fans’ News Feeds. The usual suspects, including American Express, Ford and Coca-Cola are expected to participate in the test phase.

The video ads will likely be on auto play and mute by default allowing users to activate the audio if interested. Considering the success of Video Ads in mobile this is a logical next step for Facebook.

As the world’s most popular social network strives to strike the balance between user experience and commerce smart marketers continue to focus on generating great content that captures the audience’s attention.

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Our 6 favourite features of Facebook’s News Feed updates are:

1). Photo albums have been revamped to increase sharing of content on the platform.

2). Shared articles feature a larger image, more demonstrative title and longer article summary.

3). Stories shared by brands or individuals will pull elements from that page or user’s Timeline to personalize the content and frame it in a more appealing context through positive association via familiarity.

 

4). Content shared via third-party platforms/apps like Pinterest is displayed in a more pronounced fashion.

5). Video content takes center stage and is displayed much larger.

CHOICE OF FEEDS

6). Facebook’s updated News Feed allows users to control the content in their feed by specifying which sources they wish to receive updates from: friends/family, interests, brands, businesses and public figures they follow.

Currently 30% of the content in the News Feed is from Facebook pages in the form of updates and sponsored/promoted posts. The new version gives users the ability to filter branded messages out completely.

HOW THIS AFFECTS MARKETERS

Facebook marketers will have to focus more intently on delivering great content that fans love and want to share with their friends instead of relying on Facebook ads to reach their target audience and generate sales.

Overall we believe the updated News Feed will improve the user experience and further enhance the way brands engage fans on the platform.

Interested in enhancing your business’s social media program? Contact us today!

The post 6 Things We Love About Facebook’s News Feed Updates appeared first on Gruv Media.

Facebook’s Search Function to date has been well, um how shall we put this – a tad less than stellar. To remedy this the world’s most popular social network recently announced Graph Search!

Graph Search is powered by Microsoft’s Bing which makes sense considering Bing includes Facebook Search into its own algorithm.

Gizmodo puts it in perspective:

“It’s an attempt to do what Google failed at doing — pulling all the information that matters to you within the context of your social life, skipping the results that are popular to the internet, in favor of the results that are popular within a group you actually give a damn about. Not a horde of strangers.”

Makes sense right? Our social activities are based around our interests so it stands to reason that our interactions via social channels will yield deeper insights into what is truly of value to us as individuals when tapping search engines for results.

When Graph Search rolls out later this year It will focus on the following four areas:

• people
• pictures
• places
• interests

When searching for local businesses Graph Search will list results based on what your friends like most, location based check-ins, the number of likes the business has earned and the business’s SEO tags.

Where Graph Search gets really cool is when searching for content. Users searching for pictures of friends will be able to input long form detailed queries like, “Pics of my friends from the coffee house around the corner last Saturday.” This will extend to all forms of content from music to videos, memes and articles.

When searching for personal connections based on interests for business or romantic reasons users will be able to query, “People who like real estate, Grey Goose martinis and work in Los Angeles.” This functionality will help users connect on personal and professional levels.

As Grüv learns more about Graph Search we’ll be sure to keep you in the loop with updates on its usefulness, functionality and role in marketing your business.

Interested in enhancing your business’s social media program? Contact us today!

The post Facebook Introduces Graph Search appeared first on Gruv Media.

When Facebook rolled out its promoted posts ad revenue program last year the reception from marketers in the social web was mixed. Some companies embraced the feature and saw it as an opportunity to reach a boarder audience while others were dismayed at the significant dip in the percentage of their fan base their regular non-sponsored posts were suddenly receiving (15% – 25% as opposed to the previous total fan base).

The thing about promoted posts is they are interruption based and hang at the top of your newsfeed like an unwanted guest for what seems like days. Not a great way to earn fans and influence people and there is a cost associated which may not always be in the budget.

Great content on the other hand… you know the type that people actually love, adopt as their own and share freely across social channels converts friends to fans and fans to loyal customers in ways that are genuine and cool.

Of course, great content is not easy to create especially when trying to accurately position your brand and engage and entertain your fan base but when you hit a home run the results are profound and far more powerful than promoted posts or sponsored tweets.

When the audience knows you’ve paid to play the response is lacklustre because you haven’t earned their attention – you’ve bought it out right in fact you’ve forced it upon them. Remember muting television commercials back in the day?

When choosing a social media partner for your brand focus on the agency’s creative ability in terms of developing original and effective campaigns and strategies designed to earn the attention of your fans and convert them to customers through great content and genuine engagement.

The post Why Great Content Trumps Promoted Posts appeared first on Gruv Media.

TechCrunch recently discovered that Facebook is also testing this coupon ‘offer’ with e-commerce sites, opening the feature to web-based businesses. Great news for web based companies, even better for brands that offer e-commerce and in-store sales.

While Facebook ‘offers’ for e-commerce is currently in the test phase and not available beyond the testing bracket, Facebook is working with select clients like Walmart and Lady Gaga’s online store to test the new feature and its functionality. Macy’s was the first to introduce the ‘offer’ to its audience in April and the results were outstanding. They offered Facebook fans a 25% discount for purchases over $100 – more than 40,000 fans claimed the coupon!

Facebook ‘offers’ are an innovative way to bridge the gap between consumers’ social media activities and brand’s POS and will be a key driver of sales for companies that use the platform effectively. Coupon ‘offers’ will be able in Facebook ads, sponsored stories and fans’ newsfeeds.

The offers are easy-to-use and are setup the same way as the brick-and-mortar offers:

1. click “offer” at the top of your page’s Timeline
2. choose a headline
3. select a thumbnail
4. set your redemption limit and expiration date
5. input the terms and conditions of your offer
6. preview to ensure that it appears exactly the way you want it to in your Timeline Facebook ads and sponsored stories.

Be sure to inform your staff and give advance notice for when the offer will be in play to avoid any awkward moments between your employees and loyal customers when Facebook fans arrive to redeem the offer.

The Extra Mile

Facebook goes the extra mile by sending users a message on Facebook and to their email inbox once an ‘offer’ is claimed.

Check out this screenshot courtesy of TechCrunch of an offer that Kate Spade ran for 25% off purchases online and in stores.

At the top it gives your consumers clear instructions on how to redeem the offer either by showing the email to a staff member, printing it out or displaying it to an employee from their mobile phone.

For businesses that don’t have brick-and-mortar locations the process is even easier, no direct employee interaction or training necessary. Simply incorporate the new coupon code into your e-commerce system and you’re good to go.

P.S. For a free consult on how social media can benefit your business, contact Grüv Media.

The post Facebook Is Testing New Coupon ‘Offers’ For Ecommerce Businesses! appeared first on Gruv Media.

It’s important to note that only businesses categorized as “local business” will be able to use this new feature. So, if you want to take advantage of it you will have to change your page’s settings if is not currently listed as such. This also means that if you’re a celebrity or online business you will not be able to use it as it is intended solely for brick-and-mortar operations.

The first time you attempt to make an offer you’ll be prompted to take the tour.

This is what the offer posting field looks like on Facebook:

How to create an offer for your Facebook page.

1. Start here: Select “offer” from the top your page’s timeline.
2. The headline: Choose a strong headline and include a call to action using clear language that explains what the offer is. For example, “buy one Ferrari, get one free” or “receive 50% off your next purchase”. Facebook has some choice recommendations for headlines.
3. Thumbnail: You can upload a thumbnail image to accompany the text of your offer. Be sure to choose an image that represents the offer directly or the intended target market – Facebook recommends against using your company logo since it is less likely to capture attention and spark conversions.
4. Redemption limit: You may want to limit the number claims so as not to put yourself in a position where you have to redeem an exorbitant number of offers which may prove very costly – similar to what many businesses experienced when using Groupon for the first time. Remember Groupon? This is done by clicking “unlimited” and selecting the desired number from the drop-down.
5. Set the expiration date: Allow sufficient time for fans of your page to take advantage of the offer and word-of-mouth among your customer base to spread. Two to four weeks is generally best.
6. Terms and conditions: Add the specific details – the terms and conditions and make them simple and easy to understand. Avoid tongue tying your fans with legalese, it’s a turn off.

Preview your offer carefully to ensure that it is exactly how you want it to appear and then post to your timeline.

Be sure to alert your staff and give them advance notice of when the offer will be in play to avoid any awkward moments between your employees and customers when Facebook fans arrive to redeem.

P.S. Interested in social media for your business? Contact Grüv Media for a free consultation.

The post Facebook Launches New Coupon Feature For Local Businesses appeared first on Gruv Media.

Starbucks is a social media innovator. The coffee giant seamlessly bridges the gap between customers’ online and IRL (in real life) experiences, enhancing the brand’s relationships with consumers with every exchange.

QR codes, mobile apps, social media and points of sale form a powerful system of customer engagement, retention and sales when properly designed and executed. Enter ‘My Starbucks Rewards’ program.

Customers earn a Star for every purchase made with a registered Starbucks Card. 5 Stars delivers Green status which gives users:

• a free birthday drink
• syrup or soymilk on the house
• free refills
• buy beans and get a beverage

30 Stars gets Gold status:

• all benefits of Green
• free drink every 15 Stars
• very own personalized Gold Card (love this touch)
• special members offers

Starbucks ties it all together with their iPhone and Android mobile apps and direct-to-fan engagement via social media channels. Once a consumer registers their card and downloads the mobile app they can:

• manage their Starbucks card balance
• reload their card
• track their progress in rewards program
• geo locate the Starbucks nearest you
• keep track your favourite drinks, your friends’ too
• search jobs at Starbucks
• explore the world of coffee

When performed in concert the result is a sales cycle that integrates the POS with social media/mobile apps, earns new customers and rewards existing ones while providing interest based content relevant to all parties. Bravo Starbucks, cheers to your Java!

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Right off the top some standard ways to optimize your E-Newsletter are:

Add social follow buttons: make it easy for fans to find your social profiles by including social icons in your E-Newsletters.

Add an image: images are a great way to spice up your content.

Use a Post Script: include a post script at the end of the body of your email to capture the reader’s attention. You can use the P.S. to emphasize your main selling point, create a sense of urgency or add a special bonus offer. Often times people scan the body of an email but their eye will fall on the post script. Be sure to include a link that leads the subscriber into the sales process.

Include a “special offer”: special offers allow you monetize your email campaigns and segment your lists by differentiating customers from subscribers. You can then design specific email campaigns for each segment to further optimize your sales process.

Optimize the newsletter for mobile devices: to ensure maximum open rates optimize your email campaigns for mobile devices.

Segmenting

Segmenting your subscribers in the following ways will further optimize your email campaigns:

• geographically
• content interests
• brand advocates (social media fans, frequent buyers, customers, non-customers)

Once you’ve segmented your subscribers into best customers and brand advocates you can acknowledge them with special emails:

• thank them for their loyalty
• advanced notice and promotional discounts on new merchandise
• feedback requests
• rewards
• special offers

Special Offers

By segmenting the subscribers and sending each segment a “secret code” or “hidden discount” email that requires them to click through to see what they’ve won, you can determine what kinds of offers work best with your fans and create more of that type.

Conversion Optimized ‘Thank You’ Emails

When someone has made a purchase or downloaded some cool content, sending a conversion optimized ‘thank-you’ email can increase sales and earn more fans by:

• providing access to the offer – a link to the download
• adding social sharing functionality
• include a call to action – like us on Facebook, follow us on Twitter
• send an auto-response email in the event they’ve made a purchase with a promo code for their next purchase

Testing & Analysis

Conducting A/B and multivariate testing to determine the optimum placement of social features and calls-to-action by segmenting the audience and analyzing the click-through-rates and goal conversions with direct comparisons to each will provide you with valuable insight into how your email campaigns are performing.

Email campaigns are one element in the marketing mix. Optimizing your social media strategy and engagement, website, eCommerce and email marketing to perform in concert will yield higher profits and a larger fan base.

P.S. Grüv Media is available to discuss how we will enhance your presence in the social web, drive sales and increase your audience. Contact us today!

The post 9 Awesome Ways Bands Can Enhance Their Email Campaigns appeared first on Gruv Media.

The Brothers were adept at using myriad mediums in concert to support their endeavors and this is what savvy social media marketers are doing today.

When creating a content strategy for a new client, first consider the audience and the forms of media they prefer to consume. Then, consider the ways you can increase the longevity and scope of one form of content by offering it in several mediums.

For example; you can generate a podcast from a video interview and then feature its transcription in a blog post and schedule the release of all three over the period of 7 days. By offering the same content in multiple mediums you extend its reach, maximize its potential and engage your audience in the formats they enjoy.

Experiment, have fun and above all, engage!

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“A buyer persona is essentially a representative of a type of buyer that you have identified as having a specific interest in your organization or product or having a market problem that your product or service solves.” – David Meerman Scott

A buyer persona reads like a biography or character profile. Giving your personas names allows you to empathize with them and provide a deeper understanding of the people who make up the segments of your market. For example, one of Hubspot’s buyer personas is ‘Internet Ian’ a 26 year old marketing grad with 2 years experience at a mid-level agency. He met his last girlfriend using Facebook’s Super Poke application and enjoys first person shooter video games, anime and 80’s action movies.

Once you’ve defined your market segments the best way to create your buyer persona profiles is to interview people.  Ask the following questions:

• What are their goals and aspirations?
• What are their problems?
• What media do they rely on for answers to problems?
• How can we reach them?
• What is important to them?
• What words and phrases do they use?
• What sorts of images and multimedia appeal to them?
• What web sites, blogs or podcasts do they read or subscribe to?*

Pay close attention to the keywords and phrases your buyer personas use as well as their sources of media and information. Study the communities where they’re active. Delve into the websites and publications they read. Step into their skin and walk around for a while gaining a thorough understanding of what intrigues and motivates them. This process will afford you the valuable insight into what drives each persona’s purchasing decisions and devise a content creation strategy that speaks to their motivating factors.

Now that you’ve clearly defined your buyer personas, create marketing programs designed to appeal to each segment. When buyers visit your site you want them to identify with your brand and its products/services. Design content that speaks to their needs and provide solutions to their problems without the usual onslaught of marketing messages. Learn what form of media your buyer personas prefer and create content in those mediums. Above all engage with empathy, transparency and value.

* This blog was inspired by Chapter 3 ‘Reaching Your Buyer Personas’ of The New Rules of Marketing & PR by David Meerman Scott.

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