Have just enjoyed updating http://ow.ly/
Have just enjoyed updating http://ow.ly/6gYlh Fisher Funds wanted to make it easier for clients and potential clients to find relevant info.
Launch of Fridays at 5 Piano hour at MED
Launch of Fridays at 5 Piano hour at MED Wine bar & bistro at the Masonic Napier http://ow.ly/4WgvW 5.00 – 6:30 this Friday May 20. Should make a nice way to start the weekend, rather than thudding rock music
Spread The Word – Often and Far
We often talk about our ‘hub and spoke’ approach to integrated online marketing. That’s where your website is the centre of the wheel (the hub) and the various online communication tools are the spokes. By spokes we mean that they can be used to spread the word and keep sending the readers and viewers back to the hub – the website. Spokes these days take many forms – blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, You Tube and your e-comms – to name a few.
The key to using these tools is to ensure that they all let your readers and viewers know about the others. For instance, you need to make sure that your website has clear icons for Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn if you use them. There should be a feed to your blog, if you have one, on your home page. Your email signature also needs to have clickable links to the social media tools and clickable links to your website and blog. On Facebook your info tab should have links to all the other communication tools you use. And on Twitter and LinkedIn you can also link to other communication tools. All this ‘spoke activity’ makes the wheel go round at an ever increasing speed.
Remember that not everyone uses the same communication channels so, when you have something to say, say it loud and say it often. Update your news on your website, post on Facebook, send a tweet, update LinkedIn and write a brief blog post about it. Your blog should have an RSS feed so that your followers ar the first to know about your news through their email or RSS feeder. And don’t forget to tell your engaged clients, those on your database. If it’s appropriate you can always post a short video with the news too – put a face to the name.
There are automation tools available that can save you time in posting – you can schedule when you want messages to go and where you want them distributed. Whilst this is a great time saver it must be remembered that the followers of the different sites like to get their messages in different forms – some short, some chatty and others more formal – so you need to personalize every now and again.
And finally, remember the KISS principle – Keep It Simple Sir. We strongly recommend that you start small with communication tools and add to them as your confidence and consistency in spreading the words grows. These tools are a reality of online marketing – embrace them and you will find that they pay off.
Facebook Facelift for Businesses
Facebook – a company that just doesn’t like to stand still for too long – is about to make some changes to Business Pages. Facebook calls them improvements and, in some instances, those using Business Pages do agree. At long last you can choose to receive notification about fan activity on your Page, you can ‘Like’ and comment on other Pages as your Page and you can get a news feed from other Pages that you like. This improvement mirrors the functionality that a personal Facebook page has and is a welcome enhancement for Business Page administrators and owners.
Another feature, similar to that recently added to personal pages, is the ability to feature photos of your Page’s recent experiences at the top of your Page. You can also highlight other Pages you are connected with as well as those people who manage your Page. Facebook is becoming more and more visually orientated so it makes sense that Business Pages have the same opportunity to remain current.
However, there are two the “improvements” that the jury is still out on. In the upgraded version of Pages customized tab are no longer shown along the top of the page. These have been relegated to the left hand side bar along with other applications Page options. In our opinion the tabs lose some of their visibility being listed here. Facebook argues that this change brings Business Pages in line with personal Facebook Pages thereby making it easier for the fan to follow. Questionable!
More importantly Facebook have now introduced a filter on your Wall. There are two options for people to see posts – ‘Everyone’ or your Business Page posts . If you choose the ‘Everyone’ as the default setting this means that the wall will publish posts from you as well as other pages that you, as a Business Page, have now liked. Our advice is to set this default as your Business Page so that your own posts take precedence. However you will not be able to stop people from choosing the other view when they are on your Wall. The most irritating part of this change is that Google will now publish posts according to their ‘popularity’ and not in chronological order. This, again, is in line with how a personal page works by default. There is a lot of debate around this ‘improvement’ as many businesses, quite rightly, argue that their fans want to know the latest news not the most popular as voted by Google. Currently there is nothing that you can do to change this as a Business Page owner – but watch this space as the debate continues.
Unless you have clicked Upgrade Now on your Business Page these changes will come into effect on 10 March 2011. If you haven’t upgraded yet we strongly advise you preview the upgrade so that you can be familiar with the changes and respond accordingly. Like all things Facebook – it’s now or never!
Google Places – It’s Where You Need To Be
A recent study by JiWire and reported by Mashable stated that 89% of consumers planned to use location-based services for holiday planning and related activities and 37% expected to use them more than usual.
Not only that, but a surprising number of participants “plan to use location-based media to secure coupons and discounts, as well. Twenty-one percent said they have redeemed a mobile coupon in the past 90 days, and another 30% said they were willing to travel more than five miles to redeem a mobile coupon, especially for entertainment, retail and restaurant venues, suggesting that marketers ought to expand the range of their location-based campaigns beyond their storefronts.”
You may not be in the entertainment or accommodation sectors but New Zealanders are renowned for their high level of uptake of all things technology based. Google has now changed its search parameters to allow those searching to indicate where they live so that search results can be more relevant to them geographically. In many location based searches Google Maps come up in the top ten results.
As we become more mobile (technology wise) the importance of your presence in tools such as Google Places will only increase. It’s the year of Social Marketing and Google Places is a ‘must have’ tool.
Happy New Year
Happy New Year to all our clients and friends. We hope you had a restful Christmas break and are ready for the exciting year ahead. We are all rested and ready to make the most of 2011. This year social media is going to explode and we are at the forefront of this great media. Talk to us about Facebook, Google Places, Google Analytics, blogs and anything social.
Seasons Greetings
From the back..Char, Dee, Jeanette, Robyn & Helen
Merry Christmas from the team at 3webfeet!
A sincere thank you to all our clients for continuing to support us in what has been, at times a pretty challenging year. As always in our world of new media there have been changes affecting the way we market our businesses. One of the most exciting being the the use of social media in the marketing mix. We are now seeing strategic use of this new media assist clients raise their profiles and increase business. Who would have thought Facebook and the like could actually do this?
Christmas is a time for some of the important, often more simple, things in life. Spending time with family and friends and spreading a bit of good cheer. We hope that whatever you’re up to this festive season it will be an enjoyable and safe time for you and your loved ones.
Christmas Business Hours:
The office will be closed from 5pm 17th December and re-opening Monday 10th January 2011. During this period please direct any urgent support queries to inbox@3webfeet.co.nz
Lee James makes fashion Compleat
Congratulations to Havelock North retailers Robyn Fleming and Maxine Brown on their new websites www.leejames.co.nz and www.compleathb.co.nz. These very clever websites can actually be reached simply by going to either site. Why? Because Robyn and Maxine own both Compleat Womens Fashions and Lee James Footwear. In fact, the businesses sit side by side in Havelock North.
Robyn and Maxine were approached by the previous owner to purchase his footwear business, Lee James. It seemed a perfect fit and the business partners haven’t looked back. As part of the launch of the new look Lee James a website was developed for Lee James that also promotes Compleat – and vice versa. Smart thinking has lead to an innovative online solution that works for customers who are able to see the latest on offer from head to toe.
Wildflower Sculpture Exhibition
Lynn Freeman, from Radio New Zealand, called it Hawke’s Bay best kept secret – until now! And she is right. 3webfeet is proud to be sponsors of this incredibly inspiring and visually indulgent exhibition. Over 50 of the North Island’s finest and innovative scul
ptors are displaying their works in the vast grounds of Round Pond Garden.
The gardens, owned by Mike and Julie Russell, are opened to the public only once every two years for everyone to delight in their pass
ion for form, beauty and the best nature can show us. While the sculpture enhances the majesty of the gardens, the gardens themselves are a masterpiece. As you wander through the four acres of landscaping you come across unexpected and breathtaking examples of topiary, natural plantings and a cacophony of both native and imported specimens.
The exhibition runs from 10 – 14 November, in conjunction with Holly Hospice Trail, and proceeds from the event go to Cranford Hospice. Do your eyes, heart and soul a favour and take a trip to 121 Rosser Road, Hastings. We know you will be as lost for words as Lynn Freeman, guest speaker at the opening, was when she toured the gardens earlier this week. Click here for more information.
Did You Know? The name Twitter was picke
Did You Know? The name Twitter was picked out of a hat. A small group of employees from Odeo, the San Francisco podcasting startup where Twitter initially began, had a brainstorming session. They were trying to come up with names that fit with the theme of a mobile phone buzzing in your pocket with an update.
After narrowing down the options (which included Jitter and Twitter), they wrote them down, put them in a hat, and let fate decide. Fate decided on Twitter (because clearly asking someone if they saw your latest ‘jeep’ is just weird).
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