online marketing

2 Reasons You Should Use Emojis in Brand Marketing

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When it comes to communication, I’m an impatient person. Voicemail takes too long and email often requires too much effort. Like most people I know between the ages of 12 and 70, text messaging is the go-to method for communicating- with co-workers, friends, family and (sadly) the person in the next room. Enter the EMOJI.

“Emojis help companies add a human touch to digital marketing communication. Brands should think about what their audience cares about.”

They say a picture is worth a thousand words – and emojis are just the next evolution of communicating, sometimes even complex thoughts or emotions, with simple pictures.  Brands are recognizing the usefulness of the Emoji in online marketing communication.  Here are 2 reasons you should be using the cute smiley faces as a marketing tool.

1. Emojis can transcend  language barriers. A smiley face is universal, (you know this if you have ever traveled overseas) and now there are literally thousands of emojis that are gaining worldwide acceptance and allowing an entire generation to communicate across borders. A smile. A wink to a heart. The simplicity of these images breakdown linguistic obstacles, in turn, enhancing brand recognition and generating positive impressions. Marketing experts say emojis allow recipients to fully comprehend the intentions of the brand, no matter the worldwide location of the consumer.

2. Emojis help companies add a human touch to digital marketing communication.When I see a brand using an emoji, I can instantly relate on a personal level to the conveyed emotional message of that brand. Most marketers understand that emotion is more effective than promotion by more than 2 to 1. Let’s face it. They’re cute. Who doesn’t like cute? O.K. Maybe Scrooge. Or Archie Bunker. But you get my drift. Most people are jaded to perfect PhotoShop images and slick online lead generation tactics.

How can emojis  be used in brand marketing? They can be incorporated into instant messaging applications, text, email, promotional products and social media messages to convey brand emotions. Developing your own emoji image can be a great way to extend your marketing reach to millennials. HubSpot has an Emojis for Dummies Translation Guide to help you get started. Transport the online experience into tangible residual marketing. Check out these great specific examples of national brands using Emoji Marketing from Ad Age to get your creative ideas flowing.

These branded emoji “Flingers” fly through the air with a flick of their tongue! The cute guys  (we have girl emojis too) are a fun new item that is sure to grab attention at your next function. They are part of Fina Promos emoji based product line. Why not run an Emoji contest? Think about using these guys as part of your next tradeshow giveaway, meeting, Facebook or newsletter sign-up gift. Take simplistic messaging to a whole new level!

All my best,

Audrey Gotto

 

4 Painless Ways to Encourage Online Reviews

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Online business reviews can influence internet search engine results. This is crucial for small business owners wanting to increase local seo results. Search engines such as Google take into account how many times your business is mentioned in reviews. Your business getting alot of mentions usuually translates into appearing higher in search results than a business that isn’t reviewed  often. Research suggests that consumers generally trust peer recommendations more than they trust advertising.

A recent Nelson survey found that of 25,000 internet consumers from 50 countries 90% trusted recommendations from people they know, while 70% trusted consumer opinions posted online.

I’m not going to lie. Getting reviews is not always easy. In fact, I find it to be challenging for a number or reasons. 1.) Who has the time to find your review site, compose a review, and get it posted quickly? 2.) Some of your clients no doubt love you and your product but they just aren’t skilled writers. 3.) Transparency is always an issue. Have you ever read an online business review that just felt fake?  False reviews are tacky and will actually hurt your seo results.

That being said, here are 4 painless ways to encourage online reviews for your business:

  1. Encourage your customers to leave ratings and reviews of your business if they are satisfied with your work. Send them a simple email after a service is rendered, give them a flyer at checkout, a call to action on your website or a phone call or  direct text message. Don’t be shy. You’ve done a wonderful job. Asking for an endorsement is fine, as long as it is authentic.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            Don’t miss our updates! Subscribe here.
  2. Provide customers with a variety of sites to post reviews about you. For example, if you are asking for a review via email, send the appropriate links in the body of your message so that they can easily click on the site and get typing directly.  Instead of just providing links at the bottom of your email signature, why not kindly encourage and/or ask for a review? make this the SUBJECT OF YOUR EMAIL, not an afterthought or closing comment.
  3. Respond to Reviews. The Good. The Bad. And The Ugly. Be proactive about responding to all reviews. Say thank you. Say you’re sorry. Say something! If the comment is a postive one, thank the customer for their feedback and encourage them (by name if appropriate) to use your services again. If the post is negative, explain that you appreciate their honesty and ask the customer to get in contact with you about their concerns so you can address their problems directly. And do that. I love seeing when business owners show the negative posts and their susbsequent  tactful replies.  Through your replies, customers can get to know you  as an individual, not just ‘business x.’ Transparency and authenticity are gold in the business world.
  4. Never ever post false reviews. False reviews are eventually discovered. Because of their obvious generic transparency, you risk the chance of losing visibility in search engines. Worse yet, the visibility you do get will not be the kind you want. Exercise patience and be consistent with points 1-3 and eventually you will build a strong  business online review sampling.

Here’s to your success!

Audrey Gotto- Fina Promos

 

How Social Media Helps SEO Rankings

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Social media sites play a key role in local business’ visibility in search results. When a potential or current client Googles your business, (and believe me they will before deciding to do business with you) ideally, your business website should appear first, followed by social sites. The more proactive your social media strategy, the higher likelihood your pages will attract followers- and in turn, appear within search. Give it a try. Google your name or company name. Does your website appear first? Where do your social sites appear and in what order? I tried this with my company name – Fina Promos My website appears first followed by Fina Promos Google Plus Page, Fina Promos Facebook Page, Fina Promos LinkedIn Page, Fina Promos Pinterest,  My You Tube Page and finally my blog.

What can you (or you social media marketing partner) do to help your local (organic) SEO rankings? In two words- Engage Regularly!  Here are 5 action steps you can take to regularly engage with your online audience:

  • Develop a strong social media strategy  that includes engagement and follower goals like the one in this inforgraphic from Social Media Online Classes

 

SOCIAL-MEDIA-STRATEGY-Fina-Promos

  • Post updates on your new products or services offered. Can you feature a “product of the day, week, or month”  and highlight the benefits?
  • Create promotions or giveaways that require engagement from your audience. Everyone loves a chance to win a promotional product, branded gift or premium. Gift cards also make great promotions since they are easy to distribute and less bulky than larger gifts.  Give away a chance to win your product or service for free if this is possible
  • Highlight stories of relevence to your customers. Who is your target audience and what are their concerns? Posting about things happening in your city or town  puts you on the map with local rankings!
  • Engage on social media by responding to those reaching out to you via your social sites with questions or feedback on their orders.

I hope these few tips help  you see good results with your visibility online.

All my best,

Audrey Gotto-Fina Promos

 

 

5 Ways to Optimize Your Business Listings

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Twitter Tips, Social Media Marketing

Achieving effective local search engine optimization for your business is like striking gold. In my last blogpost,  I suggested that we begin with properly optimiizing information that appears on your business website. Read article  Today, we will discuss an issue often overlooked by small business owners-How your business appears on websites and business listings.

One of the most effective ways to boost local SEO is to be consistent with your business listing information. Google and other search engines LOVE consistency. When your business is not listed, or worse yet, the information listed is incomplete or inaccurate, this can negatively effect your placements in search results. Here are 5 tips to help optimize your business listings:

  1. Search local listings websites like Facebook, Yelp, GooglePlus, YP, Yellowbook and TripAdvisor to be sure your business is actually listed. If not, be sure to claim those listings, and be consistent and acurate with your business name, phone number and address. If your business is listed as located on 6th St., use 6th St consistently, NOT Sixth Street. Make changes as neccessary and delete duplicate pages.
  2. Include videos, photos, your website URL and any other key information to make your listings attractive, interactive and informative. I get reaaly annoyed seeing the unprofessional looking “blue silhoette” in place of a photo or logo. Really. COMPLETE the listing.
  3.  Categorize your business properly. This greatly aids in properly optimizing your business website. If you happen to have relevant key words in your business name that helps. For example my company sells promo products. I choose the company name Fina Promos for that reason, and the domain name of finapromos.net
  4. Work with a “listings provider” such as Moz.com to automate the process for all local sites. Usually the price for this service is reasonable and worth your small investment in dollars compared to your large investment in time to care for this manually.
  5. Does your business have more than one location? Create a seperate listing for each location on your website to boost visibility of your brand and each of your stores or offices.

Here’s to your success!

Audrey Gotto

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4 Ways to Optimize Your Website

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Do you own or manage a local small business? If so, you’re no doubt painfully aware of the need for strong  local SEO (search engine optimization) success.  Just like your computer is the new typewriter; Local search engine optimization is the new Yellow Pages.  If you want to be found online, you must be seen online. Your website is your most important and valuable online assest, so ensure that it is properly optimized to appear high within search results. Let’s assume you do not have thousands of dollars to spend on  SEO AdWords. Here are 4 action items to boost your local SEO.

  1. Choose a domain name that reflects your business location and business type. For example, Joe’s Lawncare located in Pittsburgh, PA  could use the domain “joeslawncarepittsburgh.com” which says it all.                   
  2. Add key words on page titles that identify with your business, its products and services and its location.            
  3. Be sure to add your business name, phone number, address and social media links on EACH INDIVIDUAL PAGE of your website, not just your homepage.                    
  4. In your website copy, be sure to mention not only your products and services, but include as much as possible about your local area. This associates your business with the nearby vicinity. Remember, we are after LOCAL optimization here. Include if possible, what sports teams plays in your city, what section of town you’re in, what special place of interest is just around the corner. Not only will this added information improve your website copy for customers, it will also boost your search visibility as a local business. 

My next post will discuss how to utilize local business listings to boost SEO success.

Here’s to your success!

Audrey Gotto

Fina Promos Website

                                                                                               

3 Ways to Get More Twitter Shout-Outs ( Retweets)

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Twitter Tips, Social Media Marketing

The goal for any marketing effort is to be create awareness of your product or service and attain new business. How can you increase your company’s exposure on social media channels such as Twitter? When a follower retweets your post, his or her followers are now exposed to your business or organization. This kind of shout out is immeasurable! Here are the top three tips I share most often when asked how to get tweets, well, retweeted. If you’re new to Twitter, just pick out one and start there. Retweets are sure to follow.

1. Add facts, figures, stats, and images to your tweets Most people like to see facts, figures and stats in tweets. I know I do. And, I’m pretty sure it’s not a coincidence that the tweets at Fina Promos that get re-tweeted almost ALWAYS contain a relevant statistic or fact, figure, and/or image. Tweets with images are 94% more likely to be retweeted. Twitter rewards people who get their dimensions just right by displaying images in the feed, so keep your images 440 by 220 pixels. Below is an example of an image I shared on twitter that quickly and clearly incorporates this idea.

Embedded image permalink

Share one interesting and relevant stat or sentence from your blog post with a link to read more. Remember to attach a photo if possible, as tweets with photos are twice as likely to be retweeted.

2. Use hashtags properly

Less is more. One or two relevant hashtags is more than enough for any tweet. Any more and you risk becoming known as a hashtag spammer, and nobody wants to talk to that person. In a study of 1.2 million tweets, it was found that a sprinkle of relevant hashtags can increase your retweets by 55%. Twitter offers guidance on how to use hashtags, as incorrect use can lead to a violation of their T&Cs, so give that a read before embarking on your hashtag journey. I’m a big fan of placing my “hashtagged word” at the end of my post. It might look like this; “Life only demands from you the strength you possess. Only one feat is possible-not to have run away.” #quoteoftheday #inspiration Whatever your personal style, be uncluttered and professional with your use of hashtags.

3. Have a PURPOSE for your tweet Always think about the purpose of your tweets. Are you sharing awesome information with your followers? Promoting your latest blog post? Talking about a current event? Keeping your tweets focused, interesting and relevant will dramatically increase of your tweets being retweeted by your community. Maybe you’re trying to do all three. Choose your reason for that ONE tweet, and have at it! Vague or generalized tweets will not be share worthy most (if any) of the time.

I have provided a link below to my  FREE Ultimate Twitter Checklist. Feel free to download and use it to audit your own site.

http://finapromos.net/images/twitter-checklist1.pdf

Regards, Audrey Gotto

Got any other tips or stats for creating tweets that will get retweeted? Let us know how you succeed in the comments.

Cool Article-Read thru! I Am Leaving #SocialMedia

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Jeff Comm, New York Times best-selling author and entrepreneur wrote an excellent article that I just HAD to share with you! Follow Jeff on his journey of love/hate with social media. Thousands (no, millions) of us can relate to this…GREAT ENTERTAINING READ!

Social Media Madness

 

 

 

Click on link to Jeff’s Article

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/article/20140324190941-3561889-i-am-leaving-social-media?trk=nus-cha-roll-art-title