The Secrets Behind Video Marketing!

In 1979, video killed the radio star. Thirty-six years later, video is still a game changer, but instead of debating the merits of BETA vs. VHS, now we’re deliberating between Instagram videos and Vine. Indeed, in some circles, experts have predicted that 2015 is the “year of video marketing.”

Why the increased interest in video?

• Every day, 100 million Internet users watch at least one video online.
• 90% of online shoppers report that product videos help them make purchasing decisions.
• Visitors to e-commerce stores are 64% more likely to buy after watching a video.
• Video views are increasing. Cisco predicts that by 2017, 69% of consumer internet traffic will be to videos.

Video content can now be shared in a number of ways beyond just YouTube and embeds on your website. Pinterest, Twitter, Instagram, Vine, Snapchat, and Facebook all support video content now. So what does a marketer need to know before they begin shooting their new video marketing campaign?

1.Have a plan. Short videos, around 30 seconds, perform better than long videos. If you have a lot to say, break your script up into a series of short clips, then publish them on a set schedule to create a campaign over the course of several weeks. 

Think about where you’re going to publish it. For example, Vine videos can only be 6 seconds long, but on Instagram you have up to 15 seconds to get your message across.
 

2.Don’t go too DIY. Just because it is incredibly easy to make a video with your smartphone, doesn’t mean you should. Keep it professional, people.
 

3.Think about your goals beyond making a really cool video. Do you want to be a thought leader? Consider tutorial videos. Want to give online shoppers a better view of your products? Product reviews or fashion shows are a great way to go. 

Starting your video (or video series) with a goal in mind will help determine what kind of video you should make.
 

4.Don’t forget the call to action. No matter how many people watch your amazing video, it won’t convert if you don’t provide information about the next step you want people to take.
 

5.Don’t set out to make a viral video. Only a very small percentage of videos “go viral”. Even if your video is chock full of kittens, double rainbows, and clever hilariousness, odds are it still won’t get watched and shared by millions of Internet users. 

If it did, would it help you reach your marketing goals? Unless you sell witty, rainbow colored kittens, you’re better off making an interesting, well-made video that provides your target audience with real value that something that might go viral.

Part of the fun of marketing videos is that there are so many directions you can go. Have fun experimenting and test different formats and topics to see what works best for you.

http://www.business2community.com/video-marketing/secrets-behind-video-marketing-01227194

Do Google Adwords Really Work?

For three months Elisha Casagrande tried Google AdWords to launch her new fashion website, Repeat Offender.

She hired a search engine marketing agency that specialised in Google Adwords to help her with a campaign and budgeted $1500 a month, plus agency fees.

The result? Not one sale.

"Initially, I was told that Google AdWords would guarantee the required amount of clicks needed to our site to generate traffic and convert that traffic to sales," Casagrande says. "In the online retail industry, a conversion rate of 1% is recommended, therefore we needed quite a lot of visitors, or clicks to the site, to be able to reach our sales goals. 

Google AdWords advises that if you spend a certain amount per month you are guaranteed the amount of clicks needed to convert to sales.

"After a few months of launching the site, I decided to conduct my own research regarding Google Adwords. I asked staff, friends, family, potential customers and existing customers if they had ever clicked on the ads that appeared first under a Google search, or perhaps on a blog and/or website.

"Everybody I asked said that they have never clicked on those ads, as they were considered quite 'spammy' and instead they usually click on the first few search results in Google. After hearing this, I decided to pull the pin on Google AdWords and continue with our alternative marketing strategies."

Casagrande is now using an SEO campaign, along with Facebook ads, Facebook-boosted posts, Rich Pins through Pinterest and Instagress through Instagram. These forms of advertising are proving the most effective.

"We also utilise email campaigns, PR, blogger outreach programs, retargeting and competitions, which are all gaining momentum at a steady pace," she adds.

When Dean Salakas started The Party People, the first thing he did was invest in Google AdWords.

"For two reasons, targeting and tracking," he says. "Today, when people need something, they often turn to Google and parties are no exception. AdWords advertising puts our advertising right in front of people when they are looking. 

With AdWords the advertising is extremely relevant. I mean, if someone searches 'birthday party supplies' there is a good chance I have something they want."

Salakas has spent "hundreds of thousands of dollars" on Google AdWords and was one of the first to join when it launched.

"The reason I liked it was because for one or two cents I could acquire a customer and that sounded pretty good to me. Mind you, this was back in 2003 and today those sort of cost per clicks are not around. I didn't receive any advice, I just learnt as I went."

Salakas is also a big fan because he can track the return on investment of every action.

"I know that I spend x on advertising each month and it gets me y orders. I can then drill down and see which ads work better and which are not doing so well and adjust accordingly. 

When I went to university to study marketing they would say '50 per cent of advertising works, we just don't know which 50 per cent'. This is an old concept today, as with AdWords I know exactly what is working and what is not."

Two businesses: one with no Google AdWords success, the other with plenty. What is the reasoning behind such different results?

"For industries in which Google AdWords is suitable, the real key to success is in how you set up and structure your account from the start," Ilana Wechsler, founder and director of Green Arrow Digital, a full-service digital marketing agency, says.

"If you get this wrong, you will not succeed. Often I hear prospects say to me that Google AdWords hasn't or doesn't work for their business, and nine times out 10 their account just hasn't been structured properly. Strangely, Google doesn't really tell you this and it ends up costing businesses a lot of money.

"It is affectionately known in the industry as the Google Idiot Tax and applies to people who have set up their own account and don't know what they are doing. Google is doing itself a disservice in this regard, as those who experience such failure are often then skeptical about the value of utilising AdWords."

Wechsler says generally people go to the Google Search website to make a decision, but they go to the Google Display Network (for example, The Sydney Morning Herald website) or on to Facebook with no intention of making a decision. Advertisements on those platforms are an interruption to browsing behaviour and therefore need to be crafted differently.

"For example, no one goes on to to Facebook when looking to buy a new car," she says.

"Most of the time, AdWords on the Search Network is the perfect starting point for many businesses. This is primarily because it is the perfect testing ground for people who are actively searching. 

You can test different headlines and marketing messaging in the ads by observing the click-through rates on different ads.

"Once people click on the ads, you can then see how well your website performs in converting visitors into leads/buyers through analytics and heat mapping.

"Once this process has been refined and optimised, we pursue other online marketing strategies, such as Facebook advertising, remarketing, as well as content marketing, which feeds in perfectly with SEO."

This point is perhaps a key: small businesses shouldn't rely on just one aspect of the marketing mix to promote their business. Too many small businesses are not using all the marketing tools available to them.


http://www.theage.com.au/small-business/smallbiz-marketing/do-google-adwords-really-work-20150216-130jnm.html

Why Most Digital Marketing Fails -- And How To Fix It!

If you’re looking for insights about the future of digital communications, it pays to ask someone who’s been there from the beginning. Social media strategist Sally Falkow has been a keen observer of online trends since the mid 1990s, and started her blog, The Proactive Report, in 2003. 

In 2014, she was named one of Cision’s Top 50 Social Media Influencers on Twitter. In a recent interview, she revealed four issues she sees with the current digital media landscape – and how smart companies can take advantage of the opportunity that presents.

Not Enough Companies Are Blogging. After more than a decade on the scene, you’d think that blogging would have become ubiquitous by now. Not so much. Falkow notes that a UMass-Dartmouth study showed that in 2008, 16% of the Fortune 500 had public-facing blogs. By 2014, that number had only climbed to 31%. 

She understands why companies aren’t jumping onboard. “Blogging is a commitment,” she says. “Once you start, you have to continue. A blog has a voracious appetite. You have to produce good content regularly, and that takes resources.” 

But she views this silence as a missed opportunity to communicate directly with stakeholders, share ideas, and stake out a position of thought leadership. Indeed, she says, “With digital, we have new tools. 

It’s easy to publish and you can use analytics to find out what content is resonating with your readers.” If your company makes the effort, you can speak to your customers in a very targeted and effective way.

Companies Still Don’t Understand ‘Social.’ We’ve heard it a million times: social media is like a cocktail party. Don’t be a jerk and talk about yourself all the time. Don’t try to make a sale before you get to know someone. And yet, Falkow still sees marketers doing this all the time. 

One particular pet peeve: the common practice of re-tweeting others’ praise of you. “If someone came up to you [with a compliment], you wouldn’t pull out a megaphone and yell to everyone else in the room, ‘Sally just said she likes my work!’”

Most Digital Communications Aren’t Visual Enough. The rise of platforms like Instagram and Pinterest has shown the hunger for visual communication online. Yet most marketers don’t take full advantage of the possibilities, says Falkow. 

That’s partly a function of their training. “Most PR folk are not designers and have not had graphics training,” she says. But that’s becoming a major handicap. “Every PR student should take a course in graphic design. Visual content is a must for social media success,” she says. 

There are no excuses anymore. “With the new digital tools, anyone can be trained to take amazing photos on their camera, or make a short video in less than an hour. You can use tools like Canva or Picmonkey to edit photos and make posters with text on them for Instagram or Pinterest. “

You Have to Mix Paid and Earned Media. Finally, Falkow advises companies to face facts: we live in Mark Zuckerberg’s world, and he wants to monetize. 

The days when companies could rely on organic reach to connect with customers on Facebook (or many other major social platforms) is long gone. “Distribution and amplification of your messages will need paid social advertising,” she says, and “the lines between paid, owned, and earned media will continue to blur. PR practitioners must master the art of using paid social media to support their content.”

More than a decade into the social era, most companies still don’t fully get it. That’s a competitive advantage for you, if you’re willing to immerse yourself in the unique possibilities online communication presents.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/dorieclark/2015/02/03/why-most-digital-marketing-fails-and-how-to-fix-it/

Low-budget Digital Marketing Tips For Small Business!

Here are a few ways to draw in customers online and get more bang for your marketing buck.

If you own a small business, have a home-based business or thinking about starting one, here are some key tips that will help push your products or services at little to no cost.

It's evident that it's becoming more difficult to draw in customers online with the number of companies jumping into online ads with big budgets. Here are a few ways to get more bang for your marketing buck:

• Produce a LinkedIn group. This technique takes some time to form a group of networkers since they will not really want a hard sell. However, creating a group of specialists who are members in LinkedIn will disperse your business name by word of mouth, the best kind of marketing.

• Get published on niche blogs. In today's digital marketing, content is king. While it may be difficult to get on the front cover of a major magazine, you can create marketing opportunities by being featured in a popular niche blog.

• Produce videos on YouTube. This is much easier than it first seems with mobile phone cameras, free cost of video editing software programs and lots of topics. Publishing to YouTube is easy. Remember, it is important to make use of researched keywords in your heading, to keep the video clip brief (less than 10 minutes) and to give the listener a call to action at the end.

• E-Mail Newsletters. Already have a customer database of e-mails? Start sending out e-mails to them on a weekly basis. There are several low-cost solutions to sending bulk e-mails and you can disseminate a variety of information to your customers from company information to articles.

• Social Media visibility. While the expense of marketing on Facebook, Twitter or Pinterest is increasing, it is still extremely affordable compared with Google AdWords. 

Nonetheless, do not neglect ads on Google+ or some of the smaller sized companies like Tumblr or TypePad. Remember also that you could install pages on these sites for free and post articles, images and videos without expense. 

Facebook allows you to "promote your page" by taking an ad or article from your website – easy to set up and you could establish an end date within your budget.

http://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2015/01/27/low-budget-digital-marketing-tips-small-business/22429507/

5 Simple Tips How To Use Pinterest For Your Business!

“When I need inspiration, I go on Pinterest!” – Sim Breek is designer and uses Pinterest daily to get inspiration about trends and what to shop for her clients.
 

Pinterest is the biggest online ‘scrapbook’! Users share images by ‘pinning’ them on virtual boards. It’s famous for DIYer (do-it-yourself) and especially women, but Pinterest is much more than a nice platform, where people like and share beautiful images! 

More and more small businesses use Pinterest for ecommerce and to increase their SEO (search engine optimization). Do you also wanna use Pinterest for your business? These 5 easy tips will show you how:

#1: Be Pin-friendly!
Do you actually know what Pinterest really is and how it works? Before you use it, you should know what Pinterest actually is meant for in order to find out, if it makes sense for your business.

If you believe that Pinterest is relevant for your business, make sure your own website it ‘Pin-friendly’ so your website visitors can easily add your pictures to their own boards.

#2: Brand your Pins!
I know, it takes time to add your logo or a small watermark to your pictures, but believe me: it’s so worth the effort!

“By including your logo on photos, when users share that photo, they’re sharing your logo”, says Alexis Krisay, a partner at Serendipit Consulting.

This Pin-example shows, that the picture includes the name of the website (blog) and many useful hashtags in the description. This better your Pins are branded from beginning on, the better users will be able to find you and your products on your website. You should always keep in mind: they are willing to BUY – so make it easy for them to find you!

#3: Follow, follow, follow & engage
One important key is to identify the users and boards that are of interest for you and your business. If you can follow and engage with them, you see how fast you’ll be able to create your own community.

Just like on every other social media platform it is important for you business to engage with your users:

Like and comment
Make sure you ‘like’ and ‘comment’ the Pins of other users. This shows you are active, you ‘see’ them and you add value to their opinions. It also helps you to become more personal as a brand and business!

Tag and use names
When you comment on user’s pins, make sure you use hashtags (#). By this important keywords stand out and you automatically create more options for your business to be found for possible clients who are using the same key- and search words.

#4: Pin right
It’s not about what YOU think is the best Pin, but what your community thinks and wants to see. To use Pinterest correctly for your business, you should always try to ask yourself: what do my users want to see?

Here are some tips that can help you, to pin right:

What are your clients pinning?
If you know what your clients and users are pinning, you can easier reach and target them! Through that you’ll find out how you can inspire them and what they are looking for. You can provide answers to their questions and be their inspiration and solution by knowing what they want.

Add valuable content to your Pins
Include your website, important information, your prices and everything that can be of interest or importance for your audience. The more value you can create for the community, the more relevant you’ll be perceived.

Include ‘call-to-action’ Pins
Research shows, that if you include a call-to-action Pin, you can see an 80% increase in engagement. The following Pin from ‘One Hundred Apparel’ is a good and successful example:

#5: Don’t forget SEO
When setting up your Pins, don’t forget SEO! Next your goal to engage with other users, you want to increase your traffic. Pinterest is an easy tool to increase your SEO – if you do it right! 

Through being in touch and ‘linked’ to other users, you will fast see that also your SEO increases automatically, if you:

Make your Pins show up
Use the right keywords, add your URL and many suitable hashtags, so your Pins will appear!

Understand the Pinterest Search
In the Pinterest search bar you can search for Pins, Boards and People. If you want to appear there, you have to include your keywords in your Pin title! 

Depending on whom you want to target, you should smartly chose your keywords. Also you shouldn’t forget the ‘about’ part in your profile. Use all 200 characters to define yourself and don’t forget to include the link to your website.

Pin from your website
Try to pin as much as possible the original images from your website, because this is the place you want your traffic to go.

http://emarketingblog.nl/2014/12/5-simple-tips-how-to-use-pinterest-for-your-business/