Tag: Twitter

The Business Impact of Twitter: It’s Come a Long Way [New Data]

October 20, 2011 By Josh Mendelsohn Leave a Comment

While many people still cling to the unfortunate original uses of Twitter (“Where is Ashton Kutcher eating lunch today?”) as a reason to stay away, the fact is that for the people who actually use the microblogging service — 200 million of them — it can be a powerful way for consumers to connect directly with brands of all sizes.

We just released some really cool new research conducted along with our friends at Chadwick Martin Bailey that helps tell the story of why you, as a small business or organization, should get in the Twitter game. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Social Media Marketing Tagged With: ,

Quantity vs. Quality: How Many Twitter Followers Do You Really Need?

October 13, 2011 By Blaise Lucey 1 Comment

In this age of social media, when there’s such an emphasis on getting more fans, followers, and subscribers, it’s easy to feel a bit anxious about increasing your Twitter following.

But are large numbers of followers what you should really be concerned with?

What it really comes down to is the ancient and alluring alliteration — quality versus quantity. That’s why we took the debate to our managing editor, Martin Lieberman, and our senior content developer, Dave Charest. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Social Media Marketing Tagged With: , ,

Pardon My Eavesdropp​ing, But Are You Enjoying My Event?

October 6, 2011 By Dave Charest Leave a Comment

One of the best ways to find out if you’re running a successful event is to listen to your event attendees. The good news is that social mediamakes it easier than ever to “eavesdrop” on what your attendees are saying — while the event is taking place. And you won’t need to get a court order to do any of it.

With the right amount of planning you can make sure you’re doing a great job and head off any potential problems before they get out of hand.

Let’s take a look at 8 ways you can eavesdrop while creating an atmosphere of open sharing. This will allow you to ramp up engagement and gather some instant feedback during your event. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Event Marketing, Surveys and Feedback Tagged With: , , , , ,

Want More Fans and Followers? Look to Your Email List!

September 26, 2011 By Martin Lieberman 1 Comment

You’ve got a strong email list, the result of months’ worth of effort to get people to sign up. But if you’re going to make the most of an email and social media mix, and want to connect with your customers, donors, clients, members, volunteers, and prospects in more than one place, then you’re going to need Facebook fans and Twitter followers too, not to mention connections on LinkedIn.

The good news is that you can use your existing email list to help build your social following. Here are 6 easy ways to do that:

1. Send a dedicated email. Start by sending a special, one-time email to your subscribers announcing your social media presence. But don’t stop there. Tell these people why they should also connect with you on social media in addition to email. For example, it’s because they’ll get additional tips/advice, learn about special offers, or whatever else you plan to share. We’re a fan of telling subscribers that social media is where they can join you in a conversation. After all, email is a one-way “push,” so your loyal customers will want to go somewhere where they can interact with you.

2. Include links in your email newsletter. After you’ve announced your social presence, make your social media presence a regular part of your normal mailings by adding links to your social network profiles within the emails you already send. This will provide a constant reminder that customers can connect with you in multiple places.

3. Encourage discussion. In your email newsletter, ask people what they think of the topics you discuss. Then direct them to your Facebook Page or Twitter handle, and encourage them to share their thoughts. These kinds of strong social calls to action will provide a link between the two channels. Just be sure you monitor the discussion so you can reply and keep it going.

4. Encourage social sharing. Incorporating sharing features into your email marketing gets your email out onto social networks where it’ll be seen by people beyond your mailing list … people who may, then, look for you on those sites and connect with you there.

5. Feature an exclusive offer. Why not make Facebook or Twitter the place to be by featuring an offer that people can only see if they Like your Facebook Page or are following you on Twitter? Promote this offer to your email subscribers and encourage them to connect with you on social media.

6. Incentivize your subscribers. I’m still a big fan of Dingo, a business that ran a campaign to increase its number of Facebook Likes, and did so by offering a $20 coupon to email subscribers once it reached 5,000 Likes. Your goal number doesn’t have to be as ambitious, but you can reward your email subscribers if they help you get to your desired number.

How have you built your social media following? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below.

Filed Under: Email Marketing, Social Media Marketing Tagged With: , ,

Want Success on Social Media? Get People Talking!

August 24, 2011 By Martin Lieberman Leave a Comment

We all scream for ice cream at Constant Contact.

And yesterday, our hungry team received a nice surprise: The Ben & Jerry’s truck stopped by our Waltham office to serve us some free ice cream.

For the second year in a row, the company has been traveling around giving out tasty treats (other lucky cities this summer have included San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, and New York). Some locations on the truck’s tour are pre-set, but for a good number of them, Ben & Jerry’s is asking its fans to tweet their hearts out to get the truck to swing by their offices. That’s exactly what many at Constant Contact did.

And it worked; we all enjoyed some delicious Americone Dreamand other flavors.

The Ben & Jerry’s campaign revolved around a simple concept: It got people talking about the brand. And the more people talked up the brand, the more likely it was that they’d get something in return. Yes, there was an incentive involved, but Ben & Jerry’s generated plenty of “free” publicity just by asking people to mention it, and to do so in a light-hearted context (using the hashtag #OMGFreeBenJerrys made it even more fun).

Can you imagine how much goodwill and exposure the campaign generated in total, and how many people saw the Ben & Jerry’s name in their friends’ Twitter feeds? [Read more...]

Filed Under: Social Media Marketing Tagged With: ,

Bad Customer Feedback: How Would You Respond?

August 18, 2011 By Martin Lieberman 3 Comments

The Houston Press reported on its website earlier this week about a restaurant in Houston that decided to eject a customer for posting a negative tweet while she was still in the establishment. Apparently, a manager was checking out Twitter from his home Sunday night when he saw the tweet, since deleted, which called the restaurant’s bartender a “twerp.” (The tweet also included an inappropriate hashtag.) The manager called the restaurant to speak to the customer and told her to leave.

Responding to negative feedback on social media is always a delicate situation, especially when the feedback is not just negative but insulting, as this was. You can take the aggressive approach of this business owner, or you can handle it in a more professional manner. If you’d rather take the latter path, here are four ways to deal with negative comments: [Read more...]

Filed Under: Surveys and Feedback Tagged With: ,

Fire Up Your Marketing with Mini Campaigns

June 8, 2011 By Gail Goodman Leave a Comment

Small business owners tell us they’re eager to find new cost-effective ways to engage their customers.

The explosion of social media and other online marketing tools — combined with the growing popularity of Internet-connected mobile devices — means businesses have more ways to communicate with customers than ever before.

If you’re like most entrepreneurs we meet, you have lots of marketing communications options — but not a lot of time to figure out which tools and tactics might work best. The good news is you can try new ways of marketing your business without investing a great deal of time and resources.

How can you accomplish that? With what we like to call “mini marketing campaigns.” [Read more...]

Filed Under: Fresh Insights Tagged With: , , ,

Big Jones Takes a Big Bite Out of the Chicago Dining Scene

June 2, 2011 By Martin Lieberman Leave a Comment

For most small business owners, it all starts with an idea. That was the case for Mark Armantrout. Three years ago, he joined with his friend, Paul Fehribach, to open a restaurant in the Andersonville neighborhood of Chicago. That restaurant, called Big Jones, would serve sustainable, organic, and local farm ingredients, through a menu focused on coastal Southern cooking.

Like any big city, Chicago is filled with many restaurants, of all sizes. So it’s a testament to Mark and Paul’s hard work (and good food) that today, Big Jones is going strong, attracting diners from the north side of Chicago and the north shore suburbs. We caught up with Mark to discuss how Big Jones has been able to connect with these customers and to spread the word to even more diners. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Email Marketing Tagged With: , , , ,

Personaliz​ed Service Helps Monogram Lane Find Success

June 2, 2011 By Martin Lieberman Leave a Comment

Longtime friends Barbara Watkins and Cheryl Headley say it was fate that led them to become small business owners. Three years ago, when they discovered an opportunity to purchase an existing business, they considered it a chance to make their dreams a reality. Today, Monogram Lane is an online retail business that offers many personalized items — from jewelry to car accessories to cell phone cases and much more. Monogram Lane remains a two-person business, and the duo say they are still living their dream.

One of Monogram Lane’s keys to success has been customer service that’s as personal as the products it sells. As part of our celebration of National Small Business Week, we caught up with Barbara to learn how the friends have built such a successful business, and how that personal touch translates to its marketing efforts on social media and in email. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Email Marketing Tagged With: , , ,
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