The DreamPix Studio

Should you follow your competition on Social Media?

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I have often been asked this question and my answer is an undeniable “yes”. It is beneficial to follow your competition a variety of reasons. I do it myself all the time.

Why should you follow your competitors?

  • It allows you to stay abreast of what’s going on in the industry. Your competitor‘s thoughts may be beneficial to your own business.
  • Their ideas will help with your own creative brainstorming sparking new ideas.
  • Participation allows you to be a part of the larger conversation. It’s all about becoming an authority in your field.
  • It is an opportunity to learn – see what works for your competition and what doesn’t and apply that knowledge to your own business.

The biggest question is whether you should follow them opening or secretly. I prefer an open and honest approach. There is plenty of business to go around and there are benefits to getting to know your competitors and mutually sharing information. The secret approach allows businesses to “steal” ideas and even disgruntled customers. There is no harm in getting great ideas from others and staying informed keeps us at our competitive best.

Your Next Big Blog Idea

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bluemmDeveloping engaging content that is original, relevant, and timely is a challenge for many. There are a few questions that should help you brainstorm for an idea that will captivate your audience.

  1. What is the headache du jour for your industry? I have recently blogged about the hacking of WordPress because trying to outsmart criminals has become a daily challenge. I might share ideas for nifty CAPTCHA or database backups plugins.
  2. What questions are your customer’s asking? This is an easy one as barely a day goes by that a customer doesn’t toss a how-to in my direction. Chances are that there are others out there looking for answers to the same question.
  3. What are people talking about in the industry? Do a quick scan of blogs or newsletters from your industry and find out what the hot topic is. Two weeks ago for me, it was Google’s vow to slap those who are not mobile-friendly.
  4. Storytelling about your brand. It’s always fun to share stories that will provoke conversation and build loyalty.
  5. What are your competitors doing? While you don’t want to mimic them it always helps to keep the creative juices stimulated by following the competition.
  6. What are the latest industry trends in your business? There is a learning curve in every industry and in order to be an authority in your field you need to keep up with the latest and greatest trends and share them with your audience so they know how savvy you really are.
  7. Look at industries outside of your own and think about how it is relevant to your line of work. I am always motivated by the marketing ideas of other industries. Last week I visited the M&M store in NYC and was fascinated with the various characters that were developed for each color of the chocolate-coated candy. You never know where your next big idea will come from.

It’s Armageddon against the Mobile Unfriendly

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mobile_friendlyGoogle declares Armageddon against those who have failed to comply with mobile standards. As of April 21, any website that is not mobile-friendly will fall from grace and be booted down in search rankings. It’s been nearly ten years since the first mobile devices were introduced and alas, static sites are being sent the way of analog television, CD ROM’S, and video cassettes.

What is a mobile responsive website?

Simply put, it is a website whose viewpoint changes when displayed on various devices. The images and content are styled in a way that allows it to adjust properly to accommodate different browsers on different devices. Any business that wishes to stay competitive in their local market niche should be certain that they are showing off their right assets.

Plug your URL into this mobile-friendly page by Google and see if you are meeting the grade.

The Anatomy of a Website – Five main Components

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Anatomy of a Web Page

  1. Header

    The header is the face of a website and the most important section as it is the cornerstone of your branding. It typically contains the company logo and tagline which, at the very least, should tell readers who the business is and what they do.

  2. Good Navigation

    The navigation bar is the map of a website. All the material should be organized and labeled so that visitors can easily and logically navigate to the information that they are looking for without getting lost in their travels.

  3. Stylized Content

    Compelling readable content with headlines that sell is a must. Brands have a matter of seconds to capture the attention of net surfing guests so it is important to engage them with valuable content.

  4. Memory Hooks

    Statistics show that photos and videos are more memorable than content alone. Make the most of the available real estate on your web page and showcase products and services in the best light possible with high-quality images and informative videos.

  5. Trust Symbols

    Visitors look for signs that a company has a solid reputation and is socially acceptable. Reviews, blog feeds, social media icons, contact information, and industry affiliations all help to build trust with potential clients.

Five Goals Your Website Should Achieve

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WEBSITE_MUSTSWebsites have changed drastically since the birth of the first website in 1989. Early websites were nothing more than online storage systems that evolved into online business cards and eventually evolved into an extension of a business. In order to serve as a viable marketing tool today, a website must meet specific criteria. Aside from the obvious factors such as being mobile responsive, user friendly, and search engine optimized a business website must also achieve the following five goals:

  1. Tell a Good Story

    What makes you different than your competitors and why should a potential customer choose your company? Your website is an extension of your company tasked with achieving the same sales and marketing goals. Tell your story and tell it well.

  2. Educate and Inform

    Your content should answer all the questions that a visitor might have about your products and services so that they are able to make an informed purchasing decision.

  3. Flaunt Your Stuff

    Put your services and products in the best light possible. Use videos, great photography, and well-written content to showcase your goods.

  4. Wow your Audience with an Interactive Experience

    Incorporate social media and actively blog. It’s important to leave visitors wanting more so that they will return again.

  5. Reflect your Brand – be Recognizable & Memorable

    The theme of your website should be consistent with the overall brand of your company. Stay away from generic out-of-box websites that represent any brand USA. Customization and personalization go a long way.

Website Spring Cleaning

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Alas, the snow is melting but winter has left an indelible mark on the landscape. It is likely that your company website is a bit stale after its long winter’s nap. Here are a few tips to freshen things up.

  1. Perk up the content with new seasonal material. Every has subject matter that is more pertinent at one time of the year than another. Take advantage of seasonal opportunities by freshening content and images so that visitors have something new to engage them when they visit your website.
  2. Is your SEO working for you? It’s easy to fall behind, see where you stand with Google. Is your competition coming in ahead of you on search pages? Perhaps it’s time to mix up your keyword phrases and page titles so they are more competitive in your local market niche.
  3. Get Chatty.  Don’t be a wallflower on social media platforms – be an engaging conversationalist who adds value to the discussion. Be sure to include social media links on your website and blog posts. It will help you to build trusting relationships with customers.
  4. Mobile Compatibility. Google is now officially punishing those websites that are not mobile responsive. A review of the analytics of the websites that I manage shows that about 70% of visitors are on desktop computers, 18-20% are on mobile devices and 10% are on tablets. That means that about 30% of visitors are essentially on mobile platforms and that’s a big number to turn away if your website is not compatible with the mobile device.
  5. Credibility. If old holiday ads are still on your home page it is time to tuck them away for next year. Outdated material, misspellings, and bad links are a turn off for visitors and your competitor is only a click away.

Once you’ve completed the spring dusting and cleaning your analytics report should perk up a bit.

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly: Online Reviews

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goodbaduglyNegative reviews and comments are the nemeses of every business owner. However, the most important reason to reply to online comments – whether they are good, bad, or ugly – is not to satisfy the author but to influence the other people who are reading the comments. The majority of readers refrain from commenting but they are paying attention to what has been said and how a company responds to customer complaints.

Here are a few rules of thumb when responding to online reviews:

  1. Be short, sweet, and professional: Remember that the best defense is a good offense! Rather than defend your character by blaming the reviewer or making excuses, take a professional approach. Apologize for their unfortunate experience and offer an opportunity to make it up to them. Social media is no place to air dirty laundry keep the conversation to a minimum.
  2. Make the most of the input: Companies pay big money for consumer research. Pay attention to the information that you collect from customers. It may be difficult to hear the negative comments but it is important to learn from them.
  3. Be aware of your audience: Remember that there are many people who are reading your responses. This is an opportunity for you to showcase diplomacy, customer service, and subsequently build trust with your customer base.
  4. Pay a Professional: Consider hiring a social media manager or assign a capable person to monitor social media sites and make timely replies that reflect a consistent voice and message.

Why is Instagram so great for brands?

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When I first heard about Instagram, I cringed at the thought of learning yet another social media platform. That is until I saw the storyboard of my twenty-year-old pelicanson, and then I understood the craze. Instagram is a way to instantly document the special little moments in daily life and share them with your family and friends. Using his phone it was easy for my son to snap a photo of the green eggs and ham waffle sandwich that he had just ordered, the crazies on Venus Beach, or the pelican that sat down beside his girlfriend on Huntington pier.

In another time, these memories might have been lost as we didn’t have a camera in our hand 24-7. Thanks to smartphones we can savior the little things in life. Among the other pluses of Instagram:

  • The app integrates well with Facebook.
  • It has the capability of creating short video clips.
  • You can follow your friends and see what they are up to.
  • It’s hashtag friendly.

How does it benefit brands?

If a picture is worth a thousand words then Instagram should be the social media vehicle of choice for brands in the apparel, entertainment, and food industry who are trying to reach those under the age of 35. Instagram users are not just sharing selfies but they are posting photos of food, favorite stores, clothing, jewelry, sporting events, and more. It is essentially free advertising. Try it, You’ll like it!

LinkedIn as a Blogging Tool

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LinkedIn is a great vehicle to increase exposure to your website, content, and brand message. I’m referring to blog posts, videos, podcasts, webinars, white papers, and the like that have a business slant. In fact, LinkedIn has a convenient publishing platform that will allow users to either link a feed to your LinkedIn profile or create a post. It is a terrific way to increase your visibility and improve your professional brand. When a member publishes a post on LinkedIn, the information becomes part of their professional profile and is shared with their network. Why not take advantage of the opportunity to share with your connections? Isn’t that what networking is all about?

Four Keys to Effective Social Media

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Tools

Most small businesses that are just getting their feet wet using social media are unable to effectively market themselves on multiple platforms. It is best to embrace a select few and do it well rather than to jump on the social media bandwagon and be left speechless. The three most effective social media tools for small business owners are Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. While each has a different style these platforms are powerful enough to build a solid social foundation for any business before they expand into other social media outlets such as Pinterest and Vine.

Time

be sure to schedule the time to work on Social Media. Whether it is a block of time once, twice or three times a week it is the most effective way to approach this very necessary task.

Timing

The timing of posts is crucial to effective social media marketing. Research shows that just before or after the hours, around meal times and Tuesdays and Thursdays are the prime posting times. There are business-specific preferences that should also be considered such as weekend postings for restaurants and bars.

Topics

Social media platforms are not an opportunity for brands to talk about themselves. In fact, 85% of the chatter should be about topics that are fun, timely or valuable. Like a good dinner guest, it is impolite to monopolize the conversation talking about oneself.