Social Media Becoming More Credible, What Do People Search Most…and 3 more.

(Originally posted 7/27/2015)

1) Print, internet, search engines, social media…what do people use most for search?

That’s a question that many small businesses ask regularly. And the numbers are constantly evolving. To offer the most up-to-date detailed answer to that question, the Local Search Association posed that question to the public, and included the results in their 2014 year end report. You can see a snapshot of the results here @ LSAInsider.com.

What it tells us is the following:

• The search method used depends on the type of business the consumer is searching for.
• Print yellow pages are not completely dead, (maybe life-support is a better description.)
• Store circulars still rule for grocery stores.
• Social media and review websites are a legitimate source for search results.
• Search engines are the strongest overall source of search results for consumers.

Ok, so what should you do with this information? If you are a small business, don’t hold on to your print yellow pages just because it’s familiar. Don’t drop them altogether either. YP’s remain a legitimate help for a couple of business segments. It’s just that in most of those cases search engines still beat them. Ask for help to improve your organic search results and definitely ask for help in crafting a quality pay-per-click campaign. You can manage those yourself as well, but they take time and expertise. And don’t overlook social media and review sites for their search value as well. They are a growing player in search overall, and are preferred by some consumers for certain categories.

And what do you do with this information if you are a marketing provider? You should know that all searches are not the same. Acknowledge that print YP’s while loosing value, still provide some results. Know where digital opportunities may benefit customers the most. Some categories may benefit greatly with a quality SEM campaign, and others may need to beef up their social media presence in order to improve search from that direction. And don’t overlook the overall growth of social media in regards to search.

2) Facebook and Twitter continue to grow as sources of news. 

Facebook and Twitter continue to be growing “go-to” channels for news consumption for a majority of their users. More than 60% of Facebook and Twitter users said they use these platforms to access news, a 10% jump since 2013. Although Facebook is the larger of the two social networks, Twitter is the leader of the two in following “breaking news. Facebook is also a “trusted source” in delivering news to millennials and younger age groups. According to a recent study conducted by the Acquity Group, millennials placed greater trust in the news they found on Facebook than that found in print newspapers. And it may be no surprise that baby-boomers still placed greater trust in legacy media. You can see more on the results of this study here @ Digiday.

What does this mean to small businesses? It means that Facebook and Twitter are about much more than puppy videos, mundane daily updates, and a source for announcing social gatherings. A real audience accesses these channels, and well placed advertising messages hit on these networks hits a relevant audience. Advertising on social media channels is different than simply transferring a classified or newspaper ad to the media. You can ask for some expert guidance, or go to Facebook or Twitters customer service sections and learn more about how to reach these connected audiences.

What does this mean to local media providers? See the previous statement. If you are providing advertising to small businesses, learn more about how social media works, how the audience interacts with it, and what types of marketing are most effective.

3) Online listings, which ones are the most important? 

There are literally, 100’s of online listing, or directory, sites. As a small business, do I have to be on all of them? The answer to that is probably no. But which ones you “shouldn’t” be on I would be hesitent to say. And likely, your business information will end up on them anyway thru web crawlers, 3rd party data sharing, and social media pages (this last one you will want to watch.)

So what does a small business need to do about these listings sights? You need to make sure the information on them is 100% accurate, and consistent across the board. Anything less starts to harm your ability to maximize your search ranking when you deserve it. There are 4 major data compilers that distribute to a vast number of listing companies. Making sure these compilers have your accurate information is easy but you will have to work thru a 3rd party to insure it is done properly. You can talk to your digital agency or your local media provider about that. There are a small handful of listing companies that really drive results, and are somewhat destinations by themselves. Directories such as Google + and Yelp should be paid close attention to. The best practice is for the small business to claim (or verify) listings on these directories directly. Doing it yourself will allow you to own the information and know how it got there. If you have someone do it for you, make sure you work closely with them so you will always know the correct path to revise. Once claimed, the listing should be enhanced…or added to. You can add photos, information about your business, business hours, almost anything the directory will allow. You should also invite others to comment on your store or business on these sites. Search engines love fresh content, and robust content. The more content, and the fresher the content, the better search results you will be able to achieve. You can see more on this, plus the 7 directory listing sites that you should impact first, here @ VerticalResponse.com/blog.

What does this mean to me if I am a small business owner? It means you can take control of your online directory listings today. You can take steps to start improving your overall search rsults and “find-ability” on the web. What does this mean if I am a local media provider? It means that directory listings should be something to be paid attention to, they can morph and change without the business knowing and providing a level of reputation intelligence to keep watch over the accuracy of these listings is the bare minimum level of service you should be providing.

4) Hello Jeff…take a step back Sam.

So, to start out, no disrespect meant towards Mr. Walton. It’s just that Amazon is now larger than Walmart.

This means little to small businesses right? I mean neither one of these companies is even remotely close to being considered a “small business.” Not so fast…while this does refer to the market cap of both companies (not number of employees, number of locations, or number of wigits either one sells), it also speaks to how the market and the world is valuing their overall business model. And it says that the world is valuing Amazon’s model a little higher than that of Walmart these days. It’s a seminal moment that you will look back on some time in the future, and be able to say you saw the shift occurring, right as it was happening.

What does this mean to small business? It means that purchasing over the web, and delivery options matter to the public. It means that if you are not looking at e-commerce right now, maybe you should be, at least reviewing your options for the future. And what does this mean for local advertising providers? It means that your clients have competitors doing business in new ways, and you’ll have to be aware of them to help your current clients. It also means that you should learn more about e-commerce options that your clients may want to select from, to help them make their decision at the right time.

Check out the story, here on Quartz.

5) What’s the definition of a “small” business? 

What do a single-proprietor business, a lone plumber for instance, have in common with a 300 employee manufacturer of plumbing fixtures that sells wholesale to the public? Well, they both might be considered small businesses. In truth, while there is a specific definition of what defines a business as small, there are actually multiple specific definitions that are not always the same. Australia defines it differently than does Europe, and the US has several varying definitions, all with some overlapping commonality. For our world, we might be able to summarize a small business as the following: less than 500 employees, has a specific physical customer-facing location, and has a B2C business model.

What does this mean to me if I am one of these small business owners? It means you are among a formidable crowd, nearly 5 million of you in fact. Small businesses are starting to get more attention than ever, and there is now becoming an entire marketing industry that wants to focus on your needs. If you are a marketing services provider, this means that your potential customers are vast, but it also means that you need to be very much on top of your game in order to help small businesses with their marketing needs. Find more on this here @ StreetFightMag.

So now it’s time for me to work a little harder to get back on top of my game, thanks all…until the next post.

Mobile’s Tipping Point Has Arrived, SMB’s Not Prepared for Mobilegeddon, Native Advertising and more…,

(Originally posted 7/19/2015)

1) Mobile beats desktop in users, and now advertising purchases as well.

For several years, mobile has been touted as the digital channel that would swallow up all others. The audience was there with more mobile web access today than desktop. But the dollars never seemed to bear that out with mobile spending lagging. That is now about to change with mobile ad spend taking off in the latter half of 2015. In fact the forecasts for 2015 are that mobile and desktop ad spend are virtually even, and from 2016 on mobile will take the lead over all digital platforms for ad spend.

If you are a digital advertising provider that does not have customers as engaged in mobile as in desktop, this means you might need to start asking why. And if you are a local business, it means that there will be more competition than ever for ad placements on mobile websites and apps and you need to be working with at strong digital agency for best placement. See more on this here @ eMarketer. 

2) Advertisers that did not prepare for mobile-first are paying the price.

Remember a couple of months back when Google changed its search algorithms (there’s that word again) making mobile websites that were not optimized much harder to find? At the time, it was called “Mobilegeddon” as the potential obliteration of all non-optimized sites from search results. If you were a local business with a site that was not optimized, you would be impossible to find via mobile search, or so they said.

Early results taken after Google’s shift may have suggested  that this was all to do about very little, and there was very little change or impact on non-optimized websites. But those were the early results. The latest read on the impact of these changes in Google search results is telling a different story. In fact, in a recent report from Adobe systems, it looks like non-optimized sites have seen a 10% drop in traffic from mobile searches over the past 2 months. And since it simply took a little longer for this impact to be recorded, the likelihood is that the impact on non-optimized sites will continue to increase.

If you are a local business, this means that you must make sure your mobile presence is optimized for maximum viewing and usage. And if you are a digital marketing service provider, it means that you should be paying more attention to this side of your client’s business. See more on this here @ CMO.com.

3) Spending on Native Advertising is Soaring!

Native is one of the hottest topics in digital media…ok, so what is it?

Native advertising is simply advertising that appears “native” to the format in which it is presented. (Native Advertising takes on several titles…Sponsored Content, Content Marketing.) So, that means an ad that appears like a news story, and is presented within a news feed on a website. In the old days these were “advertorials”, or “infomercials” on TV. But Native has become very sophisticated. It is highly effective, and is available to advertisers of all sizes, provided local media is practicing the strategy. (Note: The Fayetteville Observer and Liberty Point Media offer professionally created Native Advertising campaigns for their clients.) See more on the growth of Native Advertising here @ BusinessInsider.

4) How to measure the ROI of a Native Advertising (Sponsored Content) campaign.

OK, so you are sold on the concept of using a feature article, appearing as part of the news, as a component of your marketing plan. (Yes it works marvelously!) But measuring merely on click-thru-rate (CTR) is missing a majority of the value of a good native campaign. Remember, it is basically a well-written article, and social media is a significant part of the effort. Because of this, it’s more important than ever to nail down the marketing goal ahead of time. Once that is accomplished, you’ll want to measure the metrics associated with that goal as well as the capabilities of the media used. This is not complicated, and it’s something a good digital agency can do for its customers.

If you are a small business thinking about utilizing native advertising, you will want to firmly establish your goals ahead of time. If you are a digital advertising provider that includes native advertising as a featured marketing component, you will want to be prepared to hep your client use it well and provide analytics to back up the value of the campaign. You can see more on this here @ ConvinceandConvert. 

5) Different types of SMB’s demand different marketing approaches…or when is social media “not” a good strategy?

One size fits all…NOT…for small and mid-sized business marketing. That may seem academic, but too many times the marketing decision boils down to what the guy next door is doing, regardless of what the guy next door does for a living. The right marketing solution(s) are dedicated to deliver what the SMB needs to drive business, and that differs from business owner to business owner. These are some of the concepts discussed by industry experts in a panel on Hyper-Local Businesses in NYC. If you are a local business owner, or if you are a digital marketing services provider, you’ll want to see more on this here @ StreetFightMag.

Advertising Trends for Small Businesses in 2015 (cont.)

(Originally posted 7/12/2015)

In the last posting, I offered some of Borrell Research’s 2015 SMB study results. Some interesting, and maybe not so surprising, results showed that small and mid-sized businesses are looking to increase their digital focus in 2015, as a continuation of the ongoing trend for several years. Exactly where is that focus going to be placed, according to these businesses? Here’s 5 directions that we now see coming out of the work that Borrell Research has accomplished.

1) How many $$’s do the average SMB’s devote to marketing? 

Small to mid-sized businesses don’t have dollars to toss around. That’s not a critique, it’s just a fact. Every large business started as a small business at one time, budgets are all relative. In Borrell’s study that included more than 7200 businesses interviewed of all shapes and sizes, one-quarter of the respondents said they intend to spend less than $5000. That works out to a monthly budget of under $400 for those businesses. Try to spread that out amongst all the advertising sales contenders that these businesses have to deal with and you see the importance of a strong presentation if you are one of those contenders.

Overall, the average marketing spend for these SMB’s came to 6% of gross revenues. This is an average and is not meant to be the “target” for all businesses, but it does provide a benchmark. And it’s important to remember that this figure includes ALL marketing efforts, whether or not they are directly related to media. So that includes sponsorships, signs, business cards, etc.

2) Everybody is advertising on Facebook…well, not so fast.

No, everyone is not advertising on Facebook. In fact slightly less than 1/3 of the businesses surveyed claimed to have conducted any paid advertising on FB in the past year. So does that mean that Facebook is a mirage? NO! It means that FB is growing. Frankly 75% of all those that have advertised on FB are at lease somewhat satisfied with the results. In addition, Facebook is constantly changing and trying to improve. In fact, earlier this year, FB reported a 46% increase in advertising revenue. So expect, sooner than later, that a majority of local businesses will be paying for Facebook advertising. The trick is, how to do it right. That’s what experts are for.

3) Everybody advertises on Google…not so fast.

No, everyone does not advertiser on Google. In fact according to the Borrell SMB survey, just a little over 20% of small to mid-sized businesses claimed to have advertise on Google in the past year. Does that surprise you? The univerfe of small to mid-sized businesses is huge, a number of them less than 10 employees. They need help and guidance too. SMB’s remain a very under-serviced sector by marketing firms. It’s where much of the growth is going to be in the coming years. And for Google, they have much more than the predominant pay-per-click, or SEM that tends to confuse and confound a number of people. Google’s network of display advertising opportunities, sophisticated targeting and regarding provide options for large and small advertisers. Google is well beyond being a search engine company.

4) Not all marketing is advertising.

More and more, small business is recognizing the value of a marketing “mix.” Whether that means generating new customers from a Groupon offer, or sponsoring the local Little League team, or exhibiting at our local Dogwood Festival here in Fayetteville, it’s all becoming part of the mix. And it’s a larger part than before. Marketing spend devoted to non-advertising is nearly 1/3 of the average SMB’s marketing budget. That is not by chance anymore, it’s part of an overall strategy…because done wisely it works!

5) SMB’s are expecting alot out of social media. Possibly too much?

What is social media supposed to do for a business? Can it bring in new business, while improving engagement with current customers, while at the same time generating incremental sales volume? Maybe social media can, when it’s used properly. The point here is that overall, when a business is posting to its current audience, it’s doing just that…speaking to its current audience. Generating new customers won’t occur unless current customers share posts with their friends, and that meant that the business needs to keep that in mind when posting. If a business is not promoting or boosting their posts to a targeted audience, generating new business is going to be a long uphill climb. Don’t get me wrong, social media is here to stay and its use as a marketng tool is only going to increase. But if a small business wants new customers out of their social media posts, that will require a different social strategy than the one that focuses on engaging current customers. And if you are a social media marketing provider, understanding the customer’s expectations is a primary goal in being a good partner to the SMB.

*Borrell SMB Survey 2015

Advertising Trends For Small Businesses in 2015

(Originally posted 6/17/2015)

Borrell’s SMB (Small and Medium Sized Businesses) 2015 study is out showing advertising and marketing trends. Borrell Research, a highly regarded firm serving the media industry, has conducted the SMB study for a number of years now. This study is conducted nationally and focuses on all shapes and sizes of small and local businesses to determine their advertising needs and trends. This study is valuable for small businesses, media providers, and local agencies alike to show benchmarks, trends, habits, what’s going up and what’s going down. The complete study is available for a price, but below are 5 take-aways that shed some light on what SMB’s and media providers are facing today, as well as what they may be facing tomorrow. More on this study will be included in future posts, for now, here’s 5 Digital Points.

1) Ad spending in digital media now equals that of ad spending in newspapers.

Digital media spend, (at all levels) in the US now exceeds that of newspapers, but this study focuses on SMB’s. Newspapers have historically been a pretty good value for these local customers. As of 2015, digital has now achieved the same level of overall investment as newspapers. Some of this is the result of less investment in print, as well as a much greater investment in digital.

So does this mean that newspapers are not working? Nobody is saying that newspapers no longer provide an advertising channel worth considering for SMB’s. But it does mean that digital media is working very well, and it’s use for small business marketing is increasing in double-digit percentage spurts. The days of a small business owner advertising in the local newspaper because that’s what they’ve done in the past are over. Look for digital to overtake local newspaper investment in the next study.

2) More sales are generated via the web than over the telephone for SMB’s.

Does this surprise you? The web offers a direct path for interested customers to reach a business. It offers small businesses the opportunity to showcase their expertise and to promote. If you are a small business owner, are you using your website to achieve its maximum potential as a sales channel? If you are a local media provider are you directing your clients to look harder at their web presence to generate real business?

3) Small business owners receive a whole mess of sales pitches from advertising providers every month.

On the average, small businesses are approached more than 16 times a month by advertising sales people. and a small proportion receive as many as 50 pitches. And of these sales pitches, SMB’s actually listen to just a little over 1/4 of them. If you are a local media provider trying to present to a small business, this means you really have to be on top of your game. And if you are a small business owner…well…you have my sincerest respect.

4) An average SMB uses nearly 5 media outlets in their marketing mix. 

So, after all those pitches from advertising providers, are you surprised that the average small business takes advantage of just under five? Maybe this really means that SMB’s are willing to listen to new ideas, but then making good decisions based on the information they receive. If you are a local media company, or an advertising provider, again, this means that you really need to be on top of your game, provide the SMB with a clear understanding of how you will help them achieve their specific goals. And again, if you are a small business owner, you continue to have my respect for your decision making.

5) A good website is a hot commodity.

So of all the digital investments that are talked about (but more importantly needed) in 2015, websites and website hosting are the most sought after. And that makes sense, because a website is the business home and storefront for many small businesses today. An SMB trying to conduct business without a website is…(let me think now)…maybe not conducting business at all. (It also points to the “comoditization” of these services.) Also important to note in the graph above, SEO and social media management rank #3 and #4. So if SMB’s are budgeting for these services, and they are that important, that should put to rest the misconception that SEO and social media management are free.

So, to sum it up for now, if you are a small business, you have much to consider. You have to make the most of the time and the budget you have. And if you are a local media provider or an advertising service provider, you have to consider what SMB’s are faced with, and what helps drive their business. You have to get your point across in a succinct manner, and in a way that shows value to the SMB.

More on Borrell’s 2015 SMB study in the next installment.

Video On Facebook Is Growing, How Many FB Posts Per Week Is Correct, and 3 More…

(Originally posted 5/27/2015)

1) Mobile is growing everywhere, but what about desktop?

Mobile audience, mobile web, and mobile app usage are all growing…and growing very fast. But that does not mean that fewer people are accessing websites via desktop. In fact, desktop access is holding its own quite well, even growing for some sites. What does this mean for online marketers? It means you can still focus efforts on mobile, but ignoring desktop may be ignoring a portion of an audience that could be beneficial. The moral of the story is that the internet is not a “zero-sum game.” More on this here @ WSJ.com.

2) Video on Facebook, a good way for business to reach customers.

More than half of all daily Facebook visitors in the U.S. watch at least one video a day.  And more than 3/4’s of American Facebook users say they use the social network to discover videos. Facebook is not just about text posts or photos for businesses anymore. In order to win and keep an audience, businesses need to engage them with interesting content. And video is becoming one of the ways the businesses are using to do just this. Want to know more, here are 4 reasons businesses are flocking to Facebook for video, @ Mashable.com.

3) What is the right number of posts per week for my Facebook business page? 

There’s an old axiom, “white space sells.” And in the modern social media world, the equivalent might be “less is more.” Do you feel you need to post daily to your Facebook business page? You just might be doing yourself a disservice, (and wasting a good deal of energy while you are at it.) In fact, if you are merely posting once per week to your Facebook business page, you might be doing an adequate job. Just make sure it’s the right kind of post. If you want to see more on this interesting, and timely subject, it’s all here @ SocialTimes.com.

4) 5 things you thought were important for SEO…but aren’t. 

Can you spell S-E-O? Ok, that’s an easy one. Now, can you “do” SEO? It’s not rocket science, but it’s also not a couple of quick changes to your website. Search Engine Optimization suffers from less-than-authoritative commentary, broad expectations and dated assumptions. It needs to be something that businesses pay attention to for their websites, but not to be feared. And digital marketers should know the facts from fiction. Read more here about 5 myths of SEO from Mark Cordy on LinkedIn. (Note you will need to be logged into LinkedIn to read this.)

5) Good search ads should appeal to your emotions.

What makes a good search ad? Obviously bidding on the right key words helps, but once a search ad successfully is served on a SERP, what causes the user to actually click thru to the advertiser’s website or landing page? Well, it appears that an appeal to emotions, or feelings, improves the click-through’s. “Consumers are more likely to click on ads that connect with them…”, and connecting with them means connecting with their feelings. More on what makes for a good search ad here @ BoostBlog.com.

More Than Half Of Offline Retail Sales Are Impacted By Mobile, Yelp For Sale, and 3 More…

(Originally posted 5/22/2015)

1) Remember that “Mobilegeddon” thing last month? Did Google lie to us? 

The world was supposed to go “heck in a hand basket” last month for all mobile un-friendly sites. Well, looks like the world is still just as rosy for the un-mobile, for now. Nothing happened, nada, zero, bumpkis, etc. My bet is that this is not the last we’ll hear about this, however. Maybe, just maybe, this was too big to make a big change over night. Probably a good idea to be safe and continue driving towards mobile optimization for all sites, especially small businesses. (Note: for anyone that feels betrayed by what, at first blush, looks like Google is crying for the digital wolf a little too often, remember, mobile optimized sites are better anyway. If you changed, you did yourself a favor. If you convinced your clients and customers to change, you did them a favor.) More details and research on this here at SearchEngineLand.com

2) Yelp for sale! Could this be a good investment for newspapers?

If Yelp is so good, why are they for sale? Well, everyone has to make a buck sometimes. And if it’s more like $3.5 billion of them, wouldn’t you? Newspapers have seemingly passed a number of emerging businesses by in the past. But could this be an opportunity for one, or a group of news organizations to turn that around? And what would a news organization actually do with a fantastic review site that is loaded with tons of UGC, user data, and is arguably one of the best local apps around? Quite alot in fact. More on this here from Newsonomics.

3) More than 50% of offline retail sales now impacted by mobile.

Ever wonder WHY it’s so important for businesses to pay attention to their mobile presence? And did you ever wonder why it’s so important, even for businesses that don’t sell anything via mobile apps? Well here’s the reason…mobile impacts in-store, over the counter, offline sales.

You’ll want to read the details, it’s information that small businesses can use, and information that can help media consultants help their clients. Find it here at Screenwerk.com.

4) Geo-Conquesting…a new word, and a great strategy.

Imagine…you are standing in line, a long line, waiting to order coffee. And the barista is going out of his or her way to embelish their current conversation (currently being held with the customer 8 heads in front of you) with flourishing multi-syllabic descriptions of the latest roast just shipped in from a country whose name you recognize only because you just recently caught a Tivo’d version of a tie-breaker round on Jeopardy. You need to occupy yourself somehow because this is going to take forever, so you whip out your mobile phone, and the first screen you see includes an ad that asks you, “Tired of waiting in line? Come on over, two doors down, the coffee is hot, the lines are short, and the staff here is not pretentious.”

Ok, maybe too much drama, but this describes what “Geo-Conquesting” is. This is not so new an idea (the source quoted below is from 2014) but it may be a strategy that may be new to your arsenal. It’s Geo-Fencing used aggressively. If you want to know more, find it here at cmglocalsolutions.com.

5) In spite of ongoing changes, Facebook still a great place for SMB’s to find customers.

Ok, so this is what the founder of Facebook thinks, so factor in the bias. But I’ll listen to the guy that became the 16th richest person in the world based on his vision. Facebook has changed its news feed, resulting in making reaching even your likes not a sure thing, with organic results. But it’s still probably a very good platform with which small businesses can engage their audience. Media consultants and small businesses should know more about why FB remains such a strong player. There’s more on this here at MarketingLand.com.

TV Still #1 For Auto Dealers, Google and Donald Duck are Media Moguls, and 3 More.

(Originally posted 5/15/2015)

1) Where do all those auto advertising dollars go?

The auto industry expects to spend $15.1 billion on local advertising this year, and a third of that is going to over-the-air TV. Another 1.7& is expected to go to online tv. Newspapers, capturing nearly 15% of the spend is also closely followed by online, 12% and radio with a little more than 11%. What does this all mean? It means that auto dealers still think TV is king, and online is just about as important as newspapers.

See more detail on this here @ NetNewsCheck,

2) Employment advertising needs to include “branding” too. 

Economy is getting better, the job market has loosened up a little. What does this mean for employment advertisers? It means that an increase in employment branding may be something to look at. Just think, if jobs are a little easier to find, that means that job candidates have more to choose from. Why do they make their eventual choice? Maybe one of the considerations is that the company they choose is simply a great place to be. And employers need to consider this when thinking of their marketing campaigns. There’s more on this here from Harvard Business Review.

3) More choices for advertisers, more competition for media companies, it’s an opportunity, right?

Just when you thought you knew everything about your local advertising opportunities, new alternatives pop up. Is your car logged in? Is the internet on your wrist or in your pocket? Think this is off in the distance? Think again. It’s good to know what is on the horizon, help your local customers, and local businesses can be on the right side of the next wave. More here from the Newsosaur on E&*P.

4) Programmatic…learn to spell it, learn to say it.

Programmatic, probably the fastest growing method of buying digital media in the world today. Just for national players? I think not. Did you know that campaigns sold by the Fayetteville Observer and Liberty Point Media, the same campaigns fun for local Fayetteville businesses, are bought programmatically? This will continue to grow. And with growth come growing pains. Want to know more? Go to Digiday, here. 

5) Google is big…I mean really big.

Did you know that Google is the largest media owner in the world? Ok, who is the 2nd largest? Here’s a hint…M-I-C-K-E-Y M-O-U-S-E. Yes, Disney is the 2nd largest media owner in the world. But Google is 136% larger than #2. Is this going to help you today doing your job? No, it’s just interesting, and everyone loves interesting people. More on this here from the WSJ. 

Mobile Is Larger For All News Sites, The First YouTube Video Ever, The State Of The News Media for 2015, and 2 More.

(Originally posted 4/29/2015)

1) Mobile is larger for all news sites…period!

We’ve been saying this for a while, “more people go to our mobile site than to our desktop site…” This is not a local trend, it’s not just us, it’s happening everywhere. Take a look at the graphic below showing mobile vs. desktop traffic for the top 10 news sites in the US. Let local businesses know how important the mobile channel is, and that their customers are continuing to move in that direction.

2) What were you doing 10 years ago? This guy was posting the first YouTube video…ever!

Just for yucks, here is the very first YouTube video ever posted. And as a bonus, in just 20 seconds, you can learn all about elephant trunks. And who says this blog isn’t educational? See it here, on Time.com.

3) Programmatic advertising is coming to local markets..and it’s here now! What is it, and are we ready?

Programmatic advertising, or computer programmed ad buying and campaign management, is coming to local markets. What was once the purvey of large national advertisers, large networks, and large digital agencies, is now almost standard operating procedure. What was once dependent upon human sales contact, is now being accomplished with computer programming. And it’s already in local, community markets, yes it’s here in Fayetteville. We are offering programmatic buying and managed campaigns almost daily. You should know more about it, how it works, how it can help you with your local customers, and how it aids in offering more flexibility in the campaigns you purchase and we manage. Read more about it on StreetFightMag 4/27.

4) Click-thu’s may not be the right way to measure campaign performance.

CT’s, or “click-thru’s” have long been touted as the only way to measure digital campaigns. But in the end, what do they tell you? They tell you how many people who saw the ad message and clicked on it. But does it tell you how many people made purchases? Now remember how small average CTR’s actually are. And of all the people that were exposed to your ad, did anyone eventually make a purchase but simply did not click thru? If your ad campaign was a good one, that very well may have occurred, and if your campaign performance is based on click-thru’s you are not getting the credit you deserve. Here’s why click-thru’s may not be the right metric to view for digital advertising any more. See more here at Digiday.com 4/28.

5) Mobile is up, banners are still alive, Google has competition…the official report Is In.

Pew Foundation has just published its State Of The News Media 2015. There are few surprises, and not all facts are pretty. But they are facts, and knowing the facts puts you in the driver’s seat. If you choose to read the whole thing, reserve some time, it’s a long read. But for those that want to take a short cut, here’s a nice summary at Digiday.com

Mobilgeddon Is Upon Us; Newspapers Invented the Tablet; and 3 More…

(Originally posted 4/23/2015)

1) April 21 was Google Mobilgeddon…did you (and your mobile website) survive?

April 21 was the big day for Google to change its algorithm (don’t ya just love that word?) thereby punishing mobile unfriendly sites. What does this really mean? Overall, it means that businesses HAVE to have a mobile optimized website to be found. But that doesn’t mean things disappear on April 22. For 5 hard facts about this change, and what it means, here’s more on CNN Money 4/21.

2) Be mobile-friendly…or be buried?

Ok so this is another story on the same subject. But frankly, it IS that important. Remember, friends don’t let friends be mobile un-friendly. See more here on Mashable 4/21.

3) The “innovator’s dilemma” has hit the Bed & Breakfast business.

Here’s a local story on the demise of the last B&B in Raleigh, NC. Nobody is happy about that. But it’s an interesting study in how a segment of business has been impacted by digital media and digital strategy. Airbnb, the website that lets you find privately leased rooms, locally and inexpensively, has affected this more traditional category of business significantly, permanently changing how many of us find lodging. Here’s more from the News & Observer, 4/19.

4) Facebook: Boosted Posts vs Promoted Posts…What’s The Difference?

Should I boost my FB post, or should I have it promoted? Ugh…and I just got done posting videos of my cat. Advertising on FB is not a one-size-fits-all undertaking. They sound the same, they all do a job, but not the same job. You need to know what you want to accomplish in order to make the right decision. Boosting and posting sound similar, but they are not, they accomplish different goals and are accomplished using different means. You should know the difference, and here’s where to find the information, see more here on SocialMediaExaminer.com.

5) If only newspapers had thought of the tablet 20 years ago. But they did!

Did you know that one of the early pioneers of tablet readers was a newspaper company? Knight Ridder (no longer in existence) then one of the largest newspaper companies in the US was a leader in research. They developed a working model of the tablet, before Apple, and tested its use. They also decided that it was not an idea whose time was going to come soon enough…(huh?) See more here about the Knight Ridder tablet from 1994 on YouTube. 

What Prevents Small Biz From Adopting Social Media Strategies…and 4 more.

(Originally posted 4/16/2015)

1) Small businesses and social media…love me, love me not?

Small businesses seem to agree that social media should be an important piece of their marketing strategy. But they don’t seem to be able to practice what they believe yet. Time, expertise, and money seem to get in the way. Perhaps this is an opportunity for local media companies to help? See more here @ Emarketer 4/15/15. 

2) Google wants to be a local service directory…so what?

Google and Amazon are jumping into the local service directory business. Does that mean it’s “curtains” for everyone else? Not necessarily so. See more here @ StreetFightMag, 5/4/15.

3) Are advertisers doing mobile all wrong?

Mobile devices are just another platform for the same advertising message, right? Well…not really. Mobile devices are intimate, they are with us all the time. Because they are part of the owner’s every day and hour life, mobile campaigns should add value to their activities. Here are 5 suggestions for businesses and advertisers that can improve how they use mobile channels and their own mobile presence. See more here @ Digiday 5/14.

4) Advertising sold by bots…where are the people?

Many large advertisers are turning to programmatic buying to make their campaign purchases more efficient. But this means there’s no face-to-face interaction with customers. Instead, it’s computer programs. And several major publishers are turning their inventory over to this programming, allowing programmatic to facilitate the selling as well. How does this impact the sales teams…the people involved, and what does this mean for the expertise that media sales reps will require down the road. See more here @ Reflections of a Newsosaur 4/14/15.

5) Newspapers don’t sell content to sponsors, do they? Yes they do…or will. 

Sponsored Content, or enabling an advertiser to participate in published content creation, and pay for the privilege (let alone the value) is a growing area of interest for a number of publishers. One major newspaper recently made its interest in this emerging strategy known, from the highest office of it’s enterprise. See more here @ JimRomenesko.com 4/15/1