by Kimberly | Apr 21, 2010 | Blog, Featured, Social Media
Google’s YouTube has recently launched their SearchStories feature which allow you to create video search stories using search terms, and then adding music and easily uploading to your YouTube Channel. You simple enter search terms, which can be either keywords or phrases and then you have the option of showing what comes up for these terms in either a web search, images, blog search, product search, map and a few others. Once you enter a keyword term or phrase, then there will be a preview image listed below your search terms. You then choose a music clip to add. Here is the actual search story video I created for my social media virtual assistant business. You can go here to create your own Search...
by Kimberly | Apr 19, 2010 | Blog, Facebook, Featured, Social Media
So Facebook is making some pretty big (and complicated) changes that will impact significantly how users use, navigate and perceive the platform. Among the biggest change is that users no longer “Become a Fan” of a fan page. Instead they will now “Like” a page and people will no longer be listed as fans, but will be “People who Like This.” Facebook explains the change here: Why did “Become a Fan” change to “Like”? To improve your experience and promote consistency across the site, we’ve changed the language for Pages from “Fan” to “Like.” We believe this change offers you a more light-weight and standard way to connect with people, things and topics in which you are interested. They also explain here what it means to “Like” a page: What does it mean to “Like” a Page? When you click “Like” on a Page, you are making a connection to that Page. The Page will be displayed in your profile, and in turn, you will be displayed on the Page as a person who likes that Page. The Page will also be able to post content into your News Feed. So far I’ve found this page in Facebook’s Help Center to be the most comprehensive explanation of how all the changes work and tie together. Along with the “Like” for fan pages, they are launching Community Pages which will link to your profile info so that your interests become links to community pages that reflect these interests. You also have the option of linking your interests to specific fan pages. This, of course, means increased public visibility for your...
by Kimberly | Feb 25, 2010 | Blog, Facebook, Featured, Social Media
Google announced today via their Twitter account that Facebook Fan Page status updates will now become part of the real time search. This is huge for people who seriously consider Facebook as marketing avenue and want to use it as a tool to further get found by search engines. This means that updates from Facebook Fan Pages are currently being indexed and included in Google’s real time search feature. This includes links, photos, videos and status updates but not comments by fans. While updates from personal profiles can also be posted publicly by users, it doesn’t appear that those updates are being indexed as part of the real time search. What is Real Time Search? If you’re not familiar with real time search, here’s an example. Currently trending on Twitter is “Canadian Joannie Rochette” from Olympic events. If you go to Google and type in “Canadian Joannie Rochette,” you will get quite few results, but if you scroll down about mid-page, this is what you will see. As you can see, there is a scrolling box which shows real time results as they are happening. The addition of Facebook page updates to real time search joins Twitter, MySpace, FriendFeed and others. Mostly what I’ve seen so far in real time search are updates from these networks about trending topics. This probably means that big brands on Facebook with large fan bases will likely get the most of amount of love from real time search right now. However, it does become yet another reason why businesses, organizations, non-profits and others need to seriously considering creating a solid presence on Facebook...
by Kimberly | Feb 23, 2010 | Blog, Featured, Social Media, social media marketing
Social media and the internet make it easier than ever to reach other people, other markets and other businesses anywhere in the world. So sometimes, it seems as though what is most often overlooked is how easy it is to use social media to connect with local people and businesses. As a Virtual Assistant, my business model is built around being able to work with virtually anyone, anywhere. When I first started using social media for marketing, I did not focus too much on networking locally either online or in person. However, when my husband and I started an e-commerce business, OTC Sports, part of our business model for was centrally built around reaching the local market. Around this same time, I made the acquaintance of Gary Powell with ImageWear Solutions on Twitter (@imagewear). Gary and I exchanged a few emails as I helped him figure out some of the inner workings of using Twitter and Facebook for business. He also reached out to my husband, Jeff, on Twitter (@OTCsports), communicating back and forth about different sports related topics. Gary is a great example of what a local business can do with social media. He reached out to other locals on Twitter and Facebook, offered a helping hand, and was always willing to help spread the word about other local businesses. Gary doesn’t use social media to be self-promoting, he uses it for connecting with people. When the time came for us to order promotional apparel for OTC Sports, Gary was the first person we called upon. Completely knowledgeable about promotional products and apparel, Gary made the process easy...
by Kimberly | Feb 19, 2010 | Blog, Facebook, Social Media
Just a short and to the point post that will actually be a list of references for Facebook. You might be surprised how much information you can on Facebook about using Facebook! Facebook Marketing Page: A page run by Facebook which provide tips for using Facebook for marketing and brand loyalty. Facebook Pages Product Guide: Light overview (PDF) document by Facebook about what pages are, how they work and the various elements that make up a fan page. Facebook Promotions Guidelines: Facebook’s guidelines for promoting your Facebook page outside of Facebook. Includes an easily downloadable (Facebook approved) graphic to place on your website to help visitors click through to your Facebook page. Facebook For Non-Profits: A fan page that serves as a resource for non-profits and other organizations on Facebook who work towards social good. Often they highlight other non-profit fan pages or will post news about brands or companies who are using Facebook for social good. Facebook Fan Pages: Another page administered by Facebook where they share news, best practices and examples for administrators of Facebook pages. Facebook’s Official Privacy Policy: Facebook’s official policy regarding your privacy on the platform. Facebook’s Blog: This is another good place to find all the latest announcements and news about Facebook. Facebook often posts about upcoming changes and events there before they happen. Of course, working with an experienced social media virtual assistant who is already aware of these resources and keeps tabs on the latest happenings with Facebook can help you navigate using Facebook efficiently and...
by Kimberly | Feb 3, 2010 | Blog, Facebook, Featured
I became a fan of the US Army fan page on Facebook after the shootings at Fort Hood last year. Today I noticed an interesting status up from their page. (See below). I think this is a fascinating use of a government agency connecting with every day people but it was also an interesting commentary on just how far social media has come and is now ingrained in our every day lives. After seeing this update, I went over the Army’s Facebook page to see just what was going on and it seems as though the Army’s fans were posting their opinions on the military’s “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy. Obviously, this is a highly charged and highly emotional issue for many people on both sides of the issue. The parts that particularly caught my interest was: 1. The response from the Army’s admins for page who were actively engaging with their fans and letting them know they were being heard. It also appears Admins are actively watching the page to delete any completely derogatory and profane messages. But the ones that are on there seem to be posted by people on there who are willing to post their opinions without resorting to name calling or hurtful words. 2. That this issue was being so openly discussed at all on their fan page. While fan opinions on Facebook may not change whether the policy continues, it does seem entirely feasible that at the very least, these comments will be forwarded to those in the higher ranks and quite possibly to congressmen and women and other policy/decision makers. I believe...
