Occasionally we are invited to attend industry conferences with clients to learn and evaluate trends and new technologies together as partners. Michael Bird and I were lucky enough to join Iowa Tourism in San Francisco for the 2017 eTOURISM SUMMIT and we could not have had a better experience. Besides building several new friendships, sampling exceptional cuisine, and marveling at historic architecture, there were some incredibly valuable takeaways that relate to just about everything we do here. (Psst – These all extend beyond the travel industry.)
5 Takeaways from the National Travel Conference in San Francisco
Topics: marketing strategy, social media, marketing tips, analytics, website design
Facebook has made a major structural change you have probably heard about, but you may not be sure how it affects you or what options exist to work around the change.
Topics: social media, facebook
Google released its 2015 year in search – a recap of the most frequently searched topics on their search engine. It’s no surprise that entertainment, sports, politics and world news topped the list. If your business doesn’t fall directly into one of these categories, then why would these searches matter to you? There are ways to leverage the buzz to engage with your target audience. It’s about being smart and relevant. Next time there’s a trending topic you think might be relevant to your brand and customers, ask yourself these questions.
Topics: content marketing, social media, marketing tips
Big data is a buzz phrase that basically means taking data from one source and connecting it to another. In many instances, consumer demographic data is connected with sales data. Understanding this connection allows a business to model their next consumer based on a current customer.
Topics: social media, analytics
If you’ve been dabbling in paid social ads, it’s likely you have purchased them on Facebook. For most organizations, this is the best way to start because of the potential audience size. However, it’s not the only social channel with a paid platform that can help you reach your target audience. Your ad objective and audience’s non-paid participation on a social platform should guide where you spend your ad dollars. Here are a few reasons to consider LinkedIn, Instagram and YouTube advertising.
Topics: paid ads, social media
Four Tips to Provide Good Customer Service on Social Channels
Social media has quickly become a customer service hub for many businesses. Questions, requests, complaints and all-out rants will be expressed in the social realm. The frequency, pace and impact on your business is dictated by the customer service plan – or lack thereof – you have in place.
Traditional customer service puts all the convenience on the business. Customers have to stand in line at the customer service counter and wait to pay a bill, return a product, file a complaint or just ask a question. Automated phone systems require a customer to sit on hold without a clear expectation of when they will talk with someone.
Digital has started to shift that paradigm, giving more convenience to customers and placing more expectations on businesses. Customers can pay bills online – not requiring them to drive to the store, purchase a stamp or write a check. Customers can return products from the comfort of their home by printing a return label and mailing back the item. Customers demand more control of their experience with your business and if you can’t or won’t meet their needs, they won’t be your customer for long.
So as more customers start communicating with you online, how do you provide good customer service on your social channels? Here are four tips to get started.
Topics: customer service, social media
If your company has a Facebook Page and you’ve been analyzing your January stats, it’s likely you noticed a drop in impressions, which ultimately leads to a drop in likes, comments and shares. As you might have guessed, Facebook made another change to their always-evolving algorithm. Here’s a recap of what changed and what you should do next.
Topics: social media, facebook
Unless you’ve been living deep inside a cave, you know that most people engage in conversations on social channels. While many still share friendly exchanges with neighbors, it’s not likely anyone is dragging out all of the goodies they came across today, grievances experienced or interesting facts uncovered. But they are sharing those experiences online. This is why it’s important for your brand to be present in social media.
Topics: social media, marketing tips
Many brands are facing a crisis. Is a brand simply a label for products and services or is a brand a lifestyle? Can it be both? How does one act as a company that’s trying to sell a product and a lifestyle? Social media is a platform that allows a company to successfully be both.
A lifestyle is all the components that encompass that way a person (or a group of people) lives. It’s the cumulative influence of family and friends, culture, beliefs and the media – so it’s hard to control. Social media has opened two-way communication between a brand and its advocates, so that those with similar philosophies can chat in a community of like-minded people.
Topics: social media, branding, lifestyle and leisure
There’s something kind of fascinating about the selfie. The premise of it has always been the same: a simple picture to capture a moment. It continues to transition from being something of personal value to authentic promotional value. Here are a few tidbits about the selfie.
Topics: content marketing, social media