SkyView Projects | a boutique marketing firm

DIY video content has grown increasingly popular in the online community, and is currently one of the most sought after sources of content on the web. With sites like Pinterest, Vine, and YouTube pushing both short and extended DIY videos, the market for this kind of content has become huge. The best part is that it’s free! Well, for a little while longer anyways.

Conversations about charging for video content have started, and it looks like the ball has begun to roll. Vimeo has just launched their new service, Vimeo on Demand, which allows content creators to charge for their videos. Creators can choose how much they want to charge for their content starting at $0.99 with a 90-10 splitting fee with creators getting 90 percent. So far, Vimeo on Demand has gotten a great response and is the perfect addition to services such as Netflix and Hulu. Our world of free video content may be changing at a rapid pace, so scroll through your favorites now, and stock up on all of your free music videos!

Pinterest announces today new updated design. What do you think?

Our New Look: More Ways to Discover What You Love

In January, we asked a small group of pinners to test a new look designed to make discovering things on Pinterest easier. Since then, we’ve talked to some of these folks, analyzed their feedback, and made a few changes.

Today, we’re thrilled to start sharing the new look with everyone. You should see an invitation soon.

New discovery features

We added a few new things to the close-up view of pins to help you discover things you love that you might not have known about otherwise, including:

-Pins from the same board: You can explore the entire board without leaving the page you’re on.

-Pins from the same source: Here you’ll find other things pinned from the same website.

-People who pinned this also pinned: This is literally what it says it is. Clever, we hope. We’ll be updating our Android and iOS apps soon to include this.

Other changes

We wanted to make things simpler and cleaner, without requiring you to learn anything new. What you’ll find are some subtle but useful changes, like bigger pins, so you see more of what you love.

We also responded to some feedback from pinners who told us they hated losing their place while browsing. Now, when you scroll through pins and click on something that interests you, the back button lands you right back where you were no matter how far you’ve gone.

Finally, we rebuilt the foundation on which the website is built. This makes Pinterest more reliable for you and easier to improve for us.

Share your thoughts

Thanks so much to everyone who tested our ideas and gave us invaluable feedback along the way. If you have any other feedback or comments, please leave them below.

Happy pinning!

—Jason Wilson, Lead Product Designer, Currently obsessed with pinning to photography.

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Every business owner with a social media presence has the same fear: being hacked. In the age of Anonymous, the currently thriving hacker group, those fears become very real as we watch some of the largest companies go down in the hands of equally skilled hackers. @BurgerKing was hacked yesterday, seemingly by the group Anonymous, and it was a long terrible road for this giant fast food company. The Twitter account remained opened and hacked for about one hour until it was able to be shut down and re-started, only when it was re-started the hacker’s Tweets were still there.

Here’s the hacking timeline:

“It has come to our attention that the Twitter account of the BURGER KING® brand has been hacked. We have worked directly with administrators to suspend the account until we are able to re-establish our legitimate site and authentic postings. We apologize to our fans and followers who have been receiving erroneous tweets about other members of our industry and additional inappropriate topics”

While this incident can be scary to all of us independent business owners, keep in mind this usually happens mostly to corporate giants, and if this does happen to you I'm sure someone will have your back.

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In December, images became available of Google’s new, dramatic office in Tel Aviv. Taking up 8 floors of the Electra Tower, this office space is anything but dull. The focus of the design seems to be placed solely on the lounge/gathering areas rather than the desks themselves. The open-air lounge overlooking the city, the industrial/urban style restaurants, and the wild texture seen all over the walls, floors, and seating areas all scream modern creativity, but is it too much? There’s a certain level of environmental energy I require in order to be creative, but I’m pretty sure that if I was surrounded by all of this chaos, my little creative mind would drown in a sea of over-decorating. Check it out for yourself!

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Leadership. It can seem like a simple thing at first glance, but it is by far one of the most complex and committed positions in any organization. On a recent road trip with my brother we got to talking about the characteristics of a good leader, my top three:

Listen. 

Be more committed to the mission than their title.

Have the confidence to let their people shine.

One of the reasons I started my own business was due to a lack of leadership I felt in the organizations I worked with, and the team would inevitably suffer. Time and time again I found the self-proclaimed leaders were more concerned with coming across as the smartest person in the room instead of listening to what talented team members had to offer. This not only would hurt the individual group, but the whole organization. There are a handful of people I know who I consider to be great leaders, and these leaders make all the difference in not only the team's lives but in all the lives that the organization touches. Especially for businesses that are looking to make a difference, a great leader can make all the difference.  

Recently I came across this Forbes article and found it to be a fun and yet honest approach:

Mike Myatt, Contributor

LEADERSHIP

1/23/2013 @ 1:56AM |9,942 views

Why You're Not A Leader

Everybody thinks they’re a leader – most are far from it. The harsh reality is that we live in a world awash with wannabe leaders. As much as some don’t want to admit it, not everyone can or should become a leader (my take on the born vs. made argument). Simply desiring to be a leader doesn’t mean a person has the character, skill, and courage necessary to be a leader.

If you think you’re a leader, but haven’t been recognized as such, you have a problem. Either you’re incorrect in your self-assessment, or those you report to don’t recognize your talent. Here’s the good news; handled correctly, either scenario can be resolved if you’re willing to do some work.

I’m often asked what it takes to get to the top – it’s as if people want an add water and mix recipe for leadership. While there are many paths to leadership, they’re certainly not all created equal. Perhaps a more telling issue in today’s world is many of those desiring to get ahead, have no desire to help others get ahead.

I never cease to be amazed at the numbers of people in leadership positions that shouldn’t be. Likewise, I’ve stopped being surprised when those charged with leadership development can’t seem to figure out what constitutes a leader. It’s my hope the following list will eliminate the confusion about why someone isn’t a leader. You’re not a leader if…

1. You don’t get results: Real leaders perform – they get the job done – they consistently exceed expectations. No results = no leadership – it’s just that simple.

2. You get results the wrong way: If the only way you can solve the deficit described in point #1 above is through chicanery or skullduggery you’re not a leader. The ends don’t justify the means. If you abuse your influence, don’t treat people well, or confuse manipulation with leadership, you may win a few battles, but you’ll lose the war. Optics over ethics never ends well, and being a jerk doesn’t make you a leader.

3. You don’t care: Indifference is a characteristic not well suited to leadership. You simply cannot be a leader if you don’t care about those you lead. The real test of any leader is whether or not those they lead are better off for being led by them.

4. You’re chasing a position and not a higher purpose: If you value self-interest above service beyond self you simply don’t understand the concept of leadership. Leadership is about caring about something beyond yourself, and leading others to a better place – even if it means you take a back seat, or end up with no seat at all. Power often comes with leadership, but it’s not what drives real leaders.

5. You care more about making promises than keeping them:Leadership isn’t about your rhetoric; it’s about your actions. Leadership might begin with vision casting, but it’s delivering the vision that will ultimately determine your success as a leader.

6. You put people in boxes: Stop telling people why they can’t do something and show them how they can. Leaders don’t put people in boxes, it’s their obligation to free them from boxes. True leadership is about helping people reach places they didn’t know they could go.

7. You follow the rules instead of breaking them: Status quo is the great enemy of leadership. Leadership is nothing if not understanding the need for change, and then possessing the ability to deliver it.

8. You churn talent instead of retain it: Real leadership serves as a talent magnet – not a talent repellent. If you can’t acquire talent, can’t develop talent, or can’t retain talent you are not a leader.

9. You take credit instead of giving it: True leadership isn’t found seeking the spotlight, but seeking to shine the spotlight on others. The best leaders only use “I” when accepting responsibility for failures. Likewise, they are quick to use “we” when referring to successes.

10. You care about process more than people: But for the people there is no platform. Without the people you have nothing to lead. When you place things above the people you lead you have failed as a leader.

Thoughts?

Follow me on Twitter @mikemyatt

Do you know any good leaders? What do you think makes them a good leader? Are you a good leader? 

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post by Jordan benShea

When it comes to engaging with consumers online, one of the best ways to increase interaction and traffic is by holding a contest. Encouraging users to have  personal investment in a brand not only drives sales, but increases brand trust. This photo contest, hosted by Luckie + Company, is a great example of how asking consumers to submit something personal can turn into a whirlwind of conversation, excitement, and personality revolving around one brand.

  To check out the full contest, click here. 

How can you use a contest with your brand to increase awareness? What incentives would you use? 

Share your ideas socially. 

So there you are on a Monday morning scheduling out your posts for the week on your social media calendar thinking everything is looking good, you go to check your stats and CRASH! You see your updates are getting very poor responses, what gives? Facebook's new EdgeRank update, here is a great article from Brian Solis on what you need to know:

What Your Business Needs to Know About Facebook’s EdgeRank

Facebook recently introduced the ability for brands to increase reach for important posts and updates, but that reach comes at a cost. The prices varies depending on how many fans you have in your community. This new feature coincided with changes to the company’s Edgerank algorithm, which is how Facebook automagically filters posts in and out of your stream. Similar to how Google’s PageRank sorts results to better match your search intention, Facebook uses Edgerank to ensure that engagement is optimized and spam is minimized.

Following these events, many marketers and business executives have claimed a sharp decrease in unpaid post reach. Naturally, accusations of greed and corruption were hurled at Facebook as marketers believed that Facebook’s sole motive for this update was to force brands into a paid position to guarantee reach.

The controversy hit new heights when billionaire Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban launched an offensive charging Facebook with a shakedown and thus threatening to move all of his community efforts to other social networks.

“FB is blowing it!” Cuban howled in a Tweet. He continued with a warning Facebook, one that he’s pursuing, “This is the first step. The Mavs are considering moving to Tumblr or the new Myspace as [sic] primary site.” He shared a telling screenshot in his Tweet of the Mavericks’s Facebook page showing a cost of $3,000 to reach one million of the team’s 2.3 million fans. If you do the math however, you’ll see the potential PPM of that equation is more than reasonable at $0.003 per person. Unfortunately, many experts missed this point.

The pile on continued though. We Are Social, a social media agency, and Socialbakers, developing of social network monitoring and tracking tools for analysis published findings that showed the average, organic post reach had dropped by 40% following the update to EdgeRank.

So, is overall organic post reach down?

Yes.

Is overall spam down as a result?

Yes.

Did Facebook purposefully change its EdgeRank algorithm to reduce reach and sell more ads?

Hardly. If everyone reacted in similar fashion to Mark Cuban, not only would the business lose, fans lose as well. This is something I examined at length following GM’s famous pullout of its Facebook advertising budget earlier in 2012.

EdgeRank Explained

It’s important to understand how EdgeRank works before passing judgment or sparking fruitless debates. Whether you’re leading a paid, earned, or owned strategy, making informed decisions about goals and proper metrics starts with knowing the real challenges and opportunities.

In all honesty, Facebook should do a better job helping businesses understand not only EdgeRank, but how to better leverage the network as a whole in ways that are more meaningful for businesses and the community at large. But, we have to start somewhere.

In a post entitled, “News Feed, Engagement, and Promoted Posts: How They Work,” Facebook Ad Engineer Philip Zigoris aimed to bust myths while educating marketers. It tells the story of engagement and optimization:

Monitoring what types of posts are getting good responses is key, and always has been. UsePage Insights to determine what types of content – videos, posts, questions, etc. – are getting good engagement versus what types aren’t. Take a look at our Page Publishing Guide for posting best practices, and make sure to use our Page post targeting features so that you reach the audiences most likely to respond to your messages. And for posts that you see are getting a lot of responses, you can promote them to extend your reach to more news feeds.

What are the underlying EdgeRank factors that define whether or not someone sees a post in the news feed?

1) Facebook looks at whether or not you’ve previously interacted with an author’s posts or whether or not your friends are engaging around those posts.

2) If content is or isn’t engaged by your social graph and the network at large affects what you see and what you don’t see.

3) EdgeRank also examines whether or not your have interacted with similar types of posts in the past, i.e. photos, videos, polls, etc.

4) If content or page hosts have received complaints by other users, chances are that you will not see it.

Social Media Optimization is the New SEO

Engagement is the key to amplifying reach.

The debate unfortunately masks a much more important and productive discussion. Businesses confuse Facebook as a utility or service that’s there to help broadcast messages much in the same way businesses pay wire services to distribute press releases or brands buy advertisements on TV or radio to reach as many people as possible. Facebook is a social network to help people communicate, share, and discover. With over one billion people calling Facebook one of their digital homes, a social economy is a natural byproduct. Therefore, businesses must learn that relationships are earned and earned again and communities are built upon a foundation of mutual value, entertainment, and empowerment.

A like isn’t an opt in or subscription for marketing spam. It is an expression not a representation of a captive audience. Regardless of your community size, people are not idly waiting for your marketing messages. The reality is that only a small fraction of your overall community will see your posts. People may have Like’d you, but they’re also following friends, family, other brands and important organizations and events. With everyone publishing content, you’re competing for attention in real-time. Instead, consider competing for attention with the right content at the right-time.

Approach EdgeRank with a philosophy of contributing relevance to merit resonance. You can increase reach by optimizing posts, whether paid or organic, through social media optimization (SMO). If engagement drives reach, then design content to not just be consumable, but also shareable. Likes, comments, shares, tags, et al, spark a social effect and extend the life and volume of your updates. Simply publishing or paying for each without considering shareability or SMO is done so in vain.

This is true for any social network.

Whether you pay to play or you invest in organic engagement, the intention behind each strategy must be the same. Be relevant. Make it count. By striving for relevance, you will increase probability for resonance, which will over time contribute to your EdgeRank significance (RRS).

Originally published at AT&T’s Networking Exchange. Learn more about Brian Solis here. 

How will this information change the way you do updates? How will it change your social media strategy?

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post by Jordan benShea

The Starbucks cup is a nationwide symbol, uniquely crafted to make us feel the comfort of our favorite coffee or tea. It’s recognized as a symbol of relaxation, caffeine on the go, time with friends, and good quality. For this reason the Starbucks cup has never been sold for advertising space and, as far as we know, never will be. It takes years of hard work and dedication to make a brand image this successful, and CEO Howard Schultz is now willing to sacrifice the cup for economic justice.

            Schultz is urging employees in about 120 stores in the D.C area to write “Come Together” on every cup as lawmakers come back to work preparing to make a deal that will (hopefully) stop America from “going over the fiscal cliff”. Hoping to use this powerful cup as a tool to sway lawmakers, Schultz has proclaimed that he will not stop in D.C and will move nationwide if need be. This is just another example of Schultz’s creative way of using the world’s biggest coffee chain for more political cooperation from Washington, and for something that he strongly believes in.

  How can you use your brand image to make a positive impact? What unique ideas do you have for spreading your cause through the use of your brand? 

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Managing your nonprofit marketing can be challenging, and daunting. There are so many avenues to choose from, and it can be hard to keep up with the hustle and bustle of social media. At Skyview Projects, we make it our top priority to not only keep your story consistent, but to target your preferred demographic. Skyview Projects has taken nonprofit marketing to the purest and most transparent level, seamlessly delivering your passion to activists all over the country. Your story is powerful, sincere, and real; let us deliver your passion to others that share it. 

Skyview Projects is also an industry leader in multi-platform internet marketing. To find out more about how Skyview Projects can help you, contact us via email or phone here. 

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Barack Obama has just announced via Twitter appreciation for his re-election... on Twitter... not on the radio, not in the newspaper, not on live TV... on Twitter, through social media. Are you on social media? If not, why?

Photo from Mashable.

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post by Jordan benShea

Think color doesn't matter? It does.... How do you use color in  your brand?

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post by Jordan benShea

Have you ever had an experience where you look at a logo and you do a quick onceover, and then you see it again only to realize all the different aspects you missed the first time?

We found this fun round up with hidden symbols in logos and wanted to share. How much do you think they benefit the brand?

Here are some of our favorites:

NBC Logo

One of the world’s most popular logos features a peacock looking to the right to show that the company is looking forward, not back. [link]

Amazon Logo

Logo features an arrow shaped smile that represents customer satisfaction and reflects Amazon’s goal to sell every product from A to Z. [link]

FedEx Logo

Negative space between the letters “E” and “X” creates an arrow. [link]

View the whole round up here. 

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post by Jordan benShea

Dos Equis is innovating it’s “most interesting man in the world” brand with a new literally mobile initiative.

Do you think it will work?

I am sure you have read them before just as I have, the numerous articles on how social media is just a time suck, a platform that is degrading our communication between each other, just teenagers talking to each other or companies try to sell you something, and on and on. But what isn't being mentioned in these articles is the vast good social media is doing across the world.

What you are not reading is how social media is allowing the spread of authentic and real and true stories in ways that were never before possible. I am consistently on the lookout for how we can utilize social media for social good, how we can take this powerful communications platform which creates interactions across the globe at lightening speed and share a story that would otherwise go untold. 

Many times clients ask me where to start when we meet to discuss their marketing needs, and consistently my response is the same, "tell me your story." I believe the strength of every business and every non-profit is the story. Because above all else your story tells your "why," why you do what you do, and the why is what people buy, what people get behind, what makes people believe.

The below link came across my Facebook stream and I found myself intrigued with the following post: 

Facebook has created a page, website and videos of people from around the globe using Facebook in extraordinary ways. Now to me this is worth my time, this speaks to the power of stories. Does it help the Facebook brand? Absolutely. But is it a powerful example of how we can utilize this communication platform for good? It most certainly is:

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post by Jordan benShea

Whether or not you have an Apple device we can pretty much all agree that Apple is innovative when it comes to their marketing efforts. So it may not be a surprise that the upcoming iPhone 5 is creating such buzz across all blogs and social media platforms... except, they have done NO marketing around it, at all. There has not been a single comment, single social media post, there has been NO WORD at all from Apple about this upcoming product. However, over the last 30 days alone there have been almost 620,000 tweets. That is just on Twitter. That does not include the coverage on Facebook, news outlets, or any of blogs. 

What other brand do you know that creates such a buzz about one of their products without a single mention from the company? I have been racking my brain to think of even one other example and have yet to come up with one, and why is this? Why is it that everyone (including myself) cares so much about this upcoming product? Is it because it is pretty? Well, that's true is it a good looking piece of equipment, but that alone doesn't create this buzz. Is it because it a cell phone that has such good reception? Not particularly, when the iPhone 4 came out it was plagued with reception issues. Is it because the camera is to good? That could very well be part of it, we know that Annie Leibovitz calls it the "snap shot camera of today." Is it the apps that you can download? This does have great appeal, with the average number just two years ago being 40 apps per iPhone. So is it really any one of these things? I would say it is all of these things in a neat clean and easy to use package. The fact that this single device can not only allow you to video conference with a touch of the screen better then Skype with your mom or boyfriend. It can also take photos that blow people's mind and hold all your music, while allowing you to be more productive in your professional life through the numerous apps and email. 

I am someone who has been a big believer in BlackBerry since the beginning and I remember when I got my first one and all the sudden my productivity at work shot thru the roof. Suddenly I could check all my emails and answer them before I even got into the office. I could take an extra hour at the gym or a walk on the beach and be in the office and plowing through work well before I was even previously done sorting my email.

But we are in a different time now, things move faster and faster. Social media has us answering and conversing with lightening speed. We need a device that allows us to share the photos of family vacations while managing our email and tweeting and posting Facebook updates. For many people the iPhone is that device and Apple has done a BRILLIANT job at marketing themselves, and their products so you know WHY they make what they make. Because in every thing they do they think differently. And above all else, that is what people buy into, that is what people want and that is what people depend on them for, to create products that represent thinking differently. 

Are you already searching for iPhone 5 release dates? I will fully admit I have been since March! 

Below is an article about the social media buzz around the iPhone 5 that I thought would be pertinent for this topic:

By: Jason Boies

Rumors continue to swirl over Apple’s much-anticipated iPhone 5. Industry pundits are increasingly certain we’ll see the long awaited phone by year’s end and that the device will be a huge leap forward from its previous 4S model.

Sustained Buzz

Limiting our scope to Twitter only, we see references to the still officially unannounced device have hit over 619,000 mentions over just the past 30 days. The buzz has been relatively sustained with references to the device hitting a 30-day low of only 9,846 mentions on July 1.

A pair of tweets on July 16 from two much-followed accounts regarding a rumor of an August 7 launch provided the first solid conversation peek.

All iPhone@iPhoneTeam

Apple may launch iPhone 5 on August 7.

16 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Google Facts@GoogleFacts

Apple may launch iPhone 5 on August 7.

16 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Alas, those were but rumors, meant merely to stoke the flames of anticipation and drive the populace mad with mobile desire. The effects didn’t last, however, and conversation dipped again for several days before rising almost Batman-like on July 23. As social media users dared to trust again, this even bigger and more sustained spike was now being driven by yet another rumored launch date apparently set for September 21.

Sentiment

In the past, we’ve seen just how passionate iPhone users are with regards to their favorite mobile device, many were apoplectic about the arrival of Instagram on rival Android even. “Team iPhone” is a very dedicated fan base, to be sure.

Despite that strong brand loyalty, by using Radian6 automated sentiment we see that of the 27,500 posts with clear sentiment attached, positive tweets only slightly outnumber the naysayers.

The source of most of the negative sentiment is the new charger port.  The new device is, apparently, set to drop the wide dock connector in favor of a smaller one, and the Apple faithful have weighed in on this change in droves.

Huffington Post

✔

@HuffingtonPost

Sorry: Your old Apple chargers won't work on the iPhone 5huff.to/MzBXT6

Retweeted by @evimarie78323 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Alex McClelland@Alex_McClelland

Well on the plus side, Apple is changing the dock for the iPhone 5, so all the chargers and plugs we have right now will be worthless

24 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Chef@IXSell_Chef365

Heard the. iPhone 5 will not work with anything made under it so no iPhone 4 or 4s chargers , docks, ect think it's pretty dumb

24 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Henry Truong@tecknotot

Another reason why I hate Apple is the next iPhone5 will have a redesigned connector port so all docks & chargers will NOT work#Fail

25 Jun 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Those concerns aside, the iPhone 5 remains a heavily-anticipated release.  Instances of the word “excited” and/or  “Can’t wait” account for almost 16,000 total mentions within the profile.

Jesus Alarcon@ObeyJesus

Can't wait to cop this iPhone 5. I'm gassed

24 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Abi Beardsworth@AbiBeardsworth

Can't wait for the iPhone 5 to come out, getting impatient now

24 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Alex Sims@TheRealASims

The more I see about the iPhone5 the more excited I'm getting

24 Jul 12

Reply

Retweet

Favorite

Team iPhone is Global

While the United States accounts for the largest portion of iPhone Twitter conversation (60%) , Team iPhone appears to have chapters across the globe.  Sorting mentions by region, we find Japan, the UK, Indonesia, Canada, and Thailand among the top conversation hot spots.

The iPhone 5: A Lesson in Social Media Filtering

It could be argued that your product has not truly entered the public conscience until its name is used by spammers and other online no-goodniks in an effort to collect your clicks.  Apple can rest assured that the iPhone 5 has truly arrived.  As I began sorting through my results, I found the need to filter out several phrases using the DOES NOT CONTAIN field in the Radian6 topic profile set up that specifically referenced the iPhone 5 (e.g. “iPhone 5 is sooo sexy”, “iPhone 5 is so sick looking”)  Eliminating these spambots brought my topic profile volume down considerably, showcasing the need to pay strict attention to what you’re including AND excluding from your social media monitoring efforts.

Are you excited for the iPhone 5? Or do you feel it’s already over hyped? Tell us about in the comments.And for more Radian6 coverage of items making news and other trending topics, be sure to bookmark our “Trending Topics” post tag!

Photo of iPhone by superstrikertwo

Tags: Apple, filtering, iphone 5, mobile, Social Media Monitoring

About the author Jason Boies is a Community Engagement Specialist at Salesforce Radian6. He's an avid reader, comics fan and film buff. Focusing on current events and healthcare, Jason can be found on Twitter at @JasonBoies where he tweets about health, tech, breaking news and pop culture.

What do you think about the iPhone 5 release? Are you waiting?

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post by Jordan benShea

Who doesn't love an infographic?

How do you measure your social media ROI? 

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post by Jordan benShea

While some people are finding themselves still having to defend social media, what has been clear from the beginning of marketing is the impact that a personal referral has on a purchase. A girlfriend raving about her new pair of wedges she got from Zappos and how they overnighted so she could wear them on an upcoming date, is an immediate endorsement.

First you have the human touch to the brand, this isn't a commercial on TV, this is a personal story that is being shared with you by a personal friend. 

Second, this is not an endorsement she is being asked to give, she is simply sharing a story about the brand that she feels compelled to spread.

Third, and possibly the most important, this is a trust source, she is your girlfriend, someone you have already vetted to be in your inner group. She is a trusted source providing you with a personal story and therefore an complete endorsement of this brand experience.   

When people ask me why social media is important for their brand, time and time again my response is the same; if you have people that love your brand, give them the opportunity to share that love. The example above shows how a trusted source is cultivating the brand's development and very possibly a purchase. Social media allows you to do this through multiple channels, from sharing a post on Facebook, to a Twitter status update, to posting an image through Pinterest. 

How are you seeing brand development cultivated through social media?

Below is a piece from eMarketer with recent stats on the ripple effect of social media on friends and family. If you are more of a quantitative person then qualitative, here is another way to help justify the power of social media:

The Ripple Effect of Following a Brand on Social Media

JULY 10, 2012 

Nearly one-fifth of US internet users would buy a brand if a friend followed that company on social media

Consumers are influenced by what brands their friends and family follow on social media.

A study from Ipsos OTX and Ipsos Global @dvisor asked internet users worldwide about their presumed action when they saw that a friend “liked” or followed a certain brand on a social network such as Facebook or Twitter. In March 2012, 22% of internet users worldwide said they would buy such a brand. But in the US, that number dropped a bit, to 18% of all US internet users.

While that is a relatively small percentage, younger consumers were more likely to buy because of a “like.” Ipsos found that 23% of US internet users under the age of 35 said they would buy a brand because of a friend’s social endorsement, and nearly as many internet users between the ages 35 and 49 would do so. Females and males were about even by this metric, at 18% vs. 17%.

As social media gives average consumers a larger reach, the impact of “liking” a brand is growing and becoming more significant for companies. Many companies must cater to their fans on social media as a way to cultivate brand advocates who can support and recommend the brand, and its products and services.

A May 2012 study from internet advertising network Burst Media about web users’ preferences and habits found many reasons why US internet users really followed brands on social media. Keeping up with the latest content was the most popular reason, cited by 43.5% of moms, 44.4% of other women and 30.7% of males.

As consumers continue to interact with brands on social media, and as social media’s influence grows, a “like” or follow can influence the purchase decisions of fellow networkers, even if the reason a brand garnered that “like” wasn’t necessarily to provide an outright endorsement.

See the full coverage here. 

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post by Jordan benShea