Archive for: brand personality

4 Must-Haves for Your Social Media Strategy

When you are posting on social media as the voice of a company for the first time, its recommended that you do some research and follow a few key steps before jumping right in. It takes a little bit of thought to decide what you want your company’s tone to be like. After all, the internet is where the majority of people are connecting with companies these days.

  • Design and keep a personality tone. No matter how many people handle the company’s social media, it must be constant with each post, comment, etc. You are identifying the company as one. This can be tricky if you have a few people managing the platform, so it should be discussed.
  • Post at appropriate times. If you are posting great updates at times when your customers or target audience isn’t online, chances are they won’t see that post. Doing a little bit of research can help identify when the most ideal time is for you to get the maximum reach. Typically this is before the work day starts- early in the morning, or right after work hours. Sometimes the peak hours can even be later on at night or on the weekends.
  • Connect with those that share your passion. It is so much easier to grow your social presence when you have others who share the same interest. You can share knowledge and learn for both yourself and your audience. Having a core group online also makes it more fun to connect and socialize.
  • Utilize many platforms. Just because Facebook worked wonders for one company, doesn’t mean that it will for you. Choosing a few social media platforms will help because you can do a little bit of testing to decide which outlet gets more attention. This doesn’t mean  that you should join every social media network that is available, but to have a few.

For more information on our Social Media services, click here!

4 Pinterest Secrets for Shareable Content

Pinterest caught on fast for the consumer, and it’s perfect for marketing your lifestyle brand! Customers are able to see photos of clothes, food, landscapes, art, etc. and be inspired. It encourages personality expression by posting photos and creating boards that are designed by the things you like. Here are a few tips, so your company can manage Pinterest the right way.

1. Be creative. Creating a post that catches the user’s eye is what will bring attention. Using unique fonts and interesting graphics to get your point across can be powerful and is sure to intrigue the customer.

2. Show personality. When the customer feels like they know your brand and their values, they will feel more inclined to give you business. Show appropriate humor to humanize your brand.

3. Use vivid color. When the post is eye-catching, the customer won’t be able to miss the post. Use colors that are pleasing to the eye, and not overly cluttered. Bright colors with contrast are popular to use.

4. Use Infographics.  If your brand is complex, use infographics to get your point across. It is an easy way to condense information to make it readable and user-friendly. Infographics that are visually appealing tend to get shared more.

For more tips on how to give your company the most traffic, click here!

5 Tips For Your Social Media Engagement

Social media has become very popular in recent years. Companies are now utilizing it to reach out to their customers and build relationships with them. Although it might sound easy, there are some rules to follow for optimal engagement.

Plan: Create a plan, and follow it. You can use social media without a plan, but the results will be minimal, at most.  Create a schedule that works for you and your company. Set a specific time throughout your day to spend a few minutes on posting/responding to customers. Once you have a pattern down, it will become easier to follow.

Set Goals: Set quarterly, monthly, weekly and even daily goals for your page. This will help with measuring how effective your strategy is with where you want to be.

Patience: Social media is like a slow growing snowball. It takes awhile to gain quality followers/engagement at first, but once you do, it will all pay off. It will be difficult for a smaller business to gain hundreds of followers overnight. Keep in mind that it can be more important to have a few quality followers compared to many of little value.

Offer Deals: Offering deals keeps the followers wanting to come back to your page. It also makes the follower feel valued and special if they are only getting a deal because they liked your page.

Friendly Voice:  Create a company personality for your page, so your follower knows that there is a face behind the computer. Adding character will increase the levels of engagement and make your page more lively.

For more information on social media with 405 Media Group, click here!

Keys to Creating Shareable Content

You have a great product or service, but what good is that if no one knows about it? Social media is a hot marketing tool to share with your company with people. With easy ways to share, pin and repost, it would be silly not to hop on board! Get your name and product out there before your competitor beats you to it. There are a few key ways to make sure that you don’t just post content, but so you make the most of your content to keep your audience coming back for more.

    • Watch for trends: How well your company does is influenced by how well your competitor is doing. Follow the trends of their social media sites. What content do they post? How active are they? Try something new. Combine what works for them and what works for you to find the perfect balance.
    • Inspire your customer: Create posts, tips and advice, so your customer wants to keep coming back for more. Focus on topics that they love and are interested in that also relate to your company. If they are constantly learning something from you, they will return. If they found your content interesting, it is more likely that they will share it on their social media sites, which gets your name out there.
    • Engage their emotions: When people can relate to your information on some level, they will be intrigued to learn more. This can be achieved by telling a story, making them feel special, or deepening a social connection. People are more attracted to positive emotional responses than negative because they finish reading the content and feel good afterwards.
    • Have a good header: These different approaches all intrigue the level of curiosity, interest, humor or admiration. When you use a header that makes the reader question themselves, it grabs their attention and makes them want to read. Sharing information with them that others in society might not know about makes them feel smarter, and boosts their self-esteem.

For more information on how you can make the most of your content, go to www.405mediagroup.com.

Top Trends with Web Design

Looking back over the years, you can see what design trends stuck and what didn’t. They key here is the difference between a trend and a fad. A fad is hot, but only lasts for a short time, while a trend usually lasts for a few years. There are some new trends for the year 2014 to keep a lookout for to keep you customer as engaged as possible. Afterall, your website is your showroom. You want it to not only display the correct information, but to look appealing to the eye, too.

  1. Simplicity – Your site needs to be easy to navigate and use. Avoid unnecessary information to get the message across with less clutter. You must tell a message, not just have it look pretty if its not workable.
  2. Video– The best way to get the user engaged is to use animations or tell a story through a video. Videos are easy to share online and keep the user highly engaged. You can see the engagement statistics through online tools that measure the effectiveness. Having videos in place of text make it easier on the reader and get the information across in a faster manner.
  3. Long scrolling sites– An easier format to display content is to make a long scrolling website. Also have format changes, so the user doesn’t  realize how far they have been scrolling, and keeps them reading more.

For more information on our web design services, click here!

How to Handle Online Conflict

Don’t let one bad apple ruin your reputation when it comes to your online presence. Your initial reaction might be to fire back with your opinion, but it is best to refrain from doing so. Be professional, and in the long run it will pay off. If you keep your poise, your brand’s reputation won’t be effected. Address the issue politely, correct if necessary, and move on. Keep the tips in mind that are posted below, before responding.

Stay  focused: You are in control of your attitude and how others will perceive you online. Stay positive. Keep in mind the results that will follow. You never know where you will see that person again, and you don’t want to burn bridges,especially because oftentimes it can just be miscommunication online.

Try to take the conversation offline: Be professional and remember the facts when you respond to others. Don’t let your emotions get involved, or take anything too personally. Send a direct message if necessary, so you can have a private conversation. Be sure to determine whether or not it is worth the time because you will not have time to send direct messages to everyone.

Take action stay polite and courteous: You never know when you will see them again, and you don’t want to tamper your reputation. If someone is harassing, then yes, block them. Just because there was one bad comment, doesn’t mean you should delete it. It can be a great opportunity for you to clarify your point or company’s reasoning. There is a chance that others perceive your company in that same manner, so clarifying can  help you reap benefits.

To learn more about ways to boost your online reputation, go to www.405mediagroup.com.

3 Ways to Make Your Website More Social

Your website might have high rankings in SEO, but would it rank high in the social category? Websites that come across more friendly and engaging are far more likely to attract more users and keep current customers interested. Here are three ways you can increase your social standings, today!

Improve quality

Creating content that your customers will find helpful and useful is important. Your users care about how helpful your website and content is; it can increase the level of trust they have with you. Make titles enticing, use infographics and videos often since they are generally shared more. They are quick, easy to read and visually more appealing than content.

Ask For Feedback

It isn’t uncommon for companies to not ask customers or visitors what they wanted to see next in terms of products or improvements. Having a poll is a great way to get helpful feedback that will help both you and the customer in the end. In the end, this will increase customer retention and future feedback.

Make Adjustments

Seek and encourage feedback- by choosing “emotionally intelligent words” to represent the personality of the brand. This makes it more of a personal experience for the user, which makes them feel more comfortable about leaving a comment on your site. Switch up your approach to see what works best for your company and see which leads to boost social activity.

To learn more on how you can increase your company’s social standings, click here!

3 Keys to Social Media Success

When companies use social media the right way, it can boost their search engine rankings, allow better customer service and build an effective, engaging online personality. Entreprenuers think that by just posting the content, that it is enough, but that’s where they are wrong. They need to be engaging online in conversations.

1. Answer questions from customers and clients. Using social media as a customer service platform is a great way to strengthen the relationship with you customer. By using the hashtag symbol and tagging your customer in the response, they will get a direct notification from you. Customers might not bother with a direct message, thinking they might not get an immediate response, but they won’t hesitate to tag you in a complaint for all to see. When you are tagged in a complaint, anyone that searches that term can see it, in addition to the owner’s friends network. This is great opportunity to respond because you can correct the issue directly and save your reputation if it was damaged.

2. “Like” Content. Use the “like” button when someone writes or comments on your wall, that acts as a “thank you.” This is equivalent to a +1 on Google+.  You could also say “thank you;” this is what companies can do to differentiate themselves and creates a great sense of community. When customers feel valued and appreciated, they are likely to continue liking your content.

3.Show gratitude. Build a community and network with those who share common goals, values and interests. Share each other’s posts and like them. Social media can be impersonal, so when you make an effort to change that, people feel appreciated. When you share other’s posts, the odds are likely that they will return the favor and your social network will bloom!

For more information on your social media and SEO specialists, click here!

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