Social Media Networks (SMO) are becoming the new Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Everyday people are taking to social networks to discover new content in and around their social graph. According to a recent Nielsen study, [ref: 18 percent of all searches start on Social Media sites not search engines ) social media sites such as Wikipedia, blogs, and social networks account for 18% of where searches begin, outperforming sites that are dedicated to publishing information specifically to help individuals find deeper analysis and details. This is a trend that’s only now gaining momentum; as Nielsen observes, “Social Media is becoming a core product research channel.”


"...the social web is your new distribution channel as well as your portfolio for intellectual assets. Whether you’re in the business of creating, marketing, selling, or distributing media, the social Web is an incredible medium that can create a brand, establish visibility, and build demand, all without active promotion. It’s about letting your expertise or work market itself through the practice of a socialized form of inbound marketing that helps make content discoverable when people search."  Says Brian Solis (see link at bottom)


It is all about trust..."who you gonna call?"



Read the entire blog by Brian Soilis here
http://www.briansolis.com/2010/02/social-media-optimization-smo-is-the-new-seo-part-1/

How great leaders inspire action - getting people to join your social media hub

If you haven't looked in on the TED videos you are really missing the leading edge of so many subjects.

The TED conferences discuss technology and management at its best.

One of the reasons I am posting this link is that I believe that to have GREAT followers you need inspiration to inspire them. To have a large number of followers you need to have a killer "inspirational" proposition.  Using a simple model of "Why, How and What" Simon Sinek offers his observations of this model and how it works.  To inspire is to start with what you believe not what you do.  By this I mean, solve this problem - what we/it does is uninspiring. People buy not what you do but why you do it.  Why are you passionate about something.  That is what you use as your platform for discussion.  Not What you do.

This quick 8 minute video helps to explain that process. So as with all things in this Blog, this helps to discuss the ways you get people to join your social media hub.
Listen and watch:  Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action.
Click Here

Interestingly enough, this same model is exactly what drives the video below... How to Start a Movement.

Another great video on the TED sight is How to Start a Movement by Derek Sivers.

Click Here

Both of these videos explore the process of getting people motivated to do something like follow you and drink your cool-aid.  These are core concepts for creating a Social Media Hub with dedicated followers. 

Enjoy

10 things you should do in an email to your prospects

 What are the the 10 things you should put in an emal

1.  Put URLs in the subject line!
2. Use YouTube for e-mail promos.
3. Test auto-updates of content for older e-mails.
4. Make your e-mails 3D (QR codes, digital catalogs).
5. Make "exclusive e-mail" offers a priority.
6. Format with images that are the same size as those on your site and HTML.
7. Ask for feedback and respond to it.
8. Use control groups to determine full impact of e-mails.
9. Use an offer in order confirmation e-mail.
10. Send a full early engagement stream instead of a single welcome e-mail.

FYI - do not put flash in your email, a large number (like 50%) are read on mobile devices and they do not use flash - yet!

There you have it! Now you can print this out and use it as a checklist for success.

Reference  What Not To Do in E-Mail

83% of the US population watched a video online in April 2010

178 Million U.S. Internet Users Watched Online Video During April

3Share

comScore Video Metrix today announced that 178 million American Internet users watched online video during April 2010. In other words, 83.5 percent of the total U.S. Internet audience viewed online video that month.

Why is that important.  Because there are a lot of Real Estate Agents and Auto Dealers (Offers Network's customers) who think only 17-year-olds are using Social Media sites like YouTube.  Consumers are now using Video more than ever before.  YouTube, which is owned by Google, is the #2 search engine [ref: http://techcrunch.com/2008/12/18/comscore-youtube-now-25-percent-of-all-google-searches ] when you break out the numbers from their parent firm. 

"450 million people worldwide view more 60 billion videos each month on YouTube.com. If YouTube were a nation, it would be the 3rd most populous country in the world -- behind the People's Republic of China and India, but ahead of the United States and Indonesia." (1)

Video is also a compelling way for people to view information on smartphones, our Social Media Hub building services that start with a YouTube posting of a video display of a car or house for Auto Dealers: UTUBEautos.com and AutoDEALERMLS.com and our Real Estate services through Techmediamarketing.com show that on average we are seeing 10+% of our total viewers coming threw a mobile device... wait till Tablets become the norm around the house and office (iPads).

Location Based Services [REF: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Location-based_service ] are an integral part of this Social Media trend and are the hottest thing coming now on Smartphones.  Augmented Realty systems like LAYAR or TAGWHAT are now creating significant numbers of users that can no longer be ignored.  What is your Mobile strategy?

How are you positioned to build your Social Media Hub?  Video is a core component of this strategy.  Creating free postings on Youtube, Twitter and Faceboook for hundreds of your assets (cars, property listings) linking to your web site - a web of backlinks [ref: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backlinks ].  Create a cloud of listings that the consumer can find and then click to you not some 3rd party marketplace site.   

YouTube, Twitter, Facebook... they are free.  Now there is Google Buzz.  Get involved with programs offering Augmented Reality services on smartphones.    

These are simple tactics... even if you do them by hand... Start today!

(1) Reference Links used to create this posting: http://blog.searchenginewatch.com/100601-155022