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Social media

If you just searched the words “why isn’t anyone following me on Instagram,” then you’re obviously frustrated. You put in a lot of work to establish your brand and create content. You are now attempting to build your audience, but no dice. No one’s following you. All of these other brand and business accounts seem to have figured out the secret, and you want to know what it is.

What are you doing wrong? Let’s address some of the possibilities.

Image source Public Domain Pictures

Your content is boring

Content is the most important part of your Instagram account and strategy. It’s the ultimate reason why people follow you. Without content, you have nothing to share, and therefore no audience.

Simply having content is not enough. Images detailing promotions and sales won’t cut it — neither will poorly-shot photos of you and your friends if you have a personal brand. Every picture, every video, needs to be well-produced, dynamic, and interesting. How else will you capture people’s attention?

You post too inconsistently

It’s possible that people decide not to follow you because you post too inconsistently. Do you post three times a week, or once a month? Your content may have caught someone’s eye and they want to see more, but upon visiting your profile, they discover that you post so irregularly and infrequently that they decide you aren’t worth their time. They follow hundreds or even thousands of people already, and they aren’t interested in an account that will be drowned out.

You might also be posting too much. There is no definitive number of times per day or week to publish new material — it’s different for everyone — but posting too often makes you seem spammy. No one wants you clogging up their feed.

You don’t post at the right times

Besides the frequency at which you post, it’s also possible that people aren’t seeing your content to begin with. No wonder no one is following you! The time of day you post matters, such as in the morning when people wake up, in the afternoons when they get home from work, and at night before they go to bed.

The precise times of day to post at depends on your audience. Instead of relying on trial and error or guesswork to figure out when your audience is most active online, you can use analytics tools like Sprout Social, Buffer, and Later to tell you when the best opportunities are to share new material.

You’re trying too hard

Ask yourself: are you trying too hard? Are you trying too hard to be people’s friend, or win their affections? It’s true that users want to know you are accessible — such as through returned engagement and customer service — but don’t expect too much from your followers. They do not want to be friends with brands as if they are people, they just want you to care about their feedback.

It’s also against your best interests to try to seem more popular than you are. Purchasing fake followers for false social proof is more noticeable than you think. Users can see that you have a high follower count and low engagement rate, so don’t resort to something unethical. If you are struggling to attract followers and put your content in front of the right eyes, then you can buy targeted Instagram followers from other sources.

You keep forgetting hashtags

You may be neglecting hashtags. Hashtags are an integral component of Instagram and help keep an extremely cluttered platform navigable. With over a billion users and the even higher number of posts, hashtags categorize content so that people can find material and profiles that they are interested in.

Are you using hashtags in your posts? If not, you need to remember to tag them with relevant keywords. There is no definite number that will guarantee you perfect visibility, but most experts agree on 8-10. Make sure your hashtags are pertinent to your brand and not simply whatever is trending (though it is beneficial to pay attention to trending hashtags in your niche).

You don’t follow other people, either

If you want people to follow you, it’s important to follow other people, too! It’s not necessary to follow everyone who follows you (and no one likes it when someone follows them, only to be unfollowed as soon as it’s reciprocated), but you should follow a few of your fans and other strategic accounts. Participating in your field’s conversation means being able to interact with other users and brands.

So, why isn’t anyone following you on Instagram? It’s because you need to be strategic about your campaign, and not focus on only a few details. Why do you think people aren’t following you, and how will you fix it?

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When it comes to digital marketing tools, social media is among the most effective and affordable tools that small businesses use. You can use Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn. Social media has grown tremendously over the years in terms of users. It used to be a small advertising mode, but now it’s a more significant marketing strategy for both the small and large businesses.

Social media is great for small businesses because it requires a small financial investment to be implemented, therefore helping small businesses to grow.

 Apart from using social media platforms to grow your business, you can also learn from business mentors like Tony Robbins who are always ready to share with the world some of the incredible strategies that one can use to make their business successful.

Here are some of the benefits of social media for small businesses.

  1. Increased inbound traffic

When you market your small business on social media, you can quickly increase your inbound traffic. People who are familiar with your products and services are likely to be searching for the same keywords that you already rank for.  You should include social media in your marketing strategy because if you don’t, it will be difficult for you to reach people beyond your customer circle.

When it comes to using social media, posting content in your account can be an excellent opportunity to get a new customer. Again, posting content on different social media platforms can allow your customers to reach your business organically. Marketing your business on social media can open your business to a large number of consumers across the globe.

  • Increases your brand awareness

When you have a strong social media presence, you can build your business reputation easily. Through the help of a digital marketing company who can execute a social media strategy, you can increase your brand recognition since you will engage a wide audience of consumers in platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc.

For starters, first, you have to create a social media account for your business, and start interacting with people. You can get people such as sponsors, business partners, and employees to like and share your page. The more you get the likes, the more your business gets recognized.

  • Increases your conversion rates

When your business gets increased visibility, it means that it has more chances for conversion. The comments, images, or videos can lead readers to your business’ site and increase traffic. Social media marketing gives your business the opportunity to interact with your customers on a personal level.

Research shows that social media has a 100% higher leads than the outbound marketing. Individuals use social media platforms to keep in touch with their family and friends. And because people are active on these platforms, you can throw in your brand in the mix. This will expose your business to people and individuals may mention your brand to a friend when your products or services are needed.

  • Social media improves customer satisfaction

It is no surprise that social media is a great networking and communication platform. Your small business can rapidly grow if you create a voice for it using these platforms. Nothing makes a consumer happy like knowing that if they post a comment on your page, they will receive personalized feedback and not an automated message.

One of the best ways to show that you value your customers and pay attention to their needs is to acknowledge each comment from them.

  • It is cost-effective

Social media is one of the most cost-effective methods of advertising. Creating a profile is free for almost all social media platforms. Moreover, any paid promotions that you sign up for are low cost compared to other methods of marketing.

If you are running a small business, a cost-effective marketing strategy will be best for your business since you may be working on a tight budget. A cost-effective method will also enable you to see a significant return on investment [ROI] and retain a huge budget for other business expenses.

Final thoughts

From the points above, you can clearly see how social media can be of significant value to your business. If your business does not already have the correct profiles, create them now. Fill in your business’ details and post interesting and engaging content. You don’t have any reason not to integrate social media into your marketing strategy. It is cost-effective, meaning you won’t lose a thing!

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Unless you’ve not paid attention to the media in the past months, it’s likely that you’ve heard of fake news, from the Internet hoax about Rowan Atkinson’s death – that’s Mr. Bean for those of you who don’t know him yet – to the famous Pizzagate last December. Fake news is everywhere, and while they are not the main item of information online, they can have a negative impact on your everyday life and your decisions. Imagine reading fake news about the impact of vodka on your diet and switching from a water-only to a vodka only regime? Okay, that’s a little far-fetched, but you get the picture. However, what you might not have considered is how fake news can dramatically affect your marketing efforts.

Spot fake news

Fake news and content marketing

According to the Washington Post, 60% of web users are happy to share a link without even reading its content. What this means is that people only read the first few words in the extracts and decide to share and comment, even though they haven’t read the whole article. Consequently, you are at risk of building your digital presence on facts that are not correct. Therefore it’s important to remember some basics about content marketing: According to Ignite Digital, content marketing gives your business the opportunity to educate your audience with valuable information. In other words, check your facts if you want a strong content strategy.

Don’t link to fake news

Fake news and brand awareness

There’s a double risk about the presence of fake news online. For a start, it’s likely that your website will suffer negative impacts if you’ve been building content that uses fake news. But more importantly, as users are becoming more and more suspicious about what they read online, less than one-third of your visitors will believe what they read about your company. The rest will assume that it’s all part of the big fake news scheme.

Fake news and social media

Unfortunately for you, sharing fake news on social media, as part of your social media activities, can cause viral reactions. Even if your business finds ways of dealing with the negative feedback, as Kissmetrics points out the social media world never forgets. In other words, the post you share on social media will remain online… and so do the conversations that follow. To put it simply, even one mistake that you’ve made about fake news outside of the social media platforms can still be found by users and shared on Twitter, for example. Any faux pas will come back to haunt you on social media, and even more easily if you use viral hoaxes – unwillingly, of course.

Twitter

You’re not on your own

Don’t panic, though. Fake news is a known threat, and that’s why Google has changed its algorithm in April this year, as a way to filter out hoaxes. As a result, Google is ranking primarily authoritative pages and allowing users to report inaccurate or misleading content. Admittedly, it doesn’t mean that it’s the end of fake news, But if you check your facts carefully through high-quality content sources, you’re less likely to fall for a hoax.

Your role as a business is to share authoritative content about your area of expertise. Consequently, the accidental use of fake news – on social media or your website – can damage your ranking, your brand reputation, and your social media presence. Let’s just hope that careful on- and offline research and the latest Google algorithm can help you to stay in the clear.

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Everyone likes to get their news in different ways. How you enjoy learning about what’s happening in the world, or just in your town, will often depend on your lifestyle. Some people like to take in the news when they’re relaxing and have some time to really think about it. Others will read or listen to what they can while they’re on their daily commute or just waiting around for something else to happen. Here are some of the favorite ways for people to consume news.

Websites and Mobile Apps

It’s no secret that the internet has taken over when it comes to the media. You can’t get away from the internet, and sometimes it can be exhausting to be kept up to date with the news all the time. But mobile devices and various websites, from newspapers and media organizations to blogs, help us to check up on the news whenever we want.

Social Media

While social media posts often link to an external website, it’s still one of the ways many people get their news. In fact, thanks to the instantaneous nature of social media, many people hear about the latest stories on Twitter or Facebook before they see them confirmed elsewhere.

Television and Radio

Television and radio are still popular ways to hear about the news. Listening to the radio is great for many people while they’re driving. TV gives you a more visual way of learning about the news. And they can both be streamed over the internet.

Newspapers

Newspapers are still popular, both online and in print. They’re trying to keep up with the times, and many of them are managing.


Infographic Design By Cashfloat

It’s no secret that just about everybody uses social media these days. There’s the ever popular Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat – the list goes on. However, you might still be surprised to learn some of these crazy social media facts. Take a look!

1.28 Billion People On Facebook
In any month, around 1.28 billion people are active on Facebook. To put this into context; it’s the entire population of India, which is the second largest populated country in the world.

Over 5 Million Facebook Users Are Under The Age Of 10
Studies showed that some of the parents of these children didn’t know about the account, while others helped them make it. However, users aren’t supposed to be under 13!

The Famous Oscar Selfie Was The Most Retweeted Tweet
You know the selfie – Ellen, JLaw, Julia Roberts, Brad Pitt, and so many more famous celebs feature in this photo. It became the most retweeted tweet, hitting 3.3 million!

Katy Perry Is One Of The Most Popular Ladies On Twitter
Katy has over 89 million followers. That’s 9 million more people than the entire population of Germany, not to mention 14 million more than the former president, Barrack Obama!

The NBA Were The First Professional League To Get 1 Billion Followers
Whether you like the NBA or not, this fact is pretty incredible. Sports teams and leagues are now utilizing social media to gain more followers and exposure! You can find more facts like this on the infographic below!


credit to Adelphi Degree in Sports Management Online

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According to a recent research, spending too long on Facebook at Christmas time – and seeing all those “perfect” families and holiday photos – is more likely to make you miserable than festive.

The University of Copenhagen study suggests excessive use of social media can create feelings of envy.

Researchers particularly warn about the negative impact of “lurking” on social media without connecting with anyone.

It suggests taking a break from using social media during Christmas time.

Image source Flickr

The study of more than 1,300 participants, mostly women, says that “regular use of social networking such as Facebook can negatively affect your emotional well-being and satisfaction with life”.

Researchers warn of envy and a “deterioration of mood” from spending too long looking at other people’s social media stories, induced by “unrealistic social comparisons”.

If this suggests a picture of long irritable hours over a screen, depressed by the boasts and posts of others, then the researchers say that it does not need to be this way.

The study, published in the journal Cyberpsychology, Behaviour and Social Networking suggests that actively engaging in conversation and connecting with people on social media seems to be a much more positive experience.

This seems to be much less gloomy than “passive” users who spend too long “lurking” on social networking websites without getting involved.

Researchers say another approach to improve well-being is to stop using social media altogether for a week.

News, Newspaper, Globe, Read, Paper, Inform, Policy

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Only a few years ago we were alerted to breaking news through news flashes. Viewing would be interrupted to provide audiences with information on important issues and incidents. Nowadays, anyone with an internet connection can access news before it hits the airwaves. We no longer have to wait for news organizations to put together a broadcast. This has revolutionized the media and the news as we know it.

  1. Faster

News provided by reputable organizations has to be fact checked before distribution. This is true, whichever distribution channel is used. However, sending textual updates via social media is quicker than putting together a broadcast. Where facts have not been verified, news outlets tend to lead with ‘unconfirmed reports of’ or similar. So we’re still receiving information much quicker.

Video content can be compiled and distributed immediately via sites like YouTube or Facebook. There is now no need to wait to schedule footage with TV stations. This is useful for news items, features, and political debates, etc.

  1. Citizen Reporting

Members of the public have no rules imposed regarding fact checking. Therefore, individuals can report news as it is occurring. This also makes for a different kind of reporting. It makes it more personal and more immediate. We receive reports from victims, victims’ friends, and witnesses. This provides a rich source of information that would never have been possible previously. Hashtags aid this process and readers can pull together information from a wide range of viewpoints.

Of course, on the flip side, there is often no way of verifying information from individuals. Because they are not bound by strict codes, information can be less reliable. Some have been criticized for sharing too much online.

  1. Wider Coverage

One of the biggest changes to news is that it is now available to a much wider audience. Once it is posted online, it remains there until deleted. This provides people with longer to access and share it. We can now view footage from around the world, which wouldn’t have been possible previously.

smartphone, technology, mockup

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Debates from organizations such as Foundation for Defense of Democracies can be shared worldwide. Anyone with an internet connection can access them. Viewers around the world can then comment and enter the discussion. This information is invaluable in dealing with global issues and threats such as terrorism.

  1. Photographs And Footage

Cell phones, tablets, and other portable devices have also changed the face of news. Because social media apps are available on these devices, posts can be uploaded immediately. Most people with a smartphone have instant access to a camera and video camera. This allows them to take photos and video footage of events as they are occurring. This provides vital information to law enforcement agencies, media outlets, and the general viewer. In some cases, this can provide urgent data that could potentially save lives. And again, from a content point of view, it is a rich, and personal source of information.

It has been argued that the advent of social media has degraded the quality of news. Because anyone is now a potential reporter, quality is sometimes compromised. However, most viewers can assess information and its validity. And therefore, personal reports and content only add to and enrich the news.

Facebook has reported more than doubled profits in the fourth quarter of 2015.

The social media giant’s net profit for the three months to December rose to $1.56 billion, up from $701 million.

Facebook also said that 80% of its advertising revenue in that period came from mobile advertising, up from 69% a year earlier.

Shares jumped 8.7% in after-hours trading in New York on the better than expected results.

Revenue for the full year jumped 44% to $17.9 billion, with net profit rising about $800 million to $3.7 billion.Facebook profit report Q4 2015

The results mean that Facebook has now beaten analysts’ expectations for ten consecutive quarters.

Rob Sanderson, an analyst at MKM Partners, described the growth as phenomenal.

The number of monthly active users rose 14% to 1.59 billion in the fourth quarter compared with the same period in 2014, with 1.44 billion accessing Facebook on mobile devices – a 21% increase.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that 2015 was a “great year for Facebook. Our community continued to grow and our business is thriving”.

Mark Zuckerberg returned to work on January 25 after taking two months of paternity leave following the birth of his baby daughter.

People around the world are expressing their solidarity with the people of France after November 13 attacks in Paris.

At least 129 people are dead and 100 seriously injured in the deadliest attacks on France since World War Two.

Eighty people were killed at an Eagles of Death Metal concert at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris.

Attackers took hostages before blowing themselves up after security forces stormed the hall.

People were shot dead at restaurants and bars at five other sites in Paris.

On Twitter people are using hashtags including #PrayforParis, #PrayForPeace and #StandWithParis to show their support for the victims and their families.

The hashtag #JeSuisParis is being used again as it was after the Charlie Hebdo killings in January, in which 12 people died.

A sketch of the Eiffel Tower as a peace sign is also being posted and users are changing their profile pictures.

Photo Ap

Photo Ap

Other hashtags on Twitter expressed outrage at the attacks like #TerrorismHasNoReligion.

Other images being shared include a black peace ribbon laid over the French flag, a pair of hands clasped together in prayer around the Eiffel Tower, and a famous landmarks covered in red, white and blue.

On November 13, the hashtag #PorteOuverte, or Door Open, was used for anyone who wanted to find refuge in Paris after the attacks.

In the US, some used the hashtag #strandedinUS to offer shelter for people who can’t travel back to France because of flight restrictions.

Facebook users are being offered a safety check feature called Paris Terror Attacks to let their friends and family know they’re safe, or to try to locate people they know in the city.

On Twitter the hashtag #Bataclan is being used to try to track down loved ones.

Paris is now under tight security with schools and universities closed.

There will also be three days of national mourning in France after the attacks.

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Social media is an important part of every photographer and artist’s career management. It’s a fantastic way to promote your work, connect with your audience and, if we’re being honest, keep up with friends and family. It’s hard to keep social media from taking over your life–especially when it seems like there’s a new network popping up every couple of weeks! You’ve heard of Ello, right?

We’ve talked before on this site about maintaining a proper work-life balance when it comes to spending time on social media. Today we’re going to spend some time exploring the idea of how much social media is too much from an entrepreneurial and promotional point of view.

Facebook is facing legal action from Rembrandt Social Media over its use of the "Like" button and other features of the social network

Is Too Much Visibility Really a Bad Thing?

It’s understandable that you want to secure your company’s name on all of the different social media networks. It prevents imposters from pretending to be you and sending the wrong messages out into the void. Securing user names is an important part of your reputation management. At the same time, just because you’ve opened an account on a social media network doesn’t mean that you have to find a way to work it into your regularly scheduled promotional plan. That could lead to an oversaturation of your message and–as everybody remembers during election season–too much marketing can actually dilute or actively work against you.  Pick a few of the networks that are most relevant to your venture and concentrate on them.

Keeping Your Information Safe

Another thing that you have to keep in mind is that each network you join represents a potential security breach. As Trend Micro points out, “For every door that opens on the Internet, there’s usually a “key” to open that door—in other words, a combination of username and password. And behind each door is all kinds of personal information about you.” Plus: the more user accounts you have the more logins you have to remember and the more passwords you have to create. You do know that using the same password everywhere is a bad idea, right? A good password manager can help with this. It’s also a good idea to enable two-factor identification on every service you use (that offers it).

Time Time Time

One thing that you already know is that managing a social media account properly takes a lot of time. There is more to good social media marketing than simply publishing promotional posts every morning. You have to interact with your audience on and off your profiles and feeds. Managing just one or two social media accounts can take hours of your time every day. It’s why some photographers and artists will hire help to manage their social media accounts full time. If that’s true when you have just one or two accounts, imagine the time it will take to properly manage four, five or more accounts! That is time that you could be spending on other incredibly aspects of building your business like working with clients, managing your books, etc.

Sure you can schedule things ahead of time but the last thing you want is to set everything completely to auto pilot. The last thing you want is to be that person–the person who accidentally posts promotional stuff during emergencies or crises.

So What Are You Supposed to Do?

Pick, at most, four social networks on which to focus the majority of your attention. Typically, in our field, those networks are Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Facebook. There are, of course, other social networks out there that are deserving of your time but for now, it’s important to go where the people are. You don’t have to abandon the others completely. You just need to save the specialty networks for breaks in your schedule or unexpected downtime. This is particularly true for networks that are still in beta (like Ello).

Remember: there is such a thing as too much marketing. Instead of trying to be everywhere at once all the time, make sure you’re exactly where you need to be when you need to be there. It’s a skill that will take time but once you’ve gotten the hang of it, you can be sure that your business will thrive.