Friday, May 30, 2014

Friday Facts - Part 2: The 3 Types of Social Networks and What to Post on Them

Once again, Klout has put out a blog post which is very useful to my readers (and even those who are not my readers) regarding the types of social networks and what to post on them.  This one was such a timely post, it couldn't wait to the next free Friday for posts.

You may be asking "What do they mean by types of social networks."  They break down social networks into three platforms: Personal, Content Sharing, and Shared Interest Networks.  Some social media outlets are under more than one of those networks.

Their explanation of social networks, what to post and tips for each network is quite interesting and valuable.

Check out the article via Klout's blog here: http://blog.klout.com/2014/05/3-types-social-networks-use/

Have a good Friday!

Friday Facts: Finding Out the Best Time to Post on Social Media

I've posted a couple of times - here and here in fact - about figuring out what time is the best time to post on your various forms of social media.  This time isn't necessarily the same for all of your pages, in fact the days and times will vary according to your audience.

There are, however, more tools than just the analytic tools offered by Facebook and Google that can help you figure out what times are the ideal time to post-which is what today's Friday Facts linked article is about.  The tools they talk about I hadn't even heard about, which is why I'm sharing the article.  I can still learn things - which is always a good thing.

The article has a lot of useful information as well as information on the tools and how to get them and use them.

Check out the entire article here: http://webquacker.com.au/best-time-post-social-media-is-oh-not-again/

If you have read a useful article you think we should share on this blog, or perhaps you have written some items you'd like us to share, please feel free to get a hold of me on my Facebook page or Google+.

Thursday, May 29, 2014

Thursday Tutorials: Creating a Google+ Page

I figure this is the next tutorial in the fun world of Social Media and I have a couple sites I need to create Google+ Pages for, so now is the time to do it.  If you haven't read the tutorial from last week which covers how to chose the proper category for your Google+ page, I suggest stopping here and checking that article out.  Otherwise, if you're confident in being able to chose your category, continue reading.

Just like in the article where we talk about Adding Managers to your page, view your profile in Google+.  You should see a screen like this:


Click on the profile button with the down arrow on the left hand side.  You should get a menu that looks like this:


Click on Pages, which will bring you a page like this (note: mine has pages on it already because I created/manage a handful of pages).


Click on the create a page button and it will automatically take you to the first part of the process where you have to select the category from the five options below (note: fewer main category selections to chose from, but pretty  much similar to Facebook's options).


Click on the category that fits you best.  For the page I am currently creating, I chose Arts, Entertainment or Sports as the page I'm working on right now is for a fansite for a Video Game.

Once you click on that category, just like on Facebook, you have a drop down menu of choices to select from as seen below.  I chose Video Game for this project, though website would have worked just as well.


Once you've finished the selection, click on next.  This will allow you to type in the name of your page as well as the website for it, if you have one.  Options for other categories may be different.


Once the information is typed in and accurate, be sure to click on the I agree to the terms box and click continue.


And the basic part of the page has been created.  Click on "Get Started" which will take you to your page's Dashboard and give you hints and tips to get started, as seen below.


This is pretty straightforward from here, but we'll follow up next week with a tutorial on how to finish setting up your page, including image sizes, and things to do to tweak it.

Until next time.

Thursday Tutorials are a series of tutorials designed to help people who may not be as Facebook savvy as other people.  Some tutorials will be targeted towards newbies to the social media world, others will include tutorials for more advanced users.  Thursday Tutorials are written for the layman and are designed with everyone in mind.  You can find all the Thursday Tutorials by clicking on the Thursday Tutorials tag below.

Wednesday, May 28, 2014

The Power of Social Media and Crowdfunding

Butterfly in the sky,
I can go twice as high...

Anyone who recognizes the first two lines of that song knows what show that it is for - Reading Rainbow.  Anyone who has been on social media today knows that LeVar Burton is raising funds to bring Reading Rainbow to future generations and seeking a hefty sum of money to do so through Kickstarter.

Not even a day into the fundraiser, as of this posting, more than $680,000 and is likely to break a million before the day is done.

That, my friends, is the power of social media.  All of us that grew up watching the show are donating and sharing on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest - anywhere we can - because we want to see the project funded and we want to see future generations be turned on to reading.

If you don't believe me, check out #ReadingRainbow on twitter.  Reading Rainbow is trending on Facebook.  See the posts about the fundraiser.

if you haven't even looked at it yet, check it out: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/readingrainbow/bring-reading-rainbow-back-for-every-child-everywh

It's going to meet it's goal, but we can make it better.  Consider donating when you have the funds.

Let's make Reading Rainbow great for our children and our children's children.

Wednesday Words: Social Synergy

You often hear about synergy when in the work place.  Synergy can also apply to social media, which involves today's word "Social Synergy."

Synergy is defined by Dictionary.com as "the interaction of elements that when combined produce a total effect that is greater than the sum of the individual elements, contributions, etc.; synergism."

With that in mind, social synergy is when two or more social entities work together to create something larger than their individual efforts could create.  Or, in layman's terms, online teamwork.

Social synergy isn't complicated and you can often see it in contests on Facebook and websites.  "Like this site" and "Like us" to enter to win.  Follow these groups on Pinterest/Twitter, then put in your handle so they can make sure you've followed them if you win their prize.

Any brands that have partnerships will often cross promote the other brands social media as well.  "If you like what we're doing, you should also check out ______"

So if you're looking to have a bigger reach, you might look into social synergy and working with friends to help expand both of your reaches.

Wednesday Words are a series of definitions released on Wednesday each week regarding a word found specific to Facebook's social media platform, or may be a generic word dealing with social media.  These definitions are to help provide you with a better understanding of common and uncommon terms associated with Facebook and social media.   You can find all the Wednesday Words by clicking on the Wednesday Words tag below.

Tuesday, May 27, 2014

Tuesday Tips: June is National Safety Month - Plan Accordingly

As part of Tuesday Tips, I will provide an occasional guide on relevant things you can potentially post about during the week.  As May comes to an end, looking at June provides us with a bunch of things to potentially post about.

If you own a business where working safely is important, there are a lot of safety tips that can be shared from the National Safety Council.  All you have to do is sign up to receive a weekly email that provides tips and hints that you can post.

Some things may be good reminders for non-industry environments as well - it all depends on who your audience is.

Check them out and see what they have to offer when you're planning out posts you can schedule ahead of time for June.  Never know what might be of use.

Tuesday Tips are a series of tips released on Tuesday each week regarding a hint or tip to help you manage and market your Facebook presence better.  You can find all the Tuesday Tips by clicking on the Tuesday Tips tag below.

Monday, May 26, 2014

No Monday Search Today, Happy Memorial Day

We won't be posting a list of open jobs today, since it is Memorial Day.  If you have the day off, we hope you enjoy it.  If you have to work, we hope you get a day off to enjoy in the future.

If you are looking for a job this Memorial Day, you can still check the links below to see what's available.

Have a great day!

The Monday Search is a brief listing of jobs available for those in the social media marketing field. All jobs are found through internet searches and are just featured because they are of interest to me. Monday Searches will contain links to sites with other job listings in addition to the ones listed here.