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Category: InfluencerMarketingPro

InfluencerMarketingPro

  • B2B Influencer Marketing Adds Up To Nurture and Ultimately Conversion

    B2B Influencer Marketing Adds Up To Nurture and Ultimately Conversion

    “We co-create content with (B2B Influencers) in concert with brand messaging,” says TopRank Marketing CEO Lee Odden. “So now instead of people just ignoring the press release we actually have storytelling happening with these different voices. You have this intersection of one or two or three or four influencers talking about this topic and those audiences intersect and cross. Your customer is hearing this credible message not only from the brand but also from people that they trust in different channels. That all adds up to yes. That all adds up to nurture and ultimately conversion.”

    Lee Odden, CEO of TopRank Marketing, discusses how B2B influencer marketing can be a highly effective force in driving leads and conversions for companies. Lee was interviewed by Tim Washer at the 2019 Content Marketing World Conference & Expo:

    Influencer Marketing Is Powerful Because Of Influence Itself

    Influencer marketing is powerful because of influence itself, not about the people. Influence has always been a factor in being persuasive and being effective as a communicator, as a marketer, and really being able to tap into the dynamics of that. The psychology and sociology of that is something that is everlasting, it’s evergreen. While there are trends in terms of tactics that come and go, there’s this consumerization of B2B. B2C influencers are misbehaving and have fake followers, etc. and some of that’s leaking over into B2B. But I think that’ll reconcile a little bit and kind of clean itself out. In the future brands are going to be looking at influence as a really key component of their holistic marketing strategy internally and externally.

    A lot of people when they think of influencer marketing they think of a Kardashian or some people think of something like Baddiewinkle, a 90-year-old woman who wears hip-hop clothes and now has her own makeup line on Sephora versus someone like Tamara McCleary interviewing an executive at Dell about the right IT infrastructure for doing edge computing. That’s really what it’s about in B2B.

    B2B Influencers Actually Have To Have The Main Expertise

    One of the big differences between B2B and B2C influencers is that in B2B you actually have to have the main expertise. You actually have to be knowledgeable and have a depth of that expertise in what it is that you’re influential about. It’s also important to have a network for distribution and a place to publish your content. It’s great to have a personality and that’s less common in B2B, where you have charisma. Well, lack of personality is a form of personality I suppose. 

    The good thing is that we’ve figured out ways to coach folks that have that domain expertise and an active following but they’re not necessarily used to being social. We are coaching them in how to activate themselves and to pull out the best of what they have to share in a way that’s very promotable. Many of them start to open up a little bit after we show them how to do it.

    B2B Influencer Marketing Adds Up To Nurture and Conversion

    In the planning stages (with a client looking to promote something) we’ll look at the topics that are important around the announcement and how it affects customers and how customers will think of that news and how it’ll affect or change their lives. Those topics are then what we want to be influential about. We’ll use those keywords or topics to search our network using influencer marketing software to find who is influential around those topics, who’s publishing content, who self-identifies around that topic, and whose audience is actually activated around that topic. We find those people who have trusted voices with an active community and we invite them to collaborate on content and give their opinion about the announcement. 

    We co-create content with them in concert with brand messaging. So now instead of people just ignoring the press release we actually have storytelling happening with these different voices. You have this intersection of one or two or three or four influencers talking about this topic and those audiences intersect and cross. They intersect across channels too. Your customer is hearing this credible message not only from the brand but also from people that they trust in different channels. That all adds up to yes. That all adds up to nurture and ultimately conversion.

    B2B Influencer Marketing Adds Up To Nurture and Conversion – TopRank Marketing CEO Lee Odden
  • TrenDemon CEO: We Connect Content Marketing to Sales

    TrenDemon CEO: We Connect Content Marketing to Sales

    The CEO of TrenDemon, Avishai Sharon, says that they created their cloud-based software solution in order to help companies prove that the marketing content they produced also achieved business goals and sales. In order to show this correlation, the TrenDemon software analyzes all of the different touchpoints the customer has had over his lifecycle and then reverse engineers those successful journeys in order to find out what content is working.

    Avishai Sharon, Co-founder & CEO of TrenDemon, discussed their software on ILTV:

    How Do You Connect Content Marketing to Sales?

    My personal background was heading a marketing agency for many years and one of my biggest struggles was how do I prove our value and our effort to our customers and how do you connect the impact of what we call content marketing to business goals and to sales? When we couldn’t find an easy way to show that correlation three and a half years ago we went ahead and founded TrenDemon to help companies do just that.

    We connect their marketing efforts, which today rely mostly on content, you want your audience to consume valuable content, as opposed to just advertising. The big challenge is how do you attribute those efforts to sales? There’s actually a prior problem, how do you actually map the customer journey? How do you track those different touch points into one picture?

    Reverse Engineering Successful Customer Journeys

    The first thing we do is look at all the different touchpoints that a customer has had over his lifecycle. We ask the question, not just where do they come from, but how deep was their engagement? Did they actually watch the video? Did they actually read the article? Then you can start reverse engineering those successful journeys and say what’s common about all of these successful journeys.

    What we found, and this is the interesting thing, we’re working with over 90 companies today worldwide and the vast majority of content the companies produce, over 90 percent, is ineffective at driving business goals. As you guys know it’s very expensive to create quality content and it takes a lot of effort.

    If People Read the Right Content They Will Covert to a Sale

    The second interesting thing is that if you do manage to find those 10 percent and you find a way to get it in front of the right people you’re actually able to improve dramatically your results. So there’s not just a correlation between what buyers did beforehand, there’s also a causation, a causal relationship, that if people read the right content at the right time they’re more likely to follow a path. We’re not probably as sophisticated as we believe that we are.

    We’re a SaaS company, a cloud-based solution. We’re working a lot in the US and one of our biggest markets and growing markets is Japan. They’re investing a lot of content and a lot on technology. Essentially, because we look at the customer journey and not necessarily specific languages we can operate in any environment which allows us to grow pretty much anywhere. As long as they have content, which means that they’re producing something other than just advertising, they want people and audiences to actually engage with what they’re producing and they do have some business outcomes that they’re looking to measure.

    About TrenDemon:

    Founded in 2013, TrenDemon is the world’s leading content marketing attribution and optimization solution, helping marketers prove and improve their content’s impact.

    TrenDemon insights can help you uncover your content marketing ROI, impact on business goals, and engagement to help guide the content strategy. Our optimization units will help you increase conversions and shorten time to convert on your owned assets.

    TrenDemon proudly serves a wide range of customers, from Fortune 500s and brands to SaaS, B2B, and financial companies and is backed by leading VCs.

  • Advantages of Corporate and College Influence Networks

    Advantages of Corporate and College Influence Networks

    Whether you’re seeking social capital or professional success, it’s not about what you know but who you know. A network of influence utilizes the resources of both people and groups to advance everyone, resulting in a symbiotic exchange of value. Learning to make use of available networks is essential for achieving success in the increasingly interconnected world, whether you’re a student, professional, or organization.

    Corporate Influence Networks

    Almost all Fortune 500 corporations have some kind of alumni program because of its many benefits. Connecting with experienced professionals through networking opportunities may result in informative interviews, help with a career move, promotions, finding the best candidate for your business, and access to exclusive job posts, resume evaluations, and free resources. Alumni networks may establish a genuine community with deep bonds where members have access to mentors and business experts. Discounts on sporting events, bike rentals, gyms, museums, on-campus performances, bookshops, financial services, travel insurance, air travel, restaurants, clothes, and continuing education courses are among the other perks.

    University Alumni Networks are Powerful

    For various reasons, universities and businesses both invest in robust alumni networks. A 2.8-time boost in income per employee, a 4.5-time rise in product creativity, and a 6-time increase in employer attractiveness are just a few of the quantifiable advantages of investing in lasting connections. Businesses that actively interact with graduates report an increase in new business by up to 44%. Similar to engaged consumers, engaged alumni boost brand sentiment by 10% and serve as brand ambassadors who are at least five times more valuable than typical customers.

    To raise money, prestigious universities like Dartmouth, Harvard, MIT, Northwestern, NYU, PennState, UPenn, Princeton, University of Michigan, West Virginia University, and others invest in alumni networks. Additionally, many powerful people have affiliations with institutions and could be ready to recommend exceptional pupils, which might lead to a wealth of professional prospects. 

    Objectives of Influence Networks

    Corporate alumni networks at well-known organizations like Google, Coca-Cola, Microsoft, HSBC, Citibank, Accenture, Nestle, P&G, LinkedIn, McKinsey & Company, and others have a wide range of goals. These objectives include gaining access to a labor pool, encouraging recommendations or boomerang hires, fostering business growth, raising sales, establishing connections between mentors and mentees, and building a supportive environment. As one can see, corporate alumni organizations provide their parent companies with a variety of advantages, whereas higher education institutions mostly use alumni for fundraising.

    When choosing which program to enroll in, business students and individuals with entrepreneurial aspirations should place high importance on the size and activity of a school’s alumni network. Entrepreneurs who attended their alma mater are more likely to get investors for their companies.

    In Summary

    Even the strongest alumni network, though, might go to waste if someone doesn’t make the most of it. It’s a good idea to get involved in the alumni magazine’s class notes column with personal or professional updates, join committees to reconnect with classmates, share your professional knowledge at alumni events, and meet other alumni for coffee or lunch for an informal meeting to learn about additional opportunities.

    Conversely, to continually engage alumni, universities and businesses must improve their network. Offering members clear benefits, meeting local and distant members’ wishes, sharing college news, and providing incentives and gifts during events are some tried-and-true methods of alumni involvement. 

    The Power of Influence Networks
    Infographic provided by: AcademicInfluence.com
  • Elon Musk a Social Media Influencer? Tesla CEO Teases the Possibility

    Elon Musk a Social Media Influencer? Tesla CEO Teases the Possibility

    Elon Musk is well-known for his social media presence, but the Tesla CEO is teasing a full-time switch to social media influencer.

    Musk has long been a vocal Twitter user, boosting cryptocurrencies, taking jabs at rivals and discussing upcoming Tesla features. His tweets have even landed him in hot water with the SEC, but that hasn’t slowed the CEO down.

    In one of his latest tweets, Musk teases the possibility of trading in his jobs as CEO of Tesla and SpaceX for that of social media influencer.

    In all likelihood, this is just another one of Musk’s famous attempts at humor — but only time will tell.

  • Why Video Marketing Is Important For Your Business

    Why Video Marketing Is Important For Your Business

    In an era of YouTube, Instagram Stories, Live Streams, webinars, and more, it is evident that this is the age of video supremacy. Given this exponential rise of video content in modern times, more and more online content marketers are looking for compelling ways to include video content in their digital marketing strategy.

    From promoting a product or service, increasing engagement with clients, or extending their reach on social media platforms, video content marketing is flexible and accessible. In addition, it presents an influential lead over your competitors when executed right and built with a superior online video editor.

    Significance of Video Marketing For Your Business

    Video digital marketing engages your potential clients by conveying a compelling story about your product interactively and bringing life to your products.

    While a high-quality photo and a brief description provide a fundamental view of your product, a video can convey all of the elements and advantages, explaining why the clients should be interested in purchasing your product. Listed here are some reasons why video marketing can prove beneficial for your business growth.

    Videos Are an Excellent Way to Describe Your Product

    Online video content assists potential customers in learning more about your product. According to a recent report, 94 percent of online marketers believe using video content helps improve user knowledge of a product or service.

    In addition, clients will only purchase your goods when they know better about your product and how they can use them. Unsurprisingly, video content exceptionally provides better visuals and helps companies clearly describe how things work.

    Video Content Provides a Higher Return on Investment

    The return on investment (ROI) from your video marketing depends on numerous factors, including how well you have managed your content design and the quality of your promotional videos.

    However, 83 percent of respondents say that video marketing provides them with a higher return on investment. In addition, while many online marketers think of video as a costly and time-consuming process, you can use a video maker or an online video editor, making it effortless to create video fast without a considerable budget.

    Video Marketing Can Help Boost Your Conversion Rates

    Yes, it is a fact. Recent research indicates that using videos in your online marketing campaign can help boost your conversions by around 14%. An excellent way to use video on your landing page can be an explainer video for your products or services. This is an excellent option for your client to watch a quick video to know all about what your product or service does, usually in an entertaining or eye-catching way.

    Therefore, it is valuable to hold your finger on the pulse here. In addition, video content invariably changes. Key trends that you can try include a product video (a live demo) and product reviews. This content becomes engaging for clients, and by having them on your online marketing, you can drive sales and boost your conversions more than you would ever expect.

    The Future of Video Marketing Is Bright

    As technology proceeds to pivot and change, how we employ it too. For video marketing, that implies more forms than ever to make your online audience receptive and engaged to you and your business.

    It is crucial to understand how videos can be deployed to significantly influence one-to-one promotional videos to live streams. With the future of AR, VR, and online video streaming services at your disposal, it is the ideal time to get into video content marketing, remaining updated on the most advanced ways you can convey your message to your audience.

    Video Content Engages Even the Laziest Audience

    Video content has become an excellent tool for understanding, but it is also effortless to consume. Modern life is too busy to go through lengthy product descriptions or explore in-depth services. The contemporary client likes to see their preferred product in action.

    Video preference is one of the most significant driving forces of employing video in your video content marketing. In addition, video marketing can help you attract a wide base target audience, and it operates on numerous levels.

    Video Marketing Is Your Email Campaign’s Best Friend

    Compelling viewers to open your email in this fast-paced, modern world is a significant challenge. However, according to a study, just using the word ‘video’ in your email subject line can improve your CTR (Click-through rate) by 200-300%

    It is why more and more online marketers are now using interactive video content in their email campaigns. This could indicate anything from showcasing a product that a client has rejected to a welcome email for your first-time clients to build a relationship.

    In addition, engaging video content within your email marketing strategy can assist you in engaging, persuading, and informing your target audience. Also, as it is well-known that online users love watching videos over any form of media, why not leverage its benefits to boost your business growth.

    Google Prefers Optimized Video Content

    Apart from videos being excellent elements in numerous online marketing campaigns and being a fantastic tool to provide information, another significant advantage for online marketers is better ranking on search engine results pages.

    In addition, if you take the time to guarantee that your video content remains SEO optimized, with an engaging and appropriate thumbnail, good quality content, and eye-catching title, your video marketing can bring plenty of organic traffic to your website. It can likewise improve your search engine ranking and earn higher views in the process.

    Final Words

    In a nutshell, video marketing online businesses is a significant factor. It is a reinforcement mechanism for those companies that have just started their online journey. The most meaningful side of video marketing is that it transforms how online users see your products or service. Therefore, while creating exceptional video content, it is better to understand your strengths and execute them.

    This way, you can drive on your way towards achieving heights and growth you never imagined. Also, video marketing can help you drive higher organic traffic to your website that boost your business visibility, and help you become more profitable.

  • LinkedIn Killing Stories, Revamping Videos

    LinkedIn Killing Stories, Revamping Videos

    LinkedIn is killing off its ephemeral Stories features but plans to use what it learned to improve videos across its platform.

    LinkedIn introduced Stories last year as a way for professionals to share short videos that would disappear after 24 hours. Liz Li, Senior Director of Product at LinkedIn, says the company was surprised to learn that some people wanted their videos to have more permanence than Stories provides.

    You wish videos could live on your profile, not disappear. In developing Stories, we assumed people wouldn’t want informal videos attached to their profile, and that ephemerality would reduce barriers that people feel about posting. Turns out, you want to create lasting videos that tell your professional story in a more personal way and that showcase both your personality and expertise. 

    Feedback also indicated that many users wanted tools to create more engaging videos.

    LinkedIn appears to be listening to the feedback and plans to kill off Stories by the end of September. The company will then take the feedback and lessons its learned, and roll them into a new and improved video experience.

    We’ve learned a ton. Now, we’re taking those learnings to evolve the Stories format into a reimagined video experience across LinkedIn that’s even richer and more conversational. We want to embrace mixed media and creative tools of Stories in a consistent way across our platform, while working to integrate it more tightly with your professional identity.

  • YouTube Paid Creators $30 Billion Over the Last Three Years

    YouTube Paid Creators $30 Billion Over the Last Three Years

    YouTube has provided insight into the state of its content platform, including some impressive figures regarding its revenue and payouts to creators.

    YouTube is the undisputed king of video platforms. The company recently crossed the milestone of two million creators in its monetization program — the YouTube Partner Program (YPP) — and is revealing just how much it has paid those creators over the last three years.

    Creators who are part of YPP can make money and earn a living from their content on YouTube with ten different monetization features (and we keep adding more), from advertiser revenue to selling merchandise. Over the last three years, we’ve paid more than $30 billion to creators, artists, and media companies. 

    With $7 billion in ad revenue in Q2 20201 alone, YouTube’s report is an impressive glimpse into just how important the platform is to Google’s overall business.

  • Twitter Announces Shop Module, Its Foray Into E-Commerce

    Twitter Announces Shop Module, Its Foray Into E-Commerce

    Twitter is looking to help businesses bring e-commerce to their Twitter profiles with a new feature called Shop Module.

    Shop Module is designed to let businesses showcase their products at the top of their profile page. Businesses will be able to use the feature to create a carousel of their products for people to browse.

    Bruce Falk, Product Lead, Goldbird, described the feature in a blog post:

    The Shop Module is a dedicated space at the top of a profile where businesses can showcase their products. When people visit a profile with the Shop Module enabled, they can scroll through the carousel of products and tap through on a single product to learn more and purchase — seamlessly in an in-app browser, without having to leave Twitter.

    We’re starting small with a handful of brands in the United States. People in the U.S. who use Twitter in English on iOS devices will be able to see the Shop Module.

    Some see Twitter’s announcement as part of the larger evolution of the e-commerce industry.

    “Social commerce solves the agility challenges brands have experienced within other e-commerce platforms,” Eric Dahan, Open Influence CEO/Co-Founder, told WebProNews. “Moving forward, we don’t expect this evolution of e-commerce to slow down. 64 percent of small businesses plan to continue their new e-commerce strategies in 2021.”

    Twitter plans on rolling the feature out to a handful of US-based brands. English Twitter users in the US on iOS should soon start seeing Shop Module.

  • Facebook Spending $1 Billion on Content Creators Through 2022

    Facebook Spending $1 Billion on Content Creators Through 2022

    Facebook plans to pay content creators some $1 billion through 2022 in an effort to ward off rivals.

    Facebook has been facing increased pressure from rivals, such as TikTok and Clubhouse, and is facing its slowest growth rate in company history. As a result, the company is increasingly looking at different ways to increase engagement and continue attracting content creators and users alike.

    The latest endeavor, announced by CEO Mark Zuckerberg, involves paying out $1 billion through 2022.

    “We want to build the best platforms for millions of creators to make a living, so we’re creating new programs to invest over $1 billion to reward creators for great content they create on Facebook and Instagram through 2022,” wrote Zuckerberg. “Investing in creators isn’t new for us, but I’m excited to expand this work over time. More details soon.”

    It will be interesting to see if Facebook’s efforts yields results.

  • Twitter Kills Fleets, Disappearing Tweets

    Twitter Kills Fleets, Disappearing Tweets

    Twitter has announced it is shutting down Fleets, the company’s disappearing tweets feature.

    Twitter rolled out Fleets late last year in an effort to encourage conversation. The idea was to create a way for people to share their thoughts or feelings without the commitment of a permanent post.

    Unfortunately, it appears Fleets were better as an idea than a reality, and adoption has not matched Twitter’s expectations.

    We built Fleets as a lower-pressure, ephemeral way for people to share their fleeting thoughts. We hoped Fleets would help more people feel comfortable joining the conversation on Twitter. But, in the time since we introduced Fleets to everyone, we haven’t seen an increase in the number of new people joining the conversation with Fleets like we hoped. Because of this, on August 3, Fleets will no longer be available on Twitter.

    The company says it will apply what it’s learned with Fleets in an effort to improve the overall Twitter experience.

  • Instagram Unveils Live Rooms, Ability to Livestream With Three People

    Instagram Unveils Live Rooms, Ability to Livestream With Three People

    Instagram has introduced Live Rooms, doubling the capacity of its Live on Instagram feature.

    Instagram previously allowed creators to go live with a single individual, meaning a livestream only had a total of two people in it. With Live Rooms, creators can now go live with up to three people, bringing the total participants to four.

    We hope that doubling up on Live will open up more creative opportunities — start a talk show, host a jam session or co-create with other artists, host more engaging Q&As or tutorials with your following, or just hang out with more of your friends.

    Live Rooms is designed to help creators monetize their social media presence even more, building on existing features. The company recently made it possible for Live viewers to buy badges to support their favorite creators. Viewers can also take advantage of the Shopping and Live Fundraisers features.

    Instagram says it is working on additional options, such as moderator controls and audio features that it hopes will continue to aid content creators.

  • TikTok Settles Privacy Suit For $92 Million

    TikTok Settles Privacy Suit For $92 Million

    TikTok has agreed to pay $92 million to settle a lawsuit in the US over its privacy practices.

    TikTok quickly rose to be one of the most popular social media platforms in the world, and was the first Chinese app to gain its level of worldwide success. With that success, however, came greater a degree of scrutiny. The app has repeatedly been accused of violating child privacy, uploading videos to China without user consent and being a threat to national security.

    The company has settled a lawsuit filed by TikTok users in the U.S. District Court in Illinois. Illinois has already established itself as a privacy haven, with Facebook recently settling a lawsuit filed against it in the state.

    “While we disagree with the assertions, rather than go through lengthy litigation, we’d like to focus our efforts on building a safe and joyful experience for the TikTok community,” TikTok said Thursday, according to NBC News.

    The settlement requires court approval.

  • TikTok Runs Afoul of European Consumer Law

    TikTok Runs Afoul of European Consumer Law

    TikTok has found itself in trouble with the European Consumer Organisation BEUC, as a result of multiple infractions against EU consumer laws.

    TikTok has faced repeated criticism for breaches of privacy, especially in regard to the privacy of minor children. The company has also faced ongoing criticism, scrutiny and lawsuits over its privacy practices in general.

    The latest troubles come from the EU, as TikTok is accused of violating several EU consumer laws, according to the BEUC, including a failure to properly protect children.

    The BEUC’s investigation found that a number of TikTok’s ‘Terms of Service’ were unfair, ambiguous and favoring TikTok to users’ detriment. The same is true of the company’s copyright terms, which give TikTok “an irrevocable right to use, distribute and reproduce the videos published by users, without remuneration.”

    The BEUC took issue with how TikTok administers the coins people can purchase to reward their favorite content creators, retaining too much control over exchange rates.

    The company’s handling of user data is also misleading, with TikTok not properly informing users — especially children — of how and why their data is being collected and how it’s being used.

    Most egregiously, the company is failing to protect children and minors from potentially harmful content and and hidden advertising.

    The BEUC wants “authorities to launch a comprehensive investigation into TikTok’s policies and practices and to ensure that TikTok respects EU consumer rights. The company should properly inform consumers about its business model and data processing activities and stop imposing unfair terms and practices on its users. TikTok should also stop keeping its users in the dark about the financial consequences of buying virtual gifts for their favourite idols and improve the fairness of this service. In particular children and teenagers, who form an important part of Tik Tok’s audience must be adequately protected regarding their exposure to marketing, hidden advertising and inappropriate content.”

    Given the EU’s strong privacy and consumer legislation, TikTok’s run of fast and loose privacy practices is likely coming to an end.

  • US Government Appeals TikTok Injunction

    US Government Appeals TikTok Injunction

    In the latest twist of the never-ending saga, the US government is appealing an injunction against its TikTok ban.

    The US government has been working to ban TikTok for some time. The Trump administration has accused TikTok of being a security threat, and made it clear that only a sale to an American company would prevent an outright ban. Oracle, with Walmart joining it, emerged as the winning bidder. Per the terms of the deal, however, Oracle would only gain a 20% stake in the company. Meanwhile, China signaled it would oppose a deal it felt was unfavorable to the country’s image.

    Meanwhile, TikTok was left in limbo as it tried to work out a deal with the US government as the deadline approached. The company won an injunction, with at least one judge even questioning if the ban was legally viable.

    Not willing to give up the fight, the US government is now appealing the injunction, according to Reuters. The Justice Department is bringing the case before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.

    Given that Judge Carl Nichols — when granting the injunction — said the government had “likely overstepped” in its decision to ban TikTok, this case could redefine the limits of the government’s authority.

  • Twitter Works to Make Advertisers Feel Safe

    Twitter Works to Make Advertisers Feel Safe

    Twitter is taking steps to ensure advertisers feel safe on its platform, a vital step for the company’s long-term growth.

    One of the biggest challenges social media companies face is balancing individuals’ right to express themselves with companies’ efforts to protect their brand. Facebook ran afoul of advertisers in June when the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) found many ads from high-profile companies placed alongside content that would be deemed racist and offensive. As a result, Coca-Cola, The Hershey Company, Levi Strauss & Co, Verizon, Mozilla, Upwork, REI, Patagonia, Ben & Jerry’s, The North Face and Eddie Bauer were just a few of the companies that pulled their advertising from the platform.

    Twitter is working to prevent that kind of scenario, with a new focus on brand safety, according to Business Insider.

    “We want every brand to feel confident advertising on Twitter,” said Sarah Personette, Twitter VP of global client solutions, in an interview. “Brand safety is a critical component to that.”

    The company has committed to audits by the Media Rating Council. Certification by the MRC is considered the gold standard, providing some assurance the platform’s systems are operating without bias. Twitter is also planning to announce third-party partnerships in the coming weeks, aimed at promoting brand safety.

    At a time when Twitter is working to stay relevant amid the onslaught of newer platforms, and is trying to walk the moderation tightrope, this is a critical step for the company’s success.

  • Twitter Launches Fleets, Disappearing Tweets

    Twitter Launches Fleets, Disappearing Tweets

    Twitter has officially rolled out its new disappearing tweets, called Fleets, to all users.

    Twitter has been trying new features and abilities in an effort to compete with newer social media platforms and remain competitive. Although one of the most popular platforms, some believe it has been eclipsed by competitors, in terms of growth and innovation.

    The latest new feature, Fleets, is designed to help users share momentary thoughts. According to Twitter’s testing, Fleets are especially good at helping new users feel more comfortable sharing their thoughts, an important factor in continual growth.

    Twitter’s Joshua Harris and Sam Haveson made the announcement:

    You can Fleet text, reactions to Tweets, photos or videos and customize your Fleets with various background and text options. To share a Tweet in a Fleet tap the “Share” icon at the bottom of the Tweet and then tap, “Share in Fleet.” Then, add what you think about it with some text or emojis. Soon, stickers and live broadcasting will be available in Fleets.

    Your followers can see your Fleets at the top of their home timeline. Anyone who can see your full profile can see your Fleets there too. If you have open Direct Messages, anyone can reply to your Fleets. If you want to reply to a Fleet, tap on it to send a Direct Message or emoji to the author, and continue the conversation in your Direct Messages….Fleets will be updated over time with new features, based on your feedback.

    Fleets should help Twitter compete with other social media services in its efforts to maintain relevancy.

  • You Can’t Find A 24-Year-Old On Facebook Today

    You Can’t Find A 24-Year-Old On Facebook Today

    “You‌ ‌can’t‌ ‌find‌ ‌a‌ ‌24-year-old‌ ‌on‌ ‌Facebook‌ ‌today,” says social media marketing expert Gary Vaynerchuk. ‌”Every‌ ‌one‌ ‌of‌ ‌them‌ ‌was‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌platform‌ ‌eight‌ ‌years‌ ‌ago.‌ ‌So‌ ‌it‌ ‌ebbs‌ ‌and‌ ‌flows‌ ‌and‌ ‌as‌ TikTok‌ ‌gets‌ ‌older‌ ‌an‌ ‌audience‌ ‌can‌ ‌emerge.‌ ‌I’ve‌ ‌been‌ ‌putting‌ ‌out‌ ‌business‌ ‌content‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌platform‌ ‌from‌ ‌day‌ ‌one,‌ ‌it skews ‌entrepreneurial,‌ ‌which‌ ‌may‌ ‌work‌ ‌in‌ ‌teenage‌ ‌and‌ ‌early‌ ‌20s.”

    Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of Vayner Media, social media star and entrepreneurial guru followed by millions, says you can’t even find a 24-year-old‌ ‌on‌ ‌Facebook‌ ‌today:

    I Don’t Believe TikTok Is A National Security Threat

    The‌ ‌pitch‌ ‌started‌ ‌before‌ ‌all‌ ‌the‌ ‌brouhaha‌ ‌started.‌ ‌We‌ ‌were‌ ‌awarded‌ ‌the‌ ‌business‌ ‌(with TikTok) during‌ ‌this‌ ‌time‌. ‌Obviously,‌ ‌like‌ ‌every‌ ‌other‌ ‌American‌ ‌business‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌world, we‌ ‌will‌ ‌deal‌ ‌with‌ ‌whatever‌ ‌the‌ ‌rules‌ ‌are.‌ ‌Like‌ ‌everybody‌ ‌else,‌ ‌we’re‌ ‌standing‌ ‌by.‌ Personally‌, ‌I‌ ‌don’t‌ (consider TikTok‌ a national security threat). ‌But‌ ‌maybe‌ ‌I’m‌ ‌not‌ ‌sitting‌ ‌on‌ ‌information‌ ‌that‌ ‌others‌ ‌are.‌ ‌But‌ ‌no‌, ‌I‌ ‌do‌ ‌not.‌

    ‌Our‌ ‌small‌ ‌scope‌ ‌with‌ ‌TikTok‌‌ ‌at‌ ‌the‌ ‌Vayner‌ ‌Media‌ ‌level‌ ‌doesn’t‌ ‌really‌ ‌impact‌ ‌what‌ ‌I’m‌ ‌interested‌ ‌in‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌ ‌scheme‌ ‌of‌ ‌business.‌ ‌Facebook,‌ ‌Inc.‌, ‌Pinterest‌, and‌ ‌Linkedin‌ ‌all‌ ‌our‌ ‌platforms‌ ‌that‌ ‌all‌ ‌of‌ ‌our‌ ‌brands‌ ‌work‌ ‌on.‌ ‌I’m‌ ‌not‌ ‌overly‌ ‌emotional‌ ‌or‌ ‌I ‌have‌ ‌no‌ ‌feelings‌. ‌I ‌could‌ ‌care‌ ‌less‌ ‌if ‌Facebook‌, ‌Snapchat‌, ‌Linkedin,‌ ‌CNBC, ‌the‌ ‌New‌ ‌York‌ ‌Times‌ ‌disappeared‌ ‌off‌ ‌the‌ ‌face‌ ‌of‌ ‌the‌ ‌Earth.‌ ‌I’m‌ ‌focusing‌ ‌on‌ ‌attention‌ ‌and‌ ‌that’s‌ ‌what‌ ‌our‌ ‌clients‌ ‌are‌ ‌focusing‌ ‌on.‌ ‌Where‌ ‌is‌ ‌the‌ ‌actual‌ ‌attention‌ ‌and‌ ‌how‌ ‌do‌ ‌we‌ ‌advertise‌ ‌on‌ ‌that‌ ‌platform?‌ ‌

    Every Influencer Needs To Be On Every Platform

    As‌ ‌far‌ ‌as‌ ‌the‌ ‌influencers,‌ ‌every‌ ‌influencer‌ ‌in‌ ‌the‌‌ ‌world‌ ‌needs‌ ‌to‌ ‌divest‌ ‌and‌ ‌be‌ ‌in‌ ‌every‌ ‌single‌ ‌platform‌ ‌and‌ ‌create‌ ‌contextual‌ ‌content‌ ‌on‌ ‌each‌ ‌of‌ ‌those‌ ‌platforms.‌ Whether‌ ‌it’s‌ ‌a‌ ‌government‌ ‌getting‌ ‌involved‌ ‌and‌ ‌shutting‌ ‌it‌ ‌down‌ ‌or‌ ‌if‌ ‌it’s‌ ‌the‌ ‌consumers‌ ‌shifting‌ ‌if‌ ‌you‌ ‌put‌ ‌all‌ ‌your‌ ‌eggs‌ ‌into‌ ‌MySpace‌ ‌you’re‌ ‌not‌ ‌doing‌ ‌so‌ ‌well‌ ‌today.‌ ‌So‌ ‌something‌ ‌I’ve‌ ‌been‌ ‌screaming‌ ‌about‌ ‌in‌ ‌my‌ ‌content‌ ‌for‌ ‌a‌ ‌decade‌ ‌is‌ ‌if‌ ‌you’re‌ ‌not‌ ‌creating‌ ‌content‌ ‌across‌ ‌the‌ ‌board‌ ‌you’re‌ ‌losing‌. ‌It’s‌ ‌something‌ ‌that‌ ‌brands‌ ‌need‌ ‌to‌ ‌be‌ ‌doing.‌ ‌

    Way‌ ‌too‌ ‌many‌ ‌are‌ ‌pot-committed‌ ‌to‌ ‌commercials‌ ‌on‌ ‌a‌ ‌TV ‌network‌ ‌when‌ ‌all‌ ‌the‌ ‌attention‌ ‌is‌ ‌shifting‌ ‌to‌ ‌your mobile device. ‌

    You Can’t Find A 24-Year-Old On Facebook Today

    What’s‌ ‌funny‌ ‌is‌ ‌if‌ ‌you‌ ‌look‌ ‌at‌ ‌what’s‌ ‌happening‌ ‌on‌ ‌TikTok‌, ‌‌we’re‌ ‌getting‌ ‌our‌ ‌advertisers‌ ‌that‌ ‌are‌ ‌trying‌ ‌to‌ ‌reach‌ ‌35‌ ‌to‌ ‌45‌ ‌going‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌platform‌ ‌pretty‌ ‌aggressively‌ ‌because‌ ‌every‌ ‌platform‌ ‌gets‌ ‌much‌ ‌older.‌ ‌Don’t‌ ‌deviate‌ ‌from‌ ‌what‌ ‌you‌ ‌know.‌ ‌If‌ ‌you‌ ‌and‌ ‌I ‌dance‌ ‌on‌ ‌that‌ ‌platform‌ ‌I ‌don’t‌ ‌think‌ ‌we’re‌ ‌getting‌ ‌that‌ ‌many‌ ‌views.‌ ‌You‌ ‌need‌ ‌to‌ ‌stay‌ ‌in‌ ‌your‌ ‌pocket‌ ‌and‌ ‌create‌ ‌the‌ ‌content‌ ‌‌and‌ ‌let‌ ‌platforms‌ ‌evolve.‌ ‌

    https://www.instagram.com/p/B_d-65RFQNd/

    You‌ ‌can’t‌ ‌find‌ ‌a‌ ‌24-year-old‌ ‌on‌ ‌Facebook‌ ‌today.‌ ‌Every‌ ‌one‌ ‌of‌ ‌them‌ ‌was‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌platform‌ ‌eight‌ ‌years‌ ‌ago.‌ ‌So‌ ‌it‌ ‌ebbs‌ ‌and‌ ‌flows‌ ‌and‌ ‌as‌ TikTok‌ ‌gets‌ ‌older‌ ‌an‌ ‌audience‌ ‌can‌ ‌emerge.‌ ‌I’ve‌ ‌been‌ ‌putting‌ ‌out‌ ‌business‌ ‌content‌ ‌on‌ ‌the‌ ‌platform‌ ‌from‌ ‌day‌ ‌one,‌ ‌it skews ‌entrepreneurial,‌ ‌which‌ ‌may‌ ‌work‌ ‌in‌ ‌teenage‌ ‌and‌ ‌early‌ ‌20s.‌ ‌CNBC‌ ‌and‌ ‌‌your‌ ‌incredible‌ ‌show‌ ‌could‌ ‌dominate‌ ‌on‌ ‌TikTok‌‌ ‌if‌ ‌you‌ ‌put‌ ‌out‌ ‌information‌ ‌and‌ ‌just‌ ‌had‌ ‌the‌ ‌nuances‌ ‌of‌ ‌TikTok‌ ‌more‌ ‌than‌ ‌trying‌ ‌to‌ ‌become‌ ‌Charlie Demilio.

  • Why You Should Be Using UGC in Your Facebook Ads

    Why You Should Be Using UGC in Your Facebook Ads

    In a struggle to display authenticity without resorting to obvious pandering, while still hitting ROI targets, some brands find Facebook Ads difficult to approach, especially in a politically and culturally sensitive era

    Numerous reports can be referenced highlighting the importance of authenticity within marketing as a whole. This advice is doubly true when attempting to appeal to demographics that may span numerous cultures and socioeconomic backgrounds. The only way to truly be authentic is to have representation within these diverse groups of people that can tell their story about your brand in a way that is unique to them and their coveted audience. 

    The way for such brands to avoid failure is to adopt a UGC ad approach utilizing influencers. Influencer marketing, as you may recall, can be distilled in having someone else tell your brand story for you, which is precisely what UGC created ads are.

    There are multiple methods that influencers can utilize in the Facebook ecosystem, including live streaming collaborations, fan page postings, and group advertisements. However, the method we have found particularly effective involves using Facebook’s internal brand collabs manager as a multi-step campaign process.

    For this process to work, a brand will need to only have access to an account with Facebook Ads management credentials. However, in multiple tests, we have found it is faster and more efficient to prequalify influencers through an external network prior to engaging, rather than relying upon the Facebook marketplace alone for the selection process. The importance of this step is predicated on the importance of first calculating the probability of influence based on your predetermined campaign goals. The reasoning for external vetting prior to ad collaborations is as follows:

    1. While approximate reach and engagement is discernable through the brand side of the Facebook collaboration marketplace, what isn’t obvious is relevance. By first vetting Facebook influencers, a brand will likely find the self-identified categorical selections and content focus is not always congruent with the information displayed in the collabs marketplace.

    2. The next issue is cost. Once again, testing has determined that price is not as static as one might assume when simply utilizing the brand collabs marketplace. The reason for this is reflective of fit. As a thought exercise, imagine a digital marketer is being asked to set an hourly rate for her services. The ads collabs manager in this analogy represents the expected blended rate for all activities the aforementioned marketer would be asked to perform. The reality is her distaste for a service such as site infrastructure auditing may make other activities she enjoys more expensive on that blended rate. The same is true of influencers. A blended rate exists to satisfy the vast majority of collaboration pitches the influencer is expected to receive. Therefore, approaching an influencer external to the collabs marketplace can often result in a lower starting price point.

    The only caveat to this approach is not every Facebook influencer in external networks is a member of the ads collabs marketplace. If time is of the essence, it is recommended to ask on the status of this membership when pitching. However, as Facebook is willing to let most applicants into the program, if a brand feels strongly about an influencer, it can be worth pursuing the relationship while urging the influencer also gain membership into the program.

    Once an influencer has been selected based on campaign criteria of fit, economics, and expected outcome, the process for using this influencer in an ongoing ad is remarkably similar to that of a normal influencer campaign. The critical difference is centered on ad quality guidelines, as some industries are more heavily regulated from an ad copy perspective. Presumably, a brand will evaluate the true impact an influencer provides prior to elevating into an ad unit. Additionally, running a postmortem analysis  in the event expectations are not in line with reality helps for future transactions. After initial satisfaction has been reached the next steps are simple:

    1. Approve the collaboration in the Facebook collabs manager interface

    Branded Content Approval. Source: Facebook.com

    2. Create a new ad utilizing the influencer via the boost post ad type. Simply set a budget and you’re done.

    To test this concept for yourself, simultaneously run this process against a fresh ad campaign on the same exact topic. You may find, as we and others have, that the UGC-elevated ads end up outperforming the conventional ad types. The often occurs without running into the pitfalls of a brand trying to target multiple demographics, which can often come off as inauthentic. All that was required was simply incorporating some influencers into the process. 

    To learn more, take a self-guided demo of Intellifluence, which will help you understand how influencers can be applied to virtually any marketing use case in a simple campaign creation process. 

  • Yelp Will Label Businesses That Engage in Overtly Racist Behavior

    Yelp has announced it will start labeling businesses that engage in overtly racist behavior.

    At a time when racial equality and social justice are front-and-center, many businesses are looking for ways to be a positive force for change. This has included donating to charities, improving company diversity and putting a moratorium on the sale of technologies that can be abused.

    Yelp is implementing a solution that it hopes will help customers make informed choices about where they choose to dine and what businesses they choose to support. The company says it will rely on news articles to determine if a company warrants its new Business Accused of Racist Behavior Alert.

    The new Business Accused of Racist Behavior Alert is an extension of our Public Attention Alert that we introduced in response to a rise in social activism surrounding the Black Lives Matter movement. If someone associated with a business is accused of, or the target of, racist behavior, we will place a Public Attention Alert on the business page to warn consumers that the business may be receiving an influx of reviews as a result of increased attention. For businesses accused of overtly racist actions, where we can link to a news article, we will escalate our warning with the Business Accused of Racist Behavior Alert.

    Only time will tell if Yelp’s latest initiative meets with success.

  • Oracle Beats Out Microsoft/Walmart As TikTok’s US Partner

    Oracle Beats Out Microsoft/Walmart As TikTok’s US Partner

    In a surprise move, Oracle has emerged as the frontrunner to be the US partner for TikTok.

    The Trump administration instituted a ban on TikTok that goes into effect mid-September, unless a buyer could be found to take over US operations. Microsoft, partnering with Walmart, emerged as an early prospect before Oracle also threw its name in the mix.

    Before a deal could be finalized, however, the Chinese government changed its export rules governing what technologies could be exported. It’s believed the new rules directly impact the algorithm TikTok uses for recommendations and engagement. As a result, potential buyers had to start looking at alternative ways to make a deal happen.

    According to CBC, ByteDance has rejected Microsoft’s bid in favor of Oracle. None of the involved parties are commenting, so it remains to be seen what a potential deal looks like.

  • Trump Administration May Ban More Chinese Apps

    Trump Administration May Ban More Chinese Apps

    The Trump administration is looking at banning additional Chinese apps as negotiations over TikTok have nearly ground to a halt.

    The US banned TikTok over national security and privacy concerns. The social media platform had gone from one privacy and security issue to another, leading many agencies and companies to ban their employees from using it. The nationwide ban is set to go into effect on September 15, unless a buyer can be found to take over US operations. Microsoft emerged as an early contender, buoyed by Walmart joining the tech giant in an effort to purchase TikTok. Oracle has also expressed interest, supported by Trump.

    Ultimately, however, Beijing instituted new rules governing which technologies can be exported, rules that covered the type of algorithm TikTok relies on. ByteDance has said it plans on following the new export rules, all but killing a deal in its current form. One other possibility is to sell the platform minus the algorithm that makes it what it is, leaving a buyer to create a new one.

    Now it appears the Trump administration may be looking at banning even more Chinese apps, according to CNBC. It’s a safe bet that the longer this tit for tat goes on, the more companies, services and apps will be caught in the crosshairs.