Facebook Ads allows geo-location targeting…

This is a no brainer and to be honest I can’t believe it took so long to happen.

Facebook will only know where users are if the user has allowed this in their Facebook settings. Understanding this, ads will not be shown to everyone and in fact most people knowing this change may turn this off. Facebook users are becoming numb to ads and this is a last ditch effort for Facebook to try and rein in more dollars.

If all users had geo-location switched on this would be a far more affective tool.

For small business I believe this could be a useful tool. The ad will need to have a strong offer and should help to bring foot traffic into their stores.

What are your thoughts on this?

ELLO … will this just be another social network that we grow to hate?

I’ve been tinkering round with a few ideas for a new platform and low and behold here comes one from right under me. Not saying this is what I was thinking as it’s not but still good to see something new coming out that is aimed at rivalling Facebook and Twitter.

Introducing ELLO. First reported on The Next Web.

I have applied for a beta testing and I’m hoping I get an invite to give this a test.

Ello thinking is that it’s a free platform which is ad free. Meaning it strips out algorithms and only shows you what you want to see. I think one of the coolest features is that is allows for .gifs. We all love a gif and I’m wondering why Facebook hasn’t added this to it’s features. It’s a no brainer for me and a great inclusion from Ello.

Once I’m in I’ll report back on more, but for now it’s just nice to see someone new.

Catch Your Website Visitors

Came across this and thought I would share with you. Whilst I’m not an advocate for  gaining Facebook likes due to you then having to pay more to reach them, I do like this theory to help build communities especially email.

Email generates fantastic value for brands through brand awareness, engagement and return. Swap out Facebook Like to Email Address and this initial website pop up is a great, easy to execute idea.

Website:

http://beginningboutique.com.au/

BEFORE

AFTER

Whilst the execution isn’t amazing the idea is right.

New Facebook Feature – This post will self-destruct in…

With the success of SnapChat, Facebook are going to trial posts that will disappear, you will have the choice of 1 hour to 7 days.

For us marketers this will be an interesting feature if rolled out to everyone. Allowing for sale and offer messages to only last for a certain amount of time. I’m unsure if the engagement of those posts will disappear as well.

Looking forward to testing this once it’s out. Facebook are rolling this out to mobile app users first.

Game on!

Social Photography … Get around it!

This is another expense for a brand, but one that if done correctly will save in time resources. Photography is the most important aspect of any brand online as today’s social landscape is made up of news and beautiful images. This is why social channels like Instagram and SnapChat are doing so well. It’s also why Facebook and Twitter and constantly updating their platforms to keep up with this trend.

Social photos can be used in all digital channels, example: email, website, Instagram, Facebook etc. For a two to three day shoot you should be able to shoot a full season (2-3 months) of content for all your online channels.

If you’re selling products this is no longer a wish list item, I believe it to be a must have.

Images via: http://www.whatkatieate.com/ – A fantastic food photographer. This is the level of photography you should be aiming for.

Before you the shoot, you must sit down with your strategy team/agency and discuss what photos to take, why and where. Creating a story board will help speed up this process and ensure you have the right images you need for the next few months content.

An agency that offers social photography and do it really well is The Reactor. The Reactor is an amazingly creative agency, with years of experience. This agency is a must for anything creative, truly brilliant!

Agencies Tinder is here… meet Pitcher

This is hilarious and genius in its own right. It’s Tinder for Marketing Managers searching for their perfect agency match.

This app allows marketers to short list agencies based on their previous work and clients that relate to your brand. From here marketing managers can contact agencies directly to bring them in to pitch.

Watch the video here: https://vimeo.com/105255852

Facebook Ads, here are all the dimensions you need.

Whilst I’m against paying for likes, Facebook Ads still serve a purpose for driving traffic to a site, releasing a campaign, events, offers and sales.

Facebook ads are not forever due to the costs associated with them. Below is a fantastic infographic from Ampush that explains in detail everything you need to know about Facebook Ad dimensions. Click to enlarge.

 

Facebook Videos, I’m not sold yet…

Whilst I’m slowly turning off Facebook, I still can’t delete the app due to FOMO.

At present Facebook still has a purpose as a news first platform. It’s increasingly becoming more like Twitter and now Facebook is trying to take on YouTube as a place where people will consume videos. It’s an interesting battle at the top as they all copy each other. What’s common is us users are becoming more and more visual.

You would have noticed your NewsFeed being littered with videos of late, as Facebook is trying to push these down everyones throats. It can be frustrating as videos aren’t everything that I want to view. Understanding that Facebook is pushing this feature extremely hard brands need to strongly consider adopting video in it’s infancy stage.

Video can be an expensive tool for brands, as shooting a video off your iPhone probably won’t cut it for most brands and paying someone to do a cheap video, well just looks cheap. As brands you need to be mindful of video execution vs just doing a video just because everyone else is doing it. They take time and cost money, so they’re not for everyone.

Videos that are working on Facebook are news and viral videos. Brand videos might fall into either of these categories, but at first you may see uptake being light on. I would test this out and see organically how your videos are fairing. If you’re finding the reach and engagement is low your next move is to promote the videos. This again is more money, so I would argue not to do this.

Facebook is about to release Facebook Video Views. Telling their users how many times a video has been viewed. This is a naff release to me, yet still interesting for the users to determine if they should watch your video or not. I think for brands that have less plays it might be a negative feature.

Image: Inside Facebook

I’m in two minds with Facebook videos for the brands I look after (heavily retail). Unless the content is relevant, timely and has share-ability, the cost to produce this video just might be not worth it. Your money may be better spent on social photography.

Facebook Videos, what are your thoughts?

Further reading on video optimisation best practice.

Dear Copy Writers…

Reading is effort and turns people away. Delete 50% of your page copy then remove half of what’s left!

Via: http://www.getelastic.com/landing-page-rehab/

Facebook Update – Post as yourself or the brand.

In the past once you’re admin on the page it was quite painful to post as yourself to the page if you wanted to. This is typically called astro-turfing so it’s not advised, however at times it’s needed.

 

Under each post simply click the drop down and change it to you or if you want another brand page you manage.

A quick and simple update but a handy one for you social community managers.