Altitude’s Weekly Round-up (August 3, 2011)
Every week I spend a considerable amount of time reading industry blogs and newsletters to keep up with all of the evolutions and revolutions in online marketing and technology. The purpose: to generate new ideas and recommendations for our clients—and for you, our faithful readers.
Farewell Flash? Adobe Launches HTML5 Web Animations Tool “Adobe Edge”
Adobe is launching a new tool called Adobe Edge which will allow creative professionals to design animated Web content using Web standards like HTML5, CSS and JavaScript. Not Flash. Aimed to coexist with Adobe Flash, not replace it, the Web design software is Adobe’s big bet on how it will continue to solidify its position as a top player in the infrastructure of the modern Web, especially as the Web goes increasingly mobile. In this new mobile context, the Web has become a more hostile environment for Flash, which has no place on Apple mobile devices, and likely never will. (ReadWriteWeb) July 31, 2011.
11 ways to measure the value of social media
We hear that “data is the new oil” and maybe so, but just like crude oil, data needs to be refined to maximize its value. It needs to be processed into actionable insight. Even as social media has become the most heavily explored and discussed marketing tactic, marketers have struggled to understand its true value. Many organizations have had difficulty defining their social strategy and therefore have trouble understanding the explicit and implicit results of their social programs. Organizations seeking to measure social media impact can do so in a number of ways. (Econsultancy) August 1, 2011.
Google+ Strategy: 5 Tips to Help Marketers Get Ready for Brand Pages
With 10 million confirmed users of Google+, and comScore reporting there were 20 million visitors to Google’s new social platform during its first 21 weeks of existence, it’s safe to say from a pure numbers perspective that Google+ is off to a hot start. Brands, after seeing the potential on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter, are ready to jump into the Google+ pool, but there’s a problem: the lifeguards at Google aren’t ready for them – and neither is the platform. Brands need a concrete strategy for Google+. Though it’s early, it’s not too early to start mapping out a Google+ marketing roadmap. (Search Engine Watch) July 24, 2011.
Using Social Media for New Business Development – 5 Steps to Take Today
Managed right, social media can connect your business to an almost unending stream of new and interested prospects. But to enjoy that kind of success, you have to take an active approach. Posting a profile and passively waiting for the leads to roll in won’t do it. For example, online and off, people need regular and on-going communication to build trust. An actively updated profile both keeps people coming back and helps them get to know you better. From a business development standpoint, a static profile is no better than a static brochure. (Financial Planning – The Web-Savvy Advisor) July 19, 2011.
10 Facebook campaigns to inspire your business
With 750m users, Facebook needs little introduction. But the one question I hear repeatedly at conferences and events is from marketers seeking practical examples of how Facebook can be leveraged to lure in cash from customers. So we’ve looked around, and dug out some of the most recent examples of Facebook being put into action for businesses. And here’s ten of the best. (The Next Web) July 22, 2011.
Creating Great Content for Today’s Social Web
Welcome to an increasingly social landscape on the Web. Social media started this shift from information to conversation, and now with the search engines increasingly using social signals to determine what to show searchers it’s a trend that, as a publisher, you have to get on top of to write and promote great content. (Problogger) July 29, 2011.
From traditional business to social business
When businesses ask for a social media strategy, what they are often really asking for is: Get me a presence on Facebook, Twitter and the like. The mantra of cultural and organizational change that is required in the social web seems to ring hollow. To be fair, it is not their fault. With a traditional business mindset it is hard to see why a presence on Twitter or Facebook is different from the corporate website. After all, these tools can seem to be just another communication channel. (Dachis Group) July 28, 2011.
Want to Tweet? First, Teach Your Brand to Speak
What eludes brands so persistently in new media comes to people naturally. When you observe people’s behavior on online platforms, all you see is content, not the 140 characters they write, but the link or photo attached to it. Half of all tweets include a link and that number only goes up for topical discussion. The content people are sharing, unsurprisingly, is the content they are consuming. This isn’t new: just think of the water cooler or book clubs. What we are consuming has always been the content of our conversations. (Ad Age Digital) August 2, 2011.
Top 6 Business Blog Blunders
Many entrepreneurs have strong feelings about blogging. Some look forward to it and eagerly map out a year’s worth of entries, while others dread the trip to the computer and lose sleep over what they will write about next. Regardless of which camp you fall into, I’m sure you will agree that blogging is necessary for most businesses. A well maintained blog can increase consumer goodwill, facilitate two-way communication with your customers, and raise your search engine rankings. But what are the rules for business blogging? (American Express Open Forum) August 3, 2011.
‘PEANUTS’ launches major digital and social-media expansion
Even Charlie Brown has caught the social media bug. Charles Schulz’s entire cartoon gang is expanding into mobile gaming, e-books, Facebook and digital apps, Peanuts Worldwide and its owner, the Iconix Brand Group, have just announced Wednesday. The growth into new platforms and formats is all part of a massive push to “make ‘Peanuts’ relevant to younger fans,” Iconix chairman and CEO Neil Cole told Comic Riffs on Tuesday.(Washington Post – Comic Riffs Blog) August 3, 2011.
