You put a lot of effort into building your Facebook page, so it can be discouraging when people “unlike” you. Strange as it may seem, people take their Facebook pages super seriously. So seriously, in fact, that unliking is often viewed as the ultimate way to show disapproval, even more than negative comments or reviews. What’s the main reason people unlike a brand? Simple, you annoy them.
It seems just like yesterday I was frantically calling the office on my way in for my first day at HMG. I think I passed the office building about three times before I actually realized that was where I needed to be. Ha, what a newbie! After a friendly greeting, these eager beavers put me straight to work, which has been the best part of my internship—there was always plenty of work to be done. No matter how big or small, there was always something I could be doing and no, it actually didn’t require me to make a coffee run! There are many more aspects I loved about being an HMG Creative Intern that I’d like to share with you in one of my final blog posts.
As ubiquitous as the Internet is, there are still many people who do local SEO company marketing that don’t realize how important having a good web presence really is. Or a website at that. When was the last time you searched in the Yellow Pages for a plumber or that new restaurant your friends are talking about…’99? I thought so. But nowadays, having the courage to just start a website isn’t good enough – anyone can have that since it’s not 2004 either. The key is to have, as the title says, a good web presence.
Maybe you stumbled upon this post because you check the HMG blog regularly (if so, kudos!). But most likely, you saw one of our posts on either our Facebook or our Twitter linking you here directly—the effects of social media are everywhere. A couple of months ago, we posted a blog post about the importance of having a good web presence. To expand on this, having an online presence across a multitude of social media platforms enables us to have greater reach, interaction and overall engagement. Here are a few brief tips to consider when establishing and maintaining your online social media presence:
Trends, Shares, Hashtags and Retweets! Twitter is social media’s most interactive resource to keep in touch with virtually anything and anyone you so desire, and, in real time. Since Twitter became one of the leading social media sites, I have become curious to know the numbers that make Twitter unique; so I did some research and I came up with a list of my favorite ever-changing Twitter statistics.
– 124,000,000,000 (Yes, that’s 9 Zero’s!) Tweets worldwide in 2012
– 500 million Twitter users worldwide
– 300 thousand NEW Twitter visitors every day
– 73 percent of Twitter users are between 15 and 25 years old
– 50 percent of 2013 Super Bowl ads mentioned Twitter
– 24 million Tweets accounted for during the 2013 Super Bowl (XLVII); up nearly 50 percent from 12 million in 2011 and 15 million in 2012
– 22 percent of Twitter user accounts are located in the United States (that’s 110 million Americans!)
– 16 million: the amount of the official Twitter account followers
– 11 new accounts are created every second
– 7 years since Twitter’s 2006 launch at SXSW
– 2nd ranked country for Twitter users is the England, just behind the US
– 1st Ranked for Twitter followers is Justin Bieber, 34 million and counting
Regardless of what number or metric we measure, it’s clear that social media has taken the world by storm. Nearly 1.5 billion people engage in one or more social media platform as of December 2012; that’s 30% of adults worldwide. The numbers for the United States are even more impressive with 69% of Americans ages 15 and up using social media, for a tally of 168 million users. It’s always been said that “numbers don’t lie”; so my educated guess is that this social media craze will only grow and become more embedded in our culture and economy just as the internet and television did some 20 and 60 years ago. Until next time, happy Tweeting, Liking, Pinning and connecting!
Valentine’s Day has come and gone and The Crew at HMG Creative has put on another successful campaign. The past couple of weeks have been dedicated to promoting social media interaction, through our Facebook and Twitter channels, in order to generate donations for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. From February 15 to midnight of Valentine’s Day, we were able to:
Through these efforts, we were able to bring in $300 to donate to St. Jude and we couldn’t be more proud! Although we did not reach our goal of $500, this is our very first donations-based initiative and we feel confident that this experience will leave us with the knowledge to create an even stronger campaign for the future. Not only were we able to share our love with children in need but we also created an incentive for those who helped us in the final push of our campaign. Those who shared the St. Jude photo during the last two days were entered into a drawing to win a $100 Apple Gift Card. We are thrilled to be giving the prize to Ms. Alayna Boyd, student at The University of Texas at Austin! (Who could be more deserving than a poor college student, right?!)
Despite the fact that the “Share the Love” campaign was able to stretch our social media efforts and gain more awareness for our company, what truly matters is that we were able to do all of this for such a great cause. It is our hopes that through our donations we will be able to further assist the children of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and that they will be able to enjoy their Valentine’s Days for years to come. We thank everyone for all of your help in making this donation possible!
As the month of March rolls around, Austinites (and now, people from across the globe) are preparing themselves for the one festival that brings together over 50,000 locals, techies, musicians, hipsters, film makers, producers, celebrities and many more. Yes, South By Southwest or “South By” for those of you in tune with the local lingo has quickly become the go-to festival in North America. Boasting musical acts from over a thousand artists, countless indie movie premieres and hundreds of technology start-ups, SXSW feeds the souls of those in attendance.
In addition to the many fun-filled events, there’s a lot of business that goes down during the nine days that make up SXSW. And as a creative agency that specializes in working with startups, we take this time seriously, both as a networking opportunity and as a chance to help these young entrepreneurs realize their dreams.
Over the years, SXSW has been the launch pad for many major players in the tech and web-based industries. So much so that the third largest social network, Twitter, launched at SXSW back in 2007. The launch of the micro-blogging platform was so successful that Twitter’s servers became overloaded with users during the event. But not every story is as big as Twitter’s, there are hundreds of smaller companies making a name for themselves each year during the festival- and we’re excited to be part of that growth.
As a progressive digital agency with over nine years in the biz, we know how much hard work goes into building a reputable brand and a dominant online presence from the ground up.We can help get you to the next level through proven marketing techniques, creative web design/development and a plan of action that works.
Are you planning on visiting Austin for South By Southwest. If so, make sure you give us a call, Follow us on Twitter, or come say hi when you see us front row at The Flaming Lips and Green Day concerts!
As consumers we know “brands” simply as a particular product or service we like or dislike. However, as a business owner we know there are several factors to be considered before consumers can truly identify and trust a specific brand. In a perfect world, everyone would be a great target for all marking and brand identities but that’s not the case. Let’s cover the three main steps to creating an interactive branding message that your consumers can begin to connect with!
1. Logo – (Noun) “A symbol adopted by an organization to identify its products or services” We all know it’s never about what you have, it’s about how you use it that makes the difference! Since you’ve spent the time and/or money on this masterpiece called your “logo,” make sure it shows up everywhere including business cards, social media sites, and any other promotional materials. Your logo is your company’s identity in a picture and the more you show it off, the quicker your brand recognition will grow.
Does this really matter, you ask? Consider this… how likely are you to remember a random fast-food restaurant you visited when they use generic bags and soda cups versus the restaurant that brands every cup and bag with their logo? That garbage in your car becomes advertising and will make an impression every time you see it.
2. Interact – Who knew this was a part of branding? Speak directly with your target and, even more importantly, with your clients. Share and respond to social media comments, answer your phone using your company name and/or slogan, and use interactive communication tools such as surveys and email marketing. Remember, everything you send and share should always include your logo and slogan.
3. Solve – Your mission should be simple. Every business offers a product or service that offers results and/or a solution; and just because you know that, it does not mean your target market does. Leverage your interactive tools to share a clear, concise, and consistent solution that is unique to your brand identity. Remember, the process you use to help your clients may be complicated but your message should be simple enough to earn the trust and comfort of your clients.
Branding is more of an art than a science; it takes creativity, time, patience, and just like a painting, it will even go through an ugly stage. An initial brand launch should focus on creating awareness for your unique product or services. Luckily you have a friend in the industry- whether your current brand is sour or your business is brand new, HMG can help you too!
Another video app? That’s right—as you’ve probably heard, Instagram rolled out video functions on June 20th. But what does this mean for big video sharing software Vine? Recently I wrote a blog post about Vine and how to know when and if it’s appropriate to use for your business. Now it’s back to the drawing board, but before you decipher whether Instagram Video or Vine (or either) is right for you, let’s take a broad look at the capabilities of each.
If you’re somewhat knowledgeable on social media, you’ve probably heard the word “Vine” thrown around in conversation here and there. Maybe you have an account, maybe your friend has one; maybe you’ve simply read an article about the growing trend. And if you’re as knowledgeable as you think you are, you’re probably aware that as of last week, Instagram released video functions comparable to Vine. Although it may seem counterintuitive that I’m discussing Vine less than a week after Instagram released rival video capabilities, it’s important to highlight each platform before effectively comparing the two.
