This past week: Apple made two major announcements at their Worldwide Developers Conference: the pending release of iOS7 (the mobile OS) and OSX Maverick (the desktop OS, notice the departure from the feline naming convection). iOS7 for the iPhone was long overdue with a new design interface following the current trend of flat design. Also it is set to introduce a bunch of new features, such as: Call and text blocking, phone to phone over Wi-Fi and many more. What was clearly missing was NFC (Near Field Communication), considered to be the tech to lead mobile payments mass adoption. Evidently Apple does not feel that NFC is the right technology for mobile going forward. Here is a good article by TechCrunch explaining why: "NFC Stands For Nobody F****** Cares And Apple Gets That". NFC is an over complicated technology, which goes against Apple's philosophy of simplicity. Although there are some NFC capable phones around the technology has had a very low adoption rate. So what once was trumpeted as the game changer on payment transaction has failed to materialize and now by Apple's indifference is most likely dead. Changing topic, this weeks list of tweets are about mobile, social media and content marketing. Enjoy.
Your Social Media Blue Print-> The Most Thorough Social Media Dimensions Cheat Sheet Ever [INFOGRAPHIC]
Nowadays there are many places in the different social networks where your avatar image and cover picture can be uploaded. This infograpich shows all the different sizes for the different networks, very useful to keep around.
See if you know all of them-> SOCIAL MEDIA: Finding other sites than Facebook
Facebook is the undisputed giant of social media, but it is not the only social network out there. There are more niched networks coming out where your message could be better received. This post list less known social networks that could have the right audience for your content.
Or just use YWD-> Mobile Design Best Practices
After reading this article I realized that YWD applies the same philosophy to YWD Mobile (available to all YWD websites) and by just using YWD you would get all of that for your mobile website.
Still is the best way to market online-> Secrets of a Successful Email Newsletter
Periodical email newsletters is one of the most important parts of your online marketing strategy. Having people to opt in to your newsletter creates a very receptive audience, these people want to hear from you. This article shows how to keep them from clicking the unsubscribe button.
42% of complainers on SoMe expect a response within 1 hour-> Responding, The Missing Link of Social Media
Probably one of the most common oversights for many businesses, not responding to complaints and or requests that come from social media channels.
Turned off by advertising-> It's Not Just Teens Who Are Getting Over Facebook
Granted that Facebook needs to generate revenue through advertising, but the increase of sponsored stories on people's news feed has been a turn off. I don't believe this signals the end of Facebook by any means, on the contrary I'm sure they will find a good balance to show ads amongst other news feed pieces.
How they are going to work-> What Brands Need to Know About Facebook Hashtags
They were released this week and they provide a way to reach out to people outside your following base, just like it works on all other networks.
Your are the expert your audience is not-> If I give away my content, don’t I give away my business?
Give it away with no worries, most people will still call you so you can do it for them. The difference is they now know that you know what you are talking about.
Next Friday I'll have another round up, in the meantime you can follow me and YWD on the networks below:
Gustavo Jabbaz started his digital career as a designer and then became a developer and these days spends most of his time as a digital marketer. A founding partner of Your Web Department, he's responsible for day-to-day operations, marketing and development strategy. He is who you talk to when you need support with SEO and/or Social Media. Gustavo Jabbaz on Google+ | Twitter
This past week: Nothing major to talk about, Apple and Samsung are going at it again, this time Apple is the loser and the lawyers are still the winners. On the economy front, there are encouraging signs coming from the US and Canada, both posted positive numbers on job creation. As a small business this is very good news and now is the time to focus even more on giving your audience the best online experience you can put together. With that in mind here is my tweets list.
This is how you do it-> How to Track Your Facebook Ad Conversions
Pretty simple, it does involve a bit of code to add to your landing page (or your form submission thank you page). Since you are going to the trouble to advertise it is always a good idea to track the results.
For business leads LinkedIn is the place-> LinkedIn In Comparison to Twitter and Facebook for Business
Not to say that posting to Twitter and Facebook is a waste of time but, the lead generation on these networks can take longer than in LinkedIn. And to be specific, in LinkedIn, groups is where you need to participate for faster results.
It certainly can be of big help-> What Can Big Data Do For A Small Business?
Big Data is not only available to big companies anymore, pretty much anyone can get access to this. There are a number of services out there that facilitates this for the small business.
Fan of QuickBooks? Now you can have it on your iPhone-> QuickBooks Online for iPhone
This can be very handy, as we use our phones more for certain tasks, such as email; the QuickBooks app can make life easier for any business owner.
This is a good thing-> As social media sites thrive, advertisers seek more control of their brand
This was bound to happen, as more money is poured into social networks by big brands they want to avoid any negative association with posts and comments not in tune with their messages. In a way they are clearing the way for small businesses to have the same functionality.
Your own relevant useful and fresh content-> 7 Useful SEO Tips to Stay Ahead in Search Engine Rankings
With all the recent updates to their search algorithm Google is looking for the most relevant and original content for the person doing the search. Some of the old techniques still apply, such as: Keywords and link building but original and relevant content is king.
Find your balance-> How Often Should You Publish Content On Your Blog?
You need to see what works best for you and consider your time and resources available. One thing to keep in mind is you don't need to post everyday, but if you are just starting your blog the posting need to be more frequent.
Next Friday I'll have another round up, in the meantime you can follow me and YWD on the networks below:
Gustavo Jabbaz started his digital career as a designer and then became a developer and these days spends most of his time as a digital marketer. A founding partner of Your Web Department, he's responsible for day-to-day operations, marketing and development strategy. He is who you talk to when you need support with SEO and/or Social Media. Gustavo Jabbaz on Google+ | Twitter
Kramer Design Associates (KDA) is an internationally recognized firm, based in Toronto and working on high profile projects in the practice areas of Signage Programs, Street Furniture and Media Architecture.
They bring an international perspective to their projects, as a result of completed and ongoing initiatives throughout North America, Europe, Asia and Saudi Arabia.
A client of many years of Your Web Department, they utilize the YWD website management platform in order to easily update the website on their own. Most noticeably, they’re constantly adding new photographic material to the image galleries that are used to illustrate the different practice areas.
Their website www.kramer-design.com contains several well-produced and interesting shots, and was entirely built on and is managed directly by the client using Your Web Department.
Flavio Mester is a graphic designer as well as a systems analyst (in a distant life he was an architect). A founding partner of Your Web Department, he's responsible for the design and development of all the YWD website management platform interfaces. Flavio Mester on Google+ | Twitter | LinkedIn
This past week: I just came back from a short trip to Argentina, so today's list is short (only 3 days of tweets). Nevertheless I believe they are still very helpful for any small business doing online business. As for news, nothing major to report besides Toronto's Mayor Rob Ford's ongoing saga.
Always try to look your best-> Small businesses need to come to the party dressed like their hosts.
To your clients your business website is a reflection of you and your team. Your website needs to look and do its part for your business, just like every other member of your team.
I would wait to see what Yahoo does with it-> To Tumblr or Not to Tumblr: Brands and Advertising
It is true that Tumblr needs to generate revenue some how. Advertising seems the logical option and it could be a good platform to market your brand. But I would wait a bit to see what Yahoo has in mind for Tumblr; Yahoo has a history of acquiring cool thriving communities to just do nothing with them and make them fade into nothingness.
Indeed! Don't do these-> Top 6 Social Media No-Nos to Avoid
If you are investing time and resources on your social media strategy, make sure you are doing it right.
Check which ones are suited for you-> 26 Ways to Create Engaging Content
The goal for your original created content is to be shared, and lots of times. This post has great ideas on how to make content that is sharable.
Mobile just keeps growing-> Internet Trends report shows a surge in sharing, mobile overtaking PCs
We all like to share stuff, and we like to do more from our Mobile devices. And it seems that personal computers are becoming the trucks (using a automotive analogy) of the computing world. PC are not going to disappear, but they are going to be used only for specific work.
Good tips!-> Great Tips For Successful Mobile Marketing Using PPC
PPC is still the best way to advertise online (on search or on social networks), and Mobile is the platform that everyone is using the most. See how you can maximize your advertising efforts.
Know what and how to curate and syndicate content-> Are You a Content Thief and Don’t Know It?
There is a fine line between plagiarizing and curating; if you are going to use other people content, give credit for it or/and link to the original source.
They like to share but mostly private-> Teenage Social Media Behavior [INFOGRAPHIC]
Teens, seem to like to share a lot, but only amongst their friends. They learn fast about privacy and how to stay away from their parents.
Next Friday I'll have another round up, in the meantime you can follow me and YWD on the networks below:
Gustavo Jabbaz started his digital career as a designer and then became a developer and these days spends most of his time as a digital marketer. A founding partner of Your Web Department, he's responsible for day-to-day operations, marketing and development strategy. He is who you talk to when you need support with SEO and/or Social Media. Gustavo Jabbaz on Google+ | Twitter
This past week: Google's I/O conference ends today. They had a series of major announcements about their tools we like so much. Such as a new and improved Google Maps, new Google+ interface and added features and speed for Chrome on mobile. As expected Google efforts seem to focus on mobile and they are not alone Apple seems to be working on a new iOS with a new (trendy) flat look, but so far this is just a rumour. Windows phone reached number 3 (global shipments), surpassing BlackBerry for the first time, it is good to see that there is more solid choices in the mobile market. And finally the much talked about Facebook Home app is officially a bust, with AT&T pulling HTC Facebook's phone from their lineup. What does this means for the small business? For starters your own mobile experience is about to get better and as technology improves (at a very rapid pace it seems) more opportunities arises for businesses to connect with their audience. Without further ado, this week's tweet list; next week I'll be away but the roundup will come back on the 31st. Until then, enjoy the long weekend.
Still the best tool to reach the right audience-> Why E-Mail Newsletters Won’t Die
Email is still the most popular form of internet communication. When regulation aiming to stop spam was introduced, it indirectly helped legitimate marketers create good quality email lists. Now that most email list have a clear opt in and opt out, you can be confident that the people joining the list want to hear from you.
Google drive got more useful-> From the Web to Google Drive with just the click of a button
Once you have a Google account (such us a gmail email address) you can have access to Google Drive (amongst other Google tools). Google drive is quite useful to share and store documents and files. Now you can save website "files for download" directly into your Google Drive account. These files can be accessed from your desktop PC and your phone.
A new opportunity in texting-> How Messaging Apps Are Disrupting The Mobile Ecosystem
Traditional SMS phone texting is being replaced by internet based texting apps, such as: WhatsApp and KeeK with both networks boasting million of users.
Enticing that click-> Butter Up Your Social Media Calls-to-Action
When sharing content on our social networks we do it with the hope that people will click on the link to the full story on your website. Learn how to make the share more compelling for clicking.
Got this from a friend, great presentation-> The Small Business Guide To YouTube
Thinking about creating video for your business? Check this website first.
We asked and found the answers for you (at YWD that is)-> Asking the Right Questions About Mobile
At YWD we are committed to having the best mobile experience for our business websites. We are constantly looking and asking for the newest and most effective ways to deliver our clients website to the mobile visitor. This is why we offer the mobile version on every YWD package at no extra cost.
The jury is still out on this one but do it anyway just in case-> Does Google+ matter for small businesses?
There are contradicting thoughts on whether having a Google + business page helps your search results ranking. Even though there isn't a clear benefit for search, to setup a Google+ page is free and if a visitor does look your business on Google+ you will be ready for him/her.
Friday May 31st I'll have another round up, in the meantime you can follow me and YWD on the networks below:
Gustavo Jabbaz started his digital career as a designer and then became a developer and these days spends most of his time as a digital marketer. A founding partner of Your Web Department, he's responsible for day-to-day operations, marketing and development strategy. He is who you talk to when you need support with SEO and/or Social Media. Gustavo Jabbaz on Google+ | Twitter
This past week: There are encouraging sings that the US economy is on the recovery (no recession double dip). Good news for all businesses, and hopefully this will be an incentive to work their online presence and reverse the status quo for small business websites. Only 25% of small businesses in the US have a website and for Canada it is only 40%. Hard to believe these numbers in a time when accessing the Internet is becoming second nature to all of us; and clearly there are no businesses that cannot benefit from having a website. Without further ado; my list of tweets that will help your business do better online.
If your website isn't earning its keep, for sure-> Does your business website need a redesign?
This is true for every business, if your website is not helping your business, it is time to rethink the design and how it engages your audience (or potential customers). Your business needs to generate leads or sales, it has to be your marketing hub whether your marketing efforts are in print or online.
Listening is a good start-> 5 Questions to Ask Before Implementing a Social Media Strategy
Before you jump into the social media world for your business, you should look around at what others and your competition are doing. Luckily there are plenty of guides on social media on the web and most likely you will find plenty of posts on how to do social media in your business space.
They all help, keep on sharing-> Twitter & Facebook links affect SEO on Google and Bing
It has being said before, the url shorteners do give the SEO juice to the full URL. So don't worry, every share of your website or blog helps on the search result page rank.
The art of marketing B2B businesses-> How B2B content can make you popular
This is a tough one to crack, and I'm talking from experience. It is very hard to promote an abstract product such as website management and service. But it can be done, you just need to be creative.
"Do good for our customers and they will do good for us"-> Customer Service Lessons from Amazon
This is something we try to do with YWD clients (and prospects). This philosophy seems lost with big brands but in today's social media, review and check-in world; sharing good will is a must.
It does!-> Why Facebook Buying Waze for $1 Billion Makes Complete Sense
Waze is a GPS app that helps you find the best route for your destination. Once again Facebook is betting heavily on mobile, expect them to come up with something innovative if the buyout is completed.
Next Friday I'll have another round up, in the meantime you can follow me and YWD on the networks below:
Gustavo Jabbaz started his digital career as a designer and then became a developer and these days spends most of his time as a digital marketer. A founding partner of Your Web Department, he's responsible for day-to-day operations, marketing and development strategy. He is who you talk to when you need support with SEO and/or Social Media. Gustavo Jabbaz on Google+ | Twitter
Kramer Design Associates (KDA)
