Are You Ready for AI?
As someone who’s been around the marketing block a few times (and not afraid to admit it!), I've seen it all—from the days of cold calling and mailers to the rise of social media and now, the age of AI. AI is the shiny new toy in our marketing toolkit. It's smart,...
Why You Shouldn’t Quit Facebook
Since Facebook changed its algorithm a year or so ago, most businesses' status updates are not showing up in their followers' news feeds. By some estimates, only about seven percent of what a business posts will show up organically. Naturally, this has led to some...
First Day at Code Con
Code Con is going on in New York right now and Day One saw plenty of news-worthy events: a new Google self-driving car was revealed and Microsoft shared new real-time translation technology for Skype. Great recap here. I am LOVING the idea of the real-time...
Tech Tip – How to Get a Human on the Phone
Most of the time, I look for online customer service and skip the voice mail jail, but on those occasions when I absolutely have to call a company, NOTHING MAKES ME CRAZIER than a gazillion prompts and no way to get to a human. Fortunately, this site can help. It...
HootSuite Hacked Yesterday (July 28, 2013)
Yesterday, there was a large hack on many HootSuite accounts, including mine. This resulted in a bunch of weight loss spam posts on many of the 70+ pages we manage for clients. Within minutes, Tiffany, Cara and Titania (our social media team) were calling and texting...
How Can I Make Sure My Promotion is Legal?
We run a lot of promotions for clients. Understandably, businesses want customers to make purchases. If you require a purchase of any sort to enter into a promotion where a winner is drawn by chance, it is illegal. Against the law. As in, you can be fined. The...
When to Shut Up
Today, three people were killed in Boston and more than 100 injured at the finish line of the Boston Marathon. It quickly became the MAIN topic of conversation on Twitter and Facebook. I always remind our clients and friends that if you have any social media posts...
REI’s Impressive Social Media Strategy
I just read an excellent social media case study from REI in Fast Company. REI really gets it. Note that a lot of what they're doing - custom video responses, for example - are in some ways EASIER to do for you, the small business owner. Small businesses don't have as...
#26actsofkindness
Internet memes come and go. We don't usually blog about them unless we see a relevance for your business. So why are we telling you about Ann Curry's #26actsofkindness meme that's taking off on Twitter? Simply because we like it. In the wake of the horrific murders in...
Facebook’s New Timeline – Cover Photos and Profile Pics
We should all just accept it. Facebook is going to keep changing and messing with us. Every time Facebook rolls out a new format, users bitch and complain - and start Facebook campaigns - to bring the old Facebook back. Eventually, everyone gets used to the new format...
Timeline is Coming to Facebook. Don’t Be Afraid.
Facebook has become an important part of most brand's marketing efforts. As it is now the most visited site on the Internet (more visits than Google even), businesses can't afford to ignore it. More and more people are logging on to Facebook first thing and checking...
Fun on a Friday – Pinterest
Every now and then a site comes along and just explodes into the social media stratosphere. Pinterest is one such site. Just look at its growth. In June, it didn't even have half a million visits. By December, it had over 11 million! And this is still an...