Want to Grow a Loyal Fan Base? Four Experts Tell You How
Are you looking for new strategies to build a loyal fan base? Wondering how to engage with readers and experts?
Social Media Examiner will host a free online broadcast Monday, June 6.
You’ll be able interact live with four marketing experts over three hours of free online video broadcasts.
Join Michael Stelzner (author, Launch), Mari Smith (co-author, Facebook Marketing), Joe Pulizzi (co-author, Get Content Get Customers) and Jay Baer (co-author, The Now Revolution) for three hours of FREE live instruction. You can ask all of your content, relationship and social media marketing questions live. 
Why Most Businesses Get Facebook Wrong
In this video I interview Jay Baer, co-author of the new book The Now Revolution and founder of the popular social media blog Convince and Convert. Jay shares why it’s important for companies to embrace social media now.
He also talks a lot about why Facebook can have a big impact on business, and explains why most companies approach Facebook the wrong way and what they need to do instead.
Be sure to check out the takeaways below after you watch the video.
22 Hot New Social Media Tools Worth Exploring
Are you looking for the hottest new social media tools and services? We asked our team of Social Media Examiner writers to share their best new social media discoveries.
What follows is an amazing list of social media tools you’ve likely never heard of—covering a wide range of categories:
- Tools for pictures, video, audio and screen capture
- Tools to measure and track results
- Tools to manage content
- Blogging tools
- Twitter tools
- Other social media tools
Try them out. And be sure to report back here with your thoughts.
Is Your Business Ready for the Now Revolution?
I recently interviewed Jay Baer, co-author of the brand-new book The Now Revolution and founder of the popular blog ConvinceandConvert.com.
In this interview, we talk about social media marketing, Jay’s experience writing the book and about where this crazy, fast-moving industry is headed.
Mike: Jay, what’s the single most important thing that marketers or business owners need to know to be successful right now?
Jay: It’s a terrific question. One of the things that we talked about a lot in the book is the fact that you have to act quickly as an organization. The example that we use to kick off the book is if you’re at a hotel and you’re having a bad hotel experience—it’s dirty or gross or whatever—historically, you might go down to the front desk, or call the 1-800 number or write a letter.
Top 10 Social Media Blogs: The 2011 Winners!
Social media is a big subject. If you’re looking for some reliable places to go for the best tips and social media tactics, look no further!
Our second-annual contest generated more than 300 nominations. Our panel of social media experts carefully reviewed the nominees and finalists, analyzing the quality of their content, the frequency of posts and reader involvement (among other things).
The following are the winners of Social Media Examiner’s Top 10 Social Media Blogs for 2011.
If you’re looking to master all that social media has to offer, these rich blogs need to be at the top of your reading list.
30 Social Media Predictions From 30 Social Media Pros
How will social media impact marketers and businesses in 2011? We sought expert opinions from a wide range of pros you’re likely familiar with.
Since we started Social Media Examiner in October 2009, we’ve published more than 280 articles. These original posts were written by dozens of social media professionals.
We decided to tap their knowledge and expertise to see what’s likely coming next year. Here are their predictions for where social media is headed in the next 12 months.
6 Social Media Success Metrics You Need to Track
People who say social media isn’t measurable aren’t looking very hard.
The truth is there are dozens of viable metrics you can use to gauge the success of your social media efforts. The challenge isn’t measurability; it’s knowing which measures are meaningful.
Here are the 6 undervalued social media success metrics you should be tracking:
#1: Daily Story Feedback
Instead of just counting the number of Facebook “likes” you accrue, which signifies nothing more than digital bumper-stickering, track how often your fans click “like” and comment on the status updates you post.
3 Simple Ways to Rapidly Create Custom Facebook Landing Tabs
Unless you can get people to click your “Like” button, your Facebook strategy will be as limp and lifeless as Matt LeBlanc’s post-Friends career.
That’s because the vast majority of consumer Facebook interactions don’t occur on your fan page, but rather in the newsfeeds of your fans. In fact, research from Jeff Widman of Facebook fan page consultancy BrandGlue (and a presenter at Facebook Success Summit) estimates that 199 out of every 200 interactions (99.5%) come from the user’s wall (or newsfeeds). This means that almost nobody is coming back to your fan page after they visit it the first time.
3 New Ways to Use Twitter at Live Events
If you use Twitter, chances are you’ve tweeted from a live event. But there’s so much more Twitter can offer. In this article, I’ll share three secrets you’ve likely never heard of…
But first, why do you attend offline events? Is it the lunch (invariably chicken and rice)? Maybe the dorky name tag? Or perhaps you’re lured to the junk contained in a $5 laptop bag made in China?
No, no and no. You go to events and conferences for something more than a snack and some SWAG. You go to learn something and grow your personal network.
And in that regard, Twitter has a starring role.
Four Ways to Find Out if Your Customers Are Active With Social Media
For many companies, the conversation has shifted from “why” or “should” we do social media, to “where” and “how” social media should be done.
A major component of answering those questions effectively is understanding in which social outposts your customers are concentrated, because there really is no benefit in beating your customers to the punch. Companies should follow, not lead, their customers across the social web.
At conferences, I’m often asked something along these lines: “My boss thinks none of our customers are on Facebook, but I think they are. What do I do?”
Here are 4 ways to find out where your customers are in social media:
