Social Media Promotions and the Law: What You Need to Know
Are you thinking of using social media contests?
Do you understand how the law could impact your activities?
Keep reading to learn more…
Why Legalities?
One of the best ways to grow your business is to give stuff away.
Whether your business is a small enterprise, a website or blog, or a large multinational company, hosting giveaways is sure to increase traffic, awareness and potential new readers or customers.
Sponsoring or hosting a giveaway comes with rules and regulations that many don’t know or understand. 
How to Measure the Return on Social Media Contests
Have you thought about running a social media contest? Wondering how to best measure your return on investment (ROI)?
This article will help with three case studies.
But first, about that ROI… It took some time after the advent of online advertising before marketers started asking, “What are these ‘eyeballs’ worth that I’m paying for?”
With social media, the tough questions around metrics started being asked much sooner. As marketing budgets stay tight, it’s no surprise that the need to show results is high.
So when it comes to contests on the social web, how do we go about evaluating ROI?
Investing in Your Social Media Contest
Before you can demonstrate a return, you must first make an investment!
How Bloggers Can Use Book Reviews to Connect With Experts
Are you looking to get the attention of experts in your industry?
Who writes the books your readers like to read? Experts do. And when these professionals share their knowledge in a new book, there’s one thing they highly covet—book reviews.
In this article I’ll share the power of a book review and how you might be able to review a brand-new book.
How Social Media Generated $300,000 in Software Sales in a Weekend
Logos Bible Software has worked hard to build its email list of 300,000. So choosing to shun that email list for its Black Friday promotion says a lot for the chosen alternative – social media.
Practically every other online retailer – and Logos is 100% online – blasted customers with their post-Thanksgiving email promotions.
But this software company solely relied on social media, from testing its ideas to launching the promotion to letting the resulting word of mouth do the work for them.
In response, Logos generated $300,000 in sales in those few days – three times what it brought in during the same period the year before. Not only did it add to the bottom line, but also Logos significantly expanded its fans, followers and customer connections to support future efforts.
Washington Redskins Kick-Off Foursquare to Reward Loyal Fans
Washington Redskins fans are some of the most devoted when it comes to supporting their team, donning full Native American headdresses, painted faces and hog noses.
These loyal fans now have an arguably easier way of showing their support—and connecting with each other—through Foursquare.
In a pilot for the 2010 football season, the NFL team rolled out Foursquare as a way to reward fans for attending home games or rallies during out-of-town games.
The results beat expectations. By December, Redskins fans had logged more than 20,000 check-ins at the home stadium FedExField and tens of thousands more at venues across the D.C. metro area.
Cold Stone Transforms the Ice Cream Social With Facebook
Ice cream has always been social. But Cold Stone Creamery has found a way to make it even more so—with Facebook.
The American ice cream retailer, known for pounding and slapping customized creations on a “cold stone,” has long been a favorite of ice cream lovers – enthusiasm that has helped churn out 1,459 locations in the U.S. and 16 countries.
How to Increase the Quality of Your Facebook Fans
We all want to see our Facebook Page skyrocket in numbers. And, there are many tactics for doing so. However, the fact is that numbers don’t necessarily equate to engagement and return on investment.
In the short run, an increase from 1,000 to 10,000 fans might look great to your boss or client, but when the fans start dropping off at a rate of 100 or 200 per week, and nobody answers the questions you put on your wall, you may not look like quite the hero anymore.
This article will reveal some effective tactics to gain quality Facebook fans and introduce the concept of engaging influencers.
How to Engage With Social Media (a Chris Garrett Interview)
In this video I interview Chris Garrett, co-author of the book ProBlogger. Here Chris provides great advice to helps businesses achieve value with social media.
Chris shares the best way to approach Twitter and how to avoid the biggest mistakes people make. He also highlights the importance of attraction, retention and conversion for your business blog. Be sure to read the other takeaways listed below.
Top 5 Social Media Articles from 2009
The year is coming to a close and there’s been lots of great social media content developed.
Here are our top five articles (in order of popularity) from this year…
#1: Five Must Read Social Media Marketing Studies
Here’s a quick overview of the this article:
Study 1: By 2010, 26 Million (1 in 7) U.S. Adults Will Use Twitter Monthly
The study by eMarketer found the following: “In 2009, there will be 18 million U.S. adults who access Twitter on any platform at least monthly. That represents a 200% increase over 2008 levels. Usage will reach 26 million U.S. adults in 2010, a further 44.4% climb.“
Fun Social Media Promos Feed Souplantation Customer Frenzy
Imagine marveling at Peru’s Machu Picchu ruins, and a guy nearby asks if you’ll take his picture. But it’s not just him; he’s proudly holding a paper cutout of a smiling tomato.
What, exactly, inspired this traveler to carry a cartoon tomato to one of the wonders of the world?
In a word, fun.
He’s just one of nearly 140 people who vacationed with the tomato, named “Sweetie.” These fans of the restaurant Souplantation, or Sweet Tomatoes in some markets, were enthusiastically participating in the chain’s latest social media promotion, “Where’s Sweetie?”
