If I Were Starting Social Media from Zero

A couple of months ago without notice, all of the social media sharing counters on my primary website had reverted to zero. Just like that, thousands of shares that had accumulated over a period of nearly seven years had vanished. Why is this significant? Social sharing is what is known as “social proof.”  It’s evidence […]

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Social Media is Still Uncharted Waters

When you are embarking on a journey whose destination is uncertain, you have to get comfortable with uncertainty. When it comes to social media, uncertainty has been, and for the foreseeable future, will necessarily be part of its use in your marketing equation. These are uncharted waters. Everyone is still learning. So, small businesses simply […]

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Small Business Social Media Accountability

Recent tragic events here in the United States (and around the world) have heightened awareness of the global reach of media, especially social media, and the consequences for businesses using it. Small business advertising has historically been local, making it easy to craft messaging that is appropriate for the targeted audience. However, now any piece […]

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Social Media for Small Business – It’s Still Early Days

The art of marketing has always been about making meaningful connections with ideal buyers. Modern marketing is a practice that is new to most small businesses. Prior to that small businesses made meaningful connections through selling, not marketing. One of the reasons for this is that most of the media available in recent decades, including magazines, […]

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Social Marketing is a Process

Social media marketing, now simply known as social marketing by many, is a strategic process that is designed to create a buzz that ultimately leads to profitable sales. The earliest modern marketers understood this – “Sell the sizzle, not the steak” was one popular catchphrase. Charles Revson was one of the masters of modern marketing. […]

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3 Hyperlocal Marketing Success Factors

While they may not be familiar with the term hyperlocal marketing, successful local businesses have learned it is essential to their continued prosperity. Hyperlocal suggests serving a narrowly defined niche – one that is largely defined by proximity. However, location is just one piece of the hyperlocal marketing puzzle. This weekend I worked with local […]

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