Even in invite-only beta mode, Google+ has made a large impression in the social sphere. And at the risk of throwing off the obvious cheesy pun, the social network certainly has its pluses and minuses. To keep from ending this blog on a sour note, let’s examine where Google+ needs to improve, at least in the eyes of many users:
- The Name Game – Many are up in arms about Google’s insistence on opening accounts with real names. While irksome to individuals, advertisers and marketers who will eventually look to Google+ as a tool for brand advocacy should support the real name policy. It could ensure accurate targeting practices in the short- and long-term.
- Too Early to Launch – On some level, Google underestimated the degree of interest in its social network. Why else would it be launched with a user quota?
- +1 – Though Google’s answer to the Facebook Like is likely (yes another pun) to become a significant engagement tool, the limitations of the network are stymieing its functionality. Also, some in Search have expressed concern that it slows load times.
That’s the not so good news for Google+. But the social network has done something unprecedented. It has gotten under the skin of Facebook prompting it to make sweeping changes to its privacy and tagging capabilities. Google+ Circles allow people to pick and choose the things they want to share and the people they want to share them with. The circles graphically provide users with comfort and security; they can keep information in their own little bubble. The same couldn’t be said of Facebook – until now.
If asked whether these changes were a direct response to Google+, Facebook would likely hedge. But the lesson to be learned from these improvements is that social competition is a good thing. It brings out the best in each network and promotes continuous improvement of functionality for users, advertisers and marketers.
Today is Day 2 of Affiliate Summit East 2011. The ASE website calls it the premier affiliate marketing conference and few would argue that assertion. But few would also deny that the affiliate landscape has matured recognizing and acknowledging the need for cross-channel, agency-based program integration to drive results and profits for advertisers and publishers. Even though the ASE is unlikely to re-brand, signs of this shift in mentality are evident in the diverse panels and speaking engagements at the event. That’s the good news.
The not-so-good news is that the evolution of affiliate marketing isn’t well known outside the industry. For instance, public sentiment on the Nexus Affiliate Tax is only now beginning to slowly turn in favor of affiliate marketers. While that’s a step in the right direction, federal regulation remains a very real possibility, one that can hinder short-term and long-term profitability and growth. The bottom line is many people still have an adverse view of affiliate marketing.
They say good things come in threes. Over the three-day Affiliate Summit East 2011 conference, emerging platforms like social media and mobile will be addressed and broad and niche-based affiliate and SEO topic discussions will be held. The event is always fun and chock full of insightful learnings. But what happens after the conference is just as important as the conference itself. Affiliates must drive conversions; they should strive to change the minds of outsiders currently fearful of the marketplace and help them understand the ROI benefits of a cross-channel and integrated performance approach.
Social media experts obsessed with engagement are quick to point out that tweeting links works. According to Adam Bain, Twitter President of Global Revenue, 80% of Twitter engagement is link clicking. At first glance, that is a powerful statistic, especially for companies and brands looking to drive thought leadership initiatives. Theoretically, spreading your industry knowledge to a relevant Twitter audience could generate leads and revenue. But you need to have your best practices ducks in a row in order to make this theory come to fruition.
- Thought Leaders, Know Your Followers – Articles on the importance of engaging your followers are published ad nauseam. The strength of social media is squarely in the consumer’s hands. They don’t want to be told to read your brilliance. If you’re followers are from your specific industry, chances are they are following the same publications you are. Try tweeting links directly from the publication site. It’s much less of a hard sell.
- Embrace the Retweet – Bain added that the remaining 20% of engagement stems from normal tweets and retweets. While that figure might not appear as striking as its 80% counterpart, it is actually more important. Remember that bit about the consumer being the straw that stirs the social drink? Well, if you are a budding or established thought leader, the retweet is a much favored concoction. If a reader deems your article worthy of spreading socially, the retweet is the seal of approval. And if you’re base of followers is industry savvy, they won’t regard it as just another link.
- Link Tweeting = Link Building? – Recently in Graywolf’s SEO Blog, Michael Gray asserted that the desire to acquire Facebook Likes is becoming the equivalent of black hat link building. Couldn’t the same be said of certain Twitter follower building strategies? With Twitter feeds influencing organic search rankings and with link clicking engagement at 80%, it’s plausible that tweeting links for the sake of tweeting links could eventually get Google’s attention. As more and more social networks pursue IPOs, like and tweeting practices will be heavily scrutinized. Again, this brings us back to point #1 – ensure your follower base is relevant to your industry.
Building up a strong thought leadership program requires driving awareness. Leveraging social media channels is a great way to go about it, as long as you know your audience. Tweeting a link to a piano playing cat might get you followers in the short-term but it’s doubtful many will stick around when your social conversation turns to high level topics that are of no interest to them. After all, a true leader never has to ask for followers. They just come naturally.
I did something interesting today. Well, interesting to me. I went on dictionary.com and looked up social. Twelve similar definitions came up but I was most intrigued by #4:
- living or disposed to live in companionship with others or in a community, rather than in isolation: People are social beings.
Let’s apply that definition to social media. The need for companionship across a plethora of social channels has given way to an increased competitive spirit. Companies whose social strategy is “More, More, More” are determined to build their friend count hoping this will translate into sales. And though that may sound good, even reasonable, social media marketing is much more complex. Turns out having a whole bunch of friends can be very isolating if you don’t know what to do with them.
For instance, take my local gym. It currently lists over 1,300 friends on Facebook. Perusing the friend list, I can honestly say I’ve never seen any of these people working out. That begs the title question – What Do You Do With the Friends You Have? For friends to convert into revenue, they have to be the right friends. To that end, search and email marketing would help.
Small to mid-level businesses, my gym included, should update their Facebook profiles to continuously attract higher search results and engage users. In order to improve social search positioning, your corporate profile shouldn’t resemble your personal profile. If you’re a gym, your corporate profile is not the place to praise the latest menu option at the local pizzeria. Also, include relevant brand keywords like “fitness”, “workout routines”, “cardio” and “exercise”. Search marketers can help you create a keyword portfolio designed to be both cost-efficient and results-effective.
On the email side, creating a newsletter or promotional messaging will not only benefit your Facebook friends but their interested and actionable network as well. With respect to my gym, social email marketing can take its pool of friends, wean out the ones that are less likely to join and fortify efforts to get those interested on the treadmill.
More, more, more can work if your goal is to take your friends and turn them into sales. Each business has its own unique brand identity. The mistake companies make is equating friend counts with furthering that identity. Ultimately too many friends without a sound performance-based strategy can prove very socially isolating.
Search is in a constant state of evolution. But that doesn’t mean the evolution is green. For search marketers on the PPC side of the spectrum, campaign spending can still be costly and satisfactory returns can still be hard to quantify. It’s a puzzle that PPC. But does it really have to be? Not necessarily. Not if you consider the campaign benefits of calculating Quality Score.
Without getting deep into algorithms and metrics, Quality Score measures relevance. It helps customers find sites relevant to their search and it enables advertisers to benefit from creating relevant ads. Click-through rates (CTRs) as well as ad text and landing page relevancy are key factors in calculating Quality Score. By generating a high scoring ad (10 being the cream of the crop) you are essentially telling Google that you’re a relevancy star. I know what you’re thinking. How does relevancy stardom translate into lower PPC costs?
Let’s briefly analyze the three key factors in determining Quality Score. CTRs are the main ingredient in calculating Quality Score. If people are clicking on your ad, they are confirming its overall relevancy. The more CTRs produced, the more revenue generated. Therefore, a high Quality Score will keep you from wasting critical PPC spend on ads that aren’t converting. As for ad text and landing page relevancy, these are controllable metrics. By testing and retesting ads and landing pages, you can make improvements to your Quality Score by focusing on areas like:
- Keyword performance
- Content relevance
- Page load performance
There is a reason Quality Score is such a trusted PPC metric. It helps drive better, more efficient results. Of course, there are other metrics to consider based on your campaign goals. But it’s in your best interest not to count Quality Score out.
