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Yes, Virginia, There Are Men Using Facebook

Written on September 1, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: book, marketing

Texting may be the most popular mode of communication between men, but for men under forty, Facebook beats out phone, Twitter and even email.

The result comes from “The Great Male Survey,” a study conducted by Ipsos OTX for AskMen.com. eMarketer boiled the responses down into a nice chart that shows Facebook gaining on texting as you move from young teens up to the 20 somethings. By thirty, Facebook becomes just as important as texting and incredibly, that old fashioned thing called the telephone becomes an even more important tool for communication. Imagine that.

Even though most of the men in the survey didn’t choose Facebook as their main means of communication, an average of 69% of all the men who responded said they do log on to the site regularly. The 20-24 age range comes in on top with 78% of men using Facebook and as you can imagine, it drops off dramatically after 50.

What is surprising is the fact that Twitter barely makes it on to the grid with only 8.5% of the men surveyed saying they use it regularly. 60% said they found it useless.

Once again, these stats prove that I hang around with a weird crowd since I have a large number of men associated with my Twitter account. I imagine it’s because I deal with people in the marketing, online and entertainment business, all of which are heavy on the Y chromosomes.

As for Facebook, my numbers do match up. I follow a large number of men, but rarely do they use the site to send me an email or even comment. My girlfriends, on the other hand, do both with alarming frequency. And all of those Facebook game updates come from the women I follow and that alone is good reason to cut them off in favor of more men.

The bottom line? The men are out there, so keep that in mind when you set up your new Facebook campaign. They may not respond to your fun, daily trivia question, but they are out there reading what you have to say.

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Yes, Virginia, There Are Men Using Facebook

Facebook Fans and Brands: Not a Two-Way Street

Written on August 31, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: book, marketing

”70% of consumers who “FANNED” a brand on Facebook didn’t feel they’d given this company permission to market to them.”

This comes from a 2009 ExactTarget study that was revisited in their latest installment of Subscribers, Fans & Followers. The study says that most users saw “Liking” (as it’s now called) a brand on Facebook as a way to express their personal endorsement. An almost equal number of respondents (40%) said they “like” a brand in order to get discounts and promotions. 36% said they were looking for freebies.

Put the two thoughts together and you get a selfish bunch of Facebookers who want the goodies without having to listen to the pitch in return. This in itself isn’t surprising, as most people wouldn’t willingly sign up to receive daily advertisements if there weren’t a reward in it. But Facebook isn’t like an ad you see on TV or in a magazine. Facebook is about people and connections and developing a relationship – in other words, becoming friends. Friends accept chain emails from friends, they buy candy bars to support their friend’s little league team and they tolerate the invites to the home business sales party. The harsh reality is, that even though 2,000 people have expressed their love for your product by “liking” your fan page on Facebook, they’re not your friends. That means they don’t want you to come over uninvited.

So how do you get invited?

You have to get your brand to sound more like a person. The report states that the major reason people log on to Facebook is to connect with other people. So give them a reason to connect. Some brands do this by setting up charity efforts and competitions. Something as simple as asking fans to come up with a new flavor of ice cream will get people talking.

People also come to Facebook to have fun. Statistics show that 69% of users check in on the weekends and this is prime time for sharing links. 65% say they log on before or after work or school. If your social media person is working only from 9 to 5, Monday through Friday, chances are you’re not making the most of your Facebook page. Engage Facebook users with late night games and quirky videos on a Saturday afternoon.

Who’s doing it right? ExactTarget says Oreo is one of the top players and a quick trip to their Facebook page will show you why. The first thing you’ll see is their Fan of the Week widget which directly includes their fans as part of their marketing. They also have games you play, a Pandora link for music, and even their updates are fun and quirky. This recent one liner: ‘Not all Oreo cookies are great swimmers. Who’s had an Oreo sink to the bottom of their milk?” has more than 3,000 comments. It’s deceptively simple.

If you want to learn how to turn Facebook fans into friends, check out the full report from ExactTarget then start thinking about new ways to engage and entertain the visitors to your Facebook page.

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Facebook Fans and Brands: Not a Two-Way Street

Watch Out Twitter & Facebook, the Viagra Generation is Taking Over!

Written on August 30, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: book, marketing

If you watch a lot of TV–and TV ads– you’d think that those over 50 are interested in nothing more than popping a Viagra and making a little bowm-chicka-bowm-bowm.

But, according to a new Pew study, those between the ages of 50 and 64 are getting just as excited about social networking. According to the study:

• Between April 2009 and May 2010, social networking use among internet users ages 50-64 grew by 88%–from 25% to 47%.
• During the same period, use among those ages 65 and older grew 100%–from 13% to 26%.
• By comparison, social networking use among users ages 18-29 grew by 13%—from 76% to 86%.

Twitter appears to be the hostspot of activity with 1 in 10 internet users over the age of 50 now regularly sending out 140 character updates about their lives.

Maybe Oprah was right; 50 really is the new 30!

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Watch Out Twitter & Facebook, the Viagra Generation is Taking Over!

Watch Out Twitter & Facebook, the Viagra Generation is Taking Over!

Written on August 30, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: book, marketing

If you watch a lot of TV–and TV ads– you’d think that those over 50 are interested in nothing more than popping a Viagra and making a little bowm-chicka-bowm-bowm.

But, according to a new Pew study, those between the ages of 50 and 64 are getting just as excited about social networking. According to the study:

• Between April 2009 and May 2010, social networking use among internet users ages 50-64 grew by 88%–from 25% to 47%.
• During the same period, use among those ages 65 and older grew 100%–from 13% to 26%.
• By comparison, social networking use among users ages 18-29 grew by 13%—from 76% to 86%.

Twitter appears to be the hostspot of activity with 1 in 10 internet users over the age of 50 now regularly sending out 140 character updates about their lives.

Maybe Oprah was right; 50 really is the new 30!

Pilgrim’s Partners: SponsoredReviews.com – Bloggers earn cash, Advertisers build buzz!

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Watch Out Twitter & Facebook, the Viagra Generation is Taking Over!

Local Online Ad Spending Continues to Rise

Written on August 24, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: Advertising, marketing

Local online ad spending is climbing faster than expected with sales reaching a number in 2011 that was originally predicted for 2012.

According to a study by Borrell Associates, which was reported on by PaidContent, online ad spending is likely to rise 18% next year rising to $16.1 billion dollars. Ad spending overall is expected to hit $51.9 billion which equals a 14% growth.

This is a nice leap over this year’s spending which is likely to rise less than 2% from last year. Borrell says this upswing is coming mostly from the rise in targeted advertising to local audiences and “everything involving social media.”

None of this is surprising given that “local” is the magic word of late. Everyday the marketing news is filled with stories about new mobile apps, websites and social media sites that are helping business target the customers in their neighborhood.

Technology is making it much easier for the mom and pop bicycle business to compete with Toys R Us and thanks to mobile and social media marketing, dad doesn’t have to dress up as a bumble bee in order to make sales.

Sadly, I do miss the days of Crazy Eddie screaming at me about how his prices are INSANE and my week is never complete until I’ve heard that mattress guy sigh, “You’re killing me, Larry!”  But the truth is, as much as I enjoy those local commercials, I’ve never been compelled to by their product. On the other hand, an email for a free entree at the restaurant up the street will have me there by the end of the week.

As an interesting side note, Borrell lists Monroe, LA – El Dorado, AR, Albany – Schenectady, NY, and Des Moines – Ames, IA, as the fastest growing areas for local advertising.

Among the slowest? Fairbanks, AK. Imagine that.

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Local Online Ad Spending Continues to Rise

SES SF Live Blogging Recap: Day Three

Written on August 19, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: Object

Below is the live blog coverage of the sessions given today at the Search Engine Strategies San Francisco conference. If you are aware of other live blog coverage, feel free to link to them in the comments.

4 Ways To Build Instant & Sustainable Trust Online, AIM Clear Blog
Advanced Keyword Research — SES San Francisco, [...]



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SES SF Live Blogging Recap: Day Three

Moms Want More Mobile Coupons

Written on August 19, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: marketing

If you’re looking to reach parents by mobile messaging, send them grocery coupons and more than 50% of them will be happy to accept. That comes from a survey which was conducted by Harris Interactive and it showed that parents with children are more interested in receiving mobile text alerts from merchants than those without kids.

Great news for those of you with family-oriented products, but don’t start texting just yet. The reality is that only 7% (versus 2%) of people with kids said they were extremely interested in getting those messages. A whopping 65% of people with children checked the “not at all” box.

There is some good, but probably not surprising, news in the study. When asked what kinds of text alerts they would be most interested in receiving (if they were interested at all), a whopping 77% of parents with kids age 6-12 were looking for grocery coupons and promotions. Discounts for national restaurant chains followed closely behind that, along with entertainment products like movie and sporting event tickets.

The only categories that were more appealing to people without kids were coffee and travel deals. Again, pretty logical if you think it through.

The takeaway here is that parents are busy people who are always looking for a deal to help make ends meet. If you’ve got a product that works for the whole family, a mobile coupon is likely to be well received. Right now, mobile coupons aren’t for everyone but companies such as Cellfire are working hard to change that. The biggest hurtle is the lack of organization when it comes to mobile messaging. When I’m at McDonalds with a crying baby and two toddlers fighting over a toy, I don’t have time to scan my texting history to find that $1.00 off coupon. Hey, iPhone! Is there an app for that?

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Moms Want More Mobile Coupons

SEO Metrics: Proving Value With Research, Data And Tact

Written on August 18, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: Object, marketing, seo

When it comes to SEO, it is a quantitative marketing medium that is all about metrics and results. That means if you can’t provide data/research that proves value, as well as analytics and reporting to back your results, you’re basically asking for a whole lot of drama. Putting together the research behind a business case [...]



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SEO Metrics: Proving Value With Research, Data And Tact

Have You Started Your Holiday Shopping Yet?

Written on August 17, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: marketing

If you’re like 35% of the population, you’ve already found a great sweater for Aunt Martha, a singing shark for Grandpa and you’ve got some ideas for the office gift exchange that you get roped into every year.

Ho, ho, ho, it’s time for holiday shopping and the fact that people are already stocking the gift cupboard means that this retail season will be much more profitable than the last.

How individual retailers fare, could be determined by how early they start preparing for holiday traffic. Stores that wait until November to put their best foot forward could end up stuck with shelves of merchandise they can’t unload.

According to a report by eMarketer, only 35% of shoppers said they’ll begin gift buying in November or December. The rest of the population will be coming online in the fall with the least number of shoppers showing up in September. The drop in that month is probably due to the fact that the kids are back in school, so mom has a chance to watch her soaps and read in peace. Even a clearance sale at Old Navy isn’t going to cut into the first precious days of quiet time after a rambunctious summer.

It does seem that retail stores have gotten the message. This past July, Target.com had their first “Back in Black” sale, a play on Black Friday that had them offering 40% markdowns on more than 500 items over a 24 hour period.

Add to that the Tax Break weekends offered in many states to help goose the economy and you can see why folks are already getting into the holiday spirit.

So tell us, is your business getting ready for the holidays early this year? We’d like to hear about it.

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Have You Started Your Holiday Shopping Yet?

We Trust the Blog But Not the Twitter

Written on August 12, 2010 by admin

Filed Under: book, marketing

When it comes to trust online, it’s no surprise that people prefer the blogs of their friends, but according to a recent report on eMarketer, they’re a little suspicious of their friends’ Facebook streams, and when it comes to Twitter, fugetaboutit!

The study, which was conducted by Invoke, says that only 12% of the people surveyed completely trusted a friend’s Twitter stream, while more than double that number said they completely trusted a friend’s blog post. The numbers get even more dismal when it comes to brand blogs and brands on Facebook.

15% of the respondents in the survey even went so far as to say they distrust brand blogs somewhat. The really surprising result is that only 8% of the people said they completely trusted comments by fellow members of the same community.

What it adds up to is that we’re a mighty suspicious lifeform and that’s kind of sad. When it came to blog and Facebook posts by friends, the most chosen choice was “Trust Somewhat.” Somewhat? I know the old adage of ‘don’t believe everything you read,’ but do that many people really believe that their friends are up to no good? I suppose it comes down to the definition of trust. Maybe it’s not so much that we’re being lied to as we don’t trust Suzy’s taste in movies, so her recommendations are not to be believed. Then there’s your friend who always says he saw a famous person at the bar last night. TwitPics or it didn’t happen, buddy.

So if people can’t even trust their friends, what chance does a marketer have when hawking the benefits of his latest product?

37% of those surveyed said they’d be more trusting if the arena was open to both positive and negative comments. They also said that the quality of the content and the responsiveness of the author went a long way to solidifying the validity of any claims.

The number of fans, followers or participants was the least important factor which proves that those auto-Twitter Follow programs aren’t doing you any favors.

Looks like the only way to get around folks these days is with quality content and customer service. Oh, and telling the truth on a regular basis doesn’t hurt either.

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We Trust the Blog But Not the Twitter