Top Dog Social Media

How To Write The Perfect LinkedIn Headline

Melonie Dodaro — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 14:38:32 +0000

A title is the most important part of an article or blog post when promoting it online because it’s the first thing that anyone see’s. When writing your LinkedIn profile, your LinkedIn headline is arguably the most important part as it’s the first thing that anyone will see. Your headline will determine whether they will take the time to click on your profile to learn more. Scroll down past the image for the entire article 1. Does Your LinkedIn Headline Standout In Search? You’ve only got 120 characters for your LinkedIn profile headline and you should use every single one of them to leave an impression in the search results. When prospects are scrolling through the search results, will you stand out as one of the best LinkedIn profiles? Here are a few tips to make your LinkedIn profile headline standout more: Can your ideal prospect quickly identify that you offer what they’re looking for? Try to find your LinkedIn profile through search using your chosen keywords and see how it looks compared to your competition Track how many views your profile has had in the last few days/weeks, tweak your LinkedIn headline and watch for any change in [...]

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10 Business-Killing Social Media Mistakes

Melonie Dodaro — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 14:33:48 +0000

As you can see, I like to have fun with my titles. Despite the sarcastic tone, you will find helpful material in this article to help you navigate the troubled waters of social media reputation management and marketing amidst a chaotic world where mistakes like Amy’s Baking Company still occur. Needless to say, I’ve been “inspired” by some of the latest conduct on social media platforms by unsuspecting businesses and this is my most recent effort in the campaign against it. If I have anything to say about it, you won’t be making these 10 horrible mistakes on your social media strategy anymore. Please! Scroll down to see the full article 1. Cheap Out On Your Image & Online Brand This needed to be the first point because it should be the first step you take when bringing your business into the social world. If you are not a professional graphic designer, you should not even consider doing your own graphics. Your presence needs to be professional in every way and nothing will get you dismissed faster than poorly designed or an unbranded look on your social media platforms. Invest in quality design if you want to be taken [...]

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The Ten Commandments of Social Media Marketing

Melonie Dodaro — Wed, 29 May 2013 14:11:21 +0000

Over the years I have wanted to encapsulate a few fundamental rules for any organization to fall back on when developing their social media strategy. Social media and business have had somewhat a love/hate relationship as many struggle while others see success. Similar to having a mission statement or defined company goals, your business social media strategy should rely on a few general pillars of success to establish a powerful plan. I know it’s a bit bold to declare these pointers to be the “ten commandments of social media marketing” but they have been quintessential to my success, so I can only hope that they will do the same for you. Scroll down to see the full article 1. Be Consistent In Your Social Media Strategy Rule number one of social media marketing is to be consistent with your practices. That means posting on a daily basis and being committed to engaging regularly in the social stratosphere. Here are some rough guidelines for posting frequency: At least one blog per week (two times is great but focus on quality vs quantity) Post one-two times per day on Facebook, same for Google+ (I personally limit to one) For Twitter, I generally [...]

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Prioritizing The Right Social Networks For Your Business

Melonie Dodaro — Mon, 20 May 2013 16:18:26 +0000

As we approach the halfway point of 2013, the question is no longer whether businesses should use social media…it’s how should they use social media for business. Some businesses claim social media is a godsend and have incredible success while others complain that it is a waste of time, money and resources. Both of them are right. I’ve said many times that I don’t believe that every business should be on every social network. In fact, I usually recommend that most businesses only focus on 2-3 sites so they can spend the necessary time to do them well. The trick is picking the right social networks to focus on. Where are your customers spending their time online? 27% of total US Internet time is spent on social networking sites alone (Source), so saying that your customers aren’t using social media is a tough argument to make. Understand Your Target Market The obvious task before prioritizing the right social networks is assessing where your customers are online. You should already know and understand your target market, otherwise you are not ready for this step yet and should be reading another article. A deadly mistake in any social media strategy is making [...]

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The History of YouTube [Infographic]

Melonie Dodaro — Fri, 17 May 2013 14:35:01 +0000

We continue to marvel at the phenomenal growth of social media as if it is unstoppable but when you look at infographics like this one, it certainly seems plausible. The history of YouTube is an incredible example of how social networks are taking over the Internet and our attention with no sign of stopping in the future. The history of YouTube begins in 2005 when three former PayPal employees came together with the hopes of creating a video-sharing website. They envisioned a platform that would allow users to upload, share, search and view videos online…a primitive idea by today’s standards but a daunting challenge in that era of the Internet. The first video was “Me At The Zoo” (shown below), a rather bland kick-off to what would become one of the biggest websites on the Internet. History of YouTube: A Boom For Online Business The history of YouTube for business has been fruitful so far. Studies have shown 46% of people say they’d be more likely to seek out information about a product or service after seeing it in an online video. (Source) In a previous article we outlined 10 great ways businesses can use YouTube to promote themselves online: [...]

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10 Easy Ways To Write Better Blogs

Melonie Dodaro — Mon, 13 May 2013 14:54:22 +0000

In this content-driven age, we need to constantly find new and exciting ways to keep our blog posts new and exciting for readers…and it can be quite challenging. In my quest to simplify the process, I aimed to encapsulate a few of the most reliable blogger tips in a short list along with their benefits. Before you can really determine a process, you need to identify the goal. A few common goals of blogging are: Increase traffic to website (SEO & social signals/sharing) Position yourself as a credible authority on your topic Increase awareness of your product, service and brand Obviously there are many different reasons you will be maintaining a blog with the ultimate purpose being to generate more sales. Despite this, you can’t go into it with selling, as your main goal.I’m sure you know by now, this simply does not work. Content perceived as “too salesy” works the opposite of what you want to achieve and actually repels people. Scroll down for the text-based version of this graphic showing my top 10 favorite blogger tips! 1. Draw From Real Life Situations/Ask Your Clients! If you want content that is relevant and relatable for your audience, strive to [...]

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5 Simple Tips For Increased Social Media Productivity

Melonie Dodaro — Fri, 10 May 2013 14:38:47 +0000

Social media productivity is somewhat an elusive term for most business people, frequently getting sucked into the notorious black hole of time. Let’s face it…we all want to spend less time doing stuff and more time on the beach. If you can increase your efficiency on tasks you’re already doing, that’s the best first step in the right direction! Here are a few tips for more effective social media productivity: 1. Set A Timer Chris Brogan is a big proponent of the classic egg timer on the desk and I have to agree…it can be very helpful and necessary! Every marketing activity needs to have a time limit. It’s way too easy to get distracted and begin to drift, especially on social media. Get on and get off whichever social media tool you are using according to your plan. If you don’t have a plan then this next step is for you… 2. Have A Plan! Wandering aimlessly in the digital world is the biggest hurdle towards social media productivity. Decide exactly what you plan to do on a day-to-day basis with social media and stick to it. This is where a good old checklist comes in handy so break [...]

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5 Proven Ways To Build Credibility Online

Melonie Dodaro — Tue, 07 May 2013 13:44:42 +0000

This is the second part to a two-part series on the importance of social proof in online marketing. Go here to read the first one to get a background on exactly what social proof is if you are unsure. I’ve spent a lot of time talking about social proof and now I want to show you some examples of exactly where you’ll find it and how you can leverage it. 1. Social Media & Blog Mentions If you aren’t saving all your great social media and blog mentions for later, you are already under-leveraging social proof that’s already available to you. Tools like Sprout Social have built-in archiving features that allow you to easily save great social media moments. On Twitter, you can simply favorite any tweet for it to be stored inside the Favorites section in your account. Using Twitter’s embedded tweets feature is an excellent way to display your best customer tweets because they link back to that person’s profile (so they know they are a real person). @meloniedodaro Thank you for that amazing LinkedIn webinar today. A great experience and invaluable information. #LinkedIn #socialmedia — Joanna Lo (@JoannaLo88) April 29, 2013 2. Customer Reviews & Testimonials [...]

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Social Proof: The Glue That Holds Social Media Marketing Together

Melonie Dodaro — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 16:05:17 +0000

When a new prospect encounters your business or marketing for the very first time, there is one factor that will always give you unparalleled influence: social proof. This can come in a variety of different ways like product reviews, client testimonials, video testimonials, videos of you speaking in front of large crowds or on stage, showing how many Facebook fans and Twitter followers you have, etc. Giving a new prospect the ability to see real world examples of satisfied customers who have spent their money with you is a huge asset in the sales process. Quite often, this makes or breaks the sale because of the perceived elimination of risk. If more people have purchased your product and appear satisfied with their purchase, your new prospect will feel much more comfortable about becoming a buyer. Social Proof: What It Is & Why You Need It According to Wikipedia, when a person is in a situation where they are unsure of the correct way to behave, they will often look to others for cues concerning the correct behavior. Basically, we seek external validation on subjects we are unsure of from people we trust or that seem trustworthy. If you think about it, [...]

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5 Ways To Get More Traffic From Pinterest

Dominic Tarn — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 15:03:03 +0000

After all her blogger friends kept telling her how cool it was, Melissa Taylor finally decided to get on Pinterest and managed to obtain 1 million+ followers (now nearly 1.5m) in only 9 months. How did she do it? Her advice to brands is simple: Focus on being awesome, not getting followers. Shortly after she hit the million-plus mark, Melissa published a book called Pinterest Savvy: How I Got 1 Million+ Followers so she definitely has a thing or two to say on the subject. The most influential people on Pinterest are bloggers and social media influencers – also known as tastemakers. Brands can learn a lot from how they grow and maintain their followers, who’s numbers continue to swell as the platform steadily increases its user-base. Learning from people like Melissa Taylor, Brittany Cozzens, and Joy Cho (still reining supreme at 14.5m followers) are useful case studies for brands looking to generate sustainable returns from their Pinterest marketing. Here are 5 useful tips from successful bloggers, and brands, on Pinterest: 1. Pin During Peak Times Studies show most people are on Pinterest in the afternoons (14:00 – 16:00 EST) and evenings (20:00 – 01:00 EST). Aim to schedule content [...]

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