Tag: Twitter

Reflecting on social media, PR, and blogging

A reflection on all things social media and PR…..

 

As a millennial I have grown up with the ever-evolving social media platforms. It seems like an easy task for brands to be able to hire someone to be their social media- savvy manager today. I mean social savviness is a skill most of us possess. However, it my opinion I feel like many people are ignorant to the permanence of their social media presence. many people don’t know how to utilize their presence in social to benefit themselves. I feel like many kids don’t understand the permanence of the internet and the fact that what they grow up posting on Facebook and Youtube will be around to haunt them as college graduates looking for jobs. On the flip side social media is a great way to position yourself in your desired work field, on platforms like Twitter and LinkedIn. Through my recent social media for PR class I learned so many new and effective ways to interact with professionals on Twitter. I had no idea how many successful individuals were fully utilizing Twitter, when it first came out I thought it was just something celebrities did. While I have had a Twitter account before the class, I used it more for friend connections. Now that I have learned how to interact on Twitter and have a better understanding of what to look for and who to look for I have a whole new perspective on my Twitter mission. However, social media is always changing and highly competitive. I am reminded of this when I check my Facebook and notice the constant changes on my newsfeed. Some changes I like, and others I could live without. Yet, I always adjust because in the world of social media that is what we consumers do. While I feel comfortable networking on Twitter and Facebook. The area of blogging I learned this semester is something that is still new to me. As an adult I know very littler bloggers, besides my fellow classmates. While I have met many in the career fields I have interned at, I haven’t found many personal bloggers I know. My blogging preference would be to find a platform that is super user friendly and a topic I could never ever get tired of blogging about. In my opinion the Word Press site we used this semester was pretty straight forward. I believe picking a layout was the most difficult part of the entire process. I think as a student I feel vulnerable blogging and a little insecure. I mean I am only an expert is certain areas and being that I am still in school PR is not one of them. So to really sit back and take note of brand social media efforts this semester taught me a lot about what to look forward to in a career field based on public reputation. Some brands have even reached back out to me this semester and I thought that was amazing! It also reminded me how visible you become as a blogger/tweeter. I feel like there is great potential in this field of blogging. And I am going to take my baby steps and accomplishments this semester in stride. I hope to continue to blog and further understand the process of public reputation online. I hope to continue to learn. And I hope that the information I have learned throughout this class will allow me to further myself online. The world of PR is also an area I am not an expert in…yet. But I have learned a lot of many online do’s and don’ts that would be a PR agencies worst nightmare. All the companies I have looked at have great a great PR presence online and I am sure the social media blogger and PR director work close by in many of these offices. Overall, social media will continue to change on me and I will continue to adjust. Additionally, blogging is a little out of my comfort zone but I am getting the hang of it, and actual like it. Finally, PR can be a difficult job when social media isn’t utilized the right way.

Thanks for reading one last reflection on this class.

Until we meet again…

What I have learned about brand efforts and social media connections

Wow, I can’t believe a semester is about to pass me by already! It has been interesting getting accustomed to managing and posting on a blog for the purposes of school. Through this semester I have learned about bloggers and blogging and must admit I was a little nervous to embark upon this journey of blogging. We also talked a lot about the positive and negative aspects of using the internet  for branding purposes such as public relations. The big takeaway I have gained from class is that brands can get in a lot of trouble if they don’t effectively manage their social media sites. I  am sure if you are a reader of this blog you have noticed that I keep it pretty positive throughout the majority of my content. This being my first blog and a learning experience, I decided to play it safe on my personal opinion stating. Not to say that the brands I featured had problems I didn’t discus, but more to say that I picked brands who I assumed would have effective content already in place. That being said, I just want everyone to know I am conscious of this and feel like it was an appropriate decision being that I am student with a lot to learn about the world of brand and social still.

However, after taking a semester-long look at various brands and their social-media strategies I have come to gain a better understanding of what it takes to successfully run a company blog, Twitter, Instagram account, and Facebook page. These social media sites, as well as others, like Pinterest and Tumblr, are great sources for creating a reputation amongst large audiences. Audiences that already actively engage in social media on their own time and very valuable when they engage with the brand on their own time as well. And the brands I have looked at this semester have been smart to follow through with these type of connections. From fashion brands like Steve Madden, stores like Nordstrom, and food companies like Lays there has not been one dull brand I have looked through this semester.  Each brand brought their own unique style and character to the social space. And each brand has taught me more about what it takes to generate audience interaction.

I have found common ways brands interact on Twitter, tweeting blog links, or company page links. Making sure they tweet during current events, hashtag usage, Facebook and Instagram linked tweets, and unique twitter pics. I also noticed the reoccurring retweets and other twitter accounts being tweeted from the company page. Rotating through these content methods on Twitter can help brands gain an engaging twitter following and hopefully generate follower retweets, favorites, and @replies. Every brand should have a Twitter account, no questions asked!

The commonalities I have found through Facebook pages is that most of the content is similar to Twitter. There is the same concept of posting links and pictures, as well as, posting their tweets. The Facebook page “likes” are unique to the social media site because it allows friends to see what other pages the brand likes, which could be brother or sister companies. For instance there is Dominos UK and Dominos Australia liked on the Dominos Facebook page. Once a Facebook user gains access to a page, like Dominos, they are able to see all the other pages Domino’s likes at the top of the page. I believe that Facebook isn’t as interactive as Twitter for brands, but feel that it is a great platform to inform large audiences with through posting, linking, and pictures.

  

Instagram is a photo based social media site that is more new to brands. I believe it has proved most effective for fashion brands that have more of an aesthetic appeal to them. However, food-porn is huge right now on Instagram and there is defiantly a place for food brands to begin utilizing here. Since this site is still a little new territory for many brands, it is fair to say that the fashion brands are paving the way amongst Instgram. Pictures are a key factor in advertising and online selling so the potential for brand building through Instagram is huge. Instagram is more limited on brand interactions and allows for posting, liking and commenting. The lack of writing and emphasis on the visual makes IG a fresh option in comparison to Twitter and Facebook.

  

However, the most unique way for a brand to engage and inform consumers by far is their own blog site. This is the platform that allows brands to create a style from top to bottom with their own discretion and appeal. This is where brands are allowed to be creative again, and create an online style that accents their brand image. Company blogs are by far the most interesting and intriguing to browse through. To name a few Steve Madden, Lays, and Whole Foods all maintain blogs that uniquely complement their brand image. There are also many links to the other social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest. Blog posts unique to current events and the brand are great ways to engage the consumer, Steve Madden’s emphasis on concert looks is such a hip way to intertwine this concept.

 

Overall I have looked through many brands and found many similarities on how to connect. I have learned that every brand has content unique to its own style and maintains a different following. While utilizing every social media medium is essential to gain a decent outreach, there is a necessity for company blogs more personal to their brand. Blogs are a great way to really tie all the pieces together from Facebook, Twitter, and Instgram. I hope to continue to blog after this class and continue to follow the bloggers who I have come to love. I also have a newfound respect for band efforts through social and hope that one day soon I can gain first hand knowledge of this process in my own career. Good luck to my fellow social media for PR bloggers and I hope that brands continue to engage us through social.

 

Until we meet again!

Dominos Twitter and Facebook Page Continuously Engages Audiences

Hello fellow bloggers. I’ve realized that I haven’t covered a good social-media food campaign for sometime on my blog and thought what better company to feature than the revitalized Dominos brand. Recently, Dominos took their pizza brand and centered their campaign around their customers, specifically customers who were not satisfied with their pizza. This was a daring move for a company that had already established success on a large scale. This campaign spoke to me specifically because it told me that Dominos cares about what I think and what I have to say about their products. This is why brands invest time and innovation in social because they want to be able to speak to their audiences, and interact with the people their business values the most. I thought that Dominos would be a great brand to focus on within the social-space, specifically their Facebook and Twitter pages.

 

The Twitter page for Dominos pizzais home to 22, 218 tweets, 169, 760 followers, and follows 12, 856 accounts. The pizza account hosts many mouth-watering twitter pictures accompanied by catchy tweets. Pizza-centric hashtags the account utilizes include #dominosdelivery #lavacakes #ovenbakedsandwiches #panpizza and #pizzaparty, to name a few. Other hashtags the company uses, that are more Twitter-friendly, are #thatsjusthowweroll , #winning, #humpday and #notachance. Besides catchy hashtags the company’s Twitter account is actively used and maintains a variety of tweets. I noticed that Dominos tweets about 2-3 times a day, impressively including the weekends. It seems that Twitter never sleeps so the fact that the company is still actively posting during the weekend is helpful to making connections, but also helpful in reminding users that Dominos is their best pizza option during the weekend. I also noted a number of retweets, @replys, twitter pictures, and informative tweets including pizza deals. The Dominos twitter account seems to effortlessly navigate the Twitter realm.

  

Next I went to check-out the Dominos Facebook page which is very similar to their Twitter postings. Their Facebook page is home to 8, 159, 321 likes. The page has tons of likes including fellow Dominos Facebook pages including, Dominos Australia, and Dominos UK.  These page-likes are a great way to remind audiences that Dominos is an international business and can be found in other countries around the world. Twitters pictures and Facebook pictures are pretty much the same, and remain totally  yummy through both social platforms. Yes, that means the Dominos Facebook page includes tons of pizza food-porn, and since I am a sucker for all things pizza theses pictures are highly effective  in my opinion. The Dominos Facebook posts can generate thousands of likes and hundreds of comments, making Dominos a brand that is well-liked amongst the Facebook community. This is a huge accomplishment for Dominos, considering the tough competition within the food industry.

 

Overall the Dominos social-media campaign through Facebook and Twitter compliment their successful previous campaigns that seek quality customer interaction. Both of the accounts stay active in updating their accounts throughout the work week and the weekend. I give high-marks to Dominos for continuing to pursue audiences throughout the weekend because big-brands have the authority to choose not to continue to engage audiences. Since Dominos obviously values their audiences and consumer interactions they are continuously tweeting and posting to maintain this valuable relationship. Dominos has managed to create a social-media campaign that successfully reaches audiences and engages consumers. In my opinion, the company has done a fantastic job at showing audiences they value what they say. As I have said before, I love it when brands get it right, and Dominos is definitely a brand that knows the advantages of consumer-connections.

 

Until we meet again…..

Steve Madden’s Fashion Blog Stands Out In Cyber Space

This week I received some love from a featured, and favorite brand of mine, Steve Madden who directed me towards their company blog. My recent post on Steve Madden was a description of their social media efforts on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. After taking a look at what Steve Madden was posting on the SM MAG blog I realized that creating a post specifically for their blog would be a great way to continue my social media analysis. Plus, I usually structure my posts around Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram so I thought just looking at the company blog would be refreshing.

My first reaction to the Steve Madden blog was not only the aesthetic beauty, but the unique vibe of the page. In my opinion, the Steve Madden brand has a very vintage, LA, New York style and caters to an audience who can appreciate this specific style. The SM blog is linked directly from the company website under the tab SM MAG and has loads of content. Since the blog is packed with many fabulous ways SM is making audience connections it was hard to figure out where to start my personal analysis. I am going to try to cover as much ground as possible to give my honest opinion on their social creation.

 

As far as social strategy, the blog is on top of everything the Steve Madden audience is concerned with such as, fashion, music, and staying up to date in each area. The blog has seven sections in their blog including tabs like fashion, music, about, contributors, and shop.  Immediately when you enter the home page of SM Mag blog you are greeted by a huge Steve Madden logo and  pictures paired with the top three most recent blog posts. The home page is dedicated to a little bit of everything from every section of the SM mag blog. The home page also has links to all the social media platforms Steve Madden utilizes. Under the words “follow us” is a row of icons that links you directly to each page, such as Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. I also noticed, under the Twitter icon, there was an update saying that Steven Madden recently changed their twitter handle. I thought this was a cute way to update their audience about recent changes within their social media accounts. The company also has several pictures showing their recent activity in the social space. There is a picture from their most recent pin on Pinterest, numerous recent Instagram pictures, and Twitter pictures of Steve Madden shoes with the hash tag #SMOOTD (Steve Madden outfit of the day). Blog posts and a video using the new Vine app for Twitter flow through the middle column of the page and balance everything out.

                                          

The Fashion section of the blog is dedicated to all things Steve Madden fashion. The most recent post if a how-to by Kitty Pryde, who decorates her Steve Madden kicks and “puts the twinkle in her toes” and links directly to Kitty Prdye’s blog page. This link to a blogger shows Steve Maddens knowledge of the blog-world and how effectively they have been able to integrate their mission into this social space. The music tab has links to a page about music, rather than shoes. There is an artist that is highlighted on this page with an introduction, music video,  photos, and album information. A banner above the music page informs audiences to await new artists of 2013. Following the music page there is an about tab that specifies what the blog offers audiences. The about tab is a clever way to clarify the collection of findings within their blog. I am very impressed with the about section within the blog because it sends the message that SM wants their audience to fully understand their page. Following the description of the blog’s intentions there is a section for the blog contributors. This is a great way to prove authenticity by including the audience with the faces behind the computer.

                               

Overall the SM blog effectively connects to their targeted audience through many different ways in their blog. From their multiple social media outlets like Twitter, Instagram, and Pinterest to their blog posts on fashion and music. They have a variety of hashtags used throughout the page like “SMOOTD” (Steve Madden outfit of the day) and #bts (behind the scenes). They have effectively incorporated usage of the new Twitter app Vine onto their page showing they are up-to-speed with the social space and have an account with every major social media platform. The Steven Madden blog is sophisticated and filled with content to connect with a variety of audiences who are  all shoe-obsessed.  The blog is a great example of how a brand can uniquely and creatively create a page that strays from the specific product but continues to uphold the brand image necessary for the brand.

 

                                                                                

 

Steve Madden Understands Their Audience In The Social Media Space

After taking a look at the excellent social media campaign ran by Whole Foods I decided to continue on with another brand I value. Despite the variety of available shoe stores, I am compelled to take my shoe-addiction to the shelves of Steve Madden. A company and a shoe-maker that never fail to create a trendy shoe to my standards. Steven Madden is active in their social space and utilizes their brand presence with Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram accounts. Both are actively monitored and offer their audiences a promotional, yet personal opportunity to interact with the brand.

The Steve Madden Facebook account is liked by some 702, 032 profiles, with some 36, 709 people talking about the brand on Facebook. The account is proactively updated with relevant shoe links to events such as The Oscars, sales promotions, and style guides. Although, I wasn’t able to find any direct conversations with their audiences through Facebook comments, they do update daily to initiate these type of conversations. Yet, their Facebook page includes other interactions like linking their shoe-loving audiences to original fashion bloggers, and a competition for designing shoes. According to Steve Madden shoes are relevant to any given situation. Among holidays like the recently passed Presidents Day sales event and promotions that link their shoes to the Oscars. Steve Madden is able to pair their shoes with any occasion on Facebook.

                                              

The Twitter account for Steve Madden is home to 2, 391 tweets, 27, 566 followers, and following 2,030. The background to the account is a few pairs of their newest shoes, and an original account bio that links the actual Steve Madden shoe maker’s account. It is widespread knowledge that company twitter accounts are not ran by the CEO or founder themselves, and Steve Madden is classy about how it portrays this fact to its audience. The separate accounts not only give audiences another channel of interaction with a part of the brand, but also continue to uphold their authentic image. Steve Madden’s tweets include promotional messages, retweets, contest links, sale information, tweet prompting, and hashtag interaction. The shoe brand has found a way to make shoes highly relevant in trending topics as well. Hashtags, such as #Reasonsiunfollowedyou, are linked to tweets like “because your shoe game was ratchet.” This tweet shows how the brand is able to promote its messages without sounding commercial while speaking directly to its demographic. Steve Madden is completely aware of who they are speaking to in their Twitter space.

                    

Steve Madden is also up-to-date with the use of Instagram, which seems to be a new space for most big brands still. The Steve Madden Instagram account is home to 905 pictures, 286,084 followers, and follows about 1,328 profiles. The photo posting website has pictures that give its shoe-loving audience a visual look into the brand. Among the 905 pictures in the account there is visual documentation of brand photo shoots, new shoes, fashion blog photos (with Steve Madden shoes), quotes, and pictures relevant to it’s demographic interests. My favorite aspect of the Steve Madden Instagram account is how they incorporate pictures of the corporate employees throughout the day at work with a new shoe. This brief glimpse into the work-life of the Steve Madden employees makes the brand very personal to audiences, and in my opinion contributes to the 5,000 to 20,000 likes every picture post receives.

   

 

After looking at all the social media accounts ran by Steve Madden, I journeyed to their website to look for any other connections. The company website is geared towards digitally displaying what the brand offers the consumer, ask selling their shoes. However, each Steve Madden product allows customers to read and write reviews. This option adds to the authentic company image the brand maintains. Despite the fact that Steve Madden is killing-it in the social media space, a company blog would continue to facilitate connections and conversations with audiences. The more connections formed the most authentic audiences, like myself, will view the brand. Despite my biased love for shoes and Steve Madden, I am thoroughly impressed with how high they raise the bar for other brands in the social space. They have a clear understanding for their audience on Instagram, great retweeting and hashtag efforts on Twitter, and a variety of daily posts for Facebook. The social media space can be a huge outlet for brands, as Steve Madden has proven. This company has created a brand message that is central to its target audience, and because of this is able to effectively manage all their social media accounts. I just love it when brands get it right. Until we meet again….

 

 

 

Whole Foods Online Connections Are Whole Hearted

This past week we all celebrated Valentines day, single or not. And I thought that I should write a blog about a brand that I may truly love. Whole Foods.

I have learned that through growing up you acquire a love and loyalty towards certain brands. Only certain brands, for different reasons, are able to capture your attention. Once there is a formed relationship with you and a brand, aware of it or not. There is pressure on the brand to continue to make your partnership with them meaningful. With the progression of social media, brands have been able to facilitate meaningful interaction with audiences. These messages online can be interpreted in a variety of ways, but what else is apparent is that the brand must benefit the consumer to continue a loyal relationship.

As I said previously I love Whole Foods. Living in Austin, Texas I am spoiled by our central Whole Foods location. I can go on for days about how they maintain a dynamic store with a vast selection of food products and a little-bit of something for everyone. After a deep-dive into the past week of posting through their Facebook, Twitter, and online blog, I have a more thorough outlook on their presence within social media.

The first page I viewed was the Facebook page of Whole Foods Market. A timeline profile  greeted me with a picture of fresh fruits and green juice. Scrolling through the weeks Facebook posts, it is apparent that Whole Foods has completely mastered their Facebook connections. Posts include a variety of recipes, links to their company blog posts, new store location announcements, and value guides amongst many. Their Facebook posts are relevant to national holidays and events, listing Valentines and Mardi Gras recipes, and National Tortellini day. There are upcoming event and in-store promotions like “Parmageddon” and a milestone giveaway. The product giveaway prompts audiences to enter the contest through commenting on their blog. The majority of Facebook posts range from 60 to over 1,000 likes, and multiple comments despite some spam. Some comments even received direct interaction from the Whole Food’s Facebook account manager.

Next I traveled to Twitter to check out the engagement Whole Foods offers. Just like Facebook, their Twitter account has a wide range of effective interaction taking place consistently during the past week. The Twitter account seems to have more links to recipes and other posts like money saving tips, new store announcements, upcoming event announcements and blog posts. I also found some retweets, hashtags, and a weekly Whole Foods Market chat that includes a Q&A with Twitter followers. Some of the noted hashtags include #vegan #WFMchat and #WFMdish.  Whole Foods Twitter account, like Facebook, has produced meaningful connections with their audience of over 3 million followers.

The Whole Foods company website has a worthy blog that offers insight into ideas for relevant event like holidays, such as Valentines day, giveaway promotions, and finding value in money and health. They have a link to all social media networks they are active on, like Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Googleplus, and Instagram. Their blog posts don’t have tons of comments but since their audience is actively engaged with them on Twitter and Facebook this doesn’t detract at all from their online presence.

Since Twitter, Facebook, and the company blog are the best means for interacting with audiences I didn’t do a deep dive into their other social accounts, like Pinterest and Instagram. Overall Whole Foods in a champion in their social media space. The multiple posts on Facebook and Twitter that offer both audiences a wide range of connections, information, and overall brand benefits. The blog on their homepage continues to create ideas and solutions for audiences to further engage and benefit from their brand messages. Whole Foods should be the model for any brand that wants to fully learn how to connect with audiences via social media.

Until next time….

 

 

The Hashtag Will Dominate Social Connections

The 2013 Superbowl on Sunday February 3rd was the olympics of advertising. And as an American-marketing lover, I tuned it to watch and observe all the big-brand players. My personal favorite on-screen brand connection was “The Chase” by Coca-Cola. Coke was able to create and execute an interactive experience for audiences by producing a commercial with a winner voted on by viewers during the game. This not only was a fun commercial for everyone sitting at Superbowl parties to enjoy, but the creative execution left the viewer engaged and curious. Another connection I found to be noteworthy during the big game was the Budweiser commercial “Brotherhood.” Budweiser encouraged viewers to help name the baby clydesdale used in the ad, via twitter. Other Superbowl ads included heavy use of hashtags, Facebook icons, and corporate website references.

The idea that viewers will take the time to engage during a Superbowl is risky, with all the partying. Brands are taking the risks and learning that there is a large audience who wants to interact. I am an avid believe that the consumer wants to be heard, and any voice is okay. The fact that these brands used simple ideas to facilitate connections that did not require too much energy from the audience is totally necessary during a game. Critics may have thought the idea of ‘the great chase” to be vanilla but it was completely necessary for the event (Superbowl) taking place.

According to an Altimeter report 2013 Superbowl Ads Favor URLs, Hashtags- Not Facebook by Jeremiah Owyang, 75% of brands integrated second screen experiences to their commercials. Owyang describes the second screen experience as a promotion to extend engagement to brand websites and social sites. The report also highlights that Twitter and URLs prove most successful in this second screen experience.

Twitter is a universe that allows audiences to engage most during events, like the Superbowl, and that is why it is crucial for brands to use hashtags during commercial airtime. Like i said the Superbowl is the olympics of advertising with the best of the best  in brand names coming to play. Brands must promote second screen experiences, like Coke and Budweiser, to further engage audiences and continue to make meaningful connections. According to Owyang’s report, hashtags will overtake corporate websites in 2014 and prove to be the most successful means of making second screen connections.

I have to agree with Owyang because I see the potential for hashtag use growing throughout next year. The hashtag allows Twitter users to tweet relevant ideas and thoughts. It allows brands to track these messages and further engage with the audience. It is true that the hashtag will continue to make connection-magic as the years progress. As a hashtag lover I am excited to see the hashtag progress and curious to see what will be the next big connector to social audiences.

Until next time…

 

The beginning of analyzing brand connections in the world of social

Hello all, today I embark upon the journey of blogging specifically for PR and Social Media purposes. Currently, I am an undergraduate student studying about the world of Communications with a specialization of PR. The other aspect of my life that is valuable to this blog is that I am a traditional millennial, which requires me to stay afloat with all things social media. I proactively utilize accounts I have on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest, and Foursquare.

The vision I have for this blog is to analyze the way different companies are using social media to connect with consumers. My future blogs will be similar to case-studies, analyzing the information found. This topic will involve researching other blog posts, articles, and any relevant brand activity via social media. Bare with me through the beginning phases of posting, because I am far from being a seasoned blogger at the moment.

However, I am optimistic about brand efforts towards social media and highly skeptical of any brand who hasn’t taken advantage of the social media audience. Social media sites have created a world of listeners and speakers that are willing to document their thoughts, feelings, and opinions. Accurate insight into the consumer’s mind translates into every  aspect of a company. And what is said, and done online, to facilitate connections is crucial to further success.

According to Tom Foremski, in his post titled “Advice To Marketeers And Others Not On Facebook And/Or Twitter” social media websites are a world we must use to learn from. While we may not like to emotionally tweet, or post Facebook rants, we must learn how others are and why? As the internet continues to change so quickly, marketers and PR experts must stay abreast with the changes in the marketplace. His advice to brands is to understand these conversations and outlets for communicating.

My futures reflections will address Tom Foremski’s central idea of his blog post and that is the understanding of communication in the social media world. How well do brands  understand social media? How are consumer messages online being interpreted? What are brands doing to engage us online? All of these ideas and questions will be answered throughout this process. I am open to suggestions about what brands seem interesting and anything relevant to the analyzing process. Feel free to nudge me in any certain direction on this topic.

Well I know I am intrigued for this process to begin.

Until next time…