A History of the Business of Social Media

Social media has come a long way since it's humble beginnings over 30 years ago. This infographic gives us a short history of the many innovative companies that have helped shape the environment that we so heavily rely on to communicate and also takes a look at some of the business deals behind them. What's next? You decide.

Google+ vs. Facebook: Which Is Best for Business?

Social media is an ideal way for a small business with a tiny advertising budget to get its name out there and interact with its customers. Integrating the parts of your online strategy is key, but sometimes, it's just not worth the effort to create a page on every social network out there.
Right now, Facebook brand pages are the go-to place for brands that want to be social, but Google+ recently entered the game, trying to present an alternative—or, at the least, a supplement.
Should your small business be on both Facebook and Google+? If not, which one's the way to go? Here's a breakdown of the factors to consider.
Userbase
Mark Zuckerberg's social behemoth has one glaring advantage: Its gargantuan user base is unparalleled. For a small business, it's nearly guaranteed that whoever your customers are, they're already on Facebook and know how to navigate it.
Google's network has nowhere near the amount of users as Facebook, but its audience is a bit more focused. However, the regular folks that go on Google+ don't check it as often as Facebook, so they are harder to engage. Facebook's users come back to check the site frequently, multiple times a day.
Engagement
There are a lot of similarities between the engagement features of Facebook and Google+'s brand pages. Facebook has the "like," and Google+ has the +1. Facebook has friend lists, and Google+ has Circles.
Unfortunately for Google+, Facebook completely dominates it on features. It's not even close. Whereas Google+ really only allows you to post pictures, Facebook offers a variety of ways for fans to interact with your brand. It has polls, apps, events, notes (mini blog posts) and even "friend activity," which shows when your friends are talking about your company.
Branding and customization
Pages on Google+ look very similar to the current iteration of Facebook. It has the same design with pictures at the top and a river of posts beneath it. Google+ pages are more minimalistic, with a lot of white space, whereas Facebook piles all of its features on its left-hand navigation bar.
But when Facebook releases its new Timeline for brands, things will be very different. For instance, the change in visual impact is huge. Businesses will be able to instantly grab eyes with a big branded banner at the top of the page. Meanwhile, Google+ will still have those five dinky pictures at the top.
Facebook's customization features go beyond anything Google+ has. It also allows you to embed e-commerce stores, make a page of trivia questions, set up a calendar and much more.
The bottom line
Google+ has its benefits, but it just doesn't match up to Facebook so far. Unless you have the time to spare to run a Google+ page, it's likely not worth the effort because the ability to engage consumers is so limited, and the breadth of audience is too. And when the Timeline comes to brand pages, Facebook will take another big step ahead of Google+.
For a small business, the biggest justification to use Google+ would be to supplement the brand's existing online presence. It's certainly worth it if you have the capability to run a Google+ page without slowing down everything else you're doing online.
But it's obvious that Facebook's brand pages are way ahead and should be the priority for a small business looking to engage its consumers online.
Do you have both a Facebook and Google+ profile? Which do you prefer and why?

6 Surefire Ways to Capture More ‘Likes’ on Facebook

Facebook ‘likes’ are quickly turning into currency for credibility. The more ‘likes’ your business has, the more seriously consumers will perceive your company. Extra bonus: every time someone ‘likes’ your page, each of your updates shows up in their news feed, thereby providing them constant reminders of your brand.
So how can you pump up your ‘likes’ to Apple Inc. and Gap levels (2.7 million and 1.4 million, respectively)? Follow these tips and you’ll soon be on your way.

Tag, Tag, Tag
 

In late January, Jill Homiak, founder of Presenza, a wrap top designer in Alexandria, Virginia, posted this to her company’s Facebook wall: ‘Who else is excited that Sofia Vergara is the new CoverGirl?!?!’ She tagged the word CoverGirl by putting an @ before the ‘c’, thereby alerting CoverGirl to the post. Her plan worked; it not only caught the attention of the cosmetics brand, but the brand ended up ‘liking’ her comment.
“By ‘liking’ my comment, it showed up on their Facebook page, which is ‘liked’ by more than 1.7 million people,” says Homiak. “It gave us huge visibility and we attracted more ‘likes’ in the process.”

Donate to Charity
 

PaySimple, a cloud-based accounts receivable provider out of Denver, Colorado is taking a touchy-feely approach to attracting ‘likes.’
“We are taking part in a month-long philanthropy campaign where, for every ‘like’ we receive, we will donate $1 to Kids Are Heroes, a non-profit that inspires volunteerism in children,” says Sarah Jordan, the company’s director of marketing, adding that the company is hoping to bring in around 200 likes and, so far, is up 40 from last month.
If you’re inspired to try this but aren’t sure what charity will resonate with your customers, Jordan recommends the trial and error method to see what brings about the most interest.

Host a Giveaway/Contest
 

On New Year’s Day 2011, Marc Joseph’s Facebook business page had around 3,200 ‘likes.’ Today, it has more than 42,000.
How’d he do it?
“I’ve been doing giveaways every month since January 2011 on Facebook and it has worked beautifully,” says Joseph, CEO and president of DollarDays International, Inc., a wholesale distributor out of Scottsdale, Arizona. “In addition, we really engage with our customers online and ask them what kinds of giveaways they want, which inspires even more attention and comments.”
Contests are also great ‘like’ drivers. Just before Christmas, Brina Bujkovsky, founder of The Younique Boutique in San Marcos, California, offered a free hanging quilt as the prize of a contest asking followers to describe their happiest holiday memories on her business’s Facebook page. The contest worked—her ‘likes’ went from 100 to more than 800 in just two weeks, she selected the winner at random and then asked them to post photos of the quilt once they received it—attracting even more ‘likes.’

Create a Splash Page
 

A splash page is a gate to one's Facebook wall and usually contains colorful graphics describing a company, promoting products or sales. Louis Hernandez, Jr., CEO of The Motor Bookstore, a car manual retailer in DeBary, Fla., uses his splash page to capture ‘likes.’
“A splash page asks the visitor to ‘like’ your page before seeing your wall contents,” he says. “You can bypass this, but the majority of visitors will follow instructions.”

Reward re-posts
 

In an effort to get the word out about her harp performance business, Merry Miller turned to Facebook in a creative way: she asked followers to do the work for her.
“I inspired my base to re-post a link to my love CD by offering to play a wedding for free to the person who got the most likes on my link,” she says. “I captured 100 likes in the first day.”

Get personal
 

Facebook users hate a hard sell. Endear your business to followers by posting on personal topics such a popular sports games and how you feel about the weather. Michael D. Haaren, co-founder of Rat Race Rebellion, a work-from-home job board out of Annandale, Virginia, posts about his obsession with Nutella and gets tons of feedback as well as ‘likes.’
Bottom line: remember to put the ‘social’ in social media; don’t talk at your consumers. They will just tune out.

5 Common Social Media Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Most small-business owners feel strongly about social media. They either love it, hate it or both. If they love it, it's because its tools can create tremendous brand awareness. If they hate it, it's because it’s a massive time suck. Regardless of where you stand and how proficient you are at each tool, there is always something new to learn. Here are a few common social media mistakes and tips on how to fix them.
Expecting ROI right away
Ashley Ranger sees this often. As founder of /excelamktg, a social media marketing company based in Los Angeles, potential clients frequently voice frustrations when not attracting a target number of followers or sales captures. Ranger’s advice is always the same: It takes time.
“If you are actively posting and commenting, I’d say it could take you six months to one year to see ROI out of a social media campaign,” she says.
Low on "likes?" Get creative. Ranger recommends that online businesses offer an additional 10 percent off purchases if customers "like" them on Facebook. Another way to engage: Give back. One of Ranger’s fashion clients will post a "look of the day" on Facebook and interviews with designers—both, activities that will help generate traffic.
Failing to plan
A social media campaign is like any other business campaign; it needs a well-laid-out plan before execution. Stephanie Derry, a social media consultant in Richmond, Va., recommends plotting out goals.
“Do you want to use social media as a customer service tool? A way to link to your website?” she asks. “It all comes down to market research. If you know what your target market wants, you can plan accordingly.”
Talk to your customers about the sites they use most, visit competitor’s social media pages and join conversations around your industry before firing up your own campaign, Derry adds. Once you’ve finished researching, assign one person in your company to be the director of your social media program.
“If you don’t have someone responsible, your customers will be talking to no one,” she says. “People want a personality to attach to the brand, they don’t want to feel like they are talking to a robot.”
Automating
Tools such as Hootsuite allow users to write one message and then simultaneously broadcast it to a number of social media sites. While this can be a time saver, Ranger guards her clients against the practice.
“When you automate, it starts to sound robotic,” she says. “You want your posts to have a personal feel, so take time to write different posts on each platform, even if they are similar in content.”
Hard selling
Think of your words on a social media network like the words you’d say to a customer walking into your brick and mortar store. You wouldn’t spam an in-person customer with sale promo after sale promo; you’d first focus on establishing a nice conversation and a relationship. The same goes for customers visiting your social media site, says Ranger.
Try asking your followers questions about personal topics (think holiday decorating ideas, best holiday memories) or quizzing them about their favorite product in your store. Offering a free gift can always inspire engagement, too.
Not connecting to other marketing platforms
Everyone should know you have a Facebook page, a Twitter page, a Pinterest account. According to Derry, it is important to connect your social media presence to your website, e-mail newsletter, print advertising, broadcast advertising, etc.
She says, “Make sure people who are connecting with your company are able to connect in every way; make your social media presence known for maximum benefit.”