FACEBOOK ROLLS OUT NEW PAGE NOTIFICATIONS FEATURE

Facebook rolls out new Page Notifications feature Facebook began to roll out a new feature this week, which could help brands improve the likelihood of actually getting their content seen by fans on Facebook. Introducing Facebook rolls out Latest Page Notifications Feature Unveiled According to Facebook, the new Page Notifications feature will allow users to elect to receive notifications from their favorite Pages. The tool lets users stay better connected with the Pages that matter most to them. Bottom Line: Page Notifications is good news for small businesses. Let’s face it, getting the attention you want on Facebook isn’t always easy, and with Facebook’s ever-changing EdgeRank algorithm–it isn’t getting any easier. This feature could allow businesses to get better visibility on Facebook, but only if users choose to receive notifications. And this means that building a quality fan base is more valuable than ever. Author: Ryan Pinkham...

Wednesday Gory Tip on Halloween – Social Media

Wednesday Gory Tip on Halloween: The Truth is – whatever ‘tool’ you use to communicate with your audience – it’s the way in which you ‘use it’ that matters most. Don’t ponder each day that you need to be using every tool or network available ~ You don’t. Focus on the tools that allow you to best engage current customers, connect with new ones, and build the type of relationships that can help grow your business or organization. Tridence Social Media...

Is Email Better than Social Media?

Email vs. Social Media A new report from Monetate, an e-commerce software firm, has found that email marketing is still driving more overall sales than social media efforts. Some of the key findings: • 2.49% of visitors from search engines buy something • 4.25% of visitors from email buy something • 0.59% percent of visitors from social media sites buy something That’s a big difference, but there’s no need to start grappling your forehead and deleting Facebook Pages left and right. It’s important to keep in mind that all of these channels work together, not against each other. Social media sites, in general, are a far more casual environment that can help build brand awareness, provide bite-size bits of industry information, and create communities among your customers. That said, email has the advantage of directly reaching a single person. Not only that, you can use analytics to see what that person clicks and opens, which are statistics you can use to segment your list and direct different customers to personalized destinations. Author: Blaise Lucey...

Pinterest Gets Mobile, Yelp Gets Social, Instagram Gets Even Cooler … And Other Hot Topics

Don’t you love it when companies listen to the requests of their customers? I do! And that’s exactly what happened this week with three social companies. Pinterest users wanted a better mobile experience: they got it. Yelp users wanted a better way to connect with friends: they got it. Instagram users wanted to better tell the story behind their photos: they got it. Plus, a boat load of people are searching on Google … and there’s a good chance they’re doing it on a smartphone. Read about these stories and more in this week’s news roundup. 1. Pinterest releases new iPad, iPhone, and Android Apps Pinterest users, it’s time to step away from your desk and begin to start exploring the world… and pinning at the same time. With a brand new app for Android, and a redesigned app for the iPad and iPhone, more and more Pinners  will now be able to discover, save, and organize the their boards that interest them, on-the-go. Bottom Line: Pinterest said it best, in a blog post announcing the apps on Tuesday: “It may sound funny, but our goal has never been to keep you online. Instead, we want to inspire you to go offline and do things that you love. Today, we’re making it easier to take your inspirations with you…” Want to start sharing your own inspiration on Pinterest? Here are 10 things you’ll need to do to get started. 2. Yelp gets social A new redesign from Yelp is putting a greater emphasis on you and your friends. Announced on their blog on Tuesday, the changes will put more of a focus on promoting the social aspect of the popular review site – letting users see photos and tips left by their friends on Yelp, events they are going to, and places they’ve checked-in. Bottom Line: With 78 million unique visitors in the second quarter of 2012 and over 30 million local reviews since the site was first launched, there is plenty of potential for Yelp to become a much more social network. Yelp’s success has always been tied to the fact that it provides users with access to real reviews from real people. With  a more social approach, the company’s future could be tied to connecting people with reviews from the people they trust most: their friends. 3. Instagram adds geo-based browsing with Photo Map Instagram introduced a feature this week that will let users browse photos based on location. The new geo-based photo browser displays a map to show the location of photos when they are tagged by you or your friends. To access the new feature, users will have to update their Instagram app and then click the new “Photo Map” button under their profile. Users will also see a new option to “Add to your Photo Map” when sharing photos on Instagram. Bottom Line: Photo Map is all about giving users the opportunity to better tell the stories behind the photos they share on Instagram. But Photo Map also presents a unique opportunity for small businesses, as they, too, can be part of that story. If you’re using Instagram to take photos for your business, make sure to put them on your Photo Map by adding your business name and tagging your location. 4. 95 percent of consumers use Google search, YouTube to find content online In what should come as a surprise to no one, a report from AYTM Market Research found this week that 95 percent of consumers rely on Google when searching for content online. What may come as a surprise, however, is that of those people who rely on Google to access information every day (40 percent), 46.8 percent access YouTube for information just as frequently. Bottom Line: It’s never been more important to have a strategy for getting the content you share online noticed by potential clients or customers. A key to that strategy, at least when it comes to getting discovered on Google, is creating content with a focus on SEO. If you’re looking to develop a strategy for getting discovered on YouTube, there are plenty of ways you can make online videos without spending a dime. 5. Half of all Americans now have smartphones A new report this week found that for the first time ever, more Americans own more smartphones than home phones or feature phones (regular mobile phones). According to the report, 50 percent of all Americans now own smartphones – a number that is expected to continue to rise, as smartphone sales made up 70% of all US phone sales in the second quarter of 2012. Bottom Line: Smartphones are changing the way consumers engage with your content and therefore, must change the way you deliver it. Your website, emails, social media updates, videos, and blog posts aren’t only being seen on home or office computers, they’re being seen by customers who are on-the-go. If you haven’t taken some time to reevaluate the ways you deliver content to your customers, now is a good time to think about how mobile marketing can help your business. Author: Ryan Pinkham...

DIY Project for Instagram Photos

DIY Project for Instagram Photos...

HTML vs Flash: That is The Question…

HTML vs Flash Categories: Ecommerce Trends According to the NetCraft site, in 2012 there were more than 580 million websites online, of which more than 175 million were termed active. That said, there are many design languages available to help you create a website, but today we’re pinning two of the most popular languages head-to-head: HTML and Flash. I-What is HTML? HTML (HyperText Markup Language) stands for Hypertext Markup Language. Simply put, HTML is an IT language which first appeared in 1991 during the Web’s early years. The goal of the language was to organize and manage content. In its most basic form, HTML enables you to create a page on the Internet. HTML code is what you write in order to post text, links, images etc., on your pages. HTML 5 is the most recent version of the language, and it allows for the integration of videos and animation directly on your website, which wasn’t possible with previous versions. a.Pros and Cons There are several key advantages to using HTML: HTML is compatible with all screen formats. This means your site is accessible and legible from multiple platforms such as smartphones, tablets, PC’s, etc… HTML helps search engine optimization (SEO). As we pointed out in a previous article, with tags and pre-selected key words, you can optimize your website for search engines like Google. HTML helps your website load quickly so you don’t have to install an extra plugin to your navigator. The old version of HTML was pretty limited in terms of animation possibilities (especially videos). But HTML version 5 has solved this problem. Therefore, the drawbacks of using HTML are few. b. Examples of HTML websites: Below are some examples of HTML websites: Store of SFR Store of Archiduchesse II- What is Flash? FLASH is a coded web language that enables the addition of animated content and video to a website. Flash files have the file extension .swf and need to be read by a Flash plugin in the navigator. a. Pros and Cons Advantages: Flash makes adding animated content to websites a lot easier Animated content makes a site a lot more interesting and interactive. The user experience as they navigate the site is enhanced, and the design looks much more attractive. Disadvantages: Flash doesn’t have an impact on search engine rankings. It’s difficult to adapt a Flash site to all the different web devices on the market like tablets, smartphones, etc… In order to read Flash code, the Internet user needs to have a Flash Player installed on his computer. b. Examples of a FLASH site: Store of Manoush Store of Jitrois Conclusion : So, what are you thinking — HTML or Flash? These days, thanks to the latest version of HTML, it’s possible to include video on your pages. So more and more website designers are opting for HTML over Flash. And because of the increasing number of people using smartphones and tablets to access the Internet, it’s probably a good idea to have a website that’s legible from these devices too.Therefore, we recommend designing your site using HTML. Author:  Quentin Audrain...

Photographs: Social Media’s Hot Content Marketing Asset

Photographs are social media’s hot content marketing format. Easy to take with any smartphone and/or other mobile device, photographs are fueling social media platform growth. Instagram, which recently passed the 80 million user mark, and to a lesser extent Pinterest, which has just under 20 million users, exemplify this trend. Even more important, consumers prefer photographs to engage with brands, according to research by Performics and ROI Research. 7 Tactics to Make Your Photographs Rock as Social Media Content Marketing Get your photographic content marketing on track to drive social media interaction with these seven actionable marketing tactics. Roll out the red carpet for your products. Use hero shots of your products to make their strengths shine. Let them strut their stuff so prospects and customers can see your offering in action, rather than in a solo display shot. Actionable marketing tip: Show what’s special about your products and your firm. Set your firm apart from your competitors who may have the same supplier images. Tell your business’ story. Think organization, product, founders, or other story options. Make your firm and products memorable because people don’t remember facts without context. Have a beginning, middle, and end. Actionable marketing tip: Collect stories from across your organization. Ask your employees for their images and stories related to your business. Teach customers to use your products. Use photographs to show prospects and customers step by step how to use your products with photos. Actionable marketing tip: Interpret and educate broadly to show customers how to effectively use your products both before and after the sale. Combine words and photographs so that readers understand what to do. Put a face on your business. People relate to other people. Use photographs to give your business a more personal feel. Actionable marketing tip: Consider giving a broader perspective by showing different employees at work. Make it more natural by gathering input from each person. This creates additional content and gives prospects more insight into your firm. Report the news. Don’t limit yourself to the news about your products. Be creative in your approach.Actionable marketing tip: Choose a unique perspective that’s in line with your brand. Remember, photographs show a 360-degree version of your brand. Take a tour of your business. Show prospects and customers the behind-the-scenes of your business. Actionable marketing tip: Use this opportunity to let employees show off their expertise and what they like about working for you. Let customers and fans strut their stuff. Give your customers their 15 seconds of fame. You can let them be in the spotlight with your product. Actionable marketing tip: Go one step further and invite guest curators. Target does a great job of this on its Tumblr. 3 Tips to Ensure Your Photographs Are on Track To maximize the impact of your social media photographs, here are three easy-to-follow tips. Know your customers’ social media persona. Understand which social media venues they frequent and how to incorporate photographs into your interactions on these platforms. Include social sharing. Encourage social sharing by making your images shareable. Incorporate a call-to-action. Where appropriate, use a contextually relevant call-to-action to encourage prospects to take the next step in your process. Author: Heidi Cohen...

Facebook – Tridence

Facebook - Tridence

Deliverance: Page administrators, Have you noticed this feature yet, and will you take advantage of it?

Facebook page administrators who are looking for their pages and seeing double now have a way to report duplicate pages. An icon marked "report duplicates" will appear in the left-hand column on the settings page for Facebook pages. In the search field below, you may search for and mark other pages as duplicates if you believe they are inauthentic pages about your page. So don't confuse your customers, have one main page/site.

Facebook Changed Everyone’s Email – Here’s How to Fix It

Facebook’s Recent Email Facebook just removed everyone’s email address from their profile and replaced it with an @facebook.com email address without asking you. Here’s how to easily fix the problem. A while ago, Facebook launched its own email service, which was promptly forgotten by everyone. Recently, they removed everyone’s email addresses from their profile, replacing them with @facebook.com email address instead. Luckily, your old addresses are very easy to get back on your profile – How to rectify Facebook’s recent email: Click “About” on your profile and scroll down to your email address. Click “Edit” to change them. Click on the circle next to your Facebook email address and change its setting to “Hidden From Timeline”. Click on the circle next to your other email addresses and change their settings to “Shown On Timeline”. Click the Save button at the bottom of the Edit popup (Don’t forget this step)....

Facebook News…

Cutting Edge Web Technology Double Dipping Tip for Tuesday: Photos and text for Facebook Page posts will now appear larger in the News Feed, rather than the smaller version that had appeared previously. Additionally, four photos from an album will be made visible at once — previously only three were included in album stories. So put more energy into sharing high-quality images, or risk being overlooked… www.facebook.com/tridence...