Are you frustrated with your facebook posts reaching only a small percentage of your friends or fans?

Are you familiar with the term organic reach? … Do you know what it is?

It seems you’re not the only ones that are frustrated…apparently plenty have been asking Facebook what’s going on.

In this post we are going to summarize their answers to the inquiries, taken from their blog earlier this summer.

So let’s start with a definition of Organic Reach according to Facebook: Organic reach refers to how many people you can reach for free on Facebook by posting to your Page. They go on to say that they know the severe drop in reach is a pain point for many businesses, and that they are committed to helping you understand what’s driving the change.

Why is organic reach declining?

There are two main reasons.

1. More and more content is being created and shared every day … far more content than there is time to absorb or read. As a result, competition in News Feed is increasing, and it’s becoming harder for any story to gain exposure. In addition people are also liking more pages…50% more than last year, increasing the competition even more.

2. This involves how News Feed works. It’s designed to show people content that is relevent to them. They choose by looking at thousands of factors relative to each person.

According to them they have made some key changes to improve how News Feed chooses content. They say they’ve gotten better at showing high-quality content and that they’ve cleaned up the spam. The result: News Feed is becoming more engaging even as the amount of content being shared continues to grow.

Why not just show everything — every piece of content from every friend and Page — and let people decide what they want to see?

There are issues with this that create unwanted limitations. People are busy and only have so much time. They will miss content that is not near the top but that they would find most valuable to them. Facebook claims that through their testing they have determined that the News Feed ranking system offers a better more engaging experience for users.

Is organic reach dropping because Facebook is trying to make more money?

They say no, but that’s debatable for many I’m sure. They claim their goal is simply to provide the best experience possible. They also say it’s better for businesses. The more active and engaged they are in their News Feed, then the more active and engaged they will be with business content.

Is Facebook the only marketing platform that’s seen declines in organic reach?

The internet is trendy, as are marketing platforms. Search engines provided way more traffic to businesses then they do now. As the competition to rank high got more fierce the engines had to work harder to provide the most relevent and useful content, and as a result organic reach diminished. Any marketing platform that grows at a fast rate and gets saturated will cause challenges for the platform to continue to provide relevent and valuable content to the users.

Ok, there’s more content now. But what’s the value of having more people like my Page? I paid good money for my fans on Facebook, and now I can’t reach as many of them.

Fans absolutely have value.

– Your ads drive on average 50% more recall when a person sees that their friend likes your business… The more fans that you have, the more of their friends will pay attention.

– Fans give your business credibility

– The more engagement you get, the further your reach.

– Fans also make the ads you run on Facebook more efficient in our ads auction.

So, how should I use Facebook for my business?

Organic reach has diminished, yes, but organic content still has value, and Pages that publish great content — content that teaches people something, entertains them, makes them think, or in some other way adds value to their lives — can still reach people in News Feed.

Having said that, Facebook is far more effective for business when you add paid advertising to the equation. You will reach a broader audience, with leads to greater returns.

How do I know things won’t keep changing?

Things will keep changing… hopefully more often for the better. Facebook says they will continue to innovate on our behalf, and that they will be more transparent and helpful to the businesses that market on facebook. It’s yet to be seen exactly what that means

by Brett Gurney

Striving for Excellence

P.S. Stay tuned for more Internet Marketing Tips & Techniques and guides to building the brand of YOU.

P.P.S. If you find this information valuable please subscribe to get future posts delivered to your email, and please leave us a comment…thanks!

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The post What Happened To Facabook’s Organic Reach .. Where Did It Go? appeared first on Internet Marketing For Beginners.

Linkedin is becoming more popular every day… it’s the business persons social media site and I know many of you have profiles over there… but do you really know how to use Linkedin for business…properly and with good etiquette?

In this post we are going to list in a very simple and structured way, the top 7 Do’s and the top 7 Don’ts of how to use Linkedin the right way, to benefit your exposure and your business.

LinkedIn Marketing & Etiquette : 7 Things You Must Do…

1. Personalize your connection requests – Default messages are impersonal and can be a tad annoying to some people. Get personal with your requests for better results. LinkedIn marketing only works if you do it right.

2. Have a profile picture – this is common sense right? I personally won’t connect with anyone who doesn’t have a profile picture. I want to connect with other professionals. A slew of images come to my mind in regards to those who don’t bother to show themselves … I won’t mention them.

3. Personalize your recommendation requests – for the same reasons. If you want recommendations back then get up close and personal. Show others you mean business and that you are not playing.

4. Keep it professional at all time – there are other social media sites more tolerant of games and romance…keep it professional on Linkedin if you want to benefit from it.

5. Turn off notifications when updating your profile – this applies more to multiple updates in a day. Let’s not make it annoying for people. If you find yourself making a lot of changes then turn off the notifications you don’t want to blast people.

6. Send a welcome message – one that provides value. You will get their attention and you will brand yourself as a serious person that is professional and courteous.

7. Nurture relationships – regularly. Creating and maintaining relationships is the name of the game. That’s what it’s all about. Continual communication is what sticks in people’s minds. Brand yourself through repitition…but always keep it business, professional, and valuable!

7 Things You Must NOT Do…

1. Don’t send spammy messages to your contacts – It’s the worst thing you can do in any Social Media platform. No “here’s my link buy my stuff” or any variation of… that’s cause for instant removal…and you will get removed. Your LinkedIN marketing should not be abusive or intrusive. Leave that for the amateurs.

2. Don’t over-post – multiple posts daily may not be the best way. Any more than one you better make sure it’s some darn good content.

3. Don’t ask people you don’t know for recommendations – it’s just lame and looks desperate. Instead concentrate on posting high value content and you’ll get the recommendations.

4. Don’t comment negatively in groups – or anywhere for that matter… it’s whiny and pathetic and no one likes whiny.

5. Do not post self-serving content in groups – groups are not for spamming your business…groups are for conversation, ideas, thoughts, input, asking questions, and providing answers. The goal of the content is to provide value and help. Are you seeing a pattern yet… value, value, value.

6. Don’t ask people to like your facebook page – again… lame! You shouldn’t even do that on Facebook… post your content and if it’s good content with value people will like the page simply because they like the page.

7. Don’t ask new connections or people you don’t know to endorse you – they don’t know you why would they endorse you. Introduce yourself instead and provide some good content… you’ll get your endorsements. Endorse others and they will endorse you back.

So …there you have it. LinkedIn marketing can be hugely beneficial if you treat it and your connections as you would want to be treated. With respect. Use common sense, be polite, provide good content and solutions to problems that people in your target niche may have, and you’ll be just fine. You’ll learn and fine tune as you go. These are general tips and techniques but if you follow them you’ll be looked at as a responsible and a professional marketer.

by Brett Gurney

Striving for Excellence

P.S. Stay tuned for more Internet Marketing Tips & Techniques and guides to building the brand of YOU.

P.P.S. If you find this information valuable please subscribe to get future posts delivered to your email, and please leave us a comment…thanks!

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Do you find yourself confused or unsure sometimes of the best methods for social media interaction?

Are you looking for social media methods that will get the most out of your social experience?

You’re not alone. We get a lot of requests for facebook and social media training, so we put this together, it’s a quick basics. There will be more training but this will get you started.

• Post Regularly and Often

• Develop Your Own Style and Be Consistent With It

• Don’t Just Post – Comment on Other’s Posts and Updates

• Communicate With Those You Have Something In Common With

• Be Yourself – Don’t Try To Copy Some Else

• Don’t Spam

Post Regular Updates – Consistency, and persistency will put you on the social media map. It doesn’t matter what platform or channel you are using – regular updates tell a fast story about the user. When I’m checking out someone’s profile to determine if it’s a person I want to connect with, the first thing I do is to see how active they are. I’m on facebook to connect, engage, and relate, and I’m looking for others who do the same. I’m also looking for others who will do the same with me. There’s really nothing more encouraging then when a person “follows” you… much more so than a simple “like”. Knowing that a person likes my posts enough that they are looking forward to seeing the next one, tells me I’m doing something right. I’m in this for business, and good business starts with relationships and followership. When a person posts regularly, they tend to look for others who post regularly… those are the people they can and want to relate with, and it’s also a great way to get to know someone better and faster.

Develop “YOUR” style – a definite result of posting regularly will be developing your own style that people can and will recognize. Nothing fake about that. Being unique shows people you are genuine and you speak from the heart…. that you are sincere and that you have beliefs and conviction in what you say. Copying and pasting others people s posts without altering to your viewpoint or style or words might tell people you are just in a hurry to post something, or that you’re not thinking for yourself. Leaders lead with conviction and they take the time to develop their own materials, opinions, and styles.

Comment on Other’s Posts and Updates – ok this is huge… bigger than I can say, for multiple reasons. First it tells your friends and contacts that you want a relationship and that you care what they say and feel and think. Creating relationships is what this is all about, and you cannot create relationships if you are always talking AT people, and not WITH people. Conversation is how you get to know others and how they get to know you, and this single fact alone with drive your business. And secondly, engagement is what Facebook looks for to “up” your Edge Rank score…and it’s your Edge Rank score that determines how far and wide your message goes. How many friends see your posts on their newsfeeds, and how long your posts “park” in their newsfeeds..so you see full engagement is crucial on many fronts.

Have Something In Common With Those You Connect With – I’m on social media to network, and the social media methods we use are primarily geared towards making friends and creating relationships, but mainly for business. So it makes sense that I look for others who have the same interests that I do. I’m very choosy who I connect with and who I don’t. It’s not about how many contacts you have, it’s about the quality of the contacts you have, and the engagement you have and get with those contacts…so therefore I treat it a bit as a target market. It would be different if Facebook didn’t limit the amount of friends you can have, but they do it’s just the facts. So this is something I must take into consideration, especially as I creep towards that limit. In fact there will come a time soon that a purge will need to be done, to make room for others more in stride with what I do and what I’m looking for. This is just good business sense.

Be Yourself and Don’t Be Shy – get comfortable and say what’s on your mind, but keep it positive for the most part. Don’t try and emulate others. I know sometimes when you see other leaders and those who get a lot of interaction to try and be like that person, and their’s nothing wrong with learning from others and having mentors, but you also need to show people who you are. This goes along with developing your own style, and posting regularly, but it’s also about getting comfortable which makes it easier to write and post in your words. This comfort level comes from being forthcoming and active, not from being shy.So just learn to let it flow just as if you were in the same room talking to people…keep it natural and not fake. It doesn’t have to be perfect just let it go and don’t be afraid to be funny or humorous if that’s in your nature.

Don’t Spam People’s Wall’s and Don’t Post Your Business All The Time – You might think that’s something you need to do to get your business out there but more times than not it will have the opposite effect… instead post high value and quality content. Educate, teach, inspire, inform, converse. Spamming will get you blocked, teaching will get you noticed. People want to connect and work with others who have something meaningful to say and to offer. This is an entire subject on itself, but just don’t link drop everywhere and DO NOT put your business on other people’s walls. That is their storefront not yours.

You’ll notice some mention of Facebook and while this post is about social media methods in general, Facebook really is our playground and where we spend the majority of our time networking for business.

We hope this has been of some help and that you get some value from it. We will continue training on social media methods with follow ups that get more specific.

by Brett Gurney

Striving for Excellence

P.S. Stay tuned for more Internet Marketing Tips & Techniques and guides to building the brand of YOU.

P.P.S. If you find this information valuable please subscribe to get future posts delivered to your email, and please leave us a comment…thanks!

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The post Common Social Media Methods That Create More Interaction appeared first on Internet Marketing For Beginners.

Are you spreading your message far and wide on Social Media?

Are you aware of the many ways to do this?

Social Media Diversification can help you grow your business and in this post we are going to share with you how you can benefit.

This will be a series. Today we will touch on Instagram and LinkedIn.

As you know Facebook has been the Social Media King for years… the almighty… but is their dominance starting to crack? They remain popular because everyone’s friends and family hang out there, but the marketers are getting frustrated over all the changes of the rules of engagement and content layout.

And so although according to a recent study they continue to be the favorite, trends towards multiple platforms are taking hold. 42% of online adults now use two or more social networks. Some are beginning  to feel diversification is the answer, and other sites are quickly developing a unique user base (teenagers on Snapchat, women on Pinterest, business executives on LinkedIn, etc.).

Social media diversification cannot hurt, and some say it’s the answer to a better more thorough use of time and resources. Getting the message out to a wider audience is the name of the game.

Instagram – Big Time Loyalty

Instragram is becoming a player. Stats show an incredibly high user engagement rate, especially when compared to facebook. More than half use it on a daily basis, while close to 35% do so multiple times daily. That’s huge for a smaller site and the usage is growing. So because of this high user engagement rate, they are being noticed by brand marketers. Marketers need images that wow consumers, and they need to create a strong relationship with a loyal following. Here’s some Instagram tips for seeing that happens.

• Choose photos that bring out the “feel and lifestyle” of your brand.

• Choose hashtags that are unique, simple and relevant to your brand. Avoid blending too many words into one hashtag (Instagram users love simplicity).

• Add captions that lend humor, wit and context to your photos.

• Link photos to your product pages to encourage consumers to go directly to your store or site.

• Reward your followers for viewing and sharing your pictures with a discount or a promotional code.

LinkedIn – Still Dominates The Higher Income Crowd

LinkedIn usage continues to be dominated by the higher income earners and college graduates, and has a high percentage of 50-64 year-olds. But smaller time marketers are now finding their way to the site. It’s well known as a place for business people to network, show off their expertise, and secure new business.

LinkedIn is a place to be taken seriously… here are some good tips:

• Start using LinkedIn’s sponsored updates. They are useful because they appear directly in a user’s news feed rather than on the sidebar, making for better interaction.

• Sponsored updates also have the same options as regular updates, such as like, share and comment. This will also create more engagement.

• Consider a company page and targeted updates. Targeted updates go out to a targeted LinkedIn audience, not to all of your followers like a regular update will do. You can tailor to the audience that is relevent to the message.

Women Spend More Time on Social Media—but not on Facebook

Women’s participation on social media is becoming more popular but surprisingly not on Facebook. They trend more towards blogs, Pinterest, and Instagram. It seems that although women are big on friends and family, they may be even bigger on coupons, promotions, and shopping deals. So it seems they mix those things together into one feed. The best way to intereact might be to humanize your brand along with a social presence.

Social channels feed off of each other and  Social Media diversification can expand your message reach with big potential to get more clients and sales. With some playing around and some practice you can leverage your activities into a well received brand across the board.

So get that message out there…get active, diversify, mix it up, and take advantage of all that the internet and social media have to offer.

by Brett Gurney

Striving for Excellence

P.S. Stay tuned for more Internet Marketing Tips & Techniques and guides to building the brand of YOU.

P.P.S. If you find this information valuable please subscribe to get future posts delivered to your email, and please leave us a comment…thanks!

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The post Social Media Diversification Can Widen Your Target Audience appeared first on Internet Marketing For Beginners.