Social media has been an increasingly effective part in the marketing strategies of many big and local businesses. The main question when Foursquare came around with their innovative geolocation sharing network was; How do we use this to benefit our brand or business? But the Foursquare team has added a few cool features with their network, bringing the game focus to the site, while continuing to build on their own marketing and professional relationships. Today we have some unique ways in which Foursquare has become an effective business marketing tool for more. (more…)

We’ve all heard how awesome Twitter is, but there is always that initial question when getting started; how do I get people to follow me? Well thankfully Twitter offers some original and new features that can direct users in the right way to joining the discussions they’re interested in.

With Twitter trends users can search a specific topic to see which people are tweeting about what. Simply type a topic in the search bar on the right panel. You will then be directed to all the people who’ve mentioned that topic within a tweet, updated in real-time. Connect with these other users by responding to their tweets with worthwhile information from your area of expertise.

(more…)

So we all agree Facebook is as necessary as a website if you’re going to make any kind of traction with online marketing, right? Good. Now that we have that cleared up, let’s talk about some ways NOT to use Facebook for your business.

Facebook has given businesses a way to connect directly to consumers on the consumers’ terms. It’s the epitome of why online marketing works. Facebook’s tools give businesses a way to engage them, bring them in and let them experience their brands. However, they can be used negatively without the restaurant or brand even knowing. Obviously this is detrimental as abusing a consumer’s acceptance of you will result in ejection and a bad reputation to their friends. Not good. So, let’s stave off some common pratfalls by other brands….

(more…)

Social Media can be quite confusing coming from different markets, leaving many businesses confused on how to develop their online marketing campaigns. The main question always tends to be this; Which online networks do I utilize first to gain effective results? At Vigor, the we answer this dilemma with three simple words: ALL OF THEM!

It makes no sense to try sites out individual and wait for results before moving onto the next one. Start with all of the sites and learn from your mistakes quickly and learn which sites are least effective. This is a better and quicker way of getting rid of “the bad apples.” You want your content to be everywhere from Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Youtube, and even photo sharing sites to spread your company brand. Many different tools are offered today to help manage all of this content from one site. Ping.fm allows you to maintain blogs along with any social networking site with the ability to post to any or all networks with a single click. Of course there is a lot of time put into the development of these accounts, but maintaining the content with frequent updates and business-to-consumer information has become much more efficient thanks to tools such as ping.

By: Mark G. Valente | Online Marketing Director | Vigor Interactive Branding