Put the Web to Work

Social media marketing is one of our specialties here at MSW Interactive Designs. When we say social media, people immediately think of Facebook and maybe even Twitter. However, LinkedIn is also another powerful social marketing tool for your business.  Below are some tips for using LinkedIn to grow your business. 1. Complete your profiles.  Take the time to fill out not only your company profile, but also your personal one completely.  This builds credibility for both you and your business.   MSW Interactive Designs offers social media set-up and customization as a service if you need help in this area. 2. Use compelling images. Your cover photo is the first thing visitors to your page see.  You want this photo to represent your brand well.  You also want to have a great profile photo such as your logo or something else that helps brand you. Great photos will help you establish your credibility. 3. Add relevant keywords. Just like wi...

Just when you probably got used to the way your business Facebook page looked, the king of the social media world decided to change things.  The roll out of the new look started earlier this year, but most business pages saw the new design appear in June.  Here are some of the changes that Facebook made according to www.socialmediaexaminer.com : 1. Bigger photos! One of the biggest changes is a wider, single-column view for posts.  Photos are now wider with a new 504 pixel width.  The column feed is ¼ larger than previous photos.  Photos can now be 504 pixels by 504 pixels, so take advantage of this feature! 2. Tab App locations Your first desired app only shows up at the main tab bar Your other apps will show in the “More” dropdown option You can still see all of your apps lower in the left column 3. Activity Tab has a lot of info This is a one stop place to go to see all of your notifications.  You can view, respond to...

Today's business world can be extremely busy.  For many business owners, automated posts may seem like a great way to get your information out to your customers on social meda.  It would save you time and that's one less thing to have on your plate each day. Unfortunately, there is a downside to this seemingly efficient marketing solution. MSW Interactive Designs has put together this list of 4 important reasons why you should post your own content instead of using a platform such as Hootsuite to auto post. 1. Your rankings and reach will be lower.  Social media networks such as Facebook can tell when a real person is posting or if an app or other third party tool is doing the posting for you and will penalize you.  Through research, TheSocialBusiness.com concludes, "Using scheduling services such as Hootsuite, Viral Heat, or Sprout Social to schedule your Facebook posts will gain you only one thing: an even lower reach."  Facebook gives these automated...

Finding relevant content that your audience will want to read can be challenging for any marketer.  How do you know what people are interested at this point in time?  How do you get them to read your blogs or engage with your posts? One way is by finding what's trending.  Those of you that use Twitter for your business have probably seen the little box on the lefthand side of your Twitter home page that shows current Trends. These are topics that Twitter users are currently interested in and they change all the time. In addition to Twitter, there are other ways to find trending topics that you can use in your online marketing campaigns .  Check out a few of our favorites below: 1. Buzzfeed   BuzzFeed has the hottest, most social content on the web. They're redefining online advertising with their social, content-driven publishing technology. BuzzFeed provides the most shareable breaking news, original reporting, entertainment and video across the social w...

Within the last decade, Infographics have become extremely popular!  In fact, from 2010 to 2012 infographic search volumes have increased over 800%.  For those of you that aren't familiar with infographics, they are graphic visual representations of information, data or knowledge intended to present complex information quickly and clearly. Studies have found that 90 percent of the information that we remember is based on visual impact. Combine that information with the fact that we live in a time where 1.5 billion pieces of content, 140 million tweets, 2 million videos are created each day and you can see how infographics could be beneficial to your social media marketing efforts. Here are a few great tools to create your own infographics for free! 1. Piktochart Piktochart continuously strive to allow you to pull information together and effortlessly transform it into a powerful visual story. Whether you are an individual or a business entity, they offer a wide array...

Pinterest became the 4th largest website traffic source in the world in 2012! Plus 2 in 5 customers have purchased an item after pinning, repinning or liking it on Pinterest. Pinterest also generates over 400% more revenue per click than Twitter and 27% more revenue per click than Facebook.  Now if that doesn't make a light bulb go off in your head, I don't know what would. Sure, Pinterest Marketing  may not be the best option for your business, but if your business is visual at all, say the wedding industry or a restaurant for example, you need to be on Pinterest.  Just think about all that website traffic you are missing out on.  Here are some tips on how to boost your business with Pinterest! 1. Setup a Minimum of 10 Boards  Boards should be a reflection of your typical customer's profile and you should use these boards to empower, educate or entertain your ideal follower.  You should start with at least 5 pins on each board to make sure all the w...

Twitter is one of the largest growing social media platforms and especially if you are wanting to reach a younger demographic, you need to be on it!  Many of you already know this and have already created an account, started tweeting, but with no one is hearing you.  Don't give up yet, here are 9 tips to gaining more twitter followers for your business! 1. Leverage other Social Media Profiles If you are on Twitter, chances are you have a presence on other social media profiles as well.  Be sure to let those followers know that you are on Twitter.  Talking about being on Twitter in your Blog and putting a link to your Twitter profile in your email signature block are great ways to cross promote your social media channels. 2. Engage with Your Current Followers If someone retweets your content or replys to your tweet, be sure to reply back and thank them for their interaction.  Show your current followers you care and they'll be more likely to interact w...

Considering hiring someone to help with your business social media? Many business owners recognize the importance of social media for reaching potential clients, improving website rankings , extending branding efforts, and establishing themselves as experts in their field. However, executing an effective social media campaign takes a considerable amount of time. Many businesses are now hiring experts to ensure they get the results. It’s important to find a company with a proven track record since a strategic business social media campaign is more than just making “salesy” posts across a bunch of social channels. 4 Questions to ask before you trust someone with your business social media presence: Can I see real examples of BUSINESS social media that you have done? Many freelancers or one-person social media shops describe their experience by saying, “I’ve been on Facebook for years.”  Ask for specific examples of successful campaigns executed for real businesses. ...

Let's face it...Google is practically King when it comes to the internet.  If you're business doesn't show up in Google results, most likely you're not going to be found!  With Google periodically making algorithm changes and businesses struggling to keep on top of technology with new content, those search results are changing daily.  It's important to know where you stand and what people are seeing about you and your business!  For businesses that rely mainly on online search to generate new customers, keeping your business in tip-top shape in search results is imperative.  Check out these three tips from Direct Marketing News for auditing your business online to start improving how people view you on the web! 1. Do you own the search engine results pages (SERPs) for your business name?  Knowing how frequently your business name shows up in search results and what those links say about your business is a good test of your overall web presence. ...

There is currently a lot of hype and confusion surrounding keyword meta-tags.  Once widely used to help website ranking, these meta-tags can now actually hinder your site’s ability to rank well.  We wanted to take this opportunity to help alleviate some of the concern on this topic. Why are Keyword Meta-Tags No Longer Used?  Several years ago, Google only looked at a website's content to determine their ranking and paid zero attention to "off-page" factors, such as the number of links pointing to the webpage through a strong social media presence. Google relied heavily on keyword meta-tags to determine a site’s content and where it should rank it. Unfortunately, some website developers began to stuff often-irrelevant keywords into their website designs.  This meta-tags stuffing became so severely abused that Google decided to disregard them completely . Are There Any Penalties For Using Keyword Meta-Tags?  In some cases, yes!  In Google’s eyes,...

If you are new to the Social Media marketing world, you may be wondering what is a hashtag and why should I use it?  A hashtag, also known as the pound sign in the US, is used to make a word searchable on Twitter.  It is a way for you to categorize your post based on topics that people may be interested in following – and they can be a great asset in your Social Media marketing efforts. 1. Only use Hashtag Keywords that are Relevant Think about hashtags you would personally follow. You don’t want to be too general; you want your customers to engage in what you have to say.  As a marketer, you need to think about the detailed words and phrases that those in your market will be using.   Below are some examples to give you an idea of where to start with hashtags: Name of an event, webinar or conference. #Olympics2014 Create a trend. #conversetrainer Use a location to gain new followers in your area. #Missouri Something unique or specific, such as a TV Sho...

A year ago, we presented a column on Responsive Website Design.  It was a relatively new design concept and it is a tool for developing websites that provide an optimal viewing experience across a wide range of devices (from desktop computer monitors to mobile phones).  We recently talked with a great client of ours who wanted to build a new website with a responsive design…we talked about the pros and cons of RWD and the decided to go with a more traditional desktop design with a stand-alone mobile website.  We want to share these pros and cons once more with you! Responsive Website Design – Advantages There are several wonderful advantages to having a responsive design with your website.  One of the biggest advantages is that the site displays very nicely across all devices and all screen sizes. You also have one complete view for all traffic to your website, since it does not force re-directs to a different URL like a stand-alone mobile website does....

Goodbye 2013 and hello 2014!  We have attempted to provide you advice on many topics over the past few years and we want to thank all of our readers for their input and for contacting us to learn more about website design, search engine strategies, mobile websites, and social media creation and engagement.  To start out 2014, we want to provide you some food for thought as you strategically guide your business with your web presence. In 2014 according to Forbes, “Investment in Social Media will become a Necessity, Not a Luxury.” Benefits of doing social media: 1) Improved social signals which factor into your search engine ranking 2) Company branding and brand awareness 3) Word of mouth advertising 4) Increased customer loyalty and trust and greater reach and influence Trends in Social Media for 2014 The Social Media landscape continually evolves and for a business to successfully leverage this powerful business tool, you should be considering what 201...