1) The coolest social tool you’ve never heard of
LinkedIn is a powerful way to expand your professional network, participate in groups both online and in person and optimize your job search. It is the 7th most visited site in the US. While most people are on it, know how to use and actively participate on it, there’s a little feature that was released back in 2011 that you probably didn’t know existed: InMaps. Living under the LinkedIn Labs umbrella, InMaps is a way to visualize your professional network on LinkedIn. You can build your map here.
2) Know thy market
Segmenting your audience is a big deal in online marketing. We have so much more information than we had even 5 years ago about the who, what, where, why, when and how of a visitor’s behavior. More data means more knowledge, but none of it matters if you haven’t nailed down your Marketing Persona. Search Engine Journal has a beginners guide here on creating your marketing persona. Check it out!
3) Naughty algorithms and why they change
Edgerank, Penguin, Panda, Hummingbird: The updates keep rolling in, and ruffling our feathers. Many recent articles have focused on the tactics (e.g. How to get seen, 7 ways to combat). Today, we want to share the reason behind declined reach. More competition + limited attention = declined organic reach. Which translates into a need to boost your content with paid ads. Read the full Techcrunch article here.
4) The story behind Oculus Rift and why it matters.
If you’re up to speed on tech trends, no doubt you’ve heard about Oculus Rift. You’ve also heard that Facebook bought it. What you may not know is the story behind the then 19-year old founder of this revived technology. This device might change how we interact with data, apps and the internet. Time recently published a piece on his story here.
5) The battle between organic vs. paid traffic
Building your website’s audience takes time and money. And the debate between using SEO and PPC as a primary strategy is always heated. Weighing the pros and cons of each method will help inform the right strategy. Here’s a infographic that does just that.
6) Want to know who’s doing it right on Twitter?
Twitter is fascinating, mainly because it’s the most publicly accessible social media platform for businesses. No other tool allows such easy access to brands, businesses, news outlets, celebrities, pro athletes, actors and bands. But, just because the access is easy doesn’t mean doing it right is easy. Check out some of the following; Which are most engaged brands on Twitter. Many lessons to learn.