Advisory Board Forming Now

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As promised here is Part 2 of our “Travel Blogger’s Secrets You Can Use” blog post! If you missed Part 1 be sure to click here and check out all the amazing blogging tips we covered in last week’s post. This week we’re talking about the best marketing, monetizing, and travel tips our lovely panelists, Tamara Gruber of We3Travel, Lillie Marshall of Around the World “L”, and Priscilla Pilon of The Weekend in Paris, shared at our August #NIMRI event. So let’s get started!

Top 8 Marketing/Monetizing Tips

1. Soliciting Sponsors: The emphasis should always be on the content you’re creating. “Write it, and they will come,” said Priscilla sagely, “Produce high-quality content, and they will come.”

The Official “Work with Me” section of We3Travel’s About Page

2. Doing Business With Brands: There are a few ways a blogger can work with a brand: being contacted by people to place ads, contacting people to place ads, sponsored posts, or, if you’re lucky, a sponsored trip.“If I work with a brand or do a sponsored post, it has to be something I believe in. Once your audience doesn’t believe you, you’re done,” Priscilla warned.

“Native Advertising, which is when you have content that is already successful and then work with advertisers who would complement that content, can work very well,” said Lillie.

3. Navigating Negativity: It can be very difficult to figure out what to do when you have a bad experience as a blogger, particularly if the trip is a sponsored one. It is especially tricky because, depending on the country’s laws, you could potentially be sued for a negative review. “Contact the PR people and be sure to start with the positive things and then talk about the disappointments,” advised Priscilla, “I always give them a chance to fix it. If they do, I won’t write a bad review. If they don’t, I will offer to not write about it.”

“Steer away from negative content, even though it can be very effective. Everyone gets fired up over a bad review and they like to share it, but it doesn’t reflect very well on you and can get you into trouble,” offered Lillie.

4. Create a Community: “Facebook has become a pay-to-play platform. You can pay $5 to promote a post (and I do that sometimes), but you won’t see a big difference in your analytics. What’s really powerful is to form alliances and private Facebook groups, not just with other travel bloggers. People who like wine, food, lifestyle, even interior design share readers. The cross-pollenization that happens helps everyone grow,” Priscilla said.

5. Know Your Worth: “It depends on your reach and your demographic,” reasoned Tamara, “I have a group of travel blogger friends, and we share that information.”

“This is why you need the group mentality!” proclaimed Priscilla, “Building your blogging network is key. Whatever you do, don’t write a post for someone for free – it brings the rate for everyone down to $0. You’re time is worth something.

“I would argue that there is a value in giving content to high-traffic sites, so it can be OK to do something like that for free as long as there is some ROI. It’s a value to your resume,” Lillie said.

We3Travel on Pinterest © Photos by Tamara Gruber

6. A Photo’s Worth a Thousand Shares (nope, still not right): “For me, Pinterest is very important. It drives traffic to my site, often more than google,” Tamara shared.

“Be sure to link all of your photos: photos on Google and Pinterest should link to your website and have descriptions,” Priscilla said.

“Selling your photos can also be another source of income,” Lillie pointed out.

Here’s a look at the Newport Interactive Marketers’ Hootsuite dashboard

7. Tally Your Toolbox:  “Don’t be afraid to automate! Hootsuite can schedule your posts at the best time for your demographic. You could write the best blog post ever, but if no one ever reads it, it won’t matter,” explained Lillie. To find out when the ideal time for your demographic is, be sure to check out Tweepi. 

“The Tail Wind app is great for automating Pinterest,” shared Tamara, “Paying a little for the right tools can be worth it.”

“Google trends is an invaluable SEO tool,” said Priscilla, “In WordPress there is a feature where you can try a bunch of different options and put them in Google Trends to see where you are in searches.”

Snapchat! If you want to learn more about using Snapchat as a blogger, check out AdventurousKate

8. Socialize, Socialize, Socialize (your media, that is):  “Learn and get busy on all social media sites and thank everyone who follows (NOT by direct message),” Priscilla advised.

“The biggest mistake people make is to just stop for an extended period of time on social media,” Lille said, “Be consistent and don’t be afraid to self promote!

“Snapchat is the newest thing people must be on, although it does appeal to a younger demographic,” said Tamara, “Its important to know who your audience is and where to find them.”

Top 3 Travel Tips

“Use Trivago or another trip-cost comparison site to look for the lowest fare. Then, take a screenshot and call the hotel. They will always match it, and it’s always better to book through the hotel because they tend to have a better cancellation policy and you also will be eligible for upgrades,” advised Priscilla.

“Tuesday is the best day to book airlines usually,” shared Tamara.

“People would pay a lot of money to stay in your home in beautiful Newport so rent it out on Airbnb to get money for travel and also find places to stay in yourself!” Lillie suggested.

All-Time Favorite Hotel

Balcony view from the Phoenix Resort in Belize © Photo by Lillie Marshall

Lillie’s Pick: The Phoenix in Belize “No better place for a babymoon!” 

The now closed Kona Village Resort in Hawaii © Photo by Tamara Grub

Tamara’s Pick: Kona Village Resort in Hawaii “Unfortunately, after 45 years, this resort was forced to permanently close their doors after the March 2011 tsunami.”

The gorgeous Bitter End Resort in BVI © Photo by Priscilla Pilon

Priscilla’s Pick: The Bitter End in the British Virgin Islands “I’ve never been sponsored to stay at this hotel, but I visit every year!”  

And, of course, we had to ask about their favorite place in Newport! 

Castle Hill Inn from the sea © Photo by Priscilla Pilon

Priscilla’s Pick: Castle Hill Inn “They have the best lunch and the best views!” 

The beautiful Hotel Viking (#NIMRI venue sponsor for our annual networking event!) © Photo by Lillie Marshall

Lillie’s Pick: Hotel Viking “This is the place to go to feel like royalty!” 

Here’s what #NIMRI members were saying on Instagram and Twitter: 

Great turnout at #NIMRI! A photo posted by Suzanne McDonald (@newportinteract) on Aug 12, 2015 at 4:04pm PDT

Here for #NIMRI (@ Parlor in Newport, RI) https://t.co/vWovYdNjrV — Kevin T Vine (@KevinTVine) August 12, 2015

Welcome to our panelists for @NewportInteract‘s meeting at Parlour on Broadway! #NIMRI pic.twitter.com/VRCF4huXid — Mia Lupo (@MiaLupo) August 12, 2015

Learning about travel blogging at #NIMRI at @ParlorNewport. #NewportRI A photo posted by The Newport Blast (@thenewportblast) on Aug 12, 2015 at 4:30pm PDT

#NIMRI Newport Interactive Marketers .. #education #business #rhodeisland @NewportInteract always informative — 02809 Photography (@02809Photo) August 13, 2015

Bravo, ladies! @sue_DesigEditor @sue_DesigEditor @WeekendInParis @tgruber @WeekendInParis #nimri #travelblogging #girlpower — Newport Stylephile (@NewportSTYLE) August 13, 2015

Many thanks to our venue sponsor Parlor Kitchen & Bar

Register for the next #NIMRI event now! 

The post Travel Bloggers’ Secrets You Can Use: Part 2 appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

Wow! We covered so much incredible information at our August 12 event, Travel Bloggers’ Secrets You Can Use. Our three amazing panelists, Tamara Gruber of We3Travel, Lillie Marshall of Around the World “L”, and Priscilla Pilon of The Weekend in Paris shared invaluable insights about blogging, marketing, monetizing, and, of course, traveling. We wanted to put together a couple of posts summing up all the best tips for any of you who might not have been able to make it or any #NIMRI members who want to refresh on what they learned. Part 1 will cover a little bit of background about our panelists and their top blogging tips. Stay tuned for Part 2 next week!

How They Got Started

Tamara Gruber of We3Travel and her daughter, Hannah, visiting a breathtaking waterfall in Iceland

Tamara Gruber: “After a family trip, I was telling a friend everything I’d learned about traveling as a family, and she said ‘you should share this,'” explained Tamara. And thus We3Travel was born. Tamara Gruber’s blog centers around family travel and her family of three have traveled all over the world, from the cathedrals of Europe to the rainforests of Costa Rica. We3Travel was recently named one of the Top 20 Family Travel Blogs in 2015 by Holiday Lettings (a company owned by TripAdvisor). “I try to research trips and make itinerary suggestions that everyone can get something out of,” said Tamara, “Showing kids the world is a gift that we give to them.”

Lillie Marshall, of Around the World “L”, enjoying a stunning view in Turkey

Lillie Marshall: “I started at age 27, sleeping in $10 broom closets because I wanted to travel the world,” said Lillie. Around the World “L”  which began in 2009, has covered everything from nomadic budget traveler trips to luxury family travel, now that its creator, Lillie Marshall, is married with a young son (and another on the way! Congrats Lillie!!). She works as an English teacher in Boston, and runs TeachingTraveling.com, a blog that interviews “Teacher-Travelers.” Lillie has one of the largest social media followings of any teacher in the world and Around the World “L” has been consistently selected for Top 100 Travel Blog rankings. She was also recently invited to attend White House Travel Bloggers Summit on Study Abroad and Global Engagement. 

Priscilla Pilon of The Weekend in Paris (left) sharing a few drinks with her friend, Leah, in the Alps

Priscilla Pilon: “When I first started writing my blog I didn’t realize other people could see it. I made it for my friends and family. The first time I got a comment from a stranger, I was like ‘who is this?!’,” laughed Priscilla Pilon of The Weekend In Paris. Priscilla has traveled the world, but is an admitted Paris addict. In addition to her own blog, she is the Travel Editor for The Daily Basics (the editor of which she actually met at a #NIMRI event!), as well as a contributor for Upscale Living Magazine, The Daily Meal, and Travel Squire.

Top 6 Blogging Tips

1. Preferred Platform: Lillie, Tamara and Priscilla all recommend WordPress as a blogging platform. “You can really create your own identity since there are so many themes to choose from and they’re so easy to customize,” said Lillie, “and there are so many useful plugins!”

 2. Traversing the Themes: Sifting through the bazillion or so WordPress themes can be a bit intimidating but it helps if you know want you want it to look like. Magazine-ish? Newspaper-ish? Word-driven? Photo-driven?

“Your theme must work with Google Analytics. Some older themes don’t,” Priscilla warned, “So, to be safe, don’t choose one that’s more than 3 years old. It also must be mobile responsive. If it isn’t it will be downgraded by Google.” In addition, 80% of internet users access the web through their smartphone. That is big chunk of your target audience who wouldn’t be able to access your website. However, if you already have an older WordPress site you don’t want to change, or you totally fall in love with an older theme the WP touch plugin can make it mobile responsive.

 3. Camera of Choice: Priscilla uses a Nikon D5300, but many bloggers, including Lillie and Tamara, are moving from a big DSLR to smaller mirrorless cameras. Lillie chose the Sony Alpha 5100, and Tamara has both a Mirrorless Olympus and a Go Pro. “I also love to use my iPhone!” exclaimed Tamara.

One of the 8,000 photos: Morrells Boutique Estate in Johannesburg © Photo by Priscilla Pilon

4. A Word For Every Thousand Pictures (wait, that’s not right) : “People are captivated first by a photo,” Priscilla explained, “I like to pick the pictures first, then write the story. I took 8,000 photos on my recent trip to Africa and narrowed that down to about 20 for my article. Obviously you can’t fit all of your pictures in one post, but it is nice to build up a big media library so you can share the other photos on social media or in a later article.”

5. Feelings on Freelancing: “I think freelancing can be a little bit dangerous because you are putting all of this effort into someone else’s site. However, it’s different for everyone, and some people get a lot out of it,” Lillie said.

“I focused first on building my own blog and my own presence before moving into freelancing,” explained Tamara.

“You can get some street cred if you’re writing for other sources, but you have to have a thick skin. I was sending out 20 pitches and getting 19 no’s and 1 positive response. It makes you doubt yourself, but once you get going and they know your reputation, you’ll get 19 yes’,” shared Priscilla, “Just make sure you promise appropriately and over-deliver. Also, be on time!”

Geo-tagging on Instagram © Photo by Lillie Marshall

6. Share with Care: It isn’t a good idea to post things live in case of stalkers, and never post pictures of children without their parent’s permission.  “I write about family travel, but for the longest time I didn’t use my daughter’s name,” shared Tamara, “Finally, it became too awkward writing ‘my daughter’ over and over, but it is something to be cautious about.”

“Make sure that what you’re posting is not traceable to you or where you live, and that it’s appropriate,” advised Lille, “Beware of geo-tagging!”

Next week our travel bloggers top marketing/monetizing and travel tips! 

Many thanks to our venue sponsor Parlor Kitchen & Bar

The post Travel Bloggers’ Secrets You Can Use: Part 1 appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

Luckily, NIM brought #InstagramExpert Sue B Zimmerman to Newport June 9 to share her expertise on making your Instagram work for your business.

Zimmerman is founder of Insta-Results, the world’s first comprehensive online Instagram course, and author of the No. 1 e-book “Instagram Basics for Your Business.”

An entrepreneur and founder of 18 businesses, including her own boutique, Zimmerman is passionate about teaching other business owners, execs, and marketing professionals how to best leverage social media platforms, such as Instagram, to see tangible results.

Zimmerman’s Instagram photos portray a lot of excitement and enthusiasm as part of her branding.

Keys of “Insta-Success”

Zimmerman says there are three components of Instagram that are essential to success.

• Bio
• Compelling Content
• Active Engagement

Tips to Making Your Instagram Bio Pop

• Name – Use the same name as your Twitter account so that your accounts are recognizably linked. If the name you want is taken, don’t be afraid to use underscores or symbols.
• Avatar – Make this image pop! You can use a logo, but you want your audience to feel that they’re doing business with a smiling human, not a robot. Use bright colors here, and feel free to use props.
• Bio – You have 150 characters to tell your audience who you are. Make every character count. This is a great place to use emojis and show personality!
• Call to Action – Instagram is a great funnel for leads, meaning by the time they get to your bio, they’re likely to be very interested in your brand, so carefully consider what you want someone to do once they get to your account.
• Link – You have space for only one link, so make sure you’re sending your link where you want them to go. Try sending them to your online store, email newsletter sign-up or strategy guide.

Creating Compelling Instagram Content

• Stick to your niche market – don’t confuse people.
• Add value to every post by including useful information in the image’s description.
• Create images that stand out. Use third-party apps to make picture collages or to edit images.
• Post daily. If you have fewer than 500 followers, post two times a day.
• Humanize your brand. People want to see the person behind the business.
• Engage with other accounts. Giving a shout out to accounts you like will encourage them to check out your account.
• Hashtags are so important for potential followers to find your content. But instead of putting the hashtags in the description of the image, which makes the post look cluttered, post a comment on the photo immediately after you post with as many as 30 hashtags. Try Keyhole, to help find the most useful and targeted hashtags to find your key audience.

Six Mistakes to Avoid on Instagram

• Never post a blurry photo. If it’s your only image, use a sharpening tool in Instagram to make a photo less blurry.
• Don’t post irrelevant “stuff.” You may lose followers if too much of your content seems useless or unrelated to their interests.
• Don’t over-post. If you saturate your feed with images, people will unfollow you.
• Don’t under-post. If you aren’t active enough, people won’t follow you in the first place.
• Don’t repost the same images. Instagram posts have a life of about 24 hours, so there’s no need to post an image more than once.
• Avoid posed, catalogue-type shots. Your audience doesn’t want to feel like they’re being sold to online.

What were #NIMRI attendees saying on Twitter?

Go on Instagram and see what competitors are doing by searching hashtags #NIMRI

(@daciadaly)

#nimri 3-6 seconds to capture attention with Instagram bio, make it stand out! (@englundstudio)

Thanks @SueBZimmerman #instagallive for an aMEZing workshop. Lookout #instagram here we come!!! #NIMRI #smallbiz pic.twitter.com/BVx2nHGqD5

 (@MyMezUSA)

Check out NIM’s next event here. Make sure you preregister before it fills up!

A special thank you to the event host 41 North in Newport.

Newport Interactive Marketers is sponsored by web and social specialists Designated Editor, named Newport County Chamber of Commerce Microbusiness of the Year and International Business Award Internet/New Media Company of the Year.

The post Generate Leads on Instagram appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

Big Fish Results founder Tony Guarnaccia presented at NIM’s April 15 networking-learning event, and emphasized the importance of competitive intelligence and of asking “Why?” Drawing upon 15+ years of experience, Guarnaccia gave an animated and detailed lecture to help Rhode Island’s local businesses, bigger brands, and agencies improve their strategic planning.

5 Big Questions to Ask

When conducting a competitive analysis, Big Fish Results uses a top-down process to answer five questions:

1. How much traffic do you generate versus your competitors?
2. Where is this traffic coming from?
3. How much does your competitor spend on advertising?
4. What are the specific search terms they use to create SEO?
5. WHY? What’s triggering certain types of data and data points?

Tools to Use to Aquire Competitive Intelligence

You can use online tools to acquire data on your competitors and work toward answering these questions. But Guarnaccia reminded everyone, “The tools aren’t the secret. It’s what you do with them that makes a difference.”

Here are just a few examples:

• SEMrush – Online software that offers keyword research and other data on competitors.
• Google Trends – Offers data on keywords and shows trends in topics online.
• Google Keyword Planner – Find data and conduct tests on keywords before you use them.
• SimilarWeb – Allows you to compare your traffic data to that of your competitors.
• Simply Measured – Provides data on audiences, competitors, and conversations to help develop a targeted strategy.

Competitive Intelligence

Once you’ve acquired information on your competitors, learn how to use it. This is what Big Fish Results would do:

• Segment your data – Keep your outreach relevant to each target audience by personalizing information.
• Look at trends – Find out what your target audience cares about and what your competitors are doing well.
• Benchmark – Have measures to compare your results to your competitors’ and set goals.
• Filter – Only use the strategies that apply to your brand and your audience so you don’t confuse or turn away people who you want to reach.
• Exclude Brand Keywords – Use keywords that your potential clients will be searching for.
• CREATE ACTION! – Use calls to action that inspire your audience.

About Tony Guarnaccia

Now the “captain” of Big Fish Results, Guarnaccia formerly ran digital advertising for ADP, where he worked with dozens of Fortune 500 companies, such as Ford Motor Company, Lithia, General Motors and BMW. Guarnaccia uses his experience with these big-name brands to make Rhode Island’s local businesses, bigger brands and agencies compete with huge names and become Big Fish in their market.

Here’s what some of the Newport Interactive Marketers were saying on Twitter about NIM’s event, “Secrets of Your Competition”:

Mia Lupo: For traffic trends, compare long-term performance; identify surprising peaks and dips then WHY this happens #NIMRI #trends

David Englund: Getting “schooled” from Big Fish Results is like drinking from the fire hydrant at #nimri

Ryan Belmore: So much great information was shared last night at #NIMRI! Nice to see everyone and thank you Midtown Oyster Bar and @sue_DesigEditor!

Newport Restoration: Archive.org- a good way to see how far a company’s come & what they can do to improve. #NIMRI

Join the Conversation on Twitter using #NIMRI. Or sign up for NIM event announcements using the box at the top right of this page.

Check out the next NIM event here. Make sure you preregister to get a spot before it fills up!

The post Competitive Intelligence: Ask Why? appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

AdWords is a Keyword Action 

• AdWords is Google’s brand name for their pay per click ad platform)
• Keywords are words or phrases users search for on Google to locate what they’re interested in
• Advertisers bid on keywords used to describe their business
• When your keywords are eligible in the auction an ad you write, appears in the search results
• When a user clicks on your ad Google charges the you a cost for the click (CPC)

PPC is Highly Targeted

• Keywords: “Red Running Shoes” is 50% more profitable than “Red Running Sneakers”
• Ad Messaging: “Fast Shipping” is 25% more profitable than “Fast Delivery“
• Geo Targeting: a [X] mile radius around your business, city/towns and countries
• Devices: desktops, tablets and mobile, and even mobile providers
• Time and Day: only during your business open hours or 24/5

What You Pay for a Click

• You set your monthly budget and divide it over a 30 day period
• For example: $1,000 monthly budget equates to $33 a day
• If your average cost per click is $1.00 you’ll get 33 clicks in a day
• One day you may get $33 worth of clicks, another day you may get $36 worth of clicks
• You won’t pay more than $1,000 in a month

YOU Set Your Maximum Cost Per click (CPC)

• Often you’ll actually pay less per click than your max CPC.
• For example: Your max CPC is $1.00, the advertiser below you has max CPC
•    at $0.80. When a user clicks on your ad  you pay only $0.81 for the click

How Your Ad Ranks

• Ad Rank determines your ad’s position in relation to other advertiser’s ads
• Ad Rank = Quality Score x Maximum Cost per Click
• Quality Score = The quality of your ads, keywords and landing pages
• Ad Rank is recalculated each time your ad is eligible to appear – ad position fluctuates
• Even if Brand X has higher bids than yours, you can still win a higher position at a lower price by using highly relevant keywords, ads and landing pages!

What to Do Before You Get Started

1. Establish Clearly Defined Goals – What may seem really obvious to you may not to good portion of your visitors. What do you want your visitors to do?

2. Why Should Visitors Buy From You? – What makes your product or service unique?

3. Understanding ROI – You need to understand your ROI to determine how profitable your PPC advertising is. To calculate ROI sales you need 3 numbers: revenue from PPC advertising, cost related to goods sold, and Adwords cost. The formula is:

Revenue – Overall Costs / Overall Costs = Profit Percentage (Overall Cost = Cost related to good sold + Adwords cost). 

Ex. R = 1,300 O= 1,000

($1,300   –   $1,000)   /  $1,000          =  0.3

Revenue    Overall Costs   Overall Costs   Profit is 30%

Explaining Keywords

• Broad Match: Most traffic BUT lots of irrelevant clicks – least CPC
• Modified + Broad Match: Less traffic than broad – more relevant clicks – higher CPC
• Phrase Match: Less traffic than broad  –  more  relevant clicks  –  higher CPC than broad
• Exact Match: Least amount of traffic –  most relevant clicks  –  highest CPCs
• Negative Match: Keeps your ads from appearing for irrelevant queries. Not using negative matches is one of the biggest mistakes advertisers make. Adding negatives is a huge cost controller especially when using broad match terms.

Writing Effective Ads

• Include target keywords in your ad content
• Include a value or unique selling proposition
• Have a call to action
• Don’t forget transactional words such as prices, fee, discount, etc.
• Create a sense of urgency

Monitoring and Measuring Your Campaigns

Daily

• Are your ads running?

Weekly

•  Are impressions , clicks and conversions normal?
• Did you think of new keywords in the shower this morning?
• Do you have a new promotion | product | value proposition?

Monthly  

• Month to month, quarter to quarter, year to year
• Keep in mind seasonality
• Make note of promotions
• Note of major website changes
• Make note of major news events, weather, holidays, etc.

Here’s what Newport Interactive Marketers were saying on Twitter:

@AmandaPanera: @NewportInteract Networking with friends Katrina & Emily enjoying @MidtownOysterRI! #NIMRI pic.twitter.com/PbgImlNVhj

@Sue_DesigEditor:Ingredients to a better #adwords quality score by @SemSeopro #NIMRI pic.twitter.com/l8DHE3x4Zo

@franciscosamuel: #nimri … A view from the back … Great presentation on #google#adwordspic.twitter.com/yAXISj172h

@TaichiCharlie: #NIMRI@mikejcunn @sue_DesigEditorhttp://instagram.com/p/n9Eckfwco4/ 

Recipe for an effective #PPC ad via @semseopro #NIMRI #MidtownOyster  pic.twitter.com/y8NYEJLEzR

Meet Matt Roche

Certified AdWords Professional since 2005, Google Agency Partner Matt Roche currently manages $100,000+ in monthly client ad spend. Prior to launching his firm SEM/SEO Pro, Matt served as Director of Search Marketing at Boston-based Emagine Communications and was WIMCO’s Online Marketing Manager from 2000-2006.

The post Making Cents of PPC and AdWords appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

In addition to giving information about the impacts of lyme disease, Suzanne and Dacia hope to educate attendees at SXSW Interactive 2014 about how their project forged a new model of public health communications. Also, how they overcame challenges like motivating college interns and working in the virtual workplace.

Here are the questions Suzanne and Dacia’s presentation will answer:

• How can brands use visual social media when the subject makes people — including the social media team — literally recoil?
• How can higher ed and social media pros forge a new model to best meet the needs of paying client, intern learning experience, and professionals’ interest and fulfillment?
• Which social media platforms are most effective in helping to prevent vector-borne diseases and how may they work for other public health campaigns?
• What do students know already and are they equipped to jump into effective roles as social media communicators on behalf of a brand?
• What to look for in interns and how to keep interns motivated when working virtually?

Show your support for bringing “Ticks vs. Humans” to SXSW by voting on the SXSW Panel Picker website and spreading the word to your friends and colleagues!

The post “Ticks vs. Humans: Can Social Media Crush Pathogens?” at SXSW Interactive 2014 appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

A native of Colombia, educated in fashion design at the London College of Fashion, @StylinAna has a honed her talent for following trends and introducing new concepts.

Previously Ana was responsible for social media and information technology at the internet fashion startup “Smart Is Cool” and was featured in Glamour Magazine, appeared on FOX Strategy Room, and toured the East Coast as a motivational speaker for young girls alongside the nonprofit Girls Take Charge.

Since Smart Is Cool, she has worked in social media at New York and Boston agencies. As Inceptor’s social media manager, Ana focuses on clients’ strategic social media planning, blogger relations, and identifying news, trends, and best practices. Based in Boston, Inceptor is a Didit company.

With Raynes’ tips, the audience learned how to

• Deliver beyond Facebook with Influencer Campaigns
• Utilize Google Plus and its applications (Google Hangouts, Google Circles)
• Track social media outreach using free tools
• Understand social engagement has ROI

Aside from providing “techy” information, Raynes’ talk gave small business owners insight into social branding and customer relationship management.

Missed it? That’s okay – check out this recap

What Works for Agencies That We Can Do Too

Ana Raynes’ social media team at Inceptor handles new media for major national brands. Rather than experiment on your own, find out what works that you can implement – even with limited time and budgets.

The post Social Media Agency Secrets appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

Missed March’s NIM Analyzing Google Analytics?

Jay Murphy dug into Google Analytics, showing NIM attendees how they can see who is coming to their websites and engaging with them. With this valuable information, brands can provide more specific information that attracts a greater number of followers.

Why it’s important to know who is following you

Knowing who is following your business online offers unprecedented advantages. With this information, you can clearly identify your target market as well as the customer base  you are trying to reach. You can then implement new strategies to find and attract  potential customers you have yet to reach.

Need to know more about Google Analytics? Sign up for Jay’s workshop at the Chamber of Commerce in Middletown, R.I. [Date Change: JUNE 6]

Google Analytics is a free tool that will enhance your marketing strategy. Jay covers all the basics as well as how to interpret the results and how to make solid business decisions from the data. We we’re able to explore advanced topics like how to setup features such as:

• Dashboards
• Integrating with Google AdWords
• Goals and Segments and more.

This program is free, and it gives you great insights into your website traffic and marketing effectiveness.

Navigating Google’s powerful, flexible and easy-to-use features lets you see and analyze your traffic data in an entirely new way. With Google Analytics, you’re more prepared to write better-targeted ads, strengthen your marketing initiatives, and create higher-converting websites.

If you have a website and you don’t leverage Google Analytics, you’re throwing money away!

The post Analyzing Google Analytics With BU Instructor Jay Murphy appeared first on Newport Interactive Marketers.

Would you fall in love with Google+ if it boosted your business by 75%? Well, photographer Ed King did, and Google+ for Business did just that for 02809 Ed King Photography. King explained at the September 27 NIM event how the social media platform some take for granted is actually one of the best tools you can have in your marketing toolkit.

What makes Google+ a necessary part of the marketer’s toolkit is how much it improves a marketer’s reach. Similar to Facebook, but with added reach, Google+ Business Pages creates friend-circles with live hangouts, resulting in community conversations that have more longevity so your messaging can grow exponentially.

King explained that Google+ sites are indexed faster and your connections affect search results. In fact, when King made G+ a priority in his marketing campaign, he gained more than 2,000 followers!

With 15 years experience in business-to-business sales, marketing and working with clients such as Partners Healthcare & Brigham and Women’s Hospital, former chapter president of East Bay B.N.I., King became active in social media in 1990 when he worked with AOL and in a content development role for iVillage.

Although Google+ is a little over a year old, it’s gaining serious ground, according to King. It’s a Facebook-heavy world out there, and people grow complacent and think that Facebook is the only network they need but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Getting involved in G+ Circles

Some people feel like they’re talking to themselves in G+ circles because they don’t understand the potential. In fact, live circles can improve the reach of a business easily if you know how to use them. If sites on G+ get indexed faster, and presence is about indexing … then G+ is well worth checking out, and King has the 22,000 new followers to prove it.

“My sales have increased dramatically,” says King. “It has opened doors which would never have existed without it.” An example is an online Google mentorship with a photographer who has worked with National Geographic, which has played a vital role in King’s overall online presence.

King was lucky enough to have five images selected as “Google Plus Photo Extract Photo of the day” this year, which boosted his actual print sales not only for those prints but others in his collections as well.

“I know some will say because it is a visual product that is easily shared but the idea is fresh interesting content, but I have even received feedback from one person who shares my work regularly, who mentioned to me that  because of our connection with the shared images it has increased her overall reach.”

King’s Background in Google+

King’s two-year-old fan page slowly grew his fan base – 150 fans in two years – but when he started using Google Plus that number blossomed to a ripe 22,000 followers, plus he has added an additional 300 fans to Facebook in 6 months. His Twitter account was another marketing outlet that was slow to grow, although he said he uses Google+ a bit more. He was able to add several hundred quality contacts in the past few months. [ SUE, this part is unclear to me – does he mean quality contacts through Google+, or quality contacts through Twitter via Google+??? ]

“All of this growth has lead to an increase in revenue and opportunities like my recent shoot on the Tall Ship from New Bedford to Philly which has lead to more revenue,” says King, who was asked to teach an online course through a Google contact and who gave his first three-day workshop in Rhode Island this this past September through another Google contact.

Is Google+ the whole marketing package?

As to whether Google+ is the whole marketing package, King ganders that it’s a strong possibility since he had been working other aspects of social media but until Google+ he never imagined that he could be this successful using social media.

King had some advice for the Newport hospitality industry: “Personally, if I was in the hospitality industry in Newport I would be hosting a weekly or bi-weekly hangout highlighting the area.  This may be a slow grow at first but the live stream to Youtube makes this accessible for anyone at anytime they think about searching Newport as an example.”

Hanging out on Google+ takes patience, and good listening skills, suggests King, who took the time to learn how to use the multifaceted tool until he figured out exactly how to make it work for him.

King’s passion for Google+ piqued new interest for NIM marketers, and NIM founder Suzanne McDonald got right to work to put together a Google+ hangout of her own for NIMers who wanted the marketing success Ed King was able to achieve through G+, for 02809!

Take a look at the hot topics trending twitter about the event:

12MeterCharters says, “Write a complete intro in your Google+ business page. No. 1 complaint of users is incomplete intro.”

Sue_DesigEditor says, “Of 100 million active users, @02809Photo is ranked 626 in US but his Google+ has also boosted his other social platforms.”

KevinTVine says, “Listening to @02809photo talk about how Google+ helped bolster his photography business into the stratosphere #NIMRI”

Stay tuned for November NIM event at La Forge Casino Restaurant at 186 Bellevue Avenue. NIM looks forward to seeing you at the next function at La Forge Casino Restaurant at 186 Bellevue Avenue. http://www.laforgerestaurant.com! Easy parking across the street in the CVS parking lot. Don’t forget to register!

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