Twitter

Social media has been described in a lot of ways--but when done properly, it can become an art.

Just a few years ago, a simple presence on Facebook meant a company was "doing social media." Without much strategy, rhyme, or reason, a company was “hip” if they were on the one social media channel. Now companies that are serious about social media have a presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, LinkedIn, Vine, and more. But with more and more companies entering these channels, brands have to do more than just "be there" to be successful. It takes some social creativity to break through...

This week, ExactTarget launched the 21st research report in our SUBSCRIBERS, FANS, & FOLLOWERS series: The Digital North. This cross-channel report covers the online habits and preferences of online Canadian consumers, through detailed analyses of the channels they check daily and the communication methods they respond to best.

If Canadian consumers are part of the target audience for your digital marketing campaigns, you'll want to download this free report to power those campaigns with critical statistics and numbers. But even if Canadians aren't a primary audience for your brand, the...

Social media has been around for more than a decade, and most businesses have come to realize that social can (and should) be an important part of their marketing program. At the same time, marketers continue to struggle with with how to fully leverage—or even understand—the ever-changing world of social media marketing.

Finding and installing a social media management product isn't enough. You need a thorough understanding of how to launch, grow, and innovate your social media programs.

Look no further! ExactTarget Social Media Services can provide you with proactive support, a pragmatic...

Recently, Twitter announced a new security feature to better protect accounts: login verification. This optional two-factor authentication method will run a second check upon sign-in to Twitter.com to ensure it's really you. You must enroll your account in two-factor authentication at Twitter.com in order to activate this feature.

If you have activated this feature, or are thinking about it, you might be wondering how this will affect SocialEngage. Here are a few key things to keep in mind:

• Activating two-factor authentication on a Twitter account will not de-authorize third-party apps...

Consumers who mention your brand on Twitter expect a quick response, especially if they have a complaint or question. A recent study by Socialbakers suggests brands are improving, although many industries have work to do in becoming more responsive. 

As we know at ExactTarget, the airline industry stands out for succeeding in intense customer response on Twitter: the real-time nature of flight cancellations and other problems airlines face in helping travelers means that airlines must respond quickly to consumers to be relevant. We were pleased to see ExactTarget clients WestJet and JetBlue call...

That is a familiar image, isn't it? The well-traveled, world-weary suitcase, littered with stickers from places visited from Alaska to Zimbabwe. The trusty suitcase that is lugged from state to state and country to country: it may be battered and bruised, but it serves its owner well as they globe-trot across the world.

I used to be envious of the owners of those suitcases. That image motivated me to have my own beat-up, decorated travel companion to visit far off places with.

I have been living outside of America for almost nine years now. I lived in Sydney, Australia for just under five years...

In today’s digital era, brands are trying everything to stand out from the crowd. With more channels, more users and more campaigns than ever before, breaking through the white noise is becoming even more difficult. There is no special formula, process or social media "expert" that can guarantee success when it comes to these efforts. For Dick’s Sporting Goods, they have found a way.

@DICKS simply asked, “What do you #RunFor?” It seems like a simple enough question. And then you think about it. Running is hard work. It can be painful. There’s rarely a tangible reward at the end of a run. So,...

Over the next several weeks, I will be publishing a series of posts about the basics of social media. These aren’t in any specific order, but if followed they will help you to monitor and respond to your fans and followers effectively. The posts in this series will be:

• Do Not Delete
• Remember, You’re Talking to People
• What’s the Reason for Your Social Media Presence?
• Your Customers are Talking. Listen to Them!

Do Not Delete
You might be tempted to delete negative posts from your Twitter and Facebook feed, but don't do it! It might seem counter intuitive, especially if you have a plethora of negative...

In the month of May, the entire city of Indianapolis is taken over by “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing” – The Indianapolis 500. And for one weekend each year, this historic race captures the country’s attention. That short span of attention is the perfect opportunity for the sport to capitalize. In the digital era, the Greatest Spectacle in Racing becomes the greatest spectacle in social media.

In years past, the “500” – a race so famous it can be called by a number – has been criticized for its lack of enthusiasm around the social media arena. For an event this big, with so much attention...

Is your brand on every social media platform under the sun yet mastering engagement in none?

The virtues of having a social media presence are blindingly obvious. After all, what brand wouldn’t want to connect with their customers, build brand reputation and ultimately increase sales? But all too often this desire to engage online gets side-tracked and you find yourself staring down the barrel of multiple social media profiles with no notifications. So how can you optimise your efforts on social media and increase engagement with fans and followers?

Let’s take a look at some best practice...

The recent success of social music platforms, such as Spotify and Songza, has inspired Twitter to expand its reach into the world of arts and entertainment. Primarily used as a collective newsource to share information in 140 character chunks, Twitter launched its music platform #Music last week to support music sharing and promotion. This comes only a few months after the release of Twitter's video support application, Vine, which can be used as further evidence of Twitter's expansion into other forms of communication and sharing.

#Music allows Twitter users to explore popular, emerging,...

There’s been a lot of debate about whether social media increases or decreases brand loyalty. While it allows a customer to gain more access and get closer to the brand, it also allows competing brands to do the exact same thing. With more brands competing for customers, it is easy for consumers to switch brands.  

In the sports industry, empires are built on brand loyalty – specifically the loyalty of the organization’s fan base. As we have written several times, social media and sports seem to be a combination built for each other. Now that nearly all teams at all levels are on Twitter, it is...

David Cowling from Socialmedianews.com.au has released his Social media Statistics Report recently and the numbers are interesting.

The ten most popular networks in Australia are as follows:

Google+ was in 11^th position, with approximately 340 000 users.

The key take away from these...

66 games have been played and 66 teams have been eliminated. Only two teams and two Twitter handles remain. We have given you official handles, hashtags, klout scores, and numerous other updates. Now, though, we can focus our attention on the two schools meeting for the national championship tonight.

University of Michigan

Official Handle: @UMichBBall

Official Hashtag: #GoBlue

Followers:  60,427

Klout score at start of March Madness: 78

Current Klout score: 79

Difference: +1

Developing Story: The young Wolverines have advanced to the National Championship on the back of National Player of the Year Trey...

There have been dunks, upsets, blowouts, inspiring story lines and a whole lot of basketball in the past few weeks. Sports and Twitter are a match made in heaven…or maybe March. With real-time commentary and an expansive tournament to determine the national champion, Twitter activity has been more plentiful than Florida Gulf Coast dunks were in the first three rounds.

Now, though, the field has been narrowed to the #Final4. The basketball will be good, and the potential on Twitter may be even greater. With two perennial powers, an up-and-comer, and heavy underdog, there will be plenty of...

This week I head to Knoxville to attend Social Slam and participate on a great panel discussing strategies to attract and energize an online audience. In preparation for our panel discussion, my esteemed panelists (meet them below!) and I wanted to provide attendees (and those who aren't able to attend #soslam) some actionable tips to help you better engage with your social audience.

Dino Dogan, our fearless leader and moderator. Founder of @Triberr. Lousy martial artist. Recovering engineer. Singer/songwriter. Blogger. Quiet reader. Loud speaker. Global force for badassery. Hi.

Follow Dino: http...

As a marketer, it's your job to keep up with new technologies that can help drive your business forward. With social media, it can be a challenge to keep up with the changing landscape that includes Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin, Pinterest, Tumblr, Reddit, Flickr, and more every day!

And what's worse, most social media teams are still very small. Even some of the largest brands in the world have surprisingly small and very busy teams. From our experience, the most successful brands focus on one or two networks that best suit their audience. Let's look at the 2012 Edison Survey Data and summary...

Here in Indiana, we love our basketball. Given the amount of blog posts we have dedicated to #MarchMadness, you probably already knew that. Well, the end is near. The field has been narrowed to the Final Four. Before the teams clash in Atlanta next weekend, we thought it would be appropriate to take one final (maybe) look at the field and see exactly how and where their social media marketing strategies rank.

Last week we provided our readers with official handles and hashtags for each team. We then provided the bracket filled out based on each team’s Klout score. If you had followed our Klout...

Want some advice on how to deal with those complainers on Facebook and Twitter? I recently wrote an article for Marketing Profs on this very topic!

For every complaint expressed, studies indicate that more than 25 go unregistered. Rather than complain, the vast majority of those dissatisfied customers simply take their business elsewhere. And the millions (or billions) of lost revenue are rarely recovered. But for those who do complain, there is no one right way to respond because every situation is unique. Instead, it's important to look at different complainer personas and react accordingly.

So...