This week we Celebrated 4 Years of Micro Media Marketing. It has been such an incredible journey so far and we are happy to share it with you. We are looking forward to what the future has in store as social media continues to evolve everyday. 

I want to Thank Everyone who has inspired and been a part of the Micro Media Marketing family.

John Fischer from StickerGiant.com, Rebecca Madigan from the Performance Marketing Association, and Durk Price from eAccountableOPM among the first to sign up with Micro Media Marketing. 

Scott Jangro, Brian Littleton, Lisa Picarille, Joe Sousa, Andy Rodriguez, Emilio Yepez, John Carcutt, Brian Breslin, Biana Bakman, James Martell, and many others in the industry who provided great feedback and inspiration as we grew the company. 

Of course Rick Ramos who put up my website without me asking (I think he was trying to get a date) and has helped me by being supportive everyday since. My mom who is also a woman entrepreneur (AC Trading Inc) and has shown me the example of hard work. I also enjoy a quote she used to tell me, "work smarter, not harder." There are many others so if I forgot to mention you sorry you did help me too!

Without all of you, Micro Media Marketing, would not be where it is today; so Thank YOU! 

This week I got to help someone else started out new and it was nice to be able to do. Remember always Pay It Forward. 

This week on the Micro Minute we also have other news. The Google Affiliate Network Closes Down and Facebook updates the New Newsfeed.

For weekly Social Media Tips in a Minute Check out the Micro Minute on Spreaker and tweet me your social media questions @MicroSteph or give us a call at 347-878-6696. 

First and foremost as a business you need to have a blog. Then you also need to have personal pages if not on Facebook (which is more intimate) then on LinkedIn, Google Plus, and Twitter. That being said before you can setup a Google Authorship you need to have a personal Google Plus page. When someone is doing research on your business and if they want to work with you, they look for well, YOU. They want to know the people behind the business. They want to connect and know that they can trust you. The Google Authorship takes content to that personal level. 

Why do you need to setup a Google Authorship page? First this ties your Google Plus account to your content. If that doesn't already click perhaps the numbers will. According to the Search Engine Journal having a picture of yourself and your name tied to your content in the search results increases your click through rates from 30-150%!

Listen to the Micro Minute to learn what more about setting up your own Google Authorship and see the steps that Google puts in place for you to do so below. 

3 Easy Steps from Google that shows you how to setup Google Authorship:

1. Have a profile photo (on your Google+ personal page) with a recognizable headshot.

2. Make sure a byline containing your name (must be same name as your Google+ personal page) is on each page of your content 

3. Verify you have an email address (such as steph(at)micromediamarketing.com) on the same domain as your content. 

It takes minutes and will significantly increase your Click Through Rate so it is a no brainer, now go out and do it. Blog, Share, and Be Social. If you have not been doing this for your business don't fall behind. We can setup your business and personal Google Plus pages. Contact us and we can help you with all your social media needs including content creation!

Facebook incorporates features from Twitter and other social media platforms such as Instagram which they also own. Hashtags have been said may be added to Facebook to add more value in conversations and broaden connection opportunities. This has not been launched yet but was reported here by the wall street journal.

What was incorporated just yesterday are reply buttons within the comments. This will allow for better conversations. Facebook's journalism program manager said, "You and your readers will have the ability to reply directly to comments left on your Page content and start conversation threads, which will make it easier for you to interact directly with individual readers and keep relevant conversations connected." This is a feature that Twitter already has that threads conversations. Learn how to incorporate replies and what they mean below: 
 

So what do you think of Facebook now imitating their competitors? It is usually the other way around, so it's interesting to watch them implement these updates. Ideally this will make the overall Facebook experience better.

Listen to what I have to say about these new features on this week's Micro Minute below: 

If you have any questions tweet me @MicroSteph or contact us.

This week on the Micro Minute I wanted to let everyone know about a Facebook update. This one is great because I usually warn people when setting up a cover photo on their business page of all the don'ts. This time I could tell people what you can do! Facebook made an update to their policy showing that you can now include 20% text on your cover photo. Not only that but they are not limiting the contact information which many pages were already in violation of.

This means including your website or phone number on your cover page (which makes complete sense) is now allowed. You can also have a call to action. The only thing they mainly restrict is copyright infringement and misleading users. Good move Facebook. This is something that business pages needed to have and most of them were already doing it anyways. So go ahead and update that cover photo with your company's contact info or a call to action and gain some more business. 

To hear more details you can listen to the Micro Minute Facebook Cover Photo Podcast Listed Below. You can also check out this Inside Facebook Blog Post that has more information on the policy update. 

If you have any Facebook Business Page or Social Media questions you can email me at steph(at)micromediamarketing.com or tweet me @MicroSteph. 

If you are considering DIY Social Media Ask yourself these four questions:

1. Do I know how to best use all of the Social Media Platforms?

2. Do I have the Time to Dedicate Daily to Social Media Accounts?

3. Does the Person that will run my Social Media Know how to Represent my Business Well Online? 

4. Do I or my Team have a Plan of Action on What to Share on Social Media?

If the answer was NO to any of these questions, we have a solution for you. Developing a strategy can be done for you once you speak to a professional about your business and they evaluate your current social media efforts. This process can take anywhere from a couple weeks to a couple months depending on the level of knowledge they are working with. If you do not have the time to manage your social media pages on a daily basis it is better to outsource your social media management to a professional business that can help you. If you do have the resources in-house but the person knows your business and does not know social media well you can get help by having them trained not only on the different social media platforms but also on how to represent your business well online. A strategy is the best way to have employees represent you well online and also an FAQ will help. We can develop an FAQ so that they know how to answer important questions that may arise. 

It is important that whoever is managing your personal and business social media pages that they have a plan of action. Not only a strategy is important but also an understanding of how all the social media platforms work and how to utilize them in different ways. In this Micro Minute I will go over the pros and cons of doing social media yourself or having someone in-house manage it for you. There is also always the option of outsourcing your social media but it is always important to find a good fit.

You need to make sure whoever is running your social media has a basic training of the major social media platforms and that they have a great understanding of your business. Learning who your target audience is and how to speak to them is key. With a business page you need to have a concrete brand voice meaning even if multiple people are managing the page it should be consistent. Following a blue print is ideal and being able to monitor and manage your accounts is also an important part of social media success.

Please take a listen to the Micro Minute Podcast: DIY Social Media. Then decide what you think is the best fit for your business. If you have any social media questions or would like your social media pages evaluated please contact us or tweet me directly @MicroSteph. 

Content Marketing is a huge part of social media. One important use of social media is to drive traffic. Ideally rather than using another source you want to be known as the expert in your industry. Therefore, it is important that you are providing your visitors with unique content. You can hire a content writer or do it yourself. The key is to be consistent, passionate, and to know your niche and audience. I am going to tell you about a tool you can use to help you to accomplish your content marketing goals. This is a content marketing platform called Shareist but first let's talk about content and some other ways to create it. 

If you are not a writer you can also develop content through a podcast using a simple platform such as Spreaker, GeekCast, or others. I myself have been a guest many times on great GeekCast podcasts. I also publish a weekly Social Media Tips Podcast called the Micro Minute. You can also try out developing videos. I have a YouTube Channel where I answer Social Media Questions. I actually use QuickTime Player on my MacBook to record my screen, this way I am able to show viewers step by step instructions and walk them through on how to solve their question. I have also used screenflow to record more in-depth video courses for my Social Media Courses at The School of Internet Marketing. If you do not like writing at all there is another option. First you can hire someone as I mentioned before. Second, you can interview others or invite respected industry thought leaders to do a guest blog post on your blog. 

Whatever you do have a plan of action first. Then it will make it easier on you to plan out what kind of content you will be putting together. I want to share a Micro Minute Podcast on Content Marketing. It focuses on a wonderful content marketing platform called Shareist. My mentor from back in the day Scott Jangro is the Co-Founder. He has gone over the latest updates with me and it is exciting how easy they are making Content Marketing. Not only that but the social tie ins that they have are epic. Even if you are already using a platform such as WordPress you can still use Shareist to help you to better create content. Listen to the Micro Minute and you will learn why. If you have questions feel free to tweet @Jangro or email him at scott(at)shareist.com

In this Micro Minute you will Learn: Why Content Marketing needs to be a part of your strategy. I talk about a new platform called Shareist that helps you to organize, collaborate, and share your content. It is a tool that will make your life easier whether you are a team or individual working on content it will definitely make a difference. It is so easy to use and you can even publish to your WordPress blog from there. 

If you need help with your content marketing and social media strategy feel free to contact me directly at steph(at)micromediamarketing.com

LinkedIn is an important platform for businesses and personal connections. It is the #1 Professional Network on Social Media. The way you use it should be a different strategy from the way that you use Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube and other social media platforms. It is important to educate yourself on how to use LinkedIn and learn how it can benefit your business.

First you need to make sure your personal profile is 100% completed. This means you should have a professional photo, up to date information on your title and workplace, you skills and expertise, and much more. This is something that every professional should have setup. Once that is complete you should also have a company page as well as a group page. The personal page is the first thing that people will see and it is how you will make your connections so it is the first impression.

In order to leave a good first impression you want to make sure when you reach out to someone that you met or that you are interested in connecting with that you send out a personalized message to them. You can also ask a common connection to make the introduction for you. For this reason and many others I have made a Micro Minute Podcast about LinkedIn connections. The main reason is that LinkedIn sends at least twice an email out to people that you try to connect with. Many people send out mass emails to their entire email contact list and this may not be the best tactic. Doing this is okay if you hand select and send this out to people that you know pretty well. On the other hand if you send out this email to people that you do not know well it may rub them the wrong way. If you have sent out this email and would like to stop the invitations from going out more than once you can contact LinkedIn here to stop the emails.

Homework: Add me on LinkedIn Here (test out my suggestions by adding a personal message explaining why you want to connect or that you read my blog or heard my podcast)

Listen to the LinkedIn Connections Podcast to learn more about how to best connect with people. If you have any more questions or need help with your LinkedIn Profile for yourself or a business contact us here or tweet me @MicroSteph. 

I recently launched a new podcast for 2013. This weekly podcast covers the latest social media news in one minute. The Micro Minute is a great show for anyone to listen to on the go. 

Here are some of the first episodes I have recorded so far:

The Facebook Graph Search

The Twitter Vine Video App

Enjoy and let us know what you think in the comments! Be sure to tweet your social media questions to me at @MicroSteph!

Thank you to James Martell for sending me over to Spreaker it is such a simple platform to use that I even recorded the latest Micro Minute on my iPhone! If you are interested in finding great podcasts or want to start your own definitely check out Spreaker.com. Also be sure to follow me on Spreaker Here. 

What an incredible show. We had productive meetings, learned in sessions, networked, and even dressed up. Here is a summary of the conference each day in images with captions. If we did not get to connect during Affiliate Summit East please be sure to tweet us your social media questions using the hashtag #AskMicroSteph #ASE12 or email Steph at: steph(at)micromediamarketing.com. A Big Thanks to everyone who attended our Social Media Session, we will be emailing case studies to attendees that reached out to us. 

Day One – The Meet Market

We browsed the halls of the Meet Market and ran into our client Durk Price and his eAccountableOPM team. They were also enjoying the meet market with their client: TheStreet.com. 

Day One – The ShareASale Disco Party

That same night we Discoed the night away with our friends from ShareASale. They know how to throw a fun party. They even had a special appearance by John Travolta. 

Below at the Disco Party is my friend Daniel M. Feinberg and well deserved winner for Best Dressed!

Day Two – The Exhibit Hall & Meetings

Affiliate Summit Co-Founder, Shawn Collins, chatting with one of his attendees in the Exhibit Hall next to the GoDaddy.com Booth. 

Chatting with Jim Kukral about digitalbooklaunch.com/

Day Two – Affiliate Ball with Ice T & Coco and Karaoke

I had to stop and tell Coco that she was doing social media well for herself. She has branded herself as @Cocosworld and is doing themed tweets. Props to her and what a sweet person. She even took a pic with @JGoode's Traveling Penguin. 

Of course, Karaoke was a must and a fun event to attend during the show hosted by Affiliate Summit. 

Day Three : Affiliate Summit Session and Keynote

We had a fabulous Social Media Session from all view points: Merchant, Affiliate, and Agency. Thank you to everyone who attended! If you would like to receive a case study please contact us. 

Keynote Dave Cupples asked our President MicroSteph to appear in his keynote as Wonder Woman for a good cause. She said yes and raised $790 to St. Judes Children's Research Hospital through his charitable website: DonateSponsor.org you can still donate here. Thank you anonymous for your generous donation and everyone who helped donate for a good cause. The video is coming soon!

Day Three Yankee Game:

Loving the Wonder Woman Costume so why not wear it to the Yankee Game?

Leaving you with the Best Group Picture at Affiliate Summit East after the Yankee Game in the elevator. Thanks to Shawn and Missy not only for the fun and baseball game; business wise "I get over 50% of my clients from Affiliate Summit relationships!" - <3, MicroSteph

We are so happy and proud to be working with someone like Jef Holm and his company People Water. People Water does great things for others to have clean water. They started in Nicaragua, where I am from and their next stop appears to be Africa. Jef Holm and Emily Maynard announced on After the Final Rose on The Bachelorette that they are planning a humanitarian trip to Africa to build wells. These wells will bring so many people clean water. It will all be done with Jef's company People Water.

People Water also recently launched their new website. On their site you can Get Involved, Become a Dealer, and Buy People Water. People Water is not only available online they are also available at stores such as: Whole Foods, Albertsons, 7-Eleven, and more. For every bottle of water purchased People Water will give an equal amount of clean water to a person in need.

Jef Uses Social Media for Social Good

Through the journey of Jef Holm being on the Bachelorette and the growth of their social media we have come up with some cool contests and online interactions for People Water. Twitter has been a main focus with many Live Tweeting sessions where Jef personally answered his fans. Even right after winning, Jef joked with his fans and with Emily on Twitter. Jef's Twitter account has grown since our last case study update on live tweeting.

This growth is due to the fact that Jef won the Bachelorette but he also continued to interact with his fans gaining a more loyal following and growing the excitement. Jef went from 128k followers to now well over 213k followers. Each time he live tweets his followers increase more than double what they increase on a regular day. His biggest increase of course was after winning the Bachelorette and making appearances on Good Morning America and other national shows.

The key part of his live appearances that helped with his social media presence was also sharing behind the scenes photos and moments with Emily also with his fans on Twitter which is worth a lot. He did this well and will continue to do so with his growing fan base. Well done Jef, not only are your fans happy to see you and Emily together they can also learn about the great causes you help. It is wonderful that you are taking the time to visit Africa with Emily and many people can learn how to help. If you want to join in on the conversation tweet @PeopleWater or @JefHolm with the official hashtag for People Water #DropForDrop. We will leave you with Jef's recent behind the scenes tweets: 

19hJef Holm ‏@jefholm

@emilygmaynard is going to kill it tonight on @jimmykimmel at 12:00AM @abc #boyband http://instagr.am/p/Ncg_HKPswg/ 

 

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24hJef Holm ‏@jefholm

Best birthday present ever! @emilygmaynardhttp://instagr.am/p/Nb8VaRvs3q/ 

 

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23 JulJef Holm ‏@jefholm

I just told @EmilyMaynard that I'm allergic to cats. #suprise! She told me she's allergic to @PeopleWater #messedup

 

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23 JulJef Holm ‏@jefholm

Waking up at 3:00am to do Good Morning America with my Panda Kitty. @EmilyMaynard

 

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23 JulJef Holm ‏@jefholm

GMA @emilygmaynard #teamjef http://instagr.am/p/NbFoECPs3F/ 

 

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