Susan Nefzger PR

Pew Research has released a new report summarizing social media usage and found, of the 68 percent of Americans using Facebook, 74 percent check the site daily and 51 percent say are on the platform several times a day.

Conducted over the phone during a three-day period early in January, Pew polled 2,002 US adults age 18 and over about their social media use on the following eight platforms: Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Pinterest, Snapchat, LinkedIn, Twitter and WhatsApp.

For the most part, Facebook usage has not changed dramatically since the research firm’s April 2016 report. Facebook is still the most popular traditional social media platform for all the respondents.

YouTube is also attracting a large segment of users, even though Pew admits it’s not necessarily considered a traditional social media site. In fact, it had higher user numbers than Facebook, with 73 percent of all respondents saying they use YouTube (The report did not have numbers for previous YouTube usage as this was the first year it was included in the survey questions, along with Snapchat and WhatsApp).

Social media usage growth by platform

Pew’s data showed the typical — or median — adult reports using three of the eight social sites included in the survey. Same as Facebook’s numbers, most of the usage for these sites has remained relatively unchanged since the firm’s 2016 report.

The biggest jump Pew saw in usage was on Instagram, with 35 percent of respondents now using the site compared to the 28 percent who reported using it two years ago.

Social media use among younger crowds

When looking at usage numbers by age group, Pew Research reports 88 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds are using some form of social media. The report broke down the social media usage for this age group into categories: 18- to 24-year-olds and 24- to 29-year-olds. Here is what they found:

Social Media Usage Among 18- to 24-Year-Olds

• 80 percent are on Facebook
• 78 percent are on Snapchat
• 71 percent are on Instagram
• 45 percent are on Twitter
• 94 percent use YouTube

This age group represents the largest share of Snapchat users of the various age groups. Among the 78 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds using Snapchat, 82 percent say they open the app daily, and 71 percent say they use it multiple times per day.

Instagram is getting slightly less use by this group. Of the 71 percent on Instagram, 81 percent say they visit the site daily and just over half (55 percent) are going several times a day.

Social Media Usage Among 25- to 29-Year-Olds

• 80~ percent are on Facebook
• 54 percent are on Snapchat
• 54 percent are on Instagram
• 30~ percent are on Twitter
• 80~ percent use YouTube

This slightly older age group of 25- to 29-year-olds have similar usage patterns for Facebook and YouTube when compared to the 18- to 24-year old crowd.

The numbers differ more widely between the two age groups when looking at Snapchat and Instagram, with this older age group of 25- to 29-year-olds less likely to use either of the two platforms.

Where ‘the Olds’ go on social

Per the report, 84 percent of the 30- to 49-year-old age group is visiting YouTube, and 80 percent are on Facebook.

Social media usage numbers for the 30- to 49-year-old age group drops significantly for Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter — with 40 percent of this population active on Instagram, and less than 30 percent on Snapchat or Twitter.

For the 50+ age group, usage numbers are even lower across the board: 56 percent on YouTube and 55 percent on Facebook. These numbers take a nosedive from there, with 16 percent on Instagram, 14 percent on Twitter and only seven percent on Snapchat.

We can stop whenever we want

According to Pew’s research, 59 percent of all the social media users surveyed said they thought it would not be hard to give up social media (with nearly half of the 59 percent claiming it would not be hard “at all”).

Percentage who say it would not be hard to give up social media by age group:

• 49 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds
• 60 percent of 25- to 29-year-olds
• 56 percent of 30- to 49-olds
• 66 percent of the 50+ age group

The only age group where the majority (51 percent) said they would find it difficult to stop using social sites was the 18- to 24-year-olds.

With so many people admitting they check their preferred social media sites daily, the responses given for how easy it would be to quit feels doubtful at best — especially when considering the percentage of users who admit to going to social media sites several times a day: 51 percent of Facebook users, 49 percent of Snapchat users, and 38 percent of Instagram users.

Voice Specific Mobile Search:

To begin with more people are searching on their mobile phones using voice activated technology.

So that means when you are using keywords in your SEO plan, think of how we talk, not type. It translates to longer key phrases and tags.

For local businesses, be extremely specific with the category of your business on Google My Business or whichever search engine you choose. Keep your pages updated with photos and specials as frequently as possible, at least weekly so people can see what you are up to.

Mobile First Indexing:

Every website should be mobile friendly by now. User experience is important here.  And as Google moves to mobile first indexing, it will rank your site as it relates to the mobile search experience.

Artificial Intelligence or RankBrain:

Yes everything is going artificial intelligence, virtual reality etc.. etc... what does that mean for you as a small business or a large business for that matter? It means that you need to keep viewers or readers on your site as long as possible. Google is giving Dwell Time more and more significance. To capitalize on Dwell Time, you need engaging content. Content marketing must keep in mind your target audience.

That takes us to Click Through Rates and how you can get better CTR. Update titles and page description tags with some of these:

- Best

- News

- Reviews

- Right Now

- Simple

- Step-by-Step

An SEO plan must fit in with your overall marketing plan, as it involves all aspects of content marketing, social media, PR, community outreach, offline campaigns and etc..

In other words whatever you are developing for your SEO efforts must be included in all aspects of your content marketing. Its like leaving the yeast out of the bread or whatever you are baking right? So make a comprehensive effort to move your search rank ahead in 2018 by planning ahead.

Any questions or needs we can help send an email to susan@snefzgerpr.com

Brand Look and Feel means colors, fonts, top line verbiage.

Choose 2-3 colors that you want to use to communicate the look and feel of your brand.

Fonts are the same idea, when choosing it, think about how you and others feel when seeing the fonts and how they impact that feeling.

Verbiage is everything.  From advisors to board of directors, ask others to define your service or brand in an elevator pitch or two sentence description.  Then you can compare how you the founder sees it vs. how the people who are helping you see it.  It can bring diverging thoughts together and create more consistent messaging.

Invest the time to clearly articulate a set of standards for every message that leaves your office. No point is too small — even the order of the words you use in your tagline matters.

Make sure the internal message is the same as your external message. When employees, counselors, Board of Directors members, family and friends define and describe your brand, try to provid them with a two sentence description that is easy to remember. 

Boilerplate messaging is the utmost communication of your brand, much like your mission statement.

Using the boilerplate at the end of letters, emails, press releases, all communications is the way to enforce the brand consistency.

So you can see how every detail counts when you are starting to market your brand, this will paint a clear picture of what and who you are. If you have trouble doing this, include your staff, team, and advisors to help smooth out the inconsistencies. For more details read this great article from First Round.com.http://firstround.com/review/this-brand-strategy-can-make-your-startup-look-bigger-than-it-is/

If you need help with your brand, email me at susan@snefzgerpr.com

http://firstround.com/review/this-brand-strategy-can-make-your-startup-look-bigger-than-it-is/

If you want to hear how to shake up your life and go for it, listen to Katerina Cozias on "Life After 40"her talk radio show featuring people from all walks of life who pursue their passion after the traditional life of college, working and raising a family, or pursuing a conventional career instead of their dream on http://latalkradio.com/content/la40 on Thursday, July 13th at 2p.m. EST.

I will discuss my upcoming book, "A Practical Guide to Awareness", which I created during the last two years after attending a Conscious Writing retreat in Glastonbury England.  The founder of the  International Association of Conscious and Creative Writing, Julia McCutchen, is the leading figure behind this pioneering movement.

It was there during the retreat that I began writing the book, and have since finished and am almost completed with editing to publish. I also began writing a blog, Seeing Beyond the Ordinary, which features my poetry and my photography, which is www.snefzgerpr.wordpress.com.

The transformation has been integrated throughout the last two years in my business practice, my personal relationship and how I choose to align with people in my life including family, colleagues, and all.  Conscious Writing, the practice, is about aligning with the creative consciousness to discover your true voice with which to write. Everyone has a unique story to tell. Staying in alignment is the way to continue being creative but also being happy and having a happier life.

You'll find out how I have navigated the changes on Thursday at 2 p.m. on LA40.  Tune in!

http://latalkradio.com/content/la40

LinkedIn is the most professional social media tool and is very high in search rankings for all of us. So, I'm reposting this as I saw it again on another blog.  For clients its really important also, to update your profile on all your social media not just LinkedIn.

1) Update your headshot on LinkedIn if you can do so. That also updates your algorithm on Google as "fresh content".

2) Make sure your contact information is available to the public on your profile not just people in your network.  It is so exasperating to search for services, professionals, etc... and not have an email or phone number to be able to utilize for contact.

3) Regular activity on LinkedIn is a necessity to your high rank in Search Results. Remember "fresh content",

and your algorithm - it is updated as you interact and build relationships online. That includes LinkedIn. Share posts, write articles, like other posts, and get involved in conversations that you can professionally contribute towards.

4) Group join and follow companies.  Do go ahead and join groups and follow companies to get relevant content.

It's very imporant to learn new research and information to keep up with the industry you are working within.

Follow companies that can help your employer, or your business and get involved in group conversations.

5) Update your volunteer profile.  If you are involved in volunteering, add it to your profile. Its a great plus for would be employers or clients.

If you or anyone you know needs help with LinkedIn, call or email me today.

I'm happy to talk to you about ways to improve your search rankings online.  LinkedIn is just one easy way to do so.   (https://www.linkedin.com/in/snefzgerpr)

You might think your business is safe.Hackers do it for fun, its a sport for them.

Hacked social media accounts can be inconvenient and annoying for anyone, but for a business it can be devastating and it can ruin your brand’s credibility. In March, hackers managed to access the Twitter account for McDonald’s and send out a derogatory post aimed at President Trump. But McDonald’s is a well established, multinational brand and they could gain control of their account quickly. Could your business do the same? Here are six steps to help keep your company’s social media accounts secure.

Monitor Password Practices

A strong password is the first step in good social media security. Make sure you change your social media passwords regularly and ensure each password is a meaningless string of letters, numbers and special characters. Wherever possible, use two-factor authentication. This means you need more than just a password to access an account. Each time you log in, the site will send a unique passcode to a mobile number registered to the account. If you have several people monitoring your social channels, this may be inconvenient. However, there are always ways around it. For example, you could use third-party apps such as Hootsuite or Sprout Social, which allow you to easily manage access rights for individuals.

Educate Employees

All employees should receive some basic training in social media security. More than 60% of enterprises allow their staff to use personal devices to access corporate data, so it is important that your staff knows what to look out for, both on their own accounts and on company pages. If a member of your team has their account hacked, the hacker may well target their place of work first, posting unsavory messages on your company’s social channels.

Implement a Social Media Policy

A formal social media policy means that everyone can be aware of the standards and expectations. This doesn’t need to be a lengthy document but should include details of what is considered good practice. Among many other things, it could specify that all devices used to access the organization’s social media accounts are password-protected and are locked when not in use. It could also explicitly state that passwords should not be written down or passed around among employees (unless authorized to do so) and should be changed every 90 days.

Limit Access by Apps and Staff

Choose carefully which staff members have access to your social media accounts. You could also consider using third-party management tools that allow you to give them access to social accounts without having password access. Always keep a log of exactly who has access to which accounts and ensure it is audited and updated regularly.

Passwords should be changed whenever staff members leave, even if they leave on good terms. Employees are often the weakest link when it comes to social media security. One infamous example: In 2013, UK staff at entertainment retailer HMV found themselves being laid off and the company’s Twitter account quickly hit the news when Tweets started appearing declaring, “We’re all being fired!” The tweets were, of course, later deleted, but nothing is ever completely removed from the Internet and screenshots abound of tweets that look bad for the brand.

There are hundreds of tools available that help you to schedule and manage your social media accounts. But you can’t be complacent once these tools are set up. It’s important to regularly audit which apps have access to your accounts. If you no longer use a certain app or don’t recognize its name, revoke access, to help keep your account secure.

Hire a Social Media Manager

Rather than giving access to everyone on the team and then waste time trying to monitor it, consider hiring a social media manager to take care of your channels. They should not only update your accounts regularly but also monitor your brand’s presence online and look out for any signs of a problem.

For help with your social media marketing call me today at 5616329525.

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1. Be a good communicator.
Social media is really a crowd of people talking -- usually to each other. So, you'll need to figure out how to cut through the noise and really engage with people. Here are a few pointers:

• Write well. I'm not just talking about punctuation and grammar. Write in a comfortable voice, not a formal one. Don't use four words when one will do. Unless your social-media post (Facebook update or tweet) is time sensitive, set it aside for 10 minutes. Come back to it, take a second look and edit if needed, before hitting publish.
• Use images when it makes sense. At my internet-marketing agency Portent, we've found that posts with images get about two to three times more interaction.
• Utilize video. Use platforms like YouTube or Vimeo to attract an audience. Just like images, make sure you're sharing videos that make sense.
• Take advantage of all social networks. While most people spend their time communicating on Twitter and Facebook, there are other networks that deserve attention. One being Google+. Yes, it's still a small network, but it is gaining steam, and it integrates with every other Google service. Also, there is SlideShare, a community focused on slide presentations. This site can show your content to thousands. If you have a great video or article, convert it to a SlideShare presentation.
• Respond immediately. If someone asks a question or proposes an alternate viewpoint, answer them quickly. This gives people the impression you care about their needs and are responsive.
• Don't get emotional. Don't feed the trolls. As your social-media strategy grows, you may see some angry or insensitive replies. Don't react angrily. Reply politely or not at all.

2. Buy advertising.

Don't be shy about paying to promote posts on networks like LinkedIn and Facebook. On Facebook, your posts won't even appear in all of your followers' newsfeeds without paid promotion, so promote if you can afford it.

Always use the targeting tools these platforms provide to avoid aimlessly issuing a single ad at the maximum audience size. After all, the practice won't hit the right audience and it could end up costing you. Instead, create multiple ads targeted toward specific demographics that are a great fit for your product or service. Test and see who provides the highest-quality followers.

3. Avoid me, me, me.
Don't have every post be about yourself or your company. Instead, I recommend posting 80 percent non-promotional, 20 percent promotional. So what else can you share? Here are some ideas:

• Answer questions. Search Twitter for questions by typing in a topic, a space and then a question mark. For example, "bicycle tires?" Sift through the result for great questions. Answer them directly or on other networks.
• Also, try Google. Start typing in a question, and Google will show you a list of related ones. For example, if you sell rhubarb, type in Google search, "is rhubarb." You'll immediately see the question "is rhubarb poisonous?" Answer them via social media.
• Curate content. Point out great information from other sources. This will help readers view you as a reliable resource.
• Comment. Voice your opinion on relevant breaking news and explain why it's important.

Related: 4 Ways to Turn Social-Media Fans Into Raving, Loyal Customers 

4. Expand beyond your customers.
In social media, you want to attract an audience beyond potential customers. Focus on people who are compelled to respond -- the "weird," as Seth Godin calls them. Even if they never buy from you, they'll tell others about you.

5. Flattery will get you everywhere.
Using tools like Followerwonk or Topsy will help you find the top people in your industry and major influencers. Then find the people who follow them and follow those folks, rather than the industry celebrities. They're far more likely to respond.

If people post something you enjoy, make sure they know it with a retweet, like, favorite or share. If it's really fantastic, consider posting a response on your own blog and link back to it. Over time, they'll get to know you and will be more likely to spread your content.

Even with the above suggestions, there is no magic solution. For every story of a meteoric rise to the top, you'll find 1,000 stories of slow, steady growth. Plan for that, manage expectations and capitalize.

Need help with your social media marketing or content marketing?  Let me know, email or call

susan@snefzgerpr.com.

You may be satisfied with your social media engagement thus far, but wondering how to get to the next level, right? Using video and photography to sell your product will enhance your efforts at getting people in the door or clicking on your website or blog.

Which social media platform is conducive to use of imagery?

1) Instagram- an image only platform, this is great for photography and videos. A picture tells a story and consumers love the ease with which Instagram is available.  Restaurants, artists, fashion, retail, chef's, writers all utilize this social media platform in a minimalistic way that appeals to consumers because of just that. No long explanations, no wordy sales ads, etc...https://www.instagram.com/?hl=en

2) Facebook- (https://www.facebook.com) now that the user base has reached far beyond 1 billion, and the applications available through this social media platform allow you to perfrom all manner of things while you use it, its a favorite among consumers!

Photos, videos, collages, even mini commercials can be used through Facebook business pages. The live video streaming application now available on Facebook allows your customer, client, consumer to see what is happening in real time with your product.  Need I say more?

3) Blogs- Blogs remain the most efficient way to increase your SEO or search engine optimization and ranking.

Each time you post a new blog with fresh content, including photography and videos, you are giving Google a new reason to rank you higher in the search process.  By using appropriate keywords within the copy, that describe how people find your business or would think of searching for your business, you build that credibility with Google's search engine. You will see the progress in your ranking each time you post a blog.  It usually takes 6 months to a year to obtain a first page rank if you are starting from scratch. But if you have maintained a web presence for some time, it should only help to increase your rank on search engines. Check out my blog on this web site or my poetry blog at https://snefzgerpr.wordpress.com/.

Now that we have covered the social platforms, lets quickly discuss the types of photos or videos that help maintain a consistent branding for your product or retail location. 

a) Always utilize a photo of a product that is good quality so that people know exactly what it is without reading the description. b) Try to use photos or videos that relate to your brand. Otherwise, its confusing to your reader, consumer or customer.  For example, if you are a restaurant-- utilize photos of best selling menu items which are professionally taken or at the least,very good clear images. If you are a clothing store, using photos that depict a model or consumer wearing an item is a good bet.

For low key ads use an excellent depiction of something that relates to your brand in a meaningful way. A hi tech shop that sells software is not going to want to use imagery to sell their product.  But a product, various types of services, retail, the arts, writers, etc... can all use these social media platforms to maintain a presence online. When people realize they can experience quality images or experiences from viewing your social media platform, they will keep coming back for more!

If you want to know more and have questions, please feel free to call me or email me about social media marketing, content marketing and blogging.

Susan Nefzger

susan@snefzgerpr.com

The term “big data” is ubiquitous. With exabytes of information flowing across broadband pipes, companies compete to claim the biggest, most audacious data sets. And businesses of all varieties — old and new, industrial and digital, big and small — are getting into the game.

But the reality is that our relentless focus on the importance of big data is often misleading. Yes, in some situations, deriving value from data requires having an immense amount of that data. But the key for innovators across industries is that the size of the data isn’t the most critical factor — having the right data is.

It’s Not About Big or Small

Uber is often referred to as a big-data success story. There is no doubt that Uber captures a wealth of information. Using the applications it has running in both its drivers’ cars and its users’ pockets, it has mapped the real-time logistics flows of human transportation.

But Uber’s success isn’t a function of the big data it collects. That big data has enabled the company to enter new markets and fulfill new jobs in the lives of its customers. Uber’s success results from something very different: they utilized the right data to do something very simple — dispatch cars.

In an era before we could summon a vehicle with the push of a button on our smartphones, humans required a thing called taxis. Taxis, while largely unconnected to the internet or any form of formal computer infrastructure, were actually the big data players in rider identification. Why? The taxi system required a network of eyeballs moving around the city scanning for human-shaped figures with their arms outstretched. While it wasn’t Intel and Hewlett-Packard infrastructure crunching the data, the amount of information processed to get the job done was massive. The fact that the computation happened inside of human brains doesn’t change the quantity of data captured and analyzed.

Uber’s elegant solution was to stop running a biological anomaly detection algorithm on visual data — and just ask for the right data to get the job done. Who in the city needs a ride and where are they? That critical piece of information let the likes of Uber, Lyft, and Didi Chuxing revolutionize an industry.

Getting to the Right Data for the Job

Sometimes the right data is big. Sometimes the right data is small. But for innovators the key is figuring out what those critical pieces of data are that drive competitive position. Those will be the pieces of right data that you should seek out fervently. To get there, I’d suggest asking the following three questions as a process for drilling down to the right data.

Question 1: What decisions drive waste in your business? Most businesses have large sources of waste. Consider the world of floral retailing. The average retail florist can sustain spoilage rates of more than 50% of their inventory. More than half of their flowers simply become refuse. So for innovators like UrbanStems and the Bouqs, the data that makes their businesses so disruptive is the data that enables them to eliminate that spoilage. (Disclosure: I invested in UrbanStems.)

In the words of the Harvard Business School’s Ben Edelman, “waste makes for opportunity.” Whether it’s in industrial production, retailing, or legal investigations, figuring out your sources of wasted effort and resources should guide the way toward the right data. Whether it’s as simple as identifying predictions you know you make (how much inventory to stock) or whether it requires you to think about the decisions implicit in your business model (how a cab drives around the city at 10 PM), charting out the decisions will point you toward sources of waste.

Question 2: Which decisions could you automate to reduce waste? Once you have your decisions, the hypothetical becomes what you can actually change. Humans are wonderful at making certain types of decisions. When it comes to deciding which campaigns will elicit the most irrational reactions of other humans to branding and marketing materials, humans can be brilliant. These types of decisions should stay (for now) in the hands of people.

But when it comes to making simple, repetitive, operational decisions (like where to send a cab, how to price a product, or how many flowers to order to a floral shop), machines tend to be much better than people. And although many business models of the 20th century are predicated on human control of these decisions, today we can identify the data to automate more of these decisions than you’d imagine.

Amazon, for instance, is rumored to have eliminated almost all of its pricing team, pushing most pricing decisions toward algorithmic control. For most retailers this would be blasphemous. But if Amazon’s algorithm works, it would translate to far less spent on discounts, far less inventory piling up in warehouses, and better predictability of new product introductions — each of which would yield enormous competitive advantage.

Question 3: What data would you need to do so? Once you have an understanding of the waste in your legacy system and you’ve charted out the decisions that result in that waste, the last step is asking a simple question. If you could have any piece of information, however unbelievable, to make the perfect decision, what would it be?

In Uber’s case, it needed to know exactly where all the potential riders in the city were in order to automate decisions surrounding where to send drivers and reduce the waste associated with human drivers searching for the next fare. In the case of General Electric’s Predix Industrial Internet software, the company aspires to know exactly when a machine is going to break down, helping to automate decisions about maintenance visits and reduce the waste from unplanned downtime. For health insurers seeking to cut costs, they’d love to know the moment that a diabetes patient’s blood sugar dips dangerously low, helping to automate decisions around patient interventions and reduce waste surrounding disease mismanagement.

Those are the right pieces of data to seek out. If you arrive at them by crunching a mass of information, that’s wonderful. If you arrive at them by building a new app to sense them directly, even better.

Most companies spend too much time at the altar of big data. And not nearly enough time thinking about what the right data is to seek out.