Leave Time to Stretch:

Many believe that in order to keep up with social media and maintain followers’ interest it is necessary to bombard news feeds. This may be the best approach if you are a hyperactive 15 year-old with 1,500 friends, but not when trying to run a successful social campaign for a business. This is when the daily nap becomes critical.

Make an effort to discover what times are receiving the most feedback. This can be very specific to a brand, or simply relate to the general public’s time on various social platforms. For example, Nightclubs may receive the most social traffic around dinnertime when plans are being made, while a children’s retailer might see the most traffic in the late morning when a Mom or Dad can finally log on during his or her child’s naptime.

It is important to remember that posting every hour will aggravate most of your fans. Shuffle through the information and decide what is necessary to send out, where, and when. All it takes is coming up with a strategy that fits your brand best.

Don’t Sleep the Whole Day Away:

Although businesses should steer away from posting every hour, they should be prompt in responses to questions, comments, or complaints. These connections are precious and will automatically gain loyal customers. Chipotle has conquered Twitter with this philosophy. Tweet them anything and they are sure to respond within 15 minutes. Seriously, do it. @ChipotleTweets

RealTime Recap:

Who says naps are passé after leaving Kindergarten? Integrate this rule into the way you approach a social media campaign and reap the rewards. Before you know it naptime will be a part of you daily routine again and you’ll wonder why you ever stopped in the first place.

Learn more RealTime Rules about social media marketing. Terra Spero will be running two interactive workshops at the upcoming Social Media Strategies Summit in Boston September 20-22

Nobody likes a “dirty mouth,” especially when coming from a professional or a business. This may seem like common sense, however, it can be so easy to forget when to switch into business mode while on social platforms. They are all so inherently laid back and conversation driven, that a dirty mouth starts to feel comfortable in its surroundings.  Keeping a clean vocabulary does not mean character or humor will be lost. Look at Ellen DeGeneres, she may be one of the funniest comedians of our time, yet she manages to maintain her strong character without reinforcement from a curse word every other minute.

Primetime All the Time

There is no set viewing time on social media. People from ages 13 and beyond are constantly logged-on, making it imperative to monitor what is being said. Television ads and shows are able to run at specific times, allowing the more inappropriate material to appear at later hours. Social media has a constant audience from every age group, regardless of the time of day.  Being aware of this will help keep that dirty mouth under control and help keep a business from offending a devoted audience.

RealTime Recap:

Remembering to switch to a business voice can be difficult. Keep it clean, but maintain a solid voice. You do not have to sacrifice character or humor to be appropriate. Skip the abrasive and go for the friendly, and you’ll have plenty of valuable fans.

Want to learn more RealTime Rules about social media marketing? Terra Spero will be running two interactive workshops at the upcoming Social Media Strategies Summit in Boston September 20-22

Leave Time to Stretch

Many believe that in order to keep up with social media and maintain followers’ interest it is necessary to bombard news feeds. This may be the best approach if you are a hyperactive 15 year-old with 1,500 friends, but not when trying to run a successful social campaign for a business.  This is when the daily nap becomes critical.

Make an effort to discover what times are receiving the most feedback. This can be very specific to a brand, or simply relate to the general public’s time on various social platforms. For example, Nightclubs may receive the most social traffic around dinnertime when plans are being made, while a children’s retailer might see the most traffic in the late morning when a Mom or Dad can finally log on during his or her child’s naptime.

It is important to remember that posting every hour will aggravate most of your fans. Shuffle through the information and decide what is necessary to send out, where, and when. All it takes is coming up with a strategy that fits your brand best.

Don’t Sleep the Whole Day Away

Although businesses should steer away from posting every hour, they should be prompt in responses to questions, comments, or complaints. These connections are precious and will automatically gain loyal customers. Chipotle has conquered Twitter with this philosophy. Tweet them anything and they are sure to respond within 15 minutes. Seriously, do it. @ChipotleTweets

RealTime Recap:

Who says naps are passé after leaving Kindergarten? Integrate this rule into the way you approach a social media campaign and reap the rewards. Before you know it naptime will be a part of you daily routine again and you’ll wonder why you ever stopped in the first place.

Learn more tips and how to’s from Terra Spero at the upcoming Social Media Strategies Summit September 20-22 in Boston at the Hilton Logan Airport. Early bird pricing through August 12.

Surprisingly, this rule can be one of the most engaging approaches for a national or local business to entail when creating their social presence.

Pick the Underdog:

Across Facebook and Twitter, big and small companies, non-profits, and charities are all joining forces to make sure their voices are being heard. This is especially effective when large companies such as Dove, Chipotle, and Whole Foods link up, or “hold hands” with non-profits and charities with a similar message. Each of these major companies has the ability to create an impactful influence on their customer base and can help non-profits or charities make the difference they’ve been working towards.

Find Those Who Complement:

This also creates a great opportunity for local businesses to become integrated with one another. What goes together like peanut butter and jelly? How about a hotel and local attraction, or dinner and a movie? Creating a campaign within Facebook or Twitter is a great way to link up together. Local hotels could offer a $20 gift card to the restaurant across the street if a room is booked that week, or a movie theater could offer fans a free glass of wine at the 5-Star restaurant down the road. It’s about creating a lasting experience for customers, while developing lasting business relationships with those in the same area.

RealTime Recap:

These are invaluable ways to effectively hold hands with those who are capable of making a difference. The superficial and individualistic approach is no longer going to make the impact necessary for a successful brand. Make the hand holding last beyond the playground and soon a new lasting friendship will be formed.

The Original is Always Better:

When managing a website, Facebook, Twitter, Blog or YouTube account, it’s important to create your own content as much as possible. Nobody wants to follow a copycat brand; it’s unappealing and lacks a strong voice.  This has become increasingly common on Twitter. Brands hyperactively click the “Retweet” button, and in the process abuse a valuable feature. It is important to create an intricate and rich fabric of conversation. This should include a solid base of original content while outside information is woven throughout.

Although it is important to create an original voice, image, and content, sometimes it’s hard to take your eyes off other brands’ campaigns.  Break it down. Discover what is truly appealing and see how it can apply to your brand. Just about anything can be tweaked and custom made to suit a specific brand. There is always a backbone to be found, which can be built upon using your own content.

RealTime Recap:

There are incredible amounts of information available on the Internet, making it temptingly easy to click the copy button and send it on over to a Facebook page, Twitter account, or blog. Resist the urge to snatch everything in sight and take the time to come up with original information that can be proudly posted. Your brand can outshine the competition; all it takes is an original idea. Remember, everyone is experimenting with these marketing strategies, so don’t be afraid to hop on the bandwagon and don’t be worried if you stumble along the way.

Interested in learning more RealTime Rules about social media marketing? Terra Spero will be running two interactive workshops at the upcoming Social Media Strategies Summit in Boston September 20-22

What To Avoid

Awkward Self Promotion:

It is not just for e-mail anymore. Facebook users are now going out and slapping their brand on other Facebook pages and personal pages. This is a big no-no. It is obnoxious and will only turn people away from the brand being promoted. Yes, this too is considered spam.

Group Tag:

This is most common within Twitter. Businesses, for some reason, think it is useful to tag multiple users in a post that may read “Start following us on Twitter!” The users who were tagged will quickly select the “block” option and adios to your good reputation. The problem: there is nothing personal about this approach. Instead, Retweet something your target has said. This lets the user know that you are “real” and that their voice was heard. It’s personal and exciting for that user.

RealTime Recap:

Do not bully social media users into following your business. Instead, find the ways to make it personal. Not every strategy will work for every company, but in time, you’ll discover the one that works best for you.  Don’t forget, even the underdog could be a potential customer, not just those with the most influence.

Interested in learning more RealTime Rules about social media marketing? Terra Spero will be running two interactive workshops at the upcoming Social Media Strategies Summit in Boston September 20-22

It is time for businesses, large and small, to see Social Media as more than just a way of talking to consumers. Finally, with the right plan of action, companies are seeing that they don’t have to try so hard. Consumers want to participate in contests and some will do almost anything for a great deal.

There are plenty of ways to provide incentives and rewards for new or old fans alike through Facebook, FourSquare, and even Twitter. All it takes is some imagination and initiative. Everyone loved reaching for the prize at the bottom of the Cracker Jack box; maintain that point of view and you’ll succeed.

FourSquare is perfect for providing treats to customers who are loyal or first-time visitors. There is also a sense of competition associated with FourSquare that will have customers coming back for more in order to gain “mayor-ship” over friends and strangers. Once certain levels are reached within FourSquare, patrons will be rewarded; you just have to decide in what way.

Facebook Landing pages often provide an incentive for Facebook users to click the “Like” button atop the page. Whether it’s a free iced coffee or your name etched on a Porsche, a treat is a treat.

We have yet to see many sweet treats on Twitter, but some great things going on are brands that Tweet out a code for followers to use when placing online orders or provide a password to mention to the cashier upon check out. This can prove to be helpful for retail shops, hotels, even restaurants. The bottom line is that brands must remember that nearly 40% of people who “follow” or “like” a brand on social media do so to receive some kind of deal or discount. Take advantage of an opportunity to reward your most loyal customers, because in the end, they are your “word of mouth” marketing.

Interested in learning more RealTime Rules about social media marketing? Terra Spero will be running two interactive workshops at the upcoming Social Media Strategies Summit in Boston September 20-22

As with most things in life, social media requires maintenance and clean up. Don’t be the fool who has a Christmas landing page in the middle of August or uninformative spam covering a Facebook Wall.  Don’t forget the Facebook ads that need to be kept up to date, events to be created, weekly blog posts, and relevant news to be shared on Twitter.
Making a checklist or calendar of what needs to be completed within each of these platforms can be the lifesaver that keeps you from drowning in the sea of social media.

RealTime Recap:

Social media is a chaotic business. New information is being shared every minute of every day. Try not to be swept up in the craziness of it all. Find an organized center, and soon your business will be enjoying the spoils of social success.

Want to learn more RealTime Rules about social media marketing? Terra Spero will be running two interactive workshops at the upcoming Social Media Strategies Summit in Boston September 20-22

If you’ve ever read the book “All I Really need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten,” you’ll know that Robert Fulghum reminded us that the most basic lessons in life are what shape us into the people we are today. Success in social media is attributed to well developed social skills. It’s about making friends, creating lasting relationships, and developing a dialogue that people care about.

This summer, the RealTime Marketing Group team will be uncovering the “mysteries” of Social Media and its many facets. We’re here to address the concerns of countless businesses, non-profits, and individuals who have met us with terrified eyes and a laundry list of questions. Humans are the most social creatures on the Earth, yet many hide in fear when the term Social Media is mentioned! Believe it or not, we all learned most of the rules of social media back in Kindergarten.

Join us as we head back to the classroom, let our imaginations run wild, remember the excitement of a new adventure, and of course – enjoy some cookies and milk.

Here are a few ideas to get you thinking:

• Learn, Dance, Play, Think, Sing, Draw, Paint Everyday
• Share Everything
• Play Fair/ Don’t Hit People
• Hold Hands and Stick Together
• Take a Nap Every Afternoon
• Cookies and Milk
• Don’t Take Things That Aren’t Yours
• Say “Sorry” When You Hurt Someone
• Wash Hands
• Put Things Back/ Clean Up Your Mess

Anything else you learned in Kindergarten that you think we should add?  Don’t forget to raise your hand…or at least give us a ‘like’.

The corporate shtick is out. If a brand comes out looking too stuffy or pretentious, chances are consumers will cease to care. The public relates strongly to those who make them laugh. The goal now is finding out where your brand fits into each part of your customers life. Maybe it’s the mini van driven by an adorably goofy family, or a face is given to the unexpected mayhem in your life. Ask the question: How does your brand make someone’s life better, and how can we make that humorous.

LOL At Yourself

Social opens up the perfect opportunity to dip some hands into this creative comedy outlet. These are some of our favorite examples to look to for inspiration.

Toyota took the minivan and deemed it “The Swagger Wagon”. What was once stigmatized as quite possibly the lamest ride on the road now touts about as much swag as J-Biebs.  We were introduced to the Sienna Family and their latest rap release. This perfectly hit their demographic, made moms and dads alike laugh, and created a viral buzz surrounding their brand. Mad props.

Insurance and funny are typically two words that should never be put in the same sentence. That is until we were introduced to Mayhem. Allstate took a cue from Geico’s gecko and created a character, but took the extra step in personifying the exact things that make insurance coverage completely necessary.  Between a shaky branch, jogging hottie, malfunctioning GPS, and distracted teenager, Allstate manages to get laughs from their audience by taking something damaging and giving it a humorous twist. It’s true to real life, and customers are sure to relate.

Deodorant…. Lame. Nobody really wants to think about why we all wear, or should wear, deodorant. Well Old Spice changed those rules with the creation of Old Spice Man- The Man Your Man Could Smell Like. This guy is quite possibly the most romantic, creative, thoughtful, and debonair person alive. Which is obviously who you will become once rubbing some Old Spice in your armpits. Successful commercial campaign, led to a highly viewed YouTube channel, followed by personal question and answer time with the most suave man alive.

Don’t Miss the Punch Line

Sadly, some companies have missed the boat. Take the Bronx Zoo for example. When their venomous King Cobra went missing, he was found on Twitter. Someone had taken the chance to create a voice for this rebel snake and began tweeting about his adventures around the city. What could have been a great marketing strategy for the Bronx Zoo to alleviate a potentially dangerous situation was instead taken over by a clever tweeter. Don’t let a creative opportunity such as this slip away and fall into the hands of someone else.

Moral of the story, every social ‘expert’ knows that the best campaigns have a fair amount of experimentation…and we all know that experiments don’t always go right. However, if experimenting leads you down the road of comedy, remember, not everything has to be wrapped in a neat little package. There are enough serious campaigns floating around.  If you are able to create some differentiation through humor, your ‘likers’ will be sure to give you a big thumbs up.

Terra Spero will be facilitating Creating and maintaining an optimized and personalized Facebook presence workshop, at the Social media Strategies Summit this upcoming September 20-22 in Boston. Visit www.socialmediastrategiessummit.com for more info.