Are you struggling to promote your business on social media? Read our top tips for promoting your brand online.

How to make your social media marketing more engaging.

Communication

Social media is an incredibly powerful communication tool with Facebook amassing 1.40 Billion daily active users.

Increasingly, customers are using social media to contact businesses either via Facebook Pages, Twitter or interacting on Instagram.

Communication is a two-way street, posting is all well and good, especially if it’s reaching a lot of people, but not monitoring engagement will make your potential customers feel ignored and undervalued.

Be human! Don’t be afraid to spark up a conversation with your customers – it will contribute greatly towards your reach and engagement.

Building relationships

Social Media provides us with a unique opportunity to grow our networks.

As well as raising our profile with potential customers, we can strike up a rapport with other local business owners, local charities and our wider community at large.

There will be Networking groups on Facebook & LinkedIn, and Twitter chat hours relevant to your industry or community.   See our Blog on Twitter Chat Hours

Online networking helps establish relationships with your local business community and your potential customers.

Social listening

What better way to understand what your customer wants then by actually listening to and learning from what they are interested in.

Spending time researching what your customers and others in your industry are talking about by looking at trends, hashtag conversations and industry content – along with people’s reactions – can be agreat way of inspiring new content for your business.

Putting the social in social media

The key word here is ‘social’, don’t forget that social media is largely about actually being sociable.

When you’re in a room full of people, a networking event, for example, the person with the booming voice giving the hard sell to anyone that makes eye contact quickly becomes irritating and overbearing.

Sometimes it’s just nice to have a conversation, and it’s the same on social media. It’s okay to share funny stories, staff outings, interest in upcoming events.

• Again, Chat hours on Twitter e.g. #SussexHour can be a great way of engaging with your wider community and building relationships through Social Media.

Use images

Images will help bring your content to life, and help you stand out.  They are vital to any social media post.

• Use landscape images! Portrait images do not work well on social
• If you need to source images – make sure they are copyright free or use a resource like iStock.
• Don’t push content from Instagram or Facebook to Twitter as your images will not be seen on Twitter – a lost opportunity.

Video is King

In light of the recent change to the Facebook algorithm, Video is more important than ever before.

• Be aware of what the requirements are for each platform e.g. no more than 60 seconds for Instagram
• Facebook Live is great for engagement – how can you use it in your business?

Have a strategy

As many of us know, if you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail.

A social media strategy is crucial for scheduling relevant and engaging content.

Using Google alerts or doing hashtag research can help you keep on track of the topics that are relevant to your industry.

There are also events calendars and Twitter hashtag calendars that can be found via search engines to help keep on top of your industry trends.

Be consistent

Brand consistency is crucial, it provides our audience and potential customers with a good impression of your business.

Ensuring that your brand message is consistent, your posting is regular, and your content is well constructed.

Share the love

Share content from your key business partners, your community, suppliers, and partners that is in keeping with your brand values.

This is a great way of supporting the things you are passionate about as a business – and also, is a great way of curating content and making sure you are not just talking about you or your business.

Facebook Advertising

Facebook Advertising offers a wealth of targeting and retargeting options.

Using the Ads Manager to construct your Ads Campaigns will give you the opportunity to be very planned in your approach.  Focus on

• Your campaign objective
• Who your audience is
• What you total spend will be
• How the advert is presented
  • Clear headline
  • Succinct text
  • Call to action
  • Web link to take your customer to the next step in their journey
  • Visuals or video.

Test different audiences and objectives, and measure before splashing out lots of money on a campaign.

Don’t be afraid of using social media to market your business, use our top ten tips and get your business out there.

Remember, be social, demonstrate the value of your brand, and create content which will engage your audience.

Need help with your Social Media?  Get in touch with us!

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The post Social Media Top Tips 2018 appeared first on Ditzy Media.

You may have heard Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement on Friday last week, that he is making some BIG changes to the Facebook Newsfeed.  He wants the platform to go back to its’ roots as a platform for staying in touch with friends and family.

• Organic (non paid for) reach and engagement will be affected – as the Newsfeed will feature little to no business content.
• People that like your page need to know to go to the ‘See First’ option when they like and follow the page – otherwise there is a risk they will not see your future posts.
• The Facebook Algorithm loves video – so if we start to create more live video and video content this will hopefully help with organic reach and engagement.
• And finally, this will mean we may have to spend more on promotions and adverts on Facebook to get our content seen by potential customers.

In summary, it has been increasingly harder for Pages to reach customers, with video and paid for promotions being key in a Page Owners Facebook Strategy – so in some ways – this has been an ongoing issue for some time.

It will be a while before the announced changes are fully integrated and we really get a feel for how this impacts on our reach and engagement.

Is organic content worth the time and effort?
If we think about how our customers may be using Facebook to check businesses out before they buy, I would say having good quality engaging content is still important in relation to Facebook.

Introducing more video into our content will hopefully help in our quest to get our pages out there.

Here is a link to a CBC News feature on the Facebook Changes which you may find helpful.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIaawUthDV0

If anyone has any specific queries or concerns please get in touch.

The post Facebook Newsfeed Changes appeared first on Ditzy Media.

Staying on top of your Content is important as it is a great way to reach out to your target market, and reflects how prospective customers may view your brand.  Our copywriting service can help you ensure you have a good stock of content for your business.

Importantly, regular high-quality content gets picked up by the search engines like Google and can help increase your website’s organic search ranking.

The higher your website ranks on a search engine means that it is more likely to be seen on the first page when people search for your brand or what you are selling.

One of the most popular forms of online content today is written content, particularly the short and easy to read format of blogs. Blogs are an excellent way of showcasing a service or product that you have on offer.

Putting aside the time to create content can be an issue.  For those that are not experienced in copywriting, it can be time-consuming, and content opportunities can often be missed because business owners simply lack the time to create it.

Whether your website is used as an information platform for your services or used to sell a variety of goods, the quality of your content is crucial in appealing to new customers.

Unique, affordable copywriting services to help your business shine online

Here at Ditzy Media, we offer an excellent copywriting service for those looking to uphold their brand online.

Even if you are gifted at writing your own content, time can often be of the essence, especially when you are the decision-maker running your own business.

Our experienced copywriters can write multiple pieces of high quality, unique, keyword optimised content on a regular basis for your business.

We can help you write Blogs, Case Studies, new content for your Website – even help you with your Business Award Submission.

This can be arranged on a flexible basis that best suits your budget.

Happy consequences of outsourcing your copywriting to an experienced writer can include an increase in web traffic and a boost in your online visibility.

Furthermore, outsourcing this role gives you, the business owner, back the invaluable gift of time that can then be used to develop your business further.

Whether your business needs regular, ongoing assistance with content, or even just assistance with a one-off copywriting project, Ditzy Media are here to help.

Contact us today on 01323 720 497 or alternatively send us an email through the ‘contact’ section of our website.

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A chat hour is a pre-determined time on Twitter, where a group of people join in using a hashtag to have a conversation.

Some chat hours are organised geographically, for example, in East Sussex we have:

• #BrightonHour Mondays 8.30-9.30pm
• #LewesHour Tuesdays 8.30-9.30pm
• #EBHour for Eastbourne on Thursdays 7.30-8.30pm
• #SussexHour Thursdays 8.30-9.30pm
• #1066Hour Fridays 12-1pm

Or there are sector or themed chat hours such as

• #smallbizhour
• #Charityhour
• #MotorHour

and so on.

Always worth checking the hashtags, to check the Chat Hour is active and to make sure the  Chat Hour is based in the UK as this may affect whether you join in or not.

How to get involved in a chat hour

• Log in to Twitter and then go to your search bar top right of the screen and type in the name of the chat hour with the hashtag e.g. #SussexHour
• You will then be taken to a view which has two options – View Top tweets, and view all. You need to select View All or latest so you can see the conversation as it happens.
• If you intend to join in regularly you can save that search (top right of the screen – three dots)
• It’s a good idea to open a second browser screen and have that screen logged in for Twitter and select your notifications tab. This allows you to check if someone tweets you directly so you can reply quickly without going away from the search screen.
• Don’t schedule content and then not be present – this is considered rude.
• Don’t fee you have to attend every week or stay the full hour – even a quick hello and brief chat can be beneficial.

It’s just businesses selling – right?

Wrong! Yes businesses are the predominant group in some chat hours, but they are there to develop relationships – just as with any networking event offline. Charities and other organisations also join in as do individuals!

Chat hours give people a chance to get to know each other as people, share stories, a laugh, and other experiences as well as a little bit of promotion what they may be doing.

If you are new to Twitter chat hours are a great way of getting to know people and build a network.

Top tip! Don’t forget your Hashtag, and don’t forget if you begin a tweet with a Twitter account (the @…) this can reduce the visibility of your tweet.

Follow @hashtag_hour and @ChatSalad to get tweets about when Chat Hours start.

Twitter Accounts:

@SussexHourUk

@1066Hour

@EastbourneHour

@LewesHour

@Brighton_Hour

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Pictured are Mark Jones, CEO, Families For Autism; Mina O’Brien, Ditzy Media; Penny Morgan, Project Search; Gavin Fisher, CE of Children’s Respite Trust

Mina O’Brien, of Ditzy Media and Penny Morgan of Project Search EDGH have been training since late February and have already undertaken well over 100km in training for the walk.

The walk is labelled as an Ultra Challenge and is organised by Action Challenge.  It will be a non stop walk from Richmond leaving at approx. 7am with an anticipated arrival into Brighton around lunchtime on the Sunday.

Mina O’Brien is fundraising for Families For Autism, a local charity established over 5 years that has been helping and providing support to families of children and young adults with Autism across East Sussex.  To sponsor Mina and support Families For Autism see:

https://www.justgiving.com/WalkingforFamiliesForAutism

Penny Morgan is fundraising for Children’s Respite Trust, a local charity founded in 2010 that provides respite and support to families of disabled children across Sussex and Kent.  To sponsor Penny and support Children’s Respite Trust see:

http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/PennyM

Mark Jones, CEO for Families For Autism said “Thank you Mina and Penny for choosing to fundraise for two great charities. Your amazing hard work and efforts will help to fund services and support, that Families for Autism currently provide to autistic children and young people within Eastbourne and East Sussex. Good luck from all of us and our thoughts will be with you throughout your challenge”.

Gavin Fisher, Chief Executive of Children’s Respite Trust said “We are so grateful to Mina and Penny for taking on this challenge to raise funds for the Children’s Respite Trust. Every penny they raise will make a difference to our efforts to make life better for disabled children and their families locally and we wish them both every success for their trek.”

For more information on the great work of these local charities see:

Families For Autism: http://www.familiesforautism.com

Children’s Respite Trust: http://www.crtcharity.org

The post Two local ladies take a long walk for two amazing local charities appeared first on Ditzy Media.

In 2012, I was fortunate to be part of a team of 7 people who undertook the 100km Walk from London to Brighton.

It was truly an amazing experience which did change me for the better.  The team I was part of consisted of people of all ages and abilities, and we had to train hard, as a team, to ensure we were fit enough to do the challenge.

Between us, we raised a lot of money for our respective Charities – my own fundraising efforts raised over £700 for MacMillan Cancer.

It is something I have been itching to do again and so in 2016, I am putting a team together to raise money for two superb local Charities that make a big difference to families and young people in our county – Families For Autism and Children’s Respite Trust.

When is the event? Who organises it?

The walk takes place on 28^th and 29^th May 2016 and starts in Richmond, finishing at Brighton Racecourse.

When I did the walk in 2012, it took me 29 hours and 5 minutes and it involves walking through the night.

Action Challenge are the event organisers, and they deliver Ultra Challenges not just in the UK but worldwide.  They ensure the event is well resourced with regular rest stops for water, electrolytes, snacks and food breaks every 25km.  Medical staff and physio’s are also on hand to address any issues that may arise during the walk.

I’m interested… where do I find out what’s involved?

For an informal chat, please contact me, but certainly have a look online too at the Participants area, where you will find information on how to prepare for the challenge.

Having the right kit, and making sure you stick to the training schedule is critical to complete the challenge.

You can also opt to do half the distance e.g. 44km from Turners Hill to Brighton.

Participants pay a fee of £69 to join the 100km walk and commit to raising £395 for the charity, this drops if you elect to do the half distance.

Training begins in earnest on 20^th February 2016

Journeys will be organised a few weeks in advance so everyone knows when and where to meet, how far they will be walking and where they will end up so journey’s home can be planned.

If you are inspired to undertake this challenge, please contact me for a chat on 07958 559600, or email: ditzymedia@gmail.com. You can also contact me on twitter @ditzymedia or Facebook

For information on the great work of Families For Autism and Children’s Respite Trust see: http://www.familiesforautism.com and  http://www.childrensrespitetrust.org.uk

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