Category Archives: 2018

The Most Popular Influencer Marketing Categories 2018

As you’ve no doubt heard, Influencer Marketing is big business. It’s become a key promotional tool for brands wanting to connect with customers and prospects, in an era where advertising is perceived as less effective than back in the day.

The Internet in general, and social media in particular, has brought us thousands of influencers and micro-influencers — “celebrities” with thousands (or sometimes just hundreds) of followers on their chosen social media channels, whose hustling on behalf of a product can encourage many of their followers to actually purchase said product.

Why? Because, according to a report by Nielsen, 92% of people trust recommendations from individuals over brands. And, let’s face it, many brands have brought that fate upon themselves by their own less-than-trustworthy behaviour.

Not all product categories are created equal, however, and some categories are far more likely to be used for Influencer Marketing than others.

The three categories at the top of the list, according to Mavrck data recently published by AdWeek:

  • 36% Fashion & Apparel
  • 25% Food & Beverage
  • 23% Beauty

And here are the top categories in infographic form:

If you’re considering Influencer Marketing, may we recommend our online training course on the topic:

influencer-marketing

In this course, we consider the importance of Influencer Marketing, determine the smartest and most effective strategies — and explore how to identify effective Kiwi micro-influencers who will be good ambassadors for your brand.

Lesson One: Why Use Influencer Marketing

In this lesson, we talk about exactly what Influencer Marketing is, why it matters to you and when and how you should tap into the power of Influencer Marketing. Allow TapInfluence to explain:

Influencer marketing is a type of marketing that focuses on using key leaders to drive your brand’s message to the larger market. Rather than marketing directly to a large group of consumers, you instead inspire / hire / pay Influencers to get out the word for you.

Influencer Marketing has evolved from humble origins to end up as the preferred buzzword to describe the current iteration of a well-established and familiar marketing tool: using “celebrities” to promote your products.

There’s a bit more to Influencer Marketing than just plunking a few celebrities into a TV commercial, however. Today’s definition of “celebrities” (Influencers) has broadened to encompass those who are, in the words of Andy Warhol, “famous for 15 minutes”.

Lesson Two: Most Effective Influencer Marketing Strategies

As it turns out, there’s a bit more to Influencer Marketing than simply tracking down people who seem to have a lot of followers in social media. We share proven strategies which will help lessen potential heartache.

We also examine:

  • the top Power Words to use
  • creative ways to incentivize influencers
  • the four Rs of effective Influencer Marketing
  • how to run successful Influencer Marketing campaigns
  • what Google’s purchase of Famebit tells us about the future of Influencer Marketing
  • why major players are now signing up Influencers
  • twenty trends that will shape Influencer Marketing in the next year

Lesson Three: Choosing Influencers

Not all Influencers are created equal (and there are more than a few pretenders to the throne out there). We discuss what to look for (and what to avoid) — and why you should proceed slowly as you assemble your Influencer team.

Lesson Four: Connecting With Influencers

Once you’ve determined the most appropriate Influencers for your brand, it’s time to reach out and connect. If you’re not careful though, and haven’t thought through the right approach, you might be turned down — or end up paying too much. We share lessons from others that will help ease the way.

And we also also help you to brief your chosen influencers, identifying the key information you should provide to Influencers to ensure that they will promote your brand safely, legally and effectively.

Lesson Five: Finding Kiwi Influencers

There are surprising numbers of influential New Zealanders who have attracted a wide following through their efforts on YouTube, Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat and elsewhere.

In this lesson, we take a look at some of New Zealand’s most-followed influencers on the social networks, including (just one example) the NZ-based YouTube channels with most subscribers:

  • Shaaanxo
  • Wacky Wednesda
  • Rainbow Learning
  • AzzMan

(and we rate them in terms of whose following is growing — and whose is not).

We also draw on our extensive databases of NZ users on Instagram, Twitter and YouTube to identify potential Influencer partners (and tell you how to find them — and how to evaluate them properly):

YOUTUBE
An in-depth look at NZ’s top consumer YouTubers, their overall performance, their most recent videos, what categories they cover and how to contact them

INSTAGRAM
An in-depth look at NZ’s top consumer Instagrammers, their overall performance, their most recent images posted, what topics they talk about and how to contact them

TWITTER
An in-depth look at NZ’s top consumer Tweeters, their overall performance, their most recent tweets, what topics they talk about and how to contact them

Lesson Six: Influencer Marketing Measurement & ROI

In this section we explore exactly what you can and should measure in order to ensure that your Influencer Marketing campaigns are as effective as they should be.

Lesson Seven: Influencer Marketing Cautions

We discuss the reality of fake influencers – those with fake followers who will happily take your money – and how you can identify them. We then concern ourselves with the importance of Disclosure (ensuring that your chosen Influencers are transparent about the fact that they are being rewarded for their participation).

And we discuss:

  • why Influencer campaigns fail
  • the fastest way to destroy your Influencer Marketing efforts

Lesson Eight: Influencer Marketing Tools & Resources

No need to reinvent the wheel. We tell you what you need to know to create and manage Influencer Marketing campaigns, including suggested formats, frameworks and processes. And we share plenty of case studies to inform and inspire.

Lesson Nine: Influencer Marketing Trends

Finally, we discuss twenty emerging Influencer Marketing Trends and how they might impact on your activities going forward.

 

WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THIS COURSE?
Any Kiwi marketer, or anyone who is responsible for marketing for their organisation, who is considering using influencers to promote their products/services will benefit from this carefully-structured approach to Influencer Marketing.

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WHAT CUSTOMERS ARE SAYING ABOUT OUR COURSES

Here’s a sampling of the feedback we’ve received from those who’ve taken our courses:

  • Thanks for an informative and interesting [Facebook Accelerator] course. Your presentation held a good balance of theoretical and practical information and was clear and simple enough for a non IT Facebook novice like me to follow. There are many ideas that I have gained that I will attempt to incorporate in the overall marketing plan my team is currently developing for our brand. Facebook can offer so much more than I thought as a medium for communicating with our current and prospective customers. Julie D
  • I found this course fantastic, i started off knowing very little about facebook (just how to run my own personal page) to now having a thorough understanding of ALL the things you can (and there is a lot). The course format was great and allowed knowledge to be built up over time. Course length was great and this will definetly be something i come back to constantly as we develop our facebook pages more within my company. Aleisha H
  • I have really enjoyed the course and the way it was structured. It was informative and interesting – liked the way you incorporated slide-shows, video, statistics and different forms of media to provide information. Lisa C

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TIMING

This course begins on Wednesday 01 January, 2020.

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INVESTMENT

This seven-part online training course is available for $597+GST. However we offer an EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT of $100 — pay just $497+GST for bookings received by the end of  Wednesday 25 December, 2019.

Bookings are confirmed on receipt of payment, which can be by bank deposit or credit card. We can raise an invoice in advance if you need it.

To reserve your place in this course, please pay by credit card through PayPal by clicking here:

Register Now for the next course

If you would prefer to pay by bank deposit, or require an invoice, please send an email to [email protected] with your requirements.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

You’ll receive our emailed confirmation of your booking. Then on the first day of the course we’ll follow up with details of your Login and Password, along with an Enrolment Key for the Principles & Practice of Influencer Marketing online training course.

If you have any questions, or would like more information, please email us at [email protected]

NZ Social Media Statistics 2018

In New Zealand, as elsewhere in the world, social media has become one of the most significant venues where consumers spend their time.

According to 2018 research (Hootsuite/We Are Social), 3.5 million Kiwis are active social media users and they spend an average of 1 hour and 53 minutes on social media networks each day.

That’s breathing down the neck of average daily TV viewing time, which currently stands at two hours and 48 minutes.

If you’re wondering which social networks are currently the most popular in New Zealand, wonder no more. Facebook is the most popular by a country mile, with Instagram winning the hearts and minds of younger audiences.

Check out this roundup of recent statistics (provided courtesy Nielsen Online Ratings) which highlight the performance by age group of the key social media.

FACEBOOK

Facebook continues to dominate, especially with older audiences.

If you’d like to learn more about marketing on Facebook, we offer three different Facebook courses:

 

INSTAGRAM

Instagram performs well with younger audiences. If your target market is under 35, you really should be actively marketing on Instagram (see our Instagram Marketing course to see how best to go about that).

Instagram is also a favorite tool for Influencers, who have become a significant part of social media marketing activities. We recommend that you check out our Influencer Marketing course if you wish to know more.

 

PINTEREST

Pinterest performs really well with female audiences, especially those interested in lifestyle content such as fashion, home decoration and travel. We don’t currently offer a Pinterest course but we cover the network in detail in our Social Media Marketing course.

TWITTER

After a period of some neglect, Twitter is now regaining some traction out there. Even so, it’s not quite the phenomenon it is in the US and elsewhere. Again, we don’t currently offer a Twitter course but we do cover the network in detail in our Social Media Marketing course.

 

LINKEDIN

LinkedIn is of course a social network for business people. Whilst in the past it’s been regarded as primarily a place to post your CV in the hope of finding a job, it’s moved on well beyond that and has become a major networking tool, especially for B2B marketers and sales people. If you aren’t taking full advantage of LinkedIn, you’re really missing out. Take a look at our “How to use LinkedIn Effectively” course to see what you should be doing on LinkedIn.

 

YOUTUBE

YouTube isn’t actually a social network in the strictest definition of the term, but it does compete with the other social players for both audience and advertising, so we’ve included YouTube data here by way of comparison.

If you’d like to know more about YouTube, you’d find it covered in our Social Media Marketing course. Alternatively, if you’d like to know more about using online video for marketing purposes (including YouTube and the other social media outlets), take a closer look at our Online Video Marketing course.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA TRENDS

The above graphs depict social media at a particular point in time in 2018. But how has the medium been performing over time?

Whilst individual networks have ebbed and flowed in popularity (and Instagram has shown significant growth over the past several years), they’ve always lived under the shadow of Facebook, which has consistently dominated the NZ social media environment for the last nine years (since it took over the crown from Bebo in 2009).

Whilst the demographic makeup of Facebook audiences has evolved over time (in particular, with younger audiences slipping away as their parents joined the social network), Facebook has hovered around the 2.5 million unique visitors per month mark for the last five years.

If you’d like to learn more about Social Media Marketing Trends, past, present and future, check out our special Social Media Marketing Trends 2018 report.

Are You Falling Desperately Behind With Social Media Marketing in 2018?

Social Media Marketing is constantly changing and if you’re not up to date with the latest developments, you’re in danger of falling behind.

That can be a major problem, because Social Media Marketing is now one of the most important weapons in your marketing arsenal.

So let’s do a quick quiz to test just how up-to-date you really are.

Can you answer these ten questions about the latest NZ social media marketing trends for 2018?

Q1 Now that you have to pay if you want to be seen in social media, how is that affecting marketers’ objectives for social media marketing?

Q2 Video, you must have heard, is beginning to dominate social media. Should you rush to incorporate video into your posts? If not, what should you do instead?

Q3 Now that 70% of the time we spend on social media is via mobile apps, how does that impact what and how we advertise on social media?

Q4 How does the new European General Data Protection Regulation impact on social media marketing?

Q5 Instagram Stories have been enthusiastically adopted by a number of NZ brands. Should you do so? What are the advantages and disadvantages?

Q6 What (and how many) words should you use to make your Facebook headlines as effective as possible?

Q7 What can Fast Food Marketers teach us about using Social Media effectively?

Q8 What is IGTV and what are the implications and possibilities for Kiwi marketers?

Q9 What new Facebook feature can help us gain a better understanding of our competitors?

Q10 How can Influencer Marketing revolutionise your social media marketing activities?

 

If you’re not sure of the answers to some or many of these questions, check out our special Social Media Marketing NZ Trends 2018 report and presentation:

nz-social-media-marketing-trends-2018

In our next Marketing Trends Special Report, we turn the spotlight on NZ Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018.

Social Media Marketing is potentially the most powerful weapon in your marketing repertoire — or it might be the place you avoid if you haven’t really mastered the art of promoting your brand effectively through the channel.

Here’s the thing, though — Social Media has become the place where Kiwis spend most of their media consumption time, on a daily basis. If you don’t know how to use Social Media to best advantage, you’re potentially missing out on a great many opportunities.

If you’re relatively new to Social Media Marketing, you should check out our Social Media Marketing online training course.

Otherwise, if you understand the essentials of Social Media Marketing, this special report and slide presentation on NZ Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018 will bring you up to speed with all the latest developments.

Inside the NZ Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018 presentation you’ll find:

Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018 and 2019
Social Media is constantly developing and evolving. In this section of the report we examine the latest news and information on new and extended technologies and practices and how they affect us all. Topics covered include:

  • The new European GDPR data protection regulations and how the social media networks have implemented them in ways that affect all of us. For example, In the wake of the introduction of GDPR, Facebook has introduced two new features to help developers and businesses better protect people’s privacy and respond to their privacy requests. Marketers everywhere (not just in Europe) need to understand and master these tools.
  • Instagram now reaches 1 billion monthly active users globally. Is this platform appropriate for you?
  • Social Media has changed advertising forever. We explore the new reality.
  • LinkedIn has just introduced new posting tools. What does that mean for you?
  • One-third of the world’s population is now on social media. Are you taking full advantage?
  • There’s a new Facebook Influencer Platform on its way. We give you a sneak peek.
  • Messaging apps now have more monthly users than social media networks. What are the implications?
  • Social media is now consumers’ preferred customer service channel. Is your business ready?
  • Unpaid (organic) reach is all but dead on social media channels. We explore what you absolutely must do instead.

OTHER KEY TRENDS COVERED IN THE REPORT

Video

First on the list is the least surprising of all: social goes video. Yep, all those moving pictures clamouring for attention on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram (now joined by LinkedIn, which has recently added its own native video offerings) will continue to get all the attention.

What that means for marketers: if you are not using video in social media, you are much less likely to get noticed — and even less likely to get remembered. According to data gathered by Filmora, 95% of video messages will be retained by consumers while only 10% of text-based posts will enjoy that privilege.

Oh, and if you can, make those videos live. Facebook Live videos are watched three times longer than regular videos.

Ephemeral is Hot

The move to short-lived content, pioneered by Snapchat and shamelessly copied by Instagram Stories, will continue to be a thing in 2018.

Why? There are a few factors at work, including:

  • increased concentration on the actual post content, precisely because it will disappear
  • fear of missing out, because the messages are limited and time-constrained
  • users can afford not to worry about little things like spelling, grammar or accuracy, because their messages don’t hang around long enough to be critiqued

Chatbots are multiplying

There are now some 100,000 active chatbots on Facebook Messenger and it is estimated that 30% of our chat conversations will be with the little creatures this year.

Why? Because, in many cases they are smarter than humans — at least when it comes to talking about what they know (are programmed) to chat about.

If you already know the most frequently asked questions about your products, a chatbot is the simplest, most efficient and friendliest (!) way to share that information with your prospects and customers.

Influencer Marketing is growing strongly

Influencer Marketing is the fastest-growing marketing channel, according to Filmora data. That’s because, with all due respect to traditional media channels, Influencer Marketing is (or can/should be):

  • more targeted
  • more credible
  • more affordable

Influencer Marketing can also be more successful, according to 94% of those who use the channel.

And, since these days consumers put more trust in friends, whanau and peers, Influencer Marketing is an easy approach to gather endorsements that hopefully turn into sales.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING SPECIFICS

Beyond the over-riding trends, the report drills down into the latest developments in the specific social media channels, including:

  • Facebook’s new Brand Collab Manager tool and how it will assist you with your influencer marketing programmes
  • How Facebook’s Automated Rules can help you better manage your Facebook Advertising
  • New Facebook dating app, FaceDate — swipe left or swipe right?
  • Sharing to Facebook from apps like Spotify and Oculus Go — how can you leverage?
  • Real Time Language Translations In Facebook Messenger are now available to American users. Exporters, take note as this feature rolls out.
  • Instagram Shopping is now available for NZ retailers and etailers selling physical products in approved categories. How can you best take advantage?

And, of course, all the latest news, views and updates, too numerous to list here, about the major social channels, including Twitter, Snapchat, Pinterest and YouTube.

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The NZ Social Media Marketing Trends 2018 presentation looks ahead at what marketers should expect and plan for in 2018 and 2019 — based on local and global trends you may not yet have had the opportunity to examine — turning those forecasts into a comprehensive report & slide deck in PowerPoint format (with accompanying notes).

FOR USE INTERNALLY AND WITH YOUR OWN CLIENTS

This report, like all our Marketing Insights presentations, comes with personal use and agency use rights: you can present these reports to your own team and to your clients, bringing everyone up to speed on the latest New Zealand Marketing Insights as we accelerate through what remains of 2018. All presentations are unbranded, so you can add your own branding and comments.

All of our presentations in this Marketing Insights series consist of at least 150 slides, dealing with as many key insights.

This NZ Marketing Insights presentation is available to purchase and reuse, for $697+GST.

To purchase by credit card via PayPal, please click here:

sign up now

 

BILLING OPTIONS
If you would prefer to pay by bank deposit or require an invoice before making payment, please send an email to [email protected] with details of your request. (The service provider will be shown as Netmarketing Courses in your transaction and on your credit card statement).

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
1. Your purchase will be confirmed by email.
2. After your order has been processed, download instructions will be provided to you by email.

 

The 5 Secrets of Successful Facebook Ads

What makes a successful Facebook Ad in 2018?

The good news is, we don’t have to guess. AdEspresso has analysed 752,626 Facebook ads, crunched plenty of numbers and emerged with the five key elements of successful Facebook Ads:

In 2018:

  • The length of ad text has increased.
  • Link descriptions are shorter.
  • There has been an uptick in brands that link to specific landing pages.
  • The top five CTAs in 2018 and how brands’ usage of CTAs have increased.
  • Companies are using a greater variety of Ad types.

The data below, from more than three years of research, will help marketing teams of all sizes improve their ROI.

Now, for the results!

1) Headline Length Is 5 Words on Average, but Ad Text Has Increased

The message is tried and true: A five-word headline is the perfect length. What has shifted over time, however, is the amount of ad text:

Inching up from 14 words on average in 2015 to 19 in 2018, brands have decided to squeeze more information into this initial field.

This tells us that marketers (1) believe viewers will read more up top and (2) that they’re homing in on content that best hooks viewers’ attention.

Who better to illustrate this than Facebook itself?

A clear, no-nonsense (and five-word) headline, “See how Facebook is changing,” paired with 20 words of ad text is the recipe for a perfect Sponsored Post.

In the text itself, we see Facebook doing away with regular punctuation and grammar rules — keeping it chill and relatable.

In a time of heightened security risks, particularly around consumer data, if, like Facebook, you store a lot of personal information, it’s absolutely critical to keep an open line of communication with all of your stakeholders — yes, even in your Sponsored Posts!

Although the average length for ad text has increased, it’s still important to find a sweet spot between a catchy description and staying concise.

The travel brand Away struggles with this:

Although the company nails their “Meet the Perfect Suitcase” headline (again — nothing extra, four words, and in line with Facebook’s own recommendation of 25 characters), the ad text is repetitive and quickly becomes boring after the first sentence.

Sticking to the 19-word median will help you stay on point and choose your words carefully, making sure nothing escapes viewers’ notice.

Here are some additional proven tactics for crafting the best headlines:

  • Use numbers at the beginning of your headline.
  • Create a sense of urgency with limited-time offers.
  • Be clear about your offer (avoid being too vague).
  • Ask questions that people want to be answered.

Overall, remember to keep your text clear, concise, and relaxed. While ad text has expanded, the most successful posts are still direct and succinct.

2) Link Descriptions Have Become Shorter

In 2015, the average link description was a whopping 18 words. Three years later, it has been whittled down to 13.

Why is this happening? To shed some light, let’s study an example of a link description that doesn’t work:

Well exceeding Facebook’s 30-character suggestion, the link description is too verbose and trails off without enough information to prompt the viewer to click the “Learn More” CTA.

Also, it doesn’t add any new information.

Upserve has already mentioned its restaurant management software in the ad text. The link description simply takes up space and makes the post feel crammed.

In contrast, WeWork nails it with a shorter link description that packs the most important information into the space provided.

Although it is below the 13-word average, this four-word link description underscores how less is more.

Facebook has even come out and stated that the average human attention span is just over 8 seconds.

Take this to heart, and don’t push your viewers’ limits with run-on sentences.

 

3) More Ads Are Using Specific Landing Pages

In 2015, marketers incorporated specific links for viewers in 88.7% of Facebook ads. While the result has fluctuated a bit in the past three years, the overall trend has been upward, with close to 90% of Facebook ads highlighting page links in 2018.

Including landing pages makes a post more direct and removes the effort of additional research for the viewer. Given the heightened attention to ad text in recent years (see Result #1), incorporating your link directly into this field is a great option!

You don’t have to be a big corporation to adopt professional tactics. Above, a small nonprofit, the Williamstown Theatre Festival, displays expert aesthetics by placing its link description front and center.

Pro Tip: Using bitly.com will shorten a longer url into a bite-size piece to fit your word count.

While landing pages are almost always helpful, they’re critical if you’re running Facebook Ads with the objective of lead generation, video views, or conversions. You need to be sure your viewer doesn’t just absorb information from your post but actually takes action!

 

4) Top 5 CTAs: Learn More, None, Shop Now, Sign Up, Book Travel

Choosing the perfect Call to Action (CTA) is more difficult than you’d imagine, which is a major reason why this category has seen so many changes over the years. Marketers have experimented with several different kinds of CTAs (including none at all). At the same time, Facebook constantly rolls out new options to test.

Facebook has three main types of ads that are aimed at increasing awareness, consideration, or conversion. Each of these has its own set of CTAs. While some, such as “Comment,” overlap among categories, others, like “Play Game,” are unique to a particular channel.

While the above CTAs are vetted to help drive success on the majority of Facebook ads, branching out and using CTAs that didn’t make the top-five list could set you apart in your viewers’ News Feeds.

The New Yorker could have gone with a simple “Shop Now” or “Learn More” — but the “Subscribe” CTA is more specific to its objective and is unique among the majority of other offers. It adds an artistic flair to an already-creative brand.

There are more than 30 unique options for Facebook ad CTAs. Here are a few of the quirkier ones:

  • Listen Now
  • Get Directions
  • Donate Now
  • Send Message
  • Image Click (where the image itself is the CTA)

Whether you go with a vetted approach or one that’s more daring will depend on your brand, your audience, and your ad budget — but having the correct data should always be your first step.

 

5) Companies Are Using a Greater Variety of Ad Types

Finally, more companies are deciding to get creative with the new ad offerings Facebook keeps rolling out.

Clearly, video ads have soared in popularity, while links, photos, and events have remained relatively steady or declined.

For more visual learners, another way to view the breakdown of ad types is below:

While traditional links still represent the majority, they are no match for the rapid rise of the video format.

There are so many ways to get creative and stand out with your video ads. And now is clearly the perfect time.

A few ideas from the pros:

  • Put the good stuff into the first 5–10 seconds.
  • Work in primary colors (red, blue, yellow).
  • Incorporate scrolling text.

While you should invest in learning the video format, don’t discount photo ads (particularly with all of the new image technology), which have remained a steady bet since 2015.

 

If you’d like to know more about effective Facebook advertising in New Zealand, check out our “Mastering Facebook Ads” online training course:

mastering-facebook-ads-online-training-course

In this nine-part online training course, we will take you step-by-step through what you need to know to understand and master Facebook Advertising.

Lesson One: Getting Started

In this lesson we introduce you to the principles and practices of Facebook Advertising, and take you on a tour through Facebook Ads Manager (which is the tool that most of Facebook’s two million advertisers use to advertise on Facebook). We also discuss:

  • why you shouldn’t just boost your Facebook posts and expect to get effective results
  • the key differences between Google Adwords and Facebook Ads and why they matter to you
  • the limitations faced by New Zealand advertisers compared with our foreign counterparts
  • how (if you’re not careful) you can end up competing with yourself and drive up your Facebook advertising costs
  • an analysis of the New Zealand Facebook marketplace
  • why mobile is so important with Facebook (and why that matters to you)

Lesson Two: Setting Campaign Objectives

When you first start an advertising campaign on Facebook, you’ll be offered a range of possible objectives for your advertising. In this lesson, we deconstruct each of the offers on tap, consider how they might help or hinder your campaign and review:

  • the surprising importance of Awareness campaigns for your future success
  • why you shouldn’t just go straight after Conversion and Sales objectives
  • when, where and how you should trust Facebook to meet your objectives (and when you shouldn’t)

Lesson Three: Targeting

Facebook has such rich data about its users that you can use to laser-focus your advertising on the people that you most want to target. It’s both an asset and a liability, because if your targeting is based on assumptions, you might be advertising to exactly the wrong people. In this lesson, we explore:

  • the comprehensive sets of filters available to you to segment your audience
  • the enhanced capabilities that are NOT available to NZ businesses (and how you can compensate instead)
  • how you can reach out to your own customers and prospects through Facebook Custom Audiences
  • the surprising implications of Europe’s new GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation, introduced in May 2018) for New Zealand targeting on Facebook

Lesson Four: The Offer

All offers are not alike on Facebook. To understand what works on NZ’s most popular social network, we need to review some of the key elements of social shopping.  In this lesson, we review:

  • The 10 most important factors that consumers look for when deciding whether or not to buy from you (and how you can improve each aspect)
  • The five most attractive offers that you can make, to close a sale
  • The six factors that consumers are most likely to consider when comparison shopping
  • The most popular items that Kiwis are buying online these days
  • The four most-important offerings you can provide that will have consumers recommending you to their friends
  • The five most likely reasons why consumers abandon their shopping cart in the middle of a purchase

Lesson Five: Advertising Creative

By now, you’ll be unsurprised to learn that all advertising is not alike on Facebook. In Lesson Five, we review the ads that work (and those that don’t) on Facebook. Included in this lesson:

  • identifying the most effective types of visual elements for Facebook Ads
  • when and how you should use video in your Facebook Ads
  • determining the copy elements that will work best to meet your objectives
  • establishing an effective Call to Action
  • considering the most important components of the Landing Pages (where you send people after they click on your ads)

Lesson Six: Remarketing and the Facebook Pixel

Remarketing — adding a Facebook pixel to a website outside Facebook, so that Facebook can track the journeys of those who click on your ads — is the key to truly understanding and segmenting your prospects. In this lesson, we give you a solid understanding of the benefits of remarketing and share how you can:

  • use remarketing to truly customise your Facebook Ads for your visitors
  • reach out again to prospects who visited your website but didn’t buy
  • follow up with prospects who made an enquiry or downloaded an ebook but have yet to buy
  • avoid wasting money, by not advertising again to those who did buy
  • remarket to visitors who have already liked your Facebook page

Lesson Seven: Measuring the Performance

Facebook Advertising creates a LOT of data, and the sheer scale of the information can be overwhelming. In Lesson Seven, we show you how to focus in on the key metrics that matter, and how to interpret that information to guide your future activities. In particular, we recommend that you track:

  • who saw your Facebook Ads
  • who clicked on those ads
  • the percentage who then took the desired action
  • the comparative Costs Per Click and Costs Per Conversion (and how to evaluate the effectiveness of your ads as a result)
  • the Lifetime Value of your Facebook-generated customers

Lesson Eight: Testing

Testing should be an essential part of any Facebook Advertising campaign. In this lesson we explain how to set up robust testing procedures for your campaigns and what represents appropriate sample sizes for each test. We also discuss:

  • which elements you might test (and why)
  • how and why you should only test a single element at any time
  • how to determine which variant is working and which is not (hint: it can be more complex than you think)
  • how much data you need to determine the outcome of a test

Lesson Nine: Creating Effective Facebook Posts

Finally, we review the types of posts that you should consider promoting with Facebook Ads, accompanied by a wide range of examples, including:

  • Plenty of stories from local and international businesses who are using Facebook effectively
  • The hotel chain that has twice as many people talking about it as the chain has followers
  • The radio station that has truly mastered the art of Facebook
  • Examples of posts that really tug at the heartstrings
  • The Facebook page that had 247,756 Facebook likes but managed to get 775,600 people talking and 160,000 people sharing
  • Practical posts that get people sharing

COURSE CREATION AND TUTORING
This course has been created and is tutored by Michael Carney, longtime marketer and author of six books (including the top-selling book “Trade Me Success Secrets”, now in its Second Edition). Michael is also the creator of a number of other online courses and consults on many digital business initiatives.

This is an online course, conducted on a web-based e-learning software platform, enabling course participants to proceed at their own pace, accessing materials online. This particular eCourse provides content in a variety of multimedia forms, including videos, slideshows, flash-based presentations and PDF files. No special software is required to participate.

Course lessons will be provided in nine parts, for participants to access in accordance with their own timetables.

CUSTOMER FEEDBACK

Feedback from previous Social Media Marketing online training course participants:

  • “this was the best professional development course I have done in many years” – Mark R, senior Agency Exec responsible for social media
  • “thought the information within was outstanding” – Ed P, General Manager
  • “What I loved was that I started with a fairly rudimentary understanding of social media but have learned a lot – including where to find more information as I need it.” – Fiona W, Marketing Manager
  • “I found it relevant, informative, topical, insightful and a bloody good read. It’s never evangelical, too techy, patronising, assumes that you know too much or too little about digital and has a warm sense of humour in the communication throughout which helped faciliate the learning process for me.” — Adrienne B, new media senior executive
  • “Thanks for pointing me in the direction of this course! It’s been extremely enlightening” — Shayne P, design agency director
  • “Rapt with what I have seen of the course” — Julia R, fashion editor
  • “I’m really enjoying the course – learning a lot – and I know the two friends I persuaded to join us are also loving it.” — Lavinia C, designer
  • “Am thoroughly enjoying the content!” – Kara B, magazine co-ordinator
  • “I completed the first lesson today and found it really interesting and love the interaction already! I am so looking forward to the second lesson already …” — Annette B, public relations director
  • “I was already engaging with social media and have been doing so for about 6 years or so. But, did I know how to use social media in a marketing and business sense? No, I simply did not. This course was a great way to show me how to do that.” — Sheryl K, online marketer

WHO SHOULD TAKE THIS COURSE
Any Business Owner or Manager, Marketing, Advertising, PR or Communications professional who, while they may have a fair knowledge of Facebook, realises that they need to know more about Facebook Advertising.

TIMING

This course begins on Thursday 02 January, 2020.

INVESTMENT

This nine-part eCourse is available for $597. However we offer a $100 Early Bird Discount for bookings received and payment made by midnight on Thursday 26 December, 2019. Pay only $497 for this course!

Bookings are confirmed on receipt of payment, which can be by bank deposit or credit card. We can raise an invoice in advance if you need it.

To reserve your place in this course, please pay by credit card through PayPal by clicking here.

If you would prefer to pay by bank deposit, or require an invoice before making payment, please send an email to [email protected] with details of your request.

(The service provider will be shown as Netmarketing Courses in your transaction and on your credit card statement).

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Your booking will be confirmed by email (if you have not received a confirmation within 24 hours, feel free to email [email protected]).

On the first day of the course you will be supplied by email with login details and Course Notes for Lesson One.

NZ Social Media Marketing Trends 2018 Report – Now Available

NZ Social Media Marketing Trends 2018 (now available)

nz-social-media-marketing-trends-2018

In our next Marketing Trends Special Report, we turn the spotlight on NZ Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018.

Social Media Marketing is potentially the most powerful weapon in your marketing repertoire — or it might be the place you avoid if you haven’t really mastered the art of promoting your brand effectively through the channel.

Here’s the thing, though — Social Media has become the place where Kiwis spend most of their media consumption time, on a daily basis. If you don’t know how to use Social Media to best advantage, you’re potentially missing out on a great many opportunities.

If you’re completely new to Social Media Marketing, you should check out our Social Media Marketing online training course.

Otherwise, if you understand the essentials of Social Media Marketing, this special report and slide presentation on NZ Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018 will bring you up to speed with all the latest developments.

Inside the NZ Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018 presentation you’ll find:

Social Media Marketing Trends for 2018 and 2019
Social Media is constantly developing and evolving. In this section of the report we examine the latest news and information on new and extended technologies and practices and how they affect us all. Topics covered include:

  • The new European GDPR data protection regulations and how the social media networks have implemented them in ways that affect all of us. For example, In the wake of the introduction of GDPR, Facebook has introduced two new features to help developers and businesses better protect people’s privacy and respond to their privacy requests. Marketers everywhere (not just in Europe) need to understand and master these tools.
  • Instagram now reaches 1 billion monthly active users globally. Is this platform appropriate for you?
  • Social Media has changed advertising forever. We explore the new reality.
  • We show you how to spy on your competitors and their Facebook advertising.
  • Now that 70% of the time we spend on social media is via mobile apps, how does that impact what and how we advertise on social media?
  • LinkedIn has just introduced new posting tools. What does that mean for you?
  • One-third of the world’s population is now on social media. Are you taking full advantage?
  • There’s a new Facebook Influencer Platform on its way. We give you a sneak peek.
  • Messaging apps now have more monthly users than social media networks. What are the implications?
  • Social media is now consumers’ preferred customer service channel. Are you ready?
  • Unpaid (organic) reach is all but dead on social media channels. We explore what you absolutely must do instead.

OTHER KEY TRENDS COVERED IN THE REPORT

Video

First on the list is the least surprising of all: social goes video. Yep, all those moving pictures clamouring for attention on Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Instagram (now joined by LinkedIn, which has recently added its own native video offerings) will continue to get all the attention.

What that means for marketers: if you are not using video in social media, you are much less likely to get noticed — and even less likely to get remembered. According to data gathered by Filmora, 95% of video messages will be retained by consumers while only 10% of text-based posts will enjoy that privilege.

Oh, and if you can, make those videos live. Facebook Live videos are watched three times longer than regular videos.

Ephemeral is Hot

The move to short-lived content, pioneered by Snapchat and shamelessly copied by Instagram Stories, will continue to be a thing in 2018.

Why? There are a few factors at work, including:

  • increased concentration on the actual post content, precisely because it will disappear
  • fear of missing out, because the messages are limited and time-constrained
  • users can afford not to worry about little things like spelling, grammar or accuracy, because their messages don’t hang around long enough to be critiqued

Chatbots are multiplying

There are now some 100,000 active chatbots on Facebook Messenger and it is estimated that 30% of our chat conversations will be with the little creatures this year.

Why? Because, in many cases they are smarter than humans — at least when it comes to talking about what they know (are programmed) to chat about.

If you already know the most frequently asked questions about your products, a chatbot is the simplest, most efficient and friendliest (!) way to share that information with your prospects and customers.

Influencer Marketing is growing strongly

Influencer Marketing is the fastest-growing marketing channel, according to Filmora data. That’s because, with all due respect to traditional media channels, Influencer Marketing is (or can/should be):

  • more targeted
  • more credible
  • more affordable

Influencer Marketing can also be more successful, according to 94% of those who use the channel.

And, since these days consumers put more trust in friends, whanau and peers, Influencer Marketing is an easy approach to gather endorsements that hopefully turn into sales.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING SPECIFICS

Beyond the over-riding trends, the report drills down into the latest developments in the specific social media channels, including:

Facebook

  • Facebook’s new Brand Collab Manager tool and how it will assist you with your influencer marketing programmes
  • How Facebook’s Automated Rules can help you better manage your Facebook Advertising
  • New Facebook dating app, FaceDate — swipe left or swipe right?
  • Sharing to Facebook from apps like Spotify and Oculus Go — how can you leverage?
  • Real Time Language Translations In Facebook Messenger are now available to American users. Exporters, take note as this feature rolls out,

Instagram

  • Instagram has just launched long-form video as IGTV. What does that mean for Kiwi marketers?
  • Instagram Shopping is now available for NZ retailers and etailers selling physical products in approved categories. How can you best take advantage?
  • Instagram Stories have been enthusiastically adopted by a number of NZ brands. Should you do so? What are the advantages and disadvantages?

And, of course, all the latest news, views and updates, too numerous to list here, about Twitter, Snapchat, Pinterest and YouTube.

—

The NZ Social Media Marketing Trends 2018 presentation looks ahead at what marketers should expect and plan for in 2018 and 2019 — based on local and global trends you may not yet have had the opportunity to examine — turning those forecasts into a comprehensive report & slide deck in PowerPoint format (with accompanying notes).

FOR USE INTERNALLY AND WITH YOUR OWN CLIENTS

This report, like all our Marketing Insights presentations, comes with personal use and agency use rights: you can present these reports to your own team and to your clients, bringing everyone up to speed on the latest New Zealand Marketing Insights as we accelerate through what remains of 2018. All presentations are unbranded, so you can add your own branding and comments.

All of our presentations in this Marketing Insights series consist of at least 150 slides, dealing with as many key insights.

This NZ Marketing Insights presentation is available to purchase and reuse, for $697.

To purchase by credit card via PayPal, please click here:

sign up now

 

BILLING OPTIONS
If you would prefer to pay by bank deposit or require an invoice before making payment, please send an email to [email protected] with details of your request. (The service provider will be shown as Netmarketing Courses in your transaction and on your credit card statement).

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
1. Your purchase will be confirmed by email.
2. After your order has been processed, download instructions will be provided to you by email.

Social Media Marketing: State of the Market 2018

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Every year, the fine folks at Social Media Examiner poll their 450,000 followers to determine what’s hot and what’s not in social media marketing.

The full report for 2018 has just been publicly released and if you hurry (freely available for download until May 30) you can grab it here.

The results are global, but with half the respondents based in the United States.

Social Media Marketing 2018: Key Findings

We’ve been through the report and these are some of the key findings that caught our eye:

Facebook remains king. A very significant 94% of marketers use Facebook (followed by Instagram at 66%). Two in three marketers claim Facebook is their most important social platform.

marketer-usage-of-social-media-platforms-2018

Fans and followers are no longer as sought after as before. For the first time in years, generating leads has become more of a focus for marketers than cultivating a loyal fan base. In our view, that’s just a side effect of the reality that (especially for Facebook) the importance of follower numbers has diminished as organic reach has declined. 52% of marketers surveyed said that they saw their Facebook reach decline in the last year.

Even so, 50% of marketers have increased their organic activities on Facebook over the last 12 months and 62% of marketers plan on increasing their Facebook organic activities over the next year.

Facebook is the most important paid social advertising medium (and will continue to be so as we move towards 2019). Facebook ads are used by 72% of marketers (followed by Instagram at 31%). Nearly half of all marketers increased their Facebook ad activities in the last year and 67% plan on increasing their use of Facebook ads over the next 12 months.

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Paid social media advertising is on the increase. The platforms where marketers have most increased their use of paid media are Facebook ads (49%) and Instagram ads (28%); and in the near future, both platforms will see even more expenditure, with 67% of marketers planning to spend more on Facebook and 53% planning to spend more on Instagram.

Return on Investment remains a challenge. Just 44% of marketers felt that they could measure ROI or social media activities.

The jury is still out on effectiveness. Slightly less than half of those marketers surveyed agreed that their Facebook marketing is effective.

Nevertheless, social media marketing is still viewed as delivering strong benefits. A significant 87% of all marketers indicated that their social media efforts have generated more exposure for their businesses. Increased traffic was the second major benefit, with 78% reporting positive results.

benefits-of-social-media-cited-by-marketers

Snapchat isn’t really a thing: 82% of marketers don’t currently use the platform and 72% have the no plans to use Snapchat in the next 12 months.

Influencer marketing has yet to reach its full potential: 61% of marketers are not currently working with influencers.

B2C: nearly all business-to-consumer (B2C) marketers are focused on Facebook.

B2B: most business-to-business (B2B) marketers also use Facebook, whilst a significant percentage use LinkedIn.

Most popular communications methods: images remain the most popular content form, used by 80% of marketers, while videos are used by 63% (up from 57% in 2017). Going forward, marketers plan to increase their use of videos (77%), visuals (68%), live video (63%), blogging (57%), and podcasting (25%), in that order.

 

Learning More About Social Media Platforms

Social Media Examiner asked marketers to identify which social media platforms they want to learn more about. Facebook took first place at 79%.

social-media-platforms-marketers-want-to-learn-more-about

If YOU would like to learn more about any of the above platforms, take a look at our online training courses:

FACEBOOK

INSTAGRAM

LINKEDIN

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING

NZ Posts That Have Gone Viral on Facebook in 2018

nz-posts-that-have-gone-viral-on-facebook-in-2018

You’ve no doubt seen the gloom and doom stories about Facebook in recent times, and how New Zealand marketers can no longer expect to get noticed without paying for Facebook ads.

Whilst that’s a fair summation of the current state of Facebook in 2018, there are still exceptions — posts that do get shared, because they excite, inspire or touch the hearts of Kiwi consumers.

Here, from our database of more than 23,000 NZ Facebook pages, are some of the recent posts that we’ve come across that performed far better than the average.

Firstly, from Waikato Hospital’s Emergency Department (ED), lurking within the usual public service announcements, a picture and accompanying story that will make you go “awwww” (and like the post 5,200 times and share it 618 times):

waikato

Nicely done, Waikato.

Next, from the Porirua Chamber of Commerce, a story that’s achieved surprising traction (273 likes, 61 shares) considering that the chamber only has 1,122 followers:

porirua

We also couldn’t resist sharing the post from an unlikely source, Ese Tatupu Funeral Directors &  Mortuary Embalmers, which attracted attention well beyond its core constituency when it shared the Tagata Pasifika story of its female Funeral Director:

funeral

And then there was Southland Honda, which caught the imagination of hundreds of its followers with an almost-unbelievable picture from long ago:

southland

If you’d like to improve your own social media expertise, we offer specialist training.

Here are the current courses (click on the links for more details about each course):

SOCIAL MEDIA MARKETING COURSES

Facebook Accelerator Programme
Facebook-Accelerator-course

So you have a few hundred (or a few thousand) followers on Facebook but now you want to know how to get to the next level? Our Facebook Accelerator seven-part online course will lead you through the steps necessary to supercharge your Facebook presence and get Kiwi consumers engaging with you and your brands.

For more details of the Facebook Accelerator programme, please click here.

The Principles & Practice of Social Media Marketing
social-media-marketing-nz-online-training-course

This is a thirteen-part eCourse providing a comprehensive introduction to Social Media Marketing, from the Basics to detailed instructions on how to build and run a Social Media Marketing programme.

For more details of the Social Media Marketing online course, please click here.

The Complete Facebook Marketing Course
Complete Facebook Marketing course

For those who wish to master Facebook Marketing in its entirety, we’ve created a ten-week online training programme which will take you from absolute beginner on Facebook to highly effective Facebook communicator.

For more details of the Complete Facebook Marketing programme, please click here.

How to Prepare an Effective Social Media Brief
Preparing an Effective Social Media Marketing Brief

Even if you don’t intend to become directly involved in social media yourself, you may still need to understand the principles, practices and opportunities of social media — for example, if you need to brief someone about running a social media campaign. This programme is designed to provide you with the insights necessary to prepare an effective brief.

For more details of the How to Prepare an Effective Social Media Brief programme, please click here.

How to Use LinkedIn Effectively – For Your Business And Your Career
How to Use LinkedIn Effectively - for your Business and your Career

This is a seven-part online training eCourse providing a comprehensive introduction to LinkedIn, from the basics to detailed instructions on how to use LinkedIn to promote your organisation, build your personal reputation, find a job, recruit prospective employees and even make sales.

For more details of the How to Use LinkedIn Effectively programme, please click here.

ONLINE VIDEO MARKETING COURSE

online-video-marketing-course

Online Video is no longer an “up-and-coming” marketing tactic — it’s here, and it’s a powerful way to communicate your brand story, explain your value proposition, and build relationships with your customers and prospects.

Remember the old cliche that a picture is worth a thousand words? According to an estimate by Dr James McQuivey of Forrester Research, one minute of video is equal to 1.8 million words.

So let’s cut to the chase. It’s well past time for you to upskill yourself in online video marketing. That’s why we’re launching our newest short course on the topic.

For more details of the Online Video Marketing course, please click here.

ECOMMERCE COURSES

Mastering eCommerce course

Our online course, “Mastering eCommerce”, tells you what you need to know about selling effectively online in a seven-week programme that steps you through the principles and practices of eCommerce in New Zealand.

For more details of the Mastering eCommerce programme, please click here.

Advanced Selling on Trade Me
Advanced Selling on Trade Me

This is a seven-week eCourse providing a comprehensive masterclass on selling on Trade Me. The course presumes you are already familiar with the basics of selling on Trade Me.

For more details of the Advanced Selling on Trade Me programme, please click here.

MOBILE MARKETING

Smartphone usage has hit the tipping point, in New Zealand as elsewhere. According to Google’s Consumer Barometer (2017), most New Zealanders Under 55 now have smartphones — and these devices are dramatically changing consumer behaviour, with significant implications for Kiwi businesses.To help you master this challenging mobile environment, we’ve created a dedicated online training course about Mobile Marketing.

For more details of the Principle & Practice of Mobile Marketing course, please click here.

 

Should Marketers Panic About Facebook?

should-marketers-panic-about-facebook

We’ve all seen the news stories and the memes about Facebook and its privacy issues. And we’ve seen a very different Mark Zuckerberg fronting up to the US senate. So is it time to panic and divert our marketing energies somewhere else — anywhere else?

Facebook uber-expert Mari Smith asked a similar question in a recent blog post:

Should businesses abandon Facebook and use other social media platforms instead?

One of Mari Smith’s audience members asked this very question on a recent Facebook Live broadcast on her Page. Her answer: absolutely not! For SAVVY MARKETERS it is “Business as usual.” You are foolish if you abandon Facebook right now.

Granted, if you are a personal user only, and Facebook no longer floats your boat, then sure go for it — delete your account.

BUT, if you manage a business Page on Facebook, you still have *the* most granular ad targeting parameters available to you and the ability to reach the largest online audience ever.

As much as Facebook has had a ton of challenging media attention in the past few weeks—primarily due to the Cambridge Analytica data breach debacle—there is simply NO solid reason for businesses to abandon Facebook right now. As for the impact of Mark Zuckerberg testifying before Congress, well, it remains to be seen what will happen from here.

Here’s Mari’s ‘soap box’ #MariRant message about not abandoning Facebook!

The above video is a five minute excerpt of this longer Facebook Live broadcast Mari did on April 4th, reviewing many important updates that Facebook rolled out:

Six Important Facebook Updates

In the past few weeks, Facebook has been pushing out update after update in a concerted [rescue] effort leading up to Mark Zuckerberg’s appearance before Congress. Following is a list of the most pertinent changes that impact business users in particular:

1. Removal of Partner Categories in ad targeting (over the next six months)

Facebook is shutting down Partner Categories, which allowed third-party data aggregators like Experian and Acxiom to provide Facebook advertisers with additional valuable offline demographic data such as home ownership or purchase behavior. Facebook will wind down Partner Categories over the next six months. [Note for Kiwi marketers: these Partner Categories weren’t available in New Zealand anyway, so no loss there]

2. New email address list certification tool

Facebook is working on a certification tool that will demand that marketers guarantee that email addresses used for ad targeting were rightfully attained. The tool will aim to safeguard against advertisers misusing user data in uploaded lists for ad targeting. [In our view, this is all about making Facebook GDPR-compliant in advance of Europe’s imminent new data protection regulations.]

The tool is still in development and it’s not clear exactly what the ‘certification’ process will entail. Other than checking a box? Hm. Perhaps advertisers will have to show proof of where and how they obtained the email addresses, e.g. the URL of the landing page with the opt-in form, or the Messenger Bot, along with which CRM system the business uses. 3. Major changes for apps using Facebook API’s

3. Changes to Data Access

Facebook announced nine important changes to restrict data access. Those changes include

Events API: All apps using this API will no longer be able to access the guest list or posts on Facebook Event walls.

Groups API: All apps using the Groups API will need approval from Facebook and an admin. Plus, apps will no longer be able to access the member list of a group, or personal information attached to posts or comments in groups. This is surely a good thing from a user standpoint. However, I imagine there are many Group apps out there a bit upset about this change.

Pages API: Going forward, all apps accessing data through the Pages API will need to be approved by Facebook. Facebook Login: In addition to the changes Mark Zuckerberg announced on March 21, 2018, Facebook is further imposing strict requirements on apps before they can access data. For any app you’ve not used in the last 3 months, Facebook will remove that app developer’s ability to request your data.

Instagram Platform API: Facebook accelerated the deprecation of the Instagram API, choking off developers’ access to numerous capabilities.

For the full list of the nine changes, see this post.

4. No more reach estimates for Custom Audiences

Facebook no longer shows reach estimates for Custom Audiences. After a research team from Northeastern University discovered a potential privacy vulnerability with this ad feature, Facebook stopped showing audience reach estimates in any campaign using Custom Audience targeting.

Custom Audiences are created using customer information that advertisers upload—such as a list of opt-in email subscribers, phone numbers or addresses—or website visitors based on the Facebook pixel.

Potential Reach numbers will not be provided in any campaign set up that uses Custom Audiences, including to build lookalike audiences from an uploaded list, until a fix has been developed. Let’s hope that’s fairly soon! Nonetheless, you can certainly still run your ad campaigns without the reach estimates.

5. New rules for political or issue ads

Every advertiser on Facebook that wants to run political or issue ads will need to be verified by confirming their identity and location.

Political/issue ads will be labeled and will clearly show who paid for the ad.

Plus, for political ads in the US, you’ll be able to search an archive that shows how much the advertiser spent, the types of people who saw the ads, and the number of times the ad was seen.

6. People managing large pages need to be verified

Facebook is also going to require people who manage large pages to be verified as well. Zuck states, “This will make it much harder for people to run pages using fake accounts, or to grow virally and spread misinformation or divisive content that way.”

It is not clear yet what constitutes a ‘large page,’ or exactly what the verification process entails, or even whether the verification will be the publicly displayed blue check badge.

What to do now

Many of these changes will have some impact on business Page owners and Facebook advertisers. However, each of the changes is specifically to address protecting user data. Over time, it’s likely Facebook will make some adjustments to these changes. We’ll see.

Meantime, it’s “Business as usual.”

  • Do your best to speak with good purpose and strive to become a part of the SOLUTION, not a part of the problem.
  • Don’t “pile on,” and add to the negativity that’s already swirling out there.
  • Keep posting great content on your Facebook Page that resonates with your audience and sparks meaningful engagement.
  • Amplify your reach and engagement with at least a nominal ad budget on your posts. Keep using all Facebook’s tools and ad products you were before.
  • Be sure to create and run an engaged group, linked to your Facebook Page.

This article includes quotes from the post Six Important Facebook Updates: What Marketers Need To Know Now which appeared first on MariSmith.com.

Mobile Marketing 2018 Statistics

We’ve been telling you for some time that Mobile Marketing is a big deal. Well, it just got even bigger.

mobile-first-search

Last week, after a year and a half of testing and experimentation, Google announced that its “mobile-first” indexing of the web is now starting to roll out. Searchers are “primarily mobile,” Google noted, and this should give them a better chance of finding what they wanted.

As enGadget points out:

Google is adamant that desktop-only sites won’t vanish from the index, and that phone-optimized sites included in the first wave won’t have an advantage over either desktop content or mobile pages that have yet to be included. And if it happens that a desktop site is more relevant to a given search, you’ll still see it ranked higher than its mobile alternatives.

Even with all these conditions, there’s no question that the tide has turned. Google had already emphasized mobile-friendly pages when searching on phones, but it’s now using them as a reference point for the search engine itself. It’s a not-so-subtle hint to site creators that they should fine-tune their pages for mobile if they want to stay in sync with Google’s priorities.

This latest infographic demonstrates why Mobile Marketing really matters:

2018-mobile-statistics-1
2018-mobile-statistics-2
2018-mobile-statistics-3
2018-mobile-statistics-4
2018-mobile-statistics-5
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Infographic Source: Modern Technolab

Convinced about Mobile Marketing but not sure what to do next?

Check out our Mobile Marketing course.