CMOs integrate social media in their current strategies and are looking beyond sales, which indicates they understand the value of social media. Sounds nice but how do you measure the return on investment?

Whether or not to enter the social space is not even a question anymore. Even if you don’t want to be there your audience most likely will be in that space, talking about your brand. These days the question is towards the ROI of social media. Setting up a whole social media team is quite frightening for brands, because how do you measure the KPI’s and will this directly be shown in the sales numbers?

MDG Advertising made this nice video showing how the industry is measuring the ROI of social media.

Click here to view the embedded video.

MDG Advertising answers the question CMOs are having: how do you measure the ROI of social media? In short, every business has different objectives so there is no standard measurement.

So what is important to know then? Well, having clear business objectives may be an open door but is most certainly essential. Forrester recognizes this as well and recommends 4 factors to consider to measure the ROI of social media:

1. Financial
   Have costs decreased or sales increased?
2. Brand
   Have perceptions of the brand improved?
3. Risk Management
   Are you better prepared to respond to issues that affect brand reputation?
4. Digital
   Has the brand enhanced its digital assets?

The 4 factors indicated above are really relevant, however it only matters if the results are monitored. So yes, it’s really important to set up clear brand and business objectives but don’t forget to keep track of it all.

How do you measure the ROI of your social media efforts? Let us know in the comments below.

Source: Measuring The ROI Of Social Media photo from Shutterstock, MDG Advertising

Today the winners were announced, and guess what?! Thanks to you we made it!

ViralBlog is on the second place among Top 10 Social Media Blogs 2012 by the Social Media Examiner, a third-annual social media blog contest.

We were among  nearly 600 nominations that were generated this year!

A panel of social media experts (Andy Sernovitz – author, Word of Mouth Marketing & CEO, SocialMedia.org, Rick Calvert  - CEO, BlogWorld, and Michael Stelzner author, Launch & CEO, Social Media Examiner) reviewed the nominees and finalists.

The Final Winner Selection was based on the following criteria:

• Quality of posts: The judges examined and scored the quality of posts on each blog. Educational and discussion-spurring posts are more valuable than self-promoting posts (55% of decision).
• Frequency of posts: Blogs that feature multiple posts per week scored higher. This is a sign of the blogger’s commitment to blogging (15%).
• Reader involvement: Blogs that have regular comments from readers are another sign of a healthy blog. In addition, the numbers of nominations for a specific blog play a part in this (15%).
• Blog ranking: The number of other blogs that link to the nominated blog shows the value of the content (15%). Accepted third-party blog ranking systems were used for this portion of the score.

We would like to thank all that nominated ViralBlog and for your support – also congratulation to all the nominees and winners!

Source: Social Media Examiner

A market expanding so quickly this is one to look out for. So how many people are actually playing social games? In the US alone over 100 million people play on social networks. And this is a 600 million dollar market of virtual goods!

Zynga has more than 220 million active users each month, this is a quarter of Facebook’s 800 million users. Wouldn’t it be interesting if a brand creates a game that’s compelling enough to come back every day/week?

It would open new possibilities like selling virtual goods. And for certain brands it would help on a branding level, for example Samsung could create a space exploration game for their Galaxy phone brand. With in-depth gameplay plus an added social layer, this could be the next Farmville or Mafia Wars.

Do you have great examples how brands are engaging their consumers through social games? Let us know in the comments below!

As more companies understand that social media is about long-term and strategic approach that goes hand-in-hand with other marketing channels, it’s no longer perceived as a single shot into the dark.

Wildfire in cooperation with Column Five conducted in November an ROI survey of over 700 marketers from all around the world and compiled the results in the infographic below.

Some important key facts:

• 97% of the surveyed marketers believe that social media marketing benefits their business;
• 75% intend to increase media spending this year;
• brands and market is currently focused on growing the fan base to engage and monetize in later phases.

The interesting part is, that there’s currently no standardized method how to measure ROI of social media success. For all the details, have a look.

How is the ROI and success of the social media approach measured in your company and how do you set your KPIs based on them?

Source: Wildfire

Although they are annoying and their presence has been steadily decreasing, you can learn how to create a viral video, by taking a look at some of the more recent Facebook scams…

We Love to Be Shocked and Surprised

[Video] – This is what Happened to his Ex Girlfriend!
[LINK]
Play Video! She could not walk properly for days!

Most people who are on Facebook aren’t doing anything too exciting or interesting. If you can create a video with a compelling title that actually delivers on the promise, you will gain positive affinity for your brand. Check out this girl…

Although her eyebrows look to be computer generated at some points, her video is very real and “Girl with a funny talent” has been viewed over 24 million times.

We Love FREE Stuff

‘In Memory of Steve Jobs, Apple has decided to give away 1000 Limited Edition iPad 2s’, ‘In the memory of Steve Jobs, a company is giving 50 iPads tonite’

Making viral content which gives something away for free is not always possible. What is possible is to give valuable information away for free. SimplePickup does just that with its comedic pickup videos…

…essentially telling men the world over that picking up girls is an easy thing to do, something which the dating industry, which relies on “secrets” and “techniques,” does not reveal.

We Want to Feel Accepted

Wow Now you can see Who is Stalking on your Profile

Belongingness is one of the most fundamental needs, according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. We all want to feel accepted in one way or another. If you can create a video which makes people feel wanted, feel as if they’re not alone in their problems, you’ll capture the attention of many. That is what Juan Mann accomplished with his “Free Hugs Campaign,” which has received over 70 million views…

We Look At What’s Trending

BREAKING: Lady Gaga Found Dead in Hotel Room
This is the most awful day in US history

Can’t think of a topic to make a video about? There’s no shame looking for what’s already popular and putting your own creative spin on it. That is what Atomic Productions does with its spoofs of popular movie trailers…

Facebook scams are annoying and usually result in nothing more than you filling out a survey. However, they are annoying for the same reasons they are viral: they touch our emotions.

Nickolay Lamm keeps track of the latest online scams at InventHelp Scam.

CMO Council and Lithium surveyed more than 1,300 consumers and 132 senior marketers to understand the voice, velocity and value of social media. Here are the results and insights from the research to help CMOs better understand the way how they should communicate.

From the users perspective the on-line audit shows that the consumers are mostly open-minded, engaged, loyal and willing advocates for the brands they admire but also demanding and of course want something in return.

The consumers are looking forward to, want and expect much more from the brands in the on-line environment, such as:

• better experiences;
• deeper engagement with each other and the brand;
• reasons to participate;
• and rewards when they do.

The expectations are there and to gain advantage in social, focus on these in 2012. It’s obviously not the holy grail of social media, but sure something to start with, in case these have been missed in the past

Detailed Findings – Marketer

The charts below represent answers of marketers, from which 30% are Chief Marketing Officers, 16% Directors of Marketing and 8% VP of Marketing or Digital Marketing from IT, Retail, Financial Services, Insurance, Food and Beverage and many others fields.

More than 50% of the surveyed marketers believe their brand influence and voice is growing. On the contrary, only 7% say it’s excellent and of course as brands vary, there are also some limitations for content.

How do you rate your level of brand influence in social media channels?

From the communication perspective, from customer to company, the majority is through e-mail (76%) or customer service lines/call centers (11%). The surprising part is, that only a few (11%) would post on a brand’s Facebook fan page or Tweet (8%).

Maybe useless to mention successful Twitter customer care/support of XBox or Twelpforce…

How do your customers typically interact or communicate with you?

Yes, everything is about the money, that’s the truth. There will be money, there were money…but they aren’t money right now. The question is: “WHEN THAN?” Every day is a missed opportunity and your competitors are out there. And not having a break.

Yes, there are concerns about the future, the crisis, etc. But if there’s a budget for TV campaign (are you 100% sure it’s still the best medium for your target audience?), there should be budget for social media strategy.

I’m also sure, you must have heard about social media monitoring and measurement tools that quantify the results of your social media presence.

What concerns you the most about your investments in social media initiatives?

But all this starts with a proper, planned and organized social media strategy. It’s not a banner campaign. It’s not an event. These may be part of it, but as you may see, marketers are still struggling to integrate social media within other channels. More than a third admit they have not developed fully integrated strategies for social media. There always has to be a strategy.

How would you describe your existing social media strategy?

Detailed Findings – Consumers

The pool of respondents consisted mostly of 18-44 years old (67% in total), slightly more females (52%) which mostly had less than 300 friends on Facebook and less than 300 followers on Twitter. These also followed less than 300 brands on Twitter and “liked” a maximum of 300 brand pages on Facebook.

From the user’s perspective, it’s a bit more simple. They mostly connect with brands to relax, play games, do contests. But interesting statements are – they are looking for products to learn about them, show they are fans and want to share experience. But of course also to complain.

I connect with brands on Facebook and other social networks:

Ok, maybe the users are also not yet prepared to communicate with brands only through social networks and find it more convenient/secure to send an e-mail or fill out a form. Or wait in a cue calling customer service line (really hate it!). But also do post on a Facebook page, discuss on forums and Tweet. Don’t underestimate these channels and focus on them.

When I want to communicate with a brand, I…

And now why do these people connect to your brand? They expect something special. Another way of talking, different approach or basically to have an advantage, like…yes – discounts, special promotions and offers. Everyone likes to be indulged.

These are some of the new ways I’m using social media this year:

Peer pressure is a strong “tool” and is one one of the strongest in the social media space as users inspire each other to engage and try new or different brands that they may not heard of before. Suggestions from friends and vice versa works. That’s what is Google+ trying to achieve and social search, if successfully implemented, will be a hit.

Because of social media, I am more likely to:

As you see, the information is out there, the next big steps are to get in depth knowledge of what social media space offers, listen to your customers, watch competitors, create a strategy and implement it. It may not be easy, but it’s worth it.

And as this is not the full report from CMO Council but only a part, I’d like to advice you to grab it. Does not have to become a bible, but it’s worth reading and sending over to your marketing department in case they did not hear about it.

Source: CMOcouncil.com; Social Brand Experience Full Report

And as there were more than 300 articles on ViralBlog in 2011, we bring you bring you the top 25 that you simply have to read…

You may not be able to go through all of them at once, but these are the most read posts of 2011 on ViralBlog that should not be missed.  Let us know your opinion in the comments, looking forward to read them!

iPad 2 Compared To Its Competition

On 2nd March 2011 Apple launched the follow up to the iPad, the iPad 2. With the launch Apple took another step forward in the tablet market, which Apple created in 2010.
Later more players entered the “battle of tablets“, but still have a long journey to become a proper competitors to Apple.

It’s Back: Elf Yourself 2011 Is Here!

For Christmas 2011 many businesses  couldn’t wait to expose their most brilliant themed marketing. Some – like Elf Yourself – are so epic that they can be re-launched every year. See the Elf Yourself 2011 edition here.
We think it can inspire a few CMOs as well…

How Branding Works In The Social Media Age

With more than 100 million active users on Twitter and 800 million+ on Facebook, stunning growth rates of other major social networks, it’s already a part of daily life and culture around the globe.
For the brands it’s important to know and understand how their fans, followers and prospects interact and engage with them in the vasts space of social media.

Happily Married: Tourism And Social

Have you got a stop-over, do you have to wait for public transport, are you on holiday or are you just interested in what is happening in a city? Wouldn’t it be great if you can meander around  and get to know the ins and out by using just your mobile? But not just another GPS Tour, but one extensively connected to all social and information feeds…

The Economical Value Of One Facebook Fan?

Since social media and Facebook have matured as viable dialogue marketing, CRM and customer service tools,  the job of a strategist is much more fun. Brand and business objective driven conversionista DNA is shaking in every cell.
We have the value of one Facebook Fan…

Groupon’s Air Fast Ticket Deal Misleading?

Just like in almost any other country, Groupon is also very succesful in the Netherlands. Although there are other Groupon copycats willing to accept lower commissions, many small businesses prefer to partner with Groupon because they reach more potential customers.

5 Creative Uses Of The Facebook Like

The 31st FantasPorto Oporto International Horror Film Festival, held in Lisbon between 25 February and 5 March 2011, is being sponsored by Jornal de Notícias. This local newspaper placed a remarkable ad with a macabre sense of appreciation. A great way to use the popular Facebook Like to promote a horror festival!
And that’s just one of them!

Why Dutch Politics Ban QR-Coded Billboards?!

QR-codes may not be the best promotion, there are also other more relevant ways to engage large audiences. But it’s certainly ridiculous that Dutch politicians are trying to put a ban on QR-coded billboards…

KLM Fly2Miami: It Started With A Tweet?

It all started with a tweet, might sound like a cheesy song- but it’s an amazing story. What happened? KLM announced on Twitter that they would be re-opening their Amsterdam-Miami route on 27 March 2011.

The History Of Social Networking

We all know that social media have been just a few years around now and that these means have changed our lives significantly.
But do you also know how it all started and how people were connected using the Internet before the invention of Facebook and Twitter?

Predicting Online Retail Sales & Growth 2011

Famecount aims to help people locate and connect with celebraties and brands in each of the major social networks. If  you look at the current top 10 of popular brands, half of the brands mentioned are FMCG’s.
The only retail brand is current number one, Starbucks.

Build Your Own Social Network

Probably all know the benefits of Facebook on a personal level and business level. But why enjoy all of these benefits just on Facebook? Wouldn’t it be great if you could create your own social network?

Instagram Boosts Levi’s Social Interactions?

From old Polaroid cameras to photo app Instagram for iPhone, seems to be a small step for mankind. Levi’s Brazil tapped into Instagram on iPhone to boost the social interactions with its targets..

Top 10: 3D Projection Videos

More brands are using the amazing 3D projection mapping on buildings or products in order to earn some attention of their target audiences. The projections are fully adapted to the architecture of a building or facade and as the events are filmed the 3D projection video may go viral.

Viral Friday: Volkswagen Commercial: The Force

On #1 position of Viral Friday was Volkswagen Commercial: The Force. Watch the power of the Force and a young boy. The runner up spot is for Google: Art Project – Visitor Guide. Some of the best museums are now open for everybody online thanks to Google! Kobe Bryant is, “The Black Mamba” completes the week’s top 3.

10 Mind Blowing Facebook Games Statistics

Social gaming is still a growing trend and gaming on Facebook is definitely the place where social gaming takes place. We showed you amazing facts & figures before regarding the Rise of Social Gaming & Zynga.

Android vs. iPhone

A study by Nielsen shows that more U.S. prospects are considering getting a new smartphone with Android operating system than one from Apple or RIM. The overall market share in the U.S. shows iPhone was used more,  but this is changing.

How CPG CMO’s Can Tap Into Social Gaming?

Why should CMO’s in CPG and Retail care about the trend social gaming? Maybe because the games industry is larger than the movie and music industry together? Or because social gaming can inject intensity into their brand, products and sales?

The Real Cost Of Social Media

Costs for social media projects, whether they are a short term campaign or a long term engagement strategy, tend to be under estimated. Most agency will have heard something along the lines of “but it’s free to set up a Facebook Fanpage, right?”  from their clients…

Tourism Ireland: 1st Social Game On Facebook?

We frequently try to inspire CMO’s to embrace social marketing, Facebook and social games. The most groundbreaking full year social program in tourism we have seen so far is definately the one of Tourism Tuscany. But Tourism Ireland claims to have launched the 1st branded social game on Facebook…

How 3D Projections Create Buzz & WOM?

Traditional billboard advertising is in many ways appropriate. In fact many and major advertisers still give it a fair position in their marketing budget, and they should.. Here an impression of this development, accompanied with some nice examples and an example breakdown of the costs is given.

If Social Media Were A High School?

Which social media channel is the class president? Who is the nerd? And who is the typical gossip girl? Flowtown has not only added all the major social media channels, but also added the new kids in town, like Instagram and Formspring.me.

Analyzing Your Social Media Strategy

For a couple of years social media has been on the radar of nearly every marketer. Some really understand how to make it work for them, others struggle and some are still clueless. Araceli Perez of e-interactive created an amazing infographic, showing us all the relevant steps one need to take for a solid social media strategy.

Viral Friday: Dead Island Trailer

The #1 position went to Dead Island Trailer. An amazing short movie, definitley one to watch! The runner up spot is for Rear View Girls, see how many men look at your ass ladies!  Lady Gaga completes this week’s top 3 with her crazy arrival at the Grammy’s!

Happily Married: TV And Social Media

I believe that a great long-lasting, interdependent marriage is in the making by combining Social Media and Television.
Just look at RTL’s talent show: The Voice Of Holland.

Thanks for all the tweets, shares, likes and comments!
Which article would you nominate in the top 25?

Image credit: precinct25.co.uk

We hope that the Obama case has inspired many CMO’s. And that many of them will be inspired to think beyond social campaigning, and launching stunning social marketing programs in 2012 themselves.

We are even more curious, how Obama will use social media as a Tool of Change in 2012…

We are sure the Obama team is already creating a very advanced engagement architecture behind the scenes as we speak. And we expect even more advanced systems, technologies and processes to be revealed in 2012.

And off course with a much smarter and broader team behind the buttons. Will Obama be able to re-define social media democracy again? We sure hope he can!

The Barack Obama social case study published in 2009:

If you’re already an established brand, making a video which people hate is not going to make upper management happy. However, if you’re an unknown, getting attention through a controversial video may very well be your only option. But can that attention translate into anything worthwhile, such as a fan base or sales? Yes.

Case in point. Rebecca Black. Mashable asserts that the amount of money made from YouTube and iTunes nets Rebecca and her producer $62,000.

That certainly isn’t a lot of money, but when you consider the fact that she’s been on Jay Leno, Good Morning America, and has a niche group of supporters who like her and her song, the viral video she made may very well launch a long and successful music career, assuming she perfects her music skills. She’s only 14 years old!

The people who don’t like her are the people who helped propel her to fame. At the same time, those haters exposed her to a group of people who genuinely like her and will support her despite all the criticism.

Can you copy Rebecca Black?

“Friday” was propelled by people who thought that the video was so bad that they shared it as a joke to their friends. That joke is now allowing Rebecca Black to make real money…

Can you create a joke that still gains you some followers? Take a look at this recent attempt by Shira MsMuffin.

I met Shira once, through a friend, a couple of months ago. I saw her in the recording studio and, to be honest, I didn’t think that her singing would amount to much in the way of Youtube views. She proved me wrong.

The aforementioned video now has amassed over 300,000 views in 10 days and has recently appeared on Tosh.O’s blog. I’ve listened to some of her other, less controversial, unreleased songs and they were more catchy and fun to listen to than Pound On My Muffin. I’ve heard marketing advice that you can’t reverse engineer viral YouTube videos.

They “just happen.” Pound On My Muffin does not have a million views, but it has the makings of one. This video was intended to go viral and it looks like it succeeded. Whether or not Shira MsMuffin stands to gain from it remains to be seen, but, fact is, if you want to copy Rebecca Black, you can.

Nickolay Lamm keeps track of the latest online scams at InventHelp Scam.

Wrong.

Too many businesses are being duped by social media “experts” who promise brand building and more relationships. Words like relationships and trust make many people feel warm and fuzzy inside.

Couple that with everybody talking about Facebook and Twitter and you have marketing budgets opening their wallets wide for advice from social media consultants.

Social media is essentially another form of networking and consultants help their clients build platforms from which they can communicate. Things like trust and reputation are impossible to measure, yet they are the very things that social media experts peddle.

Although many like to place the blame on social media failures on the consultants who recommended them, whether or not you are buying social media snake oil depends as much on you as it does who you hire. Here are the top ways to buy social media snake oil…

Using Social Media When You Don’t Need It

What is your target market? Are any of them even using Facebook? And even if they are, are your marketing dollars better used elsewhere? For example, let’s say you’re a nursing home and your target market consists of senior citizens in your hometown.

Seeing that only 11% of Facebook users are 55 an over, your marketing resources are better spent away from the social media world. Rather than spending money acquiring Facebook followers, spend time acquiring leads through hospitals.

Believing that Only Social Media Will Lead You to Success

Social media is like a mascot to your business. Sure, people will appreciate the friendly gesture and like you little better, but if you aren’t getting customers via traditional marketing methods or if your core business isn’t that good, no amount of social media will save you.

Your social media strategies can be combined with traditional forms of marketing. For example, if you’re running a TV commercial, advertise the fact that you are on Facebook. If you have a website, make sure to link to your social media channels.

Hire Social Media Experts Who Only Talk About Number of Followers

No social media consultant can guarantee you sales. However, a social media consultant has to consult you in the right direction and not just talk about the amount of LinkedIn, Twitter, or Facebook followers. What separates the social media snake oil salesmen from the true professionals is their willingness to match your company’s target market to what’s possible with social media.

Not Taking ROI Into Account

Social media services get a lot of flak for completely avoiding the subject of sales and ROI. If a Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, or Youtube consultant completely avoids the subject of sales, ROI, and leads, you are dealing with someone who is concerned about their own bottom line and not yours.

A good consultant creates campaigns which aim to affect the aforementioned variables, albeit with no guarantee of success.

Look for a consultant to tailor a social marketing program based on your unique situation. For example, if you’re a local violinist trying to sell violin classes, a good strategy would be to get targeted traffic from Google Places and AdWords to your website, which would have a link to your Facebook page, showcasing your expertise and experience.

A bad strategy would be to get as many Facebook fans as possible, whether or not those fans have the slightest interest in violin lessons in your local area.

Google Places and AdWords may be out of the expertise of the social media expert, which is why the creation of a professional looking Facebook fan page is all the consultant can provide. Any more Facebook fans or Twitter followers would just be a waste of money.

Nickolay Lamm keeps track of the latest online scams at InventHelp Scam Watch.