Leveraging Big Events with Your Own Content
Why did so many brands post to their social media accounts about the eclipse? Simple. People were searching and it had an official hashtag.
Brands create content to try to leverage events and happenings to capitalize on searches. It’s not unique to just the solar eclipse we experienced this past week either. Companies do this for other things too, like the Super Bowl and Olympics, because it’s advantageous to put yourself out there in the search results. If you are able to come up with something witty it can equate to shares/retweets and even more followers.
A popular social media post that many may recall came from Oreos back in 2013 when the lights went out during the Super Bowl. The ad read, “You can still dunk in the dark.” So, one of the most talked about ads didn’t even have to pay the premium pricing to solicit their product! The Oreos team quickly jumped on the idea and crafted the perfect post.
Take a look at some of the brands that took advantage of the eclipse (Some–WWE–posted about the eclipse all day… that might be overkill.)
Did you see additional brands posting? Which of their posts caught your eye and why?
Instagram Tip for Businesses to Gain Likes
As a business, your goal is to connect with consumers and showcase your products and services, right? Of course it is! Then how would you benefit if your accounts are private?
This tip may seem like a no-brainer for some of you, but there are some businesses out there in the digital world that still haven’t cracked the code.
It pains me when I see businesses keeping their Instagram (and sometimes other platforms) on private. You’re limiting your growth! How can Sally and Jane see your creative marketing techniques on the platform if you’re preventing them from looking at it?
Would you like it if you walked into an ice cream shop, were greeted by a large wall where you couldn’t see employees or ask questions and weren’t allowed to see the ice cream choices before you had to buy something? No. That might actually inspire you to walk across the street to the other parlor where you can see the ice cream and interact with the brand’s employees (a la the brand voice).
People are visual creatures. This is why content is important on social media. If users cannot see your product and messaging freely, then they are going to run over to someone else who they can get all the goods from. What would be the benefit in following you if your account was private?
When you open your account to offer a public viewing, consumers can easily see your posts, your messaging, your deals and even comments that other users leave! Maybe Adam really liked one of your products that you featured on your account and he commented on your photo telling everyone how much he enjoyed it. That may allow Tom who is shopping for a similar item, and does not follow your brand, interested in your products since Adam was speaking praises. Tom then follows your brand.
Join in the conversation on social media, don’t prevent or limit it! Brag about your business through your creative postings and let everyone envy your products, customer service, and your account growth. Allow users to see the quirky hashtags you use! They will follow, but you need to make sure your business is in the lead. Let your personal accounts stay private (if that’s what you prefer), but let your business accounts flourish!
New Feature: Facebook Stories
Facebook rolled out a new feature this week–which may not necessarily seem new to Instagram and Snapchat users. Facebook too has now bought into the disappearing images/video that Snapchat cultivated a few years ago while Instagram joined in the trend more recently in August 2016.
For those who are not familiar with the “stories” experience, users are able to post 10-second videos or images that disappear within 24 hours. If friends/followers/strangers do not view the story within 24 hours, they cannot go back and view it–it’s gone. This motivates users to view the content in a short time frame. With Instagram and Facebook, those whom are sporting stories have their icons featured on top of the apps to promote the time sensitive content.
Much like Snapchat, users can send story content directly to other users as well. Those who view the content, similarly, are able to comment back directly to the user that generated the content.
It was suggested by Bloomberg Business that Facebook introduced the stories feature as a way to encourage account holders to create original content–something the platform noticed was on the decline since 2015.
What do you think of the new Facebook feature? Do you plan to use it?
New for 2017: One-on-One Social Media Training
We are very excited to announce that we will be hosting one-on-one social media training classes for individuals looking to learn how to operate different platforms whether it is on a computer or a cellular device.
We can provide you with the knowledge to operate your favorite digital platforms whether you are trying to connect with friends and family or keep up with the latest trends.
Each session is individually designed to maximize the experience and exposure each client is seeking.
We can help you learn how to navigate Pinterest and set up your own boards and pins, upload photos to Facebook, Tweet, post to Instagram and so much more.
Let us know what you’re looking to learn and we will provide you with the pricing details.
Amplify the Tiny Print!
This blog originally appeared on MeganWashington.net in January 2015
I’m going to admit that I do not read the Terms & Conditions for most things. I am also going to assume that most of my friends do not either. Why?! Terms & Conditions seem to be the last little step that you have to get through in order to participate on a social networking site or the last thing in an office that is holding you up from completing your purchase. It’s torture. It’s like dangling a treat in front of a dog and fully expecting the dog to sit there patiently until you give it to them. Maybe some dogs can do that, but smart dogs know that they can have that treat if they just jump up and take it.
Case in point, having patience is a virtue that many of us do not practice enough when it comes to reading over what we are agreeing to. But, is what we are agreeing to always ethical? That’s a hard question to answer–depending on which side you are standing on. Jumping up and grabbing that treat probably is not always the smartest thing.
I’m going to use Vine as an example. Below I will list different pieces of information taken straight from Vine’s Terms & Conditions page and then attempt to translate them or explain my thoughts on them.
Highlights:
* You are responsible for any consequences that arise due to something you have posted.
This seems standard. You are responsible for what you post, so you are being held accountable.
* “The Services that Vine provides are always evolving and the form and nature of the Services that Vine provides may change from time to time without prior notice to you.“
Essentially, you are agreeing to terms that you have to abide by even when you do not know what they are…. yet. If Vine decides they want to sell your content, they can do so without giving you prior notice. Does that seem fair? Not really. How can you really agree to terms that may change without any notification?!
* “Any information that you provide to Vine is subject to our Privacy Policy.“
The Privacy Policy is straight forward. Vine may contact you, they can share when you have made your latest post, and they are able to provide your personal information to law enforcement if there is some type of issue. Personally, I feel like that is ethical because it does not say that they are able to sell your information or use it for anything “bad.”
* Vine cannot be held liable if someone hacks your account because you have a weak password.
This seems fair. Vine suggests that you should use a mixture of lowercase and capitol letters along with numbers to make a strong password combination. They are giving you the “how to,” tools so it is up to the user to fulfill the obligation.
* “We may, but are not required to monitor or control the Content posted via the Services and we cannot take responsibility for such Content.“
As they stated above, Vine is not responsible for what users post. BUT, here is says they may or may not monitor the content that is posted. This means that sensitive material can be uploaded by users and Vine is not obligated to monitor or control it. So if something that is very hateful toward a person or group is posted, Vine may not do anything to prevent it from spreading? To me, this seems wrong because unethical and dangerous content may need to be flagged and removed in a very timely manner.
* “You understand that by using the Services, you may be exposed to Content that might be offensive, harmful, inaccurate or otherwise inappropriate, or in some cases, postings that have been mislabeled or are otherwise deceptive. Under no circumstances will Vine be liable in any way for any Content, including, but not limited to, any errors or omissions in any Content, or any loss or damage of any kind incurred as a result of the use of any Content posted, emailed, transmitted or otherwise made available via the Services or broadcast elsewhere.“
Okay, Vine, we get it. You do not want to be responsible for any content users post. However, as a platform is it ethical to allow users to post content that is dangerous or offensive?
* Each user owns the rights to the content that they post.
Fair.
* “ In order to make the Services available to you and other users, Vine needs a license from you. By submitting, posting or displaying Content on or through the Services, you grant us a worldwide, non-exclusive, royalty-free license (with the right to sublicense) to use, copy, reproduce, process, adapt, modify, publish, transmit, display and distribute such Content in any and all media or distribution methods (now known or later developed).“
By posting, you are forgetting all royalties that could be collected and giving Vine the ability to use your content (with the ability to edit it) anywhere they please.
* Vine has the ability to alter your content when they use it or distribute it to third parties and in different mediums. You are responsible for any issues that arise out of Vine’s distribution of your content (edited or unedited).
That seems very unethical to me. Vine can alter something that you create and disseminate it in additional ways, yet you are still responsible for their edits.
* “We reserve the right at all times (but will not have an obligation) to remove or refuse to distribute any Content on the Services, to suspend or terminate users, and to reclaim usernames and profile URLs without liability to you.“
Above, we saw how Vine did not want the responsibility of monitoring content, but now they are stating they have the right to remove content. I would like to see how they identify the content they would like removed if they do not feel the obligation to always monitor what is posted.
* Vine is allowed to remove content that appears to be copyrighted.
That seems fair. They have stated that all content must be original and be your own.
* If you happen to check the Terms & Conditions for Vine and notice they have been updated–and you do not agree to something from the newly updated T&C, you are able to close your account.
That is fair, BUT it is not fair to not be alerted that the T&C have changed.
Your expected burden for reading each platform’s T&C really will differ. Vine, for example, took me about thirty minutes to read through carefully while I clicked on other pages such as Privacy Policy to make sure I had a complete understanding.
We have been taught that social media is driven by the visual aspect, so why can’t these social networking platforms amplify the tiny print into something like a video or info graphic that is more user friendly? Me, personally, I would be more likely to watch a quick video than I would be to read over something tedious.
Some of our internet comrades are quick to admit that they do not read the T&Cs.
(I did not create any of these images. They were found with Google search.)
It appears many of us feel the same way.
It is probably worthwhile for different social networks to listen to their users and create documents that are easier to read. Since the idea is to be social, wouldn’t it be fun to have some user-generated content to use as highlights in the different sections of Terms & Conditions? If it will entertain me, I will watch it.
What are your thoughts on Terms & Conditions?
– Megan
Best Media Relations Campaign Award
Congratulations to the Edison Festival of Light who received second place honors for Best Media Relations Campaign in their budget category at the 2016 International Festivals & Events Association convention in Tucson. We could not be more happy to have put together such a great–and award winning–social media plan for them.
If you would like to see what we can do for your organization, please contact us for details.
Posting images of students to social media: Is it ethical?
I began doing some research on the way that different school districts, schools, teachers and parents are handling the image and likeness of children being used on the internet. Since school is back in session for a new year, I wanted to share my findings with you in the event that you were unaware of the dangers or were uninformed about what your student’s teacher is/isn’t allowed to do.
The bottom line is, nobody can really tell you–the parent or guardian–what is right and not right when it comes to what you should do with your child’s photographs. However, it is up to you to be informed with what it means when you share the images or when others share the images.
The Wall Street Journal reported back in May that by the time a child turns five, more than 1,000 of their photos will have been posted to the internet. But how can this be seen as dangerous? Many people do not check their privacy settings on the networks which they post to and that can lead to data being shared–including the exact location a photo was taken. This may sound familiar since Instagram allows you to see specific locations where users take photos. I’ll have a post on that later so you can better protect yourself. But for now, be cognizant of the fact that there can potentially be creepers in-the-know about where you live and where you take your children (and their photographs). Researchers suggest that there are always going to be unpredictable repercussions when it comes to new technologies we use. That alone sounds scary because the truth is, people do not know the degree in which something can affect someone via the internet, long term. The rule of thumb with social media, though, is expect that it is out there forever.
Victoria Nash, acting director of the Oxford Internet Institute also believes that the amount of information parents can sometimes give away through photos and status updates–like date of birth, place of birth, child’s full name or geotags–could be used by somebody who wanted to steal the child’s identity.
But how does this translate to the school setting? Surely teachers are excited for the accomplishments their students make and want to share their progress and hard work too. But this is where the lines get blurred because is it really ethical for a teacher to be sharing images of your child? Just think, they could be sharing some of the information that I noted above–so even wishing your child a simple happy birthday with their photo attached could potentially have its hazards.
NYC Department of Education has a social media policy that has been in effect since 2012. Some of the highlights from their policy include:
• “If images of students are to be posted online there must be a media consent form on file at the school for each child featured.” (NYC Department of Education in regards to images of students being posted on professional social media pages.)
• “…to maintain a professional and appropriate relationship with students, DOE employees should not communicate with students who are currently enrolled in DOE schools on personal social media sites.”
• “The posting or disclosure of personally identifiable student information or confidential information via personal social media sites, in violation of Chancellor’s Regulations, is prohibited.”
• “Guidelines cannot be used for disciplinary purpose for failure to follow.”
The Ohio Education Association similarly agrees that teachers and administrators should not post anything related to a student, no matter how harmless they think it is.
The School District of Lee County perhaps had the most thorough resource for teachers and administrators to follow. What made this policy stand out is that it explained to teachers that they can still share posts that include images of the children but the posts themselves must be made by the schools. Therefore, a teacher can still show pride in the magnificent achievements within their classrooms. Highlights included:
• “Avoid posting confidential or proprietary information about the District, its students, alumni or employees. Use good ethical judgement and follow state and/or District rules and policies and federal requirements.”
• “Can I post pictures of my students on my social media accounts? The District media permissions signed by parents do not extend to the posting of student images or names on individually owned social media accounts. Pictures of students should be forwarded to the individual managing the official school accounts for distribution and sharing. You are permitted to ‘share’ or ‘retweet’ official District or school posts.”
• “Important to remember: Images of your students should not appear on your personal social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, etc.). Exceptions of this to this include drama performances and athletic events that are considered public events.”
It’s great the the school systems are establishing a system to better protect the students. But one thing the policies did not answer was: What happens to those found in violation of the social media guidelines?
I used the above policies as examples because they had representatives that were kind enough to reach back out to me to answer my questions.
Lisa Nielsen, Director of Digital Engagement + Professional Learning for NYCDOE explained, “Our guidelines do not come with disciplinary actions. They were created to help teachers and provide guidance for best practices. If a teacher posts images of students, as long as they have not violated any chancellor regulation or laws, there is no set disciplinary action.
My personal feeling on this is that I would be concerned if there was disciplinary action. There are many perfectly acceptable times an educator may post pictures of students in social media. Many teachers are in clubs, teams, and activities with students and posting pictures of such activities is common place. I know many amazing educational leaders who celebrate their students constantly in social media. It is a powerful way to strengthen relationships with the school community.”
Amity Chandler from the School District of Lee County commented, “I always frame this for teachers as the ‘What I if it were your kid” context…. it’s one thing for a school to post as a school another all together for your child to end up on a personal account of a teacher or other parent.
We monitor for this heavily and you know, we have had fewer issues than I have fingers. Teachers are excellent professionals.
We warn teachers first and explain how our media permissions work and in what context. We’ve never had a second issue but certainly, issues of students rights and FERPA could become disciplinary issues for any educator.”
I was curious what parents thought should happen if a teacher was found to be posting images of their child. The sample was collected through a survey that I posted to Facebook and Twitter. The answers ranged from, “I’m not sure but I would want the pictures removed for sure,” to “Suspension pending investigation.” The general feeling (75% of respondents) seemed to be that something should happen, but the parents were not quite sure what exactly it should be.
What was alarming is that some parents even admitted that they were not aware if their school system had rules and regulations established to protect their child. 100% of the respondents agreed that regardless, there should be rules and regulations established to protect their children.
When asked how important of an issue it is as a parent to be having someone else post photos of their children to the internet without their consent, the median was 6.25 where 1 represented that they did not feel it was an issue at all and 10 they felt it was a big issue.
Interestingly, 50% of respondents admitted to being friends with their child’s teacher on Facebook. So it can be inferred that the correlation of being friends with the teacher on Facebook did not have any influence on the parent’s decision (in this survey) to not want images of their child posted to the internet by the teacher.
So what do you think? Is enough being done to protect your child or are these rules–in your opinion–too much?
– Megan
August was a BIG month!
This August we are celebrating our first year in business! We could not have done it without you so THANK YOU so much!
We are also excited to announce that we were able to assist two of our clients in reaching huge milestones. Burt Saunders was elected to the Collier County Commission with over 47% of the vote and additionally we were also able to celebrate the Edison Festival of Light’s win at the Florida Festivals & Events Association where they received first place honors for the comprehensive 2016 social media plan that we created.
We are so proud to have worked with two great teams to make this happen and look forward to the future.
Teamwork makes the dream work!
8 Reasons to Stay on Social Media for 2016
It is getting to be that time of the year where people adopt resolutions with the hope of bettering themselves for the future. Among those resolutions is “giving up social media.” Social media has become a lifeline for many people through the technology that allows visual conferencing with family and friends and even the sharing of digital images that mark significant milestones in the lives of those we know. If one chooses to give up social media they give up the future of communication which is essentially going to leave them behind.
Others may label social media as a digital evil because of the drama that it can create. If you fall into that category and want to get away from social media, there are other options than simply giving it up. Many platforms offer privacy controls so you can block users and even their feeds from showing up. Bend the networks back into a way that you can leverage them to your benefit. Do not let the way that others are using the networks break the potential that is out there for you.
Below is a list of benefits that social media users are exposed to.
1. Life’s Special Moments
Family and friends have taken to social platforms to make announcements regarding special life milestones such as engagements and births. Forget your snail mail, email and even text messages. The first announcements are being sent via Facebook and Twitter.
2. Being In-The-Know
FOMO, or Fear of Missing Out is a real thing. As mentioned, many people take to social media to update their friends and family. These updates are not exclusive to life’s milestones and see users sending birthday messages, sharing event invites and one can even elect to send a private/direct message to see how you are doing, foregoing a traditional text. A friend may post about a fun vacation they went on and even share traveling tips. Someone else you know may share entertaining videos. Are you still going to feel the same if everyone sitting at your table during lunch are discussing things that were shared virally through social media and you have no idea what they are talking about? Talk about missing out.
3. Breaking News
While the television is quick to report news, you are able to see trending news stories even quicker via social media platforms. Stories spread quickly via sharing and retweeting, even quicker than a network can schedule a special briefing. Always keep your sources in mind because there has also been plenty of trickery such as the reported deaths of well known celebrities which have been nothing but a hoax.
4. Voicing Opinions
Brands are present on the various social networks because believe it or not, many of them care what their consumers have to say. This is a great way for them to make improvements to products and to insure their customer service experience meet user expectations.
5. Taking Advantage of Deals
There are many brands that offer special offers because a user follows them on social media. One becomes eligible for coupon codes and discounts that can be applied to online purchases and even in stores. Additionally, many brands expand the user experience to gamification where users can link their information to applications which track their behavior and offer rewards. Users can be alerted of the new promotions exclusive to the brand’s downloadable application via Instagram (for example). Then when the user opens the store’s application on their smartphone device, the special offers may be present. Some stores will even tell you the more times your email address is entered into their system for purchases, the more offers and deals you will be eligible to receive.
6. Trends
Many professions benefit from the access of social platforms like Pinterest. Teachers are able to gather ideas for their classrooms, students are able to view examples of resumes so that they stand out for jobs post graduation and digital designers are able to find tutorials for expanding their knowledge and skills on programs they use. These platforms are going to provide users with the best methods available for achieving the success they are after. For example, many brides have taken to Pinterest to create boards that feature ideas for flowers, dresses and decorations that are currently in style for their wedding. This is a free way to get ideas as compared to the “traditional” alternative which includes a cost for magazines to view the same information.
7. Community
Social media allows users to connect through common interests. If you’re trying a new workout program for the first time, you are able to find groups of people to support you in your quest because they are going through (or have gone through) the same thing. It certainly makes sharing your experiences and asking for advice easier because some individuals may be too timid to ask people in their life off of the internet.
8. Networking
So maybe you are looking for advice from someone in your field who is more experienced, or maybe you are just looking to make a career switch. Platforms like LinkedIn are valuable resources for networking with other people. You can also uncover information about a company you may be interested in by asking current employees what it is like to work for that particular employer.
What key reasons are keeping you on social media?
– Megan
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