This week, it was reported Instagram now has 300 million monthly active users, bypassing Twitter’s 284 million. Some might find those numbers odd, considering how often the media urges users to tweet instead of sending in a picture. However, personally I find Instagram visually easier to look at and understand. When I log into the app, I feel less pressure, I feel immediacy and I feel more connected to my followers.
Continue reading “Instagram Trumps Twitter’s Numbers”
Twitter recently announced that it’s acquiring a mobile technology company called TapCommerce. Specializing in mobile retargeting, TapCommerce targets ads based on previous user activity. While this service is certainly not groundbreaking, retargeting isn’t very common among mobile marketing due to the lack of cookies. But through large amounts of data and sophisticated statistical analysis, TapCommerce is able to overcome this problem.
With more and more consumers making purchases on a mobile device, it’s important now more than ever for a brand to target and communicate to its audiences via mobile. While many advertisers primarily focus on activating new users, TapCommerce reminds brands to re-engage with lapsed users and present more relevant content. Re-activating users rather than enticing new ones also can be less costly, as we know in the arena of customer retention.
The acquisition of TapCommerce will give advertisers on Twitter more opportunities for re-engagement and better measurement of mobile marketing. Mobile consumers also will reap the benefits of this team-up by receiving more relevant ads in the apps they use.
Twitter said in a statement that it’s too early to say when users will see TapCommerce technology on Twitter, but the groups are in the beginning stages of creating a product plan.
Even though architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) companies are primarily B2B, it doesn’t mean they can’t be active on B2C-based social media platforms. A strong social media presence can brand your staff, promote your work and connect with prospective clients.
Here are seven social media platforms your company should consider using:
1. Facebook. Instead of using Facebook for customer acquisition, as many B2B companies mistakenly do, consider using the most popular of all platforms for recruiting purposes. After all, your firm is only as good as the people in it. Showcase other employees, post job openings and talk about the culture at your company.
2. Twitter. In 140 characters, share content that’s relevant to your followers. The content can take the form of photos, videos, podcasts, white papers, articles, presentations and the like. The key is to reduce your non-value tweets–such as press releases, new hires, awards, etc.–because seriously, your prospective clients don’t care.
3. Tumblr. This blog also is the ideal social media platform for telling the “story” of your project. Through content and photos, the before, during and after of construction is collected for clients and prospective clients to see in one place. Firms should consider the archiving element of this platform since it is essentially a portfolio of the firm’s projects and ideas. It also can be used to publish your case studies.
4. Instagram. It’s a simple concept. Take a photo or video, apply a filter and publish it to your account. The non-professional aspect of Instagram can actually be very appealing to viewers since it gives a “behind-the-scenes” feel. Your company’s Instagram feed can reveal details of a project that may not have been picked up on in an official brochure or website photos.
5. Storify. Let’s say you’re hosting an event, such as a grand opening of one of your projects. You can aggregate posts from Twitter, Facebook and Instagram to create a recap on Storify. In other words, you’re documenting what is being said before, during and after your event through visuals of the posts.
6. Pinterest. Businesses can share and pin their favorite images of projects. Architects, engineers and builders can share design ideas, provide tips and showcase their work through pins and repins. Clients can also link their profile to yours, driving more website traffic and gaining credibility with prospective clients.
7. YouTube. With a YouTube One Channel, your business can display past, on-going and future projects through quick videos or commercials that can easily be seen on a computer, mobile device or tablet. A brief description of the video can be added to give the viewer better context of what they’re watching. Any broadcast news or awards coverage featuring your company can also be uploaded onto your YouTube channel.