Nailing Niche Networks

We’ll begin the show shortly…

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Who’s presenting?

Jay BaerFounder, PresidentConvince and Convert@jaybaer

Eric BoggsFounder, CEOArgyle Social@ericboggs

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Details

• Jay will lead Q & A at the end of the call.• Tag your tweets with #nichenetworks• We’re recording this shin dig.• We’ll send an email follow up to everyone.

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Short, Shameless Plug

Social Pros Podcasthttp://ar.gy/podcast

Featuring interviews with social pros from:

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Agenda

• The evolution of a social network• The marketing value of select niche

networksFoursquare, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest

• The important considerations for niche networks

• Questions & Answers

The evolution of a network

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Social Network Maturity

Users

Time

Techies & geeks (early adopters)

Tech press writes adoring articlesTargeted

“normals” begin to adopt

Begins driving meaningful referral traffic

Your grandma has a profile

User growth slows down because all homo sapiens already have accounts

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The privacy trend is real…

18-29 30-49 50-64 65+0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

20092011

Percent of social media users who have un-friended or deleted contacts

Ages

Perc

ent

Source: Pew Internet & American Life Project

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Adopting a NetworkC

om

mit

men

t

Impact

Monitor

Utilize

Operationalize

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Monitor

Goals Answer two questions:

• Are people talking about my brand here?

• Is this network ultimately going to provide value to my marketing efforts?

Who Skunk works (one person)

Tools Native client (don’t invest time/energy in tools yet!)

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Utilize

Goals Prove ROI and create a content strategy• Test many different content strategies• Set basic metric benchmarks, including financial

ones• Test, measure, repeat

Who Exploratory task force (1-2 people)

Tools Integrated and free tools

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Operationalize

Goals Make this network an established part of your organization’s marketing mix• Synch content across channels• Establish staff roles and responsibilities• Set goals and measure performance

Who Full business integration (2-∞)

Tools Third-party, multi-network tools focusing on cross-channel measurement and workflow

Why Pay Attention to Niche Networks?

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Niche networks are still small…

Facebook 900 million

Twitter465 million

Instagram 25 million

Foursquare 15 millionPinterest

11.7 million

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But they’re growing quickly…

• Foursquare grew 1000%/yr from 2009-2011.

• Instagram reached 10M users in 9 months & added another 9M between December 2011 and March 2012.

• Tumblr has 15B views per month.

• Pinterest reached 10M users faster than any other site.

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…and they’re very sticky.

Source: comScore, Statista

405Facebook

89Pinteres

t

89Tumblr

21

17

8

3

TwitterLinkedIn

MySpace

Google+

Average Minutes Per Visitor (Global)January 2012

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They align with marketing priorities

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Increasing brand awareness 90%Building company reputation 90%Increasing web traffic 88%Lead generation 81%Improving customer support programs 73%

Social Media Marketing That is Important According to Inc. 500 Companies, Nov 2011 (% of respondents)

Source: University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research, “The 2011 Inc. 500 Social Media Update: Blogging Declines As Newer Tools Rule,” Jan 30, 2012

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They align with marketing priorities

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%

Increasing brand awareness 90%Building company reputation 90%Increasing web traffic 88%Lead generation 81%Improving customer support programs 73%

Social Media Marketing That is Important According to Inc. 500 Companies, Nov 2011 (% of respondents)

Source: University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research, “The 2011 Inc. 500 Social Media Update: Blogging Declines As Newer Tools Rule,” Jan 30, 2012

Niche networks will begin to have a meaningful impact on your

business.

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Foursquare: Vital Stats

• 50% US• 50/50 male/female• Budget conscious• Curious, adventurous,

competitive

Active Users

User Persona

User Growth

Engagement

1000% / year (2009 – today)

15M 1.5 billion check-ins (Feb 2012)

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Foursquare: Marketing Value

What does Foursquare do well?

• Loyal – Treat your regulars well. Help them stand out.

• Local – Real-time discovery of local establishments

• Offers – New channel for promotions

Popular with:• Universiti

es• Museums• Libraries• Cities • Restaura

nts • Local

shops

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Foursquare: Brands to Check Out

AskMen.comSyracuse University

History Channel Starbucks

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Foursquare: Brands to Check Out

AskMen.comSyracuse University

History Channel Starbucks

Make the connection between off and online actions direct &

rewarding.

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Instagram: Vital Stats

• iPhone & (soon) Android owners

• Participatory• Emotive & artistic• Ages 25-34 most

represented

Active Users

User Persona

User Growth

Engagement

Reached 10M in 9 mos.Added 9M Dec 2011-March2012

25M App: 60 photos per secondWeb: 300M views per month(Jan 2012)

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Instagram: Marketing Value

Source: MaerskLine

What does Instagram do well?• Lifestyle – Show your brand from another

lens• Global – Hashtags allow unlimited

contributions• Off-line – Nascent, but growing group of

Instagrammer meetups

Popular with:• Retailers• Consumer

goods• Tourism• News

organizations • Fashion labels• Restaurants• Sports teams

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Instagram: Brands to Check Out

Tiffany & Co.

Sharpie

GE Washington

Post

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Instagram: Brands to Check Out

Tiffany & Co.

Sharpie

GE Washington

PostYour brand is multi-dimensional. Use Instagram to show its many

sides.

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Tumblr: Vital Stats

• 50% of user base under 25 yrs.

• 40/60 male/female• Artistic, visual, expressive

Active Users

User Persona

User Growth

Engagement

218%/yr(July 2010-2011)

46.2M blogs120M visitors

40M posts per day15B views/month (Feb 2012)

89 avg. minutes per visitor

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Tumblr: Marketing Value

What does Tumblr do well?

• Curation – Short format allows more shares

• Discovery – Easy to browse & peruse

• Display – Visual format creates captivating content

Popular with:• Fashion

labels• Retailers• Publishing• Broadcast

media • Large

Companies (culture blog)

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Tumblr: Brands to Check Out

The Atlantic Swell Style Blog

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Tumblr: Brands to Check Out

The Atlantic Swell Style Blog

Tumblr helps you tell another story about your brand.

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Tumblr: xkcd style

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Pinterest: Vital Stats

• Hobbyists, crafters, DIY nuts• 20/80 male/female• Artistic, visual, expressive• Planner, organized

Active Users

User Persona

User Growth

Engagement

Fastest independent website to hit 10 million monthly unique visitors

11.7 M(Jan 2012)

11.7 million unique monthly visitors (Jan 2012)

89 avg. minutes per visitor

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Pinterest: Marketing Value

What does Pinterest do well?

• Discovery – Display content in a simple, beautiful way

• Curation – Share the spotlight with other brands

Popular with:• Lifestyle

brands• Tourism• Retailers• Food brands• Magazines

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Pinterest: Brands to Check Out

Men’s HealthMagazine

Mod Cloth

HGTV WholeFoods

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Pinterest: Brands to Check Out

Mens HealthMagazine

Mod Cloth

HGTV WholeFoods

Pinterest provides an amazing curation opportunity for visual

brands and products.

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Before jumping in….

Ask these five questions:

• Is my target market active on this network?

• Do I have content to share that will resonate?

• Can I join this network and stay true to my brand?

• Will joining this network have an impact on my business?

• How will my brand’s identity appear on each network?

A Few Considerations…

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Tip #1: Consider the audience

Different networks, different lens. From your customer’s perspective:• Foursquare is where I discover my surroundings.• Instagram is where I see beauty.• Pinterest is where I plan & dream.• Tumblr is where I’m entertained & inspired.• Twitter is where I get my news.• Facebook is where I connect.

Your Bran

d

#nichenetworks

Tip #1: Consider the audience

Different networks, different lens. From your customer’s perspective:• Foursquare is where I discover my surroundings.• Instagram is where I see beauty.• Pinterest is where I plan & dream.• Tumblr is where I’m entertained & inspired.• Twitter is where I get my news.• Facebook is where I connect.

Your Bran

d

Respect the network’s unique value.

It can add to your brand.

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Tip #2: Beware of FOMO…

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Tip #2: Beware of FOMO…

Niche networks are increasingly popular.

But popularity does not justify investment.

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Tip #3: Consider the Big Fish Oppy

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Tip #3: Consider the Big Fish Oppy

It is much easier to influence customer behavior in a smaller

room.

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Tip #4: Recognize your finite resources

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Tip #4: Recognize your finite resources

Don’t think “Pinterest in addtion to…”

Think “Pinterest instead of…”

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Tip #5: Measurement laws still apply…

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Tip #5: Measurement laws still apply…

Pinning, Instagramming, and Tumbling needs to move the

needle for your business.

Q&A

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But first…we’re doing another webcast!

Understanding Facebook InsightsWith Jeff Widman,Founder of PageLever

March 22, 2012 @ 1PM ESTar.gy/pagelever

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Q&A

Jay Baer@jaybaer

Eric Boggs@ericboggs

Hashtag your questions with #nichenetworksThanks for joining us!