comScore Announces 40 Million Active Mobile Users on Social Nets

According to comScore, in the US there is currently close to 40 million mobile users accessing social networks on there handheld devices on a day to day basis. Facebook alone announced it had 350 million active mobile users globally. But lets not forget about Google who also sees strategic value in social networking via mobile devices. Their new version of Android features Google + which is looking very promising for social networking.

The chart below displays traffic estimates by comScore. Based on data retrieved from mobile usage of Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. As you can tell Facebook has many more mobile users than other platforms. But it seems to us like comScore underestimates the actual number of mobile users.

For example, Twitter.com recently announced it had 100 million active mobile users. They also noted that 46% (46 million users) of mobile users are active on Twitter.com via their phone globally. In the US alone Twitter.com has 20 million active users while 60% of Twitter users originate somewhere outside the United States. Based off the data comScore accumulated the mobile-social networking audience in the United States is just over 70 million users. While the grand total of mobile internet audience is over 100 million people in the United States according to Nielsen’s data (Nielsen.com). Read more…

Is Social Media a Security Threat?

With social media being such an important tool for businesses today. Many I.T professionals would consider it a security threat. A recent study showed that only 29 percent of I.T professionals believe their companies have adequate protection against security breaches from social media interfering. I.T specialists have been able to find the source of these security breaches and tracking them back to end users downloading apps associated with sites like Facebook. Many of these users aren’t aware that some of these apps actually download malicious software to their work PC’s along with spyware and viruses. Leaving the poor I.T department to clean up the mess logging endless hours fixing the damage caused by these supposed “harmful” apps.

Another cause of malware has come from users clicking on third-party links on social media sites. Facebook has taken safety measure to prevent these. One was partnering with Websense to detect malicious links and warn users about them. Employers could also take their own precautions using an app called MyPageKeeper, which searches for malicious links and notifies users if they appear on a person’s news feed or wall. But for many businesses another security concern comes from their inability to control user postings on social media platforms. With many users keeping their user profiles private from the public view, businesses have the inability to monitor postings and the I.T department fear that confidential information could be leaked via status updates.

With social media today small businesses are faced with a serious issue. Can businesses afford to ban their employees from accessing there profiles? Not to mention the importance of social media as a beneficial tool for marketing. Companies are eliminating Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare and even corporate networking sites like LinkedIn and ignoring the value social media has in the business world. These have so much potential and can be an essential tool for viral networking as small businesses have found. But security threats are only part of the problem. Major businesses have come to the conclusion that using these social networking platforms are a liability and counter productive. While small businesses have taken a more subtle approach by resorting to Time Doctor to monitor workers’ actual productivity, rather than blocking these sites altogether. A solution like Time Doctor can help your employees meet business goals and get the best out of social media marketing.

I.T. professionals urge the importance of having a company-wide security policy signed by each user to avoid security breaches. This policy protects the company, as well as stressing the importance of responsible use of office equipment to all employees. But with all the fingers pointed to social media as a security threat, the idea that social networking can be productive and business efficient is still a questionable debate for many businesses and that needs to change.

Measuring ROI for your Social Media Campaign

Here at Miami Web Design Pro many clients that walk through our doors are uneducated on the idea that Social Media is beneficial to their business. They sit down and complain that all the time and money they invested led up to a spiraling downfall for their marketing campaign. Well today we will give you some tips on how you can strategically measure your return of investment and analyze certain factors like participation, involvement, engagement, customer loyalty and satisfaction that will increase your marketing efforts on social media networks. Social media endeavors are directly related to your business’s performance. So understanding the gain your business profits from when you suddenly have an increase in followers, subscribers, fans and traffic is key to a successful Social Media Marketing Campaign.

Each year social media platforms are used by countless of small and medium sized businesses as a great marketing tool to advertise and promote to a wider audience. But many businesses find it more difficult to analyze and track there rate of investment from their social media efforts then tracking PPC advertising. Its a little bit more complicated then tracking PPC campaigns. For starters as a business owner you should try and define certain goals you would like to achieve from using social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter and Google +. Keeping tabs on number of comments your receive or the number of followers you have on Facebook/Twitter and tracking whether they visit your site or product pages after are important. Did your sales increase because of the increase in traffic to your site? Tracking all this data is imperative, with out it you wouldn’t be able to calculate the ROI from your social media campaign. Set goals to increase communication with customers or potential ones. Engaging in conversation by replying to comments on Facebook or tweet’ing back to them on Twitter will go a long way for your social media campaign.

Keeping track of the data and your business goals with the help of some online solutions will help you optimize and maximize your marketing campaign. Using Google Analytics will allow you to track incoming links to your site and the activities of visitors on your site. Tracking Social Media Metrics using tools like PostRank, Omniture and Hootsuite will help you measure your rate of investment. You can then analyze all this data to see if your goals are met and you can easily see if the traffic to your website increased after you advertised using a social media platform like Facebook. Looking for trends and tracing their origin will help you track your ROI a lot easier as well.

If your rate of investment is small from using social media site then this means you need to evaluate your campaign to see what you did wrong and how you can do it differently. Since you kept track of all your data and social media metrics it will be less of a headache to see what exactly is doing well and what isn’t working for your marketing campaign and improve on it. Evaluate the impact of social media on your business and you can fine-tune your strategy to engage with a wider audience to increase brand awareness with Social Media!

Encouraging a Social Media Mindset in the Workplace

With social media becoming such a necessity not only in peoples lives but also for many businesses. Companies need to start making decisions on social media in the work place. With today’s technology (i.e. smartphones, laptops, and tablets) social media has become apart of every digital tool we use and that isn’t going to change. So the question a smart business owner should ask himself is “What Social Media mindset should I incorporate to better my business vs it getting in the way of my business.”

As of now many companies big and small see Social Media as a distraction for employees. Employees are procrastinating at work, not meeting deadlines and being unproductive at work because there to busy replying to a post a friend or family member created or maybe there almost done cropping the fields on Farmville. Whatever the case maybe employers have begun to see Facebook, Twitter, Google+ etc.. as nothing more than distractions. Well guess what? It’s time to change the Social Mindset on your workforce and the trick is to show employees how to use social technology to meet business goals rather then casual use.

For a company to get anywhere with social technology you need to stop looking at it as a liability. One smart way to tackle this issue is by creating a digital environment for companies where constant goals and business ideas are met. Educating your employees on using digital tools for business projects the right way is ideal. Doing this will guarantee a strong Social Media mindset for business purposes which takes a lot of effort and time but the return is glorious. Each and every day Facebook is looked at as a casual social tool so naturally employers will make an effort to block its use. But what’s going to stop your minions from taking out there smart phones that’s sending them Facebook messages? With proper training Facebook will become the best business tool your business can gain from. You’ll cut down on the time your minions have procrastinated with and instead meet business goals. That also goes for Twitter and other social platforms that can aid your business. Employees wont feel labored and can have fun using social tools while still meeting business goals in a productive environment. But the right Social Media Mindset will only begin when business owners, corporate leaders and small business owners educate themselves on how social technology can better their business.

Google+ vs. Facebook vs. Twitter

We here at Miami Web Design Pro always love an information boost, and our friends at Marketingprofs just fed our vice with their comparison of the three social networking power houses. While the three are alike in several ways, for one they let us stalk those around us, they are very different. Below we will compare the three outlets.
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Google+ and what it Means for Marketing

We all know Google+ may very well become the new Facebook, once it’s limited beta version extends to the entire populace. With Google controlling practically everything we use the Internet for, Gmail, Google.com, Google Docs, etc., it’s hard to not believe it when people say it’s going to sign Facebook’s will. So how exactly can businesses get into this scene, and market through Google+? Let Miami Web Design Pro show you!
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Why Customers Give Some Brands the Boot

Miami Web Design Pro knows that there is nothing worse than a customer “breaks up” with a social brand or business. More than four in five consumers say they have “broken up” with at least one brand on Facebook, Twitter, or email because of irrelevant, too frequent, or boring marketing messages, according to a study by ExactTarget and CoTweet. Breaking up is much more high-tech than it used to be, and it can be done a lot quicker. Nowadays a customer simply has to click “unfollow” on Twitter or “unlike” a brand on Facebook.
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The Profile Picture Kisses of Death

Web Design Miami loves coming across amusing, yet informative, articles. So when we came across this article on Facebook pictures you want to avoid we couldn’t help but post it. As we all know Facebook has taken over all aspects of our lives, and it is the means by which a lot of communication is carried out on. If you still can’t grasp the importance of Facebook just think: every day 4 billion messages are sent and received via Facebook. Now if that’s not a lot, we don’t know what it is. So that is why you should carry yourself in the best light on Facebook, especially on you profile picture. There are 5 profile pictures you should avoid at all costs. And bear with us as we go down the list:

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Facebook Mishaps

Today at Miami Web Design Pro we stumbled upon an interesting article about Facebook regrets the morning after. A new Firefox plug-in has been designed to oversee specific websites to prevent drunken mistakes. All you have to do is flag certain websites and specify the times when you think you will be under the influence. The plug-in will then ask you to pass a sobriety test to log into the website. The plug-in is cleverly titled “The Social Media Sobriety Test.”
Even though this test was designed to prevent drunken people from making mistakes, some sober individuals cannot pass the exams. Tests that are used by the plug-in vary anywhere from typing the alphabet backwards to keeping your cursor inside a box. We guess common sense isn’t so common at times.
This helpful plug-in resembles Google Mail’s “Mail Goggles,” which requires users who install it to solve simple math problems before sending drunken e-emails.

Social Media Tips for the Little Guys

Social media can solve many issues or problems that a company may face, anywhere from making your business known to just interacting with your customers, social media can do the trick. One thing that small business owners always have to keep in mind is that they are not like the other guys, small business need different techniques and strategies that big companies do not require, or cannot offer. In this post we will provide you with tips on how to improve your social media strategies if you’re a small business.

1. Use social media as your very own PR manager
We all know the primary use of social media networks, to get in touch with your customers. Take advantage of this option and publicize your products and services via all your networks. Seize the search engine optimization opportunities on your page, as well as creating a bigger fan base.

2. Know who you are adding
When you personally pick your audience and the people on your social media site you create a more centralized and personal audience that you can build deeper and stronger relationships with. And not to mention that have a specific audience can also help you gain knowledge about your customers and their preferences. You will have a better insight in your community and the minds of your consumers.

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