Tag Archives: social-network

5 Fresh Ideas for Ongoing Content Generation

The post 5 Fresh Ideas for Ongoing Content Generation appeared first on HostGator Blog . Content generation can feel like an uphill battle in an online space filled with so much content. It’s your responsibility to bring new, engaging content to your audience. By offering a fresh perspective, your website stands out from the crowd and spotlights your business as an industry leader. Unique ideas can come from anywhere. Whether it’s videos or blog posts, take control of your content generation. Here are five resources to spark your imagination today. 1. Read Industry Reports A content idea doesn’t have to appear out of thin air (or endless original research). You can find what you need by downloading the latest industry report. Industry reports are usually long, dense documents that no one likes reading. However, they are goldmines of valuable information. You can transform those insights into an email marketing series to bolster your brand and thought leadership. For instance, explain a key point in the report, add your critical perspective as a business owner, and then send it to your subscribers in multiple emails. Don’t know where to find in-depth research? Start your search with Think with Google . This website uncovers digital trends with data reports, guides, and infographics. When using industry reports, it’s important to avoid regurgitating the information to your visitors. Your goal is to engage people with a different viewpoint. Don’t be afraid of controversial stances if your brand truly believes in an ideal. Take advantage of the resources available to your small business. An industry report could ignite your next great content piece that your readers will love.   2. Ask Your Audience In the hustle and bustle of work, we often forget the obvious when generating content ideas. Asking your audience is an effective way to add fresh insight to your content. Ross Simmonds , a marketer, strategist, and founder of Hustle & Grind, agrees: “So many people create content without talking to their actual target audience…But if you’re trying to grow a brand, you need to start with your audience in mind. So pick up the phone, open up the inbox or queue up the DM and get in touch with your audience.” Explore different methods of approaching your audience for content suggestions. You can send a three-question survey via email to a segmented group of subscribers. Or you can run a simple Facebook poll. You also may want to incentivize responses with free swag. Showing your appreciation will earn your brand quality feedback. User-generated content can work well for your content, too. You can do an open call for quotes or photos for a specific topic. People love seeing their names in print or hearing it on a podcast episode.   3. Scan Twitter Hashtags Twitter serves as the pulse of the latest trends in consumer behavior. From funny threads to serious news, the social platform gives your brand an inside peek at what your customers discuss and their daily activities. This social network is an oasis of content ideas that can fill your entire calendar. Use specific hashtags to search through recent tweets from your audience. For example, if your online store specializes in beauty products, you might do research with #beautytips or #beautyproducts. With a brand presence on Twitter, it’s possible to receive ideas directly from your customers. Every week make a conscious effort to read responses from your followers. You also should be replying back to them to express your gratitude. Broaden your research by checking out your audience’s responses to competitor brands. You’ll get a sense of what excites and bores customers about the competition. Regularly review your own your Twitter Analytics , too. This social intelligence is enough to build better content for your site. Use it to develop an amazing e-course or vlog.   4. Review Conference Agendas Every year, conferences get flooded with smart participants and charismatic speakers. If you desire remarkable ideas, the conference agenda holds the key to your content generation woes. When examining the agenda, the goal isn’t to swipe someone’s entire presentation. Instead, use it as inspiration to initiate adjacent content ideas. Carro Ford , a marketer and author, says: “Study the agenda and session tracks to get a sense of trending user problems and concerns.
 Conference keynotes and sessions highlight trending topics in your market that you can cover in your blog. You’ll also get ideas for keywords to use in your writing.” As a sign of appreciation, you should mention the speaker’s name and include a link to their work, if possible. These little actions provide an avenue to foster future content relationships. You also could use agendas as a syllabus for your content calendar. You might highlight a specific topic each month or create a quarterly infographic from the title of a talk. It’s not necessary to start from scratch with your content generation. Take the time to scour through conference agendas to find unconventional topics.   5. Connect with Influencers The content generation process shouldn’t operate in a silo. To produce your best content, you’ll want to collaborate with experts, thought leaders, and influencers . Working with others alleviates the ongoing demands of content production. Plus, it also gives your audience an opportunity to hear from other leading voices in your industry. Be selective when working with influencers. Don’t compromise your brand’s integrity just to earn popularity. You can vet thought leaders by analyzing their past content and asking for professional references. Moreover, expand your reach to lesser-known individuals. Help a Reporter Out (HARO) can assist you in developing relationships with experts in a variety of fields. It’s a free resource, and you’ll receive quality quotes for your upcoming stories. Think outside of the box with influencer content. Rather than the same old blog post, get industry leaders to take over your social media accounts for a day. Or ask them to record five three-minute video clips about an interesting topic. These content pieces will be more meaningful to your visitors. Step up your content game with the help of others. You can do more through collaboration.   Fresh Ideas, New Content Generating content is an ongoing process. For fresh ideas, read the industry reports or sift through your Twitter timeline. Be creative and craft extraordinary content for your audience. Need help brainstorming blog topics? Read this post. Find the post on the HostGator Blog Continue reading

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15 Best Social Media Blogs for Business

The post 15 Best Social Media Blogs for Business appeared first on HostGator Blog . The Best Blogs for Business Social Media Help Social media can be both a productivity killer and an important business tool – it all depends on how you use it. At this point, your customers expect you to be on social media. But using social media to represent a business brand effectively is an ongoing challenge, and finding and connecting with your audience on social media platforms can often feel like an uphill battle. There’s always more to learn. And luckily, there are a lot of resources out there to help you learn the ropes and get more out of social media over time. These are some of the blogs out there providing advice and best practices for social media marketing. 1. Social Media Examiner Social Media Examiner is one of the best known and respected blogs covering social media marketing. The blog provides actionable tips, tutorials, and case studies for all the different social media platforms. In addition to regular blog posts, they also publish original research and long-form guides on marketing for different social media sites. Whether you’re still learning the basics of using social media for your business or wanting to dive deeper into more detailed recommendations, Social Media Examiner provides good information. 2. Buffer Buffer both provides a product for scheduling social media posts and has an active social media presence as a brand, which provides them with a lot of data on what works. They’re known for good long-form blog posts that provide detailed, actionable advice based on data and case studies. The blog publishes posts on all the different social media platforms businesses are likely to use. 3. Hootsuite Like Buffer, Hootsuite provides a product to help businesses schedule and organize their social media updates, which means they know a lot about the subject of social media marketing. Their posts cover a lot of different social media tips, best practices, and research for all of the big social media platforms. They’re another one of the main go-tos for the industry. 4. Rebekah Radice Rebekah Radice has an award-winning blog that covers social media and other related digital marketing topics. Her posts get into topics like social media etiquette, developing a strategy for social media, and tips and tricks for getting the most from each particular platform. She often mixes in infographics, videos, and podcasts with the written content, so those who prefer other types of media have options as well. 5. Ignite Social The social media agency Ignite demonstrates the knowledge learned from over ten years of social media marketing in their blog. They cover social media news and trends, tips for specific social media channels, and how to handle an array of social media issues when they arise. Their posts can both help you stay on top of what’s going on in the larger social media industry, as well as answer smaller questions you might have about how to use social media for business. 6. Sprout Social The Sprout Social blog is another good resource that covers a lot of social media territory. You can find posts that get into the details of doing social media marketing for different industries, hiring for social media positions, and a lot of good how-to posts on getting specific things done on the different social media platforms. Their content is consistently useful for companies of all sizes and types . 7. Social Media Hat Social Media Hat offers a lot of tutorial posts about how to do different tasks on the various social media platforms, along with posts on larger social media trends and news stories. In addition to publishing posts on using the main social media platforms, they provide tips and advice for blogging and email marketing as well. 8. Hey Orca The Hey Orca blog provides a lot of the same type of content we’ve described on the other blogs on this list – general social media tips, trends, and news coverage – but they also mix in some less common types of social media content, like coverage from social media conferences, interviews with various influencers, and social media success case studies. It’s a blog with a lot of good content and personality and is worth adding to your list.   9. Socially Sorted Socially Sorted is the blog of Digital Content Strategist Donna Moritz. The blog answers common social media questions, provides helpful tips, and collects good social media examples you can learn from. She often provides additional media like templates or infographics to make her posts more useful. She has a particular expertise in visual storytelling, so this is a great blog to turn to for tips on creating more visual forms of content for your social media channels. 10. Peg Fitzpatrick Peg Fitzpatrick is another social media influencer who shares her knowledge with regular blog posts on how to reach and connect with your audience on social media. While her blog touches on all the major social media platforms, she especially gives attention to Instagram and Pinterest– channels that often get less attention on some of the other blogs on the list. 11. Top Dog Social Media Top Dog Social Media is the blog of Melonie Dodaro. While the blog includes posts on a number of digital marketing topics, its main focus is on LinkedIn marketing. You can find posts covering the range of tips and advice you need for reaching customers for B2B marketing on the professional social media platform. 12. Jenn’s Trends Jenn’s Trends is one of the best blogs out there about Instagram marketing. While she’ll occasionally touch on other social networks or digital marketing tips as well, the primary focus on the blog is how to get followers on Instagram and interact with them effectively. If your brand’s on Instagram, this is a good blog to keep on your radar. 13. Tailwind The Tailwind blog is another one with a narrow focus on just a couple of main networks: Instagram and Pinterest. It tackles questions like how to get more followers, when to post, and the types of content you should create to do well on both platforms. For anyone using the more visual social media platforms, it can be a useful resource. 14. Linked Into Business This is another blog with a primary focus on just one of the main social media platforms: LinkedIn. The blog does sometimes venture into broader topics like content marketing and communication tips, but most of the posts cover topics specific to the features and best practices for marketing on LinkedIn. For B2B brands that use LinkedIn as a marketing and sales tool, it’s a good blog to follow. 15. Mari Smith With all these blogs covering specific networks, you may have wondered when we’d get to one focused on the biggest social network of them all. Mari Smith’s got you covered with a blog all about Facebook marketing. She goes into how to use the various features Facebook offers, important news about the platform, and tips for using Facebook for marketing effectively. Conclusion As you can see, there’s no shortage of good resources you can turn to when learning how to use social media for your business. It can be daunting when you’re just starting or still struggling to make headway, but learning from those who already have a good amount of experience and knowledge can be a big help to moving your own social media efforts forward.  Spend some time reading about what works and craft your strategy around the tips and research shared by the experts. 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How Google Hangouts Can Help Web Hosts Gather Customer Feedback

Nearly one-third of Google+ users work in IT, Internet or computer services, according to a recent study by GlobalWebIndex. With this in mind, it certainly makes sense that more hosting companies are using the social network, and in particular the Google Hangouts video conferencing feature, to target prospective customers. Continue reading

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LinkedIn Raising $1 Billion, Will Invest in Infrastructure

September 5, 2013 — The business-focused social network LinkedIn plans to raise an additional $1 billion, and will use some of the funding to expand its infrastructure. That’s bound to be good news for one or more data center providers. Keep on reading: LinkedIn Raising $1 Billion, Will Invest in Infrastructure Continue reading

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