Digital Strategy Archive

Thursday sees a milestone for me as I travel back to San Francisco to speak at BrightEdge’s Share 13 event at the fantastic-looking Palace Hotel.

Last year, it was the first conference I attended as Brand Ambassador for Majestic SEO after Dixon Jones asked me to join their ranks after I left Microsoft.

Now, a year on, I’m speaking in a session about search and earned media, giving a talk entitled “Loving Links Beyond SEO”.

I’ll be blowing away the fog that surrounds link data when it comes to other uses other than link building, and focusing on the relationships that can be made between not just the rich data available, but the people behind the content that marketers can uncover and build even deeper relationships with.

Really looking forward to spending time with some old friends too, like Andy Betts, Jim Brigden, Simon Heseltine, Mike Grehan, Elisabeth Osmeloski, Lisa Williams, Todd Friesen and Matt McGowan.

Given that line up, it should be an excellent event, so follow the hashtag on Twitter: #Share13 for all the wisdom coming from that corner of the US of A!

Well it’s nearly a year since I started this company, and if I ever thought I’d have a month at home with no event to speak at post-Microsoft I’d be wrong!

Take a look at my Keynote Speaker page and you’ll see I’ll have cracked over 20 events in the last 12 months which I am thrilled about.

Having had a few weeks off, I’m hitting the circuit hard with the following confirmed speaking engagements:

SLCSEM – Salt Lake City – August 2013

BrightEdge Share13 – San Francisco – August 2013

SES – San Francisco – Sept 2013

SearchLove – San Diego – Sept 2013

SEM PDX – Portland – Feb 2014

If you’re thinking of going to these events GO!

I’d highly recommend all of them if you’re new or experienced in digital marketing, search engine marketing and social media. This world moves so quickly, you need events like these to listen to and share ideas.

If you’d like to talk about me speaking at your event about Digital PR or Personal Branding then drop me a line via my contact page and we can chat.

Welcome to the first in what will be an unending stream of “Delightful Conversations” that I’m kicking off on our new YouTube Channel – Delightful Videos

The aim of the channel is to bring you frank and informative interviews with people I meet around the world who are wise (and willing) to share their solid knowledge on social media, digital PR, personal branding and entrepreneurship.

In this chat, I talk to the wonderfully smart Kristy Bolsinger from PwC just as she stepped off stage at SMX Advanced in Seattle a couple of weeks ago.

I asked her what makes a good social media strategy, how should brands be thinking about measurement and what social media metrics to track?

I also probed her for her thoughts on the future of social media and what the next big thing is going to be.

She gives some really good advice, especially about how to get away from the tactics and see social media as part of your overall business strategy and objectives.

Let me and @Kristy know what you think when you’ve watched the video, I’d love to get feedback on the format so I can tweak it.

Oh and you can subscribe here!

Now I may not be at Cannes Lions this year, but that’s not stopping me watching all the coverage pouring across the Atlantic from the Cote d’Azur.

I’m a little bummed I’m not there now, as this’ll be the third time I’ve narrowly missed seeing Jack Black in the flesh.

Next best thing is to watch this hilarious video interview with him backstage after a Yahoo! seminar.

Intertwined with the funnies is a serious message:

Don’t count on a video going viral when you’re creating it. Just do what you think will make people laugh and don’t try too hard.

“Keep it tight and trim the fat….keep it short because on the smaller screen you don’t want to go too long. I’ve found that 10 minutes is the optimal length of a nugget of entertainment.”

I remember the CDO of Dentsu saying similar things 4 years ago at Cannes. He said you have to have a good idea and it’s that that people pick up on aand want to share, the idea and how it makes them feel.

Or just be unexpected!

Nice work Yahoo! getting Jack to the south of France! You didn’t screw this one up!

The work I get to do with Majestic SEO never ceases amaze me (among many other things) because of the good luck I get whenever I’m on their booth at many of the digital conferences I attend with them around the world.

A couple of weeks ago, it just happened that our booth at SMX West was smack bang next to Market Motive’s where the fabulous Jennifer Cario (nee Laycock) was signing copies of her new book: Pinterest Marketing: An Hour a Day

Not one to pass up an opportunity, and always on the look out for tips to pass onto my clients and followers, I asked Jennifer if she could spare a few minutes chatting to me about the book, what tips she had for businesses when it comes to their Pinterest marketing, where Pinterest marketing should fit into the overall social media mix, and how marketers should be thinking about copyright and trademark issues so they don’t get into a sticky mess with their pinning.

I know from my experience with clients – I also pin Delightful social media insight and digital PR research when I can – that Pinterest can be a wonderful resource and source of traffic for websites, but that, even though we keep hearing it’s a must “have” social channel, many businesses are still a little in the dark as to how to leverage it well enough to justify the time spent.

Jennifer gave some great, no-nonsense answers to all those questions, so if you are in any doubt as to whether your Pinterest marketing strategy is heading in the right direction, take a peek at the video above and follow Jennifer on Twitter for all her Pinterest goodness.

Thanks,

Mel

P.S. If you think Jennifer’s Pinterest tips and advice are worth sharing, why don’t you share this post and let all your followers in on the information!

Really? You’re so enthusiastic and eager to tell the world about your news that you can’t spend 30 seconds trying to think of an alternative word to adequately and originally convey your emotions?

Welcome to one of my PR Pet Peeves!

A quick search for the phrase “excited to announce” on Google throws up 138,000,000 references. They even helpfully try and complete your query because so many people are using that adjective in their press release copy.

This is lazy writing.

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Whether you’re looking for a new job, you have a public-facing role in the role you’re in right now, or you’re just simply curious what Personal Branding is all about, then this post should add value to whatever you know already.

Where are Your Digital Footprints Taking You?

As I’ve written in the Delightful Personal Branding blurb on this site, the proliferation of the web and social media means having an optimized presence online is crucial for a number of reasons:

• I’ve been told by people “in the know” at search engines that searches for names represent 60% of search queries. Now I’m pretty sure they meant brand searches, because most people use Google and Bing as navigation aids as well as looking for stuff, but people names are going to make up a significant proportion of that massive number and that means YOU are going to be among them!
• If you have a Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn account, and your name isn’t as common as “John Smith”, then the chances are you’re going to rank very highly via these social media sites because those networks are very authoritative with the search engines. If that’s the case, doesn’t it make sense to make sure they present you and your brand in the best light possible?
• Somewhere down the line, you might want run for office or have a family and how are voters or your kids going to feel if your online persona is littered with compromising photographs, factual errors, missing data or, even worse, NOTHING can be found out about you at all!

Making sure that you have a tidy house online says a lot about you:

• It shows how serious you are about people getting a good first impression when they look you up.
• It helps people find the right sort of information about you and puts you in control of your personal brand.
• And it shows you actually care what people can discover about you online, and acting like you care adds positive fuel to your fire.

Now you might be thinking: “Who are these people that are looking for me online?”

Well here are a few scenarios:

• Job recruiters and headhunters – whether you have applied for a job or not.
• People in your company that want to know more about you.
• People in other companies that want to know more about you – they may be competition or potential work partners.
• Ex-flames!
• Potential new flames!
• Long-lost relatives.
• The nice lady you always chat too at the supermarket checkout.
• On and on and on…..

Now having an effective, orderly and clean online presence is fine, but in order to maintain it you need to learn to conduct yourself in a manner that shows your interested and interesting.

This might mean:

• Regularly checking and updating your various profiles to make sure they are accurate and current.
• Having a no swearing policy – what would Aunt Mary from Outer Mongolia think?! – unless of course you’re a rock star and that sort of thing is cool (man)!
• Keeping abreast of social networks’ privacy policies and security features, so you know the minute they change how to hide certain content or add new permission measures you can act swiftly.
• Simply adding a bit more flesh to your posts and updates so they are not so thin and cryptic and anyone can instantly see what you’re about – hopefully in a positive way.

Personal Branding is not something you get right overnight. It takes discipline and nurturing to start cultivating an online persona that starts paying dividends.

The good news is that it can be done, and over the next few months I’ll be updating the Delightful Blog and adding links to this post that will give you some ideas, tips and examples of how you can look good online so people like you, you give a great impression to potential employers, and you leave a digital legacy that you can be proud of.

Thanks for reading,

@MelCarson

Here are more posts on Personal Branding from this blog:

3 Ways to Enhance Your Personal Brand at Work (CCs All Millennials!)

How To Present Yourself with True Confidence and Sincerity

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Photo Credit: M Pratter

So last year I couldn’t help but shed a tear at the John Lewis Christmas ad they put out.

It was going to be my daughter’s first Christmas and I got a little sentimental and maybe a little homesick too.

Fast forward to this year and they’ve not done a great job drawing some quite fierce criticism.

Now the very agile team at Ann Summers, who sell all sorts of fruity bedroom wear and sex toys, have leapt on the opportunity to provide their own “twist” on the John Lewis ad that had me crying into my keyboard with laughter.

Maybe I have a silly sense of humor but this tickled me….umm….pink!

Just in case Google pull it, here’s the final shot:

I remember when British Airways were having trouble with their strike and Ann Summers hijacked their brand term on Google AdWords, ads started appearing like the below:

You have to admire their balls!

Have a great weekend,

Mel

As anticipation for the James Bond movie “Skyfall” grows, Heineken have worked with the franchise to produce a minute-long spot which includes a case of (not beer) but mistaken identity.

At the end of the trailer is social media call to action to visit a nifty Facebook app game called “Crack the Case”, which keeps your attention for a good 3 or 4 minutes as you have to carry out a couple of tasks to get to the end of the adventure.

It’s actually very good quality, quick to get around and great fun.

When the game is over you get pushed through to yet another experience:

Heineken Spysight is a mobile app game which continues the spy theme with users needing to complete each level in 30 seconds.

Again, a quick easy and fun plaything that just keeps the engagement with the brewer going and going. There’s no social buttons on the mobile app page though. Some say they like to drive downloads but I think there’s room for the ability to share, especially something like this.

That’s the end of this marketing mission!

Just don’t shake or stir their beer.

Mr. Bond would not have been expecting that!

Apple’s marketing machine kicked in this morning with an email blast to subscribers prompting them to pre-order the new iPhone 5 we’ve all been hearing so much about.

Now as a former Microsoft guy, my love for the Windows Phone has not gone unsaid, and I’m glad my wife’s still at Microsoft after yesterday’s news about Windows 8 Phone and Surface, but there has to be something said about what we can all learn from Apple marketing.

• The email arrives and the subject line is “Pre-order your iPhone 5.” It’s a simple call-to-action but they say YOUR iPhone 5. They imply there’s one waiting for just for me. I just have to click the button and its awesome deliciousness is all mine.
• They also end the subject line with a full stop. Who ends subject lines of emails with full stops (or periods if you’re reading this in the US)? Who? Take a look at your inbox now and other than the odd ? or !, where are the .’s? It says to me “order you new phone full stop, period. That’s all you need to do and your world will be more complete.”
• The image within the email is gorgeous too. They tilt it slightly to show off the new thinness and the silky black curves. But it’s also tilted because it’s not quite yours yet. You have to click through to the video and eventually order it to get the full-frontal experience.
• The standout call-to-action is to simply pre-order it. But remember, Apple will get lots of publicity from the queues that will no-doubt snake around the blocks of every Apple Store in the world from September 21st, so they give you the option to be a part of that experience too.
• Then there’s the video. You’ll watch this whether you order it or not, because it’s a visual feast that talks about the design and features and takes you into Jony Ives’ world as he describes the blow by blow of how your device is made.
• I’m not a fan of the tagline, “The biggest thing…” etc. Why bother with that? It might have been stronger to not have a tagline and say “iPhone 5” and imply “enough said!”

The reason I wanted to write about the iPhone 5 pre-order email, is that too often marketers feel the need to cram in too much information, too many calls to action and too few smart teasers.

The Apple example is a perfect email marketing campaign execution by keeping things simple, having a desired outcome, and providing the receiver with little option but to take action or explore further.

Will I be ordering an iPhone 5 as a result?

No.

But I’ve spent enough time thinking and writing about them today, and you’re reading this, so they’ve got their ROI from us have they not?

Cheers,

Mel

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