There are a lot of predictions being made for the upcoming year, but the one that your business might want to be aware of is that more people will be using their mobile devices to shop online.

Consumers enjoy using apps – after all some of them have catchy names or cute logos. However, consumers prefer a mobile site more than an app when shopping with a mobile device (as reported in Adobe’s Mobile Experience Survey in 2011). The percentage of usage varied according to a customer’s need:

• 81% of users preferred mobile sites over apps for researching prices
• 79% of users preferred mobile sites over apps for product reviews
• 63% of users preferred mobile sites over apps for making purchases

Are you ready to handle the increase of customers?

Since more web users are using their mobile devices to get online (an increase to about 9% in the United States), then it makes sense to make your site mobile ready. For 2012, that translates to 1 out of every 4 searches will be done through a mobile device. However, data shows that 91% of businesses are not prepared to take advantage of the increase in traffic.

Not all sites are created equal

Your mobile site should be designed and treated differently than your non-mobile site. For example, your mobile site’s screen should fit a mobile device (not too big) and it should have a unique URL.

When some research groups were asked to test some mobile sites, they found that some sites had watered down mobile versions on the same URL or redirected them to a different URL when a smartphone user agent was discovered. This became a problem because it made the search process slower and made the mobile sites less user friendly. If a user had a problem with a mobile site, then there was a 40% chance that they would leave that site and visit a competitor’s.

Your customers will buy from you if your mobile site is mobile ready

If your mobile site is mobile ready (user friendly and visually appealing on a mobile device) then it’s more than likely that your customer will stay and make a purchase from your site (according to a 2010 report by the research group Brand Anymore). Yet unfortunately out of the 7,000 retail websites researched, only 4.8% were mobile ready.

There’s a good chance that you’re one of those businesses who are not mobile ready. So hiring the right marketing firm to help you is important now more than ever. At Thrive Marketing we have the mobile expertise and tools to get your business ready for the onslaught of customers. Contact us today to help your mobile and non-mobile customers find you.

We feel that your business can benefit from the new look and feel of Pages and are excited for the new changes.  However, we recommend for now, that you hold off converting your Page permanently until Facebook finishes working out the bugs.

An example of where members are having problems is when people are not directed to the correct Like Page after they click “Like”.  We know the importance of the Like Page for your business and want to be sure that your Facebook profile works properly.

While you are waiting to transition to Facebook’s new Timeline format, it is a good time to design some eye-popping Cover Photos for the new format.

We understand that you may have some questions concerning how these changes may impact your Social Media Campaign, so here are some questions (with answers) that should help you:

Will my Social Media Campaigns continue working with these new changes?

Yes! Your campaigns will still work normally without any changes required by you.

Are there changes to the Default Tabs?

Yes. After you convert to Timeline, Facebook will no longer allow you to set the default landing tab for visitors who hit your fan page for the first time. Instead, the default view for your page will be the Facebook Timeline. This change will work better in the new format because only 10% of Page traffic comes from “Like-Gating” your Page (the remaining traffic comes from your promotion through email and other social postings). But you should continue to “Like-Gate” your offers (and exclusive content) to help convert visitors into fans.

Another change is that you can now have large visible icons linking to your custom tabs at the top of your Timeline – plus you can “pin” a promotional post at the top to give your offer the most visibility.

How do I make my offers visible to people?

The most effective ways of engaging new and existing Fans (and to see results) is to continue to use the sharing tools built into Social Media. Promoting your offer through email, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn are still the best ways to get people to see, share and act on your offers.

If you decide that you want to convert your Page today, here are three tips to get you started:

1. Choose the right picture. Make a strong first impression on your potential and existing customers by using a carefully chosen photo. Your photo should represent what your business looks and feels like. Do you want your customers to feel warm and fuzzy or sophisticated and formal? Whatever you choose, just remember that you’re setting your business tone.

2. Add your company’s history to your Timeline. You now have a way of showing your company’s history by adding key dates (not just your posts). A side note: you may want to edit your “About” section of your Page because it is more featured now.

3. Show off your Social Media Campaigns. You can now feature your Social Media Campaign prominently on your Page. Here are three great examples of how to pull it off:

• “Pin” a promotional post to the top of your Timeline (click to edit on a specific post at the top right of the post box, and select “pin to top”).
• To help promote your offer (and make it unique from your other offers), change the name and image of your Social Media Campaign app (open the Admin panel, click Manage, then Edit Page, go to Page Settings, Apps, and Edit Settings – this is where you can change the custom tab image and the custom tab name).
• Since you’ll be able to see your most recent activity right from the top of your Page, you’ll be able to respond to your private messages right from the same Page – a great way to stay engaged to your fans.

As we learn more about Facebook’s new changes, we’ll be sure to pass any new information on to you.

Similar to other social media, users can follow their friend’s boards, “like” their boards or even share them on Facebook and Twitter. Pins can also be emailed or embedded into a website or blog, making it more available to more users. It’s a place where users can collect and show their passion – “organize and share the things you love” (Pinterest.com).

Before you can pin, you must become a member first

Since it’s an invitation-only site, you can request an invite from Pinterest or have a friend (who is already a member) invite you. Either way, you’ll be notified by email when your membership has been accepted. Just make sure that you register your account with your business email so that you can connect through your business Twitter account (you cannot connect through Facebook’s business pages).

Another thing to remember is to keep your “Hide your Pinterest profile from search engines” checked to “Off” so your profile can be searched by users on the web. Plus, keep these five rules in mind:

• Be respectful to others
• Give proper credit to your source
• Be careful about over self-promoting
• Don’t “pin” objectionable material
• Be selective when giving feedback

Now you can start pinning

Once you’ve established your account, add the “Pin it” button to your company’s website. Since Pinterest is a way to share your company’s culture (in addition to promoting your products), here are some tips that can help you get the most out of your pinboard and to increase followers:

• Create a user-focused pinboard to welcome followers. Identify your top “pinner” and ask them to share what they like most about your brand.
• View pinboards of your followers to learn more about their interests, then post images that will bring your followers back to your board.
• Use clear and vibrant images (mixed with videos) of a theme that your company wants to convey. Your bookstore can take your followers to far-off places that sometimes only exist in the plot of a novel. Share images of the beaches of Fiji or imaginary planets from distant galaxies.
• Whatever type of images you use, write a description that emphasizes your company’s keywords.
• Generate leads and drive followers back to your website – you can reward your followers with a coupon and encourage them to visit frequently.

Because staying engaged to your followers is vital, thank them for pinning your items and encourage feedback. You can ask your followers to pin your new products that they like, invite them to your next promotional event or simply ask them to share their own images with you. You can even have daily pins that generate repeat visitors.

Pinterest is not limited to furniture retailers or wedding dress designers – any type of service, product or group can benefit from the customer engagement of Pinterest. Knowing how to harness the fullest potential of Pinterest (plus understanding the rules) takes experienced social network marketers. At Thrive Marketing, we have the knowledge and resources to help your business get the most out of social networking. Contact us today and get pinned.

The Brain’s Favorite Number Is “3″

Specialists in communication arts know it. Lawyers know it. Teachers know it. Parents know it. Marketers know it. Psychologists know it. You know it too, although you may not actually realize it. The brain likes to chunk what it takes in, in threes. Think about how you memorize numbers such as phone numbers, long addresses, social security numbers, and padlock combinations. Can you remember the names of your friends that have a middle name? Doesn’t it slow you down just a little if they have two middle names?

How “3″ Applies to Marketing Communications

We’ve all seen the sales promotion literature that tries so hard to get across every single benefit of the product so you can be sure and remember them all. Do you? Of course not. You can more easily remember the three reasons for choosing or rejecting something.  Something about one reason or two is just not strong enough to be persuasive. Four or more memorable points simply become unmemorable.

Try Out 3

Here are the three basic reasons to begin chunking your communication messages into threes:

1. That is the way your audiences’ minds prefer to absorb the information.
2. The mind will retain strings of threes better than larger clusters or more than three smaller clusters.
3. Three supporting points give a structure that is sufficient without being clumsy or confusing.

Now, close your eyes and see if you can repeat back those three things.

See?

The amount of time that can be spent on social media (Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin, for example) seems overwhelming, but it doesn’t need to be. Make yourself an appointment for 15 minutes, each day, where you focus on placing your updates and messages on your target sites.

Focus on Where Your Customers Are

Focus on where you want to be for your customers. If the idea of being an inspiration to your customers appeals to you, then focus on those things you see throughout your day that would serve that purpose. They may be short articles, sayings or observations that you or others make and use those to help get your name in front of your customers. That is an easy way to develop copy for your social media sites.

Be Consistent in Your Social Media Approach

During your 15-minute appointment, log into each of your selected social sites or a blog focused on your industry. Upload messages, articles or observations to share with your friends and contacts. When you are consistent about delivering your positive messages, your potential customers will soon notice and remember you. Thus, you will achieve one of the goals of your marketing efforts: top-of-mind awareness about who you are and what you do to place excellence around your service and products.

Social Media Takes Time, but It Doesn’t Have to Take a Lot

Fifteen minutes a day will not be missed in the totality of your busy day, but it will make a world of difference in the view people have of you and your company. Just be consistent about making your presence known. Using social media for business is a battle of attrition; you wear down the resistances little by little while you build up your position in the market exactly the same way.

It’s time to change your game – a little. Whether you realize it or not, your marketing game has already been changing. Social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter didn’t start out being marketing tools but they have found their way into those possibilities.

Surprise: The Over-60 Age Group

What may be the biggest surprise, though, is the 65+ age group which is up a whopping 127% over last year.  The over-60 age group is responsible for most of the high-ticket purchases. They tend to shop longer and harder on the internet than any other group (see Marketing to Seniors: Internet Is a Must).  They are the most productive internet shoppers of all. If you are ignoring them because you think they are beyond using computers to shop, you are ignoring the most profit-generating segment of your audience.

Not Surprising: Teenagers

At the other end of the age spectrum are teenage smartphone users. Teen users have increased in smartphone usage by 53% in the past year which accounts for their biggest jump ever. This is the “me” generation and every purchase they make is a need. They are easily influenced to buy and they focus on the mobile-adapted websites because navigating standard web pages on those tiny screens is beyond their patience threshold.

What are all these people doing with their smartphones?

Well, placing phone calls is just a small part of it. They are shopping, and they are buying. Where are they buying? Smartphone and tablet shoppers buy on websites that have been optimized for mobile use. If your website hasn’t been optimized for mobile use, then your website is being bypassed by this huge and growing audience.

If you are still not convinced, digest a few of these interesting statistics:

• Two-thirds of all mobile shoppers make purchases while at home, a few feet away from a desktop computer.
• Almost half of the owners intend to make holiday purchases from their phones.
• A fourth of all iPhone and Android phone users have used a shopping application within the past three months.
• More than 40% of smartphone users have already bought something using the phone.
• More than half of all consumers have already conducted purchases on a mobile device.
• More than three-fourths of all retail companies plan to invest in mobile this year.
• The retail market for mobile devices is expected to top $12 billion by 2014.

Consider two things for holiday shopping this year:

1. Get your business website optimized and ready for mobile internet shoppers. Contact us for a free assessment.
2. Consider getting and giving those popular smartphones yourself.

iPads, Touch Pads and Smartphones Are the New Shopping Carts

There’s no question that smartphones and touchscreen tablets have changed the way people work, but they have also changed the way people shop. The reason isn’t just because of the convenient internet access either. Both phones and tablets have downloadable gadgets supplied by many retailers that compress the experience into easy-to-use shop and purchase actions. Internet access even makes on-the-spot price comparisons a reality. The big jump has come since the introduction of the super-convenient, touchscreen tablets, with their larger screens and easier-to-use keyboards. Touchscreen tablets supply the best of mobile phone convenience and couple it with desktop computer familiarity and ease of use.

In a recent ComScore survey of people who have tablets, but have never used them for purchases, about 60% of them stated that they would see themselves buying products and services in the next one to two years. Almost all of those users were predicting they would do it within one year. The survey saw very similar results when smartphone owners were asked the same question. Meanwhile, 49% of them indicated intent to buy through their smartphones within two years. As more and more people move into the smartphone and tablet arena, those numbers will go up and the timelines will get shorter.

Online retail sales are on track to grow 14% in 2011. 

Smart retailers are not only optimizing their shopping carts and conversion rates, but they are also leveraging proven email strategies and influencing customers through tablets, smart phones and a  broad range of online marketing channels.  Let Thrive Marketing, a full-service internet marketing firm, help you navigate the ever-changing ecommerce landscape and help prepare you for the 2011 Holiday Shopping Season. Contact Thrive Marketing for a Free Website Audit or Free Web Marketing Consultation.

From the ninth grade on, writing teachers, sales managers, copywriters, and others will tell you that you need to shout out your strongest benefit in your headline to attract the readers’ attention (just like everyone else’s headline). Although that would seem logical, it is not the most effective way to get better attention from the reader. So, how can so many people be so wrong?

Headlines and their character depend a lot on the context of the situation.

For example, headlines that capture our attention in a newspaper may not catch our attention the same way on an internet site. The reason is simple.  The purpose for reading each is generally quite different.

What Is In It For Me? vs. What’s New?

On a website, the purpose is to gain new information whereas in a newspaper it is to catch up on current events. Some familiarity is usually present when reading the newspaper because of the geographical interest and other ongoing news.

On a website, we are attempting to invite a person to consider new information and the purpose for reading the new information is somewhat selfish.

• “What is in it for me?”
• Does the information appear credible?

Overall, there is more reader intent on websites and the payback must be more immediate.

In the newspaper, much of the reading energy is more relaxed, casual, and without the searching intensity. Also, in the newspaper there is a stronger context associated as the headlines generally are adjacent to a photograph, text, or story context information. A non-descriptive headline, in such cases, isn’t much of a loss while the eye is scanning the other visual cues.

That isn’t a luxury a web reader usually has when viewing a webpage.

Often, the well-thought out headline will be at least a click away from the photos, nicely arranged pages, and content related to the website’s purpose. Non-descriptive headlines won’t convey enough information to urge the reader to make that extra click; they simply just pass by looking for something else more captivating.

After all, half the readers will bypass a webpage within the first five seconds. The other half has to have a further reason or they will leave, too.

One major benefit in writing headlines for websites, as opposed to writing headlines for print is that there are no restrictions on how you use the space. Abbreviations are not necessary and shouldn’t be done. Because of the column widths, print headlines often don’t have verbs or won’t make complete sentences. Neither is necessary on a webpage.

Imagine seeing this headline on a newspaper’s front page and on a webpage:

“Abandon Hope.”

This headline would be effective if placed next to a photo of earthquake rubble, for example, but what are you going to do on the web page to get the reader to click through?

That’s the point. Maybe this one would work:

“Abandon Hope of Website Success without Effective Headlines.”

“Make more white space!”

• What does it mean?
• Why would art and copy people want less art and copy by providing more white space?

It is all about what the eye sees and how much the brain can take in at one time. White space in advertising serves the same purpose as “negative space” in fine art and portraits. It is that space that forces the eye to see what you intend it to see. If there is not enough negative space, or white space, then the eyes and brain have trouble settling on what is important and needs to be viewed first.

As a general rule, layout in advertisements, as well as landing pages on websites, breaks down to:

• 60% – 65% illustrations / art
• 20% – 25% copy / text
• 10% Headlines / subheads
• 5% for logo and company information

However, the total of all that usage should not exceed 80% and probably less. That means 20% to 30% of the image should be should be unfettered with copy or illustration.

Copy and graphics need to be positioned where eyes and brain expect it. Eye tracking for almost all people in our society starts in the upper left corner and then tracks in a double-Z pattern to the bottom right of the page. By using this knowledge, the white space can be arranged to guide that somewhat natural instinct. Also, knowing that pattern, allows you to anticipate where to put the greatest emphasis on your message by placing it in the upper left and the corporate addresses and contact information in the lower right. Also located near the top should be important links and offers.

The next time you review an ad or a landing page, notice what your eyes do. If you find that you are not sure what the pattern is, maybe it is time to call, “More white space!”