A process and tools to find influencers in international social media

The rise of social media was supposed to democratise the way we share information and in a way it has. Anyone can post information or express their opinion, but in reality some individuals and groups have more influence than others. Identifying and interacting with these key influencers or Key Opinion Leaders (KOLs) can really boost your search engine optimisation (SEO) efforts, content marketing or social media campaigns.

Define your topics and research keywords

You will of course want to narrow your efforts to those influencers writing, blogging or otherwise involved in your own sector or area. You'll also want to focus relatively tightly on specific keywords as too broad an approach will be more likely to throw up a whole ocean of irrelevant leads you'll have to wade through in order to get to the good stuff. When looking to engage with influencers…

History Forgotten, History Erased: EU Ruling marks massive win for Right to Privacy Campaigners

Last Tuesday’s EU Court of Justice ruling in favour of an individual’s ‘right to be forgotten’ feels like a harsh blow to Google. The ruling, which establishes the search engine's role as a ‘data controller’ and as such does not extend to media institutions and other online publishers, has divided opinion amongst commentators. Many are worried that by shifting the onus on Google as a controller of data, the EU could be throwing the baby out with the bath water in its attempt to protect press freedoms with the right to be forgotten. Whilst Google is not responsible for the publication of content it has become a vital component of the online media melting pot and as such these distinctions matter.

Damaging attack or vital measure?

To…

Tools and techniques to review the impact of the latest Panda algorithm update on organic search traffic

Value/Importance: [rating=5] Recommended link: Search Engine Land Analysis by Barry Schwartz It’s a statement to strike fear into the heart of anyone who relies on organic visits from Google for their business or their clients’ business. Google’s head of web spam Matt Cutts announced today that a major new algorithm update is now rolling out:

Google is rolling out our Panda 4.0 update starting today.

— Matt Cutts (@mattcutts) May 20, 2014 Marketers are bound to be alarmed given the impact of the first Panda update on some sites like this one, highlighted in an article by James Gurd on how to review SEO visits and changes through time.

How to review the Impact of Panda 4.0?

Given the impact on sites throughout the history of Panda outlined below, it’s…

6 Migration musts for advertisers to prepare for the switch

Remember 2012 when Google switched Google Shopping over to paid ads, and merchants on Google had a collective pain attack? It's happening again. Google recently announced they are switching the current version of Product Listing Ads (PLAs) over to the newer Google Shopping Campaigns format. This will happen by August 2014. It's similar to the initial introduction of paid Product Listing Ads from (October 2012), when Google completely changed how Google Product Search functioned, and required merchants to make the switch within a certain timeline (July 2012). This time, to prepare, read the PLA Guide. How is Google changing Google Shopping and how can you get ready? Below are the details of how Google Shopping Campaigns are different from current Product Listing Ads, Google Shopping Campaigns best practices.

Google Shopping Campaigns vs. Current PLAs

Google Shopping Campaigns are at…

How Twitter is killing '2 birds with 1 stone' with its new mobile app promotions

One of the biggest names in social media has finally joined the mobile marketing revolution. After Facebook announced that almost half of its revenue now comes from mobile ad sales, Twitter made the wise decision to revamp their mobile app to increase their revenue opportunities from advertisers. In April, the company announced an app install suite which takes advantage of their previous acquisition of MoPub in order to allow advertisers to reach their audience both on and off site. The new interface will allow for the marketing of other apps, giving users the opportunity to initiate an app download on their phone from within a tweet.

Meeting industry demands

By creating the ability to promote apps within their app, Twitter has given advertisers everything they need to capitalize on an ever growing market.  Now more than ever, people are connecting…

YouTube's 2014 guide to meta data in video optimisation

Did you see that YouTube released a Creator Playbook for Brands in March 2014? The Playbook is essentially a YouTube handbook – it tells you what you need to do as a brand to get the most out of the functions and tools that are available to YouTube channel owners. Possibly more than anyone else, YouTube (of the Google machine) are very aware of how advertising is changing shape in a climate of growing online content and shrinking attention spans. In this article, I will provide you with what I hope will be a handy summary on what the Playbook says about optimising your content with video metadata.

Why bother with metadata?

There are a number of avenues through which you can generate views of your YouTube videos. Some viewers will find your videos in a simple, direct step. For example, they may visit…

How to win friends and engage your brand circle

Digital marketers understand that there’s strength in numbers better than anyone. After all, in a world where a campaign’s success depends on 'buzz,' numbers are something brands live by, whether they’re spreading the word or planning new ways to engage fans and customers. But strength in numbers is essential for building a reputation, too. Just look at Governor Chris Christie’s recent press disaster, 'Bridgegate.' At the first hint of scandal, his band of supporters, the Republican Party vanished. But what if Bridgegate had happened just before the 2016 presidential election? Chances are, Christie would have been getting support left and right. (Well, maybe just from the right.) At that point, his 'brand circle' (the Republicans) would have tried to win swing voters. And a group is more powerful than an individual, especially when…

Running promotions with your affiliates is an important part of growing your affiliate programme. Whether you want to target the whole programme, or just a few key players, it is important that you work to maximise the returns you see.

When talking about a ‘promotion’ in affiliate marketing, I mean something aiming to get more exposure on an affiliate’s site. So whether this is increased commission, a bespoke deal for their audience or a paid-for placement, you will benefit from making sure that you follow these tips.

1. Understand what you want to achieve

Affiliate promotions are there to grow your sales with that affiliate, or with the base a whole. But before you start, define what that means for you. Do you want more sales? Or do you want higher-value sales? Or new customer sales? What does success look like? Understanding what you want to achieve before you start will mean that you…

Lookalikes can now include site visitors tracked with Facebook Conversion or Custom audiences for website pixels

Targeted advertising on Facebook through 'Lookalikes has been available for some time as Marie Page explained  in her blog in March 2013. This alert is to let you know that Facebook have recently been announcing more enhancements to this advertising technique so that it allows companies to connect with Facebook members who fit the profile of their website visitors.

So what's new this time? Facebook have taken this one step further, to connect advertisers to 'lookalike Facebook members' who visit their website, use their mobile apps or are connected to their Facebook page.

How does it work?

To target in this way can now embed the conversion pixel tool in your website which sends data back to Facebook about your visitors, and this only works with Facebook. The advertiser can…

How popular are meshing, stacking and responding to ads?

Millward Brown's major new ad response research project, AdReaction looks at the use, behaviour and perception to advertising of multiscreen users across 30 countries, including the UK.

What is the principle of AdReaction?

The core aim of the research is for brands to 'evaluate the multiscreen landscape by considering both the scale of screens (reach/opportunity to contact) as well as the receptivity of people to various marketing approaches, both within and across screens.'

Who was surveyed?

A survey was distributed via smartphone or tablet, to over 12,000 multi-screen users, aged 16 - 44 across 30 countries. A Multi-screen user is defined as 'people who own, or have access to, a TV and a smartphone and/or a tablet. They consume 7 hours of screen media buying during a 5 hour period.'

Key findings of the AdReaction Survey

35% of screen time involves using both the TV and a digital device. Of…