Gowalla Steadily Moves Past The Check-In With City Pages, Business Listings And More

It’s no secret that both Foursquare and Gowalla are expanding their location-based social networks past the check-in, developing other incentives for consumers to use the services. Gowalla, in particular, has focused on adding innovative features to its platform to make the social network more interactive, through photos and comments. Most recently, the startup added local highlights, which allows users to essentially tap into their social graph to not only see what’s popular in a particular location, but also provide contextual information around what are the best sights, places, restaurants and activities in a particular locale. Today, Gowalla is adding a few more features for businesses that help the network move beyond the check-in, including City Pages, Verified Businesses and Venues; and the Stamp Calendar.

via techcrunch.com

Posted via email from Social Persuasion - The Social Media Marketing Agency Blog

YouTube Promoted Videos hit half a billion views

When we announced our first performance-based video ad format, Promoted Videos, nearly two years ago, the first campaign was “Penny Pranks” by Office Max.

Since that time, thousands and thousands of advertisers have taken advantage of this ad format to entice likely customers with videos about everything from smoked brisket recipes to magnetic jewelry to sneakers. Politicians and political activists have used Promoted Videos to argue for a proposition or against an issue. And large companies have reached wide audiences with movie trailers, recipes, and ideas for Halloween.

via youtube-global.blogspot.com

Have you dabbled with pay per click marketing for your business? Did you know you can run video campaigns through Google and Youtube as well? Want to only pay when people watch your video? We can help you get your videos online with full ROI tracking to promote your business or services. Contact one of our Vancouver internet marketing consultants today for a free phone consult. http://stirsolutions.com/consultation

Posted via email from Social Persuasion - The Social Media Marketing Agency Blog

Rapportive - Get social profiles of everyone who emails you right inside your Gmail account

What is Rapportive?

Rapportive shows you everything about your contacts right inside your inbox.

You can immediately see what people look like, where they're based, and what they do. You can establish rapport by mentioning shared interests. You can grow your network by connecting on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and more. And you can record thoughts for later by leaving notes.

Imagine relationship management built into your email. For free.

via rapportive.com

This is cool and it works.

Posted via email from Social Persuasion - The Social Media Marketing Agency Blog

QR Code Marketing for Business: Fast List Signups on Mobile Devices with QR Codes -

QR codes, those strange siblings of UPC codes, are starting to gain some mass appeal as more and more people buy smart phones with cameras and apps smart enough to read them. QR codes store information like a web page location that is unlocked when scanned using one of the many free or cheap apps for iPhone, Android, and other mobile platforms. They’ve been making frequent appearances on movie posters, such as the one below for Iron Man 2, which points people to a companion website containing the trailer, and lots of bonus content. It’s sort of a little reward for those curious enough to explore.

via mailchimp.com

Have you seen this alien looking sqaure box of mumbo jumbo on posters or in magazines or newspapers lately? While they may seem gimmicky (e.g. why not just write the URL), more and more businesses are dabbling with using QR codes for marketing and advertising. Just today I received Aeroplan's Arrival magazine that contained a big QR code to download their magazine app, and another scannable code to allow me to Like their Page in Facebook. Can you imagine ways you could use QR codes in your offline marketing for your business? Put a code on your business card or flyers or event notifications? Drive people to sign up for your email newsletter (as is discussed in detail using Mailchimp in the full article link above).
Contact us today to schedule a free 30 minute consultation to discuss internet marketing strategy for your business and how using QR codes might help you achieve your business goals. http://stirsolutions.com/consultation

Posted via email from Social Persuasion - The Social Media Marketing Agency Blog

Small Businesses Conflicted About Social Media and Its Uses

Small businesses are conflicted about social media and its uses, says a new study.

Thirty-five percent of small businesses think their customers use the medium, but nearly half (47 percent) aren't sure about social media's popularity, says the report from online reputation management firm RatePoint. 

via inc.com

Businesses that use social networking are seeing results. Of those surveyed who said they would be using social media as the main way to find new customers in the next year, 70 percent said it was because the platform is the least expensive option.

Posted via email from Social Persuasion - The Social Media Marketing Agency Blog