If you are a business owner who is just now dipping your toe into the social media waters, branding your company has never been cheaper. Social media is a powerful tool when it comes to branding – even replacing some paid advertising budgets with some companies. If used correctly, social media allows word of mouth to spread via the Internet, and gets the consumer to do your work for you. Social media creates the natural desire that most people have to give advice or show off insider knowledge.

Although you should always use caution when creating a social media campaign, these tools can empower consumers to build up your brand. Social media is all about “you” – not logos or extensive copy. You can gradually build up your fan base naturally by enabling consumers to begin telling their friends and family about your business. Some examples of this include: Sharing your content, “liking” your content, reading it, emailing it, etc.

An interesting article recently came across my Twitter feed: How to Use Social Media to Build Your Brand. The author cites Lisa Barone, co-founder and chief branding officer of Outspoken Media:

“Brands that have the best success use social media to form relationships with people. It’s about helping people by answering their questions or jumping into a conversation. Once they know you, they’ll subscribe to your blog or newsletter. Once they make that step, it’s a lot easier to market to them — and they’re a lot more open to being marketed to.”

When participating on different social networks, be sure to create a consistent voice, but try not to be too corporate or formal – people connect with other people. The article describes how to leverage your branding with a blog, how to take the first steps in social media, and how to share your brand message efficiently. Each objective can be reached by publishing content that is valuable enough to like or share.

There has never been a better time to start branding your business with social media. There are minimal costs involved and you are able to engage consumers in a new way – so I say, get a move on today!

Google has launched a new search feature called Google Instant Preview. The latest feature gives users a snapshot of what a search result looks like before they even click on it. This is a huge advantage to users as they will quickly be able to determine if a result offers valuable information or not. However, this advantage to users requires SEO professionals to adapt.

Results now have a small magnifying glass next to them that, when clicked on, shows a preview of the result on the right. If users like what they see, clicking on the preview will take them directly to the result’s site. If they don’t, users can move on to the next result. After clicking just once, the Preview option is activated and will appear when hovering over any result on the SERP.

Previews can be closed by clicking on the X in the upper right corner. Some previews even include a quote from the site’s content that is relevant to the user’s search. I have researched this extensively and have not found a rhyme or reason for this yet but will look further into it in the coming weeks. In my opinion, the quote should contain the exact phrase that the user searched on, just like meta-descriptions in the search results.

Google Instant Preview serves as a reminder that website design is an important part of getting visitors. A site that was designed in 2000 and hasn’t been updated since needs a fresh look if it wants to attract visitors. Otherwise, traffic numbers may tank in the coming months.

Introducing Instant Previews is a snapshot of this new feature and how it appears in the SERP’s. Google Instant Previews is a great new feature to help refine searches and results. Search engine marketers must learn to adapt to this and change industry practices accordingly.

It’s always good to get a refresher, or another perspective when it comes to doing your job. With that in mind Sara and I took off a couple of weeks ago to attend an Advanced SEO seminar given by Luna Metrics in Pittsburgh.

Presenters Christina Keffer and Jim Gianoglio brought up some very good points that make the optimization process a little easier.

Advanced Link Building
I was especially interested in this subject, as link research can get pretty monotonous and time consuming. It can also be easy to get in a rut. Here are some points that Christina brought up that I think could be very helpful:

• Create a Google Alert for your company – You could potentially receive an alert that a website has mentioned your company. You could contact that website and ask for a link back to your site.
• Advanced search operators - This resource (www.googleguide.com/advanced_operators.html) can come in handy when doing searches in Google.

Social Media
I also found this session to be highly informative. Check the pointers below:

• Research popular hash-tags – Here is an example: You own a restaurant and notice that the hash-tag #iamcraving is currently a trending topic on Twitter. You could leverage that and send out a Tweet incorporating that hash-tag and a link to your website. Everyone using that hash-tag may see your Tweet and visit your website.
• Tag your fans in photos on Facebook – Here is an example: you had an event that several of your customers attended. Tag them in any photos that they were in and all of their friends on Facebook can see they attended an event your company held, possibly piquing their interest.

Overall I was very satisfied with the topics and things learned at the seminar – it was well worth the drive (even though we got a little lost in the big city)! I love learning new things about the industry and getting another perspective – well done Luna Metrics!