In Memoriam

We have a great thank-you in our hearts for those who gave their lives for our country. We don’t need to sprout off a long, elaborate speech about this. We offer a simple thank you, and that is all. Happy Memorial Day to everyone.

Facebook: Nearly Half of Americans Think It's A Passing Fad

FacebookThere is a new study out there that is suggesting that the all mighty Facebook is just another fad, at least according to half of Americans. Could it be another MySpace?

According to a poll conducted by the Associated Press and CNBC, an astonishing 46% of respondents think that Facebook will slowly fade away as new platforms are created in the future.

Picture-heavy communities like Pinterest and Instagram are on the rise. On the other hand, the other 43% of the responses may indicate that there is still faith in the ability of Facebook to stay relevant for a while longer.

This study was conducted among 1,000 Americans that were ages 18 and over, with a margin of error of 3.9%.

Respondents on the Facebook IPO

The survey was conducted partly in response to some of the frenzy surrounding the Facebook IPO. Before it went public, almost 50% of the respondents in the survey said they believed the expected stock market value was overvalued. About 51% believed it would be a good investment, while 31% disagreed and thought if they bought shares, it would not be a good investment that would outperform others.

Respondents Speak Out On Zuck’s Abilities To Lead

So what about the creator being a 28-year-old? Can Mark Zuckerberg run a large publicly traded company? 18% said they were “extremely confident” about that. Almost 40% said they were somewhat confident, and 20% said they weren’t confident at all. 21% of respondents cited age as helping his ability to run the company whereas 11% thought that it hurt his ability.

So what do you think? Is Facebook is just another passing fad? Leave your opinion below or on Facebook.com/iquariusmedia.

 

 

 

Google Penguin: Checklist for Businesses

Google PenguinSocial Media Soothes Where Google Hits You Hardest

For small- to medium-sized businesses who find their rankings adrift with every new wave of Google algorithm updates, finding a way to generate traffic without having to rely on Google might seem like a dream come true.

As with the latest Google Penguin algorithm update, designed to weed out Internet pollution and spam, Google is getting more specific about how websites are judged on quality. They want quality and relevancy at the top.

Well, as businesspeople and marketers with real content to promote, we can’t complain about that, can we?

The Consumer Shift Away from Google

If we think of Google as a single marketing channel, albeit a big one, we are headed in the right direction — because there are other sources of traffic and link juice, and they are getting more and more powerful by the day. Why not go straight to the source? After all, consumer behavior has shifted towards reliance on social media, as opposed to Google. And Google may help them find specific products like no other source but, through social media, they are getting brand information, recommendations from friends, and reasons to buy.

The bottom line is that people – and by people, we mean 60 percent of the entire U.S. population – use the social networks. So dip in.

Google Penguin: Checklist for Businesses

1. Get people, as opposed to Google, to share your content.

Do you have gorgeous photo galleries, videos, infographics, and other visual content? Put them on Facebook ,Twitter, and Pinterest. Be funny. Be inspiring. Most importantly, be social and shareable.

2. BLOG

We can’t stress this one enough. Good, fresh content is something that both people and search engines look for. When you blog regularly, it helps build your brand and gives your readers a reason to come back, but it also forces search engine crawlers to continually index and rank your site.  And Google Penguin gives particular weight to fresh, original blog content.

Push out blog posts regularly. Hire an Internet marketing company with great writers to help. Get guest blogs, and guest blog on others’ sites to establish yourself and your blog. Blogging is a big part of how Internet marketing is done these days, and it is simply too big a deal to ignore.

3. Go visual with Pinterest and YouTube.

People latch on to visual content. Visuals, particularly video, can pack a whole lot of information into a short time frame. And visual content is infinitely shareable, made even more powerful by both Pinterest and YouTube – two sites that are GREAT sources of traffic.

4. Stay on top of Google+.

In an effort to push Google+ further into the social realm, Google Penguin is giving its content and users unnatural importance in search engine results pages. Take advantage.

5. Optimize your Facebook and other social network profiles.

  • Buy social ads
  • Interact with relevant businesses
  • Make sure people see your URLs
  • Fill out all your profile info
  • Pull in your blog stream
  • Link to your profile on important keywords on your site
  • Do newsworthy things and publish them

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What To Do

Google Penguin cares about relevancy, quality, diversity, and freshness — because these are the things that will ultimately make for a better Google search experience. What may seem like an initial hit to some of your Internet marketing efforts may be the best thing that ever happened — because it can push down those that are gaming the system, and help you and your brand rise to the top for being the cream of the crop. Just don’t slack on Google Penguin and social media best practices, some of which we have outlined for you above.

If you haven’t started in social media, start yesterday. If you’re there, do more. Get help — dedicate a team to it. This is a full-time job. Hire a full-service Internet marketing team. Iquarius Media’s number is 407-362-6503. We can:

  • Stay on top of your social media profiles
  • Start your blog and do exhaustive research, then have dedicated writers create your blog content
  • Produce videos and motion graphics
  • Custom-fit these and other Internet marketing services to you and your company

If you have questions, ask them. Ask us. You can do that here, on Facebook, on Twitter, or on Google+, to name a few.

407-378-7817