Some observers have already labeled the application as the next generation of viral marketing. 

"Like viral videos that are spread by email and social networks, the app and system can be used to promote your business by word of mouth via customers who are already at your business," Cruxbridge Media wrote in a post on it’s blog. 

The best part of the application is that check-ins can be seen by a wide circle of viewers. A user’s local followers will see them, but they also are published to the Foursquare community and can be sent to Facebook and Twitter if the user chooses to do so. While it has great reach, that local component is just as important, because it empowers a business to create local word-of-mouth buzz with mobile content marketing offers that can be realized by folks in a targeted market area. It’s one of the benefits of geo-based social marketing.

Some of ways Foursquare can help your company with its online marketing efforts include: 

Drawing people in

Foursquare is a great way to target and attract first-time customers to your business. By offering a deal to users on their first check in at a location, you are encouraging them to stop in and tell their friends they are at your business. A popular area restaurant, Fratellos, offers a free signature cupcake to everyone who checks in for their first time. When my friends and I were searching for places to eat a few weeks ago, we were definitely drawn to the establishment because of the deal (and the great food, of course!).

Encouraging repeat visits

Perhaps one of the most beneficial aspects of Foursquare is its ability to encourage repeat visits. Since the application is essentially a game, businesses can tailor their specials so that customers keep returning. One way to do this is by offering a deal on every third or fourth check in. Many local bars or night clubs offer a free drink on every third check in, encouraging users to remember to check in and to build up their check ins to receive the deal.

Growing the numbers

Another way to offer a special is to say that the special can be unlocked when the user checks in with four or five of his or her friends. Chili’s Grill and Bar Restaurant in Appleton takes advantage of this feature, as they offer a free appetizer to anyone who checks in with three or more of their friends. It’s a simple way to increase the ticket at each table and is fairly inexpensive for restaurants.

Crowning the "mayor."

Whoever checks into a venue the most times (has the most points at that venue) is awarded the title of mayor for that establishment. Usually, successful businesses on Foursquare offer the Mayor a lofty perk for as long as he or she holds that title. For example, some restaurants offer the mayor half off of his or her meal purchases, a local wine bar offers the mayor a free bottle of wine and a nearby bar provides the mayor one free drink every time he or she checks in as the mayor. The online battle for this status can be very competitive amongst users, which can increase the visibility of your business and increase sales.

For more help getting started with Foursquare, check out our free Foursquare tip sheet for beginners.

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Here's a look at The Top 3 Reasons LinkedIn Was Made for B2B Marketers:

1. LinkedIn Users Are Predominantly Business Professionals

• LinkedIn offers the highest concentration of educated professionals of any social media network and has now exceeded 150 million members in over 200 countries and territories (as of Feb 2012).

• The industries with the highest concentration worldwide on LinkedIn are High Tech (14.3%), Finance (12.4%) and Manufacturing (10.1%)

• More than 2 million companies have created their own company page (as of Feb 2012)

• Users on the network are there to connect with other professionals and are already in a business mindset, compared to Facebook or Twitter which is primarily utilized for personal use

• A survey conducted in summer 2011 found 58% of B2B marketers were using utilizing LinkedIn for their social media marketing, compared to 50% for Facebook and 43% for Twitter (Leadforce1). This is proof that B2B marketers have found a use for this growing professional network and are seeing results

2. LinkedIn Company Pages Keep Your Customers & Prospects Informed

LinkedIn continues to make advancements to their company page offering, and probably the most notable advancement was the company status update feature that was introduced in October 2011. This allows companies to post ongoing blog article links, related company news and the latest product/service advancements which then appears directly in the news feed for those who follow your company. This keeps your customers and prospects informed each time they login and see your updates, and may make the difference with touching them at just the right time as they're looking to solve a problem.

3. LinkedIn Groups Help Attract Leads

LinkedIn is currently the host of more than 1.1 million user groups, which are very specific to users' interests, industry and needs. A single member can join up to 50 unique LinkedIn groups which is a great way to network with fellow professionals in your industry, but more importantly, groups offer a great way to connect with your ideal prospects. By utilizing these groups to share useful content such as your blog articles, white papers, etc., as well as starting engaging discussions, you'll gain credibility among prospective customers and some may even begin turning into leads.

These are only a handful of the reasons and features that make LinkedIn the ideal social media marketing tool for B2B marketers. If you're convinced you need to get more proactive with your current LinkedIn activity and need some more details on how to get started, check out these other articles:

LinkedIn 101: A Critical Part of Your Inbound Marketing Strategy

A Smart LinkedIn Strategy Can Help Generate Leads

Top 3 Ways To Optimize Your LinkedIn Company Page

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One of the biggest challenges in social media marketing is giving up complete control of your message. When you create a Facebook page or Twitter account, you expose your company to the opinions of the general public. Pretty much anything goes. But the truth is, even if your company chooses not to participate in social media, you’re still at risk of being talked about in an unflattering light on the Internet. By participating and creating a social presence, you can more effectively monitor and react to any negative comments being written about you.

The worst way to respond to negative comments is to ignore them and hope no one notices. An unanswered negative comment makes you look irresponsible and leads other followers to believe that the comment is true, even if it isn’t. It’s best to analyze the comment and determine your response from there. Of course you can never be prepared for  everything people say, but here are a few tips for reacting in a professional and responsible way to negative comments online.

1. Appologize

After all, the customer is always right. Although this can be tough to do (especially if the comment is particularly surly in demeanor), by doing so you show that you are a responsible and respectful adult. If the comment in question truly brings up a valid fault of your company, it’s best to own up to it and respond with a genuine apology. Offer your suggestion to amend the situation that warranted the comment in the first place.

2. Make it Right

Sometimes, a simple “I’m sorry” is not quite enough in the wronged customer’s eyes. They want restitution for the trouble your error has caused them. Try to come up with a gift that matches the severity of the blunder and offer it up to the offended customer. I would suggest extending this proverbial olive branch in private. If word gets out that you bend over backwards for customers who complain, this will just spur a cycle of social media drama. People could start taking advantage of your generosity, and make up ficticious complaints about you, just to score freebies.

3. Set the Record Straight

You may come to find that some negative comments are just downright false. This could be the result of a misinformed fan or someone trying to spread harmful lies about your company. My advice: Assume ignorance. When you assume the commenter simply didn’t know any better, you are more likely to respond in a polite, informative manner. Plus, if this is something that other people are confused about as well, it gives you a chance to clear things up in front of your social media audience.

4. Embrace It

If you determine that the comment was intended to stir up controversy, use it as an opportunity to start a discussion. Chance are, your loyal supporters will see the conversation unfold and jump in on your side. Comments made by your supportive fans serve as informal reviews of your company as they deffend the quality of your product or service.

5. Agree to Disagree

If you’re known for taking a stance on a certain topic, you’re bound to draw comments from people who disagree with you. It’s not your place to try and convince everyone on the Internet to see things your way. Address comments that challenge your point of view with an open mind. Try to see where the challenger is coming from, but in the end, you may just have to agree to disagree on the issue.

6. Watch out for Trolls!

Some negative comments may be completely unwarrented and irrelevant to your company. These comments fall into the “spam” category. People who make negative comments on social networks just for the sake of gaining exposure or drawing negative attention to a company are called trollers. There really isn’t any good that can come of these comments. If the comment is posted on your Facebook wall, as administrator of the page you have the power to delete the post.

In my experience, negative comments are few and far between. When you encounter a negative comment, take a few moments to think about your response before you take action. Figure out a way to turn a negative comment into a positive situation for your company.

Why? Here are the top five reasons:

1. Generates leads 24/7 – No matter how dedicated your potential new rep is, he or she can’t generate leads around-the-clock like Inbound Marketing. With Inbound Marketing, your content and offers attract leads on their schedule, without restrictions. After hours, when not dedicated to handling day-to-day activities, is often when your prospects have time to look for potential solutions to their challenges.

2. Five “experts” for the price of one – When hiring an Inbound Marketing agency, your organization has access to a strategist, a social media expert, an experienced web designer, a content developer and an analyst for about the same cost as adding one sales rep.

3. Qualified leads, every time – Because prospects identify themselves and willingly share  contact information in exchange for your content, every lead is prequalified before ever making a live connection. Potential buyers come to you rather than having to search them out. Download our Online Marketing Opportunity Report to learn where conversion is happening in your industry, what industries are using social media and which are not, how to formulate a marketing strategy for each channel, and which resources will help you become an expert in the various social media channels.

4. No leads left behind – Even with the best intentions, personal follow-up sometimes falls short. Fortunately, HubSpot’s Inbound Marketing Lead Nurturing tool automates follow-up communications based on your prescribed timing and messages. Leads never fall through the cracks!

5. Reduced cost per lead - In 2011, the average cost per lead for outbound-dominated businesses was $373, while inbound businesses reported their leads cost on average $143. Inbound marketing-dominated organizations experience a 62% lower cost per lead than outbound marketing dominated organizations.

We're certainly not advising against adding sales people to your organization – quite the opposite! By letting your Inbound Marketing generate qualified leads, you’ll be letting your sales people do what they do best – build personal relationships and close the deal!

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Read more about the upcoming Speakership event below.

Speakership: Grow Your Career or Business Through Speaking and Thought Leadership

One of the most incredible things that any professional can do to boost their career, credibility and professional potential is to take to the stage as a public speaker. While not everyone desires a career as a professional speaker, nearly every professional can gain from acquiring the skills necessary to command a room from the podium.

Make no mistake; this is not a presentation on how to be a great speaker, or even a competent speaker. Rather, Speakership is a presentation on how to be seen as the expert, how to earn your place at the front of the room and how to develop your career, business or cause with purpose through the power of speaking.

What will you learn?

• The art of speakership – How to leverage public speaking to position yourself as an expert or trusted resource in front of a room of ideal prospects.
• How does one get started in speaking? What are the steps and what do you need to make it happen?
• Building a platform – what you need to do before you get on stage in order to deliver something worthwhile that resonates with your audience.
• Making the most of every speaking opportunity.
• What’s next and where to get started!

Event Basics
When: Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2012
11:00 a.m. Registration & Networking
11:30 a.m. Lunch Served
12:00 p.m. Presentation
1:00 p.m. Conclusion

Where: Radisson Hotel & Conference Center
Turtle Room
2040 Airport Dr
Green Bay, WI 54313

Fee: $15 Members of Current
$20 Nonmembers of Current
Register: (920) 593-3408
bjohnson@titletown.org

So tweet any questions you may have before the event with the hashtag #NNSMB or just ask live at the event.

Join us for life, liberty, and the pursuit of social media bacon as we explore the successes and pitfalls of having a combined online personality. Or in the case of our moderator, several personalities that medication hasn’t seemed to help with.

NEW: This event will be video streamed live via UStream by Made Ya Look Studios

More coming soon!

If you take a step back and think about it, acting like a publisher shouldn't be all that complicated. Publishing is, after all, one of the oldest professions, with the Sumerians often credited with creating the first crude books more than 5000 years ago, with pages fashioned from clay. But enough with the history lesson, right?

So how does a publisher think? And how does that thinking apply to B2B marketers and the world you're competing in? Joe Pulizzi, author of Get Content, Get Customers, and the founder of the Content Marketing Institute is the guy most often credited with linking content marketing and traditional publishing philosophies. According to Pulizzi, these are the important dimensions successful publishers think about and act on, and have to be part of content marketing:

1. Goal driven. If publishing is your core business, your first goal is profitability. But if you're publishing as a marketer, your goal should be delivering a tangible benefit to the sales process, such as attracting more well-qualified leads. Well-qualified leads should turn into customers, and revenue, and profits. Start with what you want to accomplish and let that drive planning.
2. Editorial strategy. Know who your target is in very discrete, descriptive terms, and then learn with some certainty what their specific needs are that your business can satisfy better than anyone. Talk to customers who know you well about why they chose you and have remained loyal. If you can, find a few prospects who are currently in the evaluation mode to find out what's critical to them. And because your editorial strategy will be a dynamic process that continues to evolve, institutionalize the learning/listening mode so you have a steady stream of editorial energy focused on customer needs and pain.
3. Production. Creating relevant, valuable content on a regular schedule is challenging work for professional publishers. The demands regular content creation places on the rest of us is why so many B2B marketers fall short as publishers. The New York Times, Sports Illustrated, and CNN all have dealines they can't miss or push back. Any marketer/publisher needs to develop the same processes and philosophies around deadlines, quantity and quality, or their efforts, and goals, will miss the target.
4. Circulation. This is all about driving readership/viewership/engagement. Getting your target's eyes, ears, and minds in touch with your content. You might also call it promotion. It all the things you do to acquire and keep your target connected to your content. It starts with knowing how they think and behave, so you're attracting them to your stuff with offers and language that are relevant and meaningful to them, and giving them plenty of ways to consume your content with ease and simplicity. A good circulation manager keeps an eye on the analytics as well, knowing when its time to nurture existing subscribers or aggressively go after new.
5. Distribution. here's where you need to think about channels. How many different ways can you deliver your content to places your target can easily find it. Today syndication takes an almost infinite array of forms; the right syndication choices can grow reach exponentially with little cost. And if you use social media cleverly, your followers can ecome part of your distribution plan.

Thinking like a publisher isn't complicated, but it is a lot of work. For most organizations it means bringing in or growing some skills they didn't have before. But it also should represent a much tighter and more measurable connection between resources deployed and business generated. I can see the headline now:

             Content Strategists Drive Booming ROI!!! 

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Of all the social networks you could use for marketing, LinkedIn is the most inherently business-oriented. What I mean by that is, it’s features are clearly meant for business development, it tends to attract the ideal target audience for many businesses, and its sole purpose revolves around networking for business professionals. If you haven’t found a place in your social media marketing strategy for LinkedIn yet, the time has come to bite the bullet and get on board. Here are 6 ways to leverage LinkedIn to generate leads.

1. Re-Purpose Content

LinkedIn is the perfect stage from which to project your expertise and claim your status as a thought leader in your industry. You can do this by sharing valuable content with your LinkedIn connections. If the thought of coming up with even more content makes you light-headed, take a few deep breaths and relax, because there’s no rule that says you have to come up with original content to share on all of your social networks. For example, you can share little tidbits from your latest blog post, with a link to the article for further reading. The act of content sharing is a subtle, yet effective way to reach out to prospects.

LinkedIn Apps

LinkedIn also offers a number of different applications that allow you to embelish your profile. For example, there’s a WordPress app that allows you to sync your blog with your LinkedIn profile, so that any time you publish a new post, the entire blog post gets posted to your LinkedIn profile too. There is a similar Twitter app, which automatically shares your Tweets with your LinkedIn connections. Have a killer presentation that deserves to be shared with the world? There’s also an app that allows you to upload and share your Google Presentations on LinkedIn.

2. Solidify Connections

Try not to get into the habit of “collecting connections.” Having hundreds of LinkedIn connections that you never correspond with is not nearly as beneficial as having a smaller group of connections that you engage with on a regular basis. After you make a new connection, take the next step to further get to know that person. Taking an interest in people is a great way to show that you care, thereby earning the person’s trust and respect. You will also learn more about that persons needs and find out if there’s a qualified lead in that particular person.

Don’t worry if you don’t get 100% reciprication in your efforts to reach out to people. Not everyone will share your enthusiasm for making solid connections, but those that do will appreciate it and respond whole-heartedly.

3. Get Involved in Discussions

Become a contributing member of the LinkedIn community by joining in the discussions happening every day. Seek out discussions by joining groups relevant to your business. Within these groups lies active, lively discussions just begging for your input. As you contribute more and more helpful comments, people will start to realize that you really know your stuff and you will gain exposure within the LinkedIn community. That exposure and expertise will eventually translate into inquiries, and finally, sales leads.

4. Use Group Stats to Find Your Target Market

Did you know that LinkedIn generates a nice little statistical run-down of the members of each group? The stats include valuable demographic data so that you can more easily find groups that are made up of people in your target market. Once you find a few groups that fit into your target, focus your energy on those particular groups for better chances of bringing in leads.

5. LinkedIn Answers

Demonstrate your expertise and gain exposure by answering questions on LinkedIn. There is an advanced search feature that allows you to seek out questions on a specific topic. Answering questions really helps you gain exposure on LinkedIn. Your answer appears under the question that was asked, on your profile, and in the news feed of all of your connections. Plus, any time the questioner picks your answer as the best answer, you gain expertise points.

6. LinkedIn Ads

If you want to go with a more direct approach to generate leads, there’s always LinkedIn ads. The advertisement plan on LinkedIn is quite user-friendly and is accomodating for any budget size. You have the power to pick the placement of your ads so you can seek out your target based on job title, geographic location, or even group (here’s where those group statistics come in handy). Your advertisement will link back to your website, so you’ll want to make sure to have a specific landing page set up for those who click on the ad.

Generating leads on LinkedIn doesn’t happen by bombarding your connections with sales pitches or by having the most connections. It happens by gaining exposure and offering helpful advice to the people who are proned to buy from your company.

If there is a constant in social media marketing these days, it is that as soon as you learn one platform, there will be a new one emerging that will demand your attention. Keeping up with the latest and greatest applications - because they all bill themselves as the next killer app - is enough to wear a person out, never mind actually deploying the platform as a marketing and public relations tool. 

It's an issue that's dominated conversations here at Weidert as we have watching the growing interest in Pinterest, which has been the topic of the most popular blog posts and tip sheets we have ever compiled. If need to catch up, here's a recap:

• 6 Ways To Use Pinterest To Promote Your Business
• Why Pinterest is the New Google for Visual Content Search
• Pinterest offers small businesses well of untapped inbound marketing potential

Now, just a day after our latest post on Pinterest, the following e-mail subject line caught my attention: 15 Social Media Platforms to Invest in This Year. 

The first reaction was frustration - we are just getting the hang of Pinterest, and now there are 15 new things to figure out! My second thought was to put on the brakes and pause for a minute, thinking that just because it's the latest and greatest does not mean it will make sense for our business.

That second thought is the one I want to emphasize. We know there will always be something new. In some ways, we love that. But new does not always mean effective. Not every platform is going to be effective for every business. You could wind up expending a lot of time, energy and money trying to master outlets that won't deliver qualified leads. 

No one wants to try and explain that. To avoid it, keep some simple rules and practices in mind. 

Have well-defined social media plans

You can avoid wasting time and effort on channels that won't help you if you develop a social media plan and stick with it. Important elements include your message, your content and your targets. Yes, the plan will need to be flexible and there may be a need to adopt a new platform. But if you have those fundamentals in place, you will be in a better position to evaluate whether those new tools will work for your business.

Go with what you know works

If you have been engaged in social media for a while, you will have some pretty good ideas what works for you and what does not. For example, we know here at Weidert that LinkedIn is a priority social media channel for us, generating 900 percent more leads than the next social media channel. Whatever we do with social media, and even if we add something new, we would be hard pressed to take away resources from a channel with that kind of success.

Go where your customers are

If you really know your targets, then you know the social media channels they are most likely to use. Use that information. If it's unlikely that your targets use Facebook for business, then it probably doesn't make much sense for you to spend a lot of time and energy on your presence there. Conversely, if your targets are likely to be on Twitter, spending time each day making sure you have compelling content links is a wise investment. Each new platform should be evaluated the same way. 

Of course, you should never rule out that a new social media channel will work for you. The channels are changing all of the time, and new players are always coming into the market. One may work for you particularly well. You will be a lot smarter at finding it - and avoiding wasting time with others - if you follow these simple rules. 

By staying true to your social media plans, you will spend less time chasing the latest and greatest and more time attracting qualified visitors and leads that you can convert to customers. 

Learn more about using social media to market your business: 

Follow @Sean_P_Johnson 

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Looking for a way to simplify your social media marketing process? Social media dashboards are a great way to more efficiently manage multiple social networks in one place. I’ve touched on social media dashboards in the past; however, until now, I’ve never really gone into much detail about what’s out there, how they work, and the unique features they have to offer. Here is a list of some of the veteran applications that have been around almost as long as Twitter itself, as well as a few fresh dashboards on the scene.

TweetDeck

TweetDeck is an application strictly meant for monitoring your Twitter accounts. It was recently purchased by Twitter, so you know this one’s not going anywhere anytime soon. TweetDeck has a very user-friendly interface and allows users to set up multiple feeds. For example, you can set up separate columns for your home feed, @mentions, retweets, and direct message all for one Twitter account. Plus, if you manage multiple Twitter accounts, you can recreate this setup for each account. You can also schedule your Tweets if you’re going to be out of the social scene for a while and need to automate your Tweets. My favorite TweetDeck feature: The audible “chirp” when someone mentions you in a Tweet.

HootSuite

HootSuite incorporates Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter into one dashboard. Most people would agree it’s nice to be able to view all of your social activity from one application. You have the ability to monitor all of your feeds, send Tweets, and update your Facebook status, right from the dashboard. Like TweetDeck, HootSuite also has scheduling abilities if you ever want to automate your social media posts.

One minor limitation of the free version of HootSuite that I have come across is that only one person can use HootSuite per Twitter account. So for example, if your company has several people using the same Twitter handle, only one of those people can use HootSuite for that Twitter account. If you’re willing to pay for the professional version of HootSuite, this problem is easily solved.

Seesmic

Seesmic is an alternative to HootSuite for compiling all of your social media feeds into one dashboard. Seesmic allows you to monitor Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Foursquare. Similarly to HootSuite, Seesmic allows you to update your Facebook page directly from the dashboard. However, I have read articles claiming that Facebook posts made from a third-party application such as HootSuite or Seesmic are subject to a lower EdgeRank than if you were to update your status directly from Facebook. Since nobody knows the algorithm Facebook uses to determine a post’s EdgeRank, it’s hard to tell if that is in fact true.

CoTweet

The free, or standard version of CoTweet is a Twitter dashboard with a focus on a more team-oriented approach to Twitter. For example, many companies want everyone within the organization to be able to participate in social media, but giving employees individual Twitter handles could be counterproductive in building one large following. CoTweet’s collaboration tools allow multiple users to Tweet under the same Twitter handle in an organized way. CoTweet also has scheduling capabilities and e-mail alerts for @mentions. You can add Facebook accounts to the dashboard if you’re willing to upgrade to the enterprise version of CoTweet.

MediaFunnel

MediaFunnel is another great social media dashboard with an emphasis on collaboration. If you’re looking to outsource your social media marketing plan, you may be a bit apprehensive about handing your company’s message over to someone who is essentially still a stranger. MediaFunnel has different user capabilities, which are broken up into administrator, publisher, contributor, and guest. So if you want to keep the social media ball in your court, assign the role of Admin to yourself, and set up your dashboard so that your manager can submit Tweets and Facebook posts, but they have to be authorized by you before they go live. MediaFunnel also has a monitoring feature so you can keep track of what’s being said about your company online using specific keywords.

Of course this list could go on for days, but I chose the social media dashboards that are the most reputable and offer the most useful and diverse functionalities. Everyone will have their own dashboard preference based on interface preferences and what they want to accomplish with their social media marketing plan. Feel free to try out a couple of these dashboards before you settle on one. You want to make sure that the dashboard meets all of your needs and that you feel comfortable with the one you choose.