Why, When, and How Should You Use Hash Tags?

You’ve seen these: #.

It used to be something just on your phone to press at the end of a message prompt. Now, it is something that is changing how people communicate and search online.

If you plan on marketing online, you need to know about hash tags and why, when, and how they should be used.

Why

First, there is the why of hash tags. They are used to categorize posts on social media sites plus they help to increase your visibility on those sites and in searches. When posts are grouped into categories, they are easier to find later on when someone is searching on microblogging sites like Twitter. Now, these hash tags are also used on other social media platforms, including Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook, Google+ and Flickr.

When

Hash tags are used to draw attention to a certain subject or topic that has been identified as interest to the target audience and that you can offer some relevant information about. These are often keyword related and can provide a way to better target people on these social media sites.

It is a good idea to use hash tags for specific branding strategies or for a campaign that ties all your social media and marketing efforts together for consistent messaging and brand building. They also work great for contests and other special events.

How

Use hash tags when they add real value. Some people just use them to use them and this accomplishes nothing in terms of your marketing efforts.  Overuse hash tags and you can actually elicit the same response that spam gets. You will be ignored. That’s why it is important to do research before just adding the symbol to any word or phrase just to say you are using hash tags.

Keep the hash tag to only a couple of keywords to help categorize it accurately. There are some people that make long hash tags. These are not effective and difficult to categorize so they also end up being ignored.

Measurement

The results from hash tags can be measured because there are hash tag analytic tools that are now available to help gauge if they are working or not. This is important to the online marketing program because you need to ensure that all efforts provide a return on investment.

Are you ready to add this tactic to your marketing program? Find out how Flyline Search Marketing can help!

What Makes Social Media Platforms Such Effective Viral Marketing Tools?

You may hear a lot about Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter and Pinterest – in fact, you may even use them in your personal life – but these are tools that you need to consider using for your small business. Here’s why.

These social media sites are designed solely for the purpose of expansion and continually adding to your social circle to find more people who share your interests and that can exchange information with you and vice versa. With this rapid expansion, your messages about your brand will travel faster than any other type of communication platform.

You want your followers to tell their friends, subscribers, followers and connections about your business, but they cannot do that if you do not also have a presence on these social media platforms. And, if you are on these sites, you must know what interests them enough to decide that they must share it and pass it on for that viral effect.

Another advantage to social media sites like Multiply, MySpace, Yfrog, Flickr and Pinterest is that they are specifically designed for disseminating information to the largest groups of people. These particular social media tools are also favored by search engines, which often feature information from these sites in their search engine results.

While you don’t have to be on every social media platform that is out there, it is important to have a comprehensive strategy as part of your marketing efforts. 

The problem is that you may not know which ones work best for your type of business or you simply do not have the time to update the content as regularly as it needs to be in order to garner attention and have your followers, subscribers, and fans share that information.

That’s why you need a social media marketing partner like Flyline Search Marketing who has the expertise to know what works as well as the team of professionals who can create, post, manage, monitor and track the content and responses for you. 

Our social media services have proven to be affordable and effective, generating results that include more in-store and web traffic, increased sales, and enhanced brand recognition.

If you are ready to start building the buzz about your business, Flyline can help. We have worked with all types of businesses, including florists, gyms and fitness centers, and auto dealerships, with significant quantitative improvements in their business and brand. Contact us now to learn more!

Turnkey Twitter Services Management Solution for Florists

While many florists used to think a social media platform like Twitter was just for big businesses or celebrities, more florists are now realizing the power that it can hold in reaching and engaging their target audience in a new way.

The Challenges of Tweeting

Despite recognizing the value, many florists are not entirely sure how to use Twitter, what to talk about, and how to get the maximum benefit from it. There is also the concern over time limitations when trying to focus on day-to-day business activities.

Even though the posts are 140 characters or less, florists may not be sure what to do let alone how to connect this platform to any other Internet Marketing strategies that could help them or that they are already using.

Forming a Twitter Partnership

As a florist, this is when you could use the expertise and resources of an Internet Marketing firm like Flyline Search Marketing who also understands the florist business, industry, and target audience, especially after continuing to work with six well-known florists around the country.  

Twitter Case Study: Veldkamp’s Flowers

To help you understand how Flyline Search Marketing can assist you with growing your traffic, revenue, and brand recognition, let’s look at one of Flyline’s current clients, Veldkamp’s Flowers, a family owned and operated flower shop located in Denver, Colorado.

Flyline provides them with a turnkey Twitter services management solution. Check out their Twitter site at https://twitter.com/veldkamps to see what they tweet and re-tweet about. The Denver florist has already realized the value of using Twitter as a solution for connecting with current and prospective customers in a new way that their traditional marketing efforts could not accomplish.

As part of their ongoing Internet Marketing contract, Flyline provides the Denver florist with a number of Twitter services. This includes putting together daily tweets that are themed appropriately to the season or holiday time-frame as well as those that may highlight current promotions, new products, or tips on flower and plant care.

Each tweet is professionally written to highlight key concepts and keywords. These tweets are designed to generate buzz around the Denver florist as well as enhance its brand attributes in the minds of its target audience. The tweets also focus on building natural, in-bound links deep into the client’s website.

Are you ready to see how Twitter can help your flower shop build business? Contact us now to learn more!

Social Media Marketing Builds Brand Awareness and More!

Social media marketing is more than just having an account on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn or Pinterest. 

It is a way to connect with more customers and potential customers where they like to engage with others, get information, and consult with their friends about where to shop. 

Some customers are even using social media platforms to do some of their shopping.

Affordable, Results-Driven Marketing Programs

Marketing your business through social media platforms does not cost a lot of money but it does produce incredible results when you employ a strategy of consistent content and regular engagement. 

This targeted marketing program allows you to reach your prospective audience without spending considerable money like you would if you chose to implement traditional marketing initiatives.

Branding and Buzz

Social media is where it’s at. These platforms are where people are talking and the buzz is being created about products and services. Viral posts and sharing of information lead to greater brand awareness. 

The real marketing value of social media comes from not only directing messages to your followers, but also having your brand and content touch their current and future friends and connections.

Our Social Media Marketing Programs

Our Social Media program managers design customized marketing programs that fit each client we serve. This involves evaluating your business, the products you sell, the services you offer and your current marketing strategies. 

Then, we design a social media marketing program that can include a wide range of social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Yfrog, Flickr, Multiply, MySpace, YouTube, LinkedIn and more.

With each social media platform you participate in, you must have regular and relevant content added, so we put this together for you as well as monitor any feedback or comments from your followers. 

The more sites you participate in through our social media program, the more likely you are to be favored by the search engines that regularly index information and move you up to the search query results pages.

If you think this is something that your business can benefit from, then it’s time to contact Flyline Search Marketing and learn more about the type of social media marketing programs we offer our clients and better understand how we can help you achieve your strategic goals and objectives. 

Flyline Provides a Turn-Key Twitter Services Management Solution for Florists

Twitter is used more and more by small and medium-sized businesses to interact with their customers and gain local and national recognition for their products and services. One industry that is starting to understand the real benefits of using social media tools like Twitter are florists.

Case Study of Allen’s Flowers and Plants of San Diego

Case in point is Allen’s Flowers and Plants of San Diego, a family-owned and family-operated florist with three locations throughout San Diego County. 

The florist has been a client of Flyline Search Marketing since April 2012 and recently renewed its contract for comprehensive Internet Marketing services for another year.

Along with the other social media, public relations, and marketing and advertising tools that the florist Internet Marketing program for Allen’s Flowers and Plants includes, Twitter has been a way for them to engage with their audience and quickly share updates to their websites, new press releases and blog posts, and daily deals and specials as well as answer questions from customers or followers.

The results have been spectacular for the San Diego florist. They have experienced growth in their online and in-store traffic, sales, and brand recognition. Many customers have also retweeted their tweets to incrementally increase their Twitter followers.

Our Turn-Key Twitter Service for Florists

The Flyline staff puts together daily tweets, which are themed appropriately to the seasonal or holiday time frame. Each tweet is professionally written and designed to generate a buzz around the business as well as focused on building natural in-bound links deep into the client’s website.

The Twitter account is also integrated onto the client’s website so that it visitors to the website can easily begin following the client on Twitter. 

This plug-in also makes it easier for any changes or updates to the website or blog to post on Twitter, which also then posts to Facebook to efficiently cover all Internet Marketing channels on the client’s behalf.

Flyline can do the same for your florist business! Imagine focusing on your core business while a professional, seasoned team of Internet Marketing experts are working tirelessly on your behalf to comprehensively cover all platforms and channels with news about your flower shop and developing a brand presence that positions you as the local flower and gift expert in your area.

Contact us now and you can learn more about our Twitter Services Management solution as well as our carefully crafted Florist Internet Marketing Program. 

Flyline Provides Turn-Key Twitter Services Management Solution for Florists

Flyline current provides a turn-key Twitter services management solution for its florist clients, including Carithers Flowers (http://www.twitter.com/CarithersFlwrs). It is a solution that Carithers and other florists have been leveraging to interact with their target audience, share news, promote the business and enhance their brand reputation.

This blog post provides some background on the program and the value of this tool as part of an overall social media marketing and Internet Marketing program that Flyline has designed exclusively for florists.

The Value of Social Media Marketing

Social Media Marketing is rapidly gaining traction in the florist community as a tool to work with local and national customers and potential customers. It helps to build buzz and generate interest in a local business whose target audience may no longer be turning to traditional media channels to hear about what their neighborhood florist is advertising.

The first step Flyline takes is to evaluate a potential client’s business to determine the best social media marketing programs to include in the Internet Marketing program that will feed back into the website as well as push people into the storefronts.

The Twitter Services Management Solution

Flyline staff puts together daily tweets that are themed appropriately to the season or holiday time frame. Each tweet is professionally written and designed to generate a buzz around the business.

It is also a way to build natural, in-bound links deep into the client’s website to generate organic results from the social media program. 

The tweets are also designed to engage with the audience and encourage them to re-tweet the information to create a viral effect for further return on investment.

The additional benefit from the Twitter program is that it can instantly update the other social media sites, including Facebook, which provides a way to spread the messages to more of the target audience without having to spend as much time on marketing efforts.

Flyline also adds a Twitter widget to your website to make it easy for customers or website visitors to follow you on Twitter with just a few clicks.

If you are interested in increasing your brand awareness and getting to know more about your customer, then you should consider an Internet Marketing program that includes a Twitter management services program. Contact us today to learn more!