5 Signs You’re Addicted To Social Media
Here at Melbourne Social Co we are big lovers of social media, however we understand that sometimes it can be a little hard to switch off.
If you are like us and are constantly glued to your phone, you might have a social media addiction! Read on below for 5 telltale signs.
- It’s the first thing you look at in the morning and the last thing you look at before you go to sleep:
One of the biggest signs you may be a little too dependent on social media is if you reach for your Facebook, Instagram or Twitter accounts before you even hop out of bed in the morning. This is equally as true if you scroll through your feeds before drifting off to sleep every night instead of reading a book or spending time with your partner and family.
- You check it constantly:
According to a study from the PRIA, 13 million Australians are spending 18 hours a day on social media and are logging on to check every five minutes! If you are nodding in agreement that this sounds a little like you (or are questioning how people even last five minutes) then maybe you need to scale it back a bit. Our tip? Allocate a few blocks throughout the day not to check your phone, including at meal times or when talking with friends and family.
- You post and share EVERYTHING:
We all have those friends and family members who take to Facebook, Twitter or Snapchat to post hourly updates on their lives. If this sounds like something you do – why not use that time updating your status to catch up with friends or family face-to-face to share your good news.
- It’s your first choice of recreation:
Have a spare few minutes in your day? Do you check social media? This is a big sign you love it a bit too much… Instead take use your precious spare time to read a book, go for a run or spend time with loved ones.
- You have trouble switching off:
Can you last a whole day or even a few hours without logging onto your favourite networks? If you can’t leave your phone in the other room for fear of missing a notification or new update than you are probably addicted.
- Switch off and let us take care of things for you
Okay by now you may have realised your way spending too much of your day on social media. Here at Melbourne Social Co, we understand the 'round-the-clock' pressures of managing a digital marketing campaign for your business, and are here to take some of the load off you! If you're after some advice, strategy or amazing digital marketing content for your business or personal brand, feel free to get in touch today.
Contact us: [email protected]
Social Media Terminology 101
Sometimes the world of digital marketing and social media can seem hard to understand, that’s why we thought we’d share with you some of the most commonly used terms in social media so you can start to get your head around this essential marketing tool.
Common social media marketing terminology:
SEO: Perhaps one of the most important terms for all businesses to know is SEO – which stands for Search Engine Optimisation. Search Engine Optimisation refers to implementing strategies and techniques to improve the quality of unpaid traffic to a website from search engines.
Hashtag: A hashtag is used to categorise content on social media platforms and make it searchable for consumers and audiences. An example could be #fashion.
Engagement Rate: Here at Melbourne Social Co we are big believers in measuring the engagement rate of your social media marketing content. But what does it mean? Engagement rate refers to the amount of times people have clicked, liked and shared your content on any given platform.
Facebook Advertising: Advertising on Facebook has quickly become a huge part of any business marketing strategy. It refers to paying to “boost” posts on Facebook so more people can see the content and engage, or to create banners or posts with varying objectives to target your consumer. Facebook advertising can be tailored to a range of demographic variables from location, age, gender and interests.
Re-tweet: This term comes from Twitter and happens when another account shares the tweet you have posted so that their followers can also see the content regardless if they are following you or not. Re-tweeting is a great way to make your twitter account and content visible.
Snapchat: Loved by millennials, Snapchat is a social media platform where you can send pictures or videos of your day-to-day life with a 10-second time limit to your choice of friends. You can send “stories”, which means all your friends can view the 10-second media for the next day or so, or send images directly to a person for a one-time only viewing.
Instagram: One of the most on-trend social media marketing platforms right now is Instagram, a great way to share images to your followers in a visual, creative and engaging way.
Pinterest: Commonly referred to as the new ‘Google’ of image searching, Pinterest is a way to create visual boards of images on various topics that have link backs to your business or personal website or other sites of interest.
GIF: GIF is an acronym for Graphics Interchange Format, which means small-animated images that consumers love!
Handle: This term refers to the name of someone’s social media account. For example, our Instagram handle is @melbournesocialco.
Need help figuring out other social media lingo or social media in general? We have a range of packages and services available for your business, including content creation and distribution and social media 101 training.
Contact us: e: [email protected]
3 Reasons Social Media is Vital for Small Business
So you have a small business and need to increase your business awareness and get people buying your products or services? Look no further than social media marketing.
Social media is a popular low-cost digital marketing tool, that allows you to not only present your business/product and services to a huge online community but gives you the opportunity to connect with your consumer to develop lasting relationships that will have an undeniable effect on your businesses growth and success.
Read on below for 3 reasons social media is vital for small businesses.
Increase brand awareness
One of the most important benefits of social media for small business, is its ability to increase brand awareness reaching a large number of people at a relatively low-cost compared to traditional advertising methods. A recent study has reported that 78 percent of small businesses attract new customers through social media. But you don’t have to be on all social media channels at once! Here at Melbourne Social Co, we are big believers in choosing platforms that are right for you and your business for the best results.
Legitimises your brand/business
You know your product or service is great, but how else will people know it? Going hand in hand with increasing brand awareness, having social media networks makes your business real.
When people search for a particular product or industry, they typically go to their social media networks to find out more about the business and to get a feel for their brand personality, style and what they offer. Having social media is extremely beneficial for your business’s SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) as well, as it increases your Google ranking so people can find your business on Google faster.
Develop a relationship with your consumer
You want your business to last, and there’s no better way to do that then by developing a long-term lasting relationship with your consumer. Luckily thanks to social media this two-way interaction is easier than ever, as you can like, comment and share content from your followers and encourage them to do the same about your business. This means they are actively involved in your business and are more likely to develop brand loyalty.
Are you a small business owner and are not sure where to get started on social media? Luckily here at Melbourne Social Co we are experts are developing social media content and strategies to build your business from the ground up.
Get in touch today to find out more about our social media management services - [email protected]
Why is Social Media important for small business?
Because your customers are already using it.
Consider these statistics of Australian Social Media users from August 2014:
Social Media Statistics Australia – August 2014 - source socialmedianews.com.au
1. Facebook – 13,400,000 users (steady)
2. YouTube – 13,000,000 UAVs
3. WordPress.com – 6,100,000
4. Tumblr – 4,600,000
5. LinkedIn – 3,900,000
6. Blogspot – 3,050,000
7. Twitter – 2,791,300 Active Australian Users (see calculation)
8. Instagram – 2,060,000 Active Australian Users (see calculation)
9. TripAdvisor – 1,550,000
10. Yelp – 1,300,000
11. Snapchat - 1,070,000 Active Australian Users (see calculation).
12. Tinder – 1,000,000 Australian users
13. Flickr – 740,000
14. Pinterest – 380,000
15. Reddit – 160,000
The chances are that much of your target market is already using social media. If you want to reach clients and prospects, you need to be where they are – by using social media you’ll increase the odds that your marketing message will get through to a significant number of them.
It will help you connect with your customers/clients.
Most marketing channels are one-way in nature – a business sends out its marketing message, and the consumer receives it. With Social Media, you can actually have a conversation with your audience. Social Media helps to create a community of fans and followers that see you as more than just a business entity.
They’ll view you as someone they trust, and people use the services of those they trust.
Not sure where to start in the crazy world of Social Media? Melbourne Social Co offer a range of packages for businesses looking to begin, expand on or capitalise on the ‘noise’ their brand is making in the digital world.
Contact us for more information - [email protected]