Analytics

Analytics of a blog are an important thing to stay up to date on. It is also key that you are able to interpret them to others. This skill can be an advantage to you in the future depending on what field of work you are going into. By looking through my analytics for this blog I have noticed that it has been viewed by not only people here in the United States, but also in Germany, United Kingdom, and Italy. It is most often viewed by using Safari, next Firefox, and then Google Chrome. I can tell by going through these analytics that the amount of page views on each post were higher on more current and talked about subjects. The blog post that brought in the most view's was titled "Future of Social Media Marketing." Throughout the entirety of the semester my blog has gained 207 page views. I personally think that for someone who is new to the world of blogging that that is a pretty decent number. 

This blog has helped me to gain experience in not only my writing, but it has also made me realize how important a presence on the internet and throughout social media is today. I really enjoyed the process of posting on a new topic weekly and being put out of my comfort zone. It not only opened my mind to new things, but it also helped me grow personally. Below are a few screenshots of this blogs analytics. 

Future of Social Media Marketing

Social media is a growing area that does not seem to be dying down in the near future. Its easy accessibility makes it welcoming towards its consumer in multiple ways. New things are usually hard to catch on to, and take awhile to get comfortable with. But, even the older generations of today have caught on and are commonly using social media such as Facebook and Pinterest, along with many others. With the help of technology people have begun to find multiple ways to complete their everyday tasks that they deal with. With new and simple to use applications at our fingertips one can pull up a recipe, check the forecast, and buy movie tickets through apps all in a matter of minutes. Overall the public has turned to social media to help simplify their lives. I don't see something that has helped to take away the stress of life dying out. 

Although many people have made predictions of how social media marketing is going to grow in the future, we won't know for sure until we are faced with it. Technology is growing everyday making leaps towards things that compare to xbox's kinect, but to integrate them with computers. I think that this jump will open a whole new area in the world of technology.

Shared in the website that is linked below is some ideas of how social media marketing will continue to grow. Here is a summarized list of what is to come: it is expected in the future that mobile and entertainment morph, marketing programs with reintegrate, content market will grow, and the power of networks will deliver in the coming years. I personally do not see social media marketing dying down, because of the reasons that are listed above. I think that social media will not only maintain but will grow in popularity within the public.

http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/36464.asp#multiview 

Vital Viral Videos

Viral videos are all over the internet now a days. Every time I log onto Facebook I watch at least four new ones. These videos are usually based around things that are funny, painful, heartwarming, or skillful. There are a wide variety of viral videos; the one's that I seem to view the most are the videos that involve children.  They have such a real and honest humor that often shines without any effort. One of my favorite viral videos is of a little girl named Ella, she is riding in the car with her dad while humorously singing along to an Elvis song. Her adorable facial expressions and hand motions are what kept my attention while watching this video. It is titled Ella Mae sings "An American Trilogy" by Elvis Presley. Check it out for yourself here.

I think that this video went viral because it is not only comical but it is also adorable. This is a video that a variety of people would enjoy watching. Viral videos are all about bringing entertainment to a large audience. You have to grab a lot of peoples attention not just a group, or a select few. Another thing to look at is that this video didn't have much planning, the more nonchalant and casual the video feels the more people will find it to be truly entertaining.

Viral videos are often looking to evoke an emotional response; which is something that people can use to their advantage while filming. Another thing that helps a video get seen by many is to keep it short and simple. The one that I chose is a little longer than some other videos that have went viral, but I think it still keeps you entertained throughout the entirety of it. The last thing that I think is key to keep in mind while trying to get a video to go viral is to make sure that it is searchable. You want something that is not only easy to find, but also to share!

Super Bowl XLIX

In the past years the Super Bowl has gained excitement through using interactive advertisements. Multiple brands have involved their viewers and fans through asking them for their opinion on their favorite commercials via Twitter. One brand who was involved with this trend in particular was the Doritos brand. Their promotion left it to the public to make and submit commercials, and then a select few finalists' videos appeared on television. They then geared towards the public again to vote for their favorite one. The winner's commercial was then broadcasted during the 2014 Super Bowl. The winner that was chosen was titled "Time Machine" which can be watched here.

I think that similar contests and fan interaction will take place during this years Super Bowl. I am assuming that other major brands will jump on the bandwagon of having viewer involvement incorporated throughout their commercials. These other brands saw how well it worked last year and will more than likely use it to their advantage this year.

Pantene #shinestrong Campaign

Women are still to this day often viewed extremely stereotypical throughout the media. Pantene's Shine Strong campaign has made a positive impact on women and how they feel about themselves not only in the work place but also at home. Pantene has come out with two very controversial commercial's in the last year that have caused a lot of talk.

The first commercial that I came across brought up how women say "sorry" all too much and often for things that don't really require an apology; such as questions in their place of work to asking for help at home. I know that I am definitely at fault for overusing the phrase "I'm sorry" I use it all too often throughout the day. This commercial displays women apologizing for speaking up in the and then turns it over to where the same women don't feel the need to say "sorry" for things that men wouldn't even think to say sorry for. So the question is this, why do women feel this need to apologize? Through this campaign Pantene is encouraging women to stop saying sorry, to be confident, and to believe in one's self. They want women to take a stand and to not feel belittled by their peers;especially in the work place. They have begun to use the hashtag #shinestrong to promote confidence among women, and to build a relationship with their consumers. 

Another Pantene commercial that I came across focused specifically on the stereotypes that exist between women and men. When a man is considered a boss a women is often considered bossy. When a man is considered persuasive and dedicated about what they are doing, a women is considered to be pushy and selfish. These labels have all been put down on women for things that a man would be built up for. But women need to understand that labels do not define them, and it is up to them to break that negative view that has been placed upon them. 

This campaign and these two commercials in particular caught my eye because I feel that this is an unresolved issue that has gone on for generations and needs to change. Watching these commercials makes me sad that women still have to deal with these kinds of things. I also love how this campaign incorporates its consumers asking women to define what strong is to them. Each answer is unique and special in its own way, just like women. 

Social Media: Taking Over Lives One Post at a Time

Social Media has become more and more popular over the years, whether that is a good or bad thing is questionable. People will post just about anything anymore! 

It has given a voice to anyone and everyone, whether it be a positive or negative one. We often see that during times of tragedy one's post will often become available to the public through news mediums.  I do not agree entirely with making someone's post news worthy in the way that they have. One in particular that has recently been in the news was the tweet's of the teenage shooter from Washington State High School. Sharing his tweets and pasting them all over news articles just does not feel like the right thing to do to me personally. I do not think that his family would appreciate the world seeing their loved one only through his social media posts.  It only gives a glimpse of a persons life; although he posted his tweets publicly, I still don't think its right to include them in national articles. 

Too many of us are allowing Social Media to take over our lives and the way that we live them. I think we all need to take a step back and just look at what we have around us. It is not all about technology and what' s "new", there is so much more to life and so much more that we can get out of going out and living it instead of hiding behind a screen.

 

Apple Pay: Is It Here To Stay?

Apple Pay gives costumers the chance to now pay for things with the ease of using their Apple devices. It sets up costumers with a mobile wallet that is easy to access, but also keeps their personal information secure.  All users have to do is put their device up to the payment terminal, and their Apple Pay card will pop up, then they are asked to place their thumb on the touch ID button, and the transaction is completed. You can use this way of paying not only with online purchases but with retail as well. This service is compatible with the iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, and the Apple Watch. 

Among the hype of the new release there have been some issues. People immediately started to use Apple Pay when it was released and loved it, seeing that it is convenient and simple to use. Come to find out later on that some of those who took advantage of this new way to pay had been double charged on the items that they had purchased with it. This was obviously a set back, and may cause others to be more cautious about what they purchase with Apple Pay. I personally would be a little nervous about using it for the first time. But with a company like Apple I am sure that they will get things sorted out in no time!

Buzzed About Apps

 The apps "Fade" and "Yik Yak" have recently become extremely popular throughout campus' across the US. It's questionable whether or not this is a good or bad thing. Molly Coyne describes "Fade" as, "... a collection of pictures posted by people on your campus. You can use your identity or make up one and you also get one anonymous post each day. The picture remains on the app for 24 hours and the time goes up and down from there depending on the up or down votes it gets. If it gets a ton of ups then it goes in the “Hall of Fades” which everyone can see from campuses around the country." This app is very similar to "Instagram" the difference between the two is that "Fade" actually allows its users one anonymous post a day. Yes, that can be a fun feature to take advantage of, but are people taking a little too much advantage of that perk? I think so. Now, "Yik Yak" on the other hand is much like "Twitter" set up in the same manor but, keeps all posts anonymous, which is quite scary to me actually. 

 The apps can be used in positive ways and just for fun, but I feel like people are starting to use them for negative things, such as bullying. People post rude things even when they aren't kept anonymous, now that they can hide behind a screen without being given a name I think that this has opened a whole new door. I also don't think that people quite grasp that although these posts are considered to be anonymous to the public there are always ways to find out who has posted what. Users don't seem to understand that these things can be traced. I find it quite funny that the "Fade" apps slogan is "Nothing Lasts Forever," making its users feel safe and more secure to post what they please. In reality it may fade away from a time feed, but it definitely does not just completely fade away into thin air. I do have both of these popular apps, but I am more of a follower when it comes to these, I like to be able to see what others post, but I honestly do not post much at all myself. I more so have them to stay in the loop and up to date on things happening.
 An article I recently found pertaining the app "Snapchat" displays a perfect example of how what we think is private can be made public. Although these should be a fun way to share things with others we the users need to keep in mind that what is posted can also become very hurtful to others. Not only can it be hurtful to just their feelings, but these posts can also alter their public image and cause them hardships in the future. 

Connecting With Consumers

  Advertising already follows us as consumers, and I think that it will continue to in more way than it does presently. Technology has become "the way" to advertise one's company, and I don't think that that is a bad thing at all. Yes sometimes they tend to get annoying and in the way, but other times I actually find things that are really interesting to me. There has been multiple times that I have clicked on an advertisement and ended up purchasing from that company, and then going even further to recommend it to others. Putting ad's throughout social media and just online in general helps to get that particular brand noticed and talked about.
  I keep up to date with a couple different blogs and I especially love the ad's that I find on their, because they pertain to the interests that I like and that I am looking for. I think that as long as they keep the "correct" advertisements to pages with similar products to what is being shared on those websites and other forms of social media that it will become more streamline and much less annoying. There is nothing more annoying to me though than when I continue to see advertisements that don't really relate to me at all, those are the ones that lead me to get annoyed.
  Now a days it is often to hard to grab consumers and to keep them loyal to a company, so why not try to gain more followers through social media? Don't get me wrong, I think that companies should still stick to other forms of advertisement such as TV, print and etc. as well, but using social media should help them to expand their brand exceptionally.
  Not only using social media to gain interest in consumers, but also using technology through wearable gadgets is starting to become more and more popular. This I am all aboard for, I feel that consumers should often be able to sample and become the test trials of products, not only will the company then be promoting something new but the consumers themselves can help too to promote the product at hand.

Dress Code Decode

Attire throughout the work place has drastically changed over a short period of time. Business' have become more and more lenient on dress codes. I wouldn't say that I necessarily condone this trend that is rapidly growing, but I am also not against it. I feel that the work place is a place where one should express their professional side of themselves a majority of the time. This article even shares how the White House has broken down and given their employers less strict of a dress code to follow. With that being said, dressing more causal could cause employee's and future clients to not take you in a serious manor. This could be a downfall for the promotion of yourself. I don't see the need to enforce a strict dress code but I do think it is a wise idea to have a list of general regulations put together for people of the workplace to follow. This should be different at every business, each have their own brand and own way that they want to present/sell it. There are some companies that can get away with dressing more casually and not cause any issues where as others it would be a different story. Dress codes can cause issues amongst the work place, but I feel that when you are at work you should present yourself in your own way, but also stay professional while doing that. Overall I think that it should ultimately be left up to whoever is in charge of the business, they are the one's who have a specific view of how their company should be presented to others, they should express that and make it known throughout their business.

Pushed to Pay

Agenda setting theory has popularly been seen on social media now a days, I feel that Facebook is the most popular medium where this takes place. Facebook has set it up so when a user "likes" a post that is promoting a particular brand, advertisements relating to that topic will begin to show up more frequently in one's timeline. This is good and other times rather annoying depending on the advertisement. Social media has become more active towards making your account personalized to you. On some accounts I find this to be rather creepy, it is crazy to me that technology can sometimes know more about you than you think you know about yourself;big brother is always watching. Companies take advantage of everything that they have available to them and use it towards their promotions and advertisements to reach you as the consumer.

   Social media marketing is continuously growing; buzz is starting to develop about creating paid promotions. The goal of this is to make companies pay for a spot on a social network to share their new products, messages, or promotions. Do I think that business's will start to step back from putting out social media advertisements? Absolutely not, companies who care enough to share what they are offering to the public are not going to let something like this let them fall behind their competitors. This especially will not hurt big brand companies varying anywhere from cars, apparel, and even food brands. Social media marketing is a rapidly growing and updating field. These business' should be prepared for change and be ready to accommodate to what is coming in the near future. As for small or locally owned business it may be a different story. Business' on the smaller spectrum may not have the funds to keep up with paid promotions. That being said, what they lack in the area of paid promotions they can still gain on smaller things that are still free to them. They should reach out in organic ways such as tweets, email, and Instagram to inform costumers of promotions. Also this article on pagemodo came up with tactics to accomplish paid promotions for small business'. I think that paid advertisements will have its pros and cons, but doesn't everything?

Think Before You Type

   Social media has become one of the most effective ways for companies and corporations to reach out to their costumers in various ways. The most popular one that is being used at the moment seems to be Twitter. It is any easy way to send out news, promotions, and other information. Is it almost too easy? It happens all too often that big time companies send out something over social media without double checking things before hitting send. This being a perfect example of how companies and business's are not fully educated on social media yet. One in particular that I found to be ridiculous was this tweet sent out by Gap, obviously whoever was in charge of their account was not paying attention that day. 

   

   Companies are putting the responsibility of being in charge of social media to the wrong people. Someone who has just recently been hired and is still learning the ins and outs of their workplace should not be put in charge of what is being shared with the public. Social media has its ups and downs. Although it is a quick an efficient way to share things, it shouldn't be taken lightly. That being said I also do not feel that it is a smart idea to put the CEO of a company in charge of the social media aspect of it either. The CEO has enough things going on, although they do know the ins and outs I don't feel that that responsibility should be added onto their workload. They don't have the time to properly use social media for all it is. As great as it is to get information out about one's company it is also more effect to form a relationship with the public. Response is often what people are looking for and they want it quick. I think it would be a smart idea to have one or more individuals maybe even a group of people for bigger companies who get together and collaborate ideas on how to improve the companies public image through social media. This person(s) should converse with the CEO and other peers about things going on throughout the company as a whole and then plan how they would like to present any of that information to the public. I highly advise for a company to use an application that manages all of their social media accounts together. This would help with keeping up to date on all of them, and to stay organized. Social media in the business world can be a great advantage towards the company if put in the right hands.

Defined by the User

   Social media has popularized itself through multiple ways, one way that really has helped is the simplicity of being able to get one's word out to the public in the tap of a finger. It is left up to the user behind the medium on what sort of messages they would like to send out for all to see. One group in particular that has recently been making a name throughout social media today is ISIS. This group is displaying acts of violence all over the social scene as well as tiny acts of kindness. They have an interesting strategy of how they broadcast their public image. One post will show a violently disturbing picture of someone who has been beheaded, but then the next could be a picture of a member of ISIS feeding kittens. Their active and technologically savvy ways of gaining viewers and followers seems to be working. Not only are they strategic about the things that they post, but they are also active on all of their accounts. Being active is a big part of maintaining popularity in the world of social media, once one falls behind it is only a matter of time before they are forgotten and become old news.
   In today's society it is left up to the individual(s) behind screen. Social media could very well be considered a double edged sword, it can be used both positively and negatively. It all depends solely on who is in charge of it, and how they choose to use it. People can gain not only feedback back but also a positive image through all forms of social media. One in particular form of a positive way that social media has been used recently is the ALS ice bucket challenge, the money they have raised through their message going viral has helped their cause tremendously. That being just one act that has helped many through using social media. I feel that using in that way is the correct way that it should be used. Then on the other end of the spectrum you have those who use it in negative ways such as ISIS along with many other groups. There are many pros as well as cons to everyone having access to social networks. People who blatantly use social media in a negative way often get more attention than the ones who are using it in a positive way. This really aggravates me, if there were only a way to better regulate what is being put out that would be nice, but then again it is still an advantage to learn about all of the messages that are being spread instead of just the good ones. I feel that the good the bad and the ugly should be put out for the public to view, but wish that more people would use social media to better themselves, their group, or their companies.