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Americans who've been traveling abroad are all too often stunned by the size of their mobile phone bill. Even if they aren't actively using their phone, they can rack up hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars in charges, as data streams to their phone over foreign networks.
Making the time to execute on a social media strategy can rattle even the most experienced marketers. Unlike traditional marketing, social media marketing can present many different challenges and distractions. According to a study by eMarketer 73% of marketers say finding the time to create content as their biggest marketing challenge.
I recently ran a poll of @TopRank Twitter followers to get a sense of how they spend their time online. I asked “If you had only 20 minutes a day to spend on social media what would you focus on?” Some of the answers we received were:
@henryroominates – “I would try to connect with powerful Twitter users and Tweet content from my blog.”
@SebastianX – “I’d read my Twitter Followanyday List.”
@Paco_Belle – “Look at 2-3 Twitter lists, couple circles on G+, scroll Facebook timeline & look through my RSS feeds for new things.”
@Paramountbuzz – “Engaging others…doing it now.”
@GreenDolphin_ – “My RSS feed, Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook.”
If you are involved with implementing social media marketing, you know that 20 minutes a day just won’t cut it. On top of implementing social media tactics, there’s also the task fo staying current. Lee’s post “11 Ways to Get Smarter & Stay Current in a World of Social Information Overload“ outlined how much time can be involved using social tools to collect, filter and curate social media marketing knowledge.
Avoiding Shiny Object Pitfalls
Reuters estimates that the average worker loses 2.1 hours of productivity every day to interruptions and distractions. To avoid wasting time begin by prioritizing your week. While it’s true that unexpected issues can come up plan for the best and the worst. If you have 3 hours per day on average to complete tasks related to social media strategy what will you get accomplished in those 3 hours? If you were only to have 1.5 hours per day what would you want to get accomplished? Proper planning will lead to improved productivity and efficiency. Also, take some time to determine what your top distractions are and eliminate them.
Optimize for Productivity
Focus on what will have the largest impact on your productivity. Determining what time of day you are most productive, and which activities are most significant will help you to stay on track. Are you an early riser, night owl, or somewhere in between? Creating a daily schedule and routine can significantly improve your productivity. You will also want to keep in mind statistical data which points to the best times of day and days of the week for engaging in social media activity. A recent infographic by KISSmetrics on “The Science of Social Timing” provides valuable insight into the best times of day to share or engage on sites like Facebook and Twitter. Some of the findings include:
Twitter
5pm – best time to Tweet for re-tweets
1-4 per hour – most effective frequency of Tweets
Midweek & Weekends – best days to Tweet
Noon & 6pm – best time to Tweet for increase Click Through Rates
Facebook
Saturday- best day to share on Facebook
Noon- most effective time to share on Facebook
.5 per day – best sharing frequency
Tips for an Optimized Focus
Now lets talk about some no brainer “don’ts” that the many of us “do”. Let me know if any of these sound familiar to you:
Your best friend is having problems with their significant other so you keep your phone close, just in case…
It’s baseball season and your team is playing but you don’t have the day off, thank goodness for internet radio right…
You have email anxiety which forces you to check email every couple minutes because you never know what you might miss…
One of your colleagues is obsessed with chatting online and pings you every couple minutes with a question or joke…
You’re scheduling Tweets, posting on your personal facebook page, and reading Psychology Today all at the same time, because after all you are a master multi-tasker…
I too have often thought that I could do everything at once. A balancing act acquired from years of having too much to do, and not enough time. I considered multi-tasking an art form and a higher form of organization than my counterparts who only focused on one thing at a time. I could not have been more wrong. In recent years I’ve had to buckle down and force myself to devote all of my attention to one task at a time. I’ve found that the quality of my work has improved and the level of my stress has decreased significantly. Some tactics that have worked for me include:
Closing my email when I’m working on social media tasks
Close all Internet windows and tabs except for the one I need to work on
Disabling chat or closing chat windows to avoid distraction
Pick 15 minutes a day to indulge in activities such as checking personal social media profiles, responding to texts, or chatting with friends.
Spend 30 minutes to an hour each morning reviewing emails and responding, do the same thing before leaving at the end of the day.
It is significantly easier to stick to your schedule if you are working ONLY on the tasks you have scheduled in the time allotted.
Tools for Optimizing Your Time
Depending on your available time and social media content strategy, there are many tools that can help you accomplish more with less time. Below are three different types of tools that social media marketers can use to get the most out of their time:
Curation Tools – good for quickly gathering and automatically sharing content
Evernote – not a bookmarking tool exactly but very useful for curating
Next Steps
I’m sure you’ll agree that focus and time management are something that most of us can relate to. Based on what was covered in this post, consider the following questions and determine what you can do to better focus on the tasks at hand:
What are your top 3 social media goals and do you have a plan for reaching them?
How much time can you dedicate each day to using tactics to reach these goals?
What steps can you take to improve your focus while completing social media activities?
Which type of tool: curation, aggregator, or social bookmarking can you use to help save time?
If you are looking for additional tips on Optimizing your SEO, social media, and content strategies be sure to take a look at the new book: “Optimize: How to Attract & Engage More Customers By Integrating SEO, Social Media, and Content Marketing.”
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The social media job market is hot! This infographic visualizes the 2011 Social Job Seeker Survey that was conducted by Jobvite. It examines who the job seekers are and how they are utilizing social media to find jobs. Some interesting statistics you may not be aware of:
61% of all employed Americans are open to a new job or actively looking for a new one.
4 out of 10 job seekers are “Super Social” and have 150+ contacts on Facebook, Twitter, or Linkedin.
1 in 6 job seekers found their last job through an online social network.
This Week in News About Google
“How to Get Actionable Data Out of Google Analytics” Proper goal setting is second to none when running a website or blog. If your goals are not properly setup then you are missing out on the most actionable metrics of your website. This article provides some great tips on setting up and measuring your website goals. Via KISSmetrics.
“Pages With Too Many Ads “Above The Fold” Now Penalized By Google’s “Page Layout” Algorithm” Do you shove lots of ads at the top of your web pages? Think again. The “page layout algorithm” takes direct aim at any site with pages where content is buried under tons of ads. Via Search Engine Land.
“Google+ Now Lets You Share Straight From Search Results” Aimed at making it easier for users to join or start discussions on particular topcis, Google+ has recently beefed up their search capabilities. Additionally, Google+ will automatically attach search terms to your posted items. Via Mashable.
“Google Real-Time Insight Finder” This tool helps users make sense of data and spot emerging trends more quickly. It also allows companies to gain insight in to attitudes, perceptions, and needs of your consumers so that you can adjust your strategy quickly to meet their needs. Via YouTube.
“Google+ brands growing faster than brands on Twitter?” A statistical comparison by Socialbakers shows that brands are growing their fan bases faster on Google+ than brands on Twitter. How is this happening? Read on to find out. Via Socialbakers.
“3 Content Marketing Ideas You Should Steal from Coca Cola” Heavy hitter Coca Cola has realized that a 30 second advertisement will no longer cut it. They have instead turned to content marketing , which aims to double Coca Cola worldwide consumption by 2020. Via copyblogger.
“3 (more) business blogging tips for beginners” If you are one of the many bloggers with a new years resolution that includes doing more with your blog, then this post is for you. What is the first step? Be realistic! Via SEO Copywriting.
“How to Overcome the 7 Most Crippling Blogging Challenges” Time to take the “but’s” out of blogging. This article does a great job of providing solutions for many of the excuses would be bloggers have today. Via socialmediatoday.
The Social Media Beat
“7 Ways To Improve Your Social Media Skills and Influence” Social media sharing is still a very new role for many employees. This article helps prepare newbies and social media dabblers for life in a social world. Via Forbes.
“9 Small Business Social Media Success Stories” Case studies speak for themselves. Applying a real life example of success can make a large impact on your perception of a tactic or marketing strategy. This post provides 9 great examples of how social media has helped small businesses grow. Via Social Media Examiner.
“Facebook Expands Service That Lets Users Share Online Activities” Facebook announced this week that they are adding over 60 new partners to a service which will allow users to let their friends know what they’re doing online from listening to music to news articles they are viewing. Via Bloomberg.
“Twitter Acquires Social Aggregation Start-Up Summify” Following Twitter’s other recent acquisitions it was announced today that Summify, a social news aggregation service has also been acquired. If you’re a Summify user beware! Services will shut down in a few weeks. Via Wired.
From the TopRank Newsroom
Alexis Hall – “Average Viewer Watched 23.2 Hours of Online Video Content in December”
According to the latest research from comScore Video Metrix, the average viewer watched 23.2 hours of online video content in December 2011. That is a lot of time people are spending online, engaged with this channel. This post from Search Engine Watch discusses the impact of this research on marketers, including the reach of video advertising on YouTube. Via Search Engine Watch.
Brian Larson – “PIPA and SOPA Co-Sponsors Abandon Bills”
SOPA (Stop Online Piracy Act) is on the minds of many marketers. From image sharing and content curation, to linking and keyword research, SOPA has the potential to drastically change the way we create, share, promote and optimize content. With the co-sponsor’s abandoning the bill, is this a sign that the public outcry was heard? Via Mashable.
Ken Horst – “Twitter is adding 11 new accounts per second and could pass 500 million in February, says report”
If anyone is still holding out on starting a Twitter account, now would be the time to start thinking about it. When Twitter hits 500 million, it will be very hard not to acknowledge Twitter as a strong channel for online marketing. The trick is how to leverage Twitter and you can learn that by reading our post from earlier this month; 4 B2C Examples of How Companies are Using Twitter to Attract & Engage Customers. Via The Next Web.
Emily Conley – “Yahoo’s Co-founder Jerry Yang Resigns”
Just weeks after the announcement of new CEO Scott Thomson joining Yahoo, the company’s co-founder Jerry Yang has announced his resignation. Thompson called Yang’s 17 years with Yahoo a legacy of innovation and customer focus for the iconic brand. 2012 is shaping up to be an eventful year for Yahoo. It will be noteworthy to follow how these changes trickle down to impact the world of SEO! Via Search Engine Land.
Time to Weigh In: What do you think of Google’s new search tactics? Have they taken it too far? Also, what other newsworthy items did you read this week that you think should be shared with our readers?
The recently created Consumer Financial Protection Bureau went on the road to hold its first public hearing. The bureau traveled to Birmingham, Ala., to talk about payday lenders. In Alabama, there are four times as many store-front payday businesses than there are McDonalds.
