5 Visionaries : The 2015 Marketing Predictions

Throughout 2014, content marketing was a principal player in many organizations. Many experts, leaders, CEO’s, CMO’s, etc., said that the results they obtained from this were very effective, and they will also be relevant for years to come.

These results are shown in the next infographic of Wheelhouse Advisor: 10 Marketing Predictions for 2015.

The article also explains the following points:

• Content Marketing continue rising in popularity
• Marketing software adquisions are increasing
• Personalization
• Increase focus in mobile

 

 

It is also very interesting to see how many marketing agencies show that mobile will play an important role as well. According to an eMarketer article, Mobile Search Market Too Big for Test-and-Learn, It is predicted that nearly 130 million US consumers will search via mobile phones using apps in the next four years.

The growing population of mobile searchers, coupled with changes made to algorithms and advertising platforms, have forced marketers to include mobile-specific tactics in their search engine optimization (SEO) and search engine marketing (SEM) strategies. But marketers need to brace themselves for another wave of change: Consumers are increasingly conducting vertical searches in category-specific apps, not mobile search engines.

Troughout the years, the predictions have always been very important in business, but have numbers. As my former boss at Merck always said : Numbers are Numbers.

However, he always told me : Juan Carlos : Opinion leaders are a very important key in any business that you want to start, and he was right. He was a very influential person to me, and of course I have to mention his name : Oscar Ferenczi.

I have always been believer that the biggest factor in our professional development is the knowledge that we learn from experts in various fields, and that predictions are always very important and will continue to be important.

All of this being said, I decided write this article titled «Visionaries : The 2015 Marketing Predictions», in which visionaries, leaders, thinkers and experts in marketing world share their predictions for 2015.

I wanted to do this differently.  Rather than write and write, I had an idea.  I should ask them what they think about the predictions for 2015, and as expected, they are now sharing with us their thoughts.

The following quotes are from professionals in my network whom have had a great influence on myself and others in this professions including social business, social media marketing, digital marketing, coaching, etc.

Natascha Thomson

CEO, MarketingXlerator, Silicon Valley, US

@NaThomson

Randy Milanovic

Principal, Kayak Online Marketing, Calgary, Canada

@Kayak360

Greg Cooper

Marketing Coach, Front of Mind Coaching, Bristol, UK

@LinkedInCoachUK

Jesus Hoyos

Co-Founder, Solvis Consulting, Miami, US

@jesus_hoyos

 

Ioanna Aggelidaki

Founder & Marketing Manager, Vound app, United Arab Emirates

@iangelidaki

I wanted say thank you to our wonderful participants who took the time to share their experience with all of us.

I personally learn a lot from you guys. Gracias.

Juan Carlos Giraldo

Is Google Plus The New Super Hero for Marketers??

Teamwork always brings good results, right?

Natascha Thomson and I, we were working on the second part of our series of blog to try understand the value of Google Plus for marketers and we asked our peers to share their personal opinions on the network .

• Why are you on G+?
•  G+ vs. FB: Your thoughts?
•  How do you measure G+ “success”?
• How is it going for you?
•  What are your favorite features related to G+? (e.g. communities, HOA….)
• Any other insights to share?

This blog is part two in a series. In the first blog, The Truth about Google Plus,  started to look into the viability of G+ for marketers, sifting through research reports.

This blog presents the results of an informal survey we conducted within our personal networks of G+ users, asking them to share their experiences and opinions.

 

Of course we conducted this survey on G+:

Randy Milanovic

@Kayak360

• Probably the biggest epiphany I’ve had about GPlus is that there’s an influencer type that nobody ever thinks about, yet is the largest population of all: the decision maker’s influencer (I.e. You, I and our contacts – not the big guys).
• When I’m in GPlus or LinkedIn, I’ll take engagement with a regular Joe influencer over even a decision-maker any day. These are the people who will be your champion.
• My measure of success here is in the quality of conversations.

 

Carrie-Anne Foster

@cafosterca

I’m on G+ because I find it very engaging.

• I’ve yet to +mention someone and not have them acknowledge me in some way. The influencers are warm, welcoming and encouraging. Plussers want to help you as much as they are able to.

«Facebook reminds me of high school. It’s fun, silly, and you don’t really learn anything that benefits you in the real world.

Google Plus reminds me of university. Still fun, but has a more serious tone. Information that you can use in the real world is constantly coming across your news feed. «

I measure my success…

• …on Google Plus based on the level of engagement I do. The connections I make and how much I am learning.
• I feel G+ is going very good for me and it has become my favourite social media platform by far.

HOA’s are my favourite feature!

• I love being able to interact with people in real-time. Plus it’s wonderful to see/hear a person talk as opposed to reading what they write.

For anyone who is new to Google Plus, my best advice is to remember that you’ll get out of it what you put in. It’s a social platform and users want to engage with other users. Don’t be shy!

 

Beth Lee Browning

@sitesthatwork

Why am I here

• I started on Google Plus because I was interested in Google Authorship. I’ve learned that there’s a whole lot more to it than that. After accidentally deleting my Google Plus Profile last March, I’ve become an even bigger fan.
• IMO Google Plus is the best network for curating interesting information and useful content from an incredibly wide variety of sources.
• I’m also here for the networking – I’ve met some really great people and my connections have led to real business opportunities. And of course there’s also the potential for increased visibility in personalized search results for people I’m connected with.
  

Google Plus vs Facebook

• I find Facebook to be very oriented toward personal sharing. When I’m on Facebook I’m not thinking about business, which is why I think it can work for B2C but I’m not convinced of it’s value for B2B marketing.

My favorite feature

• HOA’s. I love adding ones that are about a topic I’m interested in to my calendar and going back to watch it later. I do like the hangouts for one on one conversations.

How do I measure success – hmmmm

• I also feel like it’s the place in which I find the most content that I can learn from.
• Also engagement is one measure, but another measure is that I can attribute actual business opportunities to my activity on the platform. Some have been very direct such as a referral from someone in my network and others have been indirect, but I can trace the lead back to something that had to do with Google Plus.

My additional 2 cents would be around LinkedIn vs Google Plus

• LinkedIn and Google Plus have two very different cultures.
  • For me, LinkedIn is the professional breakfast meeting, a place where personal updates are rarely if ever shared and the conversation centers only on business.
  • Google Plus on the other hand is the company picnic, a gathering where people are still on their best behavior but they introduce you to their kids and chat about hobbies and interests outside of work.

If you use both platforms well, prospective clients or recruiters have the opportunity to see the authentic and well-rounded you and that might help you seal the deal.

 

Elle Hubbard

@tripwheels_elle

I came to G+ for the authorship and found nothing to like.

• When I returned with a determination to get to understand it better, I started to really enjoy it. That was mainly down to +Mark Vang inviting me to his community where I have learnt so much. I now love it!

I use FB only to keep up with family, and to connect with clients who follow my page.

• I have a small following there but they seem pretty engaged when I do post, which is infrequent.

I expect, I should have G+ goals for my business that measure my success…

• …but actually, I measure it by the connections I have made, the fact that I care about finding out what is going on with them, and that I feel I have a good grasp of how to use the platform, and I mean use, rather than leverage. From a business perspective I should probably try harder!

My favorite feature is…

• ...the knowledge contained within the collective minds on the platform. I have picked up so many tips and ideas along the way, that really make a difference to my business. Some have come through HOA’s and some through posts or comments, so that is why the feature is knowledge rather than any particular facility.

 

Tammy Powlas

@TPowlas

Why are you on G+?

• Just to see what I may have missed.

G+ vs. FB: Your thoughts?

• Less salesy, easier to follow, to be honest. I really like the content that +Susan Scrupski posts on G+ too.

How do you measure G+ “success”? How is it going for you?

• Not sure; I don’t get that many «plusses» and since +Steve Rumsby and I had an exchange about posting the same content on multiple platforms I don’t contribute that much here.

What are your favorite features related to G+? (e.g. communities, HOA….)

• I like the Google Hangout (is that a G+ feature)?
• The way it sends «Birthday Wishes» – far better than FB.

Any other insights to share?

• Not sure why it is not taking off.
• I am not sure how to set up Circles.

Also at times +Frank Köhntopp posts some really nice photos to G+ and makes it well worth the visit 🙂

 

Frank Köhntopp

@Koehntopp

I’m not sure I even want G+ to be successful for marketing – I’m happy with all of that going to FB ;).

Michael J Procopio

@MichaelProcopio

G+ is my favorite non-business network (I think of LinkedIn as a business network).

• Although I prefer G+, my family and friends interact on FB not G+

I haven’t found any success on G+ either personally or professionally other than its SEO benefit.

• I do feel that Hangouts-on-Air are a big success but they are separate from G+ as a social interaction network in my mind.

Hangouts-on-Air is my favorite feature.

I think Google has had a number of stumbles with G+ and even thought it is one of the top social networks it doesn’t seem to have found its place yet.

 

Tom Maiaroto

@SocialHarvest

I’m on G+ mainly because…

• …it’s easy to access from my other Google services and GMail.

I think G+ is a better business tool (B2B) than FB

• I see FB as good for B2C and for personal uses given its privacy and features. Though I don’t use FB that often to connect with friends anyway. I don’t use G+ at all to connect with friends about my personal life. It’s more of a business tool for me.

I have a hard time measuring G+ right now (I’m working on tools to help with that).

• «Success» metrics for me would be growth in terms of people following me (or my pages), engagement (comments and +1’s), and any leads or relationships established due to G+.
• Website metrics tie right into G+ if you’re using Google Analytics and that really helps track success as well. Ultimately driving traffic is a big part of success on the internet.

My favorite features for G+ include business pages and hangouts.

Other insights?

• I don’t know, I think G+ is still trying to find its niche to be frank. It’s another channel that I do try to use, but right now I’m more focused on Twitter.

 

Jose Facchin

@FacchinJose

Why are you on G +?

• I started using Google+ in 2012, just to see what this new network offered and I’ve been a little bit saturated with other networks.
• On Google+, there is a good balance between people who have the same interests in regards to professional topics.

G+ vs. FB: Your thoughts?

• The main difference is segmentation. G+ has the circles, which let you easily share targeted content with a specific audience.

How do you measure G+ “success”? How is it going for you?

• I measure success as a high percentage of engagement with my posts, and «follower» growth.
• Google+ is now my second favorite social network, right after Twitter. Twitter refers the most traffic to my blog.

What are your favorite features related to G +? (eg communities, HOA …).

• The best feature on G + is the integration of all Google services.
• G+ communities, because they provide one of the best ways to meet new people who share your interests, and as blogger, it helps me to improve my SEO.

 

Albert Ramos Catalán

@ARCatalan

Why are you on G +?

• I opened my account in Google+ in 2011, I was invited because I worked in a business incubator , but it was not until 2013 when I started to use this network as a strategy. Due to the UX it can be used like LinkedIn for business topics.
• I’d add that is a social network that has a mix between leisure and professional publications.

G+ vs. FB: Your thoughts?

• The main difference, at least in Spain, is that Facebook users log in with an intention to just have fun; more than on Google+.
• There is also a greater range of segmentation and freedom of interaction between users.
• For professionals, it also offers something similar to LinkedIn groups via the communities.

How do you measure G+ “success”? How is it going for you?

• I think that having success on Google+ has a lot to do with getting followers regardless of whether you follow them or not. Just because they like what you are posting.
• More and more people have been following my blog because they have read my posts on G+.
• If I had to rank: Twitter is my favorite network, and Google Plus comes second.

What are your favorite features related to G +? (eg communities, HOA …).

• Google+ is interesting for a variety of services available via Hangouts, their email services and the functionally on mobile devices. Even though similar to LinkedIn groups, G+ functionally works much better on mobile.
• I also like the ability to host webinars and classes on HOA.

Any other insights to share?

• G+ is valuable to drive traffic to your website, blog, or both.
• The influence of G+ on SEO should not be neglected.

Make sure you have a well-defined and distinct strategy for G +. Don’t forget that each social network requires tailored communications to be most effective.

 

Adrian Bold

@AdrianBold

Why are you on G+?

• Initially, because I felt obliged to be, i.e. use Google to stay current but now mainly to ‘take a break’ and learn via HOAs and Communities.

G+ vs. FB: Your thoughts?

• I struggle with how best to manage Facebook so tend to stick to people I know offline ‘though that gets tested when someone I know online only sends a friend request. G+ is my slightly more acceptable public face!

How do you measure G+ “success”? How is it going for you...

• No measurement for me and that probably sums up my approach to social media generally. Probably wrongly!

What are your favorite features related to G+? (e.g. communities, HOA….)

• The right communities, e.g. like Sanctuary; good mix of people, knowledge share and well-managed.

Any other insights to share?

• I’m slightly concerned that G+ is turning into one big community of social media experts and everyone else is oblivious to its potential!

If you liked this post, visit MarketingXLerator too for more insights, and feel free to comment here if you want !

Is Google Plus a Great Place to Engage ?

Natascha Thomson & JC Giraldo

Background

It started with an email exchange and ended in extensive research, interviews and, finally, this blog on the viability of Google Plus for B2B marketers.

While there is much written about Google Plus being one of the biggest and most active networks, for some reason, we did not seem to see this in our own networks. Natascha and I are also both on Facebook, where he have been building our network for a longer time, and maybe – for that reason – we have not been as dedicated on G+ as we needed to be to see more return.

I asked Natascha: “Where on G+ is all this supposed activity happening. I don’t see it in my newsfeed”. Her response: “I think where it’s happening is in the communities, and via Google Hangouts.”  But, she added: “That’s just my personal experience, we’d need to dig deeper”.

Well, here we are.

As we did for our popular series about the use of social media around the globe, we started to reach out to our networks to gather some facts.

Methodology

1. Analysis of data obtained from sources including: Jeff Bullas, Janrain,  eMarketer, Marketing Xlerator .
2. Interviews with people in our network who are active on social media. This is a random and small group and, hence, not statistically significant.

Facts

While the Google CEO Larry Page said in his own post on the company’s social network that: “We’ll continue working hard to build great new experiences for the ever increasing number of Google+ fans”, we dug deeper to see what this really means.

1. Janrain Report: Social Login Trends Across the Web Q1 2014

The graphic illustrates how in the first quarter of 2014, Google Plus increased as a choice for social login, not too far behind the number one, Facebook.

What are the reasons?

• Google Plus might not be gaining social media activity but it is technically gaining users because its login is the same for Google’s entire ecosystem of products.
• Google tried to integrate Gmail with its user base on Google Plus, the company will scrap that mandatory integration with its other products.

2. Jeff Bullas (Social Media Expert)

According to Jeff Bullas, G+ is all about data gathering for Google:

«To create a Google Plus account you needed to tell them your age, location, email account and other data that revealed your likes and dislikes. We also live in a digital data age that empowers us to express, publish and share. That reveals who we are and Google can use that to increase revenue and improve user experience. Nothing is for free.»

Jeff’s article 12 Awesome Social Media Facts and Statistics for 2013 provides more insights. We’ll focus on facts #1, #5, and #6:

Fact #1: Google+ is catching up to Facebook in terms of membership

• Facebook still dominates at 70% of account ownership.
• Google+ is not far behind at just over 50%.

Note: a Google+ account is mandatory whenever you create a new Gmail account, pushing up the account ownership stats.

Fact #5: Usage of social networks by older age groups is increasing

• Social media is not just for millennials but all age groups.
• According to the graphic below, a high % of G+ users are part of Generation X.

Fact #6. Google+ dominates on monthly visits

The graphic below shows:

• That monthly visits on G+ have risen above 1 million visits per month.
• The ugly truth is that this activity is (at least partially generated) by visits to other Google services than to G+ (e.g. Gmail) that are counted as a Google+ visits.

More proof (see graph below):

• Facebook users post more updates and are generally more active than G+ users; even considering the fact that Facebook has more users than G+ overall.
• Twitter has a much smaller foot print than G+ in terms of accounts and monthly visits, but comes astoundingly close in terms of activity and post updates when compared to G+; even within the 140 character limit. You do the math.

3 .  Marketing Xlerator

According with the post Are You the Steward of Your Social Identity?  :

If we talk in terms of convenience of logging in with your Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Google Plus, Pinterest account  called social sign-on – we can see that:

• Mobile devices like cell phones and tablets have accelerated the social sign-on trend; particularly for apps.

• Google Plus position ( 25 % )  is not bad, but not great, and it looks like the recent policy change allowing “fake names” on Google+ might give the search giant the social login boost — attracting those who are not into divulging their real names online.
  

Therefore :

• Social sign-ons are great news for marketers, as the convenience they offer can increase registrations and other (potential) buyer engagement in marketing campaigns.

•  The social sign-on information can then be used to match individuals with existing records in a CRM system to create more complete personas. As a result, marketing messages can become even more relevant in regards to product, place, promotion, and even price.

4.  eMarketer

It is very interesting to note that Google has much more to offer, with a very important market: teens and young people

Daniel Marcec, spokesman for eMarketer said to US News : “If teens are into the ‘next big thing,’ it certainly isn’t Google Plus,”

eMarketer report bellow show :

• Facebook is still the preferred platform for young people (teenagers)

Conclusions

• Facebook still leads in terms of preferences engage, social login, shares, ages, etc. 
• Google Plus is a very interesting and important network, however, still has much to gain in this battle .
  

And  some interesting thoughts  :

• What if it is not mandatory to open a Gmail account to access Google Plus?
• What would be the real numbers ?

If you have comments, please comment . We’d like to hear about your own experience with Google Plus.

 

Social Media : Trends and Behaviors by Countries Part IV

Hi there ,

This is last part  of a blog series in which Natascha Thomson and I try to provide answers to this question by surveying our world-wide networks.

Note: We make no claim that the results of our informal survey are statistically relevant but they represent insights from people who use social media regularly for business.

We asked the following questions:

1. In your country (or region or culture, if you prefer), how does the majority of people view social media?
2. What would you say is a unique characteristic about social media usage in your culture?

THE RESULTS PART IV

CANADA

Chantal Bechervaise , Senior Human Resources Assistant at Privy Council Office and HootSuite Ambassador

1.-  It’s hard to find a lot of statistics on Canada and social media usage.

• From gathering information and doing a bit of digging I have discovered that Canadians do indeed love their social media and internet usage. I am a heavy social media user myself. (My family is always joking that I am online talking to my imaginary friends.)

• In terms of engagement, Canada ranks as one of the top 3 countries around the world. Canadians use on average, 41 hours per month online on their computers. In a recent study conducted by Media Technology Monitor, 2 out of 3 Canadians use some sort of Social Media network.

• Businesses in Canada are also open to social media.

• The top three Canadian social networking sites are Facebook, Twitter and then LinkedIn. Facebook is the most popular among Canadians. The second most popular is Twitter. It will be interesting to also see how Pinterest, Vine, Google+ and other social sites begin to rank as more statistics become available.

2.- Canadians appear to love their technology and ability to connect and engage.

• I think that our usage will continue to increase. It was just announced this week that Parks Canada will be setting up 15-20 wireless hot spots in our national parks as part of a trial run, and hopes to have 75 in the next three years.  It is becoming more and more en-grained into our culture and it is here to stay.

SINGAPORE

Avtar Ram Singh , Digital Marketing Manager at Circus Social, Ogilvy & Mather

1.- With internet penetration at 73%, the internet and social media is a way of life in Singapore.

• To drive home that fact, consider this: 3.2 million of the 3.9 million people on the internet have an active Facebook account.

• Mobile internet penetration is at 64% as well, and on average, mobile internet users spend 2 hours using mobile internet each day. Around 96% of internet users in Singapore have a social media account in some shape or form.

• Due to the high cost of traditional marketing in Singapore, a lot of brands have shifted to social media in the last few years and have started to build a presence. Most, if not all, retail stores have a presence on social media with a fairly active following.

2.- There are two things that surprise me:

• The first, is how high the Facebook usage in Singapore is, and second, how low the Pinterest usage in Singapore is.

• Less than 100,000 Singaporeans have a Pinterest account, and for a country that’s fashion obsessed – that’s a little strange.

• The second thing though – is how much content Singaporeans consume on a daily basis. Trains, buses, standing in queues, having lunch alone – 4 out of 5 people will be on their phones, either watching a soap, scrolling through their newsfeed or talking to friends.

NEW ZEALAND

Lillian Leon ,  Copywriter , Social Media and Online Marketing at The Online Marketing Rookie

1.- In New Zealand , businesses are aware they should be on social media somehow.

• But businesses still don’t really understand how it works for ROI.

• Some larger and entrepreneurial companies are using social media well, but not many. Slowly, we’re getting there.

• We use Facebook most, but Instagram, Snapchat and Pinterest are gaining popularity.

2.-  Unique characteristic?

• Probably that New Zealander‘s  are not outspoken people, so we tend not to vent our opinions on social media.

• Social media is used more for connecting with others.

INDONESIA

Vicky Iskandar, Social Media Consultant at Temptu

1.- The number of people who are online in Indonesia are over 79 million in 2014 ( over 30% of the population). This sounds low in terms of % but significant when you take into account that Indonesia’s the fourth most populated country in the world with over 250 million people.

• Indonesians view social media as entertainment and they truly love to socialize .

• They’re the 3rd most active tweeters (via @conradhackett).

• They see twitter as a platform where they can chat and connect with their favorite brands and local celebrities. It’s pretty easy for a local celebrity to gain quick followings.

2.- Mobile plays a majority part in social media usage as smartphones and data packages are more affordable and readily available compared to desktop access.

• Facebook is still the number one platform with over 90% of the country’s online users but majority of active users are turning to Path (which is mobile only) as the main social platform to socialize with their friends.

• Facebook seems to be seen as more of a nuisance, with many pages abusing  and bombarding their Facebook friends with tags and sales pitches etc.

• Whereas Path, which had a 150 friend limit till recently, is seen as a more private and intimate platform.

♢

 Find parts I, II & III here: 

Part I : How do Social Media styles differ by culture/nation?

Part II : Global Behaviors in Social Media

Part III : A view & unique characteristic of Social Media at World

Finally, I want to thank my dear friend Natascha Thomson CEO/Owner of Marketing Xlerator for being part of this blog series. It has been very inspiring for me as well as a great learning and networking opportunity.

And thank to all the participants from countries like :  Germany, Netherlands, UK, Austria, China, Spain, Greece, Australia, Guatemala, Belgium, New Zealand, Singapore, Canada, Indonesia and Perú.

JC Giraldo

 

Part 2 : Global Behaviors in Social Media

How do social media styles differ by culture/nation?

This is part II of a blog series in which my friend and mentor Natascha Thomson  , CEO of Marketing Xlerator and I try to provide answers to this question by surveying our world-wide networks.