Now being a social influencer can get you into airport lounges

American Airlines has rolled out a new perk for social media users, use of their Admirals Club lounges, regardless whether you are flying with them or not.

To gain a one-day pass for the club, you need to have a Klout score of 55. What does this mean? Klout is a tool that measures your usage and engagement on social media, including Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.

The perk includes almost 40 lounges across the world including airports in San Francisco, Dallas, Los Angeles, New York, Tokyo and London.

With others already signed up to Klout Perks including Sony, Nike, Microsoft, Disney, Audi and Gilt, this is a major push by the social measurement tool.

A clever development, but one can't help to think that social influencers may see through it, regardless of whether they take advantage of it or not.

Is this a social media turning point?

A great deal has been written about social media and most of it about the opportunities that it offers brands and marketers. However, a recent survey by YouGov has suggested a negative side to using social media for marketing. Is this a turning point?

New research has revealed that brand engagement on social networks is not as positive as first thought.  

According to B2B Marketing Magazine, 'Although the uptake remains high, users are demanding more, with two in five participants claiming to be ‘getting bored’ with social media.  

The survey of 1275 British social media users found that just under half of respondents would not be positive about a product their ‘friends’ have followed and/or ‘liked’, with 43 per cent saying they are unlikely to talk about a brand on social media sites. In addition, just over half of participants revealed that they ‘do mind’ seeing ads on social networks that are based on their profile activities.  

Dan Brilot, media consulting director at YouGov, says, “It appears that while social media can be a key tool in the brand marketer’s armoury, in particular to maximise commitment among those already highly engaged with the brand, it has not quite reached the effectiveness necessary to be considered as a truly mass media marketing tool.”

Mobile Advertising Wars

There is a lot being written about the impact of mobile technologies right now.  The Financial Times’s Tim Bradshaw wrote a piece on Google and Apple lowering the price for mobile advertising in an attempt to encourage more marketers and application developers to use their technologies, ahead of Facebook and LinkedIn’s expected entries into the markets.

He cites how many brands are still unsure how to tailor their messaging for the small screen, thus available ad slots in apps and on mobile websites are often left unsold.  

At the same time City AM reports that Apple has shot past Samsung to “nab top smartphone spot”.  Around 427 million smart phones were sold in 2011, up 50% on 2010.  Apple sold 35.5 million in the fourth quarter of last year.  

One company which seems to have done some smart thinking on this is Domino’s Pizza UK & Ireland and says it has seen a “breathtaking surge” in online sales… yes, you guessed it, after the launch of two new apps last year which let customers chose a pizza via their smartphones or iPads, and which helped drive a 43 per cent rise in orders over the internet.

The FTSE 250 firm has 726 outlets in Britain, Ireland and Germany, and its franchisees created 1,800 jobs the company claims through the opening of new outlets.     

So mobile can also mean a neat “pizza profit” (piece of profit) it seems.

Most overused buzzwords and best ways to increase your profile on LinkedIn

LinkedIn has been looking at some of the most overused terms and buzzwords of 2011, comparing them to 2010, and also suggest ways that professionals can increase the number of visitors to their profile.

In the 2010 study, buzzwords like “extensive experience,” “dynamic,” “motivated,” and “innovative” were the most overused buzzwords in various countries however LinkedIn says that since its global membership has grown from 85 million to more than 135 million members since 2010 the list has changed.

Here are the 2011 most used buzzwords:

1. Creative
2. Organizational
3. Effective
4. Extensive experience
5. Track record
6. Motivated
7. Innovative
8. Problem solving
9. Communication skills
10. Dynamic

LinkedIn has also suggested some tips professionals can act on to increase the number of people viewing their LinkedIn Profile.

Click here to find out more

Which social media tools are B2B marketers using?

Pardot Marketing Automation has been looking at the most popular social networks amongst B2B marketers.

They found some interesting facts and created an infographic to show some of the key results. Twitter was deemed to be the most popular social network among B2B marketers however LinkedIn was found to create the most leads.

See the infographic here to find out more of the interesting results.

social-infographic-pardot.pdf (169 kb)

The Demographics of Social Media

Did you know that 86.5% of the people who like cats on Facebook are Women? An interesting fact, but have a look at the demographics pulled together in this table. We are often debating on the value Social Media and on their role in a company's life. It was quite time that we shared some stats.

Be it that you are looking at the ever growing 35-54 demographics or that you are considering Twitter's penetration (less than 10%), how should this affect your Social Marketing?

Read more on Advertising Age.

Using Social Media to Promote the News

Retail news aggregator My Retail Media approached The Think Tank to raise their profile online and to build awareness of its services and content.

The Think Tank developed a social media campaign, based around a retail news blog, to publicise this groudbreaking web site which sources retail news from around the world. Providing an outlet for unique content, the blog was then publicised through social media channels such as Twitter and LinkedIn.

Having set up the social media channels and started the process of building a following, The Think Tank provided training to My Retail Media to allow them to manage the content delivery themselves. This has resulted in a significant increase in new traffic to the web site and an increase in subscriptions.

Try My Retail Media for yourself - click here

Social media gets serious

If LinkedIn's recent news is anything to go by then Social Media really did just get serious. LinkedIn is looking to go public - conveying an expansion of the role of social media as an advertising space.

You have heard it from us before, but what happens in the B2C market really will at some point be relevant in the B2B. Don't believe us? Check out the B2B Marketing website for further info on the real market value of these sites in the future...