Social Media

Three Steps To Help You Measure Your Social Media Campaign

Social media has become an essential component in most marketing campaigns of today. More and more people and businesses are realizing its reach and impact, which is why they have really stepped up their social media campaigns. 

But though you may be taking your social media campaigns seriously, how exactly do you know if it’s working or not? Well, you definitely need a way of measuring it to see how much impact or influence it has on your business. The problem is, since social media is still a relatively new form of marketing tool, no one has really come up with a standard of measuring it. 

But even without a standard, there are lots of various opinions on how social media can be measured. Here are three steps that can help you get started.

1. Identify and establish goals

To measure how social media is impacting your marketing campaign, it is important for you to identify and establish your objectives in social media. Maybe you want to increase revenue, influence public opinion, increase blog subscribers… there are so many goals you can aim for in your social media campaign. It is important that you quantify your objective – the more specific, the better. Examples of these could be to increase traffic to your website by 50%, establish a Facebook Fan Page of more than 1,000 fans, increase subscribers to your blog by 20%, increase URL clicks by 100%, and so on.

1. Identify tools for measurement

There are many tools you can utilize to measure social media. Google Analytics and

Feedburner, for example, are two excellent and free tools that help analyze the traffic to your blog or website, subscriber count, keyword optimization, and other trends.

Social bookmarking tools are also very helpful in seeing who is adding your site, article or blog posts to sites such as Delicious, Stumbleupon and Reddit.

If you’ve formed a community around your brand or business, then you can measure how effective your social media campaign is by the number of new member registrations you get.

If you or your business has a profile on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube or LinkedIn, you can also monitor the number of friends you have, the numbers of fans your page has, the number of people following you, the number of retweets your message gets, etc.

You also want to check if your posts are getting comments, encouraging interaction, and the like.

Your site may also have an email campaign, and you can easily check out how many people are on your subscriber list, how many actually received your email, and how many people are clicking on the URLs included in the campaign.

1. Assessment and reevaluation

It is important that you continually assess and reassess how your social media campaigns are doing. Though you are doing quantitative measuring, you also need to evaluate how your campaigns are doing qualitatively.

For example, you may be getting a lot of participation in your Facebook Fan Page, but what if the feedback is more negative, do you think that can help you in your campaign? Well, with negative publicity, it is best to immediately address your client’s concerns and do something about it. This will show existing and potential customers that you’re not brushing off their feedback and that you’re willing to work something out with them.

Though your end goal is ultimately to increase sales or revenue, it’s truly hard to measure the monetary value of a visit, comment, friend or link. But most likely, the more traffic, participation and brand awareness you get in your social media campaign, the more likely that more people will get to know your products or services and consider obtaining them.

Measuring social media can be really tricky, and it can be hard to determine the success of your campaigns. But hopefully, these steps can help you in forming a framework for your social media campaign, and make your goals more tangible and within reach.

About the Author

“Maria Elena Duron, CEO (chief engagement officer), buzz2bucks | a word of mouth marketing firm, is skilled at making networks “work” and harnessing powerful online and offline buzz, she facilitates online visibility services and word of mouth coaching and workshops – taking companies and professionals from buzz-worthy to bucks-worthy, http://buzz2bucks.com.”

Innovative Social Media Campaigns

9875 Left 4 Dead with Survival Pack – Windows $17.99 Left 4 Dead was 2008′s Multiplayer Game of the Year, and the year’s best-selling new game property for the PC, Left 4 Dead (L4D). Left 4 Dead: Critic’s Choice Edition is a new L4D title that offers all the content of the original, plus all the content coming in the “L4D Survival Pack”. -Left 4 Dead is a survival action game from Valve that blends the social entertainment experience of multiplayer games such as Counter-Strike and Team Fortress with the dramatic, narrative experience made popular in single player action game classics such as the Half-Life series of games. Set in the immediate aftermath of the long-awaited zombie apocalypse, L4D’s single player and co-op game modes are played out across four sprawling “Movies” set in a variety of urban and rural environments. Each “Movie” has an over-riding team objective, is comprised of five large maps, and may be played by 1 to 4 human players. -The Left 4 Dead Survival Pack is a collection of new content for 2008′s Multiplayer Game of the Year. Headlining the pack is the new 1 to 4 person game mode, Survival, that challenges players and teams to “survive” unremitting swarms of zombies on over 10 maps. Rounds are scored by length of survival, and times will be uploaded to leader boards. Also included in the Survival Pack are two additional Versus campaigns. Each campaign features 5 maps for additional play of the four-on-four multiplayer game that allows players to compete as Boss zombies Versus the human Survivors. Addictive co-op action gameplay from the makers of Counter-Strike and Half-Life.-Winner of over 25 2008 Awards – named Multiplayer Game of the Year by virtually every media outlet.-100s of Zombies.-Four sprawling single player and co-op “Movie” campaigns.-4×4 Versus Mode — play as the “Boss Infected”.-Survival Mode – 1 to 4 person quick match play.-Advanced artificial intelligence drives both friendly and unfriendly creatures to dynamically create intense single-player, co-op, and multiplayer experience

Activism By Method $29.95 Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher’s book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Civil Disobedience, Direct Action, Culture Jamming, Satyagraha, Hacktivism, Advocacy, Human Shield, Protest, Political Campaign, Shoeing, Leaderless Resistance, Internet Activism, Craftivism, Tree Sitting, Judicial Activism, Tactical Media, Pieing, Initiatives and Referenda in the United States, Disinvestment, Piquetero, Demonstration, Tract, Electronic Civil Disobedience, Budget Advocacy, Soapbox, Affinity Group, Guerrilla Theatre, Lindis Percy, Open Letter, Citizen Diplomacy, Radical Cheerleading, Occupation, Toyi-Toyi, Open Campaign, Judicial Activism in the European Union, Slacktivism, Media Activism, Armchair Warrior, Micro-Donations, Collusive Lawsuit, Street Protester, Call for Action, Carrotmob, Clarion Call, Malicious Compliance, Pamphleteer, Billboarding, Virtual Sit-In, Franchise Activism. Excerpt: Advocacy by an individual or by an advocacy group normally aim to influence public-policy and resource allocation decisions within political, economic, and social systems and institutions; it may be motivated from moral, ethical or faith principles or simply to protect an asset of interest. Advocacy can include many activities that a person or organization undertakes including media campaigns, public speaking, commissioning and publishing research or poll or the ‘filing of friend of the court briefs’. Lobbying (often by Lobby groups ) is a form of advocacy where a direct approach is made to legislators on an issue which plays a significant role in modern politics. Forms of advocacy There are several forms of advocacy, which each represent a different approach in the way change is brought into society. One of the most popular forms is social justice advocacy.Although it is true, the initial definition does not encompass the notions of power relations, peoples

Africa: Diversity and Development $59.95 For many, Africa is regarded as a place of mystery and negative images, where reports of natural disasters and civil strife dominate media attention, with relatively little publicity given to any of the continent’s more positive attributes. Africa has at last begun to receive the depth of interest it has long deserved, in the shape of debates about trade, aid and debt, the ‘Make Poverty History’ campaign, and the UK ‘Commission on Africa’. But, behind the superficial media façade, Africa is a diverse, complex and dynamic place, with a rich history and a colonial engagement that, although short-lived, was fundamental in determining the long-term future of the continent.At the start of the second decade of the twenty-first century, when the world is engulfed in a major financial crisis, Africa has the dubious distinction of being the world’s poorest continent. This book introduces and de-mystifies Africa’s diversity and dynamism, and considers how its peoples and environments have interacted through time and space. The background and diversity of Africa’s social, cultural, economic, political and environmental systems is examined as well as key development issues which have affected Africa in the past, and are likely to be significant in shaping the future of the continent. These include; the impact of HIV/AIDS, sources of conflict and post-conflict reconstruction, the state and governance, the nature of African economies in a global context, and future development trajectories.Africa:Diversity and Development is a refreshing interdisciplinary text which enhances understanding of the background to Africa’s current position and clarifies possible future scenarios. It is richly illustrated throughout with diagrams and plates, and contains a wealth of detailed case studies and current data.

All the President’s Spin $22.95 From the Publisher: Just in time for the national conventions and the 2004 election, All the President’s Spin, the first book from the editors of the popular website Spinsanity.org, exposes the tactics of media manipulation that George W. Bush and his administration have employed to sell their agenda to the American people. Certainly all presidents have engaged in spin to a certain extent, but in the past the media-and the public-checked the extent to which our leaders were able to fudge the truth. However, President Bush has repeatedly used deception, told outright lies, and rewritten history to sell his policy agenda. And thanks to one of the most aggressive public relations teams ever assembled, he has been able to get away with it since he began his campaign. In the wake of September 11, the administration has taken its questionable conduct to a new level by attempting to intimidate critics and trying to connect virtually every policy initiative to the war on terrorism. Bush has used the same tactics to mislead the public on a wide range of other major policy initiatives, from the environment to homeland security to Social Security-all with little skepticism from the media. All the President’s Spin is a well-documented, investigative analysis of the deceptions of President Bush and his aides, the complicity of the media, and, most importantly, how our democracy suffers as a result. Known for their civic-minded approach to debunking spin on both sides of the political aisle, Ben Fritz, Bryan Keefer, and Brendan Nyhan critique the president’s policies, reveal the truth, and illuminate the devastating effects of Bush’s politics. Bryan Keefer, Ben Fritz, and Brendan Nyhan are recent college graduates who co-founded SpinSanity.org to fight political spin. Their work has earned them national media attention and hundreds of thousands of monthly visitors to their site.They live in Palo Alto, New York, and North Carolina.

American Wushu Practitioners $14.13 Purchase includes free access to book updates online and a free trial membership in the publisher’s book club where you can select from more than a million books without charge. Chapters: Robert Downey, Jr., Jesse Jackson, Jr., David Carradine, Wesley Snipes, Daniel Wu, Shin Koyamada, Jason Delucia, Channing Tatum, Cung Le, Benny Urquidez, Summer Glau, Mark Dacascos, Michelle Waterson, Cynthia Rothrock, Thuy Trang, Michael Jai White, Ron Van Clief, Don “The Dragon” Wilson, Bobby Lowe, Elaina Maxwell, Mark Salzman, Meiling Melançon, Morgan Benoit, Alex Huynh, Ilram Choi. Excerpt: Jesse Louis Jackson, Jr. (born March 11, 1965) is a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives representing Illinois’s 2nd congressional district, which includes the part of the Southland southeast suburbs of Chicago and part of the Chicago South Side. The son of activist and former presidential candidate Jesse Jackson, he has served the 2nd district since winning a special election on December 12, 1995 to fill the seat vacated by Mel Reynolds. His wife, Sandi Jackson, serves on the Chicago City Council. He served as a national co-chairman of the Barack Obama presidential campaign. Prior to elective politics Jackson was active in international civil rights activism. He participated in his father’s presidential campaigns and then in the office of his Rainbow Coalition. During his time in public office he has co-authored three books, two of them with his father. Jackson has a consistent liberal record on both social and fiscal issues. His most important political issue has been the pursuit of the proposed Chicago south suburban airport to serve as a third major airport for the Chicago metropolitan area. He has been a very active Democratic spokesperson for other Democratic candidates and a popular interviewee and broadcast media guest. In his 40% white district, he has generated broad-based support, which has repeatedly earned him r… More:

Barack Obama’s Social Media Lessons for Business $39.95 Outlines the multichannel marketing sequence used by the Obama campaign to win the 2008 Presidential Election. Video, audio, microblogging, blogging and user generated content are a few of the business applications examined in this guidebook. This case study is the definitive reference for the use of social media as it applies to effective business promotion.

Bill Clay: A Political Voice at the Grass Roots $9.54 As Democratic ward committeeman for more than twenty years (a position that controlled many patronage jobs), Bill Clay, Sr., was forced to endorse candidates in primary elections, even in the most contentious and divisive contests. This committee post was concurrent with his congressional responsibilities, putting the committeeman-congressman at the epicenter of most local political storms. Clay recounts his forty-one-year odyssey through a career filled with controversy, conflict, and confrontation. He challenged both the established rule of the white St. Louis power structure and the black don’t rock the boat political and civil rights advocates. In the process, he changed the face of a racially discriminatory economic, political, and social system. Clay’s struggle to gain power and to keep it was not confined to fights with other politicians and business executives, however. It also involved an ongoing fight for his political survival with the media. One daily newspaper waged a publicly declared campaign to ensure his loss in every election. Without compromising his principles or softening his attacks on racists and racism, Clay battled back. He won reelection fifteen consecutive times, and the newspaper eventually folded. In the end, Clay, using his tremendous vote-getting apparatus, became one of Missouri’s most powerful political voices in controlling election-year issues and determining the success of candidates’ campaigns in both citywide and statewide elections.

Brute Reality $29.95 This book is an analysis of those formal attempts, made by prominent social actors, to present a rationale for the existence and exercise of coercive power. The author shows that the ”war on terror” and its associated campaigns are an aggressive attempt to assert the contradictory interests of a trans-national elite. The period chosen to illustrate the key characteristics of this enterprise extends from the state of ”war” created after the September 11th attacks to the strategic adjustments begun during the nadir of the Iraq adventure. The shift in policy of the Obama administration is also analyzed. The book contains a wealth of transcripts and media sources, from Business Week”s coverage of the Afghanistan campaign to the rhetorical pronouncements of leading politicians. Brute Reality provides students of media studies with a critical insight into a number of influential structures that have helped to shape contemporary attitudes to warfare.

Brute Reality: Power, Discourse and the Mediation of War $64.67 This book is an analysis of those formal attempts, made by prominent social actors, to present a rationale for the existence and exercise of coercive power. The author shows that the ‘war on terror’ and its associated campaigns are an aggressive attempt to assert the contradictory interests of a trans-national elite. The period chosen to illustrate the key characteristics of this enterprise extends from the state of ‘war’ created after the September 11th attacks to the strategic adjustments begun during the nadir of the Iraq adventure. The shift in policy of the Obama administration is also analyzed. The book contains a wealth of transcripts and media sources, from Business Week’s coverage of the Afghanistan campaign to the rhetorical pronouncements of leading politicians. Brute Reality provides students of media studies with a critical insight into a number of influential structures that have helped to shape contemporary attitudes to warfare.

Canadian General Election of 1984 $10.44 The Canadian General Election of 1984 provides a concise and readable guide to the recent federal election. Marrying journalism to social science, this survey reports on the campaign, examines the functions of the news media and the polls, and analyzes the results. Included are details of the vote nationally, regionally, by province and by constituency.

Consuming Innocence: Popular Culture and Our Children $26.4 New – This title covers dedicated mailing and e-mail campaign to targeted pop culture and social studies media. What has more influence over our children: Paris Hilton, The Simpsons, Facebook, mobile phones, mixed media messages…or you?”Consuming Innocence” explores the complex relationship that kids – from toddlers to teens – have with popular culture. It examines the role popular culture and, most importantly, parents play in creating children’s ideas of themselves, and – with unflinching fr

Crashing the Tea Party: Mass Media and the Campaign to Remake American Politics $15.82 Used – “Crashing the Tea Party” challenges conventional dogmas related to the most recent movement of choice of conservative America and the mass media. This book undertakes a critical journalistic and scholarly examination of the Tea Party at the national and local level. Through firsthand observation of local Tea Party chapters, Street and DiMaggio uncover details about the Tea Party that have remained largely unexplored. Is the Tea Party a genuine social movement or a top-down interest group

Crashing the Tea Party: Mass Media and the Campaign to Remake American Politics $15.82 New – “Crashing the Tea Party” challenges conventional dogmas related to the most recent movement of choice of conservative America and the mass media. This book undertakes a critical journalistic and scholarly examination of the Tea Party at the national and local level. Through firsthand observation of local Tea Party chapters, Street and DiMaggio uncover details about the Tea Party that have remained largely unexplored. Is the Tea Party a genuine social movement or a top-down interest group c

Crashing the Tea Party: Mass Media and the Campaign to Remake American Politics $92.7 Used – “Crashing the Tea Party” challenges conventional dogmas related to the most recent movement of choice of conservative America and the mass media. This book undertakes a critical journalistic and scholarly examination of the Tea Party at the national and local level. Through firsthand observation of local Tea Party chapters, Street and DiMaggio uncover details about the Tea Party that have remained largely unexplored. Is the Tea Party a genuine social movement or a top-down interest group

Cricketing Cultures in Conflict: World Cup 2003 $204 The 2003 World Cup was of vital importance to the participating countries. For India, a world cup triumph would make cricket the nation”s leading industry; for the host, South Africa, a successful campaign might realize its dream of political unity.Dealing with themes of racial/political unification, commercialization, the media and globalisation, this book explores the role of cricket and sport in each of the competing nations.Looking at recent developments such as match-fixing, the abolition of the quota system and the performances of the South African national team, the collection examines the importance of the Cricket World Cup in providing a unified political, social and economic stage from which a united South African identity can finally emerge. The book also explores the role of the Cricket World Cup in relation to West Indian unity, Pakistani economic regeneration, Sri Lankan, Kenyan and Zimbabwean peace.

Custom Maid Spin for New World Disorder: Political Dust Storms, Corrosive Money and Slick Oil $6.62 We the Maids, For the Maids, By the Maids – we are the maids that clean up and pay for America’s geopolitical mess. A political manifesto for our difficult and troubled times, Custom Maid Spin for New World Disorder is a trenchant analysis of the political, social and moral ills that beset the United States. This is a book written for anyone with a stake in the future of America. Filled with witty personal anecdotes drawn from his experiences as a lawyer, a businessman and a political activist, de Krassel argues that America desperately needs to reform. He takes particular aim at the country’s career politicians, sensationalist media and jingoistic culture. And he suggests ways in which America can put its house in order. The first chapter, The Hypocrisy of Fake Morality with Real Orgasms, examines how American journalists have increasingly focused on frivolous stories about the sex lives of public figures rather than the real issues affecting the country. In the years leading up to the 9/11 attacks, for example, more time was spent by the American media chasing the Monica Lewinsky affair than tackling difficult topics like the rise of Islamic extremism abroad or the long overdue need for campaign finance reform. Further chapters cover racism and bigotry, religion, America’s great opportunity in the new millennium, the breakdown of family structures, spin and disinformation. The book concludes with an exhortation to a return to the principles of the Founding Fathers. A new millennium offers a unique opportunity for change. It is a chance for Americans to retake control of their political system and reassess their values in an increasingly religious, stressed-out, debt-laden, consumerist society. Peter de Krassel was born in England of a Russian father and Palestinian Jewish mother. He has lived all over the world, including Switzerland, Israel and the United States. Currently he lives in Hong Kong. He has a unique perspective on world events

Damn Good $35 The Best Work from Top Designers All designers experience it from time to time, that amazing feeling when a project comes together perfectly, and you can shout (at least in your head) ?Damn, I?m good!? This unique book compiles those spectacular moments and showcases the resulting work, whether the client ended up approving it or not. Organized by discipline, including packaging, logos, environmental graphics, websites and more, DIG offers a dizzying array of the most inspirational design work being produced today. The book will also include an in-depth case study of the best project from each category with a detailed, behind-the-scenes story direct from the designer. Each of the 200 firms featured in the book will be provided with a banner ad to announce the book on their websites, blogs, facebook pages, etc. to create a huge social media campaign.