It’s not often 111 million people turn their attention to the same thing at once, but come Sunday a good chunk of America will tune in and watch the New York Giants smack down the New England Patriots in the Super Bowl for the second time in four years.

Of course, many will be more interested in the commercials than the actual game, and with 30 second slots costing an exorbitant $3.5 million, advertisers will be looking to make the most of their spend. And as any savvy marketing pro on Madison Avenue knows this means spreading the messages socially long after their the TV spot concludes.

This year the method will be particularly effective because 60 percent of viewers are expected to be connected to a “second screen,” a smartphone or tablet, where they’ll text or interact with friends on Twitter or Facebook.

More than 70 commercials will air during the Super Bowl making competition fierce, so many have already released their ads on YouTube sparking viral reactions. For the first time ever USA Today’s Ad Meter will allow viewers to vote for their favorite commercial via Facebook. As fans anxiously await the rematch between the Giants and Patriots, one thing that is certain – it’s expected to be a “second-screen” Super Bowl.

Coca-Cola 

This year Coca-Cola plans to introduce the world to their new brand ambassadors, computer animated polar bears. Following their ad, the bears will come to life on Twitter, Facebook and Coke’s own dedicated bear site CokePolarBowl.com. They’ll watch the game in real-time, comment on the half time show and even respond to fans via their Twitter hashtag #GameDayPolarBears. They’re also expected to remark on other advertisements it’ll be interesting to hear their responses to competitor’s commercials.

Pepsi

Not to be outdone by their polar bear counterparts, Pepsi has plans to prompt viewers to interact with their advertisements. The company’s commercials will feature a performance by “X Factor USA” winner Melanie Amaro. During it, viewers will be prompted to “Shazam” (capture audio from the commercial) her song for an opportunity to download the video for free.

Audi 

Perhaps feeling the pressure to answer Volkswagen’s celebrated Darth Vader themed spot from last year, Audi’s commercial for Super Bowl XLVI is Twilight inspired. The company will highlight the force of Audi’s LED headlight technology which has dire consequences on a pack of young partying vampires. The company hopes to keep the buzz alive through the unveiling of its Twitter hashtag #SoLongVampires.

Chevy

The release of Chevy’s smartphone Game Time app is already causing a social stir. Individuals can play on their phones, tablets or even through their site: chevy.com/gametime for a chance to win prizes courtesy of Chevy, Bridgestone and Motorola. Those who download and register before February 6 will receive a code; if it matches one of the license plates in Chevy’s ads during the game, they’ll win one of 20 vehicles being given away.

When it comes to the online space, content is indeed King. What you say is the driving force behind the reason people continue to visit your website. The social online world tends to afford its content providers more creativity in the name of sharing, so when it comes to social content, a picture can truly be worth a thousand words. Two online sharing properties are now proving this to be true in branding: Instagram and Pinterest and both are beginning to reap the benefits of popularity in business.

Say Cheese

Instagram has been known as a favorite photo sharing site of iPhone enthusiasts since 2010 allowing people to take a flick, throw on a filter and share through the most popular social media platforms such as Facebook and Twitter. With brands looking for ways to “humanize” themselves, various company representatives took to preparing their own close-ups—tagging their product experiences encapsulated in any relevant moment in time—and the relationship has not stopped there.

Recently, luxe brand Tiffany & Co. enlisted the help of photography to go along with an important part of their What Makes Love True campaign. By using relatable, street-style imagery and a specially designed Tiffany’s filter, the blue box and the contents within retain their importance and exclusivity while becoming more reachable and attainable.

Pin the tail on the…

Pinterest is the new site on the social block and has brought the mood board to virtual life. The boards organize your thoughts, dreams, desires, or products for other users to like, share (re-pin) and comment. Simply put up a picture and a short blurb and people are sure to begin engaging with you when they find your pins interesting.

These boards also work as a wonderful way to create and hold contests, gain opinions and, most importantly, begin to build communities online, thus segmenting and organizing your friends, or customers, into customized groups. Retailer Lands’ End used many of these procedures in their Pin It To Win It campaign where users were encouraged to browse the Lands’ End site and create pins of the items they liked the most. This goes to show how a simple conversation that’s firmly ensconced in community building, helps a brand portray their personality—one of the most important qualities to any customer base.

Take Your Pic

What channels you use in your marketing mix, as with any business decision, should be based in your strategy. There are sure to be campaigns where both methods above make sense, times to only use one technique and instances when neither should be used. We should remember that, in business, there is always a social component. Mutual communication is imperative to your business if it deals with anyone besides you.  However, if your business has any sort of inherent visual aspect, your pictures are sure to help and sharing them effectively is important to keep people interested and connected.

Although removing your hand from the keyboard, highlighting text using a mouse, and clicking copy from the file menu doesn’t sound all that taxing, it does have a cumulative effect. Everyone needs to know at least a few of these shortcuts and some (Web designers, stand up!) need to know many.

Below are the best keyboard shortcuts for a few important programs.

Windows/Mac OS

Ctrl + C / Ctrl + Insert
Copies highlighted text or selects item.
Ctrl + V / Shift + Insert
Takes copied text (or object) in the clipboard and pastes it to desired area.
Ctrl + Z / Ctrl + Y
This function undoes previous changes. After copying text Ctrl+Z (Ctrl+Y) will undo it. Press multiple times to undo multiple changes.
Ctrl + S
Ctrl + S  saves that file. This shortcut key is often used frequently when working on anything important.
Ctrl + F
Opens a “Find” option in any program (Word, Notepad, etc.) . This includes Internet browsers (below) to find text on the current page.

Alt + Tab / Alt + Esc
The most common use of Alt+Tab is to alternate between the two most recent tasks, but it can also be used to switch to any running program that has a top-level window.
Ctrl + Tab
Switches between tabs in a program.
Ctrl + Back space and Ctrl + Left arrow / Right arrow
This maneuver deletes a full word forward and back at a time instead of a single character.
Ctrl + Home / End
Just as you might imagine: It moves the cursor to the beginning or end of a document.
Ctrl + P
This simple function prints  the page being viewed.
Page Up / Space bar and Page Down
The  page up or page down function moves one page at a time either up or down. When browsing the Internet pressing the space bar will also move the page down one page at a time. Press Shift+Space bar and the page moves one at a time.

Photoshop

Type any number (Changes layer or brush opacity)
Any number on the keyboard will do when you’re attempting to change layer or brush opacity in Photoshop. How it works: the number 8 and 5 will change the layer opacity to 85 percent. An easy 3 will make it 30 percent and so on.

On a more somber note:  The shortcut will NOT  work if any brush tools are selected. That will only changes the opacity of your brush.

Right click with the Move Tool  (Change layers)
It’s all about the layers in Photoshop and keeping track of which layer you are working on. Move from one layer to another by right clicking with the Move tool and selecting the correct layer from the drop down list that appears.

Check out the list of layers that appears (below). Click on a layer name to select it.

Alt+click eye icon / Option+click eye icon (Hides other layers)
This enables users to either show or hide all the layers except the selected one. This function is extremely handy when you’re using more than five layers.
Ctrl +T/Command +T (Free Transform)
The Free Transform command lets you apply transformations (rotate, scale, skew, distort, and perspective) in one continuous operation. Instead of choosing different commands, you simply hold down a key on your keyboard to switch between transformation types.
Ctrl+ Z/Command +Z (Undo)
For marketers, writers, editors, students and just about everyone else in the world, Ctrl +Z (or Command Z) is a favorite shortcut that undoes those errors that you’ve done.  However, in Photoshop it only goes back one step. If you need to go back further try using the Step Backward command, Ctrl+Alt+ Z or Command Option Z.
Shift+[  / Shift +] (Increases/decreases brush diameter)
While it may be true in the world of Matisse and van Gogh that no two brushstrokes are the same, that isn’t the case in Photoshop. After you selecting a brush, you will need choose a size. Don’t waste time hunting through the Brushes drop down menu, instead use the right and left bracket keys (next to the p key).

Also, as a variation on this shortcut, if you want to change the edge of your brush (fuzzy to sharp), hold down Shift and press your right or left bracket keys.

Tool shortcuts
Each tool in the toolbox has its own keyboard shortcut , aka single key accelerator.

B -   Brush Tool.
P -   Pen Tool.
C -  Crop Tool.
E -  Eraser Tool.
G -  Gradient Tool.
H - Hand Tool.
Z -  Zoom Tool.
L -  Lasso Tool.
W - Magic Wand Tool.

Shift+Tab (Hide and show tools and panels)
This allows users to hide all of those panels at once so you can have some breathing room. Pressing TAB again calls them all back.
Ctrl+D /Command+D (Deselect)
Photoshop users are always making new selections. Always deselect using Ctrl+D (Command D). To re-select  most recent selection  use Ctrl+Shift+D.

Adobe Illustrator

Arrow keys (up, down, left, right (move your objects in small increments aka“nudging”)

The default increment amount is 1pt (.0139 inches), but can be changed by tapping arrow key to measure.
Ctrl+K / Command+K : Opens up preference panel and then highlights increment field.
Arrow: Use these to nudge selected artwork the amount specified in the Preferences dialog.
Shift+Arrow: Multiplies the nudge by 10x.
Alt+Arrow / Option+Arrow : This allows you to nudge artwork through specified amount in the Preferences dialog.
Shift+Alt+Arrow / Shift+Option+Arrow: Similar to Shift+Arrow, this one nudges work 10x the amount specified in the Preferences dialog.

Ctrl+U / Command+U (Opens guides)
This function opens the Toggles Smart Guide. When turned on, Smart Guides create a number of onscreen feedback options while you work. As you move around your screen creating and modifying artwork, different smart guides will appear and assist your work.
Ctrl / Command
Temporarily toggles to Selection tool.
Alt / Option
Temporarily toggles to Group Selection tool.
Ctrl+A / Command+A
Select all.
Shift+Ctrl+A / Shift+Command+A
Deselect all.

D / X + a few more (Changing object attributes)
There are a few moves that can help you cover help you cover your tracks after a mistake has been made. Learn these and save yourself some serious headaches:
D
Resets an object’s appearance to white fill, 1pt black stroke.
X
Toggles the focus between Fill and Stroke.
Shift+X
Swaps the colors of an object’s fill and stroke.
/ (Forward slash)
Applies the None attribute.
Ctrl+/
Applies a new fill (via the Appearance panel).
Shift+Ctrl+/ and Shift+Command+/  
Applies a new stroke (via the Appearance panel).
Shift+Ctrl+] (Adjusting stacking order)
Due to the stacking nature of vector graphics, these power moves are essential. While there are four possible settings here, the most important ones to remember are Bring to Front and Send to Back.
Shift-Ctrl-] / Shift+ Command+]
Bring to the front.
Shift+Ctrl+[ / Shift+Command+[
Send to back.
Ctrl-] / Command+]
Bring forward.
Ctrl-[  / Command+[
Send backward.

Note: The difference of the two moves is a matter of distance.

Ctrl+2 / Command+2  and more (Locking and hiding)
Let’s face it, your illustrator work is rewarding, but it is also complex. Locking and hiding one piece of artwork while working on another is invaluable. Below are four quick ways to make that happen:
Ctrl+2 / Command+2
Locks selected objects.
Ctrl+Option+2 / Command+Option+2
Unlocks all objects.
Ctrl+3 /  Command+3
Hides selected objects.
Ctrl+Option+3 /  Command+Option+3
Shows all objects.

Ctrl+V / Command+V (Pasting)
Using the Paste command in Illustrator moves your art to the center of your screen and also allows  objects to be placed  in both front and back.
Ctrl+F / Command+F
Paste in front of the copied object.
Ctrl+B /  Command+B
Paste behind the copied object.

Ctrl+Space / Command+Space (Panning and Zooming)
This one is pretty self-explanatory but underutilized.
Space
Opens the Hand tool.
Ctrl+Space / Command+Space
This will allow you to Zoom in.
Ctrl+Alt+Space / Command+Alt+Space
Hit those and you’re Zooming on out.

Shift+Ctrl+E / Shift+Command+E  (Setting the settings for effect)
Making sure you have the proper settings for each function is key.
Shift+Ctrl+E / Shift+Command+E
Applies the last effect with the same settings.
Shift+Ctrl+Alt+E / Shift+Command+Option+E
Bring up the dialog box of the last-used effect.

InDesign CS5

T
Takes you to the  Type tool.
R
Rotate tool.
S
Scale tool.
V
Selection tool.
A 
Direct Selection tool.
P 
Pen tool.
T
Eyedropper tool.
E
Free Tranfsorm tool.
Z
Zoom.
Ctrl +
Guides.
Ctrl + 1
Actual Size.
Ctrl + 1
Fit Page in Window.

Alright, that’s it. Now get to work!

All too often we see less Web-experienced companies pushing advertising, email and even social media traffic to their homepage – obviously this leads to many missed opportunities. Using a targeted landing page is a sure way to increase the odds of converting that hard-earned traffic into leads.

We’ve discussed landing pages in this space at length in the past, but after attending ION Interactive’s webinar titled, “Landing Pages 3.0: What’s new, What’s hot, What’s not”, I decided a refresher course was in order.

Below are 10 takeaways from the event presented by ION Interactive’s co-founder and Executive Vice President Anna Talerico.

1. Interactive
Using interactive content for landing pages is becoming more common. An interactive landing page – such as enhanced content, sliders, dynamic images and user controls – provides greater access to content on a single page.  These pages appear more website-like than non-interactive landing pages and have been shown to enhance landing page conversion rates.

Interactive pages allow you to keep a simple and clear landing page that can bring in supportive content with more information to the user.

For example, tabbed content allows users to select information they want but doesn’t distract from the landing page’s focus. It’s important to allow user’s discretion to interact with whatever content the chose.

Some ways to make pages interactive:

•  Accordions, rotators, swipes, pop ups, light boxes.
• “One page” content exploration.
• Uses page real estate efficiently.
• Conversion focused.
• High production resources.
• Dynamic  templates make it fast and easy to produce.

Keep page conversion focused. Interactive pages are a creative way to enhance content but make sure to keep focus on conversion.

2. Dynamic
Creating a landing page experience that is more relevant to users is a great way to increase conversions. Start by providing a data value on the first landing page: Ask how many employees their company has or ask what zip code they are in and then reiterate that information on the next page adding some additional information based on their answer.

For example, ask how many employees a company has. Use that information on the second landing page: “Here are insurance plans for companies with five employees.”

By serving up different images and content to different targeted audiences, you’re going to increase the likelihood of conversion.

Bonus tip: Dynamic keyword insertion
Let’s use insurance as our model. Have a page that says, “Really cheap health insurance” echoing back on landing page in specific way. Another landing page should be tailored to people who may have searched for “Affordable health insurance.”

Continually test these pages with different copy and change out imagery with different calls to action based to that. Test!

• Swap content on pages based on keywords, behaviors, etc.
• Increase relevancy and specificity.
• Increase odds of conversions.

And remember to always be testing.

3. Progressive
A multi-touch approach provide users coming to a lead generating landing page first with a very simple form to submit for some type of information. The next “touch” should be a progressive step that confirms basic contact information.

The First "Touch"

Asking additional questions helps to build a user profile over time.

The Second "Touch"

A multi-step approach can really be a big boost for conversions. Numbers suggest the multi form approach increases conversions at a higher rate than single forms. The users are going to walk through a couple screens (above) to complete sign up and by using that dynamic information forms for each step, your odds increase that a visitor progressing to the next page.

Multi-step/Progressive profiling

• Reduces perceived barriers to conversion
• Allows each progressive step to be more relative
• Progressive conversion techniques can be particularly effective for complex conversions requiring  user to fill out multiple form fields.

4. Mobile Ready
According to research firm Gartner, there will be approximately 8 billion mobile devices on the planet by 2015. This is is causing a surge in demand for mobile landing pages as more traffic than ever moves across mobile devices.

There are two ways to best tactically execute landing pages for mobile for traffic.

a. The mobile template.  This page for is built for a standard browser with code to sense if visitors are arriving on mobile devices and serves up a mobile page.

b.  Another option is to make a second version only for mobile traffic. These hand crafted pages are best suited for mobile targeted campaigns– high traffic mobile campaigns like QR codes.

The more automated system serves landing pages for standard browsers and automatically makes mobile versions. It’s not hand crafted. This takes the most important content and displays it from top to bottom on a mobile device. This is good for when you might have some mobile but not a lot.

Mobile optimized pages

• Monitor mobile traffic to determine volume.
• Hand craft pages for mobile specific campaigns.
• Decide which content to place on page and how to position it.
• Automatic optimization to “catch” mobile traffic.
• Reduces effort to produce mobile.

5. Social
What does social mean for conversion focused landing pages? More than you might think. But if you’re planning on using social media on a landing page, make sure to ask visitors to share only after they convert.

Too much too soon?

While social beacons (buttons) provide assurances that you are a company alive and well, these buttons sometimes act as conversion inhibitors. Studies suggest that landing pages with social buttons experience slightly depressed conversion rates. I.e. people leave via those buttons. The Facebook page (above) is too enticing. Many visitors will prematurely bounce via this page before converting.

However, each company needs to make their own determination. Set up an A/B test and see which works best.

Advantage of using social on landing pages: fans, comments and videos can provide ‘social proof’ there are people that like a product and engage with it.

Social engagement itself is a form of conversion- – test, test, test.

To go further with social engagement after conversion, try pulling in a  blog feed on “Thank You” page.

 6. Relevant
Make localized versions for your landing pages. If you’re in Montreal and have local markets that use different languages, make one page in French and one in English. Global campaigns also should think about how to incorporate localizing for different audiences: If you have a campuses in Manhattan and Orlando create a template that can be easily interchanged for conversions wherever they are served.

Try keyword substitution. Make many different targeted versions of these pages. Use different pages for email traffic, social traffic, and search traffic ext.  Make it contextually relevant.

Optimized landing pages for keyword groups- product, brand need keywords….think conversions!

• Browser language detection.
• Geo-location.
• Hyper-local versions of pages (images, content, location).
• Make it relevant to them – increases specificity.

7. Integrated
The concept of integrated landing pages means taking advantage of multiple platforms used by sales and marketing such as CRM (customer relationship management) systems, marketing automation, lead scoring, demand generation systems and website analytics.

Integrate these efforts with all your marketing tools like Sales Force, Google, DoubleClick. Make sure all these things are talking to each other including mobile, social display, QR codes for all the different places you have traffic is key.

8. Disposable
Overinvesting time and energy and budget is a mistake. Your landing pages need to be disposable. Too often marketers approach landing pages like little mini Web projects. If you’ve got too much invested, the less likely you are to toss away a page that isn’t working.

These pages need to be disposable. Continually test and optimize.

Each page can’t be precious. Make them quickly, efficiently.

• Don’t over invest in creative that may not be effective.
• Use templates.
• Reusable images and content.
• Reduce reliance on tech and design resources.
• Allows you to scale efficiently – multi-versions and more dynamic.
• Enables agility – quick speed to market with your ideas.

 9. Data-mined
Have a system in place that pushes key conversion influences.

Here are the type of metrics to measure:

•  Bounce rate.
• Conversion rate.
• Conversion quality.

1. -lead engagement (pre-post convert).
2. -Lead quality.
3. -order value.

•  Visitor behavior on page.
• which action leads to conversions don’t.
• Results by traffic sources.

10. QR
By adding a QR code linked to a landing page, branding opportunities become a trackable lead generation opportunity.

Make sure the landing page is relevant and mobile

• It can be used everywhere.
• Engages visitors quickly.
• Make pages actionable.
• Easy to track and optimize.

The current form:

Note the sidebar of the form. It does not have the VeriSign trust seal.

The “challenger” form:

Note the sidebar of the form. It has only the Verisign trust seal and nothing about privacy of information.

The difference between the two forms: 

The difference in the percentage of visitors to our RAQ form who filled it out was 42 percent, based on testing with Google Website Optimizer. What I found by looking at Google Analytics was even more shocking. The improvement in form fills from organic, non-branded search traffic was 81 percent! 

I have trouble believing the results, so I have relaunched the test in order to confirm these findings. What I will also do is figure out if it is necessarily the presence of the VeriSign seal or simply the absence of the note regarding privacy that caused such increases in form fills. Could it be that the note about “Your Privacy” is creating fears that would otherwise not be there, while the VeriSign seal only adds confidence? What about if there is nothing there?

I will be testing further and will share that info right here. Any suggestions? Drop a comment or tweet me.

Join us at NYC Conversion Optimization Showcase!

If you’d like to showcase some of your own conversion optimization examples and have a live discussion once a month in NYC, then join our new Meetup, Conversion Optimization Showcase. Our first Meetup is scheduled for February 15, at our Madison Ave offices.

“This time will be different,” you say. “I’ll label my layers and group them accordingly.”

So, for the first 50 or so layers you stay on track by taking the time to name them. But eventually you get to a point where you start duplicating groups and before you know it, you’ve regressed to files named Layer 64 copy 3, Vector Smart Objects and imported layers from other PSDs like lost puppies without names or groups to call their homes.

Most designers will argue that time does not permit them to label their layers and groups. “As long as the structure is there it does not matter what I call the layer because I’m the only one who is going to see it right?” Wrong.

Don’t change to fit the computer, change the computer to fit you.

If the mouse isn’t your cup of tea invest in a tablet. Personally, as a left-handed creative, I find it easier and more productive to work with a Wacom tablet. I am able to design with my left hand and navigate the keyboard with my right. Do what works best for you; you’re a designer so get creative.

Learn keyboard shortcuts.

Knowing the shortcuts is half the battle and taking time to learn a few tricks will cut your time down significantly. There are many amazing resources available to learn keyboard shortcuts for the entire Adobe suite such as Training On Site. Have a post-it next to your monitor with the shortcuts so you remember to use them. PSD Tuts+ is another great resource for tricks, tutorials and quizzes.  Testing yourself is a great way to keep growing as a designer.

Screenshot from Training on Site Adobe Photoshop CS5 Shortcuts

Be kind – label.

Once you have the best mouse and can take control of Photoshop you have time to label your layers and files properly. Labeling will help you, and future designers who inherit your PSD, move around the file with ease. There will be no gradient layers gone rogue; everything will have a place in your 72 DPI (Dots Per Inch) environment. One of the best sources in proper design etiquette is The Photoshop Etiquette Manifesto  created by Dan Rose . This thorough site covers everything from naming files to grids and Web fonts by showing the do’s and don’ts of design.

Screenshot from Photoshopetiquette.com

Once the torch is passed we give all the responsibility to the developer to understand what we meant by Group 1 in our files. Unnamed layers can sometimes create more problems with development and more time will have to be spent trying to figure out what they’ve selected and where it goes.

An Organized file is a happy file.

Saving multiple versions is a great way to track your progress and to get elements from later on. However, making sure they are not confused for the approved file is important. Organize files in versions by numbering them V1, V2, V3 and avoid using synonymous words such as latest and newest which don’t tell you anything. Always include the client name so there is no doubt whether or not you have the right file. The ones being used are present and all others are in a separate OLD folder. Create a system that everyone can follow to keep consistency.

In the end, no designer is an Island. Each creative is a piece of a whole whether you are a freelancer, part or full-timer. If we become more conscious of our design etiquette from the start we are more likely to succeed as a team when we finish

However, I’m not here to debate the merits of Twitter with you.  If you’re reading this post, I assume you’ve already come to your own conclusions about Twitter.

So, without further ado, here are nine tactics your brand can use to up its presence on Twitter.

Tactic # 1 Include industry key terms in your bio.

Don’t fill your bio with a bunch of corporate speak and generic mission statements. Instead, fill it with meat:  contact details, sales pitches, and, most importantly, industry key terms. Use all of these details to tell your brand’s story in 160 characters or less.  Doing this will increase your Twitter searchabilty and tells potential customers why they should care about your brand.

Tactic # 2 Make a custom background with contact info.

While you’re limited to only160 characters that the bio offers, your brand’s story isn’t. Create a customized Twitter background and give more information or pictures that can help tell the tale.

If you’re a pizza shop, include pictures of how the shop looked ten years ago and how it looks today. If you’re a shoe retailer, like zappos, include extra contact info such as your email address, Facebook page, or telephone number.  And extra points for anyone who uses a QR code in their background, as @socialmouths does in their custom background.

Tactic # 3 Retweet the experts in your industry with @theirname.

This tactic is particularly useful for brands in the B2B space. When someone comes to your Twitter  page, your bio and custom background aren’t the only things on display—visitors will also be paying a great deal of attention to your individual tweets.

Your tweets – the kind of information you provide, what types of relationships you’ve developed and how much you value customer feedback - tell a lot about what you value as a brand.

So when you tweet make sure to mention experts in your industry and include their @twittername. This not only shows visitors that you are knowledgeable in your field, but it also gets the attention of the experts—who will then retweet your tweets, essentially widening your engagement loop.

Tactic  # 4 Include Images of your team and events in your tweets.

This is a new ability on Twitter, which may explain why it’s so underutilized.  Adding images to your tweets is a great way to project a human element to your Twitter feed. Show company employees cutting lose at functions, show successes, show customer interactions.

All tweets that include pictures show up in the recent images tab, so if there’s an old picture you want to stay up there, you’ll have to keep retweeting it.

Also, one warning: don’t post one dimensional, “safe” pictures (i.e. just staged pictures or generic pictures).  Your followers will sniff out the fake as soon as it’s up.

Tactic # 5 Find industry contacts through Follower Wonk.

Follower Wonk is amazing. Unlike the Twitter search box, which just searches recent tweets, Follower Wonk can dig through the millions and millions of Twitter user profiles, searching for relevant key terms listed in the bio.

If your brand is looking to connect with more people within the Advertising industry, just do a Follower Wonk search for “advertising”, or make it even more specific by searching for “IAB” (Interactive Advertising Bureau).  And, best of all, you can follow all of these users in app (saving you a boat load of “loading time”), and you can sort the list by relevancy or follower/following ratio.  It’s a quick way to find the social media influencers in your industry.  A must have for B2B companies.

Tactic  # 6 Find more experts/similar companies by following lists.

After locating an industry contact through Follower Wonk, check to see if they are on any relevant lists.  More than likely other users have searched for the same type of social media influencers, and have created a list of similar Twitter accounts.  For instance, if I were looking for a recruiter or job site’s with Twitter accounts, I would check out the lists that @CareerBuilder is listed on.  And if I’m a distributor of ice cream hardware products, I would check out lists that @cherrygarcia (Ben and Jerry) is included on.

Tactic # 7 Join established industry chats…or start your own.

Of course, joining an established chat is a great way to network and establish your expertise within a given industry.  Each chat is checked by using a hashtag (i.e #eventprofs), and those comments which include this feature are read by everyone participating in the chat. To find relevant chats within your industry, search for industry keywords on Hashtags.org.

Tactic  # 8 Join WeFollow.

Want Tweeps to find you?  WeFollow has a large network of Twitter people, expands across a number of categories, and is free for anyone to sign up.  Many people use WeFollow to search for industry contacts, so sign up for this free service to increase your Twitter presence.

Tactic  # 9 Create a Publishing Schedule through Hootsuite.

Having consistent content on your twitter feed increases the chances that customers will continue to return.  And one way to do this is to schedule tweets through a publishing platform, such as Hootsuite.  With Hootsuite, you can set-up tweets days, weeks, even months in advance, ensuring your feed is always filled with content.  Industry related tips or quotes is a good piece of content to schedule out in this fashion, as I’ve done with @Exec_comm’s tweets in the picture above.

And for those worried about over flooding your followers feeds—don’t be.  Read the study by  Kiss Metrics for a full explanation.  But as a general rule of thumb, schedule no more than 4 tweets per hour.

Any tips tactics that I missed?  What has your company done to increase it’s presence on Twitter?  Please let us know in the comments section.

Siri, which can do everything from taking dictation for text messages to writing emails and scheduling meetings, has left digital marketers wondering how it will change online search behavior and what, if any, effect it will have on traditional SEO techniques.

The issue will only be compounded further in the coming years as mobile searches are expected to increase from nine percent to 20 percent of total queries by 2012, according to recent report from researchers at RBC Capital Markets. As mobile searches and voice recognition technologies gain popularity, the following marketing strategies can help companies increase the likelihood of ranking at the top of mobile search results:

Optimize social profiles

In some instances, Siri’s search results have nothing to do with a company’s current organic and pay-per-click rankings. For example, when searching for a venue, Siri’s search results are based upon a searcher’s physical location and data from Yelp. Because of this Siri won’t be sending customers your way even if your business ranks number one for “best local food.”

Advice: To better your chances of becoming one of Siri’s suggested answers focus efforts on strengthening content on geographically-based applications such as Foursquare, Facebook Places, Google Reviews and Yelp.  As Yelp recommendations are embedded within Siri’s current software, it’s recommended that companies optimize these profiles in order to target to mobile searchers.

Interact with customers

Simply setting up a profile on Twitter, Facebook and other social networks isn’t enough to spark communication in today’s digital age. Rather, businesses need to provide open communication with customers to establish an online presence.  Apple is reportedly working on Siri’s application programming interface, which will ultimately be the  protocol through which Siri would interact with other services (ie. Facebook, Twitter, etc.) and apps. Be ready!

Advice: Research the applications your competitors use to interact with their audience and ensure you have a strong representation on these because soon Siri will be operating just about everywhere. Following this, be sure to monitor the activity your social networks receive and respond to customer feedback – both positive and negative.

Earn customer reviews

Companies looking to rank high on mobile search results should focus on acquiring genuine reviews by building an online fan base. Offer customers reasons to use your services through special discounts, incentives and most importantly, high-quality customer service.

Advice: Encourage customers to review your services online. While this is the most time consuming marketing tactic, it is also the most influential to Siri SEO. Review-based websites such as Yelp and Urban Spoon have installed monitoring systems to block businesses from posting spam or stuffing inauthentic reviews on profile pages.

Create a mobile site

 This isn’t newsworthy advice, yet many companies have withheld developing a mobile version of their website for one odd reason or another. But as mobile searches are expected to grow exponentially in the upcoming years, the clock is ticking. Thankfully, creating a mobile site is quick and easy with publishing platforms such as WordPress and Drupal.

Advice: When designing the site, clearly feature your business’s contact information and operating hours directly from the homepage. This will improve Siri’s chances of locating the pertinent information to deliver to its searchers, and in turn help deliver customers to your doorstep.

Claim your business listing

The quickest and simplest way to enhance your rankings in mobile search (and online) is to list your business through the main search engines: Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Advice: Registering is free and some allow companies to add photos and videos to help personalize their advertisements.

Consider this: 97 percent of these consumers say they search for local businesses online, according to local media research firm BIA/Kelsey.

Obviously optimizing local business for search is vital for the financial success of any company.

Here are four ways to enhance a business’ online presence:

Add your site to a directory

Providing a listing of your business in a standardized directory or listing is one way to classify your business. This is extremely valuable for people looking for businesses within their own area. One great resource is Yext, which allows you to put your site across multiple directories.  You can update business information such as photos, hours, features, and services through one central dashboard.

A prospective customer that is searching for your business through Yahoo will have the same information as someone searching through HopStop or Citysearch.  This is important for clear and uniform messaging across multiple listings and directories. Consistent business listing information  across several platforms will also help your Google Places ranking.

Contact Info

Listing your contact information on the title tag of your page can provide customers with an easy way of calling or emailing you.  This simple addition can save customers the frustration of searching through your website for contact information when it is clearly listed in the title tag.

Potential customers don’t have to look far to get in touch with you and for a business that takes a lot of orders, this is extremely beneficial for your conversion rate.

Address

The address for your company should be located on the footer of every site.  On the New York Organ Donor Network website the address, telephone number and map of their location are all provided.

Providing a physical address builds trust with your customers and helps your website rank better. Put yourself in the shoes of the customer: Would you feel more confident about buying from someone if they provided an address?  If you don’t have your address on the footer of every site, maybe you should contact us at 212-260-1978 or stop by 102 Madison Avenue.

Reviews

Allowing customers to review your service is important to validate a company’s service.  Hopefully you will receive more positive than negative reviews but if the situation comes up where you are forced to deal with a negative review, a quick and timely response is the best course of action.

Based on recent data below, approximately 70 percent of customers use online reviews to evaluate local businesses.  This stresses the importance of being attentive to customer reviews as it could have a major impact on your business potential.

Using Schema.org Markup

Schema.org can improve search results for your business and helps provide better results for your customers as they search for your business.  Rich snippets can be shown on search engines giving customers detailed information including reviews, photos, and descriptions.

With the listing shown above, you can see the reviews and price range that Google is displaying from the Schema markup on Yelp.

These five simple ways of optimizing your business for search can make a major impact on your website and deliver a significant return on investment for your business.

* Ad-ology Research found that only 54% of businesses with 100 or fewer employees had a website. In its most recent report, Small Business Marketing Forecast 2012, it found that 82% of small businesses have a web presence.

With everything on the Internet pointing towards mobile in some form or fashion, it only seems logical for online properties to find ways to provide geo-location services. A number of companies such as Gowalla, Loopt and even Facebook with “Places” threw their proverbial hats into this arena recently with limited success but when the smoke cleared, two popular services took control of the space: Foursquare and Yelp.

Interestingly enough, while Foursquare and Yelp started in different directions – the former starting as a geo-location with a side of gamification and the latter as a review service – but as time passed these companies’ services have become quite similar. This recent connection between the two has led to a rivalry of sorts. Since we’re about unity in this space, and with both having their pros and cons, we will explore how each in their present states can live harmoniously in today’s world.

Is checking-in a one-trick pony?

This is a notion I’ve read in some posts online. There is obviously some value in checking-in. If there wasn’t, I doubt that so many companies (such as Yelp) would have added the feature, or want to add it or at the very least are trying to add it. Notwithstanding this point, providing a service where checking-in is the only enforceable action will most likely shorten your company’s life cycle to that similar of a fruit fly. There must be something more.

For example, when Foursquare launched they added a point system which added a level of competition—perfect for today’s hyper-connected and competitive society. Yelp decided to emulate (copy is probably  more accurate) this model with the introduction of their check-in service in January of 2010. In addition, both give users the ability to attach pictures, share with Facebook friends and Twitter followers, post tips and gain mayor status and other honorary badges. Given this, I’d suggest Foursquare gets a slight edge in regards to checking-in: 1) for making it popular and “cool” and 2) for extending check-in and its subsequent “rewards” into a product line extending its “cool” factor.

Business perspective: Providing something value added will continue to be a key component for any location-based services.

 The Mobile UX

Finding multiple channels to market to is a great tactic and, in turn, I would advise against a mobile-only experience. For now, at least. Nonetheless, geo-location is inherently mobile—unless you’re planning to walk around with a laptop or a desktop all day. When it comes to the majority of Foursquare’s user experience, it has to be mobile.

(Above: Mobile Growth Hitting All Segments)

While Yelp’s mobile experience is, as we mentioned earlier, very similar to that of Foursquare, it does allow you to draft a review of any venue you visited or search online at home and then migrate to mobile as you move about. Some users, however, may feel that not being able to finalize their thoughts from a mobile device is a missed opportunity, especially since reviews are Yelp’s claim to fame. Drafting a review does allow you to get your thoughts on virtual paper though, and you’re less likely to forget anything, good or bad, that took place at the venue. In this case, for its purpose, Yelp will get a slight nod.

Business perspective: The best (and cheapest) advertising your business can find is through current clients. A platform that allows consumers to share their experience will drive even more through your doors.

What’s the Deal?

To quickly go back to the idea of checking-in for a moment, let’s think of this situation: I’ve checked in, got my points, got my badge and even possibly became a regular or a mayor. Now what? Why should I continue to check-in besides trying to beat my friends in this game?

Both companies have overlaid deal structures with their services: Yelp with their own branded deals; and Foursquare partnering with the likes of Groupon and American Express, most notably on Small Business Saturday. These deals have certainly helped both entities grow. The ability to save a couple of dollars by simply checking into a restaurant, retail store or other place is a more than fair trade off and opens the opportunity to breed brand ambassadorship.

Business perspective: In the deal category, it is Foursquare’s aptness to work with both the venue and third parties to form deals for the user that presents a small advantage.

Content provides engagement and long-term value

There’s no denying this fact—particularly when you’re talking about social media. We all know that engagement is a big deal. Yelp’s platform gives people a chance to submit detailed reviews and, obviously, people can then respond. Furthermore, Yelp’s rating system also extends user engagement thus giving it a leg up on Foursquare in the content realm. Foursquare provides its engagement at a much more mobile level. Although there is no rating system, users can still make comments on venues, leave tips and also comment on people’s check-ins—all forms of engagement that make sense on their platform. Yelp, by design, is the winner in this category. It was built on content, with content and through content.

Business perspective: User engagement is the cornerstone of online and mobile business. The more content you provide the more likely consumers will interact with you. The more they interact, the more likely they are to become customers. Period!

The moral of the story is: Finding what works best for you is what’s most important. Yes, Foursquare and yelp may share much of the same audience, but both sites still have their own unique spaces even though they might not be as disparate as other competitors in other industries. Once you’ve gained the knowledge of both, your decision simply boils down to choice. I use both. How about you?