But when we look at the individual mediums and their ad spend growth, it’s new technology that shouldn’t be overlooked.

For instance, augmented reality advertising spend grew by 94 percent from 2014 to 2017. That’s a stark contrast against display and search ad spend growth at 53 percent.

Virtual reality and augmented reality — while fascinating — are still in their infancies. But if we look at VR and AR over the past several years, it’s clear that the technology is in no means of slowing down. And as we all know, where people go — advertisers follow.

The inception of AR in advertising

Many social media advertisers have already adopted augmented reality into their advertising strategies, opening up the possibility that VR could someday be a channel for advertisers.

Take Snapchat for instance. It’s one of the pioneers in augmented reality ads, giving users the ability to try on products or view them in a “real life” setting. It’s one of the ways that Snapchat has started to differentiate the ability of its platform.

^Source

Facebook has also been testing augmented reality ads in the News Feed, so it won’t be long before more platforms adopt this type of interactive creative.

AR advertising works well, and here’s why:

• It invokes an emotional response. People love the ability to interact with your content rather than simply view it.
• Virtual try-ons increase sales. Almost literally, it puts the product in front of the user and gives them a real-world sense of what it would be like to have that item.
• It boosts hyperlocal advertising. AR ads are more than just informative. These ads can guide users to a product.

Related: How much does it cost to advertise on Snapchat?

What could a VR digital advertising world look like?

We’re already seeing how AR positively impacts the user experience and brand-to-consumer relationship, but what about VR?

AR makes advertising fun for users and its interactive ability draws them in. There is no question we would see the same response from VR ads. People have begun to develop an immunity to ads across social channels because they’ve become accustomed to scrolling and ingesting content quickly.

VR, however, does something different. It immerses users into a different type of reality with fewer distractions. It will invoke that same emotional response we’re seeing with AR ads, but possibly on a much larger scale.

A VR digital advertising world could look a lot different from what we see now, but that’s years away. It hasn’t yet gained massive adoption like social media and digital video, but it really is only a matter of time before VR takes over living rooms and office spaces.

The key component to VR advertising is the ability to adapt. Advertising has come a long way over the past two decades and will continue to evolve. Evolving as the industry progresses is an absolute must for brands.

The post Are AR and VR the future of digital advertising? appeared first on Strike Social.

Revealing the Facts: Debunking Social Media Marketing Myths

Entering the world of social media marketing can feel like riding a rollercoaster through a maze. With numerous marketing platforms vying for attention, we find ourselves awash in articles offering conflicting advice. 

This article is your guide to unveiling the truth behind social media marketing myths that have taken over the world of digital advertising. Furthermore, prepare to step into a realm of clarity and revelation. Welcome, and allow us to demystify the journey ahead.

What Are Some Common Myths About Social Media Marketing?

These popular social media marketing myths have garnered significant attention, leading some to adopt these falsehoods as catalysts for their online strategies. It’s time to dive into the truths concealed behind these 

Social Media Marketing Myth 1: Success is measured by follower count.

Follower count, often considered a vanity metric, may seem appealing. Although a sizable following can be an advantage, engagement metrics such as likes, comments, and shares offer more meaningful insights into success. The real value lies in genuine engagement and the quality of your followers. Your marketing strategy shouldn’t hinge solely on accumulating followers.

HubSpot’s 2023 research sheds light on the key metrics that occupy the attention of social media marketers, spanning to both organic and paid campaigns. Interestingly, the conventional measure of follower count has taken a backseat, as marketers focus on more important metrics including traffic, impressions, lead generation, and engagement.

Social Media Marketing Myth 2: Sign up on all social media platforms.

The notion that you must instantly establish a presence on every social media network is one of the common social media misconceptions. Instead, direct your focus towards platforms where your target audience actively engages in. Avoid spending time and resources attempting to be omnipresent.

For instance, Instagram might be the ideal choice for those who value aesthetic branding to captivate potential customers. Instagram Reels have made its mark and even the smallest accounts achieve up to 39.46% reach.

On the other hand, if you aspire to establish authority in a specific domain and expand your network, LinkedIn provides the platform where industry professionals receive pertinent updates.

Social Media Marketing Myth 3: You cannot measure social media marketing efforts.

Contrary to popular belief, social media marketing is highly measurable, but it requires tangible actions that can be quantified. Employ methods like tracking URLs, assessing your purchase funnel, and maintaining unified customer databases. These collectively address the fundamental question of whether your endeavors yield profitability.

Various social media platforms offer measurement tools tailored to track followers, engagement, and more. Facebook has the Meta Business Suite, TikTok offers Creator Tools and Analytics, and other platforms have their own counterparts, each serving unique analytical purposes.

Curious about how the Meta Business Suite works? Simply scan the QR code to download the app on your mobile device.

With the Meta Business Suite, you can track engagement insights, see how your posts are doing, and take a peek into your audience demographics. From Facebook to Instagram, Meta equips you with this tool to seamlessly engage with your customers across all apps.

Incorporating advanced technology, Campaign Lab is Strike Social’s proprietary tool that allows our media buyers to monitor ads across diverse platforms. Empowered by machine learning and historical data, Campaign Lab utilizes hyper-granular targeting, ensuring precise audience reach while optimizing campaigns around the clock.

Social Media Marketing Myth 4: Content marketing and social media exist as separate endeavors.

The truth is that content and social media should operate closely together. Research by Semrush reveals that sharing content via social media reigns as the most popular organic promotion channel, followed closely by optimizing content for search engines. Merging these two strategies creates an unstoppable force. As you know, your email call-to-action (CTA) can significantly impact your sales. For cold emails, reply rates typically range from 15-25%. Therefore, the content in your emails is just as critical as your ad copies and blog articles.

Extend the reach of your content by repurposing it for your social platforms. Capitalize on the power of social media to promote your latest blog posts, articles, or email content. By steering traffic to your website, you guide visitors to explore various facets of your business that align with their interests.

Social Media Marketing Myth 5: It’s fine to not give credit.

Whether it’s an image or a featured post, ensure credit is given when due. 

Offering proper credit reflects your brand’s integrity and values. It’s not only a respectful gesture, but can also help avoid potential controversies that could impact your brand. These small oversights can affect your business, particularly when uncredited content is used in ads.

Social Media Marketing Myth 6: Negative feedback is harmless.

Negative feedback, when left unattended, can leave an impression of indifference on observing customers.  These comments present opportunities for productive conversations and a chance to highlight your brand’s responsiveness. By addressing concerns transparently and professionally, you emphasize your commitment to customer satisfaction, potentially transforming critics into advocates.

Instead of overlooking them, engage with every comment—whether it’s praise or criticism—and do so swiftly. Quick responses showcase your brand as attentive and caring, which is essential for building trust.

Source: Starbucks Coffee Instagram page

Social Media Marketing Myth 7: Newer platforms should be dismissed.

Some of today’s most influential social media giants, like TikTok, was once a newcomer. In 2020, it emerged as a simple content-sharing app, primarily focusing on dancing, trends, and similar content. Today, TikTok stands among the top five social media platforms, poised to generate ad revenues of $13.79 billion by 2026.

Engaging with newer platforms doesn’t mean immediate dominance, but it does mean positioning your brand for future success. Investing time and resources into understanding the unique features of these platforms can yield substantial returns in the long run.

Social Media Marketing Myth 8: You must spend big on social media ads.

While social media ads indeed offer a valuable means to connect with your target audience, they aren’t the exclusive route to effective marketing. 

This is one of the common social media mistakes where businesses spend lavishly on ads without understanding the specifics. Get familiar with ad management tools that can help you assess campaign costs and optimize for the best ads. 

The synergy between organic and sponsored content also fuels your brand engagement. A prime example is TikTok Pulse, a powerhouse for advertisers seeking broader reach and enhanced engagement. By connecting ads with high-performing organic content, brands tap into the popular content that resonates with their audience. This balanced approach taps into both strategies to enhance your visibility on these platforms.

Social Media Marketing Myth 9: Social media marketing is exclusively for B2C enterprises.

SMM transcends business size and industry, contrary to this popular social media marketing myth. It’s an effective tool for B2C and B2B entities alike, fostering audience connection, relationship building, and business expansion.

By disseminating actionable and educational content, B2B brands position themselves as authoritative thought leaders. This, in turn, cultivates trust and credibility within their specific sectors.
LinkedIn, for example, caters to both consumer-facing and B2B businesses, offering avenues to create company pages, share updates, and engage with consumers. Moreover, LinkedIn’s paid advertising options allow B2B companies to target specific audiences based on professional backgrounds and job titles.

Social Media Marketing Myth 10: One person can manage all aspects of social media.

Digital marketing is a collaborative endeavor. Relying solely on one Social Media Manager can be limiting. While one person may hold primary accountability for social media management, the responsibility of ideation and feedback extends to the entire team. From marketers and designers to salespeople and project managers, each person’s insights are valuable.

Incorporating a digital advertising team can further enhance your efforts. These specialists can automate media planning and ads management, adding efficiency and expertise to your campaigns.

Break Free From These Fallacies And Craft Fact-Based Social Media Strategies

Our mission was clear: debunking common social media marketing myths that can mislead marketers. With each myth unraveled, we’ve revealed actionable insights that pave the way for triumph. As we wrap up, remember: myths may persist, but knowledge prevails. Armed with these truths, you can confidently step into a domain of effective strategies, where clarity guides you toward accomplishment.

Hungry for more insights on social media marketing? Subscribe now for regular updates and stay at the forefront of digital advertising trends. 

Expand your expertise. Browse Strike Social’s latest blogs here:

• 
  YouTube Ads for Traffic and Action Campaigns: Do They Work?
• 
  Shifting From TikTok to Instagram Reels Ads Without Losing Performance
• 
  7 Emerging Digital Marketing Trends for 2025
• 
  Inspiring Insights for Your 2025 Valentine’s Day Ad Campaigns
• 
  Play to Win With Our 2025 Super Bowl Ads Strategy Guide
• 
  Complete Guide to Facebook Advertising in 2025

The post Have You Been Fooled by These 10 Social Media Marketing Myths? appeared first on Strike Social.

Yes, you really can have these items delivered to your door on a monthly, even weekly basis in the form of a fun (sometimes elaborately) decorated subscription box.

Every month (or recurrent period), these subscription boxes with special goods are delivered to millions of consumers — for a fixed recurring price, of course.

And the subscription box business is booming.

We have the internet (and millennials) to thank

Before subscription boxes became just another delivery convenience, they were, for the most part, a marketing tool (and still very much are). But there’s much more to it than that now.

The first known subscription box surfaced in 2004, which allowed consumers to sample products from an array of independent web-based artists and shops. It was a convenient and unique way for artists to market their products to new audiences.

And the idea worked. The reason? Advances in technology and the users behind it.

These subscription box stats speak for themselves:

• From 2014 to 2017, subscription box services grew 800%.
• E-commerce subscribers are most likely to be between the ages of 25 and 44 years old and live in urban environments.
• Women account for the majority of subscribers.
• 15% of online shoppers have subscribed to an e-commerce service over the past year.

Why subscription sales continue to rise

The questions now remain, Why are subscription boxes so popular? Why do they work? Why are people subscribing?

The answers may seem simple but there’s much more to receiving a box full of lipsticks and hand lotions or meal-prepped dinners on a monthly basis.

Discovery

People subscribe to monthly packages of curated goods or hand-picked items simply because it’s fun. The element of surprise with curated boxes is what sells. People love to come across products they may not have otherwise discovered in store or ever thought to have purchased on their own.

What does it mean for the brand?

Discovery with subscription boxes works in many ways. For one, consumers can learn about new products in curated boxes. If they find value, they’ll continue to purchase outside of the subscription. Even if a consumer doesn’t necessarily enjoy a product they receive, there is at least that boost in brand awareness through discovery, use or regifting.

Convenience

Subscription boxes emerged at a time when streaming services, Amazon Prime and rideshare apps became a way of life. And what do all of these services have in common? Convenience.

Consumers set up a recurring payment and they receive their subscription box with new goods or products they’re already familiar with. As with many tech services today, this frees up time for consumers.

There is no travel needed and they set up one payment to process monthly. Easy.

What does it mean for the brand?

Three words: consumers crave convenience. Brands that can add value on top of value (satisfying delivery along with personalized products) see a boost in customer retention and loyalty.

Personalization

One of the more underlying selling points to these services is personalization. E-commerce subscription businesses often quiz their customers before signup to dissect what potential buyers are looking for. That means more valuable, relevant products.

What does it mean for the brand?

Personalization is one of the biggest causes of increased customer loyalty. People expect relevancy and subscription boxes offer just that. Whether you’re an e-commerce company with a subscription service or it’s your entire business model, customer loyalty is a package deal.

But consider what else these boxes do. These product boxes are just another way for brands to learn about their customers, whether it’s through reviews, surveys or quizzes about the box they receive. Brands can learn even more about their customer and hone in on what really matters to them across all marketing efforts.

Related: How an online subscription service increased sales with personalized Facebook ads

What’s next for subscription boxes?

If there’s one thing to take away, it’s that these services are much more than sending and receiving boxes. Subscription boxes are a win-win for consumers and brands.

The subscription box business model continues to grow and with it, new opportunities and avenues to market these unique, personalized packages.

If you’re in the subscription box business, check out our 8 tips on how to market your subscription box to increase sales.

The post Why the subscription box business model works for brands appeared first on Strike Social.

In a recent post from the professional networking site, it announced a new algorithm designed to help generate more engagement for users.

While millions of posts, videos and articles flow through the feed daily to its 500 million users, LinkedIn engineers noticed an unfair distribution in engagement, with an emphasis put on top creators.

That ultimately led to a new algorithm model that’s correcting how the platform ranks and distributes users’ content.

LinkedIn’s old algorithm was a lose-lose situation

There are two distinct roles in LinkedIn’s feed: creators (those who share posts) and feed viewers (those who read the posts and respond to them).

Prior to its recent algorithm update, LinkedIn was seeing 50 percent year-over-year engagement.

Unfortunately, that increase wasn’t equally distributed among creators, with only the top one percent of creators taking the highest share of engagement. And the number of LinkedIn creators getting zero feedback on posts was increasing.

That resulted in crowding the feed with “hyper-viral” posts, and therefore viewers were missing out on posts that mattered closely to them.

So, in other words, LinkedIn attempting to push more content considered relevant to a general, broad audience eventually resulted in not-so-relevant content.

LinkedIn’s new algorithm addresses that problem, showing viewers more meaningful posts.

About eight percent of content feedback is now redistributed from top creators down to the bottom 98 percent of users. As a result, the platform is seeing a wide range of content more equally distributed among users and more users are posting because of it.

LinkedIn isn’t the only platform with an engagement problem

This isn’t exclusive to LinkedIn.

The phenomenon is called the “Matthew effect,” and it can be described as “the rich get richer and the poor get poorer.”

Think to your other digital marketing channels and your organic engagement metrics. Users across Facebook, Instagram and Twitter suffer from the same adverse effects of algorithms that prioritize content from top users or posts expected to go viral.

In general, established figures or well-known companies tend to see higher engagement levels in general across networks than those that are smaller and less-established.

That’s exactly what LinkedIn’s new algorithm is designed to correct.

What does the new LinkedIn feed mean for marketers?

More people are posting and engaging with each other more than ever on the networking site, so this must be good news, right?

Yes, but it’s highly unlikely you’ll start to see leaps and bounds in engagement from the algorithm shift. Instead, you’ll likely see some distribution in response levels to your posts but nothing extreme.

We believe that when algorithm changes come along like these, it’s important to explore these updates and test the marketing potential before completely diving in expecting to see a complete turnaround in results.

You should keep the following in mind:

• If you’re not using LinkedIn in your digital marketing mix at all, give it a test and monitor your engagement metrics closely.
• If you’d given up on the network due to poor engagement in the past, it’s worth testing current engagement rates to previous metrics.
• Monitor your post metrics and see if there’s any distribution in engagement if you’ve been using LinkedIn consistently during the algorithm change

Right now, the question is whether or not this will make LinkedIn more appealing to marketers and advertisers. If so, the platform could become even more competitive in the long-run.

How to make LinkedIn’s new algorithm work for you

According to LinkedIn, its new algorithm is already working for users as they continue to see more meaningful posts and more engagement across the board.

Still, you might be wondering if there is anything you should be doing to play into LinkedIn’s algorithm update. While there isn’t anything you immediately have to do other than simply monitor engagement metrics, there are some tasks at hand that can help you stand out and get stronger responses to your content.

1. Ask your community a question

LinkedIn is a place where professional conversations take place and connections happen.

Try opening your posts up by asking a question, or tell a story and end with a question to get your community talking.

The key here is to engage members of your audience through comments and shares, and one of the most powerful ways to do this is by starting a conversation.

2. Keep your company updates short and sweet

Contrary to popular belief, your audience doesn’t always want to read big updates. If you have a business update, keep your post text under 100 characters for optimal engagement.

Chances are, you’re audience will be more willing to respond or react to your post rather than simply scroll past a block of text.

In this case, less is more.

3. Posts with an image receive higher engagement

We live in a visual world, and LinkedIn is no exception.

LinkedIn posts with images receive 200 percent more engagement than posts that simply display text.

Imagery should be relevant and tell a story.

That’s why graphs and charts tend to see the most engagement on LinkedIn because not only do they provide the feed viewer with a bit more insight, they’re powerful and educational.

When in doubt, add an image.

4. Test your LinkedIn performance on weekends

Fourty percent of users use LinkedIn daily. The keyword here is daily. That means weekends, too.

Don’t limit your LinkedIn posts to weekdays simply because that’s when you’re audience may be most active in their lives. In fact, it makes the most sense to test times when your audience isn’t at work and is browsing LinkedIn for educational purposes.

This includes Friday, Saturday and Sunday along with evenings or early mornings.

Test when your audience is most active and monitor your engagement metrics. Then, focus on those days where you see the highest response.

5. Mix up your content

As with all social networks, you should treat LinkedIn as its own unique channel with a singular purpose. Posting the same content over and over results in engagement dropping off.

Think about what people are on LinkedIn for:

• Education
• Professional development
• Job opportunities
• Connections
• Industry insights

The list goes on. Don’t solely post about company updates or blog content to funnel your audience into your site.

After all, there are around 40 million student and graduate profiles on LinkedIn, which means your content can span from job openings to industry insights.

Linking your efforts to engagement

LinkedIn’s updated feed is just another change in the algorithm universe. Our advice is to be aware of these changes as they come along and continue to test your Linkedin marketing efforts and determine what works best for your brand.

Drop us a message if you have any other questions about LinkedIn’s algorithm update.

The post Here’s why you’re suddenly seeing more engagement on LinkedIn appeared first on Strike Social.

It’s no surprise that with the rapid growth of the internet, social media and the digital ecosystem as a whole, there is a critical need for better controls and safety measures.

Brand safety, however, often leaves many companies with the question, “What measures can I take to effectively protect my brand and still deliver powerful results?”

That’s what makes brand safety not only important but also challenging in the world of advertising — it’s the need for shielding against unwanted associations while still driving results that make an impact. After all, everything is at stake: advertising budgets, reputations and relationships.

Looking ahead, brand safety will continue to play a major role in the advertising industry. As we approach 2019, here’s how advertisers should prepare for brand safety in the new year.

Related: Brand safety measures for YouTube advertising

1. First, define brand safety.

You’ve heard it before, but it’s worth mentioning — defining brand safety and what it means for your business is step one.

Every company owns its own brand safety. If your ad appears on a negative website, it’s your reputation that’s at stake.

So it’s necessary to own your brand safety and define what it means to you. Sure, there is the IAB Gold Standard which is an excellent guideline to follow, but go beyond that. Brand safety is subjective. An alcohol and beverage company may have different tolerances than a retail company.

Think about what brand safety means for you.

2. Find the balance between what is safe and what is relevant.

While adtech and programmatic continue to advance, advertisers are still skeptical of brand safety solutions and just how impactful they can be. A major underlying concern is a balance between safety and relevancy.

Advertisers want to reach the largest target audience without risking their reputation (or without missing out on the audiences that could be driving results). It’s a catch-22 for advertisers.

Whitelisting is one solution to this. Brands have been employing humans to whitelist safe content and websites, but it’s not enough anymore to scour the web manually for safe content. Whitelisting is extremely powerful, but what if this method could be scaled and effective for advertisers?

Enter machine learning.

By employing smart technology, advertisers don’t have to limit themselves to handpicked whitelisted websites. Technology powered by machine-learning can experiment, test and learn from past campaigns to generate unique insights and identify ad placements that are safe and most likely to drive the best results.

The solution is a scalable brand safety net where companies get the best of both worlds: brand safety and high-impact results.

3. Brand safety isn’t black and white.

Because we’re on the topic of whitelisting, let’s talk about how brand safety is more than just blacklists and whitelists.

Sure, blacklisting unsafe content and curating harmless sites or channels is one place to start but there’s much more beyond these two methods. At Strike Social, we recommend some of these key strategies to protect your brand:

• Use a combination of negative keywords injunction with blacklists
• Don’t just whitelist domains — go deep and conduct an analysis on pages (an entire site may have unsafe topics or sections)
• Don’t set it and forget it — review your blacklists and keywords on a regular basis. The internet changes fast. Keep up with the content your brand appears against.

Related: Addressing brand safety measures for Google advertising

As we move into 2019, prepare your team for next year’s challenges ahead. Define what brand safety will mean for you next year and what measures you can begin taking now to prepare for a successful year.

The post 3 Tips to approach brand safety head on in 2019 appeared first on Strike Social.

In the announcement, Facebook said:

“Low-quality ads on Facebook, such as ones that include clickbait or direct people to unexpected content, create bad experiences for people and don’t align with our goal of creating meaningful connections between people and businesses. We are now going further in our efforts to limit low-quality ads on our platforms by disapproving more of them and reducing distribution for more ads in our auction.”

Facebook’s new low-quality ad restrictions come at a time when more and more social channels are pushing for transparency to ensure users have quality experiences on their platforms.

So what does all this mean? And how strict are the restrictions? In this article, we’ll outline everything you need to know about Facebook’s new restrictions on low-quality ads and what this means for advertisers.

What is considered a low-quality ad on Facebook?

Facebook outlines a few examples of typical low-quality ads to avoid:

Engagement bait

Ads asking users for likes, comments or shares are considered spammy content. Facebook also has specific rules about likes and comments in contest promotions.

Remember that these types of ads that hack Facebook’s engagement algorithm are not only poor in nature, but they can also skew your data.

Withholding information

Ads that clearly withhold information in the copy to entice people to click or understand the full context are restricted.

This type of ad is a key problem when it comes to transparency and user experience — they often lead to spam or landing pages that a user has no interest in.

Sensationalized language

Facebook restricts ads that exaggerate headlines or command a reaction from people but don’t deliver what’s expected on the landing page.

While this type of ad can be effective, Facebook is moving to restrict them to avoid poor user experience. The problem is, some brands draw attention using dramatized or outrageous headlines that overstate the ad’s true purpose, which leads to unnecessary and false information. An ad like this could be using words like “amazing” or “mind-blowing” in the ad copy as you see in this example below.

In addition to these main restrictions, Facebook deems an ad low-quality or disruptive if the ad contains or does any of the following:

• Uses images that are excessively cropped or require people to click the ad to view the full image.
• Includes deceptive ad copy that incentivizes people to click on the ad.
• Features suggestive or shocking content on the landing page.
• Displays malicious or deceptive ads on the landing page.
• Has a high ratio of ads relative to content on the landing page.
• Uses popup ads, interstitial ads or other other ad formats on the landing page that disrupt the user experience.
• Provides an experience in which the content doesn’t match what the user expected to see.

What do these new restrictions mean for advertisers?

It seems simple, right? Avoid low-quality ads in your ad groups and it’s smooth sailing.

But Facebook isn’t only pushing for improved ad quality — it’s incentivizing advertisers to avoid it at all costs. Even one or a few ads that slip through the cracks could impact the performance of all your Facebook ads.

To enforce these low-quality characteristics, Facebook has put a couple of penalties in place to motivate advertisers to only create truthful and transparent ad experiences.

These penalties for low-ad quality ads on Facebook include:

• Any ad with low-quality attributes will see reduced distribution in Facebook’s ad auction or will be disapproved. This applies to all advertisers, but media, entertainment, politics or issues of national importance may be impacted more as low-quality characteristics often pertain to them the most.
• Multiple ads flagged with low-quality attributes can impact the performance of all your ads on Facebook.

As an advertiser, this means you should follow these restrictions carefully.

Even a couple ads considered low-quality could restrict all of your ads on Facebook, which leads to less audience reach and higher costs.

We recommend that if you’re running a Facebook campaign, be transparent and honest about your product and service offerings. Don’t sensationalize or tempt users to click on ads with inflated headlines or copy.

Facebook’s low-quality ad restrictions are just another step in the direction toward transparency on the platform and it’s best that brands fall in line to ensure the best possible user experience.

The post Why a couple of bad ads on Facebook could affect all of your ads appeared first on Strike Social.

Why change a thing?

As with any advertising initiative, the key to YouTube advertising is testing. What you might think is the less-than-ideal target audience for your YouTube campaign may actually be what eventually drives conversions.

So let’s say you decide to test another demographic or change up your audience groups. It takes time, critical thinking and analysis, but you learn that this particular audience is not only watching your ads but, to your surprise, they’re even clicking on them.

Believe it or not, this scenario is completely achievable.

Related: YouTube ad targeting: Hit the target the first time

Using Strike Social technology, we’ve uncovered the insights to give you a sneak peek into undiscovered audiences you might be missing in your YouTube campaigns.

In this article, we’ll break down those hidden audiences on YouTube by vertical based on average view rate (VR):

• Automotive
• Fashion
• Gaming
• Health & Beauty
• Retail
  

---

What is view rate?

A view rate is the number of times your video ad has been viewed divided by the number of impressions. It is expressed as a percentage and shows how many people actually watched your ad. It’s important to note that view rates vary by industry, market and creative impact.

Automotive

It’s easy to assume that people in their mid-to-late 20s and early 30s are purchasing vehicles. It’s likely that these individuals are targeted based on competitive automotive keywords and interests — car brands, auto parts, you name it.

You might also imagine weather- and sports-centric topics are popular targets and perform well, but there are far too many missed opportunities by simply targeting the average audience!

Our research revealed that parenting topics along with rock music fans and news junky affinities are also likely to respond to automotive adverts.

Country music also sees an above-average VR. Additionally, we found that family keywords fell within the scope of targeting, though that’s not too hard to believe given car buyers must consider they’re family when purchasing.

Fashion

As you can imagine, targeting anything and everything to do with fashion along with shoppers, fashionistas and business professional affinities will likely receive fashion ads positively. It’s pretty much a given. But there are a few hidden opportunities worth testing.

In our findings, we discovered that music lovers, music keywords, social media enthusiasts and TV show topics have respectable average view rates. That means, of course, that there are some potential customers that fall within these specific groups — or at the very least, individuals who may respond to your ads that you can identify and retarget.

Gaming

When it comes to gaming, targeting bargain hunters, music lovers and TV show topics stand a chance.

As you may have assumed (and assumed correctly), focusing on video game brands, sports, and action and sci-fi topics or keywords is the norm in the gaming industry.

So why bargain hunters? It’s certainly an interesting out-of-the-norm affinity audience, but think about it: there’s a plethora of collectors, thrifters and gamers alike that are keen on scoping out collectibles, games or consoles for reasonable prices.

Like fashionistas, gamers are also receptive to music topics and keywords.

Health & Beauty

Our data revealed some insightful findings for Health & Beauty.

The audiences that surprised us the most are (you guessed it): gamers and action & adventure movie fans. Testing these affinities in your targeting efforts might actually earn you some surprising results.

When presented with a health or beauty ad, nearly 38.4% of action & adventure movie fans watch it. That’s a pretty outstanding average VR, so it’s worth testing to see how your ads could perform against this kind of audience.

Retail

Retail encompasses an infinite range of goods and services, so determining an audience will depend largely on your target market, age group and lifestyle preferences. As we’re talking about retail as a whole here, these are the audiences that you may not have considered:

Of our findings, DIY affinity and keywords are perhaps one of the more unconventional audience segments for retailers. That’s simply because DIYers are often lumped with bargain hunters — those who are trying to save money.

But that’s not all they want.

They want to be inspired, and retailers may offer that certain something DIYers are looking for.

Finding unique audiences that respond to your ads

Discovering those audiences may seem daunting, but it’s possible. It requires critical thinking and some rich data to give you the right insights to begin testing.

To begin your research, we suggest the following:

• Look at your desired audience. Who are they? How would you describe them?
• Sort through your contacts database.
• Collect information from surveys or forms to learn more about your current customers.
• Gather insights from your sales department. Who are they talking to? Who’s responding?
• Utilize a recommendation engine or collect industry data from various tools.

YouTube audiences aren’t cut-and-dry

Everything isn’t always what it seems. You may be targeting an audience that’s getting money in your pocket, but there are others you may have never considered that could do the same.

These unconventional audience groups aren’t going to be the end-all-be-all to your YouTube campaigns, but what you’ll find is that there are untapped audience groups that may respond surprisingly well to your YouTube ads — perhaps by raising awareness or helping you identify potential customers likely to convert in the future.

The takeaway: never stop testing

After reviewing our data analysis, one thing is certain: never stop testing. There are far too many missed opportunities to always stick to mainstream targets.

While there are groups out there that may not always fall within your typical audience, those might be the same people who will become your customer down the road. The challenge is finding those people and understanding the correlation between their interests and your brand. That way, you can continue discovering audience groups that may, in fact, be on the lookout for your product.

There are audiences out there waiting to be uncovered, so keep testing.

Who knows — you may even discover that they outperform your average audience.

Schedule a demo of our YouTube advertising platform to learn how you can maximize your success and uncover new audiences.

The post The top 3 audiences you’re missing in your YouTube campaigns appeared first on Strike Social.

You can pretty much subscribe to anything today — razors, makeup, prepped dinners and clothing styles handpicked just for you. The list goes on.

If you’re in the subscription box industry, you know very well that it’s become saturated with curated boxes left and right. That makes it pretty difficult to stand out through all the noise.

We get it — subscription boxes are booming and people love them! So, coming up with unique subscription box marketing ideas has become a challenge. In this article, we’ll dive into 8 ways (some you have probably thought of, and some you haven’t) to market your subscription box to the masses and keep subscribers happy.

Related: How one subscription shoe brand boosted digital sales with personalized Facebook ads

1. Leverage subscription box bloggers

You have probably seen the thousands social media influencers scattered across Instagram and YouTube offering reviews of their favorite subscription boxes. This is a great place to start, after all, people listen to their favorite social media celebrities. Start here but go beyond just reaching out to social media influencers to market your box.

There are actually subscription box bloggers out there that do this for a living — they go by Box Bloggers. These bloggers offer authentic reviews based on topics they love. Research bloggers with an established following and don’t forget to engage with their audience.

2. Build a loyal social community

Subscription boxes go beyond just the package. It’s about building a loyal community where you can share ideas, inspiration and new products. That value should flow through to your social media channels, too.

Your channels should do more than post about a monthly box and what’s inside. Instead, the key is to engage and get your subscribers involved. We’ll go into more detailed below with user-generated content, but it’s absolutely necessary to acknowledge your customers — whether it’s through responding to reviews, comments or online inquiries.

This might also be in the form of chatbots, like the Facebook Messenger Bot.

BOXYCHARM, a health and beauty subscription box, has a Facebook chatbot that establishes this loyal customer communication with ease from tracking shipping status to customizing boxes.

3. User-generated content

Your biggest influencers are your customers. Leverage their ability to share new products and exciting new discoveries through their social media channels.

One way to do this is by including a letter in their monthly box with an incentive (for example, a percentage off a monthly rate) to share a photo of themselves with their box to Instagram and use a specific hashtag. This not only strengthens your online community and gets your customers excited, but it’s a natural way to build awareness through your customers.

This also depends on the type of market you’re in. For pet boxes, you might have customers submit and share a photo with their pet or Instagram videos of your customers trying out the latest recipe box they received.

The ideas can only get more unique from there.

4. Use powerful SEO tactics

Because the subscription business is booming, having competitive SEO measures in place will help you stand out and get found on the internet’s top search engines.

That means throughout keyword research that also differentiates you from other subscription services. For example, if you’re a curation makeup box, going beyond a keyword like makeup subscription box and instead using monthly makeup subscription box with full-size products will distinguish your brand from the others.

Think about what your target audience is looking for and how they’re looking for it on search engines.

Use long-tail keywords, give all of your landing pages proper meta tags and don’t shy away from powerful imagery on your site.

5. Motivate customers to increase sign-ups

To get more subscriptions for your box, you can do the usual incentives like offering the first monthly box for free or a percentage off the first three months, but these have all been done before. Sure, start here as this is what customers are looking for but to really motivate customers, think outside the box, too.

Here are some unique ways to market your box:

1. Offer an additional surprise product or small bonus box for the first 100 sign-ups each month.
2. Give a discount code that slashes off the shipping costs.
3. Lower the monthly price for a limited time to increase sign-ups.
4. A percentage of proceeds from the first 100 sign-ups each month go to a charity of the user’s choice.
5. The first 1,000 sign-ups during a limited time are entered for a prize draw for a product giveaway or limited-time discount.

These unique marketing ideas only skim the surface of incentives you can test out on your customers.

6. Devote time and resources to the actual box

While it might be what’s inside the box that your subscribers truly care about — subscription customers are also attracted to boxes that are not only designed beautifully but are designed to withstand long delivery travels. With so many products packed into a small box, the last thing a customer wants is to receive a broken product.

Invest in package engineering that makes your box practical, functional and attractive.

7. Invest in amazing customer service

Investing in good customer service these days is the difference between a thriving business and one that fails. When it comes to the subscription box business model, customers want your business available 24/7 to answer their questions, solve their problems and address their needs when they arise.

This could be anything from delivery or tracking shipments to inquiries about monthly product curations. In the age of always-on customer service, having live chat functionality is an easy win to keep your subscribers happy. Additionally, the subscription box model is very tech-focused, so having customer service readily available from your social channels is a must.

We mentioned chatbots earlier — these tools have become essential to establish solid customer service. They offer ease of communication in the event that a human isn’t readily available to chat.

8. Audit your customer demographic

Your target audience can always become more refined and perfected to improve your overall marketing strategy. In many cases, companies don’t have a solid understanding of who their customers.

Can you truly answer which proportion of your customers are female? Do you know how many are over the age 24? This is where an audit comes into play.

An audit gives you an understanding of not necessarily who your audience is, but more of an idea of how to better market to them. Marketing works differently across all ages and gender.

For example, 54 percent of women have purchased a product after seeing it in an influencer’s post but men are not as easily persuaded. Women are attracted to brands while price tends to impact men’s decision-making.

So auditing your audience isn’t only about understanding them, but more so understanding how to resonate. Start by looking at your social followers. You can also send out customer surveys to understand who follows you.

Think outside the (subscription) box

There you have it — the top 8 subscription box marketing tactics to cut through all the noise of curated boxes in the market. As a refresher, here the top strategies to focus on when it comes to marketing your box to the masses:

• Leverage social media influencers and Box Bloggers
• Build a loyal social media community
• Ask your customers for user-generated content
• Invest in powerful SEO
• Don’t just incentivize, motivate your customers
• Put design effort and functionality into your box
• Invest in amazing, always-on customer service
• Audit your customer demographic

Let us know if you need help marketing your subscription box to reach more subscribers and increase sales.

The post Subscription box marketing: 8 ways to market your box to increase sales appeared first on Strike Social.

The question begs to be answered: for YouTube advertisers, is there a best time to advertise?

In our recent 2018 YouTube Data Report, we analyzed a year’s worth of data across 22 industries in the U.S. The report examined view rate and cost per view metrics across demographics, seasonality and device.

The report revealed similar seasonal trends to the previous 2017 benchmark report — American holidays and busy months pose more challenges for brands, while slower months give advertisers more breathing room for their budgets.

Download the full 2018 YouTube Data Report to see what else we found.

Slower months mean more profitability

Markets become saturated during the holidays or busier times of the year, so naturally advertising on YouTube becomes competitive and costly to advertisers.

Slower months — those with less holidays or events — see the highest view rate among audiences (and the lowest cost per view). As such, April and May present the best opportunities to launch profitable YouTube campaigns with view rates at 38.5% and 37.5%, respectively. April and August, however, maintain the lowest CPV.

As for November and December, this period is a busy time for both marketers and consumers, making it a highly competitive time of year to advertise.

Avoid competitive months and focus on those with ROI

While November and December pose challenges for brands, the best strategy is one that focuses on months that see the highest return for your ads. That may just be a month like December, but it ultimately depends on the industry you’re in and the products you’re selling to consumers.

Our advice is to focus on less competitive months and ease into testing busier months.

Download the free data report now to:

• Get the latest insights on YouTube advertising view rate, cost per view and click through rate metrics
• Access data on demographics, seasonality trends, device and more
• Discover new ways of thinking about and targeting your audience

The post Data report: springtime is the most profitable for advertisers appeared first on Strike Social.

But how do you know that your campaign will see results? Is it based on an educated guess? Or do you have solid evidence and insights from past campaigns to expect a return on investment?

There’s much more to launching social media campaigns in hopes that they will meet goals and lift ROAS (return on ad spend).

While some marketing agencies have the expertise and bandwidth to execute campaigns effectively, it can be a challenge to drive insights and optimizations thoroughly in-house.

Joining creative efforts with skilled media buying can drive high-impact results.

We broke down the top reasons a creative marketing agency can benefit from a dedicated media partner in this ever-changing digital advertising industry.

Related: How to decide between managed advertising services and in-house management

Media buyers are the missing piece of the puzzle

Media buyers have years of experience under their belts, optimizing and executing campaigns. They’re the numbers people behind creative ads circulating the internet.

As a creative agency working with a media partner, you’re able to operate alongside a team of expert media buyers immersed in the advertising industry. They may not create the ads, but they know how to take those campaigns and make them profitable.

Consider dayparting for example.

We all know that profits vary during the day. Dayparting is the practice of running ads at specific times of the day or week to effectively target an audience.

Media buyers are able to tap into which hours are most effective for your industry and your message based on historical insights and audience testing. For instance, your audience might respond better to a certain message in the morning versus a different one in the evening.

A media partner is an extension of a creative agency, not only ensuring that campaigns operate smoothly but also that budgets are scaled efficiently to reach the best outcomes.

Data-driven campaigns outweigh the competition

It’s no secret:

We’re in the age of analytics, and not having a data-driven strategy can really hurt you.

Partnering with media experts means joining the creative component of marketing to mathematics. Media partners are more than a team of media buyers, though — they’re comprised of data scientists and engineers discovering the best ways to execute campaigns and even uncovering untapped audiences.

By utilizing historic campaign insights and best practices to guide campaigns, you’re able to determine clearly what’s working and what isn’t. For instance, does your audience respond more positively to shorter messages? Or perhaps it’s video that receives the best results.

A media partner answers those questions. Not only are you able to realize which campaigns have been successful, but you’re also making decisions based on actionable data.

Related: How to choose a social media advertising agency

Media buyers and creative agencies share the same goal

A media partner is an extension of a creative agency. Media partners are like scientists. They’re the data-driven experts who find the most profitable avenues for a campaign.

Without a dedicated media partner, creative agencies risk shooting in the dark and missing their target.

Media buyers have one goal and that’s to help creative agencies reach theirs.

If you’re in the market for a media partner, ask yourself these questions:

• Does your team have the expertise to execute, manage and monitor campaigns including budget and performance for the most efficient results?

• Will a media partner solve or rectify bandwidth problems?

• Do you have access to the right tools to create and manage campaigns in-house?

Ask yourself what’s best for your company goals

Whether you’re executing campaigns in-house or looking to partner with media experts, at the end of the day, it’s all about choosing a solution that aligns best with your campaign goals.

If you’re in the market for a media partner, choose one wisely and look for one that has proven results and technology that will be worth your investment.

The post How a creative agency benefits from a dedicated media partner appeared first on Strike Social.

In the recent 2018 YouTube Data Report from Strike Social, we analyzed a year’s worth of data across 22 industries. The report examined view rate and cost per view metrics across demographics, seasonality and device.

While taking a look at device data, we expected to see high view rates across smartphones. While that was certainly the case, it’s desktop that takes the lead in YouTube ad engagement.

Download the full 2018 YouTube Data Report to see what else we found.

Audiences are more likely to watch your ads on desktop devices

Those 24 or older are most likely to watch ads on desktop. The average view rate for desktop is 35.4% compared to 33.2% on phones.

Tablets fall the lowest at 26.2%, but don’t leave them out completely.

There is that possibility that tablet browsers read as desktops, so it’s important to analyze how well tablet devices could fit into your strategy. Not to mention — 55-64 year-olds are the most active on tablet devices.

The on-the-go “skip” generation

So why do desktops receive a higher view rate for YouTube ads than phones? It might seem a little backward given that mobile use is the leader across all devices.

But when it comes to your YouTube ads, we can infer that smartphones naturally ensue more skips or lead to weaker attention spans. People are on the go and don’t have as much attention or time to devote to ads. Consider 25-34-year olds — an age group just starting out in their careers. They have the starkest contrast between view rate on desktop and mobile.

Ask yourself: who is your audience and where do they watch YouTube?

What does this mean for you? While mobile may be a key focus for you, consider a balance between mobile and desktop. Desktop clearly dominates in ad engagement, while mobile isn’t far behind. The best strategy is one where you analyze your audience carefully to determine where they’re most likely to watch your ads.

Download the free data report now to:

• Get the latest insights on YouTube advertising view rate, cost per view and click through rate metrics
• Access data on demographics, seasonality trends, device and more
• Discover new ways of thinking about and targeting your audience

The post The world may be mobile, but desktop drives views on YouTube appeared first on Strike Social.

For one fashion e-tailer, sharpening the human connection in their ads was the path to their success.

This international subscription e-tailer has dominated in digital sales through social media advertising most notably through personalized Facebook ads.

What follows is an investigation of the brand’s strategic application of tailored Facebook ads to boost online subscriptions.

Sizing up with personalized targeting

The e-tailer has utilized Facebook’s Tailored Targeting features since their inception, focusing most on relevancy to generate clicks.

What most advertisers fail to realize is that targeting is more than putting ads in front of an audience. It’s a way to personalize an experience or touchpoint, and that’s exactly what this brand has accomplished.

The fashion e-tailer delivers its ads to the right audience at the right time using the right personalization tactics. Ultimately, this leads to more clicks and purchases.

Not only does the company focus on seasonal factors as a way to reach their audience, but they personalize targeting based on life events.

Beyond delivering ads to females between the ages of 18 and 34, they dig deep into understanding their customers’ needs by leveraging customer data and Facebook’s custom audiences. Then, they create targeted segments with a wealth of customer details — location, profession, fashion tastes, where they are in life, etc.

Is the user going backpacking across Europe and need the perfect walking shoe? Are they starting school in the snow-capped region of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula and need a warm boot? Perhaps a user has been searching for wedding rings, so they deliver an ad tailored to wedding accessories.

While this kind of targeting often gets a bad rep for seeming too forward, brands who deliver relevant content are the ones who reap the benefits. They have a better understanding of their audience and serve ads that users can relate to.

Ads that address customer intent

Ad creatives are just as important as the science behind reaching the best audience.

This brand delivers ads that serve a purpose, going beyond traditional Facebook ads. By utilizing GIFs or interactive content that addresses a problem, the brand sees increased engagement across their Facebook content.

As a fashion brand, helping customers express individuality and character is a piece of the overarching goal.

The brand gives their products a sense of purpose, tying them into real-life applications. Nowhere do they say “buy this,” but rather the ads align with customer needs and desires.

Consider this ad: the brand asks the user to screenshot a GIF of several shoes interchanging quickly. The end result is a user with a screenshot of her “perfect shoe.”

An ad like this does a few things:

• The user is immediately stopped in the feed using a quick-moving image
• The ad addresses the user’s need to find a new style in a fun, quirky way
• It gets users engaging and clicking on the ad, boosting the relevancy score

Ads that feature more products, like Facebook carousel ads, also see increased engagement across the board for this brand.

If the ad fits

What you can take away from this is the brand’s ability to meet its customers’ needs through the use of data-driven advertising and personalized content.

Merging creatives and ad targeting on Facebook will get you the most efficient results as this directly influences the platform’s relevance score for your ads.

So take a page out of this fashion e-tailer’s book and start leveraging your customer data to deliver Facebook ads that address your customer’s needs.

The post How a subscription shoe brand boosted digital sales with Facebook ads appeared first on Strike Social.

If you’re looking to promote your website, products or content on the platform, it’s best to know the right steps to take for success.

Throughout this article, we’ll dive into the step-by-step process it takes to launch successful Pinterest boards, pins and more. We’ll cover:

• How to get started on Pinterest
• How to create an amazing Pinterest board
• 5 Ways to create better pins
• How to promote your pins
• Understanding Pinterest Analytics
• Pinterest marketing rules to live by (tips, tricks and best times to pin)

What does Pinterest allow you to do?

As a user on Pinterest, there are really only a few important things that you can do with your content.

• Pin your content
• Repin content from other users
• Like other pins
• Comment on pins

It’s pretty straightforward, but there’s much more to it than this. These simple actions allow business all over the world to share their content with likeminded people who may repin and spread their content even further — organically speaking.

Pinterest has also been linked to improved SEO, as Pinterest is essentially a pool of backlinks to engaging content.

Pinterest is so powerful because you can connect with niche audiences that are actively seeking content like yours.

How to get started on Pinterest

Create a business account

As you might expect, a business account and a personal account are completely different.

To set up your business account, head on over to Pinterest and click Create a business account at the bottom of the login screen.

Add a business email (ideally), a password and the business name along with the type of business your company associates.

Set up your account and business settings

Once you’re logged in, fill out all your necessary business settings.

Choose a relevant username

Assign a username to your account but pick one that resonates well with your company name. Your username is what appends to the end of the Pinterest URL.

Upload your company logo

Profile images on Pinterest are 165 x 165 pixels.

Complete the About you section

Companies often neglect to fill out the About section on social platforms, but this is the place where you can let customers know what you offer and utilize keywords to help you show up more in search.

Claim your website

Claiming your website through Pinterest gives you access to attribution and analytics for your content. To claim your website, input your domain. You’ll be given a couple of options to claim your website, either through an HTML tag or an HTML file to add to your site.

Identify boards and topics

Upon setting up your account, you’ll want to identify boards and topics that describe your business.

For example, if you’re an interior decorator, you’ll likely choose Home Decor, DIY Home Decor, Design and Furniture. This helps Pinterest find relevant content and people/businesses to follow.

Once you’re all set with your new business account, it’s pretty straightforward from there to complete setup. After initial setup, your goals should be:

• Begin building boards to categorize and curate your content. Let’s stick with the interior decorator example. You might create a few boards titled Living Room Inspiration, Affordable DIY Projects and Dream Kitchen Decor.
• Follow relevant companies and people. Start making connections with companies you have relationships with already or experts in your industry with large followings. You can also search relevant accounts by keyword and select People in the drop-down next to the search bar.

Now that you’re set up with your business account on Pinterest, it’s time to create some boards and build your Pinterest reputation.

To build and uphold your rep on Pinterest, your content needs to stand out among the millions of pins shared daily. Here’s how to do just that:

How to create an amazing Pinterest board

Give your board a proper name. Make sure your board’s name encompasses all the curated pins you plan to share. Get creative with your board names and keep them consistent with your brand.

Write compelling, keyword-rich descriptions. Don’t neglect to give your board a proper description, being sure to utilize keywords as this helps your board stand out in search.

Categories are key. Assign a category to your board that best describes it.

Give the board a cover. Ideally, this should be a cover that encompasses the look and feel of the board as a whole. To do this, navigate to the board and click on the pencil in the top to edit. You can then assign or change a cover as needed.

If needed, add sections. Sections are great for general or large boards where you can curate deeper and deeper into your content. For example, you might have a board called “Coastal Interior Design.”

You can create various sections called Lighting, Fabrics, Patterns and so to organize your pins.

Share relevant, striking content. Stay current and consistent with your boards.

5 Ways to create better pins

1. Pin high-quality, striking images. The key to Pinterest is sharing content that is tall and sleek. That’s why infographics do especially well on the platform, along with step-by-step images. You can create striking images with tools like Canva or Infogram.

Don’t create images that are too tall. Pinterest is cutting down on pins that take up too much space as that was a major problem on the platform in 2017.

If you’re using images with text, keep the text to a minimal. For multi-image pins, four or fewer is best to minimize clutter.

2. Follow Pinterest’s image requirements. As with any social network, there are best practice dimensions to follow. Read up on Pinterest’s latest specs here. For promoted pins, read up on Pinterest Ad specs.

3. Write a description that tells a story. While Pinterest is a visually heavy platform, your pin descriptions should also be rich with content. Go beyond a simple description. Tell a story and explain the content your sharing.

4. Use hashtags and keywords. Pinterest, like many networks, runs on hashtags. Share hashtags in your description to show up better in search. That goes with keywords in general.

Create Rich Pins. Rich Pins make your pins even more useful with additional content. They’re especially ideal for recipes, products, articles or apps. Rich pins make in-app shopping even easier with real-time prices, availability and location.

How to promote your pins

You can take your pins one step further by promoting them. This helps your content reach an even wider audience based on targeting specifics you identify.

To promote a single pin, start by:

1. Clicking on the pin you wish to promote.
2. From there, choose to update your pin info.
3. Set a daily budget (this is how much you’ll pay each day while your ad runs).
4. Choose a campaign duration.
5. Add keyword targeting and there you have it — a beautiful, promoted pin for the masses.

Related: How much does it cost to advertise on Pinterest?

Understanding Pinterest Analytics

Pinterest has one of the more robust native insights.

The Analytics tab can be found in the top left corner in the platform. There are four components:

• Overview
• Profile
• People you reach
• Audience Insights

Let’s break each of these down.

Overview

The Overview section is your analytics dashboard. From here, you can access your profile data and the people you reach.

If you have confirmed your website, you can see even more such as clicks and activity directed to your website from Pinterest.

In the Overview section, you’ll also be able to see your Top Pin impressions, which are the top pins that have made it in front of other users. This is a great indicator to determine which content your audience is most receptive to.

Profile Analytics

Your Profile breaks out data in four sections:

• Impressions
• Saves
• Clicks
• All-time

Impressions includes the daily impressons and daily viewers (unique users). Along with Top Pin impressions, your profile analytics will also break down the top boards with the most impressions, too — a good indicator of which boards perform well and which might need some more love.

Saves are considered your repins. This is the number of times people have saved your content to their boards.

Clicks, of course, count the traffic coming from Pinterest to your website.

All-time is a mix of most saved content, best in search and power pins (high engagement rates). All-time data really gives you a feel of what your audience responds best to, so pay attention to this tab when making content decisions on Pinterest.

People you reach

This tab is a general audience insights section. You can track and monitor your average monthly viewers and those who’ve engaged. You can filter by device and your followers or all audiences.

Audience Insights

Pinterest has recently revealed Audience Insights, which dives a little deeper than the last tab. Audience Insights covers categories, interests, sub-interests, demographics, location and device.

What makes Pinterest’s Audience Insights so powerful is the ability to compare your following to Pinterest’s total audience. This helps you gauge how your content stacks up against others on the platform and identify areas of improvement.

Pinterest marketing rules to live by

Pinterest is a simple platform, which is why it works so well. But to become a power pinner, there are best practices and guidelines worth following.

Pin often and pin consistently

Adding Pinterest to your plethora of social media accounts can be daunting and sometimes, keeping up with posting gets away from us.

Be sure to set up a consistent schedule and pin frequently. There are many tools out there that can help you schedule out your pins organically, like Tailwind.

Don’t spam

This might seem conflicting to the above mentioned, but there’s a fine line to walk between pinning and pinning too much. If you’re always pinning, your content will seem unnatural and forced.

So how often should you pin on Pinterest? We find that 10-12 pins a day see the best results. Some companies even pin more. Three to five pins a day will suffice for slower content days.

At the end of the day, remember that it’s all about relevance. If you’re pinning just to pin, you won’t see the best results and you’ll most likely lose followers.

Don’t forget to repin

Leading us into our next rule, don’t forget that repins can count toward your daily Pinterest activity. Repinning is a method of discovery for your audience.

Just as with any other social platform, curating or repinning third-party content that relates to yours is best practice. This helps others discover your brand and you’re providing value to users through relevant, curated pieces.

Believe it or not, repinning on Pinterest is much more lucrative than sharing only your content. Studies have shown that you should actually repin 80 percent of content and only share 20 percent of your own.

So start repinning!

Don’t just pin, engage

Pinterest is easily one of the most friendly social networks and engagement is always welcome — and beneficial to your brand. Start commenting and liking pins relevant to your content. Leave feedback or opinions on other pieces to start getting in front of more of your audience.

Link to mobile-friendly web pages

Pinterest has one of the highest mobile usages with 80 percent of overall users accessing the platform through a mobile device.

Pinterest is also widely known as an in-store inspiration app, which means you can account for even more mobile use.

Off hours aren’t off limits

Unlike LinkedIn or Facebook, Pinterest’s user base is active around the clock — in fact, they’re most active after work or on weekends. Users on LinkedIn and Facebook are most likely to check those platforms during the day, but Pinterest inspires people at all hours.

So don’t leave out pinning between midnight and 4 a.m. While you’ll be able to capture people in different time zones, you’ll also get in front of the night owls scouring Pinterest.

So when is the best time to pin?

According to several sources, the best time to pin is actually on Saturday between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. That doesn’t mean that this is the best time for every topic or industry, however.

We recommend testing out different times and thinking critically about your audience. Let’s say your audience consists of 9-5ers. We can assume they’re likely pinning before or after work.

Pin with the algorithm in mind

Pinterest distributes content in multiple ways.

First, it distributes pins for your followers, then the feed scatters your pins based on quality and relevancy. In other words, Pinterest prioritizes content that your followers engage with.

What does that mean? It means your followers essentially decide if your content shows up in the search.

That’s why we recommend testing various pins and how you share them. Consider pinning your most important owned content first, then sprinkle in other owned pins or repins throughout the day.

Timing seems to be a heavy topic with all social networks, and while timing on Pinterest is still very important, its algorithm relies heavily on the quality and how well you optimize your content.

Becoming a master pinner

Pinterest a highly visual platform that serves vastly different purposes from other social media networks. It’s an exploratory medium where users come to find inspiration and new ideas.

Make sure your content falls in line with Pinterest’s core demographic and interests that your audience is most likely to respond to. Take these tips and best practices and start testing your pins to find what works best for your brand.

The post Pinterest 101: The marketer’s guide to best practices appeared first on Strike Social.

When it comes to social media advertising, it’s important to let the data guide you. Decisions based on assumption or speculation lead to mistakes and wasted ad spend.

Let’s consider mobile use, for example. When we talk about mobile users across all social platforms, we often focus our attention on younger audiences with their faces buried in their phones. Bu that’s not the only the case when it comes to YouTube.

In the latest 2018 YouTube Data Report, we analyzed a full year of data across 22 industries in the U.S. What we expected to see is a high mobile view rate across younger audiences. Our findings, however, revealed a far more interesting result.

Download the full 2018 YouTube Data Report to see what else we found.

Baby boomers are more likely to watch ads on mobile

On mobile alone, YouTube reaches more 18-49 year-olds than any other broadcast or cable network. Knowing that information, advertisers are led to believe that these younger audiences are the most inclined to watch their ads on mobile devices.

But that’s not exactly what the data tells us.

What may surprise advertisers is that baby boomers are much more likely to view ads on mobile than any other age group. View rate for 55-64 year-olds on mobile is 35.1%, compared to 33.7% view rate for 18-24 year-olds. Those 65 or older have an average view rate of 34.5%.

Take a look at tablet view rate across all ages. Those 55-64 surpass other age groups with an average VR of 29.8% (compared to 24.8% for 18-24 year-olds).

That’s a surprising discovery given that mobile use for teens has skyrocketed over the past few years, with YouTube considered one of their favorite networks.

A few factors may contribute to the high view rate for boomers on mobile:

• Gen Z is the “skip” generation, while boomers have a stronger attention span
• Older audiences may not be as versed in the functions of new tech
• Majority of boomers now own smartphones

Gen Z is profitable, but so are boomers

The takeaway here is — while focusing on younger audiences on mobile is profitable — don’t leave out boomers. They’re more likely to view YouTube ads in full across multiple devices (desktop, mobile and tablet).

What advertisers get wrong here is device use across age demographics. They’re more inclined to set their aim on younger audiences on mobile, assuming that older age groups reject new technology. Boomers are just as engaged — and even boast lower cost per views. The best strategy is to hone in on your target audience and ask yourself where they’re most likely to engage with your ads.

Download the free data report now to:

• Get the latest insights on YouTube advertising view rate, cost per view and click through rate metrics
• Access data on demographics, seasonality trends, device and more
• Discover new ways of thinking about and targeting your audience

The post Who watches YouTube ads on mobile? Turns out, baby boomers appeared first on Strike Social.

While a short-lived holiday, Halloween brings in billions of dollars each year. Last year, spending in the U.S. reached a record $9.1 billion (compared to $8.4 billion in 2016).

The big selling points: costumes, decorations and of course, candy.

Halloween is a big deal, but it can present some challenges for brands (especially those that don’t see how it ties into their business objectives).

Around the time of Halloween, marketers have the flexibility to get creative and really stand out. To make the most of your advertising budget, here’s our advice on launching spellbinding Halloween social media campaigns.

1. Time your campaign launches strategically

As with all holidays, time is of the essence.

To be successful, you’ll need to plan ahead to consider the optimal time to push your campaigns, which devices to target and which social channels to direct your budget.

With that in mind, we’ve pulled some of last year’s data to help you get a headstart.

A few important things to consider:

• Sixty-four percent of celebrants won’t typically begin Halloween shopping until October compared to over one-third who begin earlier.
• The most shopping occurs in the first two weeks of October.
• Men are more likely to put off their Halloween shopping until the last two weeks of October.

Source: Halloween Industry Association

Timing will vary by industry and target audience, but it’s best to have your campaigns started in September, slowly ramping up your ads as Halloween approaches. The biggest push should fall in those first two weeks of October.

2. Consider Pinterest and Facebook as top priorities

It may not get the same love as other platforms throughout the year, but Pinterest is a definite yes for Halloween. Just take at look at the top sources for inspiration last year:

• Online – 35.2%
• Retail Stores – 30.3%
• Facebook – 18.2%
• Pinterest – 17.9%
• YouTube – 12.9%
• Instagram – 10.4%

Source: Halloween Industry Association

Where you choose to launch your Halloween social media campaigns will depend largely on your target audience. But if you’re in the retail, craft or food industries, you’ll want to turbocharge your Pinterest advertising strategy.

Pinterest is a haven for DIYers and crafters alike to find their Halloween inspiration. Pinners are also most likely to pin and shop at the same time, searching for inspiration as they scour the craft aisle or makeup department. In other words, zero in on mobile users.

While you’ll be wise to focus on Pinterest, Facebook also sees a lot of traffic during Halloween. It’s also worth noting that Instagram has seen an upward trend throughout the years for Halloween inspiration.

3. Have fun with creatives

Halloween is a brand’s best friend simply because creatives can be as friendly or as spooky as you want.

Think of all the Halloween campaigns that have stuck with you. Were they fun and sweet, or thrilling and eye-catching?

Consider this Starbucks Halloween Instagram post from last year:

Halloween presents an endless opportunity for exciting creatives that boost awareness and ad recall. The goal here is to create scroll-stopping creatives, whether they’re fun, exciting or thrilling. Halloween is a time to make a big brand impact.

Like Starbucks, incorporate quick videos that wow your audience and help them remember your brand or offer.

4. Let last year’s results guide you

If there’s one thing you should do, it’s to make informed decisions based on previous data, keeping in mind the latest social media trends.

Take a look at last year’s performance. Did your campaigns on YouTube outperform those on Facebook? Do you need to change up your creative tactics and explore new strategies?

Looking at last year’s Halloween marketing efforts is a good place to start and you can even compare it to the year prior. This will give you a good indication of how your ads have performed and if there are areas to improve upon.

The key takeaways

1. Plan ahead and use time to your advantage
2. Pinterest and Facebook see the most traffic out of social channels
3. Have fun with creatives and use video
4. Improve upon performance from previous years

So there you have it! Four tricks to devise a wickedly effective strategy for your Halloween social media campaign. Take these insights and explore new ways that you can captivate (or even surprise) your audience for the greatest impact.

The post 4 Strategies to maximize your Halloween social media campaigns appeared first on Strike Social.

Sure, user growth on Facebook has slowed in recent months, but it’s still one of the most beneficial advertising platforms for all types of businesses. It continues to capture the most time and attention than any other platform.

For that reason, we broke down several common myths about Facebook advertising to help you understand the power behind Facebook ads.

Myth #1: It’s not beneficial for my B2B company

You might think this because Facebook has become a hot spot for e-commerce companies lately to promote their latest product lines. The truth to the matter is: Facebook is extremely lucrative for B2B businesses, too. And here’s why:

• There are well over two billion users on Facebook. There are plenty of industry experts and business owners looking for what you offer.
• Targeting options on Facebook are plentiful, and you can focus on Lead generation campaigns.
• B2B content offering free downloads or trials do well on Facebook.

If these points aren’t convincing enough, then consider this statistic: 89 percent of B2B businesses use Facebook over LinkedIn (81 percent) now. It’s clearly working.

You might be thinking to yourself: I’ve tried B2B advertising on Facebook, but no luck.

B2B ads on Facebook will often fail because they’re not relevant, calls to action are missing the mark or they’re simply not the right ad type for B2B. While there are many options for B2C companies on Facebook, there are just as many for B2B.

Myth #2: Boosting a post is the same as running a Facebook campaign

There is a common misconception that boosting a post can get you the same results as running a Facebook ad, but that’s actually not the case—at all.

They are two very different things.

Boosted posts have one purpose: to increase post engagement and impressions. Boosting a post won’t give you the same detailed targeting criteria as Facebook ads. Facebook campaigns run with the specific intent behind them, for example, a conversion campaign targets those most likely to convert.

With that said, if you’ve been boosting posts with the goal of driving traffic the same as a Facebook campaign would, you won’t see the same results.

Myth #3: I need a large Facebook following for ads to work

Don’t let a small following discourage you. You don’t need thousands of Page likes for your Facebook campaigns to thrive.

Facebook is home to more than two billion monthly active users. Your message is bound to get in front of a fraction of that number. You can create custom audiences and let Facebook put your product or service in front of those people—whether or not they like your page.

You can even create specific audiences based on email lists you might already have or target based on demographics.

Myth #4: It’s too competitive, so CPC is too high

Facebook has become entrenched with advertisers squabbling for ad space, so businesses feel that competition is too high. Therefore, companies shy away from even the idea of promoting their business on the platform.

Despite the competitiveness on Facebook, CPC rates have remained steady for a few years (except Mobile App Installs and Post Engagement ads). With that in mind, CPC could always see an increase in the future, so it’s worth investing in Facebook advertising now.

Myth #5: Facebook advertising is only for lower-funnel marketing strategies

Marketers often focus much of their Facebook ads on retargeting efforts, but as you consider all parts of the marketing funnel, campaigns on Facebook work well for upper-funnel strategies, too.

In this case, retargeting isn’t your only option for Facebook. Campaigns on Facebook can also serve the purpose of brand awareness, as long as you focus your content on promoting the brand and treat the ad more as an organic post.

Myth #6: People don’t like Facebook ads, so it’s not worth it

If you’ve ever been discouraged from Facebook advertising simply because people may not like it, you’re missing out on valuable leads!

Of course, people don’t want to see ads that don’t pertain to them (or ads that seem unnatural or pushy). Facebook has a smart algorithm for this reason – it targets users based on relevant content. The more clicks the ad receives, the more relevant Facebook views it. The more relevant the ad, the more people see it and appreciate it because it’s an ad specific to them.

So there you have it – six myths about Facebook advertising debunked. These myths only skim the surface of the common misbeliefs out there. That’s why proper research is necessary to come to the conclusion yourself that Facebook advertising is so powerful for businesses.

The post Facebook advertising effectiveness: common myths and misconceptions appeared first on Strike Social.

That’s why millions of businesses have turned to social media advertising.

In fact, many businesses focus a majority of their efforts on paid media because their belief is that organic social media is dead.

Is it? Not exactly. Has it declined over the years? Of course. Does organic social media still have value? Absolutely.

Focusing on only a paid media strategy or simply funneling all of your efforts into organic social media won’t cut it. Businesses that tie their organic and paid media strategies together see the most return on their investment.

Here are three reasons why you need to be actively pairing your organic and paid social media strategies.

Get a better understanding of your audience

When you combine organic and paid social media strategies, you get a better picture of your following.

You can analyze the demographics that engage most with your organic posts, and target these individuals with your ads, knowing well that these people are likely to respond positively to your promoted content.

On a similar note, organic posts give you insight into how well people receive your content. For example, let’s say one of your Facebook posts sees a lot of engagement. You get a lot of impressions, clicks and even the engagement metrics are through the roof.

To maximize the success of that post, it’s worth promoting it further as an ad. The chances are, you’ll see high engagement and a high click-through rate.

Grow your online presence

When you sync your paid social media and organic social media strategies, you maximize your overall presence. While paid media is designed to bring awareness to your brand, organic social media does a great job of boosting loyalty. The two ultimately go hand-in-hand.

Let’s say someone discovers your brand through a Facebook ad, then that user proceeds on to your other social media profiles to browse. Put simply, the ad has brought awareness to your brand and having a solid organic presence shows a strong connection to your customers.

Organic supports paid and paid supports organic

Organic and paid social media are two sides of the same coin. One simply does not work without the other.

Your organic content is all of your tweets on Twitter, posts on Facebook or pins on Pinterest. It’s the foundation of your social media efforts. It’s the driver behind community engagement. When you take that strategy away, you eliminate a large piece of your social media activity. And when you do that, your ads suffer.

You’re probably wondering how that might be, especially if you’re implementing audience targeting and bidding for ad placement. Aren’t people supposed to see my ad, click and keep coming back? Sure, people may see your ad and click, but if they discover that you have a minimal organic social presence, they won’t stick around.

Paid social media is how you can take your content a step further.

Brands get it right by integrating their organic and paid media strategies seamlessly into an overall social media plan.

When you sync your strategies so that they work together, you maximize the success of your overall social media marketing. If there is one thing to take away, it’s to note that organic and paid social media work better together.

The post 3 Reasons you need to sync your organic and paid social media strategies appeared first on Strike Social.

In fact, scientists predicted that 62 percent of companies would be using AI technologies by this year, and that prediction held true.

Advertisers look for software powered by artificial intelligence because they get efficient results for their budgets, see accelerated sales and even discover high-performing audiences that they may have otherwise overlooked. But choosing an AI software isn’t always easy, as each one has a variety of features to consider.

When looking for an AI software of advertising, here are the key things you should ask yourself.

Is it built by engineers who know the industry?

Better yet, is it built by engineers who are in the advertising industry? This is the first question you should be asking yourself. These are experts in their field. They know what problems advertisers and marketers face and what it takes to solve them.

Data scientists and engineers with knowledge in digital advertising are the most likely to create a product that produces effective results. These experts will be able to develop hypergranular targeting methods and test audiences for the best campaign outcomes.

Does it offer clear, transparent reporting?

Picture this: you’re using an AI software you chose for your advertising needs, and in the middle of a campaign, you realize that it’s not performing well against your campaign goals. If that happens, you should be able to understand why your campaign isn’t performing.

Look for a software with a real-time dashboard that offers transparent reports and analytics. There should also be a team ready to walk through reports with you, as needed.

Is the advertising software brand safe?

With brand safety concerns on the minds of advertisers, having a software that guarantees brand safety is now a priority. The software should be able to whitelist and detect poor channels and topics to prevent ads from running alongside them.

When brand safety is ignored, it can be detrimental to the brand as a whole and cause major PR headaches.

Does the software have proven success?

Of course, you want to look for an advertising software that has a proven track record for delivering results. Before signing on with an advertising software, ask for case studies or customer success stories that demonstrate the power behind it.

Without that kind of material, it’s almost like going in blind and choosing a software without research that backs its claims.

Does it offer reliable support?

You’ll want to look for a software that has reliable customer support, as well. Especially in the advertising industry, you want a program that is not only reliable but one with a team behind it that is readily available to troubleshoot and catch things on the fly.

If the software is self-serve, you’ll definitely want to look for industry experts that are behind the platform available to answer any support questions as soon as possible.

Does it do what it says it will do?

An AI software for advertising should be just that: a technology-based solution that uses artificial intelligence to get advertisers efficient results.

To understand how it works and if it truly provides the results you’re looking for, ask for a trial. Most software comes with trials to help advertisers gauge if the solution fits their needs.

A few other things you might consider:

A major drawback for advertisers is the potential for mistakes when setting up campaigns. Consider a mistake-free solution that eliminates the potential for oversights.

Lastly, look for an AI software that can detect when it’s appropriate to shift budgets and optimize campaigns as needed. If a campaign simply isn’t performing against your KPIs, the software should be able to detect and optimize on the fly at any hour.

There you have it. Before selecting an AI software for your advertising needs, be sure to ask yourself these necessary questions and conduct proper research to find the right software for you.

The post How to choose an AI software for advertising appeared first on Strike Social.

Each year, the Inc. 500 and Inc. 5000 recognize the fastest-growing companies in America based on ranks according to the percentage of revenue growth over a three-year period. Making the list is an accomplishment that signifies entrepreneurial success.

“It’s an honor to be listed in the Inc. 500 for the second time. Since only one-third of companies make the list more than once, the fact that we’re ranked so high the second time shows that we’re retaining our clients and consistently delivering value with our suite of products built using data science and artificial intelligence.”

– Patrick McKenna, Chairman and Co-Founder

In 2017, we were thrilled to make the Inc. 500 as the No. 17 fastest-growing company in the U.S. and No. 1 company overall in Chicago and Illinois.

As you might expect, achieving a spot on the list grows more difficult each year and we are extremely proud to be recognized a second year in a row. To put that into perspective, of the tens of thousands of companies who apply to the Inc. 5000, only one in three make the list twice and we are thrilled to be in the top 500!

This achievement is a badge that we wear proudly, signifying our growth and success since our beginnings in 2013. We have grown our global presence across 16 markets with headquarters in Chicago and offices in Kraków and Manila. We continue to develop innovative tools and services for our partners to succeed and grow their business with digital advertising.

Check out our 2018 Inc. profile for more on Strike Social’s growth – and as always, we thank everyone for the continued support!

Expand your expertise. Browse Strike Social’s latest blogs here:

• 
  YouTube Ads for Traffic and Action Campaigns: Do They Work?
• 
  Shifting From TikTok to Instagram Reels Ads Without Losing Performance
• 
  7 Emerging Digital Marketing Trends for 2025
• 
  Inspiring Insights for Your 2025 Valentine’s Day Ad Campaigns
• 
  Play to Win With Our 2025 Super Bowl Ads Strategy Guide
• 
  Complete Guide to Facebook Advertising in 2025

The post Strike Social listed on Inc. 500 for a second year in a row appeared first on Strike Social.

After all, there are so many similarities between programmatic advertising and RTB, that once you’ve unraveled all of the differences, it can be difficult to fully understand what really sets them apart.

In this article, we’ll dive into just how real-time bidding differs from programmatic advertising.

How are programmatic advertising and RTB similar?

First, let’s discuss what makes these reflect one another:

What is programmatic advertising?

Programmatic advertising, also referred to as programmatic ad buying, is a technology-based system designed to deliver efficient results. Advertisers define audience metrics, like demographics and user behavior, and use the technology to reach their desired audience at the most opportune time.

As a result, advertisers see better conversion rate and publishers win, too.

So, then what is RTB?

Real-time bidding means ad inventory is bought and sold per impressions via a  computer-aided instant auction. To put this into context, when a user lands on a web page, the information from that page is passed to the ad exchange. Ad placement goes to the advertiser with the highest bid and the ad displays instantly.

Both RTB and programmatic ad buying use multi-channel buying trends, user behavior and fast-processing. Advertisers must make quick decisions based on audience targeting and placement.

So, what is the difference between programmatic advertising and real-time bidding?

If, while reading this, you’ve thought to yourself how similar the two sound: you’re not wrong. The differences between programmatic advertising and RTB are subtle.

Think of it this way: RTB is a type of approach to programmatic advertising. There are many different kinds. Programmatic advertising, however, does not always use RTB.

If you’ve followed along so far, great!

It’s best to think of RTB as a branch of programmatic ad buying. There are many other programmatic methods, such as Private Marketplace, Automated Performance or Spot Buying. You can learn more about the different programmatic types here.

As buying channels continue to evolve for a better connection between buyers and sellers, it’s not only best to understand the differences between them, but to maintain efficiency for better buying processes.

Expand your expertise. Browse Strike Social’s latest blogs here:

• 
  YouTube Ads for Traffic and Action Campaigns: Do They Work?
• 
  Shifting From TikTok to Instagram Reels Ads Without Losing Performance
• 
  7 Emerging Digital Marketing Trends for 2025
• 
  Inspiring Insights for Your 2025 Valentine’s Day Ad Campaigns
• 
  Play to Win With Our 2025 Super Bowl Ads Strategy Guide
• 
  Complete Guide to Facebook Advertising in 2025

The post Deciphering the difference between programmatic advertising and real-time bidding appeared first on Strike Social.

There’s no question not to work Instagram Stories ads into your marketing strategy. Instagram Stories ads are designed to fully immerse your audience in your content while users tap through their friends’ stories. Here are some powerful ideas and examples of Instagram Stories ads that produce results.

Capture users right away

Instagram Stories were designed for quick content. Users are tap-tap-tapping their way through their friends’ stories and aren’t interested in being disrupted by ads.

The goal is to keep users intrigued and prevent them from tapping on to the next piece of content. Here are a few key ways you can capture users from the start:

• Be visually appealing. Whether you opt to display a photo or a video, it’s imperative that your content is fun, quirky and interesting.
• Add music. Sound should hold just as much importance as your visuals. In fact, it’s a make-or-break factor when it comes to ads. Choose music that fits well with the creative.

^Source

Here is a fantastic example of a simple ad on Instagram Stories, yet one that captures attention immediately without any gimmicks.

Spotify uses a single photo here and because bright colors and quirky images do well on Instagram, they pretty much hit the nail on the head. They also use large text that explains in only a few words what they offer.

Users have no choice but to digest this quick ad with its fun colors and brief messaging as they move through the Instagram Stories, even if they happen to tap right away.

Make your brand name visible

One of the more clear takeaways from using Instagram Stories ads is brand awareness.

Whether you’re announcing an upcoming event or launching a new product line, this avenue is a surefire way to get your brand name in front of new audiences. However, to make sure you really have that high ad recall, your brand name should be clearly visible.

Here are a couple key things you can do to stand out:

• Don’t be afraid to show the brand name front and center. Some brands overlay the brand name or logo directly over the content. Your business name should be prominent and on the screen long enough for higher ad recall.
• If you have a product with your brand name directly on it (Coca-Cola is a good example), show the product first! This way, you’re killing two birds with one stone. Tying a brand name to a product means higher brand recognition.
  

Outsiders Pizza does a good job of showing their products right away for the entire length of the ad. They chose to create a simple video showing their various frozen pizzas, which turns out both simple and interesting to look at. And as you’ll notice, showing the product also shows off their brand name on the packaging. This type of ad creative is a standard for brand awareness success.

Create compelling, helpful content

Successful Instagram Stories ads are ones that offer helpful content and don’t push the product or brand too much. Lifestyle content and content that fits into people’s lives are what sells.

Whether it’s a quick tutorial or showing off a product line, offer value to your viewers and find a way to relate to them. Find a way that doesn’t say “I’m selling this product to you,” and instead show a helpful piece of content that is engaging for users.

^Source

This ad from The North Face uses relatable, compelling messaging while also showing off a few of their sleeping bag products. It doesn’t feel too “salesy.” With a bit of comic relief, the ad is actually fun to tap through. You can easily tell which audience they’re targeting and they’re feeding into that lifestyle. It’s simple, yet effective.

Start a conversation

Instagram Stories ads are a great way to promote conversation rather than simply display a product to sell (as discussed in our last section). These ads do well because they blend with the surrounding content on Instagram Stories.

Conversation helps move the customer past the discovery phase down the funnel, so why not create an Instagram Stories ad that does just that?

^Source

Target Style is engaging with the user here, without trying too hard. The “show us” is a great call to action to also get users to engage and send user-generated content to the brand.

Use influencers

Instagram is influencer heaven. And let’s face it: people love seeing content from their favorite celebrities, YouTubers, beauty gurus and music artists on Instagram.

Leveraging influencers is easily one of the most popular examples of Instagram Stories ads. If you’re already using influencer marketing, that’s great. Why not incorporate influencers into your Instagram Stories ads? Not only are people more likely to keep watching, they know that their favorite celebrity endorses the brand.

Using an influencer marketing strategy with Instagram Stories ads also mixes well with the original content already on the platform. There are plenty of celebrity Instagram Stories and adding an ad into the mix featuring an influencer makes sense.

^Source

Express’s ad features Karlie Kloss in a quick video. It’s a promotional announcement and they do well to have just enough overlay text about the sale. It’s enough for some users to know that Karlie supports the brand, and there’s no doubt her massive following will check out the sale.

While Instagram Stories was designed with quick content in mind, the possibilities are endless when it comes to creating ads. Use these ideas and examples of Instagram Stories ads when planning your next big Instagram campaign.

The post 5 Examples of Instagram Stories ads that produce results appeared first on Strike Social.

As the second-largest shopping season of the year ramps up, the time is now to target last-minute shoppers with back-to-school social media campaigns.

Strike Social has the latest back-to-school shopping statistics and insights to help you create powerful social media campaigns and get your message in front of back-to-school shoppers.

Want to embed this infographic?

<a href="https://strikesocial.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://strikesocial.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/BACK-TO-SCHOOL_INFO_FULL-3.jpg"/></a>

Expand your expertise. Browse Strike Social’s latest blogs here:

• 
  YouTube Ads for Traffic and Action Campaigns: Do They Work?
• 
  Shifting From TikTok to Instagram Reels Ads Without Losing Performance
• 
  7 Emerging Digital Marketing Trends for 2025
• 
  Inspiring Insights for Your 2025 Valentine’s Day Ad Campaigns
• 
  Play to Win With Our 2025 Super Bowl Ads Strategy Guide
• 
  Complete Guide to Facebook Advertising in 2025

The post How to reach customers during back-to-school shopping season appeared first on Strike Social.

Sorry, millennials. It’s time to start paying attention to Generation Z.

As a wave of new consumers approach, brands have been slowly shifting their social media advertising focus to teenagers and it’s best to plan wisely when going after these tech-oriented consumers.

How is Gen Z defined?

For starters, it’s the most diverse generation. In terms of years, however, most define it as those born between 1995 and 2010, or ages 2-19.

Gen Z are digital natives. Millennials were able to embrace technology easily from a young age but Gen Z can’t remember a time without internet. They can’t remember a time without mobile phones. Many can’t even remember a time without Facebook or Twitter.

It’s also worth noting that Gen Z’s purchasing power is predicted to be worth more than $44 billion in the U.S. alone. They also make up 26 percent of the U.S. population. They’re the up and coming generation that brands can’t ignore.

As Gen Z comes into the buying scene, here’s how to advertise to them effectively:

Keep it short and sweet

Gen Z was born with technology at their fingertips. They’ve been immersed in quick content all their lives, like Snapchat and Instagram Stories. Gen Z absorbs information fast, so naturally, they can lose focus fast.

Advertising to Gen Z shouldn’t always be long-form. Keep your messaging short and your imagery simple. In video, show your brand in the first few seconds for higher brand recall. As Gen Z thumbs through their feeds, you want your advertisements to attract attention in seconds for more clicks, or else you’ll lose them.

Authenticity sells

Gen Z looks for real brands and real people. They want to make a connection with brands. This means everything from ads to customer service need to set real expectations and establish trust.

Avoid the use of models, and instead use real people. Why do you think Gen Zers are so attracted to influencers? They can easily relate.

Also make sure to have customer service across all facets of your organization (this includes social channels). An extra helping hand from a human shows them they’re appreciated, which increases loyalty and trust.

Offer value

Advertising to Gen Z shouldn’t be about selling. It should be about the value you can offer.

Make sure you’re showing how your product fits into their lives. Forty-seven percent of Gen Z say they appreciate relevant ads and 44 percent expect ads to be relevant. Gen Z is a much more diverse group, so make sure you’re targeting consumers that will be the most receptive to your ads.

Instagram is a great example of this. It’s an endless feed of people’s daily lives. Don’t choose an ad that doesn’t mix with Instagram’s content. Choose something that offers value to your audience and help them picture how your product fits in with their lifestyle.

Convenience is key

Convenience, quick and easy: three words that matter to Gen Z. That’s where social commerce comes into play. It’s yet to exist across all social platforms, but as augmented reality and in-app purchasing gains traction, this convenience factor will play a huge role.

Because Gen Z is still young and reliant on their parents’ credit cards, it might seem unnecessary to incorporate social commerce just yet. But as they grow up, brands will do well to implement it into their ad strategy. Social commerce has yet to fully take off, but that’s soon to change with Gen Z’s social media use and the ever-growing popularity of online shopping.

Think: multi-screen

Like millennials, Gen Zers are multitaskers. In fact, they’re probably much better at multitasking than their predecessors. It doesn’t have so much to do with attention span as it does with their eagerness to be everywhere at once, switching back and forth from work to play and back to work again.

With that in mind, Gen Z is a multi-screen generation. Millennials are known to use three screens at one time. Gen Z uses five. They might be doing homework on a laptop, while watching television and taking notes on a tablet, all while Snapchatting a friend.

Be present across multiple platforms and devices to get the most views and clicks on your ads.

Focusing on Gen Z

Gen Z is a hyper-connected, tech-centered generation. They’re active on social media and constantly jumping from task to task. Capturing their attention will take twice as much critical thinking as it does for millennials.

Leveraging these advertising tips will help you achieve success with this coming-of-age generation.

Expand your expertise. Browse Strike Social’s latest blogs here:

• 
  YouTube Ads for Traffic and Action Campaigns: Do They Work?
• 
  Shifting From TikTok to Instagram Reels Ads Without Losing Performance
• 
  7 Emerging Digital Marketing Trends for 2025
• 
  Inspiring Insights for Your 2025 Valentine’s Day Ad Campaigns
• 
  Play to Win With Our 2025 Super Bowl Ads Strategy Guide
• 
  Complete Guide to Facebook Advertising in 2025

The post Advertising to Generation Z: How brands can reach the new wave of consumers appeared first on Strike Social.

They help marketers and advertisers understand ad performance, better understand their audience, how to improve ads and how to better allocate budgets. Social media ad metrics help determine return on investment (ROI), which is easily the most important reason to track and measure them.

Social media advertising metrics offer solid evidence to make the most out of your social ads.

Otherwise, you’re just aiming at a target in the dark.

A quick breakdown of vanity metrics

Before we dive into some standard social media ad metrics, let’s talk vanity metrics.

Vanity metrics consist of followers, fans, blog post views, number of subscribers and so on. They all have something in common: While they look great from the outside, these metrics don’t tell you how your social media ads are truly performing.

It’s great to have a large following because that might mean more engagement and more active users, but vanity metrics won’t tell you anything about your ads.

To understand if your social media ads are even paying off, here are what social media metrics really mean for your ads.

What social media metrics really say about your ads

Impressions

You should always think of impressions as the amount of times your ad is displayed, whether it receives a click or not. Seems simple enough? For example, if you have a Twitter ad displayed on someone’s feed and they scroll right past it, that counts as an impression. That person spotted your ad but chose not take action on it.

The key takeaway: Measuring impressions helps you really better understand awareness, which is why it’s actually the first metric that most campaign managers will assess. Alone, they won’t tell you everything about your ad performance, but they will help you better understand why your content is performing well.

Click-through-rate

A click-through-rate (CTR) is a ratio of those who have seen your ad and those who have clicked. It’s determined by taking the number of total clicks and dividing by impressions. Of course, the higher the CTR, the better.

Let’s say, for example, your ad receives 2,000 impressions and gets 10 clicks. Your CTR would then be 0.5 percent. A CTR like this would need some improvement. The higher the impressions, the more clicks you’ll want to receive. Generally, a two percent CTR is considered good, but of course, there is always room for improvement.

The key takeaway: Always consider why people may not be clicking on your ad. Has the creative fallen flat? Is the messaging not on point? Does it not draw enough attention? Consider A/B testing your social media campaigns to find what resonates best.

Cost-per-action

A cost-per-action (also referred to as a cost-per-acquisition or cost-per-conversion) is exactly as it sounds: It’s a pricing model where you pay for selected actions. This might include anything from paying for clicks, to paying for Facebook likes, to submitting a form, to completing a purchase. It’s up to you determine the desired action.

CPA has the most risk associated with it, because you’re relying on good conversion rates. Put simply, the higher your conversion rate, the better your CPA.

The key takeaway: A high CPA means that your conversion rate is low and needs improvement. You’ll want to find ways to improve your conversion rate to lower your CPA, which we discuss below.

Conversion Rate

A conversion in social media is defined as an action that you’ve defined for your ad. The cost associated with that is your cost-per-action. Naturally, you should aim for a high conversion rate and a low CPA.

So what does it mean if you have a low conversion rate on social media? It could mean a number of things—you’re using poor call to actions, your value proposition might be unclear or your ad messaging is simply falling flat.

The key takeaway: Low conversion rates will tell you a lot about your ads and let you know if you need to reevaluate your campaign strategy.

Cost-per-view

Cost-per-view (CPV) is a pretty straight-forward metric as it involves a bidding model. Both YouTube and Facebook offer CPV bidding which measures cost per user interaction or number of views on a video. You set the highest bid you’re willing to pay for a user to watch your ad.

In most cases, an average CPV on YouTube will be between $0.10 and $0.30, but CPV bids will depend on the type of market you’re in. Popular keywords and markets will often require higher bids and display ads will go to the highest bid.

Quality Score and Ad Rank will have the biggest impact on your CPV.

• Quality Score is a measure of how relevant your ad is to the consumer.
• Ad Rank is what’s determined by multiplying relevancy by your max CPV.

After all ads have been ranked, your overall CPV is based on an equation that considers the ad rank of the bidder below you and your Quality Score.

The key takeaway: Ultimately, the relevancy of your ad will be extremely important to the audience you’re targeting to achieve a good CPV.

Measuring metrics for success

There are many more metrics to track as you evaluate the success of your social media ads. These, however, are vital to the understanding of how well your ads are received and how you can improve ads for the future.

The post What social media metrics really say about your ads appeared first on Strike Social.

Instagram recently revealed a new feature to its app called IGTV. They dubbed it “the next generation of video.” As you already know, Instagram allows videos on both its feed and Stories, but users are limited to only capturing and displaying short videos.

^Source

With the introduction of IGTV, users have the ability to upload videos between 15 seconds and 10 minutes long. Larger accounts and verified accounts may upload videos up to 60 minutes long but must be done from a computer. Time will tell whether or not the platform chooses to increase the length for all users. For now, its focus has been on increasing engagement.

Because IGTV is currently in its early days, it’s worth leveraging this long-form video feature in your social media marketing strategy now.

How to get started with IGTV

Learning how to use IGTV for Business is pretty straightforward. Below is a step-by-step process to get your channel set up and running like a pro.

Setting up your IGTV channel There are only a few key steps to tackle to set up your IGTV channel. To begin, you’ll need to download the app to your mobile device.

From there, you can set up a channel within the IGTV app or from Instagram by clicking on the IGTV icon in the top right corner of your feed. Tap on the gear icon and select Create Channel.

^Source

Note: you may also set up your channel via desktop.

IGTV video specs Instagram’s IGTV focuses on mobile-first vertical viewing, so the key takeaway above all is to shoot and upload vertical videos (not landscape).

Per the Instagram Help Center:

• Videos should have a minimum frame rate of 30 FPS (frames per second) and a minimum resolution of 720 pixels.
• Maximum file size for videos that are 10 minutes or less is 650MB. The maximum file size for videos up to 60 minutes is 3.6GB.

File types must be MP4. Videos should also never violate Instagram’s Community Guidelines.

Uploading your first IGTV video You can upload videos either directly on the Instagram app or by using the IGTV app. You’ll be able to view your channel by tapping on your profile photo.

To add a video, tap the “+” symbol and select from your Camera Roll. Videos must be between 15 seconds and 10 minutes. For verified accounts or those with larger followings, you can upload 60-minute videos from a desktop.

Be sure to give your video a proper title and description, which can be done during the upload stage.

IGTV best practices for your business

Like all new social media features and platforms, there are practices that must be followed. Below are some of the most important when starting out:

Choose 1-3 topics for your channel. While IGTV is connected to your Instagram, it’s worth putting some thought behind what kind of content you’ll focus on for long-form content. Perhaps you’ll publish How-To’s, product videos or behind the scenes content. Either way, having a central focus will keep viewers engaged and coming back for more.

Use a schedule. Once you have an IGTV channel up and running, keep it going. Don’t upload every once and a while. Instead, try uploading regularly to keep content fresh and interesting. Like your Instagram posts, you’ll want to keep a consistent upload schedule to keep viewers intrigued.

Edit your videos. The beauty of IGTV is you can shoot a video directly on your phone and publish it immediately. But don’t leave out what makes videos so compelling: editing. You can shoot your vertical videos as needed, edit on a desktop (or perhaps a video editing mobile app) and then upload.

Choose a cover image. IGTV allows you to select a default cover image from the video or upload a vertical image directly from the Camera Roll. Choose the latter. Take a compelling cover photo and use overlay text if necessary. Unique cover photos will capture a user’s attention much more than a blurry default image from the video.

How to make IGTV work for your brand

Currently, IGTV does not feature ads so running advertisements alongside your organic content is not an option (yet). Nonetheless, IGTV is still a viable feature for your brand strategy.

You might be wondering exactly how long-form video fits into your marketing strategy on Instagram. There are actually plenty of reasons to dive into this platform to make it work for your business.

Upgraded content. Simply put, IGTV is an upgrade to your Stories and 15-second videos on your feed. Prior to IGTV, uploading tutorials, discussions, interviews and more was a lot more difficult on Instagram. IGTV has opened the floodgates for creators and brands to start publishing unique long-form content.

Cross-promotion. IGTV adds a whole new level of opportunity for video cross-promotion. For example, if you have a new YouTube video, tease it with a vertical video on IGTV. Or perhaps you might tease your new IGTV upload on your Instagram feed or Facebook page.

The opportunities continue to grow for long-form video cross-promotion.

Brand awareness. Last but not least, IGTV is set to be a driver behind brand awareness. The app still has no search functionality, which means videos are divided and displayed based on interest, follower accounts and most popular videos. That means there is a possibility your branded IGTV videos could land on someone’s feed.

The post IGTV for Business: basics and best practices for marketers appeared first on Strike Social.

Choosing Between Snapchat and Instagram Stories: Which Works Best for Your Brand?

Both Instagram Stories and Snapchat are highly interactive platforms that draw in pretty specific demographics. So the question begs to be asked, which is more lucrative for your brand to advertise on?

Who uses Snapchat and who uses Instagram?

Instagram recently reached the one billion milestone, with 300 million accounts using Instagram Stories. Similarly, Snapchat has more than 300 million monthly active users. There’s an underlying notion that Instagram Stories and Snapchat Stories are one-in-the-same, but the two platforms are quite varied.

Let’s take a look at the demographics:

Snapchat demographic

• 45 percent of Snapchat users are between 18 and 24 and 71 percent of users are under 34 years old.
• 30 percent of U.S. millennial internet users use Snapchat daily.
• 70 percent of users are female.
• 50 percent of male college students use the platform for selfies, while that number is 77 percent for female college students.

Instagram demographic

• 80 percent of Instagram users are from outside the U.S.
• 32 percent of all internet users are on Instagram.
• 59 percent of internet users between 18 and 19 use Instagram.
• 33 percent of internet users between 30 and 49 use Instagram.
• 68 percent of Instagram users are female.

There’s also a stark contrast in growth between Snapchat and Instagram Stories. Granted, these numbers are based on Snapchat and Instagram Stories only, whereas Instagram as a whole had a strong user presence established prior to Stories. This contributed easily to the swift increase.

^{Image credit: Recode}

Advertising features and functionalities

Snapchat Stories and Instagram Stories serve the same purpose for users: people show off their day-to-day lives in 24-hour photo and video compilations to share with followers. Both apps offer real-time content, so brands can boost brand awareness, announce limited-time offerings and start a conversation in meaningful ways.

Snapchat ad functionalities

• CTA buttons and swipe-ups
• Sponsored lenses and geofilters
• AR shoppable lenses
• Retargeting capabilities
• Operates on Snapchat’s own ad manager

Instagram Stories ad functionalities

• CTA swipe-ups
• Shoppable features and videos with tagged products
• Shop in-app
• Retargeting capabilities
• Polls and more editing functionality
• Carousel ads (ideal for product showcases)
• Operates through Facebook Ad Manager

When it comes to filters and interactive lenses, Snapchat is the clear winner. Snapchat has always conquered in that category and they do it quite well. The app also mixes AR shopping capabilities with sponsored lenses for interactive buying experiences.

^{Image credit: Marketing Land}

Despite Snapchat’s AR shoppable lenses, Instagram seems to triumph in the social commerce category. Its in-app shopping functionality is advanced and always improving, not to mention, Instagram has a strong influencer presence.

^{Image credit: Instagram}

What are the cost efficiencies?

Results from advertising on these platforms are pretty staggering. Consider this: Instagram’s average CPM is between $5-$6 and average CPC falls within 56 cents and 72 cents. As for Snapchat, the platform recommends setting a swipe up (CPC) bid of $1-$3.

Because Instagram uses the Facebook Ad Manager, you decide how much you want to spend daily or over the campaign’s lifetime. Minimum budgets for most currencies start at $1 a day and vary depending on frequency. Snapchat Ads, however, start at $3,000 and go up from there.

Instagram said in a press release that their survey found users watch Stories to keep up with brands they’re interested in and to view products relevant to them. Instagram naturally invokes that “need it now” feeling among users because of its ability to showcase positive lifestyles. For this reason, shoppers on Instagram spend 85 percent of the week exploring new products and services.

The key takeaway? Ad costs on Snapchat are much higher than Instagram advertising costs, but keep in mind that Snapchat garners 1.5 times more visual attention than Instagram and sees 5 times more swipe-ups than the average click-through-rate.

Who’s the winner?

Whether you choose to advertise on Snapchat or Instagram will depend on many factors. The best place to find your answer is in the demographics and average ad performance. More teens use Instagram than Snapchat, but younger demographics exist widely on both platforms. Instagram, however, appeals to an older age group, as well.

Snapchat users are a highly specific, hyper-engaged group of people. Most are in high school or college, and the usage is widely spread across America.

As for Instagram, the majority of users are outside the U.S. Brands targeting global audiences and older age groups will see a higher success rate here. Especially for those companies with younger audiences, it’s beneficial to explore advertising on Snapchat and Instagram Stories together. It’s also worth considering that nearly half of Snapchat users aren’t even using Instagram.

Snapchat and Instagram Stories, while similar, offer different features that will resonate differently among multiple age groups. Snapchat has always been great for targeting special events and promoting mobile apps, while retail industries thrive on Instagram.

All in all, consider which app your audience is most present on and what they’re most engaged with. Perhaps it’s neither app. Don’t get lost in only targeting one platform because a majority of your audience uses it. Performance relies heavily on your ad creative and how you resonate with your audience.

^{Hero image source}

The post Snapchat vs. Instagram Stories: which is best for your business? appeared first on Strike Social.

To celebrate its impact, we’ve compiled 50 social media statistics that every social media marketer should know in 2018.

Social media statistics

• There are 4.2 billion internet users in the world. That’s over half of the world’s total population.
• 3.03 billion users are active on social media.
• 97 percent of millennials say they use the internet.
• The average social media user spends 135 minutes a day online.
• On average, people spend 40 minutes a day watching YouTube.
• Teens spend at least nine hours a day using social media.
• 60 percent of social media consumption comes from mobile devices.
• On average, active Snapchat users spend more than 30 minutes a day in the app. Learn more about Snapchat for Business.
• The average internet user has seven social media accounts.
• 22 percent of the world’s population is on Facebook.
• Visual content is 40 times more likely to get shared than other types of content.
• 43 percent of people want to see more video content.
• 88 percent of businesses are on social media.

User counts

• Facebook has 2.2 billion monthly active users.
• YouTube has more than 2.70 billion users.
• Instagram has 1 billion monthly active users.
• Instagram Stories has 300 million users worldwide.
• LinkedIn has 500 million users worldwide.
• Twitter has 300 million monthly active users.
• Pinterest has 250 million users worldwide.
• Snapchat has 178 million users snapping daily.

A look at demographics

• 88 percent of 18- to 29-year-olds say that they use social media.
• 51 percent of 18- to 24-year-olds say it would be hard to give up social media.
• 45 percent of teens say they are online almost all of the time.
• 68 percent of U.S. adults are active Facebook users.
• 62 percent of Facebook users are female.
• 50 percent of LinkedIn users are between the ages of 30-49.
• 81 percent of millenials check Twitter at least once a day.
• 70 percent of Pinterest users are women.
• 1 in 2 millenials use Pinterest every month.
• 50 percent of Americans with a college degree use LinkedIn.

How people use social media

• A quarter of U.S. adults get their news from at least two or more social media sites.
• 61 percent of Pinterest users say they use the platform to find ideas to be their best selves.
• 93 percent of Pinterest users use the platform to plan purchases.
• 70 percent of YouTube users use the platform to help solve a problem and 86 percent use it to learn something new.
• 79 percent of B2B marketers see LinkedIn as a beneficial source for lead generation.
• Facebook users watch more than 100 million hours of video each day on the platform.
• 93 percent of Twitter users who follow small businesses plan to make a purchase from a brand they follow.

Social media advertising statistics

• Advertising in mobile channels is expected to account for 30.5 percent of global advertising expenditure in 2020.
• 93 percent of social media advertisers use Facebook advertising.
• 5 million businesses advertise on Facebook.
• 70 percent of ads in front of videos are watched completely.
• 75 percent to 90 percent of Facebook ad performance is based on dynamic images.
• Instagram ads grew by 28 percent in the last half of 2017.
• Single videos account for 25 percent of Instagram ads.
• The cost for Twitter advertising is declining.
• 41 percent of Twitter users purchased products after exposure to an ad on the platform within 30 days.
• It is projected that 30.1 percent of Americans will use an ad blockerin 2018.
• Only 56 percent of Facebook ads have a call to action.
• Small-to-medium-size business use on YouTube has doubled in the last two years.

The post 50 Powerful social media statistics for marketers in 2018 appeared first on Strike Social.

Out of all the popular social media platforms, YouTube is the second-largest coming in at 1.5 billion users. Teens are highly active on the platform and majority say they use YouTube over all other platforms. That’s also why it comes at no surprise that digital ad spend surpassed television for the first time last year.

YouTube is fastly becoming the new TV.

How does YouTube rank videos?

YouTube ranks videos based on the following:

• Video quality
• Channel keywords
• Video watch time
• View count
• User experience metrics
• Thumbnails

If there’s one thing to note, YouTube strongly ranks videos on audience retention—how long users watch a video. Similar to high-traffic websites, if viewers are tuning into a video longer, YouTube recognizes the content as high-quality and shows it higher in search results.

Because people are spending more time on YouTube, it’s worth having a long-form video strategy in the mix to keep viewers engaged longer. While some content is suitable for shorter videos, don’t stray away from uploading longer videos.

YouTube videos also rank in Google search results. Here’s how you can increase the chances of ranking:

• Create “How-To” content
• Create Tutorials
• Incorporate humor

5 steps to increase organic views

With so many subscribers, channels and viewers on the platform, increasing traffic on YouTube has become a challenge for brands. We’ve compiled the following tips to boost organic reach of your YouTube videos.

1. Conduct thorough keyword research

YouTube’s algorithm takes into account keywords in the channel description, video titles, video descriptions and tags. Ask yourself: what is my audience searching for on YouTube? Now take that knowledge and research how your audience is looking for that content. Are they typing in “How to” or looking for something more specific?

YouTube auto-suggest is a great place to start. Let’s say your video is about styling ripped jeans. YouTube auto-suggest provides insights into what people commonly search and you can get a pretty good idea of what to title your video, too.

You should also take a more analytical approach to keyword research with Google Keyword Planner, AnswerThePublic.com or KeywordTool.io to determine volume and competitiveness.

2. Optimize your videos (before and after uploading)

This is easily the most important step. Optimization is key both before and after uploading to successfully increase organic views.

Tips for optimization before uploading

• Shoot high-quality video and use premium editing
• Use a primary keyword to name your upload file

Tips for optimization after uploading

• Write clear, natural titles with 1-2 keywords
• Write titles no longer than 70 characters
• Use high-volume, low-competition keywords in descriptions
• Keep video descriptions between 100-200 words, using a primary keyword throughout
• Upload a custom thumbnail to stand out in search results
• Include relevant, on-topic video tags
• Keep information naturalto est realistic expectations for your viewers

3. Fill out the about section

Your company’s YouTube profile section is prime real estate for not only telling your brand story and describing your channel, but a great place to implement market keywords. Fill in as much information as possible, including social profile links and your company website. You should also utilize keyword meta tags to describe your channel, which is found under “Advanced” in channel settings.

Channels with complete information stand out and rank higher.

4. Follow a consistent upload schedule

YouTube recognizes active channels, and the more videos you upload, the stronger your channel will appear. This might mean posting once or twice a week or perhaps biweekly.

Upload schedule should remain consistent and posting should happen when your particular audience is most active on the platform.

5. Find smart ways to engage your viewers

Lastly, find unique ways to engage your viewers to keep them watching longer. As stated above, YouTube strongly ranks videos on whether or not people are watching videos. High view rate and audience retention are major factors in organic performance.

A few other tricks to keep your audience engaged:

• Request that they subscribe
• Add end screens and cards to direct viewers to another video
• Organize videos into playlists
• Hold engaging contests

Never stop optimizing

Optimization is crucial to attract more YouTube viewers organically. High-quality video and strategic keyword implementation across titles, descriptions and tags are major factors to stand out in YouTube’s competitive search results.

The post 5 Steps to increase YouTube views organically appeared first on Strike Social.

To launch an effective summer advertising campaign, it’s important to take into account shopping insights, travel trends and how Americans spend summer—including holidays like Fourth of July and Labor Day.

Brands should consider mobile use and socialization as key factors for ramping up their social media advertising this summer, taking note of stats and popular trends below. Check out Strike Social’s infographic for helpful statistics and ideas for summer advertisements.

Want to embed this infographic?

<a href="https://strikesocial.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://images.ctfassets.net/82kv66k4hmlh/3Cct4ifgKkY2Ksamk0SaYY/25f51fb19db7df6f39b657c20b878e75/STRIKE_SUMMER_INFO_FULL.jpg"/></a>

The post Stats and ideas for summer advertising campaigns appeared first on Strike Social.

Whether you’re looking to up your follower count, boost engagement or increase conversions, we’ve compiled a quick list of the best Instagram tools for marketers in 2018.

Canva

This free desktop tool allows users to create professional-grade images with a myriad of features. You can add filters, backgrounds, text overlays, infographics and so much more. Canva understands that not every marketer is a designer, so there are countless templates to choose from that are already pre-sized to meet social media size requirements.

Advice to marketers: In order to make Canva work for your business, make sure you’re using consistent fonts, colors and icons to distinguish your brand. Import your own brand assets and change layouts to make them unique to your business. Canva is an incredibly creative tool but you don’t want to get lost in the endless visuals and graphics Canva offers.

VSCO

^{Image credit: App Store}

With ads, VSCO is a free mobile tool that takes your Instagram filters to another level. While Instagram includes its own filters and editing capabilities, this tool offers unique filters that help brands set the mood of their Instagram photos. Additionally, you can adjust lighting, saturation, sharpness and more to define your images.

For additional pro features, users can sign up for VSCO X for $19.99 a year.

Advice to marketers: There is much more to VSCO than filters. Explore all the endless photo editing options the app has to offer. You can create compelling, professional visual content beyond traditional Instagram features.

Easil

Instagram Stories are a quick and easy way to promote content, but showcasing that content in a captivating manner can be tricky with the endless filters, text features and icons at your disposal. Luckily, Easil lets users create eye-catching, professional Instagram Stories from pre-created templates.

Easil offers a free basic plan for users, and pricing goes up monthly from there.

Advice to marketers: Easil is comparable to Canva, but for Stories. Keep your designs central to your brand.

Over

Over is another quality photo-editing mobile app for users to create professional designs for releases, giveaways or product collection advertisements. There are more than 15 unique fonts and the possibilities are endless to create the perfect design. The best part about Over—it’s free!

Advice to marketers: Again, like Easil and Canva, don’t get lost in the endless sea of templates and fonts. Use branding that makes sense to your company and stay consistent.

Adobe Photoshop Express

^{Image credit: What Photography Gear}

Adobe Photoshop Express is useful for non-designers who need that professional facelift for their Instagram photos but may not have the time or resources. The app allows users to apply filters and text, adjust perspective and orientation, make photo corrections, add borders and much more. Additionally, there is an Auto-Fix feature for one-touch corrections.

Advice to marketers: Photoshop Express is ideal for beginners and making quick edits to photos. Use Photoshop Express if you’re looking for a professional look but with a user experience for new comers to Photoshop.

Shoppable Instagram Posts (Shopify)

Instagram, as with many social platforms, is a place of product discovery. Retailers using Instagram will find that Shopify’s tool for selling on Instagram is highly profitable. Shopify helps retailers grow their sales on Instagram by implementing social commerce experiences. Users who use both Shopify and Instagram can tag products directly in their posts to promote sales from discovery to purchase.

Advice to marketers: Engage your shoppers with content that shows products in use. Instagram is a visual channel and a place where users come for inspiration. Channel that into your posts to capture users’ interest to increase sales.

Tailwind

Many networking sites offer in-app scheduling features, but Instagram has yet to roll out its own native scheduling. Tailwind offers a generous free trial for scheduling Instagram posts and it also recommends the best posting times. Additionally, Tailwind offers social listening features to help understand key trending topics in your industry.

Advice to marketers: Because marketers are busy people, scheduling out your Instagram posts is extremely helpful, but you never want to “set it and forget it.” Always monitor your calendar and make sure that pre-scheduled content is still relevant when dates approach.

Instagram Analytics

^{Image credit: Lifewire}

Native insights on Instagram are just as robust as many third-party analytics tools. The analytics offered through Instagram allow you to breakdown demographics, behavior and view engagement metrics. You can view insights for individual posts or for your entire account. You can also evaluate data from your Instagram Stories.

Advice to marketers: Instagram Analytics is a powerful native tool that helps you better understand your audience and how they interact with your content. To get the most out of these insights, select your KPIs to measure success on Instagram and use the data to create a solid content strategy.

AutoHash

Coming up with relevant hashtags can be tricky, but this free tool allows you to find the best hashtags for your Instagram content. AutoHash uses smart computer algorithms to get you the best Instagram hashtags by recognizing the objects in your photo. It also lists the most popular hashtags by category. Using relevant hashtags improve engagement and follower metrics.

Advice to marketers: AutoHash should be used if you’re strapped for hashtag ideas. The app uses image recognition to determine best hashtags for your Instagram post, but not all suggestions should be considered. You should stick to only a few relevant hashtags that will resonate with your audience.

Linktree

Because Instagram only allows one link in your bio and doesn’t hyperlink URLs in posts, getting people to a landing page is challenging. That’s where Linktree comes in. It’s a free tool that provides you with a single link where you can customize a set of links to direct users to multiple locations. This might include a blog, product page or a social profile. This saves you time from changing your bio link every time you want to direct users to a new landing page.

Advice to marketers: Don’t get too link-heavy. Display only the important links that will navigate users to convert or learn more about your brand.

The post The 10 best Instagram tools for marketers in 2018 appeared first on Strike Social.

The definitive Snapchat glossary for advertisers

App installs: An attachment to a snap ad that allows users to download an app directly from the Apple Store or Google Play Store with a swipe up and a tap from a snap ad. The app is installed in the background so users don’t have to exit Snapchat.

Attachment: A tool that allows advertisers to link a snap ad to a website, an app install, a long-form video or a webpage piece, encouraging users to swipe up to access the content.

Average attachment screen time: The average number of seconds spent watching your attachment across all impressions.

Average screen time: The number of seconds spent watching your ad across all impressions.

Completions: The number of snaps watched to 97 percent of duration.

Discover page: A page available to all users that is full of content from publishers.

Related: 400 brands ran video ads on Snapchat Discover in Q1Y2018

eCPI (effective cost per install): The average cost per each app install.

eCPM (effective cost per thousand impressions): The average cost per 1,000 impressions.

eCPSU (effective cost per swipe up): The average cost per each swipe up.

eCPV (effective cost per video view): The average cost per qualified video view.

Geofilters: A filter applied to the users’ photo or video when in a designated location or on a designated day to represent where they are, what they’re doing, a national holiday or a special event.

Goal-based bidding: A bidding option based on what type of action you want to receive on your ad — swipe ups, app installs or impressions.

Impressions: The total number of times your ad was served.

Install rate: The average number of installs per swipe, shown as a percentage.

Installs: The number of times your app was installed.

Long-form video: An attachment to snap ads that allows viewers to see any form of video such as trailers, short-films and how-to videos.

Reach: The unique number of snapchatters who saw your filter directly or through a friend’s story or snap.

Snaps: Photos and videos created by Snapchat users.

Snap ads: A native form of Snapchat advertising which follows the same full-screen format of snaps.

Snapchat Ad Manager: An online software that allows advertisers to fully manage their advertising campaigns on Snapchat.

Snapchatters: A term referring to the users of Snapchat.

Spend: The total amount spent on your campaign to date.

Related: How much does it cost to advertise on Snapchat?

Sponsored lenses: An interactive form of Snapchat advertising in which the ad uses facial recognition technology to activate hidden features of the lenses, such as having a drink poured on the user or having a mask applied to their face. Activation cues can be things such as having users raise their eyebrows, blow a kiss, open their mouths or smile.

Stories: Photos or videos native to the Snapchat format that users can post to their profile for up to 24 hours. They can be viewed by the user’s friends, anyone that has the viewer’s username or a custom list of people.

Swipes: The number of times snapchatters view your filter directly on their snap when swiping left or right after taking a photo or video.

Swipe time: The average amount of time a user spent playing with your filter.

Swipe ups: The total number of times snapchatters swiped up to view your attachment.

Swipe up rate: The average number of swipes per impression, shown as a percentage.

Top snap: Your most popular snap.

Uses: The number of times your filter was sent in a snap or posted to a snapchatter’s story.

Use rate: The rate at which the geofilter is used when seen in the filter carousel.

Video views: The total number of impressions that meet the qualifying video view criteria of at least two seconds of consecutive watch time or a swipe up action on the top snap.

Views: The number of times snapchatters view a snap with your filter by watching a friend’s story or receiving a snap directly from a friend.

Web view: An attachment of snap ads that takes viewers to your preloaded website upon swiping up.

RELATED ARTICLE How to get started with Snapchat advertising Find out if Snapchat advertising is right for your business. READ MORE

Advertising in a snap

To become a pro in Snapchat for Business, we recommend familiarizing yourself with these key terms. Snapchat is a completely mobile platform with unique functions and terminology behind it, very different from other social platforms. Understand terms from this Snapchat glossary and you’ll be set up for success.

The post Snapchat glossary: key terms every advertiser needs to know appeared first on Strike Social.

Digital advertising has seen a whirlwind of changes and trends already this year, with many redefining the future of advertising. As we’re nearly half way through 2018, these digital advertising trends will also take us well into 2019, reshaping much of the industry moving forward.

Strike Social has compiled the top five digital advertising trends that businesses should be watching in 2018.

The need for personalized consumer experiences

A major trend in 2018 is personalization. People are more willing to interact with a brand that offers a personalized experience. Consumers no longer want to be a number to businesses. They want experiences that are unique to them. Brands using actionable data can securely determine information about a group of consumers, and target them appropriately based on their needs or desires.

If done correctly and thoughtfully, it’s a win-win for the consumer and the business—the consumer has a quality, personalized connection that is meaningful to them, and as a result, they continue to do business with the company.

“As long as brands are mindful of creating these types of experiences, they can positively resonate with consumers to increase brand loyalty and revenue.”

Of course, creating a personalized consumer experience requires integrated marketing technology and data-driven insights. Personalized consumer experiences might include recommending products in similar categories or location-based marketing, though they can go much deeper than these examples.

As long as brands are mindful of creating these types of experiences, they can positively resonate with consumers to increase brand loyalty and revenue.

The surge in automation

Automation in digital advertising is nothing new. In fact, it’s been slowly seeping into the industry for nearly 10 years and only recently has taken off. Also known as programmatic advertising, automation does a myriad of things for humans, such as creating faster processes and performing at higher efficiency rates. More and more, we’re seeing advertisers shift their focus to this strategy.

As digital advertising becomes more personalized, it’s becoming increasingly difficult for humans to handle the weight of data-driven advertising on their own. That’s why automation is becoming so beneficial for advertisers to make decisions, measure data, personalize experiences and much more.

An increase in mobile video marketing

It’s no secret that mobile usage has increased each year. Along with it, video on mobile is growing in popularity with consumers, and the competition is stiff. It’s projected that video will account for 80 percent of all internet traffic in 2019. Keep in mind that YouTube reports a 100 percent growth in mobile video consumption every year.

^{Image credit: Hubspot Research}

The numbers don’t lie. Consumers are more likely to engage with brand videos than blog articles or social images. In-app videos and social video will be on the rise.

Mixing online shopping with social

With the joint increase in ecommerce spending and a steep use of social platforms, marketers are beginning to turn to social commerce. Social commerce is a form of ecommerce that takes part solely on social platforms. This has been a conversation in digital marketing for some time, but it wasn’t until recently that marketers began paying attention.

Social commerce sales have grown exponentially every year and ecommerce sales are expected to increase almost 250 percent by 2021. That’s ecommerce alone. Social media contributes to these statistics, with the average person spending more than two hours a day on social networks.

Facebook contributes the most to social commerce at the moment, but other networks are not far behind as chatbots and social buying buttons become more prominent.

The GDPR shake-up

Lastly, and certainly not least, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) which goes into effect on May 25 is set to reshape the digital advertising scene. Businesses that track data or behavior for EU residents must comply with the law.

What does it mean? It means that businesses are extremely limited in what data they can gather on consumers in the European Union, ultimately eliminating personalized experiences in that segment. For EU residents, this means more transparency. Businesses will need to ensure data privacy protection across all facets of their digital organization if they handle personal data within the EU.

Businesses handling personal data from EU residents should seek legal advice if they are still unsure of their compliance with the regulation.

• 
  YouTube Ads for Traffic and Action Campaigns: Do They Work?
• 
  Shifting From TikTok to Instagram Reels Ads Without Losing Performance
• 
  7 Emerging Digital Marketing Trends for 2025
• 
  Inspiring Insights for Your 2025 Valentine’s Day Ad Campaigns
• 
  Play to Win With Our 2025 Super Bowl Ads Strategy Guide
• 
  Complete Guide to Facebook Advertising in 2025

The post 5 digital advertising trends to watch in 2018 appeared first on Strike Social.

Additionally, revenue on the digital ad side showed no signs of slowing down last year, growing 21 percent. Digital advertising on mobile is a driving factor behind the growth – it contributed to more than half of digital ad revenue. Social media, too, had a hand in the increase, snagging about 25 percent and that incline is steepening.

People consume media differently

The numbers don’t lie. Those paying attention to the digital ad space know that TV entertainment remains popular with viewers, but how people consume that entertainment is evolving.

People are mobile now and increasingly on social media, even while watching television. Many times, TV is what takes the viewer to their tablet or smartphone to look up the latest TV news or recaps. Consider this: according to Think with Google, for every hour of Games of Thrones watched, there’s another 30 minutes watched on the same topic on YouTube.

Television advertisers that develop strategies for social media will continue to thrive in the evolving digital space. As mobile and social continue to grow in usage each year, knowing how to optimize your TV ads for mobile is now more important than ever.

Related: 4 tech trends that enhance mobile advertising

Making the most of mobile

Not every television ad will be perfect for mobile or social media, and that’s okay. But with some tweaking, your TV ad can flourish just as well on a smartphone social app. Below our Strike Social’s suggestions for optimizing your TV advertisements for an increasingly mobile and social world.

Optimize for vertical video: The framing of your video will be different on a mobile platform. It’s rare that users flip their devices horizontal and while YouTube follows a horizontal aspect ratio, many other platforms such as Snapchat and Facebook display vertical video. This means advertisers must pay attention to any details they don’t want cut off when resizing for mobile and consider the aspect ratio of each platform.

Consider ad length: Media consumption on mobile versus TV is very different. Ads on mobile need to capture attention fast. While users are engaged with their devices, attention usually peaks only at a few seconds. Keep the length of your ads short and remember to get your most important details in those initial seconds – some advertisers opt to display the brand right away, which has proven promising results. If you’re producing ad copy, keep it simple yet effective to resonate with users.

Optimize for screen size: We often think of mobile as only our smartphones, but there are tablets, mini tablets and a multitude of smartphone sizes to consider. Ads on TV are optimized for larger displays, but social media advertising on mobile is compact. It’s worth keeping in mind the different screen sizes for mobile to avoid cutting off any important messages in your ad.

Design for sound-free viewing: Mobile users often consume media in public where sound isn’t always ideal. Additionally, Facebook has reported that majority of users on the platform choose to view video without sound. Adding text, detailed graphics or subtitles can enhance your ad and prepare it for sound-free viewing, but ultimately, it’s best to optimize your ads with a strong attention to visual, but still incorporate those necessary sound elements for viewers who choose to listen in.

Sync TV with social: 81 percent of Americans use a second screen while watching TV, and in one survey, 72 percent of respondents said they’re on their phone checking social media at that time. Sync up your brand’s social ads to display during television shows or events to boost performance. In our multitasking world, take advantage of that time and run ads during prime time or against a competing show.

Tuning in to your audience

With the hike in digital ad spend, there’s no reason not to work this strategy into your advertising mix. Nevertheless, while optimizing your campaigns for the right platforms, don’t neglect to tell your story. Even though social platforms cater to a completely different user experience, storytelling is stil the most important element to advertising. Always consider your audience and how to resonate with them the best on each platform.

The post Optimizing TV ads for social media and mobile appeared first on Strike Social.

What is social commerce?

The simple definition of social commerce is when a product transaction happens for a third-party website entirely within a social media platform. The social media experience drives the purchasing process, from start to finish. For example, the user finds the product on Facebook and they purchase it there as well. It’s literally a one-stop shop.

Social commerce is happening everywhere: Facebook, Twitter and even Snapchat to name a few. More and more companies are opting to place the customer buying journey directly on social platforms, because that’s where their customers are and where the competition is headed. And on top of that, 63 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds believe that social media is the most effective way to advertise to them, which is no surprise, given that nearly all millennials are active on social media in some form.

The rise of the social shopper

Social shopping is nothing new, and its gradual introduction into the ecomm industry is something marketers need to to pay attention to. Facebook is the giant in the social commerce scene, but there is an increase in consumer activity across all platforms.

Pinterest and Snapchat, for instance, should not be overlooked as the trend picks up. Eighty-seven percent of Pinners have purchased a product because of Pinterest and Snapchat is upping its social commerce game with new ad features to promote in-app commerce. Instagram, too, is gaining ground.

How businesses benefit from social commerce

Retailers are shifting to social commerce because of the infinite possibilities it offers. Because people are on social media daily, it’s advantageous to guide consumers through a product journey directly on social platforms. Here are the positive effects this kind of marketing tactic has on ecomm:

Boost trust and customer loyalty

Social commerce is more than a tool to increase sales. It’s also a tool to build customer relationships. If you’re creating meaningful journeys for your customers and engaging with them along the way, you increase the chances to acquire more loyal customers and build retention.

Quick tip: A proven strategy to engage your customers is to implement a reward system, such as a mobile loyalty app, and enhance these efforts by offering additional ways to interact with and reward your customers.

Increase authentic website traffic

It may be the more obvious benefit, but it’s worth mentioning. Upping your social commerce game means increasing authentic visits to your site. According to eMarketer, the majority of people on social media use it to make purchasing decisions and often later buy directly on the brand’s website.

ROI tools at your disposal

Tracking return on investment can be tricky without the proper knowledge and tools. With native social media, however, you have access to all the right tools you need to measure performance and tie it back to revenue. Social media services can also offer expert insights to deliver results for your e-commerce business.

Scaled word-of-mouth marketing

Word-of-mouth marketing (WOMM) is the most valuable tool for brands, but on social media, that strategy is on a much larger scale. Potential buyers look for trustworthy brands and there’s no better place to gauge reputation than online. Social commerce encourages WOMM, but on a virtual, global scale through online reviews and engagement metrics that can strengthen your brand’s reputation.

Strengthen customer satisfaction

Social commerce improves the customer experience, which directly affects customer satisfaction. This seamless experience on social media means fewer forms and bouncing from page to page during the checkout process. Paying on social media has become a smooth process with integrations like PayPal and Apple Pay, among others.

Getting social with commerce

People are glued to social media daily, and new users are always on the rise. Jumping on the social commerce train could be the difference between improving customer acquisition or missing out on valuable customers. As more brands shift to adding social buying buttons, a seamless social commerce experience is on its way. With commerce moving to social, it’s not enough to only have an e-commerce website with no social driver behind it.

The post What you need to know about the shift to social commerce appeared first on Strike Social.

”Our focus in 2018 is to keep people safe, and to keep building the experiences people expect from us.” – Mark Zuckerberg

Keeping up with all these changes and understanding how it affects you can be challenging. We’ve compiled an easy-to-digest list of Facebook updates in the last year that marketers need to know.

RELATED: Facebook advertising tips for success

More friends and family in your News Feed

Facebook updated its News Feed algorithm in January 2018 in order to promote more meaningful interactions between people. These changes include:

• Less organic content from businesses, brands and media
• More content from family, friends and groups that promote conversation
• More content from trustworthy local news publishers

What does the change mean for brands? With Facebook scaling back public content, users are seeing more organic content from people they know and less from brands. Organic reach will be more difficult to achieve, which means that brands have been shifting their Facebook strategies to focus more on paid efforts.

Facebook will prioritize organic posts that receive more engagement, so Pages that see little reaction or engagement may see the biggest impact from the algorithm update. Users may still prioritize who they see in their News Feed in their settings.

How brands and media can make the algorithm work them:

• Focus on engaging content, like video
• Post content that is valuable to your specific audience
• Post trustworthy content
• Make organic and paid media work together
• Localize your content

Transparency for political ads

Facebook recently announced a change to their political ad policies making it so advertisers will need to be authorized in order to publish electoral or issue ads. Additionally, Facebook will mark all political ads in the top left corner with the label “Political Ad.”

^{Image credit: Whyy.org}

The update aims to increase accountability and transparency for these types of advertisements, meaning Facebook wants you to know where these ads come from.

For an advertiser to be authorized, they will need to verify their identity and location.

RELATED: How to avoid having your ads associated with fake news

An increase in authenticity for Pages

Facebook has also cracked down on fake Pages, which has always been against their policy. Pages with large follower counts are now required to be verified on Facebook. Those that do not pass the verification step will be prohibited from posting.

Want to verify your Facebook Page? Learn how to here.

The decline of engagement bait

Facebook is beginning to frown upon engagement bait tactics. For example, if a post asks users to “like” or “comment” with the incentive to win something, Facebook will begin to limit the reach of that post.

Exceptions include posts promoting local issues like a missing person or important causes.

^{Image credit: PCMag.com}

A change to advertising tools

We can also expect a change to many of Facebook’s advertising tools throughout 2018. Brands should adapt as these changes roll out.

These updates include:

• Removal of some audience size data
• No more custom audience sizes
• Removal of partner data
• Apps using API now require approval
• Removal of call and SMS data targeting

How marketers can adapt: Some of these changes have not taken full effect yet, but will roll into the platform soon enough. Remain flexible as Facebook shifts some of its policies and tools and adjust strategies as needed. Advertising on Facebook is still just as lucrative, with many ad features remaining the same.

New features you need to know about

In addition to Facebook’s policy and ad updates, there are also many new features they have introduced for advertisers. In short, while it takes time to adjust, Facebook’s new features are a good thing for advertisers.

Here are the top features that have the most impact on results and cost:

Dynamic Creative: Facebook introduced a new way to A/B test your ads this year. Dynamic Creative lets you create a Facebook ad with multiple assets and Facebook’s algorithm will find the best performing creative combination.

Dynamic language optimization: No more ads with single languages. You can now deliver multilingual ads to your audiences by including up to six different language options for one ad.

Domain verification: Prior to this feature, Facebook didn’t allow you to edit your link previews. Thankfully, with the new domain verification, you can now edit your link previews as long as you’ve verified your domain ownership.

Multicity and multicountry features: You no longer are limited to selecting one city or country to target per ad. For example, if a single ad pertains to multiple cities, you can target all cities based on size.

Messenger Broadcast: Facebook has been testing a new self-serve tool for businesses to mass-message marketing messages to users.

Staying flexible in the Facebook universe

It’s expected that Facebook will always be changing. Whether it’s developing improvements for the platform or making big shifts in the algorithm, as a marketer, the best advice is to adapt to these changes and learn how new features will work for you. Slowly adjust your marketing tactics to stay on top of changes so that you’re set up for success on Facebook.

The post 2018 Marketer’s Guide to Facebook appeared first on Strike Social.

What is social media ROI?

Return on investment (ROI) as it relates to your social media efforts is a measurement of its efficiency.

Why is it important?

To put it simply, tracking progress and performance is key. How else would you know how your efforts are affecting business and performance levels? How do you prove value? Promoting your services and products on social media requires time, resources and money. Whether you’re focusing on a completely organic social media approach, social advertising or both, you’re fueling it with resources and it’s worth knowing the value that you put in.

It will vary from business to business depending on objectives and goals. It might be measured in dollars, or perhaps the number of leads accumulated. Ultimately, the definition of social media ROI will align with the value social media has on your business.

By measuring your social media ROI, you can:

• Improve marketing efforts
• Monitor the effects of your changes

Taking the steps to a successful ROI

Before you can measure your social media ROI, it’s crucial to nail down some important components that will help you prove the value of your social marketing efforts.

Define your goals

Define what your social channels will do for the business. Do you aim to convert more customers? Increase brand awareness? Bring in more leads? Your social media goals should align directly with your existing business goals.

Those aiming to increase brand awareness, for example, might focus on gaining followers or impressions. Tying social media to revenue, however, might depend on increasing conversions or purchases.

Choose metrics that matter

In order to understand if you’re achieving your goals, you’ll need to track metrics to prove it. Some might think it’s important to track follows or engagement metrics. While these are important, these types of metrics won’t always align with your goals. They look great and prove that your audience is active with your brand, but you’ll need to make sure that the metrics you track directly tie to what you want to accomplish. This often includes number of leads generated, website traffic, conversions and revenue.

RELATED ARTICLE The best social media advertising metrics for each business goal An essential guide to the numbers you have to watch carefully according to each business goal. READ MORE

Measuring your ROI

Now that we’ve covered the basis of what social media ROI is and what goes into your social strategy, how do you measure your return? Like every skilled marketer, you need proper tools. There are plenty of options that provide sufficient data to analyze, set up funnels and track actions and conversions.

These options include:

Google Analytics: If you need to track everything from conversion rate to where your audience is coming from, Google Analytics is that tool. You can determine which social channels bring in more leads or traffic source performs best. Google Analytics provides powerful insights to track how your website data relates back to your social media.

Facebook Pixel: With the Facebook Pixel, you can easily calculate your ROI with Facebook ads. You will need to integrate the pixel with your website to monitor traffic patterns and conversions as they come from Facebook.

Management tools: There are several robust social media management tools that can help you save time and offer measurable insights all in one central platform. For example, Sprout Social incorporates a wide range of networks into its one platform and generates powerful analytics to not only measure ROI, but also offer insight into your social network audience.

Native insights: Don’t overlook native insights. You can obtain analytics directly from social media platforms. It’s easy to tie dollars to performance as you advertise directly inside a platform and have the ability to track click-throughs, impressions and engagement.

Getting the most out of your return

Once you measure your return on investment, don’t stop there. It isn’t enough to calculate and not make the necessary adjustments based on your findings. The best advice: continue to learn about your social media advertising efforts and make improvements. Your ROI will help you understand what areas you can improve on.

The post How to effectively measure social media ROI appeared first on Strike Social.

The idea behind Facebook Messenger ads is to promote conversation with a brand, typically with goals to increase engagement, customer satisfaction and most importantly, increase conversions. More than 1.3 billion people use Facebook Messenger to connect with friends, family and their favorite companies every month. Facebook began rolling out Messenger ads in 2016, with the usage of mobile messaging apps having already surpassed standard network apps in 2015.

Facebook Messenger ads operate very similar to ads on Facebook, but the goal here is for brands to start conversations and keep them going. There are three advertising options available:

• Destination ads on the Newsfeed
• Messenger homepage ads
• Sponsored messages

The key differences

All brands have different business goals. Some ad types will serve goals better than others. Facebook designed each ad type to do the following:

Start a conversation

Messenger homepage ads and messenger destination ads fall in the same category. They’re both designed to prompt new conversation. Messenger destination ads, or rather click-to-messenger ads, are exactly as they sound. This ad type is similar to Newsfeed ads but with a “Message Now” call to action rather than “Shop Now” that would take you to a predetermined URL. In this case, when a user clicks the ad, they receive a message from the brand prompting conversation.

There are many avenues to take with destination ads. For example, you might explore the option of offering a coupon, but when someone clicks on the ad, they’re taken to Messenger with a chat bot or a pre-written message with more information about the discount.

Facebook Messenger ads also offer the capability to place display ads on the homepage of the mobile app, a similar display to the Newsfeed.

^{Image credit: AdEspresso by Hootsuite}

Re-engage customers

Facebook Messenger ads also allow sponsored messages. Unexpectedly, brands can send messages to users to encourage engagement. The catch? There are a couple. You can only send messages to customers who have sent you messages in the past, which is why this feature brings so much value to re-engagement. Lastly, the cost associated with these messages are based on impressions, not clicks.

Facebook Messenger ads offer a special kind of experience for your customers. Here’s why you should be using them in your social ad strategy:

Brand awareness: Like Newsfeed ads, you can expose your brand to a wider audience. More people are using the mobile Facebook Messenger app than Facebook on mobile.

Personalization: A major component of Messenger is to add a personal touch to the company. It’s a place where your potential and returning customers can ask questions, share feedback or even place orders. With ads directing users to Messenger, it encourages a sense of personalization to their experience, especially if the user is looking for something particular from your services.

Retargeting efforts: Whether you want to run a social retargeting campaign using messenger destination ads or send sponsored messages to users who may have communicated with you before, Facebook Messenger ads cater to getting in front of those who may just need that final push.

Related: Facebook advertising tips for success

The post Why brands should be using Facebook Messenger ads appeared first on Strike Social.

Advertising opportunities include increased interest in greeting cards, flowers and special events during April and May, along with top search terms on Pinterest that align with these categories.

With such a high activity for Mother’s Day on Pinterest, many brands will find it beneficial to advertise with Promoted Pins. Check out Strike Social’s infographic below for Mother’s Day stats and ideas for advertising on Pinterest.

RELATED: 7 tips for success with Pinterest advertising

Want to embed this infographic?

<a href="https://strikesocial.com" target="_blank"><img src="https://images.ctfassets.net/82kv66k4hmlh/62RGz2V69yQCouk8yc2O4U/5f020c74d6c19af35181de576b7bacc6/Pinterest_Mother_s_Day_infographic_strike_social_2018.jpg"/></a>

The post The advertiser’s guide to Mother’s Day on Pinterest appeared first on Strike Social.

The simple answer to that is yes.

Recently, YouTube introduced a change to TrueView ads called TrueView for Reach, designed to benefit both the advertiser and consumer experience. The update comes with YouTube’s announcement in the last year to abandon 30-second unskippable ads to improve user experience on the platform.

What does this mean for advertisers?

TrueView for Reach is good news for advertisers because it’s cost-effective using CPM (cost per thousand impressions) and according to YouTube, can offer 95 percent viewability rates. The option, along with other TrueView formats, is skippable after five seconds.

While this TrueView option is beneficial to increase ad recall, it also means that brands should continue to focus efforts on creating engaging content that viewers won’t want to skip. With some TrueView formats, advertisers pay when viewers watch at least 30 seconds, the entire ad or click anywhere on the creative. With TrueView for Reach, advertisers will pay even if viewers skip.

Capturing the “skip generation”

YouTube remains a popular platform among millennials, but last year, one survey found that 59 percent of millenials watch ads until they can skip. The attention span of today’s viewers is far less than it was 20 years ago and now brands on YouTube only have a small window to engage and retain their audience.

To create unskippable content, brands must:

• Set the tone immediately. A key reason most people skip is because of uninteresting content. If the content is not relevant or interesting, viewers skip immediately. Emotion and humor keep people interested. Why do you think Superbowl commercials pull at the heartstrings or make people laugh? It keeps viewers engaged and watching longer, thus promoting better ad recall. Incorporating emotion in those first few seconds improves the chances that your viewers will keep watching.
• Make a point as soon as possible. You have five seconds to get your message out. Explain the problem and promise a solution, but in a captivating manner. Then continue to tell your story. Conveying your message quickly does two things: it increases brand recall even if viewers skip, or it draws viewers in to watch longer.
• Think about brand placement. There is a debate about where brands should place their logo in an ad. Do you focus on telling a story to captivate viewers or place a logo in the beginning for better ad recall (knowing that your audience might skip anyway)? Google Insights suggests that brands choosing to show their logo in those first few seconds should tie it to the product rather than free-float it on the ad.
• Remember this is YouTube, not television. YouTube ads are a whole different game from television. People watch TV commercials passively. They don’t have that readily available skip button at their fingertips to tap. People are viewing YouTube on their phones, tablets or laptops. They’re typically on-the-go and ready to interact, share, like or comment. Get creative with your video and incorporate interacting elements that play into the user experience.
• Reach the right people at the right time. People want content that is meaningful to them. Your creative might be great and you might be telling an intriguing story, but if your ads aren’t getting in front of the right viewers at the right time, you can count on more skips and less engagement. A solution like Strike Social’s YouTube marketing software helps discover and target relevant audiences to make sure the right people are seeing your ads.

Keeping all of this mind, YouTube remains a popular platform over primetime television, but as mentioned above, advertising online is much different than your traditional TV commercial. The platform is lucrative for brands to raise awareness, but to combat the “skip generation,” it’s time to focus on those first five seconds to really hook viewers.

The post You’ve got five seconds: capturing your audience before they skip appeared first on Strike Social.

Below are the biggest social media advertising mistakes, and the ones that you certainly want to avoid.

1. Not having a social advertising strategy

So you’ve got a lot of followers and likes. There are people wandering around your social networks. They’re inquiring about services and clicking on your ads. What’s next?

If you don’t have a strategy in place, then your ads serve no purpose. You need to define your objectives, tactics, target audience and what resources you’ll invest.

2. Not defining your goals

Far too many social advertising mistakes revolve around not setting goals or not setting the right ones. Before creating a social ad, ask yourself: what is the purpose of this campaign? You can’t run social ads without knowing what you’re trying to achieve from them. Are you aiming to garner more leads? Is it brand awareness? Or is it simply to boost sales of a product?

If your goals aren’t something you can measure, then you’re already setting your campaigns up for failure.

3. Not defining buyer personas

Personas are ideas of potential customers. Identifying your potential customers helps you understand your target audience. Not every ad will pertain to the same group of people.

A persona-based advertising strategy focuses on catered content. Usually, you can’t pull these personas out of thin air. They’re based on market trends and research of buying processes.

A persona-based strategy helps you discover the full picture of who you’re targeting, and without it, you don’t know what content will resonate with the customer.

4. Targeting too narrow or too wide of an audience

An 18-year-old female who lives in California will have a different lifestyle and set of interests compared to a 55-year-old male who lives in Florida. Know your audience and use data to back it up. Making the mistake of targeting a broad audience or a narrow group could end up costing you.

RELATED ARTICLEHow to use effective targeting to reach your social media adverising audienceBy understanding your best customer’s behaviors, attitudes and demographics, you can set your social media advertising campaign up for success.READ MORE

5. Not tailoring your ads to each platform

A display ad that cuts off due to the wrong ad specs certainly hurts your chances for success. All social platforms have different requirements, and it’s important to get them right. Where will your ads be running and what types of ads will they be?

Luckily, at Strike Social, we have a complete guide of ad specs and requirements to set yourself up for success.

• Facebook ad specs
• Twitter ad specs
• LinkedIn ad specs
• Snapchat ad specs
• YouTube ad specs
• Pinterest ad specs

6. No creative diversity

While your brand should have an overarching style, having creative diversity means exploring more creative options such as video, carousel ads and utilizing multiple platforms that make sense.

Discover where your audience is more likely to view media. Is it on their phone? Or a desktop? Do they consume video more than photos? Mix in engaging content that will resonate with your audience, and don’t always use the same creative.

7. No call to action

Forgetting your call to action could mean missing out on converting customers. A call to action is a clear statement about the next step for your customers to take. What do you want them to do next? If you want them to sign up for a newsletter, “Subscribe Now” is a clear call to action.

Call to actions must be quick and easy to see, helping your audience along the buying journey.

8. Always sending people to the homepage

Let’s say you’re advertising for a clothing company and have a call to action to “Shop Now” for a product. Sending people to the homepage only creates an inconvenience for them to have to search for the product, which creates the risk of losing a potential customer.

As mentioned above, call to actions help boost your customer acquisition, but you have to guide users along that journey. Send people to a landing page to achieve a better conversion rate.

9. Not tracking conversions properly

The beauty of social advertising is that you have the ability to track results, and that includes conversion rate. You know the journey your customers take from start to finish — if set up properly that is.

For example, the Facebook pixel is a piece of a code you put on your website that helps you measure your ads, but if you don’t set it up properly, you may not be tracking the data you need to be successful.

10. Not monitoring campaigns

Don’t ignore one of the most important pieces in social advertising. If you run a campaign and don’t monitor throughout, how do you know if it’s performing? Monitoring campaigns while they are live allows you to understand performance from start to finish and make adjustments to current and future campaigns.

11. Forgetting organic performance

If we’re talking about paid social, then what does organic have to do with it? A lot actually. Your organic performance can indicate how to spend your budget wisely.

Before running an ad campaign, test the creative organically to see how it’s received. If an organic post is well-received, continue to promote it even further as an ad.

12. Neglecting the power of A/B testing

Lastly, but certainly one of the biggest mistakes, is neglecting to A/B test. Rather than guessing and checking what works, A/B testing will give you real data to backup your decision to use a certain ad creative, headline or copy. Run two ads against one another and test which ad your audience responds to more. From there, you can refine your audience.

By not utilizing A/B testing, you run the risk of promoting an underperforming ad with no outcome.

The post The 12 biggest social media advertising mistakes to avoid appeared first on Strike Social.

Of that 46 percent, users on Twitter are more likely to be young adults living in urban areas. How do brands reach these users though?

Twitter for Business helps brands get in front of the right people through several ad targeting options. Advertisers on the platform should enlist the role of ad targeting to focus on demographic specifics and behavioral patterns among a variety of targeting options available. Fortunately, Twitter offers several advertising opportunities to reach your ideal target audience.

In this blog, we’ll uncover the details behind Twitter ad targeting options available on the platform and how to make the most of them for your campaigns.

RELATED ARTICLEThe advertiser’s guide to Twitter CardsLearn to navigate the world of Twitter Cards and determine which can be used to assist your business goals.READ MORE

Follower targeting

Follower targeting lets you target followers of relevant accounts. These are people who are likely to share similar interests to your business because they already follow brands similar to yours. By choosing to target the followers of similar Twitter accounts, Twitter will automatically create an audience based on the interests of those followers.

This means that you must analyze who your competitors, influencers and similar audiences are. You might also consider targeting followers of industry news accounts.

Best practices

• Utilize search.twitter.com to find industry influencers worth targeting.
• Don’t always target accounts with millions of followers. Target the accounts with the most relevant following to your brand.
• To start, focus on 30 usernames per campaign and make sure your potential reach is at least 50,000 followers.
• Measure ongoing performance through the Twitter Ad Manager and refine your target audience as needed.

Keyword targeting

Twitter is a platform where people are constantly expressing their thoughts, opinions, wants and needs. Twitter ad targeting gives you the option to target based on recently tweeted phrases or recently searched items, getting you in front of people when it matters the most. This method requires a preconceived approach to forming your target audience, but it’s an ideal option for reaching your audience when you are most relevant to them.

Best practices

• Use your knowledge from search.
• Review the analytics from your campaigns after the first week. What is working and what isn’t? Which keywords receive more engagement? Add similar keywords to your high-performing terms.
• Twitter is all about timing. Establish times when your keyword will resonate with your audience the most.

Emoji targeting

In 2016, Twitter began letting brands target people using emojis. Emoji targeting falls within the same category as keyword targeting, but the approach is slightly different. Emoji targeting can be lucrative if used correctly. Brands should understand the context of emojis and how they are being used that might be relevant to their business.

Currently, the only available emojis to target are included on this full Unicode emoji list. The list is also important to help understand emoji context.

Best practices

• Use emojis that make the most sense to your brand. Some emojis can have multiple meanings or difficult to interpret, so it’s best to use emojis you know that make sense to your business.
• Consider demographics when it comes to targeting emojis, as some groups may use them differently or more than others.

Gender & age targeting

While Twitter doesn’t ask its users for their gender, it does read into signals for gender-based ad targeting. It’s not perfect, but for example, if your audience consists of mostly women, Twitter gives you the option to target these gender specifics. Twitter has found their public signals for gender targeting is more than 90 percent accurate.

You have the option to target men, women or any gender, as well as all ages or specify an age range.

Best practices

• Gender and age targeting are not typically used as standalone targets. Combine this method with other targeting options, such as location, interest or device targeting to refine your audience.
• Rather than assuming what is going to work, run separate campaigns for each gender to test campaign performance.

Language targeting

Like gender targeting, Twitter uses a number of signals in conjunction with the user’s language settings in their profile to determine the user’s language. This means you can also target multilingual users, for example, if they have their settings set to English but may also tweet in Spanish.

Best practices

• Utilize this targeting method during global events or holidays.
• Conduct multilingual keyword research.
• Use landing pages that use the same language as your ads.

Location targeting

To get more granular with your targeting, you have the option to target based on country, city or zip code. Location targeting, or geo-targeting, allows you to get more specific with your reach. For example, if you serve multiple locations and only want to appear to users in those areas, this option helps you maintain relevance in those places.

Find the complete list of countries available to target here.

Best practices

• If you choose not to target a location, your Promoted Tweets will be shown globally. Utilize this feature to focus on more relevant users.
• Use landing pages specific to locations you are targeting.
• Take advantage of events that happen at specific locations, for example, where a major sporting event takes place.

Interest targeting

An important Twitter ad targeting option is the use of interests. Brands can target people based on broad or specific interests that run parallel to their business. There are 25 interest categories to choose from that extend into 350 sub-categories.

Twitter allows up to two interests per campaign. If you want to refine a selected audience for a campaign, it’s best to monitor what’s working and what isn’t and adjust your interest selections as needed.

Best practices

• Twitter’s interests are broad, so focus on the variety of sub-interests available to narrow your ad target.
• If you feel more categories meet your campaign, split test the categories to determine optimal performance.

Behavior targeting

This option is only available to U.S. and UK advertisers. It allows you to reach people based on a variety of behaviors, anywhere from a user’s online and offline purchases to annual household income. Other opportunities can include what type of restaurants a user frequents, their buying styles or the type of car they own.

How does this type of targeting pertain to brands? Let’s say, for example, you are a brand selling high-end vehicles. You can target users who have made purchases at high-end dealerships in the past or based on annual household income. You’re trying to reach the most qualified buyers who meet a certain persona.

Best practices

• Narrow what buyer traits to go after based on the style of your brand. The more specific the buyer trait, the more expensive your cost-per-click or cost-per-conversion may be.
• Start with the basic traits first, and test campaign performance.

Device targeting

Device targeting on Twitter gives advertisers multiple targeting abilities:

• Operating system
• Type of device
• Wi-Fi connectivity
• Type of mobile carrier
• New device

Why would these matter? Each one has a specific use. For example, users on new devices are more likely to have interest in new apps or services. Additionally, Android and iOS users might behave differently or have different interests.

Best practices

• Segment your campaigns between different devices and identify what performs better.
• Make sure your website and landing page are responsive to mobile devices.

Tailored and flexible audiences

Twitter allows you to tailor your audiences through web, mobile app or list. These tailored audiences let you target those who have come in contact with your brand in the past. This is also called retargeting.

Let’s break down the different targeting methods:

Web: You can target users who have been to your website or took action on your site. By installing Twitter’s website tag, you can collect this data and target your custom audience via Twitter Cards.

Mobile Apps: Similar to web, if you have a mobile app, you can target users who have taken specific action on your app.

Lists: This option is pretty straightforward. Simply upload a complete or segmented CRM list directly to Twitter to target users who appear on that list. You can also upload an email list or use Twitter usernames.

The option is the first available when setting up your campaign. If you don’t wish to use a single tailored audience, you can combine multiple tailored audiences into a flexible audience.

Best Practices

• Refine your audience by combining tailored audiences with one of the other Twitter ad targeting methods.
• Use lookalike targeting to find new audience opportunities.

Related: The advertiser’s guide to social media ad retargeting

Tying it all together

With the precision of Twitter ad targeting, the possibilities are endless. There are many combinations to test to determine a qualified target audience.

Through segmenting and testing data, you can get more granular with your targeting on Twitter. For example, you might combine a tailored audience with interest and behavioral targeting to define the right audience.

No matter your goal, remember to keep your audience in mind and measure which campaigns are resonating with people.

The post The beginner’s guide to Twitter ad targeting appeared first on Strike Social.

What started out at as a simple social networking site has become the world’s largest marketing tool for advertisers. With more than 1 billion active daily users on Facebook and a fairly even gender split, it’s no secret that Facebook advertising is lucrative for brands.

Advertising on Facebook has the power to expand your business, but there’s no perfect formula. There are best practices, however, and we’ve compiled a list of some of the best Facebook advertising tips to help lead a successful campaign.

Target the right people

In order to be successful at advertising on Facebook, you want to make sure you’re getting in front of the right audience. Hone in on the audience that makes the most sense to go after for your brand. Be sure to consider:

• What devices are your audiences most likely to use?
• Where are they located?
• What languages do they speak?
• What content do they engage with most?

Facebook allows you to formulate an audience based on demographics, behavior, location, interests and more. You may find after testing and segmenting your target audience, that there are more audience opportunities out there than you had originally envisioned.

Embrace A/B testing

Why A/B test? A/B testing (also known as split testing) allows you to run multiple variations of your Facebook campaigns to determine what resonates best with your audience. A/B testing will help you understand what will perform best while also keeping ad costs down.

Don’t guess what will work with your audience just to make a mistake and lose valuable ad spend on a campaign that doesn’t perform. A/B testing let’s data do the decision making for you.

Focus on retargeting efforts

One thing all marketers face: a conversion doesn’t always happen on the first go-around. That’s where retargeting your audience comes in handy. For example, a user may visit your website or interact with your brand, but then never convert. By setting up Facebook ad retargeting, you can win your audience over by staying in their feeds and on their minds.

Connect a landing page

Link your Facebook ads to landing pages rather than straight to your website or product page. You’re likely asking for a high bounce rate by sending visitors to the homepage of your site without any clear direction. In rare instances, you might connect an ad to your website, but directing visitors to a landing page first is worth your ad spend to ensure each click counts.

Related: A glimpse into the Facebook Ads Manager

Use original designs

Let’s talk creatives. Your images must be eye-catching and stand out from the other millions of images circling Facebook daily. For best performance, use high-quality images, bright colors and white backgrounds.

Additionally, you don’t want to display the same ad image again and again. Target a wider audience by incorporating new creatives into the mix. This is where A/B testing can help you decide what creatives perform well with your audience.

Optimize for organic and paid social

Out of all the facebook advertising tips we’ve covered, one thing is certain: when it comes to organic and paid social efforts on Facebook, one does not work without the other. Make sure to analyze how your past organic posts have performed and formulate your advertising strategy around that. Use the Facebook Insights tool to understand overarching performance. Some of your organic posts may perform well with your audience or they may underperform. Understand why that is and focus your organic and paid efforts appropriately based on your findings.

The post Facebook advertising tips for success appeared first on Strike Social.

“Using advanced technologies like AI detects the best ad placements based on past campaigns.”

There are a few key components to consider when addressing brand safety. Media buyers must apply preventive measures to combat the issue with YouTube brand safety, such as constructing an extensive list of negative keywords or blocking distasteful channels in media campaigns. Having safeguards in place ensures that every campaign is brand safe.

Strike Social has compiled tips and insights on how to improve brand safety on YouTube.

Related: Brand safety measures for YouTube advertising

The post Tips to improve YouTube brand safety appeared first on Strike Social.