The 6 Dangerous Fallacies of Social Media

You may have heard of social media. There’s been a bit of news about it recently. However, a lot of people making that news have created expectations and beliefs about social media that aren’t true.

1. Social Media is Inexpensive

False. As Charlene Li said recently, social media trades media cost for labor cost. Done correctly, social media - even a simple reputation monitoring program - is a time intensive proposition that requires daily vigilance.

2. Social Media is Fast

False. Social media is by definition slow. Done correctly, social media is about developing meaningful relationships with customers and prospective customers in their natural habitat. That’s not a “wave the magic wand” scenario. You have to create content, be part of many communities, and proceed incrementally. Many successful social media programs take months (or even more than a year) to really germinate.

3. Social Media is “Viral Marketing”

False, in the same way that a square is also a rectangle, but a rectangle isn’t a square. Can a social media program go viral? Absolutely. But if you’re engaged in a social media program in an effort to go “viral” you’re not really engaged in social media at all. You’re engaged in an advertising and marketing campaign that uses the Web as its distribution platform.

4. Social Media results can’t be measured

False. Especially in comparison to many other communication programs like traditional PR, TV advertising, outdoor advertising and others, social media actually offers pretty solid metrics. Many social media software packages (great ebook analysis of them here) can provide highly detailed reports on the impact of social media programs. Can those results be tied back directly to sales, and therefore ROI? Probably not yet, but other than search and email (and maybe banners) where CAN you do that?

5. Social Media is optional

It doesn’t matter what the demographics of your customers are. It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in. Your customers and prospects are talking about you online. Your company needs to be part of that conversation. Today. Online is where many people do their talking, so that’s where you need to be. If barber shops were still driving consumer sentiment, I’d be writing this post about barber shop marketing. Be where your customers are.

6. Social media is hard

False. It’s not hard, it’s complicated. And that’s only because of the alphabet soup of social networks, lifestreams, sharing sites, etc. Social media is not about Facebook or MySpace or Flickr or Twitter or blogs or YouTube. It’s about having a strategy for making your company or organization more like a person and less like a machine. It’s about humanization.

If your customers and prospects feel like your company is more human and actually cares about them, they’ll want to be part of it. That’s the brand engagement holy grail that we’re all seeking. Too often, the humanization part gets overlooked in an effort to create a “user-generated video contest widget that we’ll launch on Facebook with support from Ustream.” Whatever. Use technology to be yourself, and don’t overthink it.

Source:
http://www.socialmediatoday.com/SMC/51001

Uncover the Facts Today About Cheap Dog Food Products

Did you know that some dog foods on the supermarket shelves could be detrimental to your dog's health? Learn the secrets today to what to look out for in cheap dog foods.

When you are seeking for methods to maintain your dog's health the foods you choose to feed him is very important to his health in the long term.

If we were to turn the clock back more than 25 years dogs were fed differently to what they are given in this day and age. In general going back in time to the last generation what was left on the table would be the dog's dinner, on the other hand it's good we have reconsidered these options and consider our dogs health and are choosier with regards to their food.

Or so one would think but are we?

Its seems every month or so some new dog food comes on the super market shelves, which make claims to provide them with better health if they eat this type of food, for example; healthier teeth, firmer bones, more active, on the other hand these products seem to come an go and are not available for reasons that they may be not good for a dogs health, it almost seems the companies that manufacture the foods are using our dogs as a test which is quite concerning.

I can appreciate we have to find ways to nourish our dogs and our family by watching our pennies, on the other hand when buying the cheapest food for our dog is not always the best option if we end up giving that money back to the vet.

So the difficulty is, how can we be aware to what dog foods to get and be economical, plus have the health of are dogs as a priory concern, and not have to give the savings to the vet.

Dogs are the same as us with regards to the food we eat that it does have an influence on our health, when you look at the obesity, health problems in the world we consume to many junk foods for instance; ready to eat dinners, hamburgers, chips, and the effects are very obvious to observe poor health and obesity.

With regard to dog food the same thing applies by feeding your dog meals with plenty of nutriments then it makes sense you can have a healthy dog; they would not be susceptible to the common diseases that are out there.

It's no surprise that our pets can catch diseases if they are not in their best health, as we all know how they like to mix with other dogs and sniffing around is quite a natural function for them, and often that could mean dogs poop this is often how they can get infected with diseases.

Very few people understand that dog foods obtainable in the hypermarket are not always the best choice. Important to take into consideration that less expensive dog foods need be examined to the contents in the tin or packet, in the same we would shop for our family, and the explanation things are not always as they are presented.

Don't fall into the trap by accepting what is true on the tin often these tactics are to make more sales.

It is important to take into consideration that the contents can be very poor quality and can affect your dog's health in the long term.

When you are at the supermarket buying food for your dog next time, look out for "meat by products" or "meat and bone meal" be very cautious when it is worded in this way, what this means is it could contain skin, bones, lungs, or other disgusting parts of bodies we would not dream of feeding to humans in it's unmixed sense, this is probably what is meant by meat by products and bone meal.

If you are seeking top grade dog foods then it is important to investigate the labels on the tins or packets for example; chicken meal, beef, plus you can be in no doubt if corn is the main ingredient.

In this article I am only able to provide you with a fraction of the information with regard to feeding your dog healthy food options, but I hope this has pointed you in the right direction to keep your dog healthy and happy.

Conclusively be thoughtful when making choices to what you feed your best buddy.

Source:
http://www.content4reprint.com/pets-and-animals/uncover-the-facts-today-about-cheap-dog-food-products.htm