Social media engagement is friendly by nature, but using social media engagement to drive business is sophisticated. As the most recent social media revolution has brought us to the era of divergent networks working concurrently to expand our existence on the cloud, Pop Labs has stayed with recent trends, both scientific and artistic, to keep our clients on the right track.

Today is Leap Day, something that happens only once every four years. If you have been neglecting any of your major social media networks for that long, you’ve missed out on tremendous marketing opportunities. Oh sure, there are still people out there demanding evidence of impact from social media channels. But both intuitively and knowledgeably, we have all seen the impact of modern, interactive social media technology. In the meantime, those who have stayed grounded rather than reaching for the cloud have been left behind while up to date firms leap light years ahead.

Have no doubt about this: Smart social media drives sales. Putting in real effort to create intelligent webs of message channels is the best way to gain engagement. Engagement opens the door to dialogue. Dialogues becomes leads… And leads become sales.

The Lab Notes theme this month has focused on audience interaction, but something that must be made clear in relation to this theme is why we care about interaction. Audience interaction draws in smart leads already in the safe zone. It turns cold calling into waiting for customers to bite.

So leap forward for the rest of 2012. Learn all you can about social media, including what it is and how you can use it as a benefit to your business. Leapfrog your competitors with Pop Labs

Check out our killer Pop Labs social media packages, including our social media audit.

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Given the rise in social media and digital marketing over the last ten years, many businesses have scrambled to adapt to the daily rise of emerging platforms, networks and technology, often chasing the ball rather than staying in front of it.

At Pop Labs, we pride ourselves on remaining in front of the social media curve, pouncing on trends and adapting to the ever-evolving social media landscape. As true digital marketers, our social media plans are tailored to the needs of individual clients and platform-specific focus.

Consider these five ways to connect your offline and online audiences:

# 1 SPEECHES
Speakers always carry an air of authority because they have the official, granted command of the audience. Speeches are also very easily recorded, so any speech can be slapped up on the web and passed around. A few interesting presentations later and Voila! Your online audience can see that you have real life fans.

#2 NETWORKING EVENTS
An oldie but a goodie. Why go to these things if you aren’t getting some kind of audience out of it? Bring a stack of cards and a Smartphone with you at all times. Pull these people onto the web with you. Drive them to your blog so they can see you have something to add to the conversation.

#3 INTERVIEWS
Just like live conference speeches, interviews are easy media to kick around on the web. They also suggest some level of knowledge. The interviewer could theoretically choose anyone to jabber with, but he chose you. Answer the questions cleverly, then show the world you know your chops.

#4 PHONE CALLS
Not a fan of cold calling? Too bad. The phone is a tool that is used for 80% communication and 20% for information. Let your key audience members know you have something digital going on with a phone call. We have gotten to the point where taking the time to hit a few buttons and blab with your clients for a bit is a sign of politeness, almost like sending a handwritten letter.

#5 LUNCH
Lunch is one of the major weapons of the modern business networker. There is something about eating that opens people up. Or maybe a full stomach is just better protection against crankiness. Whatever the case may be, calling someone up for lunch is a kind gesture that reinforces what people see of you online in a very positive way.

(To see a prime example of an offline event driving digital branding, come see Pop Labs CEO Gene McCubbin and I speak at the Ignite Houston Conference this Thursday, February 23rd, 2012 from 6:30 – 9:00 pm at C2 Creative (2215 Taft Street) in Houston, TX. Tickets are $15. All proceeds go to charity).

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Blogging has brought great changes to the information and media landscape, a fact that Pop Labs has been aware of since the beginning of the modern rise of social media and the latest advancements of the digital age. The upside is that now anyone can spread information to the masses through a self-established internet outlet. The downside is that that freedom comes at the price of having to wade through a written sea of nonsense.

The last thing you want is to be pegged as part of that nonsense. Your blog isn’t like all of those other blogs.

Your blog is the desired.

Presented here for you are three ways to make your audience fall in love with you.

#1 TELL THEM SOMETHING USEFUL
Trying to fluff your way through a blog post is the fastest way to come up with something unhelpful. Making things up as you write is the blogging equivalent of a cheesy pickup line. On the other hand, giving out some useful information immediately separates you from the pack and makes you the object of your audience’s affection.

Look your audience lovingly in the eyes, take it by the hand… and tell the truth. The bottom line is that no one likes a liar and no one trusts a sweet talker.

#2 BE FUNNY
If you ask most people what they want in a mate, they will tell you that a good sense of humor is important. The same can be said of blogs. Take yourself too seriously and you wind up sounding like an emotionally insane diarist with an open web log. Bring a smile to the face of your reader and you’ll come out smelling like a rose.

#3 TEND TO THEIR NEEDS
Being a good writer is about being a good listener. Look through the blogosphere and social media landscape and listen to what kind of conversation people are having. Then fill the need presented by the chatter and show the masses you want them to feel safe and secure.

To learn more about writing blog posts that make your audience go googly-eyed, contact Pop Labs.

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