Moving a mature and trusted brand into a new medium was the challenge — a challenge well-met and now underway, showing early benefits in real time.  That’s shown by several measures, the most important of which is new customers, but not the only measure. Here’s how Gruvii made it happen.

The medical flight firm has been an industry leader among jet ambulance providers. Today the company enjoys a first-page ranking for top-level key word search returns.   But that pinnacle wasn’t always the case. .

For more than 25 years, the company’s perfect safety record of accident-free flights and its roster of satisfied clients (caseworkers and surgical clinic administrators had been primary markets)  kept business percolating mainly by word of mouth.

“They put up website early in the game,” said Mark Figueredo, Gruvii CEO.  ”It was good for the era in which it operated, but about two years ago, corporate realized it needed more than a pretty website. And, truth be told, it really wasn’t all that pretty anymore. They knew they could be doing more but didn’t know where to begin. ”

The  mandate became to update the way the company uses its website without abandoning years of branded excellence and client recognition.  “In any medical specialty, trust comes first, or nothing else can be relied on to happen easily or well for patient, family or medical staff ,” Figurado said.  After that, the business model was a complex one of professional to professional sales with a ton of governmental regulation from the FAA and FCC to state and international licensing in both the aeronautical as well as the medical fields.

Today, the company has a humming website that’s generating healthy daily stats of 50,000 search returns, 5,000 page lands, 500 page visits that last 45 seconds or longer, and 50 visitor-initiated inquires for more information — in a market that is not an overly wide wedge of the economic pie.

In the two months that the site has been up and running, the company’s vp of sales is reporting the new website is directly responsible for five medical flight bookings, two by patients themselves and the rest by family members.  “This is a whole new market for us,”  the firm was able to announce in a press release to shareholders last week.

Its previous site had been aimed solely at professional caseworkers, and frankly, it wasn’t much more than a billboard for the 800 number.  Now that the site’s content has been enriched, it invites browsing, offers visitor education, reduces client anxiety about the process, and facilitates human to human contact that closed five transactions during its fourth week after launch.

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“The deal is, it’s not about money, it’s about getting people to talk with each other to make people’s lives better,” says Newmark, who now focuses his energies on his non-profit craigconnects, which seeks to maximize the use of online tools for the common good.

It’s difficult to pinpoint social media savvy through numbers, although the study compares a variety of metrics. While most of the stats focus on Twitter use, the infographic also evaluates LinkedIn, YouTube and RSS feeds.

Are you surprised that money doesn’t necessarily result in social media success? Let us know what you think in the comments.

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Original Article

What happens if you combine Twitter-like sharing, the depth of blogging and the voting mechanics of Reddit? You might get Chime.in, UberMedia’s take on social networking.

Chime.in, which makes its public debut Tuesday, shares some similarities to Twitter’s interface, but UberMedia CEO Bill Gross argues that his social network tackles completely different problems than Twitter or Facebook. Unlike Twitter, which describes itself as an “information network,” Gross describes Chime.in as an “interest network.”

Like other social networks, Chime.in lets users share content with others. It has a newsfeed, profile pages and a system for following other users. The social network doesn’t have status updates, though. Instead it has “chimes,” which are a cross between a Facebook status update and a blog post.

Users are allowed to write short articles on Chime.in — up to 4,000 characters. A chime displays a headline, the first few sentences of a chime, a piece of multimedia (an image, a video, etc.), a profile picture, interest tags and options for liking, commenting and sharing. Chimes included threaded comments that include a Reddit-style up or downvote system for surfacing the best comments to the top of a chime.

Gross says that having “yet another social network” isn’t a winning strategy, so Chime.in has a few differentiating factors that he believes will tip the scales in its favor. The biggest selling point is that users have control over their profiles, including the advertising and sponsors that run on the page. Users can include their own ads on the page and keep 100% of the revenue, or they can let UberMedia sell ads for their page and split the revenue 50-50.

Gross believes that control over revenue makes Chime.in more appealing to publishers that want to monetize themselves in social media. UberMedia has already struck deals with E! Online, Disney, Bravo and other publishers who will promote Chime.in while keeping control of the revenue they generate from it.

Chime.in is also built with the mobile world in mind. The mobile apps (iPhone, BlackBerry and Android) allow for all of the actions the website contains. Because of its complexity, the network isn’t available to feature phones, but in return the mobile versions of Chime.in work very much like the website.

One of the problems the social network’s app solves, Gross argues, is quick access to content. Gross says that getting content from Twitter’s mobile apps is a painful process: one has to go to the tweet, open the link and wait for the page to load. In contrast, Chime.in content loads almost instantly, thanks to caching and Chime.in actually hosting content rather than just linking to it.

UberMedia has a long road ahead to making Chime.in a success. The world is already flush with social networks and user fatigue. The company will have to convince millions of people that Chime.in is different enough and useful enough to use in addition to Facebook and Twitter. Gross believes that Chime.in’s focus on interests and its offer to let publishers keep the revenue they generate will make it an attractive choice for users, publishers and companies.

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Original Article

Twitter CEO Dick Costolo shared some interesting stats about Twitter’s growth, including that it has more than 100 million active users and that signups via iOS device have tripled since the launch of iOS 5.

Twitter has been on a roll in recent months. The company surpassed 200 million tweets per day in June but has since jumped to nearly 250 million daily tweets. The growth has been tremendous: Twitter had around 100 million tweets per day in January 2011.

Costolo shared these stats during an interview at the Web 2.0 Summit in San Francisco.

Of those 100 million global active users, half of them log in daily. “We had 30% of our monthly active users login in every day at the beginning of the year. Now it’s over 50%,” Costolo revealed.

The company’s growth amounts to about 40% quarter on quarter. But perhaps the most interesting stat is the impact of iOS 5 on Twitter. Apple’s mobile OS directly integrates Twitter, and that has resulted in a boost for the company. Costolo revealed that Twitter signups via iOS 5 devices have tripled since the launch of that iOS update.

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Original Article

Social media sites allow us to connect quickly and stay connected to people and brands faster than ever before, which means we form closer relationships and have quick access to new people and opportunities. Most small businesses know it’s important to use social media, but they often make critical, costly mistakes when setting up their social media strategy. Here are the top 10 social media mistakes small business make and how to avoid them.

Mistake No. 1: Not Having a Plan
Even though many social media applications are free, they still cost small businesses time – and time equals money. To avoid wasting valuable time and money, start by putting together a social media marketing plan. Ask yourself what you hope to achieve from social media and how you plan to get there. Determine the amount of time and resources you are willing to devote to the program.  Once you have a plan in place, it will be easier to focus on achieving the results you want.

Mistake No. 2: Too Much Too Soon
After establishing a plan, often small business owners jump into all aspects of the social space at once. This can be a huge mistake because it’s easy to get overwhelmed very quickly.  Not all social networks make sense for every business or business owner. Do some research to determine which platforms best fit your business goals. What sites are your competitors and customers on? Consider starting with a platform you are familiar with and that you already have established network on.

Mistake No. 3: Not Measuring Your Success and Return on Investment
As a small business, you have limited time and resources, so it’s important to measure every aspect of your business to be sure it’s worth the investment. A social media program is no exception. Make sure you set goals for your program and that you have ways to monitor these. Most social media applications have some type of analytics associated with their platforms, as well as help sections that explain how to use the tools.

Mistake No. 4: Underutilizing Social Platforms for Branding
Every social media platform includes multiple fields for businesses to insert their brand messages and images. Many small business owners will leave multiple fields on their profiles blank. This is a big mistake. Your company information, logo, and any other links or images on your profile are the sales tools you have to pique a potential customer’s interest in your business.  If your profile is half complete it reflects poorly on your company. Plus, the more complete the information is on your social profile, the more likely you are to be found in search results.

Mistake No. 5: Promoting Without Listening or Engaging
Have you ever been to a party and met someone who constantly talked about themselves? It’s a real turn off. Social media is very similar; if you constantly talk about your business and what your business offers without listening or engaging with others, your network will fall flat.  Don’t be afraid to jump into conversations with new people or to ask questions. Likewise, if someone asks you a question or makes a comment to you, make sure you respond.

Mistake No. 6: Not Addressing Negative Comments or Feedback
Occasionally, business owners will have disgruntled customers and clients who post negative messages about their business or services. The initial reaction is to immediately delete the post. Do not do this! Social media is based upon transparency and authenticity. When you delete a post, you indicate to others that you are uncomfortable with what your brand is doing or represents. Instead of deleting the post, face it head-on and fully address the concern. Dealing with it will earn you more brand loyalty than you had before. Remember, these are the people who essentially pay your bills; if you believe in your product and service; you have nothing to hide from them.

Mistake No. 7: Not Claiming Existing Profiles
Did you know that a lot of your company information is a matter of public record? This means that regardless if you want to be involved socially or not, your company might already be. Services such as Google Places and Yelp may list information about your company whether you’ve created a profile or not. Don’t feel violated or angry; use this as an opportunity to expand your Web presence. All of these services give you the option to control what’s shown about your company and how it’s shown. Claim all of the profiles that mention your company and update the information. Be consistent on each network so the same information is listed.

Mistake No. 8: Skimping on Time
Building an online presence takes time. If you are truly interested in expanding your network online, you need to be prepared to put in the time. For your social media marketing plan to succeed, it’s crucial that you consistently interact online; even if it’s just 10 minutes a day. If you can’t put in the time, it’s best not to start.

Mistake No. 9: Lacking Passion
Social media marketing requires passion to be successful. As the owner, you know your brand better than anyone else, but if you aren’t passionate about interacting online, your social media efforts won’t work. If you have the resources, consider having one of your employees or an intern run the program. Social media can make a big impact on your business, but (like anything) you need to have a certain level of interest and passion to make it successful.

Mistake No. 10: Not Knowing When Social Media Isn’t Right for Your Business
Just because lots of businesses are using social, doesn’t mean you have to. For many small businesses, social media isn’t the right outlet, and you can waste a lot of time on it. If you decide social isn’t your forte, that’s fine. At the very least, make sure you heed the advice in Mistake No. 7.

Social media marketing can do amazing things for small businesses, but only if it is utilized properly. Whether you like it or not, your brand is online, so even if you aren’t ready to create a full social media program, you should at the very least make sure you take control of sites you are already listed on.

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