inboun - A Content Marketing Experience

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September 19, 2012
Written by Bobby Miller Jr.
Category: Social Media

5 Creative Ways to Spruce Up Your Facebook Cover Photo

You dreaded the day Facebook updated to its newest version with a cover photo, didn't you? But you most likely went through with it. Odds are, you got timelined.

The drastic profile redesign that was announced back in 2011 was a hotly debated topic among many Facebook users. Some embraced the change and signed up early to experience the new design, while others held out as long as they could until Facebook finally made it mandatory for everyone.

I'm proud to say that I was one of the few brave souls who embraced timeline. In fact, I thought it was an awesome improvement and a way to finally personalize a Facebook profile...and guess what? I still believe this today.

No matter how hard we try, we cannot avoid Facebook's frequent updates and changes. It's time to embrace these Facebook changes and use them to get creative and express yourself.

Among the major design changes the one that stands out the most is the cover photo. The old saying "don't judge a book by its cover" is completely irrelevant when it comes to Facebook. Your cover photo should depict exactly who you are (like this guy's!). So here are five awesome tips to make the most of your timeline and cover photo and show off your creativity.

September 17, 2012
Written by Allison Way
Category: Content Marketing

This is Content 4.0.

We've heard it a thousand times: content is king, content is king, content is king. But what does this mean exactly? Why do inbound and online marketers obsess over content? Is it really that important?

The answer, quite honestly, is yes. Content truly is king. But even more specifically, Content 4.0 is king.

What is Content 4.0? It's a term coined recently by Business Insider. Content 4.0 is content worth paying for...and consumers are buying a lot of it.

September 13, 2012
Written by Bobby Miller Jr.
Category: Social Media

Social Media and Football: A Match Made in Heaven

Well boys and girls, it's that time of year again. Coin tosses start to matter a little more. Burning charcoal is the hot new fragrance this season. Nylon has become the new cotton. Not catching my drift? Let me help you.

America's favorite sport is back! Football season is here, baby!

"But Baseball is America's pasti-"

Shhhhhh...

Baseball may be America's pastime, but its time has passed. Here in the good ole US of A, it's the pigskin that seems to be America's most beloved sport.

September 11, 2012
Written by Allison Way
Category: Content Marketing

What Is Affiliate Marketing?

Affiliate marketing. A lot of us have heard of it, but not many of us actually use it. Why? At first, affiliate marketing seems complicated, tricky and sometimes, it sounds a lot like cheating. But in the grand scheme of things, affiliate marketing can do wonders for a product or service. How? Lucky for you, Inboun's here to tell you.

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a type of performance-based marketing in which businesses reward one or more affiliates for each visitor or customer brought about by their own marketing efforts. When affiliates create leads or new customers for a product or service, the company that has set up the affiliate program pays the affiliate for their marketing assistance.

September 7, 2012
Written by Bobby Miller Jr.
Category: Social Media

Norton’s New Web Tool Aims to Protect Your Online Identity

When things go online, they’re often there for an eternity. It’s actually a pretty scary thought. And as many of us know (especially after setting up Facebook, Twitter and even LinkedIn), reputations can be built or destroyed online in a matter of Mbps. You've got to be careful—your startup and your well being may be at stake!

Have you ever done a Google vanity search (also known as egosurfing)? This simple act of Googling yourself can unveil some good and some bad results. Is that picture from 2008 Cabo spring break the first thing that pops up on Google or is it your professional bio on LinkedIn? We certainly hope it’s the latter.

September 5, 2012
Written by Bobby Miller Jr.
Category: Social Media

5 Quick Ways to Clean Up Your Social Media Identity

The life of a social media aficionado is not an easy one. There's constant pressure to always be in the "know" and on the cutting edge. It is essential for any social media manager to maintain a positive identity, brand and persona at all times. This often leads to a long process of juggling and updating each account to stay current. It's going to get cluttered and murky whether you like it or not.

So how do you clean up the clutter and hold onto that social media identity you've worked so hard to obtain?

Sadly, there's no simple answer. With so much floating around on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube, it's difficult to keep everything straight. That's why the best practice is to have an emergency plan in place when things start to get hairy...especially when it's your social media identity that's at stake!

Here are five of our favorite ways to clean up your social media identity. Think of them as a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser, but for the Internet:

August 30, 2012
Written by Bobby Miller Jr.
Category: Social Media

8 Time-saving Tips for Social Media Managers

The job of a social media manager is job that differs based on people’s perception. The perceptions can be summed up quite by the picture above. Being successful as a social media manager can make you feel like you’re Don Draper—you are a creative genius, a social media wizard, an SEO master! But as you have probably already figured out, success comes at a price. Your time and ironically enough, your social life, are normally the first of the offerings that will be gobbled up by the beast known as social media.

With each passing day, the beast grows bigger—new social networks are constantly being created, each one specializing in a smaller and smaller niche.

Attempting to conquer this beast is nearly impossible, but it is doable. How you ask? Just like David and his sling shot, a social media manager needs to have his or her own arsenal of tools, tips and tricks. We at Inboun have concocted a list of our 8 favorite tips to keep you on your A-game as a rockstar social media manager. It’s all about working smarter...not harder.

August 30, 2012
Written by Allison Way
Category: Content Marketing

Top 6 Slang and Filler Words to Avoid in Business and in Life

You guys, as you like, sort of already know, there are some, uh, really annoying, like, filler words that can really kind of lower our professionalism and like, integrity in business and in, uh, life, ya know?

See what I mean?

Filler words and slang words can be the death of us—especially when speaking to an important group of people like investors, partners, industry experts and even to just to a large crowd. Filler and slang words such as “um”, “like” and “sort of” don’t just make us sound unprofessional, but they also make us seem unconfident in what we’re trying to say (or possibly, trying to sell).

August 28, 2012
Written by Allison Way
Category: Social Media

Which Links Get the Most Retweets?

Great news. There actually is a secret sauce in social media. In a recent study done by Diffbot Page Classifier, 750,000 links were posted to Twitter in order to determine what type of links were retweeted the most. The results? It's all about images! Those tweets that contained an image were more likely to be retweeted and shared throughout the social media world.

But is this all that surprising? Probably not. 2012 has been the year of the image--with new apps like Instagram, social media sites like Pinterest, even the obsession of the infographic. We can't seem to get enough pictures, animations, images and photos...so why not share them? By incorporating an image, you will have a greater chance of getting noticed in the social world!