Mr. Drew Larison

Since the new year came there has been so much talk about Pinterest and how everyone is predicting for it to be very successful, which I completely agree with. But, let’s not forget about the other startups that I think will have a huge impact in 2012, like Instagram.

Wikipedia defines Instagram as a free photo sharing application that allows users to take a photo, apply a digital filter, then share it a variety of social networks including Instagram’s own.

Like all new applications, I like to use it for my own personal use and then strategize how a business could find success using it. I used the Instagram for close six months and always found myself checking it to see who has put up new pictures. I could be wrong, but I think this means that I really enjoy using this app.

Like Pinterest, if your content on Instagram isn’t great quality and unique it won’t be successful. Luckily with Instagram and their professional looking photo filters, it is really not that hard to make great looking content. All you have to do is take a picture using your phone and then choose a filter that you think works the best for the picture.

Here are 3 steps on how a business can be successful with Instagram.

1) Get creative.
Don’t look at using Instagram like you would look at just taking pictures with your cell phone. Get creative with it. Starbucks is one of the top Instagram users because they are very creative with their pictures. They just don’t take a picture of a cup of coffee, they take a picture of a cup of coffee sitting a deck of a lake house looking over a beautiful lake. It’s very important that you try to make people smile with every picture you take.

2) Reply back to other user’s comments.
On Instagram, people can “like” and leave comments on pictures. It’s important for you to try your best to turn that comment section into a chat room. With every comment you get, reply to it. Another important fact about commenting back at people is to use the @ sign in front of their name. If you do that they will get a notification saying you replied back. If you don’t use the @ sign, they will not get a notification and your reply will most likely go unseen.

3) Give users a behind the scenes look of your company.
Instagram gives brands a great opportunity to show their fans and followers a behind the scenes look of their company. Burberry does a great job of this by taking pictures of their models backstage of a fashion show. Users love to see this type of content because it gives them that VIC (Very Important Customer) feeling. 

So, don’t get all caught with Pinterest and forget about all of the other valuable platforms that are there like Instagram. I hope this will encourage you and your brand to get on Instagram and start making some awesome content.

If you would like to follow all of my pictures on Instagram you can search for me by searching “MrDrewLarison”. I would love to follow you back and check out how you’re doing. If you have any other questions about Instagram feel free to email me at Drew@WebSuccessAgency.com

Thanks for reading, 

-@MrDrewLarison

If you haven’t heard of the Social Media site called Pinterest yet, I’m going to have to ask you to get out from under your rock. 

Wikipedia defines Pinterest as a pinboard-style photo sharing website, which basically means that users can find photos or videos from all over the Internet and post them onto different pages or “pin boards”.

In my opinion, Pinterest is going to grow unbelievably in 2012 because of it’s content and usability. Users love seeing quality images/graphics and they love sharing them with their friends, so Pinterest is just set up to be an amazing success.

As this site keeps growing, businesses are looking on how they capitalize on it. I have been on Pinterest for close to six months so I have come up with 3 ways to use Pinterest in the best way to advertise your company.

1. Don’t just pin things that you’re interested in.

There are over 30 different categories on Pinterest that are filled with awesome content. Which means that you have plenty of things to choose from to pin. It is really important not to just pin what your brand is interested in. The same goes on Twitter and Facebook. That’s like saying your brand’s target market always is watching ESPN, but your employees love QVC so all of your commercials should go on QVC. Remember this, it’s not about you…it’s about your customers.

2. Don’t post your all of your pins to other Social Channels.

We all know how annoying it can be when all a Twitter or Facebook account posts are links to similar things. Well, this is a possibility with Pinterest too. On Pinterest when you are pinning something they give you the option to send it to your Twitter or Facebook account. If all of your pins on Pinterest are also Tweets, people will unfollow you or just ignore your Twitter content. It is acceptable to post a Pin every now and then on Twitter or Facebook, but make sure it is really awesome content.

3. Re-pinning on Pinterest is just as important as re-tweeting on Twitter.

On Twitter, re-tweeting is a great way of reaching out to people in your target market, or in your industry. It shows them that you are active in your industries online community. This same rule applies on Pinterest. Pinterest has given users the ability to re-pin content. When your re-pin someone’s pin it will show up on the board of your choice.  

These are the first 3 biggest ways I have found to be successful on Pinterest. If you guys have any other tips, I would love to hear them. Email me @ Drew@LarisonSocialMarketing.com.

Like I said in the start of this post, Pinterest it going to grow in HUGE way in 2012. There will be plenty of other tips and tricks as I find out more about Pinterest.

Thanks for reading, 

- @MrDrewLarison

“Don’t ask the audience to put their phone away.  If Angry Birds is more exciting, it’s the fault of the speaker.” - Scott Stratten (@UNMARKETING)

Twitter is not a numbers game.

In this past I have heard Twitter being compared to a huge cocktail party. I love this comparison. Whether you are running a personal account or a business account your first and most important goal with twitter should be conversation and relationships- not the follower count.

To start more conversations and get more engagements from people all you have to do is three things: follow people, start talking, and have awesome shareable content.

With all of 8 of my Twitter accounts I make a priority to FOLLOW a solid amount of people. I start engaging with them, build relationships with them, and then eventually they will be recommending some of their followers to follow us :) See how that works?

When you go to a party do you leave saying, Wow! Over 75 people listened to me talk tonight or do you leave talking about the conversations you had at the party? Concentrate more on your conversations and people, and those follower numbers you want will show up.

I’ve always wondered what kind of difference it would make if people would brag about how many people they FOLLOW and talk to, not how many people FOLLOW THEM. 

Follow.Engage.Care.Build.Win.

Thanks for reading.

-Drew.

@MrDrewLarison

People keep telling me I should charge a fee for my first meeting with a potential client.

I don’t understand the thinking on this.

When I meet a potential client, the meeting is always about getting to know two things: who they are and the culture of their company. If I charge them for that meeting, I feel like I am charging them for simply saying “hello.”

Now, I understand that “time is money,” but if I charge my clients for every second I am with them, the only relationship we have is a professional one – which is not at all what I want.

The Social Media Marketing world is all about relationships and humanizing businesses’ online presence. How would I be living out those rules if my relationships with clients were strictly professional?

Heck, should I charge you for reading this blog post? All you’re trying to do is to get to know me better.

Hope you guys have a great Monday.

-Drew Larison.

The word customer has become very cliche’. I think some businesses have forgotten how important customers are to their businesses well being/life.

I got lunch from a local restaurant this afternoon and when I was leaving I got the normal cliche’ “Thank you, have a good day” from the lady working the front counter. I walked out of there thinking to myself, did she actually even look at me, does she really care if I have a good day? Being a business nerd this automatically bugged me.

This got me thinking. What if businesses stopped thinking of customers as people who just buy their product, but as investors that bring life to their company?

Without customers, any business would die. I’ve said this before but think of customers/investors as food for the business. Without food, the business would slowly die. As humans, we make sure that we keep ourselves fed. We would do anything to make sure that we don’t go to sleep hungry at night. So, why wouldn’t a business do anything to keep the business fed with customers?

Your customers (investors) mean so much to your business. It’s time to start acting like it.

-Drew Larison

Drew@LarisonSocialMarketing.com

@MrDrewLarison

This blog is going to be a little different than my usual blogs. In the last few weeks I have been blogging strictly about Social Marketing and Social Media, but this blog is going to be a little more personal.

If you guys don’t know my whole path in life has been a little different than the average 21 year old. After graduating High School I went to a small Private Christian College. I did not enjoy it at all, which didn’t surprise me since I had never been a big fan of the whole classroom environment. I hated class, and I hated what I was studying. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise when I tell you that I only lasted a year at that school. I came home and went to a small Community College, but it was the same story.

I wasn’t happy. I halfway went to classes, had a job at a fast food restaurant, and slept in until noon almost everyday. This was one of the most depressing times of my life. I had no idea where my life was going.

Since I wasn’t doing much with my life at all I started watching a lot of YouTube videos, specifically a channel called “The ShayTards”. If you guys have never heard of this YouTube channel, it features a man named Shay Carl and his family the “ShayTards”. Want to know what makes this family so awesome? All their videos contain is a daily video diary of their lives. Did I mention they have over ONE MILLION Subscribers on YouTube? Yeah, you read that right..ONE MILLION people watch this family live their lives on a daily basis. Did I mention that Shay and his family are getting paid over $150,000 a year by YouTube? Yeah, awesome. In one of the ShayTards videos Shay was reading this book titled, “Crush It”. Being a huge ShayTards fan, I bought the book and read it. I never thought that one book would change the rest of my life, but I was wrong.

“Crush It” was a book that is all about finding your passion, finding out how to make money off of your passion, and being happy. This book could not of came into my life at a better time. The book was written by a man named Gary Vaynerchuk, aka “The King of Social Media”. He is all about using Social Media to help businesses market themselves. Social Media Marketing was perfect for me, I loved business, I loved Marketing, and I loved being Social. I had never felt so sure about something in my life. So, naturally I pursued my passion. I read books, I listened to long talks, and I learned a lot.

I was starting to be happy again. I had worked at two car dealerships while I was in High School, so I decided I would try to get a Social Media Marketing Internship through them. I went in, talked to my old boss and after waiting for 2 weeks I was notified that I got the internship. I was doing it, I was living out my passion.

The Internship went great. My responsibilities ranged from making status updates for each dealership to making YouTube videos of cars. I learned a lot and I got to really make sure that this is exactly what I wanted to do with my life. While I was driving home one day a man in a Toyota Avalon stopped me in my neighborhood to talk to me. I had no idea who this guy was. So honestly, I was kind of nervous.

“You’re Drew right?”

“Yes, sir. And who are you”

“My name is Michael Kebrdle, I am the General Sales Manager of Kokomo Auto World. I would love to have lunch with you sometime”

“OK? May I ask why?”

“It’s about a job opportunity”

“Oh, ok.”

He gave me his number and drove off. I called him back two weeks later and we scheduled lunch. I met him on my lunch break and within 5 minutes he had offered me a Full-Time Position with benefits to be the Internet Marketing Manager of Kokomo Auto World. I was shocked. Eight months ago I was in my Mom and Dad’s basement, sleeping in until noon, and then playing Call of Duty for two hours. I could not believe it.

I have been working at Kokomo Auto World for almost three months now and I love it. I also started my own Social Media Marketing Consulting Company, Larison Social Marketing Agency. I’ve never been this genuinely happy in my whole life.

I’m not telling you guys this story to brag on what I’ve done so far in my short life. I’m telling you this story to encourage you to do what you are passionate about. There are so many people in this world that are doing a job that they hate, and I’m going to be honest…it makes me so mad. The way this world is there is no reason why someone should be doing something they hate.

It’s not going to be easy, I forgot to mention this, but while I was working 25 hours a week for that internship I was also working at a local deli and running all Social Media Pages for a local gym. I worked my butt off. But when you are doing something you love doing it doesn’t seem like work, and that’s what it’s all about.

I love hearing peoples stories, and I want to hear yours. If you’re sick of your job and want to start doing something you love please email me at Drew@LarisonSocialMarketing.com or tweet at me at @MrDrewLarison. If you have any questions you can always just leave them in a response to this blog post. I want to meet you.

If you’ve read all of this, I love you Haha!

Twitter-@MrDrewLarison

Facebook-Facebook.com/DrewLarison

Email-Drew@LarisonSocialMarketing.com

 Seriously, thank you for reading,

-Drew.

Most of the companies that I talk to always ask the same question, “But does this Social Media crap even work? Why should I be investing in this?”. I love this question and here is a story why.

When I got to work today I did what I always do, I checked my Twitter feed. I saw some posts from friends talking about random stuff, and then I saw a post from Jimmy Johns saying that they now have a iPhone app that you can order your sandwich from. I was pumped, one because I really like Jimmy Johns and two because it’s always fun to find actual useful things to do on my iPhone. The first thing I did was retweet their tweet about their new app and then I went to the app store and downloaded it. The app was awesomely simple. I ordered for my sandwich to be delivered to me at work at 12:30. After I got done ordering my sandwich I checked my Twitter feed again. A friend of mine had replied back to me saying how pumped she was that Jimmy Johns had an app. We tweeted back and forth a few times until she had decided she was going to order a sandwich from their app too. That conversation ended and I got distracted doing some other stuff. About 10 minutes later I noticed I had another reply on Twitter. It was a retweet from Jimmy Johns! They had found my tweet and replied back to me! Even though a part of my job is to talk to people on Twitter from a companies account and I see this stuff on a daily basis, I still thought that it was awesome that they spent the time to reply back to me. Another 5 minutes had passed by and guess what, my sandwich was delivered. I ate it and it was awesome. End of story.

I never would of got Jimmy Johns today if it weren’t for that tweet I saw this Morning. I never would of tweeted about Jimmy Johns today if it weren’t for that tweet this Morning. I never would of had brand interaction with Jimmy Johns without that tweet this Morning. NONE OF THIS WOULD HAVE HAPPENED WITHOUT JIMMY JOHNS BEING ON TWITTER.

So the important questions is this, is your brand engaging with people on Social Media Platforms? Are you missing out on these types of engagements? Are your competitors stealing your potential customers because they are on these platforms? If you answered yes to any of these questions we NEED to talk.

If you would like to talk more about this just let me know.

Twitter-@MrDrewLarison

Facebook-Facebook.com/DrewLarison

Email-Drew@LarisonSocialMarketing.com

Thanks for reading,

-Drew.