Earlier this morning, in response to yet another article I read that talked about how social media consultants / marketing agencies / marketers / communicators should focus on ‘Facebook, MySpace and Twitter’, I tweeted:
A small part of me dies every time I read an article by a ‘social media / marketing expert’ that references myspace.
— Hugh Stephens (@hughstephens) December 27, 2011
Why do we still mention Facebook’s very old, dead cousin? If people who aren’t technologically savvy are asking ‘does anyone still use MySpace’, then the answer is probably no.
Let’s have a quick look at the data.
Facebook just released “Memology 2011“, which is ‘a look at what people were talking about on Facebook on 2011.
Worth having a look are the top 10 Facebook topics in Australia:
- Planking
- Cyclone Yasi
- Census
- Death of Osama bin Laden
- Skrillex
- Victorian floods
- Daniel Morcombe
- Charlie Sheen
- Death of Amy Winehouse
- Cadel Evans
Interesting to see two disasters (the floods and cyclone Yasi) making the top 10 list. Just another case to encourage bodies such as the SES to get online to share reliable information.
Otherwise nothing hugely surprising there – Australians are generally keeping to the top memes and topics of the times. I’m surprised that Steve Jobs’ death didn’t make this list though (although this is in the global top 10 below!).
Globally there are a few similarities (underlined) but quite a number didn’t make it over here:
- Death of Osama bin Laden (also in US top 10, #3)
- Packers win the Super Bowl (also in US top 10, #7)
- Casey Anthony found not guilty (also in US top 10, #6)
- Charlie Sheen (also in US top 10, #4)
- Death of Steve Jobs
- The Royal Wedding
- Death of Amy Winehouse (also in US top 10, #10)
- Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 (also in US top 10, #5)
- Military operations begin in Libya
- Hurricane Irene (also in US top 10, #8)
Does this suggest that Australians are talking more about local and important issues compared to the overall global audience?
This becomes important when considering what content to share!
There is continuous debate about whether websites should use Drupal or WordPress as their Content Management System (CMS). The two big players are Drupal and WordPress. At Dialogue Consulting we’re a big fan of WordPress, and here’s why:
1. WordPress is the most used content management system CMS on the internet. In an analysis of the top 10,000 websites on the internet in 2010, approx 141 (1.41%) used WordPress and only 39 (0.39%) drupal. (reference) – so there are a lot of developers and users of WordPress! Similarly, if anything minor goes wrong, a google search almost always will give you the solution without the need to call someone in.
2. The downside to WordPress is that it is less ‘customizable’. This means that it can’t do all of the amazing things that Drupal can ‘in-house’, whereas WordPress might require a bit more coding or complex plugins, but the major advantage WordPress has is that end-users find it a hell of a lot easier to use due to its simplicity.
3. WordPress doesn’t have unlimited roles for users like Drupal does, but has 5 key ones (7 total). The three most useful are admin (who can do everything), editor (can manage all the content (pages and posts – theirs and others’), approve posts from other users etc), author (can write and publish their own posts) and contributor (can write posts and submit for approval by author/editor/admin). (http://j.mp/sFmnoB)
4. There are two types of wordpress site – firstly those on wordpress.com and those who use the wordpress system as a platform. WordPress.com is a system where they host it for you and you generally use a subdomain (e.g. your website is company.wordpress.com) and most accounts are free. You can upgrade and they can host larger sites or those on your domain. On the other hand, anyone is free to take wordpress and install it on their own hosting account. It’s absolutely free, and includes all upgrades etc. So while some talk about how WordPress is expensive, they are usually talking about WordPress.com hosted sites and not the installed ‘WordPress.org’ sites, which operate like Drupal.
Both sites have excellent Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) which helps search engines realise and ‘rank’ your site most effectively.
1. Always be professional
- Community Managers should always write knowledgeably, accurately, and using appropriate professionalism.
- Community Managers should always ensure all content and information provided is informed and factually accurate.
- Community Managers should always speak respectfully about the organisation, employees and current and potential clients.
- Community Managers should make an ongoing and conscious effort to treat the online community with respect.
2. Managing difficult posts
- Criticism should always be constructive: all statements should be substantiated.
- Community Managers should not engage in name-calling or behaviour that will reflect negatively on the organisation.
The purpose of a Facebook page is to engage you target audience with your brand, increase understanding of your services, drive traffic to the your website, and (if relevant) make sales.
This is achieved by encouraging community members to respond to content on the Facebook page by commenting, liking or sharing your Page or content with friends.
1. Post frequency
The ideal post frequency is three-four times a week. As a general rule, only one in five posts should be about your organisation or products
2. Tone
Consider Facebook a professional cocktail party: the tone of Facebook content should reflect your organisation. As a general rule, posts should be professional yet engaging and enthusiastic.
