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Hi, 

Here is your latest issue of Social Business Bites. 3 items this week.

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Social media users migrating to smaller circles

Short link: http://cnn.it/P33lgc

"In an age when people are encouraged to collect hundreds of Facebook 'friends' and thousands of Twitter followers, some social media users, particularly young ones, are going smaller."

At first glance, I thought this would be just another one of those "teens are abandoning Facebook" beatups.

But the article is more nuanced than that and raises bigger issues about the appropriate scale of social networks, for gaining and maintaining people's attention, connection and engagement.

One quote to illustrate:

"... over the past couple of years, it's been smaller social sharing and messaging tools, most of them mobile apps, that have gotten the most buzz and gained the most users. These services encourage users to target personalized messages to individuals or small groups instead of broadcasting posts to larger networks of people."

I would not call this by any stretch a profound analysis, and I found a few of the statements irritatingly glib. Nevertheless the article overall was a good thought prompter and could be especially relevant for anyone whose business model requires connecting with a younger demographic.

New Social Media Research That Could Change Your Strategy

Short link: http://bit.ly/1dtcief

Lots of interesting stats in this piece from Social Media Examiner (a site consistently good in serving up useful content).

Key points from recent research:

1. Users 'Like' Facebook for Social Logins
2. Social Customer Care Demand Is Growing on Twitter
3. Younger Audiences Are NOT Unfriending Facebook
4. Instagram Is the Fastest-Growing Site Globally

Some Implications (or what the author would call "takeaways")

If you have a web site where people need to register, think about social signups - Facebook, Google+, Twitter, as well as the good old name plus email address form.

For customer care, Twitter beats Facebook, but you need to handle it well (and speedily).

We covered the "younger people leaving Facebook" myth in the previous item.

Instagram is looking like one of the key platforms for a lot of businesses that might not so far have made much, or any, use of it. I stand guilty as charged on that one.

Well written, thoughtful article with plenty of suggestions about how to make this recent research work for you and your business.

7 Essential LinkedIn Marketing Stats: When to Post, What to Post and How to Improve

Short link: http://bit.ly/1p8oliH

This article definitely scores well on the illuminating + helpful scale. It's posted by the people who provide the excellent Buffer app, which many of us use to schedule updates on various social platforms. So they have a mass of data to support the statements and recommendations in this piece.

Key stats/recommendations listed are:

1. LinkedIn sends nearly four times more people to your homepage than Twitter and Facebook
2. The most in-demand content is industry insights
3. Avoid evenings, late afternoons, and weekends
4. Post at least 20 times per month

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Till next time

Be well, be social :)

Des

PS: If you are not on the list yet to receive Social Business Bites in your email inbox, and would like to try it, you can register for that at this link (there is an easy unsubscribe link in every update).

PPS: For locals here on Australia's Gold Coast, it's not too late to get tickets for the intensive workshop on personal branding, Brand Slam!, where I'll be co-presenting this coming Sunday. If you know anyone who could be interested, I'd be grateful if you would share the following link with them for all the info and a very special offer I've negotiated for my friends: http://deswalsh.com/brand-slam

My contact details

Phone: International +61 413 089 355    Australia 0413 089 355

Skype: deswalsh (if you want to connect with me there, just type in "Social Business Bites" - or email me and we can set it up).

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