JTMarCom » corporate marketing

10 Great Social Media Learning Blogs for Beginners and Where to See More!

christine — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 17:48:07 +0000

When I first started this thing called social media, I had no idea where to begin. As dumb luck would have it, I stumbled across a Mashable post referring to a blog aggregator called Alltop by Guy Kawasaki. This fantastic tool allows you to find blog information about all types of subjects. You can also customize your own page so you can see what interests you. Some of my favorite social media blogs are listed below.

Chris Brogan Community and Social Media

CC Chapman Managing the Gray Podcast-Learn to use Social Media and Emerging Technologies

Mashable Social Media Guide

ReadWrite Web

Building43

Smart Briefs on Social Media

Social Media Today

Liz Strauss Successful Blogs

123 Social Media

The Harte of Marketing

FeverBee

I hope this helps you as much as it did me. What are your favorite social media blogs? I am always looking to learn.

Optimizing Conversion Rates

christine — Tue, 05 May 2009 18:44:06 +0000

http://www.smashingmagazine.com/2009/05/05/optimizing-improvig-conversion-rates-less-effort-more-customers/

McDonald’s Rolls With YouTube

christine — Tue, 05 May 2009 17:48:44 +0000

McDonald’s Rolls With YouTube For McCafe Launch

By Tameka Kee – Mon 04 May 2009 09:01 PM PST

imageMcDonald’s is launching an all-out ad blitz for its new line of McCafe premium coffees—and one of the first places you’ll see the branding is on YouTube. McDonald’s has rolled out a rich media spread on the YouTube homepage, taking advantage of one of the video site’s new ad formats: the “tandem masthead” (pictured here). Lionsgate first tested the two-unit ads, which share creative across the top and side of the screen, about a month ago; YouTube is making the tandem ads an option for all advertisers as of today.

YouTube Product Manager Zal Bilimoria spins it as a major coup, since it will be McDonald’s first rich-media buy on YouTube. (McDonald’s previously ran video ads on the homepage—but it wasn’t for a high-profile product launch). The fast food giant joins ABC, Electronic Arts and Volvo as brands that have taken a chance on YouTube’s larger, flashier ad units; Volvo tested another unit, the “expandable masthead”—it incorporated photos, videos and a Twitter feed, no less—which YouTube is also offering up to advertisers across the board.

Bilimoria said YouTube decided to make the experimental ad units a permanent part of its roster after tests found that the original homepage mastheads (which YouTube debuted in January) had user interaction rates that were about “three times higher than other rich media units of a similar size.” The McDonald’s campaign serves as the latest sign that YouTube is making some progress in its quest to legitimize itself as a hub for premium ads and content: it made it easier to find and promote full-length movies in mid-April, shortly after sealing a rev-sharing deal with Disney for special ESPN (NYSE: DIS), Disney/ABC channels.