Social Media

If you’re working your way down the “must-have” list of digital marketing needs for 2016, organizing a coherent presence across social media platforms like Facebook or Twitter would get slotted in right under “Setting up my website.” At least it should. Social media fosters brand loyalty and community, increases sales, and helps strengthen SEO, and… Read More

Social Media

Amazon and Google are duking it out for your voice-controlled living room for some very specific, obvious reasons. I’m going to go out on a limb on one: whoever does the best job of quantifiably surfacing sentiment from users across digital mediums will win. And by “win,” I mean like everything. The new car, the… Read More

Social Media

How many times a week do you get hit by ads on Facebook that mean absolutely nothing to you? 10? 20? Broad ad targeting on the internet is nothing new, but something about that approach just feels off on an otherwise highly curated platform like Facebook. The obvious issue at play here is that, with over $17 billion… Read More

Social Media

You see millions of viewers on YouTube. You want a piece of the action. So you borrow a video camera, snag a GoPro from home, or just use an iPhone to get what you need. You record, upload the video and wait for the fans to pour in. Sometimes it works. Usually… not so much.… Read More

Social Media

My internship at Portent is ending, and although I am sad to be leaving, I want to take the time to reflect on my past three months. Here are some thoughts I want to share for anyone out there looking for an internship in social media or something related to digital advertising. To the best of… Read More

Social Media

Well, it’s been two months into my internship at Portent, and I’m beginning to get a firmer hold on my day-to-day workflow. I get the feeling that my friends still think I spend my entire day surfing Facebook and Twitter… and to be fair, I do spend a good chunk of my time each day on different social… Read More

Social Media

During the onboarding process for new clients at Portent, the Social Team is frequently asked if there exists a more buttoned up approach to managing employee access to a company-owned Facebook page. Social media as its own business practice has become increasingly commonplace within organizations, and most teams are rightfully hesitant to provide administrative access to company pages through an employee’s… Read More

Social Media

When I heard that Portent was looking for a full-time social media intern, my first thought was, “What in the world could a social media intern do that could possibly take a whole days’ worth of work?”  To be completely honest, and I know this goes for pretty much every other recent college grad and/or… Read More

Social Media

When you hear people talking about “seismic activity” on the West Coast, what immediately jumps to mind? Los Angeles, rumbling as the San Andreas Fault shifts? John Cusack in 2012, fleeing the mighty wrath of the Pacific Ocean as it gleefully swallows California into its watery maw?* Here in the Pacific Northwest,  mentioning “seismic activity” brings back memories of… Read More

Social Media

Most marketers equate ‘influencer research’ with ‘finding a celebrity who will endorse for free.’ I call that the Rockstar Method. It’s a miserable approach. Ready-and-waiting rockstar social amplifiers are slightly less common than mint-condition K cars. The Rockstar Method has its place with major brands, pure luck and the well-connected. Mere mortals like you and… Read More

Social Media

I have a somewhat-random, step-by-step routine for auditing my own Twitter account (world, really, but I start with my account). I wrapped it up in a presentation. This is not a scientific method kind of thing. It’s more of a take-a-look-at-how-things-went-and-avoid-putting-both-feet-in-my-mouth kind of thing: Confirm, Observe, Adjust: How to audit your Twitter world an 1… Read More

Social Media

Sometimes when you’re a social media strategist (or, really, just a human with a smart phone or tablet), you get stuck in a routine that involves the same few social media mobile applications. Whether I’m on the bus or about to go to sleep, I find myself checking my three favorite apps: Facebook (I know,… Read More

Social Media

It is not exactly breaking news that brand page organic social efforts are being thwarted by Facebook’s algorithm changes, which are making it harder than ever to get your organic social updates seen by your desired audience. But all hope is not lost! There is a strategy that, if implemented correctly, can potentially improve your… Read More

Social Media

If you work in social media, you’ve probably heard “Why?” more times than you can count. “Why does this matter?” “Why is social media valuable to my business?” “Why should we be paying you to help us?” I’ve been working in the social media world for three years now, and “why” questions are what I… Read More

Social Media

Alright, we all know which brands are nailing it when it comes to social media. I’m lookin’ at you Uber, BuzzFeed, Seattle PrideFest, Oreo, Nike, NO H8, and Coca Cola. These names represent a variety of businesses, brands and events. But despite their differences, every one of these companies has achieved great success by being… Read More