New research from Adobe has shown that 62% of consumers find online advertisements annoying, whilst 45% find them “invasive” and 44% “distracting”. Customers in the UK are more receptive to online ads than those in Europe, but it’s clear that marketers still need to work on their online strategy in order to make a connection with their audiences.

So if consumers are turned off by most digital ads, what are they looking for instead?

• 57% of consumers believe that beautiful advertising is more effective
• 29% think that every brand needs a funny viral video, and 67% say a video is worth 1,000 words
• 74% believe that advertisements should tell a unique story, not just try to sell

As Mark Phibbs, the vice president of marketing for EMEA explains, “Some digital advertising is failing to hit the mark. While digital provides great promise, it is not being delivered in an emotionally compelling or targeted way. The ability to tell a story and connect with consumers is as vital as ever.”

The survey feedback indicates that consumers want more attractive, authentic content, designed to engage rather than sell, delivered through mediums like social media, blogging, and video. This type of content allows them to build a stronger connection with the brand.

A new report from InMobi has revealed the power of the multiscreen. Here are three key consumer behaviours on the rise, and what they mean for your business…

1. Mobile devices

Mobile now ranks first in media consumption amongst mobile web users. Users spend an average of 108 minutes consuming media on their mobiles, compared with 93 minutes on their laptops and 37 minutes on their tablets.

The prevalence in mobile consumption highlights the need for an optimised mobile website for your business. If users are now consuming more information through their smartphones than any other device, you need to ensure that your information is readily available on these platforms.

2. Multi-screen activity

62% of mobile web users now indulge in multi-screening activities whilst watching TV – and 48% of these respondents will be plugged into their social media.

If your customers are browsing social sites in their spare time, you need to make sure your brand is there. Engage with them on social platforms and keep your company name fresh in their minds.

3. Acceptance of mobile advertising

When asked about mobile ads, 59% of InMobi’s participants said that they were very to moderately comfortable with their presence and found them useful.

Consumer acceptance of mobile ads is great news for business! Whether you opt for paid ads or free marketing via platforms like social media, ensuring that your business has a strong mobile presence is essential for 2013 and beyond.

Social Media Examiner has released its 2013 Social Media Marketing Industry Report, and confirmed what many of us already knew – that almost all marketers are now using social media to promote their business. 97% of the 3,000 marketing professionals surveyed said they were using social media as part of their marketing strategies, and 86% considered the medium to be an important part of their digital marketing efforts – up from 83% in 2012.

Facebook and LinkedIn were shown to be the most popular social platforms – 49% considered the former to be their most vital network, while 16% opted for the latter. YouTube was deemed to show the most promise for the future, with 69% planning on increasing their usage of the video platform throughout 2013.

However, despite the increasing usage of social media marketing, only 26% of participants in the survey felt that they were able to measure their return on investment. 89% agreed that social media benefited them by providing increased exposure, and 75% said they’d experienced an increase in traffic, but had found it difficult to track specific leads and sales.

The good news is that more than half of marketers who had been using social media for at least three years reported an overall increase in sales – so if you invest the time and effort, social media marketing can pay off! If you’d like to find out how you can use social media to benefit your business, check out NS Design’s social media masterclasses.

Google’s attempts at breaking into social media have not always been successful – does anyone remember Buzz or Wave? – but its Google+ platform at last seems to be gaining some traction. It now has a base of loyal users (190 million, in case you were wondering) and has just updated the mobile interface to make it more user-friendly.

Posts now appear as ‘cards’ in the stream, making it easier than ever for users to read, +1, and share content. Profiles and pages now have cover photos and larger ‘tap targets’ for people using touchscreen devices. The overall experience is now much more streamlined and visually stimulating across all screen sizes.

There are two lessons to be learned from Google+ makeover. The first is that Google is doing everything it can to make the site a success, so you should certainly sign your business up and take advantage of its features if you haven’t already.

The second is the importance of optimisation for mobile devices. We all know that the mobile web is becoming increasingly important, thanks to the ever increasing popularity of smartphones and tablets, and as we’ve said before, your business website must be optimised for mobile if you want to reach the widest possible range of customers.

A new study, ‘The Impact of Social Media on Sales Quota and Corporate Revenue’, has shown that 72.5% of marketers who use social media sites frequently outsell their competitors. More than 40% of participants said that they’d closed between two and five deals thanks to their social media campaigns, and 10% confirmed that “it directly contributes to my closes”. Social media users also exceeded their quota by 10% more than their offline counterparts – clearly exemplifying the difference that social media marketing can make when it comes to sales.

The research also looked at the success rates of different platforms. The top social selling sites were shown to be, from first to last:

1. LinkedIn
2. Twitter
3. Facebook
4. Blogging
5. Google+
6. Other (Pinterest, Vine, Instagram, etc.)

Fortunately, although it may seem overwhelming to manage multiple sites simultaneously, 50.1% of sales people said that they spent less than 10% of their selling time managing social media – which implies a pretty good return on investment when you consider the rise in their sales figures. Ultimately, Keenan’s research shows that businesses of all sizes can benefit from social media – and those who aren’t already using it are missing out.

NS Design offers a range of social media masterclasses designed to help you seize social media opportunities – find out more here.

You may remember that we recently brought you 3 Twitter fails from companies who could have done with a little more social media training before they launched their campaigns! Well, we’re back with more blunders, this time from one of the most iconic social platforms: Facebook.

Walmart

Walmart’s 2007 campaign is still remembered for one key reason – it removed the ‘social’ from social media. The supermarket realised that their page might attract negative comments as well as positive ones, so they limited their conversations to wall posts and neglected to offer a discussion board.

Lesson – The possibility of negative comments is always present, but limiting your customers’ access to free speech is not the way to address this issue. If your page receives a negative post, don’t ignore it – address their concerns and do your best to put the problem right.

Nestlé

Nestlé’s customers were allowed to make comments – but the responses the brand gave to their posts only created new troubles! Their representative made antagonistic comments to a community member (“thanks for the lesson in manners…but it’s our page, we set the rules”) giving a bad impression of the brand.

Lesson – Always treat your customers with the same courtesy you would give them in person! Hiding behind the screen is no excuse to patronise or disrespect them.

Grey Poupon

Mustard brand Grey Poupon tried to make their Facebook page appear desirable by turning it into a ‘private members club’, with admission as a fan by application only.

Lesson – No excuses, no exclusions. You should never cut out a portion of your audience.

If you want to get your brand on the path to social media success, rather than falling into any of these traps, check out NS Design’s social media masterclasses.

Video is becoming more and more important to customers in all industries. In fact, 46% of consumers say that they’d be more likely to seek out information about a product or service after seeing it in an online video – but producing video for your business comes with a host of challenges, and many SME’s feel that they lack the experience and budget necessary to add video to their marketing arsenals.

However, contrary to popular opinion, nowadays all you need to make a video is a decent smartphone and a dash of creativity. Here are some quick and simple ways to incorporate video into your social media marketing plan and get filming (without the Hollywood budget!).

1. Demo one of your products

This video is great for you and your customers – they’ll get all of the information they want about your product in one easy place, and it won’t cost you a penny to make. Sit yourself (or your most charismatic member of staff) in front of your camera and give a quick run-through of the product and its perks – it’s a quick and easy way to secure yourself a sale.

2. Introduce your team

Making videos of your team members is a fun, friendly way to introduce them to your client base – particularly when you’re in an industry where staff work directly with customers. Ask them a few simple questions about what they do and what they like to add an endearing, personalised feel to your page.

3. Film an event/exhibition/speech

The next time you’re at a conference or an event, whip out your smartphone and capture a few quick clips of some of the most interesting exhibits or engaging speeches of the day. You can post them on your YouTube channel and tweet them to the people involved – you’ll probably find they’ll be more than happy to share them and generate some social signals for you too!

The conversational nature of Twitter makes it an ideal marketing tool – but even the big brands can get it wrong sometimes. Here are three of the biggest Twitter fails of recent times, and what you can learn from them:

Waitrose

Waitrose’s seemingly innocent hashtag #waitrosereasons invited customers to relay their reasons for shopping at the supermarket chain. The brand’s PR team clearly hadn’t predicted responses such as “because Tesco doesn’t stock unicorn food” and “because I hate poor people”.

Lesson – If your company is going to rely on user generated recommendations, you need to allow for the negative as well as the positive. Weigh up the pros and cons, and if it seems too risky, don’t do it!

Celeb Boutique

UK fashion site Celeb Boutique gained fame for all the wrong reasons when they tweeted “#Aurora is trending, clearly about our Kim K inspired #Aurora dress” – on the day of the mass shooting in Aurora, Colorado.

Lesson – Keep up to date with current affairs, or you could end up posting a tweet that’s inappropriate or downright offensive, tarnishing your brand’s reputation in the process.

Susan Boyle

A promotion for Susan Boyle’s latest album launch went awry when her PR team came up with the truly hilarious hashtag #susanalbumparty.

Lesson –Always check your hashtags! Words that seem innocent separately can run together into something rather embarrassing.

If you’re starting out in social media marketing and want to side-step potential fails, check out NSDesign’s ‘Embrace the Space’ social media masterclasses.

A new survey from American mobile service provider AT&T has shown that more and more small businesses in the States are focusing their budget on their digital marketing efforts. The 2013 AT&T Small Business Technology Poll revealed that 66% of small businesses plan to either maintain or increase their online marketing spend for 2013, and 71% are “somewhat” or “very likely” to raise their budgets for mobile marketing too. Nearly a third of small businesses have “mobile-friendly” websites in order to engage with their customers.

Whilst these particular statistics are relevant to the US market, they match the trends that are occurring on this side of the pond as well. Earlier this year, Econsultancy’s Digital Marketing Outlook Report 2013 revealed that 55% of UK businesses expect to increase their digital marketing budgets this year – and 39% will be doing this at the expense of their other channels. A Constant Contact survey also showed that a quarter of UK SME’s are already using digital tools like social media marketing to enhance their customer experience.

The news that more and smaller to medium businesses are taking advantage of these methods is certainly promising for the budding entrepreneur. Digital marketing gives businesses of all sizes an equal footing and enables smaller businesses to remain competitive in the fast moving world of commerce today.

In an announcement made at the beginning of this month, social media behemoth Facebook revealed Facebook Home, a “mobile experience designed to put your friends at the centre of your phone”. The feature, which is currently only available on Android systems, introduced:

• A new cover feed that allows users to access app content from their News Feed as soon as they turn on their phone, essentially replacing their usual home screen
• Bigger, bolder notifications, again delivered right to the phone home screen
• Updated messaging functioning, known as ‘chat heads’ which allows people to receive messages whilst using other apps, without having to leave their current activity

Since its launch on April 4th, Facebook Home has been downloaded an impressive 500,000 times, and whilst some reviewers have complained of issues with battery life and certain widgets, it’s still an impressive start for a social app which essentially overhauls the functionality of your smartphone. Facebook themselves have stated that “this release is a first step and we’ll continue to improve Home”, so the potential for even more integration and interaction is certainly present.

So what does this mean for your business? The immediate impact may be limited, but this could be the first stage in creating a truly engaging mobile experience for social media users that which could provide opportunities for your brand in the future. Facebook Home, if it proves successful, will change the way that users interact with content on a grand scale, and encourage them to access Facebook a lot more often – therefore increasing the likelihood that they’ll see and appreciate your company’s content.