Is privacy possible in the online world?

After the recent Cambridge Analytica data scandal, “online privacy” can seem like an impossible dream.

But there are ways to protect your privacy and limit the information you unwittingly share.

Jump to my tips here, or read on to get to grips with what privacy really means in a digital age.

How Facebook users were trumped

We all know platforms like Google and Facebook collect data (hello, targeted pop-up ads), but many have been shocked to learn how seemingly innocuous information can be used to manipulate – not just our buying power – but our opinions and actions.

Facebook confirmed that political consulting company Cambridge Analytica gathered data from up to 87 million users.

They did so by inviting users to download a free personality test – online privacy red flag, right there folks!

While the participants were, strictly speaking, willing, they were also ill-informed. The real kicker, is that the app also harvested data from the test-takers Facebook friends without their consent.

What’s worse, Facebook says it doesn’t know how much, or exactly what, information was shared.

Cambridge Analytica collected the information to develop a software program used in President Trump’s 2016 election campaign. The program allegedly predicted voting patterns and, through micro-targeted ads, influenced voting decisions.

Similar claims have been made around the Brexit vote and recent controversial elections in the Philippines.

THAT COULDN’T HAPPEN TO ME

The unsettling thing about these kinds of social media campaigns is that they’re much, much more subtle than a pop-up ad that follows you round. Rather, they’re a hidden nudge here and there that, over time, direct your attention, shape your opinions and determine your actions.

How can they target you so specifically?

Well, in a previous blog post I talked about how, by analysing 300 of your Facebook likes, an Artificial Intelligence enhanced algorithm can evaluate your character better than your partner.

But, of course, Facebook stores more than your likes. The social media platform has:

• every status update you’ve ever made
• every photograph you’ve posted or been tagged in
• every location you’ve logged on
• every messenger conversation you’ve had, and
• every message you’ve started to type and then deleted…yep, they keep and analyse those words too.

It’s important to remember that Facebook sold data well before it started selling advertising. We shouldn’t be too shocked as they’ve never hidden that fact…but they don’t exactly boast about it either.

It’s also important to remember that all social media platforms and internet browers tout themselves as free platforms. But there is a product for sale – it’s you and your information. As the saying goes “If the product is free, YOU are the product”.

DOES MY ONLINE PRIVACY REALLY MATTER?

As the Cambridge Analytica scandal shows, it isn’t so much that your data is being collected, it’s the technology and architecture that allows two or more data sets to be combined to yield a whole other layer of information.

And, as recent events have illustrated, what researchers are proving and social commentators are saying, is the information we willingly surrender through our Facebook pages and our browsing history could potentially allow corporations and influencers to manipulate us individually.

We live in a world where mass media is being usurped by personal devices on which you get a personally curated version of news and current events. You’ve got no real way to recognise if your feed is leading you, or you’re leading it.

TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR ONLINE PRIVACY

While it can feel like we’re on an uncontrollable slippery slope, there are simple ways to improve your online privacy and avoid giving too much away.

Think before you click. Sounds obvious, but question why, or even if, a business or other agency need the information they’re asking for.

Another obvious step is to get to know the settings on Facebook and edit them to within an inch of their lives. You may think you’ve already done this but look again. You might be surprised at what you find.

• Privacy – who can see your posts and who can send you friend requests?
• Tagging – who can tag you in a post and can you be tagged without your permission?
• Face recognition – I’ve turned it off and you can too.
• Apps – see which apps, games or websites have access to your Facebook information.

In terms of Apps, you can go through each one and limit the access or turn it off altogether. I was stunned at how much information some of these apps had access to. I have my birthdate hidden, but many apps still had access to that information.

Of course, Facebook isn’t the only nosy kid on the block. Look at all your social media accounts and your Google settings too.

Google have a tool you can use to check all your privacy settings – just search “privacy check-up”.

MORE WAYS TO KEEP THE ONLINE HOUNDS AT BAY

• • Never ever click on social media questionnaires or surveys – they may sound like fun but, as 87 million Facebook users found out, they just want your data.
  • Don’t hand over your date of birth unless it’s relevant and you trust the business – when in doubt, make one up.
  • Don’t give your phone number or address unless you are getting something delivered.
  • Don’t hand over your credit card details to a site that doesn’t have an SSL certificate. It looks like this

• Paypal is a secure option for making online payments and has a great refund policy.
• Don’t login to websites or online shops using social media – create an account the old-fashioned way.
• Use a secure password saving site like LastPass.com however, don’t put your banking details in any password saving tool. Memorise these – think of it as exercising your brain.
• Clear your cache every now and then.

PROTECT YOUR PERSONAL OR BUSINESS INFORMATION

There’s a lot to online privacy, more than I could begin to cover in this blog post. And, like everything in the digital world, change happens fast.

The team at Online Influence keeps up to date with the latest advice around online privacy. We’re happy to talk to you about what you can do to make your information and your business more secure.

Contact us to find out how we can help your business today.

What is Content Marketing?

“Content marketing is any marketing that involves the creation and sharing of media and publishing content in order to acquire customers. This information can be presented in a variety of formats, including news, video, white papers, e-books, infographics, case studies, how-to guides, question and answer articles, photos, etc.”

Content marketing is a very valuable business tool – it’s also a huge topic to cover in one blog post.

Because of this, I’m writing a series of blogs to lead you through the basics and to point you in the right direction if you want to dive deeper.
As Julie Andrews (or more correctly, Sister Maria) suggests, “let’s start at the very beginning”. Why? “It’s a very good place to start”.

So, what is content marketing?

Ask Google and you’ll receive this definition:

noun

a type of marketing that involves the creation and sharing of online material (such as videos, blogs, and social media posts) that does not explicitly promote a brand but is intended to stimulate interest in its products or services.

Which is true, but there’s much more to content marketing than that.

What the definition neglects, is that this super effective business tool predates the online world and it really is all about promoting your brand. Not implicitly in terms of sales, but in terms of how your audience thinks and feels about you and your brand.

Content Marketing is a way to engage & inform your potential client or customer, before they meet you and without selling to them. When you deliver relevant information to your ideal client, they will ultimately reward you with their business. It’s a valuable tool in building the know, like & trust factor. Strategic content marketing is one of the best ways to improve your website and improve it’s rankings in Google.

Content marketing involves:

• distributing regular free, relevant and valuable content across a range of mediums to a target audience,
• keeping your audience engaged with you and your brand (think loyal subscribers),
• inspiring your audience to share your content with their networks (hello Facebook!), and
• embedding the “ideals” and “ethics” you want associated with your brand.

It’s an ideal way to achieve the “know, like and trust” trinity.

And, if you do it well, you’ll turn potential customers into eager customers who give you their repeat business and encourage their friends to do the same.

Content marketing from a different angle

Another way to get a handle on the meaning of content marketing is to look at what it isn’t.

• It is NOT direct sales.
• It is NOT one piece of content.
• It is NOT a brochure.
• It is NOT an advertisement – that is, something that interrupts the content your audience actually wants.
• It is NOT directly telling people about your product or implicitly promoting your brand.

Who uses content marketing?

According to the Content Marketing Institute,  around 88% of B2B marketers use content marketing. While it’s hard to know how many businesses overall use this strategy, it’s probably safe to guess the answer is A LOT. Content marketing is an effective strategy for businesses big and small and for all business owners, young and old. Whether you have a shop front, a market stall or operate purely online, you can use content marketing to grow your business.

Why is content marketing so important?

Good content marketing really does work.

And the great thing about online content marketing, in particular, is that if you do it right your audience will take over and do some the work for you.

What does that mean? Well, while you may need to pay for someone to create some great content and initially use paid distribution channels to drive people

to your content, once you generate a following, you’ll get a natural flow of customers through email, social media and direct traffic.

Of course, to generate a following, you need good content and a good content marketing strategy – something I’ll go into more detail in my next couple of posts.

What’s the difference between good and bad content marketing?

Good content marketing is easy to spot.

• Subscribers anticipate the arrival of good content.
• Audiences enjoy the content and apply its information to their lives and/or business practices.
• Great content marketing inspires subscribers to share your content through their networks.
• The flow on from good content marketing is more customers and customer recommendations.
• Good content marketing is reflected in good data.

Perhaps most importantly, good content marketing is educational, inspirational, and aspirational.

Bad content marketing is, um, the opposite of all of the above.

Ask your self these questions:

• What blogs do I subscribe to?
• Whose YouTube channel do I haunt?
• Which websites do I head to when you want to know “how to”?
• Whose content makes me laugh, inspires me or makes me aspire to reach for more?

Take a deeper look at these sources and you’ll find people that have good content and a good content marketing strategy in place. After all, they’ve got your attention and loyalty.

Still unsure?

While you might know what you like, it can sometimes be hard to recognise why it works so well. Even if you get why it’s got you hooked, you still might be unsure about how to achieve similar results.

Never fear! You’ll find inspiration in my next blog in which I’ll give you examples of businesses who are content marketing champions. I’ll give you lots of examples of what kind of content works and where you can share it.

And if all else fails, ask an expert.

The team at Online Influence can help. We’re happy to have a chat to you, to talk through the possibilities and guide you to content marketing success.

Contact us today, on 02 9199 2228 or 02 4724 9555.

In this post I want to tackle  what makes a good blog from a technical point of view and from a less techie perspective. If you want to have your blog read, shared and commented on it’s important to make it relevant and interesting.

So, how do you actually write a good blog post?

Two ways to blog

There are two main types of blogs:

• The original classic style blogging, as seen in  the movie Julie & Julia (with Meryl Streep), Julie Powell blogged about cooking and her struggles as a writer – she decided to cook and blog her way through Julia Child’s iconic cookbook, “Mastering the Art of French Cooking”. She cooked and blogged about all 524 recipes over 365 days. It’s a true story!  Julie’s blog became so popular that it caught the attention of a Hollywood producer and the rest is history. If you want to know what makes a good blog I highly recommend you watch this movie. Julie’s blog was the classic style of blogging, it’s like recording a log – web-log – blog. You have probably also read many blogs just like this.
• Blogging for your business is different to Julie’s blogging. Blogging for business is also known as “Content Management”.  This is the type of blogging I’m referring to in this post.

Why should you blog about your business?

• Google loves blogs because they deliver readers fresh, new, relevant content.
• Since the arrival of Panda, Penguin and Hummingbird (the names Google gave their updates), it’s getting harder for us SEO providers to get your business on the front page of Google.
• Providing new and interesting content for your blog, not only pleases Google but it pleases your readers, and this in turn pleases Google.

Where do you start?

Writing doesn’t come naturally to most of us and many of us are just procrastinators, but trust me once you give it a go you will feel very pleased with yourself. Blogging is a great way to step out of your comfort zone and try something new.

‘Where do I start?’ I hear you say. Consider these simple tips on what makes a good blogging experience. First of all you need to get back to basics. You need to know who your readers are and what they want. To get you started, try this exercise:

• Start with a fresh sheet of paper
• Create an avatar of your ideal client
  • Are they male or female? (or both)
  • What age bracket are they?
  • What income bracket are they?
  • Do they have children? If so, how old are they?
  • What keeps them awake at night?
  • What problem/s can you solve for them?
  • Keep expanding on this list, you need as much info as possible
  • Make sure you have a clear solution to their problem
  • Make sure this solution is very obvious on your website – in fact it should be the basis of your website. Everything on your website and blog should be telling the reader that you can solve this problem.
  • Knowing this and delivering this is what makes a good blog.

What to actually blog about 

This where you need to be strategic. There is no benefit in blogging just for the sake of blogging. You need a plan and it needs to be relevant. So grab another piece of paper or open a spread-sheet.

Start by listing all of the things you do in your business that you could blog about. For example some of the things we do in my business is:

• Getting leads for your website
• Optimising your website
• Website creation
• Fixing badly structured websites
• SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)
• Google Advertising
• Facebook Advertising
• Blogging for Business

From this list of 8 blog posts; create at least 4 sub-topics for each one. So far we have 32 potential blog posts.
From each sub-topic, create at least 2 more sub-topics. Now we have 104 possible blog post topics.
Next think about the media –

• You could also make some videos about these topics.? An iPhone and a good mic is all you need.
• You could also interview someone else (another expert in your field) about these topics.? Again an iPhone and a good mic is all you need. These could then be turned into a podcast and/or a video series.
• Each of these videos and interviews could be transcribed and turned into written blog posts.

So from an initial list of 8 business components we now have a massive 728 potential blog posts.

The next post will be part two of – What makes a good blog – part two

If you need help with your content management (blogging) – give me a call and I’m happy to have a chat.

Let’s talk tech – SEO (Search Engine Optimisation)

So now you know what to blog about, let’s get into the technical side of blogging.

• A golden rule – “One keyword per post/page”
• When I say keyword I don’t just mean one word – very rarely will it be one word. A good keyword can sometimes be 4 -5 words long, but usually it’s 2– 4 words long.
• Over time, your pages or posts will probably rank for other words in the copy too.
• Organise your blog by using categories and tags. Think of categories like isles in the supermarket e.g. the cooking isle, and tags as items in the isle e.g. spices and sauces. Finally keywords are the specific item e.g. “Uncle Bob’s sauce”.
• Use the keyword in the blog/page title – it can have other words either side, but don’t break up the keyword/s here.
• Use the keyword in the first paragraph
• Use it every 300-500 words, but make it natural.
• Use sub-headings using variations of the keyword/s.
• Always use an image and re-name the image using the keyword.
• Use alt-tags for images – this is the name that pops up when you hover on an image. Google reads this and can often rank these images in the search results (try it now – hover over the image in this post, you will see What makes a good blog.)
• Create links between other relevant pages/posts and use keywords as the anchor text. This tells Google and the reader, that you have other posts about this topic, and points to where it is.
• There are other more Geekie things that should be part of your blog structure. If you are not sure what these are, get in touch with me and I will be happy to review your blog.

How to actually write a good blog post…

Okay, so we’ve covered why you should blog, what you should blog about and the technical (SEO) part of what makes a good blog. Now let’s dig into how to actually write the blog posts.

• Write so that an eleven-year-old child can read it. This doesn’t mean you have to “dumb it down” but make it very easy for anyone to read it and don’t use Jargon.
• I like to use this simple acronym P O W E R
  • Pick a topic – use a “think sheet” to write down ideas.
  • Organise- group your ideas, number them in the order you want to write them and cross out ideas you won’t use.
  • Write – put the facts into sentences, adding bullet points, headings and paragraphs.
  • Edit – read your work out loud or to a friend.
  • Re-write until you are happy that your blog post delivers enough valuable information that your readers will share it and comment on it.

• Now read it one last time to make sure you haven’t “over used” the keyword. Use the search bar in MSWord to check how often you have used it (3% is a good rule of thumb). Anymore and Google will consider it “keyword stuffing” and sites that do this are “frowned upon” by Google.
• Just have a go.

I hope this helps you navigate the confusing world of blogging and I hope it helps you understand what makes a good blog. The most important point is the last one above – “Just have a go”. The first blog is always the hardest but it’s a rewarding journey if you persevere.

This is part two of a two part blog post – Read What makes a good Blog – part one

How do you like to write? I’d love you to share your hints and tips. 

Blogging for Business

 

Learn the How, What & Why of Blogging for Business.
Increase the quantity & quality of your website leads

 

• Are you confused about Blogging for Business? What to blog about & Why you should blog?
• Do you want to promote your brand and build your authority online?

• Do you want to increase the quantity & quality of leads to your business?

 

Come along to my 5hr hands on Blogging for Business workshop and learn how blogging can;

 

• Boost your web traffic
• Increase your lead quantity & quality
• Expand your brand awareness and
• Promote your own personal brand
• Start building the “Know, Like & Trust” factor

 

Facts about Blogging

 

• B2B companies that blog generate 67% more leads
• Companies that blog have 97% more inbound links
• 90% of customers find custom content useful
• Interesting content is one of the top 3 reasons why people follow brands
• 78% of consumers feel that organisations behind the content are interested in building good relationships.
• 58% of consumers trust editorial content
• 70% of consumers learn about a company through articles rather than ads

 

NEXT BLOGGING WORKSHOP: Coming Soon

Date Tuesday 26th July 2016

 

REGISTER YOUR INTEREST HERE

 

Online Influence
Level 1, 331 High St, Penrith