We all know Social Media has boomed over the past few years, and sites such as Facebook and Twitter continue to grow in size and influence.
In Australia alone:
* 1 in 2 Australians use social networking sites, such as Facebook or MySpace
* On average, Australians are members of 2.7 different sites and 8% of all time spent on the internet is on social networking sites
* Each session at a social media site ranges between 20 – 30 minutes on average
* Facebook has more than 5 million Australian users as at May 2009
* LinkedIn's Professional Network has seen a 23% increase in users over the past 8 months, reaching more than 637,000 Australian users
* Twitter has experienced nearly 50% growth in the past month, with an annual growth of 3,220%
* In April 2009, Twitter was the 37th most visited site by Australian users, breaking in to the highly competitive top 40
Social networking has passed through its ‘rebellion’ stage where users reject it as a viable marketing tool, and is now identified as a legitimate method of reaching customers. Social media tools are highly influential, and have a significant (and now measured) impact in the real world.
I can almost guarantee that some - if not a large portion - of your target market are utilising these sites - and they are more than likely to be sharing honest opinions and information about their tastes and preferences.
Check out the full Symantec article on Social Media including how to stay secure online.
On the back of the whirlwind success of viral videos such as the Susan Boyle audition, interest around highly effective viral video campaigns has been high.
Visible Measures, a company that tracks video campaigns, recently showcased those videos making it into the exclusive 100 million views club, including - to my delight - the Charlie Bit My Finger... Again vid.
The list is compiled using a platform called True Reach to examine the actual brand impact of a video campaign online.
While most of the top 18 are professional music or movie clips, the list shows that user generated content can achieve 100 million plus views.
Tracking website metrics is a vital part of any online campaign, no matter how great or small. There are a plethora of tools and services which can be used to track statistics of your site, and one such service is Alexa.com, used frequently as a reliable reference for up to date site statistics.
What is Alexa?
Alexa has developed a massive database of web statistics, including rankings and traffic information for many sites around the globe. The company was established in 1996 and has helped revolutionise web navigation and intelligence.
Review Alexa Statistics
To review site information of interest, visit the Alexa Site Info page and simply enter the site(s) you wish to review. Vital statistics will be displayed on screen.
Have Alexa track your site
To gather data on your own website, you need to request a visit from the Alexa bot. Visit the Site Owners page to edit your site information, add widgets and more.
Have questions? Contact Emma
