The Science of Social Media

Looking to take your professional skills to the next level?  Thinking about YouTube advertising as a new channel for your brand? Wondering about the best-practices for generating tons of Facebook engagement? In episode #129, Brian and Hailley discuss the most in-demand skills of 2019 (according to LinkedIn), why we’re bullish on YouTube advertising, a brand new guide on Facebook engagement, using Instagram's latest Close Friends feature for your brand, and much more!

Facebook marketing in 2019 isn’t dead. On the contrary, it’s far from it! Although we continue to see a rise in the usage and effectiveness of Stories content, traditional Facebook posts in the News Feed offer a powerful outlet for brands looking to generate engagement and traffic. Which is why we teamed up with BuzzSumo to analyze more than 777 million Facebook posts from 2018. Here's everything we learned about successful content in 2019 and how your brand can thrive on Facebook.

2019 is officially here! Gone are the days where generating audience engagement on social media was primarily a passive process. The always-online audiences of today want to be involved, interact, and co-create. The brands that are successful in delivering personalized experiences to their audiences are the brands that are going to thrive with social media in the coming year. Today we’re covering 5 data-backed social media trends you need to know to make 2019 your best year yet.

A special episode from the SSM archives! This was the most popular episode from 2018 - voted on by our listeners. Content is the golden ticket to social media success. People know, love, and trust your brand on social because of the content you share across each of your channels. But how do we as brands create consistently great content that our audiences love and keep coming back to? 11 content creation hacks that will help to save you time and increase your reach on social media.

Often the best way to learn about a craft is from someone who has been in your shoes before. That's why we turned to 13 social media experts for their biggest piece of marketing advice. Social media marketing is becoming increasingly pivotal for businesses around the world. More emails are being sent and more blog posts are being published on a daily basis than ever before in history. These social media and marketing tips should help!

Video content is one of the most popular mediums for businesses today, and for good reason. Video is more engaging, more memorable, and more popular among consumers than any other type of content. There’s data, too! For example, did you know that 76% of businesses say it helped them increase sales? Or that 80% of marketers say video has increased time spent on their website? This week we’re looking to help you increase awareness and sales using the highly-engaging format of video.

Social media algorithms play a very important role in the ability for marketers and business owners to make an impact online. Yet they remain a mystery on so many different levels. We're fortunate to have an inside look at the various algorithms that power the world's biggest networks. Today we're covering everything you need to know about decoding social media algorithms in 2019 and what brands can do to thrive moving forward.

We gathered never-before-seen data from more than 15,000 Instagram Stories posted by over 200 of the world’s top accounts and brands. This is one of the largest studies ever conducted on Instagram Stories and this week we're breaking down everything we learned (and what you need to know) from our research. You'll learn the best times to post to Stories, the most effective Stories length, how to increase reach and impressions, benchmarks for different industries, and lots more.  Enjoy!

More than 400 million people use the Instagram Stories every day - making Stories an amazing opportunity for your business to reach your customers on social media. Today we're sharing tips, hacks, and strategies that you can use to create thumb-stopping Instagram Stories content that will WOW your audience.  Whether you’re using Stories to build awareness, for advertising purposes, or are simply looking to get started, this episode has something actionable for everyone.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, an incredible two-thirds of small business owners and entrepreneurs are personally responsible for three or more areas of their business, including marketing. That's where we hope to help! We teamed up with Mailchimp, Square, and WooCommerce to bring you a brand-new small business marketing guide for 2019. Today, we'll be covering specific and actionable marketing strategies that you can use to grow your business in meaningful ways.

Marketing skills and career growth do not come easy in a field that moves at the speed of light. It seems like every single week companies are demanding an evolved skill set out of their marketing team. Brands that can successfully bring a variety of people, marketing skills, and unique perspectives together have a huge advantage in providing value to their customers. We're breaking down 7 invaluable marketing skills that help the world's top teams produce consistently great content.

Great marketing ideas are hard to come by. Which is why many businesses resort to blogging as their go-to marketing strategy. But there are so many great opportunities out there to expand channels and attract customers. But, focus is key when developing new ideas and exploring opportunities. This week, we're diving into 9 effective marketing ideas that don't include blogging such as: podcasting, video series, events, and more! Plus, we're sharing how to focus on the RIGHT opportunities.

Looking to catch up on the latest social media news and trends, but short on time? This week we're covering everything you need to know to get caught up on social media: - How to launch your product on Product Hunt like a boss and generate tons of awareness, traffic, and feedback. - Lessons learned from 17.2M impressions on Twitter and the science behind what makes for a good Tweet. - Key Facebook trends for 2019 that businesses should keep their eye on to be successful. And more!

Influencer marketing is here to stay.  Beauty, business, and tech influencers (among others) can have a huge impact in helping businesses to reach what can be difficult demographics. Great influencer marketing campaigns include content that is compelling to your audience, authentic to the storyteller’s voice, and is in-line with your goals.  We're exploring how you can get started with your own influencer marketing campaigns as well as how to find quality influencers and calculate ROI.

Neuromarketing. Sounds complicated, doesn’t it?  Fortunately for marketers and small businesses it doesn't have to be! Neuromarketing is when the principles of psychology are applied to marketing research and strategy. Understanding why people make purchasing decisions online and how they respond to marketing strategies is a critical in effectively marketing your own products or services.  We're diving into the world of neuromarketing and how you can use it to get better results.