5 ways to get the most out of LinkedIn Groups

The party's in full swing, and you're invited. Just make sure you're a welcome guest with something significant to contribute. Here's what you should know. 

 

By Matt Haskell | Posted: March 7, 2013

 

If you are on LinkedIn to connect with businesspeople, LinkedIn Groups is where the party is happening. Sometimes you get invited, sometimes everyone is welcome, and sometimes the party gets a little wild. You can even get turned away at the door.

To get the most out of LinkedIn Groups, you need to learn how to be the life of the party—not a wallflower or a party crasher. Here's how:

1. Don't be a party crasher
 
Few things are worse in a group than a member who continually "spams" discussions with his direct advertisements for products or services, or starts discussions with direct-sales tactics, pitching what he's selling. Linking to a blog and asking a question regarding your own content are both fine, but the quickest way to get kicked out of groups is to constantly pitch your stuff.

Don't focus solely on sharing your own content. This is a community, after all, so comment on and share other people's articles in your status updates; it's a great way to build your network and start conversations.

2. Don't join too many groups
 
Join a variety of groups, keying on those with high numbers of members and very active discussions, but be careful not to join too many (the maximum is 50), because keeping up just becomes too hard.
A handy way to keep up with discussions you started is to hover over the "notifications" flag on your LinkedIn home page and see who's commented on or "liked" your discussions. (It's also a great way to make connections.)

3. Use the "Share" feature to post to multiple groups
 
Do you have a company update, a blog post, or an article that you'd like to share with several groups at once? Either post it as your status and click "Share" or do the same from your company page. When sharing to multiple groups, make sure you change the title to fit the group and rephrase your introductions to make them discussion starters.

Some blog posts or articles might be appropriate across various groups, but be sure not to share an article or start a discussion in multiple groups that have very different interests. Chances are, your retail banking network group doesn't really care to hear about marketing strategies for higher education.

You can share your discussions and articles to batches of separate groups with targeted titles and details to fit the mission of several groups at once. For example, if you are a member of numerous social media groups, make sure the title of the discussion fits those groups and you aren't also pushing that discussion to unrelated groups.

4. Join groups for your target market
 
If you use LinkedIn for prospecting or business development, you likely aren't going to find much use in joining only groups of other marketers. So join groups in your target markets, too. Doing so will help identify conversations going on among your customers, and you can respond to inquiries and discussion to spawn new business.

A great function of LinkedIn Groups is that they allow you to listen. When you are a member of groups pertaining to your target audience, you have the opportunity to eavesdrop and find out what is truly important to your audience. It's a great way to do market research.

5. Ask questions systematically: polls
 
Polls are a great way to help you make smarter business decisions. They also make your discussions the most popular on the board, boost your influence, and make connections.

Ask your group members a question that you face in your business. Especially if you are in groups with your target audience, asking a polling question can help you solve client problems and make smarter decisions. Polls also open further discussions when group members comment on the results of the poll.

In addition to providing valuable market research, polls add great visual appeal to the look of a page and so boost your clout in the group.

6. Sometimes it's OK to "take it outside"
 
LinkedIn Groups aren't necessarily meant for prospecting and lead generation, but sometimes discussions can lead to real opportunities. Occasionally, a participant in a discussion or a poll will want to know more about how to start working with your company or might like to take advantage of your product or service offerings.

Rather than continuing that discussion in the public arena, "take it outside" by requesting to connect with the group member and sending a direct message that offers more information about your product. Doing so in a group would come off as solicitation, but it can be mutually beneficial if your new connection wants to learn more in a private setting.

LinkedIn facilitates such interactions by letting you request connections with group members, even if they are not second- or third-degree connections.

Matt Haskell is the Social Media Marketing Manager for SourceLink, a marketing services provider focused on data-based marketing. This article first appeared on MarketingProfs.com.

Taking Pictures in Public

Found this article from 4/17/08 edition of USA Today on considerations needed before taking pictures in public.

Think twice before taking pictures in public

 

Thanks to digital cameras and camera phones, photography is experiencing a renaissance. Many people carry a camera everywhere they go.

 

But before you start snapping, ask yourself a question: Is it legal to take a photograph in this situation? Test your knowledge with this quick quiz.

(Local laws regarding photography may differ. I'll tell you what is generally permitted. It should not be construed as legal advice.)

You're photographing the exquisite steps of a public library from a nearby sidewalk.

This one is easy. It is legal to take photographs in public places. This includes streets, sidewalks and public parks. However, you cannot obstruct other passersby.

You want to photograph an older couple holding hands in a public park.

You can photograph people in public places without consent. There are exceptions, though. If subjects have a reasonable expectation of privacy, don't photograph them. For example, don't photograph someone in a restroom or locker room.

You plan to photograph your neighbor's house from the sidewalk.

Your neighbor's house is private property. However, it is visible from a public place. So photographs are legal. Get permission if you plan to stand in the driveway or yard, though.

You're photographing your neighbor's house from the street. Your neighbor is visible through the bathroom window.

Your neighbor has a reasonable expectation of privacy, even though the window is open. So don't photograph your neighbor in the bathroom. The bedroom is also off-limits.

You're on the street photographing a military base.

The military can prohibit photographs it deems detrimental to national security. Likewise, you may be banned from taking photos of nuclear power plants. And don't expect to take photos in government buildings like courthouses.

You witness an accident scene from public property. You want to sell a photo of it to a newspaper.

You can take such pictures from public property. However, don't hinder police or emergency workers. If asked to move, do so. You may take photos from another location.

The newspaper will use the photograph for editorial purposes; no consent is needed.

You're photographing children in public. You will sell copies at an art gallery.

You do not need permission to photograph children in public. Art falls under editorial usage; consent is not required.

You take pictures of people in public. You want to sell the photos via a stock photography site.

Get a model release from anyone uniquely identifiable before trying to sell the photos.

Companies purchasing your photos will use them for commercial purposes. They need a release to limit their liability. Otherwise, they could be sued. Stock sites have their own rules governing model releases. They won't accept photos that don't meet these requirements.

You're photographing products at the supermarket.

You need permission to take photos on private property. But stores are private spaces open to the public. Owners can limit photography with clearly posted restrictions.

You want to photograph your son's soccer game at a public park.

Amateur leagues often rent public parks for events. Some jurisdictions consider the property private for the event's duration. The league can ban photography.

You're photographing an NFL game.

Many professional leagues ban photography. Restrictions should be posted. Some venues only ban professional cameras, like SLRs.

Finally, you may encounter problems taking photographs in legally permissible situations. The best solution is to avoid conflict. If in doubt, identify yourself and ask permission before taking photographs.

Kim Komando hosts the nation's largest talk radio show about consumer electronics, computers and the Internet. To get the podcast or find the station nearest you, visit: http://www.komando.com/listen. To subscribe to Kim's free e-mail newsletters, sign-up at: www.komando.com/newsletters. Contact her at gnstech@gns.gannett.com.

Save our Post Office Service

In the Saturday, February 9, 2013 edition of The Brattleboro Reformer, the following editorial appeared:

Our opinion: Bleeding the USPS

Our opinion: Bleeding the USPS

Do you think the U.S. Postal Service is deeply in the red because of mismanagement? Because of competition from private carriers? Because of a bloated work force?

If you think any of those, you are wrong.

The reason the USPS is considering cutting Satur­day delivery is something called the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006, which requires the Postal Service to pre­fund the next 75 years of retiree health benefits by 2016.

As Ralph Nader said, that congressional mandate forces the USPS to cover employees who haven’t even been born yet.

This mandate was only inflicted upon the USPS, no other governmental agency, and some have ven­tured to say it’s an attempt by Congress to disman­tle the National Association of Letter Carriers, which represents about 200,000 city delivery letter carriers.

Others say it’s just another example of Grover Norquist’s philosophy of shrinking government to the point where it can be drowned in the bathtub.

Let us not forget that the USPS does not receive tax dollars or subsidies from the federal govern­ment; it is intended to be self-funding.

Under PAEA, the Postal Service is required to make $103.7 billion in benefits between 2007 and 2016, or on average a little more than $10 billion a year.

Since the enactment of PAEA, the Postal Service has lost $41 billion, nearly 80 percent of which can be attributed to having to prefund the retiree bene­fits plan.

Astoundingly, according to the Inspector General, the annual payments could be eliminated because the USPS’ retirement fund is at more than 100 percent.

In addition, the Postal Service has overpaid $80 billion to the Civil Service Retirement System and the Federal Employees Retirement System, according to the USPS’ Inspector General.

And to no one’s surprise, the federal government has made no effort to repay the USPS for the over­payment.

Nader maintains if Congress were to reverse PAEA and reimburse the overpayment, the Postal Service wouldn’t be in the predicament it is today.

Instead, the Postmaster General is making small cuts here and there to try to stem the hem­orrhaging; either way, the post office is bleeding to death.

The most recent pronouncement to come from the Postmaster General is his intention to cut Sat­urday services.

“Ending Saturday delivery not only threatens the future of the U.S. Postal Service in the long term, but in the short term it harms small businesses’ ability to carry out their operations in a timely manner, may inhibit the elderly’s ability to receive important medication by the mail, and will drive even more customers away from the USPS and toward private mail carriers like UPS and FedEx,” wrote Nader.

Nader admits that declining mail volume has con­tributed to the USPS’ woes, as has the financial cri­sis, but it’s not the chief problem affecting the post office’s bottom line.

“The Postal Service’s ‘financial crisis’ is in fact an entirely manufactured ‘crisis’ precipitated by the ill-advised schedule of prepayments ... mandated by the 2006 PAEA ...” wrote Nader.

The Reformer urges our readers to contact their senators and representatives in Washington, D.C., and ask them to rescind the PAEA and reimburse the Postal Service the money it has overpaid into the federal retiree system.

Rather than hacking the USPS to pieces, perhaps we should call upon Congress not to surreptitiously bleed the system until it falters and collapses, leav­ing for-profit industries to scoop up the pieces.  

We don’t believe that would be of benefit to any­one.

I really like the USPS.  I enjoy sending out mail and look forward to receiving some each day. I interact daily with postal workers.  And, I genuinely appreciate that I can put a stamp on an envelope for less than 50¢ and have it arrive anywhere in the United States within a few days.

So, I sat down and wrote the following letter-to-the-editor:

Thanks for pointing out that the real reason for the “Postal Service Fiscal Cliff Crisis” is The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006 (PAEA) which forced the Post Office to pay ahead 75 years of expected pensions. In other words, pay ahead for pensions for people not even hired yet. No other corporation or government agency has to work under such an unfair burden. As consumer advocate Ralph Nader noted, if PAEA was never enacted, USPS would actually be facing a $1.5 billion surplus today:

The solution to this strictly political, manmade “crisis”?

Undo the 75 years’ advance payment requirement and relax the numerous constraints on the type of products and services USPS can provide - such as notarizing papers, having coin machines available for making copies, or selling maps.

Also, as more and more Americans order products online, there is tremendous potential for boosting USPS revenues from parcel deliveries. Give the Postal Service more flexibility in pricing its products. Such pricing would more accurately reflect the actual cost of providing a service and would allow it to better compete with private carriers.

The Postal Service helps the elderly get their medicines, helps small businesses send products and payments inexpensively, helps retirees cash their Social Security checks, and lets us cast absentee ballots so that we can participate in our democracy.

No company can grow or maintain its business by weakening service to customers. It is clear that USPS must adapt to our nation’s changing needs and that adaptation might mean shared pain for all stakeholders involved. Instead of adapting, too many in Congress, and in Postal Service management, see cuts in service as the only solution. But making the Postal Service less valuable will drive customers away, leaving it to face a new financial crisis in just a few short years.

Our postal service and its workers have been a national necessity and treasure since Colonial days, especially in rural areas. Hang them out to dry for political points, and we all lose. It’s up to Congress to act to allow the Post Office to save itself, lest it become a victim of a crisis that Congress itself manufactured.

The letter was published on Tuesday, February 12, 2013 in the Brattleboro Reformer. 

Sunday (London) Times responds to Global Criticism of one of its cartoons

On January 27, 2013, the Sunday (London) Times published a cartoon by Gerald Scarfe in which the image depicts a hunchbacked Benjamin Netanyahu building a cement wall dripping with the blood of Palestinians and various Palestinians’ heads cemented into the wall while they writhe in agony. The caption below reads “Will cementing peace continue?”

Reaction was swift in condemning the publication of the cartoon; especially on Holocaust Memorial Day.  Rupert Murdoch, owner of the Sunday Times, issued an apology.  Martin Ivens, Acting Editor, also issued a statement apologizing for its publication.

A meeting was conducted with Jewish leaders in London and it appears that the apology was sincere and accepted.

This is a good example of a company taking responsibility for its mistakes quickly and effectively.

The offensive cartoon was brought to my attention by HonestReporting.com. It's call to action prodded me to write the following letter: 

To the Editor,

On Holocaust Memorial Day, a day  to remember the most appalling atrocities carried out in modern history, you chose to publish a cartoon (“Israeli Elections… Will Cementing Peace Continue?”)  that is not only offensive to the memory of the victims of the Holocaust but is also a blood libel.

The fact is Israel’s security barrier (of which the vast majority is a fence and not a wall) is meant to protect Israeli civilians against Palestinian terrorism. 

Your publication of a misleading blood libel shows a total disregard of history in that what started as cartoons in the 1930′s ultimately led to violence and unspeakable tragedy. 

You owe your readers and the world an apology.

Six days later, I received the following response.

Dear Mr Cohn

I am grateful to you for writing to The Sunday Times and expressing your views so clearly. I’d like to apologise at the outset for the offence caused by Gerald Scarfe’s cartoon published last Sunday.

Its publication was a terrible mistake. The timing – on Holocaust Memorial Day - was inexcusable. The associations on this occasion were grotesque. As someone who understands the history and iconography in this context, I appreciate fully why publication has caused such offence and I apologise unreservedly for my part in that.

I sought an urgent meeting with leading members of the Jewish community, and am pleased to say that we got together on Tuesday evening. It was a frank but constructive meeting. Mick Davis, Chair of the Jewish Leadership Council, accepted my apology on behalf of the group and told the press afterwards that the community “now looks forward to constructively moving on from this affair”.

I hope you will find this reply reassuring, I thank you again for your correspondence.

Yours sincerely
Martin Ivens, Acting Editor

Lessons learned
1. There is power in writing letters-to-the editor
2. Good will can be repaired by responding to letters-to-the-editor

On 27 January 2013 21:19, martin cohn <cohnpr802@gmail.com> wrote:

Survey Reveals Most Overused Resume Phrases

MENLO PARK, Calif., Jan. 17, 2013 -- Think that describing yourself as a "highly qualified" "self-starter" who is a "creative" "problem solver" will help you stand out on the job hunt? Think again. According to a new OfficeTeam survey, these are among the most overused terms on resumes.

The survey was developed by OfficeTeam, a leading staffing service specializing in the placement of highly skilled administrative professionals. It was conducted by an independent research firm and is based on telephone interviews with more than 1,300 senior managers at companies with 20 or more employees in the United States and Canada.

Executives were asked, "What is the most overused or meaningless phrase you see on resumes?" Below are some of their top responses, along with advice on how to give employers what they're really looking for in your application materials and during the interview process:

For rest of article, click here. 

Walmart’s ‘Grandstand Move’: Let’s Do The Math

Posted on Jan 23, 2013 in Business Ethics, Corporate Communications

By W.T. “Bill” McKibben, Senior Counsel, The Great Lakes Group

Those of us who have spent time in communications, be it journalism or public relations, are familiar with what we call a “grandstand move.” That’s when a company with a bad image will roll out some event or policy designed to make them look good. With luck, they garner a ton of positive media attention. So it is with Walmart. Their latest is a pledge of a job for every returning veteran during their first year out of the service. It got Walmart more positive media than they’ve seen in years. Even we were impressed, until we got to thinking about it.

The majority of jobs at Walmart are low-wage, part-time with zilch benefits. When you’ve served in the workplace culture prevalent in our military, who wants that kind of job?  Bill Simon, who runs the Walmart stores in the United States, joined the company less than ten years ago. He was paid about $8.5 million last year. Our guess is that not many of the hundred thousand vets Simon estimates Walmart will hire over the next five years will take home even the average U.S. paycheck, let alone much above that figure. A hundred thousand hires over five years is just 20,000 a year, roughly four or five a year per Walmart store. So if you do the math Walmart’s offer to our veterans doesn’t add up to all that much.

 Read rest of article:
Walmart’s ‘Grandstand Move’: Let’s Do The Math

20 Changes Facebook Made In 2012 That Impacted Marketers

Ryan Cohn (no relation) wrote an excellent analysis of the changes made by Facebook during 2012.  The role of social media and marketing is definitely one that is evolving.

Facebook was all about refinement in 2012.

Faced with the question of how to provide high quality, personalized experiences to a growing number of active users, the social network reworked a variety of its products and systems for increased efficiency, revenue and a stronger image.

Facebook Growth in 2012

Facebook’s 2012 was filled with growth. According to their third quarter earnings report, Facebook totaled 1.01 billion monthly active users as of September 30, 2012, an increase of 26% year-over-year. Also, daily active users (DAUs) averaged 584 million for September 2012, an increase of 28% year-over-year.

While Asia and South America are leading Facebook’s growth, North America is holding its own. 189 million users are based in the United States or Canada, and 69.8% of Facebook’s US/Canadian users visit the site every day.

Also, 300,000 local businesses currently use Facebook, and the average American Facebook user is worth roughly $13.10/year to the network, an increase of nearly $2 over 2011.

FACEBOOK NEWS FEED

According to Facebook, “News feed is where people – one billion of them – spend their time on Facebook – in fact, 40% of their time. This is an incredible amount of time where people go to share the most important parts of their lives and to receive updates on the things they care most about – whether friends, family, or businesses.”

News feed is the center of social discovery on Facebook. According to AddThis, Facebook now accounts for 51% of all social sharing. As Facebook grows though, and more users share more content, the News feed is getting cluttered with an overwhelming volume of content.

1. The Big EdgeRank Change

Facebook modified their EdgeRank algorithm on September 20th to combat the constantly-growing clutter concern. The changes heavily penalized posts with negative feedback in order to deliver compelling, personally-relevant content to users.

2. New Post Targeting Options

Facebook also launched new post targeting options, prompting Pages to target certain content to specific audience segments. Certain content resonates stronger with certain audience members than others, and the new post targeting options provide a way for Page managers to stay consistently relevant with all their fans, even while providing a variety of messages.

3. Promoted Posts and Sponsored Stories

Facebook introduced Promoted Posts and Sponsored Stories for Page managers willing to pay for reaching extended audiences with specific content. By reaching regularly-engaging stakeholders through “free” organic content, and less often interested parties through paid Promoted Posts and Sponsored Stories products, Facebook provided a variety of content distribution options in 2012.

According to COO Sheryl Sandberg, Facebook Promoted Post ads (also known as News feed ads) were 8 times more engaging and have 10 times more recall than sidebar Marketplace ads.

FACEBOOK PAGES

4. Facebook Timeline

As Rohit Bhargava pointed out in Likeonomics, “90% of Facebook users don’t return to a fan page once they click the ‘Like’ button.” Facebook users visit your Page to get a first impression prior to clicking the ‘Like’ button, or to engage on a deeper level at a later date (oftentimes for research or customer service purposes). As such, Facebook redeveloped Pages as Timeline.

The new Timeline design included a variety of new opportunities, including Cover Photos, Milestones, Pinned Posts and Featured Posts.

5. Cover Photos

Cover photos provide Pages with a major branding opportunity. The Cover Photo can be used to build a first impression with new Page visitors, or generate positive sentiment from already-existing fans. Examples can be found here.

Other Timeline components, including Milestones, Pinned Posts and Featured Posts, offer Page managers new ways to organize their content and present it in visually-appealing ways.

6. Milestones and Pinned Posts

Facebook is big on nostalgia – the more historical information you provide to them, the less likely you are to move to another social networking platform. As such, they added Milestones as a way for brands to provide historical context to their Pages.

This feature is great for legacy brands who have fascinating tales to tell about their histories. For example, People Magazine added Milestones that corresponded with major moments featured on past magazine covers, like celebrity deaths and weddings.

Pinned Posts allow Page managers to display a post prominently at the top of their Timeline for up to 7 days. Pinned Posts are helpful for highlighting valuable content that won’t often change. Facebook also recently added Pinned Posts for Groups.

Featured Posts expand a story to the width of the entire Timeline, thereby drawing more attention to piece of content. Featured Posts highlight content that doesn’t necessarily need to be a visitor’s first impression on your Page. Unlike Pinned Posts, Featured Posts are positioned chronologically and get pushed down your Timeline as new content is posted.

7. Global Pages

For brands that do business around the world, Facebook has continued to add features and admin functionality that lets them manage their content and target content to specific countries.New Global Facebook Pages refined these efforts into a public option where pages can customize their apps, cover images and content according to the country a Facebook fan is viewing the page from.

Global Facebook pages now have global as well as country specific metrics. And one simple but big benefit is they will have one universal page URL that they can promote, since fans are automatically shown their country’s content.

8. No More Default Landing Tabs

While Facebook added a variety of new tools with the launch of Timeline, they also took away the ability to set a default landing tab for all new visitors.

Previously, Page managers could set a default landing tab that all non-fans would first see instead of the wall when they visited a Page. This is no longer allowed. Instead, users always see the main Timeline view and have to actively click through to custom apps. This means custom apps for your contests, promotions, games, media, coupons, and signup widgets may receive much less engagement from users who find their way to your Page.

Pages also often used “Like-gates” on their default landing app, requiring users to Like a Page in exchange for the ability to use the app. While Like-gates are still permitted, they’re not nearly as powerful since they won’t be the first thing users see when they visit a page.

FACEBOOK PR

While Facebook tried to maintain quality user experience throughout its fervent growth, it also faced many challenges that garnered significant media attention. These challenges put many marketers on the defensive, answering executive and client questions about Facebook’s long-term viability and ability to overcome issues.

9. Facebook IPO

Facebook’s biggest 2012 media challenge occurred when they became a publicly-traded company. Shortly before open trading, news broke that General Motors was pulling their entire $10 million a year Facebook advertising budget. Within days of going public, their stock experienced both a meteoric rise and quick collapse.

Also, by going public, the once-quiet company had to become more vocal about its product and business development intentions in order to quell shareholder worries. Financial analyst concernscentered on mobile strategy and how Facebook was going to monetize the platform’s shift to the small screen.

FACEBOOK MOBILE

Throughout the second half of 2012, Facebook became fixated on its mobile strategy. By their third quarter earnings report, they were showing dramatic improvements. Facebook posted revenue that slightly beat forecasts, and it said 14% of its advertising revenue came from ads on mobile devices. According to Mark Zuckerberg, “I want to dispel this myth that Facebook can’t make money on mobile. We are just getting started.”

10. New Laser Focus on Mobile

CFO David Ebersman announced Facebook’s mobile ad pricing was up 20% in US/Canada, and 75% of total News feed ad revenue was from mobile. Sheryl Sandberg predicted a future of more ads in Facebook’s mobile News feed.

Also according to Zuckerberg, 60% of Facebook’s monthly active users regularly access the network via mobile. 70% of mobile users visit every day. Facebook’s improved iOS app resulted in an 80% increase in News feed page loads.

11. Page Management iOS App Launched

In order to help Page managers work on the go, Facebook launched the Page Management mobile app. The app helps Page admins manage and moderate multiple pages more quickly, share behind the scenes photos and stories about customers and products, and improve Facebook interaction with users who engage with your Page.

12. Facebook Buys Instagram

As another sign of their new-found love of mobile, Facebook bought Instagram for what was originally announced as $1 billion, but ended up as $715 million in cash and stock. Since the acquisition, Instagram’s user base grew has grown from 27 million to 100 million. According toComscore, users spent more mobile time on Instagram than Twitter.

In December, Instagram caused quite a commotion when they announced changes to their Terms of Service that would provide revenue-generating opportunities. Soon after, they had to backtrack and adjust following major backlash.

FACEBOOK ADVERTISING

Facebook launched a variety of new revenue-generating products in 2012, including Sponsored Stories in the News feed, Promoted Posts, Premium Ads, Gifts and Offers. They also provided access to advanced advertising options, including the Power Editor and Facebook Exchange.

13. Facebook Gifts

Not an ad? Well tell that to all the hundreds of companies that now get their products automatically suggested to Facebook users anytime their friends have a birthday or a holiday like Christmas or Valentines approaches. Facebook takes a cut on purchases, a la the Apple iTunes store or Google Play. Facebook Gifts are now being promoted on mobile and the web.

14. Facebook Offers

Facebook added a cost to their Offers product, requiring Pages to purchase at least $5 worth of advertising to accompany the offer.

15. Power Editor Publicly Available

The Facebook Power Editor opened for public access, allowing new targeting options and the capacity to generate hundreds of Facebook ad variations. The Power Editor provides advertisers with a streamlined method to amplify certain content to specific audience segments and user devices through Promoted Posts and Sponsored Stories.

16. Facebook Exchange

Ever shop for a product on an e-commerce website, and then see that exact product featured in a banner ad on another website? That’s called behavioral re-targeting, and it’s one of many cookie-based targeting methods. It’s a way to convert window shoppers into buyers. Facebook has gotten into the re-targeting business by welcoming a select group of 3rd party vendors into the new Facebook Exchange program.

17. Log Out Ads

Do people really log out of Facebook? Well, between libraries, multiple accounts, and shared computers at the office and home, Facebook found a large untapped audience that they could show a big ad to. The price is out of budget for most businesses, but large brands and startups have been paying $750k or more to purchase the logout screen advertising real estate.

18. Optimized CPM

Facebook made a lot of steps this year in order to make Facebook ads easier and more successful for the average person. And arguably, none of these steps were more important thanOptimized CPM. It is an payment option that automatically fine tunes a Facebook ad to perform better according to the action an advertiser wants (Like, click, share, etc) and based how users are actually interacting with the ad.

19. Sponsored Results

Facebook search is no where near as lucrative to marketers as Google’s search. But just because of sheer volume, Facebook search does see a lot of impressions. Facebook apps and pages can now sponsor search results and show up at a top result for Facebook users.

20. Custom Audiences

Through their Custom Audiences feature, Facebook now lets advertisers to target ads to lists of specific phone numbers and email addresses. If a business has a strong customer list, they can now target loyalty ads directly to their customers that are on Facebook.