Blog

Social Media Business Cards

Camps often send out brochures to potential or current campers during the year to give them a taste of camp. Frequently, camps’ social media accounts are left off this brochure. Rather than making a new brochure, camps can make a small card and send it out along with the brochure. This is a fairly inexpensive way to ensure that all camp families have access to your social media networks. Here is an example of a social media card from Birds iView....

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Facebook promoted posts v. ads

I get asked pretty frequently if camps should use Facebook promoted posts or create an ad using ads manager. My answer is always the same, always create an ad!! Why you ask? 1. Targeting- When you create a promoted post Facebook limits your targeting to "fans and friends of fans," or basic geo and interest targeting. When you create an ad using Facebook ads manager you get a lot more targeting options that will help you reach your audience without wasting...

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Facebook buys WhatsApp. What does that mean for camps?

Facebook just announced that they are buying WhatsApp for $16B!!! According to Facebook, "WhatsApp has over 450M MAUs, with 70% of those active each day. In a staggering comparison, Facebook also notes that the messaging volume of WhatsApp approaches the SMS volume of the entire global telecom industry — and that it’s adding 1M users a day." So what does this mean for camps?? There is definitely a shift going on where messaging is becoming an important part of daily life. Right...

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New ideas for camps using Twitter

When I spoke at CampMinder Camp a few weeks ago, I was on a panel discussing Twitter. Prior to the panel I brainstormed a few ways that camps can use Twitter and I wanted to share them below. How camps can use twitter: -       Promotion (sign up more campers with conversion tracking) -       Real-time information sharing (specifically during camp) -       Cross promotion with partners and other brands -       Connect with mommy bloggers -       Reach new target populations (22% of online African American users are Twitter users,...

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Buzzfeed for Camps

While I certainly don't think camps should make it a huge part of their marketing strategy, there is something interesting to be said for camps using Buzzfeed. In fact one of my favorite Buzzfeed articles this year was about summer camps. If your camp is looking for a great way to engage campers, consider making a list on Buzzfeed. Example lists could be: 1. 21 ways you know you went to Camp Name 2. 10 things only campers know 3. 15 throwbacks from...

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What are brands doing on Instagram?

Instagram is a social media tool rapidly taking the world by storm. According to Instagram there are 150 million active monthly members with an average of 55 million posts per day. With this many users, it is no surprise that brands use this social media tool as a way to reach customers and potential customers. Many current brands are expanding from traditional media outlets and joining Instagram. Brands from Converse to Starbucks to Nike and even the NFL are joining Instagram...

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Twitter Conversion Tracking

Back in December Twitter announced that they were launching conversion tracking! Now we can easily track conversions across Twitter, Facebook and Google. Measurement has never been more simple. According to Twitter, "It’s critical for advertisers with direct response objectives to be able to understand the impact of Twitter ads on their bottom line. With that in mind, we’re announcing the general availability of conversion tracking, a measurement and reporting tool which will help advertisers understand the full conversion impact of impressions and...

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Facebook ad placement

Last week I wrote about the five levers you can use to improve your Facebook ads. I wanted to go more in-depth regarding Facebook ad placement, which is one of the most important levers you can pull. Facebook ads can be placed in the following: - All of Facebook (right hand side, news feed, mobile and desktop) - News feed (desktop and mobile) - News feed (desktop only) - News feed (mobile only) - Desktop only (right hand side and news feed) For all mobile placements...

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What is Ask.fm and should your camp be using it?

I get asked almost every day by a camp if they should be using certain social tools, like Shapchat, Pinterest or Instagram. Nobody has asked me yet if they should be using Ask.fm, but I guarantee you they will be asking me soon. According to Wikipedia, "Ask.fm was created in June 2010. The service rapidly gained worldwide popularity, with 80 million registered users in 2013, who post 30 million questions and answers per day. Ask.fm is now one of the 200 most visited websites in...

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