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Social media and summer camp video trainings

Posted on September 23, 2013
in Social Strategies
by Nick Middleton
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I have a lot of video trainings available on my YouTube channel and I wanted to make sure that you all had access to them. I'm uploading more each day, so make sure and check out my channel here. Here are some of the most useful video trainings available: Top three ways to target Facebook ads for summer camps How to track social activity using the Google Conversion Tracking Pixel and the Facebook Conversion Tracking Pixel How to build Twitter ads for summer camps...

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Creating a Pinterest board for your summer camp

Posted on September 18, 2013
in Social Tools
by Nick Middleton
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If you love pinning on Pinterest as much as I do, then this post is for you! Pinterest is a great marketing tool for camps to share photos, articles and tips in a fun and engaging way. It can be difficult to get started pinning, but once you have your boards set up it can come pretty easily. Here are some ideas for Pinterest boards for summer camps: - Packing list and tips - Camp recipes and foods - Camp activities - Camp staff -...

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Thoughts on “marketing” as a bad word

Posted on September 16, 2013
in Camp Inspiration
by Nick Middleton
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A lot of camps I talk to don't want to prioritize marketing as one of their main goals for their summer camp. I hear a lot of people say that it just isn't a priority, or they don't have time to fully focus on it and a number of other excuses for why marketing isn't that important to them. But the more and more I think about camps who think that "marketing" is a bad word, the more and more...

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How does your email open rate compare?

Posted on September 11, 2013
in Social Strategies
by Nick Middleton
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One of the most successful ways for camps to market is through email. I happen to love email marketing, especially if like most camps you already have a list of parents and campers who have opted-in to receiving your newsletters and updates. That being said, I am definitely concerned about email marketing open rates and how camp email marketing has become less effective in the past few years. There is no exact email marketing open rate benchmark for summer camps, but...

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How to make your Instagram photos beautiful

Posted on September 9, 2013
in Social Tools
by Nick Middleton
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One of the keys to having a really engaging Instagram account is to post beautiful photos. Summer camps have it easy because most of their photos are already beautiful (lakes, mountains, trees, etc.), but it's always fun to add a little something extra to your photos. My favorite app for making beautiful Instagram photos is Over. You can add text, pre-made images, borders, colors, etc. to your photos using this app. It's pretty awesome when it comes to making your Instagram...

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How much money should a camp spend on ads?

Posted on September 6, 2013
in Social Strategies
by Nick Middleton
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Most companies, all the way from start ups to huge corporations, don't feel like they need to pay anything for advertising. I'm sure this stems somewhat from all of the awesome free social media tools that are available to companies. Even though these tools can be extremely powerful in driving results, I feel very strongly that summer camps should at least be spending a small amount of money on ads. Well, how much money you ask? As much money as...

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Social Media Roundup for Camps- September

Posted on September 4, 2013
in Social Media Roundup
by Nick Middleton
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Here are some interesting articles on social media and summer camps from this past month! Mashable: A marketer's guide to retargeting on Facebook- This is a great beginners post on how FBX (the Facebook Exchange) works for retargeting. American Camp Association Blog: Famous campers and camp staff share thoughts on character- Did you know Michelle Obama went to summer camp? Me either until I read this blog post! Mashable: Social media project monitors keywords to prevent suicide- This is a very interesting article...

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Why Facebook ads for summer camps?

Posted on September 2, 2013
in Social Strategies
by Nick Middleton
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I've written a lot in the past about how to use Facebook ads and how to track conversions on Facebook using their conversion tracking pixel. Still almost daily I get asked why any camp would want to run Facebook ads, so I decided to write up a few quick notes. Remember that I worked at Facebook for almost three years before starting Social Summer Camp, so I feel pretty confident in the following reasons that Facebook ads really work for...

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Being your authentic self

Posted on August 30, 2013
in Camp Inspiration
by Nick Middleton
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I hear a lot from camp directors how many of their campers feel like they can only be their authentic self at camp. I know from my own camp experience too that there is something special about camp that lets you be closer to who you really are than the persona you have to hold up at school. Camp directors hold so dearly the idea that their campers can be so real at camp, yet I often see those same...

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Marketing your personal brand

Posted on August 28, 2013
in Social Strategies
by Nick Middleton
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Yesterday I wrote about how to cultivate your personal brand as a camp director or assistant director. Today I am going to quickly cover how to promote your personal brand (if you wish!). Like I mentioned in my previous post, having a personal brand in non-negotiable, you have one even if you don't want one. Which is why it always makes sense to think through your goals both short term and long term in regards to your brand. You don't...

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