Services

Be honest: Do you spend a lot of time during your work day chatting with colleagues on messaging apps, like Slack?

It's okay -- so do we. And while some of our messages are GIFs and emojis (okay, the majority of our messages), we also get into lots of lively Slack discussions (okay, debates) about news stories and product announcements in the marketing technology space.

So when my colleague, senior growth marketing manager Niti Shah, sent around a link to Apptopia's analysis of Snapchat's slowing user growth, it sparked a discussion of who uses which app for sharing disappearing messages, and which is better -- Snapchat Stories, or Instagram Stories.

The conversation evolved from there, so we wanted to open it up to our inbound.org community members, too.

So we asked marketers the following:

When do you prefer to use Snapchat, and when do you prefer Instagram for Stories?
When do you use Snapchat vs. Instagram for different marketing purposes?
And now, we're sharing some of marketers' biggest reasons for why they prefer each platform -- read on for some of the highlights of the debate below.

Why Use Instagram Stories?

The most resounding point that came up again and again -- on both inbound.org and on Slack -- was Instagram's size advantage: While Snapchat hit 166 million users earlier this year, Instagram Stories alone has already racked up an impressive 250 million users.

And that's probably because any one of Instagram's 700 million total users can click on Stories to start seeing ephemeral content from accounts they follow. So it's no surprise that marketers at HubSpot and on inbound.org saw the advantages of leveraging their reach with existing audiences on Instagram to share ephemeral content.

Via: Hubspot

In the past few years, social media marketing has started to acquire a very important role in the online world. With around 2 billion people using social media, there’s no denying that many companies are trying to create and pursue a loyal following on social media. That’s what really makes a difference and why social media marketing is indeed a thing that you should focus on as fast as possible.

More exposure for your brand

The major benefit of social media marketing is that it helps you get more exposure for your brand. The great thing is that the exposure is very large, especially with so many people using social media on a daily basis. As long as you take your time you will be more than impressed with the results and the value that you can obtain here!

You get more traffic

Traffic is crucial if you want to sell items and generate a loyal following. You should always try to talk with your customers and encourage them to visit your website. Most of them will do that and you definitely need such followers if you want to acquire the best possible experience and results in the long haul.

You gain marketplace insights

Finding good marketplace insights usually costs a lot of money, with many companies being focused on this alone. Yet with some good social media marketing services you never have to worry about that ever again. That’s what makes this type of service very helpful and the results you get here are indeed going to impress quite a bit in the end.

Affordable

A thing to note about the social media marketing services is that they are affordable. You don’t have to spend a lot of money, but they do provide a great set of results. They bring you quality and value, all while keeping the costs very low. That matters a lot and the experience will be worth it.

You increase brand loyalty

One of the main targets for any brand is to generate a loyal following. It’s really hard to do that, but most of the time you shouldn’t worry that much as a loyal following can be acquired via social media marketing and a good set of services.

Customers are happy

People always want to feel that you deliver them a great set of results. They want to feel appreciated and social media marketing allows them to feel that way. It enhances customer interaction and it helps take the experience to new heights very fast. It’s definitely one of the best investments that you can make for your business.

You should consider investing in social media marketing as fast as possible. This is one of the best investments you can make, as it helps deliver an outstanding experience and the outcome can be very well worth it. As long as you are working hard to promote your business and you want to obtain a really good experienceArticle Submission, social media marketing is the right fit for you!

You finally realize that you need a good opt-in list. After reading countless articles and sought expert advices and have read many success stories of people creating a small fortune with opt-in lists you finally decide to have one of your own. Then it happens, you think you have known everything there is to know about opt-in lists and have followed their advices to the T and you still weren’t able to make a profit.

In fact, you may be losing money. You maybe hiring writers to help you out, or there are some expenses incurred, even if you have a big list, but only a very small percentage actually buys from you, your still losing profit. You’ll realize that after a few months when you see your statistics and sales figures.

So what could have gone wrong? Why have others succeeded where you have failed? The most common mistake is that you dived straight right in. You chose a topic where you think could be quite popular and would earn you money. This just not the case. Just because you wrote people from the list doesn’t mean they are going to buy instantly.

Here I will offer more advice, for those who have started an opt-in list and have failed, you can rejuvenate your failed venture. For those who are starting, here are three quick and easy ways to build a profitable opt-in list.

1 Get your customers to trust you and your products first. Just launching your opt-in list would not make you an expert and a believable seller. Put many articles first before you start an opt-in list. Write about the topic you know and have started and used for your site. Try to put forums first to gain knowledge about your customers about their wants and needs and target those wants and needs.

• Join forums from other sites as well. Provide expert advices and recommendations.
• When you feel that people trust you already, you will be able to start your own opt-in list.
• You can build a base as well with other forum users. You can ask them to join your list.
• Friends are always good customers.
• Put up a link to your site so that they may be able to see what you're business is all about.

The certain truth is, the money will only come in when the consumers and subscribers believe and trust in you. They want a product or service that could be a good exchange for their money. People are not going to buy something out of your recommendation if they don’t know you.

2 Find a product or service that people want and need. Although it may not be your forte, if you provide a service and product that you have researched and learned about well, you can carry it on forward. Invest your time, effort and money that you could sell as well as the buyers or subscribers of your opt-in list can use.

While it is true that it is best to sell something that you have interest in, there are not many people who have the same interest as you if you decide to sell something that is not entirely popular or profitable. Do your research well and you would see the profits come in. Also provide your subscribers with promotional material that they could actually use and spread around.

3 Make friends with other opt-in list users.

1. This is basically beneficial especially if it is someone who has already launched a successful opt-in list.
2. These are people that have the experience in this venture and experience is still the best teacher.
3. While there are many articles available for you in the internet to use, there is nothing like getting a first hand account from someone you trust.

Experienced opt-in list users will be able to tell you what to do and what not to do because they have gone through it. While different situations occur for different people, the general concept can still be very helpful. There are many things to avoid and these people will be able to tell you which ones.

Building a profitable opt-in list don’t just happen overnight. There are many preparations and effort to do. Opt-in lists are built from scratch, as your list grows, you should also maintain the quality of your list. Keep it organized and manageable. Get or hire help if need be, just make sure that your subscribers are happy and satisfied and they will be willing to buy from you.

Here are six ideas to help you start your viral marketing campaign:

1.Purchase the branding rights to a viral E-book. Allow people to give away your free E-book to their visitors. Then, their visitors will also give it away. This will just continue to spread your ad all over the Internet.

2.If you have the ability to set up a forum or other bulletin board, you really have a great tool. Allow people to use your online discussion board for their own website. Some people don't have one. Just include your banner ad at the top of the board.

3.Do you have a knack for web design? Create some templates, graphics, etc. and upload them to your site. Then, allow people to give away your free web design graphics, fonts, templates, etc. Just include your ad on them or require people to link directly to your web site. Make sure that you include a link back to your site in the copyright notice and require them to keep your copyright notice in tact.

4.Write an E-book. Allow people to place an advertisement in your free E-book if, in exchange, they give away the E-book to their web visitors or E-zine subscribers.

5.Write articles that pertain to your product or service. Allow people to reprint your articles on their website, in their E-zine, newsletter, magazine or E-books. Include your resource box and the option for article reprints at the bottom of each article.

6.You can easily find products on the Internet that will sell you a license allowing you to distribute the product free of charge to other people. Look for those products that provide "branding rights". That is where you can include your own name, website, and contact information.