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Call for speakers

Press Release: Call for Speakers

By on January 16, 2013 in Recent News with No Comments

@Midwest announces a call for speakers

@Midwest is seeking speakers for their 3rd annual social media conference to be held June 6–7, 2013, at Heartland Community College’s Astroth Community Education Center. @Midwest is a two-day forum where experts address small to mid-sized business professionals who are creating a social media presence or enhancing current practices. The conference is seeking experts and business professionals willing to serve as a session speakers. There are presently six speaking positions available.

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Lunch and LEarn

Social eats: Taking business social in 2013

By on January 5, 2013 in Recent News with No Comments

Join us for the first topic in our 2013 lunchtime Social Eats series. Learn how you can enhance your business through social media with inside information from business experts. Cost is $10 per person and includes lunch. Space is limited. Reserve your spot by contacting (309) 452-8437 or by using our online form.

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Socializing

@Midwest Happy Hour

By on November 20, 2012 in Recent News with Comments Off

Join us at Gill Street from 4:30-6:30 on November 20 for a an impromptu get together to brainstorm session ideas for @Midwest 2013. Stop by and give us your thoughts, chat with other social media professionals over drinks and share your ideas on conference topics and speakers.

Heartland Community College

Directions to the Astroth Community Education Center

By on June 20, 2012 in Recent News with No Comments

The conference will be held in the Astroth Community Education Center, located on the east side of the campus.

Still undecided, listen to our radio spots.

By on June 13, 2012 in Recent News with No Comments

To succeed in business, you have to have a Facebook page.

And a Twitter account. Plus, FourSquare. A YouTube channel. A WordPress blog. A Flickr page. Digg. LinkedIn.

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Just a few days left to register for @Midwest

By on June 6, 2012 in Recent News with No Comments

On June 21, @Midwest will bring experts in marketing, public relations, communications, law, and many other fields to Central Illinois to share the secrets on how you can make the most of your social media presence. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn from industry experts.

Register before June 15 for $149. Prices increase to $179 after.

Social media is one of the most powerful tools you have available to build your business. @Midwest will help you enhance your strategy. Register today.

5 Reasons to Like the New Facebook Timeline

By on May 9, 2012 in Facebook, Marketing, Recent News, Social media tips, Viewpoints with No Comments

When Facebook announced that they were transitioning to a new Timeline format, like most users, I reluctantly clicked on the link to preview the change.  I was thrilled with what I saw, and instantly fell in “Like” with the new timeline. I immediately converted both my personal profile and business pages to the new look. What is so special about the new Timeline? Engagement! Here are my top 5 reasons to LIKE the new Timeline

 

Reason # 1 to LIKE the new Timeline:  Photos 

If you’re in the business of selling a B2B or B2C product, then you will truly benefit from the new photo features in Timeline.  Photos throughout the new Timeline are bigger and better.  For example, Profile photos are now 66% larger than before (180 x 180 pixels, compressed to 125 x 125 px).

Facebook Timeline

Custom Tabs also have a much higher profile now, as they are sized at 111 x 74 pixels

Photos that are uploaded to an album are now a whopping 403 pixels wide.  That means you can actually see the photo without having to click to enlarge it.  Highlighted posts (see Reason # 4 below) are 843 x 403 pixels.

These image changes can quickly and easily bring your posts to life.

 

Reason # 2 to LIKE the new Timeline: The revolutionary Cover Photo option.

This is prime real estate to graphically represent your brand, product, or service. The cover image is a big and beautiful 851 x 315 pixels. If you want to get really creative, try incorporating your profile photo into the cover photo. Just remember...Facebook does have a few rules about how this space can be used. According to Facebook’s Help Centre:

Cover images must be at least 399 pixels wide and may not contain:

  • Price or purchase information, such as "40% off" or "Download it at our website"
  • Contact information, such as web address, email, mailing address, or other information intended for your Page's About section
  • References to user interface elements, such as Like or Share, or any other Facebook site features
  • Calls to action, such as "Get it now" or "Tell your friends"

 

Reason # 3 to LIKE the new Timeline...the "Pin to top" feature

If your business offers a weekly special, then you will find this to be a very useful feature. If you don’t offer a weekly special...the Pin to Top feature may just be the reason to start! Facebook now allows you to Pin a post to the top of your profile for up to 7 days. This keeps important messages from being buried in your feed, and eliminates the need to re-post critical information. How to Pin:  As you hover over the top Right corner of a post, the Edit or Remove menu will appear. Select the Pin to Top option. You can unpin a post at any time. After 7 days, the post will automatically be unpinned.

Make use of this feature by posting news releases, specials, new products, important details, contests...limitless potential!

 

Reason # 4 to LIKE the new Timeline:  Highlighting a post

The new Timeline makes use of chronology, with posts alternating from the left to right of the spectrum. The Highlight feature allows you to break up that visual pattern, and create a post that reaches across the entire timeline.

Again, this feature allows you to make use of photos and images that will catch your customer’s attention.

 

 

Reason # 5 to LIKE the new Timeline:  Milestones

Facebook now allows business users to add Milestones or events to aid in your storytelling efforts. Yes, you guessed it...you can include a photo in each Milestone (843 x 403 pixels). Of course, creating your company history with Milestones, will be most effective if your company actually has a history. For a young start-up company, this is a great opportunity to get creative.

If you’re looking to engage your customers through social media, then the new Facebook Timeline is an excellent way to get the conversation going.

Are you on Pinterest?

By on May 2, 2012 in Marketing, Pinterest, Public Relations, Recent News, Social media tips, Twitter with No Comments

You know just how much Pinterest can help drive traffic to your business, right?

Yesterday, I tried to explain Pinterest to an entrepreneur I know and the entire time his eyes were glazed over. He registered nothing. I’d had a similar experience: when someone first explained Pinterest to me, I had RES (Rolling Eye Syndrome) and I believe that I fell asleep standing up.

If you’re on Pinterest, you get it. Pinning pictures to boards of your own creation is all the rage. It’s addictive. But you have to see it to get it. By pulling together stunning pictures from the Internet and grouping them into your own online bulletin boards, you can show off your brilliance, taste and personal style all in a few clicks. It’s a social media site, so you’re not going it alone. Anyone can follow you, or your boards, or both. If they see something of yours that they like, they can re-pin it to their boards, which extends the reach of your original pin to all of their followers.  And so on. Endlessly.

What does this have to do with your business?

Pinterest can send a lot of traffic to your company’s website. This past February, Pinterest drove more referral traffic to businesses than Twitter did. So how did I take advantage of this site long ago for my business?

I didn’t. Until last week.

After lingering on the site for a bit, I started to understand that pinning pretty pictures was fun. I created several boards for myself (like “Rockstar” and “Clever Heather”) to collect neat photos that inspired me to do things like get a punk rock haircut. Or to rearrange my office.

But it wasn’t until I spoke to social media guru Mana Ionescu over at Lightspan Digital that I really got it. She recommended that I create a whole pile of boards for my business,The Founding Moms. Since we’re a collective of mom entrepreneurs who meet up monthly in 30+ cities around the world, she knew that it would be a good idea to create boards for mom entrepreneurs everywhere. We could compile the best articles out there for women in business. Perhaps we could create a board full of sweets and treats that mom entrepreneurs like to eat. The most shared since its creation? The Founding Moms’ Workspace Ideas. It’s been shared like crazy and has 150+ followers already.

If you add the URL of your business to the description of the board your company creates, each time someone re-pins a picture you’ve pinned, that URL is going places. Really going places. And each new person who finds the pic and loves it may very well click on your business URL and see what your business is all about.  And not only that!  You can add members of your biz — be it customers, clients, partners or members — and have them pin to those boards, too. I added a wonderful member to our board called Founding Moms Need Treats, Too, and she really turned it into a masterpiece. If you Google “Founding Moms Pinterest” it shows up as the 4th URL listed.

Still not convinced?  I dare you to click here and find something that you love. Pin it. Do that three times and you very well may be eating all of your meals at your computer for the next 48 hours.

Register now for @Midwest

By on April 2, 2012 in Recent News with No Comments

@Midwest registration is open.

Every business and organization can benefit from a social media marketing strategy. If you already have one, are you doing it right? If you’re doing it right, could you be doing it even better? Join social media professionals from across the nation to learn about the latest ideas and trends that are shaping the future of social media. Renowned experts, business leaders, and bestselling authors will share how you can take your social media presence to the next level—right in the heart of Central Illinois.

Meet the speakers

Register today!