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Determine the kind of value you aim to derive for yourself and your followers from using the hashtag. Do you intend to crowdsource information? Do you aim to create buzz? Are you looking to provoke conversation? Make sure your intentions and purpose for employing the hashtag are clear and focused. Formulate a hashtag that is relevant to your purpose and the subject you intend to tweet about.  Check to see if the hashtag you have in mind already exists and is in use. It is also very important to check if your desired hashtag has not taken on some other meaning. Twitter Search, Hashtags.org and Tagalus are some tools you can use to do a quick hashtag check.  Start tweeting your hashtag. It helps to set the context of your hashtag by briefly explaining what it means. Tweet with moderation. The last thing you want is to be seen as a spammer. Always ask what value you and your followers can get from the tweet you are putting out.  If it does not exist yet, add your hashtag definition to online tools such as Tagalus.  Set up an automatic alert tool that sends you an email alert when someone tweets your hashtag. Twilert is one such tool.

The concept itself is deceptively simple; just add the “#” symbol in front of a word or a group of words with the spaces between them taken out.

By including a relevant hashtag in your tweet, it becomes visible to people searching for that specific topic, adding your voice to the general discussion. Conversely, hashtags automatically narrow down your audience, allowing your tweets to reach and engage only those interested in the same subject matter.

One popular link building tactic is blog commenting. Leaving a thoughtful and insightful comment on a blog post along with a name, email address, and link is not only a great way to get an inbound link but it can also improve your company/brand visibility and establish your place as a thought leader in a particular industry.

1.Act

2. It’s not about creating accounts, It’s what you do with them

3.Collaboration is necessary for Social Media success

As more and more Americans turn to their mobile phones for information, the potential for QR codes grows ever larger. (Smart phone proliferation surged above 50% in early 2012). So, rather than wait for QR codes to die or, conversely, assume they’ll be just fine, marketers should take proactive steps to use QR codes more effectively right now.

First, businesses need to have offers that are QR code-specific.

Second, there is a difference between using QR codes in unique ways to get noticed, and using QR codes in unique ways just to be weird.

The QR code program works in conjunction with Wildfire’s new mobile site. The codes are used for a variety of purposes and are located in an assortment of locations throughout Wildfires many restaurants in Chicago and it’s surrounding suburbs. Wildfire has placed the QR codes on everything from posters, to tabletops, to windows. The QR codes help Wildfire to endorse any upcoming events and promotions in order to keep customers “in the know” with the ultimate goal of increased customer participation in store events and promotions. The program gives Wildfire an opportunity to to interact with their guests all the while generating buzz for the restaurant and creating a unique experience for the diner.

"As the number of people with smartphones continues to escalate, marketing to the mobile customer is becoming increasingly more critical to the marketing mix.

Here are some best practices for maximizing the return on your QR code direct mail initiative:

Ensure that QR codes link to Web pages that are optimized for mobile devices

Provide online content that adds value for the targeted consumer and makes it worth their while to scan the code.

Use of NeoMedia's NeoReader barcode scanning app jumped more than 240% on Black Friday compared to last year, according to a recent press release from the firm.

"Retail is going mobile. People are not only using their phones to get more information on goods and services, both in-store and on-the-go, but also to purchase," said Laura Marriott, Chief Executive Officer of NeoMedia Technologies, Inc.

We talk about "the web" and "the mobile web" as if the two are different, but they aren't.

The most common mistake I see is when site owners aggressively optimize their sites for very specific platforms.

"What's the one device you couldn't live without?"

Apps.

Browser capabilities.

2. If you're not embracing social media, get in the game.

5. Be mobile.

6. QR Codes explode

Perx, a smartphone app from Singapore-based Maiplay Pte. that’s designed to replace all the cards in a consumer’s wallet with a single, easy way to get loyalty rewards.

they scan the QR code provided by the merchant when they check out. That, in turn, serves just like a stamp on an old paper card and counts towards the shopper’s next reward; Perx notifies the consumer instantly when they’ve reached that milestone. Meanwhile, users can also “spin the wheel” for a chance to win instant prizes.

Mistake 1: Not Testing the Code

Mistake 2: Getting Too Fancy With Text

Mistake 3: Serving up Non-Mobile Pages

There have been many attempts to create a WORA platform but none has really succeeded. WORA stands for Write Once Run Anywhere. Some progress was made in the pre iPhone era where platforms were getting developed which could support majority of the feature phones. It tackled the challenge of different screen size and varying user interaction standard reasonably well.

Here are 3 possibilities: 1)      Tablet usage expands to significantly eat into the desktop and laptop usage 2)      Voice technology becomes robust and usable enough to offer a new dimension to user interface design 3)      The Metro UI from Microsoft effectively manages to create a uniform container for application to run in smartphone, tablet and desktop

With 40 percent of smartphone owners browsing the Internet more frequently on their phones – using their devices to make holiday charity donations and buy gifts online – it only makes sense to ensure mobile purchases are available anywhere at any time.

The No. 1 thing is brand cohesiveness. Use the same URL on mobile as on your desktop site, as opposed to m. or .mobi. All it takes is a simple redirect script.

product reviews and testimonials, which could even be presented in the form of videos. Additionally, incentives like discounts for an opt-in for future communication and for taking a survey or participating in a poll.

free white paper, A Practical Guide to QR Codes for the Small Business Marketer.

Giving the consumer an option to scan a QR code which leads them to a website that is not optimized for the device they use to scan it is like sending someone with a broken arm in to get a full-body physical. People use QR codes to take action directly, so don’t make them jump through hoops, pinching, zooming and navigating through a messy desktop site. Give them what they want: a mobile experience.

the QR codes that perform far better are the ones that offer consumers a benefit for scanning.  This means providing a discount, special offer or inclusion in some sort of exclusive program in order to provide customers a return on investment for their time. Of course, clever marketers can find plenty of ways to provide a reward for scanning while still integrating plenty of branding as well.

Mobile websites are becoming an increasingly necessary tool as more consumers get their Internet information via their mobile devices such as cell phones, tablets and smaller portable laptops.

"In essence the Internet as we know it is changing now and will continue to do so dramatically over the next two to three years," said Lee Weiner, Co-Founder of Direct Marketing Concierge

Mobile websites, strategic implementation of QR codes and full in-house produced marketing campaigns have set Tampa-based Direct Marketing Concierge apart as a unique player in the changing landscape of cutting-edge marketing.