Category Archives: Social Media

5 Important Facebook Updates in 2013

There were a ton of updates on Facebook this 2013 and they continue to implement new changes as the year comes to an end. Most of them, I’m pretty happy with as a social media manager, a blogger AND a personal user. However, there’s been a major update with their algorithm from probably a month or two ago that affected many businesses that have Facebook pages. As much as I’d like to get into that, I haven’t done any extensive research, but I have noticed the impact of this change on all my clients and my own pages.

So, I have listed some of the most notable changes on Facebook that affected me personally and at work. Let me know at the comments section about your own list of important Facebook updates for 2013.

 

Whole Photos on Facebook Pages

Before, at work, we used to worry about ensuring that the images we use, especially those with text, are resized into a square. Or at least have the most important part of the image seen when you reposition it on your timeline. Now, you don’t have to spend more time resizing your images as Facebook now shows the whole image on your Facebook page’s Timeline. Check out this screenshot from our food blog‘s page.

Facebook Photos are now showing up as a whole image instead of squares

This is what I loved about Google+ and was wishing for the longest time that Facebook will finally decide to do something about it, so I’m thankful they did! 🙂

The sad thing though is this update doesn’t apply to personal Timelines. You will still see that your images on your account page are shaped irregularly. For me though, I don’t think it should matter since most people will see your photos on their News Feed, so they will be able to view the whole image from there. Well, unless most of your friends or followers prefer to “stalk” your personal Timeline. 😀

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The Impact of Images in Social Media

With the growing number of internet users every day, plus the fact that most have access to a digital camera or a smartphone that has a camera, the power of visual communication has continued to increase and evolve. This is why in social media, using quality images in your posts is highly important for you to make an impact in a somehow noisy world online.

Working as a social media manager and handling my blogs’ presence on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Google+, I have seen how effective images are versus text only messages. As a social media user, I can also attest to how people now prefer to read texts in an image.

Design quote

Studies, surveys and insight reports reveal that social media posts using images perform better than any other kind of content. On Facebook alone, photo posts get 50% more interaction over links, videos or text-based updates. On Twitter, tweets with image links (Twitpic or Instagram – and Twitter also now shows expanded photos on the timeline!) get more engagement too.

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Behind The Scenes and the Future of Our Food Blog

Since 2010, my brother and I have been maintaining our food blog Certified Foodies. We’ve had an amazing ride so far, even being recognized as one of the top food blogs in the country, which is really just the cherry on top.

2013 October cover v1

My brother and I have had this passion for food since we were kids. We both love cooking, him being the more skilled one. So we feel that we were meant to start our own food blog. We never intended to gain fame or even earn from our blog, but we did and continue to do so, which pushes us more to make our food blog better.

During the past 2 years, I’ve seen new food blogs launching here and there, and I was actually glad to see more people becoming more adventurous with food. We’ve received emails and inquiries from new food bloggers asking us for tips and help, and it seems that the most common question was how they can earn from blogging about food. And I think that’s the wrong way to approach blogging, especially when you’re writing about food. If it was for a different niche, I’d be perfectly okay, but I feel like for someone to start a successful food blog, one must have genuine passion for it.

Me at Seoul Garden - just showing you the grill at our table - CertifiedFoodies.com

A really, really, really old photo of me. 😀

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Why I Love My Job

Since January 2012, I have been officially working full-time at home as a Social Media Manager for a US-based company. Some may find it cheesy, but I feel like I found my calling. Though I have always excelled in other jobs I took on in the past (no, I’m not bragging – just stating the truth 😛 ), being a social media manager has been really fun and interesting for me.

Working from home

And when I love what I’m doing, it’s only inevitable that I’ll somehow be noticed for the kind of work I do and my work ethic. That’s why late last year, I was promoted to supervisor of our team of social media managers. I am currently handling a group of 4 SMMs, and I consider myself the right hand of our manager.

I believe that in the 10 months that I’ve been officially managing our team, I have improved the quality of work my team members have put out. I have imposed certain rules and implemented a couple of weekly and monthly responsibilities here and there with the hopes of keeping the morale up while ensuring the team performs.

One of the most important things I believe I have improved with the team is their time management. I wanted to make sure everyone is using their time well and not extending work hours, which usually happens in work-at-home situations because people are more likely to slack off since they can do the work later.

I have weekly coaching sessions, which is currently postponed with the amount of work I’m getting, but I implemented a weekly report to keep them in check on how their clients are performing.

I do miss, however, holding meetings or conferences in a formal office environment. It’s difficult to completely get people’s attention when you’re only text chatting on Skype. They can acknowledge what you’re saying without genuinely paying attention.

I remember, back when I was still a team leader in the last 2 companies I worked for, I hold my team’s meetings and our agents’ training sessions inside spacious conference rooms where the IT department ensures have the most attention-grabbing multimedia enhancement. With the continuous advancement of technology, I’m sure there are more high-tech audio video solutions available today. One can even use a smartphone for presentations, which I would’ve loved to do this coming week.

Anyway, I am enjoying what I’m doing because, I believe, managing people is also one of the things I’m meant to do. And since social media is ‘in’ and continues to become a bigger part of our lives, I believe I’ll be enjoying working as an SMM for a long time. 🙂

8 Must Have Android Social Media Apps

Social Media Apps for AndroidWorking as a social media manager full-time, I take it upon myself to make sure I’m updated on the latest news and information related to social media, the internet and the world so I can work on strategies and share them with my team. This may prove to be a daunting task with the vast amount of resources we have. Thankfully, there are various Android social media apps for my phone that help me consume contents more efficiently.

Aside from reading up on social media articles, I also make sure that I share articles I find really useful through my various social media accounts. Hopefully, this list will help you.

 

Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, Instagram, Pinterest, Google+ and LinkedIn

Of course, you shouldn’t be without these apps developed by the various social media sites themselves. The features you use and love on the Web versions are most likely made available on their mobile apps as well since, well, mobile is the future.

Twitter and Facebook apps for Android

I use my Pinterest app for Android for pinning, liking or even organizing my Pinboards. I use Facebook and Twitter for posting images I find amusing that I’d like to share with my network. I use Instagram for almost exactly the same reason.

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