This blog topic was requested by Fayann Dsouza (@fayann.loves on Instagram).

Crowdsourcing blog ideas rocks because I know it will make a difference to as least one person. And as my workload increases, finding the time to write a blog is getting tough! But when my community speaks, I listen.

With this topic, I went one step further and asked my Snapchat community to share their number one tip for managing a remote team. I wanted a well-rounded point of view, and the feedback was great! Their Snapchat handles are included in parentheses.

The deal is, and it’s no secret – managing is a not an easy endeavor whether it’s in-house or with contracted/remote workers.

I will outline several strategies to be successful with remote management, but there’s a singular element that MUST be an active part of everything we do – communication.

Tough love time – I believe that communication solves everything, and to bypass it when managing a team (regardless of our busy schedules) is foolish. Teams are a direct reflection of our investment, and if it’s not working then it’s time to take an objective look in the mirror.

As managers, we can’t control everything or everyone, but we can be purposeful about learning to be better at what we do on a consistent basis.

“But how do I manage a team that I can’t see? How do I stay on top of what they’re doing? Or ensure they aren’t off playing video games or shopping at the mall?”

Short answer is – you don’t. [Read more…]

Snapchat, Snapchat – current owner of my social media heart. I love Snapchat. It’s the social network I’ve been spending the most time on, and not just because it’s fun.

But because the community is second to none.

A recent study said that Snapchat users aren’t buying anything, but I disagree wholeheartedly.

Several of my #SnapchatFam followers became NutriBullet users after watching me churn mine after morning workouts, influencer personalities have become the go-to way to promote for brands, and well, there’s no shortage of these stories.

Why? Because people buy based on recommendations from friends and family they know and trust.

That’s difficult when you’re a business. You have a service or product to sell, but want it come off as authentic and trustworthy. And that’s why it’s so crucial to build a community.

Think about it.

If you go to a restaurant and have a spectacular experience, how many people do you tell? And who are your friends going to listen to – you or a review from a random source?

That’s why building communities online is so important on every social network you invest in, but especially on Snapchat.

I’ve been hanging out on Snapchat for over 3 years now – waiting and watching for the world to catch on, and the end of 2015 belonged to Snapchat. It grew from 2 million uploads per day in October to 2 BILLION by December.

Talk about an explosion!

What’s so different about Snapchat? It’s raw, real, and ultra personal. It allows any and every brand the opportunity to tell a backstory with minimal exertion, and without fancy equipment. And the millennials are ALL over it.

So how do you build a community on such a cool platform?  [Read more…]

Lately, the practice of sending group messages or tagging people online has gotten out of control.

Marketers and business owners are increasingly going overboard with sending out one message to a whole group or tagging folks in updates that they might like to see.

But that’s the whole point – updates “they might like to see.”

Before I get into why group messaging and group tagging is a buzz kill, and why it’s killing your brand – I want you to know that I am old school. The way I do business is old school. The way I conduct myself in business relationships is old school. “My word is my bond” old school.

So how I view this practice is old school.

And what I mean by that is simply that RESPECT is a part of every strategy I utilize online and in my personal life. I do not believe in tagging someone or messaging them if they did not personally opt in or it doesn’t directly relate to them. And I think brands should do the same.

Why?

There’s several reasons. [Read more…]

Last year, I wrote 3 MUSTS for Social Media in 2015 because everyone writes a “trends for the upcoming year” post, but looking back – I really called it!

So why not continue the tradition this year?

Making predictions for an upcoming year is a tough call with social media because our industry trends shift so quickly, but I’m convinced that even my 2015 predictions will continue to hold true this year.

Before we jump into 2016, here’s a 2015 prediction review:

1. Personal Connection
This was definitely a major key in constructing messages and curating content in 2015, and will continue to be this year.

In fact, we’ll begin seeing personalization take on a whole new meaning as apps and tech create devices and services that match up with users. And as these products grow, so will the need for targeted promotions.

2. Video
I was a bit ahead of this prediction last year – not in the world of marketing, but with business owners and brands.

They began engaging with video regularly in 2015, but hadn’t allocated budget for it or sewn it into the content marketing strategies.

However, moving forward this year, brands small and large know that video will be a necessary part of every content marketing strategy.

3. Ad Spend
Ad spend increased monumentally in 2015, but it’s going to be the heaviest portion of budget in 2016.

With the death of most organic reach across social networks, and the inundation of ads, we’re seeing more and more companies work harder and spend more to make their ads stand out.

We may even see interactive ads this year.

Now, let’s cover the 3 MUSTS for Social Media in 2016.

To read more, click HERE.

I didn’t intend to write about why email marketing is still a necessity for 2016 marketing strategies, but people keep asking me about its relevance.

Yes, email marketing is still very, very important. And that’s no exaggeration.

But the typical business owner gets distracted by all the new shiny social networks. And I get it – there’s so many.

However, it will be a long time before email marketing is replaced, if ever. I think our current process, tools, and apps will change, but we’ll always have an “inbox” to receive messages from the outside world that isn’t connected to a social network.

Can you imagine a world without email? And before you say, heck yes – I’d love it! Think about how you would reach out professionally or share intimate letters with someone. Or promote to them.

My inbox is magical for me. It’s the singular place someone can reach me without my getting distracted by a bajillion other things. It’s crazy how calm I feel when checking email versus going to reply to a Facebook Message or Twitter DM.

Emails still have their own place, and when it comes to marketing – there’s no difference. Even though some marketers or biz owners talk down about email marketing, the power hasn’t waned.

The biggest reason it gets so much pushback is that it’s hard. Because most email marketers don’t respect the person who signed up, and consumers are being more protective with their email accounts. [Read more…]

Sometimes it’s easy to get annoyed with social media, and yes, I’m guilty of being irritable with the constant interaction and/or notifications.

But the truth is that if we step back, social media is a blessing in MANY way.

It gives us multiple channels to keep in touch, locate old friends, and hey – it’s full of cute kitties and sweet puppies, which everyone needs more of in life.

Don’t you dare roll your eyes!

There’s plenty who say that social media ruins our life, hurts our relationships, and destroys our self-esteem.

But there’s so many ways that social media makes our lives better, especially during the holiday season, and I want to share them with you.

Why? Because we should focus on the positive effects of social media, and see all the ways it helps us to do things we’ve never done simply by logging onto Facebook or Instagram.

So let’s walk through 5 reasons to be thankful for social media this holiday season. [Read more…]

Live streaming is ALL the rage these days thanks to the heavy hitters of 2015 like Meerkat, Periscope, and now, Blab.

But live streaming is just getting started. The pathways of possibilities with these tools has only begun for marketers and business owners alike, and the best part is that anyone can be successful with it.

I started dabbling in live streaming on Social Media Day of 2015. Although I watched Meerkats and Periscopes, I hadn’t waded into the water. I remember the shock by the first Meerkat I watched – it was someone singing in their car, and when it went live, my initial reaction was to cover the camera on my phone. I felt like he could see me! Thankfully he couldn’t. But it seemed like I was privy to a very private moment.

However, the marketer in me started geeking out over with all the branding opportunities this medium presented for personal and professional brands.

This year I traveled to NYC and Minneapolis to work for clients to live stream events, and help to create an experience for the folks unable to join. The first conference was the PhotoPlus Expo in NYC. This event is the largest photography conference in the US, and it was impressive to say the least. Over 30,000 flocked to the Javits Center to enjoy the gorgeous displays of Canon, Nikon, and many more. And my job was to make that available to the folks unable to attend the conference, and amplify the brand I represented. I Periscoped photography classes, conference attendees, and keynotes like Jimmy Chin, who I could have listened to all day.

The second project was a tech conference called MobCon hosted annually by MentorMate, a leading Android/iOS mobile app development company that’s paving the way for mobile tech. This project was very different in that I was covering an event for the host, not as an attendee, and it made an enormous difference in how much control we had and what we were able to accomplish.

This knowledge is what I want to share with you because live streaming an event can be very lucrative for any brand. It will produce a LOT of content to be repurposed and used for social networks, it will extend the reach of your brand during the event, and will create experiences for those unable to join who may choose to do so in the future.

I could easily write several posts on all I learned during these projects, but for this purpose of this article, we’ll stick to the how-to’s. I’ll write follow-ups in the future.

So roll up your sleeves and start taking notes because if you want to do it right, it will take a lot more than flipping the switch on a Periscope channel.

To continue reading, click HERE.