Pinterest: A Beautiful Gluten-Free World

Pinterest is now one of my favorite sites for gluten-free social networking. The beauty of Pinterest lies in the photos, called pins, which are pinned on bulletin boards. Pinterest is a welcome visual break from the plethora of text on blogs, LinkedIn, Facebook, and even Twitter. It is also one of the easiest sites to learn how to use.

I have been using Pinterest both personally and professionally for many months. As a social media specialist for a food company, it has been extremely effective in reaching our target market. If you are familiar with the term retweeting, then you will instantly understand the concept of repinning.

According to an article in Entrepreneur, Pinterest is "driving more traffic to company websites and blogs than YouTube, Google+ and LinkedIn combined." An article in the Huffington Post offers tips for small businesses on Pinterest and provided this useful stat.

"Seventy percent of the site's visitors are women age 25-44, and they spend an average of 15 minutes looking around. If that does not make a small business mind sit up and take notice, nothing will."

Here is a great short video introduction to Pinterest with some handy tips.



So join Pinterest and be sure to follow my boards.

Facebook Upsets Users by Deleting Discussions

Recently, page admins started seeing messages that Facebook will be deleting the discussion board app at the end of this month. Despite the fact that many Facebook pages have active discussions with tons of valuable information, Facebook stated that wall posts and comments are a better way to engage users, and all the discussions will be deleted! 

“We're Making Pages Better 

We want to make sure the tools you use to manage your page are as effective as possible. Here's an update that may affect how you connect with your audience:

· Improvements to Insights: You'll now see a new public metric called People Talking About This underneath your fan count to show the number of people on Facebook who have engaged with your page in the last 7 days. Learn more in your Page Insights. 

· Discussions: The best way to encourage conversation and feedback is through posts and comments on your Wall. To focus on this, we'll be removing the Discussions app on October 31st. Learn More”

I visited several gluten-free Facebook pages to see how they use discussions. While popular pages like Gluten Freely have many discussions, the most recent post was about one month ago. However, it used to be a very active discussion board, and there are some great resources.  

On the Food Network Facebook page, there are over 1,200 topics in their discussion board and posts are made daily. There are many comments from fans upset about Facebook deleting the discussion board and wondering how they can continue. Some suggested Google Plus or creating a Facebook group. One user created a blog in an attempt to continue the Food Network discussions. Perhaps some will decide to move them to LinkedIn or Ning.  What do you think of Facebook deleting discussions, and how will you preserve them before they vanish?

6 Easy Tips to Improve Your Social Media Marketing

Gail Goodman, the CEO of Constant Contact, shared great social media marketing tips in a recent article on Entrepreneur. In Six Quick-Hit Marketing Ideas for Social Media, Goodman shows how easy it is to “spice up your year-long marketing campaign without investing a lot of time and resources.” From discussing current events to thanking customers, these simple tasks can have a big impact.   

“You don't always have to ask customers for their business. Sometimes, you'll want to give back. You can do so by providing knowledge and insights in the form of how-to guides, white papers, service giveaways or some other limited-edition offer.” 

Are you looking for examples from gluten-free companies of how to give back to your customers? Jules Speaks Gluten Free is an excellent example of incorporating how-to guides in blog posts. Visit Marion’s Smart Delights for a terrific white paper. How do you give back to your customers?

Tips for Making Viral Videos

Are you considering making a viral video to promote your company, website, or blog? Looking for a way to make your video stand out from others? Scott Gerber offers eight tips on Mashable in How To: Make a Successful Marketing Video for the Web. He developed the tips from interviews with Generation Y entrepreneurs.

"The best web videos are ones that incorporate comedy. People like to share videos with their networks that are funny, inspiring or thought provoking."

Some tips include being real, keeping it less than 2 minutes, and making it simple. Have you seen a great viral video recently? Share a link to it in the comments. 

Discover LinkedIn Groups

While LinkedIn is well known for professional networking, many may be surprised at the plethora of groups covering a wide range of topics. Groups exist for blogging, writing, social media, photography, marketing, nutrition, chefs, foodies, food allergies, gluten-free, Autism, and much more.

Being in a shared group with people makes it much easier to add them to your network.  Joining a city specific group, like Washington DC Connections, ensures local connections.  After joining a group, remember to actively participate, by commenting on discussions.

In June 2010, major updates were made to LinkedIn groups, making them more user-friendly and improving their appearance. In August, improvements were made to the moderation features, helping group managers. Additionally, users can enjoy the new following features to follow both people and companies.

Watch this video for an introduction to LinkedIn Groups and an overview on all the new features. Visit the LinkedIn Learning Center for more instructional videos and tips. Don't miss out on this great resource. Join LinkedIn today!

Is This What Gluten-Free Consumers Want?

Natural Products Insider just posted an interesting article, "Special Needs of the Gluten-Free Consumer".  They identify eight things that gluten-free consumers want.  Some are accurate and identify key needs, like cheaper products, clear labels, and certified gluten-free products.  However, based on things I encounter in the gluten-free social media world, some statements seem inaccurate.

"Surprisingly, nutrient awareness was not strong among gluten-free consumers. Some concede a need for more fiber, but most are largely unconcerned about the need for more whole grains in their gluten-free diet."

It seems that gluten-free consumers are indeed very concerned about nutrition.  The article mentions that consumers are looking for convenience items, but what I seem to encounter the most is the request for healthy convenience.

The below statement seems outdated. Perhaps when the interviews began one year ago, this was the case. I think the response would be different today, especially if they utilized social media to conduct the interviews.

"But consumers still want higher quality products. Consumers would love to have moister, more flavorful, softer baked goods. Some gluten-free breads are beginning to satisfy these needs. But consumers concede they would rather not eat bread than eat most gluten-free breads."

Thanks to Udi's and Rudi's, there are now good gluten-free breads in addition to the ones that many bake themselves.  Joan's and Udi's make great bagels. I could continue to name good products. One thing is clear - there are many yummy soft-baked goods.  I would say that gluten-free consumers are looking for nutritious and unique products. Combine that with convenience, great taste, safe manufacturing, and a cheap price, and you may have a hit!

Are Gluten-Free Consumers Deprived of Good Tasting Products?

Fortunately, there are so many great gluten-free products and gluten-free replacements for almost every gluten food. There are breads, pasta, waffles, and many more foods that taste like gluten. Some are also free of many allergens. So why do companies making new gluten-free products still feel the need to put in press releases or on their website something about gluten-free consumers being deprived of products and that finally they have something to make life better? With gluten-free bakeries across the country, clearly gluten-free consumers aren’t deprived!

Now, I am not talking about one company in particular. I see this often. Even the companies that don’t do this, have slogans about their products being delicious or tasting good. Is that still original? Does that set their products apart from others? Does General Mills need to put on the front of a box below a product that is newly labeled gluten-free that it has the “same great taste”? How do we get rid of this old concept that gluten-free tastes bad?

I think in this market for a gluten-free product to survive it needs to be unique, great-tasting, and affordable. Tell me why I should buy your product. Is it made from healthy ingredients? Is it free of other allergens? How is it different from your competitors? Read some gluten-free blogs, tweets, and Facebook updates to find out what gluten-free consumers want. Don’t market your product by telling me that I am deprived or that my diet is a burden!

Social Media Marketing Tips for Small Companies

When you are a small company trying to navigate the social media world, it can be overwhelming. The easiest option is to hire someone to do your social media marketing. The more time consuming option is to teach yourself. This Mashable article, 10 Small Business Social Media Marketing Tips, is excellent and a great starting place. The article offers both basic and advanced strategies. Below is an important tip for beginners.

"This means that having a consistent username across the various social networks is very important. At a minimum, if you haven’t registered your company name on the major networks (Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.), you should do that today. For many small businesses, their user accounts on social networks will be the highest ranked pages in search results."

Setting up your company on social media sites is only the beginning. Actively and consistently maintaining the sites is an essential key to success.

*Note: For new gluten-free companies who are unfamiliar with gluten-free social media marketing, I highly recommend hiring a freelancer, like myself, who is already active in the gluten-free social media world.