In sales and marketing, if you confuse them, you lose them.
Since your entire foundation on LinkedIn starts with your profile and your professional headline, you need to make sure it's three things: Functional, functional, functional.
What I mean by this is, prospects you encounter on LinkedIn must be able to immediately understand what type of products or services you offer, and the key audiences you serve, upon a quick glance of your profile.
Your professional headline communicates this when you stay practical and simple with how you describe yourself. Along with your photo, it's the instant calling card people use to size up who you are and what – if any – interest they should have in your profile, profession and content.
The biggest mistake people make is creating what I call an "aspirational" headline. For example, instead of using a headline like "business coach", you'll see something like, "helping clients realize their dreams."
That's aspirational, fluffy and exciting – but it's not going be clear cut enough for people to really understand you on LinkedIn.
Hundreds of millions of professionals worldwide are using LinkedIn's powerful internal search engine, and one of the key things we know about prospects when they're searching online is that if you make things difficult to understand, they'll move on to something else.
On LinkedIn, that means if it's not clear who you are and what you do, you'll be skipped over for someone who does.
Your LinkedIn profile also shouldn't be about you – instead it should be focused on what you can do for your ideal audience and what makes you different or better when compared to your competitors.
So forget the cute prose and instead focus on simplicity. Be functional.
But that doesn't mean you should simple list your job title or role in your LinkedIn professional headline. Instead, I want you to tell me – as a potential client – what you can do to help me achieve my goals.
Here are a couple examples of great profiles to demonstrate the "Functional vs. Aspirational" dynamic I'm talking about.
Consider the profile headline of John Beresford Marshall: "Equity Investing | Equity Investments | Growth Stocks | Business Development."
Here's how it looks on his LinkedIn profile page:
It's very clear cut what John does: Equity investing, equity investments, growth stocks and business development. If you're looking to do equity investing or invest in growth stocks, John is someone who can help you, right?
John's not trying to be everything to everybody, he's making it very clear, within a few seconds, what he does and what he's an expert in.
Another example comes courtesy of Lisa Anderson: "Strategic Business Advisor | Virtual CFO | Virtual CEO for Government Contractors, Accountants & Consulting Firms."
Here's how it looks on her LinkedIn profile page:
Again, Lisa's headline makes it clear what she does (Strategic Business Advisor, Virtual CFO, Virtual CEO) and who her target audiences are (Government Contractors, Accountants and Consulting Firms.)
As an added credibility play, she lists her name on LinkedIn as, "Lisa Anderson, CPA" to demonstrate her financial services credentials.
Nowhere in Lisa's LinkedIn professional headline is the name of her company, her role as CEO, or anything like that.
See the power and clarity of this approach?
Lisa is totally focused on quickly telling us who she serves, and what services she provides to those audiences.
The number one mistake you can make on LinkedIn, and especially with your professional headline, is trying to be everything to everybody.
If you're too generic, if you're not clear, you'll be nothing to nobody.
As much as possible, you need to really hone in on your target audience with your profile headline, and then build outward from there throughout the rest of your profile.
Make it very clear, right away, in your headline what you do, using, functional, practical words.
Once you begin to utilize this type of functional, client-facing approach on LinkedIn, it becomes far easier to get potential clients interesting in doing business with you.
Facebook ad targeting allows marketers to carefully select an audience. It's a powerful way for Facebook advertisers to hyper-target very specific groups.
But ad targeting can also be overwhelming, because there are so many options to choose from.
An infographic by Facebook ad agency Advertisemint brings clarity to the ad targeting choices by breaking them down into five categories:
1. Demographics: Targeting options include age, gender, interest, and language, among many others.
2. Connections: Targeting options include people who liked a brand's Facebook page or app, as well as the friends of those high-interest persons.
3. Interest: Targeting options include people who are interested in a brand or who are likely to be interested in a brand; other targeting options are categories such as movies, music, sports, games, shopping, and more.
4. Custom audiences: With this option, an advertiser can upload a customer contact list to target existing customers who are also Facebook users.
5. Behaviors:Targeting options include people with particular behaviors, such as automotive purchase, mobile or financial behaviors, travel patterns, and more.
To see Advertisemint's full list of Facebook ad targeting options, click or tap on the infographic for a larger version:
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Looking for creative ways to generate leads with Twitter?
Because Twitter is discontinuing lead generation cards, now is the time to put new lead funnel techniques in place.
In this article, you'll discover three ways to find your next customers on Twitter.
3 Ways to Find Prospects Using Twitter by Andrew Pickering on Social Media Examiner.
Twitter is a fountain of opinions and questions, and one way to tap into these is through Twitter Advanced Search. Imagine someone tweeted, "Anyone know a good photographer in San Diego?" and you happened to be a photographer in San Diego. Wouldn't this be the perfect person to connect with?
Twitter's Advanced Search function lets you search for relevant comments so you can jump into the conversation, pick up that lead, and turn it into a sale.
Use Twitter Advanced Search to find tweets relevant to your business.
Think about all of the different opinions and questions your target audience may have and run advanced searches on them regularly. For the San Diego photographer, here are some other phrases potential clients might be tweeting:
I hate my headshot.I need some new product shots.Finding a wedding photographer is hard.How do I improve my LinkedIn profile?
Depending on your niche and specialty, the potential tweets could be endless, and Twitter's Advanced Search makes them easy to find.
Search for Relevant Tweets
Go to Twitter Advanced Search and you'll find a ton of options for your search. The All of These Words field will return tweets containing your search term in any order, while This Exact Phrase will find tweets containing your search in the exact order you specified.
Enter your search terms in Twitter Advanced Search.
You can also search by accounts, location, and the "mood" of the tweet. For example, if you own a local organic coffee shop, you may be interested in finding tweets near your location that mention Starbucks in a negative light.
You can also add a location and "mood" for your Twitter search.
Once you've found relevant tweets, interact with the tweeters. The best way to start a conversation is to reply to the tweet directly. You'll get better results than if you just like the tweet or retweet it and simply hope the person notices you. If you run an organic coffee shop, for example, you might tweet people a coupon for their first purchase.
Set Up Email Notifications With IFTTT
Searching for relevant tweets on a regular basis can be time-consuming, especially if you have a lot of potential searches. However, have no fear; Daniel Knowlton let us in on a handy If This Then That (IFTTT) hack for this.
IFTTT lets you create a time-saving applet to automate your searches. Then whenever a tweeter uses qualifying keywords or phrases, you'll get an email notification. Boom!
To set it up, create an IFTTT account, click My Applets at the top of the page, and then click New Applet.
Click New Applet on the My Applets tab.
Next, click +this to set up the trigger (the action that triggers the automation). Then choose Twitter as the service and select New Tweet From Search as the trigger.
Choose New Tweet From Search for your IFTTT applet's trigger.
Next, type your search term in the Search For text box (for example, "Photographer in San Diego") and click Create Trigger.
Type in your search term and click Create Trigger.
Next, click +that to set up the result of your trigger.
Click +that to set up the action for your IFTTT applet.
Then select Email as the action service and Send Me an Email as the action.
Select Send Me an Email for your IFTTT applet.
On the next page, click Create Action. You'll then be asked if you want to receive notifications every time the applet runs (whether it finds a new tweet or not). If you want this to happen, turn the switch on.
Decide if you want to receive notification anytime your IFTTT applet runs.
Finally, click Finish and you're done. You'll start receiving emails every time someone tweets your chosen word or phrase, and you can repeat this process for all of the keywords you came up with!
Although the Twitter lead generation card is gone, you can still use Twitter ads to drive traffic to pages where you give away content in return for an email. The key is to have a great giveaway that qualifies people. You don't want to pay for Twitter ads to promote a giveaway everybody will want; you want to attract potential customers!
To get you started, we'll show you a short tutorial for setting up a simple Twitter ad campaign. Twitter ads are relatively simple to set up compared to ads for Facebook or Google AdSense.
First, set up your account with Twitter Ads and click Create Campaign.
Go to Twitter Ads and click Create Campaign.
In the left sidebar, click Website Clicks or Conversions (it might also be labeled Website Visits). Then click Create Campaign on the right.
Select the Website Clicks or Conversions option to set up your Twitter ad.
For the first step, give your campaign a name and decide if you want your ad to be shown only on Twitter or on the Twitter Audience Platform, too. You can also set up conversion tracking here, but for this simple demonstration, we're going to skip that part.
Fill in these fields to start setting up your Twitter ad campaign.
For the next step, choose the audience for your ad.
You can set basic targeting options like age, gender, location, and device; and you can also set more advanced targeting such as keywords (users who tweet certain words), followers (people similar to people who follow specific accounts), interests (accounts tweeting about certain categories of interests), and more. Use these criteria to narrow down your audience.
Describe the audience you want to target with your Twitter ad.
For example, you can target the audience of Buffer's account, as well as your own following and users like your following.
You can target your ad to the followers of another Twitter account.
Also, choose whether your ad will be shown only in timelines or also in profile and tweet detail pages.
Next, decide how much you want to spend on your campaign, per day and total. The minimum daily budget is $0.01, but Twitter gives you estimated reach and website clicks depending on your budget size. You could test at $2/day for 5 days and measure performance before scaling up.
Set up your Twitter ad's budget.
Now you're ready to create your ad. The beauty of Twitter ads is that they're simply tweets, so you have 140 characters worth of text to work with. Create your Twitter card with the link to your giveaway, add a headline, and choose an image. When you're finished, hit Publish Tweet and then Launch.
Build your Twitter ad.
You'll also want to have a remarketing pixel on your website. Then once people leave your lead magnet landing page, you can serve them follow-up ads to get visitors to buy or opt into something. The idea is that by serving your ads to people who've already been on your site, your ad cost should be lower than serving ads to a cold audience.
Twitter's live-streaming app Periscope is now embedded within Twitter's mobile app, making it easier to go live. With live broadcasts, you can show your audience the real you and let them chat with you in real time.
Live video is a great opportunity to show people your offering, rather than just tell them about it. After all, seeing is believing, right? Think about how you can go behind the scenes for your product or service. Show viewers how to use your product, people's reactions to it, how it's made, the team behind it… all of these kinds of things can build trust in your offering.
We don't recommend going straight into a full-on sales pitch all of the time, though. Remember, it's about offering value and building relationships first.
Going live is easy from within the Twitter app. Tap Compose a Tweet and then tap the Live icon.
Compose a new tweet and tap the Live icon.
Finally, give your stream a title and hit the Go Live button to start broadcasting.
Tap Go Live to start broadcasting on Twitter.
Initiating Conversations With Prospects
Twitter is a truly open social platform, which is what made many of us fall in love with it in the first place. In recent times, though, with all of the scheduling tools and automation, it's lost its way from what it used to be, especially for B2B.
Here's what the Twitter strategy seems to be for most marketers: share lots of other people's articles, tweet blog posts a few times a day, drop in a couple of promo tweets, slip in some hashtags, set up Twitter lists they'll never check, and automate the whole thing within an inch of its life… not forgetting the auto DM.
Scheduling tools and automation have depersonalized Twitter to some degree.
Ouch! It seems like this is becoming the norm and it's diluting what Twitter is all about.
The good news is that you can use this to your advantage. Imagine getting a Twitter video message out of the blue from a stranger saying, "Hey, I've just been reading your blog, I loved your article about ______." How special would that make you feel? It's mind-blowing the effect this has on people because nobody expects it.
So the mission for you is to go hunt down your target market; engage with people proactively; and ask friendly, open questions to start conversations. More conversations lead to more potential customers and leads.
Don't go for the sale right away, though. Social media is about relationships, so add your targets to Twitter lists and keep proactively engaging with them until they raise their hand as a lead.
To make sure you check your Twitter lists, change the Twitter link in your bookmarks to the direct link for a Twitter list feed. This way, every time you click to go to Twitter, you're actually going to the feed of people you need to be engaging with and you might as well do it while you're there!
Save a link to your Twitter list as a bookmark.
Tip: If you use Hootsuite or similar software, why not set up a column that shows your Twitter lists, too?
The key is to build relationships with people and then take the conversation off of Twitter. Send them a message asking for a quick 10-minute call to find out more about each other.
Conclusion
Even though the lead generation card is no more, you can still effectively generate leads on Twitter. Do you need to use all of the tactics above? Probably not. Pick the ones that work best for your business and focus on doing those well.
What do you think? What's your preferred way to generate Twitter leads? Are you doing something that should make the list? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.
3 Ways to Find Prospects Using Twitter by Andrew Pickering on Social Media Examiner.
This week's 'Skim brings copycats and censorship to a whole new level: Facebook brings Snapchat Stories, almost literally, to Messenger; China decides it's had enough of collecting virtual pinboards; Google takes on Slack with a new suite of communication tools for businesses; YouTube launches new app so users can watch videos together; and much more…
Skim for all the social news you need to know!
1. Has Facebook gone too far with Snap chat clone on Messenger?
The cat's out of the bag: Facebook's going to try to copy every successful Snapchat feature across its own platforms. It tackled filters and augmented reality masks by acquiring MSQRD and introduced a near replica of Snacphat Stories on Instagram, and it has now launched Messenger Day—another Snapchat Stories clone—across iOS and Android devices.
Zuckerberg once tried to buy Snapchat for $3 billion, and it appears Snapchat's wariness triggered a rivalry in which Facebook feels the need to beat the ephemeral messaging app at its own game. But many feel that Messenger Day upended what was a great texting application by adding superfluous buttons and unused features to their home screens.
Have you used Messenger Day? What are your thoughts?
2. Google takes on Slack with new communication tools for businesses
Google's taking a swipe at Slack with the introduction of two new features to ease collaboration in businesses: Hangouts Meet and Hangouts Chat.
Hangouts Meet provides an easy way to share links to video conferences without invitees' having to sign up for accounts or download plugins. Hangouts Chat combines searchable, individual chat rooms based on project with threaded conversations, and it also lets bots automatically schedule meetings for your team.
Even better? Both new tools are integrated with G Suite, which means all content on Google Drive can be shared effortlessly within the new tools. Hangout Meets is available to all iOS and Android users, and Chat is set to roll out over the next few weeks.
Following Microsoft's $26.2 billion purchase of LinkedIn last year, LinkedIn co-founder Hoffman is officially joining the Microsoft board of directors and will co ntinue focusing primarily on the social network; he will also help Microsoft expand its connections in Silicon Valley.
Hoffman gave a glimpse at what could be the future of LinkedIn, given its new family at Microsoft, citing how Microsoft-powered intelligent assistant Cortana could help users decide which third-degree connections on LinkedIn make the most sense to reach out to, or how Microsoft's HoloLens virtual reality gear could make LinkedIn Learning courses more immersive.
The future seems bright, according to Hoffman, so stay tuned.
4. Pinterest just lost access to 1.3 billion people
The People's Republic of China has found something wrong with what's potentially the least controversial social network out there: Pinterest. The Great Fire Wall, as China's Internet censorship system is referred to, has made the social network inaccessible for over one week now.
Conjecture suggests the blackout might be due to the " Two Sessions" meeting of China's governing classes that's currently taking place in Beijing, but it's impossible to know for certain what's caused Pinterest—one of the last American social networks accessible in China—to be taken offline.
5. How to use Facebook Messenger Day for marketing
If your company already uses Messenger to communicate with customers, we've got some top tips to showcase how it can use its newest feature—Messenger Day—to expand and optimize marketing on the platform.
Though Messenger Day functions much like Snapchat Stories, there are a few peculiarities that might make Messenger Day worthwhile for your marketing team. Because Messenger is available only for individual users and not (usually company) Pages, the new feature could be used strategically to spread employee-generated content in a way that builds brand awareness and expands your client base.
For now, content will be coming from empl oyees' profiles, so while Messenger Day could also be used to share news and images, and encourage users to follow your other social profiles, efforts should be focused on driving awareness and relationship-building.
Click through to Social Media Examiner for all the fresh tips and tricks!
6. Seven steps to better customer service on social media
If you don't yet generate many leads via social, that doesn't mean the channel can't serve other needs, such as answering consumers' questions and providing customer service. Social platforms, such as Facebook and Twitter, seem to be constantly innovating to provide companies with new and better ways to communicate with customers, so why not take advantage?
Doing so effectively, however, requires some preparation. From educating customers about how to get in touch and investing in the right platforms, to humanizing your messaging and connecting your data streams to complete customer profiles, Kristin Shevis of Conversocial suggests seven key steps to owning customer service on social media.
7. The key to YouTube's six-second bumper ads
YouTube might be just the place for your brand to raise awareness and generate new leads, but as time goes on the social network has reworked its ad formats in a way that might now seem foreign—or impossible—for your brand to convey its message.
Thorough testing and a decidedly better consumer experience means the platform's new six-second bumper ads appear here to stay, but how can your company make the most out of such a short format without fumbling?
Some might try to fit everything they've got into six short seconds, but success requires a more thoughtful approach. From breaking thing down to individual elements, to employing emotion or comedy, Andrew Wohlwend of Zefr presentsthe keys to a successful six-second ad.
Get your creative juices flowing with the exam ple ads below!
8. After overreach, Facebook and Instagram bar developers from using data for surveillance
Following revelations that police gained special access to the two social networks to track protest movements for Black Lives Matter, the two social networks rewrote their privacy policy to ban developers from using the platforms' data for surveillance purposes.
Police gained access via controversial developer, Geofeedia, which partnered with law enforcement to track streams of user content.
The American Civil Liberties Union obtained documents proving the connection last year, and it is now pushing social networks to take a strong stance on human rights to avoid similar missteps in the future. Social media might just be the next frontier for civil liberty battles after all.
9. YouTube launches an experimental app for watching videos with friends
Dubbed "Uptime," the new app from Google's YouTu be aims to make video viewing a more social experience by encourage friends to watch—and react—together. In the app, users' profile photos float alongside the video (mostly vertical in format) they're currently viewing, and they can comment or react with emojis that can be seen live or after-the-fact by friends that watch the same content.
Available only on iOS for now, Uptime wants to encourage a co-viewing experience for video; videos on YouTube can be searched and then shared from within the application.
The app is currently invite only, but checking out Uptime's Twitter feed gets you the golden ticket via an invite code, so go give it a shot!
Short video of what #Uptime is all about. ?? ?? Watch it on Uptime https://t.co/6MwZvdaF2v or find it on YouTube here https://t.co/yVEW0Uiiiw pic.twitter.com/H0NqHYZf3G— Uptime (@uptimeApp) March 14, 2017
10. Reddi t's getting hot as it positions to counterbalance fake news—and Facebook
Remarkable election and referendum results in 2016 prompted many to ask whether social media was creating an echo chamber that shielded users from opposing points of view and simply reinforced the worldview of their "friends".
Reddit—280 million active users strong—thinks it can destroy that echo chamber.
The social network, long a minefield for brands because of some of its users anti-advertising sentiment, lets users post links that are then simply upvoted or downvoted, leaving out the social connection factor of people choosing who to follow.
The small feel of the social network is becoming an attractive place for brands, and it might just force us to be exposed to new points of views that could change the game.
11. We'll wrap up with a way to take on clickbait like you've never seen
On National Read a Book Day, one booksto re in Texas took a novel approach to tricking Facebook users into reading copyright-free classics: It used a superb play on clickbait—or "Litbait," as the bookstore calls it.
Users fell for clickbait-like titles of Facebook articles that were actually descriptions of literary classics, such as Romeo & Juliet. They were then redirected to the entirety of the selected copyright-free novel, online.
Former #SocialSkim columnist Angela Natividad has the scoop from cover to cover in Adage, highlighting how originality on social media can serve not only a cause but also your brand: The bookstore's website had a massive traffic increase in traffic, as well as Facebook engagement.
Check out the campaign for yourself in the video:
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To explore how to use animated visuals in your content, I interview Donna Moritz.
The Social Media Marketing podcast is an on-demand talk radio show from Social Media Examiner. It's designed to help busy marketers and business owners discover what works with social media marketing.
In this episode, I interview visual marketing expert Donna Moritz. Her blog Socially Sorted was recognized as one of Social Media Examiner's Top 10 Social Media Blogs in 2015, 2016, and 2017.
Donna explores three popular types of animated images.
You'll discover tools to easily animate your own images.
Animated Visuals: How to Bring Still Images to Life featuring insights from Donna Moritz on the Social Media Marketing Podcast.
Share your feedback, read the show notes, and get the links mentioned in this episode below.
Listen now: Play in new window | DownloadYou can also subscribe via iTunes, RSS, or Stitcher.
Here are some of the things you'll discover in this show:
Why Animate
As people scan their social media feeds, they're making lightning-fast decisions about what content they'll pay attention to. In this context, animated visuals add a little bit of movement that can attract the eye and add value in a short, snappy way.
Donna explains that short animations can be less intimidating to create than video. Animation is simply combining drawings, photographs, text, or computer graphics to make them move. You don't need to talk in front of a camera.
Short animations can also be a way to develop your audience. Donna says if you can make a strong first impression with a short animation, that animation can encourage viewers to watch longer videos and further engage with your content.
Listen to the show to hear Donna discuss the findings of a small MIT study that investigated how quickly people interpret images.
Popular Formats
Donna says that quick animations aren't divided into formal types, but you do tend to see a few common approaches. In a one- to three-second animated image, the background is typically fixed and only text is animated. For example, she points out, Social Media Examiner does these on Instagram. She says you might also see a mini slideshow.
A GIF is a silent animated loop often used to convey a feeling. GIFs have become hugely popular on social media. GIFs started appearing in blog posts and emails but have spread to messaging apps like Slack and Facebook Messenger. For example, in a blog post about social media strategies that drive her crazy, Donna says the only way she could express her frustration was with a Muppet GIF from Giphy.
Use a GIF to convey a feeling.
Another type is a 3- to 10-second video, which you could create with something like the Ripl app. (More on that below.)
Finally, Instagram and Snapchat stories enable you to blend and share quick successions of images or videos.
All of these types of content are easy to create because so many tools are available.
Listen to the show to hear about audio in short video.
The Pros and Cons of GIFs
In blog posts and in email, GIFs are a great way to highlight particular emotions, add humor, or simply break up the content. Donna says she once sent out the wrong email to her subscribers, so she used a GIF to apologize.
However, you need to be careful about how you use GIFs. Donna recommends using GIFs sparingly. In a blog post, use no more than two GIFs, and in email one is enough. Donna says too many GIFs are like strobe lights going off at a nightclub. When you insert a GIF in an email, Donna suggests checking the file size and compressing the GIF before adding it to your email message. When you compress the GIF, the email message is less likely to be truncated.
Donna and I talk about how a GIF animation is also powerful for how-to content. A simple looping GIF can help you introduce a new feature or explain how to do something. However, Donna says to use GIFs only for simple how-to content that's short and to the point. People don't want a how-to GIF with 50 steps. That type of content would be better as longer-form video.
Drilling on bathroom tiles is tricky. Use masking tape to keep your drill from slipping. #fixinsix pic.twitter.com/AjiHx49ndX
— Lowe's (@Lowes) February 25, 2017
I ask Donna whether autoplay is a benefit on social media. Donna says GIFs typically autoplay on websites, email, and messaging apps. However, on social media platforms, GIFs may or may not autoplay, depending on the platform and the user's settings. For example, Donna says she turned off autoplay on her phone and many social platforms are press-to-play.
If you want to ensure your GIFs autoplay, you can experiment with exporting them in a video format on different platforms. However, Donna says you need to be aware of issues specific to the platform you're using. On Facebook, for example, most people have video set to autoplay but video views count only after three seconds.
Listen to the show to hear Donna and I discuss the pros and cons of looping.
Tools
Donna shares tools for animating text, creating short slideshows, and turning videos and screen captures into GIFs.
To create text animations quickly and easily on your mobile phone, Donna recommends Adobe Spark Post. Although you can use Adobe Spark on your browser, the animation function is available only on the iOS mobile app.
Click to animate images using the Adobe Spark Post app.
With Adobe Spark Post, you choose a template and customize the photo and text. Then use the animation options to select how to animate the text. For example, the text can blur, slide, or fade in. The app is free and offers a fast, simple way to make one- to three-second animations.
For slightly longer videos of up to 30 seconds, Donna recommends Ripl and Legend, which are both available on iOS and Android. With Ripl, you can upload up to eight images, add text, and create a slideshow that the app will convert into a video (not a GIF).
For example, Donna says a personal trainer might show how to do a simple exercise or a real-estate agent could showcase different homes. The slideshows are great for Instagram and Facebook videos.
Ripl offers different templates and for more features, you can upgrade to Pro for $9.99/month. With some templates, you can change the text at the bottom, whereas others enable you to change the text on every slide.
Legend allows you to animate text on several slides and you can choose colors, filters, and image backgrounds.
Legend doesn't have the ability to create slideshows of images the way Ripl can. Although Legend, unlike Adobe Spark Post, can animate text across several slides.
Next, Donna shares a couple of options for creating GIFs.
The main GIF website is Giphy.com. It's the biggest search engine for existing GIFs if you want to find one to share. However, Donna says Giphy.com also has excellent tools for making your own GIFs.
If you add a video link (like a YouTube link) or your own video, the GIF-creation tool allows you to choose where your GIF starts and ends. The tool also lets you add different effects such as captions, subtitles, animated text, and emojis.
If you want to make a slideshow GIF instead, Giphy.com has a slideshow tool that allows you to drag and drop images.
Donna adds that Giphy.com lets you work super-fast. If you have existing content, you can create a slideshow or a GIF mashup of that content. With all of the different stickers and options, Donna says the key is to create something eye-catching without overdoing the effects.
Giphy enables you to make GIFs easily from your existing content.
Another option is to do a screencast, which businesses like TechCrunch and Buffer use to share how-to content. For screencasts, Donna recommends two tools, both of which are desktop apps for Windows or Mac.
RecordIt is specifically for creating GIFs. After you download the app, press Record and drag a frame to where you want to record the screen. Then RecordIt makes a GIF from the recording. It's a great way to quickly create content to get a message across. RecordIt has a Pro version for Mac for $29.
RecordIt takes your screen capture and turns it into a GIF.
The second tool, Screencast-O-Matic, allows you to take a quick screencast. Donna says this tool is less expensive than ScreenFlow or Camtasia and is useful if you're working between two operating systems. For screencasts longer than 15 minutes, you can upgrade to Pro for $15/year.
What Donna loves about Screencast-O-Matic is you can save your files, share on YouTube, upload them to Facebook, whatever. Then with a simple click or two, you can change the .mov file into a GIF.
Use Screencast-O-Matic to create and share short screencasts.
Donna adds two simple tools for creating animations that are both available on Android and iOS. The Boomerang app on Instagram is a quick way to add movement to your image. The app creates a short video that loops back and forth. Phhhoto does something similar: It transforms a photo burst from your camera into a forward-backward loop.
Listen to the show to hear which tools Donna recommends people use to start.
Facebook Slideshow
On Facebook, slideshows can help you expand the reach of your content. For example, Donna mentions Amanda, the Australian blogger behind Cooker and a Looker. After reading one of Donna's posts about animation, Amanda created a video made of images and posted it to Facebook. Amanda ended up with huge reach for her page and more than 3,000 visits to her website.
To create the post, Amanda used Facebook Slideshow.
Combine images to create a video post with Facebook Slideshow.
To create a video with Facebook Slideshow, go to the top of your Facebook page and under your status bar, select Share a Photo or Video. When more options come up, click on Create Slideshow.
Next, upload 3 to 10 images. Then choose your aspect ratio (square, vertical), change your image duration (from 0.5 seconds up to 5 seconds), and add basic transitions and music. Then it's a matter of publishing the slideshow to Facebook.
Listen to the show to learn why Donna thinks Facebook Slideshow is a great tool for businesses.
How to Make Animations Stand Out
Try to create something original, Donna suggests. Anything new or different always stands out. If you have previously used content or your own new images, use your own content instead of the images that come with templates.
Then start playing with the tools. Mix things up with GIFs and short video, and optimize them for each specific platform. Some things will work better on Facebook, others on Instagram. Make that first view of the image eye-catching.
For instance, Sue B. Zimmerman does Instagram posts with animated titles on her images created using the GIF tool.
Remember that sometimes subtle movement can be just as powerful as a video.
Listen to the show to discover why the image may be more important than the content in your description.
Loom is a free Chrome browser extension that creates a shareable video as soon as you finish recording.
When you want to share how something works or speak to your audience, Loom is a great way to communicate, especially when video is the ideal way of communicating your message.
Because Loom creates a link that recipients can access without an account, Loom is an easy way to share video over email, instead of writing text emails back and forth to clarify certain points. In Gmail, you can even play the video right in the message window.
After you install the Loom Chrome extension, you can record what you're doing on-screen or with your computer's camera. When you're done recording, a browser tab opens with a URL you can copy and share in an email or anywhere on the web.
Loom enables you to enhance your email communication with video.
Loom offers unlimited video storage and metrics so you can see how many people have viewed your video. You can also download, delete, or password-protect your videos.
Although you need Chrome on your desktop to record and send these videos, people can receive and watch Loom videos on any platform.
If you like how the Chrome extension works, Loom for Gmail integrates the video features right into the Gmail interface.
Listen to the show to learn more and let us know how Loom works for you.
Need more leads and prospects?
3 Ways to Find Prospects Using Twitter by Andrew Pickering on Social Media Examiner.
Enter your search terms in Twitter Advanced Search.
You can also add a location and "mood" for your Twitter search.
Click New Applet on the My Applets tab.
Choose New Tweet From Search for your IFTTT applet's trigger.
Type in your search term and click Create Trigger.
Click +that to set up the action for your IFTTT applet.
Select Send Me an Email for your IFTTT applet.
Decide if you want to receive notification anytime your IFTTT applet runs.
Go to Twitter Ads and click Create Campaign.
Select the Website Clicks or Conversions option to set up your Twitter ad.
Fill in these fields to start setting up your Twitter ad campaign.
Describe the audience you want to target with your Twitter ad.
You can target your ad to the followers of another Twitter account.
Set up your Twitter ad's budget.
Build your Twitter ad.
Compose a new tweet and tap the Live icon.
Tap Go Live to start broadcasting on Twitter.
Scheduling tools and automation have depersonalized Twitter to some degree.
Save a link to your Twitter list as a bookmark.
3 Ways to Find Prospects Using Twitter by Andrew Pickering on Social Media Examiner. 
Do you use visuals on your blog and social media?
Animated Visuals: How to Bring Still Images to Life featuring insights from Donna Moritz on the Social Media Marketing Podcast.
Click to animate images using the Adobe Spark Post app.
Giphy enables you to make GIFs easily from your existing content.
RecordIt takes your screen capture and turns it into a GIF.
Use Screencast-O-Matic to create and share short screencasts.
Combine images to create a video post with Facebook Slideshow.
Loom enables you to enhance your email communication with video.