Pre-Roll: Your Guide to YouTube Dominance

YouTube. The number one video sharing website in the world is an online beast, smacking all of its competition into oblivion…Gangnam Style. The video sharing behemoth collects more than 4 billion hours of video a month, with 72 hours of video being uploaded per minute. Now is a good time, no SCRATCH that, a great time, to jump on the bandwagon by utilizing advertising tools on YouTube to increase brand awareness, increase your online market share, and boost profits and ROI that benefit your business.

Herman Advertising would like to present Pre-Roll Ads. What Pre-Roll Ads do is simple: they display your video (produced by us or otherwise) as an ad break before or during YouTube partner videos. So, users can click your video ad to learn more and we can track their engagement when the do.

For example, lets say you’re catching the new “Gangnam Style” video from singing sensation Psy.

Before the actual video plays, you’ll be served up an ad from Visa prior to the music video. If you watch the entire :30 second ad all the way through, a click-thru is charged (usually less than 0.45$ in our network). If the user does not watch all the way through, then a charge is NOT collected. Pre-Roll is a superb way to increase your online dominance through carefully articulated ads that focus on your geographical area and the client base of your choice, respectively. Herman Advertising offers this to all clients as an additional low-cost alternative for video production and promotion. Visit http://www.hermanadvertising.com for details or call (954)565-3102.

How to Archive & Save Your ENTIRE Facebook Profile

Paranoia.  It’s a feeling that’s been ingrained in us long before personal sanitizer gave germophobes a temporary safe haven.  We’ve always been taught to “take precaution,” “be careful,” “don’t touch that”…and a ton of other one-liners that make curious children cringe.

This is also evident in our daily routine, as well, creating a safe barrier between the decisions you make and the world around you.  What if, and I’m speaking hypothetically here, your Facebook page somehow became corrupt and you lost ALL of your profile information?  For someone who’s not as engaged as the average American, they would only suffer nominal consequences.  But for an individual who uses it for their connections and life stream, they would lose all hope in Facebook, social media and the human race (ok, maybe I’m being a bit too dramatic).

Anyway, Facebook contains thousands of moments we hold dear to us, including:  photos and videos we’ve shared on Facebook, wall posts that include milestones and personal moments we’ve shared with friends (i.e. the purchase of a home, marriage, children photos, etc.) friends names and conversations, as well as your entire online identity.

For me, I imagine being 75, showing my grandchildren the milestones and moments in my life that are important by scrolling through my Facebook Timeline.

So, you ask, how do I keep MY profile? It’s simple, archive it.

To use the profile downloader, sign into Facebook and click the down arrow next to the Home button in the top-right corner.  Choose Account Settings and click “Download a copy of your Facebook data” at the bottom of the window.

Enter the account password, click “Continue” then choose “Start My Archive.”

Facebook combines your profile into a nifty ZIP file that’s available to download in a little less than two hours (verification is sent via e-mail).  Once you open the ZIP file, you’re welcomed with a stripped down version of your Facebook profile, which includes your wall, photos, friends and messages. It’s as simple as that! Archive away!

A Comic Fan’s 9/11 Interpretation

11 years ago, I remember sitting quietly in Geometry class as Principal LaCasse spoke solemnly over the loud speaker. The twin towers had fell, and with one fell swoop, hope was thought lost.

I learned that even in the worst situations, that bravery can rise from the ashes. Thank you to the law enforcement, fire fighters, and Samaritans that saved countless lives that day. And for those lost, you’re alive in our hearts. We remember…

Our Hearts are in Colorado Today…

Words can’t explain the devastation that happened in a Colorado movie theater last night.  Our hearts go out to the victims and their families…

Get the Most Out of Instagram

Being socially savvy is hard work, especially when the impeding doom of maxing out your smartphone’s memory is constantly in the back of your mind.  On a daily basis, you’ve checked your Facebook 23 times, your Twitter feed 14 times, checked-in twice on Foursquare, and updated your Google+…well…the list goes on.  Social media is an integral part of our daily lives and a central conduit for communication with friends, colleagues and interesting folks.  In recent months, Instagram, an intuitive, simple to use smartphone photo sharing app, has gained a lot of steam over the course of a year with over 50 million followers .

If you have an Instagram account, in which most of you reading this do, I’ve accummulated some quick tips for increasing your followers and likes to encompass more of the digital landscape.  Feel free to add your own tips below, and comment on any of the content.  Also, add me on Instagram! @johndsaunders

Cheers!

Don’t set your profile as private. Make it PUBLIC!

Setting your profile to private, especially being active in the social media space, is a no-no.  You want individuals to be able to see your pictures and profile, so that they can decide if they want to follow you or not without you having to approve them first.

ALWAYS Use Hashtags

Hashtags are a great tool because, they provide specific content to users.  For example, if someone is searching for cool new sneakers on Instagram‘s search bar, they might type in shoes, sneakers, kicks, etc…I would use the hashtags: #sneakers, #kicks, #shoes and anything I think would apply directly to those searching for sneakers.

It takes some time before a post, but it opens up the number of impressions for individuals searching at that moment to a broader amount.  This promotes your new posts to thousands of users searching for pictures in your specific niche.

Post less than 3 times a day

There’s nothing worse than an overzealous Instagram user.  If you’re scrolling through the Instagram live feed and five pictures from one individual’s profile shows back to back, you’re going to be a tad irritated.  Someone who posts photos that much per day shows a level of egomania that’s should only be reserved for Twitter users, but…i kid i kid.  Seriously, don’t do it.

Share Instagram photos on other social networks

This is a simple, effective way to promote your personal brand/new product/cute puppy, across platforms that include:

• Facebook
• Twitter
• Tumblr

Setting them up is easy, just click on the far right icon once you open up Instagram and click edit sharing settings. Then, you’re prompted to input the username and password for that respective platform and viola!

Check out the popular page!

It’s there for a reason! Take some time to view the popular page on Instagram.  This page shows the most recent, and viral, pictures on Instagram, providing a front page view of what’s “trending”.  Don’t directly copy, but emulate some of the ideas from popular posts that seem to work, it’s a great way to showcase your work (for artists, designers…) in an easy to use platform that promotes creativity.

Find and invite your buddies!

There’s a settings tab (on your profile page on the top right, looks like a gear).

Get your friends from other social networks to follow you on Instagram with this feature.  As a new user, it can be difficult to gain followers.  Click the “Find Friends” button to add friends from Facebook, Twitter, or your address book to gain a running start on Instagram.

These are just a few tips to help you while you’re Instagrammin’ good luck!

Subscribe to my Facebook Page here: https://www.facebook.com/JohnDSaundersIII

Here’s to the Crazy Ones…

Misfit.

The construct of my upbringing can be supported by that one term.  I was always thinking outside of the box, writing elaborate stories, performing crazy stunts, and enjoying every aspect of a life void of restraint.  As a HUGE fan of the brand genius, Steve Jobs, I thought I would share one of my favorite quotes from the Apple guru.  (Courtesy of http://thenextweb.com/)

What Would Don Draper’s Salary Be in 2012?

Don Draper, the fictional ad man that takes New York by storm on a weekly basis on the hit TV drama Mad Men on AMC, makes some serious CAKE.  Check out this infographic:

Managing Your Twitter Followers

Twitter.

It’s the micro-blogging juggernaut that’s taken over your social life. You’re addicted to tweeting your follies, questions, and curiosities to people you’ve met at networking events, friends that you keep in touch with, and that one follower who seems to be “retweeting” your every word. If you’re like us, then you need some organization to the 50 bazillion followers you communicate with online.

Here’s where we come in. There’s a tool, unbeknownst to millions of Twitter followers, that allows you to organize your followers into lists. To explain, lets say you go to an event, in our case “Digital Dealer 2012”, which is a huge cultivation of the automotive industry’s best and brightest digital marketing minds. Over the course of this trade show, we met several pivotal Twitter followers that we would like to keep up with. First, we followed them on Twitter.

Then, we hit the drop down right next to the Follow button.

Now, you can either add that individual to an existing list, or create a new one. Once you place that individual in their respective list, you can access your Twitter followers according to the title. In our example, the list is called: Digital Dealer 2012

So, to access your live Twitter feed with ONLY the individuals you want to see in the list you created, hit the drop down in the top menu, and click Lists.

Now, you’re able to organize your Twitter followers into unlimited Lists, tapping into your Twitter potential and organizing your followers to keep tabs on industry-wide individuals.

Feel free to comment!

Lana Del Rey – National Anthem

The beautiful, Lana Del Rey, is the future.  She emanates a nostalgic, natural aesthetic that captures the heart of 1950’s Americana.  Her cinematic sound is uncanny, involving a mix of cinematic presentation and filters with references to pop culture.  Her newest tune: “National Anthem” is a beautiful song with a deeper message, utilizing a film filter that gives it a classic feel.  Also, it features hip-hop rising star A$AP Rocky as her love interest, as they paint a natural chemistry in this new video. Oh! There’s also SEVERAL JFK references in the video…check it out!

Great Video.

Beautiful, Lana.

Long Live A$AP.

Awesome Lego Ad

When I was a kid, we used our IMAGINATION (jeez, I sound like an old dude).  Anyway, this photo is the entire embodiment of my childhood: simple & effective.