InsideOut Solutions

About Laura Alisanne

Laura Alisanne is an online marketing, social media/community manager, and business strategist for the destination travel industry. She is a writer, speaker and social media strategist, who has worked with innkeepers, ranch owners and state associations of all sizes in service of helping business owners and organizations make positive change happen.
She holds degrees in Journalism and Printmaking from University of Oregon, Graphic and Web Media degrees from Peninsula College, as well as Creative Writing from University of Washington. Study in the Old World includes Fine Art in Cork, Ireland, and French Language at The Sorbonne in Paris.

How to Change the Name of Your Facebook Fan Page

April 28th, 2012 by

Old motel signFacebook has just rolled out a slightly easier way to apply for a name change for your Fan page. If the name of your business has changed, or there is a misspelling, or you find it’s just too long, or not consistent with the name on your website, you can apply for a change.

*(This info was updated on 12/12/12)

  • To apply for a change, navigate to your Fan page.
  • In the Admin Panel, select > Edit Page > Update Info.
  • This will take you to the “Basic Info” tab where, about 1/3 of the way down you’ll see the current name of the page and the link “Request Change.” (Not a button, but a link).
  • You can being the process of applying for a name change on the follow-on screen.

  • Fill in the form with your current Page name
  • The Page name you would like to use instead.
  • Indicate the reason for the request in the drop down menu.
  • If choosing “Other” from the drop down menu, add an explanation in the box.
  • To expedite the process upload an image, pdf or text file to support the request for the change.

how-to-change-your-facebook-fan-page-name

 

So far, Fan page owners are reporting that submitting the change is fairly painless, and the request normally goes through smoothly within a couple of days. In all the Fan pages I investigated, I did not see the option to “Request a name change” in the “Help” drop down when pages had 200 fans or less, that’s because with fewer than 200 fans, you can make these changes yourself without applying to Facebook for the change.

Keep in mind that Facebook is not able to change the URL (web address) for your Page at this time. Perhaps they will in the future. If 123 Bed and Breakfast changes its name to 789 Bed and Breakfast, the old Facebook custom URL will remain facebook.com/123bandb.

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How to Create and Market Great Blog Content to Earn Your Readers’ Interest

April 8th, 2012 by

Internet Marketing Weekly: What is “great content,” and how do I market it?

Success is closer than you think

Success is closer than you think.

If you’ve developed a schedule and system for blog posts, and posting what you believe is great content (helpful, informative, actionable, and optimized for search), and still find the traffic and follow though by readers to be lacking, then what’s next?

Lets take a very brief moment to mention one thing that works time and again for both large and small businesses in acquiring customers: Inbound Marketing! The definition of Inbound Marketing is: “Any tactic that relies on earning people’s interest rather than buying it.” Earning people’s interest creates a kind of ripple effect both in how they share information about you (you being your business), and what effects the sharing has on your business.

So back to your blog. If we keep in the back of our minds that the goal is to earn people’s interest, then top quality content (helpful, informative, actionable, and optimized for search) should be uppermost in your mind when researching, composing editing that finally publishing your blog posts. Let’s look at what it takes to create great content.

Let’s Define “Great”

Below are 4 general themes that are usually present in great content. Your content should match up to at least one.

Keep reading →

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How To Write Blog Posts That Are Optimized For Search Engines

April 6th, 2012 by

Prepare to blog

  • It’s better to blog regularly with less-than-perfect posts than to be so concerned about writing perfect posts that you don’t blog at all.
  • The goal of your blog is to attract search traffic, especially from people who don’t yet know you exist and who aren’t necessarily looking for a place to stay.
  • Keep a blogging calendar to remind yourself to blog about specific holidays and events.
  • Write several posts at once during your down times and schedule them to be posted during your busy times.

search-engine-optimized-blog-posts

Decide on a topic

  • When you decide what to write about, ask yourself, “What are people searching for?”
  • What questions do guests often ask you?
  • What is your town known for?
  • Give an “insider’s scoop” on local attractions and businesses. You’re already a concierge for your guests – you’re an expert on your area.
  • Let your blog become a recognized resource on a niche topic. Here are some ideas:
    • Walking/driving tours
    • Festivals and holidays
    • Cultural events: music, art, theater.
    • Cultural attractions: Amish communities, historic districts.
    • Local businesses: antique shops, restaurants, Amish furniture, wineries, universities.
    • Nature: birding, national parks, fall colors.
    • Outdoor activities: hiking, snowshoeing, boating, fly fishing, horseback riding, geocaching.
    • Recipes and cuisine.

      Keep reading →

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Facebook Timeline Image Dimensions Cheat Sheet

March 26th, 2012 by

Facebook Timeline Infographic:

Your Facebook Fan Page is due for a conversion to the new Timeline format, and ready or not, it is set to happen on March 30th.
If you manage a Fan page, you’ve no doubt taken the time to tour the new interface in advance of the conversion. With the myriad incarnations that Facebook Fan pages have undergone in the last two years, Timeline is the most radical. No other iteration has given the feel of a website quite like Timeline, with its large, single “cover” (or banner) image, and two column layout.
Here we offer those of you comfortable with image editing software a great sheet of the image dimensions you need to really craft a customized page. The sheet works for everyone so you know just how Facebook is resizing your images as well.
In this info-graphic you’ll find information on:

  1. Cover Image
  2. Profile Image
  3. Custom Tab App Thumbnail
  4. Shared Photo
  5. Highlighted Photo

timeline-image-dimensions-cheat-sheet

 

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Everything You Need to Know About Facebook Timeline for Pages

March 4th, 2012 by

Insideout Solutions Facebook Timeline

In the wee hours of the morning on Wednesday, Feb 29th, (yes, leap-day) Facebook had initiated project Launch Timeline for Pages. There were a few lucky pages that were allowed to update in advance on this date, which was fortunate for the rest of us, so we could see what was on the horizon. The Today Show, Manchester United, and Red Bull, to name a few, were the earliest forerunners.
Some of you may know nothing about Timeline, having never enabled it on your personal profile. For those of you who did make the switch, you’ve got a leg up in using this cinematic interface.

As a Page admin you’ll have some questions, including the biggies like, “What about custom tabs?” “How will fan-gating (calls to action with rewards for liking a page) be effected?” “Will I be able to set a default tab for potential/new fans to see?”

Well lets get into this a bit, but first lets look at all the great things that the new Timeline for Pages will bring you:

  • A nice wide canvas (aka: Cover) upon which to greet fans and tell your story: The new 851 px wide cover image (free from overt promotion calls-to-action (CTA) or advertising, is sensational. Consider it your new Welcome or Landing Tab. (851 x 315 pixels)
  •  A smaller profile image that nests in the lower left of the cover image. This may be a great place to display your logo or brand. (displays at 160 x 160 pixels)
  •  With those teeny tiny app thumbnails you’re used to in the left side bar, well, now you can upload and replace those little guys with your own custom image. Very nice indeed, giving you a bit more branding control.
  •  If you’ve got a status update that you’d like to have fans see at the top of your page, you can now make it “sticky” by pinning it. The lasts for seven days. After that, you’ll need to re-pin it to the top again if you want it to remain visible front and center.

What is changing, and what you might pine for:

  • You may no longer set a default landing tab (now both fans and potential fans will land on your Wall and see that sweeping, gorgeous Cover image we mentioned earlier).
  •  The photostrip of five images across the top is gone.
  • The profile image, once allowed a maximum of 180 x 540 pixels now displays at 160 x 160 px (though keep in mind that you must upload a profile image with a minimum width of 180 px).
  • Tabs have been moved from the left sidebar (under the profile image on your old Page format), to just under the Cover image on the right. Now here’s the most important item: in your Page Timeline, a total of four tabs are visible, and in the coveted first position is the immovable Photos tab.
  • The new layout is split into two columns, making it a bit more confusing to follow the flow of the conversation from the Page and fans.

All-in-all, there are a lot of great new features with Timeline for Pages. The forums, blogs and fan pages are chock-a-block full of discussion about the discoveries as well as pros and cons of the new layout. We’ll hit the highlights here.

Timeline Rollout:

When does the Timeline change become mandatory?

Facebook states that “On March 30, 2012, all Facebook Pages will get a new design.” Given this fact, you’ve got some time to prepare your Page.

Can I test drive the new Timeline for Pages?

Take a tour of your Timeline Page

You can preview your page, as well as upload and view test cover and profile image. You can see the blue “Preview” button at the top of any page you Admin. take the tour, and if not ready to click “Publish Now,” you can elect to click “See your old design” any time. (Phew).

What you can do as the Admin for the Page:

You can now view admin items including Page Insights, likes and comments right at the top of your Page.
If you are the admin of multiple pages, you may now view one or all of them here to save time and work efficiently.

What about that “Edit” button? How do you Edit the page now?

At the top right click the Admin panel button
Then click the Manage tab, and choose Edit page. You’ll arrive in the back end admin area you’ve always seen.

Editing the “About” section next to the profile image:
In the same Edit Page area, click “Basic Information: You’re given approximately 160 characters for display.

If you’ve got a physical address, you most likely have a map and marker indicating where your business is located, as well as your phone number. This info comes from Bing Maps (Bing and Facebook are buddies), just understand that you may have to go through the process of claiming your Place Page in order for the “About” info to appear.

The Look and feel of your Page Timeline.

The layout for Timeline for personal profiles is nearly identical to Pages.
We have a tutorial and free downloadable Photoshop template for designing your personal Timeline. It offers some great tips and resources.

All the measurements (in pixels) under one roof for your designing ease:

  • Cover Image: 851 x 315
  • Profile image: 160 x 160 (must upload an image that’s at least 180px wide) (This will also be your comment thumbnail, so design accordingly)
  • App tabs: 111 x 74

Adding a Cover image:

Click “Add a Cover” button . Once you’ve uploaded the image, you’ll be given a chance to reposition it if it’s larger than 851 x 315. Click Save when you’re done. Facebook has created a page on the rules regarding advertising on the cover image. You may want to familiarize yourself with the terms.
In at nutshell Cover images may not contain:

  • Price or purchase information, such as “40% off” or “Download it at our website.”
  • Contact information, such as web address, email, mailing address or other information intended for your Page’s “About” section.
  • References to user interface elements, such as Like or Share, or any other Facebook site features.
  • Calls to action, such as “Get it now” or “Tell your friends.”

Facebook Timeline Cover for Pages

Customizing the Tab Thumbnails, and managing tabs:

After the static “Photos” tab, you may not only reorder the remaining tabs that you’ve enabled (from Maps, to Notes, to custom Welcome or Deals), but you can also change the image thumbnail. Fans will see four tabs. The remainder are hidden until the little down arrow is clicked. Fans can see a maximum of twelve tabs, admins will be able to see them all.
To change the tab thumbnail image:

  • Click: Down Arrow to the right of the last App
  • Click the pencil
  • Click “Edit Settings”
  • Next to “Custom Tab Image” click “Change”

Ok now onto the fun part: Managing your Page:

Posting to Your Timeline page:

  • Some of the great things you can do include Pinning a post to the top of your Wall (Under the cover image, of course). Pinning will last for seven days. You can re-pin it after that time to keep in at the top.
  • Highlight a status update by allowing it to span the width of both columns. Keep in mind that at this time, you cannot both Pin and Highlight the same post.

We’re very excited about the new Timeline for Pages. Give it a test spin on your page, enable it on your personal profile and play with it for a while, prep your new cover image and profile, then switch it up on or before March 30th.
We’ve got a Timeline page enabled for our B&B test page, so take a look at one option that’s possible for your inn.

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Post Status Updates from Your Facebook Page to Twitter

March 3rd, 2012 by

Posting to Twitter from your Facebook Page

You’ve mastered your Facebook Fan Page, and feel comfortable posting status updates, photos and links from your blog. But you’ve been told that it’s equally important to create and use a Twitter account for your business as part of the suite of social media platforms that are so important to get your message out.
But you just don’t get Twitter. You don’t have time to tweet. You wonder, “What would I say? Who would follow me? Why would anyone care? And who has the time to tweet when I’ve got to bake the scones, greet guests, book reservations?”

Excellent points indeed!

If you’re comfortable using Facebook, you can enable auto-posting from your Facebook status updates (and other things) to your Twitter business account as well. Granted the etiquette, style and language are all slightly different for each platform, and over time, you’ll want to post on Twitter itself using #hashtags, @symbols, and RT (retweets), but in a pinch, and while you’re learning the ropes, go ahead and link the accounts!

Make sure you’ve already  created both a Facebook Fan Page, as well as a Twitter account for your business. If you know nothing about Twitter, we’ve got a helpful blog post to get you started.

This very short video tutorial will show you how.

Addendum to the video: In addition to enabling the checkbox for “status updates” you must also enable “links” and “photos” in order for your Facebook posts to also post to Twitter.

 

If you’d prefer written instructions:

Steps to connecting Facebook to Twitter for both current Pages and Timeline.

 

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Using Pinterest to Enhance Your Online Visibility

February 12th, 2012 by

Internet Marketing Weekly:

Pinterest is an image sharing social media platform that has been gaining a rapid rise in users, 10 million so far, and is showing itself to step far and above other image-sharing sites like Picasa and Flickr in search over the last eight months.

pinterest-search-trends

Search trends for Pinterest have outranked others in 2011

Obtaining entree to Pinterest has proved a challenge for some. There are essentially two ways to go about obtaining an invite to create a Pinterest account.
The first is to go to Pinterest and request for an invitation using your name and email address. Sometimes however, the invitation never comes.

Request a Pinterest Invitation

Request a Pinterest Invitation

The other way is to ask a friend who is already on Pinterest to invite you via email, Facebook or Twitter. I’ve attempted to gain an invite both ways, only finding the latter to be successful.

Does Pinterest Have Marketing Value for Your Business?

Pinterest is all the rage right now — especially with the new Facebook integration. But can you use it for business purposes, visibility and marketing your inn, ranch or other business?
Since Pinterest, unlike other social networks, allows “do follow” on their links, rather than the more common “no-follow” with sites like Trip Advisor, the links provided on Pinterest are giving ranking benefit.
This being the case, consider implementing these practices to enhance your search visibility when using your Pinterest account for your business:

When Setting up Your Account Under “Edit Profile”:

  1. Make certain you set your profile so it is not hidden from search engines and use keyword-rich, descriptive text in the “about” section.
  2. Begin the “About” with your business URL. This is not a live link but it can’t hurt to have it here.
  3. List your web URL and also set the location to the city and state where your business is located.
  4. If your inn, ranch or other business is well represented with a Google Places page, consider using that as the landing page for your profile instead of your website. If there are great reviews of your business and services located there, then this can really add value.

pinterest-set-up-account

When Using Pinterest:

  1. Create boards with keyword-rich titles.
  2. Use well-optimized keyword text when writing descriptions of your pins.
  3. Make sure to pin attractive images. Pinterest users are all about the visual.
setting-up-pinterest-board

 What Kind of Boards Might You Create?

Pick 1-3 niches that you’re passionate about which also support what you do as an innkeeper.

  • Create a board for each of the main categories that are on your website, like rooms, breakfast items, area activities.
  • If you offer vegan, gluten-free, fine cuisine, locavore, etc., create a board that shows your finds to support this focus.
  • Design: If your inn has a unique architectural feature or design focus, create a board for this (New England Cape Cod, Beachy, Mid-century Modern, Bauhaus inspired, etc.).
  • Gardening: Do you have unique gardens, flowers, or a food garden you maintain for the table?
  • Do you offer a wedding venue, or a cooking school, or a stretch of river for fly fishing?

Inns & Associations Using Pinterest to Good Effect.

Blair House Inn Bed & Breakfast
The High Pointe Bed & Breakfast
The Flying Frog Bed & Breakfast
White Oak Manor
Shadowlawn Bed & Breakfast
California Association of Bed and Breakfast Inns

Develop a Style and Personality for Your Boards

The pin boards need to make sense for your business and you need to have enough content on them to make them worth following.

  • Create boards that reflect both your personal and business ideas.
  • Feature causes you support, area attractions, as well as businesses and people that support your business.
  • Create a group board to increase engagement. Whether your goal is to encourage your employees to spread the word about your business, or to  receive feedback from current or potential customers, Pinterest allows  boards to have contributors. Consider hosting a group board so that your followers can add their own additions and pictures.

Share content that is relevant and valuable and not overly promotional so people are able to discover new things. Facebook doesn’t necessarily allows for that kind of discovery, and the kind of conversation you have on Twitter and the feedback you receive is very different. Pinterest gives people the option to choose what information they are getting. Unlike a general Twitter feed, Pinterest users can choose to follow certain boards and select the kind of conversation they want to engage with.

Gauging Success With Feedback

You may want to look at all of your social media platforms as away to deepen your relationship with your customers. With Pinterest, an image you upload that is repined by others about a recipe, for example, may help as you develop new ones for your guests. If you see a particular room or garden feature being re-pinned, you may consider offering to feature that room in a promotion, or do a blog post on your gardening techniques.  You can gauge the most shared content as a way to improve how you speak to your fans, guests and followers.

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Adding a Facebook Subscribe Button to your Personal Profile

January 29th, 2012 by

Internet Marketing Weekly: Facebook Timeline and Enabling the Subscribe Button

The new version of Facebook for personal profiles called Timeline, will become mandatory within the week to all users. If you haven’t voluntarily enabled it, now is the time to add a great cover image that tells your story before the switch takes place. This article will not only tell you how, but includes a downloadable template.

Once you do this, consider enabling the Subscribe button on your profile. If you’re an innkeeper who likes to post things about your inn on your personal page, you can set those status updates to “public.” When you do so, anyone who has subscribed to your personal profile will get to see your posts. They won’t, however, be able to see any status updates you earmark for friends, or special sub-groups you’ve created.

Enable Facebook Subscribe in your Personal Profile

Enable Facebook Subscribe in your Personal Profile

The way that Subscribe works is any and all Facebook users can sign up to get the PUBLIC posts in their News Feed of any user who has enabled Subscribe. Please Note: Subscribe is optional.

Facebook is pushing the Subscribe option (maybe to compete with Google+ ?). For Facebook users that have enabled Subscribe, the button now shows in the Comments plugin on websites, so you can easily find and subscribe to new people. Plus, Facebook recently introduced the Subscribe button plugin which you can add to your website.

Though it would seem the Subscribe option is designed for public figures, you may fid this a useful addition to your personal profile if you like to mention the activity happening at your inn, ranch or other business. If you’re someone who only uses your personal profile as a gateway to your fan page, then adding the subscribe button, and posting as the owner of your business makes a lot of sense.

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Facebook Timeline Cover: Easily Create a Custom Cover for Your Personal Profile

January 16th, 2012 by

If you’ve updated your Facebook Profile to the new Timeline, you can add a custom “cover” in the large image area, as well as add details about a business you may own.
Timeline is not yet available for Fan pages, so the custom cover for your Timeline only addresses your personal profile. Cover images are public (as is your profile image) and anyone on Facebook can see them.

Download the free layered Photoshop template file.Zipped File

How to create a custom Facebook cover:

1. Using Photoshop:

  • Background color – Which can be deleted or edited.
  • Profile picture box – This the exact location of the profile picture you upload. It’s nice to know where the profile image will be displayed so so as not to block an important part of your Facebook cover. You can also use the profile pic to make your Facebook cover stand out.
  • Measurement Dimensions layer – This layer is informational only and should be hidden or deleted before saving the cover for uploading.

Facebook Timeline Dimensions

If you aren’t familiar with Photoshop, Pixlr is a very handy online photo editing resource that lets you upload resize and crop photos to any dimension.

Photoshop template with image added and resized

 

Adding your new cover is easy:

Go to your timeline

  1. Click Add a Cover
  2. Choose whether you want to upload a new photo or pick a photo from one of your existing photo albums
  3. Once you choose a photo, you can reposition it by clicking on the image and dragging it up or down
  4. Click Save
Here are a few nice covers to peruse:
  • Mari Smith changes her cover image periodically.
  • Zach Seward Social Media Editor at The Wall Street Journal.
  • Local Sequim Photographer, Phil Tauran, doing a bit of marketing on his cover.
  • WordPress and SEO expert, Joost de Valk, is also doing a big of (subtle) marketing on his cover.

And check out this delightful and diverse grouping of Timeline Covers to get your creativity flowing.

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