This week on Sprout Social Insights we tackled guides for Facebook, Twitter, and small business to help you better reach your customers with the social media tools that make a difference.

Check out our articles below to find out more about each one and how they can help you with your social media goals.

And check in every day to Sprout Social Insights for more how to guides and breaking social media news.

What Apple’s New Maps App Will Mean for Local Business

At the recent Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), Apple made the announcement that it will drop Google Maps in its upcoming iOS 6 software release. Instead, the company will be offering its own proprietary mapping solution, complete with 3D models and turn-by-turn navigation.

Creating a mapping tool in-house is not a small task for Apple to take on, especially when you consider how much data is involved. Rather than try to do everything itself, Apple approached several companies to help develop its mapping application. Surprisingly, the company has decided not to include transit directions in its app by default. Instead, it will offer a way for developers to integrate this service into Apple Maps directly.

It’s clear that Apple has a very specific action plan for its Maps application. Let’s explore the significance of this move, along with several ways that local businesses can leverage the power of Apple Maps. [ Read More... ]

Don’t Forget to Engage With Your Twitter Timeline

This week we remind you that sometimes the key to good conversations and engagement on Twitter may be hiding in plain sight — on your Twitter timeline!

At Sprout Insights, we’ve written a lot about the importance of engaging your fans and followers on Twitter. We advised you to tweet on the weekends, use hashtags, and join conversations already in progress.

We’ve even showed you how to join Twitter chats, and how to find social media influencers. This is all great, actionable advice.

But sometimes, you have so many bases to cover or tactics you’d like to try that you can’t see the forest for the trees. If you find that you’d like to step back and simplify your Twitter engagement strategy, look no further than the tweets streaming by from the people who you follow on Twitter. [ Read More... ]

Why CNET Sets an Example for Pinterest Presence

Pinterest is still going strong as a powerful tool for driving online commerce. As with any service, some companies are using it more effectively than others, and we can all learn from their examples. In our series on Pinterest presence and strategy, we’ve highlighted companies from the grocery, home decor, and clothing industries that have excelled at attracting followers and developing their presence on the network.

It makes sense that a tech company would have the know-how to get up to speed on new social media networks. CNET is a great example of how a tech company can curate relevant and visually appealing content on Pinterest. The media business has presented images that are relevant to its core clientele but still are a perfect fit for sharing with and inspiring a wider audience. Here are some of the ways that CNET sets itself apart on Pinterest. [ Read More... ]

How VCs and Entrepreneurs Are Connecting Through Social Media

Just 10 years ago, an ambitious entrepreneur looking for investors would need to make countless phone calls, send dozens of emails, and travel to meetings.

Those elements are still an important part of getting your business off the ground, but today, the fast rise of social media means that the venture capital (VC) process often begins online.

Many entrepreneurs have leveraged social media to develop meaningful partnerships with investors. Conversely, many investors have also used social media to find new companies to invest in. Here’s a more detailed look at how social media has impacted the venture capital world. [ Read More... ]

Spotlight on Startups: Benefacting is a charitable marketplace

At Sprout Insights, we comb the web to bring you the most up-to-date and actionable resources on how to use social media to grow your business.

To that end, we’re pleased to present the Sprout Insights series Spotlight on Startups. We’ll find the most innovative, useful startup companies out there, get the inside track on what they’re doing, and tell you how you can leverage their products and services for your own business.

This week we’re pleased to cast the spotlight on Benefacting — a nonprofit organization that provides a marketplace where people can donate their goods and services in exchange for cash donations to their favorite charities.
[ Read More... ]

4 Twitter Mistakes: Don’t Do What These Brands Did

Twitter has been around for more than five years, and most companies have been able to use the social media network for positive gains. It can be a great way to connect with clients, promote products, and resolve customer service problems.

However, we’ve seen that social media is not free from mistakes and errors made by corporations — be they on Facebook or on Pinterest. Even today, some people and brands experience very public scandals and snafus on Twitter. Most of these errors were lapses in common sense, but others are examples we can all learn from.

Here are four powerful examples of mistakes to avoid on Twitter — don’t do what these brands did. [ Read More... ]

How to Add a Video to Your LinkedIn Profile Using SlideShare

With over 100 million members, having a personal profile on LinkedIn can be an excellent way to showcase your professional credentials. But how do you stand out from the crowd?

You can start by tweaking your profile to make sure you take advantage of all the features that LinkedIn has to offer. And one of the most powerful tweaks is to add a video to your profile.

Using the SlideShare application (which LinkedIn recently acquired), you can add a video that automatically plays when any logged in LinkedIn member views your profile. Assuming you have a YouTube video that provides a great visual representation of you or your business, this article shows you how to embed a video within your profile in a few easy steps. [ Read More... ]

How to Edit Which Likes Are Featured in Your Facebook Page’s Timeline

This week we’ll quickly show you how to edit your Facebook Page’s “Featured Likes” — that is, which things you’ve Liked that appear to visitors near the top of your Facebook Page Timeline.

We’ve already talked about how important it is to Like other Facebook Pages when you’re logged in as your business or brand’s Page. It helps build connections and give you extra exposure. But just because you’ve liked a Page doesn’t mean you want to display it as one of the first things new visitors to yours will see.

Fortunately, you can choose exactly which Pages are featured on your Timeline. To do this, just scroll to the top of your Page, above the Admin Panel, and click the “Edit Page” button (next to “Build Audience” and “Help”). In the drop-down menu that appears, click “Update Info.”

You’ll be shipped off to a new page, with navigation options stacked on top of each other on the left. One of them is titled “Featured” — click it.
[ Read More... ]

[Image credits: Tax Credits, Benefacting, Alex Proimos]