August 31, 2010 – Scottsdale, AZ – The Founder and CEO of Mint Social, a social media marketing and online branding company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, Matthew O’Brien has become an Online Marking Institute (OMI) education partner and will be presenting at the Intensive Social Media Workshop by OMI at Tempe’s MadCap Theater on September 9, 2010 (7-9am).

With 20 years of experience in the digital media world, Matt O’Brien has worked for and with Fortune 500 businesses and has built companies from start up stage to exit strategy.  In addition to founding Mint Social, Matt has developed educational curriculum for a major university on social media for businesses, is a founding board member of AZIMA (Arizona Interactive Marketing Association), founder of World Webinar Network and is active with many non-profit agencies in town.

In conjunction with Wharton Interactive Media Initiative, leading research firms and associations, the OMI gives you an unparalleled way to develop online marketing knowledge and expertise through our online marketing certification programs. The OMI Social Media Workshop offers world-class academic rigor and case study research from the leading universities and research firms combined with practical training from OMI instructors.

“Let’s face it, social media can be a ton of work, especially to do it right. Our workshop will reveal some insider tips that rarely get shared on how to drive new business with social media, says Matt O’Brien. The workshop on September 9^th will be led by Fionn Downhill of Elixir Interactive and Mint Social’s Matt O’Brien and will provide in-depth Content Marketing and Social Media case studies and lessons.

Topics covered include: finding your secret sauce in social media and content marketing; becoming the trusted expert in your industry; how to choose the right social media outlets for your content marketing strategy, why social media doesn’t work without a content strategy; and will include case studies of both successes and failures of companies who have done great and lousy jobs with their social media.

Key Takeaways of the workshop are how to implement reporting tools to track your ROI goals and objectives, what social media sites work best for SEO, tools to reduce the time investment required by social media, and making social media fun!

The OMI workshop will be held at the MadCap Theater (730 S. Mill Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281). Tickets for this 2 hour workshop are $79. Tickets are expected to sell out and, and those who wish to attend are encouraged to pre-purchase their tickets online by visiting the Online Marketing Institute website.

About Matt O’Brien of Mint Social

Mint Social is a social media marketing and online branding company that accelerates online marketing by building content engines that increase visibility and reputation in search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing) and in social networks. Mint Social helps businesses understand (through implementation) why social media and online branding is critical to online marketing success and provides the tools for delivering measurable results along the way.

Mint Social takes a unique approach to online marketing by creating a content marketing and syndication engine which connects your prospects and customers with your business. Mint Social empowers businesses with the resources and the understanding of why social media marketing, search engine optimization and online branding is critical to online marketing success as well as providing the delivering measurable results along the way.  More at www.MintSocial.com

About Fionn Downhill of Elixir Interactive

Fionn Downhill is the Chief Executive Officer and President of Elixir Interactive (http://www.elixirinteractive.com). Established in February 2003, Elixir is a digital marketing agency that focuses on search and social media, specializing in helping companies understand how their customers think and interact online and then use that information to develop highly targeted marketing programs. By leveraging our experience, technology and creativity, we are able to deliver results that generate sales, brand awareness and outstanding ROI. More at www.ElixirInteractive.com

About Online Marketing Institute

The Online Marketing Institute (OMI) is dedicated to creating a space for marketing professionals to receive actionable and educational information, tactics and best practices in a sales-free environment. OMI partners with the leading marketing associations, educators and practitioners to give students the highest quality educational content available today. Two upcoming OMI Workshops  – September 9^th  and September 23^rd More at www.OnlineMarketingConnect.com

Interested in getting hands on experience that will change the way you do social media forever?

Workshop before SMAZ 7-9am

Whether you are a novice or a seasoned social media participant, it is vital to understand the role social media plays in the current business landscape. We will re-visit the purpose of social media and how it has evolved as a business strategy. However, implementing a social media strategy with a traditional marketing mindset can be disastrous. We will cover the different approached needed for Social Media marketing vs. traditional marketing. Register Today!

Let’s face it, social media is a ton of work, especially to do it right. Our workshop with reveal some insider tips that rarely get shared on how to drive new business with social media and the tools we use. Most importantly, it will become easier to manage and a lot more fun…because you will get better results, a lot faster.

Topics Covered

- Finding your secret sauce in social media and content marketing

- Becoming the trusted expert in your industry

- How to choose the right social media outlets for your content marketing strategy

- Why social media doesn’t work without a content strategy

- Case Studies: Successes and failures of companies who have done great and lousy jobs

Key Takeaways:

• How to implement reporting tools to track your ROI goals and objectives
• What social media sites work best for SEO
• Tools to reduce the time investment required by social media
• Making social media fun!

About Fionn Downhill of Elixir Interactive

Fionn Downhill is the Chief Executive Officer and President of Elixir Interactive. Established in February 2003, We are a digital marketing agency that focuses on search and social media. We specialize in helping companies understand how their customers think and interact online and then use that information to develop highly targeted marketing programs. By leveraging our experience, technology and creativity, we are able to deliver results that generate sales, brand awareness and outstanding ROI.

About Matt O’Brien and Mint Social

With 20 years of experience in the digital media world, Matt O’Brien has worked for and with Fortune 500 businesses and has built companies from start up stage to exit strategy. In addition to founding Mint Social, Matt has developed educational curriculum for a major university on social media for businesses, is a founding board member of AZIMA (Arizona Interactive Marketing Association), founder of World Webinar Network and is active with many non-profit agencies in town.

Mint Social is a social media marketing and online branding company that accelerates online marketing by building content engines that increase visibility and reputation in search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing) and in social networks. Mint Social helps businesses understand (through implementation) why social media and online branding is critical to online marketing success and provides the tools for delivering measurable results along the way.

August 18, 2010 – Scottsdale, AZ – Matthew O’Brien, the Founder and President of Mint Social, a social media marketing and online branding company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, will be one of the presenters at Social Media AZ (SMAZ), Arizona’s largest homegrown conference on social media for business at Tempe’s MadCap Theater on September 9, 2010.

The focus for the the third SMAZ conference, will be on applied social media practices, and presenters will be showcasing successful strategies that have worked for their businesses or clients. “This is the big social media event in Arizona and it is great to be a part of the excitement as a presenter and as a sponsor,” says Matthew O’Brien of Mint Social.

Speakers from various social media, interactive marketing, search engine optimization, fortune 200 and other Web 2.0 businesses will be on hand to share strategies and present fresh ideas on how to use social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, Yelp!, YouTube and more to create signature campaigns and effectively “move the needle” and increase business.

“Our attendees have heard about what tools and sites are available to use during past SMAZ conferences,” said Fred Von Graf, organizer of the SMAZ conference. “At this point, we felt that real world examples of how to apply this knowledge to increase web traffic, page views, eCommerce, social media monitoring techniques, and ultimately bottom line revenues would be most valuable to our attendees.”

Speakers at the SMAZ conference include: 

• Greg Chapman – President of Sitewire
• Laurie G Buczek – Enterprise 2.0 Program Manager, Intel Corporation
• Matt O’Brien – President, Mint Social
• Michael Roberts – President, SpyFu.com
• Sheila Kloefkorn – Founder & President, KEO Marketing
• Arnie Kuenn – President, Vertical Measures
• Mike Corak – VP of Strategy & Interactive Services, Tallwave
• Bret Giles – President, AgencySide
• Fred von Graf – President, Web3Mavens, LLC
• Tiffany Winman – Social Media Strategist, IBM
• Jeff Moriarty – Director Social Media, Sitewire
• Bart Steiner – CEO and Founder, Bulbstorm, Inc.
• Fionn Downhill – President, Elixir Interactive
• Linda Vandevrede – Public Relations Consultant & Author
• Evo Terra – Digital Business Strategist, Sitewire
• Dean Wright – VP Marketing, Tripware.com

This marks the third time SMAZ will take place at the MadCap Theater (730 S. Mill Ave., Tempe, AZ 85281), as this converted movie theater venue can host hundreds of people. Tickets are expected to sell out, and those who wish to attend are encouraged to pre-purchase their tickets online by visiting www.socialmediaaz.org call (602) 652-2703, get 25% off one ticket with this code SMAZ3Mint.

Ticket prices range from $120 for a full day session to $25 to watch the presentations on a web-simulcast. Special pricing is available to those who work for non-profit organizations ($85 per ticket) or to students with a valid student ID ($25 per ticket).

About Mint Social

Mint Social is a social media marketing and online branding company that accelerates online marketing by building content engines that increase visibility and reputation in search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing) and in social networks. Mint Social helps businesses understand (through implementation) why social media and online branding is critical to online marketing success and provides the tools for delivering measurable results along the way. Mint Social was named as one of TopSEOs.com’s Top 10 Social Media Optimization Companies in the US.

About Social Media AZ

Social Media AZ (SMAZ) is the premier business focused event to help companies understand and learn the latest techniques in digital marketing and social media. SMAZ helps businesses learn from industry experts and corporations that have experience in how to do it right. With a focus on real world experience which means they share the good, the bad and what really works. Learn more at www.socialmediaaz.org or call (602) 652-2703.

After smashing success for the previous 2 events with over 400 in attendance last event, Social Media AZ announces the SMAZ3!

As a previous SMAZ attendee you are entitled to special ticket pricing for the upcoming Social Media AZ (SMAZ3MINT) event on September 9th.

As a person that attended the SMAZ event previously we are offering you an opportunity to get 25% off your tickets or 50% off if you buy two tickets for the best Social Media for Business Conference in Arizona, September 9th in downtown Tempe.

This offer is only good until August 27th, order your tickets now before the price goes up. This event has sold out every time, so get your tickets today.

GET YOUR TICKETS NOW

• Greg Chapman – President, Sitewire
• Matt O’Brien – President, Mint Social
• Michael Roberts – President, SpyFu
• Sheila Kloefkorn – President, KEO Marketing
• Katie Van Domelen – Social Media Manager, Off Madison Ave.
• Bart Steiner – CEO and Founder, BulbStorm
• Arnie Kuenn – President, Vertical Measures
• Laurie G Buczek – Enterprise 2.0 Program Manager, Intel Corporation
• Tiffany Winman – Social Media Strategist, IBM
• Fred von Graf – Managing Partner, Web3Mavens
• Mike Corak – Vice President of Strategy, Tallwave
• Bret Giles – President, AgencySide
• Jeff Moriarty – Director Social Media, Sitewire
• Evo Terra – Digital Marketing Strategist, Sitewire
• Fionn Downhill – President, Elixir Interactive
• Dean Wright – Vice President Marketing, Tripware.com

We will be hosting the Social Media AZ Awards – Also know as the SMAZZIES during the SMAZ event on September 9th.

Attend to see who wins the awards in the seven categories.

• Must Follow – The blog, twitter, or online presence you can’t get enough of
• Business That Gets It – Non-industry company (not a social media/marketing entity) who demonstrates creative and proficient use of social media
• Most Social Use Of Social Media – Best/most innovative use of technology to connect to people in person
• Trailblazer – Out there doing cutting edge things, changing the way people work or think in the social media space
• Up and Coming – Most notable freelance individual or agency that is notably improving its offering
• Most Entertaining – Most all around amusing, insightful, or crazy
• Homegrown Can Of Awesome – Most interesting / promising start up business, technology or tool from right here in AZ

Read more

We have partnered with the Online Marketing Institute to offer a deep dive workshop at SMAZ.

The Online Marketing Institute and Wharton Interactive Media Initiative’s new Intermediate Social Media Workshop Series is coming to Phoenix on September 9th offering world-class academic rigor and case study research from the leading universities and research firms combined with practical training from OMI instructors (Fionn Downhill of Elixir Interactive and Matt O’Brien of Mint Social). This Intensive 2 hour (7am – 9am) Social Media Workshop costs $79 and is available to friends of SMAZ for 30% off when you use the promo code OMISMAZ30. Register Here

Get more information and the full agenda for the workshop here.

Scottsdale, Arizona – August 10, 2010 – Mint Social, a social media marketing and online branding company based in Scottsdale, Arizona, has been named as one of TopSEOs.com’s Top 10 Social Media Optimization Companies for the month of August 2010. TopSEOs.com is the independent authority on search vendors and recognizes and ranks the best social media optimization service providers in the industry. 

Mint Social and the other Top 10 social media optimization service providers were selected over thousands of other companies after being evaluated through a comprehensive process by a qualified and experienced team of researchers. The Top 10 providers showed a clear-cut understanding of the groundwork behind social media optimization.

“In order to find the best among the thousands of social media optimization companies, our team has designed an evaluation system to identify the leading social media optimization firms. All the top ranking social media providers displayed a thorough knowledge in social media optimization.  These companies were able to achieve successful results that have often involved visibility and expertise on the wide range of techniques that makes their clients’ brand name available and within reach by web visitors,” said Jeev Trika, Managing Partner of topseos.com.

The rankings are based on an evaluation process involving feedback from three (3) of their clients about their services and over-all performance.  The research team has provided these clients with a list of questions.  Questions include both general and project-specific queries such as, “What type of needs analysis was conducted before work initiated?”, “What type of a ROI were you anticipating, what was achieved and in what time frame?”, “Rate your overall experience (1-10; 10 being the highest), “What types of social media optimization techniques has your agency implemented on your project?”, “What was the process of implementation of those techniques?  Did you implement them all and launch all at the same time or was it implement a technique, roll it out, and then evaluate it, then go on to the next one?” and “What has been the impact to your conversion rates from the implementation of SMO techniques?”

“We are very honored and humbled to receive this award,” said Matthew O’Brien, Founder & CEO of Mint Social.  “This is an impressive list of social media optimization businesses to be included with and we are especially grateful to our customers who helped make this award possible.”

About Mint Social

Mint Social is a social media marketing and online branding company that accelerates online marketing by building content engines that increase visibility and reputation in search engines (Google, Yahoo, Bing) and in social networks. Mint Social helps businesses understand (through implementation) why social media and online branding is critical to online marketing success and provides the tools for delivering measurable results along the way.

Mint Social takes a unique approach to online marketing by creating a content marketing and syndication engine which connects your prospects and customers with your business. Mint Social empowers businesses with the resources and the understanding of why social media marketing, search engine optimization and online branding is critical to online marketing success as well as providing the delivering measurable results along the way.  More at www.MintSocial.com

For more information, check out our Press Kit

Although we may not want to admit it, there is a difference between your perception of yourself and the public perception of you. Companies are no different. In today’s times branding is everything. To make sure that both your perception and the general perception they want to portray are along the same line, many companies invest tens of thousands of dollars every year. Among the many other things that internet has managed to do, redefining marketing strategies is a huge one. Today, almost every company has its presence on the web, because it is essential. It is said that almost 94% of products are researched online before they are purchased.  As a result, online branding and marketing is increasingly more important.

Online branding no longer means that people have to visit your site, to view or buy your products. People get to know and buy your products, even without visiting your websites. With Social Media Marketing, your business can be promoted throughout various avenues that were not available 10 or even 5 years ago. Social media marketing is a low cost/high return promotional method and can draw visitors and fans in large numbers. Websites such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube are no longer websites for kids; they have now become potent sources of online branding and marketing.

However you need to make sure of a few things before using social media marketing as a part of your online branding strategy.

As with any marketing tactic, maintenance and professionalism is key. Control the urge to join every social media site. Having your presence everywhere may not harm you or your company, but if the sites are unmaintained or unprofessional, it may cause visitors to think twice.

Determine which social media outlets are best for you or your product. Remember to choose the right user name, choose the right initial connections and so on. After the first 30 days, make any necessary tweaks to your profiles, have a contest or incentive, post regularly to keep in front of the eyes of your target.

Remember, when it comes to online branding and social media marketing, Content is king. If you are unable to manage these, you can always take help from professionals like Shannon O’Brien Bradley. Shannon has been in the marketing industry for over 15 years now and has considerable experience in the field of social media marketing. Apart from Social media marketing, Shannon Bradley also specializes in, project management and creative services.

We are changing up the traditional blog post and making it more INTERACTIVE! Is the ‘Next Generation’ blog post more like a blog story…read/click, read…click…read…engage (with images guiding your way)?

Give our blog story a test drive - ”At what stage are you at with your social media marketing (for you or for your business)?”

Click the image below that best represents where you are with your social media marketing. Then read the rest of the story and engage with us…

Beginner Social Media Marketing

Intermediate Social Marketing

Advanced Social Media Marketing

Get
Minty Results

Expert WebSite Evaluations

on Tuesday, July 13th at 6:00 pm

In July, the Arizona Interactive Marketing Association will explore a new and exciting format, as top internet marketing professionals from throughout the Phoenix market will provide expert analysis, evaluation and critique of websites for small local businesses.

Some of the Valley’s most respected and recognized internet marketers will be providing insightful analysis and helpful tips and suggestions to Arizona business websites selected from submissions made via the AZIMA website.

The July AZIMA event, held on Tuesday, July 13th will feature panelists from the Valley’s celebrated internet marketing community performing an open review and analysis as well as providing companies with ideas and tactics to implement to increase traffic, generate sales leads, and ultimately, enhance the marketability of the reviewed websites.

The panelists include:

Panel #1:

Sheila – President, KEO Marketing (Search Engine Optimization Expert)

Chris Sietsema– President, Teach to Fish (User Experience Expert)

Jack – Creator & Owner, Social Latte (Social Media Marketing Expert)

Panel #2:

David Wallace – CEO, Search Rank (Search Engine Optimization Expert)

Aaron Strom–Sr. Director User Experience & Social Community,  Godaddy.com (User Experience Expert)

Matt O’Brien – President, Mint Social (Social Media Marketing Expert)

Event Location: Scottsdale Hilton (6333 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale, AZ 85250) A light dinner, and one drink is included.

Free WebSite Evaluations

Submissions will be collected right here (complete the form below) from June 16- July 2nd, at which time four websites will be selected.  To be eligible for selection, businesses must be located in the metropolitan Phoenix market.

Advanced social media marketing (thinking) – Social media profiles, domain names, online content, keyword rankings…digital assets? Your business has a website and your businesses is doing some sort of social media marketing (whether you realize it or not). In other words, you are the promoter and so is anyone else online (like it or not).

This massive shift of putting the publishing power into the hands of ANYBODY has made social media an online business survival tactic (or a powerful marketing tool). Even after 20 years in the digital marketing business, I still get that feeling every now and then (that sinking feeling), that we are not doing enough to stay on top of the knowledge storm coming at us every day. But it is the application of this knowledge that puts a business ahead of the curve. Therefore, a business not in control of their social media (any business not actively publishing content, where 3 out of 4 people are online), has inadvertently relinquished CONTROL  OF THEIR BRAND to anybody that cares to comment on your brand.

Does this concern you?

Is having control (or influence) over your online brand and your personal reputation important? (This should be a rhetorical question)

This is not meant to be a scare tactic, just a wake-up call for businesses sitting on the sidelines. Do you consider your BRAND to be an asset? If you were to sell your business today, would your brand (represented offline and online) add goodwill to increase the sell price?

Offline Brand vs. Online Brand (digital assets)

I had the pleasure of meeting with Jeff Pruitt of Tallwave for lunch this week at one of my favorite spots, Chelsea’s Kitchen. One of the more engaging discussions we had was concerning digital assets. Jeff shares the same viewpoint that we have as Mint Social, profiles in social media are digital assets (just like domain names) that are long term investments into the value of your brand and business. This forward thinking approach of social media profiles as digital assets of a business is not top of mind with businesses today that want immediate ROI for their marketing efforts. Is this short sighted thinking? To some degree yes. As the economy improves, businesses will shift their decision-making from being almost 100% ROI centric to include a more longer term thinking when it comes to social media. Social networks like Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, SlideShare, Twitter, Google, etc. are valuable digital assets that will add goodwill and an x-factor when it comes to your exit strategy options.

Give our blog story a test drive - ”At what stage are you at with your social media marketing (for you or for your business)?”

Click the image below that best represents where you are with your social media marketing. Then read the rest of the story and engage with us…

Beginner Social Media Marketing

Intermediate Social Marketing

Advanced Social Media Marketing

Get Minty Results

Webinar Summary: Many people think that using tools like Twitter and Facebook is an effective social media marketing strategy. While these sites are helpful, they are merely tactics which do not address the over-arching goals of a social media marketing campaign in the first place. Join us on Wednesday the 26th of May at 11:00am PST when we discuss how to generate results for your social media marketing campaign. Our special guest will be Aaron Bare, CEO of Buzzmouth. Recently I caught up with Aaron for a a few minutes to talk about what we will be discussing on the webinar:

About Aaron Bare
Creative entrepreneur, management consultant and experienced business development executive.

Experience with launching products, completing technology projects, raising capital, outsourcing/offshoring and selling businesses. In 2008, selected as “35 under 35” Entrepreneurs in Arizona. Also won Video Award, Addy, Webby, Telly and Web Awards for past technology projects.

He is a former management consultant with Accenture and money manager with the Vanguard Group. Aaron’s education includes a BS (honors) in Business from Indiana Tech, MA in Economic Development from Indiana University and MBA in Global Management from Thunderbird. He has traveled to over 60 countries.

Click Here to Register for the Webinar