Speaker Spotlight: Amplify Your Social Media Bark With Brian Easter

Post by Blog Manager Robbi Hess

Brian Easter, CEO of Nebo, an Atlanta-based digital marketing and web design agency, and I spoke about his upcoming session at the BlogPaws 2014 Conference: How to Amplify Your Bark Across the Digital Ecosystem. I asked him, “The success you’ve had with your campaign to help get shelter pets adopted is phenomenal – is this something you think the “average” blogger can replicate?”

Brian said that yes, anyone no matter how “small” can change the world. “One of the biggest limitations people have is the one they put on themselves – they limit themselves with thinking that we can’t accomplish our goals.” He also explained that goals can be scary, but to assuage that fear an individual should think about what they’d like to change and look at the small steps they can take to get there.

One thing that Brian says he’s found is that, “People get hung up on asking HOW rather than WHY.” He explains that, “You should be asking WHY because the WHY will lead to a WHAT and the WHAT is everything! Once you answer those two questions, the HOW becomes more clear.”

Every blogger, he says should have a mission statement. “You need to know what is your reason for existing. What is the purpose of your blog? What problems do you want to solve and change in the world? If you have a purpose or a mission statement everything falls into line.”

A step toward making a difference in the world is by finding an unresolved conflict and helping to solve it. “Some of the greatest results come from doing just that,” he said.

Bloggers don’t need to have a big budget or an ad agency behind then, but a successful blog does need to have someone in the background thinking about the results you want to see with the blogging you’re doing.

Blogging advice

Tell a story. Tell a story. Tell a story. Brian says that not all of your blog posts or social media status updates have to be adopt me, adopt me or buy me, buy me. “You want to tell a story. Inspire people. It is hard to stand out from the crowd and break through the noise and clutter, but if you can build a tribe that will help you spread your story you will achieve your goals.”

Brian knows what he is talking about when it comes to telling a story, inspiring and building a tribe: He led his team in the creation of The Rescue Pledge, an online campaign to encourage the adoption of shelter animals. In less than a year, the campaign has generated 20 million+ impressions in less than a year, sparked over half a million online conversations and amassed an audience of 50,000+ Facebook fans. He is known for being a fierce advocate for the end user, a passionate speaker on weighty and controversial subjects and a vocal and avid supporter of animal welfare

The Rescue Pledge he said, was a “passion project.” He explained, “We wanted to let people know there are 4-8 million animals in shelters and there are good people who go out and buy an animal from a breeder simply because they don’t know the caliber of dogs available for adoption from a shelter.” That, he says, is an unresolved conflict that he found a way to address. “Some people are uneducated about the type of pets that are available from a shelter and the Rescue Pledge raised awareness.”

There is no magic bullet

Hard work, having a story to tell and a foundation of discipline are necessary attributes to a successful campaign or a successful blog. “If you’re not disciplined and you’re not creating content on a regular basis, you won’t likely be successful.”

When it comes to blogging, he shares that, “Bloggers should know and keep in front of them what their purpose, philosophy and goals are. We write these at the top of every blog post we compose.” He said that not every blog post will fill all three categories, but keeping them front of mind helps them to create content that keeps their overall purpose for the blog in mind.

Headlines matter

“You should spend as much time on your blog titles as you do on the blog post itself,” he says. “I could write the best blog post in the world, but if no one is reading it because the headline doesn’t draw them in, then I have wasted my time.” If you want to go beyond “preaching to the choir,” you need to have content that draws the reader in and compels him or her to click and share it.

Do you have to be on every social media platform?

“There is a mentality of needing to be everywhere all the time but that can take away from what you’re trying to accomplish,” he said. “You need to be focused and ask yourself, ‘what is being accomplished on this particular social media platform and will my content help further the conversation’ if it doesn’t, then you might not need to be there.”

What about your session?

Brian says that he, “purposely crafted the presentation so there is a high level of inspirational content, content that can be used immediately.” Whether you’re starting out or if you’re an advanced blogger, “There will be a road map to guide you and help you define your purpose and understand the tools needed to propel your blogging efforts forward,” he shares.

About Brian: Brian Easter brings international experience to his role along with a proven track record of helping organizations reach their digital marketing objectives. Under his leadership, Nebo has enjoyed ten straight years of growth, has never laid off a single employee and has won over 100 digital awards in the just the past two years. Brian has spoken at SES, SEMPO, AiMA, the INC 5000 Speaker Series and many other industry events. He has also been published in publications such as Ad Age, iMedia, Mobile Marketer and Social Media Today. He is an Appalachian State University alumnus with 15+ years of experience in digital marketing. Connect with Brian on the Nebo blog, on Twitter, Nebo Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.