Facebook’s “Promote Your Post” Feature – Boom or Bust?

On the heels of Facebook’s IPO bust, they launched a feature that now allows you topromote your Facebook posts so that more of your fans will see it.  (Your page must have at least 400 Likes.)

All promoted posts will show up as a “Sponsored Listing” in your fan’s feeds.

Statistics have already proven that Facebook users generally ignore ads, and GM recently pulled their campaign due to poor performance.

Granted, this is a little different than a regular ad because the post will be showed to people who already “Like” your page, but anytime the word “Sponsored” is used, it has a promotional feel to it.

So I don’t know about you, but this announcement didn’t make me do any happy dances. 

Why Use It?

If you have a Facebook page, you’ve probably already noticed a limited percentage of your fans actually see your posts.  In fact, Facebook admitted that brand page content is only viewed by 16% of your fans on average.

This is due to many reasons – users not logged in when you post, they get lost in the shuffle of other posts and pages people “Like”, etc.

And of course, the skeptic in me can’t help but wonder if they are now ensuring your posts are shown to a limited number of people to encourage more ad spend.

Let’s face it.  At the end of the day, it’s about making money – anything to help their ailing stock, right?

According to FB, not only will this feature ensure more post visibility by giving it a sponsored label, but when your fans interact with the promoted post, it will be shown to their friends as well.

Is it Worth It?

Post promotion has its place, but I wouldn’t just haphazardly use it without a solid plan.

Say you’re having a huge promotion or contest for UK residents only.   Since you can target the post, you may consider testing it out for something like this because you can reach more relevant people.

You also have to consider the fundamentals of marketing.  More views is not necessarily better if you struggle with fan interaction and engagement to begin with.  Just like pay-per-click marketing or any kind of paid advertising, your content needs to convert for the campaign to be successful.

So if your paid Facebook post gives you 50% more views, but your engagement (likes, comments or whatever you’re measuring) shows minimal results, technically that campaign was a failure.

So I wouldn’t throw any dollars into any advertising until you have a real plan in mind and understand that the basic rules of marketing and engagement still apply.

So tell me.  Would you ever pay to promote your posts on Facebook?  Have you tried it yet?  What are your thoughts about this in general?  I’d love to hear from those who’ve tried it.

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Upgrading to Windows 8

Upgrading to Windows 8(faq)

 From which older versions of Windows can I upgrade to Windows 8?

A: According to this official Microsoft blog post, if you own a Windows XP, Windows Vista, or aWindows 7 PC, you are eligible for a downloadable upgrade to Windows 8 Pro.

Q: How much will the upgrade cost?

For PCs with the above operating systems purchased prior to June 2, 2012, you can download the upgrade from Microsoft for $39.99. For new, non-Windows 8 PCs purchased between June 2 and January 31, 2013, Microsoft will offer the Windows 8 Pro upgrade download for $14.99 

 Is there an option to purchase the upgrade on a DVD or other physical media?

A: You can buy the boxed version of the Windows 8 Pro upgrade for $69.99. If you purchase the downloadable upgrade, Microsoft will offer you the option to purchase a DVD version for an additional $15. The upgrade installation process will also offer you the ability to burn a DVD or make a bootable USB key using your own media, for no charge.

Q: What about other versions of Windows 8?

A: Microsoft has announced four versions of Windows 8. You can only upgrade to two of them as a consumer, Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro. Windows RT will only come with tablets, and an Enterprise version will be sold with large-volume corporate PC purchases. Windows 8, Windows Pro, and Windows 8 Enterprise will be available in both 32-bit and 64-bit editions, with 64-bit being most common. Microsoft has not yet announced pricing for the vanilla Windows 8 upgrade.

Q: What are the differences between Windows 8 and Windows 8 Pro?

A: In this blog post, Microsoft says, "For many consumers, Windows 8 will be the right choice," while it designed Windows 8 Pro "to help tech enthusiasts and business/technical professionals obtain a broader set of Windows 8 technologies."

Basically what that means is that Windows 8 Pro comes with features Microsoft believes most consumers won't care about. For the most part this is probably true. Most people won't miss Pro's extras like the Client Hyper-V virtualization software and BitLocker disk encryption tool.

Q: What are the hardware requirements for Windows 8?

A: Here are the basics as outlined by Microsoft in a blog post:

• 1GHz or faster processor
• 1GB RAM (32-bit) or 2GB RAM (64-bit)
• 16GB available hard-disk space (32-bit) or 20GB (64-bit)
• DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM 1.0 or higher driver

Microsoft also says, "Metro style applications have a minimum of 1,024x768 screen resolution, and 1,366x768 for the snap feature." "Snap" refers to Windows 8's feature of automatically resizing and positioning application Windows when you drag them to the side of the screen. And "Metro" is the now-abandoned nomenclature for Windows 8's distinct touch-oriented software interface design.

hp adds windows 8 pc's and all in one from techmate

HP adds Windows 8-ready Envy, Pavilion, and Spectre all-in-ones

HP shows its willing to take some calculated risks for Windows 8 with a Spectre-branded all-in-one desktop.

You might know HP's Spectre product best as a home for the company's high-end, high concept laptops. With the SpectreOne, announced today, HP brings an all-in-one PC into that fold. The question is whether it's features match its high-price.

HP says the SpectreOne will begin at $1,299 when it launches in the U.S. in November. In addition to the stylized design, the SpectreOne includes a non-touch, 23.6-inch, 1,920x1,080-pixel display, a track pad, and near-field communication (NFC) technology, dubbed HP TouchZone. It also has no built-in optical drive.

The track pad makes HP the second vendor, behind Vizio, to launch a non-touchscreen all-in-one with a track pad for Windows 8. I found HP's track pad generally more responsive than Vizio's during a brief hands-on, but it still seems odd that a $1,299 Windows desktop would not also include a touchscreen. Further, the 23.6-inch display feels small compared with the 27-inch displays common to Vizio and other all-in-one PCs in the same price range. Unlike Vizio's touch pad equipped CA27-A1, HP also includes a mouse in the SpectreOne.

The TouchZone feature is more unique, and I hope it's the start of a trend throughout the PC industry. Via a sensor built into base of the unit, you can log into the SpectreOne or transfer files to it by simply swiping a smartphone or another device equipped with an NFC transmitter sticker. HP includes two stickers in the box with the SpectreOne.

HP wasn't interested in discussing the traditional PC specifications of the SpectreOne, on "life-style" grounds, but it cites a 1GB Nvidia GeForce graphics card, "the latest Intel processors" (Core i5 or better, HP tells me), and Condusiv (formerly Diskeeper) ExpressCache among the various options. I've seen the latter in a few high-end gaming PCs before. Essentially it puts a small solid state hard drive directly on your motherboard to speed up boot times and access to your mostly commonly launched applications. It generally works well, but it can be an expensive option for a solid state drive to which you can't read and write manually.

(Credit: HP)

HP also announced three more traditional all-in-ones today, including two Envy-branded TouchSmart systems, and a non-touch Pavilion all-in-one. Now that Windows 8 has its own well-developed touch software, it makes sense that HP would make TouchSmart a secondary brand and roll those mainstream PCs into its Envy product group.They're still too proper-noun heavy.

Aside from the TouchSmart name, those Envy systems should feel familiar. They're essentially the same version of the Envy 23 HP announced earlier this summer, but with a touchscreen. The 23-inch Envy TouchSmart 23 will start at $999, and the 20-inch Envy TouchSmart 20 at $799 when the two systems launch in October.

(Credit: HP)

Finally, HP has also updated its true-blue Pavilion line with an aggressively priced non-touch all-in-one. The $449, 20-inch Pavilion 20 has nothing particularly remarkable about it other than its price. You will have a hard time finding a 20-inch all-in-one desktop at such a low price. That system goes on sale in October.

-tech mate