As Junta42 continues to grow, we've started to branch out and hire freelancers and form partnerships. What I've learned through this process is that the way I make decisions on who I buy from or partner with has completely changed from just a few years ago. Whether you are an experienced freelance writer, a journalist/editor in a media company or brand, or even a marketing professional, there are things you must be doing now to make sure the work is always there (whether you work for yourself or someone else). It saddens me to find that people who I worked with for years at Penton…
Content Marketing
-
Junta42-Content Marketing
-
Seven Ways to Position Yourself for Unlimited Work
9 Feb 2010 | 7:17 am -
Junta42 Announces Content Marketing Giveaway
4 Feb 2010 | 7:29 pmJunta42 is again putting our money where our content is... Today we launched the $4200 in 42 Days contest where Junta42 will contribute $4200 toward a brand's content marketing effort. Simply put, it works like this. From now until 4/2/2010 any project submitted through the Junta42 system will be eligible for the $4200. All you have to do is sign up to the Junta42 content marketing matching service and select one of our expert, pre-qualified vendors. That's it. See more details here. Any thoughts or questions? Just shoot them over. -
Social Media Usage in Content Marketing Jumps 500% in Two Years
3 Feb 2010 | 6:54 amAs a follow up to our 2010 Junta42 Content Marketing Study, we've been doing some comparisons between content marketing product usage in 2010 versus 2008. The findings are interesting, to say the least Here are the highlights: Significant Increases in Content Distribution Social Media (i.e., Twitter, Facebook) - distribution of content through those channels has increased over 500% in two years. Blog usage has more than doubled. Online video has jumped nearly 2x. eBooks have nearly doubled. Slight Content Marketing Increases Digital Magazines Podcasts Microsites Holding Steady… -
David Meerman Scott on content marketing, social media & what's next
1 Feb 2010 | 3:57 pmHis book was a game changer. Now, David Meerman Scott's updated version of The New Rules of Marketing and PR promises even more. I had a chance to catch up with David recently and got his quick take on the book, social media and content marketing. Enjoy! JOE: From the previous version to the new version, what's the biggest change you thought you had to make? What's the biggest surprise - meaning something you'd never thought you'd actually update? DAVID: When I wrote the first edition of the book, Facebook was only available to those with a… -
5 Keys to Success with Content Marketing
28 Jan 2010 | 6:16 pmHere's a content marketing interview with me conducted by J-P de Clerck. I like the way J-P summed up the key successes and failures in content marketing for me. Hope they are helpful. The keys to success in content marketing: Understanding the informational needs of your customers Knowing how those informational needs mix with your marketing goals and objectives Developing a content program around those needs Being consistent (content marketing is a marathon, not a sprint) Listen and continually evolve the program Failure in content marketing: Selling, rather than…
-
Online Marketing Blog
-
Two Biggest Advantages of Small Businesses SEO
8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amWith search engine optimization, small businesses have two advantages larger competitors often can’t match: creativity and agility. By embracing these two philosophies as part of their digital marketing DNA, small businesses can carve out a search marketing strategy that runs circles around larger competitors. Today, we’ll briefly explore why creativity and agility are advantages small businesses have for search marketing, and some quick tips to activate each. Creativity as a search marketing advantage Large = more risk management – Small = creativity/individuality can… -
5 Ways to Show Digital Assets a Little Respect
5 Feb 2010 | 5:00 amDon't ignore digital assets in your optimization efforts Don’t fight it: Blended search results, and hence digital asset optimization, are here (at least for now). Text content may be your SEO poster child, but with images, video and audio content often appearing in standard search results, digital assets can no longer be treated as the ugly stepsister in the online marketing family. Many companies produce a variety of content and media that never make it to the public web. To this point, the majority of marketers have either overlooked or ignored optimization of non-text digital… -
BIGLIST Update: SEM Blog Reviews Snarky Edition 020410
4 Feb 2010 | 4:13 pmWelcome to the newest BIGLIST review of Search Marketing Blogs. We have a little bit of everything today ranging from Chinese focused PPC to the World’s Greatest SEO to a steaming pile of SEO Bull$#*t. Enjoy! If you think your blog deserves to be included, then write a compelling and maybe humorous comment below. We’ll almost certainly ignore it but you never know. The SEO blog design recognition for this week’s BIGLIST update goes to a newer blog from an experienced search marketer: SEO Mofo. I like the clean, yet colorful (and irreverent) design of this blog by… -
2010 MarketingSherpa Social Media Marketing Guide
3 Feb 2010 | 9:00 amOne of the most trusted sources of marketing research and information is MarketingSherpa. I’ve been a subscriber for many years and always look forward to the reports on Search Marketing, Email Marketing and B2B Marketing. Last year MarketingSherpa started conducting research and publishing a Benchmark Report on social media marketing. The new Social Media Marketing Benchmark Report was recently released and I’ve had a few days to take a look and will provide a review for our readers. As you can expect, this guide is a “meaty” 250 plus pages of research, charts &… -
Upcoming TopRank Social SEO & PR Events
3 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amOur team works hard to stay on top of current best practices and as a result, we’re asked to speak at a variety of conferences, workshops and webinars. One of the goals at TopRank Online Marketing is to help companies better understand the current landscape of the digital marketing & PR environment. That includes strategies that can be executed more efficiently and marketing programs that can adjust to persistent change. Hopefully you’ll find an event below that fits your needs. Feb 9, 2010 Webinar: Secrets to B2B Marketing Success TopRank, along with our client Marketo and…
-
Copyblogger
-
The Art of Shameless Self-Promotion
8 Feb 2010 | 7:49 amI’ve found it just doesn’t pay to crow too much about what I’ve accomplished. Sure, I celebrate when things go well. But I’ve found that talking too much about my achievements leads not only to criticism, but to disappointment. There’s always going to be someone who’s done more or worked harder. And until they carve my name into the side of the moon, I see no reason in puffing myself up. The minute you get a big head is the same minute that reality smacks you and you realize that you aren’t as cool as you think you are. So self-adulation is something I try to stay… -
Five Areas to Focus On for Effective SEO Copywriting
5 Feb 2010 | 8:51 amWhen I first started Copyblogger in 2006, I was almost militantly against on-page search optimization. Seems strange, since I’d been a successful student of SEO since 2000. It was because I saw all these people fretting over keywords like it’s 1999, and yet they had no links. Their content was weak. Their sites weren’t trusted. You can’t optimize something that’s dead in the water. So my initial goal was to get people to focus on content that attracted attention and links first. Only then do you have something you can make better (that’s what optimize means, naturally). Fours… -
Landing Page Makeovers 2007-2009: Where Are They Now?
4 Feb 2010 | 6:46 amThis is another addition to our ongoing series of tutorials and case studies on landing pages that work. It occurred to me late last year, as I was readying yet another Landing Page Makeover, that the end of one year and the beginning of the next was a good time to do a “Where are they now?” post. So first things first, I went back and contacted all makeover participants from the very beginning of the series. Of the more than 20 contacted, I learned that one is no longer in business, MagicPumpkinArt.com (Makeover #14) and two are in the midst of developing new products or revising… -
Does SEO Copywriting Still Matter?
3 Feb 2010 | 8:28 amIf there’s any one thing that can be said about SEO with certainty, it’s that it manages to cause a lot of confusion. For example, it seems like many people’s idea of SEO was formed 10 years ago, and hasn’t bothered to change with the times. Even an online veteran like Robert Scoble is completely clueless about modern best practices for search engine optimization. So, before we go any further, let me answer the question posed by the headline . . . Yes, SEO copywriting still matters. Here’s why. Search is still the biggest game in town “Pick your survey, search remains one of the… -
Third Tribe Marketing is Live
3 Feb 2010 | 5:52 amThose of you who subscribe to the Internet Marketing for Smart People email newsletter found out on Monday what Brian and I have been up to for the past few months. We knew it would be cool, because, well, we designed it to be cool. We wanted to build something people would really get value from. But still, when we saw what people were doing inside after the first day, we all looked around at one another and pulled a Keanu. Whoa. Third Tribe Marketing has been active for just under two days now. What’s been happening so far? Artists and SEOs and copywriters and entrepreneurs of every stripe…
-
Writing on the Web
-
Why Video Works with Content Marketing to Attract Clients- An Audio Interview
9 Feb 2010 | 6:45 amDo you have personality? And are you showing it to your blog readers? Do they know what you look like and sound like, and can they get a glimpse of what your office space looks like? Do they kow your hobbies, where you live? Right now I'm in pajamas and there's a few strands of hair sticking up in the air. My work space is full of papers, books, coffee and Huey, the cat. But a professional video might show a different view... One of the things I put forth in the Click Predictions ebook for content marketing trends for 2010 is that companies are going to start showing more personality. It's… -
Content Marketing for Online Profits - Video
8 Feb 2010 | 4:10 amHere's my video description of the new ebook I released last week, Content Marketing for Online Profits. I have to ask your forgiveness for my amateur video which I shot myself with an inexpensive Logitech Web cam, on a Sunday morning at home. My intention was to write a polished script and do a better job than this, but I've run out of time. The important message is that if you haven't done so already, please click this link to register to gain access to Content Marketing for Online Profits. It's an online learning program brought to you through MyKnowledgeGenie.com, which is quite amazing… -
Content Marketing Profits: Learn for Free...
6 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amIf you'd like to learn about how online content works to get found, get known, get clients and make sales, register for Content Marketing for Online Profits. It's free, and from what readers tell me, it's easy to use and learn from. Click, register, get instant access. Then tell me what you think! -
How Does Content Marketing Lead to Sales?
5 Feb 2010 | 5:32 amThis is the real question, isn't it? After writing good content that educates and entertains, after posting on web pages, blogs, and a few key social media sites... how does content work to generate sales?"Show me the money," you might say.For some people, if the ROI can't be pin-pointed, forget about it. I'll leave the analytics to experts. Google keywords like "return on investment content marketing," for example. There's no question that the return on investment of content marketing can be measured and proven. If it didn't, then why would 6 out of 10 marketers be spending more money on… -
10 Content Marketing Success Tips
3 Feb 2010 | 3:24 pmAre you writing this down? Take notes, these 10 tips for online success with Content Marketing are important. I didn't write them, but one of my favorite bloggers did, Adam Singer over at Online Marketing Blog. (#1 top Junta42 Content Marketing blog).Here's what he says:"As more companies, marketers and industry professionals flood the web with content, the value of those with a true understanding of content marketing keeps going up. "More noise increases the value of signal. If your content marketing defines you as that source of signal, you’ll consistently be found, referenced and chosen…
-
Influential Marketing
-
Twiangulate Lets You Follow Your Followers' Followers
9 Feb 2010 | 12:12 amLet me go on the record to say that if you happen to be a vendor of some type of social networking solution or software that would be useful for an agency like Ogilvy, hands down one of your most effective methods of advertising has to be to target the Ogilvy network on Facebook with a customized ad. I have seen several ads like this for solutions and find myself always clicking on them - not because they say Ogilvy but because I presume that someone has done their homework and identified that whatever they are promoting is particularly relevant for someone who works at an agency like ours. -
The Emasculated Man, Super Bowl Ad Themes & 5 Best Strategic Ads
8 Feb 2010 | 7:31 amFor several years now, I've taken the slightly different approach to doing a recap post of Super Bowl ads and instead of focusing on which ones I thought were the best or most entertaining, I try to break them down from a marketing point of view to share some lessons for anyone in marketing who may not have been able to afford the $2+ million dollar price tag to experiment on the Super Bowl on their own (ie - most of us!). This year, there were lots of examples of what NOT to do, as there usually are. So to start, here are a few major themes across this year's Super Bowl ads, including a… -
The 52nd Grammys Offer Hope For The Future Of Music
31 Jan 2010 | 10:01 pmLast night was an unlikely stage to unveil the future of music. The 52nd Annual Grammys were on the last Sunday in January as they have been many times before ... only this time they were up head to head against the NFL Pro Bowl being played for the first time in the week before the Super Bowl instead of the week after. Add to that the continued financial woes of the music industry and perception of recording studios as relics of a time past and you had the perfect recipe for a show that was at best mildly entertaining, and at worst completely irrelevant. That's what I might have thought a… -
The Undiscovered Marketing Potential Of A USB Stick
26 Jan 2010 | 3:58 amMy laptop doesn't have a CD-ROM drive. Like many owners of smaller notebooks, I don't see the value of having that piece built into my computer as I would rather save the space and have a lighter and smaller machine. As netbooks become more and more popular and the rumored tablet becomes a reality (either from Apple or other manufacturers), larger computers with built-in CD-ROM drives will be less and less common. Despite this shift, most content you can purchase today is only offered in two forms of distribution. You can either download something off the web, or you can buy a physical disk… -
Social Media & The Axe Murderer: How Privacy Is Evolving Online
25 Jan 2010 | 10:30 amEveryone knows there are certain pieces of information that you just don't share online, right? What if you used Twitter or Foursquare to broadcast your location at a bar, and an axe murderer was reading your stream? You just signed your own death sentence. Or how about sharing details about where you live and or pictures of your family vacation, or even your innermost thoughts and emotions? All are things that are getting easier and easier to share online, both purposefully AND inadvertently. Combine this with a new generation used to a different standard of privacy and you have a recipe for…
-
Web Ink Now
-
Mumbai taxis and Apple MacBook Pros are really quite similar
9 Feb 2010 | 7:40 amAs I was strolling the streets of Bombay (Mumbai), India, I noticed that the taxicabs are the same make of car, yet the owners of the cabs have personalized them with stickers and other do-dads to make them unique. It got me thinking of other things that are commonly personalized such as MacBook Pro computers like mine. Anyway, I made this very short video to show you what I mean. It is less than a minute. Direct link to the video here. -
How to crowdsource videos for your company
8 Feb 2010 | 3:44 amWouldn’t it be cool if people created videos for you? Perhaps like HP, you could hold a contest to get students to put forward their best efforts. The contest was simple. "Present an idea which promotes HP Workstations ability to bring to life anything the creative mind can conceive." This video filmed, edited and directed by Matt Robinson and Tom Wrigglesworth for the contest is just terrific. Please take a just 80 seconds to watch this amazing video. Direct link to HP Invent video by Matt and Tom here. While in Amsterdam this past week, I met Jan-Paul de Beer of BrandFighters, a company… -
Enjoying a brand called Brand while listening to a Ramones tribute band
6 Feb 2010 | 3:20 amSo last night I made my way to Pakhuis Wilhelmina, a funky former warehouse turned live music venue in Amsterdam to see what turned out to be a surprisingly excellent Dutch Ramones tribute band. (Click the photo to enlarge.) While the band was terrific, they only knew about ten songs and considering most Ramones tunes clock in at less than three minutes we heard each song twice. The crowd didn't care, getting more into it on the second go-round. (I think I heard Blitzkrieg Bop three times, but I can't be sure). So I look up to the chalkboard menu to see the brands of beer they serve. I see… -
DSBtheMovie: Crowdsourced film created quickly and with zero budget
5 Feb 2010 | 4:03 amWhile in Amsterdam where I keynoted the Marketing Pioneers event, I met Jan Willem Alphenaar, Producer and Director of DSB the Movie. The film tells the story of the Netherland's DSB Bank NV which was declared bankrupt by court in October, 2009. Amazingly, Jan crowdsourced everything for the film including the film's logo, producer, scriptwriters, soundtrack, editor, camera, actors, and publicity. The film will be completed in just four months and with zero budget. Here is my interview with Jan which includes the film's trailer at 0:55. Direct link to my video here. Direct link to the film… -
Corporate comedy
1 Feb 2010 | 6:14 amCorporate comedy is one of those phrases like "jumbo shrimp," "smart ass," and "party down in Omaha" that seems a bit off. (No offense to shrimps, asses, or those from Omaha). Despite its rarity, comedy can be an extremely powerful corporate marketing tool. My friend Tim Washer, who is head of social media productions for IBM worldwide, is a comic genius. He pushes his colleagues at IBM on the value of hysterical videos and is in charge of producing them. I sat down with Tim to talk comedy. Specifically I wanted to find out how a marketer goes about convincing the bosses to lose control and…
-
Marketing with Meaning
-
How Magazines Are Becoming More Meaningful
9 Feb 2010 | 6:00 amA little more than a week ago, I spoke as guest of Better Homes and Gardens to a group of marketers and media planners in New York City. For the weeks leading up to this presentation I had been collecting examples of how magazine publishers are adapting to the new world of digital content and meaningful advertising. What I discovered is that despite the predictions that the magazine business is fading, there actually is an incredible rebirth of the medium going on. First let me call out that this breakfast at Better Homes and Gardens is itself an outstanding example of Marketing with… -
Why Write a Book? For This Guy
4 Feb 2010 | 6:00 amThis week I had lunch with an old friend who had not yet heard that I recently wrote a book. His first question was: “Why did you write a book?” It’s actually a question that I get a lot. It’s not that people believe that writing a book is a dumb idea. Rather, most people understand that it is a huge investment in time and energy on top of a day job, so they wonder what motivation drove me to make it happen. There are many answers that I give to this question. I usually talk about how I grew up with a father who wrote several books and his experiences struck a chord… -
Don’t Fear the “Splintered Web”
2 Feb 2010 | 6:00 amIt didn’t take long for Apple’s iPad announcement to be co-opted by industries that worry about how the iPad will upend their legacy businesses. You might assume this to be the book publishers, who might fear lower margins on e-books, or newspapers, who are struggling to figure out how to profit from companies that make it easier to enjoy their content at no cost. But actually the biggest voice against the iPad so far is my very own industry: Digital Advertising. Late last week two of the leading voices of digital marketing emerged with very public warnings for the advertising… -
Goldman Sachs’s Generosity Looks Hollow
28 Jan 2010 | 6:00 amIf there’s one profession that has probably dropped below advertisers on the respect level in the past few years, it would be investment bankers. Not only did they take their fair share of blame for the ongoing economic catastrophe, but now they are sinking to new lows in the court of public opinion thanks to the billions in bonuses that are about to be paid out. In fact, a recent WSJ study found that total compensation for bankers will be up 18% in 2009 to $145 billion—that’s amid a year that took a Fed rescue plan! One company in particular, Goldman Sachs, is facing a storm… -
Marriott Mars Your Stay with In-Toilet Ads
26 Jan 2010 | 6:00 amEvery few weeks I feel compelled to share an example of how big companies are taking the marketing and advertising fields to new lows. Today’s example comes from one of my field operatives, Jonathan Richman, who spotted the advertisement for Toto toilets in his room at the Marriott Renaissance in Washington, D.C. It’s sad, but true, and a good opportunity to step back and think about the economics of this new ad space. Let’s start with an analysis of the advertising itself. Marriott is providing a platform for the Toto brand to advertise its innovative new toilet,…
-
Nigel Hollis
-
Both brands and bloggers need to know their audiences
8 Feb 2010 | 9:15 amOver the last week, about one in ten visitors to mb-blog.com have come direct from Twitter. Apparently my recent post “Are marketers creating a social media bubble?” attracted some attention in the Twitterverse, and this led to an unprecedented surge in visits to the blog. While this level of attention is very welcome, it will [...] -
Big is beautiful when it comes to viral media too
2 Feb 2010 | 10:40 pmLast week I published a post titled “Big is Beautiful for Social Media.” What I did not say in that post was that the same principle - the advantage of being big - applies to viral video as well. If you want to hit critical mass with a video (generally considered to be 1 million [...] -
Are marketers creating a social media bubble?
31 Jan 2010 | 8:46 pmWhile at the Corporate Image and Branding conference in New York City on Thursday, I was lucky enough to hear a presentation by Bernd Schmitt. The thesis of Bernd’s presentation, that successful brands think big and innovate in ways that disrupt the status quo, is hardly new, but his delivery was very engaging. In one [...] -
Why big is beautiful in the world of social media
25 Jan 2010 | 7:38 pmLike many of you, I get a lot of unsolicited email newsletters. I delete most of them without reading, but every now and again something catches my attention. For example, I stopped to look at a recent email titled “The Real Social Media Trends of 2010,” but within a few minutes I realized that it [...] -
Hello Kitty: The exception that proves the rule?
18 Jan 2010 | 9:46 amLast Monday I was at a client meeting, and as I was busily expounding that successful brands need to stand for something and that using mass media is an important means to ensuring clarity around what the brand stands for, someone in the meeting brought up the example of Hello Kitty, pointing out that the [...]
-
Conversation Agent
-
How I Participate in Social Networks
9 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amI'm borrowing a page off the Communicatrix blog to lay out how I participate in social networks. Why? Because we all have a different strategy to how we spend our time and energy to be social and to achieve our goals and since we have a strategy, in the spirit of social, we should make it transparent. [hat tip to Skip Shuda for suggesting it]I've been getting more than many requests from several people in many networks lately. Requests to friend, requests to tweet, to forward, to bookmark, to stumble, the list goes on. Being online for the best part of my day makes me very accessible. That I… -
Are You Customer-Averse?
8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amWe all know the story of how Comcast went from customer-averse to customer-friendly. It started online with a person, and it's making its way to the rest of the organization. You will agree with me that Comcast went from this episode, to this action, to this thinking. They went from customer-averse, to customer-friendly. It didn't happen overnight, still it did. Competition helps, too, so we keep our fingers crossed on any one company getting too big to care.Businesses continue to look for more ways to get new business either from new or current customers -- usually both, in this order. Shiny… -
Trust in Media Down, Good News for Experts
7 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amTrust in business and Government has gone up in the last year, while trust in media seems to be declining across the board -- this is the latest finding of the latest annual Edelman Trust Barometer survey. Take a look at the executive report and see that:Trust in traditional media is trending downward: TV news dropped by 20 points radio news dropped by 17 points print news dropped by 12 points Trust in digital media is still pretty low, and although corporate communications are trending higher than social networks, they're still not that high.We've all witnessed the decline of stretched news… -
The Future Online is Subscription-Based: Why I Joined Third Tribe
5 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amClearly, the title left out a few pieces of information. I believe there is still a future online for free, but increasingly, the way to get things done, to go from conversation to agent, is subscription-based. Why? Accountability, resources, self-selected network, and opportunity to syndicate service, for a fee.The service for a fee model interests me most. That's why I joined Third Tribe as a member this week. The whole velvet rope community concept should make brands pay attention. This is not just a build a community to push your products, or just engage customers in your stuff kind of… -
We Still Get Things Done Through Search
4 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amWith all the talk about social networks and engagement, when it comes to getting things done, we rely on search. The image above was part of the set I used last Fall at the Inbound Marketing Summit when we talked about the importance of creating content for sharing.There was another interesting study I did not mention at the time that confirms a few of the following statements on social media as content delivery mechanism to: help conversions connect to value build relationships extend to influentials engage via education They are all outcomes I've had the opportunity to experience and…
-
Buzz Marketing for Technology
-
B2B Marketing Content: Lure or Lasso?
4 Feb 2010 | 8:43 amI picked this saying up from Gary Vaynerchuk’s new book called Crush It. I really liked the idea of content having dual purposes and not just the purpose of posting to your website or blog. The lure part is really about a steady stream of content that is consistent in its frequency which is why as people come to depend on it brings people back to your site time and time again. You can call it Inbound Marketing (like the folks at HubSpot do) or you could call it Content Marketing (like the folks at Junta42 do) but whatever you call it its the basis for all your online activity. The lasso… -
Social Media is not a campaign it’s a commitment!
2 Feb 2010 | 8:47 amA while back I created a post called – There is no “campaign” in Social Media because when marketers use the word “campaign,” it tends to suggest an initiative to get a message out to a targeted group of constituents. It also implies there will be a beginning and, somewhere down the road, an ending. And I still believe that is the case … And despite a number of comments I got about that post both positive and negative – I think I stopped short of really nailing the issue which is – social media is more than a campaign it a commitment! Its a commitment… -
Influencers vs Advocates in B2B Marketing
28 Jan 2010 | 8:35 amAccording to Wikipedia – Influencer Marketing is a form of marketing that has emerged from a variety of recent practices and studies, in which focus is placed on specific key individuals (or types of individual) rather than the target market as a whole. It identifies the individuals that have influence over potential buyers, and orients marketing activities around these influencers. In my own words – Influencers are individuals that write about Avaya but they also write about Cisco and Siemens in social media or otherwise. They are non partial and therefore they write about many… -
Why is Google Scared and What it means for B2B Marketing!
26 Jan 2010 | 8:23 amAt a recent dinner with a buddy of mine from Microsoft (who helped launch Bing) – I learned a lot more about the search market and a very important trend that can effect the future of B2B Marketing. When you think about the search behavior of the average person online – we are mostly conditioned to search in very routine ways like pulling up a Google search page, using the toolbar in your browser etc. And we tend not to stray from that behavior now. It’s almost an unconscious choice for most of us. But when it comes to search on a mobile device we mostly use very specific… -
The 4 P’s to Social Media Marketing
21 Jan 2010 | 10:03 amOk ok – based on the great response I got from my readers on my last blog post The 4 C’s of B2B Marketing I thought I would try to apply the same principle to Social Media Marketing. Frankly, I have been brewing this post for a while now and its time to let it loose. It combines a few things you might have read about into one new concept around social media – the 4 P’s of Social Media marketing. So here they are: #1 Tell Good Stories – think Idea Virus by Seth Godin #2 Make them Sticky – think Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath #3 Package them to be…
-
Post Advertising
-
A Sound Move for Brands
8 Feb 2010 | 8:18 amThis year at MIDEM, a gathering in France for the music industry elite, a number of panels focused on branding. Execs from Converse, NASCAR, PepsiCo, and Carhartt shed some light on the current state of music-based branding efforts. Advertising and the music industry are getting in harmony, Brandweek explains. Mountain Dew in particular has a very integrated collaboration with its artists, while most brand-artist relationships seem forced and coldly corporate. Its Green Label Sound puts the brand in cahoots with acts like Chromeo, Meg & Dia, and The Cool Kids. Mountain Dew’s moved… -
Satisfying the Kindle-Curious
4 Feb 2010 | 6:02 amThe Kindle e-reader has been one of the hottest tech items of the past couple of years. Now, in absence of standalone displays, Amazon established a portal where the Kindle-curious can hook up with local enthusiasts worldwide. AdLab tipped its hat to the project, which circumvents traditional paid sales representatives. In connecting potential users with core brand advocates, Amazon turns power over to those most passionate about the product—inherently better than any paid pusher. Through its forum, owners answer questions and those interested can arrange meetings. It’s organic… -
The Ivy League Song and Dance
3 Feb 2010 | 12:41 pmHey nerds: wanna go to Yale next year? Consider yourself warned. As you can see by the promo video, in the minds of admissions offices, it’s Ivy League Musical, 2010. For 15 minutes, enthusiastic students harmonize over the glories of their university. And oh, how wonderful life is up there! They have game rooms! Food! And students don't have to go outside to get to the library! The YouTube video’s so geeky, it’s almost good and was bound to quickly go viral. But did Yale’s admission’s office really need to attach this over-the-top image to its already… -
Domino's Dishes Out a Hot Campaign
2 Feb 2010 | 9:13 amTo many brands, listening to consumers means conducting a few focus groups and studying a report or two. But how much does that really accomplish? Are they just “protecting” themselves from the truth (which does more harm than good)? Because in the digital age, everyone gets to be heard—and Domino’s has finally perked up its ears. Consumers had been complaining about its sub-par pizza on Twitter (one compared its crust to cardboard), and the truth wasn’t easy for Domino’s to swallow. So, it cooked up The Pizza Turnaround, a documentary and campaign that… -
Pepsi Ditches the Super Bowl for Social Media
1 Feb 2010 | 7:44 amWe’re already a few weeks into the new year. So what does the upcoming decade hold for the ad world? Pepsi’s betting on social media (and cause-based marketing). In fact, last December the company announced it would abandon Super Bowl advertising for a $20 million social media campaign. Pepsi has spent some $142 million on Super Bowl advertising over the last decade, but this move ends the 23-year relationship between the two. On January 13, Pepsi kicked off its Pepsi Refresh Project, which, could not only enrich the brand, but with its focus on humanitarian efforts, it could also…
-
Conversation Marketing
-
Dunbar's number and warp drive: Building your social network beyond 150
5 Feb 2010 | 3:45 pmThis is really, really geeky stuff for a Friday. Plus, I had to dig waaaay back to my college Sociology courses to figure it out. You've probably heard a lot about the fact that a person can only maintain relationships with 150 people before their brains are frappe'd into cottage cheese. It's a valid assumption. Try to keep actively in touch, day-to-day, with more than 150 people. It's hopeless. That 150-person limit is called Dunbar's Number. It's like the speed of light (C, if you're a hardcore geek): Current physics says you can't exceed the speed of light. You get more and more massive as… -
10 questions to evaluate an SEO
2 Feb 2010 | 6:43 pmOne tradition in marketing: If something works, you beat it to death, and then some more, until it's a broad, flat spot on the ground. So, after folks loved my first piece, 10 questions to evaluate a social media expert, I've decided to do another about SEOs. Face it: If there's one industry that's even more rife with con artists than social media, it's SEO. One way to deal with it is to just say "Screw SEO, it's all a sham anyway. After all, Scoble says it doesn't matter." If you want to do that, fine with me - one less competitor. Another way to deal with it is to ask questions that'll make… -
Introducing The Fat Free Guide: What I'd do on Groundhog Day
1 Feb 2010 | 6:53 pmI'm talking about the movie Groundhog Day, not the day when we try to predict the weather using a large rodent (I know it's not really a rodent, but come on). Quick synopsis: Bill Murray lives through the same day again and again as the universe tries to show him the direction to take his life. Hilarity ensues. Bill gets clever, though, learning to play piano, preventing accidents that he's seen happen over and over again, etc.. I like it! If I got to live through 2/2 again and again, I'd: Memorize stock prices and become the ultimate day trader. Write a really good web site to teach folks… -
2010 SEMMY Winner: You like me! You really really like me!
1 Feb 2010 | 10:06 amI'm probably way too excited about this, but hey, it's stuff like this that compensates for lots of nights writing blog posts. Thanks to everyone who voted for my post, 10 Questions to evaluate a social media 'expert'. -
My BlogTalkRadio Interview with Rey Ybarra
30 Jan 2010 | 10:12 amRey Ybarra of the New Media Radio Hour interviewed me last week. Here's the recording, if you want to listen:
-
Marketing Interactions
-
Is Your Marketing Content Wardrobe Complete?
5 Feb 2010 | 9:59 amA short time ago I wrote a post, The Focus of Content Marketing is Not Format. I've been thinking about that and trying to come up with a way to help B2B marketers understand why the way they design their content is more important than format (white paper, case study, article, etc.). I came up with a correlation to fashion. Yeah, I know. Stay with me.But first, I'm giving credit for the spark of this bizarre brainstorm Friday fun to a post Kelley Robertson (@fearlessselling) wrote - The Dangers of Sales Casual - about follow-up calls.The tone and style of how content is written is… -
What's the Cost When Sales Tries to Do it All?
2 Feb 2010 | 4:23 pmI just saw some of the results that @Gerhard20 posted after reading an advance copy of CSO Insights' new 2010 Sales Effectiveness Study. I had a really strong urge to bang my head on my desk. Let's talk about three of the research findings:Research fact: Forty-seven percent of the companies surveyed (1,600 companies participated) reported that their salespeople generate their own leads. Research fact: Nearly 62 percent of all sales leaders surveyed say that their ability to generate new leads needs improvement. Anyone see anything askew in this picture? Now look at this:Research… -
Prospect Intelligence is a Terrible Thing to Waste
31 Jan 2010 | 1:26 pmIt always amazes me when I click to download a white paper or register for a webinar and am confronted by a 20-field lead generation form. Unless it's something I want very badly, I tend to click the back button and move on to something more appealing. Then again, I'm a marketer, so sometimes I fill out the form to see what the company will do in response. I have to say that I'm rarely surprised by something amazing and unexpected. I bet I've submitted my contact information close to fifty times during the last year. Maybe more. I do a lot of research for client projects. -
When Should B2B Lead Nurturing Stop?
28 Jan 2010 | 10:00 amI was on a call this morning when a discussion came up about when B2B lead nurturing should stop. Many companies believe this should happen once the lead is qualified and handed over to sales for pursuit. I take issue with this approach because it maintains the division between marketing and sales, instead of promoting a fluid, more holistic approach that encompasses the entire buying process—and beyond. Here are a few reasons why putting a hard stop on your nurturing programs isn't the best idea: Stage in the buying process: Most of the companies I work with have a longer-term buying… -
The Focus for Content Marketing is Not Format
25 Jan 2010 | 9:36 amI'm getting a lot of questions these days about content marketing. Thank you one and all! I love that B2B marketers are working on embracing the idea of content marketing, but I'd like to point out that there's a better way to go about it than focusing first on format. The focus for developing a content strategy should first be applied to: Buyers, Prospects, Customers and Influencers - in other words The People whose attention you want to catch...and to keep. Priorities, Problems, Issues, Objectives, Needs and Situations - in other words whatever it is they may need your help…
-
PR 2.0
-
The Internationalization of Social Media
8 Feb 2010 | 3:09 amIf you were to look at Social Media the United States and many other parts of the world, you would believe that the world of Social Media was flat, dominated by social continents including Facebook, Twitter, blogs, YouTube, and Flickr. As we zoom in, we visualize other established and emerging social services that depict provinces and outlying settlements of our social atlas.Upon publishing the original Conversation Prism, which was the culmination of a year’s work documenting and organizing the social web by usage and conversational patterns, the world responded by creating… -
The Roles of Facebook and Twitter in Social Media Marketing
5 Feb 2010 | 4:14 amSocial Media marketing is rapidly earning a role in the integrated marketing mix of small and enterprise businesses and as such, it’s transforming every division from the inside out. What starts with one champion in any given division, be it customer service, marketing, public relations, advertising, interactive, et al, eventually inspires an entire organization to socialize. What starts with one, a domino effect usually ensues toppling each department, gaining momentum, and triggering a sense of urgency through its path. And, it also marks the beginning of our journey through the ten… -
Mobile Internet Market to Eclipse Desktop Internet
3 Feb 2010 | 4:42 amSounds like a sensationalistic headline, but if you read Morgan Stanley’s latest series of reports on the Mobile Internet, you’ll walk away with the same impression.Morgan Stanley’s global technology and telecom analysts documented the rapidly changing mobile Internet market to provide a framework for emerging trends and direction.To set the stage, Morgan Stanley forecasts that the mobile Internet market will be at least 2x the size of desktop Internet when comparing Internet users to mobile subscribers.According to the report, Apple’s iTunes + iPhone/Touch ecosystem… -
The Human Algorithm: How Google Ranks Tweets in Real-Time Search
1 Feb 2010 | 4:57 amIn 2009, Google struck a deal with Twitter, rumored at $15 million, to integrate tweets into keyword related Google searches. And last month, Google also integrated real-time search technology to surface blog posts and news content as they hit the Web – dramatically improving the previous five to 15 minutes its spiders would take to crawl the Web. I should also note that Collecta also offers the ability to search the real-time Web, but its results also include popular networks within the social Web. Between Google and Collecta, Twitter Search is starting to show its age.The opportunities… -
Who is the ME in Social Media?
29 Jan 2010 | 4:11 amGood friend Stowe Boyd recently shared a quote by Gabriel García Márquez, “Everyone has three lives: a public life, a private life, and a secret life.”Indeed, quite simply many of us live life allowing specific, trusted individuals to know us in one or more of our personae. Our moral compass as well as outside influences affect how we balance our three lives. The size and permeability of our personal dividers vary in the separation of each life and resemble doors that open and close based on our desires. We nurture each individually with slight coalescence, but concentrate on…
-
Nick Burcher
-
FourSquare signs content deals with Zagat, HBO and 'Valentine's Day' movie (following partnerships with Harvard and Bravo)
9 Feb 2010 | 1:02 amLocation-based check-in service FourSquare is continuing to sign 'content' deals with mainstream partners that tie in to the service. The partnerships are about using FourSquare to bring venues to life by 'socialising' them through creation of a dedicated FourSquare presence. FourSquare users then get rewards for visiting / 'checking in' at a venue as well as being able to both read and leave 'Tips' for a specific location.Restaurant review service Zagat now have a FourSquare presence at http://foursquare.com/zagat:Zagat FourSquare presenceZagat say "ZAGAT + Foursquare = Foodie Love. We're… -
Google Parisian Love Superbowl ad
8 Feb 2010 | 5:02 amAfter using newspapers / buses to advertise YouTube, and billboards / newspaper wraps to advertise Google Chrome, last night Google ran their first Superbowl commercial.The Google Superbowl ad is the story of 'Parisian Love' and long distance relationships. It's not new (having been uploaded to YouTube on 19th November) but it is elegant way of getting across the different capabilities of Google and the way it enhances our lives:Originally uploaded to YouTube as part of a series of films called 'SearchStories', other examples of Google 'ads' / branded content around this theme can be seen… -
Lost - the flag bearer for cross platform TV content [no spoilers]
5 Feb 2010 | 5:56 amAfter starting in the US earlier this week, the final series of Lost airs in the UK tonight.Lost Series 6 billboard in Times SquareWhat started off as a simple concept - plane crashes on island, survivors want to escape, especially as a giant polar bear is present too - has evolved into an amazing 6 season, complicated mish-mash of plots, sub-plots, interlocking characters, time travelling story jumping and (at times ridiculous) cliff hanger moments.Lost is more than a TV show though, through a whole range of initiatives Lost has become a multi-media franchise arguably unlike any TV show that… -
Jedward - Ice Ice Baby takes over the internet!
3 Feb 2010 | 3:46 pm(The magnificent) Jedward have released their first official single, their mashup of Under Pressure and Ice Ice Baby - and they even have a guest appearance from Vanilla Ice himself(!):Not content with just a YouTube video though, Jedward have launched a Planet Jedward official YouTube channel..........but this is just the tip of the iceberg........There is also:- a Planet Jedward official site www.planetjedward.net- a Planet Jedward Twitter account @planetjedward- a Planet Jedward MySpace www.myspace.com/planetjedward- a Planet Jedward Bebo profile www.bebo.com/planetjedward- and a Planet… -
BBC Virtual Revolution (#bbcrevolution) four-part documentary about the internet [Review]
1 Feb 2010 | 5:03 amNew BBC series the Virtual Revolution aims to tell ‘the story of the web, but also the story of how the web is re-inventing our world.’ Presented by (Guardian Technology writer) Doctor Aleks Krotoski, the first episode was like a who’s who of the internet.The explanation of how the web has evolved saw visits to cities across the globe and interviews with a formidable collection of guests – Bill Gates, Al Gore, Steve Wosniak, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, Mark Zuckerberg, Chad Hurley, Arianna Huffington, Stephen Fry, Sean Fanning, Jimmy Wales, Charles Leadbetter and Andrew Keen – to name a…
-
The Toadstool
-
Super Bowl Ad Viewer
6 Feb 2010 | 11:44 amYou must have Adobe Flash Player 9or higher installed to view this contentsrc="http://www.adobe.com/images/shared/download_buttons/get_flash_player.gif"/>My friend Ian Schafer turned me on to this Super Bowl ad viewer, courtesy of Forbes magazine. Given how much people like to talk about these commercials, I thought it would be a good idea to add it here.I'll throw out an initial thought: how many of you, having spent the past year pretty much avoiding commercials of any sort (by using DVR, iTunes, Hulu, etc.) are actually kind of psyched to watch this year's crop since you rarely get to… -
The iPhone, The Kindle App & Me
30 Jan 2010 | 7:43 amIn the swirl of debate around the iPad, one of the things I kept reading from iPaddies was that it was "impossible to read books on an iPhone."And so I feel compelled to point out that's just not true.I've been reading books on my iPhone for the past six months, using the Kindle app and it's been a very positive experience. I'm reading a lot more in total, able to read in a lot more situations and I'm reading things I might not have tackled previously due to their sheer volume. That's 32 books in total, ranging from history books like Harrison Salisbury's 900 Days, The Siege of Leningrad to… -
The Obligatory iPad Post
27 Jan 2010 | 4:25 pmI’ll keep this short and sweet.Yeah, it’s cool and it’d be fun to have one.Sort of the way it’d be fun to have a Lamborghini or some other essentially useless Italian sportscar.For most of the trumpeted uses of the iPad, it all comes down to one basic question: why would I want to do that on a really great small(ish) screen (that doesn't fit into my pocket the way my iPhone can) when I can do it on a really great big screen? Seriously.Keynote is trying enough on my 13-inch MacBook screen (compared to the usual 24 inch monitor I use) why would I want to work with it on a smaller… -
Hive Awards Updates and A Treat
26 Jan 2010 | 9:50 amI have admittedly been bad about the frequency of my updates here this month - busy trying to get the Hive Awards off the ground.Speaking of which, I just wanted to give you a recap and some details:Call for Entries ends 1.31 2.15, so ENTER NOW The show itself will be held as a part of SXSW InteractiveWhen: Friday, March 12th @ 8PMWhere: Red 7, 611 East 7th Street, off Red River Road (Bing map here)Microsoft Bing is now one of our sponsors - look for more announcements on that front shortly.And now for the treat: former SNL cast member Rachel Dratch ("Debby Downer" and others) and comedian… -
Social Media Week
21 Jan 2010 | 7:27 amSocial Media Week is going to be held the first week of February in Toronto, Sao Paulo, San Francisco, New York, London and Berlin.I am on the Advisory Board for the New York event and there are going to be a whole lot of great sessions, panels, parties and whatnot.But you won't be able to go to any of them unless you register now, which you can do at http://socialmediaweek.org/Toby Daniels has done an outstanding job of coordinating all this and getting all the pieces in place and recruiting some top notch talent to appear.See you there!
-
Servant of Chaos
-
Im a Little Bit Country
8 Feb 2010 | 2:24 pmWhat happens when the cultural references of one generation echo into nothingness? What happens when a younger generation misinterprets an off-handed quip? Or tweet? It’s not simply a few words that disappear into the ether. There are legions of stories, anecdotes and shared experiences that are erased. So when I say, “I’m a little bit country”, what does it mean to you? -
Five Must-Read Posts from Last Week
7 Feb 2010 | 4:26 pmI am always astounded at not just the number of quality, well-written posts produced each week – but also at the depth of thinking that is made available to us all. I probably learn more from reading blog posts each week than I do from the dozens of books that I read each year. This weeks’ five must-read posts are great examples: Jay Baer shares 11 reasons that your company needs Facebook. Or more precisely, he explains why Facebook can be useful for your marketing efforts. Not exactly from last week – but Niko Herzeg writes about the need to focus our strategies and products not on the… -
I Hate the Yellow Balloon
5 Feb 2010 | 1:19 pmNYE Originally uploaded by redrobin2008 There I said it. -
A Cup of Chaos #28 - Channel 7 News - Finance Segment
4 Feb 2010 | 12:07 pmThey say you should never do live TV with children or animals - nor bankers it would seem. In this segment from Channel 7's Sydney studio, there seems to be a little more action in the background than there is in the finance report. -
Commonwealth Bank's 2013 Vision
3 Feb 2010 | 10:14 pmMonty Hamilton pointed out that comments have been disabled on the Commonwealth Bank’s 2013 Vision video. Yet they allowed the embed code. So I thought I’d drop the video in here and get your feedback. I was immediately struck by how little social interaction took place in the lives of the featured couple. I was amazed that there was no understanding of the way that technology is being used not for its own sake (or for economic/transactional productivity), but to connect with others, to exercise social judgement (especially around purchasing decisions) or to coordinate and maximise the…
-
Chaos Scenario
-
What You Don't Know Can Kill You
26 Jan 2010 | 5:14 amOn a recent project, I was reminded of "The Curse of Knowledge," the arch-villain of Chip and Dan Heath's Made to Stick. According to this concept, the more we know about something, the harder it is for us to remember not knowing it.There's a corollary curse that goes with that: The more we know about something, the more tempting it is to assume we know more than we do. You might be surprised to learn how much medical doctors and/or other incredibly bright and useful people know about web architecture and design.Aircraft engineers are pretty bright people. Lives depend on their competence. -
10 Advanced Features I Want from Apple Tablet
19 Jan 2010 | 6:08 pmTo hear some commentators tell it, Steve Jobs is going to single-handedly save the newspaper industry with Apple's new tablet, which is rumored to be announced next week (Read Newsweek's Article: Five Ways Apple's Tablet May Change the World). I wish him, the newspaper industry, and the world the best of luck.But while we're pontificating about what the Tablet might do, here's hoping its rumored crowdsourcing need aggregation and fulfillment app (codename: iGenie) will pull in my wish list and make it a reality. Besides the basics -- Music, Internet, eReader, etc., here are some things I'd… -
When can a comma cost you $2 million?
13 Jan 2010 | 7:48 amLittle details matter. Ask Rogers Communications, Inc.In 2006, this Canadian company witnessed firsthand how a single comma in a contract could cost them over $2 million.What they thought they signed:The agreement “shall continue in force for a period of five years from the date it is made, and thereafter for successive five year terms unless and until terminated by one year prior notice in writing by either party.”What they actually signedThe agreement “shall continue in force for a period of five years from the date it is made, and thereafter for successive five year terms, unless and… -
Giving Credit Where It's Due
30 Dec 2009 | 8:07 amI like to give credit where it’s due.Unfortunately, in my industry, the people who put in the most hours, who have to drink the most coffee, and who get hosed most often due to last-minute hiccups, discoveries or scope changes are the ones who have some of the most thankless jobs. That’s why I fell in love with the idea of the Hive Awards, which recognize those whose contributions often go unnoticed or unappreciated. After all, when was the last time you’ve been to a website and thought to yourself, “Boy! I’m so glad that I can view this website in Explorer 6, Safari, AND… -
The Value of Y-O-U
19 Nov 2009 | 7:30 amRecently I read Value-Based Fees: How to Charge and Get What You're Worth by Alan Weiss. I've coveted this book since I wrote Innovation by the Hour last year. After I worked through my rather large (and growing) stack of reading material, I finally was able to get my hands (and eyes) on it, and I am glad I did! (Thanks to Lisa for the recommendation).Many, if not most, people in service industries bill for time and material. This is problematic in industries whose output includes ideas, for who is to say when (or on whose dime) ideas were generated? Who owns the idea formed in an employee's…
-
No Man is An Island
-
Subscription forms: list growth and sign-up language
3 Feb 2010 | 1:44 amOne newsletter publisher found that modifying the words used on their form's "submit" button changed sign-up rates by over 20%.Which suggests we should pay more attention to those forms. Should, but largely don't.We twiddle and tweak incessantly with content, offers, subject lines and button colors. Why not give due attention to the sign-up form, too?Once you've covered the basic elements (like location, privacy links, indication of email frequency etc.), what are some issues you might look at more closely?Here are three suggestions...1. How do you actually describe the act of joining a… -
The future of HTML email design...
1 Feb 2010 | 12:30 amOne solution to all those problems with mobile email and a lack of HTML email design standards: -
The one question to ask of your email marketing in 2010
28 Jan 2010 | 7:22 am...and the question is a simple one: is it enough?One of email marketing's great strengths is (or was) its robustness. It was relatively easy to get a campaign or newsletter to justify the efforts that went into it.You could often make "mistakes" and still get a good return on your time and resources.And that mentality still pervades much of the email marketing world. Never mind that good returns hide the fact that many (most) people don't actually respond to what we send.Each year, various people warn against this complacency, suggesting that what was good enough before won't be good enough… -
Twitter: lessons from one year of business use
25 Jan 2010 | 7:14 amMy Twitter account had its first anniversary at the weekend, so time for some reflections on what I've learned about its value and application for business and marketing purposes.The bottom lineMy original goals focused on providing value and service to those who might find me on Twitter.Feeling all warm and cuddly about helping folk is rewarding, but does Twitter participation impact business goals? I run a content website, so does Twitter drive traffic to the site?Twitter's effect on visitor numbers is hard to measure. For example:Over the past year, Twitter.com accounted for 0.88% of total… -
When spammers attack...Email Marketing Reports
20 Jan 2010 | 3:07 amIn the early hours of the morning, malicious persons unknown hacked into the ad serving software at Email Marketing Reports in an attempt to turn the site into a source of spy/malware.The problem was identified with the fast and efficient help of my host (pair.com) and the ad software disabled. Email Marketing Reports was back to normal very quickly. Needless to say, I'm now looking for new ad serving software.Some people visiting the main site (but not the blog) during this brief period would have got malware security warnings from their browser and been unable to access the site's content.
-
What's Next
-
Hey Old Spice and Time Warner! You were the laughing stock of social media week new york
7 Feb 2010 | 8:05 pmOld Spice was the laughing stock of Social Media Week New York when I showed this horrific photo from their lameass Residue is Evil campaign. Time Warner was close behind on the lousy campaign laugh meter. As I noted back in August 2009: "Ok, I'm not a 18 to 25 year-old man, so I'm not the demographic for the Old Spice Deodorant's Swagger contest. Nonetheless, I've never seen a more confused, obtuse, badly designed contest than the one that starts on this annoying page and gets weirder and harder to use from there. They've included their slickly produced commercials as examples, which rather,… -
Toyota: Way too little, way too late & what they should have done
7 Feb 2010 | 9:26 amThe Daily Show With Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c -
#socialmedia Tweet Chat #45 - The fear factor: Shift Happens
2 Feb 2010 | 8:05 pmI am immersed in Social Media Week New York, and wanted to share some of the highlights of my travels today. The theme of the day: Shift happens. Tweet Chatting with Borders Free WiFi Since there was no wifi at the new media conference I was covering today, (!?) I ended up at Borders, where the coffee was great, and the wifi was free, (thank you Borders!) so I could host the 45th edition of the hour-long weekly Twitter Social Media chat, produced by hashtagsocialmedia.com's Marc Meyer and Jason Breed. Just about everyone who's anyone in emerging media has hosted and/or participated in the… -
Thistle Farms: Marketing With Hope, Love & Social Media
31 Jan 2010 | 7:31 pmSometimes, the use of social media is a rather frivolous afterthought in marketing campaigns. In the case of Magdelene House and Thistle Farms, hope, love, and social media sell redemption. Let them show you what social media really can do. Last week, I went to a house party for Thistle Farms, a non-profit business operated by the women of Magdalene House, a two-year residential program for women who are recovering from sexual abuse, violence, and life on the streets, and who have paid dearly for their past. The party was held to celebrate the start of Magdelene's 10-city tour of prisons,… -
2010 Social Media Week NYC: My Schedule & Recommended Events
31 Jan 2010 | 6:27 pmSocial Media Week NYC kicks off Monday and scores of events - almost all aimed at newbies - are planned. I'm speaking at three events this week - one online and two at the Roger Smith Hotel. Details are below along with several other events that look interesting. Where I'm speaking 1- Social Media Tweet Chat Tuesday, Feb 2 noon-1pm EST on Twitter I'll moderate a conversation on Twitter about the business of social media. These Twitter chats have been moderated by a stellar array of social media luminaries including my friends Scott Monty, Ann Handley, Shel Israel, Charlene Li, Brian Solis,…
-
Buzz & Viral Marketing
-
Search is the New Art of Storytelling
9 Feb 2010 | 4:37 amSuper Bowl Sunday's come and gone, but we're still reeling over the sublime TV debut of Google's "Search Stories" campaign. "Parisian Love," which aired in the third quarter of the game, relates a classic story — an American finding love in Paris — in a fresh new way: the language of search. The effort's interesting for a few reasons. To start with, Google went against common wisdom that if you're gonna blow cash on a Super Bowl spot, it better be on something incendiary and new. "Parisian Love" has been circulating the 'net for the last three months, and the positive responses it… -
Don't Date; Get Down to the Digital Nitty-Gritty
9 Feb 2010 | 4:14 amBeing shocked over sexting is so last year. Literally. So what to do once the horror wears off? Admit it's the new face of romance, at least according to Red Tettemer. The Philly-based agency concludes "the world has moved past the quaint ritual of getting to know one another face to face." This means flowers, chocolate and dinner are dated analog rituals, and you should probably leave them to people that still have '90s haircuts. This year, grab the future by the balls and sext with Red Tettemer. You heard us: sext with Red Tettemer. From now through Valentine's Day, RedTettemer.com will be… -
Pretty in Pink: The Fiat 500
8 Feb 2010 | 4:06 amHoping to draw more female clients (and kindly drain shelves of a product that chafes our eyeballs), Fiat introduces Pink My Ride, in which 131 bottles of pink nail polish are exhausted to paint a white Fiat 500 the colour of Pepto Bismol. This is compelling, if only because you don't have to witness the painstaking effort of one peppy-looking guy, varnishing a car with a teeny nail brush, in real-time. It takes us two hours to paint our own nails, and it took him four days to finish the Fiat; we bet he was vomming en rose by the end of it. Painfully adorable work. But — because the world… -
App Saves Life of Haiti Aid Worker
5 Feb 2010 | 12:27 amHere's a story that probably keeps Steve Jobs' toes warm at night: one Dan Woolley, an aid worker in Haiti, credited his ability to survive under rubble for 65 hours to the American Heart Association's Pocket First Aid & CPR App. When the story was picked up by CNN, he called the $3.99 application a "high-tech version of a Swiss Army knife that enabled me to treat my own injuries, track time, stay awake and stay alive." Impressive, given that our own iPhones won't even stay powered for six hours' worth of Bejeweled sessions. The resulting coverage hiked the AHA app to the top 50 paid apps in… -
Playboy's Next Cover Girl Shall Rise from the 'Net
5 Feb 2010 | 12:05 amAhh, the internet finally comes full-circle. Playboy, which represents one of the classier ways you can sell your skin without gaining too much skank cred, has made it possible for aspiring cover girls to build their books on the 'net. CastingPlayboy.com, created by Grey/Buenos Aires, sports a virtual photographer who'll "shoot" girls in their own depressing little 40-square-meter studio apartments. Strut for dude while he records your best angles. At the end of this lonely pretend photo shoot, girls can compile their own digital books and invite friends to rate them. The books remain on…
-
Bringing Brands to Life
-
Strategic Incubator Interviews Me
31 Jan 2010 | 4:58 pmI recently had a fun and interesting interview with Matthew Ray Scott, Managing Director of The Strategic Incubator, about using documentary storytelling for businesses. The interview is 43 minutes long and takes a different angle (no pun intended!) than previous interviews I've given. Here are a few things we covered: How I discovered filmmaking from a busted rock 'n' roll dream. What is the most important thing about creating believable video stories? What is the greatest challenge facing companies in sharing their marketing stories? How has social media changed how companies share their… -
What is Our Company’s Purpose? The R-O-I Method
27 Jan 2010 | 6:05 amHave you read Daniel Pink’s new book, “Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us?” If you haven’t picked it up yet, don’t wait too long; this book will forever change how you think about motivating individuals (hint: it’s usually not carrots and sticks). Pink definitely motivated me to rethink how organizations might use multimedia in ways beyond traditional corporate communication methods. Let’s look at one idea from the book and adapt it for our purposes. Closing the gap One of the exercises included at the end of Pink’s book is… -
Tom's SpeedLink #16
26 Jan 2010 | 5:23 amEnjoy today's roundup... 1. In between frames Absolutely brilliant little riff from Seth Godin. "Consumers are too smart for the frames. It's the in-between frame stuff that matters. And yet marketers spend 103% of our time on the frames." 2. Why write a book? And speaking of Seth, his new book, Linchpin, launches today. I finished my advance copy yesterday and it's Seth's finest, IMHO. 3. The basic principles of nonverbal communication -1 Communications master Nick Morgan has a great series on nonverbal communications. 4. 10 Documentaries to look out for in 2010 The Documentary Blog has a… -
Impersonal Communications: 7 Costly Glitches
20 Jan 2010 | 6:13 am1. They can appear unbelievable. 2. They can feel distant. 3. They can feel unemotional. 4. They can appear uncaring. 5. They can feel meaningless. 6. They can appear wasteful. 7. They can feel uninspiring. Why not consider humanizing communications so it connects us to something beyond ourselves? Something to think about. --Tom P.S. Inspired by Daniel Pink's new book "Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us." -
Engagement in 4 Minutes
14 Jan 2010 | 6:56 pmThe narrative "sweet spot." --Tom P.S. Inspired by Indexed.
-
ContentMarketingToday
-
B2B Media Burning Bridges to Print While Business Marketers Deliver Outstanding Online Content
29 Jan 2010 | 12:40 pmAs Content Marketing Goes from Optional to Obligatory for Business, Penton Suffers and Miller Electric Shines Penton’s shift to online only for Welding Design & Fabrication symbolizes the decline of traditional media. At the same time, Miller Electric shows just how powerful content marketing can be as a replacement for traditional publishing—even when publishers take their acts to the web. Penton’s print magazine launched in 1959 when Eisenhower was President, Sputnik had just gone into orbit, and most TVs were black and white. After decades of success, the print… -
4 Common Sense Social Media Tips for PR and Marketing Pros
29 Jan 2010 | 12:02 pmYes, you can apply the best of traditional public relations practices to the new world of social media Guest post from Kathleen Taylor, APR, President of the Southwest Florida chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association offers 4 top takeaways from their January 2010 Social Media Cafe. Her report from the seminar illustrates that social media is beginning to permeate PR even in a relatively small market such as the Naples/Ft. Myers Fl area. By Kathleen Taylor, APR "The wisdom’s in the room. Make a concerted effort to learn from those around you," said Butch… -
Learn What’s Ahead for Content Marketing in 2010 from 39 experts
21 Jan 2010 | 7:15 amNew Crowd Sourced E-Book Is Also a Brilliant Example of Content Marketing Because all of us are smarter than one of us, you will find lots of value in the new e-book, Key Content Marketing Trends and Predictions for 2010– which even includes my own fearless prediction on content marketing. The genius behind this e-book is Ambal Balakrishnan. She has turned crowd sourcing into an art form. Ambal has recruited 39 experts and given them an opportunity to display their knowledge. She adds her own value by synthesizing the best of those 39 predictions to come up with her own top… -
10 Ways to Win with Online Video
19 Jan 2010 | 6:40 amStand Out from the Marketing Crowd Thanks to Lou Bortone, video marketing guru for this guest post In an over-crowded and hyper-competitive marketplace, video marketing can help you break through the clutter and deliver your message in a powerful and memorable way. Thanks to YouTube, and inexpensive, easy-to-use camera options like webcams, Flip Video cameras and iPhones, online video is now well within the grasp of just about anyone. However, just because creating video is more accessible than ever, that doesn’t mean we all know how or where to use it. As with any marketing tool, you’ve… -
Content Marketing Lessons Driven by the Geico Gecko
12 Jan 2010 | 5:02 amAnd It’s Not Just Content But Mobile Content for the iPhone The Geico gecko campaign is an excellent example of effective advertising because it integrates humor with a consistent product benefit message. Nonetheless, it suffers from the same limitations that afflict all advertising: It calls out to customers whether or not they want to hear the message. Thus, however amusing, it’s still an example of interruption marketing. Because each ad is short, Geico is limited in the amount of information it can convey. There is little intrinsic value to the content of the ads. That is,…
-
Hard Knox Life
-
Super Bowl Ad shows Google’s move from Tech to Consumer Marketer
7 Feb 2010 | 6:43 pmBack in 2006, Google’s CEO Eric Schmidt infamously said that brand advertising was “The last bastion of unaccountable spending in corporate America.” Yet during the 2010 Super Bowl, Google did what many would have called unthinkable just a few years ago… they ran a piece of brand advertising on the largest advertising stage in the world. Supporting their Search Stories campaign, Google ran their “Parisian Love” television ad during the 3rd Quarter of the Saints / Colts Super Bowl. Of course Internet companies have a long history of running ads during the… -
Is it wrong to “aim out of the ball park?”
1 Feb 2010 | 4:16 amThe other day, Miles Nadal, Chairman and CEO of MDC Partners, shared this quote from David Ogilvy, which I promptly retweeted: “Don’t bunt. Aim out of the ball park. Aim for the company of immortals.” The quote really resonated with me because it is the type of gusto we don’t see all that often in business any more, especially in the world of Consumer Packaged Goods. After all, when your sales are measured in $ Billions, Wall Street is going to reward you for consistency. But with that said, I was still surprised by some of the responses that I received when I sent… -
“Hack vs Flack”…a social media point / counterpoint
28 Jan 2010 | 10:36 amIt has been awhile since I posted a presentation up on Hard Knox Life. Luckily my friend Kevin Dugan is helping me put an end to that drought with this great presentation on the state of media relations in regards to the impact of social media. Provocatively called “Hack vs Flack“, I wish I had a chance to see him present this in person. Hack vs. Flack…a social media point/counterpoint -
How a Brand Manager can make a big difference
25 Jan 2010 | 4:19 amRight before the holidays, a colleague gave me a copy of Paul Arden’s “It’s Not How Good You Are, Its How Good You Want to Be.” Even though the book is a quick read, it is packed with thought-provoking points. In particular, I was inspired by three essays that talked about how a Senior Agency Manager, Junior Ad Account Handler and Media Buyer “can make a big difference” in the world of agency work (pages 98 – 101 in the book). In fact, I thought the points were so powerful that I wanted to do my own riff on: How a Brand Manager can make a big… -
Don’t make the mistake of giving up the Voice of the Brand
21 Jan 2010 | 6:06 amIn the halls of Brand Management, Tom Fishburne is easily more popular than Dilbert. After all, he’s one of us. So it is no surprise that Tom perfectly captured one of today’s most debated brand management questions: “Who should represent a brand in Social Media?” It is the same question that was posed on the American Express OPEN Forum, when Ann Handley wrote an article entitled “The Right Voice for Your Brand Online is…?“ In the post, Ann suggested the right “person” could be: The CEO (or other high-level executive). The marketing…
-
Web Strategy by Jeremiah
-
Register For Webinar: Developing a Social Strategy by Objectives
8 Feb 2010 | 10:11 amLeft: There are four main categories of social strategy, yet with over 20 subset objectives, which we’ll discuss at a high level. Organizations that focus on social technologies suffer from the symptom of ‘Fondling The Hammer‘ . True social strategy stems from business objectives –not the latest technologies. So often, companies develop social tactics based on the latest tool that’s sprung forth. Yet, so far and few in between to organizations develop an actionable plan based on business goals. This second in our no-cost webinar series is coming up on the… -
People on the Move in the Social Media Industry: Feb 4, 2010
4 Feb 2010 | 8:31 pmThe submissions are defintly picking up, I’m seeing more submissions than before. Why? I attribute this to the start of the new year when many folks change up jobs, and the slight uptick we’re starting to see in the economy. In an effort to recognize the changes in the social media space, I’ve started this post series (see archives) to both track and congratulate folks who get promoted, move, or accept new exciting positions. Please help me congratulate the following folks: Congrats to Jeannette Gibson (Twttier) who has moved to corporate marketing to run social media at… -
Matrix: Companies Should Factor ‘Social Influence’ Into Total Customer Value
3 Feb 2010 | 6:00 amCase Study: An Influential Mom Blogger Caused Mainstream Crises Popular blogger, Heather Armstrong (@dooce) was dissatisfied with her non-working Maytag appliance. Following protocol, she called their support number, yet her issue was not solved. Stonewalled, she argued/warned the support staff that she was on Twitter, yet didn’t receive special assistance. Escalating further, she then flexed a muscle and told them she had over 1,000,000 Twitter followers –yet the support rep did not budge. Finally, she blogged and Tweeted against Maytag, initiating a boycott by her… -
List of Corporate Social Media Strategists, Corporate Community Managers in 2010
30 Jan 2010 | 9:36 amAs an industry watcher, I look at trends, data, spending, technologies, yet what’s really important is watching the trend of professionals as they grow into these roles managing disruptive technologies. Update: Brian Hayashi has created a spreadsheet of this with additional info –like Twitter handles. We’re staying coordinated so the data is matched, follow Brian on Twitter. [Connecting with customers using social technologies is deceptively challenging, as most outsiders don't recognize the leadership to change internal cultural. Now, in public, let's recognize those who… -
O’Reilly Webcast Social Business: Taking “Social” to the Core of Your Organization
29 Jan 2010 | 6:30 amA few weeks ago, I was invited to join a discussion with Joshua-Michéle Ross (O’Reilly ), Stowe Boyd, thought leader, and Peter Kim (former colleague at Forrester, now at Dachis Group) on the topic of social business. Listen in, as there’s not really a lot of content on the slides to focus on, while you go about your work, driving, or workout.
-
Drew's Marketing Minute
-
Examples of social media policies
8 Feb 2010 | 5:35 amIn corporate America (and probably corporate World), rules get created when people make bad choices. It's how child labor laws came to be and why we now have sexual harassment policies. The few and the stupid are the catalyst to regulation.Which is why it's not a shock that companies big and small are beginning to institute social media policies. After the Dominos pizza incident and the world famous FedEx tweet -- who can blame business leaders from wanting to protect themselves by setting down some rules?I've put together a long list of social media policy… -
Have you built a rock solid foundation for your personal brand?
5 Feb 2010 | 3:10 amWhether you work for someone else, are a serial entrepreneur or anything in between -- in today's world, you can't afford to ignore the idea of personal branding.A generation ago, employees often stayed with one employer for the lion's share of their career. Today, most professionals will not work for several companies -- but they will most likely change their entire profession.And even in the unlikely case that you do find the employer of your dreams right off the bat -- you still want to distinguish yourself by standing out from the crowd.Enter personal branding. -
Nuggets of smart
2 Feb 2010 | 6:21 amI don't know about you, but one of my struggles is sifting through all the information out there to find the real nuggets of smart. I thought, from time to time, I might point out some of the really smart stuff out there so you don't have to go digging for it. I'd love to know if you find value in this sort of post. (Just click on the bolded text to get to each offering) New study on customer gratitude: Elaine Fogel talks about a new study done by the American Marketing Association that looks at the sales impact of generating a sense of gratitude in… -
The best Superbowl commercial of 2010
31 Jan 2010 | 7:43 pmRemember when the Superbowl was about the game? Now it's the halftime show wardrobe malfunctions and of course, the commercials. Here's one of my favorites from last year, to get you in the mood! (e-mail subscribers, click here to view) Want to get a jump on Sunday's new spots? Don't want to have to wade through 60 minutes of football just to see what Budweiser, GoDaddy and Doritos have in store for us?Head over to MSNBC's site where they are hosting an Ad Showdown. You can watch each and every spot and then in a nod to the NCAA tourney… -
Extinction is right around the corner...
27 Jan 2010 | 7:22 pmFor getting lost, desktop computers and glaciers. At least according to The Future Trends book called Future Files by Richard Watson. (buy it by clicking here) As part of the promotion of the book, the author released the chart below. It's an extinction timeline...predicting that newspaper delivery will be gone by 2012 and FM radio by 2027. I promise you...you'll find this fascinating and its content will be your conversation starter for at least a week. If you're having trouble reading the timeline, you can click on the chart to open a…
-
Writing White Papers
-
Before You Start Your White Paper Project, Ask These Questions (Part 2 of 4)
9 Feb 2010 | 4:26 amThis is part 2 of a series on your internal preparation for a white paper project. Second: Who is the ideal reader for this white paper? Get ready to dissect the persona. Too many companies underestimate the importance of this step in the white paper process—determining the ideal reader. When this step is skipped, the result is a white paper that tries to do too much for too many people and ends up boring most of them. Don’t let that fate befall your white paper project. Do some homework on your ideal readers and be sure that your paper floats their boat. This kind of homework is akin… -
Before You Start Your White Paper Project, Ask These Questions (Part 1 of 4)
1 Feb 2010 | 1:50 pmThis post is part 1 of a series on the homework you need to do before you start on a white paper project for your organization. First: What message do we want to convey? Have you ever painted anything: a door, a bedroom, a house? Did you keep track of your time? Did you notice that you spent most of your time in preparation, and that the process of applying paint actually went pretty quickly? White papers are not much different. Organizations that have done all the prep work and established a rhythm and process for marketing content can keep white paper projects rolling without much ado. But… -
Images as Bricks, Text as Mortar - A New Model for White Papers?
21 Jan 2010 | 9:17 amWhite papers are meant to persuade and inform. What if you did all of your persuading with images and all of your informing with text? Last week a freelance writer turning her attention to the world of white papers asked: How important are graphics and diagrams to a white paper? I’m not very good at creating these. Do you think I should check out a few online tutorials on MS Word to learn how to use all those tables and charts? I think about this a lot. A white paper without diagrams is silly, bordering on the oppressive. It’s like children’s literature without pictures. In… -
We’re Giving Away Free White Paper Success Summit Tickets!
13 Jan 2010 | 2:03 pmIf you want to win free tickets to White Paper Success Summit 2010, be sure to check out the contest we have going on over at Junta42. Your chances of winning are VERY good. And the grand prize is two summit tickets and a free consult with me! Go there now and enter to win your free tickets. -
5 Ways to Grow Your Business With White Papers & the 3 Mistakes You Must Avoid
8 Jan 2010 | 11:02 amIs the need for better leads forcing you to rethink your marketing plans for 2010? Are you contemplating using white papers to grow your business? Do you know the common mistakes that make white papers useless? If you’re pondering these questions, I strongly recommend you attend my upcoming webinar (it’s free) called 5 Ways to Grow Your Business With White Papers and the 3 Mistakes You Must Avoid coming on January 20, 2010. I will be joined by Bob Bly (author, White Paper Marketing Handbook) as a presenter at this special free event. By attending this online event you’ll…
-
Seth's Blog
-
TEDthink
9 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amCan you factor this? If you're like most people, you get a little queasy at the thought. And when you were in tenth grade, you surely wondered why they were bothering you.(the answer is (x-2) times (x-2), in case you were curious.)It turns out that the real reason you needed to do this work was to be able to play with numbers in your head. Abstract numerical thought is an important skill among educated people.Which brings us to TED, a conference held every year in Long Beach. It's going on right now. Watch a few TED videos and try to get ahead of the speaker. They have an idea...it's probably… -
Frightened, clueless or uninformed?
8 Feb 2010 | 2:57 amIn the face of significant change and opportunity, people are often one of the three. If you're going to be of assistance, it helps to know which one.Uninformed people need information and insight in order to figure out what to do next. They are approaching the problem with optimism and calm, but they need to be taught. Uninformed is not a pejorative term, it's a temporary state.Clueless people don't know what to do and they don't know that they don't know what to do. They don't know the right questions to ask. Giving them instructions is insufficient. First, they need to be sold on what the… -
The least I could do
7 Feb 2010 | 3:35 amOne way to think about running a successful business is to figure out what the least you can do is, and do that. That's actually what they spent most of my time at business school teaching me.No sense putting more on that pizza, sending more staff to that event, answering the phone in fewer rings... what's the point? No sense being kind, looking people in the eye, being open or welcoming or grateful. Doing the least acceptable amount is the way to maximize short term profit.Of course, there's a different strategy, a crazy alternative that seems to work: do the most you can do instead of the… -
iPad app of my dreams: the digital talking pad
6 Feb 2010 | 8:10 amHere's the spec. If you build it and it's great, I'll use it and I'll blog it.A while ago, I posted about the talking pad and a modern version of it.I think there's a killer app version of this for the iPad, and I hope someone will build it. The talking pad is an interactive presentation tool for smart people.OverviewIt's a very simple concept: a collection of pages (slides, images, type, let's call them pages) that are easy to navigate in a non-linear way. Along with the standard zoom features, I'd like to be able to write on any of them in real time using my finger. I can also call up, on… -
The relentless search for "tell me what to do"
6 Feb 2010 | 2:26 amIf you've ever hired or managed or taught, you know the feeling.People are just begging to be told what to do. There are a lot of reasons for this, but I think the biggest one is: "If you tell me what to do, the responsibility for the outcome is yours, not mine. I'm safe."When asked, resist.
-
Greg Verdino's Marketing Blog
-
Get an education about social media in education
2 Feb 2010 | 4:40 amIf you're in New York for Social Media Week and plan to hit some sessions, be sure to check out The Future of Social Media in Education at noon on Friday Feb 5th at the McGraw-Hill building. It's a panel session hosted by McGraw-Hill and their GradeGuru startup, featuring GradeGuru's Yianni Garcia, Mashable's Adam Ostrow, Jatched.com's Mary Casey, a few others and of course me. Here's a summary of what we'll cover during our two-hour discussion: How is social media changing the way college students learn? How are digital applications changing how professors teach? What are the most… -
The social media deadzone: why only tools focus on tools
27 Jan 2010 | 6:54 amThis morning I happened across the above graphic in an older Center Networks post and it triggered a quick thought on a familiar theme. I have often chided marketers for focusing too much on specific tools, platforms, sites and shiny objects. You know what I'm talking about. Your boss meanders into your office and casually asks you about some sexy social media thang that they saw mentioned in this morning's Wall Street Journal or the latest issue of BloombergWeek. Or your agency arrives to present -- iPhones, Androids and tablets in hand -- and they're all atwitter with talk about some… -
Will we finally stop screwing around with social in 2010?
12 Jan 2010 | 6:47 amIt has been at least a couple of years since I've done a proper "predictions" post, although last year I contributed to a fantastic 2009 predictions ebook that Peter Kim pulled together. This year I contributed to a similar ebook, but this time with my new best buds at Powered, Drillteam and Stepchange.The book makes for some interesting reading and will give you a peek into some of the things the new Powered is thinking about right now. You can download it for free right now but I'd like to give you a little taste. I have just one prediction -- that in 2010,… -
crayon to the power of Powered
11 Jan 2010 | 4:51 amAs y'all know, I've been holding down the virtual fort at crayon for the past two-and-a-half years. We've had our ups -- I've had the opportunity to work with some great people and some great clients. But believe me we've had our downs -- I've toughed it out at a couple of points during our history when Jaffe and I weren't quite sure the company would survive. It has been an interesting ride to say the least. But I'm happy to say it all ends today. Nope, I'm not "done coloring," haven't taken a position at Edelman, and believe it or not… -
From New York City to Music City: new 2010 speaking gigs
7 Jan 2010 | 10:35 amAs the new year kicks into gear, my speaking calendar is already starting to fill up. Here are the details on my first two 2010 speaking engagements - a February panel appearance at the Engage! Expo in NYC and a March presentation at Custom Content Conference 2010 in Nashville. Hope to see some of you in the audiences. Read on to learn more... On February 17th I'm speaking at the Engage! Expo in New York City. This year's Engage! (the conference that grew out of the old Virtual Worlds event series) is co-located with the 2010 Toy Fair, and will have a big focus on toy marketing, youth…
-
News from the Herd
-
A lesson from Vodafone: How one tweet can get magnified almost 100x
7 Feb 2010 | 3:34 amA cautionary tale comes from mobile phone operator Vodafone, who on Friday broadcast the following message out to its (at the time) 8663 Twitter followers: Needless to say, despite being quickly deleted, it was captured for posterity and the damage is done. Initial speculation was that the feed had been hacked, but it turns out it was a member of staff, who for whatever reason decided to mess around with the corporate feed. Think we can safely assume that guy (assuming it’s a he) is so getting fired… Vodafone had 8600+ followers on Friday, but how many did Vodafone really… -
Another report predicts a tough year for print media, radio
7 Feb 2010 | 1:36 amThis one is from ExactTarget, which worked with Econsultancy to survey 1000 marketers (both in house and agency) worldwide. It mirrors other reports over the past few months, for example this one by the IAB, by showing that 28% of marketers will shift their budgets from traditional towards digital in 2010, with 66% increasing their digital marketing spend overall. At the moment, digital accounts for 24% of the total, though last year’s IAB survey said that in the UK at least, online spend had overtaken TV for the first time. Though 70% of marketers planned to increase social media… -
foursquare the next Twitter? Maybe not yet, but Harvard is showing a way forward
31 Jan 2010 | 2:00 pmLast year Pete Cashmore of A-List tech blog Mashable predicted that the location based social network foursquare would be the Twitter of 2010. That seems an ambitious prediction given that, (at least in the UK) as anyone who has signed up will know, even the early adopters are still making patchy use of it. For example the other month blogger Malcolm Coles checked into (London football club) Arsenal’s Emirates Stadium and found that only three others out of the 60,103 in attendance had also registered their presence via the network. Similarly last week, fellow Rabbit Louise… -
Australians the most sociable online
31 Jan 2010 | 12:27 amTwo charts from the current Economist special report on social networking. First of all, according to Nielsen, “measured by hours spent on them per social-network user, the most avid online networkers are in Australia, followed by those in Britain and Italy.” By comparison, Americans spent on average six hours a month on social networks in October, almost 3x as much as in October 2007. Secondly, a chart that again confirms the dominance of Facebook as being for social media what Google is for search. The other day I mentioned a Reuters article questioning whether Facebook was… -
iPhones and apps, how many do we actually use?
30 Jan 2010 | 12:35 pmNot very many according to an article in today’s New York Times (‘When Phones Are Just Too Smart’). A summary of stats from the piece: The average iPhone or iPod Touch owner uses 5-10 apps regularly according to Flurry Research, despite there being 140,000+ available According to AdMob, people browse only the most popular items in the apps stores rather than delve into less well known offerings. This creates a bit of a chicken and egg situation for app developers. Says Stewart Putney, the CEO of Moblyng, “for all the tens of thousands of apps out there, the…
-
EyeCube
-
Update
8 Feb 2010 | 6:52 amNot a lot of recent activity here at RickLiebling.com. Sorry for that. I have been working on an eBook on crowdsourcing that I should be unveiling soon and I’ve been occupied by a couple of other side projects. Hopefully normal service will resume shortly. Cheers. -
Chief Culture Officer Bootcamp
26 Jan 2010 | 5:34 amRegular readers of Eyecube know what a big fan I am of Grant McCracken. If you are truly interested in culture, marketing and understanding the inextricable link between those two you simply must read his blog and books like his most recent: Chief Culture Officer (Disclosure: Grant was kind enough to mention me in the appendix of the book as a CCO candidate). But lots of people read Grant’s blog and books (in addition to CCO, I particularly recommend Flock and Flow How can you get a deeper understanding of the critical issues Chief Culture Officer addresses? Glad you asked. If… -
Social Media Week is Coming!
21 Jan 2010 | 5:11 amLast year Social Media Week appeared out of thin air (at least to me). I wasn’t sure what to expect from this first time event, but it sure seemed to capture the imagination of the SocMed community here in NYC. It was terrific because it was so open source. Free events were springing up everywhere with a real diversity. It wasn’t the same old topics and same old speakers. Well it’s back in 2010 and is reaching “can’t miss” status. This time around it’s being held in six cities – Berlin, London, New York, San Francisco, Sao Paulo & Toronto… -
ClickPredictions eBook now available
20 Jan 2010 | 6:14 amThe First Must-Read of 2010 Last fall I was fortunate enough to be asked by Ambal Balakrishnan to participate in her ClickDocument’s ClickPredictions eBook. Before I get into the details of this book, let me just say that Ambal is one of the most organized, detailed and forward-thinking people I have had the pleasure of working with. What I’ve learned by participating in the production of this book would well be worth the price of a $1000+ conference. So, while I’m sure she’ll thank me as a contributor to the book, let me say a big thank you to Ambal for letting me be… -
Augmented Reality Event in New York This Thursday
19 Jan 2010 | 10:24 amI’ve written about Augmented Reality in the past, and quite frankly I found this to be one of, if not the, most exciting developments of the last couple of years. Just stunning from a visual standpoint. And clearly the potential uses are intriguing. Check out this link to Richard Carey’s blog for a rundown on some interesting examples. So this Thursday is a chance for you to check this stuff out firsthand. Sobel Media is putting together an event called Augmented Reality – Is it for real and why you should care? Event details here, and here’s an event description:…
-
Find and Convert
-
B2B Buzz Marketing with Paul Dunay
5 Feb 2010 | 9:30 amB2B buzz marketing with Paul Dunay. I finally got my calendar sync’d up with Paul for this podcast interview. Paul is an award winning B2B marketing expert. He is Global Managing Director of Services and Social Marketing for Avaya, a global leader in enterprise communications, and co-author of Facebook Marketing for Dummies (Wiley 2009). A B2B Marketing Story I asked Paul to describe Avaya’s social media strategy. His response is this story…In 2009 budgets were tight across the board. Many brands experimented with social media. Actually, Avaya got the social media bug in… -
How to Convert Old Media Marketing to New Media Marketing
3 Feb 2010 | 5:00 amIn the marketing world there are several ways that people refer to new media marketing. There are phrases such as: Inbound marketing Internet marketing Web marketing Social media marketing Online marketing Digital marketing E-marketing Interactive marketing The phrase which is probably the most hyped is new media marketing! But, is a marketing strategy that includes blogging, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Flckr still new? It’s 2010 not 2007. New media, is not so new anymore! Consider that some businesses are still in new media denial. There are still some businesses who think they can… -
B2B Content Marketing for SMB Business
23 Jan 2010 | 10:38 amKim Albee on B2B content marketing. Kim Albee is founder and President of Genoo, a marketing automation software company serving B2B SMB companies mostly in the U.S. Genoo provides tools to build micro-sites, do lead nurturing, lead tracking and it integrates with Salesforce.com. I met Kim on LinkedIn when I was looking for case studies for my book. This podcast interview is an update to that case study. Kim launched her Genoo product in June 2008 in beta. It became available to the public in Sept 2009. As an entrepreneur launching a new marketing automation software product with no marketing… -
Top 5 Reasons Your Social Media Strategy Can Fail in 2010
19 Jan 2010 | 6:47 pmThere are many reasons your social media strategy can fail in 2010. Here are just five of them… No Top Down Support It doesn’t matter how mainstream social media is without top management support you’re going to fail. Social media takes time. When the boss sees people Tweeting, blogging and Facebooking during business, if he’s not on board he’s not going to like it. Find examples of competitors or other companies in your industry doing an effective job of engaging community and brand building through social media to get the boss on board. No Content Strategy Just because your… -
Social Media Marketing in Large Enterprises
11 Jan 2010 | 6:40 pmThis is the year of engagement. When I blogged my predictions for the new decade, one of the points I made is that marketers will seek to engage their target customers more interactively. While I still believe that in this decade the phrase social media will fade away, at this time it’s still here and it’s hotter than it’s ever been. Brands of all sizes are using social media to listen and to engage. Those brands that find ways to engage people authentically and in interesting ways are finding ways to monetize the engagement. And, isn’t that what all the critics have…
-
Eat Media Blog
-
Pickling Parallels: What Condiment Preparation Can Teach Us About Content Creation
9 Feb 2010 | 6:42 amA few weeks ago, I decided to prepare and can my own pickles for the first time. Without an expert canner to guide me, I obsessively read up on the dos and don’ts of pickling and canning. I found the process to be quite easy and enjoyable, as long as I adhered to the steps. Back in the office, I triumphantly told Jonathan of my success, and he said, “there must be some sort of connection between pickling and content strategy.” There is. And here they are—what preparing pickles can teach content writers: 1. Do your prep work. My grandmother was an excellent pickle-maker, and her secret… -
Strategy and Wireframing at 100mph
8 Feb 2010 | 10:45 amThis video is titled “The Right Way to Wireframe”. I think there are many ways if the end result meets/exceeds the client’s business objectives—but it rocks nonetheless. The content strategy exercise and wireframing exercise are/should be inextricably linked, it’s all content we are experiencing but it is an experience we are creating. —Ian -
Four Types of (bad) Writers
21 Jan 2010 | 12:25 pmKevin Allen has done some great writing for Eat Media in the past. In this video he portrays writers 1-4 on MyRagan TV “So, I think I know what I’m talking about there…Sparky.” The comments on the video are classic. —Ian -
The Art and Craft of Website Management
11 Jan 2010 | 7:29 amYou’re making your readers angry. Stop it. Content strategists often get very wrapped up in the concrete deliverables of the content creation and production process, and that’s understandable, because they are the sorts of things that are easy to make into line items in a proposal budget. If there is a sexy part of content strategy, it’s content creation and delivery. But the final piece of the content strategy puzzle is often the part that gets the least thought and fewest resources once the sexy part of a project is “completed.” Of course we are talking about site maintenance, one… -
Eat Media: Top 5 Mistakes I made in 2009
23 Dec 2009 | 8:55 amHiring is easy on paper. I am usually really good at hiring but this year I selected an employee that wasn’t right for our team. In retrospect I knew he wasn’t right after a few days of working with him but I had deadlines around the corner and no other candidates on the radar. After a month of deadline chasing it was crystal clear it wasn’t going to work—he knew it, I knew it and the rest of the employees knew it. I compounded an already bad problem by keeping him on a project because of an impending deadline. Nothing makes a potential employee watch You Tube all day quicker than…
-
Emerson Direct Marketing Observations
-
This weeks #SocialMedia Tweetchat Topic: Destruction of the Media Industry: Will We Be Better Off In the Long Run?
9 Feb 2010 | 6:15 amLaying out the fundamental issues and challenges in a post has become an integral part of the success of our weekly events. Usually I produce the post and the moderator comes on Tuesdays and facilitates the discussion. This week is an exception. Our moderator, Paul Gillin, has delightfully taken the initiative to not only come up with his own topic, but to construct a post as well. The following is the guest post by Paul Gillin: As we head into the second decade of the new millennium, it’s amazing to think how much has changed in such a short time. In January, 2000,… -
14 Quick Tactics to Encourage Corporate Social Media Adoption
5 Feb 2010 | 9:23 amThis past Tuesday on our weekly Hashtag socialmedia tweetchat, we were honored to have one of the classiest people I’ve gotten to know, host our chat, BL Ochman. To say that it was a successful tweetchat is an understatement, but what really pushed the chat over the top was the last question in which she asked for quick tactics to encourage corporate social media adoption. BL recounted the raw responses on her blog post, but I wanted to clean them up a little bit, make them into complete sentences, add some clarity and lastly point attendees from Social Fresh to this page. What’s… -
Social media is forcing us to operate in the now
4 Feb 2010 | 8:40 amWe have our memories; and we all have a future that we look towards, but what we have right now is now. Social media provides us with, and allows us to provide, that real time data stream of what is happening now. Today. This moment, this hour, this minute. We connect on various social networks with people who we have shared our lives with in the past. We connect with folks who we share common interests with in the work place, but it all happens in real time. We share our lives now with our family and friends as it unfolds. It’s immediate. We react, we create, we comment. In the moment. -
Engagement by proxy
3 Feb 2010 | 5:34 amI was looking at the definition of proxy for some odd reason the other day and I was struck by the irony of the definition. Last week, Todd Defren, who is taking a unique approach towards the social media space by discussing the ethical side of engagement, blogged about ghost tweeting and ghost blogging. Essentially asking his readers to determine whether doing either or not doing them, had any ethical merits. But I have news for Todd and everyone else. Ghost blogging and ghost tweeting happen a lot. A lot more than people will care to admit. It happens because people that write and talk… -
This weeks #SocialMedia Tweetchat Topic: Fear Factor: Understanding the Value of Adding Social Media to the Mix
2 Feb 2010 | 7:07 amFUD! (Fear, Uncertainty & Doubt) is typically used by sales and marketing types to position themselves against competitors. IBM used to be renown for using this tactic and now it’s being used in a different way. Executives are turning FUD around and using it on their own organizations with regards to the use of social media. While companies widely accept that social media is transforming the business landscape, executives are still reluctant to approve anything more than small tests or pilot programs. This reluctance by executives is being translated by many to simply infer…
-
Internet Marketing Blog
-
International SEO 101: Search Marketing for Foreign Countries and Languages
8 Feb 2010 | 11:30 pmMany businesses only target potential customers in their local markets, but inbound marketing also allows you to easily reach prospective customers in a global marketplace. Have you optimized your site for international search engines? Do you want your business to be found or shared with a broader audience? If so, here's how you can advance your international marketing efforts more strategically. Approach international SEO first with a decision on which countries you want to target. Research and gain insight on your audience (including culture), search results and competition. You will also… -
Shocking Edelman Survey Results Reveal Less Trust in Social Media Referrals
8 Feb 2010 | 3:23 amPublic relations firm Edelman recently released its 2010 Trust Barometer, which highlights some findings regarding social media marketing that may shock you. According to the latest survey, the number of people who view their friends and peers as credible sources of information about a company has dropped from 45% in 2008 to 25% in 2010, decreasing almost by half! I don't know about you, but as social media continues to be a marketing hot topic, I've seen a lot of discussion emphasizing the importance of company/product referrals and word of mouth marketing. So do these… -
Social Media Save: How Facebook Can Work for SMBs
7 Feb 2010 | 11:14 pmI'd like to share a personal story of how social media recently came to my rescue, highlighting an important opportunity for all you small businesses out there. This Friday was really stressful. I was up at 5:30 a.m. to prepare for the movers to come, followed by my cleaning service, all to turn my condo into a state fit for my new tenant in 24 hours! That stress only increased when the cleaning service, slated to arrive between 3 and 5 p.m., still wasn't there at 4:50 p.m. Their office couldn't get in touch with the ladies scheduled to clean my home and could give me… -
HubSpot TV - Swimming with the Fishes
5 Feb 2010 | 5:30 amHubSpot TV is LIVE every Friday at 4:00pm EST. Watch the show in real-time at www.hubspot.tv and chat with us via Twitter. Episode #77 - January 29, 2010(Episode Length: 25 minutes, 11 seconds) Intro How to interact on Twitter: @karenrubin and @mvolpe with www.HubSpot.tv in your tweet. Subscribe in iTunes: http://itunes.hubspot.tv Brian Halligan is speaking at the Franklin Club in Boston on Feb 1st at 6pm -- Cost $65 (Use coupon code hubspottv and save $10) Headlines Google Search Goes Social Search is getting more social"With Social Search, when we search for baby sleep patterns,… -
What Did Jane Austen Know About Social Media?
5 Feb 2010 | 1:00 amWith the final episode of Jane Austen's Emma airing on PBS this Sunday night, we've noticed that people are behaving a little bit more ... courtly to each other. Here's a handy guide to extending that exquisitely good behavior to the social media world. It is a truth universally acknowledged... that social media is being used by more and more businesses to engage meaningfully with their customers and to drive more qualified traffic to their sites. And while Jane Austen never blogged (she totally would have), or had a profile on Facebook, or posted status updates on Twitter, she…
-
Marketing Profs Daily Fix
-
Trending ‘Functionall’
9 Feb 2010 | 4:28 amReinier Evers founder of trendwatching.com can always be counted on to weigh in on new trends every month. As is the case with all prognosticating, there’s always the risk of being wrong. But in Evers’s case, I think he’s had considerably more hits than misses. Trendwatching’s latest caught my eye more than most. The headline screams one word: “Functionall.” The subhead: “Why simple, small & cheap appeals to all.” The definition of Functionall: Captures the phenomenon of simple, small and/or cheap products and services designed for low(er)-income consumers… -
MarketingProfs B2B Forum Ramp Up: What I Have Learned About B2B Marketing
9 Feb 2010 | 3:36 amAs part of my journey in developing the content for an educational conference, in this case MarketingProfs B2B Forum, I do a lot of research. I spend a lot of time on the web looking at competitive conferences (and non-competitive conferences) as well as reading many white papers, articles and blogs. We also take seriously any feedback that we’ve gotten from the attendees at our last event and we poll the MarketingProfs community about topics they need education on through crowdsourcing, discussions on our community sites and in the form of questions sent out as tweets. But most important… -
Guest Post: The 4 Pillars Of B2B Marketing-The Lifecycle Of a B2B Campaign
8 Feb 2010 | 6:37 amBy Achim Klor SterlingKlor Communications I recently read an excellent post by Paul Dunay on Social Media Today presenting the 4 C’s of B2B marketing. We’ve known about the 4 P’s of marketing for years: Product, Price, Place and Promotion. Paul argues the 4 P’s are primarily a B2C mix. The 4 C’s, however, (Content, Connection, Communications, Conversion) illustrate the marketing mix for B2B. Sounds great, but how should B2B organizations implement the 4 C’s marketing mix into their campaigns? I would like to highlight an approach that has served our B2B agency very… -
Interview With Seth Godin: Linchpin
8 Feb 2010 | 6:21 amIn this Marketing Over Coffee brought to you by MarketingProfs: We talk with Seth Godin about his new book: Linchpin Marketing Over Coffee with Seth Godin Direct Link to File Show length 23:30 00:52 What’s Linchpin about? 02:30 How do entrepreneurial linchpins fit in to large organizations? 05:40 Who are the artists? 06:55 Can you get beyond Dunbar’s Number? Gary V. is using Twitter to add two zeros. 08:10 What is The Resistance? What is Emotional Labor? 11:22 Thrashing – a classic Marketing problem, and yes, Duke Nukem! Real artists ship. 14:16 Is there any future for mass media… -
How To Build a Brand Internationally
5 Feb 2010 | 6:21 amCongratulations! Your company is successful locally, and now you want to share what you do with the world. In many ways, the process will be like re-starting your business. Many of the activities you performed to launch your initial business are the same you will employ in each of your new international markets. However, much of your time will be spent translating (literally and figuratively) to ensure you are locally relevant to your new customers. A Brand = A Reputation The term “brand” can be confusing. Think of a brand as a reputation. Building a reputation in any new market…
-
Occam's Razor
-
Analysis Ninjas: Leverage Custom Reports For Better Insights!
1 Feb 2010 | 2:01 amHere is a key difference between Reporting Squirrels and Analysis Ninjas: The latter almost exclusively leverage custom reports (powered by advanced segmentation) and the former flirt with one standard report and then another and then other and in the best case scenario pull only half of their hair out.There is nothing particularly wrong with the standard 19,000 reports in your web analytics tool. But they do represent the Vendor’s best guess about what you should look at. Sometimes they even get it right.Most of the time though your business is absolutely unique (even as it exists… -
Dear Avinash: Search / SEO Metrics & Analytics Questions + Answers
20 Jan 2010 | 12:47 amHow do you measure success of a online webinar?I recently did a webinar for the Search Engine Strategies conference (I am doing the opening conference keynote at SES London and SES New York) and my Market Motive co-faculty member Greg Jarboe sent me this KPI via email:“Your webcast was a big success. Your KPI questions per attendee was off the chart!”I don’t know why I had not thought of this wonderful KPI. So much better than # of attendees.As always though context is king.It could be a good thing (“you were great, engaged the audience”) or a not such a good… -
Five Sweet Web Analytics Resolutions To Kick It Up A Notch
6 Jan 2010 | 1:13 amThe new year is such a wonderful time. Wonderful smells in the air. The world is full of hope. Unachievable things seem achievable and are being polished into shiny resolutions. World peace seems within grasp.As we spring to action full of passion I wanted to share with you all a short list of things that will expand your little world of online marketing & web analytics.We all have a tendency of getting caught in a rut, using the same tool to do the same things and spew forth the same data. Change is hard, even if we know that we should be executing a multiplicity strategy to win in the… -
Analysis Ninjas: Move Beyond The Top Ten. Find Love (/Insights).
21 Dec 2009 | 4:31 amYou know what is the one thing stopping you from finding truly actionable insights from your web data?Web analytics gems lie deep in the data and we spend our lives looking at the top ten rows of data.It does not matter which report you look at. Affiliates. Products sold. Referring URL’s. Pages viewed. Search keywords. Promotions. Geographies. Really pick any report with any dimension you want to look at, we spend our time (and valuable space on our dashboards) looking at the top ten.We look at the top ten rows of data because:1. Too much data from our web analytics tools.2. Lack of… -
Who Owns Web Analytics? A Framework For Critical Thinking.
9 Dec 2009 | 1:30 amIt is rare for me to work with a organization where the root cause for their faith based decision making (rather than data driven) was not the org structure.It is almost never tools. Not any more.Surprisingly it is often not their will to use data, that is there in many cases.Sometimes it is that they don’t follow the 10/90 rule.It is always the organization structure.Specifically: Who owns web analytics / who it reports to from a org structure perspective.[Let me hasten to add that this, web analytics ownership, does not exist in a vacuum. If your overall web business is misaligned…
-
Social Internet Marketing and Jess Sloss
-
Possibly the Coolest iPhone App Yet – Siri Personal Assistant
7 Feb 2010 | 12:49 pmWhen Google announced it’s voice activated Google Search application, excited iPhone users rejoiced. Good news, this app puts Google’s to shame.Too bad it’s NOT available in Canada. From Siri, Siri is a virtual personal assistant on your phone. You ask Siri in your own voice, and it helps you get things done when you’re on the go. This video shows a demo of Siri helping plan a romantic evening, get tickets to a great movie, discover cool things to do on the weekend, and getting back home. Siri Personal Assistant Highlights Uses natural language understanding to connect… -
People Hate Broccoli Commercials more than Broccoli
6 Feb 2010 | 7:39 amBroccoli to bloggers "Why You Hatin' ?" I wrote about the odd Broccoli TV commercials out there a few weeks back, and since then things have gotten weird. In my post I critiqued this missed opportunity of integrating a more interactive component to the campaign. Others have commented and posted that they think the commercials are so bad that it must be intentional. While it looks like we all agreed that the campaign is weird, what is even more shocking are people’s response to the campaign. The Canadian Design Resource posted a screen shot of the www.miraclefood.ca site… -
Management Decision Making Flash Back
5 Feb 2010 | 1:00 pmFor years I worked as a manager at a local Cross Country ski hill. It was good times, mostly because we always had fun. This video highlights one of my preferred ways of decision making. Ah, the good times. From Christmas 2008. Cant see the video? Click here to view on Facebook. Share this on Facebook Stumble upon something good? Share it on StumbleUpon Tweet This! Share this on del.icio.us Digg this! Email this to a friend? Buzz up! Share this on Reddit Subscribe to the comments for this post? -
Onion Ring More Popular than PM Stephen Harper
5 Feb 2010 | 7:38 amThis onion ring is more popular than Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper That is right folks, this onion ring (istock photo watermark and all) is more popular than Stephen Harper. On Facebook at least. The facebook group, Can this Onion Ring get more fans than Stephen Harper? started on February 2, 2010 and already has over 55,000 fans. Yes that is more than Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has ( he has 29,822 ) Out of Touch with a Generation While the group is obviously tongue in cheek, it does highlight a serious problem with the Canadian Conservative Government’s… -
The Staff Room – A brilliant webisode series that makes me laugh!
4 Feb 2010 | 2:06 pmFunny bone engaged! The Biology teacher just got a boner? I just ate a sandwich, and took some time to get in tune with my funny bone. Introducing The Staff Room, a comedic short series, only available through your favourite social media channels. If you are anything like us, you enjoy things that are a little off, perhaps a little inappropriate, add a touch of dry wit, and get something completely hilarious! The Staff Room creators, Written/Directed by Jason Bryden and Produced by Irene Karas, released their first 3 episodes last Wednesday, followed by Episodes 4 through 6 today. Short 2-4…
-
Connect the Docs
-
ClickPredictions: Social Media: Where's My ROI?
9 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amWe asked Tom Pick "What are key marketing trends and predictions for 2010? What actions should marketers take in 2010?" Tom Pick is an online marketing executive with Minneapolis-based B2B marketing and PR agency KC Associates, and writes the award-winning Webbiquity Tom Pick Blog Webbiquity Twitter TomPick "Marketers need tools to measure social media results the same way as other marketing programs." Tom Pick's Marketing Prediction for 2010 With increased time spent on social media marketing, C-level executives will pressure their teams to demonstrate measurable ROI from… -
ClickPredictions: Deliver Compelling Content to Match Buyer Information Needs
8 Feb 2010 | 10:37 amWe asked Rebel Brown "What are key marketing trends and predictions for 2010? What actions should marketers take in 2010?" Rebel Brown is go-to-market strategist and Spin Doctor specializing in start ups, turnarounds and start-around. She’s also an author and speaker. Her business is PeopleWhoKnow Rebel Brown Blog Phoenix Rising Twitter RebelBrown "Vendors who understand buyers and communicate relevant value will capture the next wave of spending." Rebel Brown's Marketing Prediction for 2010 Vendors who deliver compelling content to match buyer information needs will… -
ClickPredictions: Learn to Listen and Engage
8 Feb 2010 | 4:00 amWe asked Ian Lurie "What are key marketing trends and predictions for 2010? What actions should marketers take in 2010?" Ian Lurie is chief internet marketing strategist at Portent Interactive. He is also the author of Conversation Marketing: Internet Marketing Strategies Ian Lurie Blog Conversation Marketing Twitter portentint "Twitter is a vast-self answering community. It’s also the ultimate search engine." Ian Lurie's Marketing Prediction for 2010 Twitter is going to overtake Yahoo! and Bing for search market share. Yeah, you hear me: Search market share. As… -
ClickPredictions: Engage Better on Social Media
5 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amWe asked Michael Stelzner "What are key marketing trends and predictions for 2010? What actions should marketers take in 2010?" Michael Stelzner is author of the book Writing White Papers, founder of SocialMediaExaminer.com and an organizer of summits such as Social Media Success Summit and Copywriting Success Summit. Michael Stelzner Blog WritingWhitePapers Twitter Mike_Stelzner "Social media strategies will be as commonplace as using a fax machine—every business will need to be in the game." Michael Stelzner's Marketing Prediction for 2010 Social media marketing… -
ClickPredictions: The Short-Attention White Paper
4 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amWe asked Jonathan Kantor "What are key marketing trends and predictions for 2010? What actions should marketers take in 2010?" Jonathan Kantor is a 26-year veteran of the technology industry, the author of the new book Crafting White Paper 2.0, and the primary contributor to the WhitePaperPundit.com blog. Jonathan Kantor Blog WhitePaperPundit Twitter Jonathan_Kantor "Use Visual Enhancements to Engage New Media, Short Attention White Paper Readers.” Jonathan Kantor's Marketing Prediction for 2010 Social Media will generate significant white paper changes in the future. As…
-
SEO Copywriting
-
Why some SEO firms don’t employ copywriters
2 Feb 2010 | 11:16 amLast week, I heard from a very frustrated prospect. This nice man had been working with a SEO firm for a few months. The firm had been doing all the back-end stuff that needed to be done: Cleaning the code, creating new Titles, building links and generally sprucing up the site. In general, the company did an OK job making the site more visible to search engines. But here’s the thing: The prospect comes from a marketing background. He knew his existing copy didn’t “pop.” And he knew that better writing would equate into higher conversion rates. When he expressed his… -
Why some large companies suck at content marketing
26 Jan 2010 | 1:20 pmRecently, Junta42 released their 2010 content marketing survey (if you haven’t read it, do it now – it’s good reading.) One of the oft-reported stats is that smaller companies (those with less than 99 employees) are spending two times more on content marketing than their big-brand counterparts (40 percent versus 18 percent.) To those of us in the content marketing trenches, this is not surprising. And here’s my theory on why. Small companies have a distinct advantage in the content marketing game: They “just do it” (to borrow from an old Nike ad.) They may… -
8 ways to handle the haters
21 Jan 2010 | 11:55 amI remember it like it was yesterday. 15 years ago, I was working for a small-press publisher. After months of begging, I finally got my chance to write my first back-jacket blurb – you know, the promo paragraphs designed to snare you into buying the book? What’s more, it was for a well-known author in the self-help field. Needless to say, I sweated and slaved over every word. A week after I turned in the copy, the publisher called me into her office. Apparently, not only did the client NOT like the copy, he felt compelled to break down why he didn’t like it on a line-by-line… -
Do you know what your prospects are really thinking?
19 Jan 2010 | 12:48 pmWant to know a secret? When prospective buyers visit your website, they are looking for more than just their desired product or service. The secret is, they’re looking for reasons to NOT buy from you. Yes, that’s right. Your prospects – no matter how motivated they are – are coming to the virtual table with a chip on their shoulder. Like the person burned by too many bad dates (you dated that person too?) they want you to prove to them how you’re not just like all the others. But the problem is, just like in the dating example, you have no idea what the… -
New SEO Copywriting Certificate Program
13 Jan 2010 | 8:10 amFor those who didn’t see the Twitter sneak preview announcement yesterday, I’m excited to announce the release of my new SEO Copywriting Certificate Program. I’ve copied the press release here – enjoy! New SEO copywriting certificate program teaches marketers, SEO companies and copywriters how to write optimized Web copy. Portland, OR (PRWEB) January 13, 2010 — Heather Lloyd-Martin, CEO and President of SuccessWorks Search Marketing, Inc., www.seocopywriting.com, and immediate past chair of the Direct Marketing Association’s Search Engine Marketing…
-
Tippingpoint Labs
-
The Food Thinkers Themselves, Part 1
9 Feb 2010 | 5:00 amThe Food Thinkers platform is not merely a blog in the singular sense. It is meant to be a site with a growing number of contributors and content targets. “FoodThinkers is an online stream of simple moments of brilliance from kitchen collaborators around the world — recipes, food pics, video, sound and taste. Brought to you by Breville.” It differs drastically from many other types of brand outreach in the blogosphere. It is essentially a sponsored channel rather. Much like a brand might sponsor a TV or radio program, Breville is sponsoring the whole channel. It’s… -
Measuring the Success of a Slow-Growth Model, Part 2
3 Feb 2010 | 7:00 amYesterday, we examined some of the components of the slow growth of the Food Thinkers by Breville site. Today, we pull out the tape measure and get down to business. Surely you measure something The Tippingpoint Labs methodology involves creating content that doesn’t necessarily attract a quantity audience. Instead, by design, it attracts a quality audience. The content we create for clients is highly targeted at relevant audiences for whom our client offers a unique value. When looking at traffic numbers, I always look for who’s referring traffic to the channel. For example, one… -
Measuring the Success of a Slow-Growth Model, Part 1
2 Feb 2010 | 2:30 amWhen Food Thinkers first launched in October of last year, everyone in the client’s office wanted to see the traffic numbers and analytics. As a strategist, it’s my job to look at these numbers, analyze them, and make recommendations based on their insight. I was hesitant to show everyone the visitor data. Looking at initial traffic data within the first few months can be like getting onto a scale in the first few days of a diet (trust me, I know) … It’s disappointing and demoralizing to see low (or high) numbers at first; so much so that success can seem hopeless,… -
Podcast: Mashups
29 Jan 2010 | 2:36 pmThe Tipping Point Podcast Subscribe in iTunes or you can enjoy the podcasts at Blubrry.com Find us in iTunes Each podcast journeys into the world wide web, exploring various aspects of what makes people successful on the internet. We’ll cover almost anything. We’ve learned all about StuffedRobots, explored Twitter, learned about SpyFu, and had a lot of fun along the way. In This Podcast Josh Cole Andrew Davis James Cosco Brad Schwarzenbach This week on The Tipping Point: Mashups Are mashups the new metaphors– combining rather than comparing unlike things — as a… -
How the Food Thinkers Content Calendar Works
25 Jan 2010 | 9:07 amRule #1 for a successful content strategy — you have to update your content on a regular basis, preferably every day. Most organizations think that adding frequently updated content to their website is next to impossible with their existing staff. It might be hard, but it’s not impossible. The keys to success are creating a regular editorial calendar, devising simple feature formats, and recruiting outside help. We took this approach when we launched Food Thinkers by Breville. The Editorial Calendar Our goal is simple: each day of the week we release one new piece of content…
-
Brain Traffic
-
Sorting through the digital debris
5 Feb 2010 | 8:06 amAs I sit here sniffling and coughing, I’m thinking, how can I get rid of this cold? Let’s ask Google! “How to Cure a Cold” is at eHow.com. The author, ranked as an “Authority,” advises me to inhale a lot of steam and avoid dairy products. Her credentials? “I have an English degree and love to write for fun, but I’ve never made a profit yet!” “How to Cure a Common Cold Naturally” also appears on eHow.com. This piece advises me to wash my hands a lot: “Studies show by doing this step once you have a cold will shorten… -
Content Strategy: More than a Bunch of Tactics
26 Jan 2010 | 11:38 amI know this will likely come as a shock to many of you, but I have a Twitter alert set up for “content strategy.” It’s really extraordinary how the tweets about content strategy have EXPLODED over the past few months. A year ago, maybe I’d see one or two a day. Now, hourly, it’s mentioned dozens of times. The thing that fascinates me is that it’s being used in about a hundred different contexts to mean a hundred different things. Now, I don’t really care that people are using the term inconsistently. I’m not altogether… -
Thanksgiving is over, turkey: When to kill your darlings
20 Jan 2010 | 8:56 amMy suburban neighborhood is pretty typical, with the exception of the 200-acre wooded park in the middle of it. I live right on the edge of the park, which means deer, ducks, pheasants, and turkeys roam near my house. And I enjoy that. But a certain turkey has really started getting in my way. Literally. He often hangs out on the corner of a four-way stop. At first it was funny, like he was waiting for the bus. Then, this weekend as I approached the stop, the turkey was in the middle of the intersection. I waited for him to cross the road (I see the joke here), but he had other ideas. -
Members vs. guests: how to label users on authenticated sites
12 Jan 2010 | 11:31 amRecently, Brain Traffic Twitter friend Taj Moore (@tajmo) asked us for some advice about copy for authenticated websites, or websites that require registration in order to log in for firewalled content and/or functions. Taj wanted to know our thoughts on what to call members vs. non-members, and logged in members vs. non-logged in members. Taj’s question inspired quite the philosophical discussion around here. And by “philosophical discussion,” I mean: “really long email chain.” We like Amazon’s approach to labeling members. In short,… -
Behold, the mighty hive
8 Jan 2010 | 7:56 amHappy New Year! (My New Year’s resolution was not to resolve anything this year. So far, I’m doing great.) Say, I’ve gotten several requests for the "hive" diagram I use in presentations. It’s a simple, visual example of how web project team roles interact with one another. This is it: (click to see full-sized image) I found the diagram on Skillset.org back in ‘08, but apparently they’ve pulled it down since then. So, as my gift to you, here it is. Wield it within your organizations at will.
-
Convince and Convert
-
The Social Impact of Friendships and Lies
9 Feb 2010 | 3:56 amDo you trust me? Social media relies on the premise that we’ll believe what people tell us more readily than if we were told the same thing by a nameless, faceless company. That’s why brands go to great lengths to humanize themselves on the social Web. But, a new study by Edelman (whose digital arm features social media and ebusiness genius David Armano) claims that bond is eroding. A survey of 4,875 adults (500 U.S.) world-wide shows that just 25% of respondents said their friends and peers are credible sources of information about companies – a decline of 20% since a… -
Please Help Me Pick a New Look For My Blog
5 Feb 2010 | 3:02 amI’ve been making a few tweaks to Convince & Convert recently, with the help of my friend (and Wordpress/SEO ninja) Chuck Reynolds. We’ve added Disqus as the commenting system. Changed the sharing tools to incorporate Sexy Bookmarks plug-in (Michael Stelzner at Social Media Examiner turned me on to it). We’re working on tweaking the subscription center at the top a bit, too. But I need your help with the biggest change – the header. I’m a big believer in humanization of your blog (in fact, it’s one of my 11 must-dos for serious bloggers). And while I… -
11 Mind-Blowing Reasons Your Company Needs Facebook
4 Feb 2010 | 3:16 amWow. Remember when MySpace was the dominant social network? Seems like a long time ago, as the past three years have seen Facebook approach, catch, and blow past MySpace to become our preferred online hangout spot. Now, new data released by Facebook and third party researchers show just how influential Facebook has become in our daily lives. Combined with several critical adjustments to how Facebook publishes “news” and intersects with other sites, the state of Facebook is mind-blowing. And important for business. Here’s 11 things about Facebook that you need to know: 1. 350 Million… -
The Chicken and the Egg Social Media Conundrum
3 Feb 2010 | 3:49 amThere are many ways social media differs from traditional marketing. It’s approachable and human. It’s a two-way dialog, rather than unilateral declarations. It treats the customer as a teammate, rather than a target. But there’s another big difference. In social media, the audience comes after the message, not before. Remember that when you buy a print ad, or billboard, or print a direct mail piece, or buy radio time, or banner ads, or bus benches, or hire a skywriter, you are doing so because you have some idea of how many people will see your message, and that they are… -
Is Your Company More Interesting Than My Wife?
2 Feb 2010 | 3:02 amIf you’re going to succeed on Facebook, you don’t just have to be more interesting than other companies, you have to be more interesting than my friends and relatives. Are you prepared for that? My friend Jeff Widman runs BrandGlue, a consultancy that helps companies better manage their Facebook fan pages. He told me recently that since Facebook rolled out the news feed changes (they decide what gets shown on your news feed based on what you’ve “liked” and commented upon in the past, and what your friends have “liked” and commented upon), that only 2…
-
Dan Blank
-
How the Web Enables Offline Business & Activities
2 Feb 2010 | 5:59 amThe web has become an essential place to go for research, connection and commerce. Even in niche B2B markets; even for products & services that can’t easily be sold online; even for companies with no web footprint. Many in B2B media are transitioning from a print-centric world to a web-based ecosystem, as are their partners & advertisers. But how much do each of these businesses factor the web into their core business model? Is a magazine brand selling web ads as it would print ads, or is it creating sophisticated lead-generation programs, and rethinking their data warehouse as… -
How I Used Facebook to Unearth a Town’s History
26 Jan 2010 | 5:34 amRecently I have been considering the value of social media in terms of how it enables families, connections and provides meaning to our everyday lives. So today I want to share a story about how Facebook is allowing me to experience my past in new and incredible ways. Here is the premise: I drove through my hometown (Howell, New Jersey) snapping pictures of every store, house, and landmark I could on the main road. I uploaded 165 photos to Facebook, and shared it for anyone to see. So far, these photos have received more than 700 comments, adding stories, context, history and reactions. A… -
How Nonconformity Can Save Media
20 Jan 2010 | 8:51 amImage by Jim The nonconformist is the outcast. And we need more outcasts. Media needs more outcasts. Why? Because the outcast can find success that others have not by looking at the world in a wholly different way. For a media brand, this does not mean to try crazy ideas, but to do primary research, study the behaviors & needs of your audience, and look beyond the products we are familiar with, beyond the new trends, to focus solely on connecting two things: Needs to solutions. Not magazine to reader; or RSS feed to target audience; or newsletter to subscriber; not the expected to the… -
How Magazines Can Make Money Online
11 Jan 2010 | 5:24 amHow can magazines make money online? The short answer is: Stop being defined by the word "magazine." Here’s the long answer: 2010 is a world where communication, distribution and audience behavior have changed drastically from when magazines, newspapers and media companies were first founded. For those who have thrived in past decades via print ad revenue alone, there is something missing in how they port their products online. David Heinemeier Hansson describes the problem like this: What is that magic thing? Simple: Let’s take a look at what that means for a media… -
A New Sound
31 Dec 2009 | 9:53 amEarlier this week I was watching a documentary on music legend Les Paul, and he described a pivotal period in his life. He was a very successful guitar player in Chicago, and one morning his mother mentioned that she heard him play a live performance on the radio the previous evening. He said that was impossible because he had played a live show somewhere else that had not been broadcast. What had happened is in part that others were copying him, and also that he was playing a musical style OF the moment. What he realized was that he needed to be ahead of everyone else, create something…
-
The Harte of Marketing
-
Getting Management Buy-In For Integrated Marketing & Communications
4 Feb 2010 | 4:41 pmThere are a lot of marketers out there that understand that integrated marketing and communications (IMC) is a preferred way to do business because it is an outside-in approach. If an organization isn’t integrated, what are the best approaches to getting management buy-in? Anna Barcelos and I wanted to share nine key ways to provide management with the value of IMC. Sales-Oriented Vs. Market-Oriented – Which Are You? It’s often been said that the mindset of “If we build it, they will come” is not viable for long term business. To understand why, let’s look at the difference… -
Integrated Marketing & Communications, Redux
19 Jan 2010 | 5:50 amThe hiatus is over! For those who have been loyal readers of this blog, Happy New Year! And I thank you for hanging in there with me while I took the time to consider where to head next. For a long time I focused on marketing, PR and social media, but rarely the integration of them all. The focus of The Harte of Marketing for 2010 (and perhaps beyond) will be integrated marketing & communications. While integrated marketing communications (IMC) is nothing new, the embracing of social media surely puts IMC back in the spotlight as its principles are similar to long-standing IMC… -
An Unscientific Test of Authenticity & Transparency: How Much Do They Really Matter?
30 Sep 2009 | 8:04 pmAlthough my blog is technically on “hiatus,” I felt this post was too important to not post it here (versus my digital marketing notebook on Posterous). I am still thinking about the direction my blog will be heading, but I know one thing for sure…it will include a lot more analysis, testing, and less opinion. As a marketer, testing is at the heart of what we do (or should do) and I for one have been lax when it comes to testing social media. Without testing all aspects of social media, we are, unfortunately, arguing from ignorance. The first test: Authenticity,… -
Putting myself on a time out.
28 Aug 2009 | 11:19 amI wrote a really verbose post, but a good friend told me that what I had written didn’t sound like me (you know who you are…thank you again!). So, here’s take two. This past year has been truly exceptional and while I love blogging, I am not a writer. So from that regard, I struggle. I know this is *my* blog and I can do with it what I’d like, but I also don’t want to produce crap content. I have SO many thoughts rattling around in my head but the pressure to make them perfect stops me from writing them down. And the time to make them perfect doesn’t… -
Gardening…The Social Media Way
12 Aug 2009 | 6:34 amTeresa Basich and I teamed up to write this post after discussing David Armano’s post. Teresa kicked off a group conversation by asking the insightful question “Now, what could we add to David’s blueprint beginnings?” Teresa wrote 3/4 of this post, so if you like the way her uber-smart brain works, be sure to check out her blog, Overcommunicated, too. Back in June David Armano of Dachis Corporation had an interesting post on debunking social media myths featured on the Conversation Starters blog of the Harvard Business Review. David discussed how organizations…
-
PR 20/20
-
7 Steps to Build a Blog Subscriber Base
4 Feb 2010 | 9:20 am(This is part 2 of a 2-part blog series on building readership for a new corporate blog) Just 12 years ago, the word “blog” didn’t even exist (It was coined by Peter Merholz of Peterme.com in 1999 from the word Weblog.). Today, professionals, companies and organizations alike are using blogs to effectively reach and influence their audiences, build inbound links, boost search-engine rankings, drive Website traffic and position themselves and their organization as an industry thought leader. In fact, a recent blog study by HubSpot showed that the Websites of companies that… -
6 Steps to Promote your New Blog
3 Feb 2010 | 9:00 am(This is part 1 of a 2-part blog series on building readership for a new corporate blog) You’ve built and designed your blog, assigned and trained your bloggers, developed an editorial calendar, optimized your blog with priority keywords, and finally got your blog launched. What a relief!Now, you’re probably wondering, “How do I promote my blog and build subscribers?” Think content + community. The content you’re publishing must be relevant, link-worthy and optimized to get found. Even then, if the content is extremely relevant and informative, and speaks… -
What Your Blog May Be Missing
29 Jan 2010 | 11:20 amKeeping your company blog regularly updated with quality, buyer persona-driven content can be a major differentiator between a successful and unsuccessful blog. But with busy schedules and already-long hours, how can you ensure that the additional responsibility of blogging is kept up with? Certainly, one option is to have multiple contributing bloggers. However, this also comes with a downside: watered-down responsibility. With multiple authors, each individual blogger can more easily become complacent, and expect others to take more responsibility for regularly writing and publishing new… -
SEO's Magic Bullet
27 Jan 2010 | 7:10 amThe concept of a Magic Bullet is an intriguing one — a magical solution to solve a vexing problem without the fear of any side effects. This is especially true in search engine optimization, where there is so much money to be made by ranking at the top of a Google search result page for a key term. Well, what if I told you... ... Search Engine Optimization may just have a “Magic Bullet," And it is BLOGGING. Half of you just stopped reading. You were ready to hear something new and exciting, and instead were given the same ole same old. Allow me to explain. Several months… -
33 Marketing Strategy Tips
25 Jan 2010 | 9:50 amNeed help getting started with your marketing plan? This post highlights 33 tips from the Inbound Marketing GamePlan eBook, which we launched last week as a resource guide for organizations seeking to build more effective and measurable marketing strategies (click here to download the free PDF eBook). Discovery (aka The Scouting Report) Your organization's Inbound Marketing GamePlan starts with the discovery phase. In this phase, use customer research, industry and analyst reports, media coverage, historical sales data, competitive intelligence, surveys of key internal personnel and secondary…
-
Keysplash Creative
-
10 Marketing Trends for 2010
22 Jan 2010 | 12:54 pmMy 10 marketing trends for 2010 were published on Entrepreneur.com. If you’ve been reading my content for any length of time, then you can assume the word ‘transparency’ is probably included in that list, and guess what? You’re right! I won’t give the rest away though. Follow the link above to read the complete article. What’s your prediction for marketing trends in 2010? Leave a comment and share your thoughts. -
Def Leppard Animated Series Could Become a Reality
1 Jan 2010 | 5:31 pmIn the late 1980s when I was 17, Def Leppard’s Hysteria album was at the top of the charts in the U.S. My friends and I got tickets to see the band perform at the Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. One of my friends and I were able to sneak down from our first tier seats to the floor and ended up in the front row at the center of the stage. We had a blast, and I still remember her dancing on the roof of my parents’ car in the parking lot afterward and denting the it. We punched it back into shape, but a small dent lingered that I could always see from… -
100 Social Media and Content Marketing Predictions for 2010
15 Dec 2009 | 6:43 amJoe Pulizzi of the Junta42 Content Marketing blog (and publisher of the Junta42 top content marketing blogs list, which KeySplash Creative is on) recently asked top social media and content marketers around the world for their industry predictions for 2010. Predictions came from well-known names like Seth Godin, David Meerman Scott, John Jantsch, and more (including me!). You can read all 100 expert predictions here on the Junta42 blog. There is no doubt that the comments and predictions in this list will make you think and re-evaluate your strategies for 2010. What’s your… -
Building Brand Value the Playboy Way Review
14 Dec 2009 | 6:55 amMary Emma Allen of b5media’s HomeBizNotes.com blog published a review of my latest book, Building Brand Value the Playboy Way, last week, which I’d like to share with you. You can read the full review here! -
20 Must Read Branding Articles of 2009
10 Dec 2009 | 6:19 pmI write about corporate branding for a fantastic organization called Corporate Eye, and this week, I published a list of what I think were my 20 must read blog posts about branding that I wrote for the Corporate Eye blog in 2009. While I can’t republish the articles here on KeySplash Creative Conversations, I can provide the link to my list of the top 20 must read branding articles of 2009 that I wrote for Corporate Eye. I’m going to be publishing my list of the top 10 branding and marketing communications trends for 2010 in January and February on Entrepreneur.com, so stay tuned…
-
Social Media Explorer
-
Viralheat Plants Stake As Affordable Social Media Monitoring Solution
9 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amThe landscape of social media monitoring solutions has always had about four tiers. There’s the mostly manual but free, the entry-level business pricing (around $100 per month), the standard (about $500 per month to start) and the expensive (“research” approaches that go into the thousands per month.) While Scout Labs made a big splash a year ago with their $99 per month price point while still offering much of the same features and functionality of the more expensive options, there has still been a gap in the market. For the small (or frugal) business that wants less manual… -
Corporate Blog Success Starts And Ends With Business Metrics
8 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amThe social media purists will tell you that a corporate blog serves as a community hub for your brand. They say it gives your customers a connection point to your company and engenders a sense of community. In some cases that’s true, but you’re going to see me exploring corporate blogging a lot more this year to follow up on a theory that your “community” or “audience” for your blog isn’t what you think it is. That, and the ultimate judge of a corporate blogging effort must be more closely tied to success metrics than making everyone feel good. As you… -
Wanna Neat Job In Public Relations?
5 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amWaggener Edstrom Worldwide is hiring a public relations account director in their Seattle office. They reached out to me with an offer to post an ad for it over there in the sidebar. As we’ve discussed before, I only accept advertising from companies whose product or service is relevant to many of you and I insist those advertisers provide me with some subject for editorial content to accompany the ad as well. The requirements gave them pause since the folks helping them with the advertising offer weren’t used to this editorial-advertising hybrid, so I decided to help them a bit… -
What Every Company Should Know About Social Media Policy
3 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amA social media policy is a company’s first line of defense against risk in social media marketing. Shockingly, only one in three companies has a social media policy in place. While I’m sure that the majority of marketing managers and decision-makers who read Social Media Explorer are ahead of the curve, there’s a good chance your company doesn’t have a written policy. *UPDATE* – eMarketer published a story and research on companies without social networking policies just hours after we went live with this post. 69% of American companies do not have social networking policies for… -
What Inbound Marketing Is And Why You Should Have It
1 Feb 2010 | 3:00 amI spend zero dollars marketing my business. “Marketing” in its traditional sense includes advertising, baiting media outlets with press releases and, to paraphrase David Meerman Scott, buy, beg and borrow for leads and attention. The way people find out about my business is through two primary mechanisms: Word-of-Mouth recommendations and finding me through search engine results. Word-of-Mouth, in this instance, is inclusive of people passing recommendations online. If an account manager at a public relations firm is looking for a social media consultant and asks his or her…
-
The Content Wrangler
-
[Interview] Joe Gollner: Defining Intelligent Content And Providing Some Real-World Examples
9 Feb 2010 | 7:41 amInterview with Joe Gollner by Scott Abel, The Content Wrangler The Content Wrangler: Joe, thanks for agreeing to chat with us today. Tell us a little about yourself and your experience in the content industry. Joe Gollner, Content PhilosopherJoe Gollner: I began tinkering with content, using open markup technologies, in 1987 while still a grad student at University of Oxford. The tinkering has never stopped. Tapping on another side of my background, the military side, I was deeply embroiled in the CALS initiative – where we applied open markup technologies to the most complex documentation… -
SDL Understanding Global Information Management Video
9 Feb 2010 | 6:20 amAn imaginative and informative video from SDL designed to help people understand the basics of Global Information Management. The video, done in the style of the popular “In Plain English” series of instructional videos from the folks at Common Craft, uses a small set of characters the company calls SDL Buddies that remind me of the little Fisher Price people we played with as children. -
Valentine: The Digital, Device-Independent Comic Available Via Wireless In 14 Languages
8 Feb 2010 | 5:27 pmBy Alex de Campi Valentine: An original supernatural thriller set during Napoleon’s retreat from RussiaImagine a graphic novel series, released every month simultaneously in 14 languages and across all major wireless platforms (Kindle, EPUB, Android, iPhone), hopefully soon via the web and, eventually, in collected print editions. Every month, you pay 99 cents and get 70-75 screens of action, adventure and suspense. In its first fortnight after launch, in the difficult final weeks of December and with no marketing and without all our distributors yet on stream, the first episode had 5,000… -
From The Start We Were Different … An Amazing Video From Mark Logic
5 Feb 2010 | 10:40 amThis video was used to open the Mark Logic 2009 User Conference. It’s an amazing presentation that tells the story of humans and the paradigm-shifting information explosion we find ourselves in today. When the video ended, the crowd went wild with applause. I’ll have to admit, I’ve never seen such response from an audience, not even to a great presentation delivered by a human opening keynote presenter. Watch the video and let us know what you think. And, consider attending the Mark Logic 2010 User Conference, May 4-6, 2010 in San Francisco. -
[Interview] Microsoft’s Gabor Fari on Intelligent Content: Saving Lives By Helping New Drugs Get To Market Faster
5 Feb 2010 | 7:38 amInterview with Gabor Fari, Microsoft Life Sciences by Scott Abel, The Content Wrangler The Content Wrangler: Hello, Gabor. Tell us a little about yourself and your experience in the content industry. Gabor: I am a Chemical Engineer by training. I became fascinated with software a little over 10 years into my career, before I made the switch to the software industry. To me, building software solutions is still pretty much engineering, and my approach is to build solutions block by block. Gabor Fari, Microsoft Life SciencesI have been working in the enterprise content management industry for…
-
Idea Launch
-
One Man’s Secret to Curbing the High Rate of Shopping Cart Abandonment
8 Feb 2010 | 12:12 pmIt oughta be a law, or something. As a simple condition of their continued existence, internet merchants should be required to buy all of their material needs online. I’m talking everything: from toilet paper to shoelaces, and from DVDs to food (Omaha Steaks serves up an absolutely delectable Chocolate Lover’s Cake). In my opinion, it’s an idea that’s been way too long in coming. Think of the positive implications. First of all, it’s never a bad idea—always a great one, in fact—to support the local economy. And if that “local” economy just happens to be the world wide web,… -
Unique Website Content Tips to Draw Readers In
8 Feb 2010 | 9:19 amWebsite content comes in many forms. Implement these innovative ideas to set your site apart from the millions of other pages of content on the Web. White Papers Nothing says authority like a white paper. Go beyond the mundane, and infuse yours with your corporate personality, humor, even graphics and video. A professional freelance writer can take even the most technical topic and make it easy for anyone—even beginners in your field—to understand. Not Your Ordinary User’s Manual Have a new product? Re-print the user’s manual on your website. But we’re not talking about the same,… -
Super Bowl Ads & The Content Marketing Connection
8 Feb 2010 | 9:13 amWe love Betty White's appearance in this year's Super Bowl ads! Most people really don’t care for advertisements and blatant marketing pitches. The popularity of the Tivo is evidence of that. However, each year, people who have zero interest in football gather around the television – to watch the ads. Why is this? Because the cost of a spot during the Super Bowl is so expensive, advertisers pull out their big guns to make their commercial truly worth it: Memorable, entertaining, surprising, uplifting – even controversial – and all in 30-second, 45-second and… -
Creating Web Content Your Readers Will Love
5 Feb 2010 | 12:00 pmWhen you’re brainstorming content ideas for your next SEO campaign, try asking yourself a few questions about your site and take some notions from the answers. Your site may have plenty of frequently asked questions and answers, a pile of relevant tips, and a nice collection of articles, but what has the site done to keep up with the times? Changing technologies, ways of using the Internet, and evolving social media platforms all change the game when it comes to how your site is perceived and utilized. Are you using social media in association with your main site? If you haven’t… -
Build Authority with a Tip and Advice Center
5 Feb 2010 | 8:47 amYour website visitors look to you as an authority in your field, and they read the content on your website looking for tips and advice that will improve their lives. This is true in any industry. What better way to cement that reputation as an authority than to launch a Tip & Advice Center on your website, a place where readers can go to get answers to their most pressing questions? Your Tip and Advice Center should be well-organized. Readers should be able to find the content and answers they need at a glance. The headlines on your website’s content tips should be benefit-oriented.
-
Rexblog
-
Google advertises in lots of good old fashioned ways
8 Feb 2010 | 8:40 amIn his typical insightful way, master of the search universe Danny Sullivan provides a thorough breakdown of the Google ad that appeared on the Superbowl last night. In his post, he also runs down several past examples of Google using “traditional advertising,” including a TV campaign to support the Chrome browser, outdoor and some local radio to support AdSense. (I would add that as part of its holiday airport free wifi campaign, many of the airports had lots of “place-based” signage associated with the effort.) One thing Danny didn’t mention was Google’s… -
It’s was just a game
7 Feb 2010 | 6:46 pmIt’s just a game. The Superbowl. The game is just a game — it’s between two teams of players, not the millions of us who sit in the stands and watch on TV. We’re just fans and we’re just talk. But every once in a while, the narrative — and the allegory — make the game more than just that battle out on the field. This year, the game was all about the team carrying on their shoulders the hopes and dreams of the people of post-Katrina New Orleans. And, well, in the process, for the rest of us who have known loss. Those of us who have ever faced the long… -
Are you working on an iPad app that can help content marketers – I’ll be happy to help
5 Feb 2010 | 5:51 amMy “job” has changed radically over the past few years, so I understand why people have no idea what I do. The company I started 20 years ago, now called Hammock Inc., is in the business of developing and managing different types of content and custom media for marketers who are trying to achieve specific objectives. (Objectives being a buzzword that means something you can actually measure, not something that’s important- and lofty-sounding but has no yardstick — those are called goals. We’re into yardstick stuff.) So, yes, when publishing a magazine (what lots… -
Economic indicators: John Chambers vs. 200 Economics Bloggers
3 Feb 2010 | 9:16 pmWednesday after the market closed, Cisco announced earnings that “trounced” analyst estimates. CEO John Chambers said, “We saw very strong, balanced growth from a year-over-year perspective in almost all of the major geographies and market segment categories,” he said. According to Reuters, “He sounded a bullish note for the rest of the technology industry, predicting a good chance of ’solid, sustainable economic growth.’” He said too that the company expects to add 2,000 to 3,000 over the next few quarters. I will remind you that Cisco serves… -
Should I care about Flash?
31 Jan 2010 | 10:56 amNYT.com with flash blocked. John Gruber writes a typically thought-provoking piece about Flash, the ubiquitous software platform that designers and marketers love because it enables animation and video that make a website act just like a TV or interactive game. Except, that is, when people do what I do and use things like the Firefox browser plugin Flashblock that keeps Flash from taking over my browser — unless I want it to. Flash can be great. But more often than not, it just slows down a web page. I grew so frustrated with Flash that I installed Flashblock months ago and…
-
Sales Lead Insights
-
B2B Marketing University 2010 Kicks Off March 3 in Washington, DC
8 Feb 2010 | 10:43 amIf you are a B2B marketer or are responsible for B2B lead generation, do not miss this half-day seminar on March 3, 2010 at the Westin Grand Hotel in Washington, DC. This all-new-for-2010 session of B2B Marketing University is focused on helping you stay ahead of the curve and excel in the changing B2B marketing environment. Join us and take your marketing and lead generation to the next level. As one of the presenters, I can promise you that you and your fellow attendees will get expert insights into the latest strategies and innovation you can deploy today to get better results and a… -
The Top 10 Silly Marketing Mistakes B2B Marketers Make: Your Input Wanted (and Rewarded)!
29 Jan 2010 | 10:53 amWe can’t promise to make you famous, but if you share your top 10 list of silly mistakes that B2B marketers make, we’ll include you in our upcoming e-book. My good friend, fellow blogger and B2B marcom consultant Dianna Huff and I are putting together an e-book on the top 10 silly B2B marketing mistakes — and we want you to be part of it! Here’s how: Use our special survey link to tell us what you think are the top 10 B2B marketing mistakes that others make. These can be anything from email or PPC ad campaign no-nos and social media blunders to “old… -
B2B Ads From the Past
15 Jan 2010 | 10:19 amI always find it interesting to take a look at the work done by our predecessors in B2B marketing. In post in Jackie West’s UK Industrial Marketing Blog, she mentions Richard Stone’s Insights into PR and Online Marketing blog post where he links to The Vintage Ad Browser. Simply click on one of the categories in the Vintage Ad Browser, or type something into the search window, and you will get to see some of the advertising work done by those B2B marketers that came before us in what then was called “industrial advertising.” Speaking of B2B advertising from… -
B-to-B Lead generation: What Enterprise-size Companies Should be Doing Differently in 2010
5 Jan 2010 | 8:06 amIf you are responsible for business-to-business lead generation at a large company, don’t miss this webcast! Lead Gen in 2010: Learn What is Working Best Right Now January 27, 2010 at 11:00 am PST (2:00 pm EST) This one-hour webinar will cover: The latest trends in B-to-B lead generation, and how you can leverage them; Which lead gen strategies and tactics are working best, and which no longer work for enterprise companies like yours; The pros and cons of various marketing media for generating, nurturing, and qualifying leads. Why not register right now? The webcast will… -
B2B Marketing Strategies for Small Companies: An Interview with Dianna Huff
29 Dec 2009 | 6:18 amThis is one of a series of occasional interviews with top practitioners on topics of interest to business-to-business lead generation, marketing and new business development professionals. My guest today is Dianna Huff of DH Communications. Dianna helps businesses with their B2B marketing communications content strategy and implementation. Dianna, what are some of the marketing mistakes you see smaller companies making with regard to B2B marketing communications strategy, and what should smart marketers do instead? Mac, that’s a good question. I see companies frequently making these two…
-
Savvy B2B Marketing
-
Super Bowl Ads - Which Was YOUR Favorite?
8 Feb 2010 | 9:57 amI’m not afraid to admit that when I watch any TV program, I always watch the ads with as much enthusiasm as the show itself. But I am a marketing geek. Super Bowl Sunday is the one day of the year that the media and your average Joe unabashedly admit that ads can be fun and entertaining – not just a convenient break in the action for you to get a fresh beer or visit the restroom.In case you missed the game – or the ads – Advertising Age has very nicely included all of them for replay on their website here:http://adage.com/superbowl10/article?article_id=141954.To recap:… -
Savvy Week in Review: February 5
5 Feb 2010 | 4:10 amPerhaps it's the short month kicking everyone into high gear. This week, the blogosphere was overflowing with intriguing ideas. We've handpicked a few of our faves. Enjoy!~ The Savvy SistersHow much do you “charge” for your content? by @ckochsterIf you require registration in exchange for content, read this.7 Rules for Perfect Press Releases by @aprildunfordHere's how to make headlines with your news.10 Tips For Content Marketing Success by @TopRank562 people thought this post was worth reading. We agree.Social Media Usage in Content Marketing Jumps 500% in Two Years by… -
Important Social Lessons from Avatar
4 Feb 2010 | 8:42 amDisclaimer: Today's post totally indulges my geek gene ... SciFi and social media in one post - Woo-hoo!Warning: Subtle spoilers to follow.I finally saw Avatar yesterday. The movie is a technologically astounding audio/visual spectacle that tells the ageless and tragic tale of violent conquest in a foreign land. For the full two hours and forty minute running time, I was thoroughly swept up in the story and the artistry; but, soon after, I was struck by the powerful metaphor the film provides in the context of social media.YOU are the alienTowards the end of movie, the narrator, Jake Sully,… -
How a Viral Email Campaign Helped Juniper Networks Triple its Contact Base and Boost Advocacy
2 Feb 2010 | 5:58 pmIn December of last year, Juniper Networks® announced that it had won the 2009 B2B Marketing Award for Best Use of Email with its Junos® Software campaign. Here Claire Macland, Senior Director of EMEA Marketing for Juniper Networks, shares a behind-the-scenes look at how the campaign came to be – and why it was ultimately so successful.Q. What was the catalyst for the campaign?A. Juniper Networks offers high-performance networking solutions, and one of our key technology differentiators – and key value propositions – is the ease of using our products due to our single… -
Who says B2B is boring!
2 Feb 2010 | 8:22 amI love Mad Men. The 60’s with all its amazing fashion and brewing social revolution. An agency on the cusp of the mass marketing revolution and the dawn of television advertising. What is not to love! I imagine myself a sassier version of Peggy Olsen. As a young college student dreaming of a life in marketing my view was primarily the B2C world I had been exposed to as a consumer and many of the classic ads now portrayed on Mad Men. Fast forward five decades for Peggy and 15 years for me and the 2010 marketing world is much different that the life…
-
Social Signal
-
Show your users you've heard their feedback
25 Jan 2010 | 5:25 pmIf you use Facebook, you've almost certainly noticed the ads on the right-hand side of most pages. And chances are you've also noticed the little "x" in the upper right-hand corner of each ad. It's the "I don't like this" link (the opposite of that little thumbs-up icon under each ad), and I use it regularly. I let most Facebook ads slide, but some either offend me (usually with a gratuitously sexist photo, or a clearly misleading come-on) or are just so clearly not intended for me (thanks, but I'm not in the market for a condo) that I end up clicking - more to alert Facebook than for any… -
Help me find a Haiti relief agency with peer online fundraising
16 Jan 2010 | 11:58 amLike many people, when I heard about the disaster in Haiti, I wanted to help. And I wanted to give others a way to help, too. Here's what I decided to do: go to a relief agency's web site, and set up a peer fundraising page (along the lines of what Convio, Blackbaud and DemocracyInAction create for their clients). These are pages where you can collect donations on behalf of the charity; they handle the credit card transaction and tax receipts. Health charities in particular have become adept at creating those pages - think Run for the Cure or our friends at BC Children's Hospital Foundation… -
Six tools for trying social media on for size
13 Jan 2010 | 2:02 pmLast week, I mentioned BC Hydro's Deb LeRose, and the brilliant opening slide in her social media presentation: the one that shows a free puppy and a baby. Her point is that, like many social media presences, each is supposedly "free". But you have to look at the long-term cost, whether it's feeding your dog... clothing and educating your child... or maintaining an effective, engaging social media presence. So what if you're not sure you're ready yet? The good news is that - just as you can babysit a niece or nephew, or volunteer to take your neighbour's Shih Tzu for the weekend - you can get… -
Alex and Rob teaching Fundamentals of Social Media at UBC in March
6 Jan 2010 | 5:04 pmReady to dive into social media, but not sure where to start? Alex and I will be teaching Fundamentals of Social Media at UBC Continuing Studies in March - a more in-depth version of the course we taught last fall. (Which, by the way, we enjoyed tremendously - thanks to everyone who took part!) The four three-hour evening sessions start on March 24 at Robson Square in downtown Vancouver, and the course fees are $425. Here are the details: This introductory course provides an overview of social media: its history, theories and the principles behind online communication including the power and… -
One way or another, organizations have to pay for their social media presence
5 Jan 2010 | 11:49 amOne of the great things about the clients I've been lucky enough to work with is how smart they are. Case in point: BC Hydro's Deb LeRose, who - among many other things - helps the company's many departments and business units understand social media. She likes to start presentations off with a slide showing a free puppy and a baby. Both of them, she says, come without a price tag. So does a Twitter account, Facebook profile or WordPress.com blog... but don't kid yourself. You'd better know what you're getting into before you click on the "submit" button. (Or take hold of the leash. Or make a…
-
Article Writing & Marketing Insights - EzineArticles Blog
-
Premium Members Get Laser-Targeted Article Titles
8 Feb 2010 | 12:58 pmEzineArticles terabytes of data generate effective titles targeted specifically for your niche. Today, we rolled out a brand new feature to Premium Members that automatically creates a pool of (5) article title suggestions that are designed to be highly effective in each author’s individual niche. The Author has a week to either use or reject any of these titles for one of their articles. Once those (5) stock title suggestions have been exhausted, you can choose another pool of (5). A Few Key Points: Title Suggestions Are Protected – 1) If you are submitting a new article and you… -
Articles Remain LIVE While You Make Changes
4 Feb 2010 | 2:00 pmUntil today, any live article that was edited by you, was removed from live status. That has now changed. Moving forward, any article that is edited by you will remain live while it is being reviewed by our editors. What This Means to You: If you make a change to your article, a new version of this article will be sent to us (just as if it were a new article), and our editors will review it. During the editorial review process, your old version will remain LIVE and will still be working for you to drive traffic back to your site and build your credibility and exposure. Once the article review… -
#HAHD Just Got A Whole Lot Easier!
3 Feb 2010 | 8:50 amParticipating in the 100 Articles in 100 Days Marathon Challenge (#HAHD) just got a whole lot easier! Thanks to a recent upgrade to the EzineArticles Member Interface, you’ll now be able to actually “sign-up” for the #HAHD Challenge, check your progress anytime and never have to submit a prize claim email again! How is this Different? Previously, you did not have the option to sign-up. You simply notified us when all 100 articles were submitted. You also had to manually track your article submission progress. We have taken the guesswork out so you can focus on your writing. -
How-To Article Template
1 Feb 2010 | 11:50 amUse this simple, yet powerful and flexible template to create your next set of high-quality articles. Writing a how-to article seems like an easy task, but forget one step and your “Simple Guide to Installing a Toilet” could end up as a simple guide to disaster! Spend a little time analyzing your subject matter, however, and the outcome will be valuable content your readers will love. A Step-by-Step Guide to Writing a Great How-To Article: Pick a Topic in Your Niche – Think about things that you have done that require a specific set of steps, like how to install a toilet,… -
Article Marketing Interview with Cathy Stucker
29 Jan 2010 | 2:05 pmAn enhanced audio-only interview recorded at the Affiliate Summit West (#ASW10) in Las Vegas. This year’s Affiliate Summit West was packed full of great information, insightful presentations and some of the top experts from the world of Internet marketing. One of those experts in attendance was Cathy Stucker from IdeaLady.com. As an EzineArticles Expert Author, Cathy’s distinction lies in her uncanny ability to produce articles that average over 3,600 views each! Cathy took a few moments from the fast-paced #ASW10 Conference to talk to EzineArticles CEO and Publisher, Chris…
-
Shelly Bowen: Exceptional Web Content
-
Maximizing Twitter for Your Business
1 Feb 2010 | 6:49 pmA quiet or nonexistent corporate Twitter account is a disappointing sight for a potential client or customer. Somewhat like an empty, abandoned shopping cart. But how do you keep up? Option 1: Hire or Assign a Dedicated Person or People to Manage One Corporate Twitter Account An impersonal corporate Twitter account, one that’s ... continue reading Maximizing Twitter for Your Business -
2010 Content Strategy Conferences
7 Jan 2010 | 4:55 pm2010 has barely taken off, and I’m already hearing from colleagues and clients about their firm resolutions to maximize digital content assets. We will focus on content this year! Content will give us an edge. We will optimize and maximize our content across platforms. We will assign dedicated resources to create and maintain ... continue reading 2010 Content Strategy Conferences -
You’re Awesomer: Leaving Customers with an Awesome Feeling
22 Dec 2009 | 3:53 pmSo I’m spending some time with my invoicing system — not my most favorite thing to do, though I do appreciate the simplicity of FreshBooks — and I get stuck. I’m not sure if it’s a user experience problem or a me problem. I contact customer service via an online form. ... continue reading You’re Awesomer: Leaving Customers with an Awesome Feeling -
6 Ways to Enhance Your Mobile to Web User Experience
1 Dec 2009 | 3:20 pmLearning from The Best Camera Just got back from lunch at Cucina Urbana with a couple super genuine, cool people from digital-telepathy. I’m pretty certain they are back in their offices downloading The Best Camera, after telling them about its signature “Chase Jarvis” photo filters. Yesterday I posted how the mobile app ... continue reading 6 Ways to Enhance Your Mobile to Web User Experience -
Mobile App Content Sparks Marketing Creativity
30 Nov 2009 | 12:35 pmPlaying with The Best Camera I’ve been playing with iPhone apps a lot lately: games, tools, resources. Sometimes friends tell me about the cool ones and sometimes I just browse the most popular ones while I’m doing something else, like waiting for a carne asada taco. (Have you noticed I do my ... continue reading Mobile App Content Sparks Marketing Creativity
-
Mike Paul Jr - The Blog
-
Simple Secrets to A Successful Online Business
4 Feb 2010 | 12:13 pmSeveral people have asked me for this, so I’m posting the replay of my Business Building call from earlier this week in it’s entirety. The call is roughly an hour long, so sit back and get comfortable, there’s some good info in here that you can use right away to start building your online business this year. And, most importantly, a system that you can tap into that will maximize your efforts online and produce lasting, recurring income that builds with your efforts. Work once, get paid over and over again as a part of this system. Oh, and did I mention you might just… -
Sunday Morning Inspiration – January 24, 2010 – Tony Robbins Talks
24 Jan 2010 | 5:59 amHere it is…your weekly dose of Sunday Morning Inspiration. This time, we hear from Tony Robbins, speaking about how tiny changes can make huge differences in your results. What kind of a tiny change are you going to make that can change your destiny and redefine your financial future forever? Join us this Wednesday, January 27th, for a live webinar that will show you what you can do to start on your path THIS YEAR to changing the rest of your life. Free Webinar January 27th – 7PM Eastern time Who knows? Maybe you’ll be driving a new BMW and have your own successful business… -
Looking at the new post.ly service, liking what I see so far…more later.
22 Jan 2010 | 3:39 amPosted via web from Mike’s posterous Related posts:Just had the greatest pizza in the world… The wifey after a long day at work More strange visitors have landed… -
Network Marketing Tips – 3 Reasons Why You’re Struggling With Recruiting Heavy Hitters To Your Business
20 Jan 2010 | 8:15 pm“All you have to do is just get 3 people to sign up…” I’m sure you’ve probably heard that before, or something that sounds a little bit like it if you’ve been in network marketing for any length of time. Your upline tells you that the secret is just to find a small group of people, get them in your downline, and you’ll be set for good. Wrong. You’ve probably gotten your 3, or however many you’re supposed to get, and soon after they joined up to your group… You never heard from them again! The people that you worked so hard to get,… -
Writing Blog Post Titles That Get People Interested…
18 Jan 2010 | 8:53 pmHave you ever wondered just how long you have to get someone’s attention and get them to read your blog post? I can tell you that you only have a matter of seconds, just simply from the nature of our microwave society. We’re so used to hearing sound bytes, short commercials and flashes of information that are delivered to us very quickly that we’re easily distracted and also easily bored. And if you’re blogging, your readers are probably being bombarded by about 60 million other things when they’re seeing your blog for the first time. Or even the second…
-
Word Sell, Inc.
-
What Can the Super Bowl Teach B2B about Social Media?
8 Feb 2010 | 6:00 amDon't Be Afraid to Take Chances I was rooting for the Saints. Their coach, Sean Payton, grew up in nearby Naperville, Illinois. They were underdogs. After a shaky first quarter, they clawed their way back into the game by halftime. I figured, if they just play sound, fundamental football from here on, they’ve got a chance. So what does Sean Payton do? He runs an onside kick to open the second half. Unheard of. Crazy. And what happens? The Saints catch the Colts off guard, recover the kick, march down field, score a touchdown, take the lead, steal the momentum, and win the game. B2B Can… -
Design Flaws
5 Feb 2010 | 2:43 amFriday Fun and Link Love This is more of a designee flaw ... How come diners always put a box of toothpicks at the cash register, but never have a trash receptacle for the wrapper? When I was on the road every day in sales, I’d reach into my coat pocket from time to time and pull out 10 or 15 toothpick wrappers. Design flaw. And while we’re in this milieu, what about the restrooms? We now have motion activated flushing mechanisms. Motion activated soap dispensers. Motion activated towel dispensers. And on the way out – your hand has to touch a door handle. What could be more… -
How to Optimize Images for SEO and Readers
3 Feb 2010 | 3:40 amSEO Basics – Optimizing Images “Every Picture Tells a Story” – Rod Stewart, Ronald David Wood Here is an unoptimized image. Here is an optimized image. Think Carefully about Optimizing Your Images Can you tell the difference? Image Title. Hover over the top image and you’ll see “pic20471″. That’s an image file name you might see on a stock photo website or for personal images in your own hard drive. A lot of folks will upload images into their blog with those titles and leave it at that. Hover over the second image and you’ll see… -
When SEO Is Like Rearranging Deck Chairs on the Titanic
2 Feb 2010 | 2:39 amFocusing on SEO Tactics Is a Titanic Blunder You’ll Smash into an Iceberg Thinking Tactically about SEO You have to think strategically about SEO. A lot of companies fall in love with tactics rather than embrace strategy. This is a big mistake, one made regularly in every sort of marketing discipline I know of. Companies will read an article on social media and start setting up Twitter accounts. Or they will hear about a competitor cleaning up on YouTube and start producing video. Or watch a slide presentation on content marketing and feverishly start composing a bunch of landing pages. -
Does Your Ad Have a Big But?
29 Jan 2010 | 3:16 amFriday Fun and Link Love Don't Let This Be YourThe other day I came across a striking advertisement in our local newspaper. This was really something, because most newspaper ads go in one eye and out the other. It was a whopper – a half page ad, color. The ad announced the grand opening of a gourmet restaurant, and the copy made me hungry – and thirsty. They’d be featuring wines from Argentina and Brazil. The head chef – showered with awards from various culinary institutes and a winner of a regional Iron Chef competition. The graphics were elegant, inviting. And to…
-
Online Content Writing and Copywriting Blog
-
How to make your content more informative
5 Feb 2010 | 1:51 amThere can be various purposes for publishing content on your website or blog but when you want to generate business from your content, you need to impart the right information as clearly as possible. What’s right information depends on how your customers and clients perceive your content, not you, unless there is a parity. Whenever you are writing content (or working with a content writing service) for your business you should step into your customers’ shoes. This means not only presenting the greatest benefits of your product or service, but also addressing their concerns before… -
So what exactly is content strategy?
3 Feb 2010 | 12:42 amThe dictionary defines strategy as “a series of maneuvers or executions performed in order to obtain a specific result or goal.” This pretty much explains what content strategy is, nonetheless, lets define it in the context of achieving your business goals. Strategy basically involves: Where you’re coming from Where you’re going How you’re going Most of us know (I’m talking about averagely intelligent and intelligent individuals) where we are coming from and where we want to go. How we are going to go is the tricky part, the core of your strategy. Assessing… -
Conveying your ideas better through story-telling
30 Jan 2010 | 5:52 amDoes your content or copy tell a story? Story-telling engages your readers. When you’re reading a story, there is something in it that grips you, that exhorts you to read further. You want to know what’s going to happen next. Whether you can relate to the narrative or not (mostly you can) reading a story is always more than reading uninspiring, drab text Smashing Magazine has an interesting post on creating a better use experience with story-telling. A good story is like a journey, and when you start reading it, you join that journey. There is a beginning, there are various ups… -
Overcoming the “So What?” problem while writing content
29 Jan 2010 | 1:07 amImage source: Global Girl Don’t know what’s “So what?” problem? It’s when you write something seemingly great and your reader thinks, “So what, big deal!” Alright, there are some readers who have an insatiable penchant for being critical and they will criticize you know matter what, but you can drastically decrease the number of such reactions by devoting enough thought to what you are writing/publishing. Why do readers reject outright what you have written? The information you have provided is of no real use The same information is available on… -
Keep your SEO goals in mind while creating your content writing strategy
28 Jan 2010 | 6:14 amIt doesn’t help if you already have lots of content and then you realize that you are not targeting the right keywords. Although no situation is hopeless you can save yourself lots of time, and money, if you define your SEO goals properly. Make a list of keywords and keyword phrases you’d like to incorporate and then start generating your content around them. There is also a business benefit of clearly defining your SEO goals — it keeps you focused. You know what sort of content you require for your website and blog and what you should avoid; yes, misplaced content is bad…
-
Samir Balwani - Internet Marketing Strategy
-
Are You Marketing or Advertising?
2 Feb 2010 | 7:28 amLately, I’ve been thinking about how social media has been a part of our overall marketing program. I started to realize that our definition of marketing and advertising is slowly evolving. In my mind advertising was the driving force of a marketing campaign. The idea was to create something interesting and broadcast it with advertising. credit Advertising was more important than the actual campaign. If you spent enough money and as long as it was marginally interesting, you could be successful. Nowadays, there’s seems to be a tip in the scales. Marketing is becoming more… -
This is How You Measure Social Media ROI
28 Jan 2010 | 6:45 amMore talk about social media ROI and measurement? You know it. This time Mitch Joel of “Six Pixels of Separation” wrote a post about measurements and metrics. As much as I like Mitch (his articles are great and I highly recommend his blog), I really disagreed with his take on social media ROI. credit He states that… “Thinking about business objectives instead of ROI makes the whole strategy that much workable and doable. In the end, instead of looking for the ROI in Social Media, maybe the smarter thing to do is to focus on what the business objectives are, and then figure out if… -
Will Social Media Survive?
20 Jan 2010 | 6:44 amSocial media… what a buzzword. It’s grown, exploded, and ushered in a new paradigm in marketing. Kind of. It seems like everyday there’s a new social media guru, someone to tell you how to use your Facebook, when to Tweet, or berate you for not having a FourSquare. The social media industry, in its current form, is not sustainable. Why do I say that? Well, two main reasons stand out. First, it’s not easy to assign or forecast ROI from social media. Without being able to at least estimate return, managers have a hard time justifying investment. It’s not a large issue right now… -
Social Media Requires a Cultural Investment
13 Jan 2010 | 6:00 amInvestment is a word that rules business decisions. How much do I need to invest? It’s a question I hear on a near daily basis. So why is it that when it comes to social media, many focus on money and ignore the cultural investment? Everything you do has a cost, whether it is monetary, time, or some other abstract resource. Social media although not the most expensive, requires a cultural evolution. For many of the largest companies, a cultural investment can be greater than a monetary one. To change a business culture requires a form of dedication and collaboration rarely achieved. But… -
Welcome to 2010… Now Trim the Fat
11 Jan 2010 | 7:00 amIt’s January, the month where the gyms are packed, fitness rules, and ad campaigns take an odd turn towards diets. But as much as we’re trained to make weight loss resolutions, your business should be looking to lose excess baggage as well. credit I’ve written fairly extensively on how most brands tend to shoot themselves in the foot when it comes to social media. Almost always, the largest culprit to online marketing failure is bureaucracy. It’s the reason why small businesses can excel at social media, while adoption is slow for large brands. Online marketing requires a company be…
-
Hound Dog Blog
-
Caution: Linchpin will change the way you think
18 Jan 2010 | 3:23 pmSeth Godin's Linchpin: Are you indispensable? Linchpin: Are you indispensable? is going to be on sale on January 26th, 2010. It is Seth Godin's new book. I've read it (twice). It is, by far, his most intuitive, creative and enjoyable book yet. It will also force you to think—a lot. I could summarize the book for you here, but I won't. After trying to explain the ideas in the book to several people, I found myself flipping through it again trying to find what it was I was trying to explain. The premise of the book is that things have changed. Obvious, right? Maybe,…
-
Winning Content by Leen Jones
-
Analytics Help Answer Content Questions
5 Feb 2010 | 10:46 amI recently talked analytics with Jeff Chasin, a sharp web analyst contracting for IBM and member of Atlanta Content Strategy. He kindly let me share some of our conversation. How Do You Explain Analytics to Content Pros? Chasin: “When I say ‘analytics’ to someone who spends most of their time with words and pictures, sometimes their eyes [...] -
The New Rules of Persuasion
26 Jan 2010 | 8:30 pmNot long ago, B.J. Fogg shared his latest insights into technology and persuasion—and his take on a winning solution. I don’t agree that many “crummy trials” beats “deep thinking,” but it certainly beats lazy thinking, no thinking, or overthinking (aka analysis paralysis). What do you think? K3GNMVNDGXBN BJ Fogg – The New Rules of Persuasion – Brussels [...] -
THURS – Content Strategy: What’s in It for You?
18 Jan 2010 | 6:37 amContent strategy consultant Margot Bloomstein will travel from Boston to tell Atlanta Content Strategy exactly what this Thursday. I recently asked Margot about two of my favorite things: content strategy and Atlanta. What’s your favorite example of content strategy and why? Margot: “One of my favorite examples of great content strategy is really an example of great [...] -
Remember References
14 Jan 2010 | 7:28 amReferences. They’re not just something your 5th grade teacher required in your report about snails. References show respect of other people’s intellectual property. And, in an age when anyone can publish, they’re a CRITICAL sign of online credibility. Customers have to believe your claims are true before they will act. What’s more, references associate your [...] -
Changes for the New Year
3 Jan 2010 | 9:54 pm2009 was a very good year for the consultancy I co-founded, threebrick. To best prepare for 2010, we made some tough but exciting decisions to better serve interactive in the southeastern U.S. I left threebrick to start a separate consultancy focused on content strategy called Content Science. While I enjoyed offering content strategy along with other [...]
