Content Marketing: Page 162

  • SMT Expert

    The Content Marketing Ecosystem Is at a Crossroads

    Over the last 10 years, an ecosystem of cloud technology, software and networks has cropped up to make people and brands more successful online. The sheer number is mind numbing. From email platforms and A/B testing to measurement and curation, there's no shortage of technology. Despite all of this advancement, one thing still holds true - search engines and social media are the perceived gatekeepers of content visibility - and rightfully so. They have been, almost exclusively, for nearly 20 years.

    By • April 22, 2015

  • 8 Social Media Marketing Myths Debunked

    Like any other topic, social media marketing also has its own set of myths. As an entrepreneur, knowing the truth is crucial. Here are 8 myths about social media marketing which have been debunked. There have been many negative stories involving social media lately, but not everyone on social media is crazy. You can still interact productively with target consumers that may be interested in your posts and your company. This communication is invaluable to entrepreneurs, and not something that should be disregarded.

    By • April 22, 2015

  • A Mini Content Marketing Guide

    The first thing you do after publishing a blog post is to share it with your social network. This typically implies Facebook, Twitter, Email, LinkedIn, reddit, etc. Studies have found that Facebook users engage quite actively during Thursdays and Fridays. On Twitter, the engagement rates are seen to be higher during the weekends. The time of the day your post reaches the community matters too. News and magazine updates (including blog posts) are more likely to be opened during the lunch hours.

    By • April 22, 2015

  • Randy's Story: When Life Gives You Lemons, Take Up Kayaking

    With The Social Shake-Up only a few months away, I wanted to share a remarkable thing that happened last year. This event is so much more than a place where you can connect with like-minded individuals and exchange social media best practices. It's a place to be inspired. In more than one way.

    By • April 22, 2015

  • Google's Mobile Update: Know All the Pros & Cons of Your Next Mobile Friendly Site

    As you know, Google has announced that as of today, the algorithm will be expanding its use of mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal for mobile searches. The majority of websites that will suffer from this update will be the ones that only feature a desktop-oriented design. Adapting the design to work for smartphones and tablets as well may be easy, requiring a few changes to style sheets, or may be difficult, requiring a complete redesign.

    By • April 21, 2015

  • Driving Traffic with Interactive Content

    Responsive website design has changed more than just the way audiences access content. It is also changing the face of content itself. Brands are now able to exercise a far greater degree of control regarding how audiences interact with content. Now that mobile has surpassed desktop, audiences can interact with brands from any location at any time.

    By • April 21, 2015

  • How to Pick Blog Categories and Tags That Grow Traffic and Rankings

    Blog content is typically organized by publication date, categories and tags. The meaning of publication date is self-evident. Categories and tags, not so much. This post defines blog categories and tags. It recommends best practices for their implementation and use and draws a link between blog categories and tags and search engine optimization (SEO). That link will help you avoid unnecessary rework and grow your website traffic and rankings.

    By • April 21, 2015

  • 14 Awesome Free Resources to Drive More Traffic to Your Blog

    We've collected 14 awesome free resources to help you grow your blog traffic. We've tried and tested them for ourselves, and we've only included the tools that have really made a difference to our blog traffic.

    By • April 21, 2015

  • Are You Crippling Your Social Campaign ROI with Poor Time Management? [INFOGRAPHIC]

    Many marketers focus on campaign components with low ROI impact potential instead of implementing the right technology during the right lifecycle phase to free up time for critical tasks like content production and strategy. And since we aren't going to get an extra 8 hours in the day anytime soon, we've put together a handy infographic to help you map out time management for your team.

    By • April 20, 2015

  • How to Measure Instagram Traffic, Leads and Sales [INFOGRAPHIC]

    Brands have started using their Instagram posts to drive traffic to their profile's bio section - hence the ubiquitous "Click the link our bio!" When users click a URL in a brand's bio, they are usually directed to content the brand recently promoted on their Instagram account. The challenge has been that brands use their Instagram profiles to promote a variety of content, but they're only given one live link to work with. The limitation means most brands update the URL in their bio periodically - sometimes every day. There are downsides to this practice.

    By • April 20, 2015

  • 5 Ways to Ensure Your Content Stands Out from the Crowd

    Content marketing is big. Really big. You won't believe just how vastly, hugely, mind-bogglingly big it is. And that creates an equally big problem for content marketers - how do you make sure your content gets noticed?

    By • April 20, 2015

  • 3 Marketing Tips for Brick-and-Mortar Stores Going Digital

    Brick-and-mortar shops who want to launch an online store should absolutely get in the game now. Moving your physical store to online retail is a logical step in scaling your business. For many stores, creating an ecommerce store is the best channel of growth in their overall business strategy.

    By • April 20, 2015

  • The Importance of Brand Integrity in the Digital Age

    In today's global digital marketplace, the name of the game is brand integrity. When I say integrity, I'm not referring to the sort of moral uprightness and honesty commonly associated with the term; instead, I'm referring to its secondary (though fundamental) meaning, which relates to a state of being whole and undivided, one of unity and cohesion. It is this kind of holistic integration, both internally (operational) and externally (customer facing), that is the number one hallmark of success in the digital age.

    By • April 20, 2015

  • We've Gotten Much Too Comfortable with 5 Star Reviews

    Studies of popular travel and review sites such as TripAdvisor and Yelp indicate that between 10-20% of all reviews are negative. Anecdotally, that seems to be a pretty reasonable percentage of customers who will not be happy with a product or service. So, doesn't it stand to reason that a business that gets consistent reviews online that are 80-90% positive is a solid (and typical) business? Should they be "penalized" for negative reviews? In fact, isn't a business that has only positive reviews likely less authentic than one that has 2 negative reviews out of 10?

    By • April 20, 2015

  • 11 Awesome Automated Email Triggers You Should be Using

    So you've got your eCommerce store up and running, you're making sales, things are looking good. But you're not content to just let your business sit, no matter how profitable it is. You are always looking for ways to take your business to the next level.

    By • April 20, 2015

  • 3 Steps for Building a Brand Awareness Strategy with Great ROI

    Building a strong brand awareness strategy isn't just a great idea - a solid strategy helps you directly impact your company's bottom line sales figures. A great brand awareness strategy requires a multi-faceted approach to improving brand engagement with past, current, and future customers. In a world where 70 percent of buying experiences are based on how the customer feels they are being treated, it is incredibly important that brands establish a loyal following of active customers.

    By • April 19, 2015

  • Blogger Outreach: How Bloggers Can Help Your Business

    Most big brands now include blogger outreach as part of their marketing strategy, whilst new and growing brands, are also taking advantage of the benefits that partnering with bloggers can provide, when it comes to raising brand awareness.

    By • April 19, 2015

  • Bazaar Marketing: Where Professional Services Marketing Goes Wrong and How to Fix It

    Sometimes a new perspective comes from a direction that you least expect. That's what happened to me on a recent trip to Istanbul. That new perspective was on why professional services marketing so often goes off-track and how to fix it. It all started at the Bazaar.

    By • April 19, 2015

  • What's the Sweet Spot for Content Marketing?

    It's true, the internet has shortened our attention spans. We'd rather watch a video than have to read 400 words or more. As a digital marketer one of the great challenges is to figure out what your audience wants and then to package that into something that's measurable and moves the needle.

    By • April 18, 2015

  • 5 Reasons to Use Instant Messaging Apps for Marketing

    Millions of people use instant messaging for content sharing and communication. These private messaging channels hide new opportunities for brands to connect with their fans. If you don't capitalize on the opportunities provided by messaging apps, then you are probably leaving money on the table.

    By • April 18, 2015

  • 5 Best Free Stock Image Sites

    You know what they say: "a picture is worth a thousand words". And thanks to social media and time poor consumers, now more than ever is this true. But as a small business owner, searching for and buying the perfect image to use on social media and your website is not only time consuming but can be expensive. Check out our top picks for FREE stock image sites and libraries.

    By • April 17, 2015

  • The Mid Week Marketing Mix: Live Google+ Hangout on April 22nd

    Kimberly Reynolds (CEO of SocialNotz.com and Marketing Manager for Social Media Examiner) and Vincenzo Landino (Digital Strategist at Broadsuite and host of #MCEOtalk); both will be giving us an insight into what is new and exciting in the social media world.

    By • April 17, 2015

  • IT Marketing: What Every Technology Services Firm Should Know for Higher Growth

    For technology services firms, this is a time of tremendous opportunity - and increasingly complex challenges. As the marketplace grows more hypercompetitive than ever before, effective IT marketing becomes absolutely essential. But which challenges are most pressing for technology services firm, and which initiatives are they prioritizing in order to get ahead? The Hinge Research Institute surveyed 530 professional services firms to better understand the business challenges that will define 2015 for IT services firms and give them a competitive edge. The findings revealed powerful insights about the new shape of the IT marketing landscape.

    By • April 17, 2015

  • Building Your Brand: It's About More Than Your Logo

    When building a successful business or brand, the importance of your customers' experience with you shouldn't be underestimated. It has always been important, but it is even more important today when consumers can easily share online their good and bad experiences.

    By • April 17, 2015

  • Set SMART Marketing Goals and Thrive

    What are SMART marketing goals? In 1981, management scholar George T. Doran wrote a paper in Management Review called, "There's a S.M.A.R.T. way to write management's goals and objectives." He introduced the S.M.A.R.T. objective-setting method using an acronym to help managers set goals. Over time, Mr. Doran's methodology has grown into the methodology we use today with our clients.

    By • April 17, 2015