As much as we hate (or love) to admit it, social media has become a core part of our lives, and as a result, our marketing strategies. We’ve learned to fine-tune our skills and become pros at figuring it all out but we all dread the day when we aren’t sure what comes next. One strategy for solving this? A social media calendar. What is a Social Media Calendar and Why is it Important? A social media calendar helps you maximize your marketing efforts by outlining your content strategy […]
If you’re like any marketing team out there, you know that content takes you far. We create content for plenty of reasons like connecting with our audience or sharing information. However, if we’re really being honest here, content is one of the contributors that gets us to our goal of converting our leads. So, how does this work? Do we produce without stop and hope someone loves it or is there a strategic way to go about this? We’re here to clue you in and share four ways to produce […]
Our world is jam packed with all sorts of content from the most general topics to the most niche industries. When there’s already so much out there to watch, scroll through, and enjoy, how do we as marketers determine what’s left to create? In this case, we look to the trends. One of the fun aspects of content marketing is that the landscape is always changing, and you never know what the next popular thing will be. In looking to the upcoming months, let’s touch on some content marketing […]
Content is the fuel that powers so many of our modern marketing strategies. From blog posts, to email campaigns and those ever present social media activities — they all need content. But here’s the rub. Content is time consuming and difficult to create. This inconvenient truth is especially accurate when your marketing output requires a constant flow of actionable content. If only there was an AI tool that could help us create more content and make our lives as content marketers easier. You’d be delighted, right? Introducing ChatGPT […]
There’s been no shortage of social and content topics to touch on this year as we continue to navigate the world of platform algorithms, marketing strategies, and creative social trends. What’s a December without your tried, true, and entertaining, year-end recap? While there is plenty to reminisce on, we’d like to highlight a few of the favorite ideas we tapped into this year. Let’s Go Back to the Beginning: Marketing 101 Marketing has been around and evolving for many generations and we took the time to dive into the […]
Let’s not pull any punches here. Content is the hardest working resource available to your sales and marketing organization today. A well-produced piece of content can be deployed at multiple stages of your sales and marketing funnel, helping you to achieve many different objectives. As long as that content is relevant, it will remain fresh and engaging in the eyes of new prospects and customers, creating new opportunities for your business many weeks, months, and potentially years after it was first produced and deployed. But content creation doesn’t come […]
If you thought content marketing was a passing marketing trend, think again. Research by Statista suggests that B2B marketers are taking content marketing more seriously than ever in 2022. That research shows that 66% of marketers surveyed will increase their content marketing investment over the next 12 months. Furthermore, 20% of those marketers will increase that investment by 10% or more. So why are B2B marketers investing so much in content marketing? Changing B2B Buying Habits In many ways, B2B marketers are mirroring trends previously adopted in B2C […]
Dynamic content has been so seamlessly incorporated into our everyday lives that we don’t really notice it’s happening. In fact, we’re more likely to notice when something isn’t optimized for our personal lifestyle and needs. Why is that? Marketers understand the power of personalization and technology has given us unique ways to keep up with the evolving expectations of consumers. Because of this, consumers come across all kinds of platforms that already have their browsing behaviors in mind and ready. Searching for the next show to binge? Netflix has […]
If you’re a marketer, you’ve probably spent years honing your skills in copywriting, design, marketing tech, ad platforms and the rest of the skills that come with the territory. On top of that, you’ve developed an extensive understanding of your business’s industry—the products, the services, the needs of your consumers, and the intricacies of the environments that surround them all. These are the things that come natural to us because they’re the world we live in every day. And when these two worlds meet, the results can be amazing—detail-rich whitepapers, […]
As a project manager, my forte isn’t content strategy or copywriting. But I do appreciate a good process and believe strengthening process can strengthen output. A lot of work goes into content planning—analyzing data and defining your audience, topics, formats, goals, etc. All of that is fruitless work if it’s not followed with a strong implementation plan. Once you have your content strategy planned out for 2022, follow these steps to create and maintain a schedule. Create a Breakdown of Deliverables You likely have a head start […]
The phrase “above the fold” originates from newspapers. It refers to all content literally above the folded line on the front page. It’s the most visible content and is meant to capture people’s attention so they’ll grab the paper off the stand for further reading. In the digital media world, its meaning has extended to include the area of content that’s readily visible and therefore the most important for inviting your viewer to digest more of your ad, web page, email, etc. Why Should I Care About […]
Part 1: Content Strategy It’s time to rethink your entire marketing and advertising strategy. No, really, it is. iOS 14 promises to curtail Facebook and other platforms’ long-standing (arguably uncouth, depending on whom you ask) data practices. Google Chrome, the most widely used internet browser by FAR, is moving to block third–party cookies, and the world is in the throes of a global pandemic that has upended marketing, advertising and general business “conventional wisdom” as a whole. With so much in flux, it’s time to get back to the basics. It’s time to stop working […]
Marketers are always talking about content—how important it is for driving leads, building brand identity, developing loyal audiences, and more. However, there’s one question every marketer must answer when it comes time for them to develop content for their own brands or clients: how much content do I really need? The short answer is that there’s no one-size-fits-all solution. There are, however, a few guidelines you can use to determine the amount of content that’s right for you and your business, and they come in two flavors: audience analysis and […]
Writer’s Block when Blogging—we have all experienced it. We sit down and are all set to write, but we don’t know what to write about. A million different topics run through our brain, but which do we choose? What do readers want to see? How can we attract our target audience? We want to write about a topic that has meaning and will also be ranked high for organic visibility so everyone can read it and to do so we must include SEO. How to Find Blog Topics that […]
We’ve all heard the classic saying that “content is king,” but is that still the case? If so, how can you maximize your output of quality content? It’s still true. Content is king, and given how 2020 has played out, it may be even more critical than ever as more and more people spend time at home, online. According to Forbes, global online content consumption more than doubled during the pandemic. The average daily content consumption is six hours and 59 minutes. Content promotes your brand. It’s how […]
Understanding link building and identifying link building opportunities is only half the battle when it comes to implementing an effective link building strategy. What really separates a great link building campaign from a not-so-great campaign is your ability to determine what is a “good” link building opportunity and what is not. To help with this, we’ve boiled the complicated link qualification process down into a simple eight item checklist: Use common sense! Ask yourself: 1. Is the placement relevant to the niche? This is arguably the most important factor […]
69% of B2B Marketers are increasing content marketing budgets or holding steady from their budgets last year. Meaning, the content marketing space is noisy and full of marketers trying to gain attention/get their message across. Add on the shift to work from home and increase in digital services and online ordering and marketers have a unique opportunity to intercept more prospects than ever before. It’s important to have a clear plan to ensure you capitalize on your content marketing efforts. Before we dive into how to maximize reach for […]
Even before the stay-at-home order was in place, I was an avid listener of podcasts. I subscribed to a few and frequently explored new podcasts as they became available. Podcasts were my go-to source, fulfilling my quest to learn more even when I didn’t have time to sit down, read books, or jump on the internet. They fit in when and where I need them, whether during my morning walk, while I’m cleaning the house, or when I’m in the car. I have learned how to be better at […]
In August 2019, Facebook released a new feature that makes it easier for businesses to chat with customers in Messenger. Facebook claims that their new lead generation in Messenger can assist businesses develop customer relationships. According to Facebook, with Messenger you can: Reach the right prospects Ask the right questions Easily remind people to complete questions Nurture leads where they spend time Instantly close the loop with unqualified leads Integrate with your CRM I don’t know about you, but that last bullet makes me incredibly happy as a […]
B2B purchase decisions are typically high value and expensive decisions. These decisions develop over a longer period of time than B2C and require relevant and timely content. The average B2B buying cycle is 6-12 months (Powerpost). So, what happens during this buying cycle and how can you guide it along? The answer – relevant, timely, targeted and personalized content. In a study by FocusVision, they discovered the average B2B buyer consumes 13 pieces of content before making a decision, typically eight vendor-created and five third-party created. Vendor-created content […]
Want to make your content marketing tasks a bit easier in 2019? Start the year off fresh with a content inventory. Wait, What’s a Content Inventory? Let’s start with definitions. In its basic form, a content inventory is a list of content items created for your brand—this could be anything from blog posts to website pages, whitepapers, infographics, case studies, testimonials, or other types of content you’re creating for your audience—and a recording of where that asset has been published. The idea behind a content inventory is that […]
LinkedIn has completely overhauled their LinkedIn Group’s experience, and I have to say that I am loving it. Back in February, LinkedIn completely scrapped their standalone Groups app, in an effort to reintegrate it back into the core user experience of the platform. Last month LinkedIn introduced their new and improved Groups experience and here is what you can expect to see, according to LinkedIn group director of product Mitali Pattnaik: Enhanced group participation Group activity notifications Access anytime, anywhere Check out all of the exciting details that […]
Email personalization continues to be a top email design trend. And with more marketers putting an emphasis on data quality, there are many opportunities for maximizing the impact of personalized messaging. Beyond incorporating first name variables into the subject line or body to boost engagement, brands can use personalization to serve the subscriber. If the data is accurate, timely, and serves a purpose, it’s likely to benefit the subscriber in ways that are advantageous for the brand. Here are a few examples from my inbox of ways brands used personalization […]
If you’re reading this blog I’m sure that by now you’ve done some research and have heard the phrase, “Content is King.” Well, for most it’s a fact. For those to whom the phrase rings true, content marketing is a major component of ongoing digital marketing strategies. Establishing well-defined content marketing goals is the critical first step in developing a successful content strategy to drive business growth. But what makes it worthy of such a title? Creating unique, high-quality content that is engaging and useful adds value to your products […]
Once upon a time, community banks and credit unions cornered the market on personalized communications and a neighbor-to-neighbor experience for their customers. But now, with the help of marketing automation platforms, big banks are poised to take back the customer experience. If community banks and credit unions hope to challenge those big banks, they’ll need a strong content strategy and an engine to deliver useful content to their customers. A great place to start is by building a user generated content guide for community banks or for your credit union. […]
When creating content, one of the biggest challenges we have is marketers is the balance between writing for Search Engine Optimization (SEO) and writing for our customers. At least, that is the internal challenge we think exists. In reality, the challenge is not nearly as big as we think. Let’s look at how to create a content marketing SEO strategy. In its most recently product SEO Starter Guide, Google has made it clear that “optimized content” is one of the most important ranking factors to consider. But what exactly […]
What Gets Measured Gets Managed – A FREE Content Calendar For SEO and Social Media Peter Drucker was a legendary business thinker. If you’ve never read any of his books on business and management, you should (at the very least) memorize his most famous words. What gets measured, gets managed. It’s not rocket science, it’s pure common sense. At past companies, I felt like Marketing Departments worked in silos, which doesn’t help year-end goals. You have the Search Team over here working on X, Social Media is working on […]