John Weiber says, “In today’s digital world, blogging is an important piece of the marketing pie. By minimizing its importance, you’re throwing away an opportunity to get your business some much-needed exposure. Many business owners choose not to blog because they think they don’t have the skills to write engaging content. But... [Read more]

Rob Rasko says, “There is a lot of chatter in our industry about the negative effects of ad blocking. And while ad blockers present a serious concern for our industry, would it hurt to consider, on a lighthearted note, that one shouldn’t be afraid to click on ads? I plan to click on more ads going forward, and in support of our industry, I’m... [Read more]

Jami Oetting says, “While Instagram engagement rates fell in 2015, the site remains the queen (or king) of social media engagement. The platform boasts a per-follower engagement rate of 2.3%, while Facebook reaches 0.2% and Twitter comes in at 0.03%. And it remains one of the most interesting and untested social networks for brands. Instagram... [Read more]

Satish Gaire has just launched PandaText. When you send a message to anyone, you want assurance that it arrived and, preferably, that they took the appropriate action. Like most marketers, you would feel the same way about messages you send to your mailing list. And, for legitimate marketers like you, it is just as important to realize that the people... [Read more]

Anshey Bhatia says, “When starting an online store, content is a frequently underrated yet vital aspect of the website creation process. We consistently tell our clients that we need content for the site completed within the first one to two months of a project—otherwise, it is the area most likely to slow down a site launch. Make sure you’re... [Read more]

Chad Reid says, “Left unsupervised, your online forms can cause a lot of trouble for your conversions. However, make optimize your forms for performance, and they’ll become your website’s greatest money-making asset. Most people don’t give their Web forms much credit or blame for their overall conversion rates, and that’s... [Read more]

Lori Weiman says, “Welcome to Part 6 of an eight-part series on PPC brand bidding, where I answer the biggest question facing PPC advertisers in 2016: How do I get meaningful growth numbers out of a crowded and competitive PPC market? The answer is surprisingly simple: Brand Bidding. Advertisers at The Search Monitor (disclosure: my employer)... [Read more]

Now you can have a software solution for online marketing to attract and engage your audience: Easily Run Viral Giveaways; Easily Run Viral Contests & Sweepstakes; Easily Run Viral Product Launches. Wilco de Kreij's new UpViral makes all these (and more) a snap... [Read more]

Roy Hinkis says, “SEO is not just about Google! Yes, that’s right, I genuinely mean this and I’m going to stick to my word. It’s common practice for SEOs to invest all their time and energies into just one search engine, but this is a limited approach. The truth is that SEOs need to investigate other strategies for generating traffic which... [Read more]

Christian Mongillo says, “The digital ecosystem is undergoing a lot of changes. From Twitter, to Google, LinkedIn, and even Bing, how do you keep track of it all? Fortunately, we have you covered with an extra set of eyes and ears. The work that we do here depends upon the success of the entire digital universe: we’re always up to speed on the... [Read more]

Demian Farnworth says, “SEO is not just about Google! Yes, that’s right, I genuinely mean this and I’m going to stick to my word. It’s common practice for SEOs to invest all their time and energies into just one search engine, but this is a limited approach. The truth is that SEOs need to investigate other strategies for generating traffic... [Read more]

If you haven't already gotten your copy (thousands have) of 'MintsApp', then use this coupon when you check out: back2earlybird. The new MintsApp 2.0 is selling quickly.  This software is designed to keep visitors to your site engaged by offering them quizzes, polls and questions to participate in. That interaction tends to hold people's attention. ... [Read more]

Aaron Orendorff says, “Discoverable, adaptive, and reusable, oh my! Learn how to make your digital content super flexible and findable using a concept called “structured content.” You publish hundreds of content assets a year – everything from e-books and videos to blog posts and snackable social content. You “atomize” content, reusing... [Read more]

Gabrielle Hughes says, “Because the majority of those contributing to the discussion are doing so in either a positive or neutral manner, a low volume of SoundCloud enthusiasts will likely continue to use the platform, whether they decide to upgrade or not. Snapchat 2.0 has Arrived Last week, Snapchat provided a new software update, offering users... [Read more]

Liva LaMontagne says, “How many positive claims should firms use to produce the most favorable impression of a product or service? Despite the logic that more positive claims about an object should lead to better impressions, a recent study found that when people are faced with messages they know are made to persuade (like most marketing communications),... [Read more]

Good videos persuade better than poor videos; that's a proven fact. But good videos aren't easy to make, or at least they weren't until EZ Video Creator. Now, with the new software from Matt Bush, you can build videos quickly using templates you can copy and paste, and customize with your words... [Read more]

Derek Edmond says, “Keyword research can be overwhelming for clients. In its most basic form, keyword research will almost always consist of a spreadsheet of hundreds, if not thousands of words and phrases, or “key phrases.” In an effort to make this type of deliverable more “digestible” for clients, KoMarketing (my employer) will often... [Read more]

Entrepreneur team says, “In this video from the Entrepreneur live stream, YouTube personality Evan Carmichael talks about how to convert subscribers to loyal customers. A couple of tricks include using the “click now to subscribe icon” in place of your YouTube channel logo and using your best video as your channel trailer. “But... [Read more]

Mark Roberge says, “Today, the world is unimaginable without the internet. We buy products, file our taxes, pay bills, apply for jobs, conduct research, stream entertainment, and communicate with people around the world over it. But this isn’t always how things were. Imagine for a moment what it was like to buy a product before the internet... [Read more]

Well-known marketers, Alex Mandossian and Steve Olsher are looking for a few beginning marketers to take under their wing for detailed, high-quality marketing training. Like every other entrepreneur and independent marketer, the most critical problem you face is getting enough exposure of your business and its products and services to the people who need your help... [Read more]

Ayaz Nanji says, “Most consumers are not willing to wait for longer than a few seconds for an e-commerce page to load, according to recent research from Imperva Incapsula. The report was based on data from a survey conducted in 4Q15 of 4,568 adults in the United States who self-report their shopping frequency to be slightly often or more. Some... [Read more]

Kristen Dunleavy says, “Eight years ago, Jared Polin filmed a video of himself talking about his camera gear. It was awkward. He was visibly uncomfortable in front of the camera. But he kept going. He created another video. And another, and another. In 2010, he launched his website Fro Knows Photo to show off his photography expertise and land... [Read more]

Ronald Dod says, “While all online businesses need a professionally-guided ad campaign, perhaps the best way to promote your business is through your customers. If you believe that your products are the best, you can and should talk about that. But, if you’re honest, you will admit that you are not exactly the most objective person when it... [Read more]

Aaron Orendorff says, “Back in February, Joe Pulizzi dropped this bombshell of a headline: One Thing Is Killing Content Marketing and Everyone Is Ignoring It. Not surprisingly – just five days later — it was the most-shared CMI article on social media. With 51 comments and counting, the question is, “Why?” Easy … people are frustrated.... [Read more]