Tucker Schreiber says, “It’s a cold evening on the town, and you’re looking for a place to grab a bite to eat. You come across two restaurants – one is close to full, the other is almost empty. Which one do you choose? Chances are you’ll go to the one that’s close to full. That’s social proof. It’s a psychological phenomenon... [Read more]

Jason Klein says, “The results of StrongView’s annual Marketing Trends Survey are in and email retains the top spot for increased investment in 2015, followed by social media and mobile marketing. Overall, the majority of marketers (54%) are increasing their budgets in 2015 – and that’s a healthy 17% increase of 2014. The results are also... [Read more]

Pamela Parker says, “Online holiday shopping activity slowed during the Christmas week but certainly didn’t stop entirely. Traffic was still clocking in at 1.6 times the holiday baseline while conversions dropped precipitously, to only .9 times the baseline number. Traffic was especially notable on the day after Christmas, when it spiked to... [Read more]

Lee Oden says, “Do you attend industry conferences? Would you like to create a greater diversity of content on a regular basis without a big jump in budget? Imagine these two scenarios: Dan looks forward to industry conferences because they provide time away from the office and give him a chance to be inspired by industry thought leaders. He also... [Read more]

Chipper Nicodemus says, “SEO is an ever-changing industry and 2014 was no exception. Some of the biggest SEO happenings went down in 2014, so let’s review! Google’s Big Algorithm Updates Both of Google’s big algorithms, Panda and Penguin, got major updates in 2014 and both are moving to rolling updates. This means that in the future, there... [Read more]

Travis Bliffen says, “For a long time people focused on optimizing only their website and doing so to rank in Google. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this, but if you haven’t learned by now, diversification is key if you are going to rely on organic traffic to promote your business. Generally when people talk about diversifying their... [Read more]

Danny Sullivan says, “Take a look at your “Following” list on Twitter. You might find some brands or people showing up there, even if you don’t follow them. If so, that seems due to either a new change or a newly noticed change in how Twitter is doing placement for promoted accounts. Credit to William Shatner who spotted this first —... [Read more]

Julie Ask says, “The annual Consumer Electronics Show (CES) opens in Las Vegas on January 6th,with global electronics manufacturers from Samsung to Sony to LG looking to outdo one another with whispers and snippets of content that will increase our anticipation of the next “must have” device. CES is typically dominated by TV’s... [Read more]

Neil Patel says, “I love reading simple writing. It’s clear. It’s easy to understand. And it doesn’t force me to work hard. But simple writing is easier said than done. Even though it’s easy on the readers, it’s hard for the writer. In this article, I’ll go over what I mean by “simple” in writing, and then give you eight... [Read more]

Chirag Leuva says, “In a span of only four years the ecommerce industry in US has grown more than double the size and is still continuing to keep the same pace of growth. From just $164 million turnover to $304 million in only four years is really huge and this growth story indicates the importance of web design focused on higher rate of conversion... [Read more]

Mashable team says, “How do CEOs stay calm? A few pointers would be great — would also like to hear about personal experiences. Answer below by Jason M. Lemkin, partner at Storm Ventures and CEO of EchoSign. First, you must fake it. You cannot let anyone see you look like you are losing control. Ever. Once [your employees] see that, they will lose... [Read more]

Chow says, “Finding a decent content strategy for your website may not be as easy as it would initially sound. Sometimes, we take a bigger issue with what the content LOOKS like. Other times, we take issue with what the content SAYS. These are both good, important things to worry about, and they are issues that need to be included in your strategy.... [Read more]

Jerod Morris says, “It’s that time of year again … The time of year when we wind down one year in anticipation of the next by taking a final look back at the best of the best content published here at Copyblogger during the last calendar year. It’s become an annual tradition. But first, I want to highlight the best Copyblogger moment from... [Read more]

Trevoe Klein says, “At the end of every year, we compile a list of the very best posts and most popular and prolific people that have been published on the Moz Blog and YouMoz. It’s a really fun way to look back on what happened this year, and an insight-packed view of what really resonates with our readers. Here’s what we’ve... [Read more]

Courtney Eckerle says, “Email marketers in 2014 put their focus on customers. Through every new tactic and test, it’s clear that personalizing emails and serving customers wins out. To help you include these tactics in your 2015 email programs, we’ve collected eight MarketingSherpa case studies that display the best in these marketing efforts... [Read more]

Jen Capstraw says, “I love reading those articles that compare 20th century science fiction to our modern world. This week, I stumbled across a list of author Isaac Asimov’s 1964 predictions for 2014. While we’re still not colonizing the moon, Asimov was pretty spot-on in the majority of predictions, including his descriptions of some of today’s... [Read more]

Allison Howen says, “A new study by Content Analytics is shedding light on the attributes that increase product visibility on major e-commerce sites like Walmart.com and Amazon. The study, which analyzed more than 17,000 product pages, found that the most visible product listings on e-commerce sites are those that contain the complete search... [Read more]

Greg Finn says, “The Internet is the cornerstone of technology in the office. Social networks for business are beginning to emerge into corporate usefulness. But Email reigns as the top tool for those in the workplace according to a new study from the Pew Research Center. A group of “online workers” (folks that had online access regardless... [Read more]

Chow says, “Email marketing is definitely alive and well. It is utilized by so many top brands and companies online, including Best Buy, Amazon and TeeFury. The right kinds of email newsletters can be hugely successful, helping you increase sales and improve customer retention. If you’re struggling with the open rates or the conversion rates on... [Read more]

Pete Prestipino says, “Pinterest has released some interesting data on the performance of its Promoted Pins project. The social pinboard, which launched the Promoted Pins beta eight months ago, indicated that Promoted Pins perform just as well as (if not better than) organic pins, generating a 30 perent increase in “earned media”... [Read more]

Gina Broom says, “Content creation is such a huge slice of the Internet marketing pie. Ever had someone cut a piece of a pie, and then joke that the rest of it is their piece? When content creation does that, it’s not joking. Google updates its algorithms all the time, This isn’t news, but the changes aren’t complicated to understand,... [Read more]

Greg Finn says, “Come January 1st, there will be more than just a new year, but new opportunities for marketers as well. In 2015 Pinterest is bringing their reservation-based (CPM) Promoted Pins out of beta for all partners. This release won’t include the auction-based pins purchased on a CPC basis. According to Pinterest they are “making... [Read more]

Matt Asay says, “Many enterprises seem content to toe-dip in the mobile deluge. That’s unwise. As Facebook, Uber and a host of mobile-first companies up-end traditional ways of communicating and commuting, companies that don’t take a mobile-first position risk becoming the Microsofts of their industries: big and profitable from yesterday’s... [Read more]

Will Blunt says, “Today, age and experience no longer necessarily determine your credibility. Instead, people care about your ideas, your generosity, and your willingness to take risks and learn from mistakes — those are the kinds of things that can give you a voice in the conversation. We’ve witnessed a blogging revolution over... [Read more]