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- 13 Jan
The 16 Best Marketing Strategies to Try in 2020
by Lisa Smith
Well, 2020 is here. And, so far, it doesn’t look a whole lot different than it did in December 2019. That’s why Lisa Smith, over at WordStream set out to ask dozens of digital marketers for their best marketing strategies of last year.And Boy, Did They Deliver
They unloaded and gave us a huge list. But here is what we think are the 16 best marketing strategies you can take into 2020. So, to see what they are, read the full article at WordStream.com – The best marketing strategies to try in 2020
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- 10 Jan
The Email Tactics Used by Senders With High Open Rates
by Ayaz Nanji
Even after all these years, email remains the top performing marketing tool. For small, medium and even enterprise level organizations, email still out-performs all other marketing tools.
But Email is Not a Static State
Rather, email is a dynamic, organic creature that moves, molds, evolves and changes. Since it involves a heavy dependence upon the human factor of the recipient, it is subject to the tides of change.
And the best way to keep up with those changes is to see what tactics work, what fails and the trends between those two points. Then, you can compare your performance against peer benchmarks.
And Who Better to Ask Than Those Who are Finding the Greatest Success
It seems that email senders with higher-than-average open rates are especially likely to rely on three primary techniques. They tend to use delivery optimization, A/B-testing, and reactivation campaigns. That, according to recent research from Validity and Demand Metric.
What did they find? First, most respondents report that their bulk email campaigns have an average open rate of 15% or lower. And the largest share of emailers reported an average open rate of between 11% and 15%. And to see more of the data and for an opportunity to download your copy of the original report, read the full article at MarketingProfs.com.
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- 07 Jan
How to Create the Right Amount of the Right Type of Content
There is such a thing as too much content. And if you’re creating content for the sake of it (without a clear business need, strategy or to simply create something new), you’ve taken a wrong turn.
The Content Paradox: Not Enough or Too Much?
In today’s fast-paced, digital-first world, there is a glut of content available. And it’s a fine line between not having enough content and having too much content. On the one hand, you need enough content to satisfy various use cases. As an example, consider Forrester’s finding that a person on average consumes 11.4 pieces of content before buying.
On the other hand, having too much content creates challenges. When you have too much content, it becomes difficult to manage and volume can degrade the value of that content with both customers and your sales team. So where is the line between not enough and too much content? And how do you find the “just right” amount of content? Start with these six steps at MarketingProfs.com
NOTE: A Free Registration pop-up opens on this site. Registration may be required to read the article.
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- 06 Jan
50 Bright Ideas for Promoting Content to Drive Leads
by AJ Beltis
We know that content marketing is huge. And there is no doubt about that. Content is being created and published every second of every day. Plus, in 2019, more than four million blog posts were published. On a daily basis!
WOW! That’s a Lot of Noise Out There . . .
This brings up an imperative question. And, it’s a question that all great content marketers need ask themselves. How do I get more people to see, engage with and react to my content?
How Can I Make The Most of My Content?
To help, the good people at HubSpot have put together a great guide. They have outlined the best content promotion ideas across various mediums. From podcasting to blogging, to everything in between. You can use these best practices to get a strong ROI from your content. So, to learn them all, read the full article at the HubSpot blog.
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- 18 Dec
2020 B2C Content Marketing Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends: New Research
by Ann Handley
Content marketing has become a consistent tool for B2B marketing for a long time now. But, until recently it is a tool that has been largely missing in the B2C space. For most marketers in that space, they knew it could work. But they simply struggled to understand how to make it work in their markets.“. . . and nair the twains shall meet . . . “
Well, now, it seems that business-to-consumer [B2C] marketers are making steady progress with content marketing. And it is quickly becoming a key element of marketing strategy. This, according to a just-published annual content marketing study [download available] from MarketingProfs and Content Marketing Institute.
To see what key actions and approaches you can take to improve your own content marketing program, read the full article at MarketingProfs
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- 16 Dec
Why Social Media is Integral to Your Content Marketing Strategy
from DrumUp
Face it, if you’re in business, social media is important to your success. In today’s climate, your business can’t afford to be without social media. However, social media isn’t the only answer. It is one tool and shouldn’t be your only avenue of marketing.You need to have a multi-pronged approach to reach your target market. And that means that you also need content marketing to be part of your overall strategy. But, since social media has such an overwhelming prevalence in today’s society, content marketing is completely ineffective without it.
Content + Social Media = Success
Combining your content with your social media means that you’ll be able to grab the market’s attention with your social media marketing. And then that will drive audience to take a deeper dive into your broader content. To see how this can work for you, read the full article at DrumUp
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- 12 Dec
4 Ways to Target B2B Audiences on Social Media
by Ellie Buckle
For B2C brands, social media is a great place to engage with your existing audience. And, for most, its also a great place to target new potential customers to grow your business.But, Can Social Media Work for B2B?
For some B2B businesses, on the other hand, social media audience targeting can be a challenge. It can be tricky to know how or where to find your audience on social media. Now, it may seem logical to start with customer personas. But, that’s just the beginning. How do you actually target your key customer segments? How do those personas change on social media platforms? How do you know you’re targeting the right potential customers?
Well, fear not. here is a list of four quick ways to target your B2B audiences on social media today. To learn them all, read the full article at WordStream.com
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- 10 Dec
Online Video Consumption Continues to Rise Globally
from Marketing Charts
What is the reason that video marketing has gained so much momentum? Here is your answer. Online video consumption growth is expanding at a terrific pace. And it shows no sign of slowing down in the next few years.Marketers are Simply Following Their Market Momentum
The recent global forecast estimates from Zenith Media is that the average person will watch 84 minutes of online video this year. This is up from an estimated average of 67 minutes spent per day in 2018. This rate of growth is not unusual. Zenith reported that between 2013 and 2018 online video viewing grew at an average rate of 32% per year.
The insights from this study clearly support some of the more recent findings
- The growth of mobile video advertising is expected to be more than 3 times larger than non-mobile video advertising in 4 years time.
- On the B2B front, shorter videos are best. B2B online videos less than one minute in length had a completion rate of 68% last year, compared to the 25% completion rate of videos which were more than 20 minutes long.
- More than half (56%) of US consumers prefer video ads which are relevant to the videos they are watching as opposed to ads that are relevant to their browsing behavior or their mindset.
To see more of the data, insights and to access the full report, read the full article at MarketingCharts.com
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- 06 Dec
Seven Tips for Building a Video Marketing Campaign
Video is getting hotter by the day. It can even be said that it is becoming the most popular of mediums for content marketing, and marketing in general.
But Why Is That?
For one reason, video is the one content medium that is effective at every stage of the buyer journey. That makes it one of the most power full forms of content you can have. And it has been a driver for the increasing use of video in both B2C and B2B marketing campaigns.
And with that popularity there are a multitude of ways you can start. And if you’re considering using video, there are seven tips to help you build a solid video marketing campaign at MarketingProfs.com
NOTE: A Free MarketingProfs Registration may be required to read the full article.
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- 05 Dec
8 B2B Video Marketing Myths Debunked with Cold Hard Facts
Video has exploded in the B2B landscape over the past few years. And, today, it has becoming a staple in today’s modern marketing and sales toolkit. However, there are some common misconceptions and video marketing myths. And those myths seem to be keeping some businesses from reaching their full video potential.
But, That Need Not be the Case
Video is here to stay. According to a study conducted by Heinz Marketing, 68% of organizations plan to increase their level of investment in video in the next six to eight months. Now, more marketing and sales professionals are realizing that video plays an important role throughout the entire buying journey. And this includes their sales cycle as well. And they are experiencing first-hand the true impact it can have on their business.
There’s still a lot to be said about video and its use in your marketing and sales mix. But to help you out, here are eight of the most common video marketing myths. To find out what they are, read the full article on the Heinz Marketing Blog.
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- 02 Dec
10 Ways Social Media Fuels Inbound Marketing
by Sian Jaylo
Your social media efforts can help establish your online presence. And it can drive traffic to your brand. From creating increased exposure to converting leads consistently, it works. So, social media campaigns should be the backbone of your digital marketing strategy.In spite of all of the recent bad press, social media is still important. According to Sprout Social, Facebook has over 2 billion active users. Instagram has 400 million daily active users. And Twitter boasts 326 million monthly active users who send 500 million tweets daily.
And That Represents a Lot of Potential Customers for Your Brand
But the benefits of social media and inbound marketing goes beyond the sheer volume and reach. Social media lets you deliver exactly what your audience wants. It provides them with engagement, education, and confidence.
To learn more of why social media is the perfect marketing tool for giving your audience what they want, read the full article at DrumUp
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- 26 Nov
The New 4Ps of Marketing and What They Mean to You
Back in college or at some point in your career, you learned about the 4Ps of marketing. As the old mantra goes, they are place, price, product, and promotion. Though nearly 60 years old, the 4Ps still hold weight today.However, the marketing landscape has been undergoing drastic changes. And today, marketers must shift to an even more permission-based data strategy to fuel their personalized marketing strategies. That suggests a new set of the 4Ps of marketing.
Now Privacy, Permission, Personalization, and Performance (ROI) are the way forward for marketers looking to earn consumer trust and loyalty. To learn what these are and how to apply them in your business, read the full article at MarketingProfs.com.
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- 19 Nov
Banish The Boring: Use B2B Video to Entertain, Educate & Engage
by Aljaz Fajmut
When we think of some of the B2B videos we have seen, we probably think to ourselves – BORING. Well, B2B videos don’t have to be boring anymore. No longer is it necessary for our customers to suffer thought a monologue of charts, facts and figures.For B2B video marketing success today, those videos need to follow the Rule of the 3-E’s. They now need to entertain, educate and engage.
That Means It’s Time to Get Creative
We can no longer escape the fact that video is not a trend. It’s not a fad. In fact, it’s everywhere. And it has proven, time and again, to be a great way of connecting with clients, building leads and clinching sales. But, how relevant is it to the B2B sphere? Well, 73% of B2B marketers have already said that video positively affects their marketing ROI.
Today, there’s no reason why your next B2B video marketing campaign can’t hit a home run. And according to Aljaz Fajmut,as long as you use video to be entertaining, educational and informative, there is no reason to be boring. And to learn 7 of the best B2B video marketing techniques so that your own ROI grows and grows this year he shars, read the full article on Jeff Bullas’s Blog.
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- 18 Nov
Good Storytelling Starts With Your Value Proposition
As a consultant, I often see companies forgetting to tell the story about the value their products hold for the customer. In most cases, that is because companies are so close to their products. As a result, they assume the benefits are apparent to everyone.
This is Where Good Storytelling Comes In
And this is a good example of what good storytelling represents. With the markets changing at such a rapid pace, it can all be overwhelming. Understanding the shifting demands of buyers, and the market are hard.
But, one thing is constant. A good story always works and a good story always starts with the value your products brings to your customers. And that means that all of your content needs to demonstrate as well as explain your products values to the customer. But not as a focal point of your product, rather from a customer-view perspective.
To understand this all more clearly and learn how this can be applied to your business, read the full article on Heinz Marketing’s Blog.
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- 12 Nov
5 Big Changes in B2B Buying Behavior You Need to Know
If you’re a B2B marketer, and especially if you work for a services provider, your environment is about to be upended. Your customers are changing. And so are the ways those customers buy.The Winds of Change Are Upon Us
There is mounting evidence that B2B buyer behaviors are shifting due to a number of dynamic forces. While those forces are slowing moving the markets we work in, most have not noticed the shifts. And if we don’t move with those forces, we will be left in the dust.
In this article from Target Marketing Magazine, Ruth P. Stevens brings forward five glaring developments in business buying behavior that you need to know about. And once you know, you must consider how to adapt and, better yet, turn the changes to your advantage. To learn what those developments are, read the full article at Target Marketing Magazine Online.
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- 08 Nov
Where do Buyers Research Products? [New Report from HubSpot]
by Pamela Bump
The burning question of the day: Where is it that people do their research when they are considering a purchase? The time was, people perused print ads. Or they saw a promotional flyer. But the times, they are a changing. Or, at least they have changed and significantly. And if brands don’t keep pace with these changes, they loose opportunities to be in consideration of the final purchase.If Ya’ Snooze if Ya’ Loose . . .
One big shift was noted in 2018 when it was discovered that 40% of people used social media channels for aspects of product research. And younger generations today are getting more and more connected to social media platforms. So, that means that the amount of product research done on these platforms is likely to grow. In fact, 16 to 24-year-olds already conduct product research more on social than search engines.
By now, you might be on all the major social media platforms. But, as they expand and evolve, you might still wonder which you should focus your time and efforts on if you’re selling a physical product. To determine this, it can be helpful to find out which social channels your specific audience is using to look for products, and then create social strategies that meet them where they are on their preferred platforms.
To learn more about the social networks people prefer to surf for product research, see the poll data and read the full article on the HubSpot Blog
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- 07 Nov
Email Marketing Trends Report: Deliverability Remains A Challenge
from Marketing Charts
A new report [download page] from DemandMetric and Return Path, has some surprising state-of-email insights. It seems that an increased number of marketers say their email marketing effectiveness is holding steady. However, fewer are seeing any increase in its effectiveness.It might be easy to assume that this performance plateau is due to the fact that email is a long-established channel. However, there are some key differences between sectors. Additionally there are some emerging challenges that are worth noting from the report.
Deliverability Become A Greater Issue; Getting Attention Still Tough
One key take-away is that email marketers still struggle at the inbox. They still need to get their emails into the inbox before they can achieve any other goal. And getting emails seen is a basic but pressing challenge considering that consumers say that few brand emails are even interesting enough to open.
For more of the data, insights and to download a copy of the original report, read the full article at MarketingChats.com »
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- 05 Nov
7 Ways B2Bs Can Use Social Media to Boost Conversion Rates and Lead Gen
by Tessa Burg
Almost all companies recognize the importance of social media. But recognition isn’t the same as understanding. And there is a huge amount of confusion around its value as a B2B marketing opportunity. A lot of those companies tend to view social’s utility through a narrow and skeptical lens.
Most B2B companies don’t believe any B2C marketing strategies will work for them. And this attitude extends to the notion that B2C social strategies won’t work. Instead, they mistakenly use social platforms as real-time broadcast channels. So, they only post announcements or company updates.
That Strategy Misses One Vital Ingredient: Participation
Social media allows B2B companies an opportunity to show their expertise while participating in and adding value to a community. Done correctly, social can drive B2B lead generation and even conversions. To learn how you can begin to leverage social media, read the full article at MarketingProfs.com
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- 04 Nov
2018 B2B Video Completion Rates and Success Benchmarks
from Marketing Charts
We know that in the B2C space, marketing videos have grown in popularity. But, this year B2B marketers have also named video as their top lead generation tactic.But keeping B2B buyers engaged can sometimes be a struggle. Marketers are constantly challenged with the cold, hard reality of engagement. So, the question remains if they work and how they can work harder for our marketing. And, can video really help with that?
One measure of video marketing success is video completion rate. That means, people watching the complete video from start to finish. And a new video benchmarks from Vidyard [download page] offers insights into that very benchmark. And what they found for completion rates for business-related videos, and the results are encouraging.
But beyond just completion rates, the study offers other benchmarks for business-related videos on Vidyard’s platform in 2018. To see what those are and to learn just how effective B2B marketing videos can be, read the full article at MarketingCharts.com
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- 31 Oct
How to Create a Market for Your Product When There Isn’t One
by Nick Mehta
As a business, you probably have dreams of being a big, successful company. But in order to do it, you may need to do more than simply have a great product or service. You may need to create a new category of business.Now, you may be asking yourself, “why do that . . . ?”
Well, there are a number of reasons you might think you want to do this. You may want to take advantage of a new trend. But more importantly, it’s lucrative. According to Harvard Business Review, “Companies that were instrumental in creating their categories accounted for 53% of incremental revenue growth and 74% of incremental market capitalization growth.”
But we also saw the big drawback. If you’re thinking about category creation, you’ve already thought of it, too. There are no customers to a category that doesn’t exist yet. And in this article from the HubSpot blog, Nick Mehta, CEO of Gainsight brings us his 5 Strategies to Create a Product Category and win.
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