I finally had a chance to test Issuu, another document sharing website similar to Scribd, Docstoc and Slideshare. Each of them have different strengths, but their main focus is on allowing users to upload documents to share with others, download and embed in other websites. The embedding function is pretty handy, and I especially like the way Issuu took…Read More
Last week I received a piece of unsolicited direct mail from an unlikely source. Are you ready for this? It came from Google! The familiar saying Google has never advertised is no longer true. I guess that even some of the world’s best brands resort to marketing in a down economy. But the good news is that they sent…Read More
Marketing pros at big companies know how to design and deliver integrated campaigns that produce revenue. But for most small businesses, this is a struggle – many focus on one marketing tactic at a time, trying different approaches and hoping something works. Small businesses usually don’t have the budget or the sophistication to design and…Read More
Recently the IAB reported that online advertising grew 10% in 2008. While search advertising dominated (with 45% of the total internet advertising market), rich media and video advertising also grew at the same rate (roughly 20% courtesy of TechCrunch.) Internet marketing growth continues to outpace traditional media, and many SMEs (small to midsize entities) are…Read More
Event marketing can be a great way to generate publicity, nurture existing customers, raise brand awareness and generate new leads. Getting to know people in a social (and fun) setting adds the human elements to business relationships, which is good because, well, people prefer to buy from people instead of faceless corporations. But if you…Read More
Sometimes, a new combination of common things creates something new and exciting. Everyone understands direct mail, email marketing and websites. Many are familiar with variable printing and personalized URLs (pURLs). But how many have seen a system that combines all of these into a single messaging engine? PitchRocket is a new web-application which combines these…Read More
Can social media document sharing sites help you expand your audience and find new customers? Absolutely. I posted our Strategic Marketing Process ebook on Scribd 4 weeks ago. I spent 10 minutes uploading the PDF and setting the search parameters, then joined a couple of marketing groups and posted it there. Our results so far? Scribd and their viewers…Read More
Are you using direct mail in your marketing mix this year? Believe it or not, direct mail isn’t dead–it can still be extremely effective as more companies shift their marketing dollars online. Don’t believe me? When was the last time you received a mail piece with your name on it speaking directly to your businesses…Read More
The New Year always brings new hope. 2008 was rough for many companies, and the cost-cutting will continue well into 2009. While cost-cutting is necessary for many companies, don’t focus all your efforts on cost-cutting: Renew your efforts to grow (or maintain) the top line. How do you accomplish this in a recession? If you’re…Read More
Jack Welsh, the former CEO of General Electric, recently delivered some good advice about business strategy during this economic tsunami. You can check out the 4 minute video if you wish, but I’ll paraphrase Welch’s 3 points as follows: Over communicate to every employee. In uncertain times, reassure employees of management’s plan to win. Take care…Read More
We all know that “getting your name out there” is a good thing. Creating publicity can accomplish this, but you need to tell the right story the right way. While the catch-phrase “even bad publicity is good publicity” might hold true for celebrities, that’s not usually the case for businesses. Publicity is about sharing your…Read More
There’s a reason marketers are literally pouring their budgets into new internet marketing programs. They work. Marketers spent $16.9 billion on search, display and rich media in 2006, and that number could be $31.3 billion by 2011 according to ClickZ and IDC Internet. Internet advertising is growing three times as fast as the overall ad…Read More
It’s always challenging to recruit top talent for your marketing team. If you’re an early stage company, it’s even tougher. You need extremely talented people who share your passion and vision, are willing to work longer hours, carry more responsibility, in a less defined position, and for less cash than your established competitors. Even if…Read More
In my last post I wrote about giving your next presentation a plot. Whether you’re trying to persuade one person or a thousand, you need to grab attention, build value and close with something meaningful and exciting. Just like your favorite filmmaker! Today I’ve got tips about storyboarding. When you create a storyboard instead of…Read More
When Martin Scorsese won his long-awaited Oscar® two weeks ago, he joked that The Departed was his first film that actually had a plot. What do Marty and marketers have in common? Stories. Great plot or not, we’re all in the business of telling stories. We tell stories in campaigns and sales materials. When we meet with colleagues…Read More