15 Steps Towards Profitable Content Marketing

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Content marketing, the strategy du jour and yet another name for blogging, is said to attract customers, build trust and bring visibility to your brand for minimal expense.

But what exactly is content marketing, why would you want to do it and how would you start? Glad you asked. Vocus enlisted four of the biggest content experts out there – Joe Chernov, Scott Stratten, Ann Handley and Adam Singer – to write an expert guide containing 15 great tips to get your content motor started!

In the guide, you will learn:

  • How to make content that really appeals to customers
  • How and where to publish it, so it gets found by more people
  • How to pick the best stories to tell to get people interested
  • How it’s easy to get your colleagues creating great content too!>/li>
  • Content marketing done well is worth its weight in gold.

Download the report now to learn how content marketing can work for your brand.


Do These Holding Company Numbers Indicate Global Recession in 2013?

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It’s been long understood that the advertising business is a leading indicator of an oncoming recession (and a lagging indicator of it’s end). Business Insider has gathered together the Q3 numbers from the four largest agency holding companies and the outlook isn’t pretty. Having barely recovered from the last recession, if these numbers are to be believed, we may be headed for another in 2013.

Taking a look at WPP Group, Omnicom, Interpublic and Publicis, Business Insider compiled a graph that tracks the ups and downs of the four holding companies and recent numbers all indicate we may be headed for the crapper again very soon.

It’s not all doom and gloom, though. While IPG sees a 2.7% drop in U.S. revenue for the nine month period ending September 30, Publicis sees U.S. growth of 2.4%. Much of the declines across the four holding companies are seen in Europe with healthier indicators for Asia and the UK.

Check out their full analysis here.


47 Useful Facebook Stats and Charts

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Hubspot has compiled 47 stats, charts and graphs about Facebook that are easy to share and put into presentations. Use these stats to help you determine what is the best strategy for your next Facebook marketing campaign.

After reading this eBook, you will be able to:

  • Determine how to best reach your particular target
  • Measure your progress on Facebook relevant to others in the industry
  • Implement strategies for best results on Facebook

Download the free eBook now and become a walking encyclopedia of Facebook marketing knowledge.


Five New Laws of Content Marketing

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Ah, yes. Content Marketing. The current panacea of every marketer’s woes. Snarky as that may sound, content marketing does, indeed, play an increasingly important role in today’s marketing mix. Dovetailing nicely with social media, it provides brands a marketing method that is much less in-your-face and far more informative than traditional advertising.

A new whitepaper, part of the Adrants whitepaper series, from communications firm Moveo posits five “laws” that can aid brands stepping foot into content marketing waters. The whitepaper explores:

  • The relationship between content consumption and perishability
  • The mission-critical role of the content curator
  • The impact of source reputation on perceived quality
  • How agencies and brands can create compelling content

Download the whitepaper now to find how how your brand or agency can achieve the most from content marketing.


5 Best Practices for Increasing Earned Media

The fact is, all social marketing campaigns on Facebook are not created equal. Campaign types that attract high user activity and entry rates are not always the same campaign types that inspire users to share with their friends.

This Wildfire report, part of the Adrants whitepaper series, discovered a number of insightful results for social marketers, including the types of social marketing campaigns that tend to get the highest participation rates, the different campaign types that get the highest sharing rates and the common thread among campaign types that generates the most sharing with friends on Facebook which results in valuable earned media as well.

Whether it be sweepstakes, trivia, quizes, coupons, giveaways, videos, photos, essay contests and a host of other tactics, this report will tell you what works and what sort of results you can expect.

Download the report now.


Internet Ad Revenue Hits $17 Billion in First Half 2012, Up 14 Percent

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In the first half of 2012, internet advertising revenues climbed to an all-time high of $17 billion, representing a 14 percent increase year-over-year, according to IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report released today by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and prepared by PwC US. In the first half of 2011, internet revenue was $14.9 billion.

Also marking a 14 percent year-over-year increase, second quarter internet ad revenues for this year hit $8.7 billion, up from $7.7 billion during the same time period in 2011.

Highlights of the report include:

  • Mobile generated significant growth – almost doubling year-over-year figures – up 95 percent to $1.2 billion in half-year 2012 from $636 million the comparable period in 2011
  • Digital video, a component of display-related advertising, saw an increase of 18 percent year-over-year, bringing in a little over $1 billion in revenue in the first two quarters of 2012 compared to nearly $900 million in the first six months of 2011
  • Search revenues in the first half of the year totaled $8.1 billion, up 19 percent from nearly $6.8 billion during the same timeframe in 2011
  • Display-related advertising revenues in the first half of the year totaled almost $5.6 billion, accounting for 33 percent of 2012 half-year revenues, up 4 percent from $5.3 billion in the first half of 2011
  • Retail advertisers constitute the largest category of internet ad spending for the first half of this year, claiming 20 percent of the total revenues at $3.4 billion, while Automotive brought in $2.2 billion for first-half 2012, marking an uptick to 13 percent versus 11 percent of category spend reported for half-year 2011 at $1.7 billion.

Annual Figures
The following chart highlights half-year Internet ad revenue since the IAB began measurements in 1996; dollar figures are rounded.

Year Revenue % Growth
HY 2012 $17,028 14%
HY 2011 $14,941 23%
HY 2010 $12,127 11%
HY 2009 $10,900 -5%
HY 2008 $11,510 15%
HY 2007 $9,993 26%
HY 2006 $7,909 37%
HY 2005 $5,787 26%
HY 2004 $4,599 40%
HY 2003 $3,292 11%
HY 2002 $2,978 -20%
HY 2001 $3,720 -7%
HY 2000 $4,013 147%
HY 1999 $1,627 110%
HY 1998 $774 125%
HY 1997 $344 320%
HY 1996 $82  
 
 
Total $111,624  

 

Ad Category Breakouts (in millions)

  HY 2011* HY 2012
  % $ % $
Search 46% $6,843 48% $8,128
Display Related 36% $5,349 33% $5,586
  -Banner Ads 22% $3,266 21% $3,622
  -Digital Video Commercials 6% $891 6% $1,053
  -Rich Media 5% $727 3% $495
  -Sponsorship 3% $465 2% $416
Mobile* 4% $636 7% $1,242
Classifieds 8% $1,235 7% $1,160
Referrals/Lead Generation 5% $800 5% $834
E-mail 1% $79 0% $78

*Revised from prior year to include mobile as a discreet category

 

Revenue Pricing Models (in millions)

  HY 2011 HY 2012
  % $ % $
Performance-Based 64% $9,588 67% $11,461
Impression-Based 31% $4,668 31% $5,199
Hybrid 5% $686 2% $368

 


The Social Marketer’s Guide to Pinterest

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So everyone all a-twitter over Pinterest these days. Yea, we marketers can’t help but jump all over the latest shiny object like a bunch of drunken lemmings trying to navigate their way through a Wipeout course. And, sadly, like most Wipeout contentants, we get whacked before we even come close to mastering the course.

But have no fear loyal readers, the Adrants whitepaper series is here to transform you from mindless lemming into social media bon vivont.

The Essentials of Marketing Kit will make you a hero to your client and a mentor to everyone in your agency. In this kit, you will get:

  • Why Social Marketing will Deliver a Positive ROI for your Brand
  • Social Media Analytics – Making Customer Insights Actionable
  • New eBook: How to Master Facebook Marketing in 10 Days
  • And, yes…The Social Marketer’s Guide to Pinterest

Download the free kit now and successfully navigate your way through all those Wipeout-like social media obstacles.


How to Make Your Online Ad Campaign Kick Ass

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Online advertising is great, right? Everything is trackable and ROI can be determined quickly. You can optimize your campaigns to death at the click of a mouse. You can razor-target specific audience slices as easily as ticking a few check boxes. OK, so it’s not exactly that easy but you get the point

However, it’s not as rosy as many of us would like to believe. In the midst of all that clicktastic awesomeness, how do you manage the barrage of data that online advertising has barfed up with the force of Niagara Falls after a five day downpour?

Well there’s these things called data management platforms or DMPs that are designed to extract meaningful insight from that deluge of data so marketers can make informed decisions. Bluekai is one such provider and they have written a report, part of the Adrants whitepaper series, that aims to teach marketers how they can use a DMP analytics platform to tie together different data streams to improve campaign efficiency and ROI.

Download the whitepaper now and get a clear and concise picture of your online marketing efforts.


A Ten Step Check List For Website Redesign

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Launching or redesigning a website for your agency or one of your clients is no longer news but it’s still a detailed endeavor that takes design skill, technical expertise and a little bit of humility coupled with patience as the project progresses.

So while we all may perceive these sorts or redesigns as yawners, they still have to be done and they still have to be done right. HubSpot hopes to help with a white paper, part of the Adrants whitepaper series, entitled 10-Step Checklist for Your Next Website Redesign.

Download the whitepaper now and make sure your next website redesign goes swimmingly.


Panties Bunched, Men Favor Porn, TV Trumps Online Video

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– One million moms get panties in a bunch, protest Ragu commercial.

– This just in! Men favor computers over television for entertainment. Um, yea. That’s where the porn is!

– Why online video remains in TV’s shadow.

– Why social media agencies are a farce.

– Taylor Swift gets all dolled up for Wonderstruck Enchanted Fragrance.

– Olympic super hero Michaels Phelps can be seen lounging in a bathtub for a new Louis Vuitton campaign.


How to Master the Art of Content Marketing

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This white paper from Limelight, part of the Adrants white paper series, will show you best practices, tips, and solutions for turning content assets into online customer engagement and higher web conversion rates.

In this report, you’ll find:

  • An overview of content marketing strategies and solutions
  • Keys to content development success
  • Must-haves for content publishing and distribution

Download this free white paper now and learn how you can implement and benefit from content marketing.


Afternoon Delight: Sex Still Selling Axe, Consumer Spending Drops

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– Just as Axe cools things off a bit with its American advertising, it’s Argentinian advertising is heating up.


Study Reveals Facebook Marketplace Ads Really Do Work

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When General Motors pulled its advertising from Facebook, many took it as an indication that the social network’s ad products didn’t work. But in reality, the pullout tells a different story, says a new report by eMarketer.


Report: How to Do Twitter Right

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Buddy Media is out with a new study that examines how marketers are using – and can better use – Twitter as a marketing tool.


The Word ‘LOL’ Occupies 27 Percent of Facebook Server Capacity

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For years, marketers have used statistics to prop up questionable endeavors and agencies have done the same to pimp their lame ass, wicked cool ideas to clients.


Four Steps to a Successful Facebook Presence

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If you’ve been to a recent marketing-themed conference or haven’t had your head in the sand for the past few years, you know Facebook, according to the gurus, simply must, at all costs, be incorporated into your social media plans.


How Brands Can Use ‘Big Data’ to Improve Their Marketing

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Heard of the term “big data?” Learn how to use it to improve your marketing and advertising.


Fifteen Worldwide Social Media Stats For Marketers

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In a presentation given at OMMA Social during Internet Week, comScore Media Evangelist Eli Goodman rattled off a plethora of juicy social media facts and figures.


Yet Another Study Downgrades Importance of Click Through

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comScore and Pretarget have released results of an online advertising study which found ad viewability and hover time are more strongly correlated with conversions (defined as purchases and requests for information) than clicks or total impressions.


Learn How Marketing Automation Can Improve Ad Campaign Effectiveness

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OK so what the hell is Marketing Automation and why should you care about it?