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Writing

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Warning to Direct Marketers: Asking These Questions Will Kill Your Conversionsby Barry Densa
Can asking a question in an ad increase sales? Some will argue vehemently that the use of a question is a non-starter, a pre-ordained copywriting disaster. Craig Huey, founder and president of the award-winning Creative Direct Marketing Group, froths at the idea of a question in sales copy. Nevertheless, a question is a tool. And as with any tool, any copywriting strategy or tactic, if a question is not formulated and handled with proper caution it could indeed do immeasurably more harm than good. Well, let me correct that: If you're a direct marketer who tests, you can measure precisely how much harm a poorly phrased question will do... or how well a good one will convert. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Bringing New Color to the Gray World of Whitepapersby Jonathan Kranz
Whitepapers have been with us for a long time. But innovations in printing and distribution—and even in the way we conceive of whitepaper content—have dramatically changed the game. Let's take a look at the ways we can bring color to the whitepaper—and multiply the impact of our efforts. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Four Tips for Customer-Centric Copywritingby Sharon Long Baerny
A customer-focused approach to marketing communications applies whether you're a property manager renting out high-end vacation homes in Maine to wealthy residents of NYC, or an international high-tech company providing support to clients who rely on an enterprisewide accounting software. No matter what you sell or to whom, by framing your marketing message from the customer's point of view first—not yours—you'll craft much more targeted copy: customer-centric copy. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Lincoln, Mark Twain & Lightning: Choice Words on Word Choiceby Ernest Nicastro
Clearly, Abraham Lincoln knew the difference between the almost-right word—and, the right word. A distinction famously defined by Mark Twain some 25 years later as "the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning." With that thought in mind, here are a few choice words on word choice to help you get more of the right words into your communications. And, make your writing more effective. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
10 Best-Practices for Writing a Whitepaper That Gets Resultsby Steve Hoffman
Whitepapers can be a highly effective tool to establish your credibility, promote a product or service, and get results. Here are the 10 best practices to writing a whitepaper that will get your company noticed. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Six Keys to Writing a Great Case Studyby Doug Stern
"Case study" is really just another way to say "storytelling." The best ones recognize that we all connect on a primal level with anything that begins with "Once upon a time" and ends with "and they lived happily ever after." So how do you write a case study that shows you care, makes your clients feel good, and (indirectly) demonstrates your credentials? [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Are You Committing the Marketing Sin of Assumption?by Sharon Long Baerny
It's an ugly truth, but a truth nonetheless: Marketers are sinners. We're not talking lying or cheating or stealing or coveting here. We're talking about the sin of assumption. And many of us commit that sin on a regular basis, from assumptions about what to say to assumptions about how to say it. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Five Paid-Search Best-Practicesby Jeannette Kocsis
Most companies should be using paid search as a mandatory component of their marketing. And with search engine marketing spending expected to reach $25 billion by 2012, it's obvious that a good share of marketers understand its potential. But first, understanding best-practices is essential to success. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
CAN-SPAM: Basic Real-World Compliance Tips for Marketersby Neil Anuskiewicz
In 2003, the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography And Marketing Act (CAN-SPAM Act) became law. It was a big step toward cleaning up the "Wild West" of email marketing. Continuing that clean-up, earlier this year the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) modified the act, allowing email marketers to use their "accurately registered post office box or private mailbox" instead of a "valid physical postal address" in their emails. The CAN-SPAM act, however, has not changed much over the years and should be followed not only because it is the law but also because it will make you a better email marketer. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
11 Tips to Align PC and Mobile Email Designby Loren McDonald
The good news: More of your customers can read your email messages on their smartphones now, instead of waiting until they get back to a computer. The bad news: The email that looks so great on your PC may look like a garbled mess on the phone. These HTML cross-platform optimization tips can make your message render better on both PC and mobile phone. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
How to Be a Good Public Relations Clientby Ford Kanzler
Since public relations isn't done "to" a company, it's done "with" the management team or owners, there's an essentially different nature to how this kind of professional service is successfully delivered. It's much more akin to legal or medical services with the "defendants" or "patients" (read management team members) having to be deeply and consistently involved in an on-going process. As the now famous slogan coined by tech PR guru Regis McKenna goes, "PR is a process, not an event." Without that, it generally goes nowhere and the agency won't be working with that client for long. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Creative Redeemed: How to Achieve Measurable Difference in Online Marketingby Scott Brinker
The power of great creative is that it over-delivers. It exceeds expectations. It signals that you care about and respect your audience—and it affects your brand when you need it most: the formative moment of a prospect's first impression of you. Measure precisely how much of a difference this makes. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Direct-to-Consumer PR Reflects Power of Do-It-Yourselfby Gail Martin
With the rise of search engines, Wi-Fi, and a Do-It-Yourself mindset, today's consumers are more empowered than ever before. They not only believe that they're entitled to information but also have unprecedented access to information on a global scale. An increasing number of consumers turn first to the Internet when they want to make a purchase—even if the product will be bought offline. That's why any PR strategy focused solely on media gatekeepers is missing a large piece of the market. While there's still value in sending your message via traditional media, more and more prospective customers are doing their own research online, bypassing newspaper, magazines, radio, and TV completely. Here are five tips for creating successful direct-to-consumer PR. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
What Do Your Marketing Communications Reveal About You?by Becky Carroll
Every touch from every department is marketing. Each customer interaction, whether via phone, email, direct mail, or Web, leaves an impression about your brand. Are your marketing communications self-serving, or are they serving customer needs? [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
How to Avoid TMI in Email: When Less Is Moreby Josh Nason
It starts simply. You're setting up fields for your email signup form and instead of grabbing just the basics for information, you start to wander: What if I got all the information I want up front? So then it begins: name, address, home number, work number, mobile number, bag phone number, AOL IM, Yahoo IM, favorite band, favorite station, favorite team. Suddenly, users are looking at a form worthy of governmental consideration. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
How to Choose and Work With the Best Freelance Copywritersby Richard Pelletier
Given how critically important effective content is right now and how important copywriters are to the creation of same - it might help the cause of world peace and mutual understanding to shine a little light on things. How do you choose a good freelance copywriter and how do you increase the odds of getting through a successful project? Here are a few ideas to help you make better decisions, which can pay real dividends. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Minimize List Churn by Reducing Unsubscribesby Loren McDonald
Reducing the number of people who unsubscribe from your mailing list is one of the key ways to minimize list churn and in turn make it easier to grow your list. That doesn't mean you make it harder for people to leave, however. Instead, learn why people leave, offer them other ways to remain in the relationship and make the process a great customer experience. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
The New to Way to Unsubscribe: Feedback Loopsby Louis Chatoff
Recipients of unwanted email messages have found a new way to unsubscribe from lists: Hit the Spam button. Major Internet service providers are now (or will soon be) using feedback loops to communicate complaints back to the message sender. What does this mean to email marketers? It means they need to rethink the way they display their unsubscribe link, especially if they are sending to a questionable list or are starting to receive complaints. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Four Steps to Writing Search-Engine-Optimized Press Releasesby Kim Cornwall Malseed
More than 90% of journalists go online to find story ideas, with 73% specifically researching press releases. With Really Simple Syndication (RSS) and free automatic email alerts from Google News so readily available, it makes sense that the Web is a prime source of consistently updated information for busy journalists. So how can your organization capitalize on these trends? [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing
Eight Fast-Acting, Low-Cost Marketing Tactics That Can Make a Difference NOWby Michael A. Goodman
Effective marketing campaigns don't necessarily require big-company budgets. By being smart in the up-front planning stage, you can maximize the greatest value from your budget, regardless of its size. Here are eight low-cost tools you can use immediately to give your marketing program an instant shot in the arm. [Read the full story] Marketing Articles: Writing

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It's Brewing on the HorizonNew Media
The possibilities for mobile marketing grow with each new smartphone introduced. For marketers, it's best to keep on top of the latest iterations—to better design mobile campaigns that dazzle. The...
Some Impure Blogging ThoughtsSmall Business
In her keynote address at our Digital Marketing Mixer in Scottsdale, Arizona, Arianna Huffington gave her play-by-play for turning the eponymous Huffington Post into a social media juggernaut. Rohit Bhargava—himself...
In-Game Ads: Real, Not Virtual, ROINew Media
Gaming is no longer the sole domain of geeky guys with programmer's pallor: 44% of online gamers, and 40% of gamers in general, are women. Over half are between 18...
Might as Well Jump!Search Engine Marketing
To do search marketing right, it's best to send potential customers who click on your search-engine-generated links to a "jump" or landing page. This page is the gateway to your...
Your Twitter ID and YouMarketing Inspiration
If you attended MarketingProfs' Digital Marketing Mixer, you would have heard keynote speaker Gary Vaynerchuk bemoan his choice of Twitter ID: GaryVee. In retrospect, he said, the handle—chosen quickly for...
Take the Drama OfflineMarketing Inspiration
In a video from BNET, Edward Muzio of Group Harmonics explains how email conversations can start unnecessary fights. "It happens all the time," he says. "It starts out as a...
Four Key Deliverability QuestionsEmail Marketing
If you're like the majority of marketers polled by Jupiter Research, your number one consideration when choosing an ESP is deliverability. But Adam Covati says an ESP can only do...
Look to the Big EB2B Marketing
In a recent blog post at ReturnPath, Stephanie Miller offers, in one word, a way to provide optimum service to B2B clients while saving precious marketing dollars. That word? Email. "The...
Playing TagNew Media
Even if you've never heard the term tag cloud, you've likely seen them in your online travels: clusters of keywords relevant to a site's content, rendered in varying font sizes...
Quirky, Weird and Hard to PredictSmall Business
In a post at Copyblogger, Sonia Simone offers some unconventional blogging advice, her nine "little known" rules for a successful blog. It's an interesting read, with plenty of key takeaways...
CAN-SPAM: My BFFEmail Marketing
Anyone who hears the acronym CAN-SPAM can be excused for assuming it's intrusive and onerous; but in an article at MarketingProfs, Neil Anuskiewicz says the legislated guidelines actually make you...
Try Some Nonprofit Holiday 'Retail'Email Marketing
"In these stressful economic times, it is more important than ever to build messages that resonate with your audience," says Winston Bowden in an article at MarketingProfs. "Like retailers, nonprofits...
Good Copy, Bad CopySmall Business
We never tire of good writing advice, and Anna Goldsmith of The Hired Pens recommends an interesting editing process that begins with taking a break. "We all know that when...
OMG, that looks good!Email Marketing
If the popularity of the 3G iPhone is any indication—Apple sold over one million units during its first weekend on the market—the smartphone is here to stay. According to Loren...
Cast Your Fate to the iPodNew Media
It can be tough and costly to win sympathetic ears for your life-changing service. But the Net—and a wildfire proliferation of iPods—have conceived a powerful ally for you: the podcast....
Cut the Mystery Man ActCustomer Behavior
Is it more effective to tell customers your brand name right away in advertising? Or is it better to create a little mystery, and reveal the brand name only at...
There Goes the NeighborhoodEmail Marketing
No matter how upright you are as a mailer, your good reputation won't follow you to a new IP address: for all an ISP knows, you could be a spammer....
Treat, Don't Trick, Search EnginesSearch Engine Marketing
While good SEO boosts site traffic, not all tactics used these days are above-board. Some, designed to "trick" search engines, are not only bad business: they can get your site...
Text Your Vote to ...Email Marketing
In late August, 2.9 million subscribers learned the identity of Barack Obama's running mate with a 26-word text message delivered via SMS (Short Message Service). The announcement joined a trend...
Application NationNew Media
When Apple unveiled its first iPhone in 2007, most reviews highlighted features that skewed to personal—rather than business—use. You could use the iPhone for many things, but you surrendered a measure...

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Lead Generation How-To Guide
Great product, great sales team, great marketing collateral - now what? People to sell to, of course. Put your lead generation tactics under the microscope with this enlightening how-to guide. Get more and better qualified leads, faster today.
Paid Search Advertising Template
If you're a little intimidated by the prospect of Paid Search Advertising, seriously, join the crowd. Here it is though -- a guiding light through the complex waters of Paid Search Advertising. We assembled a 30-page template to make learning and implementing a successful paid search advertising campaign for your firm as easy as possible.

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