Consumers are willing to spend small monthly sums to receive news on their personal computer and mobile devices, according to a study conducted by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG). more

Though the recession may be drawing to a close, we are still dealing with the stark reality of very high unemployment rates. Many people have been without work for far longer than they ever thought possible; many others, meanwhile, still have their jobs but live in a state of anxiety ... more

Newspapers are read by a critical mass of adults in the US on a daily and weekly basis, according to the latest Integrated Newspaper Audience (INA)* study from Scarborough Research. more

It strikes fear in the hearts of marketers worldwide: the dreaded online consumer complaint that goes viral. What's a good company to do when one angry customer threatens to destroy its image? Is there any way to win her back once she's decided she hates you? Some interesting new research looks ... more

"Give a man a hammer," says Lori Feldman at The Database Diva blog, "and everything looks like a nail. Email marketing campaign software often has the same effect on novice email marketers. They forget how much they hate advertising mail when they start sending it out themselves." It's a hazardous mindset—and ... more

Free shipping offers can cost your company a bundle, but they may produce ROI that makes them worth the expenditure. As you explore your options, you will probably be interested in a whitepaper from Experian CheetahMail that examines questions like these: Are more companies deploying free-shipping emails? ... more

Nearly one in five holiday shoppers will rely on digital advancements such as social media and mobile phones for help with holiday shopping this year, according to Deloitte’s 24th Annual Holiday Survey of retail spending and trends. more

Is Facebook really a tool for business? Paul Chaney says yes. Much the same way a power company connects homes and businesses with electricity, Facebook is a "social utility" designed to facilitate connections between people as well as businesses. Accordingly, it can be highly useful as a business tool. This article ... more

Ask most US consumers whether they want to receive mobile-marketing messages on their cell phones, and they will usually answer with a resounding "No." Consumers worry they'll start receiving unwanted Viagra ads and messages from a prince in Kenya. Nothing could be further from the truth. more

When potential customers arrive at your website or look over your marketing materials, they immediately want to know what's in it for them. If that's not obvious, chances are they will move on quickly. By using the word "you," you begin to establish a connection with readers because you address their ... more

Online marketing is nothing new for software marketers. It's only natural that the software industry and computer-software users migrated to the Internet early on. So although the idea of online marketing isn't new, how software is marketed online continues to evolve. more

Baggage fees have become nearly ubiquitous in the airline industry, and Southwest has capitalized on passenger hostility to the dreaded surcharge with its playful Bags Fly Free campaign. "Some airlines charge your bag up to $20 to ride in the bottom of the plane," says the narrator of one commercial. "In ... more

Companies that have fully embraced marketing-performance have marketing organizations that make a more positive impact on business—and are more likely to be market leaders—according to a study conducted by CMG Partners and Chadwick Martin Bailey. more

Last month, we offered a bunch of options for optimizing your local search advertising. Well, here's a way to extend your local search marketing options even further: through your good-old local news guys. In a recent article at Search Engine Land, KeyRelevance's Chris Silver Smith suggests three ways to optimize ... more

Based on the premise that data's no fun (and no use!) without insight, BrandZ has launched BrandZ 100, an iPhone app that takes its annual Top 100 Brands Report and actually makes it fun to read. Developed by IconMobile, the app—decked out in crisp black, white and red—takes you straight to ... more

Mobile marketing is on track to grow 27% to a $2.1 billion market in 2010, according to the Mobile Marketing Association. The total mobile audience is still relatively small, however, and is confined to a limited market segment; moreover, marketers who reach out to the wrong mobile audience risk turning ... more

Marketing messages with personalized subject lines usually fail to impress DJ Waldow. "[Most] of those emails use my first name as the 'hook' to get me to open," he writes in a recent post at the Email Experience Council blog. "This never works for me. Never. I know it's fake. ... more

Speculate all you want about how successful an online marketing campaign has been. But once someone brings hard data to the table, all bets are off: The answers are plain to see. Surprisingly, however, the average company doesn't make marketing decisions based on data. Why? Some companies explain that they ... more

For the first time, the number of small and medium-sized businesses using digital/online media has surpassed the number using traditional media, according to the Kelsey Group. more

"It's certainly not unusual that a stand up comedian like Tim Washer would be producing absurdist viral videos," notes AdAge. "What is surprising is that the IBM communications executive is doing so for his straight-laced corporate employer." Washer's first mini-mockumentary for the conservative company was called Mainframe: The Art of the ... more

Smartphone units sold worldwide in 2009 will grow 14.5% from 2008 levels, according to a forecast by Infonetics. more

Inactive subscribers are a conundrum for email marketers. Although they treat your messages with apparent indifference, they never opt out; as a result, you continue to send messages that they continue to ignore. You naturally want to reactivate these recipients so you can revive relationships and make future sales.  Now here's ... more

Hoping to position Lufthansa as bigger than just a German airline, digital agency Profero has helped it create MySkyStatus—a tool that has brought Lufthansa's branding catch-phrase, "passion for precision," to life in a hands-on way. "Communications needs to have a use," explains Profero's Wayne Arnold in a recent article at Adweek. "Saying ... more

"Too often, we are looking for silver-bullet systems or recipes for success, while ignoring the basics," says Bill Rice in a post at the Better Closer blog. "In my experience, 90 percent of big sales improvement comes from getting back to the basics." What are the tried-and-true basics of B2B marketing—those ... more

Consumers flock daily to social media sites to keep in touch with friends and family, but they are also keen to buy from brands that they have seen on these sites, according to new research from Performics and ROI Research. more