Consumer frustration with website performance during peak traffic times negatively affects business results: 78% of consumers have switched to a competitor's site due to poor Web performance during peak times, according to a new survey from Gomez. more

During uncertain economic times, acquiring new business is the biggest challenge facing B2B companies: 38% of a small group of multichannel executives surveyed cite cost-effective customer acquisition as their highest concern this year, according to a recent survey from MeritDirect. more

"They say an Internet year is … equivalent to seven normal years," says Kevin Gibbon in a post at SEOptimise—meaning that we can witness seven real-world-years' worth of change in one year online. To help search marketers keep up, Gibbon offers seven ways to stay on top of the competition in the ... more

Sweet news, hardcore Twitter users! Hootsuite—the Twitter management tool developed with marketers in mind—just released an app for the iPhone. That means you can now access the handy features of Hootsuite in any old roost! We first covered Hootsuite shortly after Canadian company Invoke Media launched the adorable owl-themed service. It made ... more

"Several months ago I was meeting with a Director of Marketing Operations and we were reviewing their corporate lead qualification process," says Carlos Hidalgo in a post at the Annuitas Group blog. "As he explained how they qualify leads, I asked him if sales and marketing agreed on the definition ... more

Remember when we told you about Twitcam, the service that lets you stream live video via Twitter? This is kind of like that, but with more oomph and less lag. Say hello to tinychat, which lets you host live Web meetings, TV shows, music jam sessions—or whatever else you wanna do ... more

Some companies seem addicted to email campaigns that shout breathless, time-sensitive offers. Each week, it seems, they tell subscribers about special deals that simply can't be missed—only to make a similar offer the following week. In a post at the Email Marketing Reports blog, Mark Brownlow provides a screenshot with 19 emails ... more

Although companies know they need a marketing message that stands out in the marketplace, 62% of executives rate their company's message as average to poor and only 38% say their company has a differentiated story, according to a survey from Corporate Visions. more

We recently encouraged businesses to expand their local search horizons and add more local flavor to their national search campaigns. Now, in a post at the Content Rich blog, Jon Wuebben offers more arguments for growing local roots in your search campaigns.  Wuebben quotes Neg Norton, president of the Yellow Pages Association, who ... more

Nearly two-thirds of marketers (64%) say they define success differently in the economic downturn while over one-half (55%) say emphasis on short-term responses to the economic slowdown has led them to neglect long-term strategy, according to a survey from Spencer Stuart. more

You're probably familiar with the story of The Little Mermaid. In this classic tale of unrequited love, a girl exchanges her voice for the chance to be close to a prince. It's a parable about finding the right voice amid the melee. Faced with a plentitude of uncertainties about social media, ... more

"B2B marketing is harder than B2C marketing," says Kyle Flaherty at the Dance With Strangers blog. Why? Because "B2B marketing is really B2C2C2C2C2C marketing," he explains. On the surface, B2B marketing appears "fairly mundane," Flaherty says. "One business communicates with another." The only problem is, "I have never in all of ... more

What do bartenders and websites have in common? Both need to be optimized to succeed. So says Jill Whalen in an amusing article at Search Engine Land. She demonstrates how the rules of optimization may dually apply to 'tenders and 'sites alike: Rule #1: Optimization shouldn't turn people off.  ... more

Belgian beer label Stella Artois has added a splash of engagement to its marketing strategy with Le Bar Guide. Developed by Acrossair, Le Bar Guide is a free app that points users to the nearest bar serving Stella. Run searches by ZIP Code, or switch the augmented reality feature on—and have ... more

More than ever, a successful lead-generation program relies on a steady stream of new content. And since the pressure to produce high-quality whitepapers and blog posts can be intense, Ardath Albee recommends the "Rule of 5" to ease your load and maximize results. "The Rule of 5," she explains at the ... more

Last summer, a happy couple sent ripples through the Net when their video, JK Wedding Entrance Dance, hit YouTube. The video depicted a wedding entourage dancing down the aisle to Chris Brown's "Forever," concluding with the bride cutting the rubber in the general direction of her nervous, but giddy, groom. Great ... more

"Retailers have complained incessantly about unfair competition from e-commerce stores," writes Mark Riffey at the Business is Personal blog, "but not enough have done something about it." Online shopping is undeniably convenient and efficient. After all, customers can browse, comparison-shop and make purchases from the comfort of their favorite chair. But—despite ... more

Your own keyword analytics data is the most valuable marketing asset of your company, says WordStream’s Larry Kim in an article at MarketingProfs. The data contained in the keyword report from your Web-analytics application—which tells you how people are finding your site through paid and organic search—comprise a far more effective ... more

Ever wish you could take your favorite Web strategist with you wherever you roam? Well, sure enough, now you can. App developer MotherApp brings you the Web Strategy iPhone App, which lets users read blog posts, reviews, news and other updates from such names as Jeremiah Owyang (Altimeter Group), Brian Solis ... more

"Without some of us even noticing," writes Brian Carroll in an article at MarketingProfs, "[LinkedIn] has developed into a useful lead-generation tool for marketers and salespeople who are looking to build relationships with prospects." As with any networking tool, however, you must develop a solid strategy for getting the most from ... more

News flash: LinkedIn still boasts one of the largest, tightest-knit collections of professionals in the social-networking space. And now it wants to be even more useful to marketers. Custom Groups is a new feature at the site that lets users build sponsored collectives. Simply establishing a non-branded LinkedIn group is still ... more

It's a question that haunts B2B product retailers when sales are down: "How do we move this excess inventory?" Cutting prices, offering two-for-one deals, or announcing blow-out sales to regular clients may go only so far in a downturn. Well, take heart. In a recent post at What Works for Business, ... more

"I was at my bank earlier this week, making a deposit, when I saw a display for VISA gift cards," recounts Drew McLellan at his Marketing Minute blog. "I needed one for a gift, so I thought … great, I'll just get it here." Thus began the exasperating process of completing ... more

B2B marketers who develop consistent lead-management processes––along with careful investments in automation––achieve stronger, more qualified sales pipelines, according to interviews conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Silverpop. more

Happy New Year! It's a brand-new day—especially when it comes to the American consumer. And that may be good or bad news for marketers, depending on the products they sell and the marketing strategies they deploy. New research released late last year by McKinsey & Company suggests that the downturn may ... more