- Customers Listen, so Tell Them What You WantSmall Business
In a post at his Marketing Minute blog, Drew McLellan talks about the frustration he felt every time he made deposits at his bank. "Like most bank drive-throughs," he says, ...
- Three Alternatives to the Permission GambleEmail Marketing
In a post at Email Marketing Reports, Mark Brownlow considers the argument that opt-in permission isn't strictly necessary. "The definition of spam has shifted broadly from 'email not asked for' ...
- Craft an Online Quiz: Boost Leads and ResultsSocial Media
Few things are more fun than learning about yourself, right? At least when the Net makes it easy.
Consider the explosion of personality test apps on sites like Facebook or MySpace—or ...
- Four Ways to Boost Response With Welcome EmailsEmail Marketing
If your company doesn't send welcome or confirmation emails to new subscribers, you could be missing out on some remarkable opportunities.
"Jill LeMaire, director of Epsilon's strategic and analytic consulting ...
- Four Tips for Non-Obnoxious NetworkingSmall Business
If you want to step up your networking activities, but you're not quite sure how, Rohit Bhargava has some advice. "The challenge isn't how you can find more opportunities to ...
- Practical Social Media Tips for 2011Social Media
With the end of the year comes the compulsion to synthesize what we've learned about the ebb and flow of social media in 2010. Toward that end, John Antonios, writing ...
- How Uplift Modeling Can Help Improve Your ROIEmail Marketing
"[I]n an effort to reach as many customers as possible at minimal financial cost," writes Mark Smith at Chief Marketer, "many marketers overlook the pricey consequences that can result from ...
- Launch Your Own Social Media Contest: Here's Some HelpSocial Media
If you're as big a fan of the Pepsi Refresh Project as we are, it's likely you recognize the power of a well-orchestrated contest to trigger engagement and enthusiasm around ...
- Four Ways to Enchant Your CustomersSmall Business
"I love to do business with small businesses—in-store, online, for myself, for others, for pleasure, for work—it doesn't matter to me," writes Guy Kawasaki at his eponymous blog. Based on ...
- Three Ways to Replace a Superstar BloggerSocial Media
Companies may find themselves in a touchy situation when their established social-media star leaves to pursue other interests. Just what do you do with a famous blog when its author ...
- Three Ways to Identify Your Brand LoyalistsEmail Marketing
On any email list, there will be three populations," writes Karen Talavera at MarketingProfs. "[T]he people who love you, the people who like you, and the group who are just ...
- Using Twitter to Calm ComplaintsSocial Media
With an article proclaiming "the democracy of fine dining," USA Today recently covered a growing trend of restaurants using Twitter to improve diner experiences and expectations.
Among companies like Chipotle and ...
- Four Ways to Handle Inactive SubscribersEmail Marketing
Every email list is going to have subscribers who sign up and then apparently vanish. "They may have opted in to a specific offer, then disengaged once they obtained the coupon, ...
- Three Ways to Influence Your InfluencersSmall Business
"In simplest terms, businesses are no longer in complete control of their products, brands and messages," writes Susan Gunelius at Entrepreneur.com. "End-users are now in control." And those end-users are ...
- Two Key Ways to Optimize for Local SearchesSearch Engine Marketing
"When you perform a search at Google or Bing, the results are significantly influenced by your physical location, even on queries where you don't specify a location," writes Ray Comstock ...
- Why Your Customers Might Want You to Just Shut UpCustomer Insight
Quick quiz: Have you ever walked into an airport, noticed that there is nobody in line at the check-in counter and still made a bee-line for the self-service kiosk? Better ...
- Four Smart Ways to Trigger ROIEmail Marketing
According to Molly Niendorf, some marketers worry that triggered email will look inauthentic to recipients. "Sure, automatic emails have been around long enough that recipients know you're not perched at ...
- Three Deadly Mistakes Email Marketers MakeEmail Marketing
In a post at the Email Marketing Reports blog, Mark Brownlow examines mistaken assumptions that can seriously damage the long-term success of an email program.
Our basic beliefs about how ...
- Four Great Perks of a Facebook Brand PageSocial Media
When managed well, Facebook's community of 500 million (and counting!) global users is an ideal place for brands to get the message out. But before you start developing dazzling social ...
- Four Tips for Successful Holiday Email CampaignsEmail Marketing
There's still time to implement plans for your holiday email campaigns, writes Suzanne Norman in a recent post at the Emma blog, and you have reason to be optimistic about ...
- How a QR Code-Driven Game Paid Off in RussiaSocial Media
Back in Mother Russia last summer, mobile phone operator MTS engaged users on a titillating mobile scavenger hunt on behalf of its 'Red Energy' branded phone plan.
The game kicked off ...
- What Zappos Can (Still) Teach Us About Customer ServiceSmall Business
In the last few years, Zappos has become as famous for its stellar customer service as for the shoes, apparel and accessories it sells. And on a recent visit to ...
- How Gucci's Luxury Shoe Sale Lured Customers WorldwideCustomer Insight
In the mobile world, luxury brands must find creative ways to reach customers while maintaining a sense of hauteur. Jimmy Choo, for example, captured our imaginations by initiating @CatchaChoo, setting ...
- Three Ways to Maximize the Power of Testimonials in Email CampaignsEmail Marketing
The forward to Harvey Mackay's bestselling Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive featured 15 solid pages of praise from VIPs like President Gerald Ford and the Reverend Billy ...
- How to Battle the Downturn With FoursquareSocial Media
"I think Foursquare is a hugely untapped and powerful little tool for small-business marketing," writes Wendy Kenney at the 23Kazoos blog. "Especially if you own a business that requires customers ...