"I'd love to be able to describe a blog as an all-powerful 'magic wand,' which will single-handedly solve all your marketing woes," says Mark White. But of course he can't. "Any company thinking of running [a blog] in splendid isolation is just guilty of actively stopping it from fulfilling its ... more

CASE STUDY - How does a social-media monitoring company build excitement for its flagship product? In the case of Radian6, it leveraged (you guessed it) social media and the medium's inherent word-of-mouth properties. Here's how. more

Is there any form of marketing communications more compelling than word-of-mouth, the enthusiastic and genuine recommendation of a person you like and trust? It's no wonder that virtually every business-to-business marketer prizes this organic, spontaneous, and—perhaps best of all—practically cost-free method of bringing in business. But some businesses, especially on the ... more

If you're working on a deal that hadn't been made public, the last thing you'll do is announce it to your friends on Twitter. And yet, warns Rohit Bhargava in a post at the Influential Marketing Blog, savvy online observers could use a variety of tidbits to gather information you never meant ... more

In a post at the Servant of Chaos blog, Gavin Heaton says those who aren't sure how to get "viral" could learn a thing or two from Stride Gum, which took notice of the following Matt Harding had gained with his "Dancing Matt" videos. If you recall, they showed him ... more

In a post at MarketingProfs' Daily Fix blog, Mack Collier started an interesting conversation about a potentially problematic trend in social media—one that seems to manifest most obviously on Twitter. "What I'm noticing," he says, "is that some well-known and established players … are using these tools not as ways ... more

While others are still hashing out whether their CEO should be Twittering, blogging, or Plurking, Zappos Tony Hsieh has been using Twitter for over a year. Here, he reveals what he gets out of micro-blogging, and why he thinks it's important for his company and others to embrace social media ... more

There are countless ways to get into the game with Social Media. Check out these few sample Social Media tools and see how they can be used effectively and efficiently. more

Last spring, telecom player Tellabs launched its "Get Schooled" video-podcast series as both a way to communicate with customers as well as showcase the depth and breadth of its offerings. Get Schooled did that and more... generating tens of thousands of views, landing a coveted interview, and garnering an industry ... more

By looking at your company's readiness in conjunction with your market, your competitors, and your buyers, you'll be able to determine what the potential is (or isn't) for social media. What's more, you'll be able to assess where you should be diving in, or what's a realistic starting place. more

As a B&B in the highly competitive historic Pittsburgh area, the Morning Glory Inn needed a way to attract more recreational and business travelers. Its Web site, the Yellow Pages, and direct mail initiatives continued to bring in some new customers. But here's how the inn boosted its online visibility ... more

Should your company should start a blog, open a Facebook account, or be on YouTube? Start by taking a giant step backward and assessing the social media landscape as it relates to your market, your buyers, and your competitors. Here are three key factors to consider. more

When it chose to enter the saturated inkjet market 20 years late, Eastman Kodak had a few surprises up its sleeve. Still, the company found it also needed a little marketing ingenuity if it was to gain market share. more

Considering the stakes, it's no surprise that the online sales channel is becoming increasingly important to the bottom line of top-shelf brands as consumers of luxury products and services continue to demonstrate their willingness to spend as much through commerce-enabled Web sites as they do in stores. Despite this trend, many ... more

How does a university up its visibility with an increasingly wired target market of both students of alumni? By orchestrating a Web 2.0-focused Web site redesign that set the foundation for an ongoing social media campaign. more

Viral marketing has been all the rage in recent years: Companies are intoxicated with the idea of creating the next video that spreads across the Internet and becomes a viral sensation. But for every successful viral effort there are countless attempts that totally miss the mark. Here's where David Meerman Scott ... more

As a result of its online customer community, a company can get much more than basic product feedback. It gains deep insight into the needs of customers, and creates ever-greater customer loyalty by embracing customers as co-designers. Most importantly, the company goes directly to the source for product enhancements, pulling new ... more

Today's technology offers ample opportunities to start conversations with and among customers, fans, foes, competitors, and the press—any person or group who cares to listen and, perhaps, act on the messages received. By some estimates, 85% of the information companies collect is not in a form that they can access or ... more

A finance director, feeling stifled by the corporate world, launches her own business based in branding and egagement... with only $1,000 to spend. Two years later, she's a blog and podcast star with a successful business. more

When Bob Lutz of GM or Jonathan Schwartz of Sun set up their blogs, they probably didn't worry too much about the review with Legal. But how does, say, a midlevel corporate marketer or product manager set out to create an "official" blog with the sanction of Legal? more

Today we discuss some SEO tactics that may or may not be Black Hat, and how to deliver a dope smack to commenters who don't add to the conversation. All that and more in this Marketing Over Coffee, a weekly audio program sponsored by MarketingProfs that covers classic marketing tactics and ... more

Wacom's digital pens and their capabilities are well-known in the business world. To continue growing, however, the company needed to address the consumer market. Here's how it effectively reached a new fan community. more

Here's the story of how Best Buy built an internal social-networking forum for its 140,000 employees, and how its original goal to get more information about customer likes and dislikes through the sales associates on the floor morphed into something else entirely. more

If the Internet community didn't know its place in politics back in 2004, it certainly does today. Its "place" is to engage and educate us, promote candidates, help with fundraising and more... all through the use of new social-media tools that are increasingly vital to a candidate's overall marketing strategy. more

Marketing executive and consultant Lewis Green wanted to re-establish his company in January 2004 after moving across the country. With no professional network in place, he figured the best way to promote his business would be a blog. His first attempt failed. But not his second. more