Go PRO Now
Get unlimited access to all of our exclusive marketing resources
YouTube recently launched a call-to-action overlay ad, which is exactly what it sounds like: a semi-transparent ad that appears over videos, and—get this—enables advertisers to send users to any website they wish. Now, that's a sweet ride! You might be, like, "Didn't that feature already exist?" But the crazy thing ... more
The Houston-area coffee shop was just one among many, until it found Twitter. Today, the Coffee Groundz is ground zero among local social-media fans—and sales have soared. more
You might have seen the video shot at the Sasquatch Music Festival in Washington state—footage of a young man as he dances wildly by himself to the strains of Santogold's "Unstoppable." He's clearly having a good time while bemused onlookers watch the spectacle. After a while, a second concertgoer ... more
Social networks have exploded in popularity in the past year: More than 4 in 10 (43%) among those who are online now use social networking sites, such as Facebook, MySpace, and LinkedIn—up from 27% a year ago. more
Not long ago, your spell-check would have revolted at a word like blogosphere; type it into a recent edition of Microsoft Word, however, and you won't see that angry red squiggle beneath its 11 letters. The bastardized term has been accepted by the software as a "real" word. Likewise, most ... more
Heads-up, all of you out there who market to moms: Food mogul Nestlé is using Twitter to promote Juicy Juice—the super-popular, and now vintage, juice-box brand that caters to kids. Expect to see the pea-green pieces on mom-targeted sites like CafeMom and BabyCenter.com. Questions like "How do you stimulate your child's ... more
Becky Carroll recently engaged in a bit of nostalgia at the Customers Rock! blog—nostalgia for the 2008 MarketingProfs Digital Marketing Mixer last fall. "While there, I spent a lot of time talking to my fellow speakers [and attendees] about what social media means to customer loyalty," she recalls. "If we ... more
"What's the deal with podcasting, anyway?" Kyla Cullinane asks Christopher S. Penn in this most recent video produced by MarketingProfs. Kyla gets to the heart of the issue immediately, and Chris responds equally directly, offering both strategic and practical advice. more
Marketing professional in the healthcare industry may be missing a golden opportunity to meet the sometimes-desperate needs of patients, to become more relevant and supportive in the long arc of their journey to better health. If they do, they will win their respect and loyalty, their adherence and behaviors will ... more
Before you enter the relatively new frontier of social media, you need an action plan. Although the costs are low, social media tools require extensive maintenance to be effective. Your strategy needs to fit your corporate culture, resources, and customer expectations. Twitter is probably the best place to test the social-media ... more
"Is your website search- and social-media-friendly?" inquires a recent post at the Online Marketing Blog. According to Lee Odden, search is the most efficient and effective way for consumers to discover content. However, focusing on standard SEO tactics, such as keyword usage and links, is not enough to remain competitive, ... more
Managing your social-media presence can be a full-time job. And in a pair of videos embedded at the HubSpot blog, Mike Volpe interviews Paula Bergs about Southwest's Emerging Media team, which oversees the airline's participation in social media. Here are some of the conversation's key takeaways: It's important to recruit ... more
What's worse? A stupid marketer who remains blissfully unaware of his ignorance, or one who recognizes—and embraces—his stupidity? In a YouTube homage to Christopher Guest, Kevin Nalty (aka Nalts) adopts the persona of the "enlightened stupid marketer" for a mockumentary-style riff on those who knowingly operate in a superficial world ... more
As of June 13, Facebook has made it possible for users to secure a URL for both their profiles and any Facebook Pages they administer. Why this matters: Facebook is super-juicy SEO-wise. It's rich with content, oft-accessed, and constantly being updated. Securing a vanity URL with your name (for your ... more
In a post at the Marketing Minute, blogger Drew McLellan admits he gets some rather strange mail. "But I have to say," he notes, "chocolate-covered grasshoppers might just top the list." The unusual package arrived from Grasshopper.com, which provides integrated telephone services, and McLellan praises the company for a well-executed ... more
How much do you know about your customers right now, at this moment? A lot of companies can show you composite profiles that describe their target customers, including job titles, needs, obligations, and goals. No doubt about it: It's important to know those things. But relying solely on such information to ... more
In a post at the Deliverability.com blog, Dennis Dayman presents a short series of off-the-cuff emails that his wife wrote in response to his question about video in email marketing campaigns. Dayman wanted to know whether she—a stay-at-home mom—found the concept appealing. In her first email, she explains that the ... more
Good news for all you budding Spielbergs out there: YouTube this month made it possible to automatically seed freshly uploaded videos across popular social networks like Facebook and Twitter, and even news and feed aggregator Google Reader. This means you no longer have to wait for your (undoubtedly stunning) viral somethin'-or-other ... more
Entrepreneurs, by definition, don't play it too safe. So for a company that serves startups and small businesses, what better way to launch a rebranding campaign and generate buzz than doing something novel and risky—but being wicked smart about it. Which is where the bugs come in. more
If you're a man, your father probably taught you how to shave your face. It's highly improbable, though, that he included a lesson on shaving the rest of your body. And as "manscaping" starts going mainstream, many might wonder why a man would let his razor wander southward. An animated ... more
In a post at the Daily Fix blog, Stephanie Miller says you don't have to choose between the social and email channels. "No need to take sides, my friends," she says. "Email and social marketing work best together, and not because I or other pundits say so, but because that ... more
Right in time for the much-anticipated iPhone OS 3.0 Software Update debut on June 17, AdMob has introduced a slew of ad units that will help enterprising advertisers make the most of mobile marketing. Among the cool features to check out: Mobile social networking, which lets users access your ... more
In a post at the Viral Garden blog, Mack Collier discusses why so many companies struggle to launch and maintain active online communities. To find success, you'll need more than a message board and good intentions, he says. Here's some of his advice: Communities grow and ... more
Recently, St. Louis Cardinals manager Tony La Russa sued Twitter for the misappropriation of his name by an anonymous account holder (the now vacant @TonyLaRussa) who had a whopping four followers. One issue that the incident brings to mind is Web anonymity and the plethora of online trolls, squatters, and ... more
Last week, as part of the MarketingProfs B2B Forum in Boston, three marketers volunteered to have their social media campaigns analyzed by social media expert and MarketingProfs contributor Jason Baer. Check out the video. more
MarketingProfs uses single