Aja Frost says, “Every fall, we gather thousands of marketers and salespeople in Boston for our annual INBOUND event — it’s where the inbound movement gathers to connect, get inspired, and learn. Today, we added our first 100+ breakout speakers to the lineup, which already includes Alec Baldwin, Gary Vaynerchuk, and the creators of Netflix’s “Making a Murderer.” One hundred sessions is a lot to wade through (and it’s not even half of the breakouts for INBOUND this year!), so here are some of our picks for marketers of all stripes. See something that strikes your fancy? Come... [...]

Laura Koetzle says, “Yesterday’s decision by UK citizens to leave the European Union (“Brexit”) brings about short-term uncertainties and unintended consequences that will make it harder for UK businesses to keep customers and attract talent. While times of high-market volatility can tempt firms to panic and cut spending on customer-focused initiatives, now is the time to drive innovation in order to win, serve, and retain customers. As decisions over the next several years are determined by legislators and driven by compliance, UK companies will be challenged to operate as customer-obsessed... [...]

Purna Virji says, “Persuasion. Influence. Psychology. The conversion rate optimization (CRO) crowd is adept at tapping into these to drive the actions of their audiences. When it comes to ad copy, there may not appear to be a lot we can do to actively influence our search audience. Short of a screaming headline (not allowed), all we have is a limited set of characters. We can make every one of those characters truly work by channeling our inner CRO expert. Before we jump into the words that work, let’s take a few minutes to understand the psychology of decision-making. What causes us to... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “For B2B demand marketers, media has until recently been synonymous with impressions, maybe clicks and hopefully, leads. Historically, marketing pros have turned to media companies to generate awareness and create demand. The focus over the last several years, however, has shifted to: “Impressions are a bonus; I expect leads.” Moreover, the definition of a lead and how it’s generated varies widely. Leads are good, especially when they engage with your brand(ed) content. Well, the bar and expectations are being reset. The next evolution is being driven by B2B marketers’... [...]

Bridget Bidlack says, “Here’s an interview with Bridget Bidlack, Vice President of Global Product Management, Experian Marketing Services about how Ad tech/Mar tech convergence enables companies to meet consumer demands. Q: What does the convergence of advertising and marketing technology mean for marketers? BB: The collision of ad tech and mar tech, or what is now being coined “mad-tech,” is revolutionizing the brand experience for both marketers and consumers. We’re now able to move beyond the relevant ad and the personalized email to create experiences that transcend the channels. Traditionally,... [...]

Shaun Haase says, “A repeatable and effective sales process is key to scalable business growth, and it’s a much more straightforward endeavour than you might imagine. Growing a business is hard, but fortunately, designing a uniform sales process doesn’t have to be. The most important thing to remember is to establish clearly defined goals early on to ensure that your sales team is on the same course of action as you. By developing and implementing a strategy that’s consistent across all of your customer segments and touchpoints, your sales team becomes a well-oiled machine that... [...]

MOZ team says, “The long tail of search can be a mysterious place to explore, often lacking the volume data that we usually rely on to guide us. But the keyword phrases you can uncover there are worth their weight in gold, often driving highly valuable traffic to your site. In this edition of Whiteboard Friday, Rand delves into core strategies you can use to make long tail keywords work in your favor, from niche-specific SEO to a bigger content strategy that catches many long tail searches in its net”. Long Tail SEO: When & How to Target Low-Volume Keywords MOZ  [...]

Ahmad Raza says, “In a world where buzzwords like Pay-Per-Click (PPC) and banner ads have become commonplace, it might be easy to overlook the fact that generic, targeted online advertising doesn’t convert in every industry. There are situations where a personal touch is required. PPC Advertising Costs Outpace Customer Value Depending on your market, it may cost too much to acquire a customer via generic PPC advertising. The margins on your products may be razor-thin, or the competition could be so fierce that even with healthy margins, bidding on PPC traffic would be a losing proposition. The... [...]

Caroline Early says, “This week on Rainmaker Rewind, Jerod Morris welcomes copywriting and content marketing expert Joanna Wiebe to The Digital Entrepreneur. Joanna is the brains behind Copy Hackers: a copywriting resource for digital entrepreneurs and online business owners. On this special episode of The Digital Entrepreneur, Joanna offers up a handful of simple copywriting hacks. And, as always, be sure to check out the other great episodes that recently aired on Rainmaker FM”. 3 Simple Hacks for Better Copy and More Conversions in Less Time Copyblogger  [...]

Entrepreneur team says, “Blogging is no longer an online diary. It’s big business, and your most effective marketing tool. The best blogs command the same respect as the oldest print newspapers, and some of the world’s largest, most successful companies treat their blogs as key parts of their online marketing strategies. Want a slice of the pie? It’s not easy — nothing worthwhile ever is. By playing to your strengths as an expert in your field, you can use your blog as a powerful marketing tool to generate quality leads, create strong relationships with potential customers and... [...]