Nikki Gilliland says, “When it comes to finding long-term success, the first few months in a startup’s life are crucial. From finding investment to talking to customers, there are many areas to focus on. So, where exactly should you start? Recently, we sat down with six executives from the Top 100 Disruptive Brands list, a report produced in association with Marketing week, to find out their top tips. You can see the interviews in full by watching the video below, or read on for a summary of what they said”. How to make your mark as a disruptive startup Econsultancy  [...]

Martha France says, “It’s exciting to be part of a growing business. But growth can also be stressful, especially for the corporate marketing department. In fact, sometimes growth can cripple your business if you do not have the resources to adequately support it. Perhaps you are a bank that has made an acquisition and you’re now in the process of integrating many new branches into your organization. Or maybe you’re a franchiser with dozens of new locations under construction or scores of new franchisees under contract. With new locations come many more local representatives... [...]

Matt Mansfield says, “As the largest social media site for small businesses, Facebook (NASDAQ:FB) likely plays a important role in your social media marketing strategy. But how do you know you’re doing Facebook right? From building your business page to Facebook’s advertising platform, there’s a lot for a small business owner to figure out and the learning curve can be steep. Happily, there are a number of ways to keep from screwing up and do Facebook marketing right. Ways like the 10 Facebook business page tips in the video above. Start at the Beginning When Using Facebook Business... [...]

Sam Hollis says, “Hello [name], I’m so happy you found us! [The place you signed up] is really a great place to get started, but you’ve come to the right place. Our blog is a wonderful resource on [your interests]. Look familiar? We’ve all received that kind of email before – where you’re addressed directly in a way that doesn’t quite sit right. The information you’ve just entered into a form is spat back at you in an attempt to connect on a deeper level. But it still feels robotic…and disingenuous. To send personalized emails that truly resonate with your audience, it’s... [...]

Rich Kahn says, “For small and local businesses, it can be hard to stand out against larger nationwide brands. However, content marketing can help your small business attract attention, and for relevant niches in your industry, too. Content marketing is a marketing approach that involves creating and distributing relevant and valuable content to your prospective audience in the hopes of driving a consumer action, and it has numerous benefits for small businesses. It can give you the opportunity to not only expand your company, but also to build your reputation and establish a place as a... [...]

Jayson DeMers says, “In the online marketing world, there’s no bell curve. There’s a sharp, exponential growth curve in terms of marketing success. The majority of online marketing tactics, especially those relegated to the inbound field (e.g., content and social media marketing) see a lukewarm return, while a handful of truly exemplary efforts end up going viral. Quality and originality are big factors for this breakout success, but there’s also a sense of timing involved — and achieving all three is almost impossible if you’re relying on conventional wisdom or forced brainstorming. So... [...]

Todd Saunders says, ““OK Google, tell me how creepy things are going to get.” How would your 2006 selves respond to our advertising toolbox of today? You can target ads to people based on their income level who are also currently at the airportwith advanced geotargeting! You can follow your potential customers around with the very products they looked at but decided not to buy with dynamic remarketing. You can trigger ads to people based on what they say inside their emails with Gmail Ads. Much of what we internet users and advertisers deem as normal would have been considered creepy or... [...]

Aja Frost says, “Imagine if a salesperson could combine the most successful elements of every email they’ve sent to create a super-email. With A/B testing, that’s actually possible. An A/B email test compares two versions of the same message to see which performs better. Senders can test anything from subject line to email signature to their call-to-action. Once the results are in, reps can continue using the more successful version and scrap the old one. Continual A/B testing essentially allows salespeople to get closer and closer to the “perfect” sales email. Let’s dive into... [...]

Lori Wizdo says, “The explosion of interest in account-based marketing has created uncertainty for business-to-business (B2B) marketers who have invested in marketing automation to optimize their lead-to-revenue processes. It’s not surprising because the vendors that market ABM-badged wares – and many pundits — generate attention with controversial proclamations, like: “ABM is the death of demand generation”; “ABM replaces inbound marketing” and “Lead to Revenue Management (L2RM) is only a suitable strategy for selling products and services to small businesses”. While... [...]

MOZ team says, “Have you ever considered gating your content to get leads? Whether you choose to have open-access content or gate it to gather information, there are benefits and drawbacks you should be aware of. In today’s Whiteboard Friday, Rand weighs the pros and cons of each approach and shares some tips for improving your process, regardless of whichever route you go”. Content Gating: When, Whether, and How to Put Your Content Behind an Email/Form Capture MOZ  [...]