William Johnson says, “Advertising can bring you quick success. That’s the reason it’s still in vogue and will continue to be so. Small businesses need to shrug off the preconceived notion that advertising is uber-expensive. It’s not always expensive; getting started with Facebook ads costs only $50. Cost is not a legitimate concern because to fully harness the power of advertising, things must be done in the right ways. The right ways include: Adding Value to the Ad Creativity has always been a must in advertising. Lately, however, its importance has increased by leaps and bounds.... [...]

Roger C. Parker says, “At Content Marketing World2016, I was cheered by the emphasis placed on content quality. Clearly, “good is no longer good enough.” Less and better are more important than “good.” The emphasis on quality was introduced in keynote talks and reinforced by numerous presenters: Joe Pulizzi stated “Mediocre content will hurt your brand more than nothing at all.” Mediocre content will hurt your brand more than nothing at all says @joepulizzi. #cmworldCLICK TO TWEET In his keynote address, Andy Crestodina of Orbit Marketing defined quality content as “content... [...]

Ginny Marvin says, “After running expanded text ads in beta beginning in late August, Bing Ads rolled out expanded text ads to all markets on Tuesday. Advertisers can now set up and launch the longer text ad format in the web UI, Bing Ads Editor or via the Bing Ads API. It’s also possible to import expanded text ads from Google AdWords in the Bing Ads web interface or Bing Ads Editor. Additionally, third-party platforms Marin Software, Kenshoo, Adobe Media Optimizer, intelliAd, and Rakuten Marketing all support expanded text ads (ETAs) in Bing Ads. Other management platforms are slated... [...]

Reuters team says, “Twitter Inc. may cut 8 percent of its workforce or about 300 people,Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing people it said were familiar with the matter. The job cuts could be announced before the company reports third-quarter earnings on Thursday, and the number of jobs affected could change, Bloomberg said. A company spokeswoman declined to comment. Last year, Twitter announced plans to lay off up to 336 employees, or about 8 percent of its workforce, a week after Jack Dorsey, its co-founder who had been serving as interim chief executive, took over as permanent CEO. Twitter,... [...]

Matt McGee says, “Google on Monday announced a few mobile-related upgrades for Google Tag Manager. For starters, there’s news that Tag Manager now supports Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP), which opens up a variety of new measurement opportunities, as Google’s Ben Gram explains in the announcement: While implementing measurement solutions on AMP pages has already been possible, it can be confusing and cumbersome for folks who are new to AMP or who have tagging needs beyond tracking a basic page view. That’s why, in addition to Google Analytics, AMP containers in Tag Manager provide support... [...]

Ellen Bartolino says, “As marketers, we know that the term “mobile optimization” can sometimes seem like just another hot button term these days. And the actual process of optimizing your brand’s site can be somewhat intimidating. In hopes of making the whole process a little less daunting, we teamed up with Localytics to bring you The Marketer’s Guide to Mobile. This five-part kit will walk you through the best practices of mobile marketing, help you decide whether or not your brand should have an app, and bring you up to speed on how mobile has evolved over the... [...]

Sonia Simone says, “Smart content producers know that we can produce a lot more (and better) content when we collaborate. But collaboration brings its own set of headaches and complexities. Today we talk about a nifty new tool to make it simpler. Joanna Wiebe, conversion expert extraordinaire, two-time speaker at our live events in Denver, and creator of Copy Hackers, is launching a new tool designed for writers who work in collaborative teams. In this 33-minute episode, Sonia and Joanna talk about: Copy Hacker’s new tool for content teams: Airstory Why it’s not smart (or even possible)... [...]

Aja Frost says, “If you’re anything like most people, you can probably rattle off 100 different things you’d rather do than dig through your inbox. It starts to feel like a chore, because what’s in there isn’t very interesting. In fact, only 21% of consumers reported that they’ve received a memorable promotional email in the past two months, according to a study by Litmus. To overcome that, many brands are using email personalization as a strategy for creating more engaging email experiences — ones that feel less like a robot, and more like a friend.... [...]

Ben Davis says, “As digital technology becomes more sophisticated and penetrates more parts of our lives, the importance of design thinking increases, too. Earlier this month, I was lucky enough to spend a week or so in Japan and there were several bits of everyday and unassuming design that struck me. Though these were not digital examples, I thought I should share them anyway to provide a bit of inspiration. 1. Sinks on top of toilet cisterns The toilet shown below is relatively common in homes. When you flush, the water that refills the cistern first comes out of the tap letting you wash... [...]

Courtney Eckerle says, “When you’re embarking on a new campaign, or a launching a new CMS, there are a million things that can go wrong. To which I say: GOOD. Bring it on. That’s what testing is all about, right? Letting the things that will go wrong, go wrong – but tracking it every step of the way. That, my friends, is the difference between a mistake and a “learning.” See that positive spin? As the Managing Editor of MarketingSherpa (MarketingExperiment’s sister site) I have covered hundreds of marketing campaigns by companies, and generally they are focused more on high-level... [...]