Ronell Smith says, “If you think creating content for boring industries is tough, try creating content for an expensive product that’ll be sold in a so-called boring industry. Such was the problem faced by Mike Jackson, head of sales for a large Denver-based company that was debuting a line of new high-end products for the fishing industry in 2009. After years of pestering the executives of his traditional, non-flashy company to create a line of products that could be sold to anglers looking to buy premium items, he finally had his wish: a product so expensive only a small percentage... [...]

Rainmaker team says, “Ever find yourself scratching your head, trying to figure out what to write about on your blog? We’ve all been there. It’s tough to come up with blog post topics week after week, and it’s not easy to keep all those ideas organized, either. This week on Hit Publish, host Pamela Wilson invited three Copyblogger experts to share their best advice for generating a never-ending flow of blog post ideas“. How to Generate a Never-Ending Flow of Blog Post Ideas ‘Copyblogger’ Blog  [...]

Chuck Frey says, “If you avoid Twitter’s paid promotion tools in your marketing campaigns because you believe they’re too expensive or complex, it’s time to rethink that opinion. Twitter’s affordable, well-designed promotion tools can help your brand generate leads, build an audience, and amplify your content – no matter the size of your company. What makes Twitter such an attractive channel for paid promotion? First, its 255 million active users send more than 500 million tweets a day. No matter what industry or market you serve, chances are your audience has a presence on Twitter“. How... [...]

Verónica Maria Jarski says, “Everybody writes, but not everybody who writes gets to his or her intended destination. To help content marketers find their way, best-selling author Ann Handley offers this writing GPS. Before you write, know why you are writing. “Anything you write—even an individual blog post—should be aligned with a larger (business or marketing) goal,” says Ann Handley, chief content officer at MarketingProfs and author of Everybody Writes, in the following Visual.ly infographic. Next, you’ll want to reframe the idea to relate it to your readers. “Ask,... [...]

Rainmaker team says, “Listen to Search & Deploy host Loren Baker and Dennis Goedegebuure discuss content for marketplaces, the power of community and audience, and how that content helps attract links and interaction around e-commerce sites“. Dennis Goedegebuure on the Holistic Practice of SEO and Content Marketing ‘Copyblogger’ Blog  [...]

Jodi Harris says, “Like all content marketers, you are probably crunched on time and always looking to trim unnecessary processes. But you shouldn’t think of personas as one of those “nice-to-have” tools that will be abandoned as soon as you build them. Having documented personas, even in their simplest forms, will not only help you crystallize your ideas, but also serve as a single version of truth for everybody creating content for your organization. We’re here to take the stress out of persona development – and help make them as practically useful as possible. Read on to learn... [...]

Demian Farnworth says, “Fans of the Internet love to mock print magazines. They love to gloat and preen as the gate to Big Media’s kingdom has been thrown open — and the gatekeepers are torn from their thrones and tossed in the moat (the pockets of their blazers stuffed with rocks). We watch from a distance as the city burns to the ground. Like there is nothing redeemable about these institutions. That’s unfortunate. Because they actually have a lot to teach us“. The Print Magazine Hoax: 10 Overlooked Lessons on Writing Great Content ‘Copyblogger’ Blog  [...]

David Kirkpatrick says, “One of my recent MarketingSherpa Blog posts, “Content Marketing 101: Tips on content strategy” covered some basics of content marketing. For today’s post, I want to dig into the MarketingSherpa Newsletter archive to highlight what can be a challenging aspect of content marketing — quantifying and proving its worth. The first article to highlight is a how-to, titled “Measuring Content Marketing: How to measure results, find gaps and grab opportunities,” that covers a range of tactics offered by Joe Pulizzi, Founder, Content Marketing Institute, and Michal... [...]

Baer says, “Now how many of those were read today? Your guess is as good as mine. A very teeny tiny minority, if you choose to rely on the most basic 80–20 Pareto’s Principle. But have you noticed the number of views, shares, and comments when the post is written by people like Seth Godin? Or Neil Patel? Or Arianna Huffington? So what are the qualities or distinct characteristics that mark these super bloggers, setting them on a plane higher than us lesser mortals? I am inclined to think that entry to this rarefied region is free, as long as you get these three steps just right. Read... [...]

Mike Murray says, “Time-strapped, budget-conscious B2B and B2C marketers can’t afford to make unwise choices with SEO andcontent marketing. You won’t find a do-everything-for-me software product, but you can make excellent progress by continually asking these questions: Am I confident that my team and I understand SEO? Do we have the time to shape SEO strategies and put them into motion with content marketing? Are we using the right third-party SEO tools and resources to support our efforts?”. 68 SEO Content Tools, Trends, and Tips for B2B and B2C Brands Content Marketing Institute  [...]