Content marketing can provide tremendous value to a search engine optimization campaign, as outlined in our recent eBook, “Content Marketing Like a Pro.” There are many different content types that can be leveraged as a vehicle for lead generation with a strong return on investment. Today, we’ll examine how you can choose the right content type to increase your brand’s SEO value.
eMarketer recently published a study conducted by CopyPress in which marketers were asked which types of content are the most cost effective. Results of the study showed the growing demand among marketers of content marketing as a leading digital focus. Thirty-five percent of marketers surveyed identified content marketing as their leading focus in 2013 as compared to 19% in 2012. It is no secret that content marketing is a powerful lead generation tool and that the return on investment is high.
When it comes to segmenting the various types of content, a vast majority of the marketers surveyed identified featured articles as the content type with the best ROI. The main differentiator between featured articles and other media types is the relatively small cost and simplicity of development which makes the investment very low. The minimal hard costs and effort associated with producing featured articles combined with the innate value of any content marketing piece that follows best practices, makes these articles very attractive to utilize.
Another advantage of featured articles that makes them a priority content marketing piece is the ability to use authorship mark-up to help promote the content and improve organic search authority. Since featured articles typically contain a byline, the rel=“author” rich snippet can be leveraged to tie the content to an authoritative author, making it much more likely to rank for keyword-targeted search queries in search engine results. (more…)
Today, we released a new eBook on content marketing. Titled, “Content Marketing Like a Pro,” the report outlines the key pillars to content marketing and advises marketers on best practices for crafting and executing successful content marketing programs.
This eBook also provides a framework marketers can use to improve their brand’s SEO and generate leads via a content marketing program.
When consumers first encounter a brand digitally it’s not always the brand’s website that makes the first impression. What makes the greatest impression is the authority of the brand’s website measured by where it ranks when a consumer searches.
Content marketing is a method to build this authority and rank.
Learn how to use content marketing to generate leads and improve your brand’s SEO with MediaWhiz’s new eBook, “Content Marketing Like a Pro.” (more…)
If you were lucky enough to be on Twitter Monday afternoon, you likely witnessed the aftermath of Burger King’s Twitter account being hacked by the international hacktivist group Anonymous. Some marketing pundits are going so far as call this a “PR disaster.” Hyperbole aside, I agree that Burger King has a big task on its hands to ensure this type of situation never happens again.
That said I don’t foresee the #failurewhopper Twitter hack hurting Burger King’s business or reputation in the long term.
The nuances of the hack have been analyzed over and over, so there is no reason to go into them in this post. (The company has since apologized for the confusion caused by its Twitter account being compromised.) What’s important, however, is to examine what impact, if any, the hack will have on the company’s brand affinity with consumers.
When I first noticed the Burger King account hack the company had about 82,000 followers. A quick glance at BK’s follower count at Twitter, as of noon EST Tuesday (Feb. 19) shows the company has a little more than 112,000 followers. That’s an increase of 30,000 followers in just a few hours. That’s 30,000 new people, both current and potential customers, that the company can now engage, inform and influence through its Twitter account. (more…)
Last week, Yahoo! announced it had signed a non-exclusive global agreement with Google to serve contextual ads on Yahoo properties and some co-branded websites. Last time the Silicon Valley giants attempted a strategic partnership, the deal was struck down by antitrust regulators at the U.S. Department of Justice. So, what is different this time?
The answer lies with the mastermind behind the negotiation: Yahoo’s CEO, and ex-Google executive, Marissa Mayer.
This deal is a sign that Mayer’s leadership is starting to have positive outcomes. Rather than contributing to the long-standing rivalry between the two companies she has chosen to build bridges. Her experience and knowledge of Google were key t negotiating this partnership, and will most likely serve as solid foundation for Yahoo to have the success that was not possible back in 2008 when it first attempted a search advertising partnership with Google.
Fast forward to 2013 and Yahoo and Google are tying up on display, as opposed to search. What does this mean for both companies? What does it mean for display advertising? (more…)
With global Internet usage growing daily, marketers are faced with extensive challenges in engaging, influencing and acquiring their target consumers. Data plays a key role for marketers when building marketing campaigns and strategies. But with consumers accessing online content through multiple devices, a more precise way to analyze and interpret data is needed.
Recently, we spoke with Heather Kraus, MediaWhiz’s performance strategy and analytics manager, and asked her about data trends in online marketing. We also discussed Big Data and how Google’s new Universal Analytics tool helps brands acquire customers.(more...)
The performance marketing industry continues to grow. And with that growth comes significant opportunities — and challenges — for digital marketers looking to tap into performance marketing’s core strengths: data, technology and accountable results. Recently, I sat down with Peter Klein, MediaWhiz’s senior vice president of media services and head of MonetizeIt, the agency’s affiliate network, to discuss the state of performance marketing and his predictions for the industry’s future.
You can read a full transcript of the interview here.
It’s not much of a stretch to state that performance marketing is the future of online marketing. The 2012 IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report indicates that more than two-thirds of all marketing transactions will be paid for on a performance basis. Total U.S. spend on performance marketing will grow by almost $5 billion, to $25 billion in online advertising revenue, versus 2011 spend.
Peter Klein, who is head of MonetizeIt, the MediaWhiz affiliate network, has been in performance marketing since the early days of the industry. With nearly 20 years of experience, he has seen the industry grow into one of the most highly demanded forms of marketing. In addition to his duties running MonetizeIt, Klein also oversees MediaWhiz’s AdNet Display Advertising and Data Acquisition divisions.
He recently sat down with us and discussed the state of performance marketing and how they can help your business more profitably engage, acquire and retain customers.
Sultan Riaz: Let’s start with the basics: What is affiliate marketing? Peter Klein:Affiliate marketing is a type of performance marketing that involves advertisers, publishers and an affiliate network. An advertiser is typically a direct response client/brand that has a product that they want to sell or generate leads for. The publisher, also known as an affiliate, is the one that actually conducts the marketing via the media channel they specialize in. The affiliate resides between the two entities. It acts as everything from operations, compliance, technology, tracking and media planner.
The three marry together nicely to form a kind of performance marketing ecosystem where everybody shares in the profits and work towards driving marketing results (more…)
There’s no doubt that performance marketing is a significant force in online marketing, and will continue to grow. What will 2013 have in store for the performance marketing industry? As I see it, there are four key trends that will influence performance marketers’ work in the new year:
1. More brands will invest in performance marketing. The 2012 IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report indicates that more than two-thirds of all marketing transactions will be paid for on a performance basis. Total U.S. spend on performance marketing will grow by almost $5 billion, to $25 billion in online advertising revenue, versus 2011 spend. This indicates that performance marketing will continue to dominate the online ad-spend model. Brands that consistently miss their online marketing ROI targets will comprise the majority of new spend on performance marketing campaigns, as they seek to take advantage of the industry’s guaranteed results. Traditional agencies will continue to focus on branding for their clients in the digital space, and farm out performance marketing budgets to trusted affiliate networks and marketers.
2. Lead quality and compliance take center stage. As brands continue to invest their marketing dollars in performance marketing, they will place increasing pressure on performance marketers to achieve their investment goals. The SaaS and lead quality product market will blossom. These two dynamic sectors of online markets will help advertisers pay for only top-quality leads, enabling performance marketers to get paid appropriately for such quality. The government will continue to get involved in online marketing regulations, such as Do Not Track legislation, and more states will attempt to pass nexus tax laws. Efforts will likely be minimally intrusive, and the industry will push for self-regulation efforts as a means to limit involvement.
3. Mobile lead-gen has its moment in the sun. Mobile marketing will become a much larger piece of the advertising budget in 2013. eMarketer forecasts 138 million smartphone users in the U.S. next year, comprising 43% of the total population. It will be critical for advertisers to optimize websites and create shorter lead-generation forms with click-to-call for mobile devices. In our “always on” world, consumers need instant gratification from the brands they allow into their online world. Advertisers that provide consumers with access to immediate customer service will win their business.
4. Consolidation of media channels. A larger premium will be placed on internal media sources to provide quality and consistency. As such, the lead-generation industry will see a continued and more aggressive consolidation of affiliate networks. Many affiliates will merge with or acquire one or more of their affiliate media sources. Specifically, many mailers and media buyers will join forces with networks to increase margin, reduce compliance risk and deliver on allocated budget to survive and create a competitive advantage.
Long dismissed as a niche form of online marketing, performance marketing has become a multibillion-dollar force in the digital-media ecosystem. For CMOs, performance marketing, of which affiliate marketing comprises the largest share of revenue growth, is no longer a marketing strategy that can be ignored or delegated to junior-level marketing managers. It is now a driving force behind many brands’ online growth and customer-acquisition efforts. As such, it requires CMOs’ devout attention to properly use and scale in order to realize long-term customer-acquisition value.
The rise of affiliate marketing, and its growing influence with digital marketers, is no accident.
Affiliate marketing has existed for more than a decade. It helps advertisers achieve their ROI goals by using publishers (affiliates) to conduct their marketing efforts via multiple media channels on a pay-for-performance basis.
Affiliate marketing can be used for any vertical, brand, company, language, time frame, or demographic. Importantly, it is a useful testing ground for CMOs who desire online marketing channel options, instant gratification, speed, and a clear measurement of return on advertising spend (ROAS) or return on marketing (ROM) investment. In fact, many affiliate marketers are experts in industry metrics and traffic sources, and can help CMOs develop campaigns based on long-term brand and customer-acquisition. This is critical as the industry evolves into a larger mobile-consumer target.
But affiliate marketing’s benefits extend beyond lead generation. Affiliate marketing professionals and networks are at the forefront of innovative online marketing campaigns. The rise of social networking sites, such as Facebook, LinkedIn, and Pandora, were largely built on affiliate marketing ad spend revenues.
Every brand in the digital age needs a strong lead-generation component to its online marketing strategy. Affiliate marketing is CMOs’ answer to that need.
The benefits of affiliate marketing are more thoroughly explained in a new MediaWhiz insight paper from, “The CMO’s Guide to Affiliate Marketing.” It outlines critical steps CMOs should take to begin working with an affiliate; defines core terminology; and information on why it is critical for CMOs to invest some of their marketing spend in the affiliate marketing channel.
Will “nonline” shopping help thrwart the negative retail effects of showrooming?
By Keith Trivitt | @KeithTrivitt | Director, Marketing and Communications
As the 2012 holiday shopping season heats up, one trend many marketers and analysts will closely monitor is the concept of “showrooming.” Showrooming occurs when consumers try out merchandise in stores then go online to buy them, often at a discounted price.
Fifty-six percent of American consumers are expected to participate in some aspect of showrooming this holiday season, according to Mobile Marketer.
Showrooming is driving many brick-and-mortar retailers crazy as they attempt to thwart the effects of Amazon and other online retailers on their bottom line. It’s also causing several well-known global retail giants, including Best Buy, to seriously rethink the physical size and make-up of their stores.
So what’s a savvy retailer marketer to do in the wake of showrooming’s rise and dominance of commerce?
The marketing geniuses at Google might just have the answer. After surveying 1,500 holiday consumers about their shopping habits, Google has found that the “lines between online and offline commerce are blurring,” according to Direct Marketing News. Google details these findings in its recently released Pre-Holiday 2012 Consumer Intentions study.
Despite dire predictions within marketing ranks that consumers would start to skip physical stores entirely in favor of online shopping, Google’s study finds that isn’t the case. In fact, the distinction between online and offline shopping are disappearing.
The concept is called “nonline” shopping. And it may harken the next great wave in-store shopper marketing.According to the Google study, 51 percent of surveyed consumers intend to research a product online and visit the store to buy it; 32 percent plan on researching an item online, inspecting it in the store and then retreating back online to complete the transaction.
“I think the whole concept of nonline is customers are connected to brands at all times of the day, and they’re going to choose how they want to interact and, at the end of the day, purchase,” Brett Goffin, Google’s retail head of industry, told DMNews. “The retailers who understand that are going to be ones in the long-term that, we believe, are going to succeed.”
‘Nonline’ Shopping’s Lessons for Marketers
The Google study presents a multitude of insights for digital and shopper marketers.
According to Google’s Goffin two factors are contributing to the blurring of offline and online shopping: consumers’ rising comfort with online shopping and their decreased fears over online credit-card fraud. (more…)
