It seems we spend more and more of our time online. Many of us even have careers that depend on online activities: social media, online shopping, etc. And with the vast majority of content that exists on the world wide web, it’s not surprising some of the lengths people (and even large news organizations) will go to in order to get you to click through. »

Social media is great. But far too often we encounter clients that use it as their primary distribution source for their content. And well, that’s not generally a good idea. You lose control of your own content and what’s worse, its existence is fleeting.  »

There’s been a plethora of articles declaring social media’s organic reach is dead or dying. But the reality is a bit more complex. Organic reach is not dead. It’s simply not easy any more. The day of simply posting things to various channels and enjoying continual increases in likes, follows, shares, and engagement are what’s dying or dead. Today, you have to work much harder and be more interesting to accomplish greatness via social media - and frankly, that’s a good thing. »

​Line extension or the addition of a completely new but related product to your product mix is a common occurrence. But it’s something you want to plan for and manage well so you get the most bang for your bucks. »

Marketing has always been about making things interesting - to pique the curiosity; to foster desire; or to cajole coveting. But sadly, at some point marketing was corrupted by hucksters selling underwhelming crap to under informed consumers. But then things changed and consumers became connected and crap was instantly outed as crap - leaving the hucksters pining for the good ol’ days. »

In one minute, more than 4 million Google searches are performed. In that same minute, approximately 600 websites are created, 205 million email messages are sent, over 70 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube, 270,000 tweets are sent, and about 2.5 million pieces of content are shared on Facebook. That’s a LOT of content. »

Time and time again I find myself silently thanking Mr. Costner and the movie Field of Dreams. The whole “build it and they will come” is the misguided idea lots of folks cling to when marketing on the internet. But online, if you build it, nobody cares. »

The pace of change for businesses is accelerating, and as a result they’re demanding more and more out of their marketing and design agencies. For better or worse, marketing departments and agencies are now forced to justify nearly all activities in quantifiable and measurable ways - usually as direct ROI figures. It’s no longer enough to simply create good creative. You now have to also measure its reach, effectiveness, and track its direct effect on sales. »

If you’re running a business chances are you have a Facebook account for it. It’s become an essential part of the social media marketing mix. It’s not quite as useful as it once was - but it’s still integral to many businesses. Sometimes it might be the only social marketing – or even a company’s entire online presence.  »

Credibility is tough to establish online. You can say you’re great. Others can say how great you are too. But if it’s not handled well, it’ll simply seem boastful – or worse, insincere. So how do you brag about your accomplishments believably? »