Aug 14 2014 | Loyalty Today
There isn’t a day that goes by that I am not intrigued or inspired by someone I do not know. We relate to, and can connect with, stories from real people. I scroll through my Facebook feed and watch videos shared by people around the world, or look at photos of a friend’s personal...Read More
Aug 08 2014 | Loyalty Today
Have you been considering getting started with AdWords, but you aren’t sure if it’s right for you? Here are a few signs that you should take the leap and get started. With nearly 6 BILLION searches per day, there are an abundance of opportunities to take advantage of...Read More
Jul 24 2014 | Loyalty Today
Like countless of her peers, yesterday’s lunch mate is an old friend who has risen to the top of the marketing field and finds herself increasingly isolated from other marketing leaders. There are very few local conferences for executives like her, not much content being...Read More
Jul 21 2014 | Loyalty Today
Have you ever wanted something so bad that you plan and strategize on how to get it? And then when you do get it, you have NO idea what to do with it? I feel like that’s exactly how I’d be with a puppy. Or a plant. But many marketers get that way about their brand advocates.This week...Read More
Jul 20 2014 | Loyalty Today
If you’ve had the chance to read some of my previous posts (here and here), you’ll know that I’m passionate about imagery and the visual side of content marketing. Enter Pinterest. Perfect for people who love to browse and search for inspiration and...Read More
Jul 17 2014 | Loyalty Today
Before we get into Schema markup, I want to back up a bit and cover the basics. Let’s start with an understanding of rich snippets or structured data. Rich snippets are “snippets” of content displayed on the SERP. They make it easier for users to understand what the...Read More
Jul 12 2014 | Loyalty Today
A little over a year ago, we covered the discussion of blog content being labeled as a ‘Trojan Horse’ metaphor when it comes to a good content strategy. What it boiled down to was the debate over the intent of the post:“…the metaphor works great for storytelling...Read More
Jul 02 2014 | Loyalty Today
I recently returned from a lovely and exhausting family vacation in New York City and Washington, DC. The trip was decidedly DIY. We used UberX for car transportation, AirBNB for lodging, TripAdvisor for daytime activities, Yelp for restaurant insights...Read More
Jul 01 2014 | Loyalty Today
Every week, I write a round up of excellent brand advocacy reads. Doing this has taught me one thing: I know this because I’m inundated with articles to choose from each week, and that gets awfully noisy after a while.What I’ve been able to take away from these posts is that...Read More
Jun 24 2014 | Loyalty Today
In my weekly brand advocacy round ups, I’ve been talking a lot about the importance of employee brand advocates and brand ambassadors. This is a topic we feel very strongly about at Ciceron. Employee ambassadors are crucial to the success of an advocacy marketing strategy — and to...Read More
Jun 23 2014 | Loyalty Today
If there is one thing I love in this world, it’s a good list. Well, that and a nice cold beer after a long day. I mean, I’m not a monster. If you’re anything like me, you’ll find lists equally as helpful. So, for this week’s posts I found three different lists...Read More
Jun 20 2014 | Loyalty Today
We’re halfway through 2014 and it goes without saying that a lot has happened this year in social. News of small start-ups being bought out seemed like it occurred on a daily basis. Each major network launched layout changes, some subtle and some not so much. There are...Read More
Jun 19 2014 | Loyalty Today
In the digital marketing world, there is no shortage of information on current trends and new tools. While I love to see this information out there, it can be a bit overwhelming to keep up with. Like most people, I’m very visual and don’t have a lot of time (or the attention span for...Read More
Jun 10 2014 | Loyalty Today
Why is it important for marketers to invest in analytics? It’s not the sexiest topic out there, and it certainly doesn’t have the buzz surrounding it that other marketing concepts do.To answer that question, we need to think a little harder about what the point of marketing is...Read More
Jun 02 2014 | Loyalty Today
Holy buckets, it’s almost June. I’m still trying to tell myself that a sweater is no longer necessary when leaving the house. How did this happen, I wonder? Not that I’m complaining — I love not having to scrape ice and snow off of my car. I call this a win.So, what does...Read More
May 31 2014 | Loyalty Today
“What are you excited about in digital marketing for 2014?” This is question my fellow Cicerones and I answered toward the end of last year. Naturally my response was related to marketing automation, I said:“I’m looking forward to the continued growth of marketing...Read More
May 30 2014 | Loyalty Today
At the end of 2013, the marketing industry was absolutely packed with predictions about the future of social marketing in 2014. We even had a few infographics of our own! (See? One here, and one here.) But after all of those predictions were known, many stopped digging in to the...Read More
May 28 2014 | Loyalty Today
“What are you excited about in digital marketing for 2014?” This is question my fellow Cicerones and I answered toward the end of last year. Naturally my response was related to marketing automation, I said:“I’m looking forward to the continued growth of marketing...Read More
May 27 2014 | Loyalty Today
When I think about brands that are doing it right in content marketing, my first thoughts go to two of my favorites, Anthropologie and Free People. Over the past few years, I’ve watched these brands evolve from simply great in-store experiences to now bringing that same...Read More
May 23 2014 | Loyalty Today
Call it what you will: a freak occurrence, a delightful surprise, fortuitous happenstance or just good luck, but when a valuable influencer picks up and shares your content on their own, with no encouragement or direct contact, it’s a win. It’s a major win, so congratulate yourself...Read More
May 19 2014 | Loyalty Today
The general purpose of marketing is to help your company make money. That’s what success is – keeping your doors open, and paying payroll. Of course, there are ultimately many other things that define success in business, but none of that is attainable without these two things. So...Read More
May 17 2014 | Loyalty Today
A few months ago, I wrote a blog post about 7 Tips for Subject Line Success. Since then, I’ve had a few different clients ask me my opinion about the use of symbols and other special characters in subject lines. My first response is almost always that you have to test it with your...Read More
May 15 2014 | Loyalty Today
As a client services manager, I get to interact with clients every day. I truly enjoy being able to experience their work, to see the impact their work has, and to bring a different angle to the table each and every day in order to provide value. I have a great team of people behind me. But...Read More
May 12 2014 | Loyalty Today
As more content is created around the concept of brand advocacy, I’ve noticed that there are a lot more ‘step-by-step’ approaches and breakdowns being created. I think this is largely because of the increase in our collective understanding of how brand advocacy works and can be...Read More
May 09 2014 | Loyalty Today
Delighted customers who are willing to share their experiences and recommend your brand to their friends and family are the holy grail of marketing. That’s because satisfied customers are the lifeblood of any business. These are your brand advocates — your current customers who love...Read More
May 08 2014 | Loyalty Today
With more organizations (at least talking about) being hyper-focused on the customer, it’s no surprise that consumer insights from the marketing team are more important than ever. In order to give the consumer what they want, we must understand their wants, needs, and behaviors. As digital...Read More
May 06 2014 | Loyalty Today
This weekend, Wizard World is bringing Comic Con to Minneapolis. I’m so jazzed about it that I haven’t stopped talking about it for at least a week. As you know, I love me some Doctor Who — and of course Matt Smith and Karen Gillan will be...Read More
Apr 28 2014 | Loyalty Today
We often talk about how social media is a perfect platform for our brand advocates to share our brand with their networks. But many times the idea that social media should be used to improve the way our brand communicates with the consumer slips through the cracks. This week’s articles are...Read More
Apr 25 2014 | Loyalty Today
Although being a so called “cat lady” doesn’t seem to carry quite the negative stigma it used to, I won’t deny that owning a cat has had some negative effects on my dating life. I’ve experienced everything from the allergies excuse, suddenly becoming busy or just...Read More
Apr 22 2014 | Loyalty Today
With the recent changes to the Google algorithm, content marketing has become increasingly important over the past year. Having fresh content on your website helps with SEO, and also provides value to those who visit your site on a regular basis. But having new and fresh content isn’t quite...Read More
Apr 21 2014 | Loyalty Today
Now that spring is here, and Easter is around the corner, my inbox is being flooded with spring wardrobe offers and suggestions. The mass influx of branded messaging makes me nuts, and usually results in countless unread emails. This is what consumers deal with on a daily basis. The best way to...Read More
Apr 16 2014 | Loyalty Today
The successes that come from search engine marketing are far beyond the number of visits it drives to your site. The click is just the first step. It is what you do with that click that truly matters and determines its value.At Ciceron, we take search extremely seriously. We know...Read More
Apr 14 2014 | Loyalty Today
Has anyone else noticed that as the weather gets better, everything else seems better, too? I mean, I had a heck of a time deciding which posts to include in my round-up this week. There were a bunch of great articles. But the following posts were chosen for their unique take on three different...Read More
Apr 11 2014 | Loyalty Today
By now you’ve probably heard the news that Facebook organic page reach has declined rapidly since October 2013. I wrote about the impending change in December, so after four months I thought it would be good to take a look to see what has happened since then and what marketers...Read More
Apr 08 2014 | Loyalty Today
Anyone who has ever been to a job interview, or on a first date, knows the importance of making a good first impression. A good first impression — and a bad one, for that matter — sets the tone for the rest of the relationship. So, it’s only natural to apply that concept to our...Read More
Apr 07 2014 | Loyalty Today
This week, Dawn wrote a post about employee brand ambassador programs. The topic has been floating around the office quite a bit in the last few weeks, so it has definitely been on my mind. It seems like common sense, but asking your employees to advocate for your brand is one of the...Read More
Apr 02 2014 | Loyalty Today
At one time, link building was all the rage in SEO. Then, guest blogging added to the popularity – allowing you to post content to other sites while building links for your own. Now, those tactics may be coming back to haunt you (and your website) with a myriad of issues for webmasters.When...Read More
Mar 27 2014 | Loyalty Today
We’ve all heard it before. Developing a strategy is essential to your content marketing’s success. It will help streamline content and create consistency. Having a detailed strategy in place is ideal, always easier said than done, right?A few months ago, Tiffani posted a...Read More
Mar 26 2014 | Loyalty Today
They say you never get a second chance to make a first impression; that is, until now.At this time last year, we had just released The First Impressions Email Marketing Study, showing at 83% of brands did not make a good first impression with their new email subscribers. Since the study was...Read More
Mar 25 2014 | Loyalty Today
I got my wisdom teeth out this week, so I’ve been spending a lot of time watching Netflix. Specifically, Classic Doctor Who. I’m a big fan. But when I found out that there were entire seasons missing from the collection, I was super bummed out. Being let down by something you really...Read More
Mar 19 2014 | Loyalty Today
Remember my previous post about reputation management, and why if you’re not in the game, you’re losing out? Here’s a link to that in case you missed it: Reputation Management 101. The news from Yelp & Yahoo should be a wakeup call for brands with no strategy in...Read More
Mar 14 2014 | Loyalty Today
What’s the perfect subject line? As an email marketing specialist, I get asked that a lot. The answer? It depends on your audience. For most people, that answer is very frustrating to hear, but it’s the truth.The perfect subject line will not be the same for every business, because...Read More
Mar 11 2014 | Loyalty Today
Let’s be honest. I’m sure you’ve figured out by now that social marketing is something that’s worth doing. Well, as long as you’re doing it right. We’ve moved away from ‘what is social marketing?’ to ‘how can I take advantage of the benefits...Read More
Mar 07 2014 | Loyalty Today
Whether it’s a loyalty program, simple employee appreciation, or any other engagement strategy — a strategy is necessary to activate your advocates. I realize that I’ve beaten this point into the ground in the past year. But nevertheless, brand advocacy strategies remain...Read More
Mar 03 2014 | Loyalty Today
If you’ve ever worked in the restaurant industry, or hospitality in general, you know the feeling you get just before you go onto Yelp, Trip Advisor or UrbanSpoon. The “please, please, please don’t tell me that one guy from yesterday that hated his (whatever)...Read More
Feb 28 2014 | Loyalty Today
Earlier this month, I wrote the first post of this series, sharing Six Ways to Immediately Improve Your Website’s Performance & Usability. In case you missed it, the list included these recommendations:Customize your AnalyticsEnsure Mobile SupportReview Page SpeedSimplify...Read More
Feb 25 2014 | Loyalty Today
It’s hard to see the big picture when you’re staring at your own belly button, so to speak. Obviously, that’s extremely important for your digital marketing plan — you know, the entire execution stage. But what’s also important is seeing the proverbial forest. Every...Read More
Feb 21 2014 | Loyalty Today
I think I say this almost every week: Be honest with your customers to earn their trust. I have to admit, I feel vindicated by this week’s round up. We have three articles about creating and maintaining positive relationships with new or existing brand advocates. From research to help...Read More
Feb 14 2014 | Loyalty Today
Well, here we are, already more than a month into 2014. We’ve all spent a lot of time over the past months coming up with big dreams, new goals, and countless lists of what we can accomplish throughout the year. And now it’s time to take action.There are a lot of trends in web design...Read More
Feb 10 2014 | Loyalty Today
Having friends is an essential part of the human experience. Who doesn’t love having people you can go to and count on when you need it? Obviously, your relationship with your bff isn’t going to be the same as your relationship with your favorite shampoo (but, I mean, it’s close...Read More
Feb 06 2014 | Loyalty Today
With all the drama and hype surrounding the Big Game this past weekend, it’s inevitable that the conversation would focus on the big winners and losers…the ads that aired (or didn’t in some cases), and the brands behind them. This year’s big question: who “won&rdquo...Read More
Feb 05 2014 | Loyalty Today
Now, more than ever, your reputation is less related to who you say you are, and more dependent on what’s being said about you by your customers. That’s not to say that you don’t own your brand, but that “ownership” has taken on a different meaning. Instead of...Read More
Feb 03 2014 | Loyalty Today
Have you ever heard that saying about how you have one mouth and two ears, and it’s for a reason? Well, it is. In your personal and business relationships, it’s important to listen and understand what the other party is saying in order to maintain or improve existing relationships...Read More
Jan 31 2014 | Loyalty Today
After three years in a corporate setting, it’s taken awhile to adjust back into the client-facing world. Over the past few months, I’ve been reminded of some of the basics I’ve learned from my mentors over the years. This list is in no way conclusive and I’m sure it will...Read More
Jan 30 2014 | Loyalty Today
Fact: Only 64% of people keep their New Year’s resolution past one month.Well, we’re now a month into 2014. I know your 2014 business goals are not New Year’s resolutions, but they have their similarities. If you don’t have a plan of attack, you’re setting...Read More
Jan 21 2014 | Loyalty Today
There’s no avoiding it — in order to have a successful business, you need to have loyal, repeat customers. They’re the ones who keep your lights on and doors open, and are most likely to advocate for your brand. In our current marketing landscape, loyalty is the new currency...Read More
Jan 20 2014 | Loyalty Today
More people are talking about brand advocacy than they were at this time last year, and this trend is going to continue throughout the coming year. And I would know. I started writing these round ups last year around this time, and there is exponentially more subject matter to sort through now...Read More
Jan 15 2014 | Loyalty Today
It’s a new year, you have a brand new budget and you’re ready to spend it. Maybe you have tried paid search in the past and are looking for a new vendor. Maybe this is the year is when you are ready to test paid search to see if it will work for your company. What do you need to know...Read More
Jan 13 2014 | Loyalty Today
I think it’s safe to say that everyone knows at least one person who tries way too hard to make everyone like them. Or at least you’ve seen that character in a movie or on TV. Either way, that sort of personality hasn’t worked to actually achieve what they so desperately want...Read More
Jan 08 2014 | Loyalty Today
Anyone who has tried to teach their grandparent how to use a computer, or had a younger relative school you in tech-talk, knows that there are differences between age demographics and their media use. Some people prefer television and newspapers to social networks and RSS feeds. Some people are...Read More
Jan 06 2014 | Loyalty Today
It is officially 2014! I know I’m excited — and my new year’s resolution has yet to be broken. I’ll give it another week and let you know how that turns out. So, with the new year comes new brand advocacy must reads for all. After all, it was my prediction that...Read More
Dec 31 2013 | Loyalty Today
It should come as no surprise that the folks at Ciceron get pretty excited about the future of digital marketing. After all, that’s what we do. So, in preparation for the new year, I surveyed my fellow Cicerones to see what they’re most looking forward to in digital for 2014.I’m...Read More
Dec 30 2013 | Loyalty Today
It is hard to believe that we only have a few days left of 2013. This year has been incredible, both personally and professionally, and it feels like it went by a little too fast. So, in an effort to preserve the memories of yesteryear, I put together a roundup of the most popular posts for this...Read More
Dec 27 2013 | Loyalty Today
Conversations ensue, opinions are shared about the implications, and we all go back to work. The most recent changes by Facebook will make for a very interesting 2014. With the New Year on the horizon, here’s a recap of what Zuckerberg has changed and what brands will need to...Read More
Dec 23 2013 | Loyalty Today
Anyone else have “The Final Countdown” stuck in their head after reading the title? No? Just me? Well, then I better move on.The heart of brand advocacy is a deep understanding of who your customer is and being able to act on that knowledge to provide something for them that they need...Read More
Dec 17 2013 | Loyalty Today
LinkedIn is an essential platform to use on both an individual and organizational level. It allows you to display, build and share your personal and professional brand, while keeping track of important business contacts.As I mentioned in part one of this series, I’m going to be your...Read More
Dec 16 2013 | Loyalty Today
Oh, case studies. This week really was somewhat of a Christmas miracle — there were so many great examples of brand advocacy campaigns that I actually had a list to narrow down. I was like a kid in a candy store. But, I digress. The idea behind this week’s post is that brand...Read More
Dec 10 2013 | Loyalty Today
Like millions of other people this past weekend, I found myself scouring for the best online deals in a frantic attempt to avoid the long lines and craziness that mark the official start of the holiday shopping season. Hats off to those of you who forego sleep and brave the elements and...Read More
Dec 09 2013 | Loyalty Today
I’m going to let you in on a secret: You have to be nice to your customers if you want to keep them. Not just ‘send-them-the-occasional-email’ nice, or ‘ignore-them-until-their-birthday’ nice — genuinely nice. New customer nice. For some reason, we’ve got...Read More
Dec 06 2013 | Loyalty Today
One of my favorite questions in marketing is ‘What should I be measuring?’. The answer isn’t a very popular one: It depends. It depends on your responsibilities, your objectives, and your business goals. While various tactics have different measures of success, too often I&rsquo...Read More
Dec 05 2013 | Loyalty Today
Content marketing is a concept that has a long history of debate. Many times, companies feel that they don’t need content marketing — that the work outweighs the benefits, or that it just “isn’t for them.” But that’s not the case. Whether B2B or B2C, any...Read More
Dec 02 2013 | Loyalty Today
Thanksgiving has come and gone, and if you’re anything like me, you’re huddled up at home with a turkey hangover from getting a little too “festive” last night. Then again, maybe you are one of the crazy Black Friday crack-of-dawn shoppers – in which case, you&rsquo...Read More
Nov 29 2013 | Loyalty Today
We tend to overindulge during the holiday season. On food, on gifts, on drinks — you name it.For this reason, I’ve compiled a few ways for you to ensure you’re not overindulging:Know what you’re sending. I know it sounds simple, but you would not believe how many...Read More
Nov 25 2013 | Loyalty Today
Tonight we’re hosting the annual Ciceron Alumni Thanksgiving party. These lovely folks are the reason that Ciceron is where it is today, and many of them are our brand advocates. We’re apparently very into rewarding our advocates with food. And drinks. Go figure. But rewarding your...Read More
Nov 23 2013 | Loyalty Today
The number of companies that provide third party social publishing and/or scheduling is incredible. Just when you thought you’ve heard of them all (Hootsuite, Spredfast, Sprout,TweetDeck, etc.), you begin to hear of even more. Each offering different methods of analysis...Read More
Nov 21 2013 | Loyalty Today
Now, businesses are using these channels as different ways to hire employees, find new business and make stronger connections. Your social profile is directly correlated with how professional you are perceived to be by both companies and consumers. Having a professional social media ...Read More
Nov 15 2013 | Loyalty Today
As 2013 comes to an end, it’s time to shift our focus to 2014. New concerns come with the new year: Where do we invest our marketing budget? What areas should we cut back on, and what areas do we increase our spend? It’s a chaotic time. And the decisions that you make, the plans that...Read More
Nov 14 2013 | Loyalty Today
I recently sold my house and am in the process of moving in to my new one. This is a very exciting time for my family, but behind all the fun comes a lot of planning, organization, and coordination. I have talked to more customer service representatives than I would like to admit, and used...Read More
Nov 05 2013 | Loyalty Today
This infographic is meant to show how many B2B companies are using content marketing to communicate with their customers.Content creation is becoming one of the essential tools of an effective marketing strategy. Having a solid content marketing plan can help with many elements of your...Read More
Nov 04 2013 | Loyalty Today
Brand advocacy can take many forms, whether it’s in person conversations, online conversations through social media, recommendations from one business to another, or any other method of referral you can think of. Sometimes it is easy to think of brand advocacy as a business-to-consumer...Read More
Oct 29 2013 | Loyalty Today
I saw snowflakes this week. Among the many things that snowflakes remind me of — including the no less than 5 months of cold we’re about to endure — is that each and every one of them is different. Similarly, each and every customer is different. Their differences are what...Read More
Oct 25 2013 | Loyalty Today
Back in college, group projects always seemed to present unique challenges. Even if I was lucky enough to end up in a group with friends, getting through a project without at least a couple bumps in the road was pretty unlikely. Typically, everyone involved had different goals, different skills...Read More
Oct 21 2013 | Loyalty Today
This week’s must reads are especially educational. I think that sometimes we gloss over this idea of brand advocacy so much that it becomes a little too slippery. Brand advocacy doesn’t have to be this huge idea. It doesn’t have to be difficult, and it actually does work. So...Read More
Oct 18 2013 | Loyalty Today
Marketing for small business isn’t easy. All too often there are tight budgets and lack of resources that make online marketing a unique challenge, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth pursuing. This infographic is designed to provide some insight into the importance...Read More
Oct 15 2013 | Loyalty Today
A Recap of the October 2013 Ciceron MBAIt’s fairly well known that brand advocacy didn’t start with the invention of the online social network. In fact, it is arguably the oldest form of marketing around, and it started with word-of-mouth, face-to-face conversations that consumers had...Read More
Oct 14 2013 | Loyalty Today
At the Ciceron MBA event on Thursday, we talked with three awesome local brands about how they use brand advocacy in their businesses, and what impact it has had on their growth. As it turns out, each one of them had nothing but good things to say about the results of their brand advocacy efforts...Read More
Oct 11 2013 | Loyalty Today
My colleague, Amber, recently returned to work after having her first baby. Being a mom myself, we often gab about new milestones, laugh about the craziness of motherhood, and commiserate about lack of “me time” or about how hard our significant others can sleep when the baby...Read More
Oct 10 2013 | Loyalty Today
My brain has been going in circles the last few weeks while writing this article in my head. It all started with a tweet I came across from AJ Ghergich. His twitter handle is@SEO, so I assume he may know a thing or two about the subject and can keep me up to speed on the ever-changing world of...Read More
Oct 09 2013 | Loyalty Today
The best marketing campaign in the world is useless unless your customers trust your brand and its message. In a 2013 study, Nielsen looked into consumer trust in advertising and came up with some interesting results. This infographic lays out that information and is intended to show you just...Read More
Oct 07 2013 | Loyalty Today
Well, we’ve made it to October. The season of pumpkin-everything is upon us, which I suspect is brand advocacy taking it’s fall form. From coffee shops to restaurants to breweries, there is pumpkin everywhere. And decorative squash. If you’re ever looking for an example of...Read More
Oct 04 2013 | Loyalty Today
As a new parent, my life has recently changed. My days have been filled with discovering the ins and outs of caring for someone who is completely dependent on me. The more I thought about it, I realized that the stages of figuring out this parenting thing were pretty similar to the consumer...Read More
Sep 30 2013 | Loyalty Today
There has been significant growth in website mobile optimization over the past two years to accommodate the 1.2 billion people accessing the web from their mobile devices (source:Trinity Digital Marketing). But why is it that only 25% of companies are optimizing their ...Read More
Sep 27 2013 | Loyalty Today
Tis’ the season to start budgeting. Fa la la la, la la la.
Ok, all jokes aside, how is your 2014 budget coming along? Whether you’ve already started working on it or it’s on your to do list, one thing is certain, you need to make marketing automation an investment priority.So...Read More
Sep 16 2013 | Loyalty Today
Integrated digital campaigns aren’t a new concept, each channel provides a different angle into your target market’s world. It’s important to put in the appropriate amount of time to understand your audiences within each channel, find out what their motivations are and what...Read More
Sep 16 2013 | Loyalty Today
Have you ever heard the phrase “easy does it”? Growing up, I heard that a lot. What can I say? I was kind of a squirrelly kid. The same concept applies to your digital marketing and brand advocacy strategy. It needs to be easy to share your brand’s content across social...Read More
Sep 09 2013 | Loyalty Today
Brand advocacy has many facets. It’s a journey that starts with a purchase, turns into a relationship, and later turns into a partnership. As with any journey, there is a starting point. After customer acquisition, the focus needs to shift to retention. Your advocates are your loyal...Read More
Sep 06 2013 | Loyalty Today
Back to school week always gets me reminiscing about the good ol’ days when the hardest decision I had to make was if I should buy regular or chocolate milk at lunch. Things are so much simpler when you’re young, and everything is a learning experience. While I might not build foam...Read More
Sep 05 2013 | Loyalty Today
It’s been a tough couple of years for e-commerce sites in the wake of Google’s Penguin & Panda updates. The world as we knew it seemingly changed overnight, and many of us found that we needed to learn a whole new way of marketing our products and services. Just when we...Read More
Sep 03 2013 | Loyalty Today
In order to have a successful, modern, digital marketing strategy, it’s essential to account for the fact that the role of business to consumer — and business to business for that matter — communication has changed. There is no longer a communication hierarchy where brands...Read More
Sep 03 2013 | Loyalty Today
I don’t know about you, but I look forward to getting birthday offers and freebies from my favorite brands on my special day. In a recent study that my colleague and I conducted, we signed up for seventy different brands’ email marketing programs. Of the seventy, only...Read More
Sep 01 2013 | Loyalty Today
If you have ever been around me when someone uses the phrase “email blast” then you know that my face probably looks like this…
Unless I’m meeting with a client or prospect, at which point I take a deep breath and try my hardest not to roll my eyes.
So why is &ldquo...Read More
Aug 28 2013 | Loyalty Today
It’s a gross understatement to say that social media, especially Twitter, is responsible for a drastic change in the way people communicate, not only with each other but with companies. If anything, that’s just common sense. The barriers that once existed between you and a brand...Read More
Aug 26 2013 | Loyalty Today
I’ve always joked that Google will take over the world someday. I mean, they know everything. They know who you are, where you are, your interests, hobbies, questions, concerns, etc. They have more data on every single user than you would ever know what to do with. Now, Google wasn&rsquo...Read More
Aug 26 2013 | Loyalty Today
Many things in life have two sides, or two edges. Your best friend has the potential to be your worst enemy. Something that you once enjoyed can become something less than desirable, even after one negative remark from someone you trust. Brand advocacy is definitely one of those things —...Read More
Aug 14 2014
There isn’t a day that goes by that I am not intrigued or inspired by someone I do not know. We relate to, and can connect with, stories from real people. I scroll through my Facebook feed and watch videos shared by people around the world, or look at photos of a friend’s personal...Read More
Aug 08 2014
Have you been considering getting started with AdWords, but you aren’t sure if it’s right for you? Here are a few signs that you should take the leap and get started. With nearly 6 BILLION searches per day, there are an abundance of opportunities to take advantage of...Read More
Jul 24 2014
Like countless of her peers, yesterday’s lunch mate is an old friend who has risen to the top of the marketing field and finds herself increasingly isolated from other marketing leaders. There are very few local conferences for executives like her, not much content being...Read More
Jul 21 2014
Have you ever wanted something so bad that you plan and strategize on how to get it? And then when you do get it, you have NO idea what to do with it? I feel like that’s exactly how I’d be with a puppy. Or a plant. But many marketers get that way about their brand advocates.This week...Read More
Jul 20 2014
If you’ve had the chance to read some of my previous posts (here and here), you’ll know that I’m passionate about imagery and the visual side of content marketing. Enter Pinterest. Perfect for people who love to browse and search for inspiration and...Read More
Jul 17 2014
Before we get into Schema markup, I want to back up a bit and cover the basics. Let’s start with an understanding of rich snippets or structured data. Rich snippets are “snippets” of content displayed on the SERP. They make it easier for users to understand what the...Read More
Jul 12 2014
A little over a year ago, we covered the discussion of blog content being labeled as a ‘Trojan Horse’ metaphor when it comes to a good content strategy. What it boiled down to was the debate over the intent of the post:“…the metaphor works great for storytelling...Read More
Jul 02 2014
I recently returned from a lovely and exhausting family vacation in New York City and Washington, DC. The trip was decidedly DIY. We used UberX for car transportation, AirBNB for lodging, TripAdvisor for daytime activities, Yelp for restaurant insights...Read More
Jul 01 2014
Every week, I write a round up of excellent brand advocacy reads. Doing this has taught me one thing: I know this because I’m inundated with articles to choose from each week, and that gets awfully noisy after a while.What I’ve been able to take away from these posts is that...Read More
Jun 24 2014
In my weekly brand advocacy round ups, I’ve been talking a lot about the importance of employee brand advocates and brand ambassadors. This is a topic we feel very strongly about at Ciceron. Employee ambassadors are crucial to the success of an advocacy marketing strategy — and to...Read More
Jun 23 2014
If there is one thing I love in this world, it’s a good list. Well, that and a nice cold beer after a long day. I mean, I’m not a monster. If you’re anything like me, you’ll find lists equally as helpful. So, for this week’s posts I found three different lists...Read More
Jun 20 2014
We’re halfway through 2014 and it goes without saying that a lot has happened this year in social. News of small start-ups being bought out seemed like it occurred on a daily basis. Each major network launched layout changes, some subtle and some not so much. There are...Read More
Jun 19 2014
In the digital marketing world, there is no shortage of information on current trends and new tools. While I love to see this information out there, it can be a bit overwhelming to keep up with. Like most people, I’m very visual and don’t have a lot of time (or the attention span for...Read More
Jun 10 2014
Why is it important for marketers to invest in analytics? It’s not the sexiest topic out there, and it certainly doesn’t have the buzz surrounding it that other marketing concepts do.To answer that question, we need to think a little harder about what the point of marketing is...Read More
Jun 02 2014
Holy buckets, it’s almost June. I’m still trying to tell myself that a sweater is no longer necessary when leaving the house. How did this happen, I wonder? Not that I’m complaining — I love not having to scrape ice and snow off of my car. I call this a win.So, what does...Read More
May 31 2014
“What are you excited about in digital marketing for 2014?” This is question my fellow Cicerones and I answered toward the end of last year. Naturally my response was related to marketing automation, I said:“I’m looking forward to the continued growth of marketing...Read More
May 30 2014
At the end of 2013, the marketing industry was absolutely packed with predictions about the future of social marketing in 2014. We even had a few infographics of our own! (See? One here, and one here.) But after all of those predictions were known, many stopped digging in to the...Read More
May 28 2014
“What are you excited about in digital marketing for 2014?” This is question my fellow Cicerones and I answered toward the end of last year. Naturally my response was related to marketing automation, I said:“I’m looking forward to the continued growth of marketing...Read More
May 27 2014
When I think about brands that are doing it right in content marketing, my first thoughts go to two of my favorites, Anthropologie and Free People. Over the past few years, I’ve watched these brands evolve from simply great in-store experiences to now bringing that same...Read More
May 23 2014
Call it what you will: a freak occurrence, a delightful surprise, fortuitous happenstance or just good luck, but when a valuable influencer picks up and shares your content on their own, with no encouragement or direct contact, it’s a win. It’s a major win, so congratulate yourself...Read More
May 19 2014
The general purpose of marketing is to help your company make money. That’s what success is – keeping your doors open, and paying payroll. Of course, there are ultimately many other things that define success in business, but none of that is attainable without these two things. So...Read More
May 17 2014
A few months ago, I wrote a blog post about 7 Tips for Subject Line Success. Since then, I’ve had a few different clients ask me my opinion about the use of symbols and other special characters in subject lines. My first response is almost always that you have to test it with your...Read More
May 15 2014
As a client services manager, I get to interact with clients every day. I truly enjoy being able to experience their work, to see the impact their work has, and to bring a different angle to the table each and every day in order to provide value. I have a great team of people behind me. But...Read More
May 12 2014
As more content is created around the concept of brand advocacy, I’ve noticed that there are a lot more ‘step-by-step’ approaches and breakdowns being created. I think this is largely because of the increase in our collective understanding of how brand advocacy works and can be...Read More
May 09 2014
Delighted customers who are willing to share their experiences and recommend your brand to their friends and family are the holy grail of marketing. That’s because satisfied customers are the lifeblood of any business. These are your brand advocates — your current customers who love...Read More
May 08 2014
With more organizations (at least talking about) being hyper-focused on the customer, it’s no surprise that consumer insights from the marketing team are more important than ever. In order to give the consumer what they want, we must understand their wants, needs, and behaviors. As digital...Read More
May 06 2014
This weekend, Wizard World is bringing Comic Con to Minneapolis. I’m so jazzed about it that I haven’t stopped talking about it for at least a week. As you know, I love me some Doctor Who — and of course Matt Smith and Karen Gillan will be...Read More
Apr 28 2014
We often talk about how social media is a perfect platform for our brand advocates to share our brand with their networks. But many times the idea that social media should be used to improve the way our brand communicates with the consumer slips through the cracks. This week’s articles are...Read More
Apr 25 2014
Although being a so called “cat lady” doesn’t seem to carry quite the negative stigma it used to, I won’t deny that owning a cat has had some negative effects on my dating life. I’ve experienced everything from the allergies excuse, suddenly becoming busy or just...Read More
Apr 22 2014
With the recent changes to the Google algorithm, content marketing has become increasingly important over the past year. Having fresh content on your website helps with SEO, and also provides value to those who visit your site on a regular basis. But having new and fresh content isn’t quite...Read More
Apr 21 2014
Now that spring is here, and Easter is around the corner, my inbox is being flooded with spring wardrobe offers and suggestions. The mass influx of branded messaging makes me nuts, and usually results in countless unread emails. This is what consumers deal with on a daily basis. The best way to...Read More
Apr 16 2014
The successes that come from search engine marketing are far beyond the number of visits it drives to your site. The click is just the first step. It is what you do with that click that truly matters and determines its value.At Ciceron, we take search extremely seriously. We know...Read More
Apr 14 2014
Has anyone else noticed that as the weather gets better, everything else seems better, too? I mean, I had a heck of a time deciding which posts to include in my round-up this week. There were a bunch of great articles. But the following posts were chosen for their unique take on three different...Read More
Apr 11 2014
By now you’ve probably heard the news that Facebook organic page reach has declined rapidly since October 2013. I wrote about the impending change in December, so after four months I thought it would be good to take a look to see what has happened since then and what marketers...Read More
Apr 08 2014
Anyone who has ever been to a job interview, or on a first date, knows the importance of making a good first impression. A good first impression — and a bad one, for that matter — sets the tone for the rest of the relationship. So, it’s only natural to apply that concept to our...Read More
Apr 07 2014
This week, Dawn wrote a post about employee brand ambassador programs. The topic has been floating around the office quite a bit in the last few weeks, so it has definitely been on my mind. It seems like common sense, but asking your employees to advocate for your brand is one of the...Read More
Apr 02 2014
At one time, link building was all the rage in SEO. Then, guest blogging added to the popularity – allowing you to post content to other sites while building links for your own. Now, those tactics may be coming back to haunt you (and your website) with a myriad of issues for webmasters.When...Read More
Mar 27 2014
We’ve all heard it before. Developing a strategy is essential to your content marketing’s success. It will help streamline content and create consistency. Having a detailed strategy in place is ideal, always easier said than done, right?A few months ago, Tiffani posted a...Read More
Mar 26 2014
They say you never get a second chance to make a first impression; that is, until now.At this time last year, we had just released The First Impressions Email Marketing Study, showing at 83% of brands did not make a good first impression with their new email subscribers. Since the study was...Read More
Mar 25 2014
I got my wisdom teeth out this week, so I’ve been spending a lot of time watching Netflix. Specifically, Classic Doctor Who. I’m a big fan. But when I found out that there were entire seasons missing from the collection, I was super bummed out. Being let down by something you really...Read More
Mar 19 2014
Remember my previous post about reputation management, and why if you’re not in the game, you’re losing out? Here’s a link to that in case you missed it: Reputation Management 101. The news from Yelp & Yahoo should be a wakeup call for brands with no strategy in...Read More
Mar 14 2014
What’s the perfect subject line? As an email marketing specialist, I get asked that a lot. The answer? It depends on your audience. For most people, that answer is very frustrating to hear, but it’s the truth.The perfect subject line will not be the same for every business, because...Read More
Mar 11 2014
Let’s be honest. I’m sure you’ve figured out by now that social marketing is something that’s worth doing. Well, as long as you’re doing it right. We’ve moved away from ‘what is social marketing?’ to ‘how can I take advantage of the benefits...Read More
Mar 07 2014
Whether it’s a loyalty program, simple employee appreciation, or any other engagement strategy — a strategy is necessary to activate your advocates. I realize that I’ve beaten this point into the ground in the past year. But nevertheless, brand advocacy strategies remain...Read More
Mar 03 2014
If you’ve ever worked in the restaurant industry, or hospitality in general, you know the feeling you get just before you go onto Yelp, Trip Advisor or UrbanSpoon. The “please, please, please don’t tell me that one guy from yesterday that hated his (whatever)...Read More
Feb 28 2014
Earlier this month, I wrote the first post of this series, sharing Six Ways to Immediately Improve Your Website’s Performance & Usability. In case you missed it, the list included these recommendations:Customize your AnalyticsEnsure Mobile SupportReview Page SpeedSimplify...Read More
Feb 25 2014
It’s hard to see the big picture when you’re staring at your own belly button, so to speak. Obviously, that’s extremely important for your digital marketing plan — you know, the entire execution stage. But what’s also important is seeing the proverbial forest. Every...Read More
Feb 21 2014
I think I say this almost every week: Be honest with your customers to earn their trust. I have to admit, I feel vindicated by this week’s round up. We have three articles about creating and maintaining positive relationships with new or existing brand advocates. From research to help...Read More
Feb 14 2014
Well, here we are, already more than a month into 2014. We’ve all spent a lot of time over the past months coming up with big dreams, new goals, and countless lists of what we can accomplish throughout the year. And now it’s time to take action.There are a lot of trends in web design...Read More
Feb 10 2014
Having friends is an essential part of the human experience. Who doesn’t love having people you can go to and count on when you need it? Obviously, your relationship with your bff isn’t going to be the same as your relationship with your favorite shampoo (but, I mean, it’s close...Read More
Feb 06 2014
With all the drama and hype surrounding the Big Game this past weekend, it’s inevitable that the conversation would focus on the big winners and losers…the ads that aired (or didn’t in some cases), and the brands behind them. This year’s big question: who “won&rdquo...Read More
Feb 05 2014
Now, more than ever, your reputation is less related to who you say you are, and more dependent on what’s being said about you by your customers. That’s not to say that you don’t own your brand, but that “ownership” has taken on a different meaning. Instead of...Read More
Feb 03 2014
Have you ever heard that saying about how you have one mouth and two ears, and it’s for a reason? Well, it is. In your personal and business relationships, it’s important to listen and understand what the other party is saying in order to maintain or improve existing relationships...Read More
Jan 31 2014
After three years in a corporate setting, it’s taken awhile to adjust back into the client-facing world. Over the past few months, I’ve been reminded of some of the basics I’ve learned from my mentors over the years. This list is in no way conclusive and I’m sure it will...Read More
Jan 30 2014
Fact: Only 64% of people keep their New Year’s resolution past one month.Well, we’re now a month into 2014. I know your 2014 business goals are not New Year’s resolutions, but they have their similarities. If you don’t have a plan of attack, you’re setting...Read More
Jan 21 2014
There’s no avoiding it — in order to have a successful business, you need to have loyal, repeat customers. They’re the ones who keep your lights on and doors open, and are most likely to advocate for your brand. In our current marketing landscape, loyalty is the new currency...Read More
Jan 20 2014
More people are talking about brand advocacy than they were at this time last year, and this trend is going to continue throughout the coming year. And I would know. I started writing these round ups last year around this time, and there is exponentially more subject matter to sort through now...Read More
Jan 15 2014
It’s a new year, you have a brand new budget and you’re ready to spend it. Maybe you have tried paid search in the past and are looking for a new vendor. Maybe this is the year is when you are ready to test paid search to see if it will work for your company. What do you need to know...Read More
Jan 13 2014
I think it’s safe to say that everyone knows at least one person who tries way too hard to make everyone like them. Or at least you’ve seen that character in a movie or on TV. Either way, that sort of personality hasn’t worked to actually achieve what they so desperately want...Read More
Jan 08 2014
Anyone who has tried to teach their grandparent how to use a computer, or had a younger relative school you in tech-talk, knows that there are differences between age demographics and their media use. Some people prefer television and newspapers to social networks and RSS feeds. Some people are...Read More
Jan 06 2014
It is officially 2014! I know I’m excited — and my new year’s resolution has yet to be broken. I’ll give it another week and let you know how that turns out. So, with the new year comes new brand advocacy must reads for all. After all, it was my prediction that...Read More
Dec 31 2013
It should come as no surprise that the folks at Ciceron get pretty excited about the future of digital marketing. After all, that’s what we do. So, in preparation for the new year, I surveyed my fellow Cicerones to see what they’re most looking forward to in digital for 2014.I’m...Read More
Dec 30 2013
It is hard to believe that we only have a few days left of 2013. This year has been incredible, both personally and professionally, and it feels like it went by a little too fast. So, in an effort to preserve the memories of yesteryear, I put together a roundup of the most popular posts for this...Read More
Dec 27 2013
Conversations ensue, opinions are shared about the implications, and we all go back to work. The most recent changes by Facebook will make for a very interesting 2014. With the New Year on the horizon, here’s a recap of what Zuckerberg has changed and what brands will need to...Read More
Dec 23 2013
Anyone else have “The Final Countdown” stuck in their head after reading the title? No? Just me? Well, then I better move on.The heart of brand advocacy is a deep understanding of who your customer is and being able to act on that knowledge to provide something for them that they need...Read More
Dec 17 2013
LinkedIn is an essential platform to use on both an individual and organizational level. It allows you to display, build and share your personal and professional brand, while keeping track of important business contacts.As I mentioned in part one of this series, I’m going to be your...Read More
Dec 16 2013
Oh, case studies. This week really was somewhat of a Christmas miracle — there were so many great examples of brand advocacy campaigns that I actually had a list to narrow down. I was like a kid in a candy store. But, I digress. The idea behind this week’s post is that brand...Read More
Dec 10 2013
Like millions of other people this past weekend, I found myself scouring for the best online deals in a frantic attempt to avoid the long lines and craziness that mark the official start of the holiday shopping season. Hats off to those of you who forego sleep and brave the elements and...Read More
Dec 09 2013
I’m going to let you in on a secret: You have to be nice to your customers if you want to keep them. Not just ‘send-them-the-occasional-email’ nice, or ‘ignore-them-until-their-birthday’ nice — genuinely nice. New customer nice. For some reason, we’ve got...Read More
Dec 06 2013
One of my favorite questions in marketing is ‘What should I be measuring?’. The answer isn’t a very popular one: It depends. It depends on your responsibilities, your objectives, and your business goals. While various tactics have different measures of success, too often I&rsquo...Read More
Dec 05 2013
Content marketing is a concept that has a long history of debate. Many times, companies feel that they don’t need content marketing — that the work outweighs the benefits, or that it just “isn’t for them.” But that’s not the case. Whether B2B or B2C, any...Read More
Dec 02 2013
Thanksgiving has come and gone, and if you’re anything like me, you’re huddled up at home with a turkey hangover from getting a little too “festive” last night. Then again, maybe you are one of the crazy Black Friday crack-of-dawn shoppers – in which case, you&rsquo...Read More
Nov 29 2013
We tend to overindulge during the holiday season. On food, on gifts, on drinks — you name it.For this reason, I’ve compiled a few ways for you to ensure you’re not overindulging:Know what you’re sending. I know it sounds simple, but you would not believe how many...Read More
Nov 25 2013
Tonight we’re hosting the annual Ciceron Alumni Thanksgiving party. These lovely folks are the reason that Ciceron is where it is today, and many of them are our brand advocates. We’re apparently very into rewarding our advocates with food. And drinks. Go figure. But rewarding your...Read More
Nov 23 2013
The number of companies that provide third party social publishing and/or scheduling is incredible. Just when you thought you’ve heard of them all (Hootsuite, Spredfast, Sprout,TweetDeck, etc.), you begin to hear of even more. Each offering different methods of analysis...Read More
Nov 21 2013
Now, businesses are using these channels as different ways to hire employees, find new business and make stronger connections. Your social profile is directly correlated with how professional you are perceived to be by both companies and consumers. Having a professional social media ...Read More
Nov 15 2013
As 2013 comes to an end, it’s time to shift our focus to 2014. New concerns come with the new year: Where do we invest our marketing budget? What areas should we cut back on, and what areas do we increase our spend? It’s a chaotic time. And the decisions that you make, the plans that...Read More
Nov 14 2013
I recently sold my house and am in the process of moving in to my new one. This is a very exciting time for my family, but behind all the fun comes a lot of planning, organization, and coordination. I have talked to more customer service representatives than I would like to admit, and used...Read More
Nov 05 2013
This infographic is meant to show how many B2B companies are using content marketing to communicate with their customers.Content creation is becoming one of the essential tools of an effective marketing strategy. Having a solid content marketing plan can help with many elements of your...Read More
Nov 04 2013
Brand advocacy can take many forms, whether it’s in person conversations, online conversations through social media, recommendations from one business to another, or any other method of referral you can think of. Sometimes it is easy to think of brand advocacy as a business-to-consumer...Read More
Oct 29 2013
I saw snowflakes this week. Among the many things that snowflakes remind me of — including the no less than 5 months of cold we’re about to endure — is that each and every one of them is different. Similarly, each and every customer is different. Their differences are what...Read More
Oct 25 2013
Back in college, group projects always seemed to present unique challenges. Even if I was lucky enough to end up in a group with friends, getting through a project without at least a couple bumps in the road was pretty unlikely. Typically, everyone involved had different goals, different skills...Read More
Oct 21 2013
This week’s must reads are especially educational. I think that sometimes we gloss over this idea of brand advocacy so much that it becomes a little too slippery. Brand advocacy doesn’t have to be this huge idea. It doesn’t have to be difficult, and it actually does work. So...Read More
Oct 18 2013
Marketing for small business isn’t easy. All too often there are tight budgets and lack of resources that make online marketing a unique challenge, but that doesn’t mean that it isn’t worth pursuing. This infographic is designed to provide some insight into the importance...Read More
Oct 15 2013
A Recap of the October 2013 Ciceron MBAIt’s fairly well known that brand advocacy didn’t start with the invention of the online social network. In fact, it is arguably the oldest form of marketing around, and it started with word-of-mouth, face-to-face conversations that consumers had...Read More
Oct 14 2013
At the Ciceron MBA event on Thursday, we talked with three awesome local brands about how they use brand advocacy in their businesses, and what impact it has had on their growth. As it turns out, each one of them had nothing but good things to say about the results of their brand advocacy efforts...Read More
Oct 11 2013
My colleague, Amber, recently returned to work after having her first baby. Being a mom myself, we often gab about new milestones, laugh about the craziness of motherhood, and commiserate about lack of “me time” or about how hard our significant others can sleep when the baby...Read More
Oct 10 2013
My brain has been going in circles the last few weeks while writing this article in my head. It all started with a tweet I came across from AJ Ghergich. His twitter handle is@SEO, so I assume he may know a thing or two about the subject and can keep me up to speed on the ever-changing world of...Read More
Oct 09 2013
The best marketing campaign in the world is useless unless your customers trust your brand and its message. In a 2013 study, Nielsen looked into consumer trust in advertising and came up with some interesting results. This infographic lays out that information and is intended to show you just...Read More
Oct 07 2013
Well, we’ve made it to October. The season of pumpkin-everything is upon us, which I suspect is brand advocacy taking it’s fall form. From coffee shops to restaurants to breweries, there is pumpkin everywhere. And decorative squash. If you’re ever looking for an example of...Read More
Oct 04 2013
As a new parent, my life has recently changed. My days have been filled with discovering the ins and outs of caring for someone who is completely dependent on me. The more I thought about it, I realized that the stages of figuring out this parenting thing were pretty similar to the consumer...Read More
Sep 30 2013
There has been significant growth in website mobile optimization over the past two years to accommodate the 1.2 billion people accessing the web from their mobile devices (source:Trinity Digital Marketing). But why is it that only 25% of companies are optimizing their ...Read More
Sep 27 2013
Tis’ the season to start budgeting. Fa la la la, la la la.
Ok, all jokes aside, how is your 2014 budget coming along? Whether you’ve already started working on it or it’s on your to do list, one thing is certain, you need to make marketing automation an investment priority.So...Read More
Sep 16 2013
Integrated digital campaigns aren’t a new concept, each channel provides a different angle into your target market’s world. It’s important to put in the appropriate amount of time to understand your audiences within each channel, find out what their motivations are and what...Read More
Sep 16 2013
Have you ever heard the phrase “easy does it”? Growing up, I heard that a lot. What can I say? I was kind of a squirrelly kid. The same concept applies to your digital marketing and brand advocacy strategy. It needs to be easy to share your brand’s content across social...Read More
Sep 09 2013
Brand advocacy has many facets. It’s a journey that starts with a purchase, turns into a relationship, and later turns into a partnership. As with any journey, there is a starting point. After customer acquisition, the focus needs to shift to retention. Your advocates are your loyal...Read More
Sep 06 2013
Back to school week always gets me reminiscing about the good ol’ days when the hardest decision I had to make was if I should buy regular or chocolate milk at lunch. Things are so much simpler when you’re young, and everything is a learning experience. While I might not build foam...Read More
Sep 05 2013
It’s been a tough couple of years for e-commerce sites in the wake of Google’s Penguin & Panda updates. The world as we knew it seemingly changed overnight, and many of us found that we needed to learn a whole new way of marketing our products and services. Just when we...Read More
Sep 03 2013
In order to have a successful, modern, digital marketing strategy, it’s essential to account for the fact that the role of business to consumer — and business to business for that matter — communication has changed. There is no longer a communication hierarchy where brands...Read More
Sep 03 2013
I don’t know about you, but I look forward to getting birthday offers and freebies from my favorite brands on my special day. In a recent study that my colleague and I conducted, we signed up for seventy different brands’ email marketing programs. Of the seventy, only...Read More
Sep 01 2013
If you have ever been around me when someone uses the phrase “email blast” then you know that my face probably looks like this…
Unless I’m meeting with a client or prospect, at which point I take a deep breath and try my hardest not to roll my eyes.
So why is &ldquo...Read More
Aug 28 2013
It’s a gross understatement to say that social media, especially Twitter, is responsible for a drastic change in the way people communicate, not only with each other but with companies. If anything, that’s just common sense. The barriers that once existed between you and a brand...Read More
Aug 26 2013
I’ve always joked that Google will take over the world someday. I mean, they know everything. They know who you are, where you are, your interests, hobbies, questions, concerns, etc. They have more data on every single user than you would ever know what to do with. Now, Google wasn&rsquo...Read More
Aug 26 2013
Many things in life have two sides, or two edges. Your best friend has the potential to be your worst enemy. Something that you once enjoyed can become something less than desirable, even after one negative remark from someone you trust. Brand advocacy is definitely one of those things —...Read More