Listen what new Experts are saying
Thursday, May 14, 2015
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Clever or Clear???
I really like this concept of being clear rather than being clever.
Some companies think they can manipulate the customers' mind easily, and actually companies are true in some extent. We customers are being manipulated by myriad ways such as discounts coupons, promotional offers, seasonal sales and etc etc. We all know that businesses are there to earn profit yet how profit is being earned is one of critical factors any firm should take care. Try to outsmart your customers might sounds like a great idea, but actually it is not in long run . CLV depends upon the honest branding and honest positioning. Any wrong or much intertwined advertising always makes a customer believe week about your product. My personal experience : you get so much perplexed with the kind of restrictions they put on coupons that sometimes you return with nothing saved in your piggy-bank. As soon as you put coupons with you , you start feeling connected to company and visualizing buying something while saving big; however, when cashier makes you aware with all the limitation printed in their tiniest existence, you may feel like "Do they really want us to grab the magnifying lens before coming to store?" Such frustrating moments renders bad image of the company where they feel cheated.
Hence, it is more beneficial if companies can communicate the information in a format which is EASY TO READ YET PRECISE.
Hence please don't think that you can be clever enough to outsmart consumer with a wrong or intertwined advertising, this cleverness will return as a big loss to companies only in long run.
Some companies think they can manipulate the customers' mind easily, and actually companies are true in some extent. We customers are being manipulated by myriad ways such as discounts coupons, promotional offers, seasonal sales and etc etc. We all know that businesses are there to earn profit yet how profit is being earned is one of critical factors any firm should take care. Try to outsmart your customers might sounds like a great idea, but actually it is not in long run . CLV depends upon the honest branding and honest positioning. Any wrong or much intertwined advertising always makes a customer believe week about your product. My personal experience : you get so much perplexed with the kind of restrictions they put on coupons that sometimes you return with nothing saved in your piggy-bank. As soon as you put coupons with you , you start feeling connected to company and visualizing buying something while saving big; however, when cashier makes you aware with all the limitation printed in their tiniest existence, you may feel like "Do they really want us to grab the magnifying lens before coming to store?" Such frustrating moments renders bad image of the company where they feel cheated.
Hence, it is more beneficial if companies can communicate the information in a format which is EASY TO READ YET PRECISE.
Hence please don't think that you can be clever enough to outsmart consumer with a wrong or intertwined advertising, this cleverness will return as a big loss to companies only in long run.
BLOGGING seems like a marathon?? What and How should I really Write.....
Now this is really getting into a serious business.... We talked WHY SHOULD A MARKETER BLOG and now HUBSPOT tell us the tip what should be written in a blog . Aint things going hand in hand ?
Here is the gist of the post
Step 1: Understand your audience.
have a clear understanding of your audience. What do they want to know about? What will resonate with them?
Step 2: Start with a topic and working title.
The topic can be pretty general, but it is essential to come up with a few topic ideas to get you started. After you choose one to run with, you need to create a working title guiding your post so you can start writing.
Step 3: Write an intro (and make it captivating).
First, grab the reader's attention. If you lose the reader in the first few paragraphs of the introduction, they will stop reading even though they haven't given your post a fair chance. Then, show the purpose of the post and explain how it will address a problem the reader may be having.
Step 4: Organize your content.
organize the info so readers are not intimidated by the length or amount of content. The organization can take multiple forms -- sections, lists, tips, whatever's most appropriate. But it must be organized!
Step 6: Fix your formatting.
Visual Appearance, Meta Description, Tags should be properly placed
Step 7: Include a CTA at the end.
CTA ( call to action ) is not merely beneficial for marketers, it is beneficial for readers too and gives a lead to marketers. If readers enjoy reading your post , they will love to click so why to leave an opportunity there.
Step 8: Optimize for on-page SEO.
optimize your post for SEO.Don't worry about it. Google doesn't care about the length of your post.If there are opportunities to incorporate keywords, and it won't impact reader experience, do it. If you can make your URL shorter and more keyword-friendly, go for it. But don't cram keywords, or shoot for some arbitrary keyword density -- Google's smarter than that!
(http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/blog-seo-modern-marketer-optimize-your-posts-ht)
Step 9: Pick a catchy title.
Here is the gist of the post
Step 1: Understand your audience.
have a clear understanding of your audience. What do they want to know about? What will resonate with them?
Step 2: Start with a topic and working title.
The topic can be pretty general, but it is essential to come up with a few topic ideas to get you started. After you choose one to run with, you need to create a working title guiding your post so you can start writing.
Step 3: Write an intro (and make it captivating).
First, grab the reader's attention. If you lose the reader in the first few paragraphs of the introduction, they will stop reading even though they haven't given your post a fair chance. Then, show the purpose of the post and explain how it will address a problem the reader may be having.
Step 4: Organize your content.
organize the info so readers are not intimidated by the length or amount of content. The organization can take multiple forms -- sections, lists, tips, whatever's most appropriate. But it must be organized!
Step 6: Fix your formatting.
Visual Appearance, Meta Description, Tags should be properly placed
Step 7: Include a CTA at the end.
CTA ( call to action ) is not merely beneficial for marketers, it is beneficial for readers too and gives a lead to marketers. If readers enjoy reading your post , they will love to click so why to leave an opportunity there.
Step 8: Optimize for on-page SEO.
optimize your post for SEO.Don't worry about it. Google doesn't care about the length of your post.If there are opportunities to incorporate keywords, and it won't impact reader experience, do it. If you can make your URL shorter and more keyword-friendly, go for it. But don't cram keywords, or shoot for some arbitrary keyword density -- Google's smarter than that!
(http://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/blog-seo-modern-marketer-optimize-your-posts-ht)
Anchor Text
Anchor text is the word or words that link to another page -- either on your website or on another website. Carefully select which keywords you want to link to other pages, because search engines take that into consideration when ranking your page for certain keywords.
Local Search
More and more, social media is playing a bigger role in search engine optimization. When a piece of content is shared on social media, it's prioritized in the ranking results. Because of this, you'll want to encourage your readers to tweet out parts of your post.Optimize for Mobile
Having a website that is responsive or designed for mobile has become more and more important. 74% of users say they're also more likely to return to a site in the future if it's mobile-friendly.Step 9: Pick a catchy title.
- Start with your working title.
- As you start to edit your title, keep in mind that it's important to keep the title accurate and clear.
- Then, work on making your title sexy -- whether it's through strong language, alliteration, or another literary tactic.
- If you can, optimize for SEO by sneaking some keywords in there (only if it's natural, though!)
- Finally, see if you can shorten it up at all. No one likes a long, overwhelming title.
WHY SHOULD I BLOG ??????
I read this article on HUBSPOT and could not resist sharing WHY SHOULD I REALLY BLOG ..... I think this should have been very first article to keep those motivated who really either don't care writing blog or are not interested in writing one. Even ending our week 8 with the reasons would also keep some of motivated to continue writing the BLOGS and honestly I really enjoy reading some of yours blogs and wish you will keep positing new stuff and sharing your experiences on it. Anyways let see what HUBSPOT says about the value marketer should be making out from blogging :
Of course, the overall ROI on blog will vary from business to business. But there are few fundamental benefits to corporate blogging that should not be overlooked:
Gain Visibility as a Thought Leader:Each thoughtful post on your blog is a public demonstration of your thought leadership, personal integrity, humor, and professional insights. You don’t have to refute one of Einstein’s theories to get respect. For example, a summary of recent trends in your industry, or a reaction to a recent news article can be extremely effective blog posts.
Engage Customers in a DialogueGive users option to comment on each article. Folks who comment on your blog may be sales leads, or they may just challenge or support your views. Either way, comments beget comments, and you will soon be at the center of an industry-relevant dialogue with customers and partners.
Every Blog Article is an SEO Opportunity
You can’t realistically optimize your site for every long tail search term, but you can certainly write blog posts targeting niche keyword phrases that are likely to draw highly qualified prospects. For example, blog a reaction to a speaker in your vertical at a local tech conference. You may not draw much natural search traffic, but there is a good chance your blog will rank well very soon for searches like “vertical + conference + speaker + city”, and those visitors may be highly interested in your reaction to the speech.
Blogs Are Link Bait:
Blog articles garner links because they are interesting, informative, and not overly corporate or sales-focused. The benefit to you is that more links means better search engine ranking and more site traffic, which translates into more sales leads.
In Google, Fresher Content = Better WebsiteGoogle will periodically crawl websites looking for new and updated content. In general, it is better to have Google crawl your site as often as possible. Sites that get crawled more often have more frequent updates and more authority. Blogging consistently ensures there will be fresh content on your site.
these last one are one of my favorites
What about these excuses :
1) I Don’t Have Time to Blog
blog is better than a newsletter or a white paper because readers can join the debate and be positioned to respond to other call to action you may place adjacent to or within posts. In addition, readers will be able to navigate your blog to read older articles that would otherwise be in a deleted newsletter or white paper. Best of all, each blog article you post will provide lasting benefit because it is a web page that can be optimized, indexed, and drawing natural search traffic for you ad infinitum.
2) What if My Customers Actually Find Out What I’m Thinking?
On this Internet word its next to impossible that customers wont get to know about you and if this is the case then why don't we try to control what our customers' perception by direct engagement with them. People love honest brands than all the time clean brands.Be confident that transparency is the best policy, and customers will reward your candor.
http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/1676/6-Reasons-Every-Small-Business-Should-Be-Blogging-Are-You-Missing-the-Boat.aspx
Of course, the overall ROI on blog will vary from business to business. But there are few fundamental benefits to corporate blogging that should not be overlooked:
Gain Visibility as a Thought Leader:Each thoughtful post on your blog is a public demonstration of your thought leadership, personal integrity, humor, and professional insights. You don’t have to refute one of Einstein’s theories to get respect. For example, a summary of recent trends in your industry, or a reaction to a recent news article can be extremely effective blog posts.
Engage Customers in a DialogueGive users option to comment on each article. Folks who comment on your blog may be sales leads, or they may just challenge or support your views. Either way, comments beget comments, and you will soon be at the center of an industry-relevant dialogue with customers and partners.
Every Blog Article is an SEO Opportunity
You can’t realistically optimize your site for every long tail search term, but you can certainly write blog posts targeting niche keyword phrases that are likely to draw highly qualified prospects. For example, blog a reaction to a speaker in your vertical at a local tech conference. You may not draw much natural search traffic, but there is a good chance your blog will rank well very soon for searches like “vertical + conference + speaker + city”, and those visitors may be highly interested in your reaction to the speech.
Blogs Are Link Bait:
Blog articles garner links because they are interesting, informative, and not overly corporate or sales-focused. The benefit to you is that more links means better search engine ranking and more site traffic, which translates into more sales leads.
In Google, Fresher Content = Better WebsiteGoogle will periodically crawl websites looking for new and updated content. In general, it is better to have Google crawl your site as often as possible. Sites that get crawled more often have more frequent updates and more authority. Blogging consistently ensures there will be fresh content on your site.
these last one are one of my favorites
What about these excuses :
1) I Don’t Have Time to Blog
blog is better than a newsletter or a white paper because readers can join the debate and be positioned to respond to other call to action you may place adjacent to or within posts. In addition, readers will be able to navigate your blog to read older articles that would otherwise be in a deleted newsletter or white paper. Best of all, each blog article you post will provide lasting benefit because it is a web page that can be optimized, indexed, and drawing natural search traffic for you ad infinitum.
2) What if My Customers Actually Find Out What I’m Thinking?
On this Internet word its next to impossible that customers wont get to know about you and if this is the case then why don't we try to control what our customers' perception by direct engagement with them. People love honest brands than all the time clean brands.Be confident that transparency is the best policy, and customers will reward your candor.
Reference
http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/1676/6-Reasons-Every-Small-Business-Should-Be-Blogging-Are-You-Missing-the-Boat.aspx
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Privacy Statement
I opened the privacy statement of retailer Target earlier too but this time observed this with different perspective. There are few things which captivated my attention :
Target Privacy Policy Revisions
Last update: 08/13/2013
Aug 2013
Added Target ticket and web site analytic services opt out information, social media widget information, and a disclosure about sharing aggregate information with third parties. Updated the security methods description, the description of Target affiliates, Information from Other Sources, and the California resident opt out.
Mar 2013
Clarified when "information" referenced within the policy means "personal information". Updated description of Target and its affiliates. Updated Target Cookies and Third Party Cookies sections. Added disclosure regarding sharing of personal information with our bank partner, TD Bank USA N.A. Added information about Target Mobile Applications.
I think Target has conveyed the message in more appropriate way and giving the track of changes gave convenience to customer.
Second uniquely standing out statement is provision of direct link to opt out from third party cookies which i have not seen in any other privacy statement
and the disclosure that caught my most attention is
I could not find any other privacy statement which has mentioned so detail and honest information on their websites. Apart Target , I have found other privacy statement quiet similar and concise. Target has given a very detailed information of their Privacy Policies which has its own advantages and disadvantages. Customer is many times is not interested in reading such a long Policies , however its easy readability can make customer go through it more likely.
Target Privacy Policy Revisions
Last update: 08/13/2013
- Aug 2012
- Updated Third-Party cookies section and added information about collection of User Experience Information.
I think Target has conveyed the message in more appropriate way and giving the track of changes gave convenience to customer.
Second uniquely standing out statement is provision of direct link to opt out from third party cookies which i have not seen in any other privacy statement
Third Party Cookies
To opt out of third-party cookies, visit the Network Advertising Initiative website and the Digital Advertising Alliance websiteand the disclosure that caught my most attention is
In-Store Cameras
We use in-store cameras for security purposes and for operational purposes such as measuring traffic patterns and tracking in-stock levels.I could not find any other privacy statement which has mentioned so detail and honest information on their websites. Apart Target , I have found other privacy statement quiet similar and concise. Target has given a very detailed information of their Privacy Policies which has its own advantages and disadvantages. Customer is many times is not interested in reading such a long Policies , however its easy readability can make customer go through it more likely.
Wednesday, October 16, 2013
Time to Ramp Up Your Pinterest SEO: Bing Now Includes Pins in Image Searches
Bing image search now includes results from Pinterest boards. Now, whenever you do an image search on Bing, you'll see Pinterest boards appear in the top-right corner:
you can drive even more traffic and leads to your website through two of Bing's sexiest features: the unencrypted keyword search data and the Pinterest integration. The links from pins are considered "no-follow" links -- which means that people can't link to content and hope to have that content gain authority because of it. So the way you're going to profit here isn't by gaming search engine rankings through links, but rather through providing quality, clickable content on Pinterest that also happens to have search-friendly names and descriptions.
Ok I recently registered on PinInterst after reading a blog from one of our mates. I am really not much into it however this is way Pinterest is expanding its wings and making people to use it. To drive the traffic on their sites people are going to use it and I am sure we all get used to it after a while. I would say GOOD MARKETING PINTEREST
you can drive even more traffic and leads to your website through two of Bing's sexiest features: the unencrypted keyword search data and the Pinterest integration. The links from pins are considered "no-follow" links -- which means that people can't link to content and hope to have that content gain authority because of it. So the way you're going to profit here isn't by gaming search engine rankings through links, but rather through providing quality, clickable content on Pinterest that also happens to have search-friendly names and descriptions.
Ok I recently registered on PinInterst after reading a blog from one of our mates. I am really not much into it however this is way Pinterest is expanding its wings and making people to use it. To drive the traffic on their sites people are going to use it and I am sure we all get used to it after a while. I would say GOOD MARKETING PINTEREST
References
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Metrics : Every-Marketing-Manager-Should-Be-Tracking
Data speaks louder Having data at your side will help you make smart decisions, suggest fast changes when necessary, and find opportunities for different marketing channels and teams to work together. HUBSPOT states some of the key marketing metrics and reports should be analyzed if looking to advance your marketing game.
This chart helps you guide your progress by visualizing what you need to achieve on a day by day basis. As your month progresses, plot what you actually achieve each day to compare your results to your goal. http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/14222/The-One-Graph-Marketers-Should-Update-Daily-The-Leads-Waterfall.aspx
2) Traffic Waterfall The same concept as above can be used for traffic
3) Average Lead Close Rate It will help you monitor the quality of your leads at any given time. If it's high, you're attracting high-quality potential business. If that close rate drops, you might not be attracting the right people. Recommended on a monthly basis
4) Average Leads Per Business Day Month Over Month Growth
Lots of marketers track month over month growth, but fewer track lead per business day month over month growth. Well, not every month is the same length!For example, Achieving the same in February what you achieved in January, needs more efforts due to it being a shorter month.
5) Month-to-Date (MTD) Goal Per Channel
6) Close Rate Per Channel
Every marketer should understand what channels work best for their business from a customer acquisition standpoint.Maybe SEO is your best volume-producing lead generation over social media.Regardless of lead volume, it's possible that social is driving more customers for business! Perhaps the close rate of leads generated via social media is significantly higher than leads generated via SEO so much so that SEO's volume isn't enough to make up the difference. That high close rate is also a very strong indicator of the quality of those leads coming from that channel. Hence should do more on that channel! It's your sweet spot.
7) Paid vs. Organic Lead Percentage
keep a close watch on how much of your leads are coming from one bucket over the other. You might also set a goal to decrease paid channels as a lead source over time. Measure what percentage of your leads come from each bucket to get a sense for how your organic efforts are working for you, and if you are scaling to reduce your dependency on advertising.
How many customers are enrolling for the offer after coming to landing page, this should be tracked to know the effectiveness of content of each offer.
9) Landing Page New Contacts Rate
To differentiate your repeat form-fillers from your newcomers, new contacts rate is a great place to start! This metric is a wonderful tool to let you know the percentage of new people you're attracting to your business.
10) Call-to-Action Clickthrough Rate
By monitoring your call-to-action clickthrough rate, or the rate at which people visit a page and then click on the page's CTA, you'll be able to understand how valuable that offer is to incoming traffic.
11) Traffic-Driving Keywords
to evaluate if your content creation is impacting your business is by tracking how well relevant keywords related to your business are performing in search.
An MQL is a lead that is more likely to become a customer compared to other leads based on their activity before converting. As a marketing organization, if you only serve up the MQLs, then Sales spends less time searching for those MQLs in their typical process and more time selling to the golden nuggets you supply, thus closing more deals.
12) Total MQLs Per Month
How many of these MQLs are you generating month over month? This is a good metric to know if you're helping your leads get to the "marketing qualified" stage via nurturing and more sales-driven content.
13) MQLs Per Channel
It would also be great to know if a particular channel is a strong source of MQLs for your business.
14) Percent Leads That Are MQLs
Are more leads being nurtured into MQLs over time? By monitoring what percentage of your leads are MQLs over any given time, you'll be able to understand how well MQL generation is working compared to lead generation.
15) MQL Conversion Rate Per Offer
This metric is your tool to measure both MQL conversion and content effectiveness.
- Goal Setting and Progress Tracking
- Channel Effectiveness
- Content Effectiveness
- Marketing Qualified Leads
Goal Setting and Progress Tracking
1) Leads WaterfallThis chart helps you guide your progress by visualizing what you need to achieve on a day by day basis. As your month progresses, plot what you actually achieve each day to compare your results to your goal. http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/14222/The-One-Graph-Marketers-Should-Update-Daily-The-Leads-Waterfall.aspx
2) Traffic Waterfall The same concept as above can be used for traffic
3) Average Lead Close Rate It will help you monitor the quality of your leads at any given time. If it's high, you're attracting high-quality potential business. If that close rate drops, you might not be attracting the right people. Recommended on a monthly basis
4) Average Leads Per Business Day Month Over Month Growth
Lots of marketers track month over month growth, but fewer track lead per business day month over month growth. Well, not every month is the same length!For example, Achieving the same in February what you achieved in January, needs more efforts due to it being a shorter month.
Channel Effectiveness
This section is to help us ensure we're closely monitoring how well each specific channel is performing5) Month-to-Date (MTD) Goal Per Channel
6) Close Rate Per Channel
Every marketer should understand what channels work best for their business from a customer acquisition standpoint.Maybe SEO is your best volume-producing lead generation over social media.Regardless of lead volume, it's possible that social is driving more customers for business! Perhaps the close rate of leads generated via social media is significantly higher than leads generated via SEO so much so that SEO's volume isn't enough to make up the difference. That high close rate is also a very strong indicator of the quality of those leads coming from that channel. Hence should do more on that channel! It's your sweet spot.
7) Paid vs. Organic Lead Percentage
keep a close watch on how much of your leads are coming from one bucket over the other. You might also set a goal to decrease paid channels as a lead source over time. Measure what percentage of your leads come from each bucket to get a sense for how your organic efforts are working for you, and if you are scaling to reduce your dependency on advertising.
Content Effectiveness
8) Leads Generated Per OfferHow many customers are enrolling for the offer after coming to landing page, this should be tracked to know the effectiveness of content of each offer.
9) Landing Page New Contacts Rate
To differentiate your repeat form-fillers from your newcomers, new contacts rate is a great place to start! This metric is a wonderful tool to let you know the percentage of new people you're attracting to your business.
10) Call-to-Action Clickthrough Rate
By monitoring your call-to-action clickthrough rate, or the rate at which people visit a page and then click on the page's CTA, you'll be able to understand how valuable that offer is to incoming traffic.
11) Traffic-Driving Keywords
to evaluate if your content creation is impacting your business is by tracking how well relevant keywords related to your business are performing in search.
Marketing Qualified Leads(MQL)
http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/30889/How-to-Expose-the-Best-Leads-to-Your-Sales-Team.aspxAn MQL is a lead that is more likely to become a customer compared to other leads based on their activity before converting. As a marketing organization, if you only serve up the MQLs, then Sales spends less time searching for those MQLs in their typical process and more time selling to the golden nuggets you supply, thus closing more deals.
12) Total MQLs Per Month
How many of these MQLs are you generating month over month? This is a good metric to know if you're helping your leads get to the "marketing qualified" stage via nurturing and more sales-driven content.
13) MQLs Per Channel
It would also be great to know if a particular channel is a strong source of MQLs for your business.
14) Percent Leads That Are MQLs
Are more leads being nurtured into MQLs over time? By monitoring what percentage of your leads are MQLs over any given time, you'll be able to understand how well MQL generation is working compared to lead generation.
15) MQL Conversion Rate Per Offer
This metric is your tool to measure both MQL conversion and content effectiveness.
references
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)