By Ray Hidalgo When it comes to using graphic design, a lot of conventional marketers fall short on artistic ability. “How do I create an infographic?” they may ask. Thankfully, the internet has plenty of user-friendly software that is readily available to any user regardless of their skill level or budget. In lieu of an era that is increasingly championing visual web content, taking advantage of the following programs will prove essential for any digital marketers looking to make a…

We get this question more often than almost any other: How do I boost my search engine rankings for my specific keywords search terms? Or: why is this particular keyword search string on page 10 of Google search? The simple answer is you’ll be found for the things you write and publish regularly. And whether you’re in the medical products field, such as software or hardware for medical applications, or you’re a dog trainer with a unique approach to handling wily…

Pin it! In the social marketing world, a new player (just a little over two years old, and just opened up from invitation only) is making waves. Using these new tools, your online retailing business can get a boost from showcasing products. Pinterest has a higher click-through-to-buy ratio than Facebook (in part because of how it’s designed as a network.) Pinterest is a pinboard, an electronic version of a bulletin board for photos. The beauty of Pinterest lies not just…

Social media engagement, defined as how many people like, share and comment on social media posts, is a metric that we’ve accepted as a gold standard in marketing. But what if we could start to see the power of social in terms of the numbers of leads, contacts and customers social brings in by channel, and even by post? It’s that kind of social media ROI that we need to begin demanding as marketers. For many clients just getting started,…

Social media continues to evolve, new players are emerging and we see many of our entrepreneurs still not sure how to maximize their return on (time) investment for their businesses. In this edition of Marketing At Work, we will explore a little deeper what goes into a strategy, share some resources from around the web, and we’ll close with a special offer for those of you still on the social fence. What is a social media strategy and why do…

Social media agencies – typically an ad agency or digital marketing agency with social media certified staff – are a new breed of agency that is focusing in on all aspects of social media marketing. Beyond Twitter and Facebook, social media encompasses all of the social aspects of content marketing, including blogging, e-mail, vlogging (video blogging), Pinterest. Tumblr, as well as our traditional social networks of twitter, facebook and linkedIN. Your social media agency should, as part of development or augmentation…

Want to increase traffic to your web site? Write a company blog. But, don’t just blog about any thought that pops into your head. Purposefully craft blogs on topics your customers are searching for and traffic will skyrocket! We have two client examples today of Michigan businesses (one, software, the other business to business services) that have seen traffic jump up significantly in just one month of blogging regularly (at least weekly.) How can your business learn from these examples? Let’s break them down: The first…

Starting January 1st, 2015 , Facebook’s algorithm – which determines what posts get shown to users – will be rewarding less promotional, more valuable content posts. Guess what, so are the actual humans participating on social media! Including you. By now, many businesses have heard the news: your promoted sale posts on Facebook are about to drop precipitiously off an effectiveness cliff. This should not be a surprise to anyone. Facebook is a social media network where the primary driver for use…

Email marketing is still one of the most viable and successful business tools out there. Whether business to consumer or business to business, email still drives a lot of our commerce. Email has matured, but some companies have not matured with it. What constitutes a good marketing email? Let’s break down the top six ways you can craft a better marketing e-mail: 1. Recognize your customers are on their mobile devices more than their computers. Making sure your email template delivery is NOT crafted in…

How to evaluate a landing page, ad or billboard in 3 seconds or less! The effectiveness of your marketing communications all depends on how effectively the message is being communicated. As marketers, we all know this. So why is it we still produce materials that contain too much copy, don’t put the key message right in the headline and use obscure photo or graphic messages as visual references? When you evaluate your next marketing piece – whether that be an…