The Executive’s Guide to Marketing on the Internet
The identify theft protection company, LifeLock, took a risk with its marketing campaign: CEO Todd Davis happily revealed his social security number in a number of print ads and on the company website. The angle was that Davis was so confident about his company’s abilities that he could broadcast his personal information without negative repercussions. Well… Continue reading ‘How to Make Online Customers Trust Your E-Commerce Site’
In this postmodern age, almost everything is self-referential and knowingly ironic. Even in the advertising world, an approach can lead to “meta,” an ambiguous pop culture concept of self-reference. Think about selling out/merchandising jokes on The Simpsons. Or a Charlie Kaufman film with the screenwriter as the main character. Continue reading ‘Visible Shops Goes Meta’
It happens every now and then. You may come across a page that is “Under Construction.” It used to be a common phenomenon, but the incidence has been dwindling steadily since its heyday back in the late 1990s. (There are more “Under Construction” search results than ever, but that is due to the much higher number of sites online.) Continue reading ‘Why Website Updates Are Important, Courtesy of “The Office”’
MarketingSherpa has a new marketing survey, published in their Benchmark Guide 2008, that shows how Search ROI stacks up against other marketing tactics.
Email marketing is still considered the best for ROI, with Search Engine Optimization and Paid Search Advertising following closely, according to the survey:
| Marketing Tactic |
Strongest Tactic |
Good ROI |
||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Email Marketing | 25% | 39% | ||
| Search Engine Optimization (SEO) | 18% | 36% | ||
| Paid Search Marketing (PPC) | 16% | 35% | ||
| Public Relations | 12% | 28% | ||
| Direct Mail | 12% | 27% | ||
| Online Banners, etc. | 3% | 16% | ||
| Print Advertising | 4% | 13% |
Visit their website for additional statistics and information.
Source: www.MarketingSherpa.com
Carol Lukas and Rebecca Andrews have identified four keys “essential to a well-functioning collaboration”:
1) Clarify the purpose: misunderstandings can occur when people don’t recognize and agree on a way of working together. You may think you’re getting together for just a few meetings while your colleague has the whole year planned out for both of you! Working together involves varying levels of intensity, from cooperation (low-level) to coordination (mid-level) to collaboration (high-level). Lukas and Andrews provide a useful chart that clarifies this further. Ultimately, “it’s important that everyone understands and agrees to the purpose of the collaboration, the degree of commitment required, and the expectations of the partners involved in the effort.”
2) Let form follow function: “Just as there are different ways of working together, there are also different types of collaborations.” The three main types of collaboration include 1) administration, 2) development/advocacy, and 3) service delivery. View the chart on their website to learn more about how to determine the level of difficulty, time, and impact, as well as the degree of intensity, for each type of collaborative.
3) Involve the right people: “As a rule, work with as few people as necessary to get the job done. The more people involved, the greater the number of communications; the greater the intensity; and the greater the difficulty of learning about each other, balancing power, and coordinating your work.” Ask yourself these questions when choosing partners:
4) Get it in writing: “The most common reason for a collaboration meltdown is disagreements and uncertainty about operating norms.” To avoid this, it is helpful to put the following items in writing: “the collaboration’s mission and purpose; values and assumptions; vision, timelines and milestones; members and membership policies; roles and contributions, policies (competition, conflicts of interest, financial relationships); and norms (participation, decision-making, communication, conflict, meetings). It’s especially important to decide what the agreements are for leadership and decision-making.”
They conclude, “Collaboration is a powerful way to accomplish what no single organization can. It’s also a complex way to work. Following these four keys will increase the likelihood of your success—and of ultimately getting the results you’re after . So take heart and remember—struggle precedes growth!”
Source: Fieldstone Alliance
