Weekly Round Up #1: Five interesting things from my week

With the new year upon us and my personal goal planning now underway (Short guide to personal goal planning), in terms of this blog I had a big think about a content plan for the upcoming months.

Part of my planning led me to think of creating more of a short, sharp and informative regular-weekly style of post. Consider it to be like a newsletter, where I encourage you to click out of my blog and indulge in whatever I have shared.

My Prerogative:
The process of sharing what I have found interesting, motivating and/or fun in my week with you the reader helps me set aside time to reflect on it all and I actually simply enjoy sharing interesting things with friends, so hopefully it's a win win setup.

So this is it, welcome to the first of what I hope will be many weekly posts called - 'Watch, read, listen, think, learn: Five interesting things from my week #1'

Enjoy.

7 differences between Social Media & SEO (Infographic)

There are some key differences between Social Media and Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and for any marketer these differences are definitely worth understanding.

Gone are the days of 'Matching Luggage' (Link article worth a read)...well in reality sadly not for a lot of brands, but gone should be the days of matching luggage where the expensive hero television commercial is essentially rolled out across digital touch-points for all to hail the campaign as being 'integrated'. These brands then wonder why the digital element didn't meet over-inflated expectations. It was flawed to begin with!

Anyway, that could be an entire blog post in itself.

Social Media and SEO are ever evolving and both can have critical roles in helping a business achieve its objectives. Different marketing channels can have (and should have) different roles - the marketing content created for one channel does necessarily work for another, the marketing tactics created for one channel almost definitely will not maximise effectiveness when used on another.

The infographic below created by Orbit Media Studios explains some fundamental and important differences between the Social Media and SEO across seven categories. Understand each one to maximise both your Social Media and SE0 strategies and to manage expectations of both.

#1 - Speed
#2 - Upper limits
#3 - Topics
#4 - Formats
#5 - Audience Intent
#6 - Effort
#7 - Measurement

How to create a Digital Marketing & Analytics Measurement Model

Data. 

Those who work in the marketing world (and probably those who don't) will contest that this small four letter word that is often preceded by words like 'big' or 'small' has become so ruthlessly banded about that it is almost a commodity. Within a marketing context this 'commodity' can and should be used to continually optimise business success.

But you know the above already, it's obvious and 'data' isn't a new thing....

'Data' is banded about so often that it would seem everyone is an expert in it. Surely all the 'experts' out there are maximising data-analytics to drive continued ROI uplift, customer satisfaction, a 360 degree view of their customers, personalised dialogue with the customer to drive engagement and minimise churn; all of which equates to arming their brand with that competitive advantage.....right?!

Wrong.

This post isn't about what data is and isn't, there are too many great (and crap) posts on that. Nor am I yet another self confessed data junkie trying to preach that data is the all and everything in digital marketing because all of the other cool kids are saying it; creativity has never been more important and most definitely has its place (Previous blog post Imagination is more important than knowledge). Having a very digital acquisitions focused background where ROI and accountability is everything, this experience has however moulded me to believe that data is the backbone to digital marketing, which should be used to plan, benchmark, measure, understand and optimise our digital marketing initiatives.

The problem in this day and age (as I see it) for many digital marketers isn't really about the collection of data itself - there are hoards of sufficient analytics tools and tutorials out there with simple implementation processes to collect basic and complex data. The problem is the abundance of data and the ease of turning the tap on to get that data vs (the lack of) a considered data strategy prior to turning that 'data tap' on and an on-going measurement plan to benchmark against.

It continually amazes me at how often marketers jump head first into a digital marketing initiative - be that development (e.g - website / app build), optimisation (e.g landing page / sales funnel), campaign (e.g channel performance/attribution and ROI) before having a considered digital measurement strategy that ties back into the fundamental business objectives. And let's be honest, too often the business objectives are either so generic or just generally unclear.

If every person who works within the digital marketing space - client and agency side - knew, understood, and utilised something as simple and fundamental as the digital marketing and measurement framework explained below at the start of every digital marketing initiative, more brands would be dominating within this space. Dominating defined as real measurable results that meet real business objectives as cost effectively as possible. Despite the pure magnitude of self proclaimed marketing 'guru's', 'ninja's' and general know-it-alls, the sad reality is that something as simple, basic and fundamental as a digital marketing measurement plan is often forgotten, neglected or simply not used. 

A few thoughts about what digital is, and is not

We live in a world where 'always on' digital is the norm, where women are kick boxers and guys wear cosmetics, where small startup companies are becoming the biggest companies, and where some of the formerly biggest companies are no longer in business. (Or rapidly losing marketshare and being squeezed out)

Why?

If I wrote about and discussed all the reasons here it would probably make for a chunky sized book, however I believe there a few top level reasons why that I mention below. This is by no means an exhausted list, just some key thoughts that immediately come to mind.

SUPER China, Amazon the Predictor, & 10 Useful Marketing Lists

The post delves into and discusses two interesting marketing articles that I have recently read that are definitely food for thought, and also one really useful digital marketing resource.

• Amazon: There is the potential Ecommerce delivery game changer waiting to happen with Amazon patenting technology that will guess and deliver products before the sale even occurs. 

• China: It has become apparent that the Chinese online-digital market is, well huge. With the incredible online-digital user numbers, connectivity, innovation, increase in disposable income, rise in educated graduates, and digital trends occurring in the mahoosive Chinese marketplace; this is a game-industry changer that most of us aren't even aware of; and we should be. 

• Resource: 10 useful digital marketing lists. 

The Worldwide State of Social, Digital, and Mobile in 2014 {Report}

This post continues the theme of marketing stats and facts discussed on my recent post 5 Marketing infographics - 2013 recap & trends for 2014 that graphically recapped key marketing stats of 2013, and predicted trends for 2014 in five infographics. 

Below is a fantastically extensive (180 slides) and useful slideshow report by We are Social that presents all the key statistics, data and behavioural indicators for social, digital and mobile channels around the world. 24 of the world's largest economies are digitally dissected within the slideshow; so a useful report tool to reference when researching and planning a digital marketing initiative.

It is of no surprise that digital continues to grow as the world becomes significantly more connected, particularly on mobile devices; with that so does marketing opportunities and capabilities.

Happy reading.

5 Marketing infographics - 2013 recap & trends for 2014

Below are five recently created marketing based infographics that summarise marketing trends, and consumer behaviours in 2013, and also what to look out for marketing wise in 2014.

As with all trends and data analysis, these infographics and the conclusions within them can and should be taken with a pinch of salt, as numbers can always be interpreted in different ways resulting in varied conclusions. That said, they have been created by key players in the industry with credible sources, so worth paying attention to.

The infographics speak for themselves really, however below are my key summary takeouts from them all.

Multiple Platforms:  

• More people (54% of Americans) are consuming content on multiple platforms (up 10% from 2012), yet only 20% of campaigns are utilising multi-screen campaigns = Opportunity.

• It is estimated that 36% of all search engine traffic in 2014 will be from mobile devices.

Responsive Design:

• Consider how your campaign can work across devices, and take heed from Google, the search masters, that all of your online properties should utilise responsive design.

Mobile Advertising:

• With the above in mind, smartphone and broadband connectivity continuing to rise, mobile ad-serving technology and analytics reporting are ever evolving, and more brands continue to get greater results and ROI from mobile marketing - it is of no surprise mobile advertising spends have increased dramatically.

• Mobile search advertising is expected to increase by 76%, and mobile banner advertising by 100% in 2014.

Content Marketing:

• If you are one of the few brands that do not have a content marketing plan, then you need to get involved. There are a number of business critical reasons for this.

• 90%+ of marketers in B2C and B2B used content marketing in 2013 - up by 5% year-on-year with 2012. 

• Google tweaked their algorithm 15 times in 2013 (37 times in 2012!), a big part of this was to focus on quality of content. Webmasters can no longer mine Google Analytics to access keyword data insights - bit of a blow for traditional SEO houses. Content is king, make it interesting, fresh, relevant, and accessible to everyone.

• SEO isn't dead but it has changed dramatically, there is a lot of BS regarding this in the industry. Make sure your agency truly understands the situation. 

• Content with video will attract three times the number of inbound links than plain text links (Caveat - quality of content, placement and relevance are major factors in engagement/success rates).

Marketing Automation:

• 78% of marketers who use marketing automation systems indicate these tools are more responsible for improving revenue contribution, and generate better quality of leads compared with activity that does not involve these automation systems.

• 63% of companies that are outgrowing their competitors use integrated marketing automation tools.

• If you don't use these tools or know what they are, learn about it as the facts are staggering.

Social Media:

• Social Media continues to grow dramatically in terms of users (1.15 billion on Facebook, 500 million on Twitter, 50 million on Google+, 230 million on Linkedin, 130 million on Instagram, and 70 million on Pinterest), engagement levels, technical capabilities, advertising dollars being spent on it, and availability of new and niche platforms.

See infographic #3 below for conclusive social media stats, and infographic #4 for an overview of key social media campaigns / stats by month in 2013.

#1 - Top Marketing Trends of 2013

Source: Uberflip

#2 - Marketing Predictions for 2014

Source: Marketing Tech Blog

#3 - Social Media stats for 2013

Source: Digital Buzz Feed

#4 - Key events in Social Media in 2013

Source: Infographic Promotion 

#5 - Hottest words on Social Media in 2013

Source: Social Media Today

Here is to a successful and exciting year of marketing, I am really looking forward to it. I hope this post has been useful, and as always feel free to share your thoughts and feedback with me.

About the author
Si Muddell is a Digital Strategist who has worked extensively both agency and client side. Si is fascinated about marketing, psychology & what motivates people, and loves guitar, surfing and travelling.

Get connected with Si on Google+, Twitter, LinkedIn & Facebook

Five great infographics on Slideshare (Using slideshare to share infographics)

A little rant..

I haven't done quite as many blog posts recently - partly because I've been a busy bee travelling this amazing world of ours for the last 8 months, but also in part because I am a tad frustrated with blogger...

Let me explain.

One of the many content mediums I like to use when blogging are infographics. A good infographic really fits that old adage of 'a picture is worth a thousand words', and sometimes (often), less is more. They are a great way of removing the clutter often surrounding facts, they bring life and fun to said facts, and are useful referencing material to go back to again and again.

For the past 12 months of writing this blog, I have found interesting infographics to share, and used Pinterest to pin the infographic from the authors website, and then embed into my blog. After a few months of doing this - and with Pinterests frequent updates, I realised the embedded Pinterest image often broke in my blog, leaving nothing more than a broken image link; annoying. I like Pinterest, but this is a fail on their part regarding this. I tried simply embedding the image itself into Blogger but there is a bug in Blogger where images over a certain size are corrupted, again making them ineligibly small.

So, here we are now - Rant over and solution found.

Slideshare to the rescue:

I have always liked the presentation sharing site slideshare. Not only is it an amazing knowledge bank where insights and stats are 'ten to the dozen', but it also has a huge content distribution/sharing/networking potential.

In recent weeks slideshare now has the functionality for publishers to upload and distribute their infographics, and tools for consumers to share them. The simple embed tools make it easy once again for bloggers like me to share infographics in a professional way. Gold star slideshare.

So, making up for lost time, below are five recent infographics that I like brought to you courtesy of the new slideshare functionality.

Chao.

10 Tips & Digital Marketing tools for every small business

Marketing can make or break a business. Like a thoroughly and thoughtfully organised dinner party, a well considered and executed marketing campaign can be the difference between satisfied guests that can't wait to come again, or guests that can't throw the next invitation in the bin quickly enough. It's the difference between your company dominating and thriving against competition, or just constantly treading water; or worse still, failing.

There are many simple tools designed to make marketing for business owners as easy and time efficient as possible. Utilised correctly these tools are your best friends, think of them as your royal armoury. The problem is that there are so many tools and opinions on the market it's sometimes difficult and time-consuming for you to find the best ones amongst the quagmire.

This short post is an interview I conducted with a good friend Oliver Mistry; part business owner of the very successful Personal and Corporate Chef company At Your Table, and currently Strategy Director at Leo Burnett, Sydney.

What better way to get some useful insights of a small business beyond the many purely theoretical posts I often read than from a successful, blooming, and fast expanding company that prides itself on service and marketing excellence.

This post follows on from a couple of recent posts I wrote that are also well worth checking out 'Digital Marketing & Social Media Tools' & '10 Marketing & Social Media Blogs you should read'.

Enjoy.

Your online life, permanent as a tattoo

10 seconds and I know you...

You meet someone out one night, you're looking to employ someone, you're trying to find Mr or Mrs right, your networking; the thing is you can quickly 'know' quite a lot about that person just by using basic tools on the internet. Think Google search or Facebook just by typing the persons name.

And here's the thing - What you know about this person is probably (or at least quite possibly) more than that person would like you to know in order for you to base your first and maybe lasting impressions on them. There's that old adage "don't judge a book by its cover" - but it is simply hard not to sometimes, it's easy to see/read something which may well be out of context and then subsequently form a strong opinion.

And that strong, perhaps jaded opinion may be the difference in you getting a job, or someone connecting with you or not, or you missing an opportunity that may be have been perfect.

Pinterest - Putting the IN in PIN

Since it's launch in 2009 Pinterest has experienced explosive growth. Some reports claim that active users on Pinterest in the US has caught up with Twitter, with 15% of adult internet users on each respective network. (Source - Tech Crunch).

Impressive.

The point is Pinterest continues to grow in terms of active users, functionality, and now its growing up by introducing its own analytics platform to capture the ROI crowd. Exciting times for Pinterest and marketers.

Below are a couple of inforgraphics that may of interest to new and old Pinterest users, which detail what it is (for those of you that don't know), the recent design and functionality updates, how people interact on Pinterest, and also Pinterest tools and other blog articles I have found useful.

Check Pinterest out, I believe there are a lot of marketing opportunities for brands and people using this platform. Don't be discouraged by the female majority demographic; the base continues to grow, evolve and attract new types of users. It's what you do with the platforms and how you market what you do that will attract people.

Goodbye Google Reader, hello Google Plus

It seems like only yesterday that I was explaining RSS to prospective clients, convincing them that this technology was a game changer, and a functionality they must have on their site, to allow people to keep updated with the content on their sites; outside of their site.

So when I woke up yesterday and read the latest marketing headlines about Google reader being dropped, my heart initially sank. I was bleary eyed from the night before and I wrongly read this to mean the death of RSS.

But that of course is just silly talk.

Google has a history of unceremoniously shutting down its products, the most notable one for RSS would be iGoogle that was launched in 2005 and is due to switch off in November 2013. Much like Netvibes or MyYahoo, iGoogle was a great tool to manage all of your RSS feeds and one that I often used.

So now it's Google Reader that is getting the chop; but why?

A brief history of YouTube in an infographic

In 8 years Youtube has grown from 0 to 800 million monthly unique users, 72 hours of uploaded every minute, and 4 billion hours of video viewed each month. There's no wonder YouTube is the #2 search engine, after...you guessed it Google; who actually owns it.

Below is a simple and interesting infographic by Shorty Media showing YouTubes incredible evolution.

Social Media Measurement - are we really doing enough?

Social - what's the value, worth?

What does a like, follower, share, mention, re-tweet, pin etc actually mean? What are they worth? How do all of these social interactions affect sales and retention, and how the hell do we compare an action on one social media platform versus an action on another? Should we? Can we?

All of the above are extremely valid and pertinent questions within the marketing industry, and to be honest, below are reasons why I think we are still a distance from having the real, or truly accurate answers.

This post isn't to give you the reader another 'Social Media - Return on Engagement' equation, there are too many of them about. It's really a discussion on how I believe the focus on 'social media metrics'  is a little too siloed, and what I believe needs to be done about it.

10 Marketing & Social Media blogs you must read

The great and awesome thing about the web is that anybody who is anybody can be creative and broadcast their thoughts to the world. Sometimes that can also be the problem, there is so much information available that it can be quite a task sieving through the quantity to find the quality.

Below, in no particular order, are a few blogs that I use for Marketing, Social Media, Great talks and general inspiration.

If you start using these blogs, share them with your friends / colleagues, join in with the conversations within the comments sections, and if you find an article useful, let the author know. As a blogger appreciation goes a long way, and for most bloggers, it is the reason they do it.

Happy reading.

Social Media Network stats for 2012

Wherever and whenever there is data, beware of the 'smoke and mirrors'. By this I mean data is often isolated to tell a particular (and convincing) pre-defined story. Social Media Networks
can have enormously varied audiences, functions and therefore user behaviour stats. A universal metric (think follow on Twitter or like on Facebook) can have a hugely varied value and meaning depending on the network.

That said, in a world where a new social media network is pretty much launched on a daily basis, and where the big boys like Facebook are ever changing things to monitise the service and further increase market share; it's interesting and useful to look at some top level user stats.

The infographic below created by Pardot is a useful snapshot of the most popular Social Networks in the Western World. These include; Facebook, Pinterest, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and Google +.

Pardot have collated Nielsen data to show each networks growth, monthly visitors, and estimated ROI. These factors have then been converted into a grade and presented like a 'report card'.

The Psychology of Social Commerce

Twenty five years ago, if you wanted to buy something, anything, you had a few of options:

1. Go to a shop / face-to-face with the buyer
2. Order via a catalogue / respond to a classified ad
3. Order via the phone

There was no internet, social media, and therefore zero ecommerce going on. Want to reminisce on evolution of Digital - take a look at this previous post of mine Digital evolution infographic. 

A customers decision to buy was based upon (in retrospect) fairly limited information, whilst the masses perception of the brand/product was largely based upon the advertising dollars pumped into the marketing, or 'pushing' of the product. 

Sure word-of-mouth influence occurred but only within a persons immediate network of friends, and the friends would have to know that the person was thinking about purchasing a specific product/service to know whether to give up their knowledge and opinion.

Facebook Graph Search: 7 implications for brands

Guest post by Oli Mistry, Digital Strategy Director at Leo Burnett Sydney

On January 15th Facebook made one of its biggest and most interesting announcements relating to a major platform update it is planning to launch, Graph Search. Graph search will allow users to search Facebook for people, interests, places and photos. Unlike other popular search engines the results will be based on the interactions and updates of the user’s first and second-degree connections. Their friends and friends of friends.

An example of this might be a user planning a holiday being able to search for friends who have been to Thailand. They will potentially get results that show their photos, see where they checked into and stayed, where and what they ate and therefore who to contact for advice and recommendations.

We all understand the power of personal recommendation or brand advocacy and its influence in the decision making process when it comes to purchases. This is a hugely exciting update for marketers and although there are no details out there on opportunities for advertising it’s certainly possible to speculate with reasonable confidence about what opportunities might begin to emerge.

So what does this all mean for brands? What are the dangers, what are the opportunities, where might this initial update be leading longer term and what should we be starting to think about in terms of actions and strategies to gain competitive advantage?

The first port of call when it comes to predicting future developments is to look for insights into the company and industry.

New year, new goals, old ways? A short guide to goal setting

So it's that time of year again where our bellies are full with all the great ingredients that make Christmas-Christmas (think roast turkey, mulled wine, cheese & crackers, chocolate....etc!). Our minds have hopefully taken a little rest from our normal busy work filled days, and as the year counts down its final days, we can, and should, reflect on the year that has past, but more importantly focus on what is achievable for the New Year.

Did you achieve your goals for 2012? What are your goals for 2013? Have you set any? What do you need to do in order to achieve them?

When it comes to goal setting, or in context with this time of year, setting New Years Resolutions, I think there are four types of people. We all have probably been each one of these at some point, and no doubt often float from one to the other.

1. The Doer
2. The Tryer
3. The Procrastinator
4. The 'I can't be bothered'

We would all benefit a lot more if we could be 'The Doer', when it comes down to goal setting. This article is a short guide to help you become the Doer, so that you can not only set achievable goals, but you can actually achieve them, and maintain a regular goal setting element to your life.

Here is a little information about the four types of people. Which one do you think best describes you?

Digital Marketing & Social Media tools guide

Digital Marketing - How do I....? 

Here's a generic situation, which may sound very familiar to some.

A buddy approaches me and asks for some marketing help. The last few years of slogging it out in a job they care little about has paid off, they now have a business idea of their own, some money in the bank, and a revived focus for their career. They are untouchable, fired up with energy and ambition, and all they want to do is get stuck straight into their new project, make things happen and make some $. It's time for them to let the world know, but the problem is they don't know how to, or better put, they don't know the best way to do so. So they look on the web and can quite easily be pulled in every direction by the pure volume of articles, 101's, books, video's, guides and expert opinions.

So after spending a few weeks/months learning, trying, failing, succeeding (repeat), they ask their buddy who works in Marketing for help, as he must know!...

• How do I get my site ranked on Google?
• How do I know if my marketing is working?
• What marketing should I be doing?
• Should I set my brand up on Social Media?
• How do I monitor my brand on Social Media?
• Should I use 'this' tool? Should I pay for 'this' service?
• Etc

All you need to know about Twitters new image editing tools for IOS

With the recent saga going on between Instagram and Twitter it comes of no surprise to many of us that Twitter has finally released its suite of image filters for IOS devices.

Much the same as found on Instagram, when uploading an image, you are presented with a set of editing tools that allow you to edit and see the modified image before making it live to the world.

This is a short post about the Twitter image editing tools on offer.
Editing tools are: Magic Wand, nine filter/effects and a crop tool.

Guide to the Wonderful World of Clients - infographic

Every now and again, you read something 'industry related' that makes you chuckle. Why? Because it resonates and bars some (or a lot) of truth.

The infographic below created by ciplex is one of those things. As I read through the infographic I fondly reminisce about a handful of challenging clients who initiated me in the art of diplomacy and pushed patience boundaries to unknown heights!

Since working client side, I definitely have more sympathy for some clients situations. Things most definitely aren't always as they seem from agency land perspective, I mean all clients can't be stupid right!
That said, some are very challenging so have a chuckle as you read over the infographic and remember some of your 'fun' clients.

Has too much social media turned you into a Zombie?

Many of us (me included) spend a considerable time using social media. This is no bad thing, amongst other things it keeps you connected to friends and family, up-to-date with news you probably wouldn't have known about otherwise, and engaged with other like minded people.

But some of us can get (at times) a little obsessed with it, you know the person who can't seem to put their phone down when in a restaurant, or has to check it when in the cinema, or must tag someone on a night out. That person is normally me, and it annoys the hell out of friends! Again, not necessarily all bad, but sometimes we can perhaps get a little too 'addicted' to it, if addiction is the right word.

With Halloween in mind, Confused.com have put together a great, Halloween themed, slightly satirical infographic, comparing obsessive social media users to zombies.

Building a Business Case for Marketing Automation

Marketing Automation should be all the talk for marketing professions of today. Those doing it properly are dominating, learning-improving. and then dominating some more, specifically in terms of their ROI and bottom line. Those who aren't, or who don't know much about it should really take some time to learn about it. It's not just another fancy marketing term getting banded about ten to the dozen by all the cool kids who work in marketing,  it's becoming a best practice that yields real results, with its success firmly rooted in improving relevancy, targeting of messages, and therefore a better customer experience.

OK...So what does 'Marketing Automation mean?

In short (sourced from Wikipedia- ) "the name given to software platforms designed for marketing departments and organisations to automate repetitive tasks...Marketing departments, consultants and part-time marketing employees benefit by specifying criteria and outcomes for tasks and processes which are then interpreted, stored and executive by software, which increases efficiency and reduces human error"

Digital Evolution in an Infographic

Remember the time when computers were the new (and expensive) fad, where mobile phones were as big as bricks, and where everyone was addicted to playing snake. Well, relatively speaking that time wasn't really that long ago! 

The pace at which technology is evolving is pretty astonishing and exciting - E.g nowadays the question isn't "do you have a camera on your phone", its "what mega-pixel is your camera on your phone".

What is second screen viewing and what are the marketing opportunities for it

I recently read a great article by Marketingmag on the 'Top 10 ways Marketers are using the second screen" and it was very pertinent to a project I am working at the moment. Essentially to transform our limited (in accessibility) online media player, to a multi-platform accessible player that adds real value to our customers. A very important product to have for an International Sports Broadcaster.

So it got me thinking...

10 Great Blogging tools for beginners and seasoned pros alike

If like me you are new to blogging, or you are seasoned pro that is just researching the blogging landscape for new tools then 10 Best Blog Tools for Beginners post by Alison posted on May 21, 2012 is exactly what you need. Being new to it myself, I have read a lot of good (and bad) posts on Blogging tools - this is a good post and I wanted to share it.

Short extract to wet your appetite. 

"Blogging can be challenging for beginners. We’ve all been there: the early days of blogging when it’s exciting just to receive a single comment on one of your posts, when writing good content takes up all of your free time, and when it feels like you’re talking to no one on social media.

So today, I wanted to share with you all the best blog tools for beginners. These tools can help you make friends online, find new readers, save time, and avoid common blogging mistakes.And of course, I hope there are a few tricks in here for experienced bloggers too! I didn’t start using some of these tools until late in the game, simply because I didn’t know about them."

Full article

Digital Marketing - What's it all about

This is a time where digital is booming. The last 5 years has seen an exponential increase in Digital Marketing spend; be that on media such as Search, Display, Social Media, Email, Affiliate and let's not forget the many analytics and database analysis tools which (should) be the backbone to any Digital Strategy. More brands are starting to migrate a larger percentage of their marketing budgets from traditional media to digital....

But Why? Obviously the below points really depend on the actual activity but generally..

Word Cloud taken from my blog post 'Digital Marketing & Social Media - My thoughts on todays landscape'

I thought it would be fun to put my first official blog post Digital Marketing & Social Media - My thoughts on todays landscape into a word cloud. 

And unsurprisingly 'people' was one of the main words.

If you haven't read the original post then below is an excerpt from it, which I hope gives this word cloud a bit more context. 

"The thing I love and continually excites me about digital is the accountability, the user centric focus, and the constant evolution and drive by the successful practioneers out there to deliver something that people want, in the way people want it, probably done best by people that understand people. This is a big shift from marketing from yonder years were there was a huge emphasis on the 'push' mentality. It must also be noted that there are many people using digital very badly..............It's my belief that digital marketing really lets you target, segment, monitor and engage with your audience far more effectively and cost efficiently than other forms of marketing. Focus on strategy, team skillsets and being prepared to test new things. Do marketing (anything) for outcome and not awards. Focus on people. "

Digital Marketing & Social Media - My thoughts on todays landscape

My professional career has piggy backed the constant evolution of digital marketing. From the very first paid search engine marketing craze at the beginning of my career, to SEO where everybody and their dog thought they had the magic insight into beating Googles algorithm and promised to get your website to the top of the seach rankings, which even as someone who 'sold SEO' felt morally obliged to tell people it was a black art and the best I could offer clients was guidance on best practice (which is important). Then we had display & affiliate campaigns, email and then mobile marketing, bespoke web development which then blossomed to easy to use content management systems where anyone could easily set up a website. Then website functionality started to bloom with intelligent web functionality such as related products, wish lists, fully customizable AJAX tools, RSS feeds etc all of which we all know as web 2.0.....and let us not forget social media, which had been brewing away all along.

Digital:

The thing I love and continually excites me about digital is the accountability, the user centric focus, and the constant evolution and drive by the successful practioneers out there to deliver something that people want, in the way people want it, probably done best by people that understand people. This is a big shift from marketing from yonder years were there was a huge emphasis on the 'push' mentality. It must also be noted that there are many people using digital very badly.