by tradesmeninsights | Mar 25, 2010 | Marketing Tips, Social Marketing, Traditional Marketing
From time to time I post some of the more popular posts to refresh the ideas for those who might have read them and for those who haven’t had a chance to look at some of the more popular ones. Enjoy.
- Many tradespeople feel they don’t really need to have anything to do with social media. Perhaps because their business comes mostly through referrals, or they don’t see immediate value in social media, or they feel it may take up too much time and they need to be out getting new business. And many tradespeople feel intimidated by social media. Read more...
- Would it surprise you to learn that the biggest gains in who’s using social media are among older users? According to a report in eMarketer, “Consumer Internet Barometer” U.S. Internet users who visited a social site in the second quarter of ‘09 rose 16% over last year. Females still lead males in usage and 70% of users were under the age of 35. The most popular sites in order were: Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn and Twitter. Read more...
- Engagement marketing is developing a two-way conversation with a customer or prospect. Engagement happens when people look forward to hearing from you and find your communications meaningful and helpful. Engagement marketing creates a common purpose between a manufacturer and its customers. It’s not a “Push” or “Pull” strategy, rather a collaborative one. Read more…
- We all have limits on our time and those of us who have dived into social media have to find time in our schedules if we want these marketing tools to work. The key, like anything, is organization and setting priorities so you optimize your time spent. Read more…
- Whether you’re using traditional marketing tools or social media, one of your key objectives should be to become the thought leader in your market or category. Read more…
by tradesmeninsights | Mar 24, 2010 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Trends, Social Marketing
We all want to come up on page one of Google, Yahoo, Bing and all the other search engines. There’s a good reason that we need to strive for that. According to a recent article in emarketer data from an icrossing study shows only a small amount of people go beyond the first page.
Across the big three search engines, 95% of traffic came from first page results. That should make us all sit up and take notice. If you haven’t taken search seriously, maybe now would be a good time to do so. Don’t do all the hard work and have less than positive results because you’ve not taken organic search seriously.
A report from Econsultancy and ExactTarget indicated search spending would increase…nearly two-thirds of the marketers interviewed said they plan on increasing spending in this area.
by tradesmeninsights | Mar 23, 2010 | Marketing Trends, Social Marketing
Marketers across the board are realizing that social media is here to stay and those that have jumped in have found that they are making new friends.
How does that translate though into spending out of your marketing budget? With budgets shrinking over the last 18 months, marketers have had to do more with less and find social as a viable option.
A recent article in eMarketer, Marketing Budgets Spiral Towards Social, they cite recent surveys from both Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and American Marketing Association that indicate that upwards of 20% of marketing dollars will be going to social in the next five years.
B-to-B marketers are catching up with their counterparts in B-to-C. Part of the reason B-to-B marketers are spending more on social is because it lines up with their marketing goals of brand building and CRM.
What are your goals moving forward in 2010 and beyond?
by tradesmeninsights | Mar 2, 2010 | Marketing Trends, Social Marketing
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you must know that social media, even in the B-to-B space, is gaining traction on a daily basis. Top marketers worldwide agree that digital will increase in 2010. A recent article in eMarketer, Engagement on social networks top priority for marketers, substantiated these trends.
81% of the brand executives surveyed expected an increase in digital projects in 2010. Social networks and applications were among their biggest priority.
B-to-B marketers are evaluating traditional media investments and are reallocating dollars to paid digital spending. Digital allows marketers to measure engagement whether it be time spent on a site, page views or click-through rates.
What are you doing to capitalize on the digital age? I’d love to hear from you.
by tradesmeninsights | Feb 9, 2010 | Marketing Tips, Marketing Tools, Social Marketing
Manufacturers are missing an opportunity to build brand awareness and thought leadership if they don’t consider using a blog as part of their marketing mix. Contractors, plant engineers and maintenance workers are looking at ways to solve problems and learn quick tips on how to do their jobs better.
In a recent post on eMarketer, Bloggers and (personal) brand building, they cited a poll done by Technorati on the state of the blogosphere 2009 that showed that:
- Over 70% of those polled talked about products or brands on their blog.
- Nearly 60% said they were better known in their industry because of their blog.
- 63% had converted prospects to customers.
- 56% have seen their blog bring their company recognition as a thought leader.
So why aren’t you considering a blog for your business to reach your audience?
