Every industry has its own jargon, buzzwords and acronyms, and content marketing is no exception. To be successful, marketers need to know what these terms are, how to use them and why they matter. Here’s a list of 31 commonly used content marketing terms to help you evaluate your marketing acumen.
The compilation of frequently-asked-questions (FAQ) pre-dates the internet. Salespeople and others have used it for years to learn and communicate what’s on the minds of others. In fact, the acronym FAQ was developed between 1982 and 1985 by Eugene Miya of NASA for the SPACE mailing list as a way to keep up with the common questions of system users. FAQs, whether they exist in print or digital format, help prospects and customers better understand your brand, your products and services, and your corporate distinction.
Marketers are expected to be experts in branding, advertising, direct marketing, content development and much more. And, in an increasingly digital environment, they need technology as an added skill set. Technology is a mainstay in our daily business lives, and it’s what fuels many marketing initiatives. Yet, staying on top of all the advances in technology is an ongoing task.
Today, the terms “digital” and “marketing” go hand in hand. Digital marketing is how today’s businesses are reaching the right audiences, with the right messages, through the right channels. And that goal is becoming increasingly complex as the pace of change and increased competition flood the marketplace. Venn Diagram in Digital Marketing Think of digital
Ever feel like you’re in a content rut? Or perhaps you are faced with a deadline for an article or blog and have no idea what topic to cover. As marketers and content creators, we write every day both for our clients and ourselves. But even the pros are faced with the challenge of generating
Generating quality and consistent leads is a priority for most businesses. As communication platforms grow and change and as customer preferences and new marketplaces emerge, business trends shift. For marketers to effectively create, implement and evaluate lead generation programs, they need to understand and leverage the latest statistics, research and trends.
For some companies, business screeches to a halt during the summer months. Summer vacations can result in reduced sales staffs and the inability to reach prospects and customers. But on top of a normal summer slowdown, the effects COVID-19 have further compounded the issue. These slowdowns can mean fewer visitors to your website, less frequent
For some marketing teams, it’s easy to get caught in a hamster wheel of content production. We’re constantly searching for ideas for the next blog, white paper, newsletter, video or webinar. To add to the frenzy, marketers spend time researching the best ways to optimize content, mastering the latest trends and technologies, and identifying the newest outlets that are attracting their target markets. But what about all the old content that already exists?
As our recent blog mentioned, many of us are working remotely during the current COVID-19 environment. For some, that may mean fewer projects, reduced hours or simply more time spent at home. While we engage in social distancing and work away from the traditional office setting, now is a good time to catch up on your reading and expand your knowledge of the marketplace. Today’s blog is a compilation of our favorite informative resources for marketing, business and entrepreneurship.
Trade Press Services and SmartFinds Marketing recently hosted a content marketing webinar as part of a “Learn from the Pros” series. The educational webinar, “How to Increase Sales with the Power of Content Marketing,” was created to help businesses discover how to use content marketing as a valuable marketing tool to increase sales, establish credibility and boost marketplace visibility.
With so many different guides, hot tips, new stats and trends coming at us each day, it is easy to get bombarded, even confused by the plethora of information and misinformation available in the marketplace. To set the record straight, we collected eight common content marketing myths and explain why they wreak havoc on the lives of professional marketers.
Creating high-quality content requires a thorough knowledge and understanding of the marketplace as well as the messaging development and writing skills needed to produce engaging copy. But that’s not all. How you distribute your content to your audiences is just as important as the content itself. Without a proactive content distribution plan to share and build traffic, a perfectly good article, blog or white paper will collect dust in the fast-paced realm of digital content.
Content marketing is an essential component of a marketer’s toolkit. In fact, 92 percent of marketers reported that their companies view content as a business asset. As such, it needs to be one of the key strategies you use to achieve your marketing goals. Yet while the most successful companies are very committed to producing content marketing, only 39 percent have a documented strategy.
As marketing communications strategists who work with a variety of business professionals, it’s important for us to stay current with digital resources to help us learn and grow in order to exceed our clients’ expectations. To accomplish that goal, we participate in industry webinars, listen to podcasts, attend industry trade shows and read a variety of books, magazine articles and internet stories. We believe some of the digital resources we’ve discovered and use can help you expand your marketing horizons and achieve your business goals. Here’s our digital resources list broken down by categories.
The end of the year is a good time to look back on the last 12 months and contemplate strategies and priorities for the year ahead. But as we come to a close of this decade, it’s even more powerful to reflect on the last 10 years and evaluate the amazing ways in which business has changed. Let’s look at some of those shifts and see what implications there are for business growth as we enter the third decade of the 21st century.
Content Marketing Institute’s 2018 study shows that 91 percent of B2B marketers use content marketing. In fact, blogging is one of the top-three most used types of content. As a consumable, informative and frequent resource, blogs make it easy to keep fresh content flowing. However, getting it right at such a frequent rate can become challenging.
Marketing’s role has expanded in recent years. Not only does it encompass addressing a company’s vision, brand, and strategies but also the content a company creates and distributes along with its interactions with prospects, customers and stakeholders on all levels. As marketing evolves and its practices become more diverse, the areas within it grow more specialized. There are experts in niches such as social media, public relations, SEO, trade shows, media outreach, influencer marketing, print advertising and digital marketing. However, technical know-how only accounts for a portion of the necessary marketing skills to become a good marketer.
It’s hard to believe that 2019 is rapidly coming to a close. While many of us are still busy in our quest to achieve our growth goals, it’s not too soon to look ahead and plan for next year. A good place to start is to research the industries that are projected to experience significant growth next year and see if any of them are a fit for your products and services. You might be surprised at what you discover.
In the past, traditional advertising outlets were limited to radio, TV, print publications and outdoor signage. With the new economy, however, savvy marketers add digital outlets to the mix. As a result of the multitude of advertising platforms available today, it’s important to know which ones to choose based on the likelihood of attracting the greatest response from prospects and customers.
Marketing is often referred to as the face of the business. As such, a well-established team that shares a commitment to being the best it can be has the ability to outshine and outperform the competition. To maximize performance, here are 12 vital goals all marketing departments should strive to achieve.
Marketers, like other business professionals, use jargon and acronyms to communicate industry knowledge, technology, procedures and processes. In a constantly evolving marketplace, it can be a full-time job to keep up with new terminology. To stay current, we’ve compiled a list of 20 essential sales and marketing acronyms that are key to communicating with peers and thought leaders in the business world.
In the B2B marketplace, we all know that content is king. In fact, 91 percent of B2B marketers use content marketing to reach customers. Further, 72 percent of marketers say content increases engagement and the number of leads companies generate. Quality content showcases expertise, provides a relevant resource to prospects and clients and positions individuals and their firms as thought leaders in their field. No surprises there.
In the B2B marketplace, a polished and professional website is one of the most important factors in building a corporate presence. Even with new leading technologies, like mobile and voice-first technology, a website is the gateway to creating a positive first impression and the platform for customer interaction. That’s why it is essential to design an easy to find, search-engine optimized website.
The B2B marketplace has changed significantly since digital, internet-based communication has become king. With the vast number of interactions occurring digitally, often we’re interacting with prospects and customers before we know it. In fact, most B2B buyers are already 57% of the way through the buying process before they meet with a representative. To better connect early on, it’s important to have a clear understanding of the buyer personas, or the profile and characteristics of your target audiences.
