Category: Analytics

Using Google Analytics to Track Social Media Strategies 

It’s hard for marketers to escape the call to take full advantage of social media in their marketing efforts. The conventional wisdom is that it’s foolish to not utilize free or low-cost platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube, which hold the potential to reach huge and targeted audiences; and, while some sites require payment for premium offerings, most are free for the basic service. (For an overview of ten popular tools, see Continue reading “Using Google Analytics to Track Social Media Strategies “

Managing the Noise on Twitter 

When Twitter first hit the social media scene, it seemed implausible or even inconceivable to many that 140 characters could provide any real value to social media marketing efforts, yet this application has emerged as one of the giants in the field. So popular, in fact, that it’s a daunting task to keep track of all of the activity on Twitter. There’s almost too much information. Some organizations Continue reading “Managing the Noise on Twitter “

How Do You Monitor Your Business Performance?

by Linda Pophal

One of the most important elements of successfully implementing a strategic plan of any size (whether a business plan, an annual company plan, a marketing plan, etc.) is establishing benchmarks or objectives that are specific and quantifiable and that will be tracked throughout the planning period. The use of dashboards is a great way to visually—and simply—convey information on how the organization is doing. Continue reading “How Do You Monitor Your Business Performance?”

Why Your Homepage Isn’t Really Your Homepage

by Linda Pophal

 

For me, the summer months represent a relatively quiet time to catch up on some professional development activities that tend to be at the bottom of my list during busier times of the year. This summer, I’ve signed up for a few Coursera courses, including one called “Digital Analytics for Marketing Professionals.” One of the reading assignments led me, as is often the case, down a rabbit hole to more and more intriguing topics until I found myself looking at Continue reading “Why Your Homepage Isn’t Really Your Homepage”

Do Your Metrics Reflect Value or Vanity?

Measurable, reliable, quantitative data is constantly being sought after by marketers. In comparison to relatively more concrete elements of a business, such as finance and operations, marketers often feel pressure, whether real or perceived, to provide some sort of measurable return on investment for their efforts. Sure, your new website design looks great, but has it directly contributed to increased online sales? Unfortunately, for many marketing efforts, it can be difficult to convincingly tie a dollar spent on marketing to dollars earned in new business.

This pressure is evaluated in a Harvard Business Review article by Eric Ries called “Entrepreneurs: Beware of Vanity Metrics.” Vanity metrics, Ries explains, Continue reading “Do Your Metrics Reflect Value or Vanity?”

A Wealth of Social Media & Marketing Tips from Experts and Practitioners

Just returned from the 6th Annual Social Media & Marketing Conference sponsored by the Eau Claire Area Chamber of Commerce and my head is spinning. It seems that no matter how much we may all think we know a lot about social media and/or marketing, there is always so much more to learn. I learned a lot today from both the presenters and other attendees. Continue reading “A Wealth of Social Media & Marketing Tips from Experts and Practitioners”

Contextualized Advertising: Just “Preaching to the Choir”?

The older I get, the more I recognize the inevitable cycles that occur all around  me, from fashion trends to areas of marketing focus. It’s the yin and yang of life I suppose; we naturally shift back and forth between preferences for one thing or another. And, it is likely true that there is nothing really “new” under the sun, just recycled or updated twists on things that have gone before.

Except, perhaps, in the world of online marketing. One of the latest trends–contextualized advertising–offers marketers the ability to almost “get inside the heads” of potential consumers to deliver messages to them based not only on places they’ve visited online, but for things that might be geographically or contextually relevant to them.

For instance. You’re walking down the street on a hot summer day and you get a text message telling you about a great deal on ice cream at a shop that is now literally 10 steps away from you. Or, you’re driving to a vacation destination and a special deal on a hotel at the next exit pops up. That’s contextual advertising and it’s all the rage right now. Although, of course, nobody quite knows yet Continue reading “Contextualized Advertising: Just “Preaching to the Choir”?”

SEO: Optimizing for the “right” words and phrases–those that drive real results!

If you Google the term “strategic communications” my company — Strategic Communications — is likely to show up on the first page of the results you see. Great, right? Well, not necessarily. But, the fact that it does, and the results that I see, have provided me with some key insights into the types of words and phrases that I, and my clients, should be optimizing for.  Continue reading “SEO: Optimizing for the “right” words and phrases–those that drive real results!”

Yes, the C-suite is concerned about ROI — communicators should be too!

I’ve been speaking and writing a lot about how communicators can do a better job of connecting with C-suite leaders to get traction for their ideas and proposals. Most recently, I presented a webinar for Mayo Clinic Center for Social Media and Ragan Communications on How to Talk Social Media to Your Hospital C-Suite. I also wrote a series of articles on the topic for IABC’s Communication World earlier this year. And I have a presentation coming up in May for Health Leaders Media.

Much of my work and research has been around issues related to social media but, in truth,
Continue reading “Yes, the C-suite is concerned about ROI — communicators should be too!”