Fantastic 5: Online Marketing Reads of the Week

It’s Friday already? Wow, where did this week go? I’ve been reading through some interesting new marketing reports, a few of which I’ve listed below that I think you may like.

Oh, and we recently did a webinar on the Power of Post-Click Marketing. Flip through the slides if you missed the webinar or want a refresher!

Report: Marketing Wisom for 2011 | Marketing Sherpa

MarketingSherpa released their marketing wisdom report which is compiled of tips and lessons from marketers who want to share their successful strategies from last year.

Marketer tools fall short for campaign optimization | BtoB Mag

Forrester recently put out a report showing that marketing decision makers feel that current tools aren’t advanced enough for campaign optimization. What do you think?

How to track content marketing lead conversions | Mongoose Metrics 

Mongoose Metrics offers three ways to convert leads from your content marketing efforts using web analytic and phone tracking data.

The what, why and how on low search volume keywords | PPC Hero

Caleb writes about what you should do when Google brands some of your keyword phrases as low search volume, and suspends you from using them in AdWords.

Report: Bing-Yahoo Missed Opportunity for Marketers | MediaPost

A new Search Market Report shows that paid spend is increasing, and that the Bing-Yahoo integration provides an interesting opportunity for online marketers. The article suggestions developing and testing new ad creative/copy for Bing-Yahoo, and watching their conversion rates carefully.

Hope you all have a great weekend. And don’t forget to tweet me links to your favorite posts @ioninteractive! 

Fantastic 5: Online Marketing Reads of the Week

It’s the middle of January already?! 2011 is already off to a fast pace, and likely won’t slow down for online marketers any time soon. One of the best ways to keep your ideas fresh and campaigns optimized, is to never stop reading and learning. Check out these five marketing articles I came across this week that I think you’ll really like!

Are your web visitors converting offline? |
Mongoose Metrics

This post explains how an integrated offline/online campaign can boost results and increase effectiveness of media spend. It focuses heavily on phone tracking conversions.

11 Product Page Testing Ideas for 2011 |
GetElastic

As the title suggests, this post looks at 11 product testing ideas to try and the reasoning behind why each may be effective in boosting conversions for you.

How should I develop content for a lead-gen e-mail? |
BtoB Mag

Tips for optimizing your lead generation e-mails. Not necessarily B2B focused.

 Marketing to shoppers at every touchpoint |
eMarketer

eMarketer looks at why brands and retailers must target consumers, pre-shop, in-store and post-shop to conduct the most efficient marketing programs.

Seven habits of highly effective mobile ad campaigns |
Mobile Marketer

And the either habit of SUPER highly effective mobile ad campaigns: send them to a mobile optimized, campaign-specific landing page! Bonus link: here are 10 useful tips for creating mobile landing pages.

What articles or posts did you love this week? Leave a comment below or send me a tweet with the link @ioninteractive!

Fantastic 5: Online Marketing Reads of the Week

We’re only a couple weeks away from the New Year, can you believe that? Yesterday at ion we played Dirty Santa (click for pics) which is sort of like Secret Santa, but with a spin. And today is our company holiday party. 

While the ion office sure knows how to have fun, we always have our eye on the prize (conversions!). Here are five great marketing optimization reads I came across this week that I think you’ll like.

 Search is No. 2 Online Activity Across All Age Groups: Pew Study | Search Engine Land

A recent Pew research study reveals the top activities across different age groups within broader generations. The top online activity among all age groups is e-mail followed closely by search.  Check out these easy to read chart with more information!

5 Tips to Improve Conversion Rates | DemandBlog

Excellent article with a strong emphasis on relevancy as a top conversion influencer. Check out these tips for improving your conversion rates in 2011 and beyond.

How to measure your newsletter subscriber conversion rate | Naomi Niles

In this post Naomi provides five steps for easily measuring your newsletter subscriber conversion rate. Are you measuring your newsletter’s conversion rate?

10 Tools for digital professionals that don’t cost a dime | MediaPost

Ten free tools to measuring and monitoring all kinds of different marketing initiatives including SEO and social.

Ad text optimization – what to test (and when)? | Search Engine Journal

The title explains it all. This post walks through an example of what to test and when for the search term “personalized gifts.”  The ideas can easily be applied to your own search terms.

If you’re looking for more marketing optimization tips, or would just like to see more pics of super cool ionians, feel free to take a peek at our Facebook page! 

Fantastic 5: Online Marketing Reads of the Week

You know what they say about “all work and no play” so luckily it’s been a fun week here for ionians! We created a holiday video for all of our online friends, and we also had a nice night out to see a Cirque du Soleil show in Miami.

While you’re relaxing and unwinding after your own busy but fun week, here are a few good articles to browse through: 

E-mail Design: Show AND Tell | Sigma

This post reminds us to always be testing our e-mails. It’s important to re-evaluate periodically and ask if something can be stated better with images or copy, or a combination of the two. Always test new ideas and continue to push the envelope. 

More Americans Watching Mobile Video | Nielsen

Nielson reports that in Q2 2010 more Americans watched video on mobile devices than any other time in history. Check out the statistics in the article.

The importance of testing signup & payment forms | Econsultancy

This post looks at the importance of testing small details and provides examples of potential conversion boosters and impediments. Remember, what works for one person may not work for you, but it’s probably worth testing!

Agency Groups Predict Strong Online Ad Growth for 2011 | Clickz

According to a new report by several agencies, online ad revenue will be steadily growing at least until 2014 when it will reach 40.5 billion. Are you optimizing your landing pages to convert all your ad clicks?

Ad Text Optimization – What to  Test (and When) | SE Journal

This posts walks through some specific examples of how to optimize your ad text. An optimized ad and a matching, optimized landing page will help you achieve the best conversion rates.

Have a great weekend!

Fantastic 5: Online Marketing Reads of the Week

Happy first Friday in December! Can you believe we’re at the year’s end already? Amidst your holiday shopping, family gathering, Q1 planning, and Q4 executions, I hope you’ll take a few minutes to check out these great marketing posts launched this week. Enjoy! 

Quantity & Quality: Interpreting Traffic with Bubble Charts | Reap Marketing

Data visualization is a pretty exciting thing for people who live in the world of analytics. This post looks at how bubble charts can be used to help visualize your incoming traffic with respect to their conversion performance.

Persuasion triggers in web design | Smashing Mag

Fantastic and in-depth post on how to use persuasion triggers in web design. This post essentially details out online marketing in a nut shell.

How to build a killer local AdWords keyword list with the best local PPC keyword tool ever | WordStream

Tom Demers provides an insightful post on how to build a keyword list for local PPC after you’ve put together your geo-targeting strategy.

 What your company should be using PPC marketing | inoigize

Excellent advice on why PPC marketing is important. Strong emphasis on measuring conversions rather than click-thru rates.

6 Demand generation predictions for 2011 | Eloqua

Eloqua rounded up a group of thought leaders in the lead generation industry and asked them for predictions on what to expect in 2011. Great read for marketers who are planning for Q1.

Oh, and PS: we now have all of our presentations uploaded in one convenient spot on the website. Feel free to browse through them!