A recent study prepared by MarketingProfs and the Content Marketing Institute surveyed B2B professionals to identify content marketing trends based on insights from the year 2012. Content marketing has become more important recently for SEO purposes due to Google cracking down on black hat and outdated link-building tactics, and it has proven its worth keeping social media engagement high in the form of infographics and podcasts. The study focused on the various tactics B2B marketers employed, methods of content distribution, and the latest overall budgeting decisions made by marketing departments.
Social Media Reigns Supreme
One core aspect of any business is to develop an effective online marketing strategy to build brand awareness and generate sales. One issue marketing professionals have is deciding in which channels to invest: inbound or outbound marketing? Voltier Digital recently released compiled statistics from a wide range of sources to provide a telling infographic (that can be seen below) on which of the two marketing strategies proves to be most effective.
Inbound marketing is less expensive
Numerous companies invest heavily into outbound marketing technologies and campaigns that provide high costs per lead and acquisition. However, according Voltier Digital, companies are better served by creating inbound marketing campaigns because they cost 62% less per lead than traditional outbound marketing. This provides considerable advantages for brands looking for more cost effective lead generation programs,
The goal of any online enterprise is to make money. However, more often than not, businesses without a strategic online marketing plan will have difficulty generating quality leads. One effective solution for increasing leads is to develop a strategic SEO and content marketing plan of action. According to recent research from MarketingSherpa, Organic Search is by far the most effective online marketing tool for increasing traffic and leads. So how can you better use Internet marketing to increase business from your website?
Setup a Blog and Post Regularly
SEO and content marketing can begin with the setup of a blog (preferably WordPress) to bring in specific leads. Focusing on long-tail keyword phrases that are highly searched in your vertical can help bring in readers actively searching for help or comparing products. ……
Simply put, the end goal of any online marketing campaign is to generate more revenues. In an increasingly competitive environment, marketing professionals are investing more resources into branding. However, the question remains: is it possible to generate more sales from online PR activities, or is it purely a branding tool? A recent study by PRMarketing reveals that online PR can accomplish both objectives.
Online PR’s Role in Building Awareness
The goal of any online PR campaign is to make up for the lack of information about your company online. PRMarketing’s study revealed that a severe lack of product information online can lose Internet retailers as many as 67% of consumers. Creating more content through blogs, press releases, and review sites is one remedy for a lack of branded content. Keyword rich content will also rank higher, making it easier for your target audience to find your articles and giving them an opportunity to learn more about your products’ benefits.
“I’m on the first page for all my keywords but I’m not generating any sales!” Does that sentence sound familiar? Well you may be in a similar situation countless other companies have experienced after launching a search engine optimization campaign. After getting to the first page for all your keywords, do you notice that the traffic is simply not converting? Does this mean SEO is not a sound strategy? On the contrary: the first page rankings and the traffic coming in prove the value of a well-executed search engine optimization strategy. Finding the root of the problem means analyzing your entire online marketing strategy at its foundation.
Optimizing the Wrong Keywords
It’s important to develop a search engine optimization campaign that not only drives traffic, but has the potential to bring in users who are in a “ready to buy now” mode. Otherwise, the traffic you’re bringing in simply will not convert. Employing the help of internet marketing professionals to analyze your keyword list, website’s analytics, and competitors’ organic strategies is a crucial process to diagnose the issues at hand. Readjusting your strategy and identifying keywords that have more potential to generate revenue help provide positive returns on your investment.
The two major activities of any effective search engine optimization campaign are link building and content marketing. While the former has been the main tactic marketing professionals rely on for creating value for their websites, the latter has become more important due to recent algorithm changes from Google. The following is a quick overview of the inherent benefits in content marketing:
Strategies are Highly Adaptable
If you notice that some of your prime keywords are not ranking highly enough, pushing out fresh content using those keywords can help create momentum for your SEO campaign. Content marketing is adaptable and allows marketing professionals to revamp current strategies and focus on providing a boost to keywords that need help.
By Jonathan Berthold on