Internet Marketing: Top 5 Marketing Stories of the Week: For Every Two Steps Forward, Take One Step Back

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Top 5 Marketing Stories of the Week: For Every Two Steps Forward, Take One Step Back

I've always been the kind of person to dive headfirst into the pool, lake, ocean -- whatever body of water is nearest. The thrill of the jump is exhilarating, but after a few too many head bumps, fish encounters and sharp seashells, I learned to step back and look at where I was going first.

Try to think of marketing the same way -- you are bound to both reap rewards and make mistakes, but sometimes you just need to take a step back and re-evaluate.

This week's top five marketing stories from InboundMarketing.com show that you need to evaluate what's already been done, to look at things from a fresh perspective, and most importantly, to keep moving forward.

1. Inbound Marketing: A Video Intro

Author: Dylan Spencer

This video takes less than three minutes to watch, and provides all the basics about the benefits of inbound marketing vs. outbound (traditional marketing). What makes this seemingly simple video a stand out is that the video itself is a great example of inbound marketing.

Dylan recognized that hundreds of people have already written articles on the topic, so instead, he made a straightforward, yet catchy video, then put it on a social media platform (YouTube) with relevant links and tags. A great example of content creation done right.

Lesson: If It's Been Done, Find A Way To Do It Differently, Or Better

2. Driving Organic Traffic from Search Engines

Author: Shimon Sandler

It's one thing to have a website. It's a completely other thing to have an effective website that pulls in leads and drives loads of traffic. The difference between these two websites is content.

As Sandler says in his article, SEO is a combination of good links and good content. A visitor may find your site through a link, but he can also leave your site if it has no relevant or interesting content.

Lesson: Create Content to Drive (and Keep)Traffic

3. With Organic Search, Content and Inbound Linking Is King

Author: Christopher Hosford

Search engine optimization is, if nothing else, complicated. You need links, but they need to be the right kind of links. You need content, but it needs to be relevant and captivating content. You need to choose keywords and create landing pages, and you need to make all these pieces fit together.

Hosford also points out that it is imperative to keep in mind your company's goals and make sure that your content reflects those goals, and people will be naturally inclined to link to you.

Lesson: Know Your Niche

4. 12 Steps for Small Business Owners. Please Stop the Denial. (Part I)

Author: Dan Ronken

In this first post of two, Ronken takes the classic twelve steps of recovery and gives them a twist -- getting small business owners involved in social media. The first post covers the first five steps, including admitting you can't control everything said about your company, "identifying your true assets and liabilities," and others.

This post is meant not to tell small businesses what they are doing wrong, but to show that there are relatively painless ways to turn a business around or just give it the boost it needs.

Lesson: Always Examine, Always Reflect, Learn to Reform

5. Personal vs. Business Branding- 4 Reasons It's Situational

Author: Suzanne Vara

Vara poses an interesting question here: where do personal branding and business branding collide? She asserts that when these "brands" do come together, one type of branding will supercede the other, depending on the situation.

Your interactions with family members may be viewed as purely personal branding by that family member, but what happens when they talk about your company to someone else, someone who doesn't know you? They may attribute their views of the company to their views of you, whereas your family member might be more likely to attribute to the company what they see in you.

Lesson: Business Branding Can Be Personal

Photo Credit: Steve Jurvetson