Guest post by Eduard Klein. Business process automation is, hands down, one of the best technological innovations to come along in decades. Humans have spent way too much time doing repetitive tasks that do not require our expertise. These tasks take time away from the value we could potentially be adding in our business. Image credit: Mikael Blomkvist on Pexels This also applies, of course, to B2B marketing. Ideally, marketers focus their time on performing high-impact tasks that need our knowledge, expertise, and experience. So, why not let B2B marketing automation take care of the rest? E ..read more

There have been lots of questions swirling in marketing circles about how artificial intelligence (AI) will impact search engine optimization (SEO), and how SEO and content marketing practices will need to change to take advantage of AI. In a recent newsletter, Christopher S. Penn provided some of the best answers to date. His entire article is well worth a read, but it’s close to 2,200 words. Until you have time to get to that, here’s a quick summary of his main points. AI-Based Search Will Take Off — Here’s Why Penn believes the popularity and use of AI-based search will ramp up quickly for ..read more

Contributed post. The business world is entering a new technological era. We’ve seen the industrial revolution, then the digital revolution, and are now on the cusp of a new revolution in technology. Image credit: StartupStockPhotos on Pixabay But what shape will it take? Here’s a look at five technologies making the biggest waves, and how they can benefit your business. The Cloud Cloud computing has advanced rapidly and grown spectacularly since the development of virtual machines for x86 systems by VMware in 1999, the spectacular growth of Salesforce.com in the early 2000s, and the launch ..read more

Contributed post. When you’re starting out with a new business, one of the first and most important things you to do is promotion. Getting your message out there. Spreading the word as much as possible. The more you do this, and the more effectively you do it, the more successful your business launch will be. Image credit: Canva Studio on Pexels You already know that, but the question is: how can you ensure you are spreading the word about your new business in the right way, and in a way that will be effective? Here’s a look at a few time-tested core tactics to use. All of the following will ..read more

I rarely write book reviews anymore. And I’ll bet you rarely read them. But this one will be brief, and worthwhile for both of us. Promise. Smart Brevity: The Power of Saying More with Less by Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz is a must-read for communicators generally, and writers specifically. It’s worth a review. Plus, this gives me an opportunity to try writing in Smart Brevity style. Smart Brevity Count: 762 Words | 3 Minutes The Big Picture Most of us write the wrong way. It’s not our fault. We’re victims of bad incentives, such as: Professors who ask us to write 10-page paper ..read more

Guest post by Val Razo. With a community of two billion monthly users, 90% of whom are used to communicating with brands in-app, Instagram has become one of the most effective marketing channels for B2C companies. Image credit: Georgia de Lotz on Unsplash At the same time, practically every B2B marketer has been wondering about the best social media platforms. For “dry, boring” B2B companies unsure of how to create eye-grabbing visual content, a photo-sharing app like Instagram isn’t the most obvious social media platform. But the situation is changing. In the last few years, an increasing n ..read more

Guest post by Ann Smarty. Both Google and Bing search engine result pages (SERPs) are becoming more visual. There are image snapshots, video thumbnails, and image search results showing up all around search results. Consequently, creating high-quality images is quickly turning into one of the marketing priorities for a conversion-driven image SEO strategy. For a few years now, Google has shown image thumbnails in mobile search results. In addition, there are image search results blended within general organic search results – both on mobile and desktop devices. Beyond that, there is often an ..read more

Guest post by Kevin George. In today’s highly competitive digital marketplace, it’s no longer enough to simply have a visually appealing website or great content. To truly stand out in the crowded online space, it’s vital to optimize your site for enhanced user engagement. Image credit: Taras Shypka on Unsplash User interaction patterns are a crucial component of search engine optimization (SEO). They refer to how users navigate through your website, engage with its content, and interact with various elements. By understanding these patterns and implementing strategies to enhance them, you c ..read more

Guest post. Successful businesses are built on innovation. If not for continual innovation, we wouldn’t be in the digital age eagerly anticipating the direction technology will take and wondering what is possible and what comes next. We’d have fewer companies like OpenAI, and more like Blockbuster. Image credit: Pixabay on Pexels Innovation is built into our way of life. From the very first automobile to the first mobile phone and the current explosion of AI and its capabilities, innovation is the cornerstone of wealth creation. As a small business owner, embracing innovation and ensuring th ..read more

Guest post. Acquiring new customers is vital for every business. But with the steep rise in customer acquisition costs, and research showing it costs up to five times more to acquire a new customer than to keep an existing one, you can’t ignore the importance of customer retention. Image credit: Mohammad Metri on Unsplash Effective customer retention methods can enhance loyalty and generate better word-of-mouth advocacy, ultimately boosting profits. Retaining your existing consumer base is also, as noted above, much more cost-effective than concentrating entirely on expensive marketing campa ..read more