With most companies focusing their social media marketing efforts on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, over one-third (36.1%) say they've been able to make a conversion from initial connection to sale via such social channels, according to a new survey from R2integrated. more

Different customers shop for products and services in different ways—even when they're looking for the same thing. And that's why your lead-generation efforts should address various buyer personas. "A buyer persona [represents a] distinct group potential customers, an archetypal person whom you want your marketing to reach," writes David Meerman ... more

Small-business owners often feel the cash-flow pinch, especially when they're starting out. Because their resources are limited, they may feel that their marketing efforts have to be limited as well. Yet what they may not realize is that they already have some powerful marketing tools at their disposal. more

As marketers focus on creative development and campaign execution, they often overlook the operational aspects of their go-to-market processes, resulting in the inefficient delivery of marketing materials to intended audiences and, ultimately, weaker frontline performance, according to a study by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council. more

Most prospects are not experts in purchasing the types of products and services you offer. So what do they do? They turn to testimonials because testimonials are readily available and because they hope to learn from others' experiences. more

This article looks at the first two of four triggered-email campaigns that no email-marketing program should be without: Welcome and onboarding emails, and remarketing emails (such as resending to nonoperners and clickers but nonconverters). more

To make customer experience stick as part of your operation, you need to have an organized and phased approach for integrating it into your organization. Without it, customer experience becomes one more customer-focused tactic that your company tried for a while and then abandoned. more

In a post at his eponymous blog, Tom Trush tells the story of a client who asked for help after a direct-mail lead-generation campaign failed to yield a single response. His prospects, insisted the exasperated client, were different. "Every time I hear this claim my ear drums rattle," says Trush. ... more

Webinars are a wonderfully robust and lively marketing tool, and an effective way to reach your prospects or buyers. Or, rather, they can be... if done correctly. Here are three key challenges you need to address if you want to call your webinar a success. more

Large retailers can count on Black Friday to turn their books from red to black, and online retailers have Cyber Monday to cash in afterward. This year, though, we also have Small Business Saturday. So how can a small business get the upper hand on these three monumental shopping days? more

Even before the recent furor over Amazon's sale of the self-published "The Pedophile's Guide to Love and Pleasure," and the subsequent less-than-stellar and social-media-inept response by Amazon, it seemed clear that the pioneering e-commerce giant had begun to fall behind the social-commerce curve. more

In a brief Take 10 online tutorial at MarketingProfs, Jim Lenskold, president of Lenskold Group, spells out clear guidelines for creating targeted lead-nurturing programs that can help you boost conversions, reduce sales-cycle times and create more profitable and enduring customer relationships. Granted, that's a tall order for a 10-minute presentation, but ... more

To launch your marketing programs, you need the green light from your internal executives—and that means building the business case for new media and new programs. Here's how to convince B2B executives that mobile poses a high-opportunity, high-ROI marketing channel—and can make a significant impact with their business-centric audiences. more

Customer retention is ultimately driven by value. Even the best segmentation, targeting, positioning, creative messaging, or promotion with flawless execution will fall flat in the absence of value. To succeed, customer retention must be a top-down, companywide initiative. Here's how to get there in six steps. more

Companies have discovered that a virtual-engagement strategy provides a new channel for reaching target audiences. Virtual-engagement platforms remain open 24/365 for connecting with prospects, customers, and employees around the globe. No wonder virtual engagement is on its way to becoming a key component of innovative companies' marketing mix. more

"If you're like many professional service providers, you get a lot of business from referrals," writes Barbara Bix at MarketingProfs. But you may not realize how closely the referral process parallels the buying process. "[J]ust as you can accelerate the buying process," she notes, "you can accelerate referrals by anticipating ... more

During the holiday season, how do you reconcile the high-pressure needs of your small business with your family's desire to roast chestnuts on an open fire? Having a virtual phone service can help, as can these 12 small-business phone tips for the 12 days leading up to Christmas. more

Though the recession is over and the economy is in recovery, most IT managers are still holding back on their spending—adding even more stress to an already lengthy sales cycle. Some of the stress can be avoided with an effective sales system and a strong game for each stage of ... more

"The Web makes it too easy for your competitor to lure away interested buyers before your people have had a chance to contact them," warns Steven Woods in a post at the Harvard Business Review blog. And that reality, he argues, demands some fundamental changes in the B2B sales process. ... more

Your sales and marketing organizations are the most critical links to customers. The alignment of those two organizations determines how well a company attracts buyers and sells to them. The relationship is more than just a simple handoff at the point a lead is generated; it is the foundation for ... more

On the Web, customers want details, facts, comparisons, and feedback from other customers. They avoid the fluff and waffle and marketing hype. What the Web represents, more than anything else, is a shift in power: away from organizations, toward customers. Brands, politicians, even popes are being questioned more than ever. more

With the near ubiquity of online social networks, you might think they're just the thing for your lead generation and nurturing programs. But before you take a spontaneous Facebook plunge, Ardath Albee of Marketing Interactions offers a few caveats. "The problem I find most prevalent is that companies have no realistic ... more

In June, The Wall Street Journal reported a surge in social-media use by law firms interested in connecting with potential class-action plaintiffs. But if you take a closer look, you'll see that many of the approaches used provide viable marketing lessons for businesses of all types. more

Online Web forms that capture customer data in exchange for content—or another kind of information or service—are often the first point of contact customers have with your business. So, why are they so awful? Or overly ambitious? more

As a marketer, you might have noticed a certain ebb and flow in the requests you get from your sales department. "At the beginning of the year when the funnel is looking light and the end of the quarter or year seems far away, eager sales people see their friends ... more