Music is the most popular video category on YouTube, accounting for 30.7% of all videos viewed, followed by entertainment videos (14.6%), and people and blog videos (10.8%), according to a study from Sysomos. more

In a recent Search Engine Land article, Andrew Goodman predicts that the biggest risk in 2010-2011 for search marketers may lie in working with outdated assumptions about the size and potential of target markets and the paid-search channel. As a remedy, he suggests five investment or expansion "risks" that could ... more

Nearly one-quarter (24%) of consumers say they regularly play games on social networking sites such as Facebook and MySpace––and contrary to prevailing stereotypes, the typical social gamer is a 43-year-old woman, according to a new survey from PopCap Games. more

Looking to make your brand trendier? Get a load of Trendistic, a clear and simple way to watch the ebb and flow of buzz on Twitter. A visit to the Trendistic homepage gives you a quick glimpse at what keyword is hottest on Twitter right now. In addition to the most current ... more

It'd be an understatement to say 2009 was a tough year for Domino's Pizza, what with the awkward employees-abusing-food scandal. A quick recap: two bored employees recorded themselves doing unpleasant things with food, and the video wound up on YouTube. Domino's responded swiftly enough, both terminating the employees and releasing an apologetic YouTube video ... more

The Great Recession has certainly not spared nonprofit organizations. With contributions down an average of nine percent, many charitable organizations have been forced to cut services. Some even face closure. Fortunately, though, the news is not all bad. "With the right marketing mix, savvy nonprofits are able to leverage social-media marketing ... more

The most significant online viral campaign of the decade was "Mentos and Diet Coke experiments" by Eepybird.com, according to a survey conducted by GoViral. more

You're probably familiar with the story of The Little Mermaid. In this classic tale of unrequited love, a girl exchanges her voice for the chance to be close to a prince. It's a parable about finding the right voice amid the melee. Faced with a plentitude of uncertainties about social media, ... more

Belgian beer label Stella Artois has added a splash of engagement to its marketing strategy with Le Bar Guide. Developed by Acrossair, Le Bar Guide is a free app that points users to the nearest bar serving Stella. Run searches by ZIP Code, or switch the augmented reality feature on—and have ... more

Last summer, a happy couple sent ripples through the Net when their video, JK Wedding Entrance Dance, hit YouTube. The video depicted a wedding entourage dancing down the aisle to Chris Brown's "Forever," concluding with the bride cutting the rubber in the general direction of her nervous, but giddy, groom. Great ... more

If your small business has earned a devoted cadre of loyal customers, you can assume they have a vested interest in your ongoing success. They want uninterrupted, easy access to the products or services they love—and, therefore, want your company to thrive. But have you given your customers a way ... more

"I know I have said it a million times in speeches, articles and in person," writes Dylan Boyd at The Email Wars blog, "but telling someone 'thanks' is one of the best things that you can ever do for your email campaigns." He was particularly impressed by the follow-up he received ... more

The notion that you can manage your brand by making and distributing messages and materials that you want "out there" is becoming quaint. And though the new age of extreme participation is a challenge, you as brand manager haven't lost all control—and you CAN influence what you can't control. more

What can marketers learn from the smallest of small businesses, a hair salon? You might be surprised: Here is a story of an integrated-marketing and client-service approach that any business would do well to emulate. more

When McDonald's launched its specialty coffees earlier this year, its banner ads inviting consumers to "McCafé Your Day" were all over the Web. Great branding, but does such online advertising send customers to local establishments? The short answer: When combined with search, it does! According to Christa Hoyland, editor of QSR Web, Google research ... more

In late October, Twitter launched its Lists feature, which might just improve your life in a panoply of organization-friendly ways. The new feature helps you sort your own contacts based on personal relevance, but—maybe more importantly—it also provides you with ready-made groups of people to which to target your messages. ... more

Get this: 8 in 10 smartphone users say they have trouble accessing content from their handhelds. What's more, they swear they'd spend at least $9 more per month on purchases if the products they wanted were easier to find. The stats come from a survey of both US and UK smartphone ... more

In a video at TED.com, Israeli conductor Itay Talgam gives a spirited 20-minute talk on what modern leaders could learn from great conductors. Interestingly, a lot of the principles he presents in the video can apply to nourishing a social-media campaign. Here are some of his words of wisdom that can cross over ... more

Few things are as irresistible as a mobile game that lets players rack points up during waiting-room or bus-ride lulls. But if you're a brick-and-mortar shop, or a restaurant, there isn't much incentive for throwing another branded version of Tetris out into the ether. What to do, what to do? Solution: Hook up ... more

"Looking for a way to punch up your email campaigns and get subscribers more engaged with your site?" Julie Waite asks in a recent post at the Bronto blog. "Product reviews may be the answer," she says. "Implementing product review functionality on your site can help seal the deal and convince ... more

In a recent post at the Online Marketing Blog, Adam Singer summarizes Charlene Li's keynote at Search Engine Strategies San Jose last summer. Co-author of the business bestseller Groundswell: Winning in a World Transformed by Social Technologies, and a MarketingProfs presenter, Li examines the intersection of search and social media. According ... more

Kevin Nalts, a marketing director who produces hi-lar-ious videos on YouTube under the handle nalts, once joked that after cutting a bazillion notches into his belt, he still has no idea what makes a viral hit with users. And that's the accepted wisdom: Creating a truly viral video—something people want to ... more

"It's certainly not unusual that a stand up comedian like Tim Washer would be producing absurdist viral videos," notes AdAge. "What is surprising is that the IBM communications executive is doing so for his straight-laced corporate employer." Washer's first mini-mockumentary for the conservative company was called Mainframe: The Art of the ... more

Hoping to position Lufthansa as bigger than just a German airline, digital agency Profero has helped it create MySkyStatus—a tool that has brought Lufthansa's branding catch-phrase, "passion for precision," to life in a hands-on way. "Communications needs to have a use," explains Profero's Wayne Arnold in a recent article at Adweek. "Saying ... more

Last summer, Morgan Stewart of ExactTarget quizzed 2,400 people on their attitudes toward marketing and made an interesting discovery. "70% of consumers who visit Facebook at least once a month and are a 'fan' of at least one company or brand, don't believe they have given those companies permission to ... more