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Results from a recent survey found that only 17% of us indicated that our CEOs would give marketing an A. What's more, this study and others continue to suggest that a gap remains between a company's business goals and the metrics marketing uses to measure their impact on these goals. The need and opportunity remains for marketing to improve the linkage between marketing expenditures and delivered results. But what should we measure? And which metrics are best?

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Leading consumer-products companies are looking to rebrand, repackage and relaunch... often too frequently. Sometimes, the effort is merely putting a bandage on a deeper sore. It's far less painful to assess lagging sales in a superficial manner than it is to dig deeper into company practices, customer-service issues, and the actual product mix being offered—not to mention how customers are experiencing the brand and whether that brand is delivering on its promises. In fact, companies that really want to dig for the truth ought to seek answers to these questions... .

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At a time when business and marketing strategy changes at the speed of light, and competitors, partners and customers have instant access to information, the days of the handler the publicist are numbered.

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What's the most common mistake companies make in crafting collateral? What are the keys to creating content that reflects a company's credibility? And how does a company stop talking about itself... and focus on its customers? Here, the author of "Writing Copy for Dummies" shares his insider secrets and expertise.

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In an online sales environment that is both increasingly competitive and cluttered, B2B marketers must be able to perform two critically important tasks: They must communicate a unique brand identity, and they must be agile enough to quickly customize lead generation and communication programs to meet their measurable objectives. These tasks can be especially challenging for small-to-medium-sized B2B firms, as well as for divisions of very large firms. Here's where they are turning for help.

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Kronos had an obvious identity problem that clearly impacted its sales performance, so getting support from the executive suite for a branding initiative should have been a slam-dunk. Except not quite. While everyone agreed there was a brand problem, the solution was costly and very long-term. Here's how Marketing won over Management, by talking a language they understood.

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Part one of this three-part series examined the overall role the customer can (and should!) play in innovation. Here is a deeper look at five specific ways that Marketing can engage the customer in the innovation process, using examples from LEGO, a company that has used these techniques with clear and brilliant success.

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Paul has earned his keep over the past 20 years by building buzz for heavyweights like Google, IBM, and Microsoft. These days he's immersed himself in social media, which serves him well as the director of Global Field & Interactive Marketing for BearingPoint. In this one-on-one, he gives us the lowdown on how to use social media to kick-start your buzz marketing efforts.

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How come some brands are great, while others manage to be just good? Is there a trick up the sleeves of those great brands—a trick that good, sustainable brands can adopt to become equally well-known? The answer is yes.

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If you're responsible for the direction of the online strategies for your company or organization, you've probably been hearing buzz about Twitter, a next-generation instant messaging tool. Even if you're new to Twitter, this article will serve as a guide to educate you to help you make a decision, by linking to resources and providing a starting point for your strategy.

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Google is now (and has been for some time) collecting data on individual users, and they are assuming that users will trust them with this data to "Do No Evil," as their famous slogan goes. Only time will tell whether the trust is well-placed.

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With the rise of social media and user-generated content, there are more factors than ever to consider when designing a company Web site. Throw in SEO and choosing the proper design/layout for your Web site, and it all gets very confusing... very quickly. Which means that Web site optimization experts such as Karen Breen Vogel are in very high demand. Vogel understands how to lead organic traffic to Web sites—but, perhaps more importantly, she understands how to give those users the content they are looking for when they arrive. Here Vogel cuts through the clutter and gives invaluable advice on how to build disciplined Web site optimization programs that build on strengths and business objectives.

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If you are adopting Net Promoter as part of your survey/metrics approach, there's a rich part of the findings that many who are implementing this approach don't consider: learning from your "Detractors." Here, Jeanne Bliss focuses on Detractors, and how to mine the gold by listening hard to their feedback to improve your organization and relationship with your customers.

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Selling now takes more time and resources then ever before. In fact, the sales cycle has become 22% longer as buyers more carefully consider their decisions. If this true for you, then consider it a great opportunity for email marketing segmentation strategies. By segmenting your prospects, you can boost revenue, improve conversion from email marketing, strengthen buyer satisfaction, and build your brand. Sound like a tall order for a segmentation strategy? Consider these ideas.

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Site visitors rarely want to view just one page on your site, except in the case of landing pages or single-page sites. If people actually want to get something done on your site, they will generally work through two or three different pages before taking an action. So here is the question of the day: How well do your pages work together? Or to put it another way: How strong is the transition between your pages?

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Driving sales is what B2B marketing is all about. Although the precise roles and responsibilities of Marketing may differ from company to company, your marching orders are the same: Help Sales produce more with less. All marketers want to know best practices and share experiences about driving sales. Here are 25 metrics you should select from to prove marketing drives sales... and to track progress.

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"You can't sit around and wait for inspiration," said Jack London. "You have to go after it with a club." Pick up your club (your pencil, your laptop, your sketchbook) and let's go. Whatever your particular challenge, these 10 strategies can help you innovate—on a deadline.

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Savvy companies like Dove, Ponds, and Nike know that women are empowered, and those companies have shown us how powerful the images and stories of real women are. What's next on the Marketing to Women horizon?

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Jerry Bader doesn't drink. But if he did, he'd start with Reyka Vodka—not because it's better or worse than any other vodka, but because the company has an extraordinary marketing campaign and an equally clever integrated Web site with an enchanting (if somewhat bizarre) Icelandic spokeswoman. The video commercials for the campaign drew 20,000 views in the first three weeks after being posted on YouTube, and they hold some interesting lessons for marketers.

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Does sex sell? You bet it does. But there's another essential element that goes hand-in-hand with sex. And that's controversy.