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Last year, Web content came of age as more and more organizations recognized it as an asset, and not just some commodity. Gratefully, more and more organizations have begun to put content first, technology second. However, there's still a lot to do.

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A big question for Web site designers continues to be this: what is the optimal number and placement of marketing call-outs on a Web page? The self-service quality of the Web has led to page designs that all too often serve myriad marketing goals. A single page can have any number of callouts in its layout, trying to catch the attention of a variety of consumers in different states of need. It is very easy for this messaging complexity to overwhelm consumers. But what if we deployed a genetic algorithm on a site to optimize the placement and numbers of callouts within a page layout to grow, on an ongoing basis, a page's marketing gains?

CONTENT TYPE: Article | TOPIC: Writing

Chances are that when engineers propose a new car model, they don't fail to include an engine in their designs. Unfortunately, that's not true of many B2B marketers and their direct marketing strategies. Too many creative briefs have a great chassis—terrific messaging hooks, keen insight into audience desire—without the engine to drive it: an honest-to-goodness offer, a do-this-to-get-that promise.

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This week: What approaches or steps do newsletter publishers need to follow to ensure the newsletter makes it all the way to recipients' inboxes? Join the conversation! Also this week, read your answers to the previous dilemma: How can a business cash in on year-end purchasing?

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Poor Eddie the e-marketer has been plagued by errors in judgment all his life. Although he at least understands the importance of e-marketing for driving traffic to his site, he's like a hamster running on a wheel, wasting energy and getting nowhere. Let's take a look at a few of the more typical e-marketing errors Eddie regularly makes—and what he should do instead.

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Long copy works well in direct mail. But how does it work online? This week, add your own two cents to: How can long Web copy be compelling? Also this week, read your answers to the last dilemma: How do spam rules apply in the real world?

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At almost 80 million, Baby Boomers make up the largest generational demographic today. And, among Boomers, women not only outnumber men, but they also influence as much as 80% of household purchase decisions, from food and finance to travel and technology. In other words, Baby Boomer women are the greatest market opportunity today. Better understanding these women will undoubtedly provide companies with greater advantage in the marketplace of the future.

CONTENT TYPE: Article | TOPIC: Writing

It's time for those in public relations to take a kinder, more empathetic approach to dealing with the media. OK, well maybe that's being too sensitive. But it does help to put yourself in a reporter's shoes when trying to get editorial coverage about your company or your client.

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It's natural to start thinking about your career in the beginning of a New Year—a time for resolution, reflection and rebirth. To help you focus on taking your marketing career to the next level, here are five key elements of a successful strategy.

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The US started the ball rolling over a year ago with CAN-SPAM, followed closely by the EU directives implementation. This article, presented in two parts, looks at the Australian Spam Act, which came into force in April of this year. Here's how the Act is structured and how it's already making significant progress in the ongoing battle against spam.

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A basic role for a marketing researcher is that of intermediary between the producer of a product and the marketplace. The marketing researcher facilitates the flow of information from the market or customer to the producer of the good or service. Such a situation, with three major players—the producer, the customer and the market researcher—often sets the stage for conflicts of interest which can give rise to ethical problems. Given the inevitability of ethical dilemmas in marketing research, well-established ethical guidelines are critical.

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Imagine your marketplace is a field of banana trees. Your marketing people are those who nurture and pick the bananas. Bananas are harvested when they are green, and they turn yellow as they ripen. Roughly 95% of your leads are like harvested green bananas. Here's how to ripen all those green bananas before you pick them.

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This week, add your two pesos to the dilemma: If you're a service business or sell a more complex product, is it still possibly to take advantage of the holiday shopping season? Also this week, read your answers to last week's problem: What is the best approach or message for marketing technical services and solutions?

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At a time when Marketing and IT must closely collaborate in order to cope with a rising swell of consumer data, both groups still engage in needless bickering, neither side willing to put aside historical grudges. Without a common understanding of the role of technology in customer management, and a path to get there, progress toward true CRM will continue to be thwarted.

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There was a time, not long ago, when companies could generate new business by simply listening to and following the advice of their investors and business advisers. To remain successful today, however, companies must collaborate directly with their most important stakeholders—paying customers.

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More and more companies around the world understand the importance of really knowing how their customers and prospects view their organizations. They also realize that viewpoints can change quickly. So how do you keep informed of your customers' opinions? How do you know they're continually satisfied? How do you know that they value your company? Or that they feel appreciated? Gathering this data objectively, accurately and quickly can be difficult. Yet it's critical in today's competitive marketplace.

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These days, businesses are increasingly using a full range of communication methods including email, Web and fax to enhance relationships with existing customers, as well as a low-cost means of acquiring new ones. Now an emerging communication mode, text messaging—or Short Message Service (SMS)—provides an additional and interesting opportunity for companies and organizations to differentiate themselves.

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E-marketing is about substance over show, logic over emotion, text over graphics. In fact: good Web marketers follow the Google motto: be useful.

CONTENT TYPE: Article | TOPIC: Writing

In today's competitive enterprise technology marketplace, the customer success story can be the tipping point for turning a prospect into a customer. Of course, the success story begins with a happy customer. But are you focusing on the right customers? Are you writing the best stories? Can your sales team and its prospects find the most relevant stories on your Web site?

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Custom publishing is a proven branding and messaging strategy that can be an important part of an integrated marketing campaign. But this communications approach—whether "sponsored" supplements, newsletters or magazines—can also play a role in a strategic PR initiative.