We’ve been genoodling…
Inspiration, Insights, and the Occasional Rant
Measuring Marketing ROI – Simple, Right?
The Problem With Measuring Marketing ROI I've had so many conversations with marketers about measuring marketing ROI. Usually those conversations are with marketers who are being asked to justify their own existence. "Show us what marketing is doing for us," the...
List Cleansing – Marketing’s Fall Cleaning Ritual
As we in the northern hemisphere prepare for the arrival of winter, we go through certain rituals - put the patio umbrella away, drain the hoses, wash the windows, winterize the car... you get the idea. For we who market, fall has a different meaning. Why Fall Is the...
Don’t Be Seduced By Your Email Open Rate
I’m going to say something here that may shock you. Your email open rate is pretty meaningless. I understand the urge to cue the bugles! Release the balloons! Break out the champagne! The open rate on your latest email is at 40%! Ever have one of those days? How could...
An Autoresponder Is Not What You Want
Autoresponder vs. Lead Nurturing: They're Not the Same If you want to engage with the people who opt in to your email list, you don't want an autoresponder. You want lead nurturing. The term, autoresponder, has been so over-used, many people think that lead nurturing...
Stop Saying “Thank You” – Rethinking Thanks
"Thank you" - arguably one of the top two most polite expressions in any language. We're taught from toddler-hood to say "thank you" when we're given something (whether we asked for it or not). Thank you for the gift. Thank you for the meal. Thank you for the ride,...
Lead Segmentation Doesn’t Work Like That
We talk about lead segmentation a lot. A lot of other people talk about lead segmentation, too, and there's a lot of really bad advice running around out there in the interwebs. There are two ways in which lead segmentation can go horribly wrong. Let's talk about...
Content Marketing Challenges – Make It Easy on Yourself
A recent survey and infographic released by SEMRush and The Content Marketing Institute talks about content marketing challenges. While we agree with the findings, we also feel like the conclusions were written for big companies, and not at all helpful for small and...
WWAD? Lessons from the Amazon Marketing Powerhouse
No matter the size of your business, whether you're a marketing team of one or twenty, whether you sell one product or service or hundreds to consumers or businesses, there are lessons to be learned from the Amazon marketing powerhouse. This crystallized for me when I...
Links in Emails – How Many Should I Have?
We get asked about links in emails a lot. How many links can I have? How many links are too many links? We want to give people lots of choices to click on, right? Well, maybe that's not the right answer. Let me explain. You Want the Click First of all, we coach people...
Marketing Results Not So Good? It’s Not Your Fault…
Someone has moved the cheese. Marketing results aren't what they once were. What worked two years ago, five years ago, ten years ago - those tactics don't work any more. Something has changed, and it's a big something. Here's the thing: it wasn't you. It's your...
Attract Leads Who are Perfect For You
Why Traffic Alone Won't Bring You Perfect-Fit Leads What do you do when you want to attract leads who are perfect for you or your business? Leads who could become your customers? And not just any customers, but the kind of customers you really want to have? You know,...
Double Opt-In Requirements – Not So Good for Marketers
Double opt-in requirements are a problem for marketers. Frankly, double opt-in requirements were created by email service providers to protect THEIR sender reputation, THEIR email deliverability rating. The claim was that anyone could put anyone else's info into an...