Top Marketing Blogs
Share the Top Marketing Blogs on
Online Marketing Performance
There’s a lot of love about online marketing from a strategic standpoint. Possibly the biggest differentiator between online marketing and other marketing methods is the degree to which it can be tracked. After launching a website, social media presence, or campaign, the next logical step is to understand and optimize...
Augmented reality, live video overlay from Photosynth creator
This is a great video from TED2010 that shows off the latest Microsoft has to offer on the mapping front including live video being overlaid at the street-view level in Bing Maps. Blaise Aguera y Arcas, who brought us Seadragon/Photosynth, lead the team that made this a reality. The whole...
I was doing some searches today to see if anything was new and exciting with how Google was handling Social Search results and saw something in the Sponsored Links results that’s new to me. I searched for Terralever (the online marketing company I work at) and one of the AdSense...
Bank of America: A tale of two social presences
Bank of America has a presence on both Facebook and Twitter. The brand perception that one walks away from after visiting each one couldn’t be more different. In a presentation I recently did I used the contrast between the two as a way to illustrate success, and failure, during the...
Google Buzz Poll: Force or Flop?
Following several clunky forays into social media, today Google has unveiled Google Buzz. From the Official Google Blog: Our belief is that organizing the social information on the web — finding relevance in the noise — has become a large-scale challenge, one that Google’s experience in organizing information can help solve. We’ve...
Google puts some more social in its search
Last week I did an internal presentation at Terralever talking about how search engines like Google and social networking sites alike were likely both attacking the idea of extending their understanding of both information and the social graph. Today I tripped over an example of Google Social Search and recollected...
Deliverability.com
Yahoo! Mail Announcement for CertifiedEmail senders
As previously mentioned here on Deliverability.com, as of last month, Yahoo! Mail no longer participates in Goodmail’s CertifiedEmail program. For CertifiedEmail senders, this means CertifiedEmail messages no longer receive enhanced privileges such as guaranteed inbox placement, images displayed by default,......
Inbox Reserve Part III: Email Notifications go Prime Time
The challenge for today’s brand marketers is to find ways to seductively charm subscribers to fully or partially divulge their social media credentials through an intuitive preference center. Some subscribers will immediately acquiesce, while others will be more sensitive and allow the brand only a partial glimpse into their...
Why is there a NOT spam button?
My friend Morgan Stewart has said it all publicly that either a few of us have thought to ourselves at one time or another or have said out-loud in a secret behind closed door email coalition session. "Why do Email......
JOB: @WhatCounts is looking to hire an Email Delivery Manager (please retweet)
This is a paid job posting. WhatCounts is looking to hire an Email Delivery Manager. Do you know someone who might be a good fit? Please help spread the word or contact jobs [at] whatcounts.com for more info. About the......
Inbox Reserve Part II: Future Subject Lines will Reduce Spam Complaints
The most compelling reasons for brands to earn network permission from subscribers is that it dramatically reduces spam complaints. Socialized email notifications are important because they prioritize a subscriber’s network first and the brand second....
RPost and Return Path Announce Partnership
Good news for those who are on the Return Path’s Certification program. RPost and Return Path announced a partnership today where Return Path’s Certification clients will now be able to access an integrated offering where your outbound messages can incorporate......
Better Closer
Use Google Reader as Your PR Monitoring Tool
RSS and Google Reader can combine to be one of the few PR monitoring tools you ever need. The Google Reader does a great job of aggregating and organizing all of your RSS monitoring feeds. However, if you really want Google Reader to be a PR tool you need to...
Developing Leads for Your Sales Pipeline
I came across one of the classic deadly myths of sales. It was in the form of a question on LinkedIn Answers. Let’s see if you can spot it: What do you find works the best for developing leads? I am currently researching other ways to develop leads and eventually fill...
Stop Being the Idea Guy and Just Do It!
Image by Tiago Daniel via Flickr I can’t think of too many people I would less like to be around than the “idea guy” or the “I thought of that guy.” And two of my favorite blogs have called them out. I have nothing to add. I’ll just point you to them: 37Signals:...
Black Ops Social Media Marketing
Image by mr.smashy via Flickr I just finished up the latest book in the Jason Bourne series, Bourne Deception. I love the action and intrigue of a good spy thriller. It pulls me back to my early days in the intelligence community… Okay, maybe not quite the same–I never had to kill...
Don’t Just Monitor Your Brand, Watch the Niche for Sales
Image by kvanhorn via Flickr Monitoring your brand online and in social media has become a no brainer. However, if you are neglecting your niche keywords and competitor brands you are letting opportunity fall out of your sales funnel. Here are a few examples of a great Michigan brand, Steelcase monitoring social...
What is Social Media Monitoring? 5 Steps to Listening Efficiently.
Social media monitoring should be a top priority on any corporate strategic agenda. This medium of communicating and marketing is surging at an unprecedented rate. What’s more it can be overwhelming if you simply jump in without any filters. This begs the frustrating question most corporate executive are pondering: What is...
Church of the Customer Blog
Ant's Eye View: New office, new practitioner
Here's some fun news about our company, Ant's Eye View: We are opening a Silicon Valley office. The new office will support our client base there, including Cisco, Yahoo!, SAP, Symantec, and Apple. Silicon Valley is our third office, after Seattle and Austin. Kira Wampler of Intuit community engagement fame...
Loyalty lessons from Lady Gaga
There's a lot marketers can learn from artist and musician Lady Gaga. At age 23, Lady Gaga has rocketed to global fame in less than two years. Playing piano at age 4 and New York nightclubs at 14, she recently broke Billboard's record as the first artist to have her...
$100 off admission to NewComm Forum
I will be keynoting at the NewComm Forum in April. The NewComm Forum is one of the top conferences that focuses on the power of social media and new communications tools and technologies to can make organizations more competitive, insightful, innovative, efficient, productive and ultimately more profitable. The conference is...
It was my birthday this week, so that usually means birthday-related direct mail from women's retail stores. I have two examples that showcase distinct differences between doing the minimum amount and doing something worth buzz. Ann Taylor delivered a typical postcard: 15% off a one-time purchase in February. "On your...
Strategic objectives are the Holy Grail of a company's being. They typically involve big plans, so the natural inclination is to compose a lengthy description of each objective. That means strategies and tactics are often piled into the wording of the objective. That unnecessarily complicates the objective, making it less...
Why it's important to be a linchpin and an artist
If you want to succeed in today's world of work, author Seth Godin says you should focus on being a "linchpin." That's the title of his new book, so we asked him a few questions about it. Q: What is a linchpin, and why is it important to become one?...
Designdamage Blog
Customer Experience: Do You Really Know Your Audience?
It’s no surprise that the increasingly social web have enabled customers to be heard while helping to improve the very products and services they’ve purchased. As millions of people continue to search online for the product they need and the service they want, do you know how the recession has...
How Augmented Reality Affects Marketing
I received some feedback and questions on Augmented Reality (AR) after my last post and thought to provide some additional inspiring ideas with regards to where AR is heading. The best example can be seen from Yelp’s Monocle app that allows users to see location-based reviews from their iPhone screens. The...
5 Tips to Engage Social and Mobile Customers
If you’ve been keeping up with the current marketing trends, you should be in the process of exploring how to utilize social media to benefit your business. By now, most of the “how to use” social media content is everywhere especially from reputation resources such as Mashable, Social Media Examiner...
The Long Tail of Trust in New Media Marketing
In today’s fragmented media world where we all have some attention deficit in our busy lives, there are simply too many sources of information thus finding a filter that we trust is extremely important. Most people tend to prefer value, look for key opinion leaders and trust one-on-one communication sources. Accordingly...
Reprioritizing Your Brand Value Propositions
We’re almost midway through Q1 of 2010, if your business is still going through a tough time, you’re not alone. Perhaps it’s time to review your cost cutting measures or reexamine your value proposition to your customers. McKinsey Quarterly recently published “The downturn’s new rules for marketers,” which suggests new ways...
What Should You Consider When Integrating Social Media
As we progress into 2010, the rapid growth of social media has allowed more access to information, consumers, communities, and experiences. This new medium has enabled a new way to communicate and share, from B2C to B2B marketers are all trying to figure out an edge. Many brands start to...
OnlineMarketerBlog
Follow-up On Ethics – Crisis Management Begins Before The Crisis
I followed up my ethics post from yesterday with a post on the Experience Matters blog entitled “Crisis Management Begins Before The Crisis” (disclosure: it’s my employer’s blog). Here’s the very beginning and the very end: “Toyota reminds me of a guy who buys flood insurance the day after the big rain… It’s this...
What is Ethical Strategy (And Does It Really Work)?
Marketers are faced with ethical quandaries every day. Sometimes these are big issues – What is the lawful (and tasteful) line when marketing to children? Could I work for Big Tobacco? Most times though these decisions are small – decisions that determine which tactics are fair game and which are off the...
5 Ways To Promote Creative Marketing
Last night I was perusing an article from the Harvard Business Review by Ed Catmull, cofounder of Pixar, entitled “How Pixar Fosters Collective Creativity.” I was really struck by how their principles for inciting creativity are the very same I’ve written about here for marketers. It shouldn’t be surprising; anyone who has been in marketing...
Does Your Social Media Strategy Need A Zen Alarm Clock?
I’m a terrible sleeper. No, scratch that – I’m a terrible waker-uper. I set at least two alarms – one placed clear across the bedroom – and hit snooze enough times to wake and enrage BG (rightfully so). While I used to be disciplined enough to rise at 4:45am to write, I’m...
Raising Awareness Is The “About Us” Page Of RFI/RFP Requirements
Do you really want to raise awareness? Does your “About Us” page really say anything about your organization? In the latest Marketing Minute video, I discuss a trend I’ve been seeing: an increasing focus on “raising awareness,” whatever that means. It’s vague, worthless, but prized by the C-level suite. I believe we...
Internet Success - The Official Guide to Being Awesome Online
It’s true, I’m selling Successfool.com to pursue something that I’ve been wanting to do for a long time! I’m taking my brand and business in a new direction and am unloading Successfool as I’ve been neglecting it with the stuff I’ve been doing locally with Sacramento Marketing Labs. I’m excited moving forward...
Social Media, 49ers, and a Limo!
Super pumped about the game this weekend and wanna throw a big thanks for @angelicaprado for finding me these great tickets and to Bill Murray from @LuxxLimo for hooking me up with a Limo to ride in style to the game… Cause that’s how I roll!! If you’re in Sacramento...
I’m bringing AWESOME back! Okay, now I NEED YOUR HELP! Post a comment below on some video topic ideas? If I choose your topic idea, I’ll throw you a shout out with a link to your Twitter ID & Website. Thanks so much! #doawesome Make sure to follow the hashtag too!...
Sacramento Marketing Labs Podcast – The Urban Hive
Most of you know I started a local Sacramento marketing company called Sacramento Marketing Labs and am having so much fun teaching small businesses in Sacramento leverage the power of Social Media and other Internet marketing strategies. I just started the podcast and I think it will be beneficial for you...
Twitter Generated Podcast – Episode #13
Your questions answered on Twitter! Thanks for the response folks! I might start doing this weekly, the question I asked was: What topics do you have for the Podcast today & here’s the response: Hope you enjoyed the podcast. Answer these questions in the comment section: What do you tell your parents or family when...
My Favorite Marketer is….Successfool Podcast Episode #12
Straight up!!!! Justin Brooke is my favorite marketer. IMO, there’s no one out there that gives more value out there then Justin, and actually cares. He’s doing some very cool things right now that are going to add some TREMENDOUS value to people’s lives and businesses! Justin shares: - How he’s giving free...
Marklives!com
According to Kulula it has been targeted by FIFA for its ad on being the 'Unofficial National Carrier of the 'You Know What.'' The low cost airline recently challenged other carriers to keep their fares low during the FIFA World Cup in June and July this year....
The ‘mega R25,000,000 MILLION’ auction from Aucor
I have never met Rick Raubenheimer but I can yell you the guys has a sense of humour. He recently lodged a complaint with the Advertising Standards Authority of SA (ASA) against a print advertisement for auction house Aucor....
DStv acknowledges promo similarities with iconic Apple ad
"Here's to the crazy ones... who had the balls to copy one of the greatest commercials ever made." The Bizcommunity.com peanut gallery was un-amused when Ornico recently picked a DStv promo titled 'The Dreamers' as its 'Ad of the Week' on its ad showcase on Biz. The promo in question...
Shame on SAPA for giving bigot national, uncritical exposure
One Taryn Hodgson of The Christian Action Network (CAN) has been gaining considerable exposure in the mainstream media thanks to SAPA. Hodgson launched an attack on DSTv researching the possibility of offering a pornographic pay-TV channel to South Africans. SAPA decided to cast her as a vocal opponent of any...
Arthur Goldstuck – Influence 2010
Arthur Goldstuck is South Africa's foremost authority on the Internet. He was one of the first journalists to cover online in this country, one of the first to go online with his content, and one of the first to research and predict its influence on society and business. Something he...
Ogilvy & Mather Mumbai creative director Piyush Pandey introduced South Africans to these Zoozoo characters created for Vodafone during last years IPL during a Design Indaba presentation. They were a huge hit in India as well as with the crowd at the Indaba....
Marketing + Branding + Design
Ignite Raleigh 2 in less than 4 hours
Over 700 people from the Triangle and surrounding areas will be gathering together tonight to hear some great 5 minute presentations. ...
You had me at hello – @GoDaddy reaches out
As everyone is accustomed to doing, I tweeted my experience. Granted, I couldn't describe the whole situation in 140 characters AND I am used to fielding positive and negative feedback from social media at work, but I was still a bit surprised by the response. ...
You Can’t Fake the Funk: A Social Media Gut Check
Tonight I was followed by another self-proclaimed social media expert. I'm not going to bash on that, because in all honesty, there are folks that I DO consider to be social media experts despite the audible groans heard throughout the crowd if anyone says that. My favorite thing about...
Watch in real time: @southwestair and @thatkevinsmith
This is starting to flare up now, but Kevin Smith (world famous multiple hat wearer) was kicked off of a Southwest Airlines flight. ...
Create a social media dunking booth in your company
After attending SocialFresh Tampa (#sofresh) and chatting with the Community panel Amber Naslund (@ambercadabra), DJ Waldow (@djwaldow), Rich Ullman (@richullman) and John Andrews (@katadhin) - I'm convinced that a dunking booth is the best analogy for gaining internal social media use. ...
Do you have questions about companies using Twitter and Facebook?
If so, there's an app panel for that. The Real Facebook and Twitter Results Panel at SoFresh Tampa will field your questions. Do you want to know how Twitter can help you handle customer complaints? How can Twitter increase your reach? How can you add content without being spammy? How can Twitter or Facebook...
AdFreak
Recycling skills useful for dealing with guys
It's pretty amusing to see this woman's boyfriends squashed like food cartons in this recycling ad from Bates Norway....
Abortion grief ads to return to NYC subways
First seen in 2008, the ads point to AbortionChangesYou.com, where people can share their stories of "reproductive grief after abortion."...
Please don't ask your Dutch nurse for sex
Dutch nurses' union NU'91 is launching an ad campaign making it clear, once and for all, that sexual services are not part of standard medical care....
Leave a Bruins game early at your own peril
The Boston Bruins' guy-in-bear-suit mascot returns, more violent than ever, in "Escalator," a clip from Mullen that explains — in shattering terms — why you should never leave a Bruins game early....
You will know him by the trail of dead cars
The new spot by David&Goliath is both intriguing and fairly restrained, especially considering its giant-gorilla-on-the-rampage theme....
Old Navy keeps the mannequin motif going
Old Navy and Crispin Porter + Bogusky continue to build out the year-old Supermodelquin ad campaign in pretty fun ways....
Inc.com
Would You Suspend an Employee Over a Status Update?
If you're thinking hateful thoughts about your colleagues or clients, don't post them on your Facebook news feed – no matter how secure you think your privacy settings are. Gloria Gadsden, an associate professor of sociology at Pennsylvania's East Stroudsburg University, has been put on indefinite paid leave for what she...
You've heard the statistics: Fewer than 30 percent of family businesses survive to the second generation, and just 10 percent hold on through the third. Sound bleak? It's not. Those are far better survival odds than for small businesses not run by a team of family members.A tight-knit managerial circle,...
How to Reduce Your Cost of Sales
Why would you bite that hand that feeds you? That's a standard argument against training a cost-cutting eye on your company's sales department. After all, it's the sales team that brings in most of a company's revenue and secures the necessary cash flow to keep you in business. So why...
Reinventing Our Energy Infrastructure
Take a look at 10 companies reinventing America's energy infrastructure. Changing the way we use energy is going to require more than just new ways of generating electricity. At an innovation summit organized by ARPA-E (a research branch of the DOE modeled after DARPA that looks at high-risk, high-reward ideas),...
Lessons Learned From a Bad Haircut
The education of Mark Zuckerberg. The Wall Street Journal has a must-read profile of Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg, who has kept a firm hold on his company, even as he's raised hundreds of millions of dollars and plotted an eventual initial public offering. The Journal reveals that Zuckerberg...
Now for some good news. A recent survey the Insight Performance team conducted with SBANE (Smaller Business Association of New England) found that an increasing number of small to mid-sized businesses in New England are planning to hire employees this year and offer base-pay increases. This indicates that...
IAB SmartBrief
Bubbly could be the voice of the next generation of social nets
Bubbly, a voice-driven social network, has become the rage in India, where it's the mic of choice for some Bollywood stars. -More- ...
Is Twitter a social tool or a news feed?
More than 70% of Twitter users have posted fewer than 10 updates, Barracuda Networks reports, and that dearth of active users -More- ...
Study: Display ads work better in Europe
Display ads are working better in Europe than in the U.S., according to research by comScore, which found Europeans were 72% -More- ...
Yelp's legal troubles don't seem to stop the flow of reviews
-More- ...
Hearst seeks profits in apps by the thousand
Using templates, the five employees in Hearst's applications unit can churn out thousands of iPhone apps that connect to thin -More- ...
Immediacy is a game-changer for online media buyers
Marketers are looking to real-time bidding as a way to reach Web users at the precise moment when they are viewing content th -More- ...
Big Marketing For Small Business
Sun Life Naming of Stadium Brilliantly Timed For Super Bowl
I’ve become a fan of Tom Mayenknecht of The Sport Market. I catch his morning show on Team 1040 Radio almost every Sunday, and enjoy the business and marketing angle he brings to major league sports. Today, he talked about Toronto-based Sun Life Financial who, in a deal announced January...
Cisco Rewards Heroes in Small Business
Network and communications technology giant Cisco Systems has teamed up with Brickfish for a unique program called Heroes of the Human Network which celebrates and rewards small business operators. To enter the program, you’re asked to describe your small business and how technology has helped you to advance or how...
F5 Expo Launch Party Introduces Malcolm Gladwell to Packed Audience
I was in attendance at the F5 Expo Launch Party yesterday, January 26th. What a great turnout! The place was packed with over 200 people – and all eyeballs were fixated on the many screens around the V Lounge as Malcolm Gladwell appeared within the Mingleverse online universe (think Second...
BIG Ideas For Your Small Business Website
The Internet, and the communications technology that has come with it, has handed small business owners an amazing marketing tool. No longer do middlemen wield a lot of control; instead, the small brands with remarkable products and services have the tools (namely search engines and social networks) to connect them...
Find Out How Great Your Service Is By Asking This One Question
Ask anyone running a small business or large enterprise, and chances are they will cite the quality of their customer service as one of the key reasons people buy from them – often based on verbal feedback they get from internal staff and customers. This is fine, but it lacks...
Yelp User Reviews Uncover The Best in Local Dining and More
I’ve just become the latest Yelp convert. What a great website, and an even better iPhone app. Yelp is another example of a site that aggregates user reviews and ratings to recommend everything from restaurants to clothing, to religious organizations. It’s localized so you can find reviews for most everything...
RefreshWeb
Social Media in 2010 and Second Right Ideas
I’m in charge of coming up with search marketing strategies for our clients, then helping get the content that makes them work through the process of development and implementation. That means I do a lot of research and exploration to find out what lies in that lovely matrix of customer...
Great how-to from Marketing Sherpa in November. This is the reason I like Twitter, by the way…the industry’s leading lights sharing what’s interesting and/or valuable to them. Lots of year-end best-of lists right now. This case study is a great resource, with excellent instructions on how to mobilize your company’s tribe...
Thanks for the great review/year/programming!
This week, I’m thankful for my team, I’m thankful for our clients, thankful for our friends in the business like Mike Belasco, and thankful that our new service launch has gotten such a warm reception. Doug Karr, of the MarketingTechBlog, got a preview of the new, low-cost service offerings supported by...
Morphing from Selling Service to Product
If you’re come to the blog via the home page, you probably noticed all the design changes, namely boxes defining some prospects’ needs, pointing to new pages addressing how we can address this particular problem. This was all possible because last Thursday, we launched our SEO dashboard at InnoTech in Austin,...
TED strikes again…rethinking advertising
A friend of mine who is an economics professor sent me this from the Global TED in Oxford. “The wonderful Rory Sutherland wows the audience at the TED conference in Oxford with a superb sixteen minute talk on advertising and aspects of behavioural economics.” As a repentant ad guy, it’s refreshing...
This time, don’t forget to budget for SEO
October is usually the month that companies are working on budget for the next year, so I wanted to be prompt in reminding you that the continual improvement offered by site optimization is a great investment. We talk to a lot of companies who a) didn’t know they were missing 90+...
Drew Stevens - Business Development & Sales Expert
Sales Techniques with Dr. Drew
If you or one of your selling staff where pulled over by a police officer and arrested for being a selling professional, would there be enough evidence to convict you or the others? The purpose of selling is meant to create relationships. Selling requires building trust and asking provocative questions that...
Secrets to Selling to the C Suite
The current recession has selling professionals and their management seeking alternatives to increase sales. One issue that continually arises is selling to the C Suite. There is a belief that if selling professionals increase their abilities to corporate executives both closure and sales revenues will increase. That may or may...
When Smart Managers Do Stupid Things
Recently a friend of mine was conducting performance reviews for her staff. She has 16 direct reports and when finished all received a superlative review. With the completion of her paperwork and interviews she provided the reviews to her manager for sign off. Trouble began. Her manager indicated to her...
Dr. Drew’s Sales Success Secret
One of the most common trivialities amongst business professionals is the inane desire to conduct thousands of things but do nothing well. Traction is not gained by conducting a plethora of things without focus. Developing business requires focus on two things- customer acquisition and retention. Doing so requires focus on...
Can Social Networking Increase Patient Volume
In the last several years the proliferation of social networking has increased ten fold. Millions of individuals are flocking to social networking sites to connect with friends, Romans and countryman. Herein lies the rub. While social networking provides an array of opportunities to connect with alliances and friends of yesteryear...
The other morning I stepped out onto the driveway to retrieve my morning paper when I saw a noticed attached to my front door. A local realtor had placed collateral materials on my door in the hope of gaining my business. The problem- no value, no trust and no relationship....
Heavyset
Wharton Grads, Olympic Uniformity, Eigenvalues, Heatmaps and the RGB of Cornflower Blue
Yesterday was a sick day - nasal congestion on par with the iPad-induced streaming lockdown of a week ago. Today, I'm clearing both my inbox and my head to the backdrop of Múm's Go Go Smear the Poison Ivy... ***** Brands eager to gain a foothold in the online recruiting space ought...
ClothesSourcing, Going Boxless, Windfarms, Design Schools and Your Own Adventure Decoded
Some thoughtful reading from this morning - time spent trying to wash from my mouth the bitter taste of ABC's two-hour homage to Milton by way of Coppola-in-the-jungle ((I am referring, of course, to last evening's LOST season premiere))...all to Aloe Blacc's terrific Shine Through:...
Tangible Data, Blank Signage, Garlic Presses and Rare Books on Architecture
Heavyset favorite Helge Tenno posits that we ought to re-examine the notion that more screens bearing more information represents progress, and instead look to methods that allow us to integrate our assembled data into physical objects. As I posted yesterday, there's a bit of a theme going on here, notably...
The End of Days, Anti-Anti-Socialism, Polarizing Filters and Splitting Heirs
Tuesday morning thoughts and readings collected against the backdrop of Charlotte Gainsbourg's fantastic new album, IRM...I'm feeling rather progressive about my choice, given the relatively mundane musical selections made in Boston ((Seriously, the Beatles??)) these days, in comparison with those in, say, Barcelona....
Physical intersections, FourSquare ettiquette, John Pareles, Go-Karts and Suitcase Art
Ed Cotton posits over on Influx Insights that a key theme of 2010 will be the intersection of digital and physical devices, a point I quite intended to make on last week's BIMA panel on The Digital State ((but, in my glee, forgot)). The crux of his post is a...
Weekend Reading: Christgau on the Decline, Spoon Holding Steady and Kismet on the Rise
Some found materials and reading collected while spending the weekend pondering the mind-numbing decline of Robert Christgau, Dean of American Rock Critics ((Truly a confounding title, no?)), who placed American Saturday Night by Brad Paisley atop his 2009 ballot for the Pazz and Jop poll. While I've little remaining appetite...
Stage Two's blog
Why Companies Are Catching On To Social Media
Twitter’s attraction in the past year or so has been quite intriguing. For most companies, there’s probably still some confusion as to what it’s good for to generate leads, sales, profits, etc., but this number is slowly dwindling as the months go by. And in a sure sign of Twitter’s...
Client News: WorldMate adds Executive Talent, Looks to Expand Partnerships
20 year wireless industry veteran, Jean Tripier, joins WorldMate as CEO today. Jean comes most recently from Good Technology, where he was Chief Strategy Officer and Chief Operating Officer and built the company’s OEM business from the ground up. Before Good, Tripier was Vice President of Corporate Development at international...
Client News: Share your VUDU viewing via Facebook and Twitter
VUDU, in the wake of their acquisition by Wal-Mart, is continuing to innovate and improve their streaming movie service. The company has announced as of this morning a new social feature baked right into their user interface, specifically the ability to share a recently viewed movie (and how much they...
It’s Easy To Make A Video, But Takes A Lot To Make It Viral
Last year, I was very fortunate enough to attend the Inbound Marketing Summit hosted by Chris Brogan and Justin Levy. It was there that I was first introduced to Tim Street, a video producer and social media marketer – perhaps better well known for French Maid TV. It was there...
Client News: Spot.Us Adds New Ways to Participate in Community Journalism
Today, Spot.Us the pioneer of community funded journalism, takes a new form in its on-going evolution with new features that give communities more ways to participate in the journalism that matters to them. The organization also hopes the new ways it uses technology will help lead to the first open...
Boxee and Redux Team up to Personalize TV
Watching TV is supposed to be a laid-back experience. Just sit on the couch and zone out. The web, on the other hand, is filled with awesome video content, but we spend hour after hour typing, clicking, searching, and sorting through endless seas of boring junk to get to one...
David Airey, graphic designer
Please do head across, let me know what you think, and thanks very much to everyone who offered feedback last month. You were a great help....
The myth of constructive criticism?
What if the sole focus of feedback was to encourage those seeking it, creating a progression in design learning by prompting more of the good, while purposely leaving weaker facets un-criticised?...
Becoming a self-employed graphic designer
Graphic designers often ask how I made the switch to self-employment. Here's a quick overview of that period in my life in 2004/05....
Figuring out the Amazon Sales Rank
As an author, I'm keen to know how book sales are going, so it makes sense to check the stats provided by the world's largest bookseller, Amazon. The retailer displays what's known as the Amazon Sales Rank....
Improve your portfolio with pro bono design
You're a graphic design student with a portfolio full of fictitious projects. You want to work with clients to build your experience, but you need a more developed portfolio to attract the clients. A classic catch-22. That's when working pro bono proves extremely useful. Read on to learn why, and for a...
Where to find contextual image templates for your brand identity presentations
When it comes to client presentations, contextual imagery is key. The use of digital mock-ups allows your clients to visualize how their new brand identity will tie-in with the products they produce, the premises they occupy, the vehicles they drive, the clothes they wear....