Increase web traffic. It’s one of the most frustrating things a marketing director can be told, because let’s face it, it doesn’t happen overnight.

That’s why so many companies turn almost immediately to search engine marketing as a solution to their traffic needs. Why invest countless hours and resources in figuring out the byzantine mazes that are the Google and Facebook algorithms when you can just pay for web traffic?

If time is of the essence, this makes sense, but there are some other quick tricks you can use to drive new traffic to your website. Here are six that take less than 5 minutes and will result in at least some new traffic.… Read More

There are a lot of really cool things online – tools, services, and techniques that other entrepreneurs and businesses are using to create incredible experiences for their prospects and customers.

When I see someone doing something new and exciting I take note – literally. I have a Notebook in Evernote filled with all the awesome stuff I see and notes on how I might be able to implement the same tactic, and sometimes make it better.

But I rarely make it back to that list.

It exists and if I ever need a shot in the arm for a project, there’s a big list somewhere with enough ideas to launch a half dozen startups in stealthy, creative ways.… Read More

When I first work with a client, their content strategy is in one of two places – it’s either non-existent with the core of marketing efforts focused on offline tactics and old school sales methods, or it’s focused on quantity over quality.

For those that fall into the latter camp, the issue is often one of planning. Content marketing is all about writing quality content that attracts attention from key prospects, right? But when someone doesn’t know what type of content will successfully make that connection, they compensate by writing more.

I am equally guilty of this. Read my blog from 5-6 years ago or the blog posts on my former agency’s website and you’ll see a whole lot of content and not a lot of focus on solving problems of our readers.… Read More

For a number of industries summer represents a relatively slow period. If you sell to other businesses, it’s likely you’ll experience quieter than normal months through July and August, but that doesn’t mean you have to put your own marketing efforts on hold.

In fact, too many companies see the slow down as an excuse to stop writing and publishing new content and to wait for everyone to get back to work.

There’s just one problem – everyone else is doing the exact same thing. Instead of shutting down your marketing efforts for two months, let’s look at some of the tangential benefits of content marketing and how powering through the slower months of summer can actually help you get ahead.… Read More

Content creation takes a lot of time. A single blog post can take several hours when you account for research, drafting, editing, layout, and promotion.

So it’s understandable that you want to get as much out of every post as you can. Yet our goals as marketers are often contradicted by the volume edict. How do we get enough content into the wild to drive traffic and keep the site at the top of the listings for our targets?

It’s a fine line and how to walk it will depend on a number of factors – your industry, your budget, and how competitive existing content might be.… Read More