By Alexandra Reid
As a regular feature, we provide our readers with a roundup of some of the best articles we have read in the past week. On the podium this week are CIO, V3, Fast Company, MarketingWeek and Dave Fleet.
Big data analytics a big benefit for marketing departments
Today’s companies collect a lot of consumer data, but much of it sits on servers. Here’s how firms in a variety of sectors can mine that data and turn it into increased revenue (and how IT departments can help).
Content marketing: Master the content loop in 7 steps
When it comes to creating and distributing content as a key part of your content strategy, keep two objectives in mind: creative and marketing. As you create and implement your content marketing strategy, it’s critical to master the content loop — and that involves more than writing a blog post and hitting “publish.” Keep these steps in mind to ensure you’re getting the most out of the content you create and the strategy you’ve defined.
The cure for content creation madness
After recovering from a “Hootsuite infection,” author Lisa Nirell regained her footing on the road to content creation recovery by recognizing that she was missing a critical ingredient in her content marketing program: strategy. In this post, she offers some good tips about what makes a great content marketing strategy, and how to know when you’re about to contract content-creation madness and your strategy is amiss.
“I see no reason why CMOs shouldn’t also take customer experience under their wing”
Should chief marketing officers really aspire to be CXOs? That stands for chief experience officer, although it is perhaps more often called chief customer officer. There are currently very few CXOs at brands — although they do appear at agencies — but the chief customer officer job title is slowly creeping into organisations. This is a good argument on why CMOs should also adopt customer experience as part of their marketing strategies.
Forrester says social doesn’t drive online sales, and why that’s fine
Research recently released by Forrester entitled “The Purchase Path of Online Buyers in 2012” indicates that email and search dominate the online space in driving online sales. Social media, says the report, drives less than one percent of online sales. While Dave Fleet says he’s skeptical of the report, he does think there is food for thought here. This is an interesting perspective (that has developed into a great discussion) worth your attention.
Is your startup ready for a PR blitz? The 7-step checklist
You want a big PR splash, but if you do it wrong, you’ll just get mud on your face. Here’s how to make sure your big debut isn’t a bust.
