For marketers who walk the walk
You know the theory. Now here's the practice. If you want opinions you can trust, advice you can use and real-world experience to learn from, then there's no better collection of marketing experts than here.
Two sayings sprung to mind recently as a project came to a close ‘We learn from our mistakes’ and ‘You are never too old to learn’. The glossy new corporate web site was ready to go live. We’d had the normal arguments over design, struggles to get content in on time and all the familiar tensions between departments about who should do what. Everything – or so I thought – had been tested and tested again and finally it was ready to show to the Senior Management Team.
0 comments | Full storyWhy 2012 is the year you absolutely must get up to speed with mobile
Amid the doom and gloom of the Eurozone crisis, the possible knock-on effect of double-dip recession and the ongoing carnage for many High Street retailers, we should all feel bullish about the prospects for mobile in 2012. Market leaders in most sectors now have a taste for what mobile can achieve for their business, whether growing the customer base, building targeted CRM and loyalty programmes, or harnessing the uptake of mobile commerce with transactional sites and apps. However, the majority of brands are still coasting down the hard shoulder. Few have moved from trial phase and fully harnessed mobile to drive greater efficiencies by better optimising their marketing budgets, to improve customer retention, or to generate an effective, robust new revenue channel.
0 comments | Full storyHow are IBM and Cisco connecting with today’s B2B buyer?
These are thrilling yet difficult times for B2B technology marketers. The end of 2011 finds us in a buyer’s market, having to work harder and smarter to encourage sustainable customer loyalty and brand advocacy – but also having a wealth of new tools and channels to help us achieve our goals. Guest blogger, Laura Nolan, Director at Marketing Options International introduces a great new video series.
1 comment | Full story10 Things I wish I’d known…
Beverly Barker F IDM was recently awarded the prestigious IDM Educator of the Year Award for her exceptional contribution to direct and digital marketing education. A seasoned marketer with 20+ years experience and one of the leading tutors across the IDM qualifications portfolio, we asked Beverly what ten things she had learned in her career that she would love to have known when she started out.
4 comments | Full storySmart, smarter… or Smarterer? Try our digital quizzes
You may have noticed that the IDM recently teamed up with digital quiz people, Smarterer, by compiling a couple of quizzes that test your marketing knowledge. One’s in social media, the other mobile. It’s a fun way to test yourself on what you know, and at the same time take on your colleagues in the race to the top of the leader board. There’s even a badge so you can show off your score on the social web! We fired a few questions at Smarterer CEO, Jennifer Fremont-Smith, to find out what they’re all about.
0 comments | Full storyWhy train marketers up when you can buy them in ready-trained?
I can see how the Royal Family goes about its succession planning: have children. But what about businesses where bloodlines are irrelevant? Where do we expect our future managers and directors to come from?
6 comments | Full storyB2B Marketing Skills: which ones do you need?
Last week at the IDM B2B Marketing Conference I was part of a panel, tasked with discussing the key skills and knowledge that a B2B marketer will need for the future. The starting point and the backdrop for the whole event (which also unveiled the IDM’s new name and branding) was that B2B marketing today is more complex than ever before. Technology has changed how customers research and buy, and the range of tools and channels that a B2B marketers has at their disposal. So what knowledge and skills are required by today’s and tomorrow’s marketer?
5 comments | Full storyWhat’s in a name?
Quite a lot, we feel. Which is why last week we were pleased, and not a little proud, to reveal our new livery, new brand identity – and yes, new name: the Institute of Direct and Digital Marketing. The profession’s reaction so far has been overwhelmingly positive. You love the colours, you think the fresher, more contemporary look is exactly what’s needed to take us forward. But we’re being asked by many: what’s the story?
0 comments | Full storyIn denial. My world is fine without any changes, thank you!
We live in a world of denial. It’s a human mechanism – a weakness. We spend money and don’t worry about paying it back. We damage our environment and see it as the responsibility of others. We pursue activities that may not be kind to our bodies but refuse to accept the potential consequences. Some might say that denial is born from naive optimism. Sadly, reality is often too hard to face so we park the unpleasant bits or those tasks we just don’t want to face in the back of our minds – sometimes to our detriment.
0 comments | Full storySmartPhones need SmartMarketers
In this new mobile, social and collaborative world, nearly everyone carries a SmartPhone or tablet. With several people carrying more than one mobile device, we now have a UK average of 1.33 devices per person! According to a US report, 26% of adults read the news on their mobile device and 75% contribute to, comment on, or forward news stories. The shift is relatively recent and marketers need to quickly adapt their programs to be mobile and socially effective.
0 comments | Full storyAre you maximising the Customer 2.0 opportunity?
Social media is at the heart of Customer 2.0, enabling a new dynamic conversation with potential customers. However whilst companies are starting to formulate their strategies and successful case studies start to appear, without a clear view on how to capitalise on the interest generated, some cannot justify the investment.
5 comments | Full storyNot even PR is safe from Digital
As we all know by now, digital technology has disrupted everything in marketing: Advertising, Direct, Promotions, Design and yes, even PR…
4 comments | Full storyChange is good – it will give you a new lease of life
You may have read ‘Who Moved My Cheese’ by Spencer Johnson. It tackles the concept of change using an allegory to convey the need to embrace this unsettling occurrence – it’s brilliant but has been used in some dubious ways I believe! For many businesses, change is not a welcome guest – in fact, in some instances, it can threaten the very being of existence. ‘Where’ and ‘next’ are not found in the same sentence for fear of upsetting the status quo.
0 comments | Full storyNo such thing as business decisions
In the lead up to the 8th IDM B2B Marketing Conference the premise for my blog series is this: the staunch divide between B2C and B2B no longer exists.
1 comment | Full story10 Steps to prove Social Media Marketing ROI
All marketing should prove its worth and social media marketing (SMM) is no different. Here are my 10 steps to both measuring the effectiveness, and proving the ROI of your social media activity.
4 comments | Full story
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