Reading online isn’t much different than in print. Some of us read every word on every line, but for the rest of us – we’re skimmers. If a headline captures our attention and piques our interest, we’ll make the decision to invest time and read the full article. As it turns out, writing blog headlines is just as much a science as it is an art. Sure, you need to eloquently string a cohesive series of words together to tee up your article, but you…
Read MoreYes, understanding your business (think: value proposition, mission statement) is important. But I’d argue that truly understanding your customers is even more crucial. If you don’t know your target customers, how can you successfully market and sell your products and services? Creating buyer personas, a semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer, is one of the best ways to generate leads and ultimately close sales. There are dozens of questions you could ask yourself, your team and your customers to help develop buyer personas. To keep…
Read MoreGathering buy-in from internal stakeholders on a content strategy often can be a difficult feat. One of the most successful and helpful ways to get everyone in the boat rowing together is to involve internal stakeholders in the content marketing process early on. Sales teams, in particular, can be helpful in shaping content strategy as they typically have a deep well of knowledge about both the products you sell and your key prospects. The next time your team sits down to map out a content…
Read MoreThere’s a significant difference between clicks to your website and true inbound lead generation. While it may be tempting to report those larger web traffic numbers as “leads,” the reality is that you can’t be certain that those folks are actually prospective customers. Website traffic is important Don’t get me wrong, traffic to your site is important. After all, it’s the first step in generating customers though online marketing efforts. But if your end goal is lead generation, it’s essential to consider clicks and leads…
Read MoreFirst of all, it’s a lot less expensive and time intensive than it used to be. For example, we’re shooting this with about an initial investment of two to three thousand dollars worth of equipment that we don’t have to keep on buying over and over again. Plus, even if you’re looking at an outside videographer, those costs are a lot less expensive than it used to be. I’m shooting this video today, but we’re also shooting three or four other videos that you’ll see…
Read MoreOne of the things that’s very important is to look at your marketing or PR firm as a partner. And you get really down in the weeds on the day-in and day-out stuff with them. You have those daily calls, or monthly calls or meetings, and those are really designed to move the ball forward on an incremental basis. But, my suggestion is, meet with those firms twice a year, three times a year — block out three hours and really talk about the big…
Read MoreYou want to start marketing, but you know how to start. And, the first question, instead of asking what type of marketing you want to do, is to really ask who is your audience. And, the best way to find out who your audience is, is to talk to folks, both inside your organization and outside your organization, and then also existing customers. They’re going to be the ones that are going to give you the really good opportunities and give you the insights to…
Read MoreClients come to us for a variety of reasons – from wanting press coverage for a new product to helping generate new business leads. Sometimes they know which tactics would move the needle, but more often, it’s not so clear. That’s where a marketing audit comes in. A marketing audit is a comprehensive review of an organization’s materials, messaging, audiences and competitors using internal, external and third-party research. The result: a deep understanding of key buyer personas and recommendations for a strategic path toward achieving…
Read More#Fakenews… #FakeAd? We are living in a world where 75 percent of consumers don’t accept advertisements as truth. And you know what? I don’t blame them. On the other hand, consumer reports are full of that kind of honesty, and it’s what buyers are looking for. In fact, 70 percent of people believe consumer opinions, which is pretty wild— people are seeking out strangers’ opinions to inform their buying habits—and they trust those strangers more than advertisements. So imagine the potential for success if a…
Read MoreEarlier this year we revamped our monthly newsletter, The Press Box, to include some of the industry-related news and trends we’re talking about around the Hodges office. Think of this aptly named section, The Rundown, as your monthly recap of all things PR, social and content. Like what you read below? Subscribe to receive the next issue of the Press Box. VR Giving Employees R&R at Work The New Yorker highlighted Mure VR, an Icelandic startup that’s hoping to cure ho-hum office environments into “Oh wow!” ones…
Read MoreA few weeks ago, Christmas came early for inbound marketers when Hubspot released its 2017 State of Inbound report. After combing through the wonderfully presented data, here are a few nuggets that grabbed our attention: 70% of respondents said their top marketing priority was converting contacts/leads into customers. However, they’ve got to overcome their biggest challenge before they can get to their top priority; 63% of respondents said their biggest challenge is generating traffic and leads. 46% of folks said that inbound marketing has a…
Read MoreThere’s been a lot of talk lately about the merging of public relations and marketing.* Even here at Hodges, some of our most successful work over the past few years has been for those clients who’ve charged us with identifying leads and supporting sales (ya know, kind of like marketing). Which shouldn’t be a surprise. Consumers are more jaded than ever with traditional marketing strategies, instead drawn to compelling stories and content designed to entertain and inform, rather than explicitly sell. PR pros also are…
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