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name=\"description\"><meta content=\"\" name=\"keywords\"><meta content=\"144ea0d73f72a2:16aa75308b46dc\" name=\"leadpages-meta-id\"><meta content=\"//inspiretowin.leadpages.co\" name=\"leadpages-url\"><meta name=\"leadpages-served-by\" content=\"wordpress\" /></head>\n<body>\n\t<div class=\"container-fluid\">\n\t\t<div id=\"header\" class=\"row header\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"header-inner role-element leadstyle-container\">\n\t\t\t\t<div id=\"logo-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<a class=\"role-element leadstyle-image-link\"><img alt=\"logo\" src=\"https://lh5.ggpht.com/SSV50fB9j01qFT_YntkVgBf9mZOtIWbaqirZfdJxg95WtziMaXj0A1cHgmsr-yjVhmz7CwjvtuRNPmkQstalIQ=s0\" id=\"logo\" style=\"max-width: 209px; max-height: 209px;\"></a>\n\t\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"headline role-element leadstyle-text\" id=\"headline\"><div>Thank You For Subscribing</div></div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"subheadline role-element leadstyle-text\" id=\"subheadline\"><div>* Prepare To Be Inspired, Motivated and Catapulated To Success In All Aspects Of Life!<br>* Whether You\'re A Stay At Home Mom, Dad, Entrepreneur,<br>Small Business Owner or Employee!<br><br>* We\'ll Be Sure To Provide Valuable Content At All Times!<br><br>Visit InspireToWin.com<br>To Learn More About Us &amp; Why We Do What We Do!<br><br>Be Sure To Check Out Our Official \"Inspire To Win Podcast!\"<br><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http://www.InspireToWin.com/itunes\">CLICK HERE TO LISTEN</a><br><br>LIVE LIFE TO THE FULLEST<br>Angel and Tulane Rivera!</div></div>\n\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t</div>\n\t\t<div class=\"row social-bar role-element leadstyle-container\" id=\"social-bar\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"facebook role-element leadstyle-dynamic\" id=\"facebook-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"fb-btn-pre\"><img id=\"facebook-lrg\" src=\"https://lh5.ggpht.com/AjHINyLSHjqMrjCbG2zyT6P6cBiZkbXNHZlLXvQ1hy9LNv_rbGiB-I_5Kl-zHwyhxMD3TYzeto5LPdjNvfmd=s0\" class=\"role-element leadstyle-image\" style=\"max-width: 35px; max-height: 35px;\"></span>\n\t\t\t\t<span id=\"facebook-text\" class=\"fb-btn role-element leadstyle-text\">Share on Facebook</span>\n\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"twitter role-element leadstyle-dynamic\" id=\"twitter-inner\">\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"tw-btn-pre\"><img id=\"twitter-lrg\" src=\"https://lh5.ggpht.com/UH2lvLMFp4lZ_-IhfoGGnIeFaGY_f4j6g7zUtLCTt2YSmqYr1jtuSm7JiOB1dT7RdEiqYYS7kN_DlM2ml_D4OA=s0\" class=\"role-element leadstyle-image\" style=\"max-width: 35px; max-height: 35px;\"></span>\n\t\t\t\t<span id=\"twitter-text\" class=\"tw-btn role-element leadstyle-text\">Share on Twitter</span>\n\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t</div>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"row hosts role-element leadstyle-container\" id=\"hosts\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row host role-element leadstyle-container\" id=\"host01\">\n\t\t\t\t<img class=\"col-xs-6 col-md-4 role-element leadstyle-image\" src=\"https://lh6.ggpht.com/8SlTMf2u5Ak3bE6Ev2Y0Xwf-Y2Q5GrS1lx9KwNQ1vO8n1wdhCZ5XVr2vXtaHOHmmJ5sNwr_NQCvuIbTs4cEx=s0\" id=\"host-image01\" style=\"max-width: 192px; max-height: 192px;\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col-xs-12 col-md-8 quote-text role-element leadstyle-text\" id=\"host-quote01\"><div>- Angel Rivera<br>Thank you &amp; Get Ready!</div></div>\n\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t\t<div class=\"row host role-element leadstyle-container\" id=\"host02\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"col-xs-12 col-md-8 quote-text left role-element leadstyle-text\" id=\"host-quote02\"><div>Tulane Rivera<br>Lets Inspire To Win -</div></div>\n\t\t\t\t<img class=\"col-xs-6 col-md-4 role-element leadstyle-image\" src=\"https://lh6.ggpht.com/Y08gltuAK53HuG1PRDzDKaTWQ7FUBr0BSPqTvbSzeoom5E8e5pt1hR6HD5dyWRlZayMipzUWzGr-R_nysq_Hqt8=s0\" id=\"host-image02\" style=\"max-width: 192px; max-height: 192px;\">\n\t\t\t</div>\n\t\t</div>\n\n\t\t<div class=\"row footer role-element leadstyle-container\" id=\"footer\">\n\t\t\t<a id=\"tw-link\" class=\"pop-twitter2 popup\" rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"\" target=\"_blank\" data-lead-id=\"twitter-link\"><img class=\"tw-icon role-element leadstyle-image\" 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Media\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:74:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/looks-matter-branding-across-social-media.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:83:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/looks-matter-branding-across-social-media.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Mon, 23 Nov 2015 15:37:11 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21415\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:651:\"<p>Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google+, LinkedIn—the list of social media platforms is a long one, and chances are, your brand is represented on more than one. Management of these accounts is key for developing an impactful brand image—to keep your brand &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/looks-matter-branding-across-social-media.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/looks-matter-branding-across-social-media.html\">Looks Matter: Branding Across Social Media</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9841:\"<p>Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google+, LinkedIn—the list of social media platforms is a long one, and chances are, your brand is represented on more than one. Management of these accounts is key for developing an impactful brand image—to keep your brand looking good from every angle.<span id=\"more-21415\"></span></p>\n<p>Simple, right? Not so much.</p>\n<p>Here’s where things get tricky: while staying consistent is key, each social platform is unique and requires a different approach. An article published for <a href=\"http://socialmediaweek.org/newyork/2014/02/19/problem-cross-posting-mastering-brands-identity-social-media/\" target=\"_blank\">Social Media Week 2015</a> suggests taking “the different personality types of social media users and where they play” into consideration, which will “help you make better decisions of when it might be okay to share content across channels. SMW also recommends that you “establish conversation guidelines for your community manager that will open more opportunities for real-time content on more fast-paced channels like Twitter.”</p>\n<p>Your social media image should also be reflected in other assets. It’s just as important to align your brand image on your website and in email marketing campaigns with your brand image on social. Overall, the goal should be to represent a unified theme across all outlets.</p>\n<p>With all these things in mind, here are a few touch points to visit when crafting your brand image as you switch between channels.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>The Picture-Perfect Image</h3>\n<p>Logos, backgrounds, color schemes, graphics—all of these assets together create a strong visual impact that you can easily mirror in each account. People tend to resonate with pictures, and having consistent image identity creates a stronger memory in the mind of the consumer.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>This Is the Voice</h3>\n<p>Think about how you want to sound. Are you humorous and personable or strictly business with a sarcastic edge? Are you playful or serious? How you convey your message reflects your company values and mission, as well as how you want your brand to be perceived. “Understanding your audience should also make it easier to decide what type of voice your brand should have,” suggests <a href=\"http://www.ducttapemarketing.com/blog/2015/02/13/social-brand-identity/\" target=\"_blank\">Duct Tape Marketing</a>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>Promotions Across All Channels</h3>\n<p>While crafting your content for a specific campaign, make sure to keep in mind how the content will sound and look on different social channels. It’s essential that both the content and visuals convey the message to the right audience and it looks consistent across all channels. This can be done by simply having the same color scheme on design elements, using the same hashtag across all channels or even just having a consistent tagline for your brand.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>Different Channels, Different Tone</h3>\n<p>Different social channels gives your brand the opportunity to talk to different audiences. Around the Insightpool office, we always say that Linkedin is your office, Facebook is your living room and Twitter is the bar. Each social channel offers a different community and this means that it’s even more important for your brand to identify who the audience is and how to speak to them. Making sure it stays on brand and consistent with the promotion strategy.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>Branding Matters</h3>\n<p>The wonderful and <em>scary at times </em>power of social media is how quickly content, video or images can go viral. We have seen the power of this with the viral user-generated content around the ALS challenge, which increased donations by excessive amounts. To ensure that in the event that your image, video or content goes viral, making sure you have branding on the images (logo, hashtag, etc.) is very important. It’s wonderful to have influencers, brand advocates and customers share content so make sure that your brand doesn’t get forgotten in the process.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>Goal(s)!!!!</h3>\n<p>As with any strategy, the end goal should be kept in mind when crafting a message or post. Always ask yourself: what is my end goal, and how will this post help accomplish that strategy? Maybe it’s something as direct as making a sale, or maybe it’s something softer, like nurturing a relationship—regardless, the thought process should always lead to the big picture, and posts should support an overarching message.</p>\n<p><strong>Now that you have steps on achieving greatness on keeping branding consistent across social channels, let’s check out a few brands doing it right:</strong></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>B2B: Hootsuite</h2>\n<p><strong>Facebook: </strong>Hootsuite champions social as a great management platform but also understands the value of social in regards to branding. Hootsuite in consistent across all social channels and focuses on similar but tweaked copy but the same images.   <strong> </strong></p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21417\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Hootsuite_fb.png\" alt=\"Hootsuite_fb\" width=\"584\" height=\"598\" /></p>\n<p><strong>Twitter: </strong>Consistent with the campaign look and feel, the branding is still a key component to the overall branding. In addition, Twitter allows for the brand to engage in a 1:1 engagement conversation around the topics. <img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21418\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Hotsuite_T.png\" alt=\"Hotsuite_T\" width=\"584\" height=\"466\" /></p>\n<p><strong>Linkedin:</strong> Still consistent with the overall branding, Hootsuite chose to follow a more corporate style which makes sense if they&#8217;re catering to their B2B audience on LinkedIn. This gives its fans an inside look into what Hootsuite’s employees see every day.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21419\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Hootsute_LI.png\" alt=\"Hootsute_LI\" width=\"584\" height=\"476\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>B2C: Oreo</h2>\n<p><strong>Facebook: </strong>Fun and playful is Oreo’s goal across all channels. Their Facebook channel engages the audience with short videos, playful images and fun content. They also always have the images and videos branded with product or logos. Makes sharing easy and fun!</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21422\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Oreo_fb1-940x1024.png\" alt=\"Oreo_fb\" width=\"584\" height=\"636\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><strong>Twitter: </strong>Consistent in images and logo, the conversation is more engaging with other brands and customers then on Facebook. The great thing about engaging other brands similar to you is that you are getting their audience involved, opening up the conversation to a new audience.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21421\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Oreo_T.png\" alt=\"Oreo_T\" width=\"584\" height=\"481\" /></p>\n<p><strong>Instagram: </strong>Visual, colorful and playful &#8211; three perfect descriptions for branding on Instagram. Many brands think they have to be on all social platforms &#8211; this is only if you can achieve greatness on all of them. It’s important to be great on the platforms that help your brand reach the right audience. Don’t waste time on a platform if you can’t put a 100% behind it.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21423\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Oreo_IG.png\" alt=\"Oreo_IG\" width=\"584\" height=\"542\" /></p>\n<p>If you are B2B or B2C brands, branding across all social platforms is incredibly important. With these examples and tactical ways to get your branding right across all channels, you are sure to increase engagement, conversations and ultimately increase ROI.</p>\n<p>Can you think of more great branding examples? Maybe you have some experience yourself? Share in the comments below!</p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-21427\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/HillaryB-150x150.png\" alt=\"HillaryB\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" />About the author: Hillary Byers Settle is the Digital Marketing Manager at <a href=\"https://insightpool.com\" target=\"_blank\">Insightpool</a>, a social sales and marketing platform that creates real connections with real people. She is a digital marketing buff, vintage enthusiast, ultimate fashion junkie, and enjoys building new relationships on social. Follow me <a href=\"https://twitter.com/hmbyers\" target=\"_blank\">@hmbyers</a></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" id=\"wp_rp_first\"><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-15921\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-free-tools-self-made-social-media-managers-online-marketers-tool-kit.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">5 Free Tools for Self-Made Social Media Managers [Online Marketer&#8217;s Tool Kit]</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-16109\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/build-email-list-fast-pt-3-go-beyond-website.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How to Build an Email List Fast, Pt. 3: Go Beyond Your Website</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-18628\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/measure-impact-social-media-campaigns.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How To Measure The Impact Of Your Social Media Campaigns</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/looks-matter-branding-across-social-media.html\">Looks Matter: Branding Across Social Media</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:79:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/looks-matter-branding-across-social-media.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:1;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:45:\"Most Important SEO Techniques That Still Work\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:78:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/most-important-seo-techniques-that-still-work.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:87:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/most-important-seo-techniques-that-still-work.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Fri, 20 Nov 2015 14:37:18 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21406\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:642:\"<p>SEO will continue to be a valuable tool in the online marketing arsenal of every inbound marketing expert. This is because SEO’s techniques and applications evolve with the times. SEO is popularly thought of as a set of techniques that &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/most-important-seo-techniques-that-still-work.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/most-important-seo-techniques-that-still-work.html\">Most Important SEO Techniques That Still Work</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:11875:\"<p>SEO will continue to be a valuable tool in the online marketing arsenal of every inbound marketing expert. This is because SEO’s techniques and applications evolve with the times. SEO is popularly thought of as a set of techniques that help your website be found. But what effective SEO means is enhancing the User Experience.<span id=\"more-21406\"></span></p>\n<p>In this article, I will show you eight of the most important SEO techniques that are still working.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>1. Optimize the Title Tag</h2>\n<p>Although it is not technically a meta tag, the Title Tag is usually associated with the Description and Keyword tags because these are found near the website’s source code.</p>\n<p>Of the three, however, the Title Tag is considered the most important because it is the first thing a search engine will look for when a query is made. The Title Tag is also the first item that searchers will see on the page when results come out.</p>\n<p>Thus, it is important to include a keyword in the Title Tag. Some SEO practitioners will include the name of the company alongside one or two keywords. Be mindful of your use of keywords. Search engines will penalize “keyword stuffing” or the brazen use of keywords.</p>\n<p>Another technique you can is to use Adwords ads to your Title Tags to increase the frequency of clicks. Look at the Adwords for keywords that you use for your product. For example your keywords in the Title Tag are “charbroiled hamburgers”. Check which Adwords are complementary for your Title Tag.</p>\n<p>If you identify these Adwords as “fresh grilled”, “made to order”, then you can rewrite your Title Tag to read “Fresh grilled, made to order charbroiled hamburgers”.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>2. Optimize Meta Tags</h2>\n<p>SEO focuses on two types of Meta Tags: the Description Tag and the Keywords Tag.</p>\n<p>The Description Tag is what Internet users read when your link comes out and could influence their decision to click or not. Similar to the Title Tag, you should also include one or two more keywords with the Description Tag.</p>\n<p>The abusive practice of keyword stuffing has somehow placed Keyword Tags in the background although there are still benefits in including them in the source code.</p>\n<p>A good rule of thumb is to figure out the keywords Internet searchers will use to find your products and services. And then come up with one or two variations. Going back to our previous example, instead of “charbroiled hamburgers” you could use “grilled hamburgers” or “freshly grilled hamburgers”.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>3. Add Title Attributes to Links</h2>\n<p>These are the attributes that pop up whenever your mouse scrolls over a link. They are used for image links but have also been used for text links.</p>\n<p>In order to maximize this helpful online tool, it would be best to use a more definitive description of the attribute than just the standard “click here”. Perhaps if you are in the restaurant business, you could write “View Menu”. If you are website designer, you could use “See Portfolio”.</p>\n<p>The idea behind SEO is not just to be found but to make the visit convenient for the user so he can explore your site further.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>4. Utilize Alt Attributes for Images</h2>\n<p>An Alt Attribute is a descriptive but relevant text of the images you use that is added to your source code. This makes it easier for the search engines to index your pages that have images.</p>\n<p>Using Alt Attributes can also help visually impaired or handicapped Internet users to find your website through the use of a Screen Reader.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21409 size-large\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/SEO_techniques-1024x580.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"584\" height=\"331\" /></p>\n<h2>5. Quality content</h2>\n<p><a href=\"http://www.social4retail.com/the-blog-economy-blogging-stats-infographic-2014.html\" target=\"_blank\">Statistics</a> on online behavior present a more discriminating profile on the Internet user. Take note of these following key figures:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>23% of Internet time is spent reading blogs</li>\n<li>77% of Internet users read blogs</li>\n<li>81% of consumers trust information shared on blogs</li>\n<li>61% have been influenced by blogs on their decision to purchase</li>\n<li>37% of online marketers consider the blog as the most important content marketing tool</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Search engine giant Google has made it very clear that they will penalize websites that do not frequently present fresh, new and original content. Further, Google will penalize websites that use links not related to their business or service.</p>\n<p>If you want to develop regular patronage on your website, you have to consistently publish quality content. Quality is defined as relevant and engaging content which your market will appreciate.</p>\n<p>You should also include keywords in your content but again, you have to be mindful in their use. For blogs, you need to use main keywords, secondary keywords and tertiary keywords. Obviously the main keywords play the most important role. Both secondary and tertiary keywords are there to lend support.</p>\n<p>For an 800 word article, use the main keyword no more than five times. It is important to have the main keyword in the title, within the first 100 words, twice in the body and in the concluding paragraph. The secondary and tertiary keywords should not be used more than twice in the entire article.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>6. Use link building techniques judiciously</h2>\n<p>Link building is a very effective technique in developing inbound traffic. By linking with other sites, you can increase the visibility of your website and attract new markets.</p>\n<p>Another advantage of link building is that is enhances your credibility and reputation as a resource. The more frequently people find your work at other websites, the more trust you gain from your target market.</p>\n<p>One of the smartest and easiest ways to find new opportunities for your link building campaigns is to analyze what backlinks are working best for your competitors. If they are ranking higher than you for your main keywords, it often means that they have better and more quality backlinks. Hence why, the backlinks of your competitors are a resource you should always analyze.</p>\n<p>An easy way to stay up to date with your competitor’s link building campaigns is to use tools like <a href=\"https://monitorbacklinks.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Monitor Backlinks</a>. Once added your main competitors, you’ll get email reports, every 10 days, with the new links they have earned. Do consider that you should only try to replicate good backlinks and ignore low quality ones.</p>\n<p>As mentioned at the beginning of this article, Google will penalize any website that adds links which has no relevance to its primary business. For example, if you run a fitness website and attach links from cigarette websites, you will be punished in the search rankings by the Google Penguin algorithm update.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>7. Integrate social media techniques</h2>\n<p>Gone are the days that inbound marketers approached SEO and social media separately. These are techniques that require precise execution but are driven by consumer behavior.</p>\n<p>Social media in particular has become a key online tool because of its large user base. Of the <a href=\"http://www.jeffbullas.com/2015/04/08/33-social-media-facts-and-statistics-you-should-know-in-2015/\" target=\"_blank\">three billion people</a> who go online every day, almost two billion are on social media and nearly one billion are on Facebook alone. The increase in popularity of smart phones is expected to drive these numbers higher because social media will become more accessible.</p>\n<p>This is the reason why SEO practitioners are integrating their effective techniques with social media. Here are some examples:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Use keywords in your articles, blogs and posts.</li>\n<li>Include social media share buttons in your blog page for easy sharing.</li>\n<li>Create high quality content for all of your shares and posts.</li>\n<li>Optimize images used for your social media posts.</li>\n<li>Be mindful of the <a href=\"https://blog.bufferapp.com/the-ideal-length-of-everything-online-according-to-science\" target=\"_blank\">ideal length</a> of posts and blogs.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>By integrating SEO techniques with your social media strategy, you can further maximize your efforts and enhance your online presence.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>8. Write mini-blogs for video posts</h2>\n<p>If you haven’t heard of YouTube then you must have been asleep for the past 10 years.</p>\n<p>Founded in 2005, YouTube has grown into one of the most popular social media sharing sites. One billion people tune in to YouTube every day. People spend six billion hours of video on YouTube every month. 300 hours of video are uploaded on YouTube every minute.</p>\n<p>These statistics show the power of video as a medium for marketing and promoting your products and services.</p>\n<p>One of the most effective ways to boost the rankings of your videos is to write a “mini-blog” in its description box. Most YouTube users pay little attention to this little description box. But by using a keyword enriched description, you can significantly move your video up the search rankings.</p>\n<p>A good strategy is to implement long tail keywords. These are more detailed and descriptive set of keywords that greatly define a search query. For example instead of using just “charbroiled hamburgers” a long-tail would appear as “made to order charbroiled hamburgers cooked fresh off the grill”.</p>\n<p>As we head off to 2016, we should expect more changes to sweep across different markets. Consumer demand remains dynamic. In the face of the continued evolution of markets, business needs strategies that have the capacity to adapt to the changing times. For this reason, SEO will continue to remain relevant and effective in the years ahead.</p>\n<p><strong>What about you? What’s working best for SEO on your website? Share in the comments below!</strong></p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p><strong><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-21407\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/felix-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"felix\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" />About the author: </strong>Felix Tarcomnicu is a blogger and entrepreneur. He enjoys doing SEO and wrote the popular article about <a href=\"https://blog.monitorbacklinks.com/seo/ultimate-guide-find-bad-good-backlinks/\" target=\"_blank\">identifying and disavowing bad backlinks</a>. You can connect with <a href=\"https://twitter.com/felixtarcomnicu\" target=\"_blank\">Felix on Twitter</a>.</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-17288\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/use-open-graph-tags-traffic.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How to Use Open Graph Tags for More Traffic</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-16300\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-tips-optimize-landing-page-search-engines-seo.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">7 Tips to Optimize Your Landing Page for Search Engines #SEO</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-17884\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/long-tail-keywords-seo-gold.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Why Long Tail Keywords Are SEO Gold</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/most-important-seo-techniques-that-still-work.html\">Most Important SEO Techniques That Still Work</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:83:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/most-important-seo-techniques-that-still-work.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"1\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:2;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"How to Get Started With Email Segmentation\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:75:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-started-with-email-segmentation.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:84:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-started-with-email-segmentation.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Thu, 19 Nov 2015 16:37:47 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21384\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:655:\"<p>Want better results from your email marketing? Who doesn’t? Especially now, when it’s almost time to roll out those holiday email campaigns. The pressure to get results is high.If you’re feeling the pressure, I’ve got good news. There’s every reason &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-started-with-email-segmentation.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-started-with-email-segmentation.html\">How to Get Started With Email Segmentation</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"Pam Neely\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:14408:\"<p>Want better results from your email marketing? Who doesn’t? Especially now, when it’s almost time to roll out those holiday email campaigns. The pressure to get results is high.<span id=\"more-21384\"></span>If you’re feeling the pressure, I’ve got good news. There’s every reason you can spike your email marketing results – and fast. If you’re still sending the same email to everyone on your list, now’s the perfect time to run a few quick tests, and then roll out some segmented emails to your list.</p>\n<p>Those of you in B2B have a different opportunity. It’s the end of the year, so anyone left with 2015 budget needs to spend it now or lose it. And there’s still plenty of time to close a few sales before the year ends. Make the right case with your prospects, and your 2015 sales could still see a handsome boost.</p>\n<p>But can segmentation really get you better results? You bet. There’s a dozen studies to cite to prove it, but here’s just one:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21386\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Ascend2EmailTacticsDifficulty-1024x969.png\" alt=\"Ascend2EmailTacticsDifficulty\" width=\"584\" height=\"553\" /></p>\n<p>According to the email marketers <a href=\"http://ascend2.com/home/wp-content/uploads/Email-Marketing-Trends-Survey-Summary-Report-150511.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">Ascend2</a> surveyed for this study, segmentation comes in as the second most effective email marketing tactic. It&#8217;s right after having a strong call to action.</p>\n<p>Trouble is, it also comes in first in terms of difficulty. That’s troubling. Segmentation doesn’t have to be as hard as it looks from this chart. You can make it crazy complicated, sure – but we’re interested in doing the simplest segmentation for the biggest results. It doesn’t have to be hard.</p>\n<p>If you can get even one or two segmentation tests done before the year, you’ll also be laying the groundwork for your 2016 email marketing. Or maybe you’ll catch up with a 2015 resolution you haven’t made good on yet. A lot of marketers said they wanted to move forward with segmentation <a href=\"http://www.emarketer.com/Article/Email-Marketers-Move-Cross-Channel-Real-Time-Communication/1012850\" target=\"_blank\">this year</a>.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21387\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/186509.gif\" alt=\"186509\" width=\"325\" height=\"271\" /></p>\n<p>Before we get too deep into nuts and bolts, let’s look at the different types of segmentation, from the simplest to the most complex. That’ll give you a lot of ideas about what’s possible, and about what might be right for your list.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>The five stages of list segmentation sophistication</h2>\n<p>As the graphic below shows, there’s a bunch of different levels of email list segmentation. The simplest, “batch and blast”, usually refers to no segmentation: You just send the same email to everybody. That’s what we want to move away from.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21389\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/image361.jpg\" alt=\"image361\" width=\"584\" height=\"465\" /></p>\n<p>Image courtesy of <a href=\"https://emailexperience.org/2014/12/the-5-stages-of-email-segmentation-sophistication-how-evolved-are-you/\" target=\"_blank\">The Email Experience Council</a>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Segmentation 1.0</h2>\n<p>At the next level of personalization, you’re using basic customer profile information. This is information people gave you when they signed up for your list. Stuff like their zip code, gender, and age.</p>\n<p>Here’s an example of an email message that uses profile-level segmentation. This is an email I got recently from REI. I’m an REI member, and so they’ve sent me an email with two offers for REI members only.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21390\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/REI2-1024x979.jpg\" alt=\"REI2\" width=\"584\" height=\"558\" /></p>\n<p>Nothing too complex here, right? But even this basic segmentation can make a big difference – like a 20% boost in click-through rates.</p>\n<p>How might you split up your list with the profile information you’ve got? Would it be based on gender, or some other thing you ask about on your sign-up forms?</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Segmentation 2.0</h2>\n<p>The next level of persona-based segmentation is a bit more sophisticated. Simply because we’ve got a persona here, it suggests there is a content marketing strategy.</p>\n<p>Personas, as many of you know, are basically customer types. They’re used so a marketer can identify how certain types of buyers behave. We’ve got a recent guest post about using personas in email marketing <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-buyer-personas-personalize-marketing-automation.html\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>.</p>\n<p>Personas are a smart way to tailor the content your audience receives based on who they are and how they behave. It’s a technique that often works in tandem with marketing automation.</p>\n<p>The online retailer Onward Reserve shared a great <a href=\"http://web.windsorcircle.com/Portals/254322/images/windsor-circle-case-study-onward-reserve.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">case study</a> of how persona marketing worked for them.</p>\n<p>They broke their email list out into four basic segments:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>best customers</li>\n<li>non-purchasers</li>\n<li>churning customers</li>\n<li>other</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Everyone got basically the same email, but the messaging was a little different. Here’s the results they got:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21391\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/onward_reserve-blog-full.jpg\" alt=\"onward_reserve-blog-full\" width=\"584\" height=\"243\" /></p>\n<p>Gee… who else would like to get nearly THREE TIMES the revenue from their holiday email campaigns? Onward Reserve hit it out of the park with that test.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Segmentation 3.0</h2>\n<p>The next level, behavioral segmentation, can be simple or complex. Just segmenting based on which subscribers clicked a link in an email is behavioral segmentation.</p>\n<p>Say you sent out an email to your entire list about a new ebook you’d just written.  You could segment out the people who never clicked the download link in that email. I’ll show you how to do that in just a moment.</p>\n<p>Behavioral segmentation can also include cart abandonment emails and webinar follow-ups. Your behavioral emails could also be “triggered” emails (there’s that marketing automation thing coming up again…). Or you could send a specific email to one group of subscribers who attended a webinar, and a different email to all your other subscribers. It can get more complex than that, but you get the gist.</p>\n<p>The email below is follow-up from a salesperson about piece of CRM software I signed up for a trial of. This is an example of an email sent based on past behavior. They probably sent this email out to everyone who attended the webinar. Note that they obviously wouldn’t send this out to their whole list – that’s why it’s a segmented email.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21392\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Amplitude-1024x738.jpg\" alt=\"Amplitude\" width=\"584\" height=\"421\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>Here’s an interesting twist on behavioral segmentation: segmenting subscribers out based on where they signed up. The retailer <a href=\"https://econsultancy.com/blog/64551-10-case-studies-that-show-the-power-of-email-segmentation/\" target=\"_blank\">Hotel Chocolat</a> had built up a fairly large email list, both from signups from their website and from signups in their stores. So they decided to send different emails to those two groups. The result?</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Revenue from their emails jumped 20%</li>\n<li>Overall website revenue jumped 12%</li>\n<li>Average order value went up by 22%</li>\n<li>Open rates, click-through rates and deliverability all improved.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>If you’re signing people up from different sources (like a Facebook page) this might be a worthwhile test.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Segmentation 4.0: Predictive modeling</h2>\n<p>Predictive modeling blends persona marketing, databases, and an algorithm. It attempts to guess what subscribers want to know next. Because of this, it can be helpful for automating content through complex buyer journeys.</p>\n<p>If you’re a small shop or don’t have a large marketing budget, predictive modeling may be outside your ken, but you should know it exists.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>An example of how to segment your list in GetResponse</h2>\n<p>Remember how I mentioned that email you could send about the product launch, where people got the email, but then never clicked the link in the email? Let’s set up a segment like that.</p>\n<p>First, go to the “Contacts &gt; Search contacts” option in your GetResponse account. It’s in the top black row of navigation once you’ve logged into your account. Once you’ve selected “Search contacts” you’ll see a page like this:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21393\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/CreateSegment1-1024x732.png\" alt=\"CreateSegment1\" width=\"584\" height=\"417\" /></p>\n<p>Choose the campaign (i.e., the list) you want to pull the segment from. Then select the autoresponder or signup date parameters – but only if that makes sense for who you want to segment. You can also leave those options alone.</p>\n<p>Next you want to choose a condition. There are a lot of options to choose from. Here’s the list:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21394\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Createsegment3-1024x405.png\" alt=\"Createsegment3\" width=\"584\" height=\"231\" /></p>\n<p>I want everyone who didn’t click the link in the email, so I’ll choose that selection in the pull-down menu. Next, the system will ask me which kind of email I want to segment from: a Newsletter, Autoresponder or an A/B test. I want Newsletter.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21395\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/CreateSegment5-1024x217.png\" alt=\"CreateSegment5\" width=\"584\" height=\"124\" /></p>\n<p>Then it will ask which message. You can select “all messages and links”, but I want a link that’s in a specific email named “7/14/15 Update”.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21397\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/CreateSegment6-1024x323.png\" alt=\"CreateSegment6\" width=\"584\" height=\"184\" /></p>\n<p>The system will then show me all the links in that email. I’ll select the one I’m interested in.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21398\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/CreateSegment7-1024x263.png\" alt=\"CreateSegment7\" width=\"584\" height=\"150\" /></p>\n<p>Those are my settings. Now I click the blue “show contacts” button. It shows me everyone who got the email, but didn’t click that link.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21399\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/CreateSegment8-1024x666.png\" alt=\"CreateSegment8\" width=\"584\" height=\"380\" /></p>\n<p>If I check the “choose all” box near the top of the list, and then choose the Action pull-down with the selection “move to campaign” I can then move all those subscribers into a new campaign… BUT I’ll have to create the campaign before I do that. You can’t create the campaign from within that view, so you’ll need an already-created campaign.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21401\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/CreateSegment9-1024x264.jpg\" alt=\"CreateSegment9\" width=\"584\" height=\"151\" /></p>\n<p>You could also just export that segment of subscribers, and then re-upload it and mail to them. For more details on the ins and outs of segmenting and tagging your campaigns in GetResponse, see the ebook, “<a href=\"https://support.getresponse.com/uploads/2011/07/NListSegmentation.pdf\" target=\"_blank\">A Quick Guide to List Segmentation</a>.”</p>\n<p><strong> </strong></p>\n<h2>Create copies of your emails to save time</h2>\n<p>Here’s one last trick to speed up your work: You don’t have to make an entirely new email for every segment you mail to. Make the email for the largest segment first, save it, and then make a copy by clicking the “Actions” button to the right of the email’s message name. Select “Re-use” from the pull-down menu. Then just rename the email to create a new version.</p>\n<p>Alter that new copy based on what you want to say to the next segment. No need to re-invent the wheel every time!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21402\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/ReuseADJ-1024x343.png\" alt=\"ReuseADJ\" width=\"584\" height=\"196\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Back to you</h2>\n<p>Are you segmenting your email messages? Do you do it for every email you send, or just for special messages? If you’d like to share any results of your segmenting work with this, we’d love to hear it. Tell us about it in the comments.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-20260\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-practices-for-cart-abandonment-emails.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Best Practices for Cart Abandonment Emails</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-19355\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/stop-wasting-your-resources-and-start-leveraging-your-employees-to-deliver-valuable-content.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Stop Wasting Your Resources And Start Delivering Valuable Content + [Free Ebook]</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-18412\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/content-marketing-monday-using-cm-b2b-b2c.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Content Marketing Monday: Using CM for B2B and B2C</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-started-with-email-segmentation.html\">How to Get Started With Email Segmentation</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:80:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-started-with-email-segmentation.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:3;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:39:\"Why and How to Write a Blog Post Series\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:72:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-and-how-to-write-a-blog-post-series.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:81:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-and-how-to-write-a-blog-post-series.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Wed, 18 Nov 2015 15:38:02 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21335\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:595:\"<p>If you&#8217;re running a blog and want to both involve your existing readers and get new ones, a blog post series would be a very effective way to do it. There are several types of series you can consider: a &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-and-how-to-write-a-blog-post-series.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-and-how-to-write-a-blog-post-series.html\">Why and How to Write a Blog Post Series</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9401:\"<p>If you&#8217;re running a blog and want to both involve your existing readers and get new ones, a blog post series would be a very effective way to do it.<span id=\"more-21335\"></span></p>\n<p>There are several types of series you can consider: a weekly or monthly post centered around one theme (this can be a rundown of the news in your niche, for instance, or a profile of a notable person) or it could be a limited-time series with an in-depth look at something worth giving insight into. In any case, a blog post series is guaranteed to drum up attention.</p>\n<p>Your regular readers will check back as you publish it and new readers will likely look through at least several of the post&#8217;s series. You can also interlink the blog posts, which will give you value with search engines combing through your blog. There is also value in segmenting a topic since you can target readers better by writing niche posts, not to mention the simple reasoning that more posts will mean more clicks. But how do you create a good blog post series? What would be a success, and what would be a failure?</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Choosing a Topic For a Blog Post Series</h2>\n<p>First things first: deciding what kind of topic will work for a series. The best types of serial posts are posts that give something an in-depth look, with each post dedicated to a certain aspect of a topic – like an involved how-to. You should pick a topic that&#8217;s “evergreen”. Avoid anything that will look dated within a year, since you&#8217;re going to put a lot of work into these serialized posts than the same amount of non-serialized writing.</p>\n<p>Exhaustive blog posts with multiple thousands of words won&#8217;t get read except for by a few (experienced bloggers already know that bite-size is the best size when and how valuable segmenting is). The rule of thumb here is that, if you&#8217;re writing a post that seems too long or one that looks at an issue from all sides, thereby creating confusion, consider writing it in several parts.</p>\n<p>In summer this year we started a blog post series dedicated to the topic of <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/achieving-the-best-deliverability-possible-part-i.html\" target=\"_blank\">Email marketing deliverability</a>. It can be quite hard to pass through the spam filters and standards, that&#8217;s why we decided to explore the matter of achieving the best deliverability possible.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Pitfalls of Posting a Series</h2>\n<p>Now, the pitfalls to avoid with serialized posting is that, if you post too many of them, stretching something artificially into multiple articles, your readers might see it as a click-getting gimmick and be turned off if the information is spread too thin. New readers will get lost in the sea of content and won&#8217;t be able to make heads or tails of it.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Write Down a Plan</h2>\n<p>Now that you&#8217;ve decided to create serial posts, you should make a plan for it. Decide on a schedule, and create an outline for what you want to cover in this series, dedicating each post to an aspect of a topic. If you&#8217;re creating a how-to series, you should plan for successive posts that will make sense to a reader who is</p>\n<ol>\n<li>Completely new to the subject, or at least to the side of the issue you&#8217;re discussing</li>\n<li>Learning about it only from reading your blog.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>It&#8217;s likely that curious readers will go off searching for more information about the topic on their own once they&#8217;ve read your take on the issue, but if you&#8217;re writing a series there&#8217;s no point in <em>not </em>being exhaustive. This will be on your blog for as long as you&#8217;re running it and someone curious about the topic who is just discovering your posts is likely to read through everything you&#8217;ve written in the series before going to a different source for more information. It is nice to add “In case you missed&#8230;” and “Related posts” sections right below the article to put the links to previous and future posts there.</p>\n<p><strong><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21377\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/series_list.png\" alt=\"series_list\" width=\"584\" height=\"440\" /> </strong><strong> </strong></p>\n<h2>An Outline for Each Post</h2>\n<p>Once you&#8217;ve chosen your topic and made an outline for the posts you&#8217;re planning to include in your series, write separate outlines for the posts themselves, at least very general ones. You might consider yourself a prolific author who doesn&#8217;t need to outline, and that&#8217;s great for you, but being inconsistent here will be a major turnoff. Remember, you&#8217;re trying to drum up new readership, so stepping up your game won&#8217;t hurt. Plan out your posts so that each new one picks up where the previous left off.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21378\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/series.png\" alt=\"series\" width=\"584\" height=\"458\" /></p>\n<p>It&#8217;s a good idea to plan for a short, two-sentence “coming up next” at the end of each post, which will pique your reader&#8217;s interest and keep them coming back for more.<strong> </strong></p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21380\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/until_then.png\" alt=\"until_then\" width=\"584\" height=\"229\" /></p>\n<p><strong> </strong></p>\n<h2>Before Posting</h2>\n<p>Before you start posting, consider this: can you keep up with the schedule you&#8217;ve set for yourself? The frequency with which you post will depend on how often you update your blog. If it&#8217;s normally three to four times a week, you&#8217;ll need to post daily. If you update your blog monthly, then you should post on a set day every week.</p>\n<p>If you&#8217;re publishing a series, anything under one post every week won&#8217;t be any good – readers will just lose interest in your posts, it&#8217;s as simple as that. One blog post published every day is the optimal balance, since it&#8217;s not too often so that people won&#8217;t be able to keep up, and not too rare for them to forget about what you&#8217;ve talked about previously – blog series work best when they burn bright and fast. If you can&#8217;t turn out information as frequently as you&#8217;d like, pre-write some or all of the posts, and just post them at set times.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>An Introduction to the Series</h2>\n<p>Now, before starting to publish the series, you should also create an introductory post that will serve as a central hub that links to all the posts once you make them (remember what we said about interlinking?). You can put this posts in the sidebar or whatever type of “best of” or “readers&#8217; favorites” type of page you have so that new visitors to your blog can find all of this information with ease.</p>\n<p>The introductory post should say what topic you&#8217;ll be covering, the general areas your posts will touch upon and when to come back for more. Publish it the day before you start posting the actual series for maximum impact.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21379\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/why_a_series.png\" alt=\"why_a_series\" width=\"584\" height=\"199\" /></p>\n<p>As you can see, most of this advice has to do with planning ahead of time. Do the legwork, and you&#8217;re sure to get more fresh eyes on your blog, as well as engage current readership. When writing your series, remember that, ideally, all this information is supposed to be relevant a year from now, in the least.</p>\n<p><strong>So think of a topic and get down to writing! Share in the comments below what ideas you have for your series!</strong></p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-21381\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/florence-150x150.jpeg\" alt=\"florence\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" />About the Author: Florence Mendoza is a content writer and marketing manager at <a href=\"http://www.buyanessay.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Buy an Essay</a> writing company. She provides online marketing help to aspiring bloggers.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-19329\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-excuses-that-keep-you-from-starting-a-business-blog.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">9 Excuses That Keep You From Starting a Business Blog</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-20473\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/21-tips-for-writing-emails-your-audience-cant-wait-to-open.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">21 Tips For Writing Emails Your Audience Can&#8217;t Wait to Open</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-16027\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-things-blog-post-goes-live.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">3 Things to Do Before, During and After Your Blog Post Goes Live</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-and-how-to-write-a-blog-post-series.html\">Why and How to Write a Blog Post Series</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:77:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-and-how-to-write-a-blog-post-series.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:4;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:50:\"5 Ways You’re Still Not Obeying Google’s Rules\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:77:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-youre-still-not-obeying-googles-rules.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:86:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-youre-still-not-obeying-googles-rules.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Tue, 17 Nov 2015 15:27:49 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21322\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:642:\"<p>Like it or not, Google has declared itself judge, jury and executioner of the internet. There are obviously some glaring political concerns about a single company holding so much power over the world wide web, but, let’s not get too &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-youre-still-not-obeying-googles-rules.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-youre-still-not-obeying-googles-rules.html\">5 Ways You’re Still Not Obeying Google’s Rules</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Kerry Butters\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:10597:\"<p>Like it or not, Google has declared itself judge, jury and executioner of the internet. There are obviously some glaring political concerns about a single company holding so much power over the world wide web, but, let’s not get too bogged down in the academia of such a debate at the moment, for the fact will still remain that the multi-coloured doodling giant will still hold sway no matter how much we rant and rave.<span id=\"more-21322\"></span></p>\n<p>To be fair, though, the <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">laws</span> rules that Google has laid down could arguably be seen to be a good thing – well, at least that’s what Larry Page and Sergey Brin would like us all to believe anyway. But let’s give them the benefit of the doubt for the moment. Google <em>wants</em> users to find the sites that <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">have paid the most for advertising</span> are the most relevant to the search query, and have gained a decent organic rank via means of <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">paying the piper</span> enticing <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">paid for</span> organic traffic, links, etc.</p>\n<p>In a perfect world (wide web), this sort of altruistic benevolence would be a great thing. And, since we’re giving Page and Brin the benefit of the doubt, let’s say that it is a good thing. Of course when I type in ‘running trainers’ to Google I want the results page to list me all of the best sites where I can buy some super-duper ones on the first page, and to hell with all the rest. But, the obvious problem with this is, that what Google might consider to be the best sites, I might not agree with.</p>\n<p>At the end of the day, Google is a computer, an algorithmic processing machine, which, although very smart, will never ever have the human touch that will allow for certain nuances or other indiscretions that only a conscious being could possibly have. And this means that it operates, in a way that is at once mind-bogglingly complex and simple at the same time. That is to say that although the computer science behind the great search engine is undoubtedly brilliant – all it’s really doing is following a set of predetermined rules in order to give web pages a search ranking.</p>\n<p>And this means that all us marketers in the SEO game have to do is make sure that we are abiding by these rules when creating content for the internet in order for Google to reward us greatly with a high SERP ranking.</p>\n<p>So, firstly, the question has to be – what are the rules?</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>What Are Google’s Rules?</h2>\n<p>Well, there are lots and lots, as we all know. Too many to list exhaustively here. So, instead I want to show you the three presumably most important, since they come from <a href=\"https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/40349?hl=en\" target=\"_blank\">Google</a> itself.</p>\n<ol>\n<li>Give visitors the information they’re looking for</li>\n<li>Make sure that other sites link to yours</li>\n<li>Make your site easily accessible</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Pretty simple really.</p>\n<p>Once upon a time number 2 on that list was number 1 – and it has to be said that garnering links to your site is still very important. But, as they say, these days content is king. And it absolutely is. I’ve been saying it for years, and I believe it right to the very bottom of my shoes. Indeed, what Larry Page is trying to accomplish is becoming overruling master of the whole universe is <a href=\"http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/l/larrypage173337.html\" target=\"_blank\">creating the perfect search engine</a> that gives the perfect results for each and every user.</p>\n<p>“The ultimate search engine would basically understand everything in the world, and it would always give you the right thing. And we&#8217;re a long, long ways from that.”</p>\n<p>Indeed we are – but, any webmaster that builds his/her site in a manner that tries to hinder this idyllic dream will be <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">banished from this earthly online world forever, mwah-hah-hah!!</span> hit with a Google penalty, which, in its most extreme cases, could see your site vanishing from the Google index altogether.</p>\n<p>So, are playing by the rules, or not? Here are 5 ways that many marketers are still missing the mark when it comes to Google’s rules.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21325\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/links-1024x576.jpg\" alt=\"links\" width=\"584\" height=\"329\" /></p>\n<h2>5 Ways You’re Still Not Obeying Google’s Rules</h2>\n<h3>1. You’re Not Giving Your Visitors Enough Information</h3>\n<p>Content is king <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">and Larry Page is Ruler, Emperor and Lord God Himself!</span>. Don’t ever, <em>ever</em> forget this. Your website is the gateway into your business – and your business is what’s keeping the modem flashing. No matter what you’re selling – be it goods or services – you simply cannot have enough information on your site. And that means that along with product descriptions and images and details of your service, you need to be adding value to what you’re offering by giving away information for free. Yes, that means blogging ­– <em>regularly</em>. If you’re not blogging at least twice a week, then you’re breaking Google’s rules. Google wants to see that you’re providing the eternal user base with lots and lots of fresh information – so get blogging. Now.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>2. The Information You Are Providing Isn’t Good Enough</h3>\n<p>I say once again, content is king. But not just any old princely content – kingworthy content. And that means that if you’re still playing the old keyword stuffing game then you need to fast forward about 10 years pretty sharpish, for that’s old news. Kingworthy content is the stuff that people can actually take away with them. It’s the how-to blogs, the beginner’s guides, the thought-provoking polemics, and the 5 Ways You’re Still Not Obeying Google’s Rules. Put simply, if all you’re doing is re-plugging your own goods or services with every single tweet, update and blog post, then you’re breaking Google’s rules, and you shall be punished.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>3. You’re Not Gaining Enough Organic Links</h3>\n<p>Link building is, and probably always will be, one of the most crucial things that you can do for SEO. The only trouble is that it’s really hard to do well, and do legally. But the secret lies in the first two points in this list – yes, I <em>am </em>going to say it again. Content is king. When you’ve got great content, other sites will link to yours. When you’re conducting great research on behalf of your following, they will point their own fans in your direction to get the lowdown on the key facts and figures shaping your industry. Organic link building is really as simple and as difficult as that. You can go down the guest post route if you like, or try paying for links, or asking your friends for them – but, at the end of the day, unless you’ve got lots and lots of genuine content creators out there linking freely to your site because of all the great content that you’re providing, then once again you are breaking Google’s rules and will find it extremely difficult to crawl up the rankings.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>4. You’re Not Linking To Other Great Sites</h3>\n<p>The link-building game is a two-way street. And, arguably, just as important as trying to ensure that you’re building up a healthy profile of inbound links, you need to be focussing equal attention on your outbound efforts as well. Why? Because Google likes to see that you’re directing users to as much great information as possible, regardless of whether you authored it yourself or not. And it’s important that you link to <em>reputable</em> sites as well. Google takes into consideration the PageRank of the page being linked to as well as your own, so, wherever you can, direct users towards the big sites, and, whatever you do, do not link to any spam pages, as you will be seriously breaking Google’s rules if you do this, even unwittingly.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>5. Make Your Site Mobile Friendly</h3>\n<p>Yes, this is absolutely imperative. Albeit a decidedly 2015 concern, it doesn’t take a genius to notice that much of the online world has gone mobile. Indeed, there’s a good chance that you’re even reading this on your smartphone or tablet right now. Google has taken heed of this, and, since the 21<sup>st</sup> April this year, has been penalising sites that are not mobile friendly. At the very least this means that you have to make sure that your site is responsively designed, if not completely re-configured with a mobile-first strategy in mind. Put simply, if your website isn’t easily accessible to mobile users, then you are breaking Google’s rules and will be suffering in SERPs as a result. Thankfully, Google have provided a <a href=\"https://www.google.com/webmasters/tools/mobile-friendly/?utm_source=wmc-blog&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=mobile-friendly\" target=\"_blank\">Mobile Friendly Test</a> page, and I encourage you to head straight over and use it immediately, and take appropriate action accordingly.</p>\n<p><strong>How else are marketers still breaking Google’s rules? Let us know in the comments below.</strong></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-18245\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-ways-build-email-list-videos.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">9 Ways to Build Your Email List with Videos</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-20798\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/10-point-checklist-for-optimizing-your-google-my-business-site.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">10-Point Checklist for Optimizing Your Google My Business Site</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-17027\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/create-clickable-headlines.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How to Create Clickable Headlines</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-youre-still-not-obeying-googles-rules.html\">5 Ways You’re Still Not Obeying Google’s Rules</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:82:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-youre-still-not-obeying-googles-rules.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:5;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:45:\"5 Ways to Rock Your Personal Brand on Twitter\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:78:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-rock-your-personal-brand-on-twitter.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:87:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-rock-your-personal-brand-on-twitter.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Mon, 16 Nov 2015 14:13:23 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21313\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:659:\"<p>In today’s very digital world, giving out your card during networking events isn’t enough. But creating a social media following is the ultimate branding tool. To get you started, I wanted to give you a starter pack to personal branding on Twitter. &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-rock-your-personal-brand-on-twitter.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-rock-your-personal-brand-on-twitter.html\">5 Ways to Rock Your Personal Brand on Twitter</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:20:\"Sara-Ruth Wolkiewicz\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:11424:\"<p>In today’s very digital world, giving out your card during networking events isn’t enough. But creating a social media following is the ultimate branding tool. To get you started, I wanted to give you a starter pack to personal branding on Twitter.<span id=\"more-21313\"></span></p>\n<p>So, without further ado, here are the first 5 steps to start your Twitter empire:</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>1. Choose your Twitter handle carefully</h2>\n<p>You may be a great chef and a fun comic book fanatic, but handles like @Cooking4Life or @GimmeComics123 won’t fly.</p>\n<p>However, if you started a cooking blog and you want your brand to revolve around that, something like @JeffTheChef is both straightforward and memorable. It’s ok to play around with something funky, but it’s not okay to create a cryptic handle of a middle schooler.</p>\n<p>This is a great solution for bloggers. For inspiration, here are two bloggers that took their URL and made it their handle:</p>\n<p><img src=\"http://blog.mention.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/twitter-bio-personal-branding-1024x512.png\" alt=\"twitter bio personal branding\" width=\"660\" height=\"330\" /></p>\n<p>Now, if you’re not a blogger, or an advocate for your business (or place of work) like someone like <a href=\"https://twitter.com/MarketingProfs\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Ann Handley</a>, you can simply use your name. It’s the easiest way for people to find and recognize you!<br />\nOne last thing to remember about Twitter handles is that although you can change them as you please, it’s better not to change it up too often. Once people start to recognize your handle, it won’t be easy to let every follow know that it’s changed. A strong personal brand needs to be consistent and recognizable, and that includes your usernames.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>2. Choose your brand’s imaging</h2>\n<p>Your profile is like an online business card of sorts. People need to see who you are (not what coat your cat has) and what you’re all about. Use your profile picture and header photo accordingly.<br />\nYou can have a fancy business-professional picture, a simple selfie (but make it tasteful, you’re not Miley Cyrus), or a funny photoshoot-style picture (<a href=\"https://twitter.com/chrisgoward\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Chris Goward</a> nailed this one.) But, as far as covers go, there are a few different approaches:</p>\n<h3>Promotional</h3>\n<p>This one is for those who are more advanced in building your personal brand, since you need to have something to promote. You could also promote your blog or the company you work for.</p>\n<p>If you have a book coming out, are speaking at an event, or have any other kind of ‘gig’ coming up, make sure that you let your followers know via your cover photo. Not everyone will see your tweet (remember that they have a very short lifespan on Twitter) but more will check your profile or hover on your handle to see your info.</p>\n<p>Take a look at Marsha Wright’s cover photo:</p>\n<p><img src=\"http://blog.mention.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/twitter-header-personal-branding-1024x366.jpg\" alt=\"twitter header personal branding\" width=\"660\" height=\"236\" /></p>\n<h3>Do “your thing”</h3>\n<p>Do you have a catchphrase, a signature color (<a href=\"https://twitter.com/JoePulizzi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Joe Pulizzi</a> sure does), or a specific place/event that relates to you?</p>\n<p>If you’re just starting out, think of something that you’d like people to associate with you. Every influencer has their own “it” thing. Whatever you choose, put it to work on Twitter! One of my favorite examples is Andrew Davis and his famous “You’ve been Drewed!” phrase:</p>\n<p><img src=\"http://blog.mention.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/twitter-personal-branding-1024x362.jpg\" alt=\"twitter personal branding\" width=\"660\" height=\"233\" /></p>\n<h3>Simple</h3>\n<p>Sometimes less is more. Branding doesn’t necessarily mean promoting yourself in every aspect of the word. Whether you’re just starting out or are more established on Twitter – a simple photo will do.</p>\n<p>The main rule for this strategy is to post something relevant, but not overly splashy. Kittens or ponies may not necessarily work, unless that’s you and your brand (<a href=\"https://twitter.com/ThisIsSethsBlog\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">Seth Godin</a>’s Twitter profile is pretty catchy.)</p>\n<p>All in all, give it a vibe that portrays your professional environment. Learn from Guy Kawasaki:</p>\n<p><img src=\"http://blog.mention.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/GuyKAwasaki-1024x365.jpg\" alt=\"GuyKAwasaki\" width=\"660\" height=\"235\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>3. Find your brand’s voice</h2>\n<p>Don’t make a professional branding tool all about what you ate for lunch. There are a couple of questions that you need to answer before you click that tweet button:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Is this relevant to my followers?</li>\n<li>Does this piece of content promote your values or business ideals?</li>\n<li>Does this help your followers get to know you better?</li>\n</ul>\n<p>It’s okay to post a panda video here and there, but keep it occasional.</p>\n<p>For most of us, just one profile will do. However, I’ve noticed a trend of influencers with two profiles. One just to post content, and another profile that’s professional but still engages people and showcases their personality (influencers are people too!).</p>\n<p>I’ve already mentioned Ann Handley, but take a look how she’s created two profiles:</p>\n<p><img src=\"http://blog.mention.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/ann-handley-personal-branding-1024x512.png\" alt=\"ann handley personal branding\" width=\"660\" height=\"330\" /></p>\n<p>Her second, more personal, profile shows how great of a communicator Ann is – which brings me to my next point.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>4. Start building connections and influence</h2>\n<p>The point of building a personal brand is to become someone that has the answer. You want to be the guy that marketers, social media mavens, and CEOs look to for inspiration? Then you need to roll up your sleeves and find the time to get involved.<br />\nrom observation, and personal experience, there are a couple things you can do to stay engaged:</p>\n<h3>Twitter Chats</h3>\n<p>Chats are an extraordinary way to meet new people, attract new followers, and gain more information about what’s going on your field. Most Twitter chats take place weekly on the same day, at the same time.</p>\n<p>My personal favorite is <a href=\"http://www.contentmarketingworld.com/cmworld-twitter-chats/\" target=\"_blank\">CMI’s Twitter chat</a>. The people I’ve tweeted with during these chats ended up being the people I got coffee with during conferences, later on leading to professional relationships and coop projects.</p>\n<h3>Respond to mentions and shares</h3>\n<p>This one seems obvious, but a lot of people forget about it. After a couple of years on Twitter, I’ve noticed that nothing strengthens professional relationships and loyalty like a little love here and there.</p>\n<p>I could once again throw in an Ann Handley example (can you tell I’m a big fan?) but I won’t. Instead, I’ll encourage you to check out her profile and take a look at how engaged Rick Short was during CMWorld 2015:</p>\n<p><img src=\"http://blog.mention.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/personal-branding-engagement.png\" alt=\"personal branding engagement\" width=\"594\" height=\"183\" /></p>\n<p>I really liked Rick’s session, so I tweeted a quote (remembering to give credit by tagging) and I got a response from the author himself. Be like Rick – respond and converse to create loyalty.</p>\n<h3>Share, tag, talk</h3>\n<p>If the author of an article you’re sharing is on Twitter, tag them in your tweet. Ask other people what they think. Don’t be afraid to start conversations by mentioning someone. It’s good to ask and engage.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>5. Become a master tweeter</h2>\n<p>Now that you know what you need to build your personal brand, it’s time to share some tools to help you tweet better.</p>\n<h3>Save time with scheduling</h3>\n<p>Yes, the tool no one wants to admit to but everyone uses. There are dozens of great scheduling tools – like <a href=\"http://klout.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Klout</a> and <a href=\"http://hootsuite.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Hootsuite</a> – that will help you choose the date and time of each tweet. Although Hootsuite offers more scheduling options, Klout has better optimization tools (time zone, best time of day, etc.).</p>\n<h3>Find conversations to join</h3>\n<p>Monitor and listen to what’s happening on and around your account. <a href=\"http://mention.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mention</a> is an awesome tool to find conversations happening around (and about) you. You can <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fx96QdauSJU\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\">react and reply</a> within the app.</p>\n<h3>Hand out your handle</h3>\n<p>Having social media buttons (in this case, Twitter) in your email signature, on your business cards, and in all your bios are important. People are more likely to log on and follow you if you plant the idea in their head first.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Conclusion</h2>\n<p>The reality is that if you know how Twitter works, what your goals are, and who you want to reach – you’ll be able to build a brand.</p>\n<p>Jump in the deep end and start connecting, engaging, and sharing your opinions. With some time and consistency, you’ll find what works best for your personal brand and what falls flat.</p>\n<p>Stay true to who you are, but just like with any branding, you need to think about what your audience wants.</p>\n<p>Once you have the hang of things, try creating a campaign around <a href=\"http://blog.mention.com/influencers-pr-campaigns/\" target=\"_blank\">influencer outreach</a>. Working with like-minded colleagues will help you establish your position and set a seal on your Twitter personal brand.</p>\n<p>So, happy tweeting, and let me know in the comments how you tackle personal branding on Twitter!</p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p>This post originally appeared on <a href=\"http://blog.mention.com/twitter-personal-branding/\" target=\"_blank\">Mention</a>, and is re-published with permission.</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-16205\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-promote-your-business-on-linkedin.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">5 Ways to Promote Your Business on LinkedIn</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-9713\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/dave-chaffey-interview.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Dave Chaffey Shares Smart Insights on Email Marketing</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-20648\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-tools-and-tips-for-creating-the-perfect-headline.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">5 Tools And Tips For Creating The Perfect Headline</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-rock-your-personal-brand-on-twitter.html\">5 Ways to Rock Your Personal Brand on Twitter</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:83:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-rock-your-personal-brand-on-twitter.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:6;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:74:\"5 Email Marketing Lessons We Can Learn From Amy Africa [Webinar recording]\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:105:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-email-marketing-lessons-we-can-learn-from-amy-africa-webinar-recording.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:114:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-email-marketing-lessons-we-can-learn-from-amy-africa-webinar-recording.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Fri, 13 Nov 2015 15:17:48 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21303\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:733:\"<p>Last week at GetResponse we had the pleasure of hosting a webinar with Amy Africa, an expert in web usability, e-commerce optimization and email marketing, among other things. For almost an hour she talked about the essentials of email marketing &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-email-marketing-lessons-we-can-learn-from-amy-africa-webinar-recording.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-email-marketing-lessons-we-can-learn-from-amy-africa-webinar-recording.html\">5 Email Marketing Lessons We Can Learn From Amy Africa [Webinar recording]</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:17:\"Karolina Kurcwald\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:7807:\"<p>Last week at GetResponse we had the pleasure of hosting a webinar with Amy Africa, an expert in web usability, e-commerce optimization and email marketing, among other things.<span id=\"more-21303\"></span></p>\n<p>For almost an hour she talked about the essentials of email marketing some of which – a little surprisingly – are too often looked over. Here are some of the things she said (and the recording of the webinar)</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Send more triggers than newsletters</h2>\n<p>The basic distinction Amy makes in her presentation is between thrust emails (or what we would simply call newsletters), sent based on your own marketing plan and according to your timing to a large group of people, and trigger emails (autoresponders, drip campaigns, transactional emails) that are sent in smaller batches, and based on an action a subscriber performs or a piece of information you have about them.</p>\n<p>What Amy suggests in the webinar is that a successful email program should contain 20% newsletters and 80% trigger emails. Another thing that will decide whether you get positive results is if you’re mailing enough. By that she doesn’t mean the actual number of emails you’re sending out (and whether you’re actually mailing enough as in sending an enormous amount of emails), but the fact whether, from the user’s perspective, it’s enough to get their attention. This will vary for various businesses and various audiences.</p>\n<p><strong>The majority of your success comes from how much you mail and what happens outside of the envelope</strong><em>.</em></p>\n<p>Automated emails are much more effective from a user’s perspective – because they’re based on something your subscriber did or something you know about them. There are some things that improve the response, such as personalization (but beware of overdoing on the personalization side, as this will definitely not improve your results). Watch the recording to hear about other ways.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Send emails in series</h2>\n<p>Triggers work best as a series – the biggest mistake, Amy suggests, a lot of businesses are making is “one and done”: sending just one email and then forgetting all about it. A very good idea is to set up an initial, onboarding series to introduce your brand and walk your subscribers through the benefits of whatever it is that you’re offering.</p>\n<p>And then when that’s done, move them to roundups to continue the conversation. Until…</p>\n<p>Right, until when? Amy suggests something that’s sometimes called <strong>“buy or die”</strong>. It involves emailing people until they take action – either buy, or unsubscribe.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Develop a sales funnel</h2>\n<p>… or what Amy calls “a ladder” (the concepts are essentially the same, although the directions are opposite). Think carefully about what messages people get from you at what step of the ladder – and whether you’re sending them what they should be actually getting. A simple example would be not to send people who already bought something from you, emails dedicated to prospects – they’ve already been there, done that.</p>\n<p>The ladder is also a place where you should keep moving your subscribers up – from first enquires all the way up until they become multiple buyers.</p>\n<p>If you’re looking for an example of an email marketing funnel, with examples of what communication you should have at each stage, we have one for you – you can download it <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/use-the-email-marketing-funnel-and-plan-your-subscribers-journey.html\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Reactivate your subscribers</h2>\n<p>Reactivation campaigns help you engage those customers or subscribers that haven’t performed an action for a prolonged period of time, but are still on your list. So technically, they are still somewhere in the funnel – or on the ladder. If they’re still there, chances are you’ll actually be able to engage them again, if you do it right.</p>\n<p>And to do it right, you have to do what Amy calls finding out <strong>“where the rat is caught in the snake”</strong> – or to use less graphic terms, where they’re getting stuck in your funnel, and why.</p>\n<p>Amy advises, yet again, using a series of reactivation emails not just a single email &#8211; to help them move forward in your cycle. If they’re stuck, you need to have an understanding of possible reasons why and then prepare emails that will actually help them take an action – preferably one you desire.</p>\n<p>One type of reactivating your subscribers who actually are no longer your subscribers is the so called graveyard targeting. Okay, this sounds a bit grim – but it essentially boils down to retargeting people who are no longer on your list with Facebook/Google ads to get them back on your list.</p>\n<p>According to Amy, you can get 60% of those people back – and out of those 60%, 70% will actually stay if you engage them with a dedicated, mini onboarding campaign, developed specially for them (do not send them the same emails that made them unsubscribe!). Worth trying, right?</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Get your subscribers to take the right action…</h2>\n<p>This will mean a lot of things, such as sending the right content at the right stage of the funnel, using the right call to actions and minimizing distractions (do all your emails need social sharing icons?), accounting for how your subscribers are reading your emails (on mobile, by any chance?) and adjusting the design and function of the emails. The list goes on and on (again, the recording gives out much more).</p>\n<p><strong>… or, in other words, do what works for your subscribers – it will work for you</strong><strong> </strong></p>\n<p>When you think about it, all of the above – as well as all the other pieces of advice Amy’s giving in her presentation – are aimed at one thing: making your email programs better. Better as in more suited to your subscribers’ needs, which in the end will mean – more effective for your business.</p>\n<p>I could probably write at least a couple of blog posts based on what Amy said (including the various tips on mobile emails) – but I guess it’s best if you just watch for yourselves (and take notes!)</p>\n<p><strong>Thoughts? Share them in the comments! And just for you, here&#8217;s the webinar in question!</strong><br />\n<iframe src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/i6tiJ8cyvnk?rel=0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"></iframe></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-12894\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/webinar-recording-autoresponders-2-0.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Webinar Recording: Autoresponders 2.0</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-14421\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/webinar-invite-mobile-email-marketing-by-jordie-van-rijn.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Webinar Invite: Mobile Email Marketing by Jordie van Rijn</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-18040\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/handle-oops-5-types-email-mistakes-fix.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Handle Your Oops: 5 Types of Email Mistakes and How to Fix Them</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-email-marketing-lessons-we-can-learn-from-amy-africa-webinar-recording.html\">5 Email Marketing Lessons We Can Learn From Amy Africa [Webinar recording]</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:110:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-email-marketing-lessons-we-can-learn-from-amy-africa-webinar-recording.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:7;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"15 Ways to Get More Business From LinkedIn\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:75:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/15-ways-to-get-more-business-from-linkedin.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:84:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/15-ways-to-get-more-business-from-linkedin.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Thu, 12 Nov 2015 15:27:22 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21288\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:618:\"<p>LinkedIn can be a major business generator, especially if you’re in B2B (business to business). You just have to know which tactics are worth your time, and which aren’t. To help you get more out of the #1 social media &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/15-ways-to-get-more-business-from-linkedin.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/15-ways-to-get-more-business-from-linkedin.html\">15 Ways to Get More Business From LinkedIn</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"Pam Neely\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:15968:\"<p>LinkedIn can be a major business generator, especially if you’re in B2B (business to business). You just have to know which tactics are worth your time, and which aren’t.<span id=\"more-21288\"></span></p>\n<p>To help you get more out of the #1 social media platform for B2B marketers, we’ve put together this list of tips for how to get more exposure, leads and business from LinkedIn. I hope you can pick up at least a few ideas from the items below, whether you’re a LinkedIn beginner or a seasoned pro.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>1) Use a professional-quality photograph for your headshot.</h2>\n<p>This is one of the first things people see when they’re scanning profiles. So don’t use a photograph that belongs on a hobby forum. In other words:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Don’t use photographs of your pet for your headshot.</li>\n<li>No “artsy” shadowy photographs, or photos of just part of your face.</li>\n<li>No high school photographs. Your photo should have been taken within the last five years.</li>\n<li>No photos that are cropped group photos. You should be the only person in the photo. There is one possible exception: if you’ve got a photo of you with Richard Branson or another globally recognized business personality.</li>\n<li>No photos you wouldn’t include on your resume if you were doing an in person interview.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>If you’re not sure if your current photo is good enough, consider using <a href=\"https://www.photofeeler.com/\" target=\"_blank\">PhotoFeeler</a>, a free online tool that lets other users rate your Facebook or LinkedIn profile photo based on how competent, likable and influential you appear to them.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21290\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/PhotoFeeler-MyResults-1024x762.jpg\" alt=\"PhotoFeeler-MyResults\" width=\"584\" height=\"435\" /></p>\n<p>The online tool PhotoFeeler gives you feedback about your Facebook or LinkedIn profile photo, based on what other PhotoFeeler users think of it.</p>\n<p>Want extra credit? Split-test your headshot. Run a couple of headshots through PhotoFeeler. Use the one that gets the highest score. It just might get you more business.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>2) Set up both a company and a personal LinkedIn page.</h2>\n<p>This is for those of you who own a business. You want the personal page so you can publish posts and participate in LinkedIn groups. You want the company page so you can do sponsored updates. Sponsored updates are a way to promote business-related content on LinkedIn. They’re like Twitter promoted tweets, or promoted posts on Facebook. LinkedIn expert <a href=\"https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/20140707164625-34888774-linkedin-company-page-vs-personal-profile-which-is-better\" target=\"_blank\">Melonie Dodaro says</a> she’s gotten massive exposure from her sponsored updates, even when she has just a $100 budget.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>3) Start republishing your best long-form blog posts on LinkedIn’s Publishing Platform.</h2>\n<p>LinkedIn offers every user an amazing tool to show off their expertise. You don’t even have to write unique content for it. Just repost content from your blog, or (with permission) from guest posts you’ve written. You may get more exposure for the LinkedIn posts than the other publications ever got.</p>\n<p>For exhaustive data-driven details on how to get more exposure for your LinkedIn posts, check out Paul Shapiro’s post, <a href=\"http://okdork.com/2014/09/09/linkedin-publishing-success/\" target=\"_blank\">“We Analyzed the 3,000 Most Successful LinkedIn Publishing Posts“</a> published on Noah Kagan’s blog. He explains how long LinkedIn posts should be, how long their headlines should be, how many subheaders and images to use, and more.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21291\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Performance-by-Word-Count-logo.jpg\" alt=\"Performance-by-Word-Count-logo\" width=\"584\" height=\"559\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>4) Get to more than 500 connections</h2>\n<p>And don’t just accept connections from anyone. Some LinkedIn users certainly have benefitted from accepting all connection requests (also referred to as being a “LION” or participating in “LinkedIn Open Networking), but several LinkedIn experts say  it’s time to be more choosy. So only accept invites from people in your industry (at least) or people you actually know or would like to know (for business… no dating through LinkedIn profiles, please).</p>\n<p>Here’s a secret trick to get more connections: Follow micro influencers and prospective clients on Twitter. About a week after they’ve followed you back, send them a customized LinkedIn invite. Mention you’re both following each other on Twitter, and you thought it would be nice to connect on LinkedIn, too. I’m still getting a 70%+ acceptance rate with this tactic.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>5) Don’t send hollow sales pitches to your connections right off the bat.</h2>\n<p>Ever. Not even if your sales manager is hounding you.</p>\n<p>People hate connecting with someone and then getting hit with a sales pitch. If you want to build a relationship with someone, do it in an acceptable way. Like and comment on their posts. Reshare their social media posts. Comment on their blog and their LinkedIn updates and group comments. Take at least a dozen actions like that before you send them InMail. And even then, only be helpful. Do not just bust out and ask when they can be available to schedule a demo or an assessment call.</p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">This (borrowed from a <a href=\"https://twitter.com/LinkedIn\">@LinkedIn</a> member) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/hashtag/salespitch?src=hash\">#salespitch</a> <a href=\"https://t.co/NPMoJeF8PI\">pic.twitter.com/NPMoJeF8PI</a></p>\n<p>— Russell O&#8217;Sullivan (@russosullivan) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/russosullivan/status/662571498561998848\">November 6, 2015</a></p></blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>6) Start liking and commenting on other people’s LinkedIn updates.</h2>\n<p>Think you’ve got no time for LinkedIn networking? Come on. You can’t scroll through a few updates and click “like” a couple of times? Make a habit of it – and maybe even add a comment now and again – and people will start to recognize you. As you become a known quantity to them, they’re more likely to like your content… and maybe even reply to your emails and calls.</p>\n<p>This one post has two comments and a like. How long do you think it took to write a sentence or two, or just to click the like link?</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21293\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/LinkedInPostComment-1024x773.jpg\" alt=\"LinkedInPostComment\" width=\"584\" height=\"441\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>7) Join a few LinkedIn groups &#8211; and start participating.</h2>\n<p>Set a timer for ten minutes if you’re worried this might consume your day. It doesn’t have to, and it’s one of the best ways to become better known in your industry. There are some rules of engagement in LinkedIn groups, and each group is a little different. Want a primer? Read Barry Feldman’s KissMetrics post on the subject to refine your <a href=\"https://blog.kissmetrics.com/rule-linkedin-groups/\" target=\"_blank\">Group interaction skills</a>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>8) Share your content.</h2>\n<p>Share content on LinkedIn groups (only in relevant groups, and only according to the group’s rules). Share it in <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/6-ways-promote-content-linkedin.html\" target=\"_blank\">your feed</a>.</p>\n<p>But don’t share only your own content… share other people’s content, too. Otherwise you’ll be at risk of either being boring or being self-centered. Both are deadly sins on social media.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21294\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/ShareContent-1024x791.jpg\" alt=\"ShareContent\" width=\"584\" height=\"451\" /></p>\n<p>Want some tips for how to format your posts so they get more engagement? See Octopost’s infographic, <a href=\"http://cdn.business2community.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/linkedin-b2b-infographic.jpg\" target=\"_blank\">“Socially Driven B2B Marketing”</a> for more ideas. One key tip: The average length of a post that converts on LinkedIn is 248 characters.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>9) Recommend people who deserve it.</h2>\n<p>Recommendations are definitely a way to build your reputation. But you’ve got to give to get. Fortunately, giving recommendations is also a great way to get people’s attention. Along the way, you’ll probably pick up a few recommendations for your work. People really appreciate getting a recommendation, especially if they didn’t have to ask for it. Often they’ll be so appreciative that they’ve write one for you, just because you wrote one for them.</p>\n<p>Here’s the deal, though: Only recommend people who’s work you know well. Ideally, that means you’ve worked with them for at least a few months. But even a one-time freelance gig can be enough legitimate experience to recommend someone. Just stick to the facts and always be professional. And &#8211; as always &#8211; try your very, very, very best to only say positive things on social media.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21295\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/SujanPatel3-1024x958.jpg\" alt=\"SujanPatel3\" width=\"584\" height=\"546\" /></p>\n<p>Sujan Patel has 21 recommendations, but these two are featured at the top of his recommendations page. You can also see how many recommendations he’s given – it’s in the upper right hand corner of this screenshot.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>10) Endorse people for skills you know they’ve got.</h2>\n<p>Endorsements are easier than recommendations. You don’t have to know someone as well to endorse them for a couple of skills. And it only takes a few clicks, versus having to write a couple of paragraphs. So endorse away. Just don’t go overboard. Endorse for only 2-3 skills at a time. And don’t endorse for skills you’re not sure of.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21296\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/JordieEndorseLinkedInEmailMarketing-1024x771.jpg\" alt=\"JordieEndorseLinkedInEmailMarketing\" width=\"584\" height=\"440\" /></p>\n<p>If you know someone’s work, it’s nice to endorse them for a few skills. I know Jordie from his blog and his posts on GetResponse, so I can definitely endorse him as being a skilled email marketer.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>11) Optimize your profile for LinkedIn’s search… and other search engines.</h2>\n<p>LinkedIn has a search engine. Some people use it just for the search engine. So it’s important to sprinkle your profile with keywords, and, of course, to fill out your profile completely. See this <a href=\"http://www.inc.com/adam-heitzman/7-methods-to-seo-your-linkedin-account.html\" target=\"_blank\">Inc.com blog post</a> for more specifics on how to optimize your profile.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>12) Use LinkedIn’s Inmails the right way.</h2>\n<p>Chris Reed wrote a whole <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-use-inmails-on-linkedin-to-win-clients.html\" target=\"_blank\">post</a> for us about how to do this recently. Want just one key take away from that article? Don’t use Inmail to sell; use it to build connections and get people on the phone.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>13) Join as many LinkedIn groups as you can.</h2>\n<p>Why? It makes prospecting and network-building easier. If you’re a member of a Group with someone, you’ll be able to send them an invite or a message. To do this, go to the Group you’ve both a part of, then go to the Group’s member list. Find who you want to send a message to. Click the “Send message” link next to their member listing.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21297\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/GroupsSendMessage-1024x614.jpg\" alt=\"GroupsSendMessage\" width=\"584\" height=\"350\" /></p>\n<p>You can message up to 15 people every month through this loophole. And hat tip to <a href=\"http://topdogsocialmedia.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Melonie Dodaro</a> for this tip!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>14) Leverage your SlideShare assets on LinkedIn.</h2>\n<p>LinkedIn owns SlideShare, which gives you all kinds of cool ways to weave the two platforms together. And that to the fact that SlideShare is one of the best and more underused ways to promote B2B content (still!) and there are plenty of motivations to get busy.</p>\n<p>Want just one reason? You can embed a lead generation form in your SlideShares. You can even require people to fill it out if they want to see the SlideShare.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21298\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/SlideShare-1024x677.jpg\" alt=\"SlideShare\" width=\"584\" height=\"386\" /></p>\n<p>Robert Rose, Content Marketing Strategist, Author &amp; Speaker for The Content Marketing Institute, has a series of SlideShares embedded into his LinkedIn profile page. This is what it looks like if you click on any of them. The integration between LinkedIn and SlideShare is becoming better and better.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>15) Launch your own Group on LinkedIn.</h2>\n<p>Got even a modest audience? Getting at least a couple of comments on every blog post you publish? You may have enough of an engaged audience to pull off a LinkedIn Group.</p>\n<p>Why start a LinkedIn Group? It positions your company as a thought leader, for starters. It also gives you a special area of LinkedIn that’s much more under your control. And it gives you another channel to promote your content, expertise and services. Oh yeah – and it’s free!</p>\n<p>Just be careful you’ve got enough of an audience to launch. Otherwise, it can be awkward to have a Group that’s pretty much dead. Think this might be for you? Read <a href=\"http://marketeer.kapost.com/linkedin-content-marketing-group/#axzz3r86kY9Qp\" target=\"_blank\">Kapost’s blog post</a> about how they created and manage the largest group on LinkedIn for content marketers.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Conclusion</h2>\n<p>B2B marketers are getting more out of LinkedIn all the time. You can too. It doesn’t have to take tons of time or money, either. Just choose a few simple tasks to do each day, and always be authentic in how you communicate with people. Even though it’s a B2B platform, you’ll actually do far better on LinkedIn if you don’t sound overly corporate or salesy.</p>\n<p>What’s working for you on LinkedIn these days? Got any tips I didn’t mention? Share one or two with us in the comments.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-19530\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/devising-your-linkedin-marketing-strategy.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Devising Your LinkedIn Marketing Strategy</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-16561\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/using-content-marketing-strategies-b2b-emails-infographic.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Using Content Marketing Strategies in B2B Emails #Infographic</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-16205\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-promote-your-business-on-linkedin.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">5 Ways to Promote Your Business on LinkedIn</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/15-ways-to-get-more-business-from-linkedin.html\">15 Ways to Get More Business From LinkedIn</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:80:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/15-ways-to-get-more-business-from-linkedin.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"2\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:8;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:60:\"8 Tips On Writing Content That People Want to Read Right Now\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:93:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-tips-on-writing-content-that-people-want-to-read-right-now.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:102:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-tips-on-writing-content-that-people-want-to-read-right-now.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Wed, 11 Nov 2015 14:37:10 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21279\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:663:\"<p>Once upon a time, good content was hard to come by. It was fairly easy to get eyeballs on your content just by the virtue of it being reasonably good. This is not the case anymore. If you have been around for a &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-tips-on-writing-content-that-people-want-to-read-right-now.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-tips-on-writing-content-that-people-want-to-read-right-now.html\">8 Tips On Writing Content That People Want to Read Right Now</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"Marya Jan\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13766:\"<p>Once upon a time, good content was hard to come by. It was fairly easy to get eyeballs on your content just by the virtue of it being reasonably good. This is not the case anymore. If you have been around for a while, you may have noted the rise in content.<span id=\"more-21279\"></span></p>\n<p>People are drowning in newsletters and emails, social media updates, and promos. This is truly the age of information overwhelm. And yet, some content still does really well. While vast majority of the content struggles to find an audience, some is thriving more than ever.</p>\n<p>So what’s the secret? Does your content have to be exceptionally good? Yes. But don’t be scared. If your content is good, you can make it exceptionally good with a few tweaks. That’s where I come in.</p>\n<p><strong> </strong></p>\n<h2>#1 Make sure your idea is relevant</h2>\n<p>If you are not clear on who your ideal audience is, or if your idea is just not that interesting to the people you want to reach, it won’t take off.</p>\n<p>Sure, there are times when a certain piece of content goes viral where nobody expected it to, or a piece you spent hours working on, tanks. However, for the most part, the most well-matched ideas work really well.</p>\n<p>Make sure you spend time figuring out what your audience wants from you. Think about the gap in the market, what type of content is missing, and what has been overdone.</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Help solve a problem.</li>\n<li>Make them feel like they can do anything.</li>\n<li>Make them laugh.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>As long as the piece has value for them and it covers a specific topic, it should be well received. It doesn’t even matter if it’s educational, inspirational or entertaining. It needs to be truly helpful and that’s the first thing you need to think about.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>#2 Work on your headline</h2>\n<p>When I tell people they need to work on their blog titles, the number one objection I hear is this: ‘oh these types of headlines don’t work in my industry’. I find this quite interesting. There is a certain presumption going on. People think that I am encouraging them to write headlines that are over-the-top, hypey or sleazy.</p>\n<p>Nothing could be further from the truth.</p>\n<p>When I tell you to make your headlines stronger, I want you to make them more specific (rather than broad and generic), spell out a benefit and/or arouse curiosity (not sensationalism). What I am really saying is that getting your headline right is critical if you want people to consume your content.</p>\n<p>Nothing wrong with that, right?</p>\n<p>Here are some examples of headlines that promise a straight benefit:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>10 business lessons I learned this year – Neil Patel</li>\n<li>5 quick things you can do to fix your marketing this week – Sonia Simone</li>\n<li>Launch a self hosted WordPress blog in 20 minutes – Michael Hyatt</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Here are some examples of headlines that are so irresistible (for the right audience, I may add) that people will be itching to click and read the whole article:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Truth Time: I Haven’t Been Fully Practicing What I Teach – Jenny Shih</li>\n<li>3 amazing things happening in my biz &amp; life right now! – Sarah Hart</li>\n</ul>\n<p>And here are two that do both.</p>\n<ul>\n<li>10 Mistakes I Made Publishing My eBook, and How You Can Do it Better – Carol Tice</li>\n<li>Want to steal my Facebook ad strategy? –Kimra Luna</li>\n</ul>\n<p>This is the power of writing a great headline.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21284\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/writing-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"writing\" width=\"584\" height=\"390\" /></p>\n<h2>#3 Hook them with a solid intro</h2>\n<p>There are certain pieces of content that hook you from the start. They have you at ‘hello’.</p>\n<p>As soon as you read the first line, you can’t stop yourself from reading the next one, and the next, and so on. Pretty soon, you find yourself reaching the end of the article and you didn’t even plan on reading it at that instant.</p>\n<p>You can have the same effect on your readers. The trick is to work on your intro.</p>\n<p>The headline will ensure that the person at the other end clicks on your article. However, the introduction will force them to continue reading. Many blog posts fail to get traction because they lose people right at the start.</p>\n<p>You don’t want to do that. Here are some tips for you to create an irresistible introduction:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Ask a question.</li>\n<li>Make a bold claim.</li>\n<li>Share a startling statistic.</li>\n<li>Use a pattern interrupt (Grab their attention by saying something totally unexpected).</li>\n<li>Start telling them a story (Make sure the first sentence is very compelling).</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>#4 Make it conversational</h2>\n<p>Nobody wants to read content that feels like as if a robot churned it out. And there is plenty of content like that floating on the interwebs for sure. The easiest way to let people know that this content was written by an actual, living, breathing human is to make it conversational.</p>\n<p>Write as you speak – only better. What do I mean by that? Write your post as if you are having a chat with a dear friend, and then edit for clarity. Here are some tips to help you do just that:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Use short sentences.</li>\n<li>Use contractions. Instead of saying ‘I am’, say ‘I’m’, or replace ‘I would’ with ‘I’d’.</li>\n<li>Use exclamatory sentences like ‘Holy cow’ ‘Say what?’</li>\n<li>It’s okay to use fragments within your writing.</li>\n<li>It is also okay to start a sentence with a conjunction like ‘and’ or ‘but’.</li>\n<li>Don’t use passive voice. Instead of saying ‘it’s been decided’, say ‘I decided that ..’, or ‘Your comment is much appreciated’, ‘I appreciate your comment’.</li>\n<li>Avoid using jargon and industry-speak.</li>\n<li>Avoid appearing too formal. It makes your writing boring.</li>\n<li>Ask questions to make your writing feel like a dialogue instead of a monologue.</li>\n<li>Inject your personality.</li>\n<li>Use words that are unique to you. Use some slang but don’t go overboard.</li>\n<li>Watch your tone. Do you want to sound warm and approachable or come across like a princess?</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>#5 Brevity is your friend</h2>\n<p>Let me ask you a question (please don’t throw something at me) &#8211; are you busy?</p>\n<p>Exactly! I mean, in today’s information oversaturated world, who isn’t?</p>\n<p>We are all starving for time and genuine connection. This is the perfect opportunity for you to stand out. Get to the point quickly. (And yes, I am writing this in a 2000+ blog post, the irony is not lost on me.)</p>\n<p>So let me clarify. I’m not asking you to write 200-word blog posts, or restrict the length of all your social media updates. What I’m saying is to be concise in your writing. Conciseness means getting rid of rambling, repetition, irrelevant information, redundancy, and anything else that takes away from a pleasurable reading experience.</p>\n<p>Here are some tips for you:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>As a general rule, use short words, sentences and paragraphs.</li>\n<li>Eliminate all run-on sentences.</li>\n<li>Get rid of all unnecessary information.</li>\n<li>Edit ruthlessly. Edit to make your writing even better.</li>\n<li>Cut all words that don’t affect your sentence structure.</li>\n<li>Shorten your stories</li>\n<li>Tighten up your writing.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>#6 Make your reader the focus of the content</h2>\n<p>Do you know the difference between a business blog vs a personal one? Let me tell you in case you don’t.</p>\n<p>Your personal blog is more like an online journal. You write it for your friends, family and colleagues. You muse about matters that are interesting and important to YOU. You are content with a handful of people reading it and leaving an occasional comment. You don’t have any goals to build your list or monetize it.</p>\n<p>Contrast that with your business blog which exists to build K-L-T (Know, like and trust) and grow your email list. It has a different purpose altogether.</p>\n<p>So when you consider publishing anything on your blog, you have to make your readers your main focus. Think about what they want. What are they interested in reading more about? What sort of content appeals to this audience?</p>\n<p>Make your content all about them. Here are some handy tips to do this:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Address your reader in the post. Pretend you are sitting across them having a friendly conversation and keep that picture in mind.</li>\n<li>Use ‘you’ and ‘your’ instead of ‘me or ‘I”.</li>\n<li>Mirror their responses.</li>\n<li>Use the kind of language they use.</li>\n<li>Build your content around questions they ask and topics they request.</li>\n<li>Ask them questions.</li>\n<li>Ask them for feedback.</li>\n<li>Ask them for comments. Make them a part of this conversation</li>\n</ul>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21285\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/writing_content-1024x684.jpeg\" alt=\"writing_content\" width=\"584\" height=\"390\" /></p>\n<h2>#7 Use proven content types</h2>\n<p>To make it really easy for yourself, see what is already working. There is no need to reinvent the wheel.</p>\n<p>Go out and explore some blogs in your industry. See what is getting popular. Pay attention to the content type. Is the piece long-form or short? Is it image heavy or does it contain some form of audio?</p>\n<p>What about the topic. Is it straight how-to content? Are they using video to do a tutorial? Are they interviewing influencers? Are they just curating what is out there already?</p>\n<p>Here are some content ideas that are proven to work:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Do an epic list post.</li>\n<li>Do a really short, punchy piece.</li>\n<li>Do an interview post where you reach out to influencers in your industry, ask them a question or two and compile the results.</li>\n<li>Write about something that is not working in your industry right now.</li>\n<li>Do a video tutorial.</li>\n<li>Create an infographic.</li>\n<li>Create a meme around your brand.</li>\n<li>Tell a story about yourself.</li>\n<li>Teach your readers to do something super fast.</li>\n<li>Write a post about the lessons you have learned in the past 5 or 10 years</li>\n<li>Publish a rant.</li>\n<li>Publish an image-heavy post.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>#8 Make it look good</h2>\n<p>You have done a fantastic job nailing your headline and so you succeed in getting people to click through. You have also worked hard to create an irresistible opening that is sure to hook people and grab their attention.</p>\n<p>However, you still find that there isn’t any evidence that your content is having impact. For example, you aren’t receiving any comments, social media shares or any feedback at all. The problem might be that nobody is actually reading the post till the end. And this isn’t because the post is not well-written and relevant, the issue could be formatting.</p>\n<p>You have to adapt your writing for the world wide web. What works in print doesn’t necessarily works online. Here are some tips:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Choose a font that is easy to read.</li>\n<li>Use images to entice your reader.</li>\n<li>Use sub-headings to highlight the important points for those who like to scan.</li>\n<li>Use bullets, numbered lists and italics to make some text stand out.</li>\n<li>Break up long paragraphs into shorter ones (it is okay to use a one-sentence paragraph).</li>\n<li>Use lots of white space to make it easy on the eye.</li>\n<li>Make sure the text doesn’t stretch across the screen. Don’t make it too wide.</li>\n<li>Optimize for mobile and make it easy to read on a tiny screen.</li>\n<li>Make your links attractive and useful by hyperlinking words that explain what you are linking to.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Remember, if you focus on your reader, put out content that they find highly useful, and make it accessible (share on social media, make it easy to consume online), then there is no reason why your content won’t see any traction.</p>\n<p>However, do keep this in mind &#8211; if you are going to play the content game, it is going to be for the long haul.</p>\n<p>Content marketing is not a sprint, it is a marathon, so if you want a great ROI (return on investment) on your time and effort, you gotta stay consistent. Don’t give up too soon and you will see it pay off. Good luck! <strong>And share in the comments below how you tackle content marketing problems.</strong></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-679\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/new-twitter-share-option-in-getresponse.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">New Twitter Share Option in GetResponse </a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-21258\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-50-blogging-tools-for-getting-into-top-2015-blogs.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Best 50 Blogging Tools for Getting into Top 2015 Blogs</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-19845\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/40-ways-to-make-your-blog-posts-go-viral.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">40 Ways to Make Your Blog Posts Go Viral</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-tips-on-writing-content-that-people-want-to-read-right-now.html\">8 Tips On Writing Content That People Want to Read Right Now</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:98:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-tips-on-writing-content-that-people-want-to-read-right-now.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"2\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:9;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:52:\"How To Create An Engaging Brand Narrative On Twitter\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:85:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-create-an-engaging-brand-narrative-on-twitter.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:94:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-create-an-engaging-brand-narrative-on-twitter.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Tue, 10 Nov 2015 15:37:45 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21271\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:665:\"<p>Creative non-fiction is one of the most overlooked and, in my opinion, underrated narrative forms in all of literature. One of my favourite ever books is a so-called non-fiction novel by Truman Capote – In Cold Blood. I’m sure you’ve &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-create-an-engaging-brand-narrative-on-twitter.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-create-an-engaging-brand-narrative-on-twitter.html\">How To Create An Engaging Brand Narrative On Twitter</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Kerry Butters\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9128:\"<p>Creative non-fiction is one of the most overlooked and, in my opinion, underrated narrative forms in all of literature. One of my favourite ever books is a so-called non-fiction novel by Truman Capote – <em>In Cold Blood</em>. I’m sure you’ve heard of it, and many, no doubt, have read it also, for it is one of the finest pieces of creative journalism to have ever been peeled off the printing press.<span id=\"more-21271\"></span></p>\n<p>What makes it so engaging? Well, aside from the fact that it is penned by one of the greatest English language writers the world has ever known, it’s the constant realisation, as you’re reading, that, despite how the book is written, that Capote’s narrative is 100% real, and not actually a fiction at all.</p>\n<p>For me it has the same effect as when those all-enticing words appear on-screen before a movie commences ­– ‘Based on a true story.’ This invariably makes the audience sit up and pay even closer attention. All the drama, conflict and heartache is somehow enhanced by those five magical words. They bring about an added depth of reality to the tale that wouldn’t have been there without them. <em>Sleepers</em>, <em>Schindler’s List</em>, <em>Into the Wild</em>, <em>My Left Foot</em>, <em>A Beautiful Mind</em>, <em>Catch Me If You Can</em>, <em>Goodfellas, Capote </em>– all amazing major motion pictures, but would they <em>really</em> have enjoyed quite the same applause if they weren’t all ‘based upon true stories’?</p>\n<p>It’s a difficult question to answer, to be fair, because these are all <em>great</em> movies. Some Academy Award-winning, in fact. And so there is indeed a very viable argument for the contrary – that is to say that, <em>yes</em>, <em>Goodfellas</em>, <em>Catch Me If You Can</em>, <em>Sleepers</em> – all of them – would have been just as enthralling even if the plots and the story beats had all been plucked right out of thin air. Of course they would. Of course they would. <em>But still</em> – there would have been <em>something</em> missing. Something that it’s quite hard to put your finger on, but nonetheless fundamental to the whole <em>spirit</em> of the creation.</p>\n<p>No, for me, the reason why movie makers feel the need to <em>insist</em> that those five magic words are emblazoned for all to see at the start of the movie, is that they know as well as anyone that true stories engage. And indeed, that’s exactly why I love <em>In Cold Blood</em> so much.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>It’s All About Veracity</h2>\n<p>Yes it is. As I’ve said, veracity is an underrated narrative form when it comes to the written word – albeit less so when it comes to the big screen. Why is this? When we read fiction – and indeed reviews and criticism of fiction – we hail the writer for how <em>believable</em>, how <em>real</em> the story is.  And yet when we are reading non-fiction – newspapers, text books, magazines, blogs – we somehow settle for just being informed, rather than entertained.</p>\n<p>And for me this begs a rather obvious question – why shouldn’t there be a kind of reverse crossover when it comes to our non-fiction output? Rather than being ‘based on a true story’, why shouldn’t our business narratives be ‘based on the traditions of story-telling’? Indeed, I think this is exactly why true-movies and non-fiction novels work so well – they bring the best of both worlds neatly together in one artistic expression.</p>\n<p>Veracity, by definition (unless you intend to lie to your customers, which is absolutely <em>not</em> a very good idea), is already very much a part of your business story – but what it might well lack is a bit of conflict, drama and suspense to keep your following hooked.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>How To Create An Engaging Brand Narrative On Twitter</h2>\n<p>Twitter lends itself particularly well to creating a brand narrative. Those little 140 character posts are just short and punchy enough that you can create intrigue, suspense and sensation very simply and quickly – everything a compelling narrative needs.</p>\n<p>But, you were probably hoping for some slightly more actionable tips than that, so here’s what I suggest.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>1. Prepare In Advance</h3>\n<p>None of the great tales ever simply oozed out of the writer’s pen without any forethought whatsoever (although, to be fair, I believe Jack Kerouac’s <em>On The Road</em> was supposedly crafted along those lines – and some people consider that to be a ‘great tale’, so it’s conceivable that you might, too). So, don’t begin a storytelling campaign on Twitter without mapping out exactly how you conceive each ‘chapter’ to flow onto the next one. Make a draft plan, and remember some rules of storytelling that you must embed within your campaign:</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Your story must have a beginning, a middle, and an end </strong>(There’s no point just jumping right into the middle of something without setting up the context of the forthcoming narrative. And, similarly, no matter what happens during the ‘middle’ section, you must resolve it at the end.)</li>\n<li><strong>Give your story an emotional arc </strong>(To plan for this, you need to consider how you want your following to fell at the beginning of you story, and how you want to transform this at the end.)</li>\n<li><strong>Plan your story to be engaging, shareable and interactive where possible </strong>(The whole idea of turning towards storytelling for a marketing boost is to try and reach out a little further than you normally would be able to. Not everyone may be interested in your brand, but, find a good story to tell, and plenty will be interested in your campaign. Encourage engagement and interaction – even if that just means that your following will leave comments that you reply to – and you should hopefully find your campaign gets shared far and wide for its entertainment value, with your brand name attached to it of course.)</li>\n</ul>\n<h3></h3>\n<h3>2. Create Memorable, Lovable, Identifiable Characters</h3>\n<p>Stories are only as engaging as the characters that carry the audience along. But, my top suggestion here is to try and make your product the central character of your Twitter story. In this way you can imbue your product with whatever personality you can possibly conceive. If it’s a cleaning product, then you could turn it into some type of superhero; a superfood nutty product could be carried along quite cutely by some sort of animal like a squirrel; and even if you’re something like a digital research agency, you could most certainly liven up your image by having some sort of detective character in a trench coat and trilby fronting your Twitter campaign. And this in fact brings me on nicely to my next point.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21276\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/images-1024x758.jpg\" alt=\"images\" width=\"584\" height=\"432\" /></p>\n<h3>3. Use Images To Tell Your Story</h3>\n<p>Social media has gone visual. There’s no escaping this fact. And Twitter is no exception. I know from experimentation with my own Twitter account, that tweets with pictures generally get at least twice the engagement as ones that don’t, and often three, four or five times that, to be frank.</p>\n<p>And of course if you’re creating characters, then the best way to bring these to life on social media will be to create images of them. A picture really can say a thousand words, and your visual characters can be endearing at a glance to anyone who stumbles across them online. Indeed, there’s nothing to stop you from including comic-book style speech bubbles in your images, provided, of course, that such a thing is appropriate to your story and overall brand image/message.</p>\n<p><strong>How do you use storytelling to promote your brand on Twitter? Please share your thoughts with us in the comments below. </strong></p>\n<h2></h2>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-5890\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/getresponse-in-brazilian-portuguese.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">GetResponse in Brazilian Portuguese</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-17796\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-blog-design-tweaks-will-increase-email-signups.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">9 Blog Design Tweaks That Will Increase Your Email Signups</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-13407\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-tell-a-great-marketing-story.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How to Tell a Great Marketing Story</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-create-an-engaging-brand-narrative-on-twitter.html\">How To Create An Engaging Brand Narrative On Twitter</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:90:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-create-an-engaging-brand-narrative-on-twitter.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:10;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:54:\"Best 50 Blogging Tools for Getting into Top 2015 Blogs\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:87:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-50-blogging-tools-for-getting-into-top-2015-blogs.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:96:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-50-blogging-tools-for-getting-into-top-2015-blogs.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Mon, 09 Nov 2015 15:41:21 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21258\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:639:\"<p>Running a blog is not as easy of a task as people may think. Blogging is really an art that requires the right attitude. To write a good article, you should first do some research, then put all your thoughts &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-50-blogging-tools-for-getting-into-top-2015-blogs.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-50-blogging-tools-for-getting-into-top-2015-blogs.html\">Best 50 Blogging Tools for Getting into Top 2015 Blogs</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:22397:\"<p>Running a blog is not as easy of a task as people may think. Blogging is really an art that requires the right attitude. To write a good article, you should first do some research, then put all your thoughts together, prepare images and videos. And it doesn’t end here. The most important part is bringing your content to the hands of your audience, getting people to read and share your post.<span id=\"more-21258\"></span></p>\n<p>Looks quite difficult, doesn’t it? However, if you are ready to do this job and try your powers in content writing, here is the list of best blogging tools that will help you during each stage of the writing process &#8211; starting from topic choice and ending up with social media promo.</p>\n<p>Just keep in mind one thing: tools don’t make the blogger! It’s all about your passion, creativity, and desire. Welcome to the blogging world!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Multimedia Tools</h2>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.freemake.com/free_video_converter/\" target=\"_blank\">FREEMAKE VIDEO CONVERTER</a></h3>\n<p>Whatever topic you write about, you might need to add a video to your post. In most cases, visual content helps readers better understand what you are talking about, then turning readers into subscribers. Freemake Video Converter lets you prepare and add videos onto your blog. Cut, rotate, join videos into one file and convert it “to HTML5”. The software will convert your video in three formats (OGG, MP4, and WebM) and provide a ready code which you can copy and paste into your blog post.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://photopin.com/\" target=\"_blank\">PHOTOPIN</a></h3>\n<p>Pics are a must-have for a good blog article. However, you don’t want to spend money on images for your blog, go to PhotoPin for free images. The site provides millions of pictures for blog posts. Just choose those that suit your topic more.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://deathtothestockphoto.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Death to the Stock Photo</a></h3>\n<p>In case you don’t find anything to your liking on PhotoPin, here is another great source for free pictures. It’s a subscription-based site. Leave your email and get hi-res lifestyle photos every month. For those who want to get an access to all site photos, there is a Premium subscription available.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://imgflip.com/memegenerator\" target=\"_blank\">IMGFLIP</a></h3>\n<p>Imgflip is a free meme generator full of ready meme backgrounds. You only need to choose the one you like and type your text. If you have a fun category or fun posts in your blog, it&#8217;s be best to remember to add some meme pictures. They are extremely popular now and will attract readers, especially if you publish such a pic as a preview for your blog in social networks.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.awesomescreenshot.com/\" target=\"_blank\">AWESOME SCREENSHOT</a></h3>\n<p>When you&#8217;re describing a software or teaching how to use a particular web service, you can’t work without screenshots to make your post more clear and professional. Awesome Screenshot is a nice tool for capturing web pages. It lets you add captions, comments, or annotations to your screenshot, blur private information, and save the result in one click. The extension can be added to Google Chrome, Safari, and Firefox.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.techsmith.com/snagit.html\" target=\"_blank\">SNAGIT</a></h3>\n<p>Snagit is a powerful image editing tool for Windows and Mac OS users. With its help you can take beautiful screenshots for your articles. You can shoot either the entire screen or a part of it. Snagit has a great built-in photo editor which lets you make all the necessary editing. It’s a paid tool, but it’s worth paying for.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://pixlr.com/editor/\" target=\"_blank\">PIXLR ONLINE PHOTO EDITOR</a></h3>\n<p>Pixlr Online Photo editor is a good alternative to Adobe Photoshop. It doesn’t require any installation, yet it has plenty of options. You can create an image from scratch or edit a previously made picture. Pixlr allows you to work with masks, layers, filters, brushes, and gradients like a fully-functional desktop software. Whenever you can’t find a good pic for your blog, use Pixlr to create one.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://makeagif.com/\" target=\"_blank\">MAKEAGIF</a></h3>\n<p>Make your blog more interesting and attractive by using GIF&#8217;s. They are extremely popular on Tumblr and will help you promote your blog on this platform. Use MakeaGif to easily create a simple GIF picture out of your photos. All you need to do is to add photos, arrange them in the right order, and press “Create a GIF” button.”</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://imgur.com/vidgif/\" target=\"_blank\">Vid to Gif</a></h3>\n<p>As it’s clear from its title, Vid to GIF lets you create GIF images from YouTube videos. What you should do is to copy and paste the YouTube video URL, point to where the start and the end of you future GIF are, and click to create it.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.techsmith.com/camtasia.html\" target=\"_blank\">CAMTASIA</a></h3>\n<p>Camtasia is a well-known software for recording and editing screen videos. Available for Windows and Mac OS, it’ll be the perfect tool for those who observe software and need to show how a particular program works. It’s always better to show, than to explain.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://sourceforge.net/projects/audacity/\" target=\"_blank\">Audacity</a></h3>\n<p>Audacity is a must-have if you work with audio. It lets you record screen audio, edit audio files, add effects, and convert tracks to a number of digital formats. This tool is great for podcasters. Alternatively, you can add voice comments to your videos.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Social Sharing and Promo Tools</h2>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.getresponse.com/\" target=\"_blank\">GETRESPONSE</a></h3>\n<p>GetResponse is a powerful email marketing tool. It’ll provide you with a subscription form for your blog and take care about your readers’ emails. GetResponse has over 500 ready templates that you can use to send beautiful emails with new posts to your subscribers. A perfectly written email will bring people back to your blog. Read <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/\" target=\"_blank\">GetResponse blog</a> for great articles about email and online marketing.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://buffer.com/\" target=\"_blank\">BUFFER</a></h3>\n<p>You have probably already heard about Buffer, a free service that lets you share your content via social networks. Add Twitter, Facebook, and/or G+ account and schedule your posts for publishing. If 10 posts are not enough, go for business account for $102/yr. Remember that social media are a must have promo tool!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://hootsuite.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Hootsuite</a></h3>\n<p>Hootsuite is one of the best dashboard tools for managing your social account. It supports all major social platforms and allows you to post blog posts automatically, right from your RSS feed.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.tumblr.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Tumblr</a></h3>\n<p>Tumblr is a popular microblogging platform. If you have fun content, it’ll be a perfect place to leave a preview for your article with a link and a funny pic. Just don’t forget to use hashtags to let people find your post.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://postach.io/site\" target=\"_blank\">IO</a></h3>\n<p>Postach.io is a free tiny blogging platform by Evernote. It’s easy to use and just like Tumblr it can serve as an additional promo source for your posts.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://wordpress.org/plugins/digg-digg/installation/\" target=\"_blank\">DIGG DIGG</a></h3>\n<p>Digg Digg is a free plugin for WordPress that allows you to add floating social buttons to your blog. Help people share your content with friends with ease!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://dabuttonfactory.com/\" target=\"_blank\">DA BUTTON FACTORY</a></h3>\n<p>Da Button Factory is a nice free web service to create call-to-action buttons for your blog. Use it to increase your posts’ CTR.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.quora.com/\" target=\"_blank\">QUORA</a></h3>\n<p>Quora is one of the most popular Q&amp;A sites where you can promote your posts. Just search for the related questions and leave a link to your article. Alternatively, you may check the most asked questions and write a blog article on the corresponding topics. Pay attention to the question title. You can get useful keywords from it.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://moz.com/followerwonk/\" target=\"_blank\">FOLLOWERWONK</a></h3>\n<p>Followerwonk can help you find Twitter influencers that can check and share your blog content with their readers. It can also help you analyze your Twitter account and get detailed info about your followers. By contacting the right people, you might get important comments from them and improve your posts.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.wisestamp.com/\" target=\"_blank\">WISESTAMP</a></h3>\n<p>WiseStamp is a simple web service that lets you add a beautiful signature to your email. You can use it to add your blog and social account links with buttons to every email you send to your readers. It will help you collect more followers on Facebook, Twitter, and other account and thus bring your post to more people.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Keyword Research Search Tools</h2>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.google.com/trends/\" target=\"_blank\">Google Trends</a></h3>\n<p>A good article will get zero readers if it’s not presented in Google Search. To make Google find and rank your article, you should get a right set of words (called keywords) and add them to your title and page description.</p>\n<p>Check if the keywords you are planning to use are popular ones. Google Trends will show you the volume for each keyword or phrase. Thus, you can make a decision whether your potential article is worth spending time on.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://adwords.google.com/KeywordPlanner\" target=\"_blank\">Google Keyword Planner</a></h3>\n<p>Google Keyword Planner will also help you check whether a keyword is highly requested and offer related keywords that can bring you a new idea. You can also enter a series of keywords and get results for each of them at the same time.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://buzzsumo.com/\" target=\"_blank\">BuzzSumo</a></h3>\n<p>BuzzSumo lets you search for popular topics on social networks by entering a corresponding keyword. Explore what people and bloggers from your niche write about a particular topic and think how you can observe it in a better way.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Content And Optimization Tools</h2>\n<h3><a href=\"https://evernote.com/intl/\" target=\"_blank\">Evernote</a></h3>\n<p>No doubt, you have heard about this software. Evernote is great for making notes and writing drafts. Install Evernote on all your devices and enable the sync option to have your text always on hand. Then just copy a ready text and paste it into your blog.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.google.com/intl/en/docs/about/\" target=\"_blank\">GOOGLE DOCS</a></h3>\n<p>Google Docs is one more web service where you can write and keep your draft. It has all the main functions of Microsoft Word and lets you access you data from any place in the world.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.nuance.com/for-individuals/mobile-applications/dragon-dictation/index.htm\" target=\"_blank\">DRAGON DICTATION</a></h3>\n<p>If you are too lazy to type, use Dragon Dictation App for iPhone to simply speak your text. The app will give you a ready transcript of your voice text, that you can paste directly into your blog. In case you have a complete idea of your post in your head, Dragon Dictation will help you finish the post faster. Learn more tips for faster writing <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-write-more-blog-posts-more-easily-in-less-time.html\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://coschedule.com/headline-analyzer\" target=\"_blank\">Headline Analyzer</a></h3>\n<p>No doubt, the headline is the most important part of your post. Based on your headline, people will make a decision whether to open your article or leave it behind. Paste your title in the Headline Analyzer and get a score for it. Headline Analyzer doesn’t provide ready variants for your title, but based on the date it gives, you can easily improve your headline. If you can’t get a high score in this service, don’t be sad! Here are <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-tools-and-tips-for-creating-the-perfect-headline.html\" target=\"_blank\">five tools and tips that will help you create a brilliant headline</a>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Proof-reading Tools</h2>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.hemingwayapp.com/\" target=\"_blank\">HEMINGWAY APP</a></h3>\n<p>Before posting your article, copy and paste it into Hemingway App. It’s one of the greatest blogging tools ever. The free web service will check your post readability and make suggestions for improving it. It will make your article easier to understand and more comfortable to read.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.grammarly.com\" target=\"_blank\">Grammarly</a></h3>\n<p>Grammarly is definitely a must-use. Check your spelling, punctuation, style, and more. The site shows your mistakes for free, but to see the suggestions you need to buy one of the paid plans. However, even with the free plan you can see what to correct.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><strong>SEO and Analytics Tools</strong></p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.google.com/analytics/\" target=\"_blank\">GOOGLE ANALYTICS</a></h3>\n<p>Without doubt, you must know Google Analytics. What it does is give you detailed information about your blog: number of views and visitors, bounce rate, time rate, customers’ flow, keywords, and many, many other features. If you plan to work hard on your blog, Google Analytics is the 1<sup>st</sup> thing to get.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.google.com/webmasters/\" target=\"_blank\">GOOGLE WEBMASTER TOOL</a></h3>\n<p>One more great product from Google. It will help you check sites that have links to your blog, and find and delete duplicate content that you might have on your site. Google Webmaster Tools will also let you check your site ranking in Google and identify issues with your site.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://semrush.com\" target=\"_blank\">SEMRUSH</a></h3>\n<p>Semrush is a powerful tool used to analyze you competitors and your blog performance. Paste a keyword or a URL into the search box and learn what keywords your competitors use, what place they get in Google, and other useful information. There is a free limited access that you may get once in 24 hours.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://ahrefs.com/\" target=\"_blank\">AHREFS</a></h3>\n<p>Ahrefs is another tool for keyword and competitor analysis, and to check who links your competitor&#8217;s sites in order to find new potential partners. You can also get information about your social media performance.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://serpstat.com/\" target=\"_blank\">SERPSTAT</a></h3>\n<p>Serpstats like SEMrush and Ahrefs let you get information about keyword volume, find your competitors and their ranking or traffic.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.screamingfrog.co.uk/\" target=\"_blank\">SCREAMINGFROG</a></h3>\n<p>ScreamingFrog lets you see a complete list of sites that posted links to your blog, it also checks what kind of links they provide. If you think there is a bad link that may negatively affect your site, use Google Webmaster Tools to get rid of it.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://jetpack.me/support/wordpress-com-stats/\" target=\"_blank\">JETPACK PLUGIN</a></h3>\n<p>The Jetpack plugin provides you with traffic stats right from your WordPress dashboard.  It’s not as great as Google Analytics, but it can give you a brief summary of what’s going on in case you don’t have time for a full report.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://wordpress.org/plugins/all-in-one-seo-pack/\" target=\"_blank\">ALL IN ONE SEO PACK</a></h3>\n<p>All in One SEO Pack is one more must-have for your blog. It lets you use your own meta title and description for every post and customize post URL. Thus if you choose correct keywords and create a right title, your post has all chances to rate higher in Google. All in One SEO Pack is highly compatible with other plugins, so you can extend its functionality.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Self-Organizing Tools</h2>\n<h3><a href=\"trello.com/\" target=\"_blank\">TRELLO</a></h3>\n<p>Trello is a nice web service to organize your work. Create columns like “Plan”, “In Progress”, “Ready”, or any other that comes to your mind. After that add cards with your plans into the 1<sup>st</sup> column and move them from one column to another depending on the status of your work. It will let you see how much time you spent on a task, helping you to plan how you can make it faster the next time.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://calendar.google.com/\" target=\"_blank\">GOOGLE CALENDAR</a></h3>\n<p>Make a schedule for your publications and add it to Google Calendar. Turn on notifications and sync your calendar among all your devices to not forget a single event.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.toggl.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Toggl</a></h3>\n<p>Toggl is perfect for tracking time. Add your task to Toggl, press the Start/Stop button, and start working. When your task is done, get back to see full stats of how you spent your time. It’ll help you organize your day more effectively and complete more tasks.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>General Tools</h2>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.google.com/adsense/start/\" target=\"_blank\">GOOGLE ADSENSE</a></h3>\n<p>In case you want to monetize your blog, use Google AdSense tool to place corresponding banner ads to your blog. Google AdSense is simple to use, and you’ll always get paid on time.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://www.clickbank.com/\" target=\"_blank\">CLICKBANK</a></h3>\n<p>ClickBank is a popular affiliate network for bloggers. It offers a great number of products, so surely you’ll find something to promote in your posts. Isn’t it great to do what you like and get paid for that?</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.dropbox.com/\" target=\"_blank\">DROPBOX</a></h3>\n<p>Prepare images, photos, video, and audio materials for your new post and add it to Dropbox to access them whenever you need.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.google.com/intl/us/drive/\" target=\"_blank\">GOOGLE DRIVE</a></h3>\n<p>If you don’t like Dropbox for some reason, you can always use Google Drive for the same purpose. Moreover, all the documents you create with Google Docs will be automatically added to your Google Drive.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://wordpress.com/\" target=\"_blank\">WORDPRESS</a></h3>\n<p>Of course you might be using it already, but WordPress should be in this list. It’s a great place to store your blog with a great number of beautiful themes and all kinds of plugins. Better choose a mobile friendly theme to let all readers feel comfortably while reading your posts.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"http://bluehost.com\" target=\"_blank\">Bluehost</a></h3>\n<p>If you want to create your own blog from the scratch and don’t want to use ready platforms like WordPress, go for Bluehost. It’ll host your blog for a reasonable price without any limits.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://polldaddy.com/\" target=\"_blank\">POLLDADDY</a></h3>\n<p>PollDaddy is necessary when you want to collect your readers’ opinions or feedback. The tool lets you easily create surveys and polls. PollDaddy is highly customizable and very easy to use. Ask people what they think about your articles. It might help you to get new ideas or improve your writings.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://gtmetrix.com/\" target=\"_blank\">GTMETRIX</a></h3>\n<p>GTMetrix helps you check your site’s speed and provides useful recommendations on how to make it faster. Use it at least once per month to see if everything is ok with your blog. Otherwise you may lose potential readers if your site is too slow.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3><a href=\"https://www.headspace.com/\" target=\"_blank\">HeadSpace</a></h3>\n<p>It’s not really a blogging tool, but it can be of much help. HeadSpace is a simple cute meditation tool. Whenever you are stuck writing a post or analyzing your blog, just take a 10-minute break and relax.</p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p>Hope this list will be helpful to you. However, we can always make it better. Let’s create a bigger one! Share what tools and services you use for your blogging activity in comments.</p>\n<p><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-21268\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Terry-Smith-150x150.jpeg\" alt=\"Terry Smith\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" />Author’s bio: Terry Smith is a freelance blogger, former teacher and web developer. He enjoys modern technology and sharing his thoughts and ideas with other people. You can follow him on <a href=\"https://twitter.com/TerrySmith226\" target=\"_blank\">Twitter</a>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-19773\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-great-ways-to-reward-your-social-followers.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">3 Great Ways To Reward Your Social Followers</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-20648\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-tools-and-tips-for-creating-the-perfect-headline.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">5 Tools And Tips For Creating The Perfect Headline</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-18231\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/craft-excellent-content.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How To Craft Excellent Content In Three Steps</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-50-blogging-tools-for-getting-into-top-2015-blogs.html\">Best 50 Blogging Tools for Getting into Top 2015 Blogs</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:92:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/best-50-blogging-tools-for-getting-into-top-2015-blogs.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:11;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:45:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:58:\"Understanding Content Marketing in 10 Steps #FreebieFriday\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:90:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/understanding-content-marketing-in-10-steps-freebiefriday.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:99:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/understanding-content-marketing-in-10-steps-freebiefriday.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Fri, 06 Nov 2015 15:27:22 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:2:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}i:1;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:11:\"Whitepapers\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21225\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:710:\"<p>If you&#8217;re just starting off your content marketing journey or you&#8217;re in need of getting back your content marketing inspiration, it&#8217;s time you brush up on the basic steps to achieving content marketing success. So what exactly is content marketing?  &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/understanding-content-marketing-in-10-steps-freebiefriday.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/understanding-content-marketing-in-10-steps-freebiefriday.html\">Understanding Content Marketing in 10 Steps #FreebieFriday</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:20:\"Sara-Ruth Wolkiewicz\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:8511:\"<p>If you&#8217;re just starting off your content marketing journey or you&#8217;re in need of getting back your content marketing inspiration, it&#8217;s time you brush up on the basic steps to achieving content marketing success. So what exactly is content marketing? <span id=\"more-21225\"></span></p>\n<p>If you were to ask &#8220;what is content marketing for 500&#8221; the first answer that Google will throw at you would be an answer from <a href=\"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Content_marketing\" target=\"_blank\">wikipedia</a>:</p>\n<p><em>&#8220;<b>Content marketing</b> is any <b>marketing</b> that involves the creation and sharing of media and publishing <b>content</b> in order to acquire and retain customers.&#8221;</em></p>\n<p>However, content marketing is much more refined than just publishing stuff in order to conquer and acquire. The founding fathers (<a href=\"http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/what-is-content-marketing/\" target=\"_blank\">Content Marketing Institute</a>) of the art of content explained it in greater detail:</p>\n<p><em>&#8220;Basically, content marketing is the art of communicating with your customers and prospects without selling. It is non-interruption marketing. Instead of pitching your products or services, you are delivering information that makes your buyer more intelligent. The essence of this content strategy is the belief that if we, as businesses, deliver consistent, ongoing valuable information to buyers, they ultimately reward us with their business and loyalty.&#8221;</em></p>\n<p>So, it&#8217;s about creating guides and informational maps to educate people so much so, that they will want to know more, they will seek out your product, and they will be your loyal customers.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Goals</h2>\n<p>It&#8217;s easy to create, but it&#8217;s much easier to see that created content work if we know exactly who it is for and what it&#8217;s supposed to do. Below is an excerpt from the free guide which you will find at the end of this post:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21238\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Step1_guide.png\" alt=\"Step1_guide\" width=\"584\" height=\"585\" /></p>\n<p>As you can see, the road to establishing a goal for a content piece is very much based on the conversion funnel. Too many marketers write for the sake of writing, adding sales pitches within their text, hoping for more clicks and sing-ups. However, content marketing is meant to educate. When your customers, and potential customers, are educated they are more likely to use your product, share it with others, become brand advocates.</p>\n<p>What&#8217;s more, well prepared content is a tool to be used not just by customers but by customer support as well. Mindful content is prepared to answer questions and doubts, it explains and teaches &#8211; <a href=\"http://blog.mention.com/content-marketing-personas/\" target=\"_blank\">customer support</a> is able to first hand share that with your customers whenever they need something hands on to guide them.</p>\n<p>Nevertheless, content is mean to get more leads. A surprising fact is that even more than lead generation, marketers are using content as a way to raise their brand awareness. A <a href=\"http://www.slideshare.net/CMI/2015-b2b-content-marketing-benchmarks-budgets-and-trends-north-america-by-content-marketing-institute-and-marketingprofs\" target=\"_blank\">study shared</a> by Content Marketing Institute and Marketing Profs that 84% say brand awareness is the most important goal.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Creating and distributing</h2>\n<p>According eMarketer, 63% of decision-makers choose to share relevant content via in-person conversations:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21241\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/eMarketer_Preferred_Methods_for_Sharing_Relevant_Content_with_Their_Peers_According_to_B2B_Technolog..._198728.jpg\" alt=\"eMarketer_Preferred_Methods_for_Sharing_Relevant_Content_with_Their_Peers_According_to_B2B_Technolog..._198728\" width=\"584\" height=\"502\" /></p>\n<p>Content is the perfect way for customer success representatives to show the way and for marketers to spread the word. What&#8217;s astounding is that blog, as a method of sharing, is towards the end of this list, showing just how important it is to:</p>\n<ol>\n<li>Create relevant content</li>\n<li>Post it via media that can be later on distributed (blog post)</li>\n<li>Share the blog post, text, or ebook via channels that are even more effective like email or social media.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Intertwining your marketing efforts and using differentiated channels serves as a foundation for CMI&#8217;s definition of content marketing,<em> &#8220;regardless of what type of marketing tactics you use, content marketing should be part of your process, not something separate.&#8221;</em></p>\n<p>How do you plan out your strategies? Are you making sure that all channels of marketing are partnering up to create a campaign that distributes on all fronts?</p>\n<h2></h2>\n<h2>From A to Z</h2>\n<p>Contrary to popular belief, content marketing is not just &#8211; goals, creating, distributing. Those three steps are a part of a whole process. So, what does it take to be a content marketer?</p>\n<ol>\n<li>You need to know your goals.</li>\n<li>You must be able to edit and write in a manner that customers will resonate with.</li>\n<li>You should be ready to research the deepest corners of the Internet.</li>\n<li>You must be familiar with SEO tactics and influencer marketing.</li>\n<li>You need to understand how social media goes hand-in-hand with your content.</li>\n<li>You should know how to make use of content tools and platforms</li>\n<li>You can create a plan for thought leadership based on the quality of your content.</li>\n<li>You know how to create engaging content through storytelling.</li>\n<li>You understand the importance of loyalty</li>\n<li>You are familiar with analytics and what you need to measure to learn from your results.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>As you can see, as a content marketer you have to put on quite a few hats to be able to put all the pieces together. Each step is a result of your previous action, and that is followed another step you need to take. So why is content marketing so important, if it is so hard? Because it informs, it drives traffic to your site, it creates brand awareness, it&#8217;s easily shareable, and it brings numerous SEO benefits (if done correctly.)</p>\n<p>Furthermore, in 2016 we will be creating even more content! Take a look at this chart:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21246\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/eMarketer_Expected_Change_in_Amount_of_Content_Created_in_2016_According_to_B2B_Marketers_in_North_A..._197959.jpg\" alt=\"eMarketer_Expected_Change_in_Amount_of_Content_Created_in_2016_According_to_B2B_Marketers_in_North_A..._197959\" width=\"584\" height=\"496\" /></p>\n<p>2016 will be another victorious year for content. Which is why, if you haven&#8217;t already, you need to get on the content marketing bandwagon! <strong>Download our free ebook &#8220;10 Steps to Understanding Content Marketing&#8221; to learn more. Do you have a documented content marketing strategy? Share in the comments below how you tackle content!</strong></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-20096\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/using-psychology-to-drive-conversion-in-your-emails-freebiemonday.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Using Psychology to Drive Conversion in Your Emails #FreebieMonday</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-16328\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/build-profitable-customer-loyalty-program-whitepaper.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How to Build a Profitable Customer Loyalty Program #Whitepaper</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-20872\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/the-ultimate-holiday-campaign-guide-grholiday.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">The Ultimate Holiday Campaign Guide #GRHoliday</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/understanding-content-marketing-in-10-steps-freebiefriday.html\">Understanding Content Marketing in 10 Steps #FreebieFriday</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:95:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/understanding-content-marketing-in-10-steps-freebiefriday.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"2\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:12;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:45:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:63:\"How Conversion Rate Optimization Helps Improve Sales on Shopify\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:96:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-conversion-rate-optimization-helps-improve-sales-on-shopify.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:105:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-conversion-rate-optimization-helps-improve-sales-on-shopify.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Thu, 05 Nov 2015 16:04:56 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:2:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}i:1;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:12:\"Case Studies\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21227\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:698:\"<p>Many shoppers circle the sales funnel only to jump back out again. Why? Lots of reasons, actually. There are tons of things &#8211; some of them tiny, minuscule even &#8211; which could change your customer&#8217;s mind at the last moment, &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-conversion-rate-optimization-helps-improve-sales-on-shopify.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-conversion-rate-optimization-helps-improve-sales-on-shopify.html\">How Conversion Rate Optimization Helps Improve Sales on Shopify</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:14729:\"<p>Many shoppers circle the sales funnel only to jump back out again. Why? Lots of reasons, actually. There are tons of things &#8211; some of them tiny, minuscule even &#8211; which could change your customer&#8217;s mind at the last moment, causing them to say “I’m out”.</p>\n<p><span id=\"more-21227\"></span>Something as simple as an increase in font size, or a swapping a single word in a phrase could massively improve your conversion rates. And that’s why it’s important to pay attention to conversion rate optimization.</p>\n<p><strong>Conversion rate optimization is when you use analytics and customer/user feedback to try and improve your website’s performance (i.e turning a “maybe” into a “yes”).</strong></p>\n<p><b>Why</b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> do we want to improve conversion rates?</span></p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There’s always something that can be improved, something that can make the customer’s journey less painful and more streamlined.</span></li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">PPC is getting more costly, and you can effectively spend less by making the most of the visitors who’ve clicked through to your site by optimising it for conversions.</span></li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The world of ecommerce is ever-expanding &#8211; more and more competition is cropping up, so you need to do everything you possibly can to convert your potential customers and reduce the risk of them looking elsewhere. </span></li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A business that’s always improving and updating its site looks more legitimate than a site that stagnates.</span></li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The effects are immediate, unlike SEO, which can take months to show results.</span></li>\n</ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We’ve spoken to some experts and shopify sellers to see what they are doing to improve their conversion rates.</span></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>1. Track where people are looking, and focus on problems your product can solve</h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you track where people are looking, you also know what they’re not paying attention to. Try using a tool like </span><a href=\"https://www.crazyegg.com/overview\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CrazyEgg</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to see where your visitors are clicking and scrolling. This can help you figure out whether users are bypassing your calls to action. </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shopify store owner,</span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adelaida Diaz-Roa, Ruffit Dog Carriers used this tactic, as well as others:</span><b> “</b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We’ve managed to raise our conversion rate from 2.03% to 4.66% recently. Our store is </span><a href=\"http://ruffitusa.com/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ruffitusa.com</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> (on Shopify) and while there have been many techniques we’ve used, I’d say the biggest ones are using apps like SumoMe to track where people are clicking and what they’re looking at, also setting up cart recovery emails, and putting pictures of customers on our front page as well as product reviews on the product page. Another great thing has been changing our content to focus more on showing the problems our carriers can solve and how instead than on the product itself.”</span></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>2. “Find, fix, and follow up”</h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Once you’ve figured out where you’ve gone wrong, you need to fix the issue, then test your new tactics, and analyse the results. </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shopify store owner Robert Eisenstein, President of </span><a href=\"http://www.cardboardandcoins.com/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">CardboardandCoins.com</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, a site specializing in Baseball Cards and U.S. Coins, suggests a 3 step process for improving conversion rates:</span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“Basically, we went through a 3-step, process, which was Find, Fix, and Follow-up.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“To find out how best to use our existing visitors to increase sales without paying for more traffic, we used Google Analytics to check for pages where our bounce rate was over 20%. For those pages, we ran heat-maps to track user&#8217;s eye movement on those pages, and as a fix, we first ran A/A tests and ultimately, we addressed colors and readability of the content.” </span></p>\n<p>“As a follow up, we watched our bounce rates drop in Google Analytics and we learned never to become complacent or sink more funds into attracting more visitors into a poorly-converting funnel.”</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>3. Segmented Retargeting</h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Retargeting is when you try and reach those who have previously visited your website and then left for whatever reason based on their previous actions. This can be through display ads, social media, email and so on. </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">David Smethie, a Digital Marketing Consultant tells us: </span><b>“</b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Retargeting is the best way to improve conversions without acquiring more unique visitors. With retail, the concept is pretty simple, but implementation can be time consuming depending on how many products you sell.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This brings us back to shopping cart abandonment emails, which was mentioned earlier. Simply setting up an automated email that offers users who have filled a shopping cart then abandoned it a discount voucher could help bring back that customer who has already reached your site then left. </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“The easiest win with the highest ROI is to retarget visitors who added a product or products to their shopping cart but didn&#8217;t check out for whatever reason. Then serve this segment of prospects ads that entice them to complete the transaction, by offering a discount code for example. To make sure customers that purchased a given product at full price don&#8217;t see these ads offering a discount, be sure to create a buyers retargeting list for each product and subtract that list from your shopping cart abandon list.”</span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This could be significantly cheaper than spending cash on a new campaign to try and bring new clicks. </span></p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21230\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/conversion_rate-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"conversion_rate\" width=\"584\" height=\"390\" /></p>\n<h2>4. Increase PR efforts</h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shopify sellers Sanjay and Shashi Aggarwal, who own </span><a href=\"http://www.spicekitchenuk.com/\" target=\"_blank\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Spice Kitchen</span></a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which focusses on selling high-quality Indian spices say that the key to improving conversion rates is through upping their PR game and reaching out to journalists and bloggers who focus on their niche, as well as making their store more responsive: </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“We have done a number of things to improve conversions over the last 3 years since starting. Firstly we have ensured we have a really clean design and we invested in a great Shopify theme that fit our brand. We have added regular blogs and recipes and in conjunction with being very active on Social Media we have increased traffic of people visiting our site.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“For the past 18 months I have been actively involved with raising our profile in the UK market by connecting with food bloggers, engaging with journalists within food / small business in order to get our story out there. This has resulted in regular features in regional and national press online and in print.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“We have also started doing more face to face events in the UK and we try to ensure that every person we engage takes a flyer or business card and therefore has the opportunity to visit our online store. This has again worked well for us.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“We have a few good apps that we have used on Shopify. Pure Chat is an excellent tool for allowing our store visitors to talk to us. This is free for upto 30 chats per month. We use ShopPad, which converts our store to a more responsive layout when people view on mobile or ipad. We use Google Adwords to analyse where our traffic is from and this affects how we change our marketing.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“Like making any business successful it takes commitment and relentless hard work. The PR work has been a daily search for opportunities and it has worked extremely well. This has come from 18 months of hard work, there are simply no quick wins.”</span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“We have also ensured fundamentally that our products are excellent and every customer has been happy with them and the service they have received. Any issues or problems are sorted immediately.”</span></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>5. Use external tools</h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Aaron Dicks </span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Managing Director </span><b>impression.co.uk, </b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">a digital marketing agency suggests using external tools, particularly Visual Website Optimiser and Google analytics Experiments, as well as getting an external trust mark for your store to help your customers recognize your site’s legitimacy:</span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“The best way we’ve found to properly test for conversion optimisation is with an external tool. Typically, at Impression, we use Visual Website Optimiser (vwo.com) due to the range of possible experiments you can run simultaneously. However, Google Analytics Experiments would be suitable for any Shopify retailer just getting started with CRO.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“As CRO is concerned with upwards pressure on a website’s conversion rate, on ecommerce stores typically the more straightforward tests are those surrounding allowing users to easily add products to their baskets, or to check out more easily. However, CRO, when paired with an equally important school of thought called User Experience (UX) testing would lead true ecommerce digital marketing managers to rethink how their website is structured, how products are categorised and filtered, and the weight of importance of each piece of content on the product page.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“This means that all of the following pages aspects are ‘fair game’ for CRO testing, and so long as you keep good logs of changes, many of these do not require external tools to manage:</span></p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Headline (landing page title or product “name”)</span></li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Call to action style</span></li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Product images (lifestyle or product shoots, for example)</span></li>\n<li><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Descriptions (long vs short)</span></li>\n</ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“When using external tools like Visual Website Optimiser, you’re much more able to run multivariate tests, or segment down your A/B test audience to ensure you keep disruption to an absolute minimum for your website visitors. The reporting options you have are better also.”  </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“No matter what testing you do, there are some elements to running an online store that nearly always increase conversion rates, and these are also traits of running a good sustainable business. This includes reviews and ratings, trust and authority marks such as secure checkouts, and business/online awards.” </span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">“Google Trusted Stores is a good example of an external trust mark (including extra third party warranty), but as mentioned above, many of the traits of an established online business are required in order to even qualify (minimum order volume, good seller reviews, fair returns policy, etc).”</span></p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">These are some tried and tested methods of optimising conversion rates that have worked well for sellers on Shopify. A few small tweaks really could make all the difference, so experiment, try something new, and last but not least: test, test, and test some more!</span></p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-21228\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/jodie-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"jodie\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" /></span></i></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This was a guest post by Jodie Pride, content creator at </span></i><a href=\"http://www.veeqo.com/shopify-integration-and-inventory-management\" target=\"_blank\"><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shopify inventory management</span></i></a><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> software Veeqo.com</span></i></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-13111\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/case-scenario-autoresponders-daily-deals.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Case Scenario: Autoresponders for Daily Deals</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-18329\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/email-success-profile-wilson-laus-success-manifesto.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Email Success Profile: Wilson Lau’s RicheMinds.com</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-18479\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/email-success-profile-ram-shengale-gyantastic.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Email Success Profile: Ram Shengale of Gyantastic</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-conversion-rate-optimization-helps-improve-sales-on-shopify.html\">How Conversion Rate Optimization Helps Improve Sales on Shopify</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:101:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-conversion-rate-optimization-helps-improve-sales-on-shopify.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:13;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:44:\"9 Super-Easy Ways to Personalize Your Emails\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:77:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-super-easy-ways-to-personalize-your-emails.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:86:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-super-easy-ways-to-personalize-your-emails.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Wed, 04 Nov 2015 15:27:28 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21180\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:663:\"<p>Personalization is one of the biggest trends of Internet marketing right now. Whether it’s personalizing websites, or social media content or emails, more and more marketers are trying their hand with this technique. But that’s not even the most interesting &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-super-easy-ways-to-personalize-your-emails.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-super-easy-ways-to-personalize-your-emails.html\">9 Super-Easy Ways to Personalize Your Emails</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"Pam Neely\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:12321:\"<p>Personalization is one of the biggest trends of Internet marketing right now. Whether it’s personalizing websites, or social media content or emails, more and more marketers are trying their hand with this technique.<span id=\"more-21180\"></span></p>\n<p>But that’s not even the most interesting part. The most curious thing about personalization is how more and more consumers report they want more personalized marketing messages. Some of them even expect it.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21182\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/chartofweek-02-17-15-lp.png\" alt=\"chartofweek-02-17-15-lp\" width=\"584\" height=\"629\" /></p>\n<p>How nearly 2,000 email subscribers answered the question, “<em>Q: In which of the following ways, if any, would you like company emails to change? Please select all that apply</em>.” More personalization was the second-most requested change.</p>\n<p>With personalization on the rise, with customers requesting it, and with all the reports of great results from personalization, you’d think almost every email would be using it. So why are so many of us email marketers still stuck in personalization 101. Why are we still thinking of personalization as just using someone’s first name in the subject line? We’re working with one of the most flexible, testable and customizable marketing channels on the planet.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21183\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/PamSubjectLine-1024x97.png\" alt=\"PamSubjectLine\" width=\"584\" height=\"55\" /></p>\n<p>Personalizing a subject line like this is a good start, but there’s way more you can do.</p>\n<p>Part of the reason we’re hanging back may be because we know adding a first name to a subject line now and again is likely to lift open rates. It’s also fairly easy to add that first name. And it’s data most of us <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/pros-cons-including-name-field-opt-forms.html\" target=\"_blank\">have</a>. Why <em>not</em> did it?</p>\n<div id=\"attachment_21184\" style=\"width: 594px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img class=\"wp-image-21184 size-large\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/InsertFNAMEGetResponse-1024x569.png\" alt=\"InsertFNAMEGetResponse\" width=\"584\" height=\"325\" /><p class=\"wp-caption-text\">Personalizing the subject line of your emails is really easy. It takes just a few clicks in GetResponse.</p></div>\n<p>Well, because in some cases, personalizing the subject line can actually hurt results. That’s what we found when we <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/do-personalized-subject-lines-improve-campaign-results-check-out-these-stats-now.html\" target=\"_blank\">analyzed over <strong>53,000 unique messages</strong></a> sent from GetResponse accounts between September and December 2009.</p>\n<p>Here are the details of that study:</p>\n<p><em>“<strong>emails with personalized subjects </strong>averaged <strong>26% higher open rates</strong> and over <strong>130% higher CTRs</strong> than <strong>emails without personalized subject lines. </strong>Pretty impressive at first glance!</em></p>\n<p><em>Unfortunately, the same stats clearly show that <strong>email with personalized subject lines</strong> averaged <strong>26% higher complaints </strong>and over <strong>71% higher unsubscribe rates</strong> than <strong>emails without personalization.</strong> This time it doesn’t look as impressive. </em></p>\n<p>So what’s a marketer to do? Not personalize at all?</p>\n<p>No. You should definitely keep personalizing. But it’s time to try something more creative than the first name in the subject line. There are all sorts of personalization tricks you can apply to your emails. The ones I’ve picked for this blog post don’t even require any fancy information merges. You don’t need peoples’ past order histories or download records do to anything I’ll describe here.</p>\n<p>Just by “borrowing” a few ideas from some cool emails I’ve come across, I think we can get you thinking outside the subject line. Actually, I bet you’ll be able to think of a couple more personalization tactics by the time you’ve read this post through. But these nine ideas are enough to get us started.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>1) Personalize the salutation.</h2>\n<p>This is actually the #1 place I’m seeing first names used. It’s just as simple to insert a first name into the salutation as it is to insert it into the subject line.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21185\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Salutation-1024x706.png\" alt=\"Salutation\" width=\"584\" height=\"403\" /></p>\n<p>Notice how this first name begins with a lowercase letter. You might want to clean up the data from your forms a bit and capitalize each first name before you send a mailing out.</p>\n<p>Also note how this email doesn’t personalize the subject line, but does personalize the salutation. That was one of the recommendations from that GetResponse study I mentioned above. The testers believed that the personalized subject line raised expectations too high, then broke them when people opened the email. Only personalizing the salutation gets around that problem.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>2) Personalize an image in your email.</h2>\n<p>Incorporating someone’s name into an image is a new way to grab subscribers’ attention. It works because we’re drawn to images (sorry about the pun), and so we’re more likely to see our name if it’s in an image.</p>\n<p>This is a fairly new trick, so it may be working simply because subscribers aren’t used to it yet. Sometimes just adding something beyond the typical hum-drum email gets attention.</p>\n<p>Here’s an example courtesy of <a href=\"https://niftyimages.com/\" target=\"_blank\">NiftyImages.com</a>.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21186\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/ImagePersonalized-723x1024.jpg\" alt=\"ImagePersonalized\" width=\"584\" height=\"827\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>3) Personalize the preheader text.</h2>\n<p><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/preheader-text-neglected-part-email.html\" target=\"_blank\">Preheader text</a> is known as “the second subject line”. So why not personalize it? Here’s another reason to personalize it: Half of all emails are opened on mobile devices. And the preheader text takes up more space than the subject line on many mobile devices.</p>\n<p>Bonus idea: Personalize the postscript in your email. You know, the “PS:” at the close? Postscripts often get read more than body copy.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>4) Personalize (or segment) according to whatever URL is in your subscribers’ email addresses.</h2>\n<p>Say you’ve got a bunch of people with email addresses that end with “gmail.com”. Send an email to them that’s “just for Gmail users!”</p>\n<p>This is even more effective if you’re in B2B and send emails to a bunch of people in a few select companies. Then you can craft a special offer or discount just for employees at those firms.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>5) Add a personalized video.</h2>\n<p>Services like <a href=\"http://bombbomb.com/\" target=\"_blank\">BombBomb</a> and <a href=\"https://idomoo.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Idomoo</a> can help you create personalized video emails like the one below.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21187\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/BombBombFULL-651x1024.jpg\" alt=\"BombBombFULL\" width=\"584\" height=\"919\" /></p>\n<p>Note that even these services don’t usually embed the video into the email message. Like most other marketers, they create an image that looks like a video for the email. When the subscriber clicks that image, they’re brought to a landing page where the video automatically plays.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>6) Personalize according to how many days it’s been since someone subscribed.</h2>\n<p>I got this cute email on my second “Twitterversary”. It even had an animated gif – the candle sparkled.</p>\n<p>Why not send your subscribers “anniversary” emails? If someone stays with you even long enough to get to a first year anniversary, that’s still pretty good. They deserve a little something.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21188\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Twitterversary-845x1024.jpg\" alt=\"Twitterversary\" width=\"584\" height=\"708\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>7) Personalize by adding their Gravatar profile image to your email.</h2>\n<p>I mentioned earlier that we’re drawn to images. Well, we’re positively magnetized to our own image. Adding someone’s <a href=\"https://en.gravatar.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Gravatar</a> photo, like Buffer did here, almost makes it look like you handcrafted the email.</p>\n<p>There are instructions on how to embed a Gravatar image in an email <a href=\"https://en.gravatar.com/site/implement/hash/\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>. If you don’t do code, they might be scary. But you could always hire a coder to set it up for you.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21189\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/BufferGravatar-1024x842.png\" alt=\"BufferGravatar\" width=\"584\" height=\"480\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>8) Use email retargeting</h2>\n<p>I said think outside the subject line, right? Well, how about thinking outside the email message and even outside the inbox. That’s what retargeting can do.</p>\n<p>Here’s how it works:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21190\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/800p_HowItWorks_RTMail.jpg\" alt=\"800p_HowItWorks_RTMail\" width=\"584\" height=\"219\" /></p>\n<p>Image courtesy of <a href=\"https://retargeter.com/blog/retargeting/retargeting-for-email-marketers\" target=\"_blank\">Retargeter</a>.</p>\n<p>Retargeting is a very popular technique right now. It may be invasive to some subscribers, but there’s no way around it: Retargeting works.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>9) Send messages at just the right time for each individual subscriber with Time Travel or Perfect Timing.</h2>\n<p>This one’s only for GetResponse customers. If you want to want all your emails to arrive at a specific hour, regardless of your subscribers’ time zones, choose the “Time Travel” option when you’re setting up your next email campaign. It’s on the very last setup screen, near the bottom of the page (also shown below).</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21192\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/PerfectTiming-TimeTravel-1024x883.png\" alt=\"PerfectTiming-TimeTravel\" width=\"584\" height=\"504\" /></p>\n<p>Or you can go a different route and let the GetResponse system send your emails based on when each individual subscriber tends to interact with your emails. Obviously you’ll need to have sent a couple of email campaigns to your list before this works well. But if you’ve been sending emails on a regular basis, it’s definitely worth a test.</p>\n<p><strong>And number 10? That’s up to you. I bet after seeing all these ways to personalize an email, you’ve got plenty of your own ideas. How about sharing one or two of them with us in the comments?</strong></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-15896\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/get-emails-opened-read-infographic.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How to Get Your Emails Opened and Read &#8211; Infographic</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-18245\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-ways-build-email-list-videos.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">9 Ways to Build Your Email List with Videos</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-16344\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/increase-engagement-using-ratings-reviews-infographic.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Increase Engagement Using Ratings and Reviews: Infographic</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-super-easy-ways-to-personalize-your-emails.html\">9 Super-Easy Ways to Personalize Your Emails</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:82:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-super-easy-ways-to-personalize-your-emails.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:14;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:58:\"Why Customer Testimonials Are The Ultimate Marketing Tools\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:91:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-customer-testimonials-are-the-ultimate-marketing-tools.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:100:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-customer-testimonials-are-the-ultimate-marketing-tools.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Tue, 03 Nov 2015 15:28:08 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21161\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:665:\"<p>In a lot of ways this blog post doesn’t need to be written – everything that I’m going to point out here, you know already. You know, for instance, that when you buy a product, especially from the internet, you’re &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-customer-testimonials-are-the-ultimate-marketing-tools.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-customer-testimonials-are-the-ultimate-marketing-tools.html\">Why Customer Testimonials Are The Ultimate Marketing Tools</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Kerry Butters\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:8603:\"<p>In a lot of ways this blog post doesn’t need to be written – everything that I’m going to point out here, you know already. You know, for instance, that when you buy a product, especially from the internet, you’re much more likely to trust a recommendation from a friend than you are an advert commissioned by the selling company.<span id=\"more-21161\"></span></p>\n<p>Indeed, you know that when you head onto Amazon or eBay, it’s the customer reviews and ratings that you’re looking at, rather than the actual product description. You want to know how trustworthy this seller is, or how good other readers found that book to be, or if there really was any trouble claiming a refund after 30 days when the service didn’t work out.</p>\n<p>This sort of behaviour stands to reason, of course – as 21<sup>st</sup> Century human beings, we’re used to companies lying to us in order that they might convince us to buy their product. In fact, we’re not even offended any more – and perhaps are even a little bit disappointed when we find that the most expensive fair trade peanut butter on the web really is the smoothest.</p>\n<p>For the fact is that <em>every single jar of peanut butter on the market claims to be the smoothest yet, the crunchiest yet, or peanut-bloomin-butteriest yet</em>. And the simple fact is that they can’t <em>all </em>be – it’s against the laws of physics.</p>\n<p>And of course, as marketers ourselves, we’ve all been guilty of a little hyperbolic overselling from time to time, haven’t we? I know I have, especially in my early days. And when it comes to marketing your very own product, which you’re very much in love with – almost to the point where you might even be blinded to a few of its most glaring flaws – it’s very easy to produce content that paints said product a little, shall we say, <em>generously</em>.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Testimonials – Getting To The Truth Of Your Product</h2>\n<p>Officially speaking, a testimonial is a kind of formal statement, for which the author will give his/her approval for its use as part of a company’s marketing literature. Many websites have a ‘Testimonials’ section on the home page. Others have a completely separate page dedicated to testimonials. And still more like to use them a little more sparingly and just bung a few on the end of an email, blog post or what have you. And then there are even some businesses who don’t use testimonials as part of their ongoing campaigns at all!</p>\n<p>Now, I absolutely stand by the exclamation mark at the end of the last sentence – because completely ignoring the unrivalled marketing weapon that is the customer testimonial is like going to war without any ammo (see, I told you I could be prone to the odd hyperbole from time to time).</p>\n<p>Real people trust real people. Real people don’t trust faceless enterprises. It’s as simple as that. And so, without any customer testimonials, all your potential new customers have to go on is everything that <em>you </em>say about <em>your </em>product – and you’re not exactly going to be advertising its pitfalls, are you? No.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Why Customer Testimonials Are The Ultimate Marketing Tools</h2>\n<p>I’ve given the strict sense of testimonials above, but, to be honest, for the purposes of content marketing in 2015/2016, a great review on social media is just as good as an official testimonial. For one thing, a good review will incite more people to leave good reviews, and pretty soon you’ll have lots and lots littered all over your Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and all the rest. And this is known to increase conversions.</p>\n<p>Some stats from <a href=\"https://www.brightlocal.com/2014/07/01/local-consumer-review-survey-2014/\">BrightLocal Research</a> &#8211; out of 2,104 respondents to an online survey about consumer usage and attitudes toward online testimonials and reviews:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21163\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/online_review.png\" alt=\"online_review\" width=\"584\" height=\"352\" /></p>\n<ul>\n<li>88% have read reviews to determine the quality of a local business</li>\n<li>39% read reviews on a regular basis</li>\n<li>Only 12% do not read reviews</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21166\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/review_affect.png\" alt=\"review_affect\" width=\"584\" height=\"355\" /></p>\n<ul>\n<li>72% of consumers say that positive reviews make them trust a local business more</li>\n<li>10% of consumers don’t take any notice of online reviews</li>\n</ul>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21164\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/reviews_trust.png\" alt=\"reviews_trust\" width=\"584\" height=\"356\" /></p>\n<ul>\n<li>88% of consumers say they trust online reviews as much as personal recommendations</li>\n<li>Only 13% said they do not trust reviews as much as personal recommendations</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Soliciting Testimonials And Reviews From Social</h2>\n<p>Ok, so I think we can all be pretty clear about the key benefits of having some great testimonials on your website, and a nice fresh stream of favourable reviews on social. But, let’s just bullet-point them here quickly so we can all be absolutely clear what we’re working towards.</p>\n<p><strong>Testimononials and Reviews:</strong></p>\n<ul>\n<li>Serve as social proof of your product</li>\n<li>Build trust and credibility</li>\n<li>Showcase your product in all sorts of ways (often consumers will be using your product in ways you hadn’t even thought of)</li>\n<li>Allow your customers to do the hard work and sell your product for you</li>\n<li>Are often candid, and un-salesy</li>\n<li>Surmount skepticism</li>\n</ul>\n<p>So, testimonials are great for all sorts of reasons – but how do you go about getting good ones?</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Social Reviews</h2>\n<p>Social reviews, hopefully, will be generated naturally enough across your networks. And, if you get a particularly good one, you can simply drop your follower a line and ask them if you could use what they’ve said as a testimonial on your website. Often you will find that a happy customer will be more than willing to help in this way and become part of the story of your success.</p>\n<p>But, what makes a good review? Well, I’ll tell you what makes a bad one. They go something like this:</p>\n<p><em>“I love this product!! I’m so glad I bought it, and I’ll defo be buying more in the future!!”</em></p>\n<p>Ok, so obviously this is positive, but it doesn’t really prove or explain anything to your visitors. It’s just vague, and even looks a bit spammy, to be honest.</p>\n<p>Far better to have something like this:</p>\n<p>“Wow, I used your toothpaste exactly like you told me, and I haven’t had any pain or bleeding now for 10 weeks. And the flavour of the mint is the freshest I’ve ever tasted in a paste. This stuff is literally life-changing. Recommend 100%.”</p>\n<p>Hyperbolic statements like this are actually beneficial when it’s your real customers who are producing them. So, find these ones amongst your social reviews, and reach out to the authors.</p>\n<p><strong>What are your methods of soliciting customer testimonials? Do you have a questionnaire scheme, maybe? Or perhaps you approach the topic via your email list? Let us know in the comments below. </strong></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-19447\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-excuses-keeping-you-from-creating-an-information-product.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">9 Excuses Keeping You From Creating An Information Product</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-16144\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/st-patrick-can-teach-us-content-marketing.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">What St. Patrick Can Teach Us About Content Marketing</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-1835\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-perform-effective-surveys-strategies-tips.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Who knew surveys could be so easy!</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-customer-testimonials-are-the-ultimate-marketing-tools.html\">Why Customer Testimonials Are The Ultimate Marketing Tools</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:96:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-customer-testimonials-are-the-ultimate-marketing-tools.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:15;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:41:\"Reactive Marketing Lookbook – #Movember\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:69:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/reactive-marketing-lookbook-movember.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:78:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/reactive-marketing-lookbook-movember.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Mon, 02 Nov 2015 15:44:49 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21118\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:620:\"<p>It&#8217;s that time of the year again! Razors all over the world have been dropped, beard oils have been purchased, the sound of facial hair growing has begun. In other words &#8211; welcome to Movember! In case you don&#8217;t know &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/reactive-marketing-lookbook-movember.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/reactive-marketing-lookbook-movember.html\">Reactive Marketing Lookbook &#8211; #Movember</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:20:\"Sara-Ruth Wolkiewicz\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:12099:\"<p>It&#8217;s that time of the year again! Razors all over the world have been dropped, beard oils have been purchased, the sound of facial hair growing has begun. In other words &#8211; welcome to Movember!<span id=\"more-21118\"></span></p>\n<p>In case you don&#8217;t know what Movember is, it&#8217;s a tradition begun by the <a href=\"https://ex.movember.com/about/foundation\" target=\"_blank\">Movember Foundation</a> which raises awareness for men&#8217;s health. Basically &#8211; men don&#8217;t shave all of November and raise money! Last year <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/movember-campaigns-grow-successful-marketing-stache.html\" target=\"_blank\">we wrote about the essence</a> of this month, from the rules all the way to leaderboards.</p>\n<p>This year we want to turn your attention to the various ways that different brands, companies, and individuals engage is this campaign. Besides the fact that it&#8217;s a great cause, it generates enormous feedback and engagement from people. Moreover this year, the Movember Foundation decided to broaden their horizon by turning out attention to another big issue in men&#8217;s health &#8211; lack of movement.</p>\n<p>Broadening the cause gives the campaign more traction. Not only are men able to grow fuzz and move, the ladies are also able to raise money by <a href=\"http://www.marketingweek.com/2015/10/29/movember-moves-beyond-the-moustache-as-it-looks-to-widen-appeal/\" target=\"_blank\">staying active</a>. Brands are now more eager to take part and engage, making this campaign spread like fire.</p>\n<p>Let&#8217;s take a look at some of the best examples of brands that are taking this opportunity to take part in reactive marketing with Movember.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Twitter</h2>\n<p>Twitter is a platform where people share a lot about themselves, more so than on Facebook people are not afraid to talk about their every thought. Now, because Movember is a sort of narcissistic event in its right (I mean, it is about admiring your own fuzzy face caterpillar) guys are not afraid to spam up the #movember tag. Plus, we like to follow celebrities, our favorite magazines, or channels on Twitter &#8211; it&#8217;s the perfect place to see what they came up with!</p>\n<p>Socialbakers created a <a href=\"http://www.socialbakers.com/blog/2385-movember-moustaches-on-a-social-mission\" target=\"_blank\">handy infographic for Movember 2014</a> showing just how much engagement and new followers this event brings, just look at the excerpt of Twitter statistics:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21151\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/twitter.png\" alt=\"twitter\" width=\"584\" height=\"582\" /></p>\n<p>Here are a few great Movember conversation starters for Twitter:</p>\n<h3>1. Star Wars UK</h3>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Chewie did Movember way before everybody else&#8230; <a href=\"https://t.co/CpGMPKaF79\">pic.twitter.com/CpGMPKaF79</a></p>\n<p>— Star Wars UK (@StarWarsUK) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/StarWarsUK/status/660901645451005952\">November 1, 2015</a></p></blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>  </p>\n<h3> 2. Cleveland Cavaliers</h3>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\"><p>Happy <a href=\"https://twitter.com/hashtag/Movember?src=hash\">#Movember</a>, y&#8217;all. <a href=\"https://t.co/gkgxwgg2p8\">pic.twitter.com/gkgxwgg2p8</a> — Cleveland Cavaliers (@cavs) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/cavs/status/660824739750019072\">November 1, 2015</a></p></blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>3. Le Tour de France</h3>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\"><img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f468.png\" alt=\"👨\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /><img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f468.png\" alt=\"👨\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /><img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f468.png\" alt=\"👨\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /> Bon lundi ! / Have a good Monday and don&#8217;t forget to grow your mustache. <img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f468.png\" alt=\"👨\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /><img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f468.png\" alt=\"👨\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /><img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f468.png\" alt=\"👨\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/hashtag/movember?src=hash\">#movember</a> <a href=\"https://t.co/0UxlTBahmJ\">pic.twitter.com/0UxlTBahmJ</a></p>\n<p>— Le Tour de France (@letour) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/letour/status/661100914502184960\">November 2, 2015</a></p></blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script></p>\n<h3>4. DJ Waldow</h3>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\"><p>Movember protocol question: is it kosher to grow a beard while also growing the stache? cc <a href=\"https://twitter.com/Movember\">@Movember</a> <a href=\"https://twitter.com/MoSistaKaren\">@MoSistaKaren</a> — DJ Waldow (@djwaldow) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/djwaldow/status/660493925874925568\">October 31, 2015</a></p></blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script></p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">Today = Halloween. Tomorrow = First day of <a href=\"https://twitter.com/hashtag/Movember?src=hash\">#Movember</a>. Join me in eradicating testicular &amp; prostate cancer. Donate: <a href=\"https://t.co/blOlmjvRi9\">https://t.co/blOlmjvRi9</a></p>\n<p>— DJ Waldow (@djwaldow) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/djwaldow/status/660611627453177856\">November 1, 2015</a></p></blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script>  </p>\n<h3>5. Comedy Central UK</h3>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" lang=\"en\"><p>Celebrate <a href=\"https://twitter.com/hashtag/Movember?src=hash\">#Movember</a> by finding Tom Selleck among the moustachio&#8217;d cast of <a href=\"https://twitter.com/hashtag/Friends?src=hash\">#Friends</a>! <a href=\"https://t.co/ejIvwEMtJj\">https://t.co/ejIvwEMtJj</a> — Comedy Central UK (@ComedyCentralUK) <a href=\"https://twitter.com/ComedyCentralUK/status/661113093498519552\">November 2, 2015</a></p></blockquote>\n<p><script src=\"//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js\" async=\"\" charset=\"utf-8\"></script></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Facebook</h2>\n<p>Facebook generates a lot of conversations, socialbakers gathered some astounding facts about Movember Facebook campaigns:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21153\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/facebook.png\" alt=\"facebook\" width=\"584\" height=\"471\" /></p>\n<p>Some great examples of Facebok Movember undertakings:</p>\n<h3>1. Movember Foundation</h3>\n<p>The great things about the Movember Foundation is that it not only posted catchy content (hey, they even reached out to the ladies!) but that it also created lots of valuable content. Images are great for catching the eye, but they work even better when you have relevant content to go along with it. Sharing inspiring stories makes the Movember Foundation even more likable.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21134\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Movember.png\" alt=\"Movember\" width=\"491\" height=\"701\" /></p>\n<p>And something for the ladies too!</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21135\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Movember_ladies.png\" alt=\"Movember_ladies\" width=\"489\" height=\"597\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>2. Speedo</h3>\n<p>Speedo not only posted pictures, but it also partnered up with MF to create a swimming app. There is also a fun video involved, check it out <a href=\"http://www.speedo.co.uk/news-tips-techniques/swim-mo-save-bro\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>. Not only does Speedo catch peoples attention and raise awareness, it also promotes an app that will get swimmers more involved with their brand.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21136\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Speedo.png\" alt=\"Speedo\" width=\"490\" height=\"587\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>3. Carlsberg</h3>\n<p>This is my personal favorite, not because I like beer but because of the elegant and creative campaign. Carlsberg created <a href=\"http://www.thirstforgreat.com/beerd-beauty/carlsberg-beerd-beauty.html\" target=\"_blank\">beauty products</a> for beards (wait for it) with beer in them! Now, this following video appeared on their Facebook page and it collected over 600 shares as of yet!<br />\n<iframe src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/-KjURW5LS0g?rel=0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"></iframe></p>\n<p>What&#8217;s more, to keep the momentum going, Carlsberg made sure to create images that not only look appealing but speak to both the gents and the ladies, put together the images collected over 2000 likes and 200 shares. Interestingly enough, the &#8220;sistas&#8221; images had very little engagement compared to &#8220;Shave responsibly.&#8221;</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21140\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/Carlsberg-1024x512.jpg\" alt=\"Carlsberg\" width=\"584\" height=\"292\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Catching the wave</h2>\n<p>Collecting mustaches = Collecting engagement. It&#8217;s a simple formula that the internet seems to follow. You may not have a team of bro&#8217;s with mo&#8217;s in your office. However, you can get excited with the world by showing off pictures of other honorable &#8216;staches!</p>\n<p>Get your customers talking, write a blog post about the greatest mustaches in the biz (Steve Jobs had a mustache at one point!) as a source of inspiration. EveningStandard embraced the Movember craze by compiling <a href=\"http://www.standard.co.uk/sport/movember-2015-the-top-15-moustaches-in-sport-a3103626.html#gallery\" target=\"_blank\">Great Sporting Mustaches</a>. International Business Times made a list of <a href=\"http://www.ibtimes.com/its-movember-7-rules-guidelines-grow-successful-mustache-or-mo-2157246\" target=\"_blank\">7 Rules And Guidelines To Grow A Successful Mustache</a>.</p>\n<p>The GetResponse bros and sistas are growing and moving too!</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21157\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/11/grMovember.gif\" alt=\"grMovember\" width=\"403\" height=\"224\" /></p>\n<p><strong>How are you planning on getting your Movember reactive marketing going? Share your ideas, stories, and thoughts in the comments below! And if you&#8217;re looking for other Holiday inspiration (and our fancy cutout mustache) download our free Holiday Guide!</strong></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-18085\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/movember-campaigns-grow-successful-marketing-stache.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Movember Campaign: How to Grow a Successful Marketing &#8216;Stache</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-14764\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/new-whitepaper-christmas-email-marketing-guide.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">New Whitepaper: Christmas Email Marketing Recipes 2013</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-18836\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/start-business-blog-2015-part-iii.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">How to Start a Business Blog in 2015 – Part III</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/reactive-marketing-lookbook-movember.html\">Reactive Marketing Lookbook &#8211; #Movember</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:74:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/reactive-marketing-lookbook-movember.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:16;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:50:\"5 Reasons Why Your Goat is a Terrible Guest Writer\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:83:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-reasons-why-your-goat-is-a-terrible-guest-writer.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:92:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-reasons-why-your-goat-is-a-terrible-guest-writer.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Fri, 30 Oct 2015 15:17:31 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:12:\"PRODUCTIVITY\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21104\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:640:\"<p>Your goat decided to start a new adventure with writing by contributing to other blogs. What a fine and swell idea, a very popular one these days. However, it’s hard to get to the proverbial greener side. Editors get a &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-reasons-why-your-goat-is-a-terrible-guest-writer.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-reasons-why-your-goat-is-a-terrible-guest-writer.html\">5 Reasons Why Your Goat is a Terrible Guest Writer</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:20:\"Sara-Ruth Wolkiewicz\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:8285:\"<p>Your goat decided to start a new adventure with writing by contributing to other blogs. What a fine and swell idea, a very popular one these days. However, it’s hard to get to the proverbial greener side. Editors get a lot of guest post ideas – their inbox is an endless pit of “3 innovative, never before seen, great ideas for posts.”</p>\n<p><span id=\"more-21104\"></span></p>\n<p>But you’re better than your goat. There is much more to you, an established writer, right? Thought so. Which is why in case you’d like to help Murray, Finn, or whatever your goat’s name is &#8211; here’s how you should prepare him for the guest writing journey:</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>1. Who is Murray trying to reach?</h2>\n<p>The number one mistake potential guest writers make is not knowing the company they’re trying to reach. I don’t mean that you need to know the name, address, and favorite coffee order of the entire content team, but it just does not look ok if you can’t even remember how to spell the name of the blog.</p>\n<p>GetResponse is not necessarily the hardest name to spell, but we’ve had a chuckle or two over some misspellings (or blatant changes in our name) like:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Get Response</li>\n<li>GetReponse</li>\n<li>Got Response</li>\n<li>Get the Response (my personal favorite)</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Although accidents happen and everyone can understand that Murray might eat one letter and write to GetReponse, he might be taken less seriously with Got Response.</p>\n<p><img class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-21112\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/7774.gif\" alt=\"7774\" width=\"250\" height=\"215\" />Since it is Murray that showed interest, it would put him on top of the “awesome goats” list if he read up on the blog and/or business he’s trying to read. Furthermore – it doesn’t hurt to proofread the email! Autocorrect or caffeinated fingers tend to cook up more than a fair share of crazy words. If it makes Murray feel better – I’m one of those people who’s computer turns “Hey Chris” into “Hey Christ”, so proofreading is almost necessary.</p>\n<p>It’s the little things that count. I guess misspelling GetResponse or writing my name wrong will make him more memorable – but is this the way to go about it? I’d say no. Charm people with your knowledge, presence, and great ideas!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>2. Does Murray know the blog’s audience?</h2>\n<p>It’s one thing to let Murray eat a letter or two, but it’s another to let him email editors without knowing their brand. Don’t let the goat email, tweet at, or stalk different blogs just because they have lots of shares and readers. It’s great to be visible everyone, but it’s better to be “famous” on blogs that share your expertise.</p>\n<p>Craft titles that won’t just fill the void. Empty topics are quickly recognized and no blog will take Murray seriously. We want to help writers share their knowledge and their insights in a field that we see them excel in!</p>\n<p>Train Murray to be an expert in one field or industry. Help him become the voice of reason that will be able to bring in valuable information to a specific targeted group. Read a few posts, see what the tone of voice is like, make sure that your goat understands how the posts are crafted and at what audience. A social media marketer won’t be as interested in new WordPress plugins as a content marketer might be.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>3. Can Murray follow guidelines?</h2>\n<p>Once you get him past the gatekeepers of the content calendar, make sure that Murray reads the guidelines. What does the editing team ask for? Are there any guideline points that are not clear? Reach out and ask for more info – editors don’t bite!</p>\n<p>Too often, writers send back texts that have numerous mistakes that could have been spared if they just read the guidelines. Missing an Oxford comma here or there will fly, but quoting competition or adding linking to a personal website every other sentence? Not so much.</p>\n<p>As you will see with every step in this post – get Murray to reach out to the editor! We love goats, we are more than happy to help. Keep in mind that sometimes we take a day or two to email you back, but know that your email is certainly flagged in our email accounts and we remember about you <img src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/wp-includes/images/smilies/simple-smile.png\" alt=\":)\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>4. Is Murray able to keep up with the due dates?</h2>\n<p>Hey, we’re all busy people, right? So make sure that Murray doesn’t keep the editor waiting, due dates are there for a reason. Keep tabs on the progress or dates but using tools like Trello, Wunderlist, CoSchedule, or Todoist.</p>\n<p>And as with every post – it’s always better to let the editor know that something came up, than to leave them hanging and emailing you every hour. A simple “I had an emergency, I’m sorry I can’t make the deadline, I will be in touch when I can get a hold of my computer.  – Sent from my iPhone” will do.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>5. Will Murray be part of the conversation?</h2>\n<p>Not every blog will ask of Murray to share the post via his social media, or even to take part in conversation that might arise under his text. However, that being said, it’s always nice to see Murray share his work.</p>\n<p>What’s more, get Murray to talk! It’s always nice for the reader to see a response from the author himself. As an author he might offer more insights and quick tips than the editor ever could on his own. We love seeing people interact, even with us!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>May the guidelines be with your goat</h2>\n<p>Hey, work is always easier when you have a map to follow. The geography of guest blogging is fairly simple if you have the right guide(lines). Never be afraid to ask the editor for advice. Sometimes you may not understand the rules – we get that, so we’re here to help. Better yet, you might have a very outside of the box idea about goats and blogging that might not be on the list of topics!</p>\n<p>Editors are people with giant content hearts, funny bones, and minds that can foresee the future. We will know if your idea has potential, even if it does sound crazy. Once in a while the crazy ideas are the best ones, let us help you change the face of the Internet with them!</p>\n<p><strong>So, write like a human (or a goat?), for a human, and cross to the writing side of the force. You like writing? We like guest bloggers!</strong></p>\n<p><strong>Seriously. We&#8217;re waiting (look below) to hear from you! Guest contributions are always welcome. We love content and we enjoy working with new guest bloggers. If you have an idea, a question, or a post that will change marketing as we know it, shoot us an email at &#8211; <em>write@getresponse.com</em></strong></p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21105\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/content_team.gif\" alt=\"content_team\" width=\"450\" height=\"288\" /></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-8753\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/the-easy-way-to-generate-content-for-your-company-blog.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">The Easy Way to Generate Content for Your Company Blog</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-6213\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/content-is-king-in-email-marketing-too.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">&#8220;Content is King&#8221; &#8211; in Email Marketing Too</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-7965\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/setting-the-course-for-2012%e2%80%93multi-channel-marketing.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Setting the course for 2012–Multi-channel Marketing</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-reasons-why-your-goat-is-a-terrible-guest-writer.html\">5 Reasons Why Your Goat is a Terrible Guest Writer</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:88:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-reasons-why-your-goat-is-a-terrible-guest-writer.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"2\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:17;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:45:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:60:\"How to Achieve Email Marketing Excellence [Deck + Recording]\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:89:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-achieve-email-marketing-excellence-deck-recording.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:98:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-achieve-email-marketing-excellence-deck-recording.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Thu, 29 Oct 2015 15:53:57 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:2:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}i:1;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:8:\"Webinars\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21091\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:696:\"<p>Following the report, we&#8217;ve recently published in collaboration with Dr Dave Chaffey and Smart Insights, we&#8217;ve organized an online webinar to discuss the aims and outcomes of our study. For those of you who didn&#8217;t get the chance to join &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-achieve-email-marketing-excellence-deck-recording.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-achieve-email-marketing-excellence-deck-recording.html\">How to Achieve Email Marketing Excellence [Deck + Recording]</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:18:\"Michal Leszczynski\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:10229:\"<p>Following the report, we&#8217;ve recently published in collaboration with Dr Dave Chaffey and Smart Insights, we&#8217;ve organized an online webinar to discuss the aims and outcomes of our study.<span id=\"more-21091\"></span></p>\n<p>For those of you who didn&#8217;t get the chance to join us, here&#8217;s a nice and quick recap to get you on track. In this post you&#8217;ll find both &#8211; the slide deck and a recording of the meeting &#8211; so that you too can start achieving email marketing excellence today!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Key Takeaways</h2>\n<h3>Why you should optimize email campaigns</h3>\n<p>Organic, CPC (SEM), and Email continue to be the online marketing channels driving most e-commerce purchases. In fact, email itself, generates an ROI of 3800% according to DMA National Client Email Report from 2015. It&#8217;s also been rated as one of the most effective digital media channels by respondents of our study.</p>\n<p>However, as we&#8217;ve seen in the course of this study, it&#8217;s just the average ROI we&#8217;re usually hearing about. Having put email marketing capabilities and campaign effectiveness together, we&#8217;ve found that marketers, whose email campaigns are more advanced, in general are more positive about their returns from this channel.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21100\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/1.-Email-marketing-ROI-1024x582.png\" alt=\"1. Email marketing ROI\" width=\"584\" height=\"332\" /></p>\n<p>But that&#8217;s only an opinion, while we really like numbers. So, we&#8217;ve decided to find out what&#8217;s really taking place and crunch some data. We analyzed over 130 million email messages our clients sent out. The graph below shows you the outcomes.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21099\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/2.-OTR-and-CTR-by-excellence-1024x523.png\" alt=\"2. OTR and CTR by excellence\" width=\"584\" height=\"298\" />As you can see, initially the results are as predicted &#8211; the more advanced you are, the higher the average OR and CTR of your campaigns. What&#8217;s interesting though is that the Advanced &#8211; and Expert &#8211; level marketers observed lower than the intermediate results.</p>\n<p>Our first impression was that the most sophisticated email marketers operate in the most competitive markets, such as retail, travel, and financial services, where it is harder to get responses. In some sectors, such as retail, testing shows that, across a quarter or year, a higher send frequency produces higher revenue from the email list, but the response from individual emails may be lower.</p>\n<p>We also asked Jordie van Rijn to explain this pattern:</p>\n<p>“Don’t be thrown off by the dip at the higher sophistication end of the spectrum. We are comparing apples-to-oranges here. Often the advanced senders will also have a bigger (but older) databases, or are in high velocity industry like fashion or travel, sending more frequently. All of those have a profound impact on response rates, but still they get more traffic and sales because of their scale”.</p>\n<p>In other words, it pays to optimize. Especially so in the more competitive markets, where average results may be lower than in other sectors.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>The CRITICAL areas of email marketing that boost response</h2>\n<p>Email marketing campaign improvement starts with the analysis of ones&#8217; own practices and comparing them against what competitors are doing, and how the audience reacts to said messages.</p>\n<p>Proposed by Dr Dave Chaffey mnemonic CRITICAL is a great point of reference for the purpose of email campaign analysis. Below you&#8217;ll see all of these elements with short descriptions and questions you should be asking yourself before hitting the &#8220;send&#8221; button in your next campaign.</p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Creative</strong> &#8211; how creative is your creative?</li>\n<li><strong>Relevance</strong> &#8211; does your message carry value for each individual user?</li>\n<li><strong>Incentive</strong> &#8211; what reason to act does the user have?</li>\n<li><strong>Targeting or Timing </strong>&#8211; to whom exactly and at what time are you writing?</li>\n<li><strong>Integration through time</strong> &#8211; are you using all the email marketing options (newsletters, reactivation emails, customer survey messages or multi-step welcome series) in your strategy?</li>\n<li><strong>Conversation</strong> &#8211; are you talking at or with people? Think of social proof.</li>\n<li><strong>Attributes</strong> &#8211; what&#8217;s outside of your email and how it resonates with audience? Subject, From address?</li>\n<li><strong>List management, landing pages, deliverability</strong> &#8211; never skip these critical elements that could make or break your email campaigns. Low deliverability or bad converting website will overpower even the most creative email messages.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Proven techniques towards email marketing sophistication</h2>\n<p>After you&#8217;ve learned to analyze your email marketing campaigns, you should go one step further, and start optimizing them. Here are 5 necessary steps you should take to achieve email marketing excellence:</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>1. Track more</h3>\n<p>Open and Click-thru rates are great, but they won&#8217;t give you the full picture of your campaign status. Forget vanity metrics such as number of likes or page views.</p>\n<p>If you consider also bounces, unsubscribe rates, complaint rates, ROI, CPA or Sales &#8211; you&#8217;ll know whether what you&#8217;ve been doing is delivering the right results. Can you increase the communication frequency? Are people happy with your content? Should you invest more in the promotional campaign? You&#8217;ll know the answers to these questions only if you consider the whole range of metrics.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>2. Manage your lists</h3>\n<p>Growing an email list is hard enough, but it&#8217;s not the only thing you should remember about. Being proactive in building it across multiple channels and following the best practices in terms of list hygiene are also essential. Use double opt-in, manage bounces appropriately and observe how your audience reacts to each of your campaigns.</p>\n<p>If possible, automate the onboarding process with a welcome email series. This way, even if you&#8217;re away or just finished a promotional campaign, your audience will stay in touch with your brand.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>3. Target wisely</h3>\n<p>Knowing who your audience is, is the key. Being aware of what stage of lifecycle they&#8217;re on will help you target them better. Craft your emails according to the different needs and wants of your personas. Align your offer and messages with their expectations, and watch your conversions grow.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>4. Manage deliverability</h3>\n<p>Deliverability is essential to achieving high returns from email marketing campaigns. If your messages don&#8217;t land in the inbox, how can they convert them and sell your product or service? That&#8217;s why you should: evaluate the frequency and format of your messages, test different versions of content, build your email list according to best practices, and talk to your ESP about ways to improve your results.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>5. Optimize your messages</h3>\n<p>Be smart about your emails. Make sure that where possible, you can cross-sell, up-sell or reactivate your audience with relevant content that&#8217;s delivered at the right time. Where applicable, embrace urgency and play of the power of loss aversion &#8211; this will lift your sales up! Most importantly, exceed expectations and be creative.</p>\n<p>Check out the slide-deck of the presentation or <a href=\"http://getresponse.tv/video/uvSF_YJFXc4/achieving-email-marketing-excellence-webinar/\" target=\"_blank\">jump right into the webinar recording itself</a>. If you wish to find out more about email marketing or seek advice on email marketing strategy, visit Smart Insights <a href=\"http://www.smartinsights.com/email-marketing/\" target=\"_blank\">email marketing hub page</a>.</p>\n<p><iframe style=\"border: 1px solid #CCC; border-width: 1px; margin-bottom: 5px; max-width: 100%;\" src=\"//www.slideshare.net/slideshow/embed_code/key/j6NaxHPShb49Bk\" width=\"425\" height=\"355\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"> </iframe></p>\n<div style=\"margin-bottom: 5px;\"><strong> <a title=\"Email Marketing Excellence - Dave Chaffey GetResponse Smart Insights\" href=\"//www.slideshare.net/GetResponse/email-marketing-excellence-dave-chaffey-getresponse-smart-insights\" target=\"_blank\">Email Marketing Excellence &#8211; Dave Chaffey GetResponse Smart Insights</a> </strong> from <strong><a href=\"//www.slideshare.net/GetResponse\" target=\"_blank\">GetResponse </a></strong></div>\n<p><iframe src=\"https://www.youtube.com/embed/uvSF_YJFXc4?rel=0\" width=\"560\" height=\"315\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\"></iframe></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-11006\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/webinar-slideshow-21-techniques-to-grow-your-list.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Webinar Slideshow: 21 Techniques to Grow Your List</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-19907\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/brian-solis-webinar-reaching-generation-c.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Brian Solis Webinar: Reaching Generation C</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-11120\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/webinar-recording-psychology-of-email-response.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Webinar Recording: Psychology of Email Response</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-achieve-email-marketing-excellence-deck-recording.html\">How to Achieve Email Marketing Excellence [Deck + Recording]</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:94:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-achieve-email-marketing-excellence-deck-recording.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:18;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:47:\"Why Autoresponders Are Perfect for Storytelling\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:80:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-autoresponders-are-perfect-for-storytelling.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:89:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-autoresponders-are-perfect-for-storytelling.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Wed, 28 Oct 2015 15:27:30 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21082\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:661:\"<p>Autoresponders are one of the oldest and most effective types of email marketing. They’ve been around since Internet marketing was born. They’ve probably sold more than a billion dollars worth of stuff. Compare that to storytelling. It may be one &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-autoresponders-are-perfect-for-storytelling.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-autoresponders-are-perfect-for-storytelling.html\">Why Autoresponders Are Perfect for Storytelling</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"Pam Neely\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:12536:\"<p>Autoresponders are one of the oldest and most effective types of email marketing. They’ve been around since Internet marketing was born. They’ve probably sold more than a billion dollars worth of stuff.<span id=\"more-21082\"></span></p>\n<p>Compare that to storytelling. It may be one of the newest marketing buzzwords, but it’s actually one of the oldest marketing techniques. Storytelling is so important that some experts have hailed it as the #1 more desirable skill for a marketer to have.</p>\n<p>What if we paired these two things up? What if we used autoresponders as a container for storytelling? It would let us fuse one of the oldest and most effective digital marketing tools with one of the oldest and most effective ways to engage an audience.</p>\n<p>Using autoresponders for storytelling might result in crazy-high sales and engagement rates – the kind of results <a href=\"http://bensettle.com\" target=\"_blank\">Ben Settle</a>-style emails get. Or you could put them in the hands of <a href=\"http://www.sethgodin.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Seth Godin</a> for a far softer sell.</p>\n<p>Or maybe we could put it in your hands, and let you make something new.</p>\n<p>I really don’t know what we could do. But autoresponders seem like such a perfect container for storytelling that I just had to explore them further. Here’s a few things to consider.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Autoresponders are a marketer’s best friend</h2>\n<p>Autoresponders are a lazy (or busy) marketer’s dream. They are a series of email messages that you set up ahead of time. Then you schedule them to go out every few  days. Once an autoresponder is set up, you could leave it alone indefinitely. It could run all your email marketing by itself.</p>\n<p>That feature of autoresponders is why they are the original marketing automation. Often when we talk about marketing automation even now, we’re basically talking about autoresponders.</p>\n<p>But thankfully, autoresponders require none of the expensive technology that so often goes with marketing automation. To create and manage an autoresponder, all you need is an account at an email service provider that lets you send unlimited autoresponder messages.</p>\n<p>Note the “unlimited” part. Some email service providers only let you send about 30 messages for each autoresponder sequence. That’s a good start, but many autoresponders go on for longer than that.</p>\n<p>Autoresponder masters like <a href=\"https://www.perrymarshall.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Perry Marshall</a> have autoresponder sequences that go on <em>for years</em>. We’re talking over 300 messages in these sequences. So just 30 messages isn’t going to cut it. Fortunately, if you’re a GetResponse customer, we’ve got you covered. You can send unlimited email messages in each autoresponder sequence. We won’t hold you back.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>How to plan your autoresponders</h2>\n<p>So once you’ve got the autoresponder capability, so can just start cranking out email  messages, right?</p>\n<p>Not so fast. You could start that way, but it will make things MUCH harder for you later on. Instead, sit down and plan your autoresponder first. Consider whether you want a time-based autoresponder or an action-based autoresponder.</p>\n<p><em>“What’s the difference?”</em></p>\n<p>The classic autoresponder is time-based. So you’d have a series of email messages set to go out in a pre-defined order. You’d schedule them to go out every few days. That’s a time-based autoresponder.</p>\n<p>An action-based autoresponder isn’t triggered by elapsed time. It’s triggered by different actions a subscriber takes. You define those actions, whether it’s downloading a whitepaper or clicking a specific link in an email.</p>\n<p>If you want to send a time-based autoresponder, you can plan it out like a list. But if you want to send an action-based autoresponder, plan it out as a flow chart.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Planning action-based autoresponders</h2>\n<p>Powerpoint is good for making flowcharts. So are oversized pieces of drawing paper, whiteboards, or online flow chart tools like Draw.io.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21084\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/DrawIO_AutoresponderFlowChart-1024x641.png\" alt=\"DrawIO_AutoresponderFlowChart\" width=\"584\" height=\"366\" /></p>\n<p>The interface of Draw.io, a free online tool that lets you create detailed flowcharts.</p>\n<p>You don’t necessarily have to write a story that only has one path. You can write a “choose your own adventure” style story with an autoresponder.</p>\n<p>Don’t know what a choose your own adventure story is? Way back in the 1980s, when people still read books, there was a type of young adult fiction called “Choose your own adventure”. At certain points in the story, you got to decide what you wanted the characters to do. So at the end of a chapter, you’d see something like this:</p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>If you want to attack the ogres, go to page 37. </em></p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>If you want to run away as fast as possible, go to page 51.</em></p>\n<p>You could use this technique with your autoresponder… if you’ve got an adventure novel in you. Or you could use this “choose your own adventure” technique to let your email readers choose what they want to hear about.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21085\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/ChooseYourOwnAdventure-1024x496.jpg\" alt=\"ChooseYourOwnAdventure\" width=\"584\" height=\"283\" /></p>\n<p>Action-based autoresponders are like the old “choose your own adventure” action stories.</p>\n<p>If you’re a GetResponse user, it gets even more interesting. You can pass a subscriber from one email campaign (ie, one email list) to another based on which links they click. So if you wanted, you could create two, three or even more different autoresponders, and then pass people back and forth among them based on how each individual user clicked.</p>\n<p>Starting to see why we want to plan all this out first? It can be extremely powerful. But it can also become extremely complex. A few words of caution, before you start planning your action-based autoresponder:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Don’t make your flow chart/autoresponder too complex. Otherwise you’ll create a maze even you might get lost in.</li>\n<li>Think about how you might want to change your autoresponders in the future. Build in some flexibility for changes.</li>\n<li>Consider what your prospects want to know about, and what order they tend to want to know it in. The “funnel visualization” reports in your <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/knowing-analytics-vanity-metrics-vs-actionable-metrics.html\" target=\"_blank\">Google Analytics </a>account might be helpful with this.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Get your autoresponders’ timing right</h2>\n<p>Let’s go back to time-based autoresponders. There are some standard best practices for how often to send autoresponders. Generally, marketers send one message a day for about the first week, then send switch to every other day or every few days. This gives your readers lots of information when interest is high and slows things down as their enthusiasm tapers.</p>\n<p>While that timing usually works, it’s always important to test. Your list is unique. Your readers might want emails more often or less often. The only way to know is to test.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21086\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/TimeBasedAutorespondersView-1024x926.jpg\" alt=\"TimeBasedAutorespondersView\" width=\"584\" height=\"528\" /></p>\n<p>GetResponse makes it easy to manage the spacing of your time-based autoresponders. There’s also an interface similar to this for action-based autoresponders.</p>\n<p>Here are a couple of other timing issues to consider:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Some marketers send autoresponders on specific days of the week. That way, if you want to send out another type of email to your list, you won’t be sending people two emails in one day.</li>\n<li>If you allow people to sign up for more than one autoresponder, they might end up getting several emails in one day.</li>\n<li>Some marketers get around this by sending emails from one autoresponder in the morning and sending from a different autoresponder in the evening.</li>\n<li>Because of all these timing complexities, the simpler your autoresponder is, the better. Do not add any complexity unless it improves your results.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>How autoresponders to build trust</h2>\n<p>Both storytelling and autoresponders are a terrific way to build trust. That’s because both of them are extremely effective at getting your audience to know you and then (hopefully) like you. Once those two things are established, it’s time to work on trust.</p>\n<p>The autoresponder builds trust over time because it’s a slow sell.  People get to think about what you’ve said between emails. The consistency of the emails also builds trust. And it builds a habit. Every day, or every few days, your subscribers are becoming trained to look for, open and read your emails. They begin to trust you to send good information.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Adding some storytelling to your autoresponder</h2>\n<p>I really don’t have to tell you how stories work. You were hearing and telling stories even as you learned to speak. But there are some helpful things to remember about storytelling best practices. They’ll help you write better autoresponders.</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Every story needs a main character and a problem (or a villain). The story is how the main character, or hero, overcomes the problem.</li>\n<li>Your audience needs to identify with and care about the main character. Maybe that main character is you. Maybe it’s an imaginary person. Maybe it’s a historical character. Or maybe it’s one of your customers. Customer stories, also called “case studies”, are one of the most effective content formats around.</li>\n<li>Your audience will identify and care about that main character if he or she is like them.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Serialized storytelling</h2>\n<p>There’s a classic storytelling format that’s tailor-made for autoresponders: the serialized story. These are basically stories that are broken up into installments. Most of Charles Dickens’ books were serialized.</p>\n<p>The trick with serialized storytelling is to learn how to hook the reader at the end of each segment. Even if your story is broken into chapters, instead of short emails, you still need to give your reader a reason to continue on to the next chapter. You want to leave them hanging, with the tension high, so they’ll crave your next installment.</p>\n<p>Want to see this done at a masterful level? Watch <em>Game of Thrones</em>. The writers for that series know how to keep us hanging not just episode to episode, but from scene to scene.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Conclusion</h2>\n<p>Autoresponders are a natural container for storytelling. They’re also one of the most profitable and easiest types of marketing campaigns to run. If you haven’t set up an autoresponder yet, we urge you to give it a spin.</p>\n<p><strong>Know anyone who tells great stories in their autoresponders? Give them a shout out in the comments.</strong></p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-17726\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/triggered-emails-know-21-profitable-techniques.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Triggered Emails: Do You Know These 21 Profitable Techniques?</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-11618\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/create-landing-pages-with-getresponse-sneak-peek.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Create Landing Pages with GetResponse [SNEAK PEEK]</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-17442\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/rethink-resends-increase-email-frequency.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Rethink your Resends and Increase Email Frequency</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-autoresponders-are-perfect-for-storytelling.html\">Why Autoresponders Are Perfect for Storytelling</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:85:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/why-autoresponders-are-perfect-for-storytelling.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:19;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:48:\"8 Email Subject Lines to Increase Your Open Rate\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:81:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-email-subject-lines-to-increase-your-open-rate.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:90:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-email-subject-lines-to-increase-your-open-rate.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Tue, 27 Oct 2015 15:23:34 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21067\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:645:\"<p>Do you want to ensure that your subscribers open more of the emails you send them? Do you want to learn techniques to create subject lines with appeal? One of the biggest problems affecting those of us involved in online marketing &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-email-subject-lines-to-increase-your-open-rate.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-email-subject-lines-to-increase-your-open-rate.html\">8 Email Subject Lines to Increase Your Open Rate</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:11684:\"<p>Do you want to ensure that your subscribers open more of the emails you send them? Do you want to learn techniques to create subject lines with appeal? One of the biggest problems affecting those of us involved in online marketing is the fact that <strong>our subscribers do not open all of our emails</strong>. <span id=\"more-21067\"></span></p>\n<p>Whilst the open rate within the sector usually falls between 20% and 25%, these remain relative figures, as the longer the list, the harder it becomes to maintain a high open rate.</p>\n<p>Some time ago, in this blog, we published an article wherein we discussed <strong><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-tips-to-make-your-subscribers-more-likely-to-open-your-emails.html?\" target=\"_blank\">7 Tips to Make your Subscribers More Likely to Open Your Emails</a></strong>. This entailed tactics focused on “context”, that is, on everything that you should have prepared before you start sending emails: preventing servers from viewing you as spam, ensuring that your subscribers remain loyal to you over a long period and creating a newsletter that offers more content of value than the content presented in the blog</p>\n<p>Today, I would like to take to you about <strong>email subject lines with appeal</strong>. These subjects will not only make your subscribers want to open your emails as a result of the trust they have in you, but also due to their curiosity, aroused both by the manner in which the subject line is written and the inclusion of certain elements.</p>\n<p>Below, we provide 8 tips relating to subject lines <img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f609.png\" alt=\"😉\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2># 1. Put the key word at the beginning of the subject line</h2>\n<p>Don&#8217;t abuse this in all of your emails, but of you want the subscriber to focus on the subject line that you are going to discuss, <strong>the keyword can represent an element that makes your email stand out</strong> from all the others received over the course of the day.</p>\n<p>The same technique might also prove useful for posts. Indeed, at times, if the title of your post has sufficient appeal, it can be used as the email subject line.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21068\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/Keyword-1024x326.png\" alt=\"Keyword\" width=\"584\" height=\"186\" /></p>\n<h2># 2. Play with visual elements</h2>\n<p>If you want your message to stand out, employ visual elements. I am not telling you to overload the subject line with emoticons &#8211; sometimes it is useful to employ them &#8211; but rather to employ brackets, parenthesis or other elements that serve to highlight a word or key sentence that is of interest to you.</p>\n<p>For example:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>[Exclusive Content] Here are all your eBooks!</li>\n<li>[Free Tools] Download the tools we promised you.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2># 3. Use the subscriber&#8217;s name in the subject line</h2>\n<p>We normally limit this approach to those emails wherein we truly want to attract the user&#8217;s attention for a given reason: a promotion, a subscription or a campaign.</p>\n<p>When you write a subject line of this nature, <strong>you must ensure that the sentence is fresh</strong>. You do not have to always place the name of the subscriber at the beginning: include it within the discourse.</p>\n<p>For example:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>David, did you know that&#8230;?</li>\n<li>We have finally done it, David!</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2># 4. Imagine that you are writing to a friend</h2>\n<p>If you want to convey freshness, a very good technique is to imagine that the recipient is someone you know very well.</p>\n<p>We actually think of specific friends: Jonathan, Alex, Felix… and we imagine the subject line that we would spontaneously employ if we wanted to draw their attention to a specific question.</p>\n<p>Evidently, these friends respond to a given profile: <strong>the profile of potential clients interested in our niche</strong> and with whom we maintain<strong> fairly frequent communication</strong>. Nevertheless, I urge you to refrain from abusing subject lines with the user&#8217;s name for two reasons:</p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>A loss of effectiveness.</strong> If you always employ the subscriber&#8217;s name, this approach will prove less effective when you really want to capture their attention (for example, this may prove redundant in a general blog newsletter).</li>\n<li><strong>The benefits of the content.</strong> It is often better to stress the benefits of the content that you are going to offer, rather than capturing the attention of the subscriber.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2># 5. A good subject line, where brief, is twice as good</h2>\n<p>The use of short subject lines is always recommended. In my opinion, the reason why the following is a good maxim has a two-fold explanation:</p>\n<ol>\n<li>When something is good, if it is brief, it is twice as good. <img src=\"http://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/72x72/1f609.png\" alt=\"😉\" class=\"wp-smiley\" style=\"height: 1em; max-height: 1em;\" /></li>\n<li>How many characters do you think that a reader sees on his or her smartphone? When an iPhone is positioned vertically, when using Gmail, less than 40 characters can be displayed.</li>\n</ol>\n<p><strong>If you fail to make your subscriber understand why he or she must read your message within these 40 characters, you may have lost the possibility of having your email opened.</strong></p>\n<p><strong> </strong></p>\n<h2># 6. Use the “number technique”</h2>\n<p>If you know that the subject line is not going to be short, you can take advantage of this opportunity by employing <em>the number technique</em>: using numbers to specify the benefits of the content. For example:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>100 tools and applications for Community Managers</li>\n<li><a href=\"http://www.socialancer.com/marketing-de-contenidos-los-casos-moz-socialbro/\" target=\"_blank\">2 cases of Content Marketing: How SocialBro and MOZ generate content of value</a></li>\n</ul>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21069\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/SocialBro-and-MOZ-1024x268.png\" alt=\"SocialBro and MOZ\" width=\"584\" height=\"153\" /></p>\n<p>This technique, in a very subtle manner, enables you to link the subject line heading to <strong>2 psychological perspectives that are of interest</strong>, from the point of view of the reader: information and depth.</p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Big numbers.</strong> When you create content with a large amount of tools, for example, what the reader perceives is that you are going to represent a source of information that will provide a great deal to investigate and test.</li>\n<li><strong>Small numbers.</strong> If the subject line includes small numbers, such as 2 or 3, the reader will understand that you are going to focus on a few cases relating to your sector in greater depth.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Therefore, you must employ numbers in a strategic manner:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>To focus the reader&#8217;s attention on the subject.</li>\n<li>To ensure that readers understand what they will find within your content.</li>\n</ul>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2># 7. ‘Re:’ for sales emails</h2>\n<p>I have to warn you that you must be very careful when employing ‘Re:’ prior to writing the subject line. This technique is increasingly widespread. We have tested it on a single occasion (during a sale) to gauge its effectiveness and we noted a 5% increase in the open rate of the emails we were sending.</p>\n<p>HOWEVER &#8211; and the capitals are deliberate- not everyone likes emails of this nature.</p>\n<p>Remember that what your subscriber will understand when he or she sees such a message is that <strong>you are responding to an email that he or she sent to you, whereas, in reality, this is not true</strong>. Therefore, if you want to try this technique, go ahead, but do not abuse this approach as it may prove detrimental in the end.</p>\n<p>Indeed, we also observed that the unsubscribed rate rose&#8230; The open rate increases but you lose potential clients. Be careful.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2># 8. Employ the GetResponse “Time Machine”</h2>\n<p>I have been using and recommending GetResponse as an email marketing tool for some time. This is the tool that we employ in Socialancer, and there are many reasons why I favour it over other tools. The following link will allow you to access our <strong><a href=\"http://www.socialancer.com/recursos/getresponse/\" target=\"_blank\">GetResponse Resource Centre</a></strong>, where you will find articles and videos (in Spanish) wherein we outline the reasons why we work with GetResponse.</p>\n<p>In relation to open rate, GetResponse has two features that I really like:</p>\n<ol>\n<li><strong>Perfect Timing.</strong> This feature allows you to send messages to each subscriber when they are most likely to open their emails. To this end, GetResponse grounds its decision on the time at which each subscriber opened previous messages. <img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21070\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/Perfect-Timing-1024x636.png\" alt=\"Perfect Timing\" width=\"584\" height=\"363\" /></li>\n<li><strong>Time Travel.</strong> GetResponse sends your emails at the time you determine, according to each subscriber&#8217;s time zone. If you have a clear idea of when your subscribers normally open your emails, this feature will fine tune the deliver and improve the open rate. <img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21071\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/Time-Travel.png\" alt=\"Time Travel\" width=\"584\" height=\"295\" /></li>\n</ol>\n<p>As you can see, there are many ways of improving the open rate of your messages.<strong> Have you tried any of them? Which have served you best? Share in the comments below!</strong></p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-20695\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/09/Foto-Benet-Marcos-Socialancer-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"Foto Benet Marcos Socialancer\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" />About the Author: Benet M. Marcos is founder and editor of <a href=\"http://socialancer.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Socialancer.com</a>, one of the reference platforms in online marketing in the Hispanic market. You can find him on <a href=\"https://twitter.com/benetmaria\" target=\"_blank\">Twitter</a> or on <a href=\"http://www.linkedin.com/in/benetmaria\" target=\"_blank\">LinkedIn</a>!</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-19982\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/measuring-and-tracking-your-email-results-freebiemonday.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Measuring and Tracking Your Email Results #FreebieMonday</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-5290\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-steps-to-creating-a-compelling-subject-line.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">5 Steps to Creating a Compelling Subject Line</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-12802\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-tips-avoid-your-subscribers-spam-folder.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">6 Tips to Avoid Your Subscriber’s Spam Folder</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-email-subject-lines-to-increase-your-open-rate.html\">8 Email Subject Lines to Increase Your Open Rate</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:86:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/8-email-subject-lines-to-increase-your-open-rate.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"3\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:20;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:65:\"Getting Festive On Facebook – Planning Your Christmas Campaigns\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:94:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/getting-festive-on-facebook-planning-your-christmas-campaigns.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:103:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/getting-festive-on-facebook-planning-your-christmas-campaigns.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Mon, 26 Oct 2015 14:17:19 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21061\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:666:\"<p>Ho! Ho! Ho-oh, no! It’s not that time of year again, is it? Well, not quite – but it is already October, and that means that it won’t be long before the C-word will be spilling glitteringly from the lips &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/getting-festive-on-facebook-planning-your-christmas-campaigns.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/getting-festive-on-facebook-planning-your-christmas-campaigns.html\">Getting Festive On Facebook – Planning Your Christmas Campaigns</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Kerry Butters\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:7035:\"<p>Ho! Ho! Ho-oh, no! It’s not that time of year again, is it? Well, not quite – but it is already October, and that means that it won’t be long before the C-word will be spilling glitteringly from the lips of every man, woman, child and marketer (for I’m not sure we qualify as being any of the above) from London to Brisbane and back again.<span id=\"more-21061\"></span></p>\n<p>Yes, the holiday season is just around the corner, and that means you’re going to have to pull something a little special out of your social stockings as the Yuletide beckons, and the whole of Facebook seems to become one massive battleground-bazaar of offers, deals, adverts and tinsel.</p>\n<p>As a consumer, you no doubt feel as tyrannised by the early annual onset of Christmas as everyone else. But, as a marketer, you are at the same time acutely aware of the need to <em>be</em> tyrannical and strike just as early – not least because your competitors will soon be decking the halls with seasonal sales even if you’re not.</p>\n<p>Of course, Christmas is the biggest time of the year for retailers – both on the high street and online. And so it’s the perfect time for brands to up their social media strategies and promotional activities to get a piece of the action. Put simply, come November onwards, people are looking to spend money, and so it’s your job to give them the best reasons to do so.</p>\n<p>And so, it is with jolly and joyful pleasure that I get the opportunity to bring to you 5 great tips for planning your Christmas campaigns on Facebook and other social media. Ho! Ho! Here we go!!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Planning Your Campaigns For Christmas</h2>\n<h3>#1. Start <span style=\"text-decoration: line-through;\">Early</span> NOW!</h3>\n<p>There’s not a moment to lose now as we head into November. Christmas marketers will be rearing their red-hatted heads all over social media soon enough, so make sure you’re one of the very first. Ideally, you’ll want to start launching your Christmas campaign into the wild about 6 weeks before the big day. This year, that sacred day falls on Friday the 13<sup>th</sup> of November, and so you have 2 options:</p>\n<ol>\n<li>Avoid this date at all costs – especially if you’re superstitious. Go for the Wednesday or Thursday instead, or, at a push, leave it until the following Monday.</li>\n<li>Embrace the date. Use this feared day as a foil to bring unrivalled cheer and happiness to your dedicated followers. Tell them not to worry, because Christmas is just round the corner, and you’ve got the perfect gifts for each member of the family.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Either way, you need to start planning your promotions and giveaways right now in time for launch.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>#2. Decide On Promotional Offers</h3>\n<p>Everyone loves a Christmas special offer. Last year, <a href=\"https://www.fabric.co.uk/christmas-social-media-campaigns-10-things-brand-needs-know/\" target=\"_blank\">Fabric</a> posted a blog citing some interesting research, which revealed the following:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21063\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/purchase_influence.png\" alt=\"purchase_influence\" width=\"584\" height=\"586\" /></p>\n<p>“Festive shoppers are most receptive to free shipping offers, exclusive offers for that particular social network and also loyalty points and rewards.”</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>#3. Create Festive Imagery For Your Posts And Website</h3>\n<p>Christmas is special, and you’re going to have to pull out all the stops. You’re going to have to talk to your design team tomorrow and get them thinking about the special snowmen, reindeer and/or St. Nick images that are going to be accompanying your product promotions.</p>\n<p>And, when it comes to your website, it will pay dividends to pull the Christmas decorations down from the loft as well. This isn’t actually as complicated as it sounds, as there are many plugins available that you can simply install on the backend of your site that will display snowflakes falling, fairy lights, advent calendars or a Christmas countdowns. Check out ‘<a href=\"https://premium.wpmudev.org/blog/free-wordpress-christmas-plugins/\" target=\"_blank\">10+ Free WordPress Plugins To Add Christmas Cheer To Your Site</a>’ to see what tickles your tinsel.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>#4. Host A Competition</h3>\n<p>Competitions are always a great way of grabbing attention, no matter what time of year it is. But at Christmas, offering a particularly generous giveaway can be the perfect way to stand out from the crowd.</p>\n<p>Facebook and Instagram are the perfect platforms on which to post a nice Christmassy picture, and you can ask for likes and shares for people to enter. On Twitter, you can get your followers to answer a question, and you reward the best answer with your prize. Just remember to make it Christmassy!</p>\n<p>“If there was a 10<sup>th</sup> reindeer pulling Santa’s sleigh, what would you name him? Top answer wins best prize ever!! Answer with #10reindeer.”</p>\n<p>There you go – 136 characters and all yours if you want to use it.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>#5. Analyse Results For Christmas 2016</h3>\n<p>Christmas happens every year, you know. And so, when the silly season has calmed down a little, take the time in the New Year to analyse the results of all of your special Christmas campaign efforts, so you are better equipped for next year’s festivities. Furthermore, it is likely that you will have generated some extra leads with all your extra endeavours, so January is a great time to start trying to convert these fresh little snowflakes in an effort to kick off your New Year sales.</p>\n<p><strong>Got any more Christmas campaign tips? Please, be generous this year, and share your secrets in the comments below. </strong></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-11679\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/top-tips-for-attracting-cyber-monday-shoppers.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Top Tips for Attracting Cyber Monday Shoppers</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-11594\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/email-marketing-workshops-coming-soon-in-london.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Email Marketing Workshops Soon in London!</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-20967\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/12-tips-for-creating-your-content-plan-this-holiday-season.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">12 Tips For Creating Your Content Plan This Holiday Season</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/getting-festive-on-facebook-planning-your-christmas-campaigns.html\">Getting Festive On Facebook – Planning Your Christmas Campaigns</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:99:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/getting-festive-on-facebook-planning-your-christmas-campaigns.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"1\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:21;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:50:\"Don’t Underestimate the Power of LinkedIn Search\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:80:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/dont-underestimate-the-power-of-linkedin-search.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:89:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/dont-underestimate-the-power-of-linkedin-search.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Fri, 23 Oct 2015 14:17:23 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21049\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:653:\"<p>YouTube will overtake Google this year in the search market. Video is king now that everyone has a smart phone. Just like YouTube, LinkedIn is often overlooked when it comes to the use of search online.  And just as YouTube is still &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/dont-underestimate-the-power-of-linkedin-search.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/dont-underestimate-the-power-of-linkedin-search.html\">Don&#8217;t Underestimate the Power of LinkedIn Search</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9232:\"<p>YouTube will overtake Google this year in the search market. Video is king now that everyone has a smart phone. Just like YouTube, LinkedIn is often overlooked when it comes to the use of search online. <span id=\"more-21049\"></span></p>\n<p>And just as YouTube is still overlooked and underestimated by brands, if not by consumers themselves, as to how they market themselves digitally &#8211; LinkedIn is in the same spot.</p>\n<p>Search works on LinkedIn just the same way as it works on Google, in fact the two go together! <strong>If you have spent time and effort on your personal profile on LinkedIn you not only increase your rankings on LinkedIn but you also improve your search rankings on Google</strong> too.</p>\n<p>If you adhere to the rules of Google and implant many keywords throughout your profile they will get picked up by the LinkedIn search engine and your search will be optimised towards them. The same applies to Google. So let&#8217;s go deeper into what LinkedIn search can do for you!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Coming up on top</h2>\n<p>LinkedIn is a gamification platform. If you do all the things they want and update regularly, you will be effectively rewarded with improved search position on LinkedIn. The bonus is that you are also rewarded on Google, because as I said before &#8211; the two go together.</p>\n<p>For example, if you type in “LinkedIn” into Linkedin, you get me! You also get 46,000 other people most of whom actually work for LinkedIn but I come up top. Why? Because I probably use the site more often and more times than anyone else who focuses on LinkedIn. What&#8217;s more, I have the &#8220;LinkedIn&#8221; keyword written so many times on my personal profile &#8211; in my summary, in my experience, and in my blogs &#8211; that Linkedin sees this and “rewards” my profile with higher search rankings.</p>\n<p>The same thing happens with me being an event speaker. I use the term in my headline but I also created a separate experience section that details my experience of speaking engagements for companies, event and conference companies, and other organisations. This raises my ranking for people who want to find an event speaker on LinkedIn. Out of 4,000 people I come top for “event speaker” search on LinkedIn. Not rocket science just organic and all free.</p>\n<p>This also applies to your company page. Which is why I can never understand why people 1) don’t have a company page on Linkedin (it’s free) and 2) why they don’t update it on a regular basis. Why not fill the top ten searches on Google with your company website (which ironically I use to purely drive traffic to my personal and company page on LinkedIn not the other way around), your LinkedIn personal profile and your LinkedIn company page?</p>\n<p>By doing this you give people more reasons to engage with you, more reasons to socially buy from you, more benefits to doing business with you, more angles to want to work together. <strong>Putting in the effort on your LinkedIn personal and company pages will improve your search rankings on both LinkedIn and Google organically without spending a dollar.</strong></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Publishing on LinkedIn</h2>\n<p>It has now been more than a year since LinkedIn opened up its publishing platform to all members, a capability that was once exclusive only to a select group of ‘Influencers’ like Richard Branson, Bill Gates, and Barack Obama. Since then, LinkedIn members have been publishing more than tens, if not hundreds of thousands, of posts per week. LinkedIn engagement levels have gone through the roof, <strong>professionals on LinkedIn want to read engaging content</strong>.</p>\n<p><strong>So treat LinkedIn as your marketing partner for, like you, LinkedIn wants to drive additional traffic</strong> and more importantly engagement onto their website/app. Since acquiring Pulse in 2013, LinkedIn has transformed into a massive content engine where members actively seek out, discuss, and share advice and latest trends.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21056\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/LinkedIn_publish-1024x683.jpeg\" alt=\"LinkedIn_publish\" width=\"584\" height=\"390\" /></p>\n<p>The other great benefit of posting your blogs on LinkedIn rather than just your own website is that they can also appear on Pulse under different headings like entrepreneur, leadership, and small business. <strong>This can also open up your blog to millions more people who share an interest or same background as you who</strong> then could also like and share it with their connections on LinkedIn or at the very least read it. This will ensure that your blog is seen, read, and shared by even more people.</p>\n<p>LinkedIn is mobile-enabled and engages members with real-time notifications. LinkedIn even sends out eDMs that tell your followers when you publish something new and interesting. So why would you want to spend the time, money, and effort rebuilding a community when you can leverage LinkedIn’s of more than 364 million – one that is professional, targeted, and engaged?</p>\n<p><strong>Your latest three blogs on LinkedIn continue to sit on your LinkedIn profile and engage anyone new that you connect to</strong>. Research conducted by Econsultancy even proved LinkedIn sends nearly four times more people to your homepage at 64 per cent compared to Twitter (17 per cent) and Facebook (14 per cent). So make sure to share your content on LinkedIn!</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Your turn!</h2>\n<p>What are you waiting for? Are you struggling to gain traction with your company blog? Try this: Re-post it to LinkedIn with a footer that says <i>“this blog first appeared on </i><i>www.yourcompany.com</i><i>”</i> to cross-drive traffic to your company website. The beauty of LinkedIn is that every view, like, and share can be analysed and tracked.</p>\n<p>There are also specific interest Groups where your audience has already been defined for you. You can share your blog there and attract a whole new level of professionals who you are not connected to but who are interested in the same area of business as you. If your content is thought provoking and engaging you will even become a Top Contributor of the groups with all the extra views that were brought in by your LinkedIn profile.</p>\n<p>The other amazing thing about posting your blog posts on LinkedIn is the analytics. LinkedIn now tells you not only who viewed the post, liked it, and commented on it but it now analyses everyone who viewed it and break it down for you as to who they are. This includes the city they come from, the industry, the title of the viewer, and the traffic source. Your website and Google analytics can&#8217;t tell you any of that.</p>\n<p><b>Skip all the heavy-lifting – LinkedIn has done all of that. Now sit back and watch the magic that the LinkedIn platform can do for you. </b><b>Worth thinking about. It’s all free on LinkedIn. </b></p>\n<p><b>What are your thoughts on search and publishing via LinkedIn? Share in the comments below.</b></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-20564\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/08/ChrisJReed-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"ChrisJReed\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" />About the Author: <a href=\"https://www.linkedin.com/in/b2bsocialmarketing\" target=\"_blank\">Chris J. Reed is an official LinkedIn Power Profile</a>. He is also a serial entrepreneur having created marketing businesses in both Europe and now in Asia Pacific with Black Marketing – enabling LinkedIn for you which now has offices in Singapore (HQ), ANZ, North America, China and Hong Kong, and the UK.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<p><strong>More from Chris:</strong></p>\n<ul>\n<li class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-ways-to-use-inmails-on-linkedin-to-win-clients.html\" target=\"_blank\">5 Ways to Use Inmails on LinkedIn to Win Clients</a></li>\n<li class=\"entry-title\"><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/15-reasons-to-invest-in-your-personal-brand-on-linkedin.html\" target=\"_blank\">15 Reasons To Invest In Your Personal Brand On LinkedIn</a></li>\n</ul>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-18245\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/9-ways-build-email-list-videos.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">9 Ways to Build Your Email List with Videos</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-19124\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/structuring-urls-seo.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Structuring URLs For SEO</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-20047\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/the-importance-of-responsive-design-in-emails.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">The Importance Of Responsive Design in Emails</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/dont-underestimate-the-power-of-linkedin-search.html\">Don&#8217;t Underestimate the Power of LinkedIn Search</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:85:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/dont-underestimate-the-power-of-linkedin-search.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"2\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:22;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:50:\"7 Marketing Podcasts for a More Productive Commute\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:83:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-marketing-podcasts-for-a-more-productive-commute.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:92:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-marketing-podcasts-for-a-more-productive-commute.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Thu, 22 Oct 2015 14:27:47 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:12:\"PRODUCTIVITY\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21043\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:627:\"<p>We’re in a special time for podcasts. They’ve been around for a long time, hanging out in the corner and biding their time. Waiting to be noticed not as a niche but as a next big thing. Waiting for other &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-marketing-podcasts-for-a-more-productive-commute.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-marketing-podcasts-for-a-more-productive-commute.html\">7 Marketing Podcasts for a More Productive Commute</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Guest Blogger\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:10930:\"<p>We’re in a special time for podcasts. They’ve been around for a long time, hanging out in the <i>corner</i> and biding their time. Waiting to be noticed not as a niche but as a next big thing. Waiting for other content types to have their moments in the spotlight. A few years ago, it was text-based social posts. Then it was all about images. But right now, the podcast is having its “moment.”<span id=\"more-21043\"></span></p>\n<p>From classics like <a href=\"http://www.thisamericanlife.org/\" target=\"_blank\">This American Life</a> to its viral spinoff <a href=\"http://serialpodcast.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Serial</a>, and from mass appeal NPR to more niche topics like knitting or sports, there really is something for everyone. There’s even a podcast where <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/talk-salad-scrambled-eggs/id1009465366?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Kevin Smith talks about old episodes of Frasier</a> (yes, really, and it’s my new favorite thing).</p>\n<p>And my favorite thing about podcasts is that they’re the perfect on-the-go content. All those mornings in the car or on the subway when you’re gearing up for your day. It’s usually a pretty unproductive time &#8211; until now.</p>\n<p>Add a few of the podcasts below to your morning commute to become a better marketer without trying to find more time in your workday for learning.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>1. Marketing Smarts</h2>\n<p>Currently hosted by Kerry O’Shea Gorgone for MarketingProfs, <a href=\"http://www.marketingprofs.com/podcasts/\" target=\"_blank\">Marketing Smarts</a> has been around and established since 2011, way before this current podcast renaissance. That proven track record, along with having names like MarketingProfs and Kerry’s attached, means you get to hear from some <i>big deal</i> guests.</p>\n<p>What kind of big deals? Some of the most exciting guests that I’ve listened to on Marketing Smarts lately include Chris Brogan and Mack Collier. They also have guests talk about things  found really interesting but never would have thought to research myself, like <a href=\"http://www.marketingprofs.com/podcasts/2015/28108/mobile-games-Dave-and-Busters-Marketing-Smarts\" target=\"_blank\">how Dave &amp; Buster’s uses free mobile games</a> in their marketing strategy.</p>\n<p><b>Frequency: </b>weekly</p>\n<p><b>Length:</b> ~ 30 minutes</p>\n<p><b>Episode to download: </b><a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-to-reach-100-your-audience/id468650101?i=349467029&amp;mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">How to Reach 100% of Your Audience</a></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>2. Grammar Girl Quick &amp; Dirty Tips</h2>\n<p>Modern marketing relies on content. Website content, ad copy, blog posts, email campaigns, tweets &#8211; they’re all on us. So whether or not the word “content” is in your job title, there’s a <i>really</i> good chance you’re a content creator.</p>\n<p>That’s why writing skills are more important than ever for marketers. Brush up on the basics with <a href=\"http://www.quickanddirtytips.com/grammar-girl\" target=\"_blank\">Grammar Girl</a> while she answers questions you’ve probably had before, too. So click the ‘Subscribe’ button. Your editor will thank you later.</p>\n<p><b>Frequency:</b> weekly</p>\n<p><b>Length:</b> 10-20 minutes</p>\n<p><b>Episode to download:</b> <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/481-gg-or.-that-should-be/id173429229?i=351898842&amp;mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">And/Or. That Should Be a Word.</a></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>3. The Lede</h2>\n<p>This one is a must-listen for any fans of Copyblogger. No brainer, since it’s hosted by Jerod Morris and Demian Farnworth. Each week, they talk about all the topics that Copyblogger and Rainmaker represent: content marketing, copywriting, email, and more.</p>\n<p>What I love about <a href=\"http://rainmaker.fm/series/lede/\" target=\"_blank\">The Lede</a> is that they’re not afraid of controversy. I wouldn’t say that it’s controversial, but more that Jerod and Demian have really interesting discussions and debates about controversial topics. For example, they’re currently taking on <a href=\"http://rainmaker.fm/audio/lede/written-content/\" target=\"_blank\">audio vs. written content</a>.</p>\n<p><b>Frequency:</b> weekly</p>\n<p><b>Length:</b> 20-40 minutes</p>\n<p><b>Episode to download:</b> <a href=\"http://rainmaker.fm/audio/lede/content-seo/\" target=\"_blank\">How Much Does the Modern Marketer Need to Know About SEO?</a></p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21045\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/itunes.png\" alt=\"itunes\" width=\"584\" height=\"378\" /></p>\n<h2>4. Content Inc.</h2>\n<p>For those of us that do focus on content, there’s a podcast for us, too. Unsurprisingly, it comes from CMI and Joe Pulizzi: <a href=\"http://contentmarketinginstitute.com/content-inc-podcast/\" target=\"_blank\">Content Inc.</a></p>\n<p>My favorite thing about this podcast is that it’s really bite-sized, and therefore perfect to listen to on my walk to lunch or back from the subway. You see a lot of marketing podcasts that release long episodes once a week, but not many that release shorter episodes more frequently.</p>\n<p><b>Frequency:</b> twice per week</p>\n<p><b>Length: </b>~ 10 minutes</p>\n<p><b>Episode to download: </b><a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/episode-81-building-your-content/id948387773?i=351591320&amp;mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">Building Your Content Marketing Fantasy Team</a></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>5. Social Media Marketing Podcast</h2>\n<p>Brought to you by Social Media Examiner, in <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/social-media-marketing-podcast/id549899114?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">this podcast</a> Michael Stelzner interviews the industry’s best about their success stories and best tips. The weekly show goes pretty in depth, clocking in as one of the longer podcasts on the list.</p>\n<p>And it’s not just straightforward social media best practices. It’s more advice for social media marketers, than advice about social media marketing (if that makes sense). They talk about the larger industry and driving forces behind social, such as <a href=\"http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/getting-attention-the-science-of-being-captivating-online/\" target=\"_blank\">capturing attention</a>, as well as more tactical topics like Twitter marketing and Facebook groups.</p>\n<p><b>Frequency:</b> weekly</p>\n<p><b>Length: </b>30-60 minutes</p>\n<p><b>Episode to download:</b> <a href=\"http://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/analyzing-content-with-google-analytics-with-andy-crestodina/\" target=\"_blank\">Analyzing Your Content With Google Analytics: How to Know What Works</a></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>6. Shopify Masters</h2>\n<p>Ecommerce marketers, this one’s for you. It’s also for those of you who read case studies about huge startups and enterprise companies, and think, “But how can I apply this to me?”</p>\n<p><a href=\"http://shopifymasters.org/\" target=\"_blank\">Shopify Masters</a> interviews successful ecommerce entrepreneurs using Shopify about online business, marketing, and more. But one theme across all episodes, regardless of topic, is growth. And that’s something all marketers can never hear too much about.</p>\n<p><b>Frequency:</b> weekly</p>\n<p><b>Length:</b> 50-70 minutes</p>\n<p><b>Episode to download:</b> <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-content-drives-sales-for/id900763980?i=349234896&amp;mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">How Content Drives Sales for HasBean.co.uk</a></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>7. #AskGaryVee</h2>\n<p>Talk about content repurposing at its finest. Gary Vaynerchuk and the folks at Vaynermedia have been producing the <a href=\"https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLfA33-E9P7FC0AoARnMLvgFgESJe4_Ngs\" target=\"_blank\">#AskGaryVee YouTube show</a> for ages as a way for Gary to answer questions he gets asked on Twitter. And they also take the audio to turn into <a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-askgaryvee-show/id928159684?mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">a podcast</a>.</p>\n<p>If you’ve ever read or listened or watched anything by Gary Vaynerchuk, you know that this podcast is entertaining. He’s definitely one of the most animated and charismatic marketing leaders that I follow! There are several new episodes of #AskGaryVee per week, and they’re perfect for morning commutes when something dry will just put me back to sleep.</p>\n<p><b>Frequency: </b>usually twice per week</p>\n<p><b>Length: </b>10-25 minutes</p>\n<p><b>Episode to download: </b><a href=\"https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/how-creatives-can-start-thinking/id928159684?i=348237981&amp;mt=2\" target=\"_blank\">How Creatives Can Start Thinking Like an Entrepreneur</a></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Conclusion</h2>\n<p>I’ll be honest. It took a long time for me to jump on the podcast bandwagon. I love the written word too much to replace it with audio. But then I realized &#8211; <b>I didn’t have to.</b> If you love learning and listening to smart marketers, podcasts let you get even more of that on top of what you already read or watch.</p>\n<p>What are your favorite marketing podcasts that jumpstart your day? Share in the comments below!</p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #ffffff;\">.</span></p>\n<p><img class=\"alignleft size-thumbnail wp-image-20413\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/08/brittany-berger-headshot-150x150.jpg\" alt=\"brittany berger headshot\" width=\"150\" height=\"150\" />About the Author: Brittany Berger is the Content &amp; PR Manager at <a href=\"http://www.mention.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Mention</a>, where she reads a lot and writes even more. She likes her media social and her Netflix non-stop. Connect with her on Twitter at <a href=\"http://www.twitter.com/bberg1010\" target=\"_blank\">@bberg1010</a>.</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-20371\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/11-essential-marketing-apps-for-small-business-owners.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">11 Essential Marketing Apps for Small Business Owners</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-17110\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/top-38-books-every-online-entrepreneur-must-read.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Top 38 Books Every Online Entrepreneur Must Read</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-20056\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/the-world-is-just-better-with-gmails-undo-send-option.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">The World is Just Better With Gmail&#8217;s &#8220;Undo Send&#8221; Option</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-marketing-podcasts-for-a-more-productive-commute.html\">7 Marketing Podcasts for a More Productive Commute</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:88:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/7-marketing-podcasts-for-a-more-productive-commute.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"0\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:23;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:54:\"3 Tricks to Get More Clicks From Images in Your Emails\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:87:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-tricks-to-get-more-clicks-from-images-in-your-emails.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:96:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-tricks-to-get-more-clicks-from-images-in-your-emails.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Wed, 21 Oct 2015 14:37:35 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21024\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:640:\"<p>The web is getting more and more visual all the time. Cisco says video will soon make up most of the traffic on the web. Social posts with images tend to get double the clicks and shares. And infographics are &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-tricks-to-get-more-clicks-from-images-in-your-emails.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-tricks-to-get-more-clicks-from-images-in-your-emails.html\">3 Tricks to Get More Clicks From Images in Your Emails</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"Pam Neely\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13176:\"<p>The web is getting more and more visual all the time. Cisco says video will soon make up most of the traffic on the web. Social posts with images tend to get double the clicks and shares. And infographics are still a great way to build links.</p>\n<p><span id=\"more-21024\"></span></p>\n<p>You may already be adding an image to everything you post on social media. And you probably design nice headers for all your blog posts. Maybe you’ve even made a few videos.</p>\n<p>But what about your emails? Images make a different there, too. If you’re not including images in your emails, you might be missing out. And if you’re not using images correctly, that could also be costing you sales.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>First image click-trick: A hack to overcome image blocking.</h2>\n<p>Before we dive too deep into all cool stuff you can do with images, let’s address the big bugaboo: Image blocking.</p>\n<p>Image blocking is a setting in most email clients, like Gmail or Yahoo! Mail. It lets the user see or not see images in their email messages. Some email clients, like Gmail, automatically show images. Other email clients don’t. But even if the images are shown automatically, many people decide to turn images off.</p>\n<p>According to Litmus, about 43% of all Gmail users don’t see images in their emails. Other email clients, like all versions of AOL, Yahoo! Mail, and Outlook on desktops are set to automatically block images. Again, people can change those settings, but the reality is that plenty of people have image blocking turned on. Plenty of people won’t see the images you include you in your emails.</p>\n<p>Drat! What’s a marketer to do?</p>\n<p>Well, there’s a hack for this. It won’t give your users the gorgeous images you want them to see, but it does let you show something better than this:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21025\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/MakersRowExample-1024x622.png\" alt=\"MakersRowExample\" width=\"584\" height=\"355\" /></p>\n<p>Maker’s Row might want to rely less heavily on images in its emails, or make better use of ALT tags.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>An introduction to ALT tags</h2>\n<p>If you’re not an HTML coder, you may not know what an ALT tag is. Basically, it’s part of the HTML code that creates an image. The ALT tag lets you include a text description for each image. ALT tags are most often used on web pages, but they also work in emails.</p>\n<p>To add ALT tags in GetResponse, just select an image in the Email Creator. Look for the “ALT” button.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21026\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/AddAltTags-1024x541.jpg\" alt=\"AddAltTags\" width=\"584\" height=\"309\" /></p>\n<p>Click that ALT button to add your copy:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21027\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/AddAltTags2-1024x646.jpg\" alt=\"AddAltTags2\" width=\"584\" height=\"368\" /></p>\n<p>Click the blue OK button when you’re done. Now you’ve got a basic ALT tag set up. Pretty simple, right?</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Make those ALT tags stand out</h2>\n<p>That’s not the end with ALT tags, though. They can be formatted to stand out more. However, this is an advanced trick. It requires some hand coding of your emails, which some of you won’t want to do. I’m including it anyway, just so you know what’s possible.</p>\n<p>Here’s an email with standard ALT tags. The text is certainly legible and it accurately describes the images. But it doesn’t pop much:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21028\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/PlainALTText-1024x532.png\" alt=\"PlainALTText\" width=\"584\" height=\"303\" /></p>\n<p>This is ALT text that’s been formatted with CSS (Cascading Style Sheets markup). Both of the headlines here (“Overstock Tires” and “Help Stop Breast Cancer”) are actually ALT tags, just with some extra formatting.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21029\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/4WD_ALTTags1-1024x721.png\" alt=\"4WD_ALTTags1\" width=\"584\" height=\"411\" /></p>\n<p>This is what this email looks like with the images on:</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21030\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/4WD_ALTTags2-2-852x1024.jpg\" alt=\"4WD_ALTTags2-2\" width=\"584\" height=\"702\" /></p>\n<p>While CSS-formatted or “styled” alt tags look better, you’ll need some coding skill to create them. If you’re terrified of code, skip over this part. If you’re not, here’s an example of the code that makes an image with a basic ALT tag:</p>\n<p>&lt;img alt=&#8221;Halloween treats just for you&#8221; src=&#8221;myimage.jpg&#8221; width=&#8221;500&#8243; height=&#8221;200&#8243; /&gt;</p>\n<p>Notice the height and width there. In most email clients, you need those to get ALT tags to show up. Now here’s code for an image with the ALT tag formatting magic.</p>\n<p>&lt;img style=&#8221;font-size: 20px; color: #CC3300; font-weight: bold; height: 200px; width: 500px;&#8221; alt=&#8221; Halloween treats just for you &#8221; src=&#8221;myimage.jpg &#8221; width=&#8221;500&#8243; height=&#8221;200&#8243; /&gt;</p>\n<p>Again, to add that to an email, you’ll have to hand code your emails. That means you’ll need to use GetReponse’s HTML Source Editor, not the Email Creator.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21031\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/CreateNewsletter-1024x595.png\" alt=\"CreateNewsletter\" width=\"584\" height=\"339\" /></p>\n<p>Even if you can’t hand code your emails right now, just adding basic ALT text in your emails is a great start. Here are a few tips for writing better ALT tags:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>Keep them short. Some email clients will cut off long ALT tags.</li>\n<li>Make your ALT text add to your message. Here’s an example of ALT text that doesn’t really add much:</li>\n</ul>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21033\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/ALTTagsThatArentSoGreat-1024x579.png\" alt=\"ALTTagsThatArentSoGreat\" width=\"584\" height=\"330\" /></p>\n<p>See where it says “Logo” and “banner”? That’s certainly descriptive, but it communicates very little. Instead, this marketer could have changed “Logo” to their company name and tagline. And they could have changed “banner” to whatever the banner’s call to action is.</p>\n<p>That brings us to possibly the biggest issue with image blocking: Don’t make your call to action button an image. Because if images are turned off, that image may not render well. An email with a broken call to action is a wasted email. Instead, use CSS markup to create your buttons.</p>\n<p>GetResponse users: Worry not. All the buttons you make in the Email Creator are in CSS. They’ll show up and work just fine, whether your subscribers have images turned on or off.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Second trick: Make your images load faster</h2>\n<p>So you’ve heard about how half of all emails are now opened on mobile devices, right? And you’ve heard how impatient mobile users (and any users) are with slow-loading websites, right? Well, ends up that slow-loading emails are kind of a disaster, too. Most subscribers won’t wait around for them to open.</p>\n<p>Know what the #1 offender for slow-loading emails is?</p>\n<p>Images. Big images.</p>\n<p>It’s fun to use big, gorgeous images, but be careful: They can slow your emails down and even hurt <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/what-do-isps-really-look-at-in-content-deliverability-part-vi.html\" target=\"_blank\">deliverability rates</a>. But there’s a snap workaround. It’s free, low-tech, and fast.</p>\n<p>Reduce the file size of those images. There are a bunch of free tools online to do this. I like the <a href=\"http://www.jpegmini.com/\" target=\"_blank\">JpegMini</a> app myself. But there’s also Google Photos, <a href=\"https://imageoptim.com/\" target=\"_blank\">Image Optim</a>, and of course Adobe Photoshop, or any of the other desktop-based photo editing programs. Apparently, the <a href=\"https://wordpress.org/plugins/wp-smushit/\" target=\"_blank\">WordPress Plugin Smush.it</a> is pretty good, too.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-21034\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/JpegMini-1024x732.jpg\" alt=\"JpegMini\" width=\"584\" height=\"417\" /></p>\n<p>Aim to keep the file sizes of your images small. It will improve deliverability and make your emails more user-friendly. Nobody likes to wait even a second for an email message to load.</p>\n<p>Whatever tool you use is up to you. But do try to reduce the file size of the images you use in your emails. Each image should be no bigger than 50KB each. Some sources say you’ll run into problems if they’re over 20KB each.</p>\n<p>Also aim to keep the overall file size of your email below 125KB if possible. This won’t do miracles for your deliverability rates, but it helps. And emails that load fast definitely have an edge over emails that take forever.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Third Trick: Make those images move</h2>\n<p>Surely you’ve seen at least one email with an animated gif. If not, here’s what one looks like (An animated gif that was used as a header image in an email from PopSugar):</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21035\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/unnamed2.gif\" alt=\"unnamed2\" width=\"584\" height=\"274\" /></p>\n<p>Here’s another animated gif in an email. This one’s used as a background image (See the full email <a href=\"http://us9.campaign-archive1.com/?u=5cb712992a906406c5eae28a7&amp;id=05d9ede24a&amp;e=3d0aaa33b4\" target=\"_blank\">here</a>):</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter wp-image-21036 size-large\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/TrelloAnimatedGif-1024x928.gif\" alt=\"TrelloAnimatedGif\" width=\"584\" height=\"529\" /></p>\n<p>And just one more… Here’s an animated gif tutorial/promotion for a new feature in a social media tool. This was included in an email as the primary, above-the-fold image. SAAS companies can get a lot of mileage out of animated gifs.</p>\n<p><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21037\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/unnamed.gif\" alt=\"unnamed\" width=\"540\" height=\"507\" /></p>\n<p>New software features or software tutorials are one of the most common ways I see animated gifs being used.</p>\n<p><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/animated-gifs-in-emails-why-not.html\" target=\"_blank\">Animated gifs</a> are a terrific way to add some sparkle to your emails. They don’t have to be big, elaborate animations, either. In the Trello example above, there’s just two frames.</p>\n<p>You can make animated gifs in Photoshop or on any number of free online tools, but my favorite is <a href=\"http://gifmaker.me/\" target=\"_blank\">Gifmaker.me</a>. I’ve tried about six different gif makers, but Gifmaker wins the prize for:</p>\n<ul>\n<li>how many controls you get</li>\n<li>how small the file size of the final animation is</li>\n<li>how they don’t add a watermark with their logo</li>\n</ul>\n<p>Do use an image file size reducer before you make your animated gifs. Get the frames of your animation to be as small in file size as possible. Otherwise the file size of the final animation can get unwieldy. If you forget to make the frames small before you’ve made the animation, don’t worry. <a href=\"http://ezgif.com/\" target=\"_blank\">EZGif.com</a> can reduce the file size of an animated gif by almost half.</p>\n<p>One last thing: Try to use animated gifs where they truly add to the message of the email, not just as an afterthought. For example, the animated gif from Trello supports the message of that email, which is to celebrate Trello’s 10<sup>th</sup> year anniversary.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h3>What do you think?</h3>\n<p>Got any more image tricks to get people to click? Tell us about them in the comments.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-16389\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/gmail-just-like-pinterest-email-revolution-approaching.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Gmail just like Pinterest? Email revolution approaching&#8230;</a></li><li data-position=\"1\" data-poid=\"in-13684\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/essential-guide-to-avoiding-dreaded-spam-traps.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Essential Guide to Avoiding Dreaded “Spam Traps”</a></li><li data-position=\"2\" data-poid=\"in-18422\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/facebooks-new-organic-post-targeting-new-tools.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Facebook’s New Organic Post Targeting and Other New Tools</a></li></ul></div></div>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-tricks-to-get-more-clicks-from-images-in-your-emails.html\">3 Tricks to Get More Clicks From Images in Your Emails</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:36:\"http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/\";a:1:{s:10:\"commentRss\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:92:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/3-tricks-to-get-more-clicks-from-images-in-your-emails.html/feed\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:38:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/\";a:1:{s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:1:\"2\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}}}i:24;a:6:{s:4:\"data\";s:42:\"\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";s:5:\"child\";a:5:{s:0:\"\";a:7:{s:5:\"title\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:43:\"How To Get Set Up Buyable Pins On Pinterest\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"link\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:76:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-set-up-buyable-pins-on-pinterest.html\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"comments\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:85:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-set-up-buyable-pins-on-pinterest.html#comments\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:7:\"pubDate\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:31:\"Tue, 20 Oct 2015 14:17:36 +0000\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:8:\"category\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9:\"MARKETING\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:4:\"guid\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:36:\"http://blog.getresponse.com/?p=21017\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:1:{s:0:\"\";a:1:{s:11:\"isPermaLink\";s:5:\"false\";}}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}s:11:\"description\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:636:\"<p>Pinterest has always been the online destination for browsing products, but, up until June of this year, there was no actual purchase option for users. This has meant that, although the site has been evidently useful for Pinners in order &#8230; <a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-set-up-buyable-pins-on-pinterest.html\">Read more</a></p>\n<p>The post <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/how-to-get-set-up-buyable-pins-on-pinterest.html\">How To Get Set Up Buyable Pins On Pinterest</a> appeared first on <a rel=\"nofollow\" href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com\">GetResponse Blog - Email Marketing Tips</a>.</p>\n\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:32:\"http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/\";a:1:{s:7:\"creator\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:13:\"Kerry Butters\";s:7:\"attribs\";a:0:{}s:8:\"xml_base\";s:0:\"\";s:17:\"xml_base_explicit\";b:0;s:8:\"xml_lang\";s:0:\"\";}}}s:40:\"http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/\";a:1:{s:7:\"encoded\";a:1:{i:0;a:5:{s:4:\"data\";s:9739:\"<p>Pinterest has always been the online destination for browsing products, but, up until June of this year, there was no actual purchase option for users. This has meant that, although the site has been evidently useful for Pinners in order to research the products that they might like to buy, actual Pinterest-enabled conversions have not been as spectacular as they might have been<span id=\"more-21017\"></span></p>\n<p>93% of Pinterest users use the platform to plan purchases. &#8211; that’s an incredible statistic brought to us from the <a href=\"https://www.shopify.co.uk/infographics/pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Shopify blog</a>, and certainly one that <em>all</em> social media marketers should sit up and take notice of – especially if its physical products (as opposed to services) that your company is peddling. Check out the full infographic rammed with loads of great commerce stats about how shoppers behave on Pinterest:</p>\n<p><em><img class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-21018\" src=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/uploads/2015/10/IG.png\" alt=\"IG\" width=\"373\" height=\"1453\" /></em>What is perhaps most notable about these stats is that they come from data and research gathered <em>before </em>Pinterest introduced its <a href=\"https://business.pinterest.com/en/buyable-pins\" target=\"_blank\">Buyable Pins</a> feature on the platform.</p>\n<p>But, since its launch, according to the <a href=\"https://business.pinterest.com/en/blog/new-merchants-and-platforms-buyable-pins\" target=\"_blank\">Pinterest blog</a>, “Even in these early days, we&#8217;re seeing strong results from Buyable Pins. A study of Buyable Pins from Shopify merchants showed <strong>2x higher conversion rates</strong> compared to other Pins on mobile. That’s promising to us (and hopefully to you!) because we wanted to build something that would make mobile shopping frictionless.”</p>\n<p>Well, I would concur that this is indeed “promising” – for the feature is really only in its infancy, and, as yet, not completely rolled out. Indeed “Buyable Pins are only available to select U.S. retailers and businesses using commerce platforms like <a href=\"https://www.shopify.com/pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Shopify</a>, <a href=\"http://www.demandware.com/pages/pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Demandware</a>, <a href=\"https://www.bigcommerce.com/pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Bigcommerce</a>, <a href=\"http://www.ibm.com/commerce/us-en/ecommerce/?lnk=WH_ecommerce\" target=\"_blank\">IBM Commerce</a> and <a href=\"https://info2.magento.com/Pinterest.html?utm_source=pinterest&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Magento</a>,” says <a href=\"https://business.pinterest.com/en/get-list-buyable-pins\" target=\"_blank\">Pinterest for Business</a>. “We plan to work on more integrations in the future.”</p>\n<p>So, “promising” it may be, but if you want to start flogging your goods on Pinterest, you’re actually, for the time being, going to have to get in line. Currently there’s a <a href=\"https://business.pinterest.com/en/get-list-buyable-pins\" target=\"_blank\">waiting list</a> that you can join to start setting up your Pinterest for Business page as a portal for direct sales. Or, if you already use <a href=\"https://www.shopify.com/pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Shopify</a>, <a href=\"http://www.demandware.com/pages/pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Demandware</a>, <a href=\"https://www.bigcommerce.com/pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Bigcommerce</a>, <a href=\"http://www.ibm.com/commerce/us-en/ecommerce/?lnk=WH_ecommerce\" target=\"_blank\">IBM Commerce</a> or <a href=\"https://info2.magento.com/Pinterest.html?utm_source=pinterest&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=pinterest\" target=\"_blank\">Magento</a>, to run your online store on your website, then you can click on the links and apply via them.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Why The Wait?</h2>\n<p>Well, that’s the question that many eager retailers want answered. Nathan on the Shopify discussions page, though, helpfully gives us an answer:</p>\n<p>“Pinterest has created one of the most genuinely marketable social media communities ever and to make sure that the community is as receptive as possible and has a high degree of interest, they&#8217;re very protective of who and what can currently be sold on that market to build consumer confidence. At the moment they are reviewing all shops that are applying to make sure that they have a strong business history and meet all the requirements of their advertising policies – <a href=\"https://about.pinterest.com/en/advertising-rules\" target=\"_blank\">https://about.pinterest.com/en/advertising-rules</a>”.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>In The Meantime…</h2>\n<p>Buyable Pins have the potential to literally change the face of e-commerce on the internet. With 87% of pinners saying that they have purchased something they’ve discovered whilst pinning, just think of all the added conversions that could be made when all users have to do is click a button.</p>\n<p>As Pinterest co-founder and chief executive Ben Silbermann comments: “Pinterest is already designed to work like a catalogue, so we wanted to find a way to weave buyable pins into the pages people already know. Buyable pins are a simple and secure way to buy the products you love right from inside Pinterest.”</p>\n<p>Put simply, there’s never been a better time to start focussing on your Pinterest account whilst you wait for approval to start selling (see ‘<a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/5-great-ways-to-stand-out-on-pinterest.html\" target=\"_blank\">5 Great Ways To Stand Out On Pinterest</a>’).</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Setting Up</h2>\n<p>As mentioned, the first thing that you will need to do to is get on <a href=\"https://business.pinterest.com/en/get-list-buyable-pins\" target=\"_blank\">a waiting list</a>. Once you’ve been approved there are a couple more steps that you need to take:</p>\n<ol>\n<li>Your site must be set up to generate a product feed in a specific format that notifies Pinterest which of your products are eligible for purchase via the Buyable Pins program.</li>\n<li>Your site must also implement a specific API that allows the Pinterest servers to create orders on your site for users of the Pinterest iPhone and iPad applications.</li>\n</ol>\n<p>Now, this might start to sound a bit technical and even off-putting for many online retailers, but if you set up with Shopify, Magento or one of the other commerce platforms listed above, then most of this will be taken care of for you.</p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n<h2>Why Buyable Pins Kick Ass For Online Merchants</h2>\n<p>First and foremost – there are <strong>no subscription or transaction fees! </strong>That’s right, Pinterest will not be taking a cut from sales made on its site, and is providing this additional service for merchants absolutely free of charge. Instead, the social network hopes to make extra money by increasing merchants’ engagement with Pinterest, specifically via advertising and its <a href=\"https://business.pinterest.com/en/promoted-pins\" target=\"_blank\">Promoted Pins</a> program.</p>\n<p>It won’t all come completely free, of course – your commerce platform will charge you for integrating the extension into your online store, but, on the scale of things, this will be a one-off charge that is likely to be minimal compared to having to cough up a percentage every time someone makes a purchase from your Pinterest page.</p>\n<p>But, as the merchant, you will absolutely ‘own’ each order that gets placed on your Pinterest page. This means that, unlike when you sell through a third-party channel like Amazon or eBay, the transaction will take place just as if the customer were buying directly from your website. This means that you will be able to reach out and engage with your customers in much more meaningful ways.</p>\n<p>For instance, you will have direct access to all of the customer’s data – email address, demographic, the lot – so you will have the direct opportunity to appeal to them to come back again and place another order. This means Pinterest’s buyable pins will deliver a much higher customer lifetime value than if they had bought your product through a third-party channel, where the likes of Amazon retain the ‘ownership’ of the order and indeed the customer.</p>\n<p><strong>Have you managed to get off the ground with Pinterest’s Buyable Pins yet? What have your experiences been like so far, and what do you think of the service as a whole? Please share your comments below.</strong></p>\n<p>&nbsp;</p>\n\n<div class=\"wp_rp_wrap  wp_rp_plain\" ><div class=\"wp_rp_content\"><h3 class=\"related_post_title\">Related posts</h3><ul class=\"related_post wp_rp\"><li data-position=\"0\" data-poid=\"in-16389\" data-post-type=\"none\" ><a href=\"http://blog.getresponse.com/gmail-just-like-pinterest-email-revolution-approaching.html\" class=\"wp_rp_title\">Gmail just like Pinterest? 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