B2B Marketing Blog - TopRank®

B2B Marketing views, news and interviews.

Online Marketing News: Watch Your Customers, Google Stock Drops 9%, Maximize Your Twitter Profile, Yelp Goes Undercover, Google Disavow Tool

5 Ways to Detect Lying Clients By Reading Their Facial Cues

When meeting with clients face to face there is a lot you can learn from not only what they say but what they’re doing while they’re speaking.  Microexpressions are subtle changes in the face that happen for only a fraction of a second.  This infographic can help you identify if your clients mean what they say, and how you can adapt your approach to meet their needs.  Via American Express.

How Stories Make Customers Fall In Love
The best way to actively engage your customers is to tell stories, good ones.   The right story can turn your customers into brand advocates.  This article offers some concepts that can help you begin to woo your customers in a meaningful way.  Via Inc.


Online Marketing News: Watch Your Customers, Google Stock Drops 9%, Maximize Your Twitter Profile, Yelp Goes Undercover, Google Disavow Tool

Online Marketing News: B2B Marketing History, Shake It For Coca-Cola, AdWords Credit Program, Facebook Collections, Emma Watson Dangerous Search

B2B Marketing: Our Shared History (From the 2012 MarketingProfs B2B Forum)

For the record, B2B Marketing is not boring.  It is an industry ripe with opportunity for innovation and creativity.  This video from MarketingProfs takes you on a short journey though the history of B2B Marketing.  For more helpful tips be sure to check out the B2B Marketing Innovation eBook.

Coca-Cola Equips Vending Machines With Kinects, Lets You Dance For Free Cokes
In an effort to remain the number 1 global brand, Coca-Cola has come up with an innovative and interactive advertising campaign.  Coca-Cola has equipped a number of their vending machines with webcams and Microsoft Kinect sensons.  In order to win a free soda you must follow a series of dance moves shown the on the screen.  Via SingularityHUB.


Online Marketing News: B2B Marketing History, Shake It For Coca-Cola, AdWords Credit Program, Facebook Collections, Emma Watson Dangerous Search

Online Marketing News: Social Goes Global, Twitter Gets New Digs, Instagram For Business, New Panda Update

The Meaning of Like: How Smart Devices and Social Analytics Are Transforming Retail

This recent infographic from Symphony Teleca shares some very insightful information on the ways that consumers use devices to make purchasing decisions, and the ways that companies can measure these trends.

Going Global: Insights for International Social Media
With more companies receiving service requests from outside the continental US this article examines how best to approach a global social media strategy.  Via Search Engine Watch.

Google patents smart watch with flip-up display that could reveal everyday objects’ secrets
The watch would present notifications and other information transmitted from your smartphone at a glance.  There are also claims that the watch could channel a plethora of other Google apps, like Gmail, Goggles, and Maps.  Via engadget.


Online Marketing News: Social Goes Global, Twitter Gets New Digs, Instagram For Business, New Panda Update

Online Marketing News: LinkedIn Adds Endorsements, Make Your Website Mobile-Friendly, Myspace Previews New Design, Twitter Opens Content to Search

The Ecosystem of Lifecycle Marketing

This infographic from RightOn Interactive takes a deep dive (literally) into the world of lifecycle marketing automation.

Key Takeaways:

  • 22% increase of the average sales cycle in the past 5 years
  • 47% of B2B marketers close less than 4% of marketing-generated leads
  • 64% of CMOs have either an informal or no process to manage marketing automation
The topic of customer lifecycle marketing is near and dear to TopRank of course, especially when it involves long term engagement with prospects using integrated content, social media and search marketing.

LinkedIn Gets its Own Version of Facebook Likes: Endorsements
Endorsements allows users to recognize professionals for their expertise.  It really is as simple as clicking a button.  On the users profile there will be a list of recommended endorsements.  You can either click to endorse, or suggest other area of expertise.  Via TNW.


Online Marketing News: LinkedIn Adds Endorsements, Make Your Website Mobile-Friendly, Myspace Previews New Design, Twitter Opens Content to Search

Online Marketing News: Twitter Upgrades Profiles, Google Snaps Up Photo Editor, Apple Copies App?, META Tags Are Back

Smartphones Impact On the World

In this recent infographic from ProtectYourBubble.com assesses the impact of Smartphones on people all over the world.  Highlights include:

  • 1 in 4 households in the U.S. have cut their landline
  • More kids between 2-5 can work Smartphones than can tie their shoes
  • 72 Million iPhones were sold in 2011

Reality Check: 10-15% of Brands’ Social Media Fans, Likes and Reviews Will Be Fake By 2014, Says Gartner
It seems like we’re hearing more and more that many fans, friends, reviews and likes for brands are fake. New research from Gartner uncovers that it is only going to get worse, as paid interactions become an industry all of their own.  Via TechCrunch.


Online Marketing News: Twitter Upgrades Profiles, Google Snaps Up Photo Editor, Apple Copies App?, META Tags Are Back

Online Marketing News: Facebook Ads = Massive ROI, Bing VS. Google, Social Media Measurement, Rise of Mobile+Local

How Airlines Have Taken Flight with Social Media

This infographic from Mashable shows just how social airlines have become over the past few years.  How does one of the top airlines fair socially  (at the time this infographic was created)?

American Airlines

  • Twitter – Following: 413
  • Twitter – Tweets: 1,231
  • Twitter – Followers: 42,985
  • Facebook – Likes: 325,045
  • YouTube – “United Breaks Guitars”: 10,771,568

Trials Show Facebook Retargeted Ads Deliver Massive ROI
According to reports, Facebook’s new cookie-based real-time bidding retargeted ads program is showing an ROI of up to 16x’s what is being spent.  Initially revealed in June there was buzz that the ads were performing very well.  Now the data shows that these new ads may be cheaper, get higher click through rates, and have higher post-click conversion rates than retargeted ads on other exchanges including Google’s AdX.  Via TechCrunch.


Online Marketing News: Facebook Ads = Massive ROI, Bing VS. Google, Social Media Measurement, Rise of Mobile+Local

Online Marketing News: Social Media: A Recruiting Tool, Google Rating Guidelines, Rules for Online Content, Write Better Facebook Posts

Social Media & The Effect On Employee Recruitment

Still think that social media doesn’t hold value for business?  I found this recent infographic from Intricate on Visua.ly that says otherwise.  If you’re looking for a job, or looking to grow your team here are some things you should keep in mind:

What Employers Frown Upon

  • 78% – Posts and tweets on doing illegal drugs
  • 66% – Sexual posts and tweets
  • 61% – Profanity in posts and tweets
  • 54% – Grammar mistakes
  • 47% – Pictures of you drinking

Google’s Rating Guidelines Adds Page Quality to Human Reviews
A new version of Google’s human rater handbook hit the web and Google’s Premiere Engineer Matt Cutts insists these rating will not directly affect search engine results.  Regardless, the rating document does provide a high level view of what Google looks for in a quality website.  Via Search Engine Watch.


Online Marketing News: Social Media: A Recruiting Tool, Google Rating Guidelines, Rules for Online Content, Write Better Facebook Posts

Online Marketing News: Google+ Integration, Price of NOT Tweeting, Bing Facebook Photo Search, Take Advantage of LinkedIn

Restaurant Social Media Top 10

Have yu ever wondered how the largest restaurants in American stack up on social networks?  This recent infographic from QSRweb.com shares a glimpse into how your favorite fast food spots are fairing.  While the infographic provides insight into likes, fans, and followers, it would be great to see what sort of engagement strategy these companies have, or how they respond to feedback (good and bad).

Google Plus Goes to the Office
On August 29th Google announced that it is in the process of integrating Google+ with Google Apps.  The business application for this change may come sooner than you think.  It appears that Google is now integrating Hangouts with calendars, e-mail, and documents.  Perhaps companies will now have a one stop shop for video conferencing and document sharing?  It may still be too early to tell, but we have our fingers crossed. Via The New York Times.


Online Marketing News: Google+ Integration, Price of NOT Tweeting, Bing Facebook Photo Search, Take Advantage of LinkedIn

Online Marketing News: Facebook Tests Sponsored Search Ads, Google’s Page 1 Results Possibly Getting Smaller, Klout Revamps Metrics

Most Effective Advertising Online In 2012 [Infographic]

This recent infographic from Webstarts takes a look at online advertising in 2012.  With billions of dollars being spent on advertising each year it is difficult for some marketers to determine where their advertising dollars should be spent.

Facebook Testing Sponsored Search Ads – Google AdWords Watch Out?
It appears that Facebook is pushing even further into Google’s territory.  The social networking giant as discretely begun rolling out more search-driven advertising, including a new category of Sponsored search ads.  Via AdWeek.


Online Marketing News: Facebook Tests Sponsored Search Ads, Google’s Page 1 Results Possibly Getting Smaller, Klout Revamps Metrics