Locally, the difference between marketing to other businesses and marketing to consumers isn't that big.

ClickZ Experts
Commentary, opinion, advice, and thought leadership from interactive marketing's leading practitioners.

1. B2B and B2C Marketers Can Learn From Each Other - 2007-08-15 22:55:15-04
   Locally, the difference between marketing to other businesses and marketing to consumers isn't that big.
   
2. Online Shoppers Take Their Time - 2007-08-15 22:55:15-04
   Five things marketers can do to close the sale.
   
3. Conversion Funnel Folly, Part 1 - 2007-08-16 22:55:38-04
   If all you're getting are reports, you aren't getting any intelligence. Part one of a series.
   
4. Will an Economic Recession Hurt SEM? - 2007-08-16 22:55:38-04
   Or will it help SEM?
   
5. Playing the Tracking Game - 2007-08-16 22:55:38-04
   Is measuring rich media or video just crazy talk?
   
6. Good Content in Bad Places - 2007-08-17 08:46:07-04
   When your online content is scraped, stolen, or splogged: a what-to-do guide.
   
7. Big-Time Black Hat - 2007-08-19 23:11:33-04
   What the spammers are up to (don't try this at home, folks).
   
8. The Overflowing Inbox - 2007-08-19 23:11:33-04
   Managing your inbox while you're away.
   
9. Do You Need an Actual Web Site? - 2007-08-19 23:11:33-04
   How people use the Web is shifting. Is a full-on Web site the way to reach them?
   
10. Keeping Consumer Trust During a Crisis - 2007-08-20 22:39:52-04
    At what point does sight, sound, and motion make a difference when connecting with consumers in a crisis?
    
11. Performance Media Planning and Buying, Part 1: Paying for Leads and Actions - 2007-08-20 22:39:52-04
    Get up to speed on performance based media buys. First of a two-part series.
    
12. Defining Web Analytics - 2007-08-20 22:39:52-04
    Web analytics must be about more than site performance.
    
13. Behavioral on a Shoestring? - 2007-08-21 23:56:32-04
    Behavioral targeting is all the rage. But can you do it on a shoestring?
    
14. Selling SEM Upstream in the Enterprise - 2007-08-21 23:56:32-04
    The benefits and requirements of solid SEM work.
    
15. Archive Your B2B E-Newsletters for SEO Success - 2007-08-21 23:56:32-04
    Make your past newsletters keep working for you.
    
16. Facebook as a B2B Marketing Tool - 2007-08-22 23:29:33-04
    Facebook was originally a personal social network. But that hasn't stopped businesses from adapting its features to suit their networking and promotional needs.
    
17. Are You Interested in E-Mail ROI? - 2007-08-22 23:29:33-04
    There's a genuine need for information and exchanges that focus on building positive ROI through e-mail. Let's get organized!
    
18. Marketing in Uncertain Times - 2007-08-22 23:29:33-04
    Action steps to take now to prepare for any crisis that may lie ahead.
    
19. Mobile: The New Human Connection - 2007-08-22 23:29:33-04
    Creating social networks is no longer just about interpersonal relationships. The most tangible connections are born from personal relationships enhanced by mobile technology.
    

7 Steps to Developing Effective Newsletters Online

If you have a loyal customer base, but haven't used a regularly scheduled newsletter to communicate with then, then its time to develop a monthly newsletter. Electronic newsletters are a great way to share information, promote your products, and solicit feedback from your most important customers. If you want to develop effective newsletters, you'll need to follow these seven proven tips for creating winning newsletters.

1. Choose a Theme.

The largest pitfall to developing an effective newsletter is the lack of a theme. When creating newsletters on a regular basis (ex: monthly), select a unique theme every month that appeals to your audience. Once you have identified a theme, be sure that your newsletter content focuses on that specific theme throughout its content. This creates a newsletter that is meaningful and positions your company as a meaningful source of information.

2. Allow for Easy Scanning.

If newsletter subscribers are unable to scan your newsletter, you stand a good chance of losing them. The first few seconds are your most important so make them count. Use big, bold headlines, and article descriptions, providing links to the full article or related content areas. By providing article introductions versus an entire article, you make it easier for readers to view your entire newsletter while allowing them to zero in on the content that has the greatest appeal.

3. Use Graphics.

Producing a newsletter that's wall-to-wall text will not be able to keep the interest of even your most savvy reader. Interject graphics, product photos, pictures, and so on throughout your newsletter. This will break up those large blocks of content increase your newsletter's appeal. Make sure your graphics include links to the articles or products they reference as Internet browsers tend to click on pictures or graphics presented online.

4. Include Product or Service Information.

Internet users are very comfortable with product promotion especially when receiving free information or content. They understand that advertising pays the bill and is common among electronic newsletters. So use this information to your advantage. In each newsletter, discuss a featured product or provide a special offer to your newsletter readers. Products or services that are closely aligned with the theme of your newsletter can be ideal. As a rule of thumb, keep the number of products you promote three or less.

5. Proof Your Work.

When creating an electronic newsletter, you should always check your work. Spelling, grammar, and punctuation should be perfect. When users find these types of errors, it signals a lack of care - causing doubt as to the amount of effort used when developing the content presented. The result could very well be an increase in those who unsubscribe or a reduction in overall click-through rates.

6. Be Viral.

Never assume that the person reading your newsletter signed up for it directly. In fact, you should encourage your readers to forward the newsletter to others who may be interested in the content you're providing. Make your newsletter, and each volume of your newsletter, accessible via your website. Additionally, make it easy for new users to sign up through a link in each edition of your newsletter. When users forward a copy to a friend, they can easily subscribe.

7. Don't Forget Can-SPAM.

In the footer of your newsletter, include your company name, address, and contact information. Inform users why they are receiving your newsletter and how than can unsubscribe. Honor all unsubscribe requests within the alloted 10 day requirement. By doing so you are meeting current standards and you'll keep your newsletter subscription list clean.

These newsletter development tips can help you deliver a valuable newsletter that gets read and acted upon. Don't be afraid to experiment and keep relevant content the main focal point of your newsletter. As your newsletters become more sophisticated don't lose site of the basic principles. The tried and true is often the best way to be successful!

Michael Fleischner is an Internet marketing expert with more than 12 years of marketing experience. He has appeared on The TODAY Show, Bloomberg Radio, and other major media.

Sale + Email = More Sales

Many businesses focus their marketing efforts on acquiring
new customers.

They spend countless dollars and hours trying to keep a
steady stream of new visitors coming to their stores and
websites to purchase from them.

Getting new customers can be expensive - after all, to get
new ones, you have to determine where to advertise, how to
get people to your door/site, how to convert people from
prospects to customers... it can be a lot of work!


------------------------------------------------------------
An Easy Source Of Income - That's Easy To Overlook
------------------------------------------------------------

So why don't more businesses put the same effort into their
existing customers?

These are people who have already done business with you
and are much more likely to buy (again) than someone who
hasn't purchased from you before. Yet too many businesses
fail to market to their own customers after a sale.


------------------------------------------------------------
Customer Follow Up - Cheap AND Automated!
------------------------------------------------------------

You don't have to spend time and money getting your own
customers to find your store or site - they've already been
there and purchased! They're the most qualified prospects
you have - they're in search of what you're selling and
they trusted you enough to purchase from you.

The difference between businesses who turn one-time buyers
into loyal, lifelong, repeat customers, and those that
don't is...


  The ones who do it, do it, and those who don't, don't.


That's it. You have a choice: communicate with customers
and turn them on to other related products they might
benefit from. Keep at the front of their minds and inboxes,
show them you stand behind your products and value their
patronage. Boost your revenues.

Or don't.

The best part?  Even if you're busy, it's easy to follow up
with customers by email - it's automated! So get your buyers
onto a customer list after purchase and start communicating
with them!

You can:

  * thank your customers for purchasing.

  * offer helpful advice related to the product or service
    they purchased from you.

  * suggest other products, services or resources to get
    the most possible value out of their purchase, and to
    boost your revenue per customer.


------------------------------------------------------------
Integrate Your Shopping Cart With AWeber
------------------------------ ------------------------------

For businesses using an online shopping cart service, it
really is a simple automated process - when someone buys,
they can be added to a customer list using the payment
notification email and one of our email parsers.

We have parsers/integration set up for popular carts like:

  * PayPal
  * Clickbank
  * 1ShoppingCart
  * 2Checkout
  * PayDotCom
  * Volusion

Head over to our Knowledge Base for more details on how to
integrate your shopping cart with AWeber:

  http://cosmicbreath.aweber.com/faq/search/Shopping+Cart

(If you use an online cart that we don't have a parser for
yet, contact us about setting up integration for it!)

To Your Success!

A New Chrysler and a New Marketer

NYT > Media and Advertising

1. Advertising: A New Chrysler and a New Marketer - 2007-08-15 23:19:11-04
   With a new chief marketing officer, Chrysler is wasting no time in trying to persuade customers that it has come out from under the wing of its former German owners.
   
2. New Owner to Combine Men's Magazines - 2007-08-15 23:44:18-04
   Alpha Media Group will turn Stuff magazine into a section of Maxim, while keeping Stuff.com as a stand-alone Web site.
   
3. China Cracks Down on News Media as Party Congress Nears - 2007-08-16 00:13:53-04
   Beijing officials are discouraging the country's news media from being too aggressive, two months before the Chinese Communist Party Congress.
   
4. Nickelodeon to Limit Use of Characters on Junk Foods - 2007-08-16 09:28:31-04
   Nickelodeon, the children's television network, will prohibit use of its characters on junk food except on special occasions like Halloween.
   
5. 3 Reporters Sue H.P. in Spying Case - 2007-08-16 09:33:05-04
   Three reporters for CNET Networks sued Hewlett-Packard on Wednesday, accusing the computer maker of violating thier privacy during its search for boardroom leaks.
   
6. The Show: Back to You, You Lecherous, Micromanaging Desk Jockeys - 2007-08-16 21:05:51-04
   When it comes to the job of sideline reporter, it's not the women who are clueless.
   
7. Advertising: Now, the Clicking Is to Watch the Ads, Not Skip Them - 2007-08-16 21:53:37-04
   Even while consumers seek to avoid advertising on TV and the Web, a growing number websites are presenting advertisements as entertainment.
   
8. What's Offline: No Applause, Please - 2007-08-17 23:53:19-04
   The curse of the business press, cutting email overload, understanding the telecommuting promotion gap and what business leaders can learn from fairy tales.
   
9. Is Publishing the Sweetest Revenge? - 2007-08-18 00:07:28-04
   Sharlene Martin, a Los Angeles literary agent, is spearheading the reincarnation of O. J. Simpson's book.
   
10. Beliefs: In Praise of Scoops on Heaven, Hell and, Yes, God - 2007-08-18 01:06:28-04
    No one has sufficiently mourned the loss to religion reporting resulting from the closing of the Weekly World News.
    
11. The Count: Google Wins the Most Hearts on the Web - 2007-08-18 13:52:36-04
    In the 21st century, you should be ready to answer this question: What's your favorite Internet brand?
    
12. Digital Domain: Pass the Popcorn. But Where's the Movie? - 2007-08-18 16:31:52-04
    Consumers, manufacturers and cable operators are all ready for video-on-demand, but the studios have balked.
    
13. Disney Stakes Claim to Ratings Record - 2007-08-18 20:22:46-04
    The premiere of the Disney Channel movie "High School Musical 2" delivered the largest single audience in basic-cable television history, according to Disney.
    
14. Atlantic Tells Fans of the Puzzler Not to Fret - 2007-08-19 18:53:34-04
    Ever since the Atlantic Monthly's crossword puzzle disappeared from the print magazine over a year ago, its fans have been complaining loudly.
    
15. For Media Columnist, Everywhere He Turns It's More Murdoch - 2007-08-19 20:33:32-04
    Doubleday will publish Michael Wolff's biography of Rupert Murdoch, the chairman of the News Corporation.
    
16. Link By Link: Defending Wikipedia's Impolite Side - 2007-08-19 20:43:12-04
    Mike Godwin's job is to defend an online encyclopedia created by tens of thousands of (often anonymous) contributors who comment freely on living people and businesses.
    
17. Drilling Down: Consuming Less While Getting More - 2007-08-19 21:33:04-04
    While Americans may feel bombarded by media information, we seem to be consuming less of it.
    
18. Advertising: Forget the Calendar: The Beauty Is in 30 Days of Marketing - 2007-08-19 22:04:26-04
    The Hearst Magazines division of the Hearst Corporation is bringing back for a second year a multimedia campaign called 30 Days of Fashion.
    
19. How Solid Is the Deal for Tribune? - 2007-08-19 22:49:59-04
    When shareholders gather to approve an $8.2 billion plan to take Tribune private, an uncomfortable question is sure to be on many of their minds: Will this deal fall apart?
    
20. Ad Growth for AOL Called Vital to a Remake - 2007-08-19 22:51:52-04
    A precipitous slowdown in advertising growth has raised new questions about AOL's transformation plans.