The content marketing matrix [new #infographic] via @smartinsights

Instead of surfacing a list of blue web links, the new Google search engine, will also present more facts and direct answers to search queries at the top of the results page.

By employing ‘semantic search technology’, the world’s most popular search engine is going to endure its biggest makeover yet, as it attempts to stay ahead of the curve and maintain its spot as the market leader.

The changes, which will see more answers, rather than just web links, surface on each search results page, resemble Wolfram Alpha’s approach, a British computational search engine which tries to answer queries, rather than supply a list of websites.

Google now seems to moving towards the same model and may soon begin providing one answer to a search query, instead of thousands of links to different sites.

Since the rise of Twitter and information updates in real-time, Google has been trying to update its core search service, to make it as relevant and timely to each user.

New research about digital marketing trends published today shows that social media engagement is rated as both the top priority and most exciting opportunity for companies this year.

But while the fourth Quarterly Digital Intelligence Briefing, published by Econsultancy in association with Adobe, shows a huge appetite for social media programmes, there is a worrying lack of commitment to investment in associated analytics and measurement. 

Research for this report found that, along with content optimisation, social media engagement is rated as the top priority for digital marketers out of a range of digital-related marketing activities and disciplines.

Asked to indicate their top three priorities for the year ahead, companies surveyed by Econsultancy and Adobe found that these areas will be more important in 2012 than other disciplines including conversion rate optimisation, mobile optimisation and content marketing.

Social media analytics lagged behind in ninth place. 

More than 600 companies surveyed for this report were also asked about the ‘most exciting’ digital-related opportunities for their organisations in 2012. 

More than half of client-side respondents (54%) said that social media engagement featured among the three most exciting opportunities, way ahead of mobile optimisation (38%) and content optimisation (37%). Again, social analytics is much further down the pecking order, this time in eighth place.

More at: http://econsultancy.com/uk/blog/8995-social-media-engagement-is-the-top-priority-for-digital-marketers?utm_medium=twitter&utm_source=twitterfeed

Waitrose is winning the social media war this Christmas, converting the most online visitors into paying customers and brand advocates, accordingly to the latest Supermarket UK study from Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG).

Waitrose, with its focus on “engaging content”, is having a “far higher impact” on consumer behaviour than Sainsbury’s and Tesco.

The study also revealed that shoppers taking an action on a supermarket Facebook page are twice as likely to shop there this Christmas, with 87% intending purchase compared to 43% of those that just visit the page.

On YouTube this is even greater, with 89% of those interacting online planning purchase, versus 36%. The insight also shows Twitter activity is a strong sign of brand commitment, with 92% of followers and 93% of those tweeting about a brand intending purchase this Christmas.

The research was undertaken in late November 2011 by communications strategy, media buying and management agency, SMG. Using its proprietary research tool to measure the value of a fan on social media, the Social Media Behaviour Index (SMBI) has analysed the strategies of the ‘Big 6’ supermarkets in the UK – Waitrose, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Asda, Morrisons and the Co-operative.

More at: Waitrose is ‘best at converting social media users into paying customers’, reveals new survey

Repeat after me: Useful, Relevant, Timely, Useful, Relevant, Timely, Useful, Relevant….

It doesn’t take much to send a story viral on Twitter, but a recent quirk in the URL system at The Independent saw a flurry of humorous web links scattered across the Twittersphere. 

I was first alerted to the incident when one of our leading techies at dotCommerce, Stuart Gill, sent me a link that was doing the rounds on Twitter, seemingly exposing an entertaining URL on a story about Kate Middleton’s head in The Independent.

Namely:

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/utter-PR-fiction-but-people-love-this-shit-so-lets-just-print-it-2269573.html 

While it initially looks as though a sub-editor at the paper has been neglectful, this is actually an example of a little URL rewriting feature that is common to lots of content management systems.

As long as you have the numbers at the end, you can put anything into the URL and it will still work normally.

For example:

http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/why-we-are-cancelling-our-Guardian-subscription-2269573.html

More at: http://econsultancy.com/uk/blog/7445-using-rewriteable-urls-to-help-user-experience-and-seo

WatchingPaintDry.wordpress.com

One of the most common objections I hear from companies when I talk with them about blogging is, “We don’t do anything really interesting. No one would read our blog, so why waste our time?”

I have a lot of problems with the previous objection and not the least of which is the apparent lack of passion about the product or service, but I’d like to focus on the idea of “interesting content” here today.

We’ve all heard the expression Content is King and that’s all well and good, but what if your content has to be derived from spark plug repair or asphalt. Not all of us can be the Entertainment Director on a Disney Cruise Ship or a Beverly Hills plastic surgeon. How do you go about making boring content interesting?

It’s Not Your Content, It’s You

Here’s the first kicker: your blog content isn’t boring because of what it’s about, your blog content is boring because you are presenting it in a boring way. You have to approach every article as an opportunity to punch everyone you know in the face with Awesome, and you have to believe you can do it (Can I get an “Amen”).

In their book Content Rules (you guessed it, Amazon) Ann Handley and C.C. Chapman tell a lot of stories, but one in particular is about a company called the Indium Corporation. If you aren’t familiar with Indium, they distribute specialty alloys and solder products for electronic assemblies. Pretty epic, huh?

What you go on to find out is that Indium publishes over 70 blogs to their niche markets all written by employees. They have seen unbelievable success from it and have branched out into other social media marketing avenues because they embraced their niche.

So, who will care about your blog on spark plug repair? The people who will be buying those spark plugs from you, that’s who. If you don’t think anyone will be interested in what you have to offer or talk about, why are you even in business? You may as well just close up shop and go apply to sweep up trash at Disneyworld, at least everything about that place is exciting.

For everyone else who isn’t ready to throw in the towel quite yet, this next section is for you.

5 Ways To Breathe Life Into Seemingly Boring Material

I’ve hinted at these already throughout the article, but I know you like things laid out a little better, so here goes:

1. Get Passionate – I know that not every day at your job is peppermint flowers and bunny farts, but there should be some part of you that loves what you have to offer. Light some candles, turn on some Barry White and find that passion again and convey that through your articles. If you honestly can’t, find someone who can and have them be your blogger. However you get it done, make sure there is a passionate voice behind the blog for your company.
2. SOS – Take a hard look at what you’re publishing. Maybe those 1,500-word, no-picture articles about stereo innards aren’t the angle you need to be taking. Try to figure out creative ways to get your message across. Blendtec could have easily created salesy articles about their line of home products, but instead they created Will It Blend? and have been entertaining Internet audiences for years while generating interest and showing the benefits of their products. It’s a pretty brilliant way to sell home appliances if you ask me. If you can’t think of a creative way to blog about what you have to offer, contact me and we can figure it out together.
3. Embrace Your Niche – I’m filching this one from Ann and C.C.’s book because it’s right on the money. Any big or small business worth its snuff knows in very fine detail who they’re customers are. Put that knowledge to work for yourself and create content specifically designed to entertain those customer profiles. What kinds of things interest them? How do they see themselves? Is that viewpoint different from how the rest of the world sees them? The answers to the previous questions lead to things like Toyota’s Swagger Wagon video. This is the definition on Long Tail Marketing. Know the most specific things your customers will look for and focus on those things.
4. Be Human – This has become a cliché in the social media universe, but so many people say it because it’s true. For the most part, sales copy is boring and when you write your blog in sales copy, your blog will be boring. It’s refreshing when you watch a commercial and think, “Hey, that’s something my friends and I could have done.” It refreshes you because you relate to it. Write your blogs in a way that you would relate to on a human level, the rest will come from there.
5. Tell Stories – One of the easiest ways to be interesting is to relay stories. Real or imaginary, when crafted well, stories can draw people in, connect with them on emotional levels and drive them to areas of commitment. There’s a reason Sally Struthersalways introduced us to the African children for whom money was being raised. To this day, one of my most popular posts is The Chameleon and the Coalmine. There is no breakdown and no point written out in the story, it’s simply a narrative, but it connects with people. Tell stories when you write.