MarketingProfs Daily: Graphic Design

Three Email Copywriting Tips for Non-Pros

Wed, 25 Apr 2012 14:00:00 GMT

Let's say your small business doesn't have the resources to hire a professional copywriter for email campaigns. That means you&mdash;or someone on your overtaxed team&mdash;is trying to create effective messages without a solid knowledge of what works and what doesn't. So, what must you know? In a post at his blog, pro ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

How to Choose Stock Images for Your Email Campaigns

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 15:00:00 GMT

"When you think about your creative content, many factors come into play: your copy, your font choices, the layout and, of course, the images you choose to communicate your message," writes Jessica Hughes in a guest post at the Emma blog. "In short, looks count," she says. When you're selecting stock ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Four Ways to Optimize Your Email's Call to Action

Wed, 1 Feb 2012 15:00:00 GMT

Even when elements of your email campaigns deliver strong results, there's always a chance you can do better. Consider the case of a tried-and-true call-to-action (CTA) button used by HubSpot. During a slight redesign, the inbound marketing firm decided to test a few alternatives. "We were pretty shocked to discover that ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Four Ways Small Businesses Can Make a Big Email Splash

Wed, 25 Jan 2012 15:00:00 GMT

"Countless small businesses send out countless emails every day," writes Gary Levitt in an article at MarketingProfs. "If you were to sift through campaigns and results (as I do), the mountains of data would suggest two breeds of email campaign: the outstanding &hellip; and the invisible. Your emails need to ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Four Tips for Mobile Email Design

Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:00:00 GMT

"Designing emails that look great no matter where they're read can be quite the challenge," writes Justine Jordan at the Litmus blog. "As more people read email on mobile devices, chances are your recipient might view your email ... on a mobile phone as well as on their desktop." To help you ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Four Tips for Mobile SEO

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 18:00:00 GMT

"Despite some predictions that mobile SEO will be of negligible importance, mobile search has grown 5x in the past 5 years&mdash;far outpacing PC searches&mdash;and the growth is only set to continue with the rapid uptick in smartphone sales," writes Lior Levin in a guest post at HubSpot. That means if you ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Time-Tested Tips and Tools for Faster Blogging

Fri, 4 Nov 2011 17:00:00 GMT

In 2008, Lifehacker published a list of 10 ways to get blogging done without it becoming a chore. "Writing your blog should be a fun way to stretch your mind and stay connected to trends, friends, and the greater world," they note, "not another computer task." Best practices for blogging haven't ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Five Ways to Make Your Website Tablet-Friendly

Fri, 21 Oct 2011 17:00:00 GMT

You're seeing tablets more and more: on subways, in planes and in waiting rooms. To ensure you don't miss out during this cultural switch in reading habits, a number of publications have covered ways to ensure your site is tablet-friendly. We've decided to highlight the tips provided by CIK Marketing, as ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Five Email Design Must-Haves

Wed, 24 Aug 2011 14:00:00 GMT

The average email subscriber faces an inbox filled with clutter. Once she sorts through a variety of personal, professional and marketing messages, she won't look kindly on messy or incoherent email offers. "Without a well-crafted, clear and consistent design for your brand, your email is going nowhere in a hurry," ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Common Pitfalls and Challenges of Modern Customer Loyalty, Part 3 [Video]

Tue, 16 Aug 2011 14:00:00 GMT

Part three of this five-part video series on digital loyalty explores customer understanding of loyalty programs, social platforms and access devices (e.g., mobile), common user-interface challenges, and alignment of loyalty programs with business goals. Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Six Crucial Factors of Mobile App Development

Fri, 24 Jun 2011 17:00:00 GMT

Building a mobile application means winning more traction for your efforts: You can be with users all the time! But often, developers and execs might not quite "see" your great idea; instead, they see challenges and unplanned costs. It's time to educate yourself about such obstacles, so your next app proposal ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Turn Your Data Into Infographics: Five Cool Tools

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 17:00:00 GMT

One aspect of being social is relaying information as efficiently as possible. But data is dense, and we have more of it to sift through than ever before. To help you get your data across in an eye-catching way that resonates, Fast Company offers a list of five tools businesses can ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Five Ways to Search-Optimize Your Images

Mon, 9 May 2011 17:00:00 GMT

Ever wonder how much meaningful traffic or links could come your way if you search-optimized your images? The answer might be, More than you'd expect. So writes Michael Gray in a post at Graywolf's SEO Blog. Thanks to Google's universal search results, images can help you show up on the first ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Marketers Playing It Too Safe (Creatively)

Fri, 22 Apr 2011 13:00:00 GMT

In an age where innovation is a key factor to business success, many ad and marketing executives are itching for more creative freedom on the job, according to a survey from The Creative Group. Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Four Reasons to Revive the Bulky Direct Mail Piece

Tue, 16 Nov 2010 15:00:00 GMT

"Just a few years ago, I could count on receiving a mailbox-full of direct mail nearly every day, including the crown jewel of direct marketing, the BIG direct mail piece," writes Dean Rieck at Direct Creative. "Thick #10's, fat 6&times;9's, and beefy 9&times;12's once stood atop the mountain of attention-grabbing ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Draw a Picture With Your Data

Tue, 2 Nov 2010 15:30:00 GMT

"Data visualization and infographics are powerful ways to communicate data, stats or information that most communications pros never even consider," writes Adam Singer at the Future Buzz blog. "And yet in a world increasingly saturated with data and information, they are a potent way to tell your story, break through ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

What You Can Learn From the Gap's Logo Debacle

Tue, 2 Nov 2010 14:00:00 GMT

Not long ago, Gap sparked a social-media firestorm when it quietly unveiled a redesigned logo. People not only disliked the bargain-basement aesthetic&mdash;they hated it. And, writes Umair Haque at Harvard Business Review, for good reason: "The new logo reeks of something designed not just by committee," he says, "but by ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

How to Ensure Your Messages Render Correctly

Wed, 13 Oct 2010 14:00:00 GMT

You might think you've done your rendering homework, but that might not be the case. "Don't assume that the custom template you tested several months ago is still rendering correctly across all ISPs and Browsers on PCs, Macs, iPads," writes Kimbery Snyder at the Bronto blog. "ISPs are always changing ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Two Ad-Design Rules to Make Your Brand Message Stick

Wed, 22 Sep 2010 15:30:00 GMT

"Brand identifiability is under the advertiser's control and is a key consideration in ad design," note the authors of a recent research report on the effectiveness of visual ads. But because of rising "media noise" due to competing advertisements and "active ad avoidance by consumers," it has become challenging for ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Improve Your Website by Removing These Four Things

Tue, 7 Sep 2010 14:00:00 GMT

Marketing experts often tell you which features your website absolutely must have. But for a post at the HubSpot blog, Kipp Bodnar created a list of items you should delete as soon as possible from your site. Here are a few items that deserve immediate elimination: Complicated animation. There's little ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Three Things You Need To Know About Website Design

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 14:00:00 GMT

Jonathan Kranz writes that he often winces at the missed opportunities he sees in B2C and B2B websites. "There may be nothing particularly 'wrong' about the design, the underlying coding, or even the writing," he says at MarketingProfs, "but these websites aren't right, because they fail to connect with customers ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Display Ads Making a Comeback

Wed, 30 Jun 2010 15:15:00 GMT

The US display ad market has made a comeback in the last few months, led by JPEG ads, which accounted for 42.4% of impressions in May, and leaderboard-style banner ads (728 x 90 pixels), among the most commonly viewed display ad sizes, according to data from comScore's Ad Metrix Creative ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Four Lessons from Posh Real-Estate Agents

Tue, 22 Jun 2010 14:00:00 GMT

If you're not in the market for luxury real estate, there's a good chance you haven't seen the glossy brochures that Christie's Great Estates and Sotheby's International Realty produce for their multimillion-dollar listings. "It is a shame that few of us do get to experience this world," writes Rohit Bhargava ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

Do You Flickr?

Tue, 27 Apr 2010 14:00:00 GMT

Most small businesses haven't figured out how to promote themselves on Flickr&mdash;and that means you can get an edge on the competition. And in a recent post at the Influential Marketing Blog, Rohit Bhargava offers several useful how-to pointers. Consider the following: It all starts with high-quality, non-marketing ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs

It's the Same, but Different

Tue, 13 Apr 2010 14:00:00 GMT

If you want customers or members to fill out a form or volunteer their time, writes Roger Dooley at the Neuromarketing blog, "you will be more successful if you describe the task in a simple, easy to read typeface." The reason? When something can be completed in a shorter period ... Read the full article at MarketingProfs