19: Busting Email Myths

With 2017 set to expire in just a few weeks there are also a few marketing trends that are set to expire. According to a recent blog post written by Jasz Joseph over at Hubspot, there are 8 marketing trends that have ran their course as we know it. That being said, you should be aware of them and get with the times and start making adjustments now.

Today the guys discuss whether they agree with this article or not. From drip campaigns to ebooks to marketing automation, there is something to be learned and adjusted to take your marketing into the future...the very near future.

We would love your feedback on whether you agree with the article or not. Tweet us @LunchBreakMkt to give us your thoughts and opinions. Maybe you have one you would add or maybe even take away from this list. Whatever it may be, we want to hear from you.

As we draw closer to the end of the year, most marketers are thinking about what areas they would like to see an improvement in the new year. One of those areas is SEO. We have found that most business owners and even some marketers can either be intimidated by SEO or they just don’t have a clue where to start.

In today’s podcast the guys dive even further into the SEO world and give you even more tips you should be applying to your website to get better results with your SEO. This topic is a continuation of the tips provided in a podcast from season 1. If you haven’t given that a listen, stop what you are doing and head over there to give that a listen.

We hope that you find the information helpful and can start applying these tips to your website today in order to see a greater performance from your SEO in 2018.

Enjoy!

SHOW NOTES

5:55 - Jason kicks it off with meta descriptions.

7:50 - You want to optimize your meta description preview. We recommend Yoast SEO.

8:40 - You can also use Headline Analyzer by CoSchedule.

9:18 - Create a template for your descriptions.

10:57 - Always important to have a keyword focus on your website.

12:07 - Include your keywords inside the title tag.

12:36 - Drop your keywords in the first 100 words.

14:05 - Meta descriptions are marketing gold.

15:15 - Ask questions in meta description

16:03 - You can include CTA’s like your phone number

17:06 - Test, test, TEST! Always A/B test.

18:04 - Include SEO friendly keywords in your site URLs, but make sure you keep it short.

20:58 - Wrap your title in an h1 tag and make sure you only have one h1 tag per page.

23:31 - Make sure your subheads wrapped in an h2 tags.

24:22 - Check out the Competitive Gap Analysis by SEMrush. Best tool for seeing what keywords your competition is ranking for.

Everyone does it. Don’t deny it. It’s something that scares us. It can be your worst nightmare.

I am talking about farting. It’s not a mystery that everyone farts. No exceptions - it's science... However, it’s what you do with after you fart that matters. Do you claim it and take extreme ownership? Do you deny it at all costs? Or do you pass the blame to someone else?

In business, there are moments where a business “farts.” Something happens that is grabbing their audience's attention for all the wrong reasons. What they do in response is crucial.

In today’s final episode of season 1, the guys discuss a few businesses that handle their business “farts” the right way and those who did not. This episode will have you laughing and terrified all at the same time.

The traditional sales and marketing funnels are changing. There is nothing you can do about it. No longer are the days of linear funnels. Because there are so many mediums available today, the funnel is more like a web. Everything is connected in achieving the main goal of conversions.

It was just 3 years ago when I was sitting in a sales and marketing team meeting, where I pointed out that it takes up to 7 touch points before someone makes a decision. Now, in 2017, I recently read that the number is closer to 11 touch points. That’s a lot of movement in just 3 years.

So what does a web funnel look like? What do I do to adjust to the web approach?

In today’s show, the guys discuss what the landscape looks like for sales and marketing and will give you some tips for adjusting to the more web approach. Don’t get left behind. Make your adjustments today.

Enjoy!

Your website is your best employee...when it converts customers. If you had a sales team member who wasn't closing sales, would you keep them around? You would probably cut them from the team OR you could diagnosis the reason why they aren't converting sales and help them make the adjustments to start succeeding.

So if your website isn't converting, are you going to cut the website or are you going to make adjustments? I would imagine you would make adjustments.

In today's podcast, the guys take a look at some common reasons your website may not be converting. Even if your website is performing well, you may still be committing some of these mistakes as well. Notify the problem, make the adjustments, and start seeing your website convert like never before.

Enjoy!

Recently, Google released Hawk into the world, a new algorithm focused mostly on local search. Zack wrote a blog that detailed what all you can expect from that new update. In that blog, he gave the readers tips for what they could be doing to outperform their competitors and begin to rank higher in search engines.

This actually sparked a conversation between the guys where they realized that they haven’t really presented a lot of topics surrounding SEO. Until now!

Today’s podcast is centered around SEO and even more tips you can start applying today to get a better authority ranking and see your ads and company website move up in the search engine rankings.

The guys hope you enjoy this topic and find the tips practical for you to start applying it in your SEO strategy today.

Enjoy!

Show Notes

1:47 - Brian Dean shoutout!

2:37 - Tip number one is: Get reviews.

5:15 - Don’t get stuck on having to get 5-star ratings.

8:44 - Tip number two is: Get Listed

10:35 - Keep your profile on Google up to date.

12:20 - Tip number three is: Make sure you appropriate titles and meta descriptions for Google to find you.

16:34 - Tip number four is: Make sure you gather quality links.

19:36 - Tip number five is: Create great content.

24:45 - Tip number six - Do your keyword research

24:56 - Check out Moz, SEMrush Keyword Tool, and Google's Keyword Planner.

Last month, Jason and Zack discussed micromarketing and how most brands are missing some of these little moments to extend their brand. Emma is the company that started this micro marketing journey the guys discussed on the show.

In today’s episode, we discuss micromarketing, Seth Godin, marketing automation, and who will play Zack and Jason in a movie idea they have on micro marketing, with Colby Cavanaugh, SVP Marketing at Emma.

Colby shares a lot about how the Emma brand is passionate about micromarketing. He also shares his take on what AI has for the future of email marketing and marketing automation. No matter how advanced technology gets, marketing will always need a human touch.

This podcast will give you a deeper respect for micromarketing. The guys hope that you start finding ways to continue your brand well past the more conventional marketing channels.

Enjoy!

Show Notes

2:23
Colby gives a brief overview of his career background.

4:25
Emma is the genesis of our mission to redefine micro-marketing with their brilliant 404 page.

5:53
The Seth Godin article that Colby mentions.

6:56

Seth suggests instead of trying to see how big you can make a segment, you see how small you can make the segment in order to find that viable audience.

7:11
Colby says they are passionate about the micro-marketing moments, like their 404 page, to extend the brand of Emma.

9:00
Jason points out how much work into the idea of investing time into a 404 page that NO ONE will ever see.

11:45
Today we have so much data at our fingertips as marketers. Colby believes we should use 70% of that date on customer service and 30% on sales.

12:15
We are coming for you, Seth! We will have you on the show.

13:45
Colby talks AI and what place it serves in digital marketing and marketing automation.

14:19
Marketing will always require the human touch that AI will not be able to have.

17:55
Marketing United

18:35
We as marketers are often missing the primary uses of email marketing automation like a welcome series.

20:15
What is the average welcome email series a business should be using? The answer is 4-5 depending on your industry and your brand.

24:36
How much email is too much email? Colby says individual preference comes into play here depending on your brand and how much your audience craves your content.

27:40
Emma’s Road Show

MORE ABOUT EMMA:

According to www.emailvendorselection, “Emma is a provider of email marketing software and personalized services that help organizations of all sizes get more from their marketing. Designed with businesses, franchises, universities, nonprofits, and agencies in mind. Emma's features include email automation, audience segmentation, and mobile email marketing, plus integration with CRM solutions, eCommerce platforms, and social networks.”

MORE ABOUT COLBY:

Colby Cavanaugh is SVP of Marketing at Emma. Prior to joining Emma, he worked as VP of Global Channels at Return Path, where he drove customer success through their global partner ecosystem and enhanced their product offerings for digital marketers. He has over 10 years experience in the digital marketing space, including positions with Webtrends, ExactTarget, and Salesforce.

Colby Cavanaugh is SVP of Marketing at Emma. Prior to joining Emma, he worked as VP of Global Channels at Return Path, where he drove customer success through their global partner ecosystem and enhanced their product offerings for digital marketers. He has over 10 years experience in the digital marketing space, including positions with Webtrends, ExactTarget, and Salesforce.

He also has experience living and working abroad in Japan and earned his MBA from Portland State University. Colby currently resides in Portland with his wife and two children.

Today's show is all about busting the myths surrounding email. Is email dead? Is it stuck in 1999? Is CAN-SPAMM really that strict? Listen & find out.

Our guest is none other than the Queen of Email Testing herself, Justine Jordan from Litmus. 

There are literally hundreds of thousands of website hosting platforms in the world today... all of them claiming to be the best in the industry. With the rise in WordPress over the last decade as a viable means for a content management system for building your next website, we have seen more companies specialize in WordPress only hosting. However, none can be matched by WP Engine.

As proud clients of WP Engine, we were honored to have our special guest on today’s podcast, Eric Jones, VP of Global Communications at WP Engine. They have revolutionized how WordPress clients host their website and are growing in dramatic fashion. At Market House, we have experienced some of the best customer service we have ever experienced in the tech/digital industry. Not only that, but we have seen the downtime of our client's sites diminish.

In today’s podcast, Eric talks with the guys about the importance of branding and what role content plays for branding your company. Over the last several years, companies have made the switch to providing useful, valuable content for their clients that are not powered by pushing the companies products or services. People can sniff out when they are being pitched. The purpose of this new way of providing content is to show your authority in the space. Giving people a reason to listen to what you have to say.

With this type of content generation, you have to be very careful about being promotional about your own products, but providing real value to consumers on the topics at hand. You have to be really focused on who your audience is, what’s the goal, and stay true that real focus.

Some would say, “Why would I provide valuable information to my customers without pushing my product? How does that make me money?” Eric gave us 2 of the biggest advantages for companies to take this content generation into consideration.

1. Credibility in your industry. By providing valuable content regarding the industry to your client, you are providing them a sense of credibility in the space. You are positioning yourself even further as an authority in the space.
2. Trust with your client. If they see that you know what you are talking about, they will immediately trust what your brand has to say. This, over time, leads to more sales and establishes you as the true authority in the industry.

We hope this podcast gives you ammo to go back to your team and convince them to get behind providing useful, valuable content that educates the client. This brands your company out of trust and not out of a sales pitch.

Enjoy!

More about Eric and WPengine:

Eric Jones service as the Vice President of Global Brand and Communications at WP Engine, Inc. He was the Marketing Partner at North Bridge Growth Equity and North Bridge Venture Partners. Previously, he was Group Head of the New York Technology Practice at Edelman.

WP Engine provides best-in-class customer service on top of innovation-driven technology. This is why over 70,000 customers in 120 countries have chosen them for their mission critical WordPress hosting needs.

As part of their commitment to power WordPress digital experiences around the globe, WP Engine offers their customers the option of choosing a data center located in US, EMEA, and Asia-Pacific. Their global data centers enable enterprise-grade site performance and support data security and compliance requirements.

The location of your server affects site speed - the closer your visitor is to the data center, the faster your site will load for them. With data centers across four continents and a global CDN network, they deliver lightning fast experiences that help improve SEO and conversion rates for customers across 136 countries around the globe.

How to find Eric and WPengine:

Eric Jones LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/ericjones24

Eric Jones Twitter: @Eric_H_Jones

WPengine Twitter: @wpengine

WPengine Facebook: facebook.com/wpengine

WPengine Website: WPengine

Links mentioned in the show:

Torque Magazine

Velocitize Publication

Market House Case Study

Casper

Vanwinkles

MLive