“62% of search engine users click on results appearing on the first results page and 90% click on results from the first three pages” (Melage, 2007). 84 percent of all searches conducted online are completed with Google, Yahoo, or MSN (Melage, 2007, p. 69). According to Melage, most people conduct simple one word searches by [...]

Winfiled reports that “approximately 900 million mobile search users will exist by 2011″ (2008, p.2). Being connected to the internet via cell phone or computer yields tremendous power and access to vital information. The sky is the limit. Furthermore, Winfiled reported, “64 percent of American consumers trust search engine advertising, while a mere 10 percent [...]

Viewing SEO from a global point of view yields some interesting results. New Media Age claims that 66 percent of UK online ads were spent on search engine marketing in 2005. This is an increase of 57 percent from the previous year (Anonymous, 2005). The article titled “In Search of Rejuvenation” by Heather Fletcher (2009) [...]

The journal Inc states that the new basics of marketing that you need to know about are: websites, email, mobile phones, social networks, viral video and blogging (Buchanan, Chafkin, & McCarthy, 2008). According to the author, “the world of marketing is radically different than it was only a few short years ago. From viral video [...]

The article titled “Brand Management in Small to Medium-Sized Enterprises” describes how small to medium sized enterprise (SMEs) “account for the vast majority of organizations in most developed economies” (Berthon, Ewing & Napoli, 2008, p. 28). The authors continue to explain that SMEs operate very differently than large organizations (LO’s) (Berthon, et al., 2008, p. [...]

The article titled “Do-it-yourself marketing” illustrates how creativity combined with innovative use of limited funds can produce effective results for significantly less money than employing an ad agency (1996). The article states, “cynics say it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. But the key to small business success may lie in who knows [...]

“Will it Blend?” from Blendtec and three more case studies of viral-video marketing success. Your product doesn’t have to be as visually appealing as, say, a Ford model to benefit from a snazzy viral video. It can be something as mundane as a blender, in fact. That’s the lesson one can learn from the unlikely [...]

Spring is just around the corner here in Michigan, and it couldn’t come at a better time. Well, I suppose it could have come earlier for those of us who’ve suffered through an unbelievable amount of snow, ice, and gray this past winter. The funny thing is, we keep plugging along, shoveling, plowing, slipping, and [...]

Low-cost mailings, no-frills help, networking sites get the word out. With only $1,000 a year to spend on marketing for Tedde, a company that makes one-of-a-kind bears, Sky Khan knew she needed an image with a lot of impact. That’s where poor Headless Ted came in. Around Halloween, Ms. Khan put a decapitated bear on [...]

<h2>Think about who you are, who needs what you do and how to get their attention.</h2> One of the most powerful strategic planning tools your business can possess is a marketing plan. I’m not referring to an academic exercise found in college marketing textbooks. Your marketing plan should be a simple (in some cases, one-page) [...]