aimClear has long embraced an online marketing model in which public relations is a core component. Among our staff of 22, 6 have deep experience in public relations. If the value PR brings to online marketing is not painfully obvious by now, you haven’t been paying attention. The opposite is also true. Online marketing tactics add so many facets to public relations programs that, frankly, agencies that aren’t implementing them are dating themselves and limiting the effectiveness of the campaigns they undertake.

Reading the PR trades, you get a distinct sense that there are two breeds of PR agencies/executives these days: Those who hold the traditional tactics sacred and believe any encroachment smears the honorable profession, and those who embrace a classic approach coupled with online marketing tactics to cover earned, owned, paid and shared media. If all you want out of your PR firm is gray-tinted hands from stacks of print coverage, go ahead and hire the former. We’re guessing that most companies are more interested in an integrated approach. Fortunately, it’s easy to spot the old school agencies. Just keep an ear open for the following phrases:

“It can’t be done.”
A big part of any PR executive’s responsibilities is setting expectations, but there’s a difference between being realistic and not trying. In online marketing disciplines such as PPC and SEO, the mantra is test, test, test. For many in traditional PR, if they’re asked to do something out of the ordinary or that isn’t standard operating procedure, they get uneasy. Why? Is it because failure is that much more public? Probably not. It’s likely because they’ve been doing the same thing for so long, they’ve learned what works and what doesn’t. Whereas that can be a good thing, complacency never is. It also implies a template approach to public relations that leaves no room for innovation.

“We’ve been doing that for years.”
FleishmanHillard, an esteemed big business PR agency, recently announced that they’ve shifted their focus from traditional PR to earned, owned, shared and paid media, in addition to removing the hyphen from their name (can you imagine writing that release? “Fleishman-Hillard is now FleishmanHillard”). All joking aside, this was a big story in the industry, with a feature article in The New York Times, among others, as well as a piece in PR Daily, a widely read e-newsletter for the PR industry. The writer of the PR Daily article talked to several agency owners about Fleishman’s new strategy, all of whom replied that it’s nothing new. They’ve embraced it for years. And yet, these are the same people you’d probably hear saying:

“Public relations is earned, never paid.”
Where did this notion come from? Definitions of public relations abound, and one of the most common is “helping an organization communicate with its publics”—no distinction between earned and paid. Even in PRSA’s latest definition of public relations, there’s no mention of PR being executed solely via unpaid tactics. Perhaps the naysayers simply mean we shouldn’t be paying for media coverage. But what if forking over a couple bucks here and there means we get our message in front of the media in a novel way?

Inbound PR has proven to be one of the best non-intrusive methods to get ideas in front of busy editorial staff and bloggers. We know that a majority of journalists use the Internet to develop story ideas and find sources, so why not be present where they’re already searching?

Just because there’s an exchange of money, doesn’t mean something should automatically be classified as advertising, and thus, not under the purview of PR. If PR is helping an organization communicate with its key audiences, what’s wrong with paying to promote that Facebook post that would otherwise be seen by fewer than 20% of your fans? Why not amplify an article that ran in a 1,000-subscriber newsletter to a precisely targeted audience of 80,000? The best way to be in the news is to do something newsworthy. So do it, then tell the world what you did on your blog, and promote that content to media roles. Implementing paid organic amplification tactics not only helps you reach wider audiences—whether that’s media, customers, employees, community members, investors, donors, etc.—they can also make your PR efforts more measurable.

“SEO is pointless.”
Reading the comments on articles about SEO aimed at those in the PR industry can be a jaw-dropping experience (sometimes the article itself is just as dumbfounding). Invariably, the comments complain that SEO is all about stuffing keywords into press releases and the like. There’s usually at least one commenter that gets on his/her high horse to report that content produced for the media should be written with the media in mind, never SEO.

It’s a shame that SEO has gotten a bad rap with public relations professionals. But you almost can’t blame them. After all, most articles written about PR for SEOs focus on the almighty press release, which, of course, is laughable to anyone with some degree of PR experience. Can SEO, AP Style and the inverted pyramid coexist? Absolutely. And the PR executive who takes the time to study the basics of search engine optimization will understand and quickly outpace his/her peers in developing content designed for the target audience as well as search engines.

All of the above have one thing in common: a closed-minded mentality. If the old school PR exec is resistant to new ideas, the modern PR pro is open minded, willing to try something new and take risks. They’re confident in their abilities, but they don’t have a superiority complex. They welcome change and collaboration with marketing professionals of all disciplines without being territorial.

Does your PR agency recognize the value of integrating classic public relations with disciplines such as SEO, PPC and social? Or are they still using a fax machine?

In case you haven’t noticed the SEO buzz kill, it’s practically Armageddon out there, at least  for some last gen marketers. For SEO practitioners who don’t know what they’re doing anymore 2013 SEO is brutal man, just brutal.  Google’s veritable Jihad against link spammers and outdated link building tactics is finally working to a greater extent. Search engines in general are building better bullsh*t detectors than ever before.

Search engine results pages mirror the real world more now and real brands have real advantages.  Marketers can complain all they want but the truth is that brand-advantage is not new. Before the Internet it was always hard for new brands to break through. We got spoiled for about a decade because early flawed search engine technology artificially leveled the playing field for clever would-be competitors. Now search engines reflect the physical world more accurately. Not happy? Get over it. *Sigh*

The good news is that for marketers adept in organic, paid and paid-organic distribution of awesome content the living is high baby!  Pitching for links only with email and phone calls is SO 2011! There’s plenty of good ol’ #SEO links to go around for authentic and talented content marketers who understand the current distribution paradigm.

Since so much of SEO is contingent on actual quality links and true social signals, there’s nothing to be afraid of for evolved content marketers. Great content properly distributed yields signals and links. We’ve seen this proven over and over.

To begin, the foundation of great content marketing is…well… tremendously useful content advised, tailored and tuned by the very audiences to which we expect will consume it.  All the classic caveats apply: How does the content serve users and why will they care?  How does the content demystify, serve, remove barriers to conversion and move users towards the purchase funnel in attributable steps?

This post is not about creating great content. We assume you already know how to create content that works. Content that “works” means to say that “If the right user sees the content then the user will value the content on some level and have a propensity to somehow act.”  Also “Good things will happen from content touches including users sharing, linking, and converting via content-as-the-living-landing-page. Rather, this post is all about how to get MORE, much more, out of your terrific content.

In this post-Penguin & Panda link building environment, many old methods don’t work anymore. As we link builders seek new age replacement methods, we’re after content and distribution programs that:

• Earn real links from sites with good domain authority
• Generate authentic social signals from real users of good authority
• Insulate our sites from harsh search engine algorithm updates
• Drive targeted & scalable social psychographic traffic to content that converts
• Amplify PR distribution to journalists, bloggers, and a myriad focused media-role users

Recently Forbes magazine caught up with aimClear’s social distribution tactical successes online, and highlighted one of our client’s case studies to readers. The article by Neal Rodriguez details our team’s integrated techniques to amplify on-site content marketing winners for conversion. The attention was gratifying since we see stellar results over and over with our clients and have been evangelizing these distribution tactics for years.

The Forbes article focused on paid-organic distribution for CPA KPI conversions using content as a vessel. Content marketing conversion amplified with paid-organic social distribution is cool enough in itself.

However conversion is only half the groovy story. Paid-organic content social content distribution also spawns transformational SEO benefits. Let’s explore the (most delightful) “other side” of the paid-organic content distribution story, SEO.  Yep, we’re talking about the social signals and links you need for SEO.

Starting With Facebook
Here’s how it works. Social media distribution in Facebook used to be mostly free. Content placed on your wall was seen by many people without marketers needing to pay. Now Facebook has learned to monetize the distribution of “organic” content, even to most users who liked your page. You have to pay to play using Page Post Ads and Sponsored Stories or a relatively small amount of FB users will see your content.

The good news is that it’s relatively inexpensive to “re-enable” organic features to dominate.  The Page Post Ads look organic. Some FB users are bothered but most don’t seem to care. If your content is good enough to earn conversion, then it can be amplified.  For the most part, if you’re not amplifying content on your social walls, few focused users will see the content, relative to available psychographic audiences.

The graph below shows the conversion effect. From September to December the content was marketed by organic (not paid) search and social methods.  Take note that the content did earn organic conversions.  In January and February we dialed in paid-organic distribution to occupational psychographics. You’ll see that conversion scaled right along with the traffic lift.

Anything great about content marketing can be amplified. If you’re not doing paid-organic social content distribution, no matter how strong the organic distribution (non paid), the content is wasted compared to the exposure it could receive for relatively small money. You’re leaving money on the table from traffic, buzz, links and conversion.

Modern Link Building That Google Loves & Nearly Always Works
Well-executed organic amplification of relevant content nearly always results in links. Marketers are already learning to ditch old style link building efforts in favor of paid-organic link building to earned psychographic audiences, bloggers and journalists. We tell our clients to spend their money building more effective content and distributing it to social psychographic segments.

Let’s think it through. The best way to earn links is to ensure that “backlink ready” audiences with an affinity for your business’s wares to consume your content. Paid organic amplification gets content in front of many more targeted users. Page post and feed ads in Facebook perform nearly as corresponding organic page units sometimes even better.

Also, well-targeted content traffic from a FB page post ad performs on your site much the same as “intent” search keywords. That means users spend copious time on site, page views per visit, bounce rate and (yes) conversion.  CONTENT is what has always earned links.

Not Just Facebook
Most mainstream social platforms are going this way by creating advertising products to pimp content. For instance new DIY targeting in Twitter is making radically focused paid-organic content amplification possible. Twitter is more aggressive and transparent than Facebook when it comes letting users know that promoted tweets are paid.  Still, users accept the ads just fine and promoted Tweets perform very well.

Twitter targeting methods are hot, which we’ll cover here in aimClear Blog in coming days.  One method is to target followers of users who follow other people.

Master Social PR For SEO
Content amplification to occupational media roles is a new staple of the modern distribution and link building.  aimClear was early in evangelizing the notion of paid-organic distribution of content to publications, bloggers, journalists, editors, morning show anchors and most every other media role. It works so very well, often resulting in interviews, links and media attention.

Savvy PR pros know that they can target media players at specific publications from USA Today and the Washington Post to Conde Nast. Think of it as inbound PR. Next time you want the media to consume your content. Make sure they see it! Similar targeting is easily deployed using paid Twitter and LinkedIn.

Worry Less About Google Algorithm Updates Trashing Content. Prepare your content strategy to sail through SEO updates with less stress. The techniques shared in this post will insulate you from future Google inquisitions. The social signals generated and links earned are real users consuming your content. That’s what Google wants, right?

 “Paid organic” social content distribution may be the most misunderstood and underused tactic in all of online marketing today. Distributing content that lives on your site by amplifying it to select psychographics via social walls is the greatest only-lightly contested marking opportunity since 2002, when Google AdWords was released.  Understanding and actualizing this tactic means to dominate with content marketing. Better yet, well-targeted traffic to content from social channels yields conversions, likes, follows and other good things.

Literally, SEO link building agencies that don’t use these tactics risk going out of business of losing their jobs.  Agencies that do not adapt to the new link-building paradigm may not survive. Sites bolstered by old link building methods wilted or tanked when Panda and Penguin hit. This reality has hurt many.

It should be noted that paid-organic social content distribution does not  replace good old-fashioned public relations and P2P outreach.  Human to human marketing will always work. That said, we believe the methodology outlined in this post is well on its way to becoming the defacto best practices model for most business that sell with content and a crucial element of success. For SEO most businesses need to sell with content. We believe PR companies will adopt these practices as standard fare in the future. Good ones already are.

You may be resistant to paying Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Reddit and other channels today to distribute your content. You won’t feel that way very soon because paid-organic social content distribution is most marketers new job description. It takes care of so many pieces of the puzzle, from PR and link building to traffic, loyalty and conversion. Link building is dead. Long live the new link building!

Header image © Argus – Fotolia dot com

Reason number 87 we love Facebook’s Power Editor: It’s the source to access the latest, greatest targeting options… Facebook Partner Categories! The release and excitement of Facebook’s Partner Category targeting, Datalogix, Acxiom, and Epsilon, has been widely covered. Here, we’re laying out the new Facebook targeting visually because: 1) It’s been requested, and 2) Seeing the category targeting laid out is downright HANDY for Facebook advertisers. It makes choosing the targeting much easier than with Facebook’s threaded drop-down within Power Editor.

Grab your hats, here we go!

See what we mean? Difficult to view targeting all at once.

Datalogix

Facebook’s been in cahoots with Datalogix since 2011, when they began working together to tie Facebook ad performance to real-life, off-line purchases. Now, marketers can tap into Datalogix’s sweet inventory of Big Data, which ranges from vehicle owners to those in-market for vehicles, demographics, lifestyle, consumer packaged goods (CPG), retail, and subscriptions services.

The inventory is GIANT, right?! But, wait, that’s only the Auto category. There’s more:

Phew!

Acxiom

While drastically smaller than Datalogix, Acxiom has really interesting targeting options for those in the B2B space (Hello, “Job Roles!”) and demographic information, which includes a user’s property value. This could be extremely useful to advertisers selling luxury or big ticket items. Shoot, we were already pretty jazzed to be able to target, definitively, users with homes, let alone based on property value!

Epsilon

Sounds like a Bond code word, huh? Though smaller than Axciom, and a dwarf in comparison to Datalogix, the targeting with Epsilon is pretty bad @$$ with even more occupation targeting. Epsilon also includes business types, among other drool-worthy targeting.

There you have it, Facebook’s Partner Categories mapped out visually. We advise advertisers to dive in the category pools, Facebook Broad and Partner, often as new data may become available!

Post image photo credit: © michelangelus – Fotolia.com

In Pilates class last week, our accomplished instructor Karen shared that she had some SRSLY awesome photos and wanted to share them in social media. It seems that when Ellen DeGeneres announced her underwear photo contest, Karen was disappointed that women were not included.

Karen suggested to a few close friends that they should have their own Ellen underwear photo shoot to demonstrate that women everywhere should be proud of their bodies regardless of their age, shape or size.  Sixteen of her fabulous, fit friends were up for the challenge.  This amazing group of ladies range in age from 41-57.  Together they are proud to have 41 children and 7 grandchildren.  These gorgeous grownups workout together 2-3X a week, take fitness field trips and encourage each other to live happy, healthy lives.

On March 29, 2013 on a glorious 45 degree spring day, photographer Shirleen Hieb directed a photo shoot along the scenic shores of Lake Superior in Duluth, MN.  Everyone put on Ellen underwear beneath down jackets, stepped into winter boots and headed to “The beach”  The shores were snow packed and adorned by the beautiful blue lake as a backdrop.  After removing  jackets and dressed only in Ellen underwear, an exhilarating experience was had by all.  The photo shoot was a blast, an awesome experience shared by amazing women.

We hope you agree that this enchanting statement of beauty deserves attention. These women are terrific role models for all of us. We’re extremely proud to share this story with our community and have them as friends.

Hats off to the lovely ladies of Duluth for sharing their strength, beauty, heart and passion with us all! Rock on!

Over the last four months, the aimClear team has been on a whirlwind world tour, speaking at destinations near and far (Israel, Australia, Munich, California, New York and more!), all in the name of spreading the good word of Internet marketing. And guess what? We’re not slowing down any time soon! In fact, coming up next week, aimClear’s Marty Weintraub and Manny Rivas are respectively jetting off to sunny Florida and foggy London to speak at Interactivity Digital and SMX London.

Read on for a sneak peak into what the two will speak on. Let the travel, erp, speaking binge continue!

Interactivity Digital
South Beach: May 15-16

Killer KPIs: Turning Data into Dollars
May 15, 11:40 – 12:20 p.m. (EST)

On Day One of Interactivity Digital, Marty will hit the stage with Annie Cushing to explain the big bad world of big data, and how to turn it into real profit. Specifically, attendees will gain a solid understanding of essential KPIs for both paid and organic traffic, in addition to knowing exactly how to leverage the data for even greater returns. Sweet!

Mission Possible: Become a Search Marketing Spy Through Competitive Analysis
May 15, 2:20 – 3:10 p.m. (EST)

Later that day, Marty will join John Doherty and Bill Hunt to uncover the fine art of spying…on your competitors. Really! It’s totally legal, totally necessary and probably a whole lot easier to accomplish than you think. Attendees will walk away with the tools and strategies needed to find out not only how competitors are driving traffic and increasing conversions, but how to leverage that data for their own marketing needs – all without making those competitors raise an eyebrow. So sneaky! But not really.

Follow Marty along at his Twitter handle, @aimClear.

SMX London
London: May 15-16

Conversion Science
May 15, 1:00 – 2:15 pm (London Time)

Over on the other side of the pond, Manny Rivas will join George Popstefanov and Matt Van Wagner for an in-depth look at customer conversions on Day One of SMX London. The panel will discuss how to get inside customers’ brains and create a website experience that satisfies needs by leading customers seamlessly from search to ultimate conversion.

Paid Search Advertising in a Multi-Device World
May 16, 10:45 – 12:00 pm (London Time)

On Day Two, Manny, along with Alistair Dent and Bill Dinan will jump into the complex topic of paid search campaigns for mobile devices. Because mobile users have different needs and wants than desktop users, campaigns must be customized accordingly. This session features a discussion of the paid search ad issues, strategies and tactics needed to succeed in a multi-device, always-on world.

Follow Manny along at his Twitter handle, @mannyrivas.

Now, we must go pack and catch our planes. See you around the world!

© Oleksandr Moroz – Fotolia.com

A few weeks back we covered Vine, a new app for recording and sharing bite-sized videos. This time around, we’re discussing a different video-oriented social platform that’s gaining some serious clout – Spreecast.

What’s A Spreecast?
Spreecast is a free, live-streaming video-broadcasting platform with integrated social media. Basically, users can broadcast live video while interacting with viewers via a Twitter and Facebook stream that lives beside the video – essentially making the broadcast an interactive experience. Up to four users can split the screen, while unlimited viewers can watch and chat. There is also the option to make broadcasts private, and all video can be recorded for later use.

According to the company website, Spreecast can be used to:

• Discuss current events: Journalists, bloggers and media companies broadcast their analysis of the news
• Explore your interests: Users meet and interact with others who share the same hobbies and interests
• Meet celebrities and personalities: Public figures use the platform to connect with fans
• Engage with customers: Brands use Spreecast to connect with customers, promote products, services and events, and to build a larger social presence
• Chat with friends and family: Private and unlisted Spreecasts are used to stay in-touch with loved ones
• Host video conferences: Again, private and unlisted settings can be used for companies, organizations, schools, etc to host interactive meetings

Why Is Spreecast Taking Off?
While there are many new platforms like Vine, Viddy and Socialcam vying to be the video version of Instagram, and others like Google+ Hangouts competing with Skype, Spreecast has managed to standout amongst the crowd – and grow a strong fan base along the way. Launched in 2011, many prominent people and companies, like Anderson Cooper and VH1, have begun to regularly use Spreecast. So, why is it the one video platform that’s managed to gain traction? Because it mixes live video and interactivity to create a special sauce that allows viewers to not only consume real-time content, but become active participants in it as well.

Plus, the barriers to entry (and engagement) are pretty low. The Spreecast technology can be easily embedded on any site, including blogging platforms and it recently rolled out a mobile app for on-the-go video chatting. Additionally, the technology is web-based and doesn’t require any downloads, so viewers just sign in with Facebook or Twitter credentials and they’re ready to participate.

How Can I Use Spreecast To Market My Business?
While Spreecast is most popular in the entertainment and news industries, it certainly has its uses for other businesses. If you’re thinking that it’s time to jump on the Spreecast train NOW, it’s clutch to first build a strategy around how you’ll use the platform. Also, keep in mind that Spreecast is all about real-time engagement with customers or clients – meaning, media training for anyone you’re putting in front of the camera would certainly be a good idea.

Incorporating Spreecast into your company blog is an easy way to test the live-broadcast and engagement waters. Consider including the platform as part of your blog’s content calendar and schedule weekly, bi-weekly or monthly Spreecasts. While there are endless ways Spreecast can help build your brand, we pulled together a few ideas to get you started:

• Feature subject matter experts and spokespeople discussing current events and trending topics affecting your brand
• Highlight a new product or service and have a subject matter expert or spokesperson on hand to answer questions
• Hold an interview with a customer or client and discuss how your company has helped them
• Broadcast a Spreecast from your tradeshow booth, showing off your latest products and services
• Broadcast how-to videos that demonstrate products and answer frequently asked questions

What do you think about Spreecast? Is it a platform you’d consider using to promote your brand?

Well folks, we’ve finally made it to the month of May – and the countdown continues to Zenith SocialCon 2014! In a few short weeks treasured industry thought-leaders from around the country and local online marketing professionals will gather together in lovely Duluth, Minnesota for a packed-to-the-gills one day intensive social marketing conference. Zenith SocialCon 2013, set to be held on May 30th, has a juicy curriculum sure to make even the most esteemed marketing conventions blush.

As the event draws nearer, we’ve had the fun opportunity to share candid Q&As with some speakers set to share their insights and knowledge with the crowd. This week, we’re pleased to showcase Mr. Ric Dragon, who is almost never without a truly fashionable hat (evidence). Ric’s co-founder and CEO and of DragonSearch, a digital marketing agency based out of Kingston and NYC, NY. He’s also a regular speaker on the mainstream conference circuit and a classically trained artist besides!

At Zenith, he’ll be contributing to the Content Marketing Master Class session which is sure to be jam-packed with actionable tips and top-shelf tactics. Our interview was a real pleasure. Read on for the goods!

(You’ll notice I fought the overwhelming urge to ask him how awesome it feels to have “Dragon” as a last name. *Pats self on back*).

| aimClear: Mr. Dragon! Welcome, welcome. Tell us a bit about yourself – who are you, where do you come from, how did you get here?

Ric Dragon: Good morning, Lauren! I’m so excited to be returning to Duluth and the Zenith Conf.

If you had known me thirty years ago, you’d probably be somewhat flummoxed meeting me today.  I had just finished up a stint as a graphic designer in the Air Force during the Cold War, and entered college to study painting, determined to rebel against the years of haircuts and starched shirts.  But artists often have to do many different things to make a living, and as personal computers became ubiquitous, I found myself with an early laptop loaded with a relational database program. Enduring a bout of cabin fever, I learned the program and created a product for artists to manage their own work. I used those skills afterwards to form a web and application development company.

Fast forward a decade later: a business partner told me that we must enter digital marketing. While my firm had been doing SEO “best practices” for years, I didn’t want to associate with the armies of snake oil salesmen and charlatans that were spamming our customers with flimsy promises. Despite some of the shadiness of the industry, our clients needed those services, and we entered the industry.

We formed DragonSearch just before the emergence of Twitter and Facebook.  Since we had this legacy of approach based on, “how can we bring process to bear,” as soon as those platforms gained traction, we created a framework in which to work. We took the wisdom and philosophies of Six Sigma, Lean, and Capability Maturity Model and borrowed from each to create our own approach digital marketing.

| aC: Inspired! So, clearly you have plenty of agency experience… what are the inherent challenges of offering agency services in social media channels?

RD: There are initial challenges in crafting a strategy that has impact on real desired outcomes.  We’re able to overcome that challenge quite often by doing a robust discovery piece of work, where we work with a brand to really suss that out. But then there is often an additional challenge: social can create value for an organization or brand across a whole eco-system of touch points. There is the value in brand equity, mind share, brand perception, impact on SEO, impact on other marketing activities, risk mitigation, as well as real impact on actual sales. Too often, executives are fixated on the last element to the detriment of the other value points. This can impact budgets and expectations.

| aC: Noted and noted. Now, tell us about your most recent book and what sorts of content marketing nuggets we’ll discover.

RD: Social Marketology was in fact written to address the idea that social media marketing could be done better with a process-based approach.  If you look at any brand, it exists within an eco-system comprised of itself, customers, competitors, and the world around it.  The framework that we developed addresses the different parts of the eco-system so that when a marketer has gone through the various phases, they’re able to create a meaningful strategic plan.

One of the profound implications of the social media revolution is that unless yours is one of those rare love brands, no one cares much about your brand. But if there is underlying purpose – even passion – people will care about that. Perhaps there are people who care about that strange-tasting beverage in cans of Red Bull – but more people care about the brand’s passion point of extreme living.  That is something the brand has been able to evangelize and celebrate in their own social media.

| aC: Totally. What three secrets do you know about content marketing that, if everyone else knew them, they could be Ric Dragon?

RD: I’m fairly certain we all have our fatal flaws – our weaknesses.  They can also be our strengths! I know that I’ve taken my own style of leaning, unorthodox that it may be, and used it as a means to become a fanatical learner and in turn, a sharer of knowledge. You have to be willing to be willing to dive down some rabbit holes, and immerse yourself in whatever experience has attracted you.

The business thinker/writer Steve Farber often quotes himself, “do what you love in the service of those who love what you do.”  It’s simple.  That love of what you do translates; It becomes kinesthetic. Notice the best viral videos, the best books, the best music, and even the best marketing – they all come from a place of passion and love.

Be willing to invest in content.  Rethink what it means to invest time and resources into content. You might create an online widget or application, or an infographic, or video – any one of these might require more than a100 hours of effort. That can be a hefty investment – but at the end of the day, you can create something that attracts a lot more than 100 times a piece that takes one hour. If you’re going to break through the noise, you’ve got to create real value – that’s what it comes down to.

| aC: Awesome stuff. At the Zenith Social Media conference, you’ll be speaking on the Content Marketing Master Class session. Give the readers at home a sneak peek as to what you’ll be serving up!

RD: Value. MORE value. How do we take one thing, add it two another, and have something that is more valuable than the two things stuck together? It’s what I call “1 + 1 = 3.” Yes, we’re going to discuss the myriad approaches to content marketing, but we’re going to go further and talk about how we light a firecracker under the rear-end of our content to make something that is truly remarkable – something that truly has an effect.

| aC: Excellent. Lightning round! Favorite ethnic cuisine, vacation spot, and adult beverage, GO!

RD: I’m thinking I’d like a nice plate of grilled eggplant and hand-made pasta, washed down with a glass of Brunello di Montelcino, overlooking the Tiber River that winds its way through Rome. But if I must suffer with a plate of ratatouille, a glass of Bordeaux, and watch the houseboats on the Seine, I’ll take that, too.

| aC: Well played, Mr. Dragon, well played indeed. Well, we’ll be seeing you pretty soon! Safe travels, sir! 

Photo credit: laurenlitwinkaphotographs.tumblr.com

May marks the entry of many eager and nervous graduates into what we call the “real world.” The Duluth Chamber of Commerce, local ad agencies, and a gaggle of internationally-known speakers are excited to offer YOU, local college students, the opportunity of a lifetime to get your foot in the door and network with some truly amazing professionals.

This year’s Zenith Duluth Social Media Marketing Conference is a premier resource for marketers who want to stay relevant in a fast-paced and constantly evolving industry. We’re proud to offer this amazing learning experience plus an extra special something for our community’s soon-to-be graduates.

The first 50 students who register for a ticket to the Zenith Duluth Social Media Marketing Conference also get exclusive access to the private networking event held during the conference.

Stunning perks include the chance to:

• Talk one-on-one with nationally-respected leaders in the industry
• Get honest feedback on résumés from real decision-makers
• Find out what online marketing employers are searching for and how best to approach them
• Ask whatever burning questions you have for the top dogs
• Forge friendships with people who matter, including fellow peers and local professionals
• Check out the aimClear shop and meet its dream team of marketers

Oh, baby. And for those who don’t make it in the lucky top 50? Fear not. The main event, the Zenith conference itself, is packed to the gills with exciting sessions and networking opps. You’ll walk away awe-struck with ton of insight and best practices from some of the world’s leading online marketers.

Check out the agenda to get a preview of the topics. Now, onto the specifics…

Where Do I Sign Up And How Much Do I Have To Fork Over?
Registration is super simple and remarkably affordable, but keep in mind, spots are limited and they will fill up! We’re offering a student discount when you present your student ID at the door – tickets for just $99! This is a steal. Period. Put into context, most events with these speakers cost 5x more plus airfare. This star-studded event is happening in your city, people!

Already on board? Register now for Zenith Duluth Social Media Marketing Conference and get started. Still hungry for more info? Read on. (Or check out our sneak peek of what’s to come and a small recap of last year.)

Where & When?!
The Zenith Duluth Social Media Marketing Conference will be held at the Greysolon Plaza on Thursday, May 30th. It’s a one day jam-packed summit full of stuff you need to know if you’re serious about getting a job in marketing or PR. The networking opps are worth the price of the ticket alone – but yeah, you’ll also get to savor tons of fabulous brainchow throughout the day.

Who Will Be There?!
“You keep talking about awesome guests and networking… but who exactly will be there?” All the right people (almost). Get ready to step into the ring with the industry’s movers and shakers, from coast to coast, even from your backyard. You’ll be able to chat with industry heavyweights including founders, CEOs, directors, owners and presidents. They make decisions, they’re known in the industry, and they want to meet you! 

These pros have relationships with decision makers all over the world. You could find yourself in Duluth, the Twin Cities, New Orleans, New York, Australia, Brazil or Germany… who knows? Here’s a preview of who you could be building an invaluable relationship with. These folks pack a powerful punch.

Okay, this is the last time we’ll say it: This is an insanely awesome opportunity to invest in your future. Seize it, take control, be proactive, and put yourself out there!

If you’re serious about getting a job in marketing or PR and you don’t get out to this event, you’re completely shooting yourself in the proverbial foot. Attend this conference or read about it later from someone who did – and learn how that person is now working for a Fortune 500 company and achieving their professional dreams…

Remember to check out http://www.zenithconference.com/ to get your feet wet and sign up!

Hope to see you at Zenith on May 30th!

photo credit: © ryanking999 – Fotolia.com

Account management is the bidirectional art of representing your business to clients and vice versa. The job requires skill, advocacy, diplomacy, leadership, boundaries, intelligence, method, heart, patience, experience, and hopefully, wisdom. Superb account managers are rare and exhibit marvelous professional and personal characteristics, some of which can’t be taught. This post kicks off a multi-part series discussing the many “dos” and “don’ts.”

I’ve been thinking about this post for some time. aimClear has grown to be a company of well-skilled account managers, a number of whom are seriously talented and inspire me every day. Of course, as aimClear’s founder, I was the original account manager and set the tone. Back in the day, I tossed my disruptive and flamboyant personal style into the corporate crucible. Fortunately, employee after employee helped flesh things out, improving on the starting point. The timbre of our organization has matured in elegant ways and I’m proud to be part of it.

At first, representing my fledgling sole proprietorship to clients was a substantial challenge for me: my background is as a professional musician and not a technical businessperson. In those days, I tended to see things through my out-of-the-box creative lens and was plenty disorganized…. it’s safe to say I made my account management technique up as I went along. Most of the time things worked out really well, but there were certainly a few lessons learned the hard way.

Over the years– and especially now that we’re larger company– I’ve gotten to interact with many highly professional business people. From our super clients and vendors to aimClear’s accomplished team, I’ve been so fortunate to learn from some of the best in the business. Read on important dos and don’ts amalgamated from my own instincts, experience, failure, and wisdom gained from others I’ve been lucky enough to learn from:

1-We Don’t Ever Want A Client To Find Out Anything Important First: Win, lose, or steady as she goes it’s not OK for clients to be surprised by their own success, opportunities, unexpected developments and challenges.

2-Make Real Promises & Keep Them. Being a yes-man has no equity whatsoever. If it can’t be done in the time frame, at that cost, or sent by that date, don’t say you’ll do it. Your reputation is only as good as your word.

3-When Discussing Your Team, Use The Word “We” Not “I.” When communicating on behalf of your team, make sure it’s not all about you. As a wise boss once taught our team, “When you send memos, do interviews, or otherwise deal with media or your employees, give OTHERS credit- sometimes even if you did it.” He continued, use the words “us,” “we,” “our,” and not “I,” “me,” or “my.” Even when aimClear WAS just me, I still corresponded and blogged from the collective person. It added corporate depth to recipients’ and readers’ perception of what kind of company aimClear was. Also, it helped me visualize what we became rather quickly.

4-Inject Authentically Erratic Communication Patterns To Reflect Your True 24/7 Commitment. Sometimes, the best ideas are the ones that come in the shower or make me jolt straight up in bed at 3AM. Many colleagues seem to be that way– driven, fanatical,  24/7, on. I want our clients to KNOW that we care about their account to an extreme. So, if a sleepless client sends a memo at 1:20 AM CT, I make sure to email them back right away. There have been many times when clients have remarked, “You never sleep!” Great! Then I’m doing my job. It’s also cool when Australian or European clients get an immediate response during their workday.

5-Be A Thoughtful Listener. Here’s one I personally need to work on every day: being a good listener. The main reason to listen is to really hear what others say. This is a hard one personally. It’s easy to get excited and step all over something brilliant another marketer has to say.

6-Know When To Interrupt. That said, knowing when to interject a comment or position is a crucial skill. The best account managers know exactly the right time to cut a conversation off at the knees. When yielded properly, respectful interruption is a fantastic tool.

7-Know When To Shut Up. When the sale is already closed, objective accomplished, or the news delivered and accepted, close your mouth before you screw it up. My dad always told me, “If you don’t open your mouth, people will only think you’re stupid.” I took that to heart. I’m getting better, but it’s safe to say that I don’t always know when to shut up. It’s rarely wrong to hold cards close to the vest.

8-Never Risk Legal Exposure. This is a special category of knowing when to shut up. When telling too much gives another party information to come after you legally, you really better close your yapper. As a rule, account managers should step back from the conversational table when disagreements become contentious, when there’s talk of contract violations, or in human resources matters. We live in a litigation-happy world where you don’t have to be wrong to get sued. Watch carefully for this one.

9-Leadership Is As Leadership Does, Not What Would-Be Leaders Say They’ll Do. aimClear is a flat organization, with few layers of supervision. That said, there are absolutely lines of authority and mentoring though few are delegated officially in the org chart. When new members join our team with the goal of becoming leaders, we tell them to BE the leader and WIN the authority by modeling leadership, not talking about it. Leadership is truly earned. It is not assigned.

10-Respect Your Own Inexperience & Limitations. The biggest mistake and danger we see in new account managers is when they don’t know what they don’t know. Taking a stand and being erroneous is like a 75-year-old dude with a beer gut wearing a Speedo… just plain wrong. It’s ALWAYS OK to say, “I’m confident I know the answer to your question, [Client], but we have an expert in the shop I want to consult. I’ll be back to you later today.” This enhances your and the agency’s perception to the client because it insinuates depth and process. Turn your lack of knowledge into an advantage that way.

11-Be Confident In What You Know You Know. The flip side of understanding one’s limitations is projecting confidence when you’ve got the goods. Look, it’s not uncommon for account managers to make a lot of money and that’s for good reason. Embody the value of all you’ve learned, experienced, and studied. Don’t walk on eggshells when you know you’re right

12-Stand Up For Greatness Others Don’t Immediately Understand. Sometimes, other team members and clients don’t understand brilliance right out of the box. If you, the account manager, believe that your solution is freakin’ genius and nobody else in the room can quite wrap their arms around it, fight for the idea. Myopic record companies said, “No,” to Elvis Presley and The Beatles. Don’t abandon surefire greatness just because the ingenious solution you hold is not immediately understood by others.

13-Learn From Your Clients And / Or Boss: Your clients and boss were smart enough to hire you. They also know the most about their organization, the challenges and opportunities ahead. Learn from them, even if it’s what not to do. I’ve learned SO much from our clients over the years.

14-Righteous Indignation Has Its Place: Once in a while, you just have to tell someone who’s way out of line that they’re way out of line. You have to stand up for your dignity. This is the nuclear option, but sometimes arguably required. Be willing to lose the account or job as a result, understanding that an all-cards-on-the-table reset is the only possible way to save the relationship. Sometimes you have to almost kill the patient to save it.

15-Aspire To Be Best In The World At The One Thing You’re Good At: Jim Collins, in his book, Good To Great, in his hedgehog analogy, shared research revealing that truly great companies stick to what they’re masters at. He advised seeking the one skill that a business could be best in the world at and pursuing it with singular focus. Being Jack-of-all-trades is overrated. Great account managers are informed in many areas and stick to what they’re good at.        

16-Count To Twenty. Better Yet, Make It Thirty. How many times have you whipped off an email or quickly returned a call and immediately regretted it? There are hardly any situations that require an absolute real-time response. There’s always time for 20 breaths while you think. Most usually there’s time for 10 minutes or an hour. Take the opportunity to collect your thoughts and assess the situation before you jump in headfirst.

17-Don’t Poop Where You Eat. Never badmouth your team to a client to curry favor. Chances are you’ll ultimately lose the client and your job. Exceptions can be made when you and your supervisor decide together that one of your team members messed up and carefully couched language can be delivered to the client to cut losses and/or apologize. Also, talking smack about your own team can sometimes expose your shop legally.

18-Abandon Flawed Work & Do It Again: Poor deliverables should never leave the shop. No work product is sacred just because it’s done and took time. We always ask, “How many times does it take to do it best in the world?” Do it again until it’s great. Enough said.

19-Exude Passion & Confidence! Wear Your Heart On Your Sleeve: It’s totally amazing how many jagged corners clients are willing to accept from authentically passionate account managers. Be emotional. Call clients and share your enthusiasm. Laugh heartily and shout. Show your hunger and lust for greatness in all you do. A famous music producer once told me that he wanted to “Smell the sweat” in every keyboard track I recorded when he listened to the tape. I tell aimClear account reps I want to smell the sweat and feel the love in their client.

Stay tuned for the next installment of Be An Account Manager Super Hero! 64 Enduring Lessons for Success, Part 2. 

Image © Danomyte – Fotolia

aimClear has been been expanding at a prodigal rate since 2007 when we were founded. Last year alone we were cited on the 2012 Inc. 500 list of fastest-growing private companies in America and named one of the “Best 100 Companies To Work For.” 2013 is proving to be much of the same, as we’ve charged right out of the gate. This month we’re focused on hiring PPC rock stars, to complement our well-known squad of serious search, social advertising, big data and retargeting jockeys. At aimClear, channel tactics blend together in remarkable ways, as you’ll see from the job descriptions below.

Duluth

Even if you love your current job, check these PPC positions out.  If you live in Minneapolis, Saint Paul, or Duluth, then there is a reasonable chance the opportunity will keep you up at night. If you used to live here and want to move back, this might be a grand opportunity.  If you’re in-house and want to escape from the vanilla cubical, step right up. Unlike some other agencies, aimClear is not a “Virtual” company. We do the water cooler tango every day in our two locations.

St. Paul

Work on dozens of super cool case studies a year, study, speak, blog and impact the industry as part of your job. At aimClear we devote to the personal brand of each employee that works here. Get the skinny on aimClear. You can read lots of cool facts about about our philosophies and whole employee approach.  We’re plugged in to the online industry in relatively unique ways, especially for the region. Here are the positions we’re hiring for right now:

Lake Superior

#PPC Thought leader
Are you known amongst your professional community as a true search, social, and display advertising thought leader? Does big data audience modeling keep you up at night? Are you fluent in archetypal site retargeting hacks? Do psychographic models blow your mind? Are you a walking talking tactical retargeting field guide for really smart marketers?  Do clients call to work with you, just because you are you?

Are you ready to support and help support some really smart marketers as they grow even smarter? Are you open minded enough to follow as well as lead? Do you speak at conferences, blog, and/or know somehow that you’re ready to take your deserved position in the industry? Do you measure thought leadership in how much you give to the marketing community? Do you wish your job included more opportunities to integrate with big data? Do you love small ball social, content, SEO, video and emergent technologies? Do you build remarketing lists in your sleep?

Do you understand content amplification and paid-organic concepts and understand the paid is an essential component of both social and ultimately SEO?  Are you a total AdWords jockey? Are you a totally awesome account manager that grows relationships with the businesses you touch? Are you skilled at delegating and team building? Are you a marketer’s marketer, who understands the difference between strategies and tactics?

If the answer is yes to all or most of these questions, then this job is for you.  aimClear seeks an established #PPC thought leader to grow with us and help lead us as we lead our clients and the industry.  This senior level position requires 6-10+ years experience, tactical fluency, agency chops, leadership skills and a burning desire to dominate whatever comes next. Salary and benefits are commensurate with experience.  Contact us for more information about our #PPC Thought Leader position.

——————–
#PPC Account Manager
It’s not a long way to the top if you want to rock and roll. Join aimClear’s internationally recognized team. Your focus will be AdWords, Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads, YouTube for AdWords, Bing AdCenter, site retargeting and third party data source audience modeling. Hand’s-on agency experience a plus. A minimum of 2+ years of experience running search, display, and social PPC is required.

This position requires a functional literacy in Google and Facebook advertising products.  The position is for our Duluth office. You’ll train with the best in the industry, attend conferences and grow towards the professional goal of branching out into other channels. Our PPC account managers grow in their skillsets by design.

Take Your Career To The Next Level
So, if you’re ready to explore the opportunities, checkout www.aimClear.com and please reach out to us here with a bit about yourself. Looking forward to hearing from you and for a great fit.

Duluth pictures used with permission of Northern Images
St. Paul Picture © FocalPoint – Fotolia