Without further ado, we present to you the 2nd resolution in our New Year, New Content series: Optimize social media.

Ahh good old social media, can you imagine your life without it? Hard to believe that a little over a decade ago, social media was barely on our radar. In these busy times, it’s easily one of the most influential forms of communication. From Friendster to Facebook, social media has changed greatly over the years. Here are some good rules of thumb to keep in mind across all channels:

• Create high quality content. Gaining a following doesn’t happen overnight, not all people have the luck of going viral so they have to earn their followers through good ol’ fashioned hard work. Creating meaningful, high quality content is the only fool-proof way to optimize social media.

• Share content that fits the medium. Not every post is Facebook-worthy. Practice good quality control and decide how you will use each channel in a way that best suits your business. Will it be more playful? Educational? Whatever fits in the messaging you are trying to convey.

• Post at the right time across each channel. This time will vary depending on who your audience is, the best way to find out is trial and error and monitoring your analytics. See which tweets/FB posts/pins resonate and at which times.

• Be consistent. Social media works at a lightning speed and being an active member is key to success. Post on a consistent basis to ensure that your tweets/posts/images get noticed. If you curate interesting content you’re more likely to gain a loyal following.

• Keep track of analytics. From timing when to post content to measuring which posts work, pay attention to your analytics to maximize your success. Here’s a list of the different free analytics-tracking options available.

For more nuanced tips and a bit of history tidbits, let’s take a walk down social media memory lane with a look at the key players and how you can make the most of them for your site.

2003

LinkedIn has been around since 2003 and this business-focused social network continues to influence the employment industry. There are 2 users signing up every second, joining around 187 million monthly active users.

• Fill out ALL relevant info. LinkedIn is the place to highlight your career so don’t be shy! This may seem obvious, but many people don’t optimize their pages. Include all your work experience in a clear and concise way. A photo will also make your profile more approachable, just be sure it’s professional.
• Build up an interesting network. Connecting with people in your industry is the first step, but be sure to connect with a mix of individuals providing a balanced network spanning various professions — you never know how you might use those connections in the future!

2004

In 2004, Facebook made its entrance into the online world, offering people a virtual social life. For two years, the site was only available to an exclusive set of university students. These days, everyone and their mother has Facebook; the site boasts more than 1.3 billion active users. But how can you make the most of it?

• Optimize your business Facebook page for SEO. Facebook can be a great way to introduce your site to a new audience. Make sure you fill out your site’s About page and adjust your settings to maximize your chances of being found. Also stay up to date about Facebook’s changes and how it affects your page.
• Make sure your Facebook page cover photo and profile image match your brand. Your Facebook page should be an extension of your site, keeping things cohesive will help keep your brand connected.

2005

Me at the zoo. These four words changed the world of social media when Jawed Karim, one of the co-founders of YouTube uploaded the site’s first video in 2005. YouTube was the first network of its kind, allowing users to share their lives through video in lieu of photos or text. These days, about 100 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute and the site sees more than 1 billion unique visitors each month. Yowza!

• Name and tag your videos accordingly. Make your video titles and descriptions appealing and add all relevant tags. See what’s trending and include phrases and words to increase the likelihood of people finding your videos.
• Pay attention to your audience retention. In your dashboard, the audience retention will show you the level of attention and the length of time your audience spends watching your videos. Tracking these patterns over time can help you hone in on your mistakes. Do people drop off after a minute or so? Maybe your videos should be shorter, etc. For more tips, read this.

2006

Twitter launched in 2006 as a way to share your “status” in real-time. The rest as they say is history, with this social media platform being hugely influential in everything from political movements to more lighthearted content like award show flubs. Here’s how you can maximize Twitter to its full potential.

• Authentically engage with your audience. The best way to build up a dedicated audience is to talk to them! The powerful thing about Twitter is that things happen in real time, so answering followers questions and engaging with them in a meaningful way is crucial.
• Create exclusive content. Make your Twitter profile worth visiting by creating content only for the Twitter community. From contests to promotions to product launches, make your Twitter handle the place followers can turn to for breaking news about your brand. For more great tips check out this article.

2010

A virtual inspiration board, Pinterest users create and share boards with all types of content, from fashion tips to how-tos and everything in between. With 40 million active monthly users, this site may have lower numbers than some of their competitors, but their user base is extremely engaged.

• Use rich pins. Rich pins include more detailed information right on the pin itself, whether it’s a product or recipe, making them much more useful for users. Here’s how to get started. 
• Verify your website. Make it easy for your Pinterest followers to know who you are by verifying your site. Find the steps right here.

Launched in October 2010, photo-sharing social network Instagram continues to grow. After being acquired by Facebook in 2012 for a cool 1 billion, the artsy network is becoming more influential than ever — one carefully chosen filter at a time.

• Include relevant hashtags. On Instagram hashtags can be a great way to get noticed and increase followers (if used wisely.) You can also create hashtags for events, giveaways and any time you’d like to create specific content relevant to that hashtag. A tool for measuring analytics and more useful info here.
• Think outside the Instagram filter box. While Instagram’s built in filters are great, there are countless other photo editing apps out there. Make your Instagram pop with sleek, swoon-worthy images. More great tips here and here.

2011

In 2011, search giant Google launched their own social network with Google +. Google describes it as an additional “social layer” to all the other services they offer. With 540 million monthly active users this social network contender is not pulling any punches.

• Use the features to the max. The great thing about Google + is that it’s seamlessly built in with all the powerful features of Google, so make the most of them. A robust Google + page has shown to improve search engine rankings, coincidence? We think not.
• Host hangouts-on-air. This unique feature is only available on this platform and can offer an interesting avenue to connect with readers across the globe. More great tips can be found here.

And one last tip! To further optimize your monetization strategy, you can easily monetize your social channels using the Skimlinks fave.co URL shortener. We hope you’ve found these tips useful and can apply them to your sites: There’s no instant way to gaining a strong social following, but by implementing a consistent strategy you’ll be on the road to becoming a social media ninja.

Two resolutions down and two to go. Check back for the third resolution in our New Year, New Content series: How to work better with brands. Stay tuned!

Another week in the books, from affiliate marketing trends in 2015 to Pinterest and Tumblr amping up their ad offerings, here’s the latest news you may have missed: 

Pinterest preparing to beef up ad offerings. Social discovery tool Pinterest announced this week that they’d acquired Kosei, a startup that makes personalized product recommendations to Internet users. This is a good match for Pinterest, as they’re expanding on their ad offerings after the announcement of Promoted Pins earlier this month. Re/Code takes a look at what this means for the site. 

Tumblr looks to pair its community with advertisers. Microblogging site Tumblr is looking to its popular users to bolster its ad program. The program, Creatrs by Tumblr, will join artists with brands who purchase Tumblr’s sponsored posts. This NY Times piece dives into how an ad program would look like on the popular social site.

Box IPO soars and the tech world reacts. Box, an online file sharing and personal cloud content management service for businesses officially started trading, rising 66% in their market debut January 23. TechCrunch talks with analysts and venture capitalists on the impact of this rise. 

Pushing for a mobile-only digital strategy.  Recent studies show that nearly half of consumers believe mobile is the “most important resource” in their purchase decision-making, so why don’t more brands focus solely on this influential medium? This AdAge piece examines the influence of mobile in the customer journey. 

The state of marketing. It’s easy to get caught up in the buzz of a good headline, but sometimes they’re just plain wrong. This in-depth marketing report curated by VentureBeat Insights takes a closer look at the state of the industry and effectiveness of marketing technology implementation.

What’s next for affiliate marketing in 2015. From attribution to more opportunities in mobile, affiliate marketing is poised to grow in 2015. This forecast from MultiChannel Merchant explores the biggest trends to take hold this year.

How to best manage multiple social media accounts. With the vast amount of social networking sites out there it can be tough to strategize about how to best use each tool. Buffer’s social media guide offers tips on how to manage each medium, from analytics to activity streams and more.

Hacking scandals to continue in 2015. 2014 saw a fair share of high profile hacks, from Sony to Target and Home Depot, and Cisco CEO John Chambers told CNBC that 2015 will be even worse for cyber attacks on the business world.

Online video startup Vessel revealed. A new player has entered the online video streaming world. Subscription-based Vessel differs from other existing models in that it offers creators a more favorable revenue share, splitting ad revenue 45/55. AdWeek’s piece looks at how this new service compares to the existing players.

TGIF am I right? Before you head off for the weekend, let’s look back at the week in tech news. From Snapchat’s high ad rates to perfecting the art of a social media post, social is the name of the game this week. Let’s see what we’ve got:

Snapchat charging 750K for brands to advertise: Messaging app Snapchat is causing quite a stir in the ad community, with several industry sources stating that the young app is asking brands for $750,000 a day for its new ads. This AdWeek piece looks at what the video-friendly app can offer potential advertisers and if it’s worth the hefty price tag.

Facebook makes its way into the office: Companies no longer have to block the social site. Facebook just announced its newest venture — Facebook at Work — which lets businesses create their own social networks amongst their employees. TechCrunch examines how this latest move will fare against established office social networking sites and what Facebook brings to the table.

Who’s using social media in 2015?: The past decade has changed the landscape of social media immensely. From Facebook to Instagram to Tumblr, the online juggernauts keep growing. But who’s using which platform and how? This AdWeek infographic takes a closer look.

Understanding “The Internet of Things:” This much-discussed buzzword, IoT for short, has been making headlines lately, but what is it exactly? Re/Code breaks it down in layman’s terms and explains how it works, what the products are and more.

Perfecting the art of a strong social media post: Catching readers’ attention in the busy world of online content is tough. This QuickSprout post offers tips on how to make your social media posts stand out and command attention.

Tips from bloggers on how to grow your blog: The one question that all bloggers always strive to answer is how to grow their blog. What works? What doesn’t? This blog post from The Well asks successful bloggers firsthand how they found success in their blogging careers.

How social media can fast track your business relationships: In today’s fast-paced digital world, social media can act as the bridge that connects people from all around the globe. Mashable takes a closer look at how social media drives business development.

Pinterest’s promoted pins get the green light: After tests showed that promoted pins performed well, Pinterest opened up its Promoted Pins to all advertisers at the beginning of 2015. Polls showed that users clicked on Pinterest’s promoted content at nearly twice the rate than on Facebook or Twitter. eMarketer explores the reasons why.

And just for fun, here are 52 places you should travel to in 2015 according to the New York Times.

The end of a year always brings with it two things. Reflections on the year that passed and predictions for what’s to come. So last year, we took a stab at predicting various online trends based on our own observations and opinions.

It’s all fun and games when you’re trying to predict the future, but what if you take a closer look and see how those predictions did? We’re about to find out. Despite the fast-paced nature of the internet and the lightning speed with which things change, we’re going to take a trip down memory lane and see how our 2014 predictions fared:

Mobile Experience

Here’s what we said: Doesn’t matter if you respond to it through design responsiveness or mobile apps, mobile is here to stay and all of us need to pay attention to it.

Here’s what happened: We were right..well sorta. Mobile has without a doubt become one of the biggest mediums, with consumers tied so close to their phones that 48% admitted to using their mobile device while on the toilet. So it’s safe to say mobile is definitely here to stay but are merchants making the most of this growing medium?

Our mobile study had some surprising findings in that arena. Even though mobile phones account for over 20% of impressions and 18% of clicks among publishers, they only drive 10% of the sales volume. Why the disconnect? Check out this blog post for more insight.

Visual content

Here’s what we said: From our experience, visual content drives a lot more engagement than regular text, making visual content a big part of 2014’s trends.

Here’s what happened: No great epiphany here. Visual content has and will continue to be a huge part of the content world — both online and in print. And we weren’t the only ones who thought visual content would make a splash in 2014.

Bottom line, you only have to take a quick look around the Web to see just how crucial visual content is, from the emergence of easy-to-use photo editing programs to the ever-increasing presence of Instagram, 2014 was definitely the year of the visual. And looks like 2015 will continue the trend.

Content Marketing

Here’s what we said: Content marketing is a trend that started a while ago, but we still think it will be important for years to come. Some studies show that 80% of business decision makers prefer to get company information in a series of articles versus an advertisement….Getting potential customers interested in what you have to say is a much more powerful and engaging way of marketing your company and products. The reality is that despite all the hype around it, it’s not a fad.

Here’s what happened: Content marketing has indeed seen growth in 2014 — and it’s making an impact. The percentage of B2B marketers using content marketing has risen to 93 percent. Nearly half of those content marketers (42%) consider themselves effective, up from 36 percent the year prior. But this effective form of communication has also gained popularity in more mainstream ways. Really at its core, content marketing is a way to communicate more directly and organically with audiences.

Whether it’s brands engaging with their customers and developing long-term relationships or content becoming a crucial business-growing tool, content marketing has proven just how big of an impact brands can make when they talk to their audiences, not at them.

Social for SEO

Here’s what we said: Even before the latest Google algorithm update, we noticed that social interactions were being given increasing importance. In 2014, Social sharing will continue to become more relevant, perhaps even more so than keyword optimization, link building, page name, etc.

Here’s what happened: We were right on the money with this one. More brands and businesses than ever are realizing the importance of social SEO. A blog post in Business 2 Community summed it up:

Social media drives REAL traffic to your website – traffic that is high quality! If someone is engaging with your company or brand on social media then there is an obvious connection or interest. These are the type of visitors that eventually turn into customers… As you build your social media following on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, LinkedIn, Pinterest, and others, you build up a large following of people that have the ability to share your content.

Really social media is just another way to reach your audience and more importantly engage with them. Take a look at this infographic to see just how many people are using social media to see the extent of your audience potential. Instead of trying to figure out how to wrap your head around the latest Google algorithm update, focusing on your social SEO can have a big impact on your bottom line.

The Internet of Things

Here’s what we said: There is no escaping from all the interconnected devices we currently own. From phones, to tablets, computers and self-measurement devices, everything seems to be connected. The surprising fact is that this might only be a small part of the number of connected devices that will exist in 2020. According to ABI’s research, more than 30 billion devices will be connected by then.

Here’s what happened: We weren’t alone in predicting that the “Internet of Things” would take off, but it seems in the year since our prediction it hasn’t quite taken off at the pace everyone thought it would. ‘The Internet of things’ or connected products that bring efficiencies to day-to-day life has been a buzzword for years. However, things like the consumer unease about the security of collected data has held it from becoming more mainstream. But don’t lose hope, it seems the buzzword will become a reality, it’s just going to take a little more time than everyone thought.

So all in all, we did pretty well with our 2014 predictions! It may be reason enough to warrant an updated post for 2015? Stay tuned to find out.

As promised, we’re excited to announce the first resolution in our New Year, New Content series: Create more shoppable content. What’s shoppable content you may ask? Well, any time you read a blog post or an online article talking about a product with a link to said product, you’ve just gotten a great example of what shoppable content looks and reads like.

We want to help you create this type of content because it’s not only informative and relevant, it’s also a great way to earn revenue. As a Skimlinks publisher, each time your readers click on a link from your site and go on to make a purchase, you’ll earn a commission. If you’re already talking about these things anyway, why not get rewarded for the sales you drive?

We turned to some of our Skimlinks publishers to illustrate how you can create shoppable content on your site.

Gear Patrol is a daily magazine for men that features a mix of highly-stylized stories around gear, adventure, food, design and culture. With a small team, Gear Patrol focuses on telling captivating stories while still writing about products and earning, whenever possible, commissions from the sales they drive. Here are their tips:

• Use images. Making your content enticing for your readers is key, and drawing them in with beautiful pictures is a fantastic way to inspire them to read your content & maybe even make a purchase.
• Link your content. Make sure that those gorgeous images link out to the products they depict. Make sure to have relevant links in your written content as well, so readers don’t have to search high and low; all you need to do is simply click on the link to get more information about a product.
• Tell a story. Don’t just write about products to simply write about products. Create an interesting narrative that provides both context and inspiration.

Another Skimlinks publisher that successfully incorporates shoppable content into her strategy is Wande’s World. Wande runs a successful blog and YouTube channel — Wande’s World — where she discusses all things fashion, lifestyle, and beauty. For Wande, creating content is at the forefront. For her the creative process of selecting an outfit, taking photos and video and sharing it with the world is the most satisfying portion of her career as a blogger.

But like many bloggers, she had to juggle a full-time job as well and wanted to easily monetize the content on her site and YouTube channel. Simply by posting content she was passionate about, Wande was creating shoppable content for her readers and Skimlinks helped her earn an income out of it.

Now, every time she posts a video of her outfits, she includes affiliated product links into the description so her readers can quickly and easily purchase the items she shows off in her videos. She focuses on creating content yet manages to earn a commission of the sales she drives if her readers click on and purchase items from her links.

Boom. There you have it. Your first New Year’s resolution is nearly complete. In addition to lifting those weights, remember to create engaging stories with inspiring images to bring your content into tip-top shape in 2015. Most importantly, include product links within your content to help your readers reach the items you write about and also increase your potential earnings.

Hope the beginning of 2015 has been a good one for everyone! Now that the holiday hoopla has officially come to a close, it’s time to get caught up on all the latest happenings. From the internet of things to deeplinking in mobile apps, let’s dive in.

Why the ‘Internet of Things’ hasn’t really caught on: The Internet of things or connected products that bring efficiencies to day-to-day life has been a buzzword for years. Despite this, consumer unease about the security of collected data has held it from really taking off. AdWeek discusses what brands need to do to address consumer fears.

Connecting mobile apps to one another once and for all: Companies big and small are trying to bring the same simplicity that you see on the web, linking pages to one another, to smartphones by teaching mobile apps to connect to one another in the same way. This NY Times piece dives into what will need to happen for the mobile app world to become interconnected.

Facebook aims to bolster video content to compete with YouTube: Social media giant Facebook recently announced that video activity on its platform increased greatly in 2014. Users saw 3.6 times more video in the newsfeed in 2014 vs 2013. AdExchanger explores what this increase signifies.

Job seekers listen up, web developers are in high demand: It’s never been a better time to be a web developer. Those versed in programming language Ruby, C and Python are making six figures on average, while their C# and PHP counterparts aren’t doing too shabby at 90K. Entrepreneur looks at the top cities for tech, the most popular coding languages and trends of this evolving industry.

How to connect with customers on social media: Social media has quickly become the most preferred method of attracting new customers for all types of businesses. From evaluating demographics to tracking analytics, this Buzzsumo piece explores ways that you can use social media wisely to find and keep customers for the long haul.

2015 is shaping up to be a huge year for internet marketing: With more resources than ever before and trending data signifying growth, it’s safe to say digital marketers will be busy this year. This KISSmetrics post presents statistics-backed reasons about why internet marketing will be on the rise.

Here’s how you can become a better writer: Keeping up with the demands of creating content isn’t always easy, this roundup of resources from Inc. will help writers on all levels.

Building Skimlinks from the ground up: Skimlinks CEO Alicia Navarro spoke with Yahoo Small Business about the company’s beginnings, the ins and outs of affiliate marketing and how the Skimlinks technology has revolutionized the way online publishers earn money.

Image via Death to the Stock Photo

Here at Skimlinks, we’re committed to helping publishers thrive. We can’t help you make it to the gym more often, but we can help you turn your site into a lean mean earning machine. That’s why this year we’re sharing our four results-driven New Year’s resolutions to help you get your content in tip top shape (and keep it that way).

Resolution # 1: Create more shoppable content – Content about brands and products is in high demand as consumers look to online resources to guide their purchases. It’s also a great way to boost your revenues! From product reviews to item details used in outfit posts, commerce-related content is taking the internet by storm.

According to recent surveys, 90 percent of consumers say their buying decisions are influenced by online reviews, so why not bring that info to their fingertips? You’ll earn a commission from the sales you drive and readers will get curated recommendations from their favorite publishers, it’s a win-win.

Resolution # 2 : Optimize my social media – In the past decade or so since the inception of social media, it has firmly implanted its place as THE most happening form of media. You want to make sure you’re making the most of this influential medium and connecting with your readers in an authentic way. We’ll show you how.

Resolution # 3 : Work better with brands - What do brands look for? How can I connect with them? How should I balance my content types? We’ll help you answer all these questions and learn more about the ins and outs of working with brands and the relationships you’ll cultivate.

Resolution # 4 : Boost my readership – There’s no magic solution, but there are several tips to keep in mind that can help increase your readership. From SEO tools to more nuanced content creation advice, we’ll help you create a solid plan to make sure your site is getting seen.

Tune in for our New Year’s Resolutions series starting next week, where we’ll dive into each topic and provide you with real-life examples and honest, applicable advice to help take your site to the next level.

I tend to get very sentimental at this time of year. The short days and cold nights are a perfect trigger for introspection, and I enjoy taking the time to be conscious and grateful for all the good things that have happened over the past year. It is very easy to be swept away by all the end of year madness, so it’s important to pause and reflect on the bounty of things we have to be grateful for.

First and foremost, I’m incredibly grateful that Skimlinks continues to blossom, despite the ever-changing and aggressive industry we are in. After 7 years, we are still launching new products and features, expanding to new customers, becoming stronger, faster, better. For that, I have all of *you* to thank: your loyalty, support, feedback, and collaboration are the reasons Skimlinks is what it is.

The other great joy of leading this company is welcoming new team members into our fold. I have always been frightened of becoming a “big” company, of losing the charm and dynamism of a startup as we bring on new people. To my immense relief and gratitude, our culture has remained as electric and buoyant as ever, despite (or perhaps even because of) the new additions. We are now 75 people, a number I never thought we’d reach, but I’m proud and thankful for each of them – old-timer or newbie – for making Skimlinks’ culture something really special.

We live in a world full of uncertainty: 2014 has seen conflicts spring up in Israel and Palestine, in Russia and Ukraine, in Iran, Syria and Pakistan, even my hometown of Sydney was not spared. And while we learn about these events with horror, it engenders real moments of mindfulness, of in-the-moment awareness of our own being, of our health, of the presence of loved ones around us, and the freedom to work and study and travel and exist as we like. I hope you all get to experience as many of these precious moments as possible, and may they fill you with the energy and conviction to start 2015 with freshness and spirit.

Thank you all,

Alicia Navarro,
Co-Founder & CEO of Skimlinks

We turned 7!

In July 2014, Skimlinks celebrated its 7th birthday! The company that began its life as a whole other business has truly grown by leaps and bounds in the past 7 years. From a small team of 3, the company now has 75 employees and offices around the globe! We’re excited to watch Skimlinks continue to grow and thrive.

We blogged our hearts out:

In 2014, we made an effort to beef up our blog presence. Wanting to provide our readers with the latest in affiliate, tech as well as useful advice and effective tools to help their brands, we’ve been busy publishing blog posts on topics such as the future of mobile commerce to the importance of data and more.

We are constantly working to improve our blog and took this opportunity to reflect on the posts that resonated with our audience and learn from those that didn’t. Some popular posts included:

• 5 Ways to Get the Most out of Skimlinks
• How a One-Woman Business is Monetizing Commerce-Related Content across Multiple Blogs
• Publisher Spotlight: Interview with Onlinecouponisland.com’s Ali Naqi
• 5 Affiliate Marketing Tips for Beginners
• Attention Fashion Bloggers! Get Inspired and Affiliate Your Links

Be sure to sign up to get our blog posts straight to your inbox and let us know what you’d like to see on the blog in 2015!

We helped shape the digital landscape:

We crunched thousands of numbers and analyzed data so that we can deliver relevant information to our publishers and beyond.

In September, we released the Best Practice Guide- a detailed look into all the best ways to successfully utilize Skimlinks technology to its full potential. The Shoppable Content Guide offered comprehensive advice about how to best incorporate commerce-related content — or comtent as we like to call it — to maximize your earnings. Another noted release was our Mobile Landscape Study which examined what devices people use to read content, click ecommerce links and purchase goods online.

We took part in numerous industry events, hosted meetups and more:

2014 was another great year for our event calendar. Building relationships and attending industry events is critical for the team at Skimlinks. It’s one of the best ways to connect with and learn from our present and future publishers. And really we just love meeting you all in person!

From BlogHer 2014 in San Jose, California to BlogFest in London, not to mention the Business of Software Conference in Boston and Digital Media Strategies in the UK, our team members spent 2014 on the ground, talking and interacting with industry leaders and dedicated online publishers — making sure that we help publishers navigate the changing digital landscape and earn money from their content.

We held our very first Summit:

In October 2014, we held the Content to Commerce (C2C) Summit in New York City. We brought together industry leaders and innovators to talk about everything from monetizing strategies to native ads to the future of digital publishing. Publishers large and small dispensed some key advice about how they’ve navigated the waters of monetizing content to a sold out crowd.

We kept on growing, with several new faces hired in 2014.

As a growing company, we are constantly on the lookout for new talent. From Eddie who joined our Engineering Team, to Robin over at Business Intelligence and the Marketing department which doubled in size, there’s now 75 of us across London, New York, and San Francisco! With each new addition, we hope to make the Skimlinks experience a better one for our publishers. Wanna join us? Check out the jobs page for a list of current openings.

Looking back, it’s been a cracking good year: Our passion is helping publishers get rewarded for the great content they create and we’ve been thrilled with the success our publishers have achieved.

We’ve got a lot more up our sleeves and can’t wait to continue supporting influential online voices from across the globe. Thanks for being a part of our journey this year and here’s to an even better 2015!

In news, ad tech predictions for 2015, how to turn holiday shoppers into year-round customers, reasons why your customers aren’t sharing your content on social media and the 10 most innovative digital products of 2014. In tips, 10 ways to come up with 15+ blog post ideas each week, 18 expert tips to organize your content creation process and 6 customer trends that will build or break your business in 2015.

NEWS

The Next Big Thing(s) For Online Advertising: Predictions for 2015 via MediaPost

The online advertising world undergoes rapid changes, with key developments occurring often. From a focus on programmatic targeting of content to more sophisticated means of measuring the impact of content marketing campaigns, read on to find out what big ad tech marketing trends are expected to develop in 2015.

How to Turn Holiday Shoppers into Year-Round Customers – Starting Right Now via Kissmetrics

The online holiday shopping season is no joke. According to ComScore, holiday e-commerce spending is expected to increase by 16% to $61 billion. So if you’re an online business how can you capture the holiday shopping excitement for the long-term? From personalization to inspiration here are some ways you can turn your holiday shoppers into year-round customers.

4 Reasons Your Customers Aren’t Sharing Your Content on Social Media via Inc

Social sharing is almost always used as a metric to measure a digital media campaign’s success. While things like pageviews are important, to truly engage an audience you need to have a deeper understanding of why people share content. Find out more behind the sharing motivations of customers and learn how you can connect with your audience in a meaningful way.

Here Are The 10 Most Innovative Digital Ad Products of 2014 via AdWeek

The online ad space is expanding with more companies than ever offering some form of advertising on their platforms. From sponsored videos on Instagram to app-install ads on Twitter and promoted chats on Kik, there are now more ways than ever to advertise on the web.

TIPS

10 Ways We Come Up With 15+ Blog Post Ideas Each Week via Groove

Coming up with content is no easy task, check out these tips to learn more about how you can create blog post ideas. From more obvious tips such as reading more and taking notes, to more nuanced ideas including doing what others are afraid of doing, read through to get inspired in 2015.

18 Expert Tips On Organizing Your Content Creation Process via Buzzsumo

Before you jump into brainstorming your content ideas, find out how you can organize the whole content creation process. From Google Docs to Evernote, find out what these experts recommend to keeping your writing process more streamlined.

Six Customer Trends That Will Build Or Break Your Business As We Enter 2015 via Forbes 

With technology moving at an ever-increasing pace, customer expectations also continue to soar. From customer empowerment to the desire for self-service, read through these trends to find out if your business is prepared for the expected changes that 2015 will bring.