Yearly Archives: 2010
Featured Ian Lurie29 Dec, 2010
Internet marketing in under 300 words
Today, you get to see the ugly, stench-ridden underbelly of my writing process. I actually recorded myself typing this blog post. While I removed a few typos that would’ve gotten me rated NSFW, the rest is pretty much straight-up: And, in plain old text, in case you don’t want the video version: There are no… Read More
Ian Lurie28 Dec, 2010
6 steps to make genius happen
This post is written by Todd Clarke. Todd’s… it’s hard to explain, but he believes IT departments can add tons of value and do brilliant stuff. And he helps them do just that. He writes the blog Fire Under Every Butt and generally dispenses great wisdom to anyone in a company that relies on technology.… Read More
Ian Lurie27 Dec, 2010
I’m not crazy: 10 great, content-friendly web designs
A marketer walks into a meeting, ready to see the newest designs for their client’s site. The new design is beautiful. It makes everyone weep with joy. It’s also totally devoid of text. The marketer (or SEO, or copywriter, or strategist) walks back out of the meeting, punches a wall until their hand flattens, and… Read More
Ian Lurie26 Dec, 2010
The Marketing Uncertainty Principle
By Bruce Lee, marketing copywriter “Anyone who says that they understand Quantum Mechanics does not understand Quantum Mechanics”- Richard Feynman Yes, I am about to draw a comparison between marketing and quantum physics. (I’ll wait a moment for those of you who believe you came to the wrong classroom to head for the door.) Quantum… Read More
Elizabeth Marsten21 Dec, 2010
Taking the Microsoft AdExcellence Exam Part 3
Ready to move on to Targeting? This one is a short one, but it’s an important one, so here we go, one step closer to taking the adExcellence exam! Targeting (3:24) Targeting has several optional features that will make your campaigns more effective like geo-targeting, day of the week, hours of the day, gender and… Read More
Ian Lurie20 Dec, 2010
18 ways to build morale at a marketing agency (not)
Most marketing agencies are filled with the stench of fear. I’m not talking about that energized we-have-a-lot-to-do-get-moving feeling. I’m talking about “Oh, crap, what if I work here for the rest of my life?” fear, compounded by the “Oh, crap, what if the CEO decides he wants a bigger bonus this year?” fear. I’ve worked… Read More
Ian Lurie16 Dec, 2010
Internet marketing project management: How we do it
Yesterday I wrote about how agencies can’t use typical project management methods. Those methods fight interruptions. We have to build interruptions into our work style. Here’s the real meat-and-potatoes stuff. This is the set of rules and guidelines I wrote for the Portent team, nearly un-edited, plus examples. I talk tools, rules and exactly how… Read More
Ian Lurie15 Dec, 2010
Clients aren’t customers: Why most agencies suck at project management
Companies like 37Signals talk about their workflow: Efficient, uninterrupted sprints, team rotation, and projects finished in days instead of weeks. Guys like David Allen write about ‘Getting Things Done and the importance of eliminating distraction. I admire them and their success. I spent years trying to implement their working styles at my company. It’s frustrating… Read More
Ian Lurie13 Dec, 2010
Market research is (often) worthless. Here’s why.
This post is by Bruce Lee, marketer and marketing writer. Here’s the short version: Knowing that someone has disposable income doesnʼt tell you what they want to spend it on. I used to work for a (retail) company that had fairly deep pockets. Occasionally, we would reach into those pockets to buy market research. Our… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie9 Dec, 2010
Truth or dare? 6 internet marketing trends put to the test
In the last month there’s been a lot of hand-wringing about search engines changing their algorithms, social media sites tweaking their privacy settings and other ‘game changing’ internet marketing kerfuffles. I picked 6 of the alleged changes that have folks talking, from SEO to social media, and rated each one on my personal truthiness scale:… Read More
Elizabeth Marsten8 Dec, 2010
Taking the Microsoft AdExcellence Exam Part 2
Continuing on with Part 2 of our 7 part series, I won’t dilly dally with details and like Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers, we’re just going to jump right into our guide on taking the adExcellence exam, Getting Started. Creating an Account (3:58) This section is a quick overview on how to set… Read More
Portent Staff7 Dec, 2010
10 Copywriting Nightmares & How to Deal With Them
Copywriting is a career replete with pitfalls, from editorial visions gone awry to hair-pulling, forehead-pounding hours attempting to come up with synonyms for “elegant” that alliterate with “xylophone.” There are good parts, too. Really good parts. I promise. But that is an entirely different post. This is a post about the depths of despair all… Read More
Ian Lurie7 Dec, 2010
Conversation Marketing, The E-book: Now on sale
Back in 2001, I sat down at my blazing fast Pentium computer and started writing a book about internet marketing. Brainstorming it with John Cass, we realized “Hey, the internet is kind of two-way, like a conversation…” and that led to the title Conversation Marketing. Little things like babies slowed me down a bit, but… Read More
Doug Antkowiak6 Dec, 2010
New Facebook Profile Changes
It’s apparent that the new profile changes are Facebook’s way of allowing each profile to take on a narrative. Personal biography information like your job status, education and home town are clustered together and bumped to the top of the page.
Ian Lurie6 Dec, 2010
Owl, reed, twisted flax, vulture, owl, owl, horned viper.
This is another great post by Bruce Lee, marketer and advertiser par excellence. Most graphic designers would be happier in ancient Egypt. Egyptologists disagree on whether this papyrus from the Eighteenth Dynasty promotes an energy drink (Red Ox) or a feminine hygiene product “with wings”. Due to the exclusive use of hieroglyphic symbols for communication,… Read More