Yearly Archives: 2011
Ian Lurie4 Feb, 2011
Kenneth Cole’s real mistake: Tactics without a strategy
Unless you live under a rock, or have a life outside the internet, you’ve heard about Kenneth Cole’s now-infamous Tweet-fuffle: Tasteless? Yes. And ill-advised. Tactically it looks brilliant: Surf on a trending hashtag (#Cairo). By tweeting and including that hashtag in his post, Kenneth Cole ensured his tweet would be seen by the millions of… Read More
Ian Lurie2 Feb, 2011
10 reasons you’re not an ‘advanced’ SEO
I’m warning everyone: I’m blogging angry. I waited 24 hours. I’m still angry. So here it is. I am @#$)(* sick and tired of people telling me they’re “advanced” SEO’s, sitting on “advanced” SEO panels and speaking at “advanced” SEO conferences after three years of screwing up people’s web sites with a nofollow tag. Here… Read More
Portent Staff31 Jan, 2011
4 Sales Tactics That Will Make You a Better Writer
Before I became a writer, I spent eight years in sales. It was a fantastic way to fit work in between classes and afforded me to upgrade my college cuisine to include more than spaghetti noodles. I thought I was just paying for textbooks, but the experience I gathered while selling pianos and cell phones… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie27 Jan, 2011
Everything I ever learned about marketing I learned from Dungeons and Dragons
I gave a talk today at Emerging Media Conference about marketing and Dungeons & Dragons. I’m hoping to have it as a video pretty soon, but for now, I took a big chunk of it and turned it into a blog post. This is basically a transcript, so it may not make total sense at… Read More
Copywriting Ian Lurie27 Jan, 2011
6 copywriting tips – Latest Search Engine Land column
My latest Search Engine Land column just went live. I listed out 6 ideas for stuff to write when you’ve got no idea what to write: 6 content tips: How to write when you have nothing to write about
Ian Lurie25 Jan, 2011
Marketing principle #1: Everyone needs a Gluten
My wife has me trying to eat gluten-free for a few weeks. That means no bread, cookies, pizza, pasta. It’s like I’ve been told, “Ian, from now on, food will suck”. But I’m doing it. Voluntarily. If Dawn had simply told me, “Eat less starch, eat more veggies, and reduce caloric intake,” I’d totally fail.… Read More
Ian Lurie24 Jan, 2011
4 exit strategies for marketing agency owners
I’m not a big ‘exit strategy’ kind of guy. I prefer to build a cool business that’s going to last, and keep at it. Hence my 16-year stint (thus far) at Portent. But there’s always someone asking me what my strategy is for getting out. So, here you go—created by the Portent-ites—4 exit strategies for… Read More
Elizabeth Marsten24 Jan, 2011
Taking the Microsoft AdExcellence Exam Part 4
Moving on the part 4 in the Microsoft adExcellence Exam series, we explore the Tracking Ad Performance section. After this, you’re more than half way there! Microsoft Adcenter Reports (3:22) This section just explains where to find the reporting features and what kinds of reports where are. There are 3 types of reports: Delivery, Budget… Read More
Ian Lurie21 Jan, 2011
Sorry, but your charts are ugly
I once got fired for improving sales 300%. I showed a client a report. It was awesome and I was dang proud of the results. The report read like this: Sales from organic search last year were $50,000. Sales from organic search this year were $150,000. Sales from PPC last year were $60,000, against a… Read More
Ian Lurie20 Jan, 2011
Lessons in Twitter community building, by Kevin Hillstrom
Kevin Hillstrom is my analytical idol. So, when I bought a copy of his e-book, Twitter Hashtag Analysis a few weeks back, I was mostly looking for hashtag analysis techniques. But I got a huge bonus: This great e-book is a blueprint for Twitter community building. Hillstrom based his e-book on analysis of activity in… Read More
Portent Staff19 Jan, 2011
Hey Copywriters – Designers Hate You for a Reason
I consider myself a perfectly creative person. I can paint Manet-quality word pictures; every once in a while I will whip up such stunning moments of alliteration that the Cat in the Hat’s whiskers curl with envy. I am a copywriter. Outside of my poetic prowess, my creativity is pretty much useless. And most days… Read More
Ian Lurie18 Jan, 2011
The best marketing ‘trick’? Cultural memory.
Everyone wants marketing ‘tricks’. The best marketing trick? Write an e-book. Write a title that guarantees cool marketing tricks inside. Sell the e-book for $2000. If you sell 2 copies, you make $4000. That’s a cool trick. OK, seriously now… There are no marketing ‘tricks’. The best marketing, internet or otherwise, springs out of some… Read More
Featured Ian Lurie17 Jan, 2011
8 rules for CEOs
At least once every day I consider replacing myself with a ‘real’ CEO. Then I could just be the nerd in the cave, writing and programming and SERPing and such. But Portent’s my baby, so it’s hard to let go. Here are the big 5 rules I’ve increasingly tried to work and live by. I… Read More
Ian Lurie14 Jan, 2011
2010: The year everything died
Man. 2010 turned internet marketing into a charnel house. RSS, SEO, the web were all pronounced dead by one pundit or another. Let’s review: SEO is dead Robert Scoble, Steve Rubel, Jason Calacanis, Jeremy Schoemaker and others all pronounced SEO dead because of Google Instant or blended search or a pressing need for more links… Read More
Tom Schmitz13 Jan, 2011
A Facebook Events Rant – RSVPs and the Event Wall
I do a lot of Facebook events. Every other week I send invitations to a list nearing 800 people. It’s an opt-in list. All are members of an organization and Facebook is where we communicate with each other. Of those 800, between 150 and 300 typically attend. That means 500-650 do not. When someone attends… Read More