Brand Growth Requires Some New Tools

Here’s our latest roundup of digital marketing tips.

CRM: New Microsoft tools integrate LinkedIn data directly into Dynamics 365

Microsoft bought LinkedIn and everyone was like … ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ now what? It was always about the data, but to what end? This one: LinkedIn data will feed directly to Dynamics 365, Microsoft’s CRM platform.

Client takeaway: The announcement had two major pieces of news:

1. Dynamics 365 is being linked to LinkedIn Sales Navigator tool, giving sales people access to all LinkedIn users.
2. An HR tool, Talent, will give HR Dynamics 365 users the ability to search LinkedIn’s Recruiter and Learning Solutions.

Suggested implementation: Social media searches have been a part of the hiring process for a long time. So heed the advice already. But this is a bit of a different level.

Design: Why we care about Design Week Portland

For the second year in a row, Bonfire Marketing’s creative director, Jeff Wester, is presenting at DWP. Get a preview of his presentation, plus a little dose of creative inspiration, as he looks at how process can drive creativity.

Client takeaway: There’s no escaping that processes are a part of life. Those processes don’t have to stifle creativity by acting as restrictions.

Suggested implementation: Learn how to turn processes into a resource and begin to cultivate artistry in a whole new way.

Digital advertising: Nearly 80 percent of US display ad spend will be programmatic in 2017

Despite some recent bad press, automated ad buying is gaining ground over open exchanges. Private marketplaces give buyers and sellers more control over their programmatic buys.

Client takeaway: Mobile makes up 79.8 percent of programmatic spending, and by 2019, 85.2 percent of mobile ads will be transacted programmatically.

Suggested implementation: Outside of social networks, over half of native ads won’t be sold programmatically. But expect that to change (and therefore your strategy), as the exchange matures.

“Mobile makes up 79.8 percent of programmatic spending, and by 2019,
85.2 percent of mobile ads will be transacted programmatically.”
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SEM: 2017 SEM growth hacks: monster growth from brand protection

Your competitors could be driving up your CPC by bidding on your branded keyword terms. But attacks like this can be mitigated by deploying three growth hacks to protect your brand against divisive SEM campaigns.

Client takeaway: You could be losing up to 10 percent of clicks and a 20 percent increase in CPC for every competitor bidding on your branded keyword terms.

Suggested implementation: Expand your list of branded keywords to include common search term endings to your brand name. Team up with a partner or friendly brand to take up as much of the SERP as possible. And then just lodge a few complaints and piggyback on others’ success.

SEO: What are the biggest challenges surrounding Schema markup?

We’ve preached the urgency of readying your site for voice search. One of the tools to help? An accurate Schema.org markup. An astounding number of businesses ignore it because it doesn’t directly affect ranking, but structuring yours can help search engines pull the best snippets from your site.

Client takeaway: Schema.org markups act as a roadmap and give context for digital assistants searching for answers to voice queries. As few as 17 percent of all websites currently have a structured markup.

Suggested implementation: The biggest challenge to implementing your Schema markup? Finding someone to own it and, quite simply, understanding it.