Make It With Michael

By Alon Alroy In the 1960s and ‘70s, marketers at B2B companies invested heavily in traditional advertising to generate awareness and ultimately gain customers. In the early ‘90s and the late ‘00s, businesses began building strong online footprints through email, websites, and social media. But successful marketing strategies of the future will rely less on digital experiences, and more on live events. This trend can already be seen today. According to Forrester Research , the average B2B CMO spends 24% of their budget on events. Live events account for the single largest marketing category, larger even than content marketing, digital advertising or website development. The reason for this is that some savvy marketing leaders understand that live events provide marketers with a unique opportunity to connect with target audiences – something that is becoming harder and harder to do as prospects become shrewder. Although many businesses already invest heavily in professional even...

By Lux Narayan Social media presents a plethora of possibilities to brands. It offers them a way to interact at a more personal level with global audiences . Retail brands, in particular, use social media quite heavily for a variety of purposes. In addition to publicizing things like discounts and new collections, they can gain insights into what concerns their target audience has. This information is key for tailoring future campaigns and product innovations to engage audiences better. According to a study by Pew Research Center , more than 90 percent of brands have a presence on more than one social network. Almost all brands studied had a presence on Facebook. While quantifying the return on investment of social has puzzled marketers for a while now, it definitely has a bearing on consumers’ purchasing decisions . Social media affects several facets of how a brand is perceived . Retail brands up their social media game to match the rich dividends that are up for grabs. The str...