Search engine marketing, often referred to by its acronym SEM, is a way for businesses to appear higher in search engine results.
While search engine optimization (SEO) is an organic digital marketing strategy (meaning it creates traffic to your business over time rather than using paid methods), SEM is a “pay-per-click” (PPC) method of advertising in search engines. PPC means that a business will pay anytime a consumer clicks on their search engine listing.
SEM involves identifying keyword phrases and trends in a target market and utilizing those keywords to show your advertisements on search engine results pages via Google Ads, Bing Ads, etc. It’s important to understand your audience and use pertinent keywords so that the most relevant consumers are ...
While consumers do turn to the internet for much of their information about travel destinations, printed guides remain relevant in the digital age.
For example, a Destination Analysts study has found that more than 50% of U.S. travelers consult printed materials before making travel decisions.
That said, you still need to find a way to help your publication (and destination) stand out from the pack. Here are three tips for doing just that.
Embrace Magazine-Style Writing
While newspapers have been losing readers, magazine readership has held strong, with the total number of magazine readers in the U.S. remaining above 220 million every year between 2016 and 2020. And when it comes to travel, research by the University of Massachusetts Amherst demonstrates that travel ...
Having a well-designed website and an active social media presence is a great start. But if you really want to keep customers interested, you’ll need to get creative — and interactive.
Here are some tips to get you started.
1 | Get Your Name Out on TikTok
TikTok is having a major moment as the place to be for brands, but getting it right and getting noticed can be a challenge. Luckily, TikTok itself has put together a guide to success, with tips on how to come across as authentic and creative.
2 | Launch a Customer Loyalty Program
One of the simplest ways to reward loyal customers is with a points program. Let customers earn points for actions like following you on social, ...
Internal newsletters are a great way to keep employees engaged and let them know what’s going on with the company or their co-workers. But how do you craft a compelling newsletter that employees will actually want to read?
Here are a few easy tips.
1 | Ask Your Employees
The best source of information about content is always the audience for that content. So if you’re wondering what employees would like to see in a newsletter from their company — ask them. Send out an email encouraging feedback, launch a survey with perks for completion (e.g. a drawing for a gift card) or even ask people to volunteer for a brainstorming session that represents different departments and diverse viewpoints.
2 | Choose a ...
With the world adjusting to COVID as a fact of life, travel is making a roaring comeback in 2023. And that comeback entails several new consumer trends that visitor bureaus and hospitality businesses should be aware of.
1 | Vacationers are looking for ways to “travel light.”
More and more, travelers have been looking to slim down their luggage. Destinations that hope to lure the clutter-conscious should highlight hotels offering bulky items (such as exercise equipment) for rent, or introduce potential visitors to local businesses that can supply travel essentials.
2 | The off-season is becoming more popular.
One side-effect of a global pandemic: many people have become less comfortable with crowds. So if your area is a popular one with summer travelers, ...
If you’re anything like us, your resolution to hit the gym three times a week is going to fizzle out by mid-February. But when it comes to your business, there are a few resolutions you should work hard to keep.
1 | Take a fresh look at your brand.
What are the values and experiences that define your brand, and are they still relevant to the actual values and experiences you’re hoping to embody? Just as importantly, are they still relevant to what consumers want from a company in your space? If your most recent brand update happened a few years ago — or in reaction to a market trend that might no longer be current — the new year is ...
It’s every brand’s email nightmare: you work hard on crafting the perfect pitch, but when that email hits your prospects’ inbox, they hit the delete button without even opening the message.
How do you craft an email worth opening? And how do you close the sale once you have your prospects’ attention?
Step 1 | Choose a Catchy Subject Line
Good subject lines:
Are short. You want people to be able to read the whole thing, whether they’re on desktop or mobile! So keep your subject line to 40 characters or less.
Don’t contain “spammy” words. Avoid phrases like “buy now” or “free,” which could land you in spam filters.
Include a call to action. What is it you’re asking people ...
It’s never been easier to get in touch with your audience. Gone are the days when you were limited to print ads or even email marketing blasts. Today, savvy brands choose to reach out to customers and prospects via content they’ve created themselves (or paid someone to create for them).
But it’s also never been more confusing to choose the right strategy for your brand. There are so many different kinds of content, and each of them serves a different purpose. Here is a short introduction to some of the most common terms, what they mean, and how they help your brand in different ways.
Thought Leadership
As a general rule, this kind of content comes from the top of your organization ...
Whether digital or in print, ads are one of the best ways to get your brand in front of consumers. But given the sheer amount of information competing for your targets’ attention every day, how can you stand out?
Here are ways not to do it:
Write a novel.
Ad space is pricey, so it’s tempting to fill that space with everything you want your target audience to know. Resist that temptation. People’s eyes will slide right over an ad that is too heavy on the text. Anything more than two sentences and a couple of bullet points is probably excessive.
Combine messages.
One of the fastest ways to lose someone’s attention is by throwing too many different pieces of information at them, so ...
Your brand is your most valuable asset.
So when you trust somebody to tell your brand story for you, you want to make sure it’s the right kind of person. Someone who can write copy that’s engaging and easy to process and, most importantly, get to the heart of what your brand is about.
In other words, a journalist.
Why a journalist, you say? Seems like a marketer or ad copywriter would be a better choice.
And sure, we get it. Marketers and salespeople know how to craft an appealing message and broadcast it. But so do journalists, and they have a few other skills in their repertoire too.
Here are five reasons why journalists make the best content marketers:
1 | They can distill ...
