New In Our Community: Many Marketers May Lack Key Online Skills


New In Our Community: Many Marketers May Lack Key Online Skills

Join us for another edition of the community news and information roundup. It’s our survey of some of the top small business blogs and online communities on the Web. Enjoy and tell us what you thought in the comments below.

Many Marketers Lack Basic Online Skills  (Datalicious)

Surprisingly, this survey by digital consulting firm Digital Chameleon found 92 percent of respondents lacked basic digital competencies. This included those who worked in mainstream media, for a brand or in an agency. The survey was taken in Australia where Digital Chameleon is based. Do you think the results would have been different in your community?

A Look at Website Building Tools for Business (FitSmallBusiness)

There are many ways to build a website for your business these days. And often, you do not need to rely on coding experience to do it. Here FitSmallBusiness editor-in-chief David Waring reviews Wix, Weebly, SquareSpace and WordPress to help you make up your mind.

Master the Art of the Facebook Contest (Scott’s Local Business Corner)

Contests on Facebook can be a very effective marketing tool. Here April Atwood shares some pointers about how you can create one successfully. Thanks to Scott’s Marketplace content marketing manager Shannon Willoby for sharing and adding some comments in the Bizsugar community.

Business Survival is About Being Adaptable (Franchise Acumen)

If you want to know the secret of longevity in any business, it’s fairly simple, write’s Mike Hall. Always be ready to adapt to change. As a small business owner or entrepreneur, sometimes it’s hard to change approaches that have worked in the past. But, in the end, those who don’t learn new skills or seek ways to be relevant as the market changes will be left behind.

A Look at Celebrity Endorsements to Grow a Business (The Brand Agent)

No, you may not have the budget to hire Michael Jordan to endorse your product or service. But there may be cheaper celebrities, even local celebrities that you could afford. The question is, like every other marketing tactic, whether celebrity endorsement will work for you. Here Bob Williams, CEO of Burns Entertainment & Sports Marketing, gives some advice for figuring out whether this approach is a good fit.

Make Your LinkedIn Profile All It Can Be (Simplicity)

Think of your LinkedIn profile as a sort of resume online. Does yours say all it should? Business coach Sarah Santacroce makes these suggestions for tweaking your profile. Don’t miss her additional tips for a more effective LinkedIn presence in the BizSugar comment section.

How to Create the Right Kind of Content (Susan J. Campbell)

Content marketing should be a huge part of your marketing strategy today. But as copywriter Susan J. Campbell explains, the quality of the content you use in your marketing campaign is also hugely important. Focus on providing readers with excellent information, updated regularly and use keywords and links judiciously for success.

Tips for Online Marketing with Your Business Blog (Tweak Your Biz)

If your business website includes a blog, there are many effective ways to use updates to promote your products, services and expertise. In this post, Marc Andre mentions some you may or may not have heard before. He also takes some time to talk shop with members of the BizSugar community.

The Importance of an Advertising Plan (SteamFeed)

When you create an advertising plan to grow your business, its important to have a goal in mind. Marketing consultant Randy Bowden suggests starting by determining what key performance indicators you will use to determine whether that goal has been achieved.

How People Learn About Your Brand (Seven Secrets of a Brand Champion)

It may surprise you to discover that, even today, the main way consumers learn about new brands isn’t by searching around on Google. And it isn’t by reading a customer review on a retail website either. While both are important means by which customers learn more about a product or service, this report shared by brand expert Michael Doyle may change your mind about how you market your business.

Relaxing read via Shutterstock

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  1. Going to read the LinkedIn post. Also curious about ‘How People Learn About Your Brand’ as I thought Google and reviews would be some of the ways.

  2. “92 percent of respondents lacked basic digital competencies” – Actually the same could be said of the offline world. Ever since downsizing became the craze of the 1980s, capable secretaries were let go. Executives began writing their own correspondence and using EXCEL or Lotus etc. fr calculations that before that assistants had handled for them. Whenever and wherever I do consulting work I find an astonishing lack of computer skills in general. As for online literacy and things like basic knowledge in HTML or CSS and a knowledge of Internet protocols, server setup etc., sometimes add-ons and plugins can help people out. But it is deceptive because then they struggle with interactions between add-ons and plugins, as the discussions e.g. in WordPress forums abundantly show. But would it get better if everyone (the other 92%) were equally well versed in online procedures? I doubt it. Would more people win a gold medal in swimming if they went through the same rigorous training as Phelps? No, in Olympics as well as in Google, they’d end up second, third, fourth, … umpteenth rank with exactly the same efforts as the first incumbent. So all newcomers in Internet marketing have to struggle with a law of diminishing returns, I believe. And thanks to those 92%, 8% are spared a lot of effort …