Content

Sarah Worsham / Jan 15, 2014

Improperly Using Images Online Can Be Costly

Image via CrunchBase

If you find an image online that you like, it’s ok to use it on your website or in your advertising campaigns, right? Not unless you either have permission to use the image, or have purchased rights to use it — unless it has been clearly labeled as ok to use (either by being a creative commons image or otherwise). Using someone else’s images online without proper permission can be costly — a free image can end up costing thousands of dollars in legal fees and fines. Your website is responsible for any images that are on it — so even if a designer or employee puts up an image improperly, you will be held responsible. And the tricky part is that only the original owner of the image can give you permission, so if you find a site of free images, be wary that they’re actually free. Andy Sowards has some more good information about using images online…

If you think that you can use whatever photo or image you want from the Web, you’re wrong. The The Berne Convention declares new and original work created after April of 1989 has automatic copyright protection regardless of if its author. Don’t dive in just yet If you landed a big client and need plenty of captivating photos for your project. — Using Stock Photos? Know the Laws by Andy Sowards

Sarah Worsham / Jan 6, 2014

Creating a Continuously Improving Content Strategy

Writing journal (Photo credit: avrdreamer)

One of the most difficult aspects of any type of marketing is what happens after a campaign is launched — measurement, analysis, and improvement. Content strategies are no different from any other marketing strategy — they should also be measured, analyzed and improved for the best results. Even with all the best data and tools available, certain assumptions have to be made as to what will spark an audience’s interest. More often than not, marketers can be surprised by what gets the most engagement and response, especially if a company’s audience tends to be slightly eccentric in some way. David Somerville over at eConsultancy put together a great post to help you understand how to create a content strategy that is continuously improving with a content cycle:

The Content Cycle is a simple process that can be adopted by any business, big or small, to help ensure that they are producing online content that reaches their digital objectives.

It’s vital that each of the phases are given equal attention, as they are all required to make the process work effectively.

Implementing it is a sure-fire way to not only improve the efficiency of content production, but also to prove that content can most certainly deliver ROI for your business. — The Content Cycle: how to improve your campaign strategy by David Somerville

Sarah Worsham / Jan 3, 2014

Email Marketing Challenges for 2014

Email marketing isn’t dead — budgets are actually increasing according to the StrongView study. Increasing budgets means increasing scrutiny to make sure subscribers are engaging as expected. This also means improving the segmentation of lists to reach the right targets and growing opt-in email lists. Email marketing can be very effective if the list is opt-in and targeted properly. Even with all the spam out there, people are still interested in content that is valuable. Marketing Charts has more on the study and results…

When it comes to email marketing challenges, a plurality 40% said that one of their top-3 is accessing and leveraging customer data from multiple channels and data sources. Issues with coordination across marketing channels (34%) and developing more relevant engagements (32%) also appear towards the top of the list of challenges, with these pointing to the emphasis being placed on targeting and engagement. — Top Email Marketing Initiatives and Challenges in 2014

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