Category: Marketing Automation

In the age of information overload, it can be tricky to grab and retain your customers’ attention for a prolonged period of time. They are targeted by dozens of companies every day, and for your email to stand out, it has to offer an engagement-based experience that’s unlike anything they’ve ever encountered before. Enter well-strategized…
The post How to Deliver an Exceptional Customer Experience with Email Marketing appeared first on Benchmarkemail.

submitted by /u/sanjay4sales [link] [comments]

This article is part of a larger series that focuses on diversity and equity in marketing through the amplification of Black and racially diverse authors. As a company, we are committed to identifying actions we can take in the fight against racism and injustice, and elevating BBIPOC voices is paramount to inspiring change. Follow along and read other posts in this series here.

This post is authored by Jada Harland, CEO + Talent Marketer.
From a consumer and recruiting perspective, diversity did not become important; it always has and will continue to be important to the structure of any long-term success of any business. 
According to HR Digest, a McKinsey study acknowledges that “Ethnically diverse companies are 35% more likely to have financial returns above national industry medians and gender diverse companies are 15% more likely to do the same.” Trillions of dollars and hundreds of millions of potential customers support a variety of industries with their cash. 
But another currency that has become more and more valuable is engagement. Inclusivity in talent leads to new perspectives, accountability in better decision-making, and endless ideas for content. So, I pose the question, why shouldn’t the talent supporting the internal structure of a business reflect their customers?
Recruitment is a bittersweet necessity for all companies, big or small. The recruiting teams keep the wheels of stellar talent turning as businesses expand, roles change, and new opportunities emerge, giving the recruiter extraordinary power to shift the narrative of their respective company’s diversity agenda. Therefore, a good recruiter is to hire the best candidate for the role, regardless of what one’s name looks or sounds like on their resume, any assumptions of personal preferences, or skin color. 
Hiring changemakers
My take on talent is a little different as my role as a Talent Marketer has incorporated, if not focused, on diversity quite a bit. This job title has gained traction in recent years as more workplaces realize recruitment is more than just cold calls and looking over hundreds of resumes. A lot of the time, we are assigned unicorns that we must attract, entertain, and persuade to join our clients’ organizations or our own companies. 
Hence the marketing aspect of recruitment is strategic in achieving the goal of encouraging the increase in engagement from a diverse and capable talent pool. And to top it off, I primarily focused on hiring marketing talent.
I should also mention that my role in Talent Marketing was even more unique as I am also a Black woman in Corporate America, where there are only a few others who look like me in most companies. For example, as a Talent Marketer, supporting recruiting efforts often puts me on a team that has only 1 or 2 black recruiters out of 30+ recruiters. 
Leaning on my experience hiring project managers, copywriters, consultants, contractors, and even executives, you hear and see a lot on the backend of the hiring recruitment process that makes me hopeful about workplace diversity for our future. Some rhetoric makes me proud of the progress made in Corporate America with a genuine demand for great talent that will change the outlook of the office, while other times I find myself cringing at displaced and disgraceful commentary surrounding the conversation around diversity or inclusivity. 
It’s general knowledge that after President Truman’s Executive Order 9981 in 1948 diversity in the armed forces would bring about change, but the corporate initiative has been painfully slow until recent years since the 1960s.
Marketing teams lead the way
As a Talent Marketer, I have had the pleasure of focusing on marketing professionals who I consider to be the gateway for change. Marketing and Advertising teams are hired to manage half the business. Their half of the business is primarily focused on demand and ongoing engagement. The content produced by the marketing team guides the conversation around a brand and the interactions of the customer. 
This past year, the Black Lives Matter Movement exposed uncomfortable issues in our private lives, but also in the workplace. Many companies scrambled to make the conscious decision to identify who their customers were and to address how they were being affected. This led to new campaigns being produced, companies rushing to hire more diverse talent so as to not be part of the problem, and even displaying their political views on social platforms. 
These efforts were driven by marketing teams that suddenly had to face the struggles of their peers as well as consumers. In light of the BLM Movement, the lack of empathy from Corporate America became impossible to ignore and many companies acted swiftly, leading to the understanding that representation matters in and out of the office. That’s one reason why creating diverse marketing teams and marketing leadership is important. Witnessing the impacts of marketing on the social constructs of our world means the more people who look and think like us all, the more change we will see. 
But while diverse marketing teams make big strides toward change, marketing teams that lack diversity can make big mistakes. We all saw the epic fail of H&M and their campaign around a new line of clothing with black kids wearing monkey shirts. This led to an uproar and H&M struggled to recover. The same goes for Dove under Unilever with their campaign with a black woman removing her brown shirt to be replaced by a white woman in a white shirt or skincare brand Nivea, and even Pepsi. All could have been avoided and saved millions of dollars on horrid content if they had a more diverse team to speak on these issues. 
Diverse talent is abundant
In my role, I deal with talent 70% of the time. I have been on the agency and client side. Unfortunately, the conversation about diversity is complex when dealing with hiring clients for several reasons. 
First and foremost, the lack of access leads to lack of diversity. As a recruiter and as a marketer that attracts talent, the data shows that the talent is out there, but there are changes that must be made. Job descriptions should be descriptive of the role but leave room for individual experience. 
For example, if a role requires a candidate to have experience with “creative assignments” and they have all the required tools to get the job done, who is to say that their experience working on other material outside of “White America” would not be helpful to broaden the scope of projects for your company? We are aware that there are what’s considered “Black brands” vs “pop culture.”
This divide exists because most brands exclude people of color. If I have a talented graphic designer who has primarily worked with “black brands” and their work reflects the hair textures or ideologies of black culture, their work should be valued just as much as their white counterparts.
Unfortunately, talent like this often gets overlooked and categorized as “too urban” or “not a cultural fit.”  We recycle the same content instead of mirroring the reality of society. We all have a story, and we have the right to share it authentically. Placing value on one’s life experience over another is damaging.
But that’s not the only way that Corporate America is moving so slowly when it comes to creating more diverse teams. In the process of finding talent for a job posting, we do an intake call, starting off with one idea of “revolutionary talent,” but ultimately the search changes as the company goes back to seeking candidates that they’ve always had, white and male with the same perspectives. 
Another point to make is that the wage gap still exists, and it is discouraging to speak to a talented marketer who is hired at a lower salary and takes a much longer time than their peers to reach a certain salary threshold. If we are moving forward to a more equitable future, companies must go back to the drawing board. The two previous problems prove that the search for more diverse candidates was an idea, not a plan of action for diversity or inclusivity.
Wrap up
As a black professional and as a recruiter, I have learned that doing your job well is not just based on your results, but equally on the vision of the client or hiring party. Internal conflicts around diversity and inclusion need to be addressed from the top down much like legislation. 
We lead by example. Because the ideology behind talent marketing is to identify, create, and encourage top-tier talent to gravitate to the roles for the company, we have to set the tone. The resources we use in recruitment change depending on our search and in this case, we also need to change our perspective. The diversity we seek is not hidden. Choice is change. This responsibility leaves us all with a question, Corporate America, what are we working on, and are we really serious about it?

Jada Harland is a trailblazer. She has worked in Talent Marketing for 5 years working with Fortune 500 companies to hire the best marketing professionals from Specialists to CMOs.
Her experience in Recruitment has opened doors to work on diversity in some of the biggest brands. She now owns her own online clothing store Nastasia.co and works alongside her husband with their other business ventures. She continues to utilize her skills in social media, copywriting, website building and recruitment on a contractual basis. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her growing family, traveling, and learning about history and astronomy. 
Visit this page to see more in the series, or check back in a week for our next guest post. 

CM Group is a family of global marketing technology brands including Campaign Monitor, CM Commerce, Delivra, Emma, Liveclicker, Sailthru and Vuture. By joining together these leading brands, CM Group offers a variety of world-class solutions that can be used by marketers at any level. Headquartered in Nashville, TN, CM Group has United States offices in Indianapolis, Los Angeles, New York City, Pittsburgh and San Francisco, and global offices in Australia, London, New Zealand and Uruguay. 
The post Diversity in Recruitment appeared first on Campaign Monitor.

Looking for a cost-effective, functionality-rich Mailchimp alternative? We’ve researched and tested 4 best Mailchimp alternatives and prepared in-depth feedback.

Advertising is the process of creating messages that raise awareness of your brand.
These messages can have various purposes like attracting potential customers, promoting upcoming sales, and introducing new products to market. Most advertisements center around one business, but a unique type, called comparative advertising, centers around two.
When done right, comparative ads can successfully convince consumers to do business with one brand over another. But, when done wrong, companies may find themselves in the middle of a lawsuit. Given this, using comparative advertising requires care and attention.
In this post, we’ll explain what comparative advertising is, give examples from real-life businesses, explain the legality of using the strategy, and present pros and cons that you can use to make the best decision for your business.

These ads can directly or indirectly mention a competitor, but consumers can typically deduce who the other business is through product features and call-outs. Comparative ads also give customers a direct point of comparison between two companies, as they can view products and assess features all at once, rather than needing to seek out information from multiple sources.
Although they may feature two businesses, it is important to note that one company creates the ad for their benefit, so its tone is swayed in their favor. That being said, businesses aren’t allowed to make false claims about their competitors, so consumers are presented with factual information.
There is no set template for comparative advertisements; they can be digital or print, videos or images, humorous or serious. Many businesses take advantage of 21st-century viral culture and share ads on social media platforms and capitalize on the traffic from likes, retweets, follows, and shares.
Comparative Advertising Examples
Below we’ll go over some real-life examples of comparative advertising to help you understand the practice.
Popeyes
Popeyes is an American fast-food chain that serves fried chicken. Chick-fil-A is their direct industry competitor, well known for being closed on Sundays.
Popeyes capitalized on this and created a comparative advertisement that emphasized that their restaurant is open on Sundays, ready and able to serve consumers every day of the week, especially while Chick-fil-A takes a day off. The video is shown below.

Sprint
Verizon, a cellular provider, used the same actor as the face of their commercials for nine years. Sprint, an industry competitor, poached the actor in 2016 and used his switch to their service to take a unique approach to comparative advertising.
In the video below, Sprint essentially says, if a long-time, loyal Verizon actor can switch to Sprint, why can’t you change as well? The business positions itself as a qualified competitor by saying that their cell phone service has a 1% difference in coverage than Verizon.

 
Cocoon by Sealy
Casper is a well-known mattress brand that has managed to garner significant hype and recognizability for its products.
Cocoon by Sealy, a direct competitor, uses comparative advertising in search engine result pages (SERPs) to target Casper’s intended audience. The company placed a paid ad in a SERP for the term Casper mattress (shown below), with the headline “Don’t Buy the Hype, Shop Cocoon & Save Hundreds.”

Cocoon claims that its competitor is only a competitor because people buy for the name-brand hype. If a curious consumer clicks on the ad, they learn that Cocoon offers mattresses that are worthwhile because they are conducive to peaceful sleep and are affordable (displayed in the image below).

Image Source
Adidas
Adidas is a well-known sports apparel brand that is only outshined by Nike. Adidas created a comparative video (shown below) that features a person running in the desert wearing Nike shoes.
Runners know outdoor terrains are challenging to run in. Still, the most impressive thing in the video is that the cameraman carrying a 50-pound camera can keep up with the runner because he’s wearing Adidas shoes.

 
Kroger
Kroger is a grocery store chain that took out a full-page comparative advertisement against a local competitor (Publix) in a Tennessee newspaper.
The advertisement, shown in the image below, features two long receipts from both stores that are the same length, but costs were cheaper, and savings were higher at Kroger. The brand essentially says that, even if you buy the same products, Kroger offers lower prices, savings, and additional perks that consumers cannot find at Publix.

Image Source
Bounty
Bounty is a paper towel brand that created a comparative ad to display the benefits of using their paper towels versus the leading generic brand. While they don’t explicitly name a competitor, they make a dig at whoever it may be by calling them the “ordinary brand” because they can’t clean up messes as well as Bounty can.
Essentially, they’re saying Bounty is premium, and any other option is just regular.

Image Source 
While all of these businesses used comparative advertising, it’s essential to understand that it’s only that — comparative. Each company believes it is the best option, but they say that through comparison, not false or misleading claims.
However, given that the line can be vague, many countries have laws that dictate how comparative ads can and can’t be used.
Comparative Advertising Law
Below, we’ll discuss the comparative advertising laws from three different countries and the explicit language they use to explain what advertisers are allowed to do.
United States Comparative Advertising Law
The U.S.’s Federal Trade Commission (FTC) protects consumers from being deceived, defrauded, and manipulated by businesses. It also protects companies from unfair practices and activities of competitors.
The FTC ruled on comparative advertising and said, “Comparative advertising, when truthful and nondeceptive, is a source of important information to consumers and assists them in making rational purchase decisions. Comparative advertising encourages product improvement and innovation, and can lead to lower prices in the marketplace.”
In brief, the FTC supports comparative advertising, as it benefits consumers by giving a well-rounded view of product offerings. What they don’t tolerate is advertising that disparages competitors and is deceptive as a means to get consumers to do business with one company over another. Companies can use the FTC ruling to file claims if they feel as though they are being discredited.
Australia Comparative Advertising Law
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission says that “Businesses may use comparative advertising to directly promote the superiority of their products over another.” Like U.S. law, businesses must follow general advertising best-practices of not being deceptive or misleading in an attempt to entice consumers to do business with them.
Hong Kong Comparative Advertising Law
Hong Kong has no specific legislation intended to limit comparative advertising. Still, the Trade Descriptions Ordinance prohibits false trade descriptions and misleading or incomplete information advertisements, and the Association of Accredited Advertising Agencies of Hong Kong has the authority to investigate instances of violation.
All in all, regardless of your location, it’s important to understand the laws and regulations of comparative advertisements, so you don’t find yourself in the middle of a lawsuit.
Comparative Advertising Pros and Cons
The reality of choosing to use comparative advertising is up to your individual business needs.
Suppose you have an industry competitor that owns most of the market share. In that case, comparative advertising can be beneficial as you’re letting your target market know that there are other options out there. If you’re a new business, comparative advertising can also help generate awareness around the fact that you exist.
However, if you’re unable to support your claims of superiority and your advertisements seem more berating than comparative, you can stand to lose business. Overall, as mentioned above, the decision to use comparative advertising depends on your goals.
We’ve compiled a list of comparative advertising pros and cons that will help you make a comprehensive decision about whether you should opt to use the strategy.

Pros
Cons

Explicit product emphasis. Comparative advertising specifically focuses on a single product or feature that makes you better than a competitor, which is helpful advertising for your products in general. Even if you don’t sway your audience, they are still becoming aware of its direct specifications, benefits, and features.
You can face legal action. As mentioned above, many countries have laws protecting consumers and other businesses from comparative ads. If you don’t follow legal requirements, you may face legal action from your competitors that requires significant legal fees. If you’re a big name brand, publications will likely report on it, which can also negatively impact your reputation.

Raise awareness. Comparative marketing can help you raise awareness for your business, especially if you’re new to the industry or a small business standing up to a competitor. Mentioning their name gives you exposure to their market share and an entirely new audience that may be ready to make the switch.
Can create brand name confusion. Just as comparative ads can generate brand awareness, they can also spur confusion. Mentions of multiple competitors in the same ad can lead consumers to become confused about which business offers the features they prefer or which company proved to be the best option to meet their needs.

Gain new followers and attract new clients. Comparative advertising can help you gain new followers and attract new clients, primarily when these ads are widely distributed and placed in high-volume consumer traffic areas. For example, many businesses in the United States create humorous comparative advertisements to share during the Super Bowl because they know the event has significant viewership.
You may lose integrity and look bad to your audience. Suppose your advertisements don’t align with your countries comparative advertising rules and are flat-out disparaging of your competitors. In that case, you may look bad to your target audience, which is the opposite effect you’re trying to have. In addition, even if you follow the laws, some people just don’t appreciate ads that pit two companies against each other. It’s best to first understand your target audience before electing to create and share comparative advertisements.

Inform consumers about what is important. As comparative ads focus on a specific feature or experience that comes with a product or service, you’re informing consumers about the factors they should keep in mind when making purchasing decisions. Essentially, you’re showing them that they should consider more than just the brand name of the product they’re interested in.
 

Comparative Advertising Can Help Your Business Grow
Should you opt to use it as part of your business’ marketing strategy, be mindful of comparative advertising laws in your country, ensure that you’re providing benefit to the consumer, and that you’re not simply disparaging your competitor and claiming superiority.
If done successfully, you can stand to raise significant brand awareness, drive revenue, and even capture a higher portion of your industry market share and position yourself as an industry leader.

submitted by /u/Kloudportal7 [link] [comments]

“Marketing is really just about sharing your passion.” — Michael Hyatt

At SALESmanago, we strive to inspire our passion in both our customers and employees, and we’re clearly doing it the right way!

And so, we are thrilled to announce that G2 (a leading business review platform for comparing business software) yet again confirmed in their report that users love us! We were ranked as High Performer in the Enterprise, Mid and Small-size segment in the Marketing Automation and also got a special appraisal for Easiest Admin, and Easiest to do business with. Although, the most important one is the badge “Users Love Us” 

This award validates all our efforts to become better and better for our customers. From this place we would like to thank all our users, both small and big, for your trust, understanding and above all support. It is only thanks to you that we are able to be so successful, and believe us – we enjoy your satisfaction like nothing else. 

Great results in the G2 ranking confirm that SALESmanago is a comprehensive platform that is always in high demand, introducing more and more new features and innovations so that our customers can enjoy the full potential of our platform, taking their business to the highest possible level with our help. 

Thank you again for your trust, we promise to maintain our services at the same high level for all the years to come! 

Marketing Automation Report

marketing automation marketing automation

In the lockdown E-learning is the best operational approach for students to continue learning. Our online classes are the best solution for students in this situation. ​ With our online classes of Math, physics, and science, students can learn with the same quality. ​ Math for elementary, high school and college students Physics for high school and college. Science for all levels English class for bilingual kids. ​ Zoom or google meeting class. Perfect for homeschooling and School online support ​ Visit my website https://iprofevolution.com or contact by [info@iprofevolution.com](mailto:info@iprofevolution.com) / [iprofevolution@gmail.com](mailto:iprofevolution@gmail.com) ​ iprofevolution.com My qualifications: – BA in Physics and Computer Science – MA in Physics – Enrolling in Ph.D. – AI to optimize students learning – Tefl and Tesol certificate – IELTS certification ​ Experience: – More than 10 years as an English, maths and science teacher – 3 years as an Online teacher – Book Reviewer and Curriculum Strategy creator – Toys and children’s games builder
submitted by /u/EmptySuspect [link] [comments]

We’re obviously big fans of email here at Benchmark, but we also understand that they can be a significant drain on your time. Who hasn’t started on a project only to get distracted over and over again by that little notification bubble on their phone or desktop? And who among us can really claim membership…
The post 4 Email Productivity Tips, Tricks, and Hacks appeared first on Benchmarkemail.

submitted by /u/Kloudportal7 [link] [comments]