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SEO Glossary of Terms: Decode the Search Engine Optimization Language

SEO /

Search engine optimization, more commonly known as SEO, has evolved rapidly, incorporating AI and complex algorithms. With updates constantly reshaping the landscape, it can be challenging for B2B marketers to keep up with SEO terminology. To help you stay informed and navigate its complexities, the expert team at Stifel Marcin has created a comprehensive SEO glossary of terms. Whether you are a seasoned pro or a beginner in SEO, we hope this resource becomes your go-to guide for understanding SEO vocabulary and concepts that power successful campaigns. SEO Terminology A-Z If you need to brush up on your SEO vocabulary, our SEO glossary of terms provides clear and concise definitions for common terms. If you have questions about search engine optimization, reach out to our team. With years of experience and a deep understanding of search engine algorithms, we can help you unlock the full potential of your online presence. A • Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP): AMP is a simplified form of HTML aimed at speeding up the browsing experience for mobile users.• AI Content Optimization (AIO): The process of tailoring your digital content to ensure it is accurately understood, indexed, and utilized by AI-powered platforms. • Algorithm: A complex set of rules used by search engines to rank websites in the search results.• Alt Text (Alternative Text): Descriptive text for images to help search engines understand the content of images.• Answer Engine Optimization (AEO): The process of optimizing your online content to provide clear and accurate answers to specific questions users ask in search engines.• Application Programming Interface (API): An API enables the development of applications by providing access to the functions or data of another service, such as an operating system or application.• Anchor Text: This refers to the clickable text used to link to other pages.• Artificial Intelligence: The simulation of human intelligence by machines. In SEO, AI analyzes data, predicts trends, and researches improving search engine algorithms and enhancing search results with no-click insights.• Auto-Generated Content: Content produced automatically by programs rather than written by humans. B • Backlink: A link from one website to another, which can improve a site’s authority and ranking.• Bing Webmaster Tools: A free service provided by Microsoft that assists in monitoring and troubleshooting your website’s visibility in Bing’s search results.• Black Hat: These are search engine optimization techniques that breach Google’s quality standards. Black hat techniques can result in your website being penalized.• Bots: Also called “crawlers” or “spiders,” these are programs that browse the Internet to locate content.• Bounce Rate: The percentage of visitors who leave a site after viewing only one page.• Breadcrumb Navigation: Internal links that provide users and search engines with a clear path to navigate through your website.• Broken Link: A hyperlink on a webpage that leads to a non-existent or “dead” resource, which can be either internal or external. This is sometimes indicated with a “404 Page Not Found” error message. C • Cached Page: A version of a webpage that Google saves on its servers during its most recent visit.• Canonical Tag: The (rel=”canonical”) HTML code snippet specifies the primary version of duplicate, near duplicate and similar pages.• Canonical URL:  The preferred URL for a page, used to avoid duplicate content issues.• Click-Through Rate (CTR): The ratio of users who click on a link to the number of total users who view a page or ad.• Content Management System (CMS): Software used to create and manage digital content.• Content Marketing: Creating valuable content to attract and retain an audience.• Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO): Improving the percentage of website visitors who complete a desired action.• Core Web Vitals: Metrics that are part of Google’s Page Experience signals, used to evaluate user experience.• Crawlability: The capability of a search engine to access content on a webpage.• Crawler: An internet program designed to systematically browse the internet, primarily used by search engines to discover, process, and index pages for search results.• Customer Journey: A detailed mapping of the steps a consumer takes from their initial awareness of a brand to purchasing a product or service, and their experiences thereafter. D • Dofollow Link: A link that passes on PageRank, often referred to as a “followed” link.• Domain Authority (DA): A metric developed by Moz that predicts how well a website will rank on search engines.• Duplicate Content: Content that appears in more than one place on the internet, which can harm SEO performance. E • E-A-T: Stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, factors used by Google to evaluate the quality of content.• Entry Page: The initial page a visitor lands on when they visit your website.• Evergreen Content: Content that remains relevant and does not become outdated.• External Link: A link from your website to a different website. F • Featured Snippet: A summary of an answer to a user’s query, which is displayed on top of Google’s search results.• Footer Link: Links that are placed in the footer section of a webpage. G • Google Analytics: A web-based service offered by Google that measures website traffic and performance based on an analysis of data and statistics.• Googlebot: Web crawler that drives Google’s search engine.• Google Business Profile: A free business listing provided by Google that appears in maps and web search results and allows a company to claim/create a profile, and update the profile with information including hours, links, and photos.• Google Consent Mode: A feature that allows websites to adjust how Google tags behave based on user consent. It enables websites to respect users’ privacy choices regarding cookies while still measuring key metrics and optimizing performance.• Google Search Console: A web service by Google which allows webmasters to check indexing status and optimize visibility of their websites. H • Heading Tags (H1-H6):  HTML tags used to define headings on a webpage.• Hreflang: An HTML attribute used to inform Google about different language and regional versions of a webpage.• HTTPS: A secure version of HTTP that encrypts communications between your browser and the server, working

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TikTok Marketing Strategy: Do You Need It For Your Business?

Social & Video, Websites /

With more than 1.2 billion daily users, TikTok has become a social media phenomenon. Self-described as the leading destination for “short-form mobile video,” a significant 47 percent of its users are under 30 (with nearly 25 percent under the age of 20). Its popularity is prompting companies to ask if they should position their brands with this audience. Unlike other social platforms, TikTok’s algorithm rewards its content first (instead of building a follower base and having only a fraction served your content). Since you do not need to have followers for your content to be seen, this gives brands a big opportunity to get their “tiktoks” in front of their target audience. If you are looking for a way to increase brand awareness and engagement, while also building a loyal following within a young audience segment, TikTok might be right for your brand. But like any social platform, it is critical to have the right knowledge and right strategy in place. Is TikTok Right for B2B Marketing? The truth is, there is no definitive “yes or no” answer to this question. Just like any social platform, it is critical to have the right knowledge and strategy in place. Organizations and marketers should be asking key questions regarding goals and objectives they wish to achieve, and develop a marketing strategy to support them. Here are some things to consider: • Who is your target audience? Do you see potential overlap with the TikTok demographics? • Authenticity and creativity lead the way on TikTok, versus scripted or polished video content. Is your brand comfortable thinking “outside your current creative box?” Videos on TikTok are meant to be entertaining, engaging and personal. Do you/your marketing team have the bandwidth to create such content? • People rule over brands, meaning individuals producing content tend to be more popular than actual brand accounts. Many companies are finding success with TikTok by partnering with influencers or participating in hashtag challenges. • Do you have a brand standard or persona? Brands who lean more “traditional” or employ a more serious tone of voice may have more of a challenge embracing TikTok’s quirkier content. • The TikTok algorithm rewards those posting multiple times a day. This can be a challenge for many brands who may already be struggling to create relevant content just 1-3 times weekly. • Look at your current content on your other social channels. What is resonating with your audience? Do you have a blog? You may be in a good position to creatively repurpose that content into “snackable,” entertaining bits for TikTok. Think short and sweet, videos less than 60 seconds are favored. Advertising on TikTok TikTok provides five options for advertising, including sponsoring a branded hashtag challenge and in-feed video ads. Within their ad manager (you must register and create an account), you can select audience targets or create custom audiences. Advertising costs on TikTok typically start at around $10 per CPM (cost per 1,000 impressions), with a minimum campaign spend of $500. High-impact format ads like TopView ads can be significantly more expensive, with costs varying depending on targeting, format, duration and competition. We recommend you check with TikTok for current pricing on premium ad formats. You will recall that the majority of TikTok users are Millennials and Generation Z, so consider this before investing if your demographics do not align. The Long and Short of It It is important to note that just because a social media platform is popular, it does not necessarily mean it is right for your business. For manufacturing and tech companies, many of which have limited marketing resources, platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter may make more sense. Remember that social media requires strategy and commitment to quality content. If you have limited bandwidth, choose a platform or two to start, and serve those audiences first. TikTok is likely here to stay, which means you can watch, learn, and research if the platform is right for your organization. Power Up Your Social Strategy If you’re looking for a B2B marketing agency partner who can help you with your TikTok marketing strategy and/or social media strategy, contact us today. Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. Learn more about our social media marketing services and let’s talk.

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Trade Shows in B2B Marketing: Marketing Beyond the Show Floor

ABM, Lead Gen Tactics /

In recent years, some B2B companies have found it harder to justify the high cost of attending multiple tradeshows. However, live contact with prospects and customers––outside of the standard sales call––is still a valuable marketing tool. At Stifel Marcin, we regularly work with B2B companies on the marketing strategy for trade shows. We can help to evaluate your show program, as well as assist in taking your face-to-face marketing beyond the trade show to build rapport and value with your audience. Trade Show Value in the B2B Marketing Mix Is the role of trade shows within the B2B marketing mix on the decline? The answer remains nuanced with data ranging by industry. Recent data shows a strong resurgence in sectors like technology, healthcare, and entertainment, while industries such as heavy manufacturing and construction continue to see lower attendance compared to pre-pandemic levels. Real-time feedback from marketing managers in manufacturing and industrial sectors indicates that many B2B companies are reassessing their trade show strategies, weighing increasing costs and mixed lead quality against potential networking benefits. While some events are experiencing growth, the increasing scrutiny of ROI and evolving digital marketing alternatives are influencing how businesses allocate their marketing resources. Let’s face it; exhibiting at a trade show is a hefty investment. Costs include booth space, your exhibit and graphics, freight and drayage, on-site labor, utilities and services, travel, lodging, meals, entertainment, and the time commitment of vital staff. With this range of expenses, even a small regional show can cost a company tens of thousands of dollars and weeks of valuable time. And while in-person customer face time is essential, if enough leads aren’t being generated by show participation, the high costs and resource commitments are hard to justify. So, what are B2B industrial marketers to do? Here are some tips and tactics from our trade show agency experts. Analyze Carefully and Choose Wisely The first step is to analyze your trade show performance in detail. Some questions to ask are: What were the overall costs and their breakdown? Did we get quality leads? Can we follow-up quickly and effectively? How many of the leads proved convertible into actual sales? And what was the cost per lead? Plus, trade show exhibitions are also valuable for brand awareness, so consider if overall show attendance and traffic generated enough brand exposure. Use in-depth analysis to edit your tradeshow schedule. Select shows with high-quality leads, optimum cost per lead, and high brand engagement. Depending on your industry, company size, market share, and business goals, this may result in attending just one or two critical shows per year. Finally, analyze your exhibit and staffing requirements. Are there ways to maximize branding and audience impact, while reducing costs and resources required? Consider things such as: All of these factors can help you reduce costs at the tradeshows you have selected to attend as an exhibitor. Host Your Own Events So, you have analyzed your trade show schedule and have determined that you will exhibit at one major market show this year––a show that is still putting up good attendance figures and generating a high volume of good quality leads. Now you have a challenge. Your sales managers are concerned that cutting four regional shows from the schedule will reduce opportunities to get in front of your customers on a personal level, and they are right. One option? Host your own events. Building a program of customized events around select, high-quality target audiences can be very effective. Hosting customized company events such as lunch and learn sessions, customer-specific product launches and demonstrations (by invitation), specialized training classes, panel discussions, and industry seminars give you critical face time with customers and prospects while demonstrating your organization as a “thought leader.” Plus, hosting your own event gives you greater ability to control costs, resources, locations, and logistics. Most importantly, hosting also gives you greater control of attendance and lead quality––you’ll be personally marketing to and inviting the customers and prospects you want to see. Take Your Show on the Road A second option for replacing tradeshows is to take your custom presentation direct to the customer’s site. For example, companies are reporting great success with events such as “vendor days.” This is an event where a customer will provide space on site and host several vendors for the day, giving each vendor time for a brief presentation of their products and services. This type of cooperative event is a win-win for both host and invited suppliers concerning staffing, costs, and efficiency: the host company benefits by introducing their employees to key suppliers and new technologies, and the supplier team benefits from a day in front of key decision makers at every level. Plus, neither company must send large numbers of staff to a tradeshow for three days, at considerable cost, while critical work backs up at home. Our trade show marketing experts can help you develop the right tools to help you achieve your goals. Communicate and Promote for Success What if I hold an event and no one comes? Don’t let this happen! “If you build it, they will come” does not work in business or marketing. You have to tell your audience about your event and what benefits it will provide. And you have to tell them consistently, frequently, and in a variety of ways. While one can argue that the Internet and today’s digital marketing are factors in the decline of tradeshow participation and attendance, digital communications are wonderful for promoting events too. Online newsletters, email blasts, and social media are proven, practical ways to get the word out to your audience. What’s more, integrating digital media with traditional direct marketing, such as a personal letter or postcard campaign, can increase the reach and response to your event promotions. Finally, in developing the event itself, make sure it is well supported by knowledgeable staff, brand graphics, presentation materials and multimedia, and hospitality items. While these components do add costs, they will improve the audience’s experience

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The Importance of SEO for B2B

SEO /

The hallmark of a great website is an optimal user experience (UX)  – with an architecture that is understandable, easily navigated, and allows users to quickly find the right products and information to support their research, review or purchasing decision. Properly planning, implementing and maintaining a B2B search engine optimization strategy will position your business prominently in the marketplace, and in the search results. The importance of SEO for B2B businesses is evident when considering some recent statistics: • 89% of B2B researchers gather information about potential purchases online • 53% of website traffic is from organic search (vs paid advertising) • 42% of B2B purchasers use a mobile device during their search • Less than 1% of searchers click beyond page one page of Google results • The average B2B buyer conducts 12 different online searches before interacting with a B2B website• Well-executed long tail keyword strategy can improve click-throughs by 3-6% When Done Right, SEO is a Win-Win for Both User and Business  At its core, excellent SEO practices: • Allows users to find your business more easily with higher search engine results page (SERP) rankings.  • Ensures your website offers content that helps solve the problem they’re searching about  • Creates positive brand visibility  • Ensures your website renders properly on different devices and browsers • Provides key data people are seeking • Improves the user experience SEO Maintenance is a Must Do  Search engine optimization takes ongoing maintenance and monitoring to be sure you are listing where you want, and don’t fall in the rankings. Even if you achieve that coveted first-place ranking, take the steps to ensure both your site code and content are updated regularly, and take stock of your keyword performance to gauge how your rankings compare to your competitors. Just because your site is at the top today, doesn’t mean your competitors aren’t actively working to grab that position from you. We Understand the Importance of SEO for B2B Businesses  Exceptional search engine optimization and maintenance is crucial in this digital age. Whether you are building a new site or need ongoing B2B SEO services to improve an existing build, our team of experts is here to help. As a Google Partner agency, we have the resources to measure, monitor, and improve your page experience and search engine rankings. Reach out via the form on this page or contact us via phone or email and let’s talk. Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. When you need B2B SEO experts, look no further than Stifel Marcin. Let’s get started.

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B2B Marketing Agency Services: 5 Reasons to Outsource

Lead Gen Tactics, Marketing Campaigns /

The time may come when you consider outsourcing specific marketing needs to an experienced agency. As advertising and marketing become more complex, utilizing B2B marketing agency services, and establishing a relationship with trusted experts, can reap many benefits for your organization. With the rise of digital marketing, the growing sophistication of inbound and outbound content creation, and the complexity of budget planning and shifting increasing, knowing you have the support of expert B2B marketing agency services can help you plan for success. If you’re working to gain internal support to retain B2B marketing agency services, here are a few benefits you can share with your team: 1. Working with Experienced Marketers   Your organization’s team members may not have the unique resources needed to fully execute various parts of a marketing strategy. When you employ B2B marketing agency services with a firm like Stifel Marcin, you collaborate with experienced specialists. Keeping up with changing digital trends and requirements, and complex search engine and social media algorithms is really a full-time job. Every day our team is researching changes, remaining current on the trends, tools and issues impacting marketing today. Our integrated and multi-disciplined team collaborates to help you develop goals, KPIs, and optimize budgets, determining the best marketing strategy that is unique to your business. 2. Reducing Your Team’s Workload We often hear from clients about the difficulties in keeping up with changing technologies, or not having enough time or resources to execute on-going tasks like content development or social media marketing. Investing in B2B marketing agency services lets your team focus on the tasks they do best and collaborate more effectively and efficiently with their internal teams, ultimately saving time and money. At Stifel Marcin, we see ourselves as an extension of your team, with a flexible structure that allows us to function like an in-house marketing department, while providing the expertise of a full-service B2B marketing agency. 3. Accessing Better Marketing Technology Modern marketing relies on many digital tools and software such as analytics tools, creative software and research platforms. For digital marketing strategies like SEO and paid advertising, they are essential. These tools can be very expensive and knowing how to leverage the detailed and specific features means we can evaluate data, set up tracking metrics, identify changes, anticipate trends and more with expertise and a strategic finesse. Working with an experienced agency like Stifel Marcin will ensure you are benefitting from the best technology services and tools to generate leads, sales and returns. 4. Discovering a Unique Point-of-View While you know your products and services best, engaging B2B marketing agency services can provide fresh perspective on your marketing goals, current approaches, and future needs. Your ideal agency partner will work to understand your business and your audience(s) thoroughly, evaluate the competitive marketing environment and collaborate with you to develop strategies promoting your unique benefits that help your company stand out in a crowd. Every day at Stifel Marcin, we work with technical content and complex concepts, creating engaging messaging and visuals that create attention and inspire the right customers to act. With more than two decades of experience, we know that fresh eyes on your brand and a cooperative partnership can take your marketing results to the next level. 5. Optimizing Budgets When you leverage the benefits of an integrated agency, you can review tactics, spend and ROI across the full channel of marketing opportunities. Some organizations opt to hire companies they feel are “specialized” in one area or another (perhaps a digital company, a PR company, etc.). This, however, can sometimes have the opposite effect. Instead of one collective evaluation of tactics from your single B2B marketing agency partner, you can find conflicting opinions, differing tracking methodologies and even recommendations made based on one agency’s personal interests. Additionally, as subject matter experts across a wide variety of marketing applications, when you utilize the B2B marketing agency services like we offer at Stifel Marcin, you benefit from expertise on how to optimize spend on every channel. We understand how to best plan media buys, bidding strategies and negotiate with third parties to achieve the best results. It’s in our best interest to make the biggest impact, ensuring we can make your brand as visible as possible. B2B Marketing Agency Services That Power Results If your agency is considering outsourcing some or all of your marketing needs, we can help. Check out our tips on how to outsource B2B marketing services and then contact us. Together, we can help determine what services may be right for you. Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. If you have questions about outsourcing your marketing to maximize returns, let’s talk.

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A Marketing Guide: Creating a Website Privacy Policy Checklist for Your Business

Website Development, Websites /

In today’s digital age, where data is the backbone of business operations, online privacy has emerged as a critical concern. With an ever-growing emphasis on data protection and compliance, businesses must prioritize safeguarding user information to maintain trust and mitigate risks. This holds true for B2B enterprises, where sensitive data exchange is common. The stakes are high when it comes to privacy for B2B businesses. Breaches can lead to significant financial loss, reputational damage, certification compliance issues, and legal repercussions. Customers and business partners expect their data to be handled with extreme care, and negligence in privacy measures can have far-reaching consequences. As the digital landscape continues to evolve, businesses must proactively address customer and visitor privacy to stay ahead of the curve and protect their interests. Our digital experts have developed a website privacy policy checklist that serves as a practical guide for marketers, helping businesses navigate the complexities of data protection, compliance and user trust. Of course, your marketing team should also be in direct communication with your legal team, to ensure accuracy and compliance to your business operations and locations. Check out our tips below and contact our team who is ready to help with your B2B marketing needs and questions. Website Privacy Policy Checklist – Five Steps Whether you are an established business or an emerging start-up, this website privacy policy checklist can help minimize the risks associated with mishandling data, and is a great starting point to help make your online activities compliant with legal requirements. 1. Conduct a Privacy Audit A privacy audit involves an assessment of your website’s data collection, storage, processing, and security practices. It helps you understand what personal information you collect, how it is collected and how it is used and shared. A thorough audit will also detail your current privacy policies, cookie usage, third-party integrations, and security measures. Our digital marketing experts can support this assessment and provide proactive insights and recommendations that can help you mitigate risks. 2. Develop or Review Privacy Policies Privacy policies serve as a written statement that outlines how a business collects, uses, stores and shares user data. Privacy notices are concise notifications that inform users about specific data collection activities, such as the use of cookies or third party tracking. Both play a vital role in establishing transparency and trust with website visitors. But crafting clear and legally compliant privacy policies and notices can be a complex task, especially for B2B businesses that may have unique data processing requirements. Your management, website team, and legal department should work collaboratively on developing a comprehensive privacy policy, which often includes: • Data collection – a statement to clearly explain what types of personal information are collected from website visitors, such as names, email addresses or browsing behavior• Purpose of data collection – an explanation of the purposes for which the collected data will be used, whether it’s for order fulfillment, communication, personalization or analytics• Data sharing – disclose whether or with whom the collected data will be shared, such as third-party service providers, business partners or affiliates• User rights – outline the rights of users regarding their personal information, including the right to access, correct, delete or restrict the processing of their data• Opt out processes – explain to users the correct process to follow to request their information be removed from business databases and tracking as applicable to your site• Security – describe the measures in place to protect user data from unauthorized access, discourse, alteration or destruction A B2B marketing agency like Stifel Marcin can provide expertise in your website structure, development and processes, working with your legal team to assist in navigating privacy regulations. 3. Cookie Management and Consent Your website privacy policy checklist should include documentation of your cookie tracking and management practices. Cookies are small text files that are stored on a user’s device to track their online activities. It is important to manage cookies responsibly because they can collect sensitive information and impact user privacy. In many cases, the best approach is to obtain informed and explicit consent through the use of a third-party cookies function control or custom solution, triggering a pop-up message on a user’s site entrance. Regardless of your approach, businesses should demonstrate respect for user choices and their right to control personal data. When implementing cookie consent notices/banners, again, transparency is key. Clearly communicate to users what types of cookies are being used, their purpose and how the collected data will be used. Providing consent options allows users to choose which types of cookies they want to accept, giving them control of their privacy preferences. It is also important to maintain a record of user preferences, as this ensures compliance and allows users to easily manage and modify their consent settings. You can read more about cookies in our article. Stifel Marcin can assist in designing and developing user-friendly consent banners or installing cookie-related plug-ins that align with best practices, working with your team to establish processes for recording and managing user preferences. By leveraging our digital marketing knowledge and experience, you can understand the complexities of cookie management and consent effectively, maintaining user trust and meeting privacy obligations. 4. Implementing Data Protection Measures Customer data is valuable and businesses have a responsibility to protect it. Implementing data protection measures involve a combination of technical, organizational and procedural safeguards to ensure confidentiality, integrity and availability of customer data, including: • Security of data storage – employing secure servers or cloud platforms with strong authentication mechanisms and encryption protocols can help prevent unauthorized access to sensitive data. Encryption protects data both at rest and in transit, ensuring that if it is intercepted, it remains unintelligible to unauthorized parties. • Access controls – businesses can restrict data access to authorized personnel only, minimizing the risk of internal data breaches. Strong authentication measures, like multi-factor authentication, add layers of security to restrict access to authorized individuals. • Data backups – by implementing automated and regular backup processes, businesses can retrieve information in the event of a data loss or a security incident, minimizing downtime and data loss. • Plug-in updates – plug-ins, an extension of features and functionality added to

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Why Google for Search Engine Optimization

SEO /

Below is the major U.S. search engine market share break-down.* Search Engine Optimization for Google The first time we meet with a new client about website SEO, we often get asked why we talk about Google so much. First, we reference the numbers and usage statistics. Then we say, “Well, what do you search for.” We can probably count on one hand the number of times the response hasn’t been Google over the past two decades. Search Engine Algorithms While Google is the biggest, it’s not all that different from Bing or Yahoo. The three major U.S. search engines use very similar algorithms to determine rankings. There might be a slight difference in rankings, but at the end of the day, it’s pretty close. Since Google is the most-used, we focus and monitor the largest resource of traffic. Also, many people don’t know that Bing and Yahoo are owned by Microsoft, and operate with very similar parameters. Work Toward First on Google Want to ensure your company is ranking first in Google? Give us a call or complete the form on this page and someone from our team will be in touch! *Source: StatCounter.com Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. If you’re looking to invest in SEO services to help increase your web traffic, we can help. Contact us today.

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Just Say No: Why Your Business Should Not Buy Social Media Likes or Followers

Lead Gen Tactics, Social & Video /

If you’re on social media, you’ve likely seen comments in posts or ads in your feed touting the benefits of buying likes or followers on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and other platforms. “Grow your following instantly!” “Get 1,000 real followers affordably!” As the old saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. And this is no exception. While the lure of a higher follower count with the click of a mouse can be tempting, we’re here with six reasons why your business should not buy social media likes or followers: 1. Your Engagement Rate Will Suffer At the end of the day, it’s not your follower count that matters most. Rather it’s the quality of engagement with your followers that’s critical. If you purchase followers, yes, your follower number will rise, but the vast majority will be fake or bot accounts. Social media is meant to be a two-way street. Genuine engagement helps your business determine what your potential and current customers need and want, what their interests are, and how you can be of service. Lots of followers but little engagement skews your data. And if your data isn’t reliable, how can you tell what your real followers are doing or what they need? Fake accounts will not interact authentically with your brand. They will not share posts with their networks, they won’t leave meaningful comments on your feed for you to respond too. Offline they won’t be telling friends or family about your brand because they are in fact fake. There are services that offer to connect you with real followers. But what good is “real” follower if they have no interest in your brand and its offerings? They still won’t engage with your posts, which means your overall engagement rate lowers and your posts risk not showing up on newsfeeds or in discovery feeds to the people you really do want to reach. The takeaway: lots of followers but no interactions can mean the platform algorithm will actually penalize your future content, limiting organic reach. 2. It Lowers Credibility Social media users today are savvy and want to know they are interacting with a business who has their best interests in mind. Many followers are quick to notice an account with thousands of followers but little to no engagement on posts (or lots of spam…more on that below). Organic growth happens because of trust, credibility and a belief that your content is valuable. If followers can tell you buy social media likes and follows, your once loyal followers may jump ship for another brand’s social accounts. 3. Your Account Could Be Banned All social media platforms have terms of service agreements, and as a business/user, you agreed to those terms when you set up your account(s). If you buy social media likes and followers, you are likely in violation of their community rules. Facebook, Instagram and others are cracking down on fake accounts. According to Statista, Facebook took action against 1.7 billion fake accounts (yes, read that again…1.7 billion fake accounts in one quarter alone). If they feel your site has broken its rules, real consequences, like your account being suspended or even banned, can occur. It’s simply not worth the risk. 4. No One Likes Spam We’ve all seen the spam comments that flood social posts, leading to a very irritating scroll if you’re genuinely interested in the real comments. In many cases, these are bot comments from fake accounts. If your actual followers continually see nothing but a bunch of statements like “The first five people to message me wins $5,000!” or “I’m paying $100 to the first 10 people to DM me,” you may just lose them. If you buy social media likes or followers, be prepared for the spam that comes with it. 5. Think about Account Safety This is an important consideration that should not be overlooked. When you buy social media likes or followers, you have no idea who is behind the actual accounts or their intentions, leaving your social media handles open to hacking or viruses. Having an account hacked is the nightmare that keeps any social media manager awake at night. It can take weeks, even months, to reclaim an account and in the meantime, your real followers might be seeing fake content with your brand name and image or perhaps nothing at all, as your account may just go dark. 6. It’s a Waste of Marketing Dollars While follower services will promise big returns for very little money, in the end it’s a waste of money if those new “followers” bring no value to your community. There are far better ways to earmark your marketing budget for social media, such as targeted paid ads, strategic content marketing and more, that will pay dividends in engagement, brand loyalty and yes, organic growth. When you work with a social media marketing agency like Stifel Marcin, you can leverage the full capabilities of different platforms to connect with customers, growing your influence and your sales. Grow Your Following the Right Way Organic growth takes time. And that’s okay! It’s better to have 500 truly interested and engaged followers than 50,000 who don’t care about your business and its products/services at all. Don’t focus just on vanity metrics. Instead of buying followers, think first about how you can provide value to your potential audience. What solutions can you offer to help solve their problems? Engage and then engage again. Check out our posts about B2B social media best practices and 4 tips to leverage social media to increase your sales pipeline and brand loyalty for more ideas about how to grow your social media presence. Connect with Customers As a B2B social media marketing agency, we’ll work with you to develop comprehensive social media plans that tell your unique story, offering value to your customers and growing loyal brand followers. Contact us and see how we can power up your social media strategy. Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that

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Creating a Recruitment Marketing Strategy to Build Your Workforce

Recruitment Marketing /

Today, talent acquisition managers need to do far more than post a job online to fill positions with the right candidates. At a time when 90% of professionals are open to new job opportunities, recruitment marketing is an effective way for companies to tap into a market of new professionals, as well as retain the employees they have. A Brand Story That Engages Your Audience Candidate expectations have changed and hiring teams have been working to adapt, cutting through the digital noise to reach and engage with great talent. The new generation of employees is technologically savvy, and typically performs extensive research to find the right company that holistically fills all their goals – financial and personal. Additionally, keeping your existing workforce is absolutely critical. A strategic marketing campaign can showcase your company’s culture and purpose, engaging with your employees on an emotional level, while highlighting opportunities for them to achieve financial goals. A well-crafted recruitment marketing strategy and campaign reassures your workforce that they are putting their energy into the right role, and that their employer is aligned with their personal vision. 5 Benefits of Recruitment Marketing According to research conducted Aptitude Research Partners, 70% of companies are planning to invest in recruitment marketing technology within the year. Now more than ever, companies are realizing they must develop and effectively communicate their brand positions to foster a culture of engagement, equality and opportunity that fuels the mind and soul. Today’s talent wants to become a part of your company story. Here are five key benefits that recruitment marketing campaigns can provide for your organization. 1. Strengthens Brand Alignment – Candidates do not apply to a company, they apply to a culture. They are looking to engage and grow in an environment that has values, opportunities, and in which their work has purpose. Across all disciplines, recruitment marketing can share your company’s story with potential candidates and existing employees. It reaffirms the value your products and services bring to others and aligns teams in a greater good that affects the world. All companies have a purpose, sometimes it just takes a well-crafted communications strategy to bring that story to life and empower a brand. 2. Hiring Efficiency – An on-going talent marketing campaign constantly engages with a talent pool. It promotes your brand positions and has assets (digital and physical) that provide a better candidate experience. Showing people that your brand is aligned with their values, and has the opportunities they are interested in, is critical for a labor pool which is open to change. In today’s fiercely competitive labor market – with many companies pursuing the same workforce pool – getting your brand positions out there is key. When you are ready to hire, your marketing campaign has already laid the groundwork, preparing a pipeline of interested potential candidates who are primed to join your company when they see that job post come online. 3. Reduces Hiring Costs – Beyond traditional job boards and paid recruitment services, a strategic marketing campaign can manage your budget. With strategic digital placements and careful planning, a marketing campaign can pinpoint your target audience and provide measurable results – increasing your reach in key target skills, industries and geographies for a controlled cost. Digital campaigns also can be continually improved, optimize your campaign messaging, media buys and spend. Much like account-based lead-gen marketing campaigns that acquire sales prospects, smart recruitment marketing goes after your ideal candidates and motivates them to connect. 4. Improves Team Diversity – It’s no secret that diverse teams are proven to be more effective. Recruitment marketing allows you to develop and target personas that build needed skill sets and diversify your team. Strategically-deployed digital campaigns remove some of the human factors that can lead to teams that all look alike, with messaging and positions that demonstrate that your brand values diversity and inclusion. Additionally, they can help combat existing perceptions, reshaping your brand and preparing it for tomorrow. 5. Builds Employee Engagement & Reduces Turnover – Teams thrive and succeed when an organization is aligned in purpose and every single employee feels important in the company story. Consider that the cost to replace an employee can be as much as 1.5x their annual salary. Recruitment marketing minimizes culture disconnect, which often contributes to turnover. Reminding employees how their work affects the world, and how the company values its team, can have long-lasting effects that vastly improve the employee experience and the bottom line. Effective recruitment and engagement strategies leverage the power of marketing to help communicate key brand positions. Empowering your workforce as you show the value their work brings to the world and connecting with their hearts and minds is critical. Investing in employee engagement, promoting your company’s opportunities, and championing your culture and purpose-driven work can have significant impact. High-value top talent will not settle until they find the right fit, so be sure you are using every tool at your disposal to connect with them. A Trusted Partner in Recruitment Marketing For two decades we’ve helped B2B companies grow their sales and workforce. Learn more about our recruitment marketing expertise or contact us for a non-obligation consultation regarding your workforce communications. Stifel Marcin – The B2B Marketing Agency Unlike many advertising and marketing agencies, B2B isn’t just something that we do, it’s all we do. We’ll work to help your brand achieve its goals through the strategic combination of creativity, communication and technology. Our focused client intake processes give us the ability to thoroughly understand your business, products and objectives, working to identify the competitive advantages and opportunities that will grow awareness, leads and sales. We develop innovative marketing plans with strategic, data-driven processes, presenting complex ideas and compelling messages that position your business ahead of the competition. As your cooperative partner, our integrated B2B marketing agency is dedicated to your success. If you have questions about your recruitment marketing strategy, we want to talk. Reach out today and a member of our team will be in touch shortly.

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Digital Branding Agency Tips: Protecting Your Brand in the Wild Web World (WWW)

Corporate Branding, SEM /

Digital marketing offers new opportunities to expand your customer base and grow your sales in new markets. With Big Data, properly constructed digital marketing campaigns leverage interest and profile information to target a highly-specific group of customers. But that exposure requires diligence. If you (or your digital marketing agency partner) aren’t controlling where your ads are served and what is being said – your brand may be at risk. While some might argue that conversion and engagement performance is the most important aspect of digital marketing management, there is a strong case to be made that brand safety is equally important. Marketers spend years building a brand. Sweat equity goes into a company’s messaging, associations and positions – which can be erased in an instant. Where are the Risks in Digital Marketing? Just as digital marketing opportunities exist virtually everywhere there is a screen – so are risks. When your ad is served alongside, or within, controversial content, there is a distinct possibility that a negative perception of your brand can occur. From violent content to politics to opinion-based articles, marketers need to carefully vet their ad placement strategies and protect the brands in their care. In the past, you may have heard of this on YouTube®, where brand-related videos ran before/after controversial content. The brand association created significant negative reaction and commentary. While YouTube has made improvements, this platform is just the tip of the iceberg. CTV – connected television – for example, is often a low-cost way to serve video content (ie. commercial ads). But controls and settings on this platform present issues. Consider the amount of televised content that is truly PG-rated, and also focused on adults. Then strip out anything with controversial information, and your options become even more limited. CTV does offer opportunities, but in this visual platform, it is critical that your marketing partner is hands-on and focused on the details when planning any CTV campaign. When your ad is served with controversial content, a negative perception of your brand can occur. Similarly, with Native and Google Network ads, display advertising can run alongside controversial content without careful planning. From a brand-focused banner ad to positions that seem out-of-place within pop-culture news, a careful eye and a critical focus on the details is necessary. While many marketers are focused on social platforms – which create opportunities for almost limitless commentary, it also needs oversight – the digital strategy deployed on social media is a critical step in protecting your brand. Keep in mind, controversies aren’t simply related to content that isn’t PG-rated. Think about political topics, geo-political issues, and more. If you are working for a multinational company (or perhaps want to sell to one), you need to be careful your ads aren’t running in an article that might be pro-independence or anti-independence, as you run the risk that the reader may think your company is supporting – or even sponsoring – that article’s position. Digital Brand Management That Protects Your Brand Our digital branding agency team is highly involved in digital brand management and the monitoring of our clients’ digital campaigns. Every day we review where ads can be served, where impressions are coming from, and any potential negative associations. We have compiled some steps you can use to protect your brand on digital marketing platforms. Steps to Ensure Brand Safety in Your Digital Marketing Campaigns 1. Define Expectations & Brand Standards– As the very first step in any digital marketing campaign, clearly defined standards should be developed. Spell-out what is ok and what is not ok so the digital team has a reference to build from. This is part of the brand standard guides our digital branding agency creates for our clients. Defining the social aspects (like if it’s ok to show someone with a glass of wine on your Facebook feed) as well as the corporate requirements (you are not registered to perform a service in one state, so no ads should run in that state) should be clearly laid out. 2. Think About Ad Content- It sounds simple, but, being thoughtful of what your advertising is saying is a critical step. Today consumers are vocal and engaged, and brands are regularly called-out for statements and positions that some find offensive. In marketing, we are used to these concerns, but with the fast-paced nature and easy public dialogue that digital platforms support, it’s up to us marketers to be as vigilant as ever. Every aspect of work should be reviewed. Can it be read differently? Interpreted to mean something else? Can it even be read wrong in digital platforms where less than 20% of words are typically read, and therefore create a problem? 3. Select the Correct Marketing Partner- A skilled marketer should know what to look for and what to consider before deploying any ad content. Check and recheck, and then get another opinion. On social, don’t leave the post content up to someone who isn’t strategically savvy, and mindful of corporate concerns. Controlling your content is the easiest way to protect your brand. 4. Control the Settings- Digital marketing platforms offer a wide variety of targeting options. Carefully locking in where ads are served, and what content they could appear near, is critical. This is more complex than it sounds, and a good digital marketing team needs to be strategic here – and make connections. For example, if there is a geo-political concern as described above, the team should be reviewing all the ad options in that region and be careful of the platforms they are running ads in. 5. Think About Potential Problems- If there is a potential that your digital reach might put your ads in front of someone who, while their profiling is exactly aligned with your target, would react poorly to your ad content – then it’s time to readjust. As strange as that sounds (with our ability to specifically target groups) it can happen. For example, what if your company provides components for products that use an aerosol delivery system. We could target a specific B2B profile, who – outside of our defined profile – is also passionate about environmental

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