Long issue because we didn’t publish last week (blame it on St. Patrick’s Day ?). So here we go:
- Our DBE team members will be reaching out to our clients to talk about moving to GA4. This will be important because the current version of Google Analytics, Universal Analytics, will eventually be obsolete and GA4 needs to be turned on to start collecting data now so you can have historical data in GA4 when you need it. The hard shift is scheduled for July 2023, but we need to get things moving now. For an easy read on this change over, we like this short piece in Social Media Examiner by Chris Mercer. If you’re in the mood for more details, here’s the story straight from the horse’s mouth.
- Are you familiar with the IBM Institute for Business Value? They publish original research for the C-Suite, with much of the focus on trends that affect marketers. Best of all, the reports are FREE. Great insights available by sharing your basic deets. There’s a section on reports for marketing and sales executives so you can feel extra special searching there.
- We can’t help ourselves…this has nothing to do with digital marketing, but did you see the American Kennel Club released its list of 2021’s top dog breeds? Frenchies are on the “top 5” list, making me very happy (I don’t have a Frenchie but I live vicariously through their owners on Instagram). Here’s the full list.
- Reddit wants to grow its ad revenue. The brand’s solution? Releasing a Discover tab (like Facebook and Instagram) to keep users on the platform longer. The question is: Will marketers take the bait? More info in this summary from eMarketer.
- The book industry had an exceptional year in 2021. Why’s that you ask? TikTok! Technology has merged with the literary on #BookTok. This platform’s honesty and vitality seem to be just the thing to revive an industry some think is “declining.”
- We like this clever infographic for SEO strategies for new websites from Moz.
Do Good Spotlight on: Elizabeth’s Wish
Elizabeth’s Wish is a not-for-profit established by Elizabeth Hurst, her friends, and supporters to combat ovarian cancer (OC). They very much want you to check out the page making it easy to see the signs and symptoms of OC—which are often overlooked until it’s too late—so you can protect yourself and those you love.
This, right here: “Women reporting symptoms of OC to their health care providers are often dismissed as the presentation can mimic symptoms of other issues or even of physical changes due to peri-menopause or menopause.”
So please check out this page. We were so moved by Elizabeth and her mission that we donated to the cause. Please take a moment to visit the site to learn more. Thank you.
- eMarketer shares that TikTok is giving YouTube a run for its money and suggests now’s the time to start caring.
- Smart Insights offers their take on SMART (Specific, Measurable, Actionable, Relevant, Time-bound) goals in this post. They’ve added “ER” to the end of the acronym: SMART-ER (Evaluate, Reevaluate). It goes deeper than just defining SMART including the recommendation to integrate this approach for each phase of the RACE (Reach, Act, Convert, Engage) framework. Bonus: a list of 10 measures design tests (e.g., the clarity test that asks if there is any ambiguity in interpreting results) for fine tuning your KPIs.
- If you’re in the B2B space, do you know what a DMU is? It refers to the group of decision-makers you need to reach and influence, aka the Decision-Making Unit, within your target companies. The group vs. the individual is what differentiates B2B marketing from B2C and Search Engine Watch offers a strategic approach on “How to create B2B content that ranks and drives sales.” It all starts with an understanding of your target DMUs to discover the most relevant keywords to leverage in your content. If that sounds familiar, you know DBE’s engagements always start with Discovery and Audits…
- MarTech reports “Only 11% of CMOs say they have achieved digital transformation goals” with skill shortages (talent) being one of the major obstacles. This quick read ends on a somewhat existential note, asking whether digital transformation is the kind of journey that can be completed at all.
That’s it for this week. Thanks for reading, and please let us know if there’s anything we covered that you want to talk about. Stay well, stay strong, stay focused.
