As summer officially approaches we take a look at what’s hot this week in digital marketing and what’s especially relevant to B2B. Google will make ranking changes to its mobile versions of Google Search, so Dan Pacifico advises we keep investing in mobile-ready websites and mobile SEO. Big Data analytics can improve B2B leads through a social scoring process, which Leanne Terpak thinks can also help us better understand and target audiences and lead to faster, better marketing decisions. Andy DeBrunner gives us the line on Line, the world’s fastest-growing social network – one that seems poised for a major presence in Asia with implications for B2B. Relevant content presented quickly and easily tops the list of essentials of a great web site, says Jenn Vitello, who offers more insights in her content blog. Speaking of essentials, Andy Hunt adds perspective for all who are implementing marketing automation systems or actively using them now: don’t be afraid to make hard choices between what’s really necessary and what’s just an option. Read on. And find us again right here next week. 

This week we discover the source of missing mobile data from Google Analytics, uncover a dozen ways to make social media data more actionable and welcome YouTube’s new “One Channel” design. We have tips on how B2B marketers can curate content – as we do here – as part of an effective lead nurturing program. And noteworthy in many markets: AT&T and the iPhone will step in with Push-To-Talk services as Sprint shuts down the previous PTT darling, the Nextel network. Read on for details, and post a comment to let us know what you’d like to see more of or less of in the weeks ahead.

Penguin 2.0, a.k.a. “Penguin 4,” is the latest Google search algorithm update we now must consider. It appears that a keen focus on content, a hallmark of best B2B practice, rather than heavy reliance on external links satisfies this bird. Web analytics and the massive amount of data it can produce can be overwhelming. A savvy B2B marketer gets focused and avoids the irrelevant – below are some remarkable analytics guides to help. Vine, which we blogged about last week, is now available for Android devices, dramatically expanding its potential user base; keep considering the B2B possibilities of very short-form video integrated with Twitter and let us know what you think. Jenn Vitello notices that even B2B publishers, the kings of content, are optimizing for mobile. Maybe you should, too? Rounding things up this week, our director of marketing technology considers what makes a site highly interactive, engaging and easy to share – often qualities we want in B2B digital experience. 

At last week’s BMA Annual Conference in Chicago a large majority of the speakers addressed true customer insight as an important part of a successful marketing organization. Even going so far as saying that not getting customer insights is irresponsible.

This week we highlight the “conversational search” capability unveiled by Google as Dan Pacifico starts to ponder the changes ahead for B2B marketers with natural language processing applied to search. We knew mobile was claiming more traffic:  how about more than one-fifth of all content visits? Other stats from Uberflip document the rise of shareable content and the importance of video. Speaking of video, Andy DeBrunner looks at the B2B potential of Vine, Twitter’s 6-second video service -- talk about tightly crafting your message! Helping us simplify things this week is a primer on the four keys to success in marketing analytics. We wrap things up with a reminder that users – often accessing mobile devices in the field, or in less than ideal settings – deserve our consideration as we design and deliver the content they need. Enjoy.

Welcome, or welcome back as the case may be, to The B2B Weekly Roundup, where we offer our take on some of the key developments affecting B2B marketing in bite-size form. Google’s I/O conference gave us all a glimpse into the firm’s integration plans; Godfrey’s Andy Hunt assesses the impact on B2B.  Separately, we note the opportunity to highlight your company’s deep expertise via web content for improved search results. Leanne Terpak poses a few key questions for marketers on the use of Big Data and suggests the most important thing is to turn insights gleaned into useful actions.  We share the inspiring story of a 17-year-old girl who won a Twitter hackathon as an example of the creativity that awaits B2B marketers in the social media space.  And finally, in case you missed BtoB Magazine’s Media Power 50 report, it’s worth a look; after The Wall Street Journal and WSJ.com, Google and LinkedIn occupy the #2 and #3 positions in the B2B media landscape.  No further comment on that one here, for now.  Enjoy and let us know how we’re doing.

As a B2B marketing pro, you have a lot to keep up with. We’re right there with you. Now we’re right here with you, too, offering our take on some of the week’s most interesting news and powerful insights in the world of business-to-business marketing and communications. As we work out the schedule and topics I hope you’ll leave comments to let us know how to improve. Out of the gate, we’re committed to covering Search, Analytics, Social Media and Content Marketing and providing an anchor Digital Trend Watch. We know you’re busy. We hope this helps by giving you a quick handle on the relevant trends. Your feedback will help us do that better. Thanks, and welcome.

There’s a lot to learn from the construction industry – one so vital to our economy and yet so vulnerable to economic cycles. So here’s the question of the month: How do we plan when the future is murky at best?

Art galleries and movie theaters might help you stir a few B2B marketing ideas. But nothing beats your own manufacturing facility.

Delivering a killer B2B presentation can literally make the difference between feast and famine as a salesperson. Succeed and you’re often branded a hero. Fail and you’re one step closer to the cheese lines. Fortunately for all of us, presenting is a skill that can be taught and improved upon. It doesn’t require highly innovative products or a strong global brand at your back either; it simply requires focus.

Working the B2B trade show circuit can be a highly rewarding experience toward cultivating relationships and developing leads, even if you aren’t formally exhibiting. Peddling in Las Vegas, however, is unlike no other destination. Consider these (lucky) 7 tips when selling in the desert (without a booth) to maximize your effort.

When it comes to pitching for new business, I’ve heard some fairly wild theories in my day. For example, if the client’s color is yellow, everyone should wear yellow to subconsciously appear as though the agency is “one with” the client. Or, everyone should sit in a very specific fashion so the first thing the client sees is the agency, thereby establishing a dominant position.

Bang. Head. Here.

Having been in the game for over ten years now, nearly six of them with Godfrey, I know a thing or two about responding to RFPs. Or RFQs. Or RFIs. Or RFwhatevers.

For those of you still considering a late New Year’s resolution, I have one. In fact, it’s actually three in one. It’s not losing weight, securing a better job or any of the other most popular American resolutions. This one you can actually, easily fulfill. And here it is: Take chances. Fail forward. Be bold.

With increasing frequency, I find myself discussing focus as a key growth driver for B2B companies in 2013. Obviously, the term “focus” can mean many things to many people. For some, focus applies to operational efficiency. For others, focus relates to market segmentation. Some organizations, like the Institute for the Study of Business Markets, even offer extensive seminars on the topic. In this context, however, I’m referring to focus as it pertains to new business development – choosing the right customers.

If you want to win in the NFL, there’s a lot you can learn from B2B. For starters, here are five important lessons that NFL teams can learn from B2B marketers.

Are marketing directors getting what they want from their agency? Here are six key factors B2B marketers value most from an agency.

For many B2B companies it can be a struggle to align all four of the P's with the realities of a business-to-business marketing strategy. See how Motorola Solutions has evolved the thinking behind the model.

I'd like to issue a challenge to the entire world of B2B. I'm inviting you to submit your list of B2B companies whose contributions changed the world in 2012. Submit your nominations as comments to this blog and provide a brief explanation (less than 100 words).

Unified marketing takes “integrated marketing” to another level. While integrated marketing is about tactics working together, unified marketing starts with the strategy and concept and drives all messaging and tactical decisions. Here’s how to try it during the 2013 marketing planning cycle.

A very common reality among B2B marketers is that their annual marketing plan is closely tied to their fiscal year budget. Read about how you can make informed decisions about B2B marketing budget allocations and marketing strategy using the data you have and pairing it with customer insight.

Are you starting to think about your marketing strategy for 2013? While identifying the next campaign or product launch comes first, don’t forget to organize how you’re going to create and distribute your plan. Here are some tips to keep your internal content creation process running smoothly.

John Deere apparel. CAT® footwear. Armor All™ vacuums. All highly recognized brand names, but who knew they made these types of products? Well, actually, they don’t. They are products of manufacturers who believe in the potential of brand licensing. With the right pairing of license and product offering, manufacturers can bypass entrance barriers in a crowded marketplace through higher brand recognition, stronger customer preference and a perceived quality differential. But, there are considerations when choosing such a strategy…

As the myriad of interface displays and mobile devices grows, responsive web design can help design a website for the future---but it means you have to let go of how you approached the design process in the past.

Whether you’re a content strategy veteran or are just getting started, Margot’s new book "Content Strategy at Work" is a must-read for everyone. Read on to hear about Margot’s inspiration for writing the book and her thoughts on how b2b marketers can leverage content strategy with clients.

It's been hard to miss all the co-mingling of marketing and IT that has been taking place over the past few years. As the volume of work shared between the groups increases and the pace accelerates here are a few things to keep in mind to ease the integration.

According to Forrester Research, spending on email marketing, delivery, analytics, integration and creative will approach $2.5 billion annually by 2016, up from $1.5 billion in 2011, a compound annual growth rate of 10 percent. Since email is becoming more valuable in the B2B market, I encourage you to take a second look at your email marketing strategy and examine what your database of email addresses is worth.

What kind of content do prospects and customers respond to most? Storytelling.

As B2B marketing efforts become more integrated, the line between paid, shared and earned media is becoming blurred. A successful marketing plan must incorporate all three, with focused messaging and strategic outreach. Find out what role PR plays in the overall marketing plan.

When writing website content for your global audience, consider the language you’re using. Make it easy to understand and translate by the international users. Here are some things to consider.

Events require a large portion of B2B budgets, but determining ROI is often overlooked in the planning process. Here are some tips on measuring success.

A recent article in Advertising Age (“When CMOs Learn to Love Data, They'll Be VIPs in the C-Suite”) provides some empirical support for an idea we’ve strongly suggested in the past: Marketers need to support their decisions with data if they hope to play a serious role in their organization’s future.

Howard Stern knows how to re-purpose content. Marketers should take a lesson from his playbook.

After reading the excellent blog by my colleague Leanne Terpak on establishing KPIs, my thoughts returned to a topic I had raised earlier: If KPIs and the analytics they drive are so important, why aren’t we doing better with them? What is stopping us?

Customer Relationship Management has been around for quite a while now, and has been a key item in many B2B marketing strategies. It's lost a little of its sexy veneer— no longer the hot buzzword of a decade or so ago. Here are some tips on how to change your thinking, and your approach, to CRM.

With refreshed yearly budgets and objectives planned, now is a great time to establish new priorities and explore the possibility of thinking differently in your daily B2B work. I recently read a Fast Company blog post that discusses the notion of embracing the importance of accurate “small stuff”.

To continue my series of blog posts on B2B web analytics basics, here we’re going to take a closer look at Key Performance Indicators and what you need to know about them.

Who is winning the smartphone wars? Apple? Android? Blackberry? With all the conflicting news about market shares of smartphones, what matters to marketers is what your customers and prospects are using and what they experience on your digital properties on their platform(s) of choice.

2011 was a whirlwind year for the world of digital marketing and communications. And through it all, B2B Insights was reporting live on the scene.

The Public Relations Society of America recently unveiled their list of 12 trends that will change the PR industry in 2012. Noted on this list is the convergence of brand management and reputation management functions within organizations.

Media interviews can be intimidating, however, there are several techniques that a spokesperson can implement which will allow them to succeed at any interview. There are several myths that spokespeople cannot afford to believe as well as tips and tricks to help the spokesperson stay on message.

One of the most discussed and challenging issues marketers face these days is measuring ROI.

When Godfrey decided to produce our first e-book, it was quite the undertaking. Here are five tips I picked up along the way.

The situation: Your company is in the early stages of planning for a new product launch that is sure to be a hit with distribution and has the potential to shake up the competitive marketplace...

As 2012 B2B marketing planning should be in full-swing, I find myself internally rationalizing the necessity of early planning. A topical analogy seems evident as the 2012 Presidential Election is one year from today.

A recent article in Ad Age presents the social media dilemma expressed by many large, global B2B companies: not knowing what to Tweet about.

Big ideas are like sea turtles. About 1 in 100 make it out of the nest alive but only 1 in 40,000 survive to adulthood. That’s because truly original ideas sound strange at first. They are usually squashed as soon as they hatch. So, the success of a big idea depends on selling it from day one.

The recent Wisconsin-Michigan State game was a perfect analogy to marketing communications. While the game-winning play got all the attention, every other play and decision had a part in the final outcome.

If the objective is to appeal to the audience, then why do so many B2B companies approach communications like a bad first date--only talking about themselves? There is a better way.

A recent survey of CEOs found a vast percentage were frustrated with their company’s marketers and felt they failed to provide useful information about the role marketing plays in achieving business success.

As a parent and a marketer I’m always looking for the positives. Looking at my teens, it became clear to me that there are some basic lessons that span both areas of my life. 

Is there really any reason to wonder why Google would take this position in the rapid growing arena of mobile devices and mobile broadband access? The truth is that this has been in the works for a while at Google and they are just now putting some public movement behind it.

It all starts with a plan. Without it you can quickly find yourself careening down the rabbit hole with no bread crumb trail to help find your way out. Through my experience, I’m still amazed to see the number of companies that don’t value, or maybe appreciate, the power of well thought out and monitored analytics. 

Building a solid, lasting perception of your company depends on how well you align short-term marketing initiatives with larger brand objectives and common-sense brand stewardship. As you battle to defend and grow your brand, keep these five basic tips in mind...

Thought leadership is a phrase that is thrown around a lot in strategy meetings and planning sessions, the idea being that you can build brand loyalty and active audience participation by sharing fresh insight that provides direction or even solutions to common challenges many of your customers face.

One of the staples of cause marketing is that in addition to doing good, the proposed cause marketing campaign should benefit the business. But I’d like to raise the bar.

Okay, so maybe you’ve actually met your CFO. Unless you are a close confidante, however, you may not know what keeps him, or her, awake at night.

It’s hard to come up with a strategy, or art direct, design, etc. without insight about the target audience. Insight is more than just knowing who your audience is — it's knowing and understanding who your audience really is.

There’s good news and bad news in the survey BtoB magazine published on the use of marketing automation in support of events.

We’ve all heard life is like a box of chocolates, I’ve recently heard email marketing is like a restaurant, but I feel I can really relate a successful B2B marketing team to the workings of a renowned hospital.

Content strategy — perhaps the latest buzzword — has taken the marketing world by storm. So what’s with all the hype?

A recent study by the Pew Research Center reinforces the idea that for a growing number of people, there is no such thing as a mobile Internet.

In its most recent issue, BtoB magazine published a survey of B2B marketing analytics in which most respondents confess relatively minimal involvement in analyzing their web data for marketing insights.

Do you ever hear this around your office: “Research is too expensive. And anyway, we know who our customers are.” We recently completed a project that proved how, in B2B marketing, a little insight leads to a better strategy, which drives a better creative solution. And it isn’t as difficult, time-consuming or expensive as you might think. 

Do you own,  operate or plan on browsing a web site in the next 12 months? If you answered yes then there are some new privacy regulations coming out of the European Union which will affect you. We're still in the early stages of this but there are a few basic things you can do now to start preparing.

Marketers today need to create maximum value with a minimum budget. And yes, marketing analytics can definitely help. Over my next few blog posts, I plan to discuss the basics of B2B analytics in a series, providing some primary education on this topic and taking a look at the actionable information that can come out of crunching the numbers.

If you’re a B2B marketer and you haven’t jumped on the mobile marketing bandwagon, now would be a good time to hop onboard.

There’s a lot of buzz these days about B2B publishers offering more “marketing services” and thereby competing with agencies (including Godfrey) who are also traditional partners in planning and delivering marketing communications for mutual clients.

If “B2B Branding” was a company, it would have a branding problem. Too many business-to-business marketers and senior managements think branding means logos, taglines, business cards and letterhead. It’s a lot more than that today.

B2B marketers know how important it is to optimize their websites for search. However, what they often fail to realize is that their search strategy must be expanded beyond their websites to be an integral part of all aspects of their comprehensive marketing strategy, including videos that are uploaded to YouTube.

Looking for a clever or interesting way to communicate your brand message? Consider taking some risks. Experiment with crazy solutions. Even if your ideas don’t make it all the way to the audience, there is value in asking the questions. But when the they do work out, it’s the icing on the cake.

It used to be good enough to say, “We know who our customers are.” But now, it is important to challenge assumptions and make the effort to find out more about your customers. Technology has changed the game completely.

We are in the business of communication. So what happens when we don’t clearly communicate?

“We have to develop an iPad App” and “how much does an iPad app cost” are two things I have heard frequently over the last few months.

Our marketing colleagues in B2B SEO use an interesting term, “link bait.” It’s usually described as something that makes people want to link to your site, thereby increasing your search-engine ranking.

I have a problem with that.

How do you make an impression on prospects that are bombarded with messaging and offers at every turn? How can you create a lasting memory for your message and your brand? In part two of this three part series I will look at selecting the right 3D giveaway item, one that not only gets in front of your target, but stays there.

Is your company using a dynamic approach to strategy? Are your marketing and communications programs keeping pace?

The iPad 2 is here and Apple apps are hotter than ever. Now B2B marketers are starting to want their own custom apps and are making room for these gems in their budgets. There are lots of facets to this issue. Here are five ways to rethink the iPad.

How do you break through the clutter and noise that appears in front of your top prospects? What makes them tick? What catches their attention? What would make them think highly, or think at all, of your company? In part one of this three part series I will look at how to micro-focus your 3D direct mail campaign as the first step in making a significant impression.

Secondary research can be very helpful. But do you know where the information comes from? If not, beware hidden agendas and biased results.

Marketers are pressured every day for top-line growth and bottom-line results. You need to deliver measureable performance. Since the one constant we can all rely on is change, we need data-driven continuous feedback to design, execute and improve marketing campaigns to show that all-important ROI.  To do this properly, I recommend you develop an analytics strategy.  "A what?" you ask.

The numbers continue to build the case - mobile is growing. According Google CEO, Erick Schmidt, speaking recently at the Interactive Advertising Bureau's annual leadership meeting, mobile is growing much faster than predicted. He supported his call to “do mobile” with some interesting stats

I got an e-news alert the other day informing me that a reputable consulting and research firm was identifying the four technologies that  B2B CMOs should be watching. I am not a CMO but I deal with them so I believe I should be paying attention to what they are watching.

It's easy to be overwhelmed by all the measurements that are available these days. Let's start the discussion about which are most actionable.

B2B marketers know mobile matters. But how do you start creating mobile experiences as part of a B2B strategy? There's one thing you must know.

I don’t know about you, but we are actively engaged in re-shaping our company for the future – with one eye on the near- to mid-term (1 to 5 years) and the other on the long-term (10 to 30 years).  The trick, of course, is to manage the present while creating the future, and there’s some pretty good advice on how to do that.

Three months after we helped one of our clients survive the upheaval of being acquired, I picked up The Wave by Susan Casey. In the book she explores the phenomenon of rogue waves. Still largely unexplained, there are at least two known causes:

Social media reached new heights in 2010, so what's in store for 2011?

You’ve heard some great predictions for the New Year, but let’s be honest, 2010 was just too good to let go. And that’s why we here at Godfrey have compiled a 5 track, 13 disk compilation of what, in our fast-paced marketing world, are already oldies but goodies.

You don’t have to guess whether your B2B email initiative will be a success.

Just give it a test drive—A/B multivariate split testing, that is.

You hear all sorts of jargon in B2B marketing.

But when you hear “drip marketing,” don’t think Chinese water torture -- although you may have been subjected to it if you’ve ever opted to receive email from Land’s End or Amazon.

B2B marketers often fail at successfully executing an effective online content strategy.  Avoid these common content missteps.

An integrated brand strategy is like a flock of geese. When flying in V-formation they cut through the wind, reduce drag and make more progress than when flying alone. It sounds simple but it requires hard choices.

You just released your b2b iPhone app, and now you’re ready to charge ahead with the iPad. You're excited, but first consider these tips on how designing for the iPad is different from the iPhone.

I love analyzing user behavior on websites and looking at outcomes through analytics. I think regularly about what does the user want to do when they get to a page on your site? And did they complete the task that they intended to do? Or more importantly, did they complete the task that YOU wanted them to do?

In the 1994 movie, Babylon 5, one of the main characters, Ambassador Londo Mollari, makes the statement, "Only an idiot would fight a war on two fronts." (Blogger's note: I have never actually seen the movie.) This same notion - fighting a battle on multiple fronts - has also be attributed to the fall of the Germans in WW2, to the failure of the U.S. government of eliminating insurgents in rural Afghanistan, and - for the purposes of this post - to the ruination of many a reputation in the business community. If I may...

Before you cut into your marketing budget or scrap all plans for conducting research, ask yourself this question:
Is insight into an industry’s perception of your company, competitors, prospects and clients something you can afford to pass up?

Let’s face it – it sometimes feels like a tangled world wide web. It can be daunting to try to keep up with the ever-changing social media technologies and platforms. But, it doesn't have to feel that way...

I've been a huge fan of The Karate Kid series for my entire life. Seriously.

My favorite memory to stem from the trilogy (yes, trilogy, for I do not count Hilary Swank's 1994 blasphemous disaster as part of the series) takes place when I was a child.

A recent Business Week article reports that AOL plans to create the "newsroom of the future" by using high-powered technology to revolutionize the business of gathering and presenting news.

Social media has become a basic requirement for marketing communications programs. While B2B marketers may feel pressured to immediately be a part of popular communities and outlets, slapping Linked In and Facebook features on a web site and getting a few enthusiastic employees to tweet, isn’t a strategic way to begin participating.

Being connected to customer needs and desires should be a key aspect of shaping your B2B brand. But the engine of growth needs to include creativity, something many B2B executives don't spend much time on.