A blog created by UMSL Marketing B.A. and MBA students.
By Elizabeth Snowden
Among many of the interests and questions anticipated at St. Louis’ 2016 Midwest Digital Marketing Conference will ultimately be: how do we remain relevant? As a business, group member, consumer or individual professional, Elizabeth Ledbetter probably has your answer. Continue reading “#MDMC16 Speaker Elizabeth Ledbetter Knows Creative Talent”
By: Robert Aguilar
We would like to introduce you to one of our speakers at the Midwest Digital Marketing Conference, Jennifer Phillips. Jennifer is the Director of Marketing Cloud Excellence at Salesforce. She has been with Salesforce for over 7 years and in the marketing industry for over 15 years. Jennifer partners with higher education institutions and nonprofit organizations to deepen their success with Salesforce marketing / digital products. The goal at Salesforce is to better connect businesses with their consumers. They have developed the world’s #1 CRM platform which is cloud based. In their own words, they “help your customers love you.” We got the chance to interview Jennifer and find out some of her thoughts on the current state and future of digital marketing.
What does content mean to you?
Content is information delivered to add mutual value to organizations and their constituents / customers. Sounds boring, but done right it’s anything but!
What is the digital “word of the year” for 2016?
Measurable. This is something that has been common in many of the communications I have had in preparation for the conference. Many people are discussing and trying to develop more ways to measure your marketing successes and shortcomings.
As everything moves to mobile and social, it seems like the web is dying. Should we still care about the web?
We must care about the platforms important to our constituent / customer groups. If we fail to meet them – in an interesting and fulfilling way – “where they live”, we break their trust. Success is delivered to organizations who know and nurture the platforms their target audiences stand on.
What do you see as the next big disruption in the world of marketing and communications?
Effective 1:1 marketing is creating a new paradigm of the curated consumer experience. Continued evolution on the delivery method of just in time communications, will create the next new normal for consumers – hyper-personalized customer experience.
For more on Jennifer check out her speaker session in the academic/social media track at 2:55 p.m. at the Midwest Digital Marketing Conference 2016. She will be speaking about “Delivering Effective Digital Student Experiences,” something we are very passionate about at UMSLDigital.
We’ll see you in April!
Katie Krum is currently the Director of Digital Marketing at Under Armour and manages the content and engagement for Under Armour’s Connected Fitness ecosystem. This includes MyFitnessPal, MapMyFitness, and Under Armour Record.
Katie graduated with a B.A. in History from Princeton and a M.S. in Integrated Marketing from NYU. Before she worked for Under Armour, she worked in digital marketing at Nickelodeon and Mariott International. Katie’s background comes from start-ups, which is also where she discovered her passion for digital technologies.
Katie also made Brand Innovators “40 under 40” List. A list consisting of young marketing professionals who “have proven they have the ingenuity, leadership, and strategic foresight necessary to perform at the highest levels possible in the in the constantly evolving media and marketing environment.” – David Teicher, editor and chief content officer at Brand Innovators.
In anticipation of her discussion on Social Media we asked her to answer some questions on the future of digital marketing, see her opinions and insights below!
What’s the future of wearable tech? Will it ever become a marketing platform?
Clothing! Shirts and shoes will provide us with the information (and so much more) that bands, glasses, watches and heart rate monitors provide us today… the marketing platform will be in the data we collect.
What does “content” mean to you?
I used to have a much more narrow view of content — related to premium content: long-form content (tv series), blog articles, visual/story-telling slideshows, etc. But in the broadest of terms: commercials are content, images on a retail site might be considered content, instagram posts are content…its so many things. So broad that we probably need to create more precise terms for the future.
What are your top 3 digital metrics?
Related to engagement, I am trying to turn the organization towards quality time spent, which can be measured by: time spent reading, scroll depth, engagement, recirculation, shares, and percentage of article completed.
Come hear Katie talk about why she feels this way and all the other insights she has about digital marketing at the MDMC! Register today, April will be here before you know it!
By: Elizabeth Snowden
We all knew it would happen sooner or later – traditionally-manual, low-agile industries would figure out how the technological revolution can work for them, and make their move. It seems like only yesterday (and for some it was) that businesses comprised of specialized human labor made the leap from written correspondence to email. Construction, mining, drilling, heavy logistical operations – all bring to mind images of workers in hardhats and back support belts, operating heavy equipment that cannot be 100% automated with a low margin of error. How can technological advancements benefit these businesses and ensure a high, sustainable adoption rate?
Cue Jobsite Unite. Not only have they introduced an app and services to foster community building and improve project efficiency, they address technological adoption, training and support. Their stylish website offers a freemium-based service (try me for free!), multiple digital platforms (smart phone friendly), and have rolled out impressive social media profiles on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Their app is available from the App Store and Google Play.
Jobsite Unite has capitalized on what we like about going digital: services we want at the press of a touchscreen, and answers to our questions from peers who understand their audience. Streamlining your business and promoting team building might free up so much of your time, you could reallocate that time to expand your business, bond with family, friends, take a vacation, or kick it with a beer and count all the extra money you’ve earned.
Come check out Jobsite Unite on April 21st at the Midwest Digital Marketing Conference at St. Louis Union Station, and allow them to wow you in person!
We would like to welcome Jerry Bernhart as one of this year’s speakers at MDMC16!
Jerry is Principal at one of the leading executive search firms in the nation, Bernhart Associates Executive Search, LLC. His company has served thousands of clients ranging from startups to Fortune 100 corporations in the U.S. and abroad for over 20 years. The company specializes in the fields of Ecommerce, Digital Marketing, and Multichannel Direct Marketing.
We are happy that Jerry Bernhart could join us as one of the Breakout Session speakers at MDMC16 on April 21st. Check out some of the highlights of our interview with Jerry below:
What does “content” mean to you?
“It’s original.”
Who wants to read something that they’ve already seen at a million times? No one! You need to give your audience something that they can’t find anywhere else.
If you’re creating content on a topic that’s been written about for a while, try to put your own spin on it or explain it from a different point of view. Adding original thoughts will help your content reach new people.
“It engages.”
You want your content to engage the reader. By the end of your blurb, they should have learned something or been entertained. By engaging your reader, they will want to keep reading what you post and possibly even share it with their friends or followers.
“It’s actionable.”
Your content should also give the readers a call to action that will tie up why they’re on your website looking at your content. You can ask them to “call now” or “sign up now” for your newsletter; whatever is best for yourself or business.
So what about digital metrics for gauging how well your content is being received?
Jerry tells us that he puts the most emphasis on Bounce Rate (single-page sessions or sessions in which the person left the site from the entrance page without interacting with the page) & Average Session Length.
In Jerry’s line of work, it’s important that he grabs the attention of current & future clients immediately; “I know that the longer they are there, the stronger the impression I will make.”
Looking at Bounce Rate and Average Session Length will show you whether your landing page is appropriate, what content is working on your website, and if people are staying on your website.
For more insights from Jerry, check out his book Careers In eCommerce and Digital Marketing.
By: Kathrin Hanke
I would like to introduce you to one of the MDMC16 speakers, Agata Dec. She is the Head of Analytics Project Management at Brandwatch, the world’s leading enterprise social intelligence company, whose technology allows users to analyze and utilize conversations from across the social web. Continue reading “#MDMC16 Speaker Feature: Agata Dec”
By: Stacy Bueneman
Nicki Powers is a Marketing Automation Consultant at LinkedIn. Nicki provides strategic consulting services to LinkedIn advertisers and helps them optimize their campaigns through detailed segmentation and measurement strategies. Continue reading “Link Up with Nicki Powers at #MDMC16”
By: Elizabeth Snowden
Technology Partner’s Director of Emerging Markets, Betsy Mack, is a networking ninja. A master of connection. As the United Way of Greater St. Louis’ former Major Gift Manager, and former Director of Marketing at her current company, Betsy has built a career on understanding community needs, aligning company goals, and building support. Continue reading “#MDMC16 Betsy Mack Blends Tomorrow’s Marketing Trends with Community Advocacy”
By: Kathrin Hanke
Let me introduce you to MDMC16 speaker Travis Estes, the Web and Social Media Manager of the GRAMMY Award winning St. Louis Symphony– the nation’s second-oldest orchestra. Travis Estes has more than 16 years experience as a marketing professional, working in the digital realm. He has developed digital presence for Black Cat/Phantom Fireworks, HFC, Strong Funds, and the museum tours of King Tut, Princess Diana and America I Am, as well as strategic planning for the Chicago Botanical Gardens, Frank Lloyd Wright Home & Studio and the American Marketing Association. Continue reading “#MDMC16 Speaker Feature: Travis Estes”