Mediaboss Marketing

In some ways, its odd to even look at the statement, managing an Internet marketing team, as few companies actually had dedicated digital marketing departments prior to the last five to 10 years!

However, its a challenge that more and more businesses are facing, as a strong, vibrant Web presence is becoming a non-negotiable part of doing business in a digital world. If you find yourself tasked with the management of such a team, consider the following tips, as managing digital workers may present different challenges compared with workers in traditional sales and marketing fields.

Before you even think about hiring or managing an Internet marketing team, youll need to familiarize yourself with the different roles youll encounter. For example, do you know the difference between an on-site SEO analyst and a web developer? If you dont yet understand how Internet marketing teams are structured, take a look at Rand Fishkins SEOMoz Whiteboard Friday video titled Roles and Responsibilities of a Web Marketing Team.

In addition to understanding the various roles youll encounter while on the job, youll want to be quite clear on your organizations preferred marketing strategy. If, for example, your company chooses to focus primarily on PPC advertising, the specific roles youll need to fill or manage will be significantly different than a business pursuing SEO as a digital marketing strategy.

Its also a good idea to determine how your organization measures Internet marketing success before undertaking team management. Are you undertaking Internet marketing campaigns in order to boost brand awareness or to increase sales? If your goal is brand awareness, focus your hiring resources on more content creators, who will be able to provide you with the marketing materials needed for dissemination across social media channels.

On the other hand, if youre focusing strictly on digital sales, youll need talented SEO analysts who can carry out website split tests and measure Web data in order to improve your conversion rates.

Now that you know more about the type of roles your organization needs to fill, consider whether it makes more sense for your team to bring new members on as direct-hire employees or independent contractors. Specifically, youll want to think through whether you anticipate needing full-time workers for long-term projects (in which case, full-time employees may suit your needs better) or whether youll need specialized skills for shorter periods of time (where independent contractors may be a better fit).

If you do decide to add members to your Internet marketing team, youll likely see the best results from soliciting your existing employees or contractors for referrals. As an added bonus, hiring primarily from interpersonal recommendations can cut down on the hassle associated with widespread job postings and bulk resume submissions significantly.

Before adding any new members to your Internet marketing team, consider having qualified candidates carry out a small test project in order to demonstrate their skills. Remember, with a talented copywriter, anyone can be made to sound good on paper. However, you wont know if your potential hires will be a good fit for your team until you actually test their unique skill sets.

As you expand and mentor your team, keep a close eye on where the departments weaknesses lie. For example, one Internet marketing team may be missing a strong link builder, while another lacks the creative workers needed to power content marketing campaigns. As a manager, being aware of these deficiencies will allow you to either make new hires that address these shortcomings or to add continuing education programs that train existing workers in important new skills.

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15 Tips on Managing an Internet Marketing Team

When Gov. Pat Quinn came to Peoria last week to tout a piece of legislation expanding access to childhood immunizations, he sat at a table inside Kroger at 9219 N. Lindbergh Drive and signed his name on some official-looking papers.

In fact, it looked for all the world like he was signing the actual legislation, making it law during his stop here.

Not so much. In fact, he faked plenty of people out by conducting what we later discovered was a mock bill signing - what his press staff called a "ceremonial signing."

We're told that he does this routinely during flyarounds, when he hits multiple cities in a day to promote what his office determines is a major piece of legislation that they want to highlight.

"We do it with important bills," spokeswoman Brooke Anderson said by phone Friday, noting that the legislation would make it easier for kids to get state-mandated shots to prevent illness prior to the start of the school year. It lets pharmacists administer the shots to kids middle school age where previously they could only give them to youngsters age 14 and up.

Granted, appearing in multiple communities in one day practically guarantees press coverage of a piece of legislation. But does anyone think it's the ceremonial aspect of it - the signing of a name while sitting at a table - that's the important part, that shines the light on the issue? Isn't it the issue itself that matters? Or is it the fact that the governor thinks it's important enough to devote an entire day to it?

Plus, it'd be nice to make it clear that something that looks like a bill signing and sounds like a bill signing isn't really a bill signing. (C.K.)

Location, location, location

There was also a bit of snark going around about the location Quinn chose for the mock signing.

A grocery in Far North Peoria isn't considered the epicenter of need for childhood immunizations, or an area crying out for more people who can administer them.

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Word on the Street: Quinn bill signing: rinse and repeat

Houston, TX (PRWEB) August 26, 2012

Winnie Hart is launching a series of blogs called Twins Know which will give a fresh perspective on the elements of social media marketing. Winnie and identical twin sister, Lorrie Lee, will be contributors. The first offering is titled Twins Know: The Importance of Being Unique Online. The articles will share insights from the singular world of twinhood and apply them to elements of online marketing. http://blogs.imediaconnection.com/blog/2012/07/31/twins-know-the-importance-of-being-unique-online/?imcid=nav#%23

TwinEngine, Powered by The H Agency, is an award-winning, strategic marketing and creative agency that specializes in Social Media Marketing.

Winnie Brignac Hart, right engine creativity, and Lorrie Brignac Lee, left engine analytics, bring 20+ years of marketing experience, 125+ industry awards and a passion for leveraging their twin talents to help companies translate traditional marketing channels into forward thinking online and social marketing solutions.

TwinEngine, Powered by The H Agency Where Social Takes Flight. http://www.twinengine.com

Contact Information: Winnie Hart Winnie(at)twinengine(dot)com http://www.twinengine.com 504-522-6300

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TwinEngine, Powered by The H Agency, Launches “Twins Know” Blog Series

The social networking world may be a busy place with users loyal to their favorites, but a co-founder of start-up Branch says his new network should easily blend in.

"We absolutely see ourselves as being complimentary to everything else," said Josh Miller, who co-founded Branch, a new social discussion site. "We don't like the way that other companies point out negatives about other sites. We think Twitter is amazing. We think Facebook is amazing.... I think we'll fit right in."

Branch, which is in public beta with invitations only available by request, is a site focused on helping people have online conversations. On the site, users are able to pick who they want to talk with. Users also can try to be added to a conversation by clicking on an "Ask to Join" button.

"It's like putting people in a room together and having them talk," Miller told Computerworld. "They're swapping messages like they would in e-mail or IM or around the table. It's all about talking to people you know."

Patrick Moorhead, an analyst with Moor Insights & Strategy, agrees that there is room for Branch to fit into the social networking world.

"Branch fills a gap opened by Twitter, Facebook, Google+, and Quora to enable high-quality conversations without the noise," he said. "It also takes advantage of the desire for more intimate, private conversations of self-selected groups.... Branch is trying to find a way to lower the signal-to-noise ratio of babblers to meaningful participants."

Even so, Jim McGregor, an analyst with TIRIAS Research, said that with so already available, Branch could find it difficult to get any traction.

"Conversations could be done with the tools that are available today, namely Facebook and Twitter," said McGregor. "I think this is more of a solution looking for a problem than the other way around. At this point, there are so many tools available that I think it is going to be difficult for any newcomer to standout from the crowd, not to mention finding a way to make money at it."

Branch, though, has a lot of support. The business is backed by Obvious Corp., the company piloted by Twitter co-founders Biz Stone and Evan Williams.

On Branch, conversations are open to the public, though, at this point, the site doesn't have a way to search for users or particular conversation topics. However, the main page on the site lists the day's hot topics, like Hiking the Grand Canyon, Berlin Trip Tips, and Advice for Friends Who Feel Stuck in their Careers.

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Startup Branch Offers Place to Chat

PEPPER PIKE Feminism is not a dirty word, according to Julie Zeilinger, founder of the blog the FBomb (thefbomb.org).

And it is a little Fd up that some people think that it is.

Zeilinger, 19, is a sophomore at Bernard College at Columbia University in New York City. She grew up in Pepper Pike and went to Hawken School. The feminists first novel, A Little Fd Up: Why Feminism is Not a Dirty Word, was published this year by Seal Press.

Zeilingers interest in feminism is not a fad or phase.

I grew up in a feminist household, Zeilinger said. I was raised to believe in equality for others.

This moral belief, Zeilinger said, is at the root of feminism.

It was not until middle school that Zeilinger was introduced to feminism. She was meeting with her guidance advisor, who Zeilinger mentions was awesome. Her advisor told Zeilinger to check out author Jessica Valentis book, Full Frontal Feminism: A Young Womans Guide to Why Feminism Matters, and her blog Feministing.com.

Reading Valentis book and blog sparked Zeilingers interest in feminist concepts such as gender equality and human and reproductive rights.

It is depressing that we do not learn more about the feminist movements in high school, Zeilinger said.

Her prescription to this depressing reality was to start her blog the FBomb in 2009. There were no other blogs to fuel conversations about feminism among teenage women.

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'Feminism is not a dirty word': Pepper Pike teenager's first book takes solid look at positives of feminist movement