Author: Martech Expert

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Martech News

Martech Predictions for 2021

2021
  • Last Mile impressions will surge as retail businesses double down on recouping their COVID-19 losses
  • Behavioral marketing will continue to drive conversion
  • Virtualization in customer service will boom. Augmented reality in the online shopping experience will become commonplace
  • Bigger data will drive bigger decisions. Amazon is expanding into bricks and mortar. So is Google. So is… everybody who has access to big data
  • Click fraud will continue to rise until ad platforms respond with better machine learning algorithms to identify fraudsters
  • Although COVID-19 lockdowns have destroyed the retail industry, in-person shopping is not extinct. Retailers will focus more on blending the shopping experience across online shopping and bricks-and-mortar locations
  • Anonymous, universal ID will standardize adtech audience tracking methods.
  • Ecommerce trends will include products that remind people of normal, in-store experiences like spa treatments and gym workouts
  • The battle between giants Apple, Facebook, and Google Adwords will result in innovation on the way in which users are tracked across platforms
  • Uber-everything because technology and COVID-19
  • Consumers will focus more on a product’s utility, quality, and alignment with their values than brand affinity, especially in ecommerce and the wellness industry
  • Subscriptions will surge as people get used to set-it and forget-it
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Cryptocurrency

Will Crypto Surpass Fiat Transactions?

cryptocurrencies and gold bar

Since the COVID-19 lockdown, the economy has tanked and trust in the US dollar and other currencies may be at an all-time low. Gold and silver prices hit all-time highs, as a strong indicator for further drops in fiat. Crypto prices are up too, and they are much easier to use in transactions to transfer value from one person to another, versus metals. With the future of fiat currencies being questionable, will crypto transactions grow in volume, and eventually surpass crypto transactions?

Crypto Values Continue to Rise

Bitcoin is knocking on the door of $12,000 and above again, and people are already talking about whether Ethereum will break $1000. In the past, people were skeptical about crypto. Yet, it appears as though it isn’t going anywhere. People trust the technology enough to put their money into it, and ecommerce vendors are accepting Bitcoin transactions (and others).

Prepare Your Company for the Future

Whether it’s Bitcoin, Ethereum, or some other coin, the future is in cryptocurrencies. They’ve been volatile up until now, and may continue to swing widely. But, we may see them stabilize as fiat continues to fall. That being the case, there are a few things you can do as a merchant. The first step of course, is to start accepting crypto transactions. You can still continue to accept fiat, but by accepting crypto, you will give your customers more choices, and that will give you more revenue streams.

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Cryptocurrency

Should You Accept Bitcoin and Crypto Transactions?

bitcoin on mobile

Most websites accept many different payment options. They take Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Paypal, Amazon Payments, debit cards, and other forms of payment. Some websites even accept ACH transactions. But these are all ways to transfer fiat currency from one person to another. What about crypto?

The Benefits of Fiat Currency

The beauty of fiat transactions is that they are universally accepted. Billions of people have bought into government-backed stores of value. They trust the brand of a country like the United States as a stable entity that brings value. People recognize the US dollar, the Euro, and other capital as a legitimate currency that will hold its value. These countries and organizations have been around for a long time, and using credit cards and other tools to convert fiat into tangible goods feels natural to most people. Furthermore, as a consumer, you have some protection when it comes to credit card transactions. If a merchant fails to deliver, you often have recourse. You can demand a refund, and you’ll often get it. This can be a problem for online merchants in particular.

Ecommerce Transactions and Crypto

If you’re a merchant and you accept credit card payments (as do most ecommerce vendors), then you’ve likely experienced some chargebacks. You provided a good product or service to your customers, yet for whatever reason, some of them reversed the charges, costing you money. While this is great for consumers, it is not always good for merchants. Sometimes, this is straight fraud. Other times, there was just a communications problem, and when that happens, merchants lose. Crypto is different.

If a customer buys merchandise using Bitcoin, Ethereum or some other cryptocurrency, the sale is generally final. They cannot reverse those transactions once the funds hit your digital wallet. You as the merchant should of course provide good customer service. You can therefore refund orders when honest customers make such requests. But now, you can also reject shady requests for refunds, and you eliminate the chargeback problem.

Some industries have fully adopted Bitcoin as a method of payment. For example, credit card companies don’t generally approve some types of products, despite their legality. As a result, adult entertainment companies, CBD, and the lesser known kratom companies will accept bitcoin as payment.

One drawback to crypto transactions is that they can be expensive. Each digital currency has its own rules about mining fees for transferring coins from one wallet to another. Bitcoin is notorious for this, though the somewhat new Lightning Network has helped to solve this problem. On the other hand, some cryptocurrencies are very cheap to process. For example, Ripple costs $0.0037 per transaction on average. Compare this to the 2-3%+ fees that credit card processors will charge, and the savings can be enormous.

There is one major problem: crypto is volatile. Bitcoin can drop 20% or more within one day, due to market activity. As a result, many merchants will immediately convert their crypto to fiat to mitigate the associated risk.

Will the Martech Industry Adopt Bitcoin & Crypto?

While it’s still relatively new, it’s already happening. Merchants are slowly accepting crypto on their websites, and it’s growing. In fact, as the dollar has been losing value in the pandemic economy, people have been shifting their savings into gold, silver, … and crypto. Merchants that accept Bitcoin and other digital coins will benefit from this growing market.

Categories
Wellness

Salesforce to Launch Work.com, Return-to-Work Readiness Hub

Work.com dashboard by Salesforce

Salesforce is expected to launch Work.com. They are advertising the platform as a way to help businesses and communities to safely reopen. According to the company, the new platform will include tools for contact tracing and emergency response management. It also includes employee wellness assessment and shift management tools. Collectively, this toolkit is designed to help private and public sector response to the COVID-19 pandemic, along with future issues that disrupt economies on a massive scale.

Every company and community in the world is focusing on how to safely reopen and get to a new normal

Bret Taylor, President and COO, Salesforce

Work.com Advisory Board

According to Salesforce, the project has leveraged guidance from top industry partners. These include Accenture, Deloitte, PwC, and other businesses. The company’s goal was to provide a holistic solution to problems identified by health experts and business leaders.

How Salesforce is helping customers get back to work
Categories
Compliance Wellness

Marketing Technology for CBD, Cannabis, and Kratom

magic mushrooms

One of the biggest challenges for companies that sell alternative medicines and other ingestible products is the inability to advertise on platforms like Google Adwords and Facebook. Here are some martech ideas that can help.

CBD Oils and Related Products

Facebook and Google will likely reject your ads. However, you can begin to think about your audience, and how you can develop content that will be accepted onto such platforms. For example, CBD is often discussed in the health and wellness space. So, it stands to reason that you could produce more general content as part of your leads acquisition process. One path forward would be to create a general health and wellness website. Then, determine your target audience and build out some content and landing pages for that audience, which is unrelated to CBD. From there, you would funnel the visitors towards the products and services that align with your core business.

Cannabis-Related Content and Paid Ads

If you’re advertising cannabis-related products, then you’ve got an even steeper hill than your CBD counterparts. This may change over time, but in the meantime, the strategy is similar to that of CBD. Figure out your target audience, and some vanilla products that appeal to them. These might be people who suffer from pain, anxiety, and even those who are going through chemotherapy and other cancer treatments. They have obvious needs that you might be able to address. So, educate them on cannabis, but do it only after you’ve funneled them through related content that is acceptable on paid ad platforms.

Kratom and Paid Ads on Google, Facebook and Instagram

This is another challenge. Kratom has some regulations surrounding it, but it’s a smaller community than that of CBD and cannabis. There are a handful of kratom websites that educate their readers on the pros and cons of ingesting this plant substance. The good news is exactly at: it is a small, but growing community. If you get in early, you could have authority in the space. With that in mind, follow the same strategy as with CBD and cannabis. Think about the people who utilize kratom as falling into several audiences, and target them with non-kratom offers.

Psilocybin (“Magic Mushrooms”), Pharma and Everything Else

Can you guess the strategy here? That’s right, it’s the same as for the other cohorts. You’re not going to be able to advertise magic mushrooms on Google, Facebook, or Instagram. But you can target people with PTSD and others who would benefit from this plant substance.

Paid Ads Strategy

You should now have some great ideas in mind for a landing page, content, and ad campaign to surround your products and services. Be strategic, follow the rules, and the outcome will be a huge lift in your profits.

Categories
Leadgen

Choosing the Right Web Hosting Plan

woman standing in front of web server

There comes a time in every martech professional’s life when he or she (or they) must decide on a web hosting company for their business. With so many choices and pricing options to choose from, how can you be sure to make the right choice?

Start Cheap

It’s true that you get what you pay for. It’s also true that you can waste a lot of money paying for best-of-class solutions to your problems when you aren’t best-of-class in your new venture. This is very true when it comes to website hosting plans. You could invest in a dedicated hosting plan with lots of storage space and processing power. This could cost you $100, $1,000 or more for a robust cloud hosting plan, every single month, before you’ve attracted a single visitor to your website. In addition, such robust plans often require Linux experts and professional server administrators to run. While these plans provide a lot of value to established companies with lots of traffic to their websites, they’re overkill for people just starting out.

Hosting Plans for About $5 Per Month

Believe it or not, you can launch your website for about $5 per month. For example, check out this review on SiteGround shared hosting plans. At this price, your risk is very low, and you can learn the ins and outs of web hosting in general. Then, when your website starts generating tons of traffic (and revenue), you can think about upgrading to a faster, more robust web-hosting plan.

Ultra-Fast Website Hosting

It’s true that fast websites convert better than slow websites. People are programmed for instant gratification today. Consequently, when your page takes an extra few seconds to load, many people will abandon before it finishes, in their quest for faster results. However, page speed is only one of many factors that impacts conversion, and rankings. You can still do very well with a modest hosting plan, while you build your model.

Get Started Now

Go ahead and do your research. The SiteGround review above can get you started. I’ve used their website hosting service, and they’re a solid company. For around $5 per month, you can have your website launched, and you can begin building your business. Then, one of two things will happen. Either life will get in the way before you realize your dream, and you will have fewer Starbucks lattes this month. Or, you will build a profitable company and can start thinking about the next steps in scaling your business.

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Leadgen

Why Conversational Commerce Matters

woman engaging in conversational commerce on her mobile phone

In real life (aka, “meat-space”), conversations matter. When you are greeted professionally by a customer service representative on the phone, or when you get quality help from a floor manager in your favorite department store, you’re likely to remember the experience as a positive one. Consequently, you will be more likely to engage the same company again in the future. The same can be said about online transactions.

How to Make More Sales: The Know, Like, and Trust Factor

Conversational commerce is a term that can be applied to real-world interactions. But it has existed since mankind developed language and trade. One thing is certain: customers buy from people who they know, like, and trust. And, the associated, positive feelings come from the conversations we have with one another.

How Does Conversational Commerce Impact Online Sales?

Imagine having a customer service representative available on your ecommerce website 24/7/365. Conversations can take place through online chat, phone calls, or email, having someone ready to answer questions whenever a person decides to shop. If you’re there, and your competitor isn’t, it’s likely that you will capture the sale. Now, imagine taking this to the next level by integrating AI-powered martech like a chatbot that knows how to answer any question that a potential buyer puts forth.

If you can integrate a chat bot with your website that is smart enough to pass a modern-day Turing Test, then you’re likely to convert more visitors to customers, regardless of the time of day at which they visit your website. And, just wait. Natural-sounding voice will soon replace much of the technology that we have today. Keep this in mind the next time you revisit design updates for your ecommerce website.

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Leadgen

Lead Generation Success In A Few Simple Tips

Lead generation is a technique that all sales professionals must perfect. Do you want to learn how to be better at it yourself? Whether you’re generating leads for your law firm, or leads for investors in your next ICO or IPO, this information can help. If you are looking for the secrets your competition are using successfully, then the article below will be sure to pique your interests and satiate your desire for knowledge.

Content is King

Create engaging content. Lead generation relies a lot on building trust with your product or service. Smart targeted content does a lot to build get you there. Your target audience will be more likely to do business with you if they feel you are providing great service and that you legitimately care.

Always be conscious of other people’s privacy and wishes. Don’t spam people who don’t want your offers. Not only does it waste your time to send anything to individuals or businesses not spending money, you are going to offend them and violate your own opt-out or privacy policies in doing so.

Talk to Business Owners

Talk to business owners in related industries. They may be willing to share leads with you, by sending their customers your way. For example, if you own a shop where you sell balloons, talking to a florist about a joint venture is a great way to get leads from another business.

Consider throwing a neighborhood party to let your neighbors know what you’re up to. For example, if you are looking for leads as a dentist, you can have a barbecue and hand out toothbrushes with your number on them. If you’re an internet marketer, sponsor a street fair and let the businesses there know you can do the same for them.

Buying Leads is Okay

Don’t shy away from paying for leads if you’re on a budget. There are low cost solutions to lead generation out there. Pay per click campaigns are one. These search marketing campaigns give you lots of brand building impressions, but you only pay if someone actually clicks on the ad itself. This can be a very effective lead generation method.

Be sure to maximize your use of social media. If you don’t have enough followers, you can hold a giveaway to boost your numbers. While those people may not be interested in what you’re selling, their friends who are may see your posts on their feed and follow you themselves.

Create Loyal Customers

Your customer base is going to be loyal to you and build you get new leads. You can accelerate this aspect of lead generation by doing different things. For example, you can start a referral program. Referral programs reward your current customer base for building you find new customers out there.

Don’t be afraid to cut certain tactics that aren’t performing as they should. Even if a tactic is generating a ton of leads, it may be that the leads just really aren’t that strong. If there’s low to no conversion, why continue spending in the channel? Rather double down on tactics that are converting.

LinkedIn for B2B Leads

One of the highest visitor to lead ratios you will find online is with LinkedIn. Therefore, this platform should be high on your list of tools for lead generation. Put together a polished and professional profile that includes links to all your landing pages and make LinkedIn a valuable part of your lead generation success.

Consider who might have an insider’s view on who would be interested in what you’re selling. For example, real estate agents could get tips from local HR professionals on people moving to the area to start a new job. Who would know of people who would need what you are selling?

Create a Plan

Whatever budget you have, you are more likely to reach your goal when you have a plan. Once your campaign gets rolling, track its progress so you can determine what works and what doesn’t. If you have a very tight budget, you need to watch more carefully where money is being put to get more out of it.

A site combined with social media will bring in more leads. From Twitter to Facebook, you should everything available. Make sure to diverse your marketing campaigns so that you can familiarize yourself with effective and ineffective methods.

Focus on quality content for your website. Publishing content that already interests people can boost your leads. Make sure to keep your content free of spelling and grammar errors and factual inaccuracies. This will reduce the overall risk that you take.

Don’t be driven by only bringing in targeted leads to your website. It’s not harmful if people come to your site who might not buy from you, although you shouldn’t be focusing on them entirely, of course. Be sure to use tools which determine which visitors to your site are leads and which are just great.

Gathering leads from your website needs traffic. Traffic building is what any site needs, but even more so if your site is also set to generate leads. Make sure that you target traffic for your products and services, but also take the time to push traffic for your lead generation as well.

Remember that trending on social media isn’t the be-all and end-all of marketing. If you can get any positive buzz at all about what you’re selling, you’re generating leads. When using social media, the content is king as long as you present it in a way which doesn’t sound like spam.

Don’t overlook the concept of actually paying for quality leads. It can take some time to generate leads on your own using SEO or pay-per-click methods, but paying for leads can build get your business off the ground. If you are looking to pay for leads, make sure that you do so from a reputable company.

Use cost-effective advertising. Target those who are already interested in your niche with your ads, and offer them something of value. People like to receive free or discounted stuff, so getting them to your website this way will not be tough to do. Just make sure that more great offers await them on your site.

Learning about lead generation is just the first step you must take. Next, you have to consider how you can generate leads. Can you get the job done today? If so, do it! Everyone who procrastinates will fail, so get up the drive and start generation leads right away.

Categories
MLM

Multi-Level Marketing – Top Tips And Techniques

Multi-level marketing has been around in various forms for a while.No matter its true age, you can earn money by doing it and be free of financial woes. Continue reading to learn how you achieve MLM success that works for you.

First, know the risks. Multi-level marketing is risky, time-consuming, and in some cases, expensive. You may even want to try an online course on the subject before dipping your feet in.

Don’t Set Unrealistic Expectations

Don’t give people unrealistic expectations just to get them into your personal downline. This can cause your downline to quit quickly if they don’t get off to a hot start and they’ll want to quit. Let people know to have realistic expectations so they can expect.

It can be easy to slack off and skip a day or two, kick your feet up and allow the day to pass you by; however, you have to be constantly moving. Make it your goal to work on your business forward every day. It doesn’t always have to be a large step. A bit of social network can suffice.

Don’t Spam People You Know

Don’t bombard those you know with messages from your marketing content. You might enjoy what you’re working on, but you need to tone that down around loved ones. Do not allow your enthusiasm to create tension with those who are important to you.

When looking at different multi-level marketing businesses, take a hard look at the products and services you will get to offer consumers. Don’t only look at profits; look at consumer opinions too. What are the benefits can be found by buying them? Is it something they will keep coming back for again and again?

Know What You Sell

Make sure you are familiar with your products; test products before attempting to sell them. This can prevent you to avoid selling poor quality products. You need to move to a different type of product if something like this should happen. Even if you’re getting paid well by a company, your long-term career is in the balance when you market inferior products.

Recognize loyalty in customers and team members’ loyalty. Reward members of your team who go the extra mile.Reward any customers that place larger orders or refer those that they know. These rewards can be in the form of a gift certificate, a free product, and other useful items that are important to them.Try not to provide cheap-looking certificates or other gestures with little meaning behind them.

Avoid Schemes

Be careful that you never enter into any pyramid schemes. Pyramid schemes are part of thing. They may look very enticing with huge upfront offers, but in the long run you’ll probably end up losing money.

Try to learn what the multi-level marketing opportunity’s integrity is like in an opportunity before you wish to take part in. Look into how the current CEO of the company. Does the CEO have previous experience in this industry?

Become your own right. You are responsible for your MLM approach. The MLM company may build out with some training, but you must find new ways to set yourself apart out from the others who are selling similar products. Take your own education into your own hands and do it on a daily basis.

Be Creative

Be creative when sharing your company. Find innovate ways as you can to share your business message. Use these tactics in different areas of your social life. This will allow you find interested individuals that want to be part of the opportunity.

Try other creative ideas like making a how-to website put together to build your MLM campaign out. Try showing step-by-step instructions put together to get traffic boosted on your site.Teaching something builds to ensure they stick around. This boosts the possibilities to getting additional people to join your MLM business. It can also increases your advertising revenue.

Talk to an accountant before you start multi-level marketing.Make sure you employ one after you get started with the business. This will build you to get money back on your potential write offs during tax season. Understand how to manage your taxes will work as well. While you may file your own personal taxes annually, you might be facing quarterly filings now professionally.

Before you consider starting a multi-level marketing business, be sure you’re comparing each program that is out there. These can be different and that depends on what kind of program you select. Calculating what you’ll earn will make it easier to determine if that opportunity is worth it to you.

Start Small

Rather than setting up a website, you can always stick to social media.

You should always have to understand what you have available at your disposal. You are forced to determine the fiscal condition of your success with a budget.

Participate in meetings organized by the company. This affords you an opportunity to meet other people involved in sales and learn new techniques that can boost your sales. It will also boosts your business.

You must choose a company that is the right business to work with.You have interest and faith in a given company.

Have Fun With It!

The most crucial factor in succeeding of at any MLM programs is that you’re going to have to have fun with the things you’re trying to do. This will keep you have a positive attitude even during the roughest times. If you don’t enjoy it, it will be apparent. Your downline contacts will not like this either.

Beware of any MLM business that use high pressure sales tactics to try and get you to pay thousands of dollars into their company. It is true that you may need to pay upfront for product kits to get started. But, if the MLM business is pestering you buy a large amount of products up front, you ought to move on.

Make sure you develop regular goals for yourself.

Your persona should be incorporated in order to attract your brand. You have to stand apart from the others in MLM.

Learn tactics that are productive when you email a list for the purposes of multi-level marketing. For instance, use people’s names and not a generic term.Make certain that you direct them to a part of the process where they need to act on something. Your business won’t be productive if you do not implement an effective email strategy.

Some claim that MLM is nearly a century old. It is a viable income today. If you long to participate, you now have the right tools and info. As you become involved in your MLM venture, remember the information found in this article.

Categories
Compliance

IAB releases CCPA Compliance Framework for California

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) has released its framework for California’s new regulatory framework, the California Consumer Privacy Act, or CCPA. This content is targeted at publishers and technology companies that need help with maintaining compliance with the ever-growing list of regulations that one must follow at the state, federal, and international level. What’s in it? Start here to find out.