For Content Marketing, SEO and Related Topics Check Out SEJ

If you're an experienced writer just getting into blogging or into providing blog content, you'll want to learn more about the SEJ Search Engine Journal. It has daily posts about the topics of SEO, Search Engine News, Social Media, Entrepreneurship, WordPress, and Content Marketing. Besides daily updates, SEJ also creates in-depth content guides which are available as e-books for Kindle on Amazon. SEJ is a one-stop resource for white papers, pod casts and webinars on many of the things you want to know about blogging and providing content for your website or for others.

SEJ additionally offers an exclusive, invitation-only writers’ program that includes valuable perks such as conference press passes to its annual events and exposure on a site that gets about one million unique page views monthly. For details on these and the 2016 invitation only conferences check out Search Engine Journal.

How Does Your Content Marketing Measure Up?

The results of the new 2015 survey by The Content Marketing Institute found that only 23% of Business to Consumer marketers successfully track their return on investment in content marketing. This year's survey reached more than 5,000 marketers,representing 25 industries in 109 countries.

Fifty-one percent, an increase of 15% over last year, say that measuring the effectiveness of content is a challenge. Only 27% of B2C marketers have taken the time to put their strategy in writing, while 50% of those surveyed only have a verbal strategy.

Other findings from this year's survey revealed that 69% of those responding are creating more content than they did a year ago and 45% of B2C marketers now have a dedicated content marketing group in their organization. On average they are using seven social media platforms this year compared to only six last year. The use of blogs dropped from 72% last year to 67% this year.

Seventy-one percent use print or other offline promotion, and while it is the paid method that they use most frequently to promote and distribute content, only 46% say that it's effective. The majority, or 57%, say that search engine marketing is the most effective way to promote/distribute content.

The 2015 survey included new questions showing that the average number of paid advertising methods for promoting/distributing content is four and that 48% of those surveyed say that they publish new content daily or multiple times per week. The average number of content marketing initiatives being worked on at the time of the survey was 13.
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For more information on the findings from the 2015 survey visit the Content Marketing Institute site.

Dotbiz Blog: Check Out Web.com for a Full Spectrum of Web Oriented Free Videos, E-books, White Papers, News and More

Small businesses can find a number of free resources on Web.com, a leading provider of Internet services and online marketing solutions. These include how-to videos, e-books, white papers, marketing tips, and more through its Small Business Forum, an online community built specifically for small businesses. Membership to the Web.com Small Business Forum is free (registration required. Once registration is complete, small businesses get instant entrance to a multi-purpose portal where they can access expert advice and tips to help them grow their businesses.


Web.com provides the latest small business and online marketing news with top stories from around the world added daily in both article and video formats. The E-books and White Papers section provides full access to Web.com's complete library of e-books covering some of today's most important small business and online marketing topics, with new e-books added every month. Members can also use the Small Business Forum to grow their personal and professional networks by getting help from other business owners and by sharing their own knowledge while building their online reputations from within the Small Business Forum's Groups, or its Guest Blogging program.

Dotbiz Blog: Google Changes Typeface of Logo To Make It Easier to Read Across Multiple Devices and Platforms

If you use Google for search, you probably notice that on September 1, 2015 the company launched a new logo. Why? According to the Google blog the popular search engine was once a destination reached from a desktop PC, while today people use Google products Google was one destination that you reached from one device: a desktop PC. These days, people access Google products from many different platforms,apps and devices including mobile phones, TVs, watches, automobile dashboards, and desktops.

So, the previous familiar logo with a serif font gives way to a simpler custom typeface that is sans-serif and thicker making it easier to read even on the smallest screens. The new logo tells you that you’re using Google, but also shows you how Google is working for you. For example, new elements like a colorful Google mic help you identify and interact with Google whether you’re talking, tapping or typing. And, the little blue “g” icon and replacing it with a four-color “G” that matches the logo and is used in places where the full name will not fit.

The new branding replaces the last Google logo, which the company has used since September 2013. The new san-serif logo is Google’s sixth logo since the company launched in 1998. Most of the updates have been subtle. In October 1998, Google change the color of the “G” from green to blue and added an exclamation point at the end. Google removed the exclamation point the following May.

Not everyone likes the new logo. My first reaction to seeing the old logo morph into the one was ugh, but I brushed it off because Google has artfully played with its search engine art in many different ways. I thought it was like a change for the day.

I actually prefer the old serif font, which lacks the utter simplicity of the new one. However, I do understand that serif type doesn't shrink down as well as san serif fonts. In instances when the type is used for a logo that needs to scale from really large to tiny, the new logo is better for that purpose.

Of note, there has been an on-going argument among those who take note of such things as to whether serif fonts are more legible than san serif. But such arguments always have to take into account the actual shape of the letter and the spacing between letters. With a logo that is just a font without other graphics parts are interplay the uniqueness, familiarity and memorability all

Dotbiz Blog: Reputation Management News

Reputation Management is an ongoing concern for anyone with online visibility. Profile Defenders is a company that offers tools to help fight off unwanted scam reports, negative search results and bad online listings that cost online businesses money by defaming legitimate companies and causing confusion on the worldwide web.

In business for more than four years, Profile Defenders has increased its selection of tools and expanded their reach across many different scam report websites such as Ripoff Report where they can almost all but guarantee to completely remove these results. According to Jordan Roberts of Profile Defenders, "The goal is to target not only consumer complaint sites and web searches but also some of the other commonly known listings on websites such as Scambook.com, for the purpose of complete removal of unwanted content that can hurt legitimate businesses and can cost them thousands of dollars.

DotBiz Blog: Now You Can Create Web Content Thanks to Mozilla

Sure you can access the Web with your cell phone, but what about adding content to the Web. Thanks to Mozilla's new Webmaker app, anyone with an Android phone can now create web content. It not only allows all of the basics such as text, photos and links, but also enables the creation of photo galleries, guides and other easy-to-share content. The Android Webmaker app is available in English, Indonesian, Bengali, and Brazilian Portuguese.


The app was first launched as a web-based program three years ago. The Android version will enable more global initiated web content and will facilite mobile blogging. Android Webmaker is free from your Google store. Click here: [https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.mozilla.webmaker]

DotBiz Blog:Volkswagen Made Me Do It.

Okay, I haven't blogged about car commercials in awhile, but Volkswagen has made me do it. I admit, I have not seen any of Volkswagen's diesel oriented "old lady" commercials, so I had nothing to go on when I saw their rear-end event featuring a Passat with the "Golden Sisters". But when I saw this one, it raised an immediate question in my mind: What was Volkswagen thinking?

So much of the commercial consisted of tight shots of the aging "sister" trio that the VW rear and any logo branding kind of dropped out of the picture. Furthermore, following their repartee was not all that easy. So instead of immediately grasping the fact that VW is having a year-end sale, I was left puzzling over what I had just seen and heard and why.

Big question: Are aging spinsters the new ideal target market for Passats? Why is this trio not reliving their youth by tire kicking a VW Mini Van? Third question: Is Volkswagen trying to refocus potential customers on a rear-end event? If so, could they not have auditioned a few more rears? I mean the actor is attractive enough, but his jeans are kind of saggy.

Finally, unless this really amps up floor traffic, what about placing a rear view mirror on these commercials and instead telling consumers why they should drop everything and buy a Volkswagen.

Dotbiz Blog: Could Your Site Lose Its Right to Private Domain Registration

Most people who have a website have been asked whether they want their domain name to be private or public. Opting for privacy costs more, but is considered an advantage by both private and commercial website owners as it prevents a domain owner's real, private information from appearing on a WHOIS search and therefore making the owner more susceptible to among other things identity theft and harassment.

Now, that privacy is at risk as the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers(ICANN)has been asked by an entertainment industry group, known as the Coalition for Online Accountability, to limit the use of proxy registration services. ICANN is considering not allowing domains used for commercial purposes to enjoy that privacy. A broad view is that any site running ads is commercial.

While the loss of private registration would on the surface make it easier to find and sue those who have abusive domain name registrations, it would also open up more private information for criminals to utilize. The current right to privacy also protects whistleblowers who expose crime, waste, and corruption. It also preserves the ability to speak anonymously which protects people with unpopular or marginalized opinions.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) opposes the new proposal to roll back anonymity.

Although the time for public comment has just passed, you can read an initial report on the issue by going to icann.org and searching comments for the following: GNSO Privacy & Proxy Services Accreditation Issues Working Group Initial Report. A vote is expected later this year.

Dotbiz Blog: Free Web Content from Reuters

Fresh website content is a big thing for every online site. Now, there's a new, free and perhaps unexpected source, Reuters. Yes, Reuters, the 160 year old news agency, recently announced that it would begin offering text, photos, video and other multi-media packages to online publishers through Reuters Media Express. Not every available story will work for everyone, but free and prestigious is difficult to beat.

The content will be made available through Reuters Media Express on a metered basis, allowing publishers to use an allotted portion of the newswire’s content each month. Users will be allowed to search and view content without registration, and only require a log-in to download content from the Media Express site.

As the media industry navigates the unprecedented shift to digital publishing and online news consumption, Reuters said that it is committed to innovating and challenging conventional models in order to help publishers and expose more readers to its award-winning news content.

DotBiz Blog: The Growth of E-tail in Social Media

E-tailing through social media sites is known by most as social commerce. This sector has been growing in popularity for a number of obvious reasons. 1) Setting up a business site on Facebook is free. 2) Having Shopify set up a store for you costs $9. 3.)Facebook is approaching 1.5 million users. Together, these figures are important even if you already have a traditional e-commerce site or even if your main product is information. The increasing realization of social markets by e-tailers is why social commerce is expected to ramp up significantly during the months ahead.

Sure, Amazon.com has 270 million users and eBay has 155 million, which is why e-tailers will, no doubt, want to maintain these venues in addition to venturing into the social commerce waters. Small retailers on the Web benefit from using every option available to both drive traffic to their main store and to grow their customer base by putting their goods in front of more people.

DotBiz News: What Will Happen to Digital Rights Over the Next Five Years

Digital rights management(DRM)is a growing topic in global web conversations. According to Report Linker,analysts have identified and described the market dynamics in important segments offering promising possibilities for companies to boost their growth. The DRM market has been studied by major application segments, revealing that mobile content, live streaming video, mobile game, digital music industry and global e-book market are the basic driving forces behind the growing demand for DRM. The global DRM market is estimated to grow in double digits during the next five years. Key trends include increasing government support for a safer digital economy, growing pay TV services market, and rising digital watermarks technology. Growth in digital broadcasting, is expected to push the global DRM market to new heights.

Also, a thorough analysis has been conducted on industry players that will help provide a detailed understanding of the competitors in the digital rights management market. The full report is available online from ReportLinker.com,an award-winning market research solution that finds, filters and organizes the latest industry data.

Dotbizblog: E-commerce Sites Should Dig Deeper Into Content

One of the big trends in e-commerce is the burgeoning of content on retail sites. This goes to underscore the fact that customers, including online retail customers like to get a few tips and feel a little personality from the people they do business with. Some sites cover this base by including an onsite blog or at least a link from their site to their blog site. Others look to more descriptive copy and fun sidebars not only to woe customers to make a specific purchase, but also to keep them onsite a little longer and draw them a little closer to their brand.
Even if the site only offers an email newsletter by offering a sample copy or two, customers can actually decide to subscribe, particularly if from time to time a special discount code is included in the e-newsletter. Bonus? The e-tailer's name is in front of its customers more often and if the content is good, loyalty can blossom. Bottom line: content is king even if content is not the main reason for your site.

Dotbizblog: Good News For U.S. Ecommerce Through The Next Four Years

Good news continues for ecommerce. Recent forecasts from eMarketer project that through 2018 U.S. ecommerce will grow by 11%. Even then, the U.S. will trail worldwide ecommerce projections which top out at 15% growth. In terms of traditional retail, the U.S. ecommerce figure is three times the projected total U.S. retail growth of 3.3% for the same time period.

Dot Biz Blog: What is Jake At State Farm Saying?

Okay, I haven't posted for awhile. [Okay a long while.] I
am a little conflicted. Should this blog be actual tips
for online businesses or should I just continue to point
out weird advertising observances from time to time? Who knows?

However, for now, I have another observation. Does State Farm
Insurance want to lose female customers or fail to attract them?

Every time, I see their "Jake at State Farm" TV commercial, I for one,
am glad I am not a customer. What does anything about that commercial
have to do with getting a good deal on insurance?

For instance,
(1) Why do I as a viewer, along with any other viewers
who may actually be in the market for insurance, want to know
that the husband in this commercial is calling State Farm in
the middle of the night and that his wife, obviously a light sleeper,
is jealous?

(2) Why does the wife [who has this man for a husband] care who
the heck he is calling in the middle of the night?

(3) Why does anyone need to know that the night shift
State Farm customer service rep is wearing kakhi pants?
Does this fact instantly identify him as a man and not a woman?

(4 What does this couple's angst have do with good service or
good rates from State Farm Insurance? Since the husband is not
stranded on the roadside and his house is obviously not on fire,
this commercial simply begs the question of why the husband has
an urgent need to talk with State Farm in the middle of the night.
[Surely, State Farm has not actually embarked on an outbound calling
plan to wake up customers and potential customers in the middle of
the night.]

Aside from the several customer targets who may actually be
offended by the commercial, this :30 sec spot fails to deliver
any benefit as to why I, or anyone else should be doing business
with State Farm. I did get the fact that they have 24-hr service,
just sayin', but isn't there a better way to point this out?

Dotbizblog: Should Companies Spend Money to Show Small Children Emulating the Bad Behavior of Adults? really?

Okay, I no longer have small children, but I couldn't help but note one evening this week that two back to back TV commercials showed small tots setting very bad behavior examples. One showed a toddler repeatedly flushing a toilet including craming a stuffed toy into it. Another, I believe a Nationwide Insurance commercial, showed children acting in adult roles of impatience and rage. Really? isn't it bad enough that children often have to see their own parents acting out without having television reinforce this type of behavior?

Dot Biz Blog: Fifty Shades of Grey, Fan Fiction and Blogging

Who knew? I'll admit to not having read the book or seen the movie, but I have read reviews of both in my local newspaper as well as interviews with the author. I was aware that the author E. L. James was a fan fiction author and that the book was originally available as an e-book and as a POD title.

I was unaware until reading PRNewswire and the Fort Worth Star Telegram that this runaway bestseller had any local ties. As it turns out Fifty Shades of Grey was originally made available by a blog called The Writer's Coffee Shop. Today's news indicated that an Arlington,TX resident who was a partner in the blog could possibly be cashing in on the success of Fifty Shades of Grey to the tune of seven figures after suing the blog's Australian partner. Seems as though the Texas resident only received a one-time $100,000 payment after the Random House deal was originally put together by the blog's Australian partner and James.

First take away? Fan fiction, especially if it becomes as successful as Fifty Shades of Grey, can lead to considerable profits for authors, and can also put some coin in the pockets of bloggers, especially those who are also involved in publishing. Second take away? As bloggers, know your business partners and have a firm contract in place. Just as good fences make good neighbors, good contracts make good partnerships.

Hey, it is obvious. I never spend enough time on my on blogs!
However, if you need to build more website traffic with key word
press releases, need new web content or other public relations
needs, check out our complete range of services at AndersonandCompany.biz.

Dotbizblog: Just Saying...

Overall the quality of this year's Super Bowl commercials were, in my opinion, better.
Most seemed to do a better job of connecting emotionally with audiences, not just by
being attention getting but rather by delivering messages that mattered.