Marketing School | Digital Marketing | Online Marketing

In Episode #361, Eric and Neil discuss how to create engaging Instagram story ads. Instagram is an effective tool that can be leveraged for your marketing strategy, but you need to know how to use it right. Tune in to learn how you construct an effective Instagram story and why Instagram is more beneficial for increasing brand awareness than it is for ROI. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Create Engaging Instagram Story Ads 00:55 – Instagram story ads are the ads that pop up in between Instagram stories 01:04 – Instagram story ads are similar to Snapchat story ads 01:15 – The only time that Eric watched an Instagram story ad was when it was from Brendon Buchard 01:21 – Brendon made his story ad look like the usual Instagram story 01:38 – It was a selfie video where Brendon was teaching 01:58 – Target who you need and want 02:33 – Your conversion will go up if you’re targeting the right profiles 02:40 – Most ads aren’t relevant to a person’s profile 02:58 – It is more ad

In Episode #360, Eric and Neil discuss 7 growth hacking examples you can learn from. Tune in to be inspired by how these companies skyrocketed their branding and acquired more customers using a few tactical strategies. If you want to grow your company effectively, it doesn’t hurt to look to the best! Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: 7 Growth Hacking Examples You Can Learn From 00:37 – First is Dropbox 00:40 – Dropbox used pay-per-click to acquire more users 00:51 – Dropbox was making $60 in revenue per customer 01:23 – Second is Airbnb’s growth story 01:29 – Airbnb got people to post on Craigslist 02:08 – Third is SEMrush 02:16 – SEMrush started with a free usage model with the option to upgrade 02:56 – Fourth is Hotmail 03:05 – Hotmail added “sent from Hotmail” at the end of their email to generate signups 03:38 – Fifth is Hubspot 03:43 – Hubspot is a content marketing machine which drives a lot of signups 04:00 – Hubspot also decided to create free tools 04:10 – H

In Episode #359, Eric and Neil discuss 5 tools that’ll help you track your search engine rankings. Tune in to know the benefits of SEO tracking, why it’s good to see how your competitors are doing and how tracking can help you see what you need to tweak with your SEO. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: 5 Tools That'll Help You Track Your Search Engine Rankings 00:36 – Search engine rankings are important if SEO rankings are important to you 00:46 – First is Google Search Console 00:58 – It’s not the best, but it’s a good starting point 01:04 – Second tool is Ahrefs 01:18 – You can compare your performance and your competitors’ performance as well 01:29 – Third is Authority Labs 01:38 – It is geared towards ranking 01:47 – You can see if your SEO efforts are paying off 02:01 – A Now Provided report shows you keyword opportunities 02:05 – Fourth is SerpBook which tracks your ranking accurately 02:31 – Fifth tool is SEMrush 02:41 – It is growing and updating quite fast 03

In Episode #358, Eric and Neil discuss whether a focus group is still worth the investment for market research. Tune in to learn more about focus groups and how technology has played a major role in how we conduct market research today! Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: Are Focus Groups Still Worth the Investment for Market Research? 00:38 – A focus group is when a group of people that are your ideal customers come to discuss a certain product that you may be launching 00:56 – Neil did a focus group that was paid by Yahoo 01:09 – The people discussed Yahoo and its competitors 01:50 – Focus groups were very effective before, but it won’t be as effective now 01:58 – Technology has changed the face of market research, people can find their answers online and surveys to collect information are done online as well 02:32 – Eric doesn’t see the need for an in-person focus group 03:02 – Mileage may still vary 03:12 – Marketing School is giving away a free 1 year subscription to Olark which

In Episode #357, Eric and Neil discuss 3 creative ways to attract your ideal customer. Tune in to learn how you can draw the most curated customers to your website without coming off as spam. They’ll also discuss the benefits of hosting an event with a curated guest list of your liking. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: 3 Creative Ways to Attract Your Ideal Customer 00:40 – Eric usually throws a dinner with marketing directors 00:59 – People like doing business with people 01:36 – Emailing potential customers is another way 01:53 – Neil puts remarketing pixels in the email 02:04 – Eventually, people will click the links 02:20 – Eric uses Dux-Soup which enables you to scan profiles on LinkedIn 02:38 – You can set the search parameters 03:05 – Dux-Soup is $15 a month 03:15 – Caffeine can keep your screen on 03:40 – Marketing School is giving away a free 1 year subscription of Olark which is a chat tool that you add to your site 03:54 – Subscribe, rate and review Marketing Sc

In Episode #356, Eric and Neil discuss the 7 metrics you ought to monitor in Google Analytics. Tune in to learn how you can use these metrics in Google Analytics to drive more traffic to your site and increase your ROI.  Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: 7 Metrics You Ought to Monitor in Google Analytics 00:37 – First metric is the bounce rate 00:54 – You can check which pages are causing the bounce and do necessary adjustments 00:59 – Second metric is the search traffic 01:01 – You can monitor it daily and make weekly comparisons to see the trends 01:21 – Neil started adding different languages on their website 01:56 – Third metric is the conversion 02:02 – You should be looking at where your conversions are coming from and if you’re hitting your goals 02:22 – Fourth metric is the time on site 02:42 – Check your time on site alongside your bounce rate 02:53 – Fifth metric is the site speed 03:00 – Site speed is a ranking and experience factor 03:20 – Sixth metric i

In Episode #355, Eric and Neil discuss how to retain your customers. Customer experience has the largest impact when it comes to loyalty. When you treat your customers well—acknowledging their value as client and friend—they will stay true to you, refer you to others, and contribute to the long-term success of your company. Tune-in to find how you can keep your customers for the long haul. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Retain Your Customers 00:40 – People like dealing with people so visit your customers and build a relationship when you can 00:48 – It can be difficult at times, but you have to establish that relationship 01:17 – Add as much value as you can to your customers 01:24 – Your job is to make them look like a superstar so they’ll remember you forever 01:31 – Become their friend 01:44 – The onboarding experience affects retention more than anything else 01:50 – Look at the metrics for your onboarding 02:17 – For service-based businesses, Conversion Rate Exper

In Episode #354, Eric and Neil discuss how to build DA 70+ links. Tune in to learn how you can effectively build your DA links and the importance of having the BEST content in your respective field before approaching high DA sites you want to link back to you. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Build DA 70+ Links 00:34 – DA stands for domain authority with a scale of 1-100, 100 being the strongest 00:43 – The higher the domain authority is, the easier it is for you to boost your content 01:08 – Large publications usually have 60-90+ DA 01:24 – Marketing School’s Episode about writing for large publications 01:32 – Go to your competition, take their URL and put into Ahrefs 01:40 – You’ll see their backlinks, who’s linking to them and the articles they're pointing to 01:47 – Create better articles, hit those sites up, and ask for a link 01:53 – Neil finds this to be the most effective way 01:57 – Check Brian Dean’s skyscraper technique 02:00 – Check out Dean’s article on

In Episode #353, Eric and Neil discuss whether or not you should use a pop-up. Tune in to hear Eric and Neil’s experience with pop-ups, why they still work, and how you can recoup your spending by using this tool. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: Should You Use Pop-ups? 00:55 – Whether people like or hate pop-ups, they still use them because they work 01:04 – You should use pop-ups 01:13 – Use pop-ups when your visitor is about to leave your website 01:23 – Eric read a study that assessed whether a visitor left the website after seeing a pop-up 01:42 – The metrics stayed the same 01:56 – People still convert at the end of the day 02:16 – Hello Bar can be used for pop-ups 02:35 – You can recoup your spending through pop-ups 03:04 – There’s nothing wrong with pop-ups 03:10 – When your pop-up is great and people get value from it, they won’t hate you 03:27 – As Mark Cuban says “when you try to please everyone, you please no one” 03:30 – That’s it for today’s episode! 3 Key Poin

In Episode #352, Eric and Neil discuss the 7 advanced segments you should be setting up in Google Analytics. Tune in to know how evaluating segmented data can improve your customers' user experience, provide you a picture of your search traffic per geographic region, and see who is actually spending on your website. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: 7 Advanced Segments You Ought to Set Up in Google Analytics 00:40 – Google analytics show you data 00:48 – With advanced segments, you can specify data and ‘slice and dice’ Google reports to look at the data based on the segments 01:10 – First, look at the regions where you generate most of your business from 01:12 – Create advanced segments around those countries 01:16 – Neil targets Brazil and other Spanish speaking countries with some European and US countries 01:26 – Neil can track the traffic from those regions 01:43 – Second is the people who have viewed 3 or more pages 02:00 – Third is the search traffic per country 02:09 – You

In Episode #351, Eric and Neil discuss 7 chrome extensions that every marketer ought to use. Tune in to learn how these chrome extensions can make your work as a marketer easier so that you’re using your time in a way that maximizes productivity! Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: 7 Chrome Extensions Every Marketer Ought to Use 00:34 – First extension is Zest—it has tons of marketing articles 00:54 – Keyword Everywhere is an extension that when you search anything, it pops in data on the search volume from Google 01:15 – It is useful for marketers because they can do keyword research through the Google browser 01:26 – Ghostery shows you the technology a website has 01:53 – Fourth is Save to Pocket 02:08 – Allows you to save anything for future reference 02:20 – Fifth is Buffer for social media sharing 02:37 – Sixth is Email Hunter 02:46 – It can figure out the email address of the profile you’re viewing 02:58 – Neil used Rapportive but LinkedIn discontinued it 03:14 –

In Episode #350, Eric and Neil discuss how to get press like Richard Branson. Tune in to hear about Richard Branson’s unreal PR stunts that put Virgin company on the map! You’ll also find out why standing out and being bold is just what you need to do to make yourself memorable! Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Get Press Like Richard Branson 00:40 – Neil learned about how Richard Branson created Virgin during his speaking engagement at VTEX as an opening speaker for Richard Branson 01:28 – Richard did a crazy PR stunt when Virgin was just starting and didn’t have enough capital 01:44 – Richard used hot air balloons with their name on it so people would be exposed to the brand 01:56 – When the London Eye couldn’t be lifted from the ground, Richard had a blimp that flew over London Eye with the message “BA Can’t Get It Up” 02:28 – Richard went overboard for his company to grow at a rapid pace 02:38 – Richard lives his life how he wants it 03:06 – You have to do something remar

In Episode #349, Eric and Neil discuss how to rank #1 in Google. Tune in to learn how you can work your way up to the TOP of the Google search results and why being consistent and thorough with your content can skyrocket your ranking. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Rank #1 in Google 00:40 – The two main factors that affect ranking are your content and links 00:51 – Building backlinks becomes difficult over time 01:09 – Neil was at the SMX Conference and everyone was talking about links 01:20 – Neil found out over the years that Google values content more than they do links 01:27 – You want to get to Top 10 in the search result for any keyword you want to rank for 01:35 – You can use the Keyword Density Tool by SEObook 01:40 – Make sure your content is VERY thorough to get more search traffic in the long run 02:00 – Wikipedia is always the top search result for “Abraham Lincoln” 02:05 – The content is consistently growing 02:24 – Guest posting can also help your rank

In Episode #348, Eric and Neil discuss how to hire a blog editor. Tune in to learn the tasks you can assign your prospective editor. Assess as much as you can before hiring an editor such as whether or not you they can work well with you. You’ll also find out why Neil prefers paying a flat rate rather than an hourly rate. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Hire a Blog Editor 00:55 – Eric has used ProBlogger to hire writers and editors 01:34 – Neil evaluates a team of editors by how they streamline a task 01:39 – Editors have to think of at least 20 variations of a headline 01:48 – Make sure the content is free of lapses 01:54 – Editors will also reach out to other editors that they’ve linked to through email 02:17 – Next is scheduling the posts in different social media sites through Buffer 02:40 – A blog editor makes sure the right content will post at the right time 03:00 – Blog editors need to have a process for how they get things done 03:40 – You can ask them if they c

In Episode #347, Eric and Neil discuss why big brands get away with spammy link building. Tune in to learn how Google has changed their algorithms, making businesses think twice about using shady link tactics. And even if these tactics work, find out why it’s still not recommended for you to use them. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: Why Do Big Brands Get Away With Spammy Link Building? 00:44 – Big companies like Google and Amazon make hundreds of millions of links 00:50 – The over-optimization cup 01:01 – Once it overflows, you’ll get hit with penalties and adjustments 01:08 – A new site or brand has a smaller margin of error 02:06 – One of hardest indicators to manipulate is brand craze 02:10 – This is when more and more people are searching for your brand 02:30 – When Google knows that you’re a big brand, it’s harder for them to remove you 02:38 – Google just penalizes a big brand for shady link building 03:05 – Google notices that people will turn to other search engines when

In Episode #346, Eric and Neil discuss whether public speaking is worth it. Tune in to find out the benefits of public speaking, such as networking and increasing your brand awareness. Eric and Neil also discuss what they aim for whenever they participate in a speaking engagement. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: Is Public Speaking Worth It? 00:50 – Neil was 20 years old when he started public speaking 01:14 – Speaking consistently within your space will eventually drive a business 01:26 – The content should be advanced 01:45 – You can get better offers if you’re a public speaker 02:01 – Eric was in Amsterdam a month ago and he talked with other public speakers 02:12 – Having a network of public speakers is a benefit for Eric 02:27 – The right people can introduce you to other people 02:38 – Public speaking is a great way to connect with people 02:50 – Eric will always aim for 1 good connection in every public speaking event that he does 03:00 – Neil observed that speaking ou

In Episode #345, Eric and Neil discuss how to become a contributor for well-known publications. Tune in to learn the strategies that will land you that GREAT deal—you only need one to make your efforts worth it. You’ll find out the importance of focusing on your content and connecting with editors and guest contributors. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Become a Contributor For Well Known Publications 00:47 – If you want to be a contributor for a specific publication, look at their format first 00:53 – Write something that is interesting to the editor while following their format 00:57 – Reach out to editors and try to help them out 01:06 – Check out other websites that are looking for guest bloggers through Google search 01:23 – It is true that you’re not going to generate a positive ROI from a guest post, but it takes ONE deal to make it worth it 01:47 – Neil wrote on a publication before and was spotted by a CEO and Neil made a 7 figure deal 02:35 – Guest writing will eve

In Episode #344, Eric and Neil discuss how to attract TOP marketing talent. Tune in to learn how you can easily find the top marketing talent, how to leverage LinkedIn updates for making those contacts, and the importance of communicating who you are (as a company) to potential new recruits. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Attract Top Marketing Talent 00:36 – Eric just hired a number of new employees 00:55 – Finding great marketing talent is more difficult than finding a designer 01:25 – Eric blasts his lists every once in while with his jobs page from Workable 01:37 – From the applicant tracking system, Eric can monitor everything 01:51 – What Neil learned in recruiting is that possible recruits want to learn more about your company 02:06 – Create a video about your company 02:29 – Neil goes to LinkedIn to find people in the space and approach them 02:49 – Neil creates a great job description to send to people 03:35 – Most people are on LinkedIn and the best ones aren

In Episode #343, Eric and Neil discuss how to use polls to attract new customers. Tune in to learn how you can use polls to engage and interact with your customers and, at the same time, attract new leads! Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Use Polls to Attract New Customers 00:40 – Neil was looking to acquire advertising companies that do pay per click management 00:47 – Neil had a poll on his website asking if people spend money on Google AdWords or Facebook ads 01:03 – Neil got 401 responses with 51% answering “yes” 01:22 – Neil modified the poll asking how much people spend on paid advertising 01:35 – Most of Eric’s clients leverage paid advertising 01:56 – Neil told Eric how he can leverage his leads using polls 02:29 – You can get people engaged through polls 02:47 – A poll is a way to have a conversation with your customer and not just a form that needs to be filled out 03:21 – Eric is considering removing Intercom and using chatbots, like ManyChat 03:30 – Eric wil

In Episode #342, Eric and Neil discuss how to leverage Quora ads. Tune in to learn why NOW is a good time to invest in Quora ads and the do’s and don’ts when it comes to answering a question to draw new business in. Time Stamped Show Notes: 00:27 – Today’s topic: How to Leverage Quora Ads 00:35 – Quora is a question and answer site that has raised a $100M round in June 2017 00:54 – Eric personally reads Quora 01:12 – Quora currently generates a lot of search traffic at the moment 01:19 – One of Eric’s clients, Lever, tracks the keyword applicant tracking system 01:31 – If you’re a content marketer on Quora, it is targeted and you can create articles that targets specific keywords easily 02:06 – Quora is a text-based content that sends people to a landing page 02:16 – With Quora, you want to answer their question and pitch them your product 02:24 – Quora is a mixture of using content marketing combined with paid advertising 03:13 – You can redirect people to search in Quora if you don’t want to pay