Why should a tech company consider hiring an external marketing firm? One of the most important reasons is that an agency will be made up of team members with years of combined expertise in diverse marketing skill sets. Finding a single person or building an internal team with all of this experience will cost far more than partnering with a marketing agency.
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How to Use Audience Personas to Improve Your Content Marketing Strategy
Marketing is not an exact science and can seem very abstract. On top of that, the marketing industry is evolving at a much quicker pace than other areas of business. Social media, smartphones, and ad block features in web browsers are just a few of the things that have greatly impacted the efforts of marketers. Buyers also behave much differently today than they did in the early 2000’s.
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5 Press Release Ingredients Designed to Increase Engagement from Your B2B Audience

Nearly every business has written a press release at one time or another. We have worked with a few clients in the past that didn’t really see the need or value of producing press releases. This could be for a number of reasons. Some of our clients were not wild about writing press releases because they saw them as extra work with little to no payoff. Some perceived press releases as something only large companies do. Most of our tech clients saw the value, published press releases, and enjoyed growth.
Before sharing the five ingredients you should include in your press releases, it’s important to understand “the why.” Why are press releases important and how can they benefit your business?
Join John Centofanti at WordCamp Kent 2018

John Centofanti will be presenting at WordCamp Kent on Be the Expert: Growing Your Business by Educating Your Audience.
This session will focus on how to grow your business by educating your customers and providing value. You already know that your audience is looking for an expert to help grow their businesses. Find how to help your audience succeed and build your expertise at the same time.
Don’t fake it ’till you make it. Learn it ’till you earn it. This session will give you practical ways to grow your own business and your reputation.
Join John and others at Kent State University June 9-10 to catch his full presentation. Don’t miss out!
Rebuild vs Revise: Should You Update Your Existing Website or Redesign from Scratch?
Overview
New website features, styles, and trends appear daily. Some disappear quickly and others become a standard which other sites follow for years.
Best practices for websites may be technical or related to design and content. Some standards have remained for years, while others change year after year.
Think of some website features or styles you’ve experienced:
Join John Centofanti at WordCamp Toronto 2017
John Centofanti will be presenting at WordCamp Toronto on Brand Positioning: Growing Your Business by Finding Your Niche.
This session will cover how to develop your own brand, how to position it in the marketplace and attract the right clients. It will also cover ways to develop messaging for your business.
The session is interactive. John will use the branding principles presented with a volunteer to help a real business. This is a condensed version of the work Creative Stream Marketing does with all new clients to prepare their business for effective marketing. This will be easy to understand and practical, regardless of your business size or your expertise.
Do You Have a Product, a Solution, or a Service?
Many tech companies refer to their offering as a product, others call it a solution, and still others refer to their service. What’s the best way to market your offering?
If you are routinely charging different rates or prices for your offering, chances are, you don’t have a product.
This may not sound like an important point to discuss, but it can influence a prospect’s perception of your company and affect whether he or she buys from you or not. I’ve worked with SaaS companies, software companies, and others who have some type of tech solution. Here are some common scenarios:
- The sales team refers to the company’s products
- Its website refers to its solutions, or even products and solutions
- The operations team refers to the offering as its services
Often, these terms are used interchangeably, with no sense of consistency or clarity.
Is paying for targeted ad impressions worth it?
If your banner ad is seen by 75,000 website visitors, do you get a good return—or any return—on your investment? It depends.
Understanding the Value
Paying for a banner ad on a website other than your own can be very profitable or a waste of your marketing dollars. There are a few things to consider before saying yes or no to banner ad opportunities.
4 Reasons to Avoid Negative Marketing Messages
Negative marketing messages are everywhere—TV, radio, web, print, outdoor and social media.
Negative marketing works, but should you do it?
Negative marketing can take many forms:
Speaking negatively about the competition
- Brand X is always breaking and never reliable. Try Brand Z for the quality you deserve.
- Tired of your insurance company putting you on hold? Call ABC Insurance to talk to real people who care.