[Posted by Mathieu Hannouz
Senior Product Marketing Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

Addictive, creativity filled, inspiring, entertaining, and actually pretty darn useful.  These are all words used to describe Pinterest, the newest social media craze that so many are talking about, including Mashable, Conversational Marketing, and country music star Taylor Swift.  Although this visual pin board is currently filled with recipes, fashion ideas and dream travel destinations, it has fantastic potential for businesses. (more…)

[Posted by Mathieu Hannouz
Senior Product Marketing Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

I read an interesting article in the Washington Post associated with the Consumer Electronics Show, “Privacy rights activists worry about potential abuse of high-tech devices featured at CES event” that examined privacy concerns being raised in light of increasingly high-tech homes and gadgets – can you imagine your refrigerator, stove or washing machine being connected to the internet?  It’s not a concept that is all that far away.  As a result, privacy advocates warn that consumers must be diligent about understanding what real-time data and personal information could be collected and shared with third parties, like utility companies…and quite possibly marketers. (more…)

[Posted by Kristin Hambelton
Vice President Marketing, Neolane, Inc.]

On January 24^th at 2:00pm ET, Neolane will kick off its 2012 webinar series with a doozy: Unraveling the Complexity of Cross-Channel Messaging – A Roadmap for Tearing Down the Silos and Adopting an Integrated, Customer-Centric Approach.

I’m excited to present alongside Shar VanBoskirk, Vice President, Principal Analyst at Forrester Research.  Shar is a leading expert on interactive marketing and how businesses can leverage digital channels and technologies to drive sales and deepen customer relationships.

(more…)

[Posted by Erin Collins,
Marketing Intern, Neolane, Inc.]

With the massive adoption of social networks, a significant increase in the number of American smartphone users, and the subsequent changes in consumers’ receipt and ability to react to marketing messages, 2011 was an eventful year for marketers. As 2012 rapidly approaches, here are a few key trends that we expect to see impact the future of brands’ customer relationships: (more…)

[Posted by Mathieu Hannouz
Senior Product Marketing Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

Over the past year, B2C and B2B companies made strides in working to figure out how to turn “likes” on Facebook into qualified leads by gaining more information about who their fans are and how to engage with them in personalized, one-to-one dialogues. In the process, a few companies stand out not only in terms of creativity, but also in moving the bar in term of how brands communicate with customers and prospects over social media channels. (more…)

[Posted by Ed Hadley
Senior Marketing Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

My 20-month-old daughter was too young to get the concept of Santa last year.  This year is another story.  She’s borderline obsessed, constantly talking about how he flies through the sky, puts presents under the tree, and says “ho, ho, ho.”

To say she’s excited about Christmas would be an understatement.  In fact, she’s so eagerly awaiting Santa’s arrival that I’m afraid she’ll be disappointed if she doesn’t actually see him in our house.  Hopefully, the gifts under the tree offer some consolation.

Why I am writing this here?  Because great marketing is like Santa: it makes kids of us all.  If it’s truly special, we eagerly await its arrival.  And we know that the gifts waiting under the tree—in our inbox—will be exactly what we want.

Santa delivers incredible engagement  and relevance.  Hopefully, your marketing does too.

Happy Holidays from Neolane!

[Posted by Jennifer Minko,
Marketing Programs Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

2011 is just about over and the time has come to prepare for another year of events, conferences, and webinars, oh my! This is the point where I like to review the past 365 days of programs and share a few key points that stood out. We organized a number of webinars, covered a variety of topics, and shared the stage with some amazing presenters whose ideas and commentary gave us insight on what it means to be a marketer today.

This year was all about building a business case for marketing tech purchases and making sure your selection will withstand a constantly evolving marketplace.   With the help and knowledge of analysts, partners and, customers we were able to address the issues and challenges you face and move toward a better understanding of where you can begin making a change. (more…)

[Posted by Mathieu Hannouz
Senior Product Marketing Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

I recently co-presented a webinar alongside Suresh Vittal of Forrester Research that highlighted best practices around effective ‘rules of engagement’ for B2B2C (business-to-business-to-consumer) marketing.

This type of marketing applies to sectors that distribute products and services through an intermediary (services are sold to a business and then to a consumer)—the insurance, pharma, automotive and financial advising sectors would be the best examples. (more…)

[Posted by Ed Hadley
Senior Marketing Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

While there’s plenty of ongoing discussion in the marketing community about the death of email, I never hear anyone talk about the death of direct mail.  Is that because it died long ago?

Many critics would say yes.  Others would argue that the final nail in the coffin is the U.S. Postal Service’s $3 billion cost-savings initiative, which will eliminate next-day delivery for first-class mail and periodicals.  By getting even slower, they’d say, direct mail would surely have no place in an age of instant gratification. (more…)

[Posted by Ed Hadley
Senior Marketing Manager, Neolane, Inc.]

As much as the holidays mean fun with family and friends, they also entail obligatory visits with distant relatives—and among them, a crazy aunt or uncle.  Surely you know the type.   As a kid, you dreaded their arrival because it would instantly derail your fun with siblings and cousins.  Your parents would warn you to be on your best behavior: to be polite, listen to their stories, pretend to like their gifts, and so on.  Worst of all, their extended stay—or so it seemed—would seriously cramp your style. (more…)