[akinn005]

Marketing Campaign Development Reflection

My experience in Internet Marketing Campaign Development has inspired me to reflect on what I have learned and accomplished throughout my academic and professional career journey.

Some aspects of my career have allowed me to integrate Internet Marketing concepts, strategies, and areas of expertise into cohesive campaigns with exceptional results. Going back to the fundamentals; of digital branding and storytelling, I create a foundation for a clear messages and communication focused on the intended audience.

Developing, analyzing and monitoring, and acting is imperative for any online media campaign to be successful both online and offline.

Once established, I continue to build upon the foundation through consumer behavior analysis techniques to then utilize better web design and usability for the intended audience.

-Ashley 

[akinn005]

Those little links on the bottom...

After studying a significant number of privacy policies and analyzing extremely credible well-known businesses and corporations, it quickly became apparent; breadth and depth of companies are available in that link way down on the bottom of the page labeled "Privacy Policy" chose to operate and what they value most. Keeping in mind every section of a privacy policy has a purpose and is there for a reason.

When was the last time you read through a website privacy policy?Did all the sections make sense?

Depending on the organizations business goals, objectives, and most important purpose of the website.

Tip: Privacy policies should at a minimum disclose to visitors the type of information collected about site visitors and why information is collected.

Is personally identifiable information being collected on your favorite blog or website? Look for the disclosures; hopefully, your favorite hot spot on the web cares about you as much as you care about them and proves it by adding an extra layer of credibility to the privacy policy

[akinn005]

Website Analytics and Optimization

After taking the advanced analytics class at Full Sail University I now have deep understanding of different tools and how they are utilized for tracking, reporting and acting upon the story behind the data from different sources of online marketing channels. Such as website traffic and how every task relates back to the overall goals and objectives.

Before taking the web analytics and optimization class in the mastery program, I was not aware of the power and capabilities of free analytic tools such as Google analytics. To explain further, being able to identify metrics such as how many people are visiting a website, how long they are staying on the site, and if they are new or returning visitors are some of the capabilities I was familiar with. Additionally, I knew the tool could be utilized for SEO. However, what I did not know until now is how to take those metrics to the next level by comparing them to other dimensions, such as how people are finding and interacting with the website on a granular level are other metrics that can be analyzed.

 Furthermore, I leaned Google Analytics can be used for more than tracking website data. It can also be used for games, mobile apps and even POS systems. I was very impressed with all of the tools, resources, and analytic competencies I now have after completing Web Analytics and Optimization. I am also happy to have successfully passed the Google Analytics IQ Exam thank to what I have learned throughout this course. The certification is something that will provide evidence of analytical fundamentals and competencies to use throughout my careers for at least the next 18 months.

[akinn005]

I just joined Thrilld, check it out and follow me!

[akinn005]

Strategic Public Relations Mastery Journal

[akinn005]

Advanced SEO Strategies

Advanced SEO at Full Sail University has expanding my knowledge extensively in regard to different methods to achieve higher search rankings. Before attending the class online I was hoping to learn more about what is required on the back end of website development to gain better results.

 One of the most interesting topic that I did not understand completely before taking this course was link building strategies. However, internal and external link building makes perfect sense. Internal links through anchor text help users navigate through website content more efficiently and naturally. In addition, they help search engines crawl through a website more effectively.

 Furthermore, external link building is just as important. Keeping in mind that the amount of external links to a website do not carry as much weight as the relevancy and credibility of the external links brining visitors to a website.

 Moreover, I have gained knowledge on how to prioritize different components of SEO such as title tags, keyword research and creating content that sounds natural for the human language. This information is something that is very important for anyone working in the business world to understand, more so because there are so many SEO perpetrators by having understanding of the most important factors of SEO and their level of importance can save a company from investing in something that will never be obtainable or possibly keep them from going out of business.

 Then by drilling down into the nuts and bolts of the primary components and optimizing one small detail can make the difference between first page rankings or second page and ultimately hundreds, thousands or millions of dollars in revenue.

[akinn005]

Advanced Internet Marketing Strategies

When reflecting back on the mastery journal timeline I stated throughout this course I hoped to learn more about paid search, email marketing and social media strategy to create marketing campaigns.

 Now that I am in the last week of this course I can explain further how I have developed knowledge and skills that have synergies with my original expectations.

 While working through the course I gained further understanding of paid search, beginning with creating as and copy based off goals and objectives set before building the campaign. Then moving forward into understanding micro conversions throughout a full paid search campaign from awareness to loyalty.

 Although, before taking this course I had a foundation of display and pay-per-click fundamentals, learning advanced Internet marketing strategies and their correlations one another helped me fully understand a complete media campaign and most importantly how it effects a companies bottom-line.

 The tools and resources provided throughout the course enhanced my ability to make educated decisions based off of research, to decrease risk of a campaign failing. As, well as how to utilized detailed metrics to forecast realistic results and track them throughout the campaign to make adjustments as necessary.

 That said, I am happy to have the opportunity to gain further knowledge and skill sets learned from this course that will beneficial to me throughout my career.

[akinn005]

What does new media mean to you?

What does new media mean to you? From dial-up and chat rooms and “you’ve got mail” to fully functional multi-channel communications, mobile apps and AI the possibilities for marketers to reach their audience and connect with them are limitless. Facebook once a platform that was once frowned upon now shows 75% of active users are between 30-49 years young according to Pew Research Center.

Every day there's something new and exciting happening in the wonderful, yet mysterious digital space that encourages openness and new opportunities to engage and connect with people instantly all over the world.  

AdWords, social, SEO... oh my what does all this mean and how can we make sense of it all?

Scott Stratton said in of his Unmarketing series, “People have never stopped spreading information the only thing that has changed is the way people spread it.” When thinking of new media as an extension of traditional media, it begins to make sense. People once used the phonebook to search for a local business when they needed a phone number, address, or to book a service. Now, Google is the phonebook for most people.

People once picked up the phone and made a call to friend or family member; now Facebook is the go-to choice for catching up and saying hello. Paper invitations are almost extinct, why waste paper when an event or email works just fine.

Traditional television commercials must now be formatted and converted to look, load and stream nicely on YouTube, Social Media, Websites you name it. Bloggers are superstars, experts, educators and so much more. They provide information on just about anything and everything that anyone could want to learn in just about every way possible as in video, audio, visual or text.

To me new media is a new way of living, learning, communicating and selling. Now, I ask you once more what does new media to you?

[akinn005]

Web Design and Usability

After completing the Web Design and Usability course at Full Sail University as part of the Internet Marketing, Masters Degree program, I would like to reflect my former and latter expectations of this course.

When anticipating what I would learn throughout this course when completing my Mastery Journal Timeline goals in January 2015, my expectations originated of gaining knowledge of multimedia color schemes and animation tactics to engage website visitors.

However, what I have learned after completing this course is color schemes and animation is only one of many, details in regards to engaging the person that chooses to spend time on a website.

As Walters explained, creating an enjoyable experience for website visitors demands planning and thought in every component such as information architecture, development, marketing, copyright, design, search engine optimization, accessibility, and usability that has synergies creating an experience that keeps the desired audience engaged and loyal.

Having a thorough understanding of every component throughout the web development process and has validated the importance of having dedication; knowledge and experience to ensure the intricate details are not overlooked or disregarded throughout the web design and usability process.

In my opinion, this class has been very beneficial in providing an in depth understanding and respect for each component leading up to the final stages of a website built for its ideal visitors. Moreover, the web development and usability course within the Internet Marketing Masters Program at Full Sail has exceeded my expectations of what I thought I would gain from this course.

Walter, A. (2008). Building findable websites: Web standards, SEO, and beyond. Berkeley, CA: New Riders.

[akinn005]

Consumer Behavior and analysis

Before taking the course in Consumer Behavior and Analysis I was to my understanding it would involve more analytics and tracking information in regards to the consumer path to purchase. However, now that I have nearly completed this course I am now able to understand how and why consumers chose their path to purchase which. By looking further into consumer behavior, there is so much to consider. The tracking is just one part of the equation, but knowing why is the other. In addition, I was able to gain more understanding and knowledge of the importance of ethics in regards to letting people know there if there are cookies installed on a website or mobile app. Throughout class discussions, it became known that people tend to be less skeptical of the Internet when they are simply informed about how their information is being tracked and how it is being used, which is a good practice both morally and ethically. In wrapping up the course the information and assignments regarding cultural segmenting to and how to provide a good user experience, such as creating multilingual content on a website or promotional materials. As well as mobile marketing and the tactics that should be implemented according to the type of products or services a company is offering. By taking the information learned in this course about how consumers interact with content and where they interact with content provides advanced understanding of consumer behavior to build upon the foundation of Internet Marketing.

[akinn005]

Full Sail University Review

For this mastery journal post I would like to reflect onwhat I have learned from the marketing fundamentals course and how it relates to my mastery journal timeline.

A few of the objectives mentioned in my mastery journal timeline where to learn more about analytics, finding resources to stay current on industry trends, website usability, and utilizing backlinks in relation to SEO. The marketing fundamentals course at Full Sail University has provided a great foundation to lead me into more in depth knowledge relating to these objectives.

Until taking this course I did not realize the importance of social media as backlinks and how much it impacts search rankings. Being able to get followers, engage them and ultimately have them share content makes perfect sense on how to prove to Google my content is worthy of being an authority deserving to get ranked.

 If Google does see my content as an authority by gaining popularity through social engagement and quality website traffic then the next objective to keep in mind is website usability. When developing a website the usability is easily overlooked, yet very important. When talking about website usability the first step is testing it though face-to-face interviews for ease of use, functionality and design. The usability testing is a key element throughout the development process to ensure users are having a simple and enjoyable experience.

That said, analytics is a key element for I use into gaining comprehensive insight on what is going on to ensure all the efforts put into engaging through social, obtaining quality website visitors by getting found easily are small metrics that lead to meeting set goals throughout the path to purchase leading to the achieving the ultimate goal of gaining conversions such as an email sign up, registration or purchase.

In my opinion all of these individual objectives should have a synergetic relationship leading to results or more importantly the bottom line. With all the continuous changes happening within social and search staying current on these trends can be overwhelming. By following creditable blogs such as moz.com, social sprout, joining LinkedIn groups and participating in conversations online I feel confident my efforts are being best practiced in addition to utilizing a combination of the knowledge I have learned throughout my professional career.

 -Ashley

 Irby, L. (n.d.). Getting Listed & Ranked in Google, Yahoo and Bing. Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://www.2createawebsite.com/traffic/search-engine-traffic.html

 Inbound marketing is complicated. Moz's software makes it easy. (n.d.). Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://moz.com

Nodder, C. (2013, September 18). Lynda.com Training | Foundations of UX: Making the Case for Usability Testing. Retrieved March 1, 2015, from http://www.lynda.com/Web-User-Experience-tutorials/Foundations-UX-Making-Case-Usability-Testing/140844-2.html

[andrearisch]

Graphic designer friend shared link to this company. Great example of a website.

[akinn005]

Marketing fundamentals at Full Sail University

The two digital marketing strategies I would like to take time to analyze contain metrics from familiar internet resources such as a website in addition to social media efforts.

As a starting point, website marketing to me is extremely important and should be viewed as the center of the digital marketing universe. The capabilities of free Google analytics are an exceptional tool to benchmark and ultimately assist in identifying how to create a results driven digital marketing strategy.

The primary analytics I look at are overall website traffic/visitors, bounce rate, and demographics. Those simple metrics provide a great deal of insight on what's happening on the back end. Digging a bit deeper, utilizing the tag manager capabilities can tell what users are clicking on and engaging with providing more granular insights which is incredible.

As for social analytics the important metrics to me are page likes, demographics, geos and most importantly engagement. I do not see simple "likes" being enough to quantify overall social media success. What does matter is finding what type of content truely engages those who are following a product or brand through social media comments, shares and content likes then taking that information and turning it into digestible information that is results driven.

That said, there is so much data avaliable the most important tactic is being able to identify the  drivers through data injected information and knowing how to utilize it accordingly to obtain overall goals and objectives.

-Ashley

[andrearisch]

Quote Pictures - BrainyQuote

[akinn005]

"Nothing is impossible, the word itself says 'I'm possible'!" - Audrey Hepburn quotes from BrainyQuote.com

[akinn005]

Inbound or Outbound... that is the question?!?! Any thoughts anyone?

To my understanding inbound and outbound marketing is similar to push and pull methods of marketing. Outbound marketing which is a paid search, direct mail, DR audio or visual advertisement such as radio or television with the expectation of a direct instant gratification response.

Outbound advertising is a method of generating awareness and the ideal collaboration experience. In regards to perception, outbound marketing can be perceived as intrusive. However, if done correctly, outbound can be very effective, although it takes preparation. 

Inbound marketing is more of a James Bond approach.

Fantasy, appropriate or necessary?

Impulse may be receptive to outbound, where as an informative may be enticed  to an inbound.

-Ashley

[akinn005]

http://prezi.com/hlfsyhimj0lw/?utm_campaign=share&utm_medium=copy

[akinn005]

Always do your best. What you plant now, you will harvest later. - Og Mandino at BrainyQuote

This quote reminds me to be patient and stay focused! Og Mandino quote. (n.d.). Retrieved January 22, 2015, from http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/o/ogmandino164003.html?src=t_motivational