I just love infographics as a great way to capture a process and a story in a way that I can understand. One great example is the Inbound Marketing Strategy infographic published recently by Slingshot SEO (see below – included with the authors’ permission). think this is a great tool to use as you plan or review your B2B marketing. It steps you through the 3 phases of the buyer cycle, TOFU, MOFU, and BOFU, and lists on the side what types of marketing activities or materials can support that buying phase. For information on these phases, see my previous blog post, You Paid for TOFU. MORE >>

'Do you want a practical approach to using LinkedIn? LinkedIn has a lot of features, and it’s not easy to understand how to use them and what to do to get results. Here is a checklist for making sure your LinkedIn implementation is successful. Make sure your profile is 100% complete. LinkedIn will prompt you if your profile is incomplete. Some of the key factors are adding a photo, getting at least 3 recommendations, adding your education, creating a list of skills. Make sure you connect to your Company Profile on LinkedIn, and other Company Profiles for past jobs. LinkedIn marketing MORE >>

I manage marketing and social media for some of my clients, and imagine my surprise when I found that a marketing services vendor in my network was following not one, not two, but many of my clients or customers on Twitter. I’m on my Friday morning marketing soapbox to say that this is not only creepy, it’s sad, and it can happen to you! It’s sad for the marketer who doesn’t have enough customers and connections to build a social network organically like I did. It’s sad for someone who has to follow and not lead. Be original, organic and true. MORE >>

'If you’re puzzling over why you no longer see posts by others directly on your Facebook company page, puzzle no more. Facebook simply made yet another change that affects the way we manage pages. This issue has not come up that much for my clients. Most are business-to-business (B2B), and some set up their Facebook pages in a very controlled fashion: they are the only ones that can post on their page. Hover with your mouse over a post and, when the “x” appears in the right corner of the post, click on it. Change is good. Change is good. Facebook b2b social media MORE >>

I’ve always admired how so many B2B marketers are control freaks. We control details and deadlines and, most importantly, our brand. It’s all about  brand and message consistency and uniformity across divisions, products, platforms, people and in some cases countries. Protect the brand at all costs! But now, due to the socialization of buying and marketing, it’s more difficult to control your brand. In fact, you have to let go, at least a little bit, and let your stakeholders (your employees, your customers, your suppliers, your fans) promote your brand. Old School!), MORE >>