If you're located in the Northeast like we are then you're probably bunkered down in your home preparing for the storm of the century. The snow has started and lets hope you already have your milk, bread and eggs. Even 2ft (or maybe 3ft) of snow couldn't stop us from recapping some great posts from the week. First up, of course, is my weekly pick from the blogosphere to share with you. This week's post comes from Jeffrey Rohrs , VP of Marketing with ExactTarget , who wrote about last Sunday's Super Bowl and the marketing lessons learned from this year's ads. Now on to this week's recap. MORE >>

Many marketers are moving away from using pay-per-click (PPC) advertising in lieu of more cost-effective lead generation methods, like blogging, social media marketing, and creating excellent offer content that drives net new leads and reconversions. While we are obviously 100% on board with the whole inbound marketing thing, we think there are still instances in which it makes a lot of sense to invest in some paid online advertising. After all, everything in moderation, right? Sometimes you just have to give in to ordering that decadent piece of chocolate cake -- and not feel guilty about it. MORE >>

I thought snow days ended once school did. Yet here I am, today, locked in my apartment waiting out what I'm told might be the biggest snowstorm in the history of Massachusetts (I don't quite buy that promise, but will admit it's already quite terrifying out there!). Still, even with the menacing (although mis-named in my opinion) "Nemo" raging down on my home, I am still able to work. For me, as a young employee, this is the only type of workplace that I know. But is this a good or a bad thing? Personally, I am happy that I am still able to get my work done today. MORE >>

Co-written by Megan Manning & Kara Batt. We just got our hands on MRI’s 2012 magazine sales numbers, and while the data initially read as a bunch of numbers on a spreadsheet, a closer look gave us insight into the advertising industry. Even though access to print and digital magazine content was easier than ever in 2012, most publications closed their fiscal year on the clearance rack. True to its nature, the fashion and beauty magazine category ignored the status quo and set its own trend, creating innovative and lucrative products that drove them to close their fiscal year with a 7.3% MORE >>

Sitting in a meeting a couple of weeks ago a jovial sales chap began to rib the marketing director about the extent of his role. You marketing lot just stick a few pictures in PowerPoints and brochures don’t you?’. How we giggled. While these views are clearly archaic, it does highlight an on-going issue that we marketers face – ‘how do we show the real value we add to the business?’. For the majority of other departments this job is easy. Sales guys can show directly where they are adding to the bottom line. Tech guys can launch new products on a yearly basis with a big bang. But marketing? MORE >>