Here’s a situation. You wake up early to work out and afterwards rush to work early because you know you have a busy day ahead of you. Afterwards, you pick up your child from daycare, watch them until bedtime and then finally have a moment to yourself on the couch. What do you watch? According to a new study from Future Today, you’re most likely to choose an ad-​supported streaming service, as nearly 51% of other US consumers do.

The hardest part for any business is standing out from the competition. It can be especially difficult when you’ve never spent a large among of money on advertising, due to uncertainty around ROI. Small businesses feel this strain even more due to the fear of not being able to compete with big box retailers. Jeremy Weaver, an account executive for WSIL-​TV, was keenly aware of these factors when he approached a small, home remodeling contractor.

Like most industries in 2020, out-​of-​home advertising took a nasty hit in gross revenue. Due to the COVID-​19 pandemic, the media type dropped 13.1% in revenue to $51.6 billion globally, its worst drop ever according to PQ Media. It’s not all doom and gloom, however, because 2021 has seen out-​of-​home advertising rebound in a big way. According to the Out of Home Advertising Association, U.S. revenue increased 38% in the second quarter of 2021 compared to the previous year, accounting for $2 billion.

Millions of small businesses work around the clock figuring out how to best reach their customers. It can be a constant struggle. Trying to anticipate the right marketing strategies that’ll achieve success to keep up with the changing demand is no small feat. To start, it’s known that small businesses need smart website design, but more importantly, they also need to understand their clientele. A new report from Constant Contact shows how small businesses think their online marketing is doing with their customer base, and how customers view it as well.

There are not many things worse than being ghosted. Whether it’s business or personal, the feeling of being completely ignored is, simply put, awful. For Dianna Humphreys, a multi-​media sales consultant for The News-​Press Media Group, this was exactly what happened when she approached a local roofing company.

As wild as it sounds, the 2021 holiday season has already started. Due to the new realities surrounding COVID-​19 and how consumers had to shift their purchasing habits last year, the evolution to an all-​digital holiday season may be here sooner than we realize. Those who spent days camping out in front of big box department stores for a new PlayStation in 2007 or 2013 are now in online waiting rooms for the new model this year. Thanks to a new report from Integral Ad Science, there is new information on when consumers are doing their holiday shopping, how they’re budgeting and the importance of online advertising.

New customers come and go every day and retailers hope to retain as many of these customers as they can. If someone is looking for a new pair of shoes, maybe they try a couple of different stores before they find their perfect pair. Ensuring brand loyalty then becomes a crucial aspect for the retailer, along with how to properly execute a non-​overbearing retention marketing plan that doesn’t push the customer away. According to a new report from CommerceNext, retailer retention marketing and privacy are essential to a new wave of customer-​centric marketing strategy.

When you think of “traditional media types” in advertising, what comes to mind? TV, newspaper, direct mail, and radio most likely. Those formats have been the advertising ambassadors for decades, but only over the past few years has digital advertising firmly planted its flag in that world. So much so, the question in the conversation at this point should be what is considered “traditional?” While its growth was always to be expected, the COVID-​19 pandemic has accelerated the rapid expansion of B2B digital ad spending, and it’s only going to get bigger, according to a new report from eMarketer.

Facebook is one of the largest social media outlets, if not the largest, in the world. The platform has been around for nearly 20 years. During that time, there have been so many controversies centered around privacy it’s hard to keep track of, but the social media juggernaut has also seen year over year growth in advertising spent on the site. Whether it be holiday shopping or election season, you’re likely to find dozens of ads appearing on Facebook. Though, due to multiple factors, advertisers are starting to lose trust in the social ad spend.

It’s more important now than ever for retail clients to be on their A‑game when it comes to advertising, since the holiday shopping season has kicked off early this year. Consumers, after a year made up primarily of virtual shopping, are ready to go back to local retail locations and re-​experience all that comes from an in-​store shopping trip. While we adjust to a COVID-​19 post-​vaccine reality, many are ready to get back to a sense of normalcy. A new study from Uberall shows 82% plan to still shop locally once the world recovers from the COVID-​19 pandemic.

Life during a global pandemic has been nothing short of a roller coaster. The initial wave of fear had given way to a sense of relief when vaccines became readily available to the nation, however new variants of COVID-​19 seemingly are here to stay. It’s a difficult world to navigate and even trickier if you’re trying to advertiser to consumers during a time of financial uncertainty. Though, according to a 2021 Consumer Intel Report from Valassis, if there were two words to describe how consumers feel now, it would be “cautious optimism.”

It’s August 2021 which means one thing comes to mind, it’s time to start thinking about the November 2022 elections! That’s right, the 2022 midterms, which are 15 months away, and the ad spending associated with them, has already started to ramp up. Much like how the holiday season shopping season starts earlier and earlier each year, the political election cycle now seems never-​ending. For good reason too; it’s a cash cow for advertising. According to an AdImpact report, an estimated $9 billion in political ads will be spent during the upcoming election

The world of selling SEO is complex, with so many factors involved that it can be overwhelming. Add to that the ever-​evolving digital advertising landscape and it’s understandable if your clients, or even a veteran sales rep, can have a hard time keeping up. What is the status of SEO in 2021 and where does it go from here? Thanks to a recent worldwide study from brightlocal, there are now insights into what to charge your clients for SEO and what local businesses are looking to track when it comes to an SEO campaign. These insights come from the 550 businesses who responded to the survey. Topline findings show that 32% of these respondents believe that achieving local SEO success this year will be harder than it was last year. You can change their minds once you show them your expertise on SEO.

It’s the middle of August, which means Halloween stores are popping up left and right, which means that Thanksgiving is right around the corner, which means it’s already Christmas shopping season. Crazy, right? While that might sound absurd, according to a survey from Shopkick, the holiday season is set to launch sooner than ever this year.

Courtney Carter, account executive for WHO 13, went through a two-​year period where her company did not have AdMall. As an avid user who loved its prospecting tools, she was excited when the word came down that they were getting it back.

With each passing year, more and more states are opening the door to online sports betting. What was once considered taboo, now is an established enough industry that this past April, the NFL announced official partnerships with three online sports betting sites. 12 states currently have fully legalized sports betting and many more have legislation at various points of passage and debate. Now is the time to help your advertisers profit with these sites, and according to a survey of adults 21 and over in these states, conducted by Cumulus Media and Westwood One, AM/​FM radio listeners have emerged as the best target audience.

The last few years have presented an interesting evolution for brands and brand awareness. For example, there has been far more engagement on social media, with brands actively approaching the comment section more as unique individuals versus milquetoast PR-​like statements. And, unlike in the past, there has been a bigger embrace of social change, like the embrace of the LBGTQ+ community and the Black Lives Matter movement. One age group, perhaps surprisingly, most in-​line with this social evolution of brands is baby boomers.

Corey Baysden, account executive at Spectrum Reach, has been selling media advertising for over 20 years. During that time, the advertising landscape has evolved toward digital, however, believe it or not, there are some companies that have yet to make the jump. That was the case when Baysden reached out to a local HVAC dealer who had never thought about digital advertising before.

You’ve probably heard of the term ‘OTT,’ but do you know what it is? More importantly, can you explain to a SMB what it is? According to a survey by Borrell Associates, a whopping 50% of SMBs said they “do not know” what OTT is. That’s clearly a problem, but the bigger issue is clearly defining what OTT means SMBs and from there, determining who their best target audience would be.

B2B marketers may be slow to pick up on some trends, but these companies have finally embraced digital advertising in a big way. Efficient use of technology is helping them attract leads into the top of the sales funnel and leading them to boost digital marketing budgets this year.