Contributing Author: Melanie Heser

Everyone wants to know that their marketing is working. That dollars are well spent. And there is an impact on their business. Without regular reporting on the performance of your efforts, that’s a tough thing to prove.

Disclaimer #1: There are no implied political messages or opinions in this article. I am using current events to give you some advice on branding. Remember, your mind is like a parachute. It only works when it’s open.

Storytelling remains the mantra for content marketers as we boldly trudge forth into 2016.

There is a false sense that sticking a photo, any photo, on something gives it more value. We have access to billions of photos with the rise of stock photography. Heck, it can be easy and cheap so why not. Let’s step back and take a look at what stock photos are and what photography says about your brand. Stock images are photographs that already exist and are licensed for a specific use. It often replaces the need of hiring a photographer. Stock photos are licensed either as rights managed (RM) or royalty free (RF).

The digital landscape changes everyday, which makes it difficult to keep up, much less know what’s coming next. This isn’t an attempt at guessing new digital tactics, it’s a forecast for how I believe ideas and strategy will evolve over the next year.

The Ad-Blockalypse is coming, and it's scary as hell.

So a 30-second Super Bowl spot is going for a cool $5 million in 2016. The 50th Super Bowl, as they say, is in tall cotton.

Super Bowl Sunday, the renowned unofficial American holiday, is almost here! And this year it’s a big one – Super Bowl 50.

There is no television program more exciting or expensive to advertise during than the Super Bowl. According to eMarketer, 21% of companies who advertise during the Super Bowl spend over 10% of their annual marketing budget on this one commercial.

Let's play a game.

Earlier this year, I heard Jason Dorsey speak at a conference, and I recently stumbled across a copy of his TEDx Houston talk. While you might be hesitant to watch another presentation about Millennials or the generations that follow, his insights are unique, and it’s well worth 18 minutes of your day.