How are you measuring the effectiveness of your marketing efforts? Most companies tend to default to sales numbers. However, that type of measurement alone gives you very little data about what is driving those sales, how and where you can find more of them, and which type of customer is the most profitable.

We have all heard 2014 dubbed the “year of content” in the marketing world, but many sources are projecting that marketers will master a new trend this year: Moment Marketing. Moment Marketing a.k.a. Adaptive Marketing is a term used to encompass any sort of communication or marketing efforts that drive engagement with consumers on up-to-the-minute topics. This year, expect many brands to incorporate current events into their marketing - and specifically social media - strategy.

I’m a con artist. And, honestly, it’s a label I wear proudly. Don’t act like you’re innocent. If you’re in the marketing biz, chances are you’re a con artist as well (or at least on your way).

I love to discover new, cool web tools, and see emerging technologies being used to craft really great user experiences. I get excited when I see things like the Arcade Fire and Google Experiment and think, “I wish I had built that!”.

The Olympics are over, and after 15 days of nonstop competition lots of gold was dished out. At VI we just completed our own winter games, three weeks of Addy Awards in the three cities we hang our flag. Likewise, much gold was claimed.

Sooner Sports TV, in conjunction with VI Marketing and Branding recently received five ADDY awards at the 48th annual Oklahoma City American Advertising Awards. The awards came in recognition for the 2013 OU Football intro videos.

Some companies take a lot of pride in stating that their product has been the same as it was when you were a kid. They wouldn’t dare change their style or ingredients, because that’s what got them to where they are today. Bush’s baked beans come immediately to mind. They are in just about every grocery store in America because of that secret family recipe. Good plan. But only if you’re Bush’s baked beans.

Tablet sales increased in 2013 to 76.8mm units sold. There are now 227 million tablets in use in the USA.

If you write, you’ve heard of the Five Ws. It’s basic information gathering for the reader. Write for your readers and stop writing for search engines. That’s the message Matt Cutts, head of Google’s web spam team, has been repeating anyway:

Your paid media budget is too high. Not your overall marketing budget, it’s probably underfunded. But, your paid media budget, as a percentage of your marketing budget needs to be reduced. There are better things that you could be doing with those dollars that will improve your marketing ROI.

VI President, Tim Berney Honored Last Night as one of Oklahoma's Most Admired

When I began my career some 25 years ago, most companies had the same basic marketing tools. It seemed that no matter what the organization did, they needed a tri-fold brochure, a folder, a house print ad, and a cheap promo item or two. Given the marketing outlets of the day, it was generally effective stuff. Over time, the fundamental tools that most companies need evolved; videos, presentation decks, websites, etc.