“The results showed that these savvy business owners are not only utilizing social media in advanced ways but that the understanding of the philosophies behind why social media works and how it can help business were advanced,” said a Staples representative.

One of the most notable findings was that Facebook fans were considered four times more valuable than Twitter fans by these business owners. This corresponds to recent data showing that each engaged Facebook fan delivered hundreds of dollars in revenue over their lifetime. It also makes sense since a Super Bowl ad must compete with the clutter of similar ads and can only create a moment of passing buzz. Also, Twitter followers aren’t as likely to notice messages from the brand. In fact, LinkedIn edged out Twitter as the second most-used social media platform for small business owners.

The study also showed that consumer engagement was the primary reason that 50% of small business owners used social media, followed by a slightly smaller percentage who used these platforms mainly for increasing sales and building brand awareness. Interestingly, boosting sales was their main motive last year.

The business owners expressed that their greatest social media challenge was the time it took to perform effective social marketing and maintain ongoing communication. They averaged 5.5 hours per week devoted to their social media channels.

A whopping 85% of these owners admitted taking personal responsibility for handling their social media. Unfortunately, 88% of them have not received any formal training in social media management.

Another interesting finding was that more than 75% of small business owners found that social media has had a productive return on their business, despite the fact that 82% have not been able to calculate a precise business return. This indicates that these owners understand the value of building relationships with consumers and trust that they will lead to a lifetime of purchases, loyalty, and advocacy.

Discover how Facebook and social media marketing can have unlimited value for a business. Contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is a full-service advertising agency and one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. MDG specializes in developing integrated marketing solutions, exceptional creative executions, and solid branding and media-buying strategies that give clients a competitive advantage. Our core capabilities include print advertising, branding, logo design, creative, digital marketing, creative media planning and buying, radio and TV advertising, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing, and SEO. For the latest on social media marketing trends, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at Venturebeat.com.

When Dove debuted its “Dove Real Beauty Sketches” video ad last month on YouTube, the beauty brand probably had no idea that the video would go viral and quickly turn into the most-watched ad in history. The video ad has already been viewed more than 114 million times and uploaded in 25 different languages. It’s also become the third most-shared ad ever. Mashable.com covered the ad’s poignant message and how it exploded into a viral video sensation.

The three-minute ad featured people describing how they saw themselves and the way they viewed others while simultaneously being sketched by a former forensic artist. The artist sketched the individual’s descriptions of themselves and their depictions by others to reveal strikingly different portraits that were much more flattering based on the accounts of others. It displayed the powerful message that we view ourselves too harshly and should be aware that the flaws we see in ourselves are often invisible to others. The video ad ended with the participants discovering that they need to appreciate their own natural beauty, along with the tagline, “You are more beautiful than you think.”

“The campaign evoked an emotional reaction in millions of people that inspired them to share the positive message with others,” said Fernando Machado, VP of Dove Skin. “Beyond just the millions of views and publicity impressions, it is the outpouring of testimonials from around the world that are exciting us.”

Use YouTube video ads to build buzz for your brand. Contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top video marketing agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about the latest trends in video marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at Mashable.com.

MDG Advertising has developed a fact-packed infographic that offers advice for building a better online reputation. It features specifics on the state of online reputation management (ORM), along with both savvy and sorry ways that brands have handled their digital reputations. It also offers tactics and tips for getting started and managing mistakes. After all, how a company manages an online slip-up can make a world of difference in how the online world sees and speaks about the brand.

The infographic illustrates the need for ongoing online reputation management, revealing that 92% of consumers trust brand recommendations from friends and family, while 70% value online opinions from other consumers. It shows that more than half of consumers on social media have used a social channel for brand research, including 70% who like to hear about a customer’s experience with the brand, and around 50% who either compliment or criticize the brand to the social media world. It also discloses that more than half of brands feel unprepared or unsure of whether they could handle an online image crisis.

MDG’s infographic cites examples of how brands have handled online reputation crises both perfectly well and painfully wrong. It cites negative cases by American Airlines and Progressive Insurance, along with lessons for both dodging and dealing with such situations. It also includes positive examples by Target and KitchenAid, whose savvy actions serve as models of reputation management.

It offers smart strategies to help brands create good online reputations, as well as ways to cope if things go bad. To build a company’s good name, it suggests focusing on establishing the brand’s voice before its products, along with striving to develop brand advocates, paying attention to every online user, constantly monitoring online mentions, and practicing smart SEO. If crisis management is needed, it advises identifying negative remarks on all social media channels, executing a pre-determined crisis response plan, and trying to solve the problem before it turns into a full-blown crisis. It also offers words of wisdom for worst-case scenarios, such as responding immediately and decisively, being open and honest, admitting and correcting mistakes, devising creative solutions, and establishing a plan for rebuilding the brand’s image. These are all important lessons for brands to learn since mistakes are easy to make and much harder to correct.

Overall, the infographic provides a clear guide for cultivating, maintaining, and reclaiming a brand’s online reputation. Remember, an online crisis can happen to any brand at any time, so brands had better be prepared to handle the worst in the best way possible.

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Build a better online reputation for your brand. Contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

View MDG’s infographic portfolio.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top content marketing agencies. Our 360° integrated approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. Our core capabilities include branding, logo design, creative, online advertising, print advertising, media planning and buying, TV and radio, web design and development, infographic development, email marketing, social media marketing, and SEO. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional, social media, and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about the latest trends in marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

In the fast-paced hustle and bustle of the city that never sleeps, it’s difficult to get a cab, let alone the attention of an entire street of New Yorkers. Mondelēz’s Oreo brand used a unique approach to get attention from New York City natives this week. Bloomberg Businessweek reported on the elaborate stunt from Oreo.

On May 14, 500 a cappella singers from across the U.S. joined Canadian singer Adam Young of Owl City in the streets of New York City in celebration of Oreo cookies. The unusual guerrilla marketing approach is a part of Oreo’s multimillion-dollar “Wonderfilled” campaign. The advertising campaign, which launched on television last Sunday during Mad Men, includes a jingle by the Owl City front man. In addition to TV ads, the promotions will be broadcast on radio, online, and in events in Los Angeles, Chicago, and other cities.

Oreo is no stranger to offbeat promotional advertising. During this year’s Super Bowl blackout, 360i, one of the ad agencies responsible for Oreo’s new advertising campaign, immediately responded with the “Dunk in the dark” tweet. The intelligent tweet outshone most of the television spots that aired during the game. Oreo also engaged in a harmless Twitter rant with AMC Theatres after asking followers if they ever sneak Oreos into the movies.

The recent Oreo spectacle—complete with free snacks, tunes, and a sing-along in Union Square—may have been a little too sweet for New Yorkers. Reactions on Twitter ensued:

According to Samuel Craig, professor of marketing at New York University’s Stern School of Business, “Union Square is a place where people naturally congregate, so you’ll reach them. The added benefit is the news coverage. The challenge for Oreo is it’s a 100-year-old brand. How do you keep it fresh, relevant, exciting? This is one way to break through the clutter.”

Oreo’s a capella showcase may have seemed strange to some New Yorkers, but it was commendable from a creative standpoint. Even at the ripe old age of 100, Oreo continues to push boundaries with lighthearted, original, creative advertising executions. The cookie brand has been around for a century, so they must be doing something right.

Let the power of creative advertising move your brand forward. Contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York City, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital advertising to reach your marketing goals. While some industries may fare better in print or TV ads, and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about the latest trends in marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at Businessweek.

The ad was placed in a special edition of Forbes magazine that was targeted to a select group of subscribers. It featured a super-thin router and battery positioned between four back-to-back pages that could be activated by the reader. While the battery only provided around three hours of power, the user could get an extra charge by lifting a flap in the ad that allowed for a mini-USB cable to be plugged in.

Because users had to keep the ad within reach to access the free Wi-Fi, Microsoft practically ensured that the print ad’s content would be repeatedly read to maximize the chances of product purchase. In addition to cleverly attaining frequent exposure, the company also unleashed a whole new digital direction for traditional print advertising that will hopefully inspire similarly progressive print promotions.

To tap into the benefits of creative print advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° integrated approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. MDG’s core capabilities include award-winning print advertising, branding, logo design, creative, digital marketing, media planning and buying, radio and TV advertising, outdoor advertising, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing, and SEO. To stay on top of the latest trends in marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at Springwise.com.

Child abuse is often veiled in secrecy, which makes a new outdoor ad’s secretive approach to helping kids in need seem only appropriate. Created by the Spanish organization called the Aid to Children and Adolescents at Risk Foundation (ANAR), the ad is designed to display two different messages, with a general one for adults and an urgent one for children. Gizmodo.com gave a glimpse of the outdoor ad’s dual display.

When viewed by an adult or a person over four-foot-five in height, the ad looks to be an image of a sad-looking child with copy that describes child abuse as only being visible to the child experiencing it. The ad brings that message to life, because when viewed by a child, the boy’s sad face on the ad is marked in bruises. The child’s version also includes the stronger message to call the foundation for help in case of abuse: “If somebody hurts you, phone us and we’ll help you,” and includes the foundation’s phone number.

The ad relies on an optical illusion involving a lenticular top layer that shows varying images at different angles. It’s designed to help children suffering from abuse to seek help, especially if their abuser is standing beside them.

While the ad’s lenticular technology opens the door to all kinds of exciting advertising possibilities, some have expressed skepticism as to whether it could one day be used by companies to target their products directly to kids. For now, it’s being used for a good cause and will hopefully remain a positive outdoor advertising platform.

Discover the latest advertising innovations and learn more about the power of creative outdoor advertising. Contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. MDG specializes in developing integrated marketing strategies, exceptional creative executions, and solid branding and media-buying strategies that give clients a competitive advantage. Our core capabilities include print advertising, branding, logo design, creative, digital marketing, media planning and buying, radio and TV advertising, outdoor advertising, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing, and SEO. To stay on top of the latest trends in marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at Gizmodo.com.

“The results of our research clearly show that financial brands understand how their customers consume media,” said Tom O’Regan, president and CRO of Martini Media.

Of the digital marketing channels being leveraged by banks and credit unions in 2013, almost 60 percent of marketers planned to use mobile, social media, and online video. In addition, 44 percent intended to use rich media and 40 percent expected to choose search, yet only eight percent planned to pursue display. This revealed a sharp shift in digital spending towards more media-rich and interactively engaging digital media vehicles.

Mobile channels were clearly favored in bank and credit union marketing strategies, considering the explosion in mobile usage and mobile device development. The challenge now for financial marketers is to create impactful digital experiences, since both the smaller-sized screen and that the nature of financial content haven’t traditionally been short, snappy, and stimulating.

According to the research, a strong reason that banks and credit unions were moving toward digital marketing channels is because they’ve started to see a decline in both audience engagement and returns from more traditional advertising formats. In fact, a full 67 percent of financial marketers said they believed that digital marketing has become more efficient, which would enable them to target their markets at a lower cost.

Along with higher marketing efficiency, respondents also felt that digital delivered greater effectiveness in its ability to help brands reach their target customers. A whopping 91 percent said that digital data and targeting technology could help them better reach their ideal audience, while 88 percent felt that aggregating niche sites could also enhance their reach. In addition, 87 percent believed it was worthwhile to pay premium CPMs on certain sites to be assured of connecting with their target audience.

Finally, the research showed that bank and credit union marketing professionals realize the importance of content. An impressive 91 percent currently use some type of content in their digital ads, with 68 percent using only their own original work, and 23 percent opting to incorporate third-party content.

Digital has finally made its mark on bank and credit union marketing. Now, financial brands must figure out the best channels and content to choose as they embark on their unique digital marketing directions.

To learn how digital advertising can improve your credit union marketing success, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Check out MDG’s latest digital marketing campaign for IBM Southeast Employees’ Federal Credit Union.

MDG Advertising, a full-service, creative advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is a top credit union marketing company whose clients include IBM Southeast Employees’ Federal Credit Union and Lafayette Federal Credit Union. Our 360° integrated approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about the latest trends in credit union marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at the FinancialBrand.

The out-of-home campaign consisted of posters in kiosks on Lincoln Road and in Aventura Mall. Each ad had eye-catching images and copy that highlighted the hospitals A-list healthcare services for those who live in and visit the area. The message was that these hospitals are the “places to go” for outstanding healthcare in Miami.

The campaign went beyond traditional outdoor advertising by incorporating digital, geo-location, and real-time elements that would appeal to the tech-savvy nature of the targeted younger audience. Each ad featured a QR code that directed consumers to a website landing page that listed the nearest hospitals and their average ER wait times.

Here’s how MDG made HCA hospitals look hip:

To learn more about the power of creative outdoor advertising and how it can increase patient volume and awareness for your healthcare brand, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797, or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° integrated approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your healthcare marketing goals. MDG’s core capabilities include print advertising, branding, logo design, creative, digital marketing, media planning and buying, radio and TV advertising, outdoor advertising, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing, and SEO. To stay on top of the latest trends in healthcare marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

The Bing Blog recently released a post by Dr. Ronny Kohavi of Bing’s Research & Development team. Kohavi’s insights provided a statistical exploration of how users interact with Bing’s search results during a standard browsing session, suggesting that Bing is in the process of refining its results based on engagement rather than relevancy. Search Engine Land delved into the actual adjustments Bing implemented to enhance its results in a search market dominated by Google.

When Bing shows deep links like this, the third search result on the page, i.e., whatever shows up two spots below what you see above, gets a CTR of less than one percent.

The Internet is more cluttered today than ever before. With link upon link of similar content, search engines as prolific as Bing are refining their results with usability-based technology in order to compete effectively for market share. Bing is no stranger to the essentiality of rankings: “More than 50 percent of Bing users click the first result, and more than 75 percent click there if the first result includes Bing’s deep links,” says Kohavi. Although half of all users are clicking the top search result, only about 4 to 6 percent are clicking on the third search result, and only 2 to 3 percent click on the fourth result. In essence, the lower the ranking, the lower the level of engagement. However, Kohavi states that these results differ when users revisit the search results page by using their back buttons.

The complete page of search results.

The results after clicking on MAACO’s home page for 15 seconds and clicking the back button.

According to Kohavi, “When users click on a result, then hit the browser back button, they typically look lower on the page. Statistics showed that the click-through rate on lower positions are a factor of five to eight times higher after a back button.”

Bing modified its search results in response to the findings. Beginning last summer, “users would first see eight results, then be shown 12 if they hit the back button. By showing extra links after a back button click, Bing says it saw an almost two percent drop in users clicking through to page two,” according to Search Engine Land.

Kohavi also discussed user interaction with “deep links”—the compilation of several search results from one source. According to Bing, “the click-through rate on the block of results is more than 75 percent.” When deep links are involved, the click-through rate (CTR) for the third search result on the page is less than one percent. Bing is extremely conscientious about user search habits, and they typically run more than 100 search experiments at a time.

With that in mind, Bing has launched another modification to its search. On certain searches, Bing will now show as few as four search results in the initial search, and will then increase the results to fourteen if users click the back button.  As Kohavi mentioned in his blog, Bing is “now looking at ways to determine whether we should extend the number of search results when we have evidence that users are in exploratory modes (e.g., searching for insurance).” With each experiment and analysis, Bing is moving one step closer to defining search engine specifications and user methodologies.

To learn more about integrating Bing into your search marketing strategy, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top integrated marketing agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional, digital, social, and search marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To stay on top of Bing and the latest trends in search marketing, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at SearchEngineLand.

In 2005, David Foster Wallace delivered the commencement address at Kenyon College. In an incredibly dry tone of voice, Wallace dished out his raw and inspiring take on life after college. Wallace’s “This is Water” addresses the “capital T truth, with a whole lot of rhetorical niceties stripped away.” Fast-forward eight years, and the speech has now grabbed the world’s attention. Without any permission whatsoever, The Glossary, a small, Los Angeles video production firm, brought Wallace’s cynical words to life in a cinematic short film, aptly entitled “This is Water.” The video has already garnered millions of views and the views are growing fast. Adweek held a Q&A with the video’s director, Matthew Freidell, and its producers, Allison Freidell and Jeremy Dunning.

In the email interview, the creators of the video admitted that the undertaking was incredibly risky and said, “Wallace has an extremely passionate following and we knew it wouldn’t be easy to adapt the original version.” Additionally, the video was made without permission from Wallace’s publishing house. With great faith and passion, The Glossary made the bold move to film without consent. “We are in no way making any money directly from this video; it was purely a passion project. While we had high hopes for this, we could have never seen all of this attention coming. Sometimes it’s better to ask for forgiveness than permission,” the creators said. “Our main goal was to expose people to the content of the speech.” If the overwhelming number of YouTube views is any indication, Wallace’s words have officially been resurrected.

Dry, cynical, and utterly relatable, Wallace’s commencement speech is unbelievably inspiring and his unvarnished account of the truth can’t go unnoticed. While Wallace’s speech is powerful on its own, the addition of visuals elevates the importance of his words even more. The Glossary created the viral video without any permission, but Wallace probably would have appreciated their brave and unusual approach.

To integrate video marketing into your digital advertising strategy, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top video marketing agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about the latest trends in marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at Adweek.com.

The rise of social media has spawned the development of numerous new social platforms that offer marketers fresh and innovative ways to leverage the power of social media. One of the newest platforms that’s quickly gained a huge following is Pinterest. This unique photo-sharing site has opened the doors to some highly creative and effective examples of brand marketing, with one of the most compelling and cost-effective cases presented by Honda. MarketingMag.com took a look under the hood of the automaker’s savvy social media marketing strategy to see how their use of Pinterest delivered high exposure and engagement for a very low cost.

As the fastest-growing social media platform, Pinterest soared to mainstream popularity in 2012. Many believe its appeal lies in its image-driven format and easily sharable nature. Pinterest pinboards are categorized by image topic and users can simply search or share the pinboards that pique their interests.

While individuals were the first to discover the beauty and ease of Pinterest, brands have quickly followed their lead in order to reach this huge audience and leverage the power of Pinterest for their own promotional needs.

Honda was one of the first automakers to develop a presence on Pinterest. The automaker realized that many people were spending so much time on the social media site that they were developing “pinning habits.” This habitual pinning quickly convinced the brand to initiate its first Pinterest marketing campaign.

Another catalyst for the campaign was that the Pinterest audience was virtually identical to the target market for their new CR-V. The car was targeted to young people about to reach major milestones like getting married and having children, who are now planning their big adventures online.

To devise this social media marketing campaign, Honda began by identifying their users who had a high number of followers and then connecting with them. Next, they challenged these users to take a 24-hour break from Pinterest. They referred to this break as a #Pintermission. In return, Honda would give each user $500 to spend on making one of their pinned images a reality.

Once the participants were chosen, Honda set up individual pinboards within its profile and posted personalized images. The participants were given permission to add image content to these pinboards so they could post the photos taken during their Pintermissions. To maximize their exposure, Honda encouraged the participants to create their own Pintermission-focused pinboards and make Honda a collaborator. The automaker also developed promotional posters that could be easily shared on Pinterest.

Their Pinterest marketing campaign proved incredibly successful by generating over 16 million total media impressions. More than 4.6 million individuals were exposed to the #Pintermission boards and the effort amassed more than 5000 re-pins and nearly 2000 “likes.” In addition, the buzz extended far beyond Pinterest, as mentions of both the campaign and the brand steadily appeared on Twitter and Facebook. Most importantly, they received these stellar results and made a big impact for very little cost.

Honda’s success with Pinterest will hopefully inspire other brands to come up with their own creative social media campaigns that leverage the platform’s marketing value. The Pinterest audience holds an extremely high appeal for many brands and the platform’s promotional potential is only limited by a marketer’s imagination.

To leverage the power of social media, incorporate Pinterest into your social media marketing efforts. Contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Learn more about Pinterest by watching MDG’s video: A Marketer’s Guide to Pinterest.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach where traditional, digital, and social media marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To stay on top of the latest trends in social media marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at marketingmag.com.

The Q1 global search ad spend has jumped 15 percent from the same time period last year.

According to the report, this global increase was driven by a 24 percent rise in U.S. ad spend. Interestingly, CPCs in the U.S. remained higher than those in the U.K., yet declined for both countries and remained flat for the E.U. In addition, PPC spend declined by 11 percent in the U.K. and by 4 percent in the E.U.

The report also emphasized the ongoing substantial cost efficiencies on smartphones as mobile CPCs have not kept up with the increase in mobile click volume. In fact, U.S. phone clicks represented 8.7 percent of total paid search clicks and just 5 percent of total spend. In addition, U.S. computer and tablet click-to-spend ratios were basically even.

Overall, the 2012 spend for paid search rose 32 percent over 2011, and Q1′s 15 percent jump in global ad spend is a positive sign for the current state of search marketing, as well as the rest of 2013.

To learn more about the latest trends in PPC and search marketing, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top content marketing agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional, digital, and search marketing to reach your advertising goals. We strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To stay on top of new search marketing trends, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at SearchEngineLand.

The iOS version of Google Now will be slightly different from the search service enjoyed by Android users because it won’t be as fully integrated into the mobile platform. iOS users will have the same general search capabilities and access to information from Google’s huge web of services, but they won’t have a swipe gesture for direct access, a homescreen symbol, or as many “cards” for conveniences like events and boarding passes. These “cards” serve as the delivery system for the desired search content and are completely based on the context of the user’s search.

“With Google Now, you don’t even have to search,” said Baris Gultekin, co-creator of Google Now. “We’re really interested in having computers do all the hard work.”

Even with fewer cards and extras, Google expects that Google Now will be embraced by iOS users seeking the ease and instant access of the smart search service. Many have compared Google Now to Apple’s Siri, since both serve as virtual personal assistants to help users access information relevant to their specific search needs. While there are advantages and arguments for each, iOS users will now have the choice of which smart search service is the smart one for them.

To learn more about the power of Google Now’s smart search service, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top integrated marketing agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional, digital, social, and search marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To stay on top of the latest trends in search marketing, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at ReadWrite.com.

Mother’s Day falls on the second Sunday in May, so marketers need to develop a schedule for sending their emails at the most ideal times. According to research, email campaigns sent in the two weeks prior to Mother’s Day get 80 percent of the transactions and 75 percent of the revenue. Some marketers strive to schedule their emails as close to the holiday as possible, which is why 46 percent of email volume is sent within the week before Mother’s Day.

The particular days for sending emails can also have a great effect on their open rates. Some experts assert that emails sent on Thursday or Friday perform much better than those sent on the weekend or Monday. This has been attributed to a variety of behavioral and social factors.

Given the mobile-centric nature of today’s consumers, it’s very important to optimize emails for mobile viewing. More than half of mobile opens are read for more than 10 seconds and another 20 percent are scanned for between two and 10 seconds.

When developing the email content, it’s smart to create a sense of urgency around the offers featured within. Phrases like “last chance” or “final days” have been shown to more than double the transaction rates of previous Mother’s Day emails.

Subject lines can also influence whether the email is opened, read, and shared. Personalized subject lines have shown a 54 percent increase in open rates of Mother’s Day emails when compared to emails sent without a personalized touch. This personalization has also resulted in a 66 percent rise in transaction rates and a 41percent jump in unique clicks.

Subject lines promoting special deals and offers have also proven to be more effective than subject lines that focus only on Mother’s Day. These deal-based subject lines have shown a 32 percent increase in transaction rates and 15 percent higher revenue. In addition, subject lines touting free shipping or free gifts have received a 30 percent increase in transaction rates and 25 percent higher revenue than all other kinds of Mother’s Day emails. Lastly, subject lines with the phrase “treat yourself” have shown a 10 percent increase in open rates when compared to other Mother’s Day emails.

Hopefully, marketers will use these tips to develop their Mother’s Day email campaigns and see how a few small tweaks can make a really big difference.

To implement an effective email marketing campaign, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

At MDG, a full-service advertising and digital marketing agency with offices in Boca Raton, FL and New York, NY, our 360° integrated marketing approach uses just the right mix of traditional and online media to reach your marketing goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To stay on top of the latest email marketing trends that will make an impact for your business, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at MediaPost.com.

Just as new patio furniture can completely enhance the appearance and ambiance of an outdoor area, MDG totally revamped the branding, media strategy, and social media identity for Carls Patio to give the outdoor furniture brand a more contemporary look and feel. This retail marketing makeover began last year when Carls Patio selected MDG as its agency of record, and has resulted in such strong success that the brand is expanding into new locations. To celebrate Carls Patio’s rapid growth and promote the opening of its new stores, MDG developed an all-store savings event and created a new TV commercial to promote the event to their entire market.

“Our results for Carls speak for themselves. We revamped everything, from branding to social media to a targeted, cost-effective media strategy. This resulted in 18% year-over-year growth with fewer locations and a substantially lower media spend,” said Michael Del Gigante, creative director and president of MDG Advertising.

The savings event was unique in the way it offered storewide savings at all locations, rather than just on specially selected merchandise or only at a new location. This approach allowed Carls’ entire market to celebrate, offer savings, and maximize exposure.

The television advertising clearly conveyed through direct visual and audio elements that the savings spanned all stores and merchandise. It also emphasized that the savings even applied to the brand’s exclusive new Fifth & Shore, a line of completely customizable outdoor furnishings that was only recently introduced to the consumer market. This signature line lets customers basically design their own patio furniture by enabling them to select from a wide array of furnishings, fabrics, and finishes. In addition to its custom-built appeal, the entire line can be produced and delivered within two weeks. This gives consumers the cachet of customized furnishings without the time and trouble often experienced with custom decor.

To see how MDG promoted the growth of Carls Patio and positioned the company for even greater retail marketing success, click here to view MDG’s branding and marketing portfolio.

To implement a cost-effective TV advertising strategy that will increase sales and provide maximum exposure for your retail brand, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360°integrated approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your retail marketing goals. MDG’s core capabilities include award-winning print advertising, branding, logo design, digital marketing, media planning and buying, TV advertising, retail marketing, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing, and SEO. To stay on top of the latest trends in TV advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com

These new mobile apps appeal to young audiences because they are incredibly easy to use and let them send limitless pictures and video for free. They also allow for instant access and quick sending without having to navigate through social networks. As a result, they are booming with young people who are looking for platforms other than Facebook.

“More people text and make phone calls than get on to social networks,” said Rich Miner, a partner at Google Ventures which just invested in the new MessageMe company. “If one company dominates the replacement of that traffic, then by definition that’s very big.

Today’s hottest mobile message apps are Kik, Whatsapp, WeChat and KakaoTalk. Among U.S. mobile messaging app start-ups, Kik has quickly drawn 40 million users since its launch in 2010 and one of the more recent entrants, MessageMe, received 1 million downloads in its first week. Many Asian companies are producing some of the fastest-growing apps in history. WeChat currently has 400 million users, which is far more than Twitter, while KakaoTalk claims 80 million users. These Asian companies are working to expand into the U.S. marketplace.

For now, there is no sign that Facebook is losing its dominant status since many of the people using these new mobile messaging apps continue to use the social network. Yet this hasn’t stopped Facebook from moving aggressively into mobile by pursuing new ventures that offer deeper integration into the mobile movement.

In fact, Facebook recently developed its own smartphone app, which has already become the most-used mobile app today. Now Facebook is busy playing catch-up and they’re willing to be as aggressive as possible to get ahead. Last year, the company halted data integration discussions with mobile messaging start-up SnapChat and instead copied their signature feature with a new messaging app of their own. They have also hired graphic artists to create emoticons and graphics for Messenger that basically copy those on popular Asian apps.

Facebook is following the traditional formula of first establishing a social network and then developing apps for users. This new breed of mobile messaging apps is taking the opposite approach and is now trying to build social networks capable of supporting additional features and innovations for its apps. Many are already making enormous progress by integrating geo-location services, games and payment features directly into their apps. The highly-competitive nature of the market ensures that other debuts and discoveries won’t be far behind as young people continue to flock to mobile messaging apps as the coolest way to connect today.

To discover the latest social media trends, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service Florida advertising agency, with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, specializes in developing targeted Internet marketing solutions, exceptional creative executions and solid branding and media buying strategies that give clients a competitive advantage. Our core capabilities include branding, logo design, creative, digital marketing, print advertising, media planning and buying, TV and radio, public relations, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing and SEO.

Read more at Reuters.com

1. A Shift Toward Shoppable Media – In 2013, watch for the rise of shoppable media, which is the industry term for video or print vehicles that engage and encourage the consumer to make an immediate purchase via various technologies. The growing consumption of online videos and the recent ubiquity of mobile technology has attributed to bringing shoppable media into the mainstream. Major brands like Target and Asos have recently used shoppable media for their retail marketing promotions and their executives believe that it’s the future of video as consumer engagement becomes increasingly important to the overall shopping experience and final sale.

2. Innovations in In-Store Technology – The popularity and ease of online shopping have led retailers to update their stores with technological conveniences like tablets, interactive panels, and digital signage. Some retailers are expediting the checkout experience by allowing shoppers to use their mobile phones to instantly scan their items and pay at self-serve kiosks. Other retailers are adding kiosks that let consumers purchase products not available in-store and installing e-signs that allow for changing prices remotely. Finally, a few have started using state-of-the-art tracking technology that prompts the play of product videos when consumers reach for a particular product.

3. The Power of a Physical Presence – Just as brick-and-mortar stores have been upping their game to compete against their online rivals, major online retailers have started testing temporary physical locations. These physical stores let online retailers provide a showroom experience designed to let consumers browse in-store and then buy online. Many see these temporary shops as a worthwhile way to display their products and give customers a more sensory shopping experience while carrying low inventories and investing less in real estate. Despite the fact that e-commerce has been thriving for many years, a whopping 90 percent of sales still occur in physical store locations.

It’s clear that retail marketing is ahead of the game in terms of understanding what customers want and how unconventional approaches can help them get it. Whether their efforts are more tangible or technological, the retail industry seems poised to prosper in 2013.

To learn more about the latest trends in retail marketing, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° integrated approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your retail marketing goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. Our core capabilities include print advertising, branding, logo design, creative, digital marketing, media planning and buying, radio and TV advertising, retail customer relationship management, loyalty programs, Web design and development, email marketing, social media marketing, and SEO. View MDG Advertising’s creative advertising portfolio.

Read more at Adage.com

Another study from October 2012 revealed that 82 percent of adults online had used social media over the last year, with most visiting Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. Healthcare marketers, providers, patients, and brands have used these social media platforms regularly for the past few years for various professional and personal purposes and their explosive growth shows that their usage has continued to rise. More likely than not, a healthcare brand’s competitors are already established on social media, which is reason enough to get on social media right away.

As you can see, any healthcare marketers and businesses not taking advantage of the reach and relationships provided by social media are truly missing out on extremely valuable opportunities.

The two main ways for healthcare marketers to get involved in social media are by taking either a passive or an aggressive approach. A passive strategy is based on listening to the feedback from consumers and patients about the brand and the particular health condition. There is little risk and no need for adverse event reporting.

On the other hand, an aggressive approach involves actively engaging with patients and consumers online to generate awareness, trial, and loyalty for the brand. This strategy comes with higher risk, but also higher rewards, and calls for developing a system for adverse event reporting to ensure fair balance.

Finally, consider that the number of Americans seeking healthcare information online is expected to steadily rise as medical costs get higher and higher. Also, TV advertising for healthcare brands may serve to increase awareness, but most consumers will likely go online to learn more information. Add these to the long list of reasons why the healthcare industry needs to get in on social media and simply has no time to wait or waste.

To add the power of social media to your healthcare marketing, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more about this topic: “3 Tips for Using Social Media Compliantly in Healthcare Marketing”

Download MDG’s Report: “Driving Change in U.S. Healthcare Marketing.”

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top healthcare marketing companies, whose clients include Dental Care Alliance, MDVIP, Max Planck Florida Institute, and HCA East Florida. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional, digital, and social media marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about the latest trends in healthcare marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at worldofdtcmarketing.com.

In recent years, Americans have been consuming more and more media due to their increasing comfort with digital devices and the steady stream of new technological innovations available in the marketplace. As a result, radio has soared in popularity and a recent national survey conducted by Arbitron and Edison Research demonstrated the growth of radio consumption on both traditional and online radio channels. In fact, weekly online radio listenership has almost doubled in the past five years, and even jumped by more than two hours since last year, to reach an average of nearly 12 hours per week. Traditional AM/FM radio also boomed during this time span and surged to 243 million weekly listeners tuning in about two hours per day. MediaPost.com featured more of the findings from the survey to show how radio keeps sounding better and better to the American audience.

Despite the dire prediction that radio would be eclipsed by more modern media formats, radio has beat the odds and been going strong. The enduring popularity of music and our fascination with discovering new musical artists and styles have contributed to its longevity.

Americans have had a long-standing love of music, with 45 percent of survey respondents saying they felt it was important to keep up with the latest music. A whopping 78 percent of those respondents also said that AM/FM radio was their top choice for making these musical finds.

Additional survey results showed that 58 percent of adults over age 18 preferred to listen to AM/FM radio in the car most or almost all of the time. The actual dashboard radio was also used far more frequently for AM/FM listening than CD players, digital audio/MP3 players, or satellite radio.

Overall, the survey proved that radio was still music to Americans’ ears.

To leverage the power of radio advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and digital marketing to reach your advertising goals. While some industries may fare better in print, television, or radio advertising, and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional and digital marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about the latest trends local television advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at MediaPost.com.

Additional projections touched on locally targeted social advertising, which refers to the paid ads placed on social media networks. The findings showed that this local social advertising will grow at a compound annual growth rate of about 26 percent to reach $3.62 billion in 2017.

Not surprisingly, display has remained the leading social advertising unit. It has taken around $3.7 billion this year and is expected to increase to $6.4 billion by 2017.

Another rising category is native social advertising, which has been stimulated by both Sponsored Stories on Facebook and Promoted Tweets on Twitter. That category is set to jump almost $3 billion over the next four years to hit $4.57 billion in 2017. Interestingly, Facebook’s Sponsored Stories and other native social ads are forecast to account for more than half of the social media network’s ad revenue by 2014 and approach 60 percent by 2017.

Finally, the study indicated that U.S. marketers will spend $5.1 billion on social desktop campaigns this year and increase that social ad spending to $8.8 billion by 2017.

It’s important to realize that social advertising may be on the rise, but mobile advertising continues to soar and their integration can provide substantial results. In fact, marketers will spend $1 billion on mobile social in the U.S. this year and that figure will leap to $2.2 billion by 2017. Facebook can expect more than 27 percent of their global ad revenue to come from mobile advertising this year, with that figure rising to 38 percent by 2014.

To learn more about integrating social media marketing strategies into your advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797, or visit mdgadvertising.com.

MDG Advertising, a full-service advertising agency with offices in Boca Raton and New York, NY, is one of Florida’s top creative ad agencies. Our 360° approach uses just the right mix of traditional and online media to reach your marketing goals. While some industries may fare better in print and others online, we strive to create a balanced approach, where traditional, digital, and social media marketing efforts support each other and your message is tailored to the medium. To learn more about social media trends in marketing and advertising, contact MDG Advertising today at 561-338-7797 or visit mdgadvertising.com.

Read more at MediaPost.com.