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The 9 Best Free Email Accounts and Service Providers of 2020

Productivity
October 24, 2020/by
The 9 Best Free Email Accounts and Service Providers of 2020 You need it for networking, job recruitment, downloading resources, transferring files, setting reminders, meeting with colleagues, and so much more. Even with the rise of office chat platforms, you still depend on email for a surprising number of things. But unfortunately, not every email service is completely free. And even the free ones might not be the easiest to use or have all the features you need. It can be a challenge to find an email service provider at no cost that balances the right features with usability. To help make your search easier, we put together a list of the different types of email accounts you can set up, followed by the nine best email service providers you can host your account on right now for free. Types of Email Accounts There are two main types of email service providers to choose from: email clients and webmail. When you use your provider to access your email from a different device or location online, you can use one of three major email protocols to do so: POP3, IMAP, and Exchange. Let's briefly go over these different types of providers and protocols. Email Clients Email clients are software applications that you install onto the computer itself to manage the email you send and receive. To access this email, the client interacts with a remote email server. Email clients you've likely heard of include Microsoft Outlook, Mozilla Thunderbird, and...
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What is a website taxomomy?

SEO Strategy
October 24, 2020/by
What is a website taxomomy? While scavenger hunts can be fun, users don't want to frantically search through a website to find answers to their questions. They want them quickly, and they want them to be easy to find. The structure users want is called taxonomy. Scientifically, a taxonomy is a classification scheme that dictates how things are organized and classified based on their characteristics. A website's taxonomy can dictate the user experience, and can also influence search engine rankings. This post will go over what a website taxonomy is, and give you the resources to create a successful organization system for their site. Website taxonomy is also related to URL structure, which is how URLs are organized to reflect content within specific site pages. Every website domain stays the same for every URL address, but subdirectories and URL slugs change as page content gets more specific. For example, say your website’s primary domain is www.samplewebsite.com. Your taxonomic structure will include subdirectories within your domain that are relevant to the page’s content. So, if your samplewebsite has a ‘Contact’ or ‘Announcements’ page, the URLs would change to reflect the information displayed on each page. The URLs for these pages would be www.samplewebsite.com/contact and www.samplewebsite.com/announcements, respectively. Why is a website taxonomy important? A well-planned taxonomy can transform how users interact with your site, especially when your content is organized logically. If users can get to your site and find what they’re looking for, they’ll view you as a reputable...
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7 Australian Companies with Great Taglines [+What Marketers Can Learn From Them]

Branding
October 23, 2020/by
7 Australian Companies with Great Taglines It's no secret that people who live in startup-filled cities have seen some of the wildest brand names. And, that variety in company names makes sense. When many startups in similar industries are founded in one geographic area, brands need to come up with a name that grasps attention, lightly hints at their mission, differentiates them from competitors, or encourages prospects to learn more about them. This is especially true in Australia, which hosts startups from Sydney to Melbourne. These cities are the founding place of uniquely named startups and major brands like Sukin, Canva, and Billabong. While the successful companies listed above have made their names noteworthy and easy to recognize, their company titles only hint at what their brands offer. This is why successful brands like these also lean on taglines to give prospects a quick, clear view of a brand's overall mission or purpose. With a great name and an effective tagline, prospects will remember your brand's uniqueness, mission, or what types of products you offer. Then, when they're looking for a product in your industry or space, they might think of your brand's name and catchy tagline. If you're working in a busy startup hub like Australia, or are starting a business in an already crowded business landscape, take note of these seven Australian companies with taglines that stand out and set them apart from the competition. 7 Australian Companies With Great Taglines "More than Money" -...
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60 Best Free Online Courses For Whatever You Want to Learn

Skill Building
October 23, 2020/by
60 Best Free Online Courses For Whatever You Want to Learn Benjamin Franklin once said, “An investment in knowledge always pays the best interest.” That’s never been truer than it is today. With new technology emerging at breakneck speeds, there's a palpable pressure to continuously upskill. Whether you want that job promotion or to sidestep into a new field, you'll need to commit to learning new skills. However, learning new skills can be both time-consuming and challenging. In fact, according to Josh Kaufman, international bestselling author of The Personal MBA, it takes 20 hours to go from knowing nothing about a particular subject to being pretty good at it. Of course, if you want to become an expert -- well, that takes even longer. Blog posts and podcasts are great starting points for exploring a particular topic. But online business courses will provide you with the time and space you need to go deep and truly master a new skill. Plus, most courses are made up of on-demand videos and exercises that you can progress through at your own pace. Below, we've gathered 60 of the best free online business courses. These cover the main business skills you'll need to advance in today's rapidly changing workplace -- from digital marketing and coding to selling, leadership, and more. Keep reading to become an expert in whatever subject you feel can best help you succeed. If you'd prefer, click on one of the following topics to jump straight to courses regarding...
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B2C Marketing Automation and 5 Top Software Tools to Power It

Marketing Automation
October 23, 2020/by
B2C Marketing Automation and 5 Top Software Tools to Power It Any B2C marketer can attest to the total relief that comes right after setting up successful email automation. To know that your customers will receive personalized emails without you having to manually write each and every one … whew, that’s powerful stuff. Did you know that segmented (a.k.a. personalized) email campaigns can drive a 700+% increase in revenue? And that’s just email. From text reminders to cart abandonment emails to multi-channel campaigns that span social media and in-app messaging, B2C marketing automation marries the power of personalized messaging and hands-off marketing. It simultaneously saves time (and money) while delighting your customers wherever they are. What is marketing automation? Marketing automation refers to any marketing efforts, campaigns, and tasks that are managed, executed, and measured with software versus manually. These efforts and campaigns are typically triggered by actions taken by leads or customers. Marketing automation has many benefits. It can help save your resources, nurture your leads, and increase your revenue — all at once and with minimal manual effort. Amazing, right? It’s important to note, however, that marketing automation shouldn’t replace human touch. This is especially true for B2C — unlike B2B, the B2C sales cycle is much shorter and the customer journey much more personalized. What is B2C marketing automation? B2C marketing automation encompasses any automated marketing messages and campaigns targeted to individual consumers versus business audiences. This type of marketing automation must be much more...
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35 Office Costume Ideas for Marketing Nerds & Tech Geeks

Company Culture
October 22, 2020/by
35 Office Costume Ideas for Marketing Nerds & Tech Geeks Halloween is a fun holiday, and it doesn't get the attention it deserves. It doesn't have recognizable songs or vacation days associated with it, and it falls on a busy time of year for most people in the workforce. But that doesn't mean you should skip the festivities at your office Halloween celebration. How many days of the year are you encouraged to dress up and goof around at work? Probably just one -- Halloween -- and even then, it can be hard to know what's office-appropriate. We want you to have fun this Halloween, so we're taking the work out if it for you. We've compiled a list of DIY Halloween costume ideas that are easy to put together, inexpensive, and perfect for the digital marketer or tech professional. If your family and friends don't get your costume, your colleagues definitely will. 35 Office Costume Ideas for Marketing Nerds & Tech Geeks Computer or App-Related Costumes 1. Alt Text Alt text isn't just the metadata of an image published on the web -- you could also say it's an "alternative" fashion statement with the text to describe the era. This was HubSpot Director of Content Corey Wainwright's office Halloween costume a few years ago. It's great because you don't even look dressed up if you have a casual office dress code, so you can just blend in. To dress as alt text this halloween, break out your...
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50 Lucrative Blog Niches & Finding One That Works for You

Blogging
October 22, 2020/by
50 Lucrative Blog Niches & Finding One That Works for You There's an obscure album by an equally obscure guitarist named Duck Baker called There's Something for Everyone in America. I don't know a ton about it — apart from the fact that it came out in 1975 and that its cover art is absolutely next-level. And while neither of those facts is particularly relevant to this article, the album's title is.  Image Source: Best Buy That idea that "there's something for everyone" doesn't just apply to America — nor does it have anything to do with what appears to be Lady Justice stabbing a tiger in the heart while Duck Baker casually looks on and smiles from a nearby window. No, that concept is also relevant to niche blog topics. Everyone has something that's meaningful and interesting to them in its own right, and in a lot of cases, those kinds of passions and pursuits can be channeled into a well-crafted, consistently maintained blog property. Here, we'll go over what you need to consider when choosing a niche blog topic and look into 50 potential blog niche ideas you can choose from. How to Choose Your Niche Blog Topic So what should you blog about? How do you land on the topic that will resonate most with readers and keep you fulfilled in the long run? Well, first and foremost, you need to consider your areas of expertise. Where are you an authority? What can you...
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The Ultimate Guide to Amazon Advertising

Amazon Marketing
October 22, 2020/by
The Ultimate Guide to Amazon Advertising I'm willing to bet, whenever you have marketing strategy discussions with your team, you typically discuss the same three or four social platforms — Facebook? Check. Instagram? Check. Pinterest? Check. But — what about Amazon? In 2018, Amazon launched "Amazon Advertising", (formerly Amazon Marketing Services, or AMS), as a search advertising solution for Amazon vendors. Similar to pay-per-click ads on Google, sellers only pay when shoppers click on ads. AMS is rapidly growing. In fact, Amazon's ad revenues are projected to amount to 12.75 billion in 2020, with an impressive 23% growth since 2019.  If you're already not using AMS, your team should consider it. Amazon Advertising could become a core advertising platform for many businesses, as well as a good alternative to Google and Facebook. To help you get started advertising on Amazon, we've created this ultimate guide that fleshes out each type of ad you can run on Amazon and some of their best practices. Read on to learn how to advertise on the ecommerce platform in 2020. Keep reading, or jump to a specific type of Amazon advertising: 1. Amazon Sponsored Ads 2. Amazon Headline Search Ads 3. Amazon Product Display Ads 4. Amazon Native Ads 5. Amazon Video Ads 6. Amazon Stores Amazon Advertising Strategy Even though we'll be describing five unique types of Amazon advertisements that all have different best practices, here are seven general tips for shaping a successful Amazon advertising strategy: 1. Determine your goals. Whether...
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The Ultimate Guide to SEM (Search Engine Marketing)

PPC
October 20, 2020/by
The Ultimate Guide to SEM (Search Engine Marketing) Search Engine Marketing, or SEM, is one of the most effective ways to grow your business and reach new customers. While it's critical you employ organic strategies to attract traffic over the long-term, sometimes, you can't properly compete on the SERPs without putting money behind it -- and that's where SEM comes into play. For instance, consider what happens when I type "summer shoes" into Google: Zappos clearly has an effective SEO strategy, since its "Summer shoes" page ranks first organically. However, their paid "Summer Shoes" ad, circled above, ranks as the first search result overall. With 35% of product searches starting on Google, and the average Google search lasting only a minute, it's critical your business's product or service appear at the top of a SERP when a user is searching for it. This isn't always possible organically, particularly when other businesses are paying to ensure their products appear above yours. When this is the case, it's critical you invest in a SEM strategy. What is Search Engine Marketing (SEM)? SEM, or search engine marketing, is using paid advertising to ensure that your business's products or services are visible in search engine results pages (SERPs). When a user types in a certain keyword, SEM enables your business to appear as a result for that search query. To ensure you're able to use SEM to properly advertise your products or services on the SERPs, we've...
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What Is a Landing Page? All Your Questions, Answered

Landing Pages
October 20, 2020/by
What Is a Landing Page? All Your Questions, Answered If you could do one thing to dramatically improve your marketing ROI today, would it be to use landing pages on your website? If you're trying to generate leads for your business, and you don't have at least a few landing pages on your website, you're missing out on a key opportunity to turn website visitors into something more. Here, we'll explore what a landing page is, the myriad of landing page benefits and how you might use a landing page to reach your business goals, and how to make your landing pages as powerful as possible. What is a landing page? A landing page is a page on your website where you can offer a resource from your business in exchange for a visitor's contact information. Marketers can capture this contact information using a lead-capture form, where visitors can enter details like their name, email address, and job title. A good landing page is focused on a particular stream of traffic -- say, from an email campaign that's promoting an ebook. Because the landing page is targeting just people who are (presumably) interested in this ebook, and because this ebook has exclusive information that elaborates on a topic your audience cares about, you can convert a higher percentage of your website visitors into leads whom you can then follow up with. How to Create a Landing Page To create...
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