We may not be able to write like "Harry Potter" author J.K. Rowling, but we all can access deep wells of creativity, intuition, and empathy. When we draw upon these wells in the service of our prospects, marketing can be a magical thing.

There's a dark side to focusing solely on numbers. Be aware of the dangers of managing campaigns solely on a rational basis - after all, numbers provide false certainty and aren't reality. Don't forget to look for the humanity behind the statistics.

Use the web to discover everything about your market. Craft your marketing, turn on the AdWords tap, and give it a try. Send some traffic to your landing page and see if you're right about what people want. If not, pause, adjust, and test again.

This article examines Google Search Plus Your World from a different point of view. What is driving the integration of social and search? How does it work? And what's the impact on our perception of Google's relevance and usefulness?

Your AdWords split tests should consist of four tuners: the who, what, why, and how. Start with the weightiest question of who, and then successively plan and fine tune your PPC advertising ideas with ever more precise degrees of tuning.

As you plan your next AdWords campaign, be willing to spend for results, but start by spending your creative energy first. How can you get the right message to the right people at the right time in a way that sets you apart from your competition?

Simple PPC split testing can provide market insights that allow you to connect deeply and powerfully with your prospects. All that's required is a willingness to think, wonder, and ask. Here are two questions to jump-start your own deep curiosity.

Local small businesses rarely use Google AdWords to its full potential. AdWords can be a powerful tool to generate instant traffic. You can also test messaging for later use on other advertising platforms and enable remarketing to create branding.

As described in Michael Lewis' "Moneyball", Oakland A's General Manager Billy Beane fielded the winningest team in baseball while spending half as much on player salaries as their nearest rival, the New York Yankees. Beane .

A recent YouTube/Ipsos study explored the interaction between traditional TV advertising and YouTube pre-roll ads. 2400 study participants were placed in 3 groups: TV only, YouTube only, and TV plus YouTube. The TV plus YouTube group showed twice .

Last week, I looked at some research from Google into where and when people are using tablet devices such as iPads. The research showed that tablets are a multi-tasking device that rarely leave the home, but are used in different ways at different.