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123 eGuides. 3 Proven Steps, Just 3 Bucks.

123 eGuides are authoritative guides published exclusively in electronic format to provide maximum value at minimum cost. Every 123 eGuide is just 3 bucks or less ($2.99 to be exact).

123 eGuides are designed for today’s reader who wants information in a quick, convenient, easily readable format. Each 123 eGuide is intended to provide a functional overview rather than a detailed roadmap. Every 123 eGuide always includes additional resources if the reader wants to learn more.

Check the "Available 123 eGuides" link above to see what's available. 123 eGuides are available wherever eBooks are sold, including the Amazon Kindle store and in any eBook format at Smashwords.com.

1 Minute Advice: What Marketers Worry Most About

Marketers have a lot to worry about. According to a study published in MarketingProfs, these are the top five worries of senior marketing executives:

1. ROI
2. Work from home/remote working issues
3. Inflation/recession
4. Pressure for increased profits/shareholder value
5. Competition from new brands

Checkout the other worries marketers have here (Free subscription required):

https://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2023/48571/what-keeps-senior-marketers-up-at-night

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

1 Minute Advice: Common Brand-Positioning Mistakes

International brand strategist Ulli Appelbaum shares 9 common brand-positioning mistakes on MarketingProfs. They include:

• "Letting the Loudest Voice in the Room Dictate the Ideation Session"
• "Focusing on Category Consumers Rather Than Real People"
• "A Lack of Diverse and Divergent Perspectives"
• "Writing Your Brand-Positioning Statement in a Workshop"

Read all about these and five more common brand-positioning mistakes here: (Free subscription required) https://www.marketingprofs.com/articles/2022/48487/common-brand-positioning-mistakes?

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

1 Minute Advice: Social Media Marketing Trends for 2023

Here are a few of the key trends in social media marketing to look for this year from experts in the field, according to Social Media Examiner:

1. Brands prioritize LinkedIn and TikTok.
   "I wouldn't be surprised to see many brands and marketers ramping up their existing efforts on LinkedIn and TikTok in the new year." 
2. Short-form video leads content mix.
   "Without question, the one major platform shift that’ll quickly separate the brands that succeed and those that fail in 2023 is going to be short-form video."
   
3. Social customer care leads to ROI.
   "With our current economic climate, companies should be working overtime to retain the customers they have while showing potential customers how their brand experiences far outpace their competitors."
   
4. Artificial Intelligence revolutionizes marketing.
   "As creatives and marketers are able to allow AI to do the creative gruntwork, this will allow marketers time to explore ideas that were beyond their reach. Those marketers who employ AI solutions will have a strategic edge over those who do not."
5. Brands embrace YouTube ads.
   "I think 2023 will be a year when the Google + YouTube ad spend for a lot of brands will exceed Facebook ad spend."
   

Read what all the experts have to say here: https://www.socialmediaexaminer.com/social-media-marketing-trends-2023/?

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

1 Minute Advice: Fastest Growing Brands by Generation in 2022

Which brands grew the fastest within generations this year? Check out some of the results from this study by Morning Consult cited in Marketing Charts:

For Gen Z, the fastest growing brand with the highest purchase consideration was Roku.

For Millennials, the fastest growing brand with the highest purchase consideration was SToK Cold Brew.

For Gen X, the fastest growing brand with the highest purchase consideration was SHEIN.

For Baby Boomers, the fastest growing brand with the highest purchase consideration was T-Mobile.

Finally, this may be a surprise... Across all generations, the fastest growing brand in consumer purchasing consideration in 2022 was Meta.

Read more here: https://www.marketingcharts.com/brand-related/top-brands-228121?

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

1 Minute Advice: B2B Marketing Plans for 2023

B2B marketers in the U.S. are generally bullish on 2023 when it comes to spending more on their marketing budgets, according to a survey mentioned in Marketing Charts. Over half of respondents said they plan to spend more on content creation/strategy (54 percent) and digital marketing (54 percent). Almost half said they plan to spend more on marketing operations/technology (47 percent), demand generation (47 percent), product marketing (46 percent) and field or event marketing (46 percent).

Read more here: https://www.marketingcharts.com/business-of-marketing/marketing-budgets-227620

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

End of Year Sale: 50% Off All eGuides!

Now through January 1, 2023, you can purchase any 123 eGuide at half price. This special promotion is only available at Smashwords.com, where you can select your choice of eBook format, including Kindle (mobi), EPUB and PDF.

To take advantage of this half-price sale, click on the eGuide titles below that interest you to read more about them. When you check out, your eGuide will automatically be 50% off -- regularly $2.99, just $1.49 each. Offer good through January 1, 2023.

Branding 123
Building a Breakthrough Brand in 3 Proven Steps
Third Edition

Low Cost / No Cost Marketing 123
3 Steps to Effective Marketing with Little or No Money

B2B Marketing 123
A 3 Step Approach for Marketing to Businesses

Product Launch 123
Launch a Product or Service in 3 Proven Steps

Sales Leads 123
Generating, Qualifying, and Converting Sales Leads in 3 Proven Steps

On Your Own 123
Launch a 1-Person Business in 3 Proven Steps

Don't miss this special end of year sale!

1 Minute Advice: Should You Advertise on Twitter?

Now that Twitter has come under control of the mercurial Elon Musk, questions are being raised about its long-term viability. Marketers need to consider whether or not Twitter is worthy of an investment of their advertising dollars. Some advertisers are balking; reports The New York Times, "Even before [Musk] completed his deal for Twitter, advertisers began expressing their doubts. Twitter had 3,980 advertisers in May, the month after Mr. Musk agreed to buy the company, according to MediaRadar, an advertising intelligence company. By October, it had 2,315 advertisers, the fewest of any month until that point." The Times adds," Twitter’s advertising business has become so fraught that it has started offering brands additional incentives." At the very least, marketers should proceed with an abundance of caution.

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

1 Minute Advice: Direct Mail isn't Dead Yet!

Almost half of U.S. marketers (44 percent) report an increase in direct mail budgets over the past year, according to a survey mentioned in Marketing Charts. When asked why they use direct mail, 67 percent of marketers said they use it because it is a legacy channel, 66 percent for scale/growth, 64 percent to diversify their marketing mix, 60 percent because competitors are mailing and 53 percent because of the rising customer acquisition costs of digital channels. Of all respondents, 97 percent said the performance of direct mail has either improved (65 percent) or remained steady (32 percent) over the past year.

Read more here:

https://www.marketingcharts.com/cross-media-and-traditional/direct-mail-227655

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

1 Minute Advice: The Best Influencers are Family Members

Family members are the best influencers with adults when it comes to product recommendations according to a recent study reported by Marketing Charts. Almost three-quarters (71 percent) of adults have bought products or services that were recommended by family members. Two-thirds (66 percent) of adults have done so based on close friends' recommendations. Only 39 percent made a purchase based on the recommendation of an acquaintance, and 38 percent say a recommendation from company or store personnel.

Companies or brands on social media influence 35 percent of adults to make a purchase, while groups on social media influence only 28 percent of adults. Individual influencers don't impress adults either -- their recommendations only influence 27 percent of adults.

More about the study here: https://www.marketingcharts.com/cross-media-and-traditional/word-of-mouth-227501?

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.

1 Minute Advice: Marketers Need a "Community Flywheel"

According to McKinsey, the “big idea” in 2020s marketing is community—reaching consumers in the communities they are a part of and helping them express community membership by participating in your brand.

"Brands that excel at this use five reinforcing techniques—know your communities, make your brand story talkable, zoom in on hero products, fuel the conversation across channels, and make transactions effortless—to encourage the development of a community flywheel."

McKinsey states: "This methodology is well suited to the fast feedback cycle of cross-functional agile teams and doesn’t require extensive marketing technology investment ahead of demand; it thereby enables rapid growth, provides high return on investment at low risk—and encourages energized, high-performing teams."

Read more here: https://www.mckinsey.com/capabilities/growth-marketing-and-sales/our-insights/a-better-way-to-build-a-brand-the-community-flywheel?

This post is brought to you by 123 eGuides, publisher of authoritative, affordable guides to help small businesses get the most from your marketing. Now available: The updated, revised Third Edition of the popular eGuide, Branding 123, that details a 3-part system for how small marketers can build a breakthrough brand. Included in the Third Edition are profiles of 5 small brands that grew up using techniques similar to those outlined in Branding 123. Read more about this eGuide here.