[Roundup] Get a Marketing Education in August 2017

By Jenny Lockhart on 09/06/17
Updated on 01/30/19

You can’t go shopping right now without seeing back-to-school lists and supplies. August brings the end of summer and the start of a new school year for many.

But we’re learning all the time here at 9 Clouds. This monthly roundup is proof!

Read on to get schooled on nine interesting marketing facts and trends we found in August 2017.

1. Open the Gate?

Gated content — i.e. the well-crafted work you put behind forms to increase conversion — is a standard tactic in digital marketing. And it has been for years.

But you know as well as we do that form submissions have been dwindling. Web users are interacting with gated content in a new way, and we can’t just pretend it’s not happening.

Search Engine Journal’s Brad Smith makes a solid argument for un-gating content this month. I personally agree with Brad’s stance, but you’ll have to read his whole post to see where you stand.

Are you going to open the gate? »

2. The Rule of One

One of the questions we hear most often is: “How much should I spend on Facebook ads?” Now, we have a post anyone can use to determine their Facebook budget!

Our own Scott Meyer explains the 9 Clouds “Rule of One” and how it can be used to set a Facebook ad budget for your dealership (or any other business).

Follow his three guidelines to get started on this powerful social marketing site today.

What’s your budget? »

3. AI Integration

The rise of artificial intelligence (AI) makes some people nervous — driverless cars and robots, oh my! — but we think businesses should embrace the benefits of this AI technology.

AI is a large-scale field, encompassing both radical shifts like autonomous vehicles and more low-key technologies like messaging apps.

Google released a new AI marketing feature that businesses can deploy now. We explain how and why to set it up in one of our recent blog posts.

Get Google Messenger »

4. Bots in Action

Speaking of AI, there are a few brands already using it really well in their marketing. The HubSpot team rounded up some of the best uses of chatbots in marketing.

Not sure what to make for dinner? Whole Foods’ chatbot will help you out.

Want to order coffee? Just chat with Starbucks bot.

Check out the whole list of brands using chatbots over on the HubSpot blog.

Who has the best bots? »

5. Setting Off an Arms Race

Okay, last thing on robots. Promise!

But this one is B – I – G.

Tesla is expected to announce an autonomous big rig in September. Analysts say that if Tesla opens up orders for AI semi trucks, “it could set off an arms race . . . to get electric, autonomous trucks to market.”

By 2035, more than 12 million fully autonomous vehicles are expected to be sold per year globally, according to research firm BCG.

Find out what this semi-truck announcement could mean for the auto industry over on TheStreet.

Will we see self-driving semis soon? »

6. SEO When You’re #1

Moving on, as promised, let’s talk about search engine optimization (SEO). We’ve been researching this topic a lot in 2017, with team visits to both MozCon and the SEJ Summit.

What have we learned? That we have a lot to learn. SEO is (as we all know) constantly changing, and it’s more challenging than ever for businesses to succeed in a digital marketplace.

But what if you’re actually doing awesome with rank, and you just want to build the size of your market?

This month, we’re highlighting a post from Moz that explains what to do with SEO when you can’t move up any higher.

You’re #1 on Google — now what? »

7. Meet our New Clouds!

Have you met Jacquelyn Jacobsma?

She’s a creative content strategist who joined our team. Technically she started at the end of July, but we’ve been getting to know her throughout August. You should get to know her, too!

Jacquelyn is one of the awesome people making content for 9 Clouds. Although it’s been a roller coaster of emotions this first month, she’s doing great, and we’re excited to have her on the team.

P.S. Stay tuned next month to meet our newest cloud, Jaden Miller, who joined our team on August 30!

Get to know Jacquelyn »

8. Stock Up

If you’re like us, you spend a lot of time writing a great post, and then you hit the ultimate roadblock: finding that perfect photo.

We’re always on the lookout for great image resources, so when someone shared this Entrepreneur article in our Slack channel, it was a great relief. New photos!

And now we’re passing it on to you. Find stock photos for any occasion with these handy free image sites.

Find the right visual »