Gabby's Marketing Blog

Measuring the effectiveness of digital marketing is a great challenge many organizations continue to face even today. When most marketers hear "digital analytics" they may categorize this term under basic web analytics tools like bounce rate, traffic, unique visitors, etc... However, it is important to understand that web analytics is only a portion of what encompasses digital analytics. Web analytics, more specifically, supply marketers with information regarding the performance of their website. Digital marketing analytics, on the other hand, offers a more comprehensive view of what is/isn't working with you current marketing strategy. This information is crucial in marketing as marketers must be able to understand the impact of their marketing campaigns on conversion rates and the buyer's journey. Utilizing digital analytics correctly will provide deeper insight than ever before and will help your business grow to new heights.

This week, I decided to add a "skills" section to my LinkedIn profile. The majority of the skills I added I acquired through various classes at Benedictine University while others I learned on my own. As my major is marketing with a concentration in digital media, I figured it would be beneficial to understand the various Microsoft programs. Understanding how to effectively use Powerpoint, Word and Excel is definitely a skill employers look for. Last semester, I learned how to conduct market research through the use of surveys, interviews, focus groups etc... I was required to gather research from Benedictine University students and analyze the responses with regards to the given questions and draw a conclusion. I liked this course and would feel comfortable doing a project like that again. As of this semester, I feel more confident in my social media marketing skills as I have completed the Hootsuite program and received a certification.  I will continue to improve upon ...

Advancements in artificial intelligence are changing social media marketing in a variety of ways. It has come to the point where social media platforms are essentially thinking and acting like humans with the personalized information/ads they generate for each user. The first benefit of AI in social media is enhanced user experience. AI allows social media marketers to get closer to their audience and understand their preferences. This, as a result, helps with better targeting of ads and overall content. The next benefit is the ability to more accurately measure performance. Marketers can now track user engagement, performance on ads and insights regarding their content. All in all, automation makes social media marketing easier for businesses and content creators alike. It will be interesting to see how much more AI will be able to accomplish in this field within the next few years. 

The outbreak of the Coronavirus in the United States has created global upheaval as the economy struggles to recover. Among other things, the Coronavirus has also created significant changes in both online search behavior, as well as the type of content search engines display as a result. For example, searching "Coronavirus" in Google displays a variety of new panels that provide objective information about the disease. The content is primarily from the World Health Organization, the Center for Disease Control as well as other government sources. One can see how a global pandemic can affect what the government wants the public to see with regards to search information. Simply put, Google appears to be focused on surfacing content from the most trustworthy, expert organization that specifically focus on global health issues particularly during a time of crisis. With this in mind, one may wonder how other economic events may affect search engine optimization with regards to w...

This week for class I created a website on Weebly. My dad has his own remodeling company so I decided to make a website for him. The process in creating the website was fairly simple. First, I choose a template that would be the best fit and then I filled in information about the company. I also selected a free domain name:  www.rabianskiremodeling.weebly.com. I used the website to highlight a few of my dads past/current projects while including of all the services he offers. Creating a website is a great way to attract new customers and appear more professional. Prior to making the website, my dad only marketed himself by word of mouth and with business cards. Having a physical platform to view will make customers feel more confident choosing Rabianski Remodeling for their next home project. To further develop the website, I will need to connect a google analytics account to assess a variety of metrics that can help make the website more of a success. To help promote the websi...

This week for class I created a website on Weebly. My dad has his own remodeling company so I decided to make a website for him. The process in creating the website was fairly simple. First, I choose a template that would be the best fit and then I filled in information about the company. I also selected a free domain name: www.rabianskiremodeling.weebly.com. I used the website to highlight a few of my dads past/current projects while including of all the services he offers. Creating a website is a great way to attract new customers and appear more professional. Prior to making the website, my dad only marketed himself by word of mouth and with business cards. Having a physical platform to view will make customers feel more confident choosing Rabianski Remodeling for their next home project. To further develop the website, I will need to connect a google analytics account to assess a variety of metrics that can help make the website more of a success. To help promote the website, m...

This week I studied for the SEN (Search Engine News) exam. This is a basic SEO course that introduces over 70 fundamental ranking factors and strategies. The purpose of the course is to bring you up to speed about everything SEO so you can feel confident analyzing a website's presence. A nice benefit is that the course only costs $50 as opposed to $550 with the student discount. The lessons in the course covered topics like the role and importance of various types of search results, keyword research, internal/external ranking factors and many more. After each section there was a short quiz to test your knowledge before moving forward. While the course took some time and dedication to complete, my efforts were worthwhile. An online multiple choice exam was offered at the end to receive the official SEO certification. To receive the certification, you have to pass with a score of at least 70% or higher. After my second try, I received the certification in SEO fundamentals. I uplo...

 While there are many social media platforms to chose from, it is important to realize that each is intended to reach a different audience with a different method. To better understand this concept, Professor Kelsey shared an image explaining social media differences using donuts as an example. The following image uses short sentences to describe how each platform primarily functions. If you are looking to market through social media to promote a company, product etc.. it is good to know what each platform strives to achieve so you can attract the right audience. Understanding what consumers expect from each platform can help you create affective advertisements and adapt to trends. Without careful consideration of each platform, you may find it difficult to connect and appeal to your current audience. Using the donuts model as a guide can help chose the social media platforms that will be the best for you in the long run.

While images definitely make a page more appealing to the eye, they are also an important aspect to effective search engine optimization. Although it is not exactly known how many words and keywords Google makes of an image, it has been found that Google can read text from images. As a result, this may have a significant impact on ones rankings and Google Image Search status in the future. The following tips have been found to help optimize images for SEO while also increasing website speed and overall SEO Chose the right image format  Optimize image file weight Save images at smaller resolutions Resize images to scale Reduce the file size using plugins Remove any irrelevant or unneeded metadata Name your image and add alt descriptions for SEO success Use SVG files to have a higher clarity and lighter website Ultimately, the goal is to implement each of these steps to help optimize your visual content  and improve your SEO efforts. With constantly changing a...

Moving forward with the book Surfing the Tsunami , chapter two focuses on how artificial intelligence is already being applied in today's world. After reading this chapter, I was intrigued to find out how web analytics is being affected. AI has already been used in several areas such as research in the medical field, creating innovative technology (autonomous vehicles) and in programs like Netflix and Spotify. Over the last few years there have been significant advances in machine learning. Machine learning is important because we can essentially teach a machine an algorithm to imitate the human brain. Many analysts believe that machine learning will completely transform the development process of various software including web applications. With regards to web analytics, machine learning can be very helpful in helping companies generate and understand data to a further extent. Among other things, these algorithms can help to understand customer behavior and boost customer engage...

A few days ago I completed my certification for Hootsuite and Google Analytics. After passing an exam for each, the websites gave me the option to add the official certification to my LinkedIn profile. Doing this was extremely simple. First, I accessed my LinkedIn profile and scrolled to "licenses and certifications" box towards the bottom of the page. I selected the "+" at the top right hand corner of the box to manually enter the credentials to verify each certification. The information needed to fill out the boxes can be found on the official page of your certification. After filling out all of the information, my Hootsuite Platform Certification appeared on my profile for potential employers to see. I am currently in the process of completing my Hubspot certification so this will be another achievement I can add shortly. I will continue to add as many certifications as I can to spice up my profile and attract future employers.

 A few days ago I completed my certification for Hootsuite and Google Analytics. After passing an exam for each, the websites gave me the option to add the official certification to my LinkedIn profile. Doing this was extremely simple. First, I accessed my LinkedIn profile and scrolled to "licenses and certifications" box towards the bottom of the page. I selected the "+" at the top right hand corner of the box to manually enter the credentials to verify each certification. The information needed to fill out the boxes can be found on the official page of your certification. After filling out all of the information, my Hootsuite Platform Certification appeared on my profile for potential employers to see. I am currently in the process of completing my Hubspot certification so this will be another achievement I can add shortly. I will continue to add as many certifications as I can to spice up my profile and attract future employers.

 A few days ago I completed my certification for Hootsuite and Google Analytics. After passing an exam for each, the websites gave me the option to add the official certification to my LinkedIn profile. Doing this was extremely simple. First, I accessed my LinkedIn profile and scrolled to "licenses and certifications" box towards the bottom of the page. I selected the "+" at the top right hand corner of the box to manually enter the credentials to verify each certification. The information needed to fill out the boxes can be found on the official page of your certification. After filling out all of the information, my Hootsuite Platform Certification appeared on my profile for potential employers to see. I am currently in the process of completing my Hubspot certification so this will be another achievement I will add shortly. I will continue to add as many certifications as I can to spice up my profile and attract future employers.

Surfing the Tsunami is a book written by professor Todd Kelsey regarding the advancement of artificial intelligence and its ever growing presence in our society. After reading the first chapter, professor Kelsey offers some interesting points as to why everyone should strive to either adopt, adapt or become adept to AI as it is something we must familiarize ourselves with as quickly as possible. Artificial intelligence is already having a significant impact on business, the job market and society in general. We can see this with online commerce, automated cars, and programs like Siri and Alexa. It is safe to say that over the last few years, advancements in AI have opened new doors with respect to analyzing data. While there are definitely things AI can be useful for, I am still worried about the many drawbacks. Moving forward with the book, I will take professor Kelsey's advice to live in readiness as opposed to fear as it is import to absorb all the information, be it positi...

In Surfing the Tsunami , chapter 5 primarily focuses on adopting AI. While adapting refers to learning about AI and paying closer attention, adopting focuses on AI related tools and platforms that help with managing AI. Professor Kelsey suggests that this level is the second best option of the three levels. Similar to Mr. Kelsey, I think I am a realist when it comes to AI as the advancement of AI in our society is inevitable and not necessarily intended for global domination. We already see how companies like Amazon have introduced these concepts with online commerce and products like the Kindle. As suggested in the chapter, I will visit the WorkFusion site to go through their Automation Academy Program to get a deeper understanding about these topics. On the other hand, the alternative to adopting AI is to ignore, resist, and reject AI. However, the economic reality suggests that this is not necessarily a wise option. Companies especially should look to make sustainable transition...