Content, Content Marketing, Content Merchandising… What’s the Difference?
The OpenView blog posted an excellent summary and analysis of a recent debate over content marketing. While we’re in the business of on-page content merchandising, the lines between types of Internet content seem to blur indistinguishably in all directions. What’s the difference between your Facebook post and your product description, and what lines should departments be careful not to cross? Brendan Cournoyer accurately points out that everyone has a different definition, and that people seem to be doing what they think will work for their company. But, he then asks: How anyone can be successful at this if marketers can’t agree on a definition? I ask the opposite: who cares what it’s called and whether it’s consistent, if it’s what is best for the company? Unlike the male footprint pattern, it’s certainly something to think about.
Read the summary at blog.openviewpartners.com.
Gold-Digging in China
China’s current online retail environment may be well behind the times of western markets, but it is also experiencing a more rapid rate of development, according to a recent Acquity Group report. The Next Web sums up the situation by saying that “China’s is a lucrative market, but that online shopping stores have yet to establish trust among consumers.” Delivery is sketchy in many parts of the country, and Chinese people have yet to embrace the web as a shopping mall because of inconsistencies in the experience. The article also mentions recent increases in online spending that evince the current pace of online retail. For instance, China’s largest B2C retail site doubled its online sales value from 2009 to 2010. Still, average user spending, even if dreams of projected totals come true, falls well short of current U.S. spending.
Read the full article at thenextweb.com.
