Posted by: Kerry Houchin, Project Manager

There are two ways to generate BtoB leads using Linkedin: the expensive way and the free way. For advertisers who are willing to spend $25,000 or more, the site offers the “Linkedin Advertising Sales” option, which includes a variety of highly-targeted display ads, polling questions and more. For those with budgets smaller than $25,000, Linkedin offers a DirectAds text ad option that works on a highly-targeted pay-per-click or pay-per-impression model. While both of these options may have a place in your lead generation strategy, you may be wondering how to effectively generate leads without spending part of your precious media budget.

Linkedin is a social network where business professionals go to look for advice and make connections, not a venue where they look to be sold on a product or service. The key to generating leads on Linkedin is to first gain people’s attention and trust, and then become a thought leader in your area of expertise. Make sure to join Linkedin under your own name instead of a company identity. Next, use the search function to find the most active (not necessarily the largest) group in your area of knowledge. Then, join the conversation and, where appropriate, use collateral such as white papers or specially created social media landing pages to add value to the topic.

Remember that it can take time to gain a following on Linkedin and that leads may not be of the same quality that you’re used to seeing from other conversion-driven tactics, but with diligence and patience, Linkedin could become a great lead generator for your business.

Posted by: Erin Wilson, Marketing Coordinator

Although social media is an extremely popular marketing tool for B2C companies, many B2B companies have been hesitant to jump on board. Recently, however, more and more B2B companies are adding social media tactics to their marketing plans. In fact, spending forecasts predict that they will continue to increase their marketing budgets to include social media.

Some B2B companies may still doubt the efficacy of social media, but a recent study featured in eMarketer found that “at least once a week, 33% of active Twitter users share opinions about companies or products, while 32% make recommendations and 30% ask for them.”  In other words, companies are being talked about whether or not they have a social media presence.  By joining and guiding the conversation, B2B companies can more effectively position their brands and generate leads.

This Wednesday, June 23^rd, 90octane will participate in the Denver Online Marketing Summit (OMS). OMS brings together hundreds of marketers for educational sessions on social media and content marketing, email, demand generation, analytics and more. The OMS 2010 23-City Tour offers attendees the opportunity to learn strategies and tactics from leading authors, academics, brand marketers and online pioneers in an environment free from exhibit booths and sales pitches.

90octane will partner with Eloqua, a leading company in the marketing automation and automated demand generation space, to host lead generation workshops. 90octane will guide attendees through individualized, 15-minute labs assessing their lead generation programs and offering recommendations for improvement.

In addition, 90octane Account Manager Brook Caesar has been selected to speak at the event, discussing strategies for social media integration. Caesar’s presentation will cover social media best practices to help businesses foster strong relationships with prospects and customers.

Stay tuned for an upcoming post about key learnings from the event.

Posted by: Sean Voorhies, Project Manager

As online and mobile marketing continue to converge, the opportunity for cross-medium campaign interaction is growing. Bertolli’s sponsorship of ads within the ‘Today Recipes’ iPhone application is a prime example of how such a campaign can be executed.

Bertolli’s ad featuring the chance to win a culinary vacation is showcased next to one of the application’s recipes. Once a user clicks on it, he or she is taken to a landing page with minimal registration and the opportunity to opt-in to receive future Bertolli email communications. As the technology advances, users will be able to complete the form without leaving the ‘Today Recipes’ app itself.

With high session times and an average click-through-rate of 3%, campaigns like this – that serve to better the user experience while furthering marketers’ objectives – are proving to be a recipe for success and a tough combination to beat.

Read more: Mobile Marketer

Posted by: Kerry Houchin, Project Manager

According to ClickZ, there are more than 270 million mobile subscribers in the United States and 96% of mobile phones are SMS compatible. Imagine how many customers you could reach using a targeted, 140-character text message. Think about your own mobile habits. Chances are you have your phone with you and turned on a vast majority of the time. If you have a smartphone, it’s likely you have an alert set up for inbound texts, but not for inbound emails. So, when is it best to deliver the message via SMS and when should you stick with email?