Sometimes it feels like Google’s AdWords program has been around since the rise of the internet itself. In fact, the first online advertisement appeared on the web in 1994 and by 1995, a company called DoubleClick was launched, which was eventually acquired by Google in 2008. Everything Google does lately seems to be a long-running success (well, except Google+), and AdWords is no exception. Although it relies on a digital marketing strategy that isn’t as popular these days (pay-per-click advertising), AdWords is still going strong, partially because of the brand name associated with it (Google).

There was a time when small businesses never had websites. The internet was a place for online-only businesses or major corporations. It was too expensive, too technical and far too much work to create a website for the mom and pop donut shop down the street or your local sporting goods store. But the world has changed quite a bit over the last few years. As the internet has become more and more a part of our daily lives, virtually any business can set up a website these days. There are also now a host of companies that are helping companies create websites, no matter how big, small or weird they may be.

Social media is one of the most fascinating battlegrounds of 2015. This constantly changing environment has become overrun with ambitious companies looking to leverage their social media presence for profit. But nobody has quite figured out the best way to do that yet. And so, expect to see various companies experimenting with social media in the months to come. Some will have success… and others will have to fire their social media managers.

With every new technological advancement, it’s often remarked about how the world has “become smaller.” The Earth never actually changes size, but it seems smaller because technology allows us to close the distance between one another in various ways (i.e. the telephone, railroads, air travel, etc.). The internet was one of the most revolutionary ways the world “shrank,” because it allowed us to start communicating instantly with virtually anyone around the globe. And for some reason, the internet fostered a spirit of collaboration and interaction like nothing else. From the very beginning with chat rooms to the popularity of sites like Reddit today, online folks have always seemed to want to get to know each other.

Inbound marketing is currently the most effective marketing strategy. It’s dynamic, it saves you money, and it definitely works. However, it does tend to have a lot of moving parts, and it’s easy to become confused while running an inbound campaign (especially if it’s your first). With that in mind, we wanted to come up with a mini-checklist of sorts that can help you keep all those moving parts in check. If you ever find yourself lost or overwhelmed with a campaign, just use this blog article as a reference guide to get you back on track.

If a blog is published online and nobody finds it, does it make a sound? That’s a silly rip-off of a classic unanswerable question, but it brings up an issue worth considering: if you write great content for your inbound marketing strategy, how useful is it if nobody reads it?

There are many reasons inbound marketing has become one of the most effective and popular marketing strategies in the business world. For starters, it’s extremely cost effective – relying completely on the internet for marketing eliminates those expensive direct mail and traditional marketing fees. It’s also eminently adaptable; since everything lives online, you can change your website, messaging, content or email campaigns with just a few keystrokes. But perhaps the best part about inbound marketing is the fact you don’t have to go out looking for potential customers; instead, by creating informative content, you bring the potential customers to you.

It’s hard to believe that something that didn’t exist 20 years ago is now part of the daily routine for nearly a billion people around the world – but that describes Facebook perfectly. The brainchild of Mark Zuckerberg has become a global phenomenon, with 936 million people using the social media platform on a daily basis. That means nearly one out of every seven people on the planet checks their Facebook at least once a day. Clearly, that’s an enormous audience you want a piece of.

Practically since the dawn of the internet, websites have been obsessed with traffic. How much traffic is enough? There’s no such thing. No matter how much traffic you have, you always want more. For a business, this equation is simple: more visitors means more potential leads; more leads means more potential sales; and more sales equals more money. That’s what you started this business for anyway, right?

It’s a question as old as time: how many of my leads should I be converting? The sales business is a hard slog, and salespeople need to develop a very thick skin. Few people are ever going to be rejected as much as the average salesperson is. It’s simply the nature of the beast. Potential customers are hesitant to trust sales pitches, and they are wary of products that sound too good to be true.