Entries by Allen Stafford
[VIDEO] Creating a Treemap Chart in Microsoft Excel
For a video tutorial on creating a treemap in Microsoft Excel, scroll to the end of the written tutorial. A Brief History of Treemap Charts Treemap charts are a form of area-based visualization developed in the early 1990s by Professor Ben Shneiderman at the University of Maryland Human-Computer Interaction Lab. While area-based visualization diagrams like mosaic plots have existed […]
Choosing the Right Social Media Platform for your Business
The Rise of Social Media Platforms Digital technology, devices, the surging popularity of the internet, and the human need to stay connected have given rise to many social media sites and other virtual communities over the past 20-years. Social media’s popularity continues to accelerate with no sign of slowing soon, allowing marketing professionals to connect […]
Financial Analysis Control Tool
Financial Analysis Control Tool Explained The fourth tool for measuring the annual control plan is the financial analysis control tool. This analysis tool looks at the relationship between the expense-to-sales analysis (ratio) and the overall financial framework to analyze where and how the company is making or losing money concerning marketing activities. In other words, it’s an […]
Marketing Expense-to-Sales Analysis
Marketing Expense-To-Sales Analysis Explained The marketing expense-to-sales analysis is one of four tools in the marketing annual control plan. As discussed in the article, The Marketing Control Process for your Business, the analysis is partly responsible for ensuring that a company reaches its financial goals. The ratio helps monitor marketing expenses, ensuring that a firm does […]
Going Viral: Five Content Categories That Increase Your Chances
Going Viral, the New Black Marketers and brand executives dream of taking their content viral, infecting viewers with their messages in hopes of gaining market share, brand recognition, and hours of free advertising. Marketers learned that digital video and other digital content are an alternative to traditional media at tremendous savings after Evian Water posted […]
Creating Engaging Videos and Their Optimal Length
The Web – A Visual Medium and Engaging Videos Humans are visual creatures. Our survival depends heavily on visual cues for fundamental behaviors like locating food, a partner, and shelter. We also rely on visual cues for complex actions like parental care and the forming of social hierarchies. In a 2004 research paper by Indiana University School […]
Four Skills Marketers Need To Thrive After COVID-19
A Changing Employment Landscape Let’s not beat around the bush; it’s brutal in the job market right now as COVID-19 rages through the U.S. In December 2020 — the latest data available — unemployment rose 6.7%, virtually doubling from the previous year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). That’s 10.7 million people out […]
Crisis Communication – How to Communicate To Your Customers During COVID-19
The Covid-19 pandemic caught many businesses, specifically B2B firms, unprepared to manage a crisis of its magnitude. Addressing supply chain challenges, customer support, and customer communication proved toilsome, especially for businesses without a crisis communication plan. Due to COVID-19 and lack of preparedness, many B2B firms found that customers were switching to other suppliers for various […]