The past few months have been very busy and interesting at Dinkum. Not only have we continued to grow very quickly (another 50% this year seems likely), but the Internet has become more complicated as well. The compounding effect is that all of our clients (large and small) are looking to deploy more impactful campaigns using a broader set of tools whose complexity has increased. It’s clear also that results (ROI) matter more than ever. Today, as I worked with Seth (social media) and Kerri (PPC) on one of our campaigns, I delighted in the fact that I was unconsciously Read More

For the longest time, Hangouts On Air on Google+ was for a limited number of people. I was one of the lucky ones who had a chance to beta test it while it was in its infancy. Now it’s open to the public and the creativity and innovation on Google+ has grown exponentially. People are coming up with some great new concepts for shows and podcasts using this feature. Here’s a run down of what to expect from Hangouts On Air (HOA): You don’t have to be a media celebrity to have fun with HOA. Just get out there and Read More

Dinkum is a small internet marketing company based in Philadelphia. We like being small but every now and then there comes a time when we need to expand a little. Now is that time. So we are on the lookout for the right candidate to join our team and before I get into the specifics let me offer a couple of pre-qualifications. We want you to be in or around the Philadelphia area. While we all work remotely, we do have meetings, get-togethers, conferences etc that you will be required to attend as well as the occassional client meeting. This Read More

Well, kind of. First up, let me admit to chronic multi-tasking. I’m always doing 10 things at once, even though I’ve read research that says multi-tasking isn’t productive. I remember reading one article about the subject, only to notice I was simultaneously watching the news on TV and eating dinner. Fortunately, I can focus when I need to, but it seems like my default position is to do many things at once. I’ve seen how multi-tasking affects your performance. When I lived in New York City, you could always tell when someone walking along the sidewalk decided to check their Read More

I have a cool phone. I know I don’t access all of its potential. But I recently discovered an app that makes sense to me. My local grocery store started running little ads in their circulars for their shopping list app. At first I groaned and thought, “Just what I need. One more electronic list.” But being curious, I decided to investigate it. It took some figuring out, but I did manage to download it to my phone. Then I was able to view their weekly circular, pick out items I’d like to purchase, and create a shopping list, complete Read More

Have you heard of Klout? In its own words “Klout measures influence online using data from your social networks. Anywhere you have an online presence, you have the opportunity to influence people by creating or sharing content that inspires actions such as likes, retweets, comments and more. The more engagement your posts receive, the more influential you are. Klout uses this information to provide you a Klout Score that measures your overall influence.” The score is from 0-100 – the higher your score, the more influential you are in their calculation. The average score is 20 (not 50) and ranked Read More

I read numerous blog posts related to Internet marketing and particularly enjoyed one entitled “5 Ways to Open the Social Side Door and Build Relationships“. It’s a guest blog on Jay Baer’s popular site. The post talks about what’s missing from current sales and marketing initiatives – creativity. I remember when personal computers were introduced into offices and something called software allowed you design and print your very own brochures. WOW. What most folks found out, however, is that just because you can doesn’t mean you should. It makes a difference what the call to action is, what typeface is Read More

How do you change someone else’s behavior? The question sounds rather sinister, I know. But think about it. You want someone to buy your product, donate to your cause, fulfill their obligations as an employee, quit smoking, slow down on the roads, eat their vegetables, pay back the money they owe you. I could go on. We’re all in the behavior game change business. We all want to influence outcomes. Once we accept this, how do we make it happen? Adam Ferrier is a consumer psychologist who runs a very successful advertising agency in Australia called Naked Communications. In a Read More

More and more studies are finding that too much choice leads to poorer decision making. Sounds crazy and contradictory, I know. I read a fascinating opinion piece in the Sydney Morning Herald (Dinkum has strong Australian roots, after all) by Andrew Leigh that summarised some interesting research on this topic. Here are the best bits:- In a share-trading experiment, two groups of university students were pitted against one another. One team saw only share prices, while the other team could also consult experts and media reports. The result? The better-informed team ended up reacting to rumours and gossip, made too Read More

If you feel challenged by change, you’re not alone. It’s a harsh truth that change is the new constant in our lives. Rogue management consultant, Steve Smolinsky, from Benari LTD argues companies need to acknowledge this fear and address it. “The vast majority of people, irrespective of culture, really don’t like change. They like to get up in the morning at the same time, go to the same workplace and know exactly what they have to do that day. They even like to watch the same TV shows. Some people live their whole lives this way.” “Senior executives tend to Read More