Marketing Day: Amazon Alexa, Google Data Studio & Super Bowl LI ads

Here’s our recap of what happened in online marketing today, as reported on Marketing Land and other places across the web.

From Marketing Land:

1. Refreshing competitive search strategies in 2017 Feb 2, 2017 by Thomas Stern In the new year, columnist Thomas Stern argues we should adopt new strategies for monitoring and analyzing the competition. Here are his suggestions.

2. The desktop’s death has been greatly exaggerated: How it’s holding its own in a mobile world Feb 2, 2017 by Christi Olson Mobile usage is certainly growing, but does that mean that desktop is done? Columnist Christi Olson doesn’t think so, and she suggests search marketers create campaigns that leverage the strengths and acknowledge the contributions of each device.

3. Amazon launches an Alexa hub to help marketers create voice skills Feb 2, 2017 by Matt McGee New resource targets brands and agencies that want a presence in the Alexa ecosystem.

4. Back to the future with the Engagement Economy Feb 2, 2017 by Chandar Pattabhiram Columnist Chandar Pattabhiram explains the new Engagement Economy — a world where everyone and everything is connected, fundamentally shifting the relationships between buyers and sellers.

5. Google Data Studio removes 5 free reports limitation Feb 2, 2017 by Ginny Marvin Create and share as many free reports as you’d like.

6. Super Bowl LI advertisers: Here are the brands gearing up for game day Feb 2, 2017 by Amy Gesenhues New updates to the list include spots from Bud Light, Audi, Buick and Nintendo.

7. 2017: The age of social satellites Feb 2, 2017 by Blaise Lucey As web traffic and user engagement continue to drop, columnist and Bitly senior content strategist Blaise Lucey says it’s time to think about creating modular pieces of content that orbit your central piece of content.

8. A bot for Kia Motors is the first to debut a new Super Bowl ad Feb 2, 2017 by Barry Levine The ad, promoting the eco-angles of Kia’s new Niro crossover SUV, stars Melissa McCarthy on a mission to save the planet.

9. Three paid social features you need to try in 2017 Feb 2, 2017 by Brad O’Brien Columnist Brad O’Brien highlights recent social ad features from Facebook, Pinterest and Snapchat and explains why you should consider trying them out for your brand.

10. Instagram won’t fix Facebook’s ad load dilemma yet, but video might Feb 1, 2017 by Tim Peterson Facebook may max out on the number of ads it can stuff between posts, but what about the ads it’s inserting within posts?

11. You have 50,000+ email subscribers… now what? Feb 1, 2017 by Digital Marketing Depot If you have 50K+ email subscribers — and you are not monetizing your list — you are leaving money on the table. This white paper from AdStation covers several effective methods for generating revenue with your email list, including the five essential ingredients that your subscribers will actually appreciate.

12. Facebook’s Q4 2016 earnings report in 7 charts Feb 1, 2017 by Tim Peterson The numbers that matter from Facebook’s latest quarterly earnings report and what they say about the social network’s ad business.

Online Marketing News From Around The Web:

Analytics

1. H&R Block CMO On Broadcast TV, Watson And Which Metrics Matter Most, AdExchanger

Blogs & Blogging

1. How to Add Some Spice to Your Drab Company Blog, Small Biz Trends

2. How to Get Your Blog to be Ranked like a Leading Brand in 2017, The Blog Herald

Business Issues

1. Firefox fail: Layoffs kill Mozilla’s push beyond the browser, CNET

2. Google to end Hands Free pilot test on February 8, focus efforts on Android Pay, 9to5Google

3. Google, Apple, Facebook and Microsoft plan to draft a joint letter opposing Trump’s travel ban, Recode

4. Microsoft Presses for Immigration-Ban Exceptions, Wall Street Journal

5. Snapchat reportedly hit 160M daily users and $400M revenue in 2016, TechCrunch

Content Marketing

1. 10 Content Marketing Lessons I Learned From Seeing How Our Content Is Shared, Simply Measured

2. Content Marketing Agency Trends and Challenges, MarketingProfs

3. Creative Frameworks that Build Content Marketing Success, Copyblogger

4. Day Four: How to Publish, Promote, and Propagate Your Article, Problogger

5. Intimacy, tech and robot wars: Content marketing in 2017, Branded3

6. Native Content Yields Big Return For Big Publishers, AdAge

7. Take Complete Charge of Your Content, Duct Tape Marketing

8. What Are Your Top B2B Content Marketing Objectives?, KoMarketing

Conversion Optimization

1. 3 Website Hacks to Radically Improve Your Conversion Rates, Jeff Bullas

Copywriting, Design & Usability

1. Content Typography: Why Your First Impression Matters, Heidi Cohen

2. Mobile-First Is Just Not Good Enough: Meet Journey-Driven Design, Smashing Magazine

Domaining

1. A first hand account of being forced to change your domain name, Domain Name Wire

2. Analyzing new top level domain registrations by country (Part 4), Domain Name Wire

E-Commerce

1. 5 Excellent Examples of Omnichannel Retailing Done Right, Multichannel Marketer

2. How e-commerce will change the grocery industry, Internet Retailer

3. Personalizing Your eCommerce Store, Usability Geek

Email Marketing

1. How a Nashville landmark boosted email click rates 87%, My Emma

2. How to Create a Successful Email Marketing Campaign, Constant Contact

General Internet Marketing

1. 7 Digital Marketing Resolutions to Make – CopyPressed, CopyPressed

2. What to Look for When Working with Influencers, eMarketer

Internet Marketing Industry

1. Maritz Motivation Solutions Launches Loyalty Gift Portal for Brands to Engage Customers, PR Web

2. Alteryx Adds Seasoned Executives to its Leadership Team, Alteryx

3. AppNexus Signs Over 260 Publishers in 2016 to Grow the Largest Independent Marketplace for Digital, PR Newswire

MarTech

1. 3 Predictions for Native Video Trends in 2017, MarTech Advisor

2. How Marketers Can Use Technology for Personalization, MarketingProfs

3. How to build your own Twitter bot in less than 30 minutes, Venture Beat

4. Loathe it or Like it, Display & Native Ad Tech Will Serve to Grab More Mindshare in 2017, MarTech Advisor

5. Marketing Automation: Batteries Not Included, Content Marketing Institute

6. The Automation Dilemma: Scaling Innovation or Building Walls of Discontent?, Conversocial

7. Three full-stack marketing trends for 2017, Econsultancy

Mobile/Local Marketing

1. 10 thought-provoking quotes about mobile experiences, Econsultancy

2. Integrating Progressive Web Apps deeply into Android, Chromium Blog

Reputation Management

1. Protect your sending reputation with DKIM, Reach Mail

Social Media

1. 2017 Guide to Facebook Ad Types, 3Q Digital

2. 3 Types of Facebook Groups: How to Use Them to Strengthen Your Impact, Leadership and Profits (Part 1), Amy Porterfield

3. And the Most-Liked Instagram Photo Ever Is …, AdAge

4. As Facebook Turns 13, It’s Celebrating The Power Of Facebook Groups To Do Good, Fast Company

5. European Publishers Discover New Audiences Through Instant Articles, Facebook Media

6. Facebook’s new “Discover People” feature wants to help you make friends, TechCrunch

7. Turning Your Social Media Connections into Clients, CompuKol Connection

8. Twitter Is Gearing Up for Super Sunday With Emojis, Periscope Hearts, Moments, Adweek

9. What to Pin to Pinterest In February, Tailwind Blog

10. What You Can Learn from Dolce & Gabbana’s 5 Instagram Comment Types, Simply Measured

11. Why brands should be making more use of Pinterest, Econsultancy

Video

1. 36 percent of publishers are wading into VR and AR, Digiday

2. Brands Can Use Animated GIFs in Facebook Video Ads, Adweek

3. Buyers see potential in Facebook’s TV push, Digiday

4. Facebook’s Friends Day Videos Are Back (Messenger GIFs, Too), Adweek

5. How to Create Social Media Marketing Videos Without Appearing On Camera, Social Media Examiner

6. How to Use Video Content to Accelerate Engagement, Convince and Convert

7. Video and Social Media Marketing Trends in 2017, MarketingProfs

8. When it comes to video, more publishers are betting on mobile web versus apps, Digiday