We’ve all spent another year on the “pale blue dot” that orbits the Sun.
And now, as many of us ponder what to read over summer to prepare us for another journey through space and time, it can be useful to see what other people found helpful through the year, like a space probe looking for signs of life and valuable resources.
So I have trawled through our analytics and found the list of the 5 most-read marketing articles of 2016, to give you an easy reading list for summer, or at least an aperitif for your summer reading.
Thank you for your comments and feedback over the year and after a break I look forward to sharing more marketing and WordPress insights in the New Year to make life on the third rock from the Sun a prosperous one for us all.
I should point out, only two of the articles were written in 2016. We have a perennial favourite in the list and a couple of other ones that still brought in the readers this year.
The 5 most-read marketing articles of 2016
Number 1, March 2016: The Instagram algorithm and the little red dot that’s about to drive the pale blue dot crazy.
This was, by far, the most-read article of 2016 and I am relieved to say my predictions turned out to be true. The allusion to the “pale blue dot” in this story is why I chose that flavour for this best-of article. If you are likely to do some star-gazing over the break, enjoy the last part of this article because it ends on a philosophical note.
Number 2, July 2013: Download my PDF brochure: Simple steps in WordPress
This article deals with a very practical question, including PDF documents on web pages. It is worth noting that PDFs NEVER replace the need for live, actual text on a website BUT they can complement that text and give people the option of downloading a nicely formatted snapshot of content, when relevant.
Number 3, March 2013: 3 powerful reasons for using odd numbered lists in your blog post titles
This is the perennial favourite I mentioned earlier. It is still a good read and still getting cited, even if I say so myself. I hope you find this useful over the break. Oh, and here’s a tip: Consider going through your backlog of blogs, if you have one, and recreate them this year using this approach.
Number 4, November 2014: Export Marketing 101 – Your 30 Second Sales Spiel
Patrick Baker wrote this article two years ago and if you have missed it, it will certainly add some value to your summer break. In fact, if you have a captive audience of family around you, use them as your focus groups for testing your pitch! Nothing says “prosperous family” as much as one where we let each other bounce off marketing and business ideas!
Number 5, June 2014: How much does your Sales Person or Team cost you?
Would you believe, Patrick snuck another article into the top five with this piece about understanding costs. This will also be fitting reading over the break as you reflect on where all that money went during Christmas festivities and the bargains of post-Christmas sales.
Have a safe, happy and productive summer as you restore your balance and reserves, ready for another year in which we’ll all try to make a dent in the universe (thanks, Steve Jobs, for that last image).
