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Dreamforce 16: My Big Insights

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Last week, I had the pleasure of attending Dreamforce 16 with my amazing wife. This was truly an epic conference, with many takeaways for marketers, salespeople, and businesspeople. Today’s post summarizes my big insights, and I’m hoping these provide actionable fuel for growing your own business. Before jumping into my blog post, I encourage you to watch my Dreamforce 16 video, taken live from the conference. And, when you’re done reading, don’t forget to check out the slides at the end of the post.

Insight One: Let Machine Learning Do Your Data Science

ian-lopuch-welcome-to-dreamforceDreamforce 16 was very much about the new Salesforce Einstein algorithm. Einstein is machine learning at its finest, an algorithm that learns over time and suggests tips to marketers and salespeople on how they can be more effective at their campaigns and jobs. Think of it this way: Einstein is like having a full time data scientist on your team, always looking for new optimizations and opportunities. Rather than being a real person, Einstein lives within Salesforce. How cool!

I’ve long been a fan of smart automation within digital marketing, and even wrote a whitepaper on the topic. Automation continues to evolve over the years and now spans departments. As you implement automation at your company think about how it can seamlessly tie together sales, marketing, customer care, product management, executive management, and others. Also, consider testing automation that learns over time, taking some of the heavy lifting (data analysis) off your shoulders.

Insight Two: Salesforce Is Now A Big Player In Marketing

ppc-ian-dreamforce-16Salesforce demonstrated their marketing cloud technology, a highlight of the conference for me. As a marketing executive, I am the biggest fan of marketing platforms around. If your company already leverages Salesforce for CRM/sales, the case for auditioning their marketing cloud is quite compelling, especially if you are a B2B marketing organization. Salesforce is making it easy to leverage a unified technology stack that spans multiple departments.

With so many options to choose from when it comes to marketing and sales technology, where do you even start? A few quick tips:

  1. Audit your existing technology stack, if you have one. How would the new platform(s) fit into your existing mix? Would they replace existing platform(s) or complement?
  2. Understand your primary short-term objective. Do you need a platform that does it all, or do you want to start scrappy and address one opportunity at a time? Think about the long-term so the actions you are taking are scalable as your business grows.
  3. Consider the size of your business. Some platforms are better for different lifecycle stages.
  4. Understand your platform budget. Do you have millions per year to invest in technology or do you have a more limited budget?
  5. Go with the best! There are great platforms to fit all companies and budgets. When evaluating platforms, see how long they have been around and understand their reputation in the marketplace.

Insight Three: Salesforce Announces Intent To Acquire Krux DMP

dreamforce-16-cloud-expoMost marketers and salespeople agree that data is incredibly powerful. Data is the hub of any great business strategy. The challenge is data lives in so many different places. That’s why I suggest bringing a DMP (data management platform) into your company’s technology stack. Think of your DMP as the central repository of all your consumer data anonymized (both prospective and actual). Each of the solutions in your stack (and your CRM too) can tap into this DMP to gain insights and provide a better, more customized user experience.

Practical use case: You sell autos. Someone visited a landing page for your lineup of SUVs. They leave the site. In real time, your DMP creates a record for this new prospect and also adds an attribute (they like SUVs). Next time, when the same consumer comes back to your site (maybe they just type in your homepage URL), the site taps into the DMP to personalize content. Of course, you choose a homepage image of SUVs, tailored to their interests.

This is a very simple example, but you can start seeing the power of a great DMP. Make your DMP the hub of all of your marketing, sales, customer care, and website personalization. DMPs allow marketers and salespeople to connect 1-on-1 with prospective consumers.

Insight Four: Salespeople Spend Two Thirds of Their Time NOT Selling

I really could not believe this statistic! How crazy is that? Salespeople spend the vast majority of their time engaging in activities that are misaligned with their primary role. I imagine this is quite frustrating for salespeople, and that they would rather be selling than working on administrative work. Of course, the charter of Salesforce is improving this situation and empowering salespeople to perform the work they love so much, automating and improving the manual work and administrative tasks that can consume valuable time.

At a meta level, I imagine this statistic is not too far off for other professions. My insight and takeaway here is to always remember my primary goals and focus, focus, focus. There are so many distractions out there. There are so many administrative tasks. How can we all get better at focusing on the activities that produce great value, finding alternate ways to get the manual work done?

Insight Five: Run Your Business From Your Phone

I thought this was really neat: Salesforce allows you to run your business from your phone. With the married marketing and sales clouds, you can do so much on the go. I’m a big fan of the mobile lifestyle, and find so much inspiration when I’m working from all different kinds of places. In fact, I personally get more done when I’m not in the same environment every single day.

My big insight here is that we should all challenge ourselves to be more mobile. What can we do from our phones? How can we all visit different places and get really creative with our work?

Insight Six: Charity Should Be a Primary Objective

When it comes to charity, Salesforce is a company I admire incredibly. They take charity so seriously, and invented the 1-1-1 integrated philanthropy strategy. Under this model, Salesforce (and other companies that choose to participate), donate technology, time, and money to great causes.

At Dreamforce, I had the honor of learning about Musicians On Call, a charity that brings happy moments (via live music) to those sick and stuck in the hospital. I’m a big believer in the power of music, and have been actively looking for charities in the space. We’re already donating to the Fender Music Foundation, a charity that provides musical instruments to schools and students that cannot afford them. Now, we have started giving to Musicians On Call as well.

I recently wrote a blog about focusing on activities that will drive value 50 or even 100 years form now. Charity is one activity that cannot be underscored enough. My big insight here is that we should all find ways to give back. Giving back should not be a secondary objective, it should be a primary objective in our lives and businesses. Let’s all get out there and add value that will live on forever.

Insight Seven: Account-Based Marketing Is Gaining In Popularity

Running concurrently with Dreamforce, we also attended a nearby event called Open Lounge by InsideView. I especially enjoyed watching the EverString presentation. My big takeaway from this event is the growing popularity of Account-Based Marketing. Many marketing teams have focused on "generating leads" from a lowest CPA (cost per acquisition) standpoint. Leads come in and then they go to the salespeople. However, salespeople have historically approached things differently. They look at the universe of potential customers and cherry pick the most important ones. They double down on the accounts that matter the most.

Account-Based Marketing aligns marketing with the sales worldview. It enables 1-to-1 marketing. When an account has been identified, sales and marketing work together to acquire that specific customer. This involves a lot of collaboration and technology, and naturally makes sense to me. In fact, I have been practicing account-based marketing for a number of years, before this new term was coined. The insight: Find ways to collaborate and support your sales team. While inbound leads are great, don’t lose sight of the big picture customers.

So there you have it, a few of my favorite insights from the conference. If you attended Dreamforce, please feel free to share your insights in the comments!

Slides From Dreamforce 16

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salesforce-marketing-cloud

salesforce-krux

salespersons-time-dreamforce

run-your-business-from-your-phone-dreamforce

musicians-on-call-dreamforce

everstrings-account-based-marketing-stack

Images of Ian Lopuch – Copyright © PPCIan.com. Images of slides – Copyright © their respective creators.

Go-To-Market Strategy: Driving Incredible Success

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I work in the commercial real estate space, at a swiftly-growing business that regularly launches new physical properties/businesses. As the marketing executive, I’m always thinking about the most effective go-to-market strategy for new stores. Today’s post is meant to offer a checklist for anyone else in the same situation. Have a new store coming opening and figuring out how to launch with the most impactful results possible? Let’s explore the best marketing channels for your go-to-market strategy.

Website, Landing Pages, and Offer Strategy

New TreeBefore we explore the marketing channels, let’s first figure out our foundational strategy. Start building your website, landing pages, and offer strategy well in advance of your new business launch. If you have a store opening, I like to have my website ready a few months early. Even if the store is not open, you can start "pre heating" the market with some pre-opening promotion. Why not gain customers before you store even opens?

Some important considerations:

  • Whether you are building a new website or adding a new section on an existing website, make sure to notify your relevant team members and/or technology partners very early. Get on their calendar immediately.
  • Consider taking photos and videos of your store in progress. Even if your store has not opened, you could share with consumers the future site and construction progress on your website.
  • Consider a very strong offer for early birds.
  • Include a lead form on your website and start collecting names and emails addresses. When your store is getting ready to open, send an email to your list.

Pay-Per-Click (PPC)

Now that your website is ready, I suggest starting with PPC, the best marketing channel for your go-to-market project. Where do consumers go when they are looking for anything? The go to a search engine, such as Google. Where do consumers look on search engines? Do they go to page 2, 3, or 4? No, they look at the first few results on the first page of Google.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) can take time. With a new store, you may not rank very well in the organic search results. This is where PPC comes into the picture. Paid search, the paid results on Google and other search engines, allows you to immediately market your store at the top of page 1 of the search results.

Some important considerations:

  • If you’re operating a physical business, make sure to opt into mobile. Mobile is critical for brick and mortar businesses.
  • Take advantage of geo targeting. Only show up in the geo(s) that apply to your new business.
  • Bid high. It’s important to start a new campaign with strength. I typically recommend showing up in the first few positions, especially when a campaign is brand new.
  • Start with exact match to make sure you’re targeting the exact queries you’d like.
  • As part of your paid digital strategy, consider launching paid social media campaigns. Since paid social does not typically convert as well as paid search (higher in the marketing funnel), I typically start with paid search and then work on paid social as time and budget permit.

Programmatic Retargeting

PPC costs money, sometimes a lot. I like to get as much leverage on my media spend as possible. This is where Retargeting enters the picture. Consider adding retargeting pixels to your landing pages and website. Once a consumer has reached your website via PPC, they may choose to leave. Leverage retargeting to share a special offer or coupon with your new prospect. With programmatic CPMs often in the $2 and $3 range, retargeting becomes a low cost way to increase the yield of your PPC campaigns.

Some important considerations:

  • Install Google Analytics on your new website. Set up Retargeting Lists within Google Analytics and link to your Google AdWords account. This is a really easy way to leverage free Google products to easily set up retargeting on your own.
  • Don’t have any time? Consider working with a programmatic retargeting partner or platform. Some of my favorites are both sponsors of this blog: Acquisio and Kenshoo.

Direct Mail

What does this old world marketing channel have to do with your business? A whole lot! Direct mail has come a long way. These days, you can target direct mail just as you would online marketing channels. Want to target specific life events? You can do that. Want to target specific age groups? You can do that too. Want to target consumers in a certain radius of your store? Easy! When launching new stores, direct mail postcards with a special coupon offer can work very well, especially when you take a data-drive approach.

Some important considerations:

  • Don’t know where to start in the world of direct mail? I suggest starting with Bantu Direct, a PPC Ian sponsor.
  • Consider first class mail since second class delivery dates are less predictable. While more expensive, first class mail ensures your mailers reach consumers in advance of your store opening.
  • Consider 6×9 postcards to make a true impact. While 4×6 postcards are more cost effective, 6×9 convert better since they really stand out in the consumer’s physical mailbox.
  • Opt for higher quality cardstock to make the best possible impact.

Radio

While my name may be PPC Ian, my love for non-digital channels has grown exponentially over the years. Why? Offline marketing offers enormous scale and many of the efficiencies and conveniences of digital. Consider some hyper local radio to create awareness for your new store. Radio is super for awareness, direct response, and amplifying everything you are doing with your new store.

Some important considerations:

  • Consider local, terrestrial radio for a locally-targeted campaign.
  • Work with an amazing agency like Oxford Road to get on the local radio stations and shows that your consumers care about. With limited time in launching your new store, work with a partner/agency that can truly help with your creative strategy.
  • Don’t only run ads on local, terrestrial radio. Also consider a "DJ Reads" strategy where local DJs, that your consumers love, actually share your brand with their audience.
  • Make your call to action (CTA) a phone call, if possible. Set up a unique phone number and have someone ready to answer and provide info. Also consider a text message CTA.

PR

Especially with a local, brick and mortar strategy, I love PR. Get to know the local influencers in your market. Build your story. Get in front of the press by offering value. PR offers a great way to launch a new business. There is a reason PR is listed a bit later than the other channels. It won’t drive as much direct response as a channel like PPC, for example, but I do recommend including in your strategy for a few reasons:

  • You can’t really tap into the power of PR any old day. PR revolves around big events. Opening a new store is a huge event. This is one of your best chances to flex the power of the PR channel.
  • PR will drive your long-term SEO efforts. While SEO will not likely help too much for your store launch (more on this later), SEO is one of the most important investments you will ever make. PR is, in my opinion, the best way to build quality citations and links to your brand.

Channels To Postpone

When opening a new store, focus is everything. There are only so many hours in the day, and I recommend doubling down on the channels that will be most effective for your launch. This does not mean that the other marketing channels are not important, it just means they can stand to wait a little longer. Following are the channels I love, but recommend postponing just a bit, especially if your resources and team are lean (like mine):

  • Search Engine Optimization / Content Marketing: This free media channel (other than time and resources invested) is one of my favorites. Great SEO takes time, energy, and thought, not only to complete the work required (generating content) but also enjoying the benefits (Google does not rank new websites/businesses overnight). During your store launch, start generating ideas for content and capture photos and videos. However, you can afford to postpone the bulk of the work until your store is physically open. Delaying your SEO a few months will allow you to focus on the channels that drive immediate impact, without having material impact on the long term of your organic search.
  • Organic Social Media: Before your store launches, make sure to reserve your social media handles. Moreover, make sure to integrate social media into your website. However, the day-to-day management of organic social media can wait. In my experience, organic social media is a bit like SEO. It takes time to scale. When the results start flowing in, they can become exponential in nature.
  • TV: This channel offers true scale and power. At the same time, a great TV strategy takes time and effort. The best TV campaigns rely on a team that already has extensive knowledge of a stable, operating business. Because your store is brand new, I suggest waiting a few weeks (or months) after launch to make sure everything is going smoothly before tapping into the scale of TV.

Image of new tree © PPCIan.com

My Monday Morning Thoughts

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Happy Monday, everyone! With a few exciting updates and items to share, I thought I’d write a post that captures it all. Today’s post is all about my Monday Morning Thoughts.

Ian Lopuch Vine

  1. I’m incredibly excited to announce my new Vine Business Quotes Initiative. Based on the popularity of my marketing, business, and investing quotes in social media, I thought it would be really fun to share my quotes as short video clips on Vine. (I’m also sharing them on My Instagram too.) Please head on over and let me know what you think.
  2. My good friend and industry leader, Marc Poirier, is raising money for Make-A-Wish Quebec. Marc and his team at Acquisio have participated in the 48-Hour Ride for many years and have raised a substantial amount of money and awareness for these children in need. Let’s help Marc make this the biggest and best year ever! I wanted to take this opportunity to highlight a true leader in our industry, someone who has gone above-and-beyond for his community. Please join me in donating and wishing Marc a successful 48-Hour ride. As a digital marketing community, let’s give back by supporting Marc and the Acquisio team!
  3. My PPC Ian Facebook Page recently surpassed 50,000 fans, and I’m now about to surpass 60,000. I wanted to sincerely thank everyone for their support, it means the world to me.
  4. I’m incredibly focused on video marketing these days. My Vine quote initiative (#1 above) is a direct offshoot of my passion and interest in video marketing. I’m also revamping my PPC Ian YouTube Channel. Make sure to check out my new introduction video, and subscribe to see all of the great videos I have forthcoming. Having purchased some cost effective video equipment and learned the basics of iMovie, I look forward to sharing with you my video marketing journey in the coming weeks. Sure, I have executed amazing video marketing at the corporate level, with the support of large teams and large resources. However, it’s completely different when you design, shoot, edit, publish, and market video 100% yourself. As a scrappy marketer, I want to learn everything I can about video, without the support of corporate resources.
  5. Also on the topic of video marketing, my team and I have been breaking boundaries in the commercial real estate industry with some of the first ever drone videos of self storage facilities. I look forward to sharing with you my experience in the coming months via an interview with my very own drone videographer.
  6. At the corporate level, I have been executing upon some amazing hyper local blogging initiatives. With a multitude of blogs to manage, problems of scale quickly arise. As an overall framework, I have been challenging my team to focus on quality over quantity. In fact, I don’t want to publish a single post unless it marks the best work of the writer’s career. A challenge to everyone reading: Do the best work of your career in everything you do. Make a name for yourself.
  7. I’m an investor and marketer. While most of you know me as a marketer, I’m more investor than marketer since the investing framework fuels everything I do in marketing and most other areas of my life. I’m truly thrilled that my friend Jason Fieber launched his new blog, Mr. Free at 33. An incredible blogger, Jason writes about investing, dividends, saving money, and achieving financial freedom. His message is a powerful one, and I encourage you to check out his blog.
  8. Lately, I have been checking stats too frequently. With instant access to so many numbers, I have been checking the numbers an absurd number of times throughout the day. My advice for the week (both for myself and everyone reading): Focus on your work, and refrain from checking your stats too frequently. The act of checking stats can be fun and rewarding (if you catch issues). Most of the time, however, it is a huge distraction from completing actual work.

I wish each and every one of you an incredible week and thanks for reading.

My New YouTube Intro Video – Big Things Are On The Way

A Reality Check For The Digital Marketing Industry

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I’ve been getting really philosophical lately. I want to start this post with two very important questions: Will your current company be here in 50 years? Will the work you are doing right now have lasting impact in 50 years time? If your answer is "no" (or maybe an "I don’t know"), this post is for you.

Ian Lopuch Donated Bench

We Are Here For A Reason

Let’s start with the basics. I have the firm belief that we are all here for a reason. We are here on this planet to be amazing leaders, contributors, mothers, fathers, sons, and daughters. We are here to add incredible, long-term value to humanity.

As I get older, I also simultaneously realize that time is finite. As a younger professional in my 30s, I have a treasure trove of time, right? I sure hope so. That being said, as I get older, the days, weeks, months, and years seem to speed up.

At a recent conference, a wise elder in our industry was called in to speak to the young leaders (I was included in the young leaders segment). His illustration: Life goes at 20 miles per hour in your 20s, life goes at 30 miles per hour in your 30s, life goes at 40 miles per hour in your 40s… By the time you get to your 60s, life is moving at 60 miles per hour. Each day you live, the actual time passes faster.

I find this to be incredibly true in my life. Time has never seemed to move so quickly. I’m young and have a lot of time ahead, but I know it’s important to seize the moment immediately.

I have concluded that I want to make a lasting 50-100+ year impact on each and every major aspect of my life. Over the last few years, I have organized my life around four main categories. Let’s explore each.

Ian’s Four Elements of Life: Family

I don’t write about my personal life frequently on PPC Ian these days, so I’m absolutely thrilled to announce I’m now a Dad. Becoming a father has been the single most important, life-changing event of my entire life. Being the best Dad possible is my greatest and proudest accomplishment. Fatherhood has given me a completely new perspective on life.

Let’s go back to my original question… If you’re a parent right now, the work you are doing as a parent will certainly have huge value 50 or more years from now. Through the lens of my original question, there are few things as important as parenthood, in my opinion.

As a digital marketing leader and people manager, I encourage you to close up shop early on a regular basis and spend time with your family. You are planting and nourishing the foundation of this world’s future via your children. Our children are so much more intelligent than us, let’s invest in the future!

Ian’s Four Elements of Life: Charity

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about my legacy. What type of legacy do I want to leave here on planet Earth? Above and beyond my family, the first thing that comes to mind is a legacy of generosity and contribution. At the beginning of of this post, you see a picture of yours truly on a bench. This is actually the bench that my beautiful wife (Nicole), mother in-law, father in-law, and I donated to our local park. This very bench will be here in 50 years. This very bench is benefitting the local community each and every day.

I am incredibly focused on charity these days because I know the actions I take in charity have longevity and great meaning. I’m approaching charity much like my investing career: Small, incremental investments on a regular basis yield huge returns in the long-run. The returns in this case are not in my personal portfolio, they’re so much more important. (Stay tuned, I’m about to launch a new website where you can follow the donations we’re making on the charity front, both money and time.)

I encourage you to bring charity to the top of your list. In our busy world of digital marketing, it’s so easy to forget about something like charity. We’re just trying to hit deadlines and milestones, after all. Charity cannot wait for your release date or milestone. Your time and money will have great impact, immediately.

Ian’s Four Elements of Life: Spirituality

I really found spirituality over the last few years. My Pastor, a very smart and articulate man, loves to remind us that there is no more important work than the work we do in God’s kingdom. In fact, I would say that his message on this topic has really encouraged my thinking behind today’s entire post, my entire thought architecture on the long-term view.

50 years is a reasonably short period of time, in the scheme of things. Will the company you’re at be here in 1,000 years? Well, God and his incredible kingdom will still be here. Contribute to God’s kingdom and your work has true staying power.

Whether you are Christian or support another religion, I encourage you to embrace your spiritual side. Here in Silicon Valley, many unfortunately subscribe to the religion of money. Many churches are struggling to stay afloat. This is a real issue when it comes to priorities. Don’t focus exclusively on the short-run since there’s a whole spiritual world that will be around forever.

Ian’s Four Elements of Life: Career

Just over a year ago, I made a career jump! I leveraged my long-standing track record in digital marketing to become Partner at a 40+ year-old commercial real estate development and investment company, with responsibilities spanning marketing, technology, and real estate development development. Many people asked me, "Ian, why are you making this move?" My answer: I wanted to pursue my incredible passion for investing.

I’ve always been a long-term investor, one who invests exclusively for dividends and cash flow. My investment horizon is forever since I typically don’t sell. Capital appreciation is nice, but just icing on the cake. My passion for long-term investing lead me to a company that has been growing for over 40 years and will surely be around another 50+ years. I got into position where I can build real estate assets that benefit this world for generations to come!

I encourage you to find a company that you believe will stand the test of time. Or, a company that is providing a good or service that offers true longevity and benefit to society. Why work on something short-lived when you can add value for the long-haul?

If I were writing to doctors, the answer here would be obvious. Everyone in that line of work is performing fundamental important work with long staying power. Same goes for teachers and police officers. Digital marketing is an amazing career (I’m the greatest proponent around), but can sometimes be a little different. How can you make your work in digital marketing even more important to society over the long-term?

Bringing It Home

I want to encourage you to align everything you’re doing, across all four aspects of life, for a 50 year (or longer) horizon.

That said, what if this is not possible? Maybe you’re at a company that pays well, but you have no confidence in future longevity? There are many elements of life, even more than the four outlined here. I suggest doubling down in your categories of strength. Your shortcomings in one category may add even greater strength in another. For example, leverage that incredible salary to give even more to charity.

Or, find unique ways to turn a short-term situation into one with long-term perspective. For example, go all out mentoring others at your company. While your company may or may not have staying power, your mentoring surely will. It doesn’t matter if you have it all figured out, it just matters that you’re thinking on the philosophical level.

What if you’re a CEO or leader at a company? Consider a deep-dive on your long-term plan. How is your company positioned for the next 50 years? How are your philosophical values as a company aligned for society-wide benefit? How is your company supporting your employees across all four pillars of life?

Also, swim lanes don’t have to be exclusive. For example, why not bring charity into your company? Whether you believe your company will be here in 50 years or not, you can certainly pioneer team charity events, making your company a bit more immortal.

As always, thanks everyone for reading. It means the world to me.

Image of Ian Lopuch on Bench ©PPCIan.com

I Pray While Running

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Wood Stairs

I’m truly honored and proud to be a disciple of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Today’s post is about my experience as a Christian Businessman and my experience praying while running. I hope this post encourages you to embrace your own spirituality, as I know this is the key to solving many of our world’s challenges.

I’m a Busy Person: Running Is The Perfect Time To Pray

I’m a busy guy. I love what I do and often take on way too much. It’s all good and I’m blessed to have these opportunities in life.

Many Christians like to start their day with prayer. This is something I may try in the future, but I often find that the mornings are my busy time. I could probably find a few minutes to pray, but it would feel rushed.

If you’ve been reading PPC Ian for a long time, you probably also know that I love running. Since becoming a Christian, I have started getting into really deep thought during my long runs. I have really taken advantage of my time running (typically I go running for 45 minutes to 1 hour at a time), to connect with Jesus via prayer.

If you’re a busy person and feel like prayer is not making it into your routine, I encourage you to give this a try.

Today’s Prayer: I’m Thankful

Wood Stairs 2

So, what did I pray for during today’s run? First and foremost, I started with gratitude for everything I have. Today, I am especially thankful that I was able to run at all, especially for such a long distance (about 7 miles) in such heat (hot summer heat) on such tough terrain (entire run was up a slope, and then down the same slope).

Recently, I stepped on a piece of glass that really caused some damage to my foot. I thank Jesus that my foot has healed and I was able to run. Also recently, I pushed myself too hard running and had to go to the ER due to dehydration. I’m thankful that I’m more conscious of my limits and decided to walk part of the run today. I am smarter and wiser due to these challenges.

Of course, I also took some time to reflect on my incredible family and life. I’m very lucky and grateful.

Today’s Prayer: My Wishes

The great thing about praying while running, especially if you go on long runs like myself, is you have a ton of time to truly pray. With so much going on in our world right now, I had a multitude of prayers:

  • I prayed for the African American community. Black lives truly do matter and I prayed that African Americans enjoy peace and true prosperity. An interesting side note… I grew up listening to rap music. Rap music very much shaped who I am. Rap is my encouragement, my fuel, my hope. Rap music always puts me in a great mood. I’m a fan of jazz too. If it were not for the African American community, I would not be where I am today since this amazing music is so much a part of who I am.
  • I prayed for the amazing police officers out there. Over the last decade, I’ve had the privilege to get to know some local police officers here in the Bay Area. I have so much respect for the men and women who enforce our laws and put their lives on the line for our personal safety. I pray for peace and prosperity for the police force.
  • Just like everybody else out there, I’m often facing a big question or dilemma where I just don’t have the answers. I know that Jesus has a plan and has those answers for me so I prayed today for those answers.
  • I haven’t had the opportunity to support our Church to the extent I would like in recent months. Today, I prayed that I’m able to contribute, especially via my tithe and offering and also by executing upon my finance seminar.
  • Last, I truly have a heart for those in the local community who are facing challenges. I prayed for those in the greater San Mateo County who are in need of help. I prayed for prosperity in our community.

Some Closing Thoughts

I respect all religions that promote peace, respect, and love. Whether your spirituality is Christianity or another religion, I encourage you to really embrace your spiritual side. I truly believe that spirituality is the key to many of the challenges our society faces. We are flawed and we don’t have the answers. A much higher power does, however, as long as we ask for help and are open to feedback.

I also came up with some fun ideas on today’s run. I find that these runs while praying offer me great insight and peace. Two of the fun ideas today were creating my personal bucket list and also sending some gifts to star employees who have gone above and beyond.

In closing, I encourage you to go running and embrace your spirituality.

Image of wood stairs ©PPCIan.com

Why You Need To Try Affiliate Marketing

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I just made Success Entrepreneur’s list of the Top 87 Affiliate Marketing Blogs and Bloggers That Can Make You Rich, and could not be more excited. If you have any interest in digital marketing as a career path, profession, or source of income, you need to try affiliate marketing. Affiliate marketing teaches you how to be a truly scrappy digital marketer, a marketing entrepreneur on the highest level.

Top 87 Affiliate Marketing Blogs

No Corporate Safety Net: Affiliate Marketing Will Test You

As a corporate digital marketing executive with 12+ years experience, I have managed some of Silicon Valley’s largest digital marketing budgets, most advanced teams, and most intricate systems. However, large operations can provide the marketer an incredible safety net.

By contrast, most affiliate marketers have very limited budgets (or no budget), very lean teams (just themselves during certain hours of the week and maybe a freelancer or two), and little technology (other than free tools like Google AdWords editor).

Without the corporate safety net, you are forced to become the most scrappy marketer around. You are forced to get really clever, efficient, and effective with the cards you are dealt. In some ways, it’s liberating because you can literally test anything and you’re the boss. In other ways, it’s frightening because you’ll either sink or swim, and will likely pivot your strategy a multitude of times before finding success. If you are in the digital marketing profession, consider ditching the corporate safety net in your spare time and trying your hand at affiliate marketing. It will truly transform your entire outlook on digital marketing.

My Edge: Affiliate Marketing Generates The Best Corporate Ideas

If you work at a larger enterprise, initiatives are planned well in advance. While there is some flexibility to test and get creative, you often don’t have freedom to go completely wild (and for good reason). As an affiliate, you can test anything. It just so happens that the most wacky ideas often become the most successful strategies.

I love affiliate marketing because it has driven my success as a corporate digital marketing leader. Without the multitude of hours invested as an affiliate, I wouldn’t have driven as much success on the corporate level. Affiliate marketing continues to teach me the lessons that propel my career because I bring those lessons to the corporate world. I test on my own time with my own business and only bring the best, winning strategies to corporate. Affiliate marketing is my edge in the corporate world.

Extra Income: Affiliate Marketing Puts Cash In Your Pocket

If you’ve been reading PPC Ian for a while, you probably know that I love saving money and investing for the long run. It also happens that I live in the incredibly expensive San Francisco Bay Area. I personally look at affiliate marketing as an extra source of income, a way of generating savings that can be further invested in my future.

I recently wrote a blog post called Your Margin Is Made on the Margin describing the exponential value of each additional dollar saved and invested. Even if you don’t make a lot of money from affiliate marketing, any marginal income generated will truly impact your life from a long term investing standpoint. And, you can work from the comfort of your own home while building skills that directly propel your career.

If you have not already tried your hand at affiliate marketing, I hope today’s post encourages you. I want to sincerely thank Khalid from Success Entrepreneur for featuring my blog, it means the world to me. Please check out Khalid’s list and the 86 other successful affiliates. Each one has a unique story and lesson to share.

Image in this post © SuccessEntrepreneur.org

Buffer Review: I Love Buffer

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The way I approach social media has truly transformed. I now feel like a social media giant, thanks to an amazing platform called Buffer. Today, I wanted to share my review of how I’m personally leveraging Buffer.

Ian Lopuch Buffer

Before we get started, what is Buffer? Simply put: Buffer is an at-scale social media content publishing platform. Buffer allows you to publish amazing content across many social media accounts, all in one convenient location. Here’s how I personally utilize Buffer…

1. I Leverage Buffer To Manage 25 (and Growing) Profiles In One Place

In my current role, my team is incredibly lean. At the same time, as a local, store-based business, my marketing program involves a ton of social media profiles. As a digital marketer with 12 years experience, I can’t settle for anything but the best. Unfortunately, I ran into a brick wall when attempting to manage 25 social media profiles manually.

Enter Buffer. Buffer allows me to manage my 25 profiles in one place. Whether on my laptop or my iPhone, Buffer is seamless and just plain easy. The platform saves me huge time and makes the impossible finally possible. As my portfolio of social profiles grows, I know I can count on Buffer for scale.

2. I Leverage Buffer To Optimize My Time

As a professional that likes to allocate large chunks of time to projects in a single sitting, social media has always been a challenge. Logging in/out of accounts and spending 15 minutes here and there has never been fun nor efficient.

At the core of Buffer is an amazing machine learning algorithm. I’m now able to sit down for one or two hours at a time, loading Buffer with great content. Then, I let Buffer decide when to post the content. Buffer learns over time, posting at the times that are most likely to drive business results. Further, Buffer monitors my own posting schedule and stretches out posts during times when I’m less active. Buffer has turned my social media content creation sessions into pure productivity.

3. I Leverage Buffer To Collaborate

As my team expands, I want everyone involved in social media. Thankfully, Buffer offers the ability to have multiple users. And, Buffer offers multiple access levels. I’m a manager so my posts go right into the queue. However, some of my team members are contributors so their posts must be approved by me prior go going live.

Moreover, I’m now scheduling brainstorming sessions across the company. Buffer offers an amazing reason to sit down with a colleague and write copy. We can load the copy directly into Buffer while the ideas are fresh and let Buffer decide when it’s best to push our content live. Buffer has increased my ability to collaborate across the entire company.

4. I Leverage Buffer For Amazing Social Media Graphics

Some of the best social media posts include fresh graphics. Unfortunately, such graphics can be time-consuming to create in Photoshop or very expensive when created by a designer. Thankfully, Buffer offers a platform within a platform called Pablo. Pablo makes it simple to create some of the most effective social media graphics ever, on the fly.

5. I Leverage Buffer For Analytics

At the end of the day, all of us digital marketers are responsible for results. We are data-driven marketers and must push the needle forward. We thrive on great results. Thankfully, Buffer offers advanced analytics within the core platform. Now, I can see, in real time, the results of my campaigns. And, Buffer makes it really easy to share those results with my entire company.

Beyond the platform itself, I have had such a positive experience with everyone at the Buffer team. I want to take this opportunity to sincerely thank Buffer for making me feel like a social media giant. I look forward to growing my social media program with Buffer as my partner every step of the way.

Image of PPC Ian © PPCIan.com

Business Lessons From Surfing

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Maui Sheraton Black Rock View

I just went to Maui with my wife and son for a fun family vacation. During our trip, I had the opportunity to try surfing for the first time. I’m a very strong swimmer (competitive swim team during high school) and body boarder (grew up in LA going to the beach). Interestingly enough, I had never tried my hand at surfing before. I was honestly somewhat apprehensive as a taller guy. That said, my wife, Nicole, convinced me and I’m so glad she did. Today’s post highlights some of my top takeaways (applicable to life and business) from my surfing experience.

Ian Lopuch Surfing

  1. Run towards challenge. These days, I’m blessed to have a variety of mentors in my life. The consistent theme I always hear is that you should do at least one thing that’s uncomfortable and challenging each and every day. When you embrace challenge, you truly grow. I overcame my concern of getting hurt while surfing (falling off the board and/or having a collision with other surfers) and had the time of my life.
  2. Wait for the right pitch. In surfing, it’s all about waiting for the right wave. Sometimes, that wave will come right away. Other times, you have to wait quite some time. In business and life, it’s important to exercise patience. Wait for that right pitch, that right deal, that right opportunity. Don’t rush. The best investors have the willpower to wait for the perfect opportunity. Also, they have the willpower to stick to their strategy during turbulent times if the long-term fundamentals are there.
  3. Don’t look back. If you look down at your feet while surfing, it’s likely you’ll fall off the board. At least, that’s what I personally experienced. However, when I looked forward, toward the horizon, my balance was incredible. In life and business, don’t get too caught up in the past. It’s all about the future.
  4. It’s okay to ask for help. Being my first time surfing, I took a lesson. Without my instructor’s help, I wouldn’t have successfully surfed multiple waves during my first surfing outing ever. I embraced the help, and benefitted from the knowledge of my mentor. No matter how far along you are in business, there are always areas where you can improve. Actively solicit the help of others, stay humble.
  5. Follow a routine. I learned this from my son. Life is so much easier when you have a routine. Of course, routines evolve and you have to challenge yourself too (point 1). However, an overarching routine is pure gold. When surfing, I always found success when following the steps my instructor outlined. When I lost track of the steps, I was fast to fall off the board. Routines and rhythms are the key to business.
  6. Pace yourself. Paddling a heavy long board out to sea can be exhausting, especially when you’re new to surfing. It’s all about pacing yourself and conserving energy. The same can be said for business. Stress too much in the short run and you may run out of energy when you really need it. You may burn out. Pace yourself because business and life and all about the long term.
  7. Take time in nature. As a running enthusiast, I always enjoy getting out there and experiencing the great outdoors. Surfing offered a completely different perspective, in the beautiful Maui oceans. If you’re a business leader, make a concentrated effort to get your team out of the office. There’s a beautiful and energizing world out there!

Images in this post © PPCIan.com

Investment Liquidity Applied To Online Advertising

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Liquidity

I’m completely obsessed with investing, and I also happen to be a marketer. It is no consequence that this investment enthusiast built his career in digital marketing, as these two paradigms live in parallel universes. Best practices and frameworks from investing often apply to online marketing, and vice versa. Today, I’m excited to discuss the investment concept of liquidity and how it is incredibly relevant to all marketers.

What Is Liquidity?

Drake River Bend OR

There are two major asset classes in investing, those that are liquid and those that are illiquid. Liquid assets are easy to buy and sell. Think about well-known, large cap stocks on the NYSE or Nasdaq. You can buy and sell at a moment’s notice, as long as the stock market is open. A perfect example of a liquid stock is Coca Cola (NYSE: KO).

Please note that not all stocks are as liquid as KO. If you transact in small cap companies, especially those traded "over the counter", buy and sell orders can take time to fill. Oftentimes, if you want to sell immediately, you may have to lower your acceptable price to get the order filled. These small caps, in my opinion, are still somewhat liquid, but quite a bit less than KO.

Liquidity Costs You A Premium

As you may expect, liquidity costs a premium. As of 4/12/16 intra-day, KO is trading at $46.67, with a PE ratio of 27.94 and a dividend yield of 2.99%. In other words, Coca Cola stock is expensive right now (although, honestly, not a bad starting yield in this amazing company). Even in a poor-performing stock market, KO (and most comparable blue chips) tend to trade at premium prices. As an investor, you pay for the stability that comes with a liquid asset. You pay for your right to sell at any time. In my opinion, you sometimes suffer lower returns if you only invest in liquid assets. That being said, the vast majority of my personal strategy involves liquid assets and I’m an incredible fan.

What Is Illiquidity?

Now, let’s talk about illiquidity. Illiquid assets are difficult, or sometimes impossible, to buy and sell at a moment’s notice. You may be "stuck" in such assets for years (or even in perpetuity). The classical example of an illiquid asset is real estate, especially when you own fractional interests in a property and are not the key decision-maker. It gets even more illiquid if you’re investing in a development project, one that will be constructed in the future. Investors typically do not experience major cash flow until the property is constructed, rented, and operating like a well-oiled machine.

Let’s look at an example. For those of you into FinTech companies like myself, think Realty Mogul. Realty Mogul offers the ability to own small, fractional interests in real estate investments. Many opportunities on Realty Mogul allow you to participate with $10,000 or $20,000 invested (a big chunk of change, but a low number in the context of real estate investing overall when you’re dealing with multi-million dollar assets).

You become part of the Realty Mogul LLC assigned to the property, and dozens of other investors are pooling their money in tandem with you. Such interests are not traded on an exchange, and you are often committing your money for a number of years (although Realty Mogul offers shorter term opportunities as well).

Typically such investments are considered illiquid. Sure, in theory you could find a buyer for your LLC interest and work with the Realty Mogul team to trade your interest, if you entered into a financial bind. That being said, extracting the true value of your asset would be really difficult. Illiquid assets are all about the long-term. You are really banking on huge value creation over time, and are giving up your ability to access your money for the privilege of potential higher returns (both cash flow and capital appreciation). The benefit of assets that are more illiquid in nature: Returns can be substantially higher than liquid assets.

Liquidity Applies To Capital Appreciation

An important nuance: There are two components of your investment return, capital appreciation and cash flow. Capital appreciation refers to how much value the asset itself gains (you may have heard "buy low, sell high"). Cash flow refers to cash distributions shareholders receive from their investment (often referred to as "dividends").

Illiquid real estate investments can start cash flowing relatively quickly (within a few years). Cash flows can become substantial. When speaking about liquidity and illiquidity, however, I’m mainly focused on the asset itself, the capital appreciation portion of your return. Quite frankly, I’m the type of investor that isn’t as concerned with capital appreciation as I am with cash flow so I truly appreciate the cash flow possibilities with illiquid assets (I’m just not concerned about selling). That, however, is the topic of a completely separate blog post!

The Best Portfolios Have A Balance

In my opinion, the best financial portfolios have a balance of liquid and illiquid assets. The liquid assets can be sold on a moment’s notice if you ever need the money. The liquid assets allow you to survive with a lower cash buffer (emergency fund). This means more money invested! The illiquid assets, in the long run, could boost the returns of your overall portfolio, but you’re locking up money. You’re making a commitment. Diversification, in my opinion, is the key to success.

How Does This All Apply To Online Marketing?

With a name like PPC Ian, you could probably guess that I got started in PPC (or pay per click marketing). I want to leverage the PPC channel within digital marketing as a way to illustrate liquidity and illiquidity in the world of online marketing.

Let’s think about keywords. In many categories these days, the bulk of one’s traffic comes from a concentrated set of keywords. Often referred to as your "head terms", these keywords are incredibly liquid. They provide a ton of traffic, their performance is consistent, and you can buy them and see results instantaneously. Because of their liquidity, head terms cost a premium. CPCs tend to be higher and the competitive landscape is fierce. You’re not going to make a ton of margin on the head terms, but they will provide steady, predictable returns when managed correctly.

Now, let’s think about long tail keywords. The long tail is like the Wild West. You’re buying keywords that may have never been searched before. Your average long tail keyword may only get a few clicks per year. It’s difficult to accurately price such keywords because you don’t have a ton of performance data (other than data from related keywords). That being said, the long tail is less competitive. You’ll often find bargains. The long tail is for the patient investor/marketer looking for increased returns. While the long tail involves more sweat equity, research, and strategy (just like investing in an illiquid real estate asset), the long-term upside is there in the form of higher margins.

The best digital marketing strategies, in my opinion, combine head terms with long tail keywords for a well-balanced portfolio.

A New Framework For Something You Already Know

While most people reading this blog know all about head terms and long tail keywords, I’m hoping today’s investment framework of liquidity and illiquidity is new to many. In your career, it’s not only about what you do but how you think about what you do (and how you explain it). I’m hoping today’s framework gives you a new perspective on the amazing things we do as marketers, and a new way of explaining your work in your next big presentation! Also, I’m striving to build excitement around investing in general, as it’s a personal passion of mine, one that is directly related to your career as a marketer!

Disclaimer: I’m long Coca Cola (NYSE: KO)
Disclaimer: This is not investment advice. Today’s blog post is just for entertainment purposes. Please connect with your investment advice professional before making any investment decisions.

What If You Had To Pay With Dividends?

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Golden Leaves Banner

Sitting at Starbucks (Nasdaq: SBUX) right now, I’m enjoying a hot chocolate and a chocolate croissant. My creativity and productivity is often higher at Starbucks than in a quiet zone, so I really enjoy powering through work in this amazing environment. Also, I’m a proud shareholder, and enjoy the fact that Starbucks pays a dividend (albeit a small one). This experience cost me $6.00 plus $0.50 tip, for $6.50 total. (Actually, it cost me a little less since I’m in their loyalty program and get free drinks from time-to-time, but let’s ignore that fact for the sake of simplicity.)

Manage Every Single Dollar

$6.50 may not seem like a lot at face value. And, in my opinion, it’s totally worth it for the experience I received. That being said, the best investors and business operators know how to manage every single dollar. They treat experiences like this as a treat, rather than a day-to-day routine. Every last dollar counts, and this $6.50 represents far more underlying value when viewed through the lens of dividends, one of my favorite financial concepts of all time. Today’s post is meant to encourage you and me to ask one simple question before making any purchase, "What if I had to pay for this with dividends? Would I still make the purchase?"

Dividends: The Only True Form of Passive Income

For those new to dividends, they simply represent the company paying a portion of profits back to shareholders. Many large companies, the kinds of companies I like to invest in, pay dividends quarterly.

Golden Dividend Tree

The best companies have long, consistent track records of growing their dividends, oftentimes for decades upon decades. The best companies keep their payout ratios, the percentage of earnings that are distributed back to shareholders, at reasonable levels so they have a buffer of security (and don’t risk a dividend cut when times get tough and earnings suffer). Dividends, in my opinion, represent perhaps the only true form "passive" income. You don’t have to do anything other than own stock in amazing companies (and keep good records).

SBUX: Every $100 Invested Generates $1.34 Pear Year

Let’s look at Starbucks and their dividend. Currently trading at $59.86 (as of 3/17/16 intraday), Starbucks pays shareholders a quarterly dividend of $0.20 (or $0.80 per year). That’s $0.80 / $59.86 = 1.34% dividend yield. In other words, for every $100 invested, I earn $1.34 in dividends per year.

$485.07: The Real Cost of My Hot Chocolate and Croissant

Now, let’s say I had to pay for my $6.50 snack/meal at Starbucks out of dividends. I would have to own $485.07 worth of Starbucks stock at 1.34% yield to pay for my single Starbucks experience ($485.07 * 1.34% = $6.50). Now, let’s say I went to Starbucks every single day of the year (like some people do). $6.50 * 365 = $2,372.50. In order to pay for this expense with Starbucks dividends, I’d need to own $177,052.24 worth of Starbucks stock at 1.34% yield ($177,052.24 * 1.34% = $2,372.50).

To be fair, Starbucks does increase their dividend each and every year. In the last five years, for example, Starbucks dividend has increased by 108%. So, if I wanted to invest in Starbucks stock now, hold for five years, and then enjoy my $6.50 experience daily five years from now, I’d "only" need to invest $85,121.15 right now (assuming rate of dividend increase stays similar).

How Much Would You Have To Invest To Make That Purchase?

I’m not saying to avoid Starbucks here. I’m not saying to pinch every penny. I am saying to be conscious of every single business and personal expense. Whenever you make any purchase in business and life, mentally consider if you’d still make the purchase if you had to pay for it via dividends. Think about how much money you’d have to invest and how hard you’d have to work to save that capital before making your purchase.

You Are A Business, You Have A Market Capitalization Just Like SBUX

At the end of the day, you are a business. You are no different than Starbucks. If you can eliminate expenses from your life, your personal market capitalization increases. Remember from my recent post about Your Margin Is Made On The Margin, that margin is leverage. If you increase your margin (your profit) just a little bit, your market capitalization (or value) could skyrocket. This rule applies to businesses and people. Manage your own life as if you are a business. Whether the expense is small or large, all savings matter and create leveraged value. Dividends provide an amazing lens illustrating why margin creates so much value.

Reinvest Your Savings In Dividend-Paying Stocks

I’d like to close bringing this discussion full circle. When you start saving money, what will you do with your extra cash? You may want to consider investing in dividend-paying stocks, especially those that have a consistent track record of increasing dividends (safely) year in and year out.

Use your savings to start generating even more income, in a passive fashion, which will compound and snowball over time. You’re at the tipping point when your dividends become considerable, perhaps covering a big portion of your expenses (or even all of them). Add that dividend income with your own earned margin, and your own market capitalization will skyrocket.

My winning strategy:

  1. View all expenses through the lens of dividends. Would I still make that purchase if I had to pay for it via dividends? Leverage this concept to be considerate and frugal.
  2. Reinvest my savings in dividend-paying stocks, those that are safe and increase dividends over time.
  3. Reach the inflection point where my dividend income snowballs and I’m able to fund significant life expenses via passive dividend income. Maintain my conservative financial ways and dividends could cover all expenses one day.

Disclaimer: Long SBUX. This blog post is just for entertainment. I’m not a financial advisor, and this is not investment advice.

Images of tree and golden leaves © PPCIan.com