Dabrian Marketing Group

DaBrian Marketing Group Expands Agency Team

November 4, 2013 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

DaBrian Marketing Group, LLC, a full service digital agency based in Reading, PA, has recently hired five new employees in the areas of search engine optimization consulting, creative design, social media, and more.

In the latter half of 2013, DaBrian Marketing Group, LLC, a full service digital marketing agency located in Reading, PA, expanded its team to include five new members from local colleges and universities as well as the surrounding community. Tim Eroh, a graduate of Penn State’s University Park campus, was hired as a search engine optimization (SEO) apprentice, but quickly progressed to a full-time SEO consulting position. Mark Mapp, a freelance creative designer, was also initially hired part-time, but soon secured a full-time position as DaBrian Marketing Group’s creative lead.

Felicia Weitoish, a graduate of Alvernia University, has joined the DaBrian Marketing team in a part-time administrative assistant role. DaBrian Marketing also acquired two interns from Alvernia University and Penn State’s Berks campus. The former (James Doherty) has taken on the social media marketing internship role, and the latter (Kyle Lessig) has been brought on for the business analyst intern position.

Daniel Laws, Jr., principal owner of DaBrian Marketing Group, LLC, expressed his appreciation and enthusiasm for the talent offered by the Berks County area, “We’re very fortunate to have talented and driven individuals in our community. Our newest team members allow us to not only improve our client offerings, but affirm our new brand position as a full service digital agency.” Laws went on to say, “We’re very much invested in the economic development of the Reading area. We’re excited to have this opportunity to cultivate local talent and continue moving forward.”

DaBrian Marketing’s new hires shared Daniel’s sentiment about working in the burgeoning digital marketing field. Tim Eroh, DaBrian Marketing’s search engine optimization consultant, commented on his new position, “I feel really fortunate to have gained my current position with the DaBrian Marketing team. I’ve learned new skills and have access to a host of platforms and tools that allow me to show true value, both for clients and among my new colleagues.”

For more information about DaBrian Marketing Group’s expanding agency team, call 610.743.5602 or visit dabrianmarketing.com.

About DaBrian Marketing Group, LLC

Since 2008, DaBrian Marketing Group, LLC has been a digital agency focused on providing marketing solutions to businesses that want to obtain digital awareness, cultivate meaningful customer relationships, and develop innovative strategies. DMG’s services include email marketing, search engine optimization, website design, web analytics, social media marketing and more. Company headquarters are centrally located at 500 Penn Street, Suite 201, Reading, Pennsylvania 19602. For more information about DMG, visit www.dabrianmarketing.com or call 610-743-5602.

Link Building: Then and Now

October 30, 2013 by Dabrian Marketing Group

Link building has always been an important aspect of SEO and, with the latest algorithm changes, still is. However, long gone are the days of simple mass directory submissions and overly-optimized content made for search engines. Even though these tactics may garner a smidgen of link equity, it will not suffice in the world of Google’s Hummingbird algorithm change and the direction the search engine is taking.

Google and the other major search engines are shifting their ranking factors to include content that is original, relevant, readable, and shareable. Therefore, it is imperative to take the time and effort to develop great content that will improve your search rankings, industry knowledge, and reputation.

Bridging Link Building and Measurement

While going through this infographic, keep in mind that to really understand any content’s impact and the significance of your linking opportunities, you need to measure. When you see a site that might make a good linking opportunity, be sure to check its domain and page authorities as well as what that site is linking to. Again, you’re evaluating the opportunity’s overall value.

Another good measurement to employ is looking at the bounce rate of pages that your content is on. Google defines bounce rate as “the percentage of visits that go to only one page before exiting”. If your bounce rate is high, not many visitors are staying on your site. There are several factors that can affect bounce rate but content is one of them. Check out the infographic below for more details!

Have any questions about link building or content development? Contact us today or leave a comment below!

Measure to Make the Most of Your Marketing

October 23, 2013 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

The secret to better business decisions isn’t magic. It’s not rocket science either. The problems of missed opportunities, wasted budgets, and ever-elusive marketing ROI can be solved using one thing—data. It’s no doubt that both traditional and digital marketing tactics have a place in the business world, but the difficulty of justification so often rears its head. If you’ve allocated time and money to campaigns because “that’s what you’ve always done,” listen up. This post could save you major time and aggravation.

First Things First

Let’s clear something up. When it comes to marketing success, what matters most is the way your business uses its data, not the sole act of collecting it. In our experience, data in isolation is data wasted. With that being said, there’s more to this process than taking simple measurements. If your website saw 1,866 visits this month vs. 979 last month, you probably think you’re on the path toward more customers and visibility. Unfortunately, you’d very likely be wrong. With any piece of information you collect, your question should always be “Which of my goals does this data inform?” If you can’t determine one, then your measurement is either too vague or your goals poorly defined. In either case, you aren’t gathering the actionable insights you should seek.

Setting the Stage for Success

Solid goals should be the first place you start. Construct a detailed plan that incorporates specific, goal-centric measurements. Do you wish to gain a more established presence on social media platforms? Start by defining what constitutes “established” and assigning metrics that will show improvement over time. Some could include an increase in social media brand advocates, a greater volume of inbound social media conversations, more positive audience sentiment, etc. When it comes to determining progress, think about your goals using the SMART framework (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound). That way, you’ll avoid the pitfalls of collecting hollow data.

Putting Your Plan in Place

Once you’ve got some solid goals established, it’s time to collect and analyze your information. For example, if you’re working to determine whether your business’s billboard ads are worth the cost, you may place a “vanity” URL (a unique web address that redirects to your desired landing page) on the billboard. Using your chosen analytics platform, you can then filter traffic to those that entered your website using that URL to determine how well the billboard’s message resonated and how effective the medium was as a whole. Some additional components to keep in mind when analyzing include gathering benchmarks (standard measurements through which adequate comparisons can be drawn), testing campaigns (and components within campaigns, such copy or design), and honing in on audience trends (such as behaviors within your online shopping cart).

This information is far from exhaustive, but it serves to highlight a very specific point: marketing campaigns without data to back them up aren’t worth your time or your budget. Taking the time to map out SMART goals and the meaningful metrics by which you’ll determine your progress will be well worth it now and in the future.

Google Analytics API – Lesson 4: Authentication

October 16, 2013 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

Google Analytics API – Lesson 4: Authentication

If you’ve been with us through the entire series, welcome back! This time we’ll get in and get our hands dirty in some code. If you haven’t been with us for the series, start by reading the first part of the series, which discusses some background, and the second part of the series. We also have added the third part of the series which prefaces today’s lesson.

Picking Up Where We Left Off

The next step in the process is to start editing and uploading the files. Before we begin editing files, we must first get the information to place in the files. This part is mainly Google’s authentication.

Well, How Does the Authorization Work?

Google uses Auth 2.0 with a special token to authenticate a user. If you have ever allowed an app to access your Google information, this is the same process. When you use a Google app, which is what we will be developing, it will first request access by you. This will require a Google login from the account you wish to use the app with. Then, it will ask for your permission for the app to access your account. Finally, it will return an authorization token to the application. This token has an expiration. It also may expire early depending on your browser settings.

Where do I go to Authorize?

To get your information for authorization, head over to the Google API Console. When in the console and logged into the appropriate account, click the dropdown in the upper left hand corner to create a new project. Name the project any name you choose.

Once you have created a project, navigate to the services page. Ensure that you turn on the Analytics API. Once you have completed that, click the ‘API Access’. This will take you to an area where you can generate the keys you will need.

For our purposes, we’re going to be doing a web application. We are still working in PHP for this project. All of the demonstrations will be live and on the web. Input the appropriate information here.
After you have submitted the client ID settings, you’re done! You will be redirected to the API access page, where you can see all of the information.

What if it breaks!?

Luckily, you can’t exactly break this one. However, as we move forward with more coding, you will need to keep an eye on these settings. There are some errors that you may run into that could be caused by the settings you made here.
For the next installment, we will be discussing how to actually implement these items into the previously downloaded code. From there, we will move forward with uploading and testing the application!

Have more questions about starting with the Analytics API? Tell us in the comments, and stay tuned for the next part of the series!

DMG Gains Board Membership with Reading Downtown Improvement District

October 1, 2013 by Dabrian Marketing Group Leave a Comment

Reading, PA, October 01, 2013 — Daniel Laws of DaBrian Marketing Group, LLC, a full-service digital agency based in Reading, PA, has been appointed to the Reading Downtown Improvement District’s board of directors.

Guided by its mission to create a “vital, productive, and commercially active environment in downtown Reading,” the Downtown Improvement District (DID) has worked toward a safer, cleaner downtown since 1995. Daniel Laws, principal owner of DaBrian Marketing Group, LLC, had previously served on the DID marketing committee. With this new position, he is confident that he can contribute toward an even greater level of positive change within the city.

“We always strive to give back to our community whenever possible, both as a company and on an individual level,” said Laws. “With our recent appointment to the Downtown Improvement District’s board, we hope to make a more substantial difference from an economic and business standpoint.”

Representatives and fellow DID board members expressed similar enthusiasm regarding this announcement.

“As the improvement district continues to focus on the revitalization of downtown Reading and the implementation of the state-designated Keystone Community Main Street program, effective and energetic leadership is crucial,” said Charles R. Broad, Executive Director of the Reading Downtown Improvement District. “We believe Mr. Laws brings a valuable skill set to our organization. He has exhibited leadership and commitment to downtown Reading.”