As any veteran digital advertiser knows, reading is the key to staying current with new trends, best practices and innovative strategies. The more you read, the more informed are, and the easier it is to stay relevant. Digital advertising, strategies and tactics change daily, which is why it’s important to keep a fresh supply of expertise at the ready. In the words of Jay Bear, president of Convince & Convert (on our list of course), “In digital marketing, if you don’t learn, you die. Period.”
While you can’t be expected to read everything written on digital advertising, you can take a few minutes each day to breeze through some of the best resources in the biz. We’ve put together a list of fifteen award-winning digital advertising blogs—state-of-the art reads offering trusted advice, expert tips and smart guidance to get you (and keep you) on your toes. Here’s who made the cut.
1. Ad Week:
A must read for media buyers, Ad Week has a robust digital section covering emerging tech, brand voice, storytelling, platforms and more for a well rounded look at what’s significant in digital marketing.
Plus, the website has a broad collection of free webinars, perfect for digging a little deeper into topics like how to measure an influencers worth or how to meet the challenges of omnichannel – uniting TV and digital. Social Pro Daily, the site’s social media focused blog, is another great resource for breaking news and how-to posts to keep you up to date on the social front.
2. Advertising Age:
Recognized as the “leading global source of news, analysis and inspiration for the marketing and media community”, Advertising Age covers strategic topics for businesses of all sizes, from start-ups to well established companies.
With over 50 new posts each week, featured stories focus on current trends in advertising, hits and misses from past weeks and bold opinion pieces that make it impossible not to find digital advertising gold.
3. Adland:
Need some campaign inspiration? Since 1996, Adland has been editorializing and curating the best ads from print, radio and TV. Whether you need motivation, explanation or just a few minutes of advertising bliss, Adland delivers.
In addition to touting the largest collection of Super Bowl commercials in the world, Adland offers smart commentary on riveting ad campaigns from around the globe – like when United Kingdom’s Banks Beer turned a boarded-up building into a giant, larger than life advent calendar for the Christmas holiday.
4. Unbounce:
The Holy Grail of landing page expertise, the Unbounce team is passionate about this one topic, making it the perfect place to learn about collecting leads, boosting conversions and increasing engagement.
With guidance on how to create a landing page and why you need one, tips on seeing the value of A/B testing or the pros and cons of using dynamic text, Unbounce brings you up to speed with actionable insight and industry specific tricks of the trade.
5. Kissmetrics:
Easily one of the most fun blogs to read, the Kissmetrics blog is jam packed with metric-packed studies, easy guides and cool infographics with the latest digital marketing stats.
Read about the power of live video, learn what an SSL certificate is or the value of repurposing content as you build a solid foundation of modern advertising expertise in the digital space. Kissmetrics makes it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for with a user-friendly menu featuring top articles on every category, from paid ads to SEO to content marketing.
6. Ad Exchanger:
A great place to go for trusted industry information, Ad Exchanger offers a podcast, opinion section and news and resources, leaving no stone unturned. Looking for current events? Ad Exchanger has a news section dedicated entirely to platforms.
What is Facebook up to and how does Twitter plan on addressing privacy concerns? If you’re interested in learning how to maximize location based data in your ad campaign or how to optimize programmatic advertising, they have a section for that too.
7. Marketing Profs:
With thousands of invaluable resources, Marketing Prof does a deep dive into marketing strategy with articles, podcasts, online seminars, tutorials, guides and reports. Advertising resources include retargeting, mobile ads, pay-per-click, media buying trends, the best ad formats and even how to target millennials with billboards.
With over 600,000 members, the Marketing Prof blog is trusted by individuals and organizations looking for “real-world solutions to common and not-so-common marketing problems.”
8. Copyblogger:
One of the veterans, but still a leader, Copyblogger is an authority resource on all things content marketing. Since 2006, the team at Copyblogger has been helping marketers craft copy that works, whether it’s to advertise, educate or entertain.
If you’re looking for audience-focused content – the kind that will help you reach your business goals, Copyblogger is where to start. With original weekly posts, the insight is fresh, relevant and focused on what’s working now, not last year or last week.
9. Duct Tape Marketing:
Another great resource for gathering effective, affordable digital advertising tips, the Duct Tape Marketing blog has close to 75 million subscribers, and it’s easy to see why. Helping you cut through the clutter and noise of digital advertising today, this is one resource you definitely want to bookmark.
Not sure where to begin? Here’s a throw back piece on why you shouldn’t discount radio advertising, with smart tips on how to run your first profitable radio ad campaign.
10. Grow:
A forward-thinking blog that professes to “sit at the intersection of marketing, strategy and humanity”, Grow is one of those collections that you enjoy because it tackles every day issues, but from a new angle. Recent posts explore whether Facebook will be a permanent fixture in our lives, and the reality behind influencer marketing.
With an entire section devoted to advertising, the Grow blog offers industry expertise and thought-provoking insight with a little dash of fun on the side.
11. Social Media Examiner:
When you need tactical information on social media marketing, Social Media Examiner is second to none. Whether you’re looking to optimize your Facebook page or just want to learn a few tricks for using visual content on your website, this is the blog.
They set the bar high with an annual, downloadable social media industry report, following all the major social platforms, organic and paid activity and more.
12. PR Daily:
Ragan’s PR Daily is a complete, aggregated collection of “news, advice and opinions” – pithy articles that address advertising, marketing and PR.
In addition to breaking news, you can find tips on topics such as how to drive video production in-house, or inspire your communications team.
13. Marketing Land:
The best of both worlds, Marketing Land offers actionable advice to digital advertisers and corners the market on daily breaking news stories too. A quick glance means you can get the latest on Google AdSense or the skinny on Facebook’s new analytics features while brushing up on the value of native ad expertise.
From social to SEO, mobile, display and more, you’ll find everything you need to navigate the new age of media strategy like a pro.
14. Content Marketing Institute:
Content is a major building block of an effective digital advertising campaign, and the Content Marketing Institute is filled with practical, how-to guidance, insight and the best advice from industry experts. With memorable articles and killer research, it’s easy to further your content goals with video marketing, influencer relations and advertising ROI.
15. The Ad Contrarian:
Named one of the world’s most influential advertising and marketing blogs by Business Insider, the Ad Contrarian is a no frills, simple, but very sharp blog dedicated to everything ad related.
Authored by Bob Hoffman, best selling author and speaker, The Ad Contrarian speaks to Bob’s expertise and slightly provocative opinions.
There you have it, fifteen of the best digital advertising blogs available. These are the Internet’s best of the best – blogs that we think are informative, entertaining and above all, essential reading for digital advertising success. Online advertising best practices and techniques change constantly. New technologies, strategies and tactics are uncovered each day. Industry blogs are a fantastic way to keep pace, while taking your digital advertising expertise to new levels.
Of course, we’d like to invite you to take a look at our blog too – the DASH TWO blog. We’re fans of creative marketing and inspired by our team who works hard to write posts that balance technical know-how with innovative ideas and thought provoking concepts.
Bharti Sharma on January 22, 2019 at 3:57 pm
nice information this article is very useful for learning advertising.
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