Oracle’s Maxymiser Named a Leader in Forrester Wave for Online Testing

Despite the pervasiveness of data-driven technologies, many marketers still struggle to deliver individualized experiences when they really count. According to a July 2015 commissioned study by Forrester Consulting, only 2% of surveyed organizations have the necessary capabilities to identify, deliver on and measure micro-moments (Balancing Privacy And Personalization: The Challenge Of Marketing For Micro-Moments, September 2015 Forbes Article) -- a point in time when customers show their affinity or desire for specific products or services. On a website or mobile application, this inability to deliver the right experience during the proverbial “moment of truth” can be costly. At best, marketers lose a revenue opportunity. At worst, they send one to your competitor.

This is why the Oracle Marketing Cloud’s most recent acquisition came in the form of Maxymiser, a marketing optimization platform focused on testing, insights and personalization on web and mobile experiences. Online testing platforms allow marketers to do the work of data scientists, but with a set of tools that make the process of personalization approachable and achievable. Today, it’s my pleasure to share that Oracle’s Maxymiser was cited by Forrester Research as a leader in The Forrester Wave™: Online Testing Platforms, Q3 2015. Click here to download a copy of the Forrester report at Maxymiser.com.

As Forrester notes in the report: “Companies must respond and keep up with these changing digital behaviors, needs, and wants by becoming customer-obsessed and maximizing the level of intelligent digital interaction,” the report’s authors write. “To support continuous optimization, online testing practices need to scale across the enterprise, supporting use cases and processes that coordinate multiple stakeholders, multiple types of digital touchpoints, complex testing, and high test volumes.”

As Forrester writes:

"[Maxymiser’s] key differentiators are support for campaign planning and control, segment development and execution, professional services, and executive vision. The platform will appeal to marketing and digital experience teams wanting a close vendor relationship while being able to manage most of their optimization program via self-service."

Throughout its history, Maxymiser has had a mission of helping companies do more sophisticated, data-driven marketing, but with a platform that’s usable and helps marketers in their daily jobs.

But Maxymiser ultimately measures its success by that of its customers, and the effects online testing can have is massive. Take Alaska Airlines as an example. Its web marketing team wanted to improve its ability to sell rental reservations alongside its core flight bookings. Moving beyond basic A/B testing to the sophistication of multi-variate testing, they saw a 12% increase in upsells of rentals and a 70% completion of purchase for experiences that were optimized by Maxymiser. Further, personalization and upsell boosted Harry and David’s online revenues by 22% while Flybe reported that for every £1 spent with Oracle’s Maxymiser, £30 in revenue uplift is generated.

“An Increased Focus On Testing”

Earlier this year, Oracle Marketing Cloud, in partnership with The CMO Club released the CMO Solution Guide to Leveraging New Technology and Marketing Platforms. The Guide includes five solutions to help CMOs face the challenge of providing a seamless positive customer experience across all touch points.

One of the five solutions identified deals specifically with testing and the need for it as Mayur Gupta, Global Head, Marketing Technology & Innovation, Kimberly-Clark says “The key for brands today is not only adopt an agile mindset and culture but to also have an increased focus on testing.”

To learn more, download the CMO Solution Guide to Leveraging New Technology and Marketing Platforms.

What Is an Off Grid System?

An Off Grid System refers to a house or an independent building supply line by conventional electricity generation needs its own power generators. Off-grid systems are particularly common among those who live in remote areas where grid connection is expensive. Today also used in suburban homes that have the possibility to withdraw from the local power distribution line.

There are a few factors that motivate people to have an off-grid system. One important reason is that end up saving money over a period of time not having to pay the local electricity supplier. Another reason is the speed at which the carbon footprint is reduced. Having your own system of electricity to power all its electrical needs mean that you end up saving tons of greenhouse gases that have been generated, if you were to use the local power supply.

In most cases, households use solar panels and wind energy systems for off-grid house. All these systems can not be done in a few days and sometimes takes months to complete. Solar panels and wind turbines can be purchased at reasonable prices. Another significant trend among those who go outside the network is building its own solar panels and wind turbines. We could go to DIY their generators if they have certain buildings or electrical basic skills.

Batteries play an important role in a system outside the network, as they are used as primary storage device. The use of deep cycle batteries is considered the best, and reaching deeper levels of storage is a feature that can be useful when electricity is used at night. Choosing the right power converter is so important, as they are the main unit that converts electricity to its usable form. They must also have the ability to work with solar panels or wind turbines additional you can decide to connect with time.

With other renewable energy systems such as solar systems, hot water and land batteries they will also benefit greatly from a system outside the network, as it could be used to power water heating and exterior lighting consuming a good amount of power over his own party.

The energy efficiency of the whole house is very important when opting for a non-network system. This would mean using energy efficient electrical equipment, keep your home free of leaks, with good insulation, the installation of a management system of gray water and energy after several other economic activities on a daily basis. Of course, going outside the network as a family should be a combined effort. Each individual may have to play their own role in the conservation of electricity and must have the same responsibility to do so.

Opt for off-grid system means that you will no longer rely on conventional electricity and have a substantial positive impact on the environment hand the electricity consumed will be one hundred percent green.

Factors To Consider When Selecting Solar Installers

Solar panels are a way of reducing their energy bills and improve the environment. But before looking for someone to come and install a system for your home, you should keep a few things in mind. We must prepare for your interview with solar installers considering the following.

You need to know how many installers years have been in operation. This is an indicator of the number of installations of solar panels made. You should find out if they specialize in on-grid or off-grid solar systems. They must also indicate whether they serve the commercial and residential sector.

You should also look at their certification and qualification. There are manufacturers of solar panels that form the staff on how to install their systems. This ensures that all panels are installed as do their guidelines. The Board of Certified Energy North America is also supposed to deliver certified solar installers. People who have a NABCEP certification level of the installation and maintenance of high quality solar panels.

Solar installers with experience should be able to advise you on the type of system you need for your home. Energy needs of your household will assess and give an honest assessment of the type and capacity of the solar panel you need. Unscrupulous operators can recommend the most expensive option, even if your needs are less. If you can afford it, you can get one that has a higher capacity than it needs energy and can sell surplus energy to the main network provider. This will ensure that the unit pays for itself in the long run.

Installers must have an experienced team that understands the type of coverage you have and make adjustments to make sure your unit is stable. They must also have experienced electricians connect the solar unit to power your home effectively.

Talk to others who have installed solar units where solar installers that use. They will help narrow the list of installers to visit. You can also go online and check customer reviews before deciding who to hire. Have a portfolio of facilities that have made and ask them to allow you to visit some of its physical facilities.

Cleveland Rocks! TopRank Marketing Kicks off Content Marketing World – #CMWorld

It’s fitting that the kickoff for Content Marketing World is at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. This year’s speakers and workshop leaders are rock stars of the industry. Each one has a solid back catalog of hits; together, they’re a content marketing supergroup.

So for those about to rock, we salute you. Team TopRank (Alexis, Ashley, and Josh) will be bringing you highlights, insights, and takeaways throughout the event. Keep an eye on the blog if you can’t make it to the big show, and if you’re here, please seek us out.

Here are just a few of the presentations we’re excited to attend over the next few days:

15 Essential Tools to Optimize Your Content Marketing

Content marketing is creative work, but even the most creative content can be more effective with the right technology to back it up.

RazorSocial Founder Ian Cleary combines a tech-head’s knowledge of marketing tools with a genuine passion for quality content. He promises tools and tips aplenty for his session, as well as action items to take home and put to work.

Ian’s presentation looks highly technical, supremely practical, and imminently actionable. He promises to deliver:

• Tools we can use to improve our content marketing results
• Technical tips we can implement to improve performance
• More efficient and effective social media activity

From Content to Conversion: Persona-Driven Lead Nurturing

Developing personas is a vital part of understanding your audience, so that you can create content that speaks to their specific needs. What role do personas play after your campaign has begun?

Marketing Interactions, Inc. CEO Ardath Albee is a persona pioneer; she has years of experience and has experienced incredible success using personas across the marketing funnel. Her presentation focuses on creating context, increasing relevance, and forming a deeper connection with potential buyers through personas.

Ardath’s presentation will cover:

• How to create a continuum for lead nurturing with the insights from your personas
• How personas help you to understand and address the context of your buyers
• How to speed up the sales cycle and accelerate conversions with outside-the-inbox nurturing

Helping Your B2B Sales Team Thrive in the Age of Content Marketing

In today’s world of the empowered prospects, content marketing is at the frontlines of prospects and customers. This shift in power, has changed the role of the sales team. While their role has evolved, there is an opportunity for teams to continue to amplify the impact of content marketing on sales team success.

Jeff Herrmann, Partner and Chief Revenue Officer at Fathom, is a champion of B2B sales and marketing alignment. He focuses on leveraging content, data and technology in order to help companies and individuals accelerate growth.

His presentation will deliver:

• Methods to close the loop between your content marketing program and sales success
• Tips to help sales colleagues leverage valuable data and insights from their marketing efforts
• Help sales team build trust by taking an “audience first” approach

Social SEO: Hacking the New Algorithms

Measuring the impact of social within your content marketing strategy can be tricky. Although traditional digital marketing KPIs and algorithms are at play, the setting and methodology is unique.

Marketing manager at Lenovo, Erin Monday, plans to deliver a session that will reflect on and apply “traditional” SEO algorithms to social in order to maximize content marketing success.

Key takeaways include:

• Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. all have algorithms, just like the search engines
• Learn to play the algorithms organically
• Find tips and tricks for use social algorithms to your advantage with organic content   

Advanced SEO Practices That Will Blow Your Mind

SEO is an essential piece of any effective digital marketing strategy. When used correctly, it can help attract your best customers to your content. However, if you already have the SEO basics down, this session will take a deep dive into some powerful tactics that will give your search traffic the boost it needs.

Rand Fishkin, otherwise known as the Wizard of Moz promises attendees an SEO journey that takes a look at some of the lesser-known and use-case-specific tactics.

In his session, the Wizard will teach you advanced ways to:

• Leverage competitive and market analyses to improve page performance
• Find tricks for combining and separating URLs to draw in more search traffic
• Take advantage of search results with answer boxes

Practical Tips, Tools & Templates to Build Your Content Marketing Strategy

In today’s world, everyone has the ability to become a content publisher. That means that the battle for customers has become increasingly fierce. Unfortunately, all of that great content often falls flat if marketers cannot measure its success.

Content marketing mastermind and all around great guy Michael Brenner of NewsCred will help break down a seemingly complex idea into some actionable ways to build your own content marketing strategy.

In this session you will learn how to:

• Conduct a content audit
• Build a customer journey map
• Quickly generate content ideas
• Find a way to answer your customers top questions

TopRank Marketing Will Be Rocking Content Marketing World 2015

There are so many great speakers and topics at Content Marketing World that it was hard to choose just a few to feature.

TopRank Marketing and Content Marketing Institute also combined forces to bring you a content marketing triple feature in the form of three eBooks filled with advice from Content Marketing World speakers that cover everything from content strategy to measurement.

View each of them on SlideShare by clicking the links below:

The Big Picture of Content Marketing Strategy

Making Content Marketing the Star of Your Marketing

Measuring Your Content Marketing Box Office Success

Keep your eye here on Online Marketing Blog for coverage of the presentations as well as Instagram, Flickr, Pinterest and Twitter @TopRank.

Image via Shutterstock

---

Gain a competitive advantage by subscribing to the
TopRank® Online Marketing Newsletter.

© Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®, 2015. | Cleveland Rocks! TopRank Marketing Kicks off Content Marketing World – #CMWorld | http://www.toprankblog.com

The post Cleveland Rocks! TopRank Marketing Kicks off Content Marketing World – #CMWorld appeared first on Online Marketing Blog - TopRank®.

To Survive Today, CMOs Must Remain Relentless

I am extremely fortunate in my career to have met with and established relationships with some very smart, savvy extremely passionate C-Level people. And at or near the top of that list is former Kodak CMO, Jeffrey Hayzlett. His latest book, entitled Think Big, Act Bigger: The Rewards of Being Relentless is out right now.

It is the last word in the title which brings me to this post today: relentless.

When something or in this case, someone is relentless it means they never give up; they never rest on any laurels; they are never satisfied and so on.

Establish a System for Continuous Improvement

Earlier this year, in partnership with The CMO Club, Oracle Marketing Cloud released The CMO Solution Guide to Leveraging New Technology and Marketing Platforms. In the Guide, which I co-authored, we identified 5 specific solutions to help CMOs meet the challenge of delivering a seamless positive customer experience across all touch points.

And the last of the 5 solutions identified was: Establish a System for Continuous Improvement

Now, I don't know if the word "continuous" is a synonym of "relentless" in the traditional sense, but in this context it absolutely fits like a glove for a CMO must never rest; must never rest on any laurels and must never stop exploring their options - in this case as it relates to technologies and platforms.

However, it' not about being relentless for no reason; with no justification. As written in the Guide: "The CMO of today must—in addition to being agile—be open to taking chances and remain risk receptive. However, this stance is not about taking risks just for the sake of taking them, it’s about taking calculated risks to realize innovation and achieve success."

And one of the ways to achieve success while mitigating risk is by testing.

According to Mayur Gupta, Global Head of Marketing Technology & Innovation for Kimberly-Clark, “The key for brands today is not only adopt an agile mindset and culture but to also have an increased focus on testing."

Julie Lyle, former CMO of hhgregg and Prudential Corporation Asia, adds “Technology enables us to monitor how customers respond to the experience we offer at each touch point. We can test enhancements, track impact (from the customer’s POV), and leverage the insights we garner for continuous improvement.”

The Other Four

To learn all about the other solutions identified, download The CMO Solution Guide to Leveraging New Technology and Marketing Platforms today.

Various Advantages of Going Solar

The sun is undoubtedly the richest source of energy available to our planet. He was feeding our planet since the dawn of time. However, with the recent development of solar technology, it became possible for us to use solar energy to produce electricity. Previously, it was available only for scientific laboratories and commercial organizations, but with the falling costs of solar systems, has become a reality for domestic users as well.

Go Green with Solar Power

You may already be aware that most sources of power generation with natural resources such as fossil fuels, gas, nuclear fuel etc. These natural resources are available in limited quantities on earth. You can contribute to the conservation of scarce natural resources if they are based on solar energy. Contrary to conventional power generation resources, solar energy does not pollute the environment because it has almost no waste.

Save and Earn money with solar energy

Growing need for energy has also been the source of constant escalating electricity prices. However, you can remain indifferent to these regular increases in the cost of electricity using solar energy. After installing solar systems once, you can generate your own solar power at almost no cost. This means that you continue to save on their electricity bills by using solar energy.

Also, if you became fully independent in their own power, you may provide additional energy to the grid. In several cities in the United States, you can earn money directly if power is supplied to the network. It certainly will be happy to see your electric meter spins backwards when you are feeding the grid.

Earn incentives and tax credits

Most state governments in the country to promote and help people who want to use solar energy. This allows you to make correct tax credits when you decide to buy solar systems to be installed in their facilities. In fact, these tax credits reduce the total cost of solar systems which makes them much more affordable for you.

In many states, you can also earn incentives to install solar systems for you. You should apply to claim these incentives. The incentive amount you get depends on the total power of solar installations and the effects used to. For example, between a home user, a non-profit organization and a commercial organization, the three would be eligible for different amounts of incentives despite the help of solar energy systems with the same power.