I have a new toy. It's really an amazing tool that gives my writing more detail, makes me more responsive to the marketing managers and subject-matter experts I work with, and saves me a ton of time. But it's so fun to use that it feels like toy.

I applaud Google for using its enormous influence to fight back against the content farms, such as eHow and WikiAnswers, which clog search results with weak but heavily search-engine-optimized content to fuel ad sales.

Most marketing is all about communicating externally. I'm working with a client who needs internal branding. In fact, I suspect that her customers hold a deeper impression of her brand by coming into her brick-and-mortar store than do her employees, who are inured to the environment.

Found an interesting post on the MLT Creative blog titled, "Why Top-of-Mind Matters in B2B Marketing." Being memorable, through a consistent message and integrated marketing channels, certainly does help a B2B marketer be "top-of-mind" when it's time for the buyer to buy. But the post got me thinking about one of the most powerful channels: positive word-of-mouth, particularly personal endorsement.

In Part 2, I started my list of ways B2B marketers can charge our campaigns with emotional engagement. It’s a technique that Don Draper uses in every pitch (as in this clip on YouTube), and that we can learn from in today’s world of analytical marketing techniques. Here are some additional techniques for content marketers.

Please retweet: You can get more retweets now. Ask me how.

The following headline on today's SmartBrief on Social Media caught my eye--which it was carefully designed to do:

Why great content is never enough

As one who works for an outfit called "The Content Factor," my interest was piqued.

Dan Zarrella has researched the characteristics that make content retweetable, and quality, says SmartBrief, isn’t one of them.

Our friend Junta Joe blogged recently about the reasons to outsource, not in-source, your content marketing. The thrust of Joe’s post is that marketing managers need to focus their energy elsewhere. He plugs an upcoming report, but I’d like to elaborate some thoughts in the meantime.

Want to increase your email open rate, white paper download rate, or registrations at your next speaking gig? Create a catchy title by turning the problem you solve on its head.

Last week I met a B2B solopreneur who performs visual facilitation. She leads meetings and synthesizes group-think by illustrating discussions on a large mural, in real time. Julie's recent blog post is a perfect case study for B2B personas.

The Edelman Trust Barometer is a yearly study, conducted by the revered PR firm, of who is trusted and why. I had the opportunity to see a presentation of the 2010 data at the Atlanta Women’s Network luncheon this week.

One finding that surprised me is that trust in business is up dramatically since last year. I would have expected a small rise, but not a large one, following a precipitous dip in 2009. Edelman attributes this rise to business’ willingness to listen to and engage all their stakeholders—not just stockholders.