Almost Summer Reading

I'm not sure if June qualifies as summer or not. I used to think so, but some people classify summer as July and August. Seems a little short.

However you think about it, June is definitely the month to be outside as much as possible enjoying the sunshine and warm weather. 

Are you on the beach working on your tan? Then here are this month's relaxing must-read marketing articles:

1. Unleashing the power of B2B case studies, FierceCMO
2. How to get buyers to respond (even when they’re busy), Jeff Molander
3. Kahuna report: Mobile email trending upwards, messaging improves retention, FierceCMO
4. The Inbound Marketing Effectiveness Report, Act-on
5. Email Marketing Tips: 33 Industry Experts Share Their Best Strategies and Tactics, Drip

Want to learn more about Honeycomb and how we are helping our clients address their strategic and tactical marketing priorities? Feel free to call me anytime.

Tuesday Reads: Inbound Marketing, Housing Bubble

Marketing Research Chart: What are the most valuable inbound lead sources? - Kaci Bower, MarketingSherpa

The fine folks at MarketingSherpa released a new report on inbound marketing and surprise, surprise inbound marketing if effective.

Leads obtained from inbound marketing tactics, such as SEO, social media and blogs, have increased in importance over the last 12 months, particularly when compared to leads from outbound marketing programs. Inbound marketing tactics tend to be cost-effective, and offer an efficient option for generating highly qualified leads.

Twelve Facts That May Surprise You About the Housing Bust - Nick Timiraos, WSJ

A new paper was released by the Federal Reserve that analyzed the housing bubble/crash. Their viewpoint is that the commonly accepted reasons for the bubble aren't really true. Agree?

Fact 1: Resets of adjustable-rate mortgages did not cause the foreclosure crisis.
Fact 2: No mortgage was “designed to fail.”
Fact 3: There was little innovation in mortgage markets in the 2000s.
Fact 4: Government policy toward the mortgage market did not change much from 1990 to 2005.
Fact 5: The originate-to-distribute model was not new.
Fact 6: MBS, CDOs, and other “complex financial products” had been widely used for decades.
Fact 7: Mortgage investors had lots of information.
Fact 8: Investors understood the risks.
Fact 9: Investors were optimistic about house prices.
Fact 10: Mortgage market insiders were the biggest losers.
Fact 11: Mortgage market outsiders were the biggest winners.
Fact 12: Top-rated bonds backed by mortgages did not turn out to be “toxic.” Top-rated bonds in collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) did.