3 Content Marketing Lessons From Big Brands »

Your story is always about the people who use the thing you sell, not about the thing itself. In other words, cast your customer as the hero, rather than you or your product. Tell that bigger story relentlessly and unwaveringly.

Last year Felix Baumgartner dove from the edge of space while 8 million people watched the live stream on YouTube. Some people called the 128,000-foot free fall–engineered and sponsored by Red Bull–a publicity stunt. But it was more than that: The effort was a content-marketing play to get people involved in the Red Bull story on a humongous scale.   Read more (from ANN HANDLEY)

10 Ways That Mobile Learning Will Revolutionize Education »

Smartphones and tablet computers are radically transforming how we access our shared knowledge sources by keeping us constantly connected to near-infinite volumes of raw data and information. We enjoy unprecedented instant access to expertise, from informal cooking lessons on YouTube to online university courses. Every day people around the globe are absorbed in exciting new forms of learning, and yet traditional schools and university systems are still struggling to leverage the many opportunities for innovation in this area.

Recently frog has been researching how learning models are evolving--and how they can be improved--via the influence of mobile technologies. We’ve found that the education industry needs new models and fresh frameworks to avoid losing touch with the radically evolving needs of its many current and potential new constituencies. Learn more

Has Google+ helped your business?

Google’s algorithm that informs how search results are ranked constantly evolves. However, one element is clearly important: how your business fares on Google+.

So in case 250 million users, 150 million of which are active, isn’t enough reason to entice you to incorporate Google+ into your company’s social media marketing, ranking higher in search results is definitely a reason to get involved. That and the fact that Google adds more than 10 million new users each month.

While Google hasn’t come out and said exactly how Google+ figures into its SEO equation, social media experts have a pretty good idea of how it all works. “Google is using the number of +1s, shares and general activity on Google+ as a ranking factor in the personal results of logged-in users,” said Mike Arnesen, senior SEO analyst at SwellPath. “This even extends out to the second degree, so friends of your friends will be affected when you +1 pages.”  Read more