From the now-infamous Oreo Superbowl Blackout tweet and the explosion of SnapChat to the biggest Cyber Monday in history and the shift toward semantic search, 2013 saw no shortage of moments that transformed the digital marketing industry as we knew it.
There was always something new to talk about and insights to be cultivated from all the year’s numerous highlights.
As we stand on the cusp of the New Year, we present you with our 5th annual list of top digital media strategists to follow as they reveal and react to what is sure to be a thrilling 2014.
PUBLIC RELATIONS
Dan Janal, Founder of PR Leads Plus (@prleads)
A true online marketing pioneer, Dan wrote one of the first books ever written about the subject almost 20 years ago. Safe to say, Dan can teach you a thing or two about press releases.
Gary Vaynerchuk, CEO of Vayner Media (@garyvee)
His passion for storytelling and experience helping Fortune 500 companies like GE, PepsiCo and the NY Jets find their social voices and build their digital brands should be worth a follow alone. He also shares plenty of presentations through slideshare.
Jonah Peretti, Founder/CEO of Buzzfeed (@peretti)
Having co-founded The Huffington Post, BuzzFeed and Contagious Media, Jonah’s a media industry pro. Expect plenty of insights into the life of a modern media tycoon and what it takes to stick in the media industry.
Karyn Martin, Public Relations EVP of 451 Marketing (@KarynMartin)
Having helped grow our consumer PR practice by 600% in 3 years, Karyn is an instrumental asset whose leadership and vision rings clear. As a board member at large of the Publicity Club of New England, she always has her pulse on the industry’s latest and greatest.
Laura Ries, Founding Partner of Ries & Ries (@lauraries)
Having consulted with top corporations around the world from Microsoft to Ford, Disney to Frito-Lay, this marketing strategist keeps her Twitter feed stocked with not-to-be-missed branding insights.
Maria Popova, Writer, Blogger and Editor (@brainpicker)
Editor of @brainpickings, a human-powered discovery engine for interestingness, and writer for various publications including Wired UK and The New York Times, Maria boasts one of the most inclusive accounts on Twitter, covering the most interesting news in politics, culture, art and more.
Stuart Elliott, Advertising Reporter for The New York Times (@stuartenyt)
Stuart’s Twitter feed is a collection of advertising headlines interspersed with delightful pop culture commentary and insight.
Wendy Clark, Global Sparkling Brand Center SVP of Coca-Cola (@wnd)
The SVP of Coca-Cola, Wendy gives us an inside look at the underpinnings of one of the world’s most enduringly successful brands. Her deep understanding of how all different media channels work together is one to emulate.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Amy Jo Martin, Founder/CEO of Digital Royalty (@amyjomartin)
With nearly 1.1 million Twitter followers, Amy Jo travels the world to speak about the latest trends in social media, how to monetize various social platforms, and how to successfully build a personal brand by utilizing social media. Her blog.
Ekaterina Walter, Founder/CMO of BRANDERATI (@Ekaterina)
This former Intel social media strategist has become a key voice in the online influence debate and helps brands connect with advocates. Her blog.
Jay Baer, President of Convince & Convert (@jaybaer)
New York Times best-selling author and Fortune 500 consulting guru, Jay’s signature phrases such as“always be helping”, are becoming the mantra of content marketing. He also runs the world’s #1 content marketing blog, “Convince and Convert.”
John Bell, VP of Enterprise Digital Marketing for Travelers (@jbell99)
In the business of designing digital marketing and social media solutions for more than 20 years, John explores the application of both. More on his blog, “The Digital Influence Mapping Project.”
Mari Smith, Social Media Expert (@marismith)
One of the world’s leading social media strategists and widely recognized as the #1 Facebook marketing expert in the world, Mari is on a mission to educate and inspire businesses to become truly social. She regularly appears in publications such as The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Inc. and Forbes. Her blog.
Sarah Hofstetter, CEO of 360i (@Pezmeister1)
Sarah has become a thought leader in real-time marketing, leading the firm behind Oreo’s highly popular Dunk in the Dark ad this year.
Shiv Singh, Head of Global Brand and Marketing Transformation at Visa (@shivsingh)
Shiv is a well-regarded social media marketer, recently joining Visa from PepsiCo where he was behind several key digital efforts.
SEARCH MARKETING
Adam Ware, CEO of SwellPath (@whereitsworking)
Adam shares updates about digital marketing and analytics and the latest in-depth Google Analytics and marketing posts from the SwellPath blog.
Lisa Myers, Founder/CEO of Verve Search (@LisaDMyers)
Bit by the “SEO & social” bug in 2005 when tasked to set up the Search department at her former agency and hasn’t looked back since. Co-founded search blog “SEO Chicks”
Julie Joyce, Director of Link Fish Media, Inc. (@JulieJoyce)
A regular contributor to industry-standard publications like Search Engine Land and Search Engine Watch, Julie builds links and writes “loads and loads” about it. Co-founded search blog “SEO Chicks”
Marshall Simmonds, Founder of Define Media Group, Inc. (@mdsimmonds)
Responsible for building About.com into the most successful content network on the Internet and overseeing all search strategy initiatives for the New York Times Company portfolio, Marshall is an industry pro.
Matt Cutts (@mattcutts)
As the head of webspam at Google, Cutts makes important announcements about algorithm changes and how search results will be impacted. Where better to get news than straight from the horse’s mouth?
Rand Fishkin, CEO of Moz (@randfish)
Rand is an expert on all things SEO. Watch out for his awesome Whiteboard Friday presentations.
Wil Reynolds, Founder of @Seerinteractiv (@wilreynolds)
Wil promotes the importance of moving beyond shortcuts and tricks and remembering that businesses existed before search engines.
THOUGHT LEADERSHIP
Angela Ahrendts, CEO of Burberry (@AngelaAhrendts)
Quality over quantity sums up Angela’s social media presence. When she does post, you can expect some great content. Joining Apple to lead online & retail stores in 2014, Angela is definitely one to watch.
Brain Halligan, CEO of Hubspot (@BHalligan)
Having coined the term “inbound marketing,” Brian is on the forefront of the new industry standard of putting quality content first. You can expect no less from him.
John Maeda, President of Rhode Island School of Design (@johnmaeda)
John subscribes to the laws of simplicity on his quest to redesign leadership. His tweets reveal his candid thoughts and commentary on all things design, tech, business and life.
Mark Cuban, Entrepreneur (@mcuban)
Entrepreneur, owner of the Dallas Mavericks and investor on ABC’s Shark Tank, Mark tweets plenty of plugs for his companies, but also insights, articles, and commentary that reveal the man beneath the billions. See more on his blog.
Mike Myatt (@mikemyatt)
Advisor to CEOs and writer on Forbes, CEO.com and his own blog, N2Growth, Mike is the go-to guy for leadership best practices. His articles always present clear and practical takeaways for any leader to apply.
Nancy Duarte, Founding Partner at Duarte (@nancyduarte)
2013 Microsoft MVP Award winner for her mastery of PowerPoint, CEO and author, Nancy is one of the nation’s leading graphic design minds. Never underestimate the power of visual storytelling in business.
Nilofer Merchant (@nilofer)
Known as the “Jane Bond of Innovation” and a visionary by CNBC, Nilofer is one of the most respected thought leaders in business and entrepreneurship. She’s a popular name on influencer lists and well-deservedly so for her work as an author, corporate director and speaker.
Peter Aceto, CEO of ING Direct Canada (@PeterAceto)
Peter consistently tweets quality leadership articles he finds useful.
What do you think of our list? Let us know who is on your list! Tweet us and hashtag #451Strategists
