We’re still living on cloud 9 from Friday’s Yearly Carnage. And guess what!? We’re already planning the next one (which might be sooner than you’d think).

But we’re thinking about taking this show on the road! So we wanna hear from you—where should we hold the next Carnage marketing conference?

As marketers, we have a love/hate relationship with link building. It’s really dang important, but it’s also really difficult. And time-consuming. And frustrating. It is truly important, though.

But it’s not all bad! You can make it a little easier on yourself. Get out your paper and pencil ’cause we’re going back to school today to teach you about Sustainable Link Building.

Let’s start by talking about some common problems with link building:

1. It’s risky. You might spend a ton of time on a piece of content and get no links to it.
2. There’s a difference between great content and great content that gets links.
3. Traditional link-building campaigns are just that—campaigns. They have a start and end date. They’re not built to get links over time.

So what can you do? Rather than risky “link building campaigns” try sustainable link building. Here’s a little more on that:

1. Try things other than just long-form blog content. That type of content is traditionally the riskiest and produces the fewest number of links.
2. Don’t tie content to specific dates or events. If you want to create a piece around a specific event, like Earth Day, don’t mention the specific date. It gives it a limited runtime when you do that.
3. Look at datasets that give you multiple angles for outreach. Data reports and data visualizations are great for driving links. Dig into demographic data, location data, etc. to see what unique reports you can make.
4. When you create link-worthy content, purposely make it something that needs to be updated consistently. Example: you create an ultimate guide to SEO. That’s something that needs to be updated as often as Google updates itself.
5. Learn what content formats work for you. Create a chart of content types based on difficulty to create and if they get links for you. The type of content that works for one company, might not work well for another. Pro-tip: interactive content is getting a ton of links for all industries right now.

That’s the gist of it. If you need more, dive head first into this post from Moz.

Big news alert! If ya wanna continue getting access to the Daily Carnage free of charge, be one of the first 500 fans who complete our Carnage2018 contest!

HA, kidding! The DC will always be free of charge. We’re just trying to prove a point about contest marketing. (But, we would actually really appreciate it if you took our one question survey above so we can start planning the next Carnage conference!)

For contest marketing to work well, evoking emotion is vital. When reading that first line you either became seriously worried that you were going to have to start paying for the DC or excited ’cause you just entered a race and you are a winner. Whatever you were feeling, you can’t deny the sense of urgency.

It doesn’t matter what industry you’re in, this strategy can light your brand on fire! The pros at MarketingProfs recommend picking a quality prize but make sure its relevant to your brand. And, offer a variety of prizes at different levels. When there’s a higher chance of winning, more fans will happily get involved.

At the end of the day, give everyone a participation trophy (in the form of a discount or coupon code) that way participants are still inclined to make a purchase.

Here are four reasons your marketing strategy should include contests:

1. Build your fan base. A basic sweepstake plus a low barrier to entry is one effective option for brands wanting to dip their toes in social media contests.

2. Engage your audience. A user-generated content (UGC) promotion—such as a photo or video contest—taps into the human drive to compete and provides an opportunity for everyone to experience their 15 minutes of fame. And more importantly, they become further invested in your brand.

3. Provide rich data. The lure of a prize often gives all needed motivation to submit their contact information—and maybe more. If you’re “listening” you can also learn from the interactions that take place around your contest.

4. Empower customers to do your marketing for you. Give your audience a reason to spread the word and amplify your marketing message using contests, sweepstakes, or other online promotions.

If you wanna learn more, well, you know what to do…

Ever wonder why ghosts always wear white sheets? For real, like where’s the creativity? You’d think every now and then a ghost would push the limits of ghoulish fashion and try a plaid sheet. Or perhaps try wearing a rug instead of a sheet.

These are questions we ponder all the time here at the Daily Carnage. Apparently, the folks over at Ikea were debating the same thing.

Their latest campaign reimagines what would happen if ghosts decided to wear colors. The ad starts by featuring a bunch of white-sheeted ghosts having a house party. It’s a pretty boring party until a group of color-sheeted ghosts show up. That’s when the party really gets going.

Just proving what we suspected all along: ghosts in colorful sheets just have more fun.