by Adam T. Sutton, Senior Reporter

MarketingSherpa's consumer-marketing newsletter is capping off another great year of inspiring marketing. Marketers negotiated the slow climb out of recession and the rise of social media with innovative campaigns that kept the results pouring in.

Campaigns this year included many bold initiatives -- some of which paid off handsomely -- such as Old Spice's viral video effort which captured tremendous attention and lifted its body wash sales 107% in one month alone, according to Nielsen.

Below are three trends we identified among the campaigns and experts we featured in this year's B2C newsletter, along with 10 links to the articles to refresh your memory.

Social Marketing: More strategic thinking

Marketers from companies large and small proved in 2010 that social marketing was more than hype -- it was an effective way to engage an audience. Companies were challenged to understand not only how their Twitter feeds and Facebook profiles worked -- but how to manage them effectively to achieve business goals.

Indeed, 40% of marketers were transitioning from the "trial" to the "strategic" phase of social marketing maturity, according to the MarketingSherpa 2010 Social Media Marketing Benchmark Report. Many of those marketers are now likely in the "strategic" phase, which is characterized by a routine, formal process.

In response to this trend, MarketingSherpa is launching the Inbound Marketing newsletter in January. Articles will feature marketers' tactics and strategies in social media, content marketing, search engine optimization, landing page optimization, and analysis. (See useful links section below to sign up)

Here are three consumer-marketing articles we published featuring strategic social media marketing:

Developing a Social Media Strategy: 6 Lessons from Kodak

How 'Localizing' a Brand through Social Media and In-Person Events Created a Successful Product Launch

Reach Influencers via Social Nets and Conferences: 5 Steps


Social Marketing: Improving tactics

Marketers also had another year to test their social marketing tactics in 2010. We interviewed several marketers who had uncovered ways to improve results with social features on their websites and on third-party social networks.

Twitter Bingo Contest Helps Lift Sales 150%: 6 Steps

Improve Your Facebook Profile to Increase Consumer Interaction: 4 Tactics

Social Media Giveaway Campaign Lifts Sales 15%: 6 Steps


Mobile Marketing: Effective experiments in a new channel

In January 2010, it felt like it could have been the year when mobile marketing rose to prominence. By October, smartphones represented one in four mobile subscribers, compared to just one in 10 two years prior, according to comScore. But looking back on the year, it is clear that mobile marketing is still emerging.

Marketers have not adopted mobile strategies in large numbers. However, many have started experimenting with SMS, mobile websites and mobile apps -- similar to how marketers experimented with social marketing in 2009.

Here are four 2010 articles featuring marketers who challenged the unknown in this emerging channel:

Page Tests Cut Mobile Bounces 22%: 3 Steps to Improve Experience for Mobile Visitors

Integrated SMS, Social and Email Promo Capitalizes on Weather Event: 5 Steps

Mobile Website Advice from Taco Bell: 5 Considerations to Reach More Mobile Devices

Direct Mail and SMS Combo Lifts Rewards Program Membership 5%: 5 Steps


Useful links related to this article

Sign Up: Inbound Marketing newsletter

Powerful Viral Video from Old Spice

Local Social Media Marketing: How your peers use Twitter, Facebook and blogs

U.S. Smartphone vs. Non-Smartphone Subscriber Share

2010 Social Media Marketing Benchmark Handbook