Top Story

• Marketers fled to digital to escape election, superstorm
  The flood of negative ads during the 2012 election cycle, along with the impact of Hurricane Sandy, led many brands to hunker down and cut back on TV advertising, MarketShare executive Pat LaPointe says. A better strategy, however, was to switch some of the unused TV budget to targeted digital campaigns, LaPointe says. "This allowed them to continue to engage those people who were still in consumption mode vs. those who were largely in survival mode," he explains. eMarketer (12/28)     

Trendwatch

• 2012 was the year native advertising took off
  This is the year that native advertising and content marketing took flight, writes Shane Snow. Brands such as Coca-Cola, Facebook and Red Bull ran creative content-based campaigns that showed ways to move beyond stale social media strategies, and "stood out as models for an industry that's largely on board with content marketing, but still spreading its wings," Snow writes. Advertising Age (tiered subscription model) (12/27)     

Getting the Word Out

• SMS is a powerful marketing tool, says Coke strategist
  Newfangled mobile marketing solutions are useful, but old-school SMS messages remain one of mobile marketers' most powerful tools, says Coca-Cola brand strategist Kim Siler. "It's a ubiquitous format you can use to reach 98% of consumers," she explains. "It's much more personal and much more integrated into what a consumer is already doing in their daily lives." MediaPost Communications/Marketing Daily (12/26)     

Developer Update

• Don't be too quick to write off HTML5
  HTML5 has gotten a bashing lately from native-app proponents, but a Business Insider report suggests the platform could still emerge as the winner of the native-HTML5 wars. Still, victory won't come quickly. "HTML5 apps will get better, but not as fast as some HTML5 advocates think," this article argues. Business Insider (12/26)     

Design Corner

• The year's top resources for Web designers
  The past year saw the launch of some useful applications and online tools for Web designers, and Cameron Chapman has put together a list of more than 100 of the best resources that launched in 2012. WebDesignerDepot.com (12/28)     

Small Businesses & Entrepreneurs

• SEO firms set their sights on SMBs
  SEOMoz's recent acquisition of GetListed suggests that SEO-tool providers are starting to set their sights on small businesses, writes Andrew Shotland. That could prove tough, since SMB customers are notoriously hard to acquire and keep happy. "[A] lot of money is going to be burned learning the hard lessons of Local," Shotland predicts. Search Engine Land (12/26)     

Association News

• Web Marketing Association Facebook page is a good resource
  Another great way to keep in touch with the WMA is to like our Facebook page. This is a great way to get notified of new competition call for entries and get hints and tips on how to increase your chances of winning an award.     

Featured Content

On Leadership

Top five news stories from SmartBrief on Leadership this week. Want more leadership news?

• 5 things workers hate about their bosses (Harvard Business Review online)

• Women who rose to the top in 2012 (CNNMoney/Fortune)

• End-of-year feedback? You're doing it wrong (Fast Company online)

• Communication skills trump appearance, top leaders say (SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Leadership)

• Fact-checking the Nativity story (The Week)

SmartQuote

If all misfortunes were laid in one common heap whence everyone must take an equal portion, most people would be contented to take their own and depart." --Socrates, Greek philosopher