5 Marketing Influencers Every Brand Should Follow in 2016

Over the past decade, digital media has transformed marketing in unimaginable ways. A small group of digital marketing experts has led the industry. Digital marketing leaders can help businesses of all sizes expand their brand reach and exponentially increase their sales.

Here are some renowned marketing influencers that you should follow.

1. Neil Patel

Neil Patel is possibly the most influential digital marketing expert alive. Patel is a lifelong entrepreneur that has been active in the digital marketing industry since his early 20s. He has founded a number of famous marketing analytics and automation brands, including KissMetrics and CrazyEgg.

Many digital marketing professionals inappropriately refer to themselves as “gurus,” but Patel has earned his reputation as one. He has driven over one billion targeted leads to his clients’ websites and helped them multiply their revenue.

Patel has worked closely with a number of famous brands, including Gawker media. He helped Gawker increase their website traffic by 5 million visitors in only four months.

2. Sujan Patel

Sujan Patel is the cousin of Neil Patel. He is another highly effective digital marketing leader that has worked closely with some of the largest brands in the world. He is also a passionate blogger that shares his wisdom on entrepreneur magazine, Forbes, the Wall Street Journal and other distinguished publications.

Sujan always had a knack for closing sales and identifying entrepreneurial opportunities. His mother vividly recalls the day he bought a bag of popcorn for less than a dollar and sold it for $20.

After becoming a distinguished digital marketing expert, Patel has mentored other entrepreneurs. Neil Patel has spoken highly of his cousin’s work ethic and marketing talents. “If there’s one thing I know about Sujan, it’s that he’s always going to push himself to be faster, better & stronger than he was yesterday, both professionally and personally,” Neil Patel states.

3. Kim Garst

Kim Garst is a best-selling author and social media prodigy. She has over 20 years of experience as a digital marketer and entrepreneur and has dedicated the past five years of her career to social selling.

Kim is the author of a number of popular social media books, such as:

• Will the Real You Please Stand Up: Show Up, Be Authentic, and Prosper in Social Media
• The Quick and Easy Guide to Branding Your Business and Creating Massive Sales with Pinterest
• Secrets of the Online Marketing Superstars

She is also the founder of Social Boom, which has become one of the ten most respected social media blogs in the world.

4. Ryan Deiss

Ryan Deiss founded digital marketer in 2009.  In less than two years, Deiss and his team spent nearly $20 million on A/B testing. Armed with their unparalleled knowledge, they were able to create some of the best-optimized marketing campaigns ever seen.

Over the past seven years, Deiss has served nearly 2,000 brands from over 60 countries. His company has shown they can deliver spectacular results for their clients, so their services are in high demand.

5. Peggy FitzPatrick

Peggy FitzPatrick is a passionate brand ambassador, social media marketer, keynote speaker and author. She is the head of content marketing for guy Kawasaki and has worked with a number of global brands, including:

• Virgin
• Google
• Motorola
• McDonald’s

She co-authored the art of social media: power tips for power users with Guy Kawasaki.

Mike Allton, Chief Marketing Officer for SiteSell, has praised FitzPatrick for her ability to communicate social media clearly and effectively.

“In addition to avidly reading all of Peg’s blog posts and articles, I’ve had the extreme pleasure of appearing with Peg on HOAs and connecting with her on multiple social networks,” he writes. “Not only is Peg an expert in social media marketing, she’s an absolute joy to work with and learn from! Businesses and social media managers would do well to follow her on one or more platforms and soak up all of the knowledge she’s sharing. And if you have an opportunity to bring her on your team, jump at the chance!”

Featured photo credit: Pexels via pexels.com

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