Archive for January, 2008
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Leveraging the Web for Off-line Media Buys |
I get angry when I see companies buy pricey media such as print, television, radio or outdoor and they don’t take advantage to tie that media buy to the web in an effective way. What do I mean by this?
Take for example a large billboard on the side of the highway that has a message about a specific offer from a company, and the only web address displayed is the company’s main domain name eg, www.company.com I feel that this is a wasted advertising opportunity to have just your main domain name listed. Much in the same way Danielle pointed out when off-line link-bait is often not leveraged properly on-line, targeted messages, spaces, interactivity and landing pages should be created and matched on-line for off-line media buys.
I believe that every advertising buy should have a targeted message behind it and accordingly specific media creatives and goals to go along with it.
3 Comments » - Posted in Analytics, Business, Web Development by Jake Matthews
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62 Million Users=lots of data!Jan 30 2008 | Facebook, Social Networks |
In the olden days a sociologist had to find people and recruit them to fill out long arduous forms. Today there is Facebook, and these sociologists are finding out that people generally love to talk about themselves. It is fun to talk about my interests, social networks and life!
Check out the New York Times article ‘On Facebook, Scholars Link Up With Data’. I would imagine this is being used in many other ways and will be being used more frequently in the future.
No Comments » - Posted in Facebook, Social Networks by Patrick Winfield
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Harness the Power of the Internet: People Power! |
I remember when I first experienced the power of the Internet. I was in middle school hanging out with a friend. We decided to use the computer in my father’s office and got online to chat. Of course that led to starting trouble within the chat room and getting kicked out, but the feeling of connecting (even if it was very juvenile and idiotic) was lasting.
Well both myself and the internet have evolved since then (thankfully). We are in the midst of Web 2.0. I mean, look at who Time’s person of the year in 2006 was- it was me, or was it you?
Now you can sell your handmade t-shirts to someone in California, post a video so millions can see it, raise money for a certain candidate or cause or even connect with a classmate that now lives in Boston.
9 Comments » - Posted in E-commerce, Search Engines, Social Networks by Patrick Winfield
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Going Local in StumbleUponJan 23 2008 | Business, Social Networks |
I am becoming a big fan of the organic approach to StumbleUpon (SU) and the ways you can connect with members finding like minded users in demographic and interest areas.
The StumbleUpon social tool was built for discovering webpages that are recommended by your network of friends. The site allows for networking and the toolbar allows for finding and discovering new great content on the web. This is a powerful combination of Internet function and social web.
After using SU for a long while it seems that the tool will be able to grow in its use as a localized marketing tool. And though outwardly commercial sites tend not to get a great amount of traffic (rather fail miserably) – it’s all in the approach.
22 Comments » - Posted in Business, Social Networks by Jake Matthews
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The Three C’s of Strong Social News ProfilesJan 22 2008 | Social Networks |
The three C’s of a strong social news profile are content, consistency and contacts. If you follow these tips, your success on social news sites will become that much easier.
Reliable Sources. Make sure the blogs and news sources you’re submitting from are reliable and have quality information. Make sure they aren’t sending false information to the readers. And if you see that they might be trying to game social news websites don’t submit their content.
General viewpoint. Find a viewpoint in which the majority of the users will have interest in, or even care about. Take a look at the top submissions for the day. Those are basically the stories which most people have interest in. If you don’t find stories for all audiences, the users will either bury your story, or it will just be left unnoticed. Try thinking from a global standpoint. Does your town hockey championship really effect people half way across the world?
1 Comment » - Posted in Social Networks by Adam Fuhrer
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How to Select a Paid Search Management ApplicationJan 21 2008 | Coverage, Pay Per Click |
On Thursday, Christine Churchill, President of Key Relevance presented an informative webinar on How to Select a Paid Search Management Application.
This session presented by Search Marketing Now and sponsored by Marin Software was an excellent introduction in how to determine whether you need a third party search management application and if so, what considerations you need to make when selecting the application.
Ms. Churchill started by demonstrating that the projected growth of paid search is high. In fact, US paid search advertising revenues were $11.76 billion in 2007 and are projected to grow to $26.79 billion in 2011 (JPMorgan and Company reports “Nothing But Net”).
All indications point to paid search continuing to grow. New players are entering into the market and those involved are increasing their spend. Double digit growth is expected.
Yet - with all this growth, there are still many difficulties associated with managing PPC.
1 Comment » - Posted in Coverage, Pay Per Click by Shannon Bowden
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Designing for Human Beings: How May I Help You?Jan 18 2008 | Design |
Treating your users or audience like a human being rather than a faceless mouse clicker is crucial to any relationship online. Some sites excel in their ability to inspire and encourage a user to go deeper, feel comfortable with the experience they are about to have and possibly visit again or tell a friend.
Professional design has this effect, from the spacing of information so that each block of content is far enough apart from the other so that the eye can flow smoother- to the copy written with personality, making an audience feel as if they are understood or even better part of the conversation.
Give me options
Look at this page that I am directed to after I create an account with Flickr.com:
It welcomes me with an ‘OK, you’re all set…‘ and then suggests some pointers to help get me started as well as some recent photo submissions from users that I can investigate further.
2 Comments » - Posted in Design by Patrick Winfield
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14 Trends No Marketer Should Ignore |
On Tuesday, Seth Godin, author of bestselling books and agent of change presented an informative session call 14 Trends No Marketer Should Ignore. This enthusiastic and informative presentation, sponsored by SEMpdx and Corvent provided a wealth of info on New Marketing.
According to the promos on this session, Seth was going to question if our marketing is out of sync. HE wants us to make the most out of today’s new marketing technologies - without making ‘meatball sundaes’!
I must admit the title of this session was intriguing (albeit a bit disgusting - a meatball sundae - YUCK!) and I was excited to find out what Seth had to say.
Seth started out by telling us that he has discovered that there is a disconnect between the people doing the work and the people writing the checks. The people doing the work recognized that it wasn’t working. They realized that the time was being wasted in meetings etc.
21 Comments » - Posted in Business, Coverage by Shannon Bowden
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7 Types of Forum Members You Should Get to KnowJan 17 2008 | Social Networks |
Two weeks ago I posted about the ins and outs for forum marketing. When joining a community, especially if you plan to market to them, it is important to understand the dynamics behind a lot of the interactions.
Below are what I’ve noticed as the different types of prominent forum members.
The Worker Bees. These are the people that keep the forum moving. When someone posts a question they are quick to research the answer. When someone posts for advice, they give it. When someone need hugs, or encouragement they are there to offer it. These forum members will rarely cause controversy but they are the heart and soul of the community. They are the ones that keep coming back to make it lively.
12 Comments » - Posted in Social Networks by Danielle Winfield
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Paid Search For Big SitesJan 14 2008 | Coverage, Pay Per Click |
On Thursday, January 10th, Chris Sherman, Executive Editor from Search Engine Land spoke at a very valuable Search Marketing Now webcast entitled ‘Paid Search For Big Sites’. This event was sponsored by iProspect and provided pertinent information regarding paid search programs for big brands and big sites.
At the onset, Chris indicated that the goal of the presentation is to help those attending to better manage their paid search efforts.
Mr. Sherman started by stating that all big brands do have big sites - but that not all big sites are big brands. The presentation was broken into two segments - what you need to do to set up your PPC program for success and the marketing end of things related to search.
