Let's face it, any business that is serious about getting sales or leads from their website will spend a lot of time and money in raising it's profile. They'll be making sure that the website is Search Engine Friendly and that they are making the best use of the browser 'real estate'. They will be getting links to the site by the bucket load and making sure that there 'voice' is heard in the Social Media arena too.
All this adds up to one hell of a lot of effort (and money) and done properly will result in traffic to a site. But what happens then, do users like what they see, can they find what you want them to find? These are very important questions and they need to be answered not by you (or your web site's designers) but by your audience, your potential customers...
Of course there is a lot of research and questions that you can answer for yourself too, three of the greatest books on this subject being:-
'The Big Red Fez' by Seth Godin - ISBN 0-7432-2086-2
'Prioritizing Web Usability' by Jakob Neilson & Hoa Loranger - ISBN 0-321-35031-6
and
'Don't Make Me Think' by Steve Krugg - ISBN 0-321-34475-8
Reading any of these will really help you understand the area of web site usability in greater depth, but you will still be missing one vital component, that of what real visitors think of your site, not friends or business colleagues, but people who have never heard of you and have never seen your site before...
This is where independant user testing comes in and it can be a real eye opener, telling you that even though you thought that it was perfectly simply to find can openers on your site, that in reality for your potential customers it was dam hard.
Such insights come up far more often than you would have thought...
There are many companies that offer website usability testing, but one of the best I have come across is 'WhatUsersDo.com'. Their costs are good too, starting at just £25!! If you are interested you can also follow them on Twitter , it could be some time and money VERY well spent.
So if you have spend a lot of time and money getting traffic to your site, be sure to check that it is usable and that people can do 'what you want them to do' - More on that bit another day...
Friday, 26 February 2010
Thursday, 25 February 2010
Online Reviews - Just how important are they?
As per my other posts I really thought that the online review (as long as it could be found easily) would be a tremendously powerful tool, a tool that could make or break any business, whether this was a online shop, like my 'friends' at Crazycameras or a restaurant or other offline trader.
Why did I think this, well, a part of the 'hype' around Social Media is the argument that people will seek advice and views from their friends and associates before making a buying decision. This lead me to think that that meant that people were already searching for information on where not to buy etc.
My thoughts on this were (I thought) confirmed by the apparent 'panic' of some brand managers at the thought that peoples tweets might appear by their natural listings in Google, the fear being that if they were not complimentary that customers might take their business elsewhere.
My conclusion was that people are getting wise to the 'bad businesses' on the web and that the review was something that every business needed. But then I had an experience that proves that even the most savy online buyer can get it wrong, even when there are reviews and data out there warning him. That buyer was of course me, I did not do what I always (I thought) did and did not check out the web before ordering from crazycameras. Why did I do this insane act? well looking back on it there are many reasons, and I am sure that many have (and will) make the same mistake.
But why is this, why did I do what I did? I turned to the learned community at Linkedin and asked the question "How important are Consumer Reviews on the Internet if you are running (or marketing) an online store?" to try to find out more.
The results were to some degree as I predicted, most saying that Reviews were indeed a great and perhaps vital weapon at getting people to decide on buying from your brand rather than another. But there was one great post by a chap called Lyndsy Simon of FedEx Frieght that really was an eye opener to me (even though it is in reality just common sense).
Lyndsy's words were 'Speaking from personal experience, I only look for customer reviews if the site I'm looking at feels "shady" - in other words, they have failed to gain my trust, but I want their product. Practically speaking, if a site seems well put together and the prices are not the lowest in the arena, I'm not going to bother looking up reviews.'
This said it all to me, and now I look back on it was the reason I made the mistake. The crazycameras site looked good, their T&C's were fine and the price (perhaps the most important part) was great, they even offered free Post and Packing (not surprising in hindsight as they don't seem to send anything out..).
So I was 'sucked in' and am now paying (along with many others) the price.
What does all this go to show, well three things really:-
1. Reviews may well not have any effect at all IF the site / price / product mix is spot on
2. Good Reviews are being used by some and can only do good (but remember that not everybody will believe that you / the site owner did not write them)
3. Bad Reviews WILL in the most cases stop people buying if there are enough of them, and people take the time to look (which I seriously believe will be the case in most instances soon, as users become more 'internet savy')
So for the time being at least those 'bad eggs' on the Net will be able to survive, simply because not every one takes the time they should before buying, but saying that their days must be numbered...
More tomorrow
Why did I think this, well, a part of the 'hype' around Social Media is the argument that people will seek advice and views from their friends and associates before making a buying decision. This lead me to think that that meant that people were already searching for information on where not to buy etc.
My thoughts on this were (I thought) confirmed by the apparent 'panic' of some brand managers at the thought that peoples tweets might appear by their natural listings in Google, the fear being that if they were not complimentary that customers might take their business elsewhere.
My conclusion was that people are getting wise to the 'bad businesses' on the web and that the review was something that every business needed. But then I had an experience that proves that even the most savy online buyer can get it wrong, even when there are reviews and data out there warning him. That buyer was of course me, I did not do what I always (I thought) did and did not check out the web before ordering from crazycameras. Why did I do this insane act? well looking back on it there are many reasons, and I am sure that many have (and will) make the same mistake.
But why is this, why did I do what I did? I turned to the learned community at Linkedin and asked the question "How important are Consumer Reviews on the Internet if you are running (or marketing) an online store?" to try to find out more.
The results were to some degree as I predicted, most saying that Reviews were indeed a great and perhaps vital weapon at getting people to decide on buying from your brand rather than another. But there was one great post by a chap called Lyndsy Simon of FedEx Frieght that really was an eye opener to me (even though it is in reality just common sense).
Lyndsy's words were 'Speaking from personal experience, I only look for customer reviews if the site I'm looking at feels "shady" - in other words, they have failed to gain my trust, but I want their product. Practically speaking, if a site seems well put together and the prices are not the lowest in the arena, I'm not going to bother looking up reviews.'
This said it all to me, and now I look back on it was the reason I made the mistake. The crazycameras site looked good, their T&C's were fine and the price (perhaps the most important part) was great, they even offered free Post and Packing (not surprising in hindsight as they don't seem to send anything out..).
So I was 'sucked in' and am now paying (along with many others) the price.
What does all this go to show, well three things really:-
1. Reviews may well not have any effect at all IF the site / price / product mix is spot on
2. Good Reviews are being used by some and can only do good (but remember that not everybody will believe that you / the site owner did not write them)
3. Bad Reviews WILL in the most cases stop people buying if there are enough of them, and people take the time to look (which I seriously believe will be the case in most instances soon, as users become more 'internet savy')
So for the time being at least those 'bad eggs' on the Net will be able to survive, simply because not every one takes the time they should before buying, but saying that their days must be numbered...
More tomorrow
Wednesday, 24 February 2010
The Internet has turned the World into a Village
If you go back just a hundred years you could find people in villages in the UK who had never been more than a few miles outside the place where they lived and worked. To be sure life was much simpler then, but people still had to buy goods and services and to make sure they choose the right supplier they asked their friends neighbours for advice.
In the villages it was easy to find out information on the best baker of plumber, as everyone knew everybody's business and were only to keen to share the gossip. This network (for a network it was) made sure that businesses kept their noses clean as if they did not, they would soon pay the price as the news of poor service or products spread and their customers went elsewhere.
As populations grew and people became more mobile and bought more and more things, it was 'easier' to get away with poor service or goods as there was always someone that had not heard about a bad company.
Then along came the Internet and made it even easier for companies, good and bad to sell their wares, and to sell them to people many hundreds if not thousands of miles away. This early internet must have been the 'happy hunting grounds' for many an unscrupulous business and at the moment there are still some that are making good money out of providing a poor service.
But are their days numbered? As the title of the blog states, the Internet is / has turned the world back into a village as now, everybody can find out just about anything they want to know about a business and how it treats its customers, allowing them to steer clear of any that look dubious.
The thing is that at the moment, not everyone is looking around for advice before they buy. I have seen reports that state that some 90% of online shoppers do look for reviews, but I think that is a bit optimistic and that the figure for the time being at least is lower. Why do I say that, simply because of the number of people who have been caught out by companies, like crazycameras that just don't live up to their promises. I have had personal experience of them, and the reviews of others are reporting just the same issues.
This must mean, that there are many who, at the moment at least, don't look at the reviews available on line, but that figure MUST drop over time as people become more 'Internet Savy'.
Here the message for all businesses, large and small, is that you must be aware of what is being said about you and your brand and be prepared to argue your case and as importantly to improve your services so that you only get positive reviews in the first place.
In the USA, the reviews attached to local businesses are already being looked at by people using Google Maps to find local suppliers (this area being targeted by SEO companies there) and it will soon be the same in the UK and Europe.
So a note of warning to all business owners, be sure that your goods and services are the best and that your customers are happy, as if you don't the 'Information Mill on the Web Will Surely Find You Out'
More tomorrow
In the villages it was easy to find out information on the best baker of plumber, as everyone knew everybody's business and were only to keen to share the gossip. This network (for a network it was) made sure that businesses kept their noses clean as if they did not, they would soon pay the price as the news of poor service or products spread and their customers went elsewhere.
As populations grew and people became more mobile and bought more and more things, it was 'easier' to get away with poor service or goods as there was always someone that had not heard about a bad company.
Then along came the Internet and made it even easier for companies, good and bad to sell their wares, and to sell them to people many hundreds if not thousands of miles away. This early internet must have been the 'happy hunting grounds' for many an unscrupulous business and at the moment there are still some that are making good money out of providing a poor service.
But are their days numbered? As the title of the blog states, the Internet is / has turned the world back into a village as now, everybody can find out just about anything they want to know about a business and how it treats its customers, allowing them to steer clear of any that look dubious.
The thing is that at the moment, not everyone is looking around for advice before they buy. I have seen reports that state that some 90% of online shoppers do look for reviews, but I think that is a bit optimistic and that the figure for the time being at least is lower. Why do I say that, simply because of the number of people who have been caught out by companies, like crazycameras that just don't live up to their promises. I have had personal experience of them, and the reviews of others are reporting just the same issues.
This must mean, that there are many who, at the moment at least, don't look at the reviews available on line, but that figure MUST drop over time as people become more 'Internet Savy'.
Here the message for all businesses, large and small, is that you must be aware of what is being said about you and your brand and be prepared to argue your case and as importantly to improve your services so that you only get positive reviews in the first place.
In the USA, the reviews attached to local businesses are already being looked at by people using Google Maps to find local suppliers (this area being targeted by SEO companies there) and it will soon be the same in the UK and Europe.
So a note of warning to all business owners, be sure that your goods and services are the best and that your customers are happy, as if you don't the 'Information Mill on the Web Will Surely Find You Out'
More tomorrow
Tuesday, 23 February 2010
Are Goliath's days numbered now?
We've all heard the story about David and Goliath, but in most cases it is the 'David' in the match that gets squished.
We see this every day with big business getting away with things, the poor old consumer battling in vein to get justice. After all they are just one person all alone against a business that has many resources and often a very 'deaf' ear....
But is all this about to change with the advent of Social Media, as this gives all the chance to make their case on a much wider platform, and one that can under certain circumstances reach millions in a very short space of time.
You see, that 'wronged' consumer can now place comments on the various review sites AND then point people to them (via Twitter, Facebook etc) so that all can see what is going on and can thus make their own decisions as to whether to buy from that business in the future.
Surely, if enough people place such complaints / poor reviews AND people get to see (easily) what people are saying about a company that that company's purchases will be reduced and in extreme cases dry up entirely...
It is a known fact that poor reviews can put people off visiting restaurants etc, SEO companies around the world making it clear to their customers that having positive reviews associated with their Google Maps entry is a must.
As a starting place, have a look at the following reviews about a company called crazycameras. Their record looks like it is pretty bad overall as the two links below will prove.
http://www.reviewcentre.com/review584267.html
and
http://www.complaintsboard.com/complaints/crazy-cameras-c274982.html
and on the Social Media front, try searching for 'crazycameras' on Twitter.
Armed with these weapons, surely the consumer, the little person (the David) will soon be able to take on the biggest of businesses and in the end win.....
More tomorrow
We see this every day with big business getting away with things, the poor old consumer battling in vein to get justice. After all they are just one person all alone against a business that has many resources and often a very 'deaf' ear....
But is all this about to change with the advent of Social Media, as this gives all the chance to make their case on a much wider platform, and one that can under certain circumstances reach millions in a very short space of time.
You see, that 'wronged' consumer can now place comments on the various review sites AND then point people to them (via Twitter, Facebook etc) so that all can see what is going on and can thus make their own decisions as to whether to buy from that business in the future.
Surely, if enough people place such complaints / poor reviews AND people get to see (easily) what people are saying about a company that that company's purchases will be reduced and in extreme cases dry up entirely...
It is a known fact that poor reviews can put people off visiting restaurants etc, SEO companies around the world making it clear to their customers that having positive reviews associated with their Google Maps entry is a must.
As a starting place, have a look at the following reviews about a company called crazycameras. Their record looks like it is pretty bad overall as the two links below will prove.
http://www.reviewcentre.com/review584267.html
and
http://www.complaintsboard.com/complaints/crazy-cameras-c274982.html
and on the Social Media front, try searching for 'crazycameras' on Twitter.
Armed with these weapons, surely the consumer, the little person (the David) will soon be able to take on the biggest of businesses and in the end win.....
More tomorrow
Wednesday, 17 February 2010
Creating a GlobalBuzz
I attended a webinar last night that really spelt out the power of Social Media and how the world of marketing had changed. In the old days it said, people had three methods of getting the attention of their potential customers.
i) The 'bought' some advertising or a space at an exhibition etc
ii) They 'begged' the Media for attention
iii) They employed sales people to go out and 'pester'
It went on to state that while these methods still worked and had their place, in the 'new' world, there were other, more effective (and potentially cheaper) ways of getting your message across and making those all important sales.
The basic premise of this 'new world' was that you did not buy, beg or pester your way to exposure (and thus sales) but instead you had to 'EARN' that exposure.
The presenter went on to explain that this 'earning process' was based upon another statement, one that he holds to be very true indeed:-
'On the Web You Are What You Publish'
This basic truth is supported by the fact that these days information, news and gossip all travel via 'Word of Mouse' (and thumb if you include the mobile phone) . This is where the Web really has changed things, as now it is so very easy to share things with others, which in turn means that news etc can spread very very quickly, the number of people being 'aware' of something potentially mutliplying at an incredible rate.
BUT, and it is a big but, that information / news has to be worth sharing, it has to be worth person A telling person B about. That is the trick and the fence that so many fail at.
One of the biggest changes that business has to get it's head around was that it was no longer any good to talk about products and service, but instead about the issues that were facing it's customers and how they could be solved. You did not now just go in and sell, you had to talk to people in their language not yours.
The biggest issue for many marketing executives will however be the issue of 'losing control' of the marketing methods, of taking your hands off the reins and letting the horse go where it wants to. The best example of this was that of the Grateful Dead pop group. They made the decision to allow their fans to record their live performances, even it was said going to the length of giving these 'recording fans' the best seats in the house. Their music was thus shared on the Net and viewed by thousands who otherwise may never have heard it. The end result, the group became the one of the most popular touring bands of all time. Plus remember they did not have to buy, beg or pester, they just 'shared'.
Views were also expressed about measuring ROI on Social Media and how this was basically a bad idea, it just being not compatible with the medium.
To see the Tweets on the webinar search for #GlobalBuzz on Twitter.
The 'Creating a Global Buzz Webinar' is available on line now too.
It was really good and I would recommend that all online marketers have a look, it certainly gave me some inspiration.
i) The 'bought' some advertising or a space at an exhibition etc
ii) They 'begged' the Media for attention
iii) They employed sales people to go out and 'pester'
It went on to state that while these methods still worked and had their place, in the 'new' world, there were other, more effective (and potentially cheaper) ways of getting your message across and making those all important sales.
The basic premise of this 'new world' was that you did not buy, beg or pester your way to exposure (and thus sales) but instead you had to 'EARN' that exposure.
The presenter went on to explain that this 'earning process' was based upon another statement, one that he holds to be very true indeed:-
'On the Web You Are What You Publish'
This basic truth is supported by the fact that these days information, news and gossip all travel via 'Word of Mouse' (and thumb if you include the mobile phone) . This is where the Web really has changed things, as now it is so very easy to share things with others, which in turn means that news etc can spread very very quickly, the number of people being 'aware' of something potentially mutliplying at an incredible rate.
BUT, and it is a big but, that information / news has to be worth sharing, it has to be worth person A telling person B about. That is the trick and the fence that so many fail at.
One of the biggest changes that business has to get it's head around was that it was no longer any good to talk about products and service, but instead about the issues that were facing it's customers and how they could be solved. You did not now just go in and sell, you had to talk to people in their language not yours.
The biggest issue for many marketing executives will however be the issue of 'losing control' of the marketing methods, of taking your hands off the reins and letting the horse go where it wants to. The best example of this was that of the Grateful Dead pop group. They made the decision to allow their fans to record their live performances, even it was said going to the length of giving these 'recording fans' the best seats in the house. Their music was thus shared on the Net and viewed by thousands who otherwise may never have heard it. The end result, the group became the one of the most popular touring bands of all time. Plus remember they did not have to buy, beg or pester, they just 'shared'.
Views were also expressed about measuring ROI on Social Media and how this was basically a bad idea, it just being not compatible with the medium.
To see the Tweets on the webinar search for #GlobalBuzz on Twitter.
The 'Creating a Global Buzz Webinar' is available on line now too.
It was really good and I would recommend that all online marketers have a look, it certainly gave me some inspiration.
Tuesday, 16 February 2010
Newsletter Due Any Day Now!
Our parent websites first newsletter is due to be sent out in the next few days, so please be sure to sign up.
In this first edition there will be some very special offers, these only being available via the Newsletter.
We expect that the Newsletter will be sent out monthly, but we will also be sending out other important 'news flashes' and other offers from time to time as well.
So don't miss out, sign up now.
By the way, you can un-subscribe at anytime of course.
In this first edition there will be some very special offers, these only being available via the Newsletter.
We expect that the Newsletter will be sent out monthly, but we will also be sending out other important 'news flashes' and other offers from time to time as well.
So don't miss out, sign up now.
By the way, you can un-subscribe at anytime of course.
Monday, 15 February 2010
How Important is Advert Positioning in PPC?
One question that I am often asked is how important is the place an advert is shown when using Pay Per Click Adverts? This is a good question and is related to some degree at least to the question about what Organic ranking it is best to have.
We will however concentrate on PPC here, only referring to Organic rankings as appropriate. So, what is the best position to have for your advert? Is it position 1, or 4, 10 or what?
The short answer, that will infuriate many, is that 'it depends' on what the advert is for. Before I go into my thoughts, it is important to grasp one most important fact, this fact being that no matter how good your advert is (or where it is on the screen) that your potential customers will look around the others and click them (and the organic listings too) as well as looking at yours.
This fact means that even though a certain position may get you the first click, that it does not guarantee that you will get the last one, the 'buy it' click. This will depend on where you land your customers and how good a 'deal' you are offering them. The best positioning in the world and the best advert text in the world will not make up for a poor landing page, or in some sectors at least a higher price tag on the goods.
Let me tell you a little story (a true one too)
I thought perhaps that going through the process of buying a camera (as I did last week) might help to illustrate the process, helping with not only this question, but also covering some other aspects of online marketing too.
So last week I decided that I wanted to buy a camera, one primarily that would also take reasonable videos for use on websites (mainly our own and YouTube). I had looked a few months before too, but had decided at that time not to buy. This in effect means that I had started the 'buying cycle' some weeks before. Don't know what the length the cycle for a camera is on average, (varies from product to product, the cheaper the product the faster the cycle, at least on average) but in my instance it must be about 8 weeks.
I had in my mind a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ7, this in part being down to the TV ad (the dancing Statue of Liberty one) [ a point here about the power of TV ads ], but was not sure if this was the best bet. So I started looking around for Reviews. There were many of course and all were very helpful, but here the point is, are there any online reviews for your products? This is not always appropriate or possible, but if others have them and you do not, you could be in BIG trouble, as your product will be the one that people cannot find out what they want to know, i.e. what do others really think about it.
The reviews led, in this case to YouTube videos, showing the camera, how good it was at videos etc as well as showing the competition. Here is another good point. Do you have videos about your products or services. When you think of it, most businesses could have videos about what they do. Having an informative video could well make the difference of someone buying or contacting you so do think about getting some online.
So, I had looked around and had decided that the camera would do. I also decided that I was going to buy it online, the question was from whom. That I decided (like many others I expect) was going to be on price, at least on price from what looked like a genuine site. I had seen some links from the reviews to sites that were selling the camera and they were my first port of call. However, I was not going to leave it there and turned once again to Google (where I had started out with the query 'Panasonic Lumix reviews'.
Up came all the adverts of course, together with some Organic listings that were in the main all too general. No it was the adverts that caught my eye. Why?, well because many were telling me then and there how much the camera was going to cost, including such info as 'Free p&p'. The latter is important as some sites do, in my opinion charge far too much for this, often 'hiding' it until the last moment. Note, this is NOT a good idea, be as upfront as you can here, otherwise you risk loosing sales. Tip here, keep a good check on your shopping cart abandonment rates and make changes to see if you can improve things.
I clicked on the cheapest one first and had a look around for any catches. None were there, but there were other ads showing the camera at other (higher) prices and some with no prices. I clicked on about 5 in the end, but none could compete for the same product, the prices being sometimes as much as £80 dearer (for exactly the same product). So I went back to the first one, not because it was the first (this being a combination of being high on the front screen of Google AND more importantly the text and message - the price) but because it was the best DEAL.
By the way, it was also important that I was taken just where I wanted to be with one click (from the advert). I did not have to look around for the camera on the page, it was there right in front of me, all I had to do was to choose the colour. It even confirmed the price and free p&p.
So in the end, the other adverts had had their chance of getting me to click and some had succeeded, but only one company had sealed the order as they were selling at the best price (this time).
What all this boils down to in the end is that it is not positioning or even (to a degree at least) the text of the advert, but what that click leads too. So don't fret too much about not being No.1 on Google Adwords (or in the Organic Listings) as just being there on the front page for ads and in the first 2 to 3 pages of Organic listings will get you visits, all because people like to 'Pogo Stick' through the possibilities to see if they can find the best deal or source of information.
So, instead of concentrating on rankings, take a good look at how you are presenting your products for 'sale' and if it is a price sensitive market place consider putting the prices in the adverts. Plus ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS make it easy for people find what they are looking for and easy to buy it / contact you.
More soon
We will however concentrate on PPC here, only referring to Organic rankings as appropriate. So, what is the best position to have for your advert? Is it position 1, or 4, 10 or what?
The short answer, that will infuriate many, is that 'it depends' on what the advert is for. Before I go into my thoughts, it is important to grasp one most important fact, this fact being that no matter how good your advert is (or where it is on the screen) that your potential customers will look around the others and click them (and the organic listings too) as well as looking at yours.
This fact means that even though a certain position may get you the first click, that it does not guarantee that you will get the last one, the 'buy it' click. This will depend on where you land your customers and how good a 'deal' you are offering them. The best positioning in the world and the best advert text in the world will not make up for a poor landing page, or in some sectors at least a higher price tag on the goods.
Let me tell you a little story (a true one too)
I thought perhaps that going through the process of buying a camera (as I did last week) might help to illustrate the process, helping with not only this question, but also covering some other aspects of online marketing too.
So last week I decided that I wanted to buy a camera, one primarily that would also take reasonable videos for use on websites (mainly our own and YouTube). I had looked a few months before too, but had decided at that time not to buy. This in effect means that I had started the 'buying cycle' some weeks before. Don't know what the length the cycle for a camera is on average, (varies from product to product, the cheaper the product the faster the cycle, at least on average) but in my instance it must be about 8 weeks.
I had in my mind a Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ7, this in part being down to the TV ad (the dancing Statue of Liberty one) [ a point here about the power of TV ads ], but was not sure if this was the best bet. So I started looking around for Reviews. There were many of course and all were very helpful, but here the point is, are there any online reviews for your products? This is not always appropriate or possible, but if others have them and you do not, you could be in BIG trouble, as your product will be the one that people cannot find out what they want to know, i.e. what do others really think about it.
The reviews led, in this case to YouTube videos, showing the camera, how good it was at videos etc as well as showing the competition. Here is another good point. Do you have videos about your products or services. When you think of it, most businesses could have videos about what they do. Having an informative video could well make the difference of someone buying or contacting you so do think about getting some online.
So, I had looked around and had decided that the camera would do. I also decided that I was going to buy it online, the question was from whom. That I decided (like many others I expect) was going to be on price, at least on price from what looked like a genuine site. I had seen some links from the reviews to sites that were selling the camera and they were my first port of call. However, I was not going to leave it there and turned once again to Google (where I had started out with the query 'Panasonic Lumix reviews'.
Up came all the adverts of course, together with some Organic listings that were in the main all too general. No it was the adverts that caught my eye. Why?, well because many were telling me then and there how much the camera was going to cost, including such info as 'Free p&p'. The latter is important as some sites do, in my opinion charge far too much for this, often 'hiding' it until the last moment. Note, this is NOT a good idea, be as upfront as you can here, otherwise you risk loosing sales. Tip here, keep a good check on your shopping cart abandonment rates and make changes to see if you can improve things.
I clicked on the cheapest one first and had a look around for any catches. None were there, but there were other ads showing the camera at other (higher) prices and some with no prices. I clicked on about 5 in the end, but none could compete for the same product, the prices being sometimes as much as £80 dearer (for exactly the same product). So I went back to the first one, not because it was the first (this being a combination of being high on the front screen of Google AND more importantly the text and message - the price) but because it was the best DEAL.
By the way, it was also important that I was taken just where I wanted to be with one click (from the advert). I did not have to look around for the camera on the page, it was there right in front of me, all I had to do was to choose the colour. It even confirmed the price and free p&p.
So in the end, the other adverts had had their chance of getting me to click and some had succeeded, but only one company had sealed the order as they were selling at the best price (this time).
What all this boils down to in the end is that it is not positioning or even (to a degree at least) the text of the advert, but what that click leads too. So don't fret too much about not being No.1 on Google Adwords (or in the Organic Listings) as just being there on the front page for ads and in the first 2 to 3 pages of Organic listings will get you visits, all because people like to 'Pogo Stick' through the possibilities to see if they can find the best deal or source of information.
So, instead of concentrating on rankings, take a good look at how you are presenting your products for 'sale' and if it is a price sensitive market place consider putting the prices in the adverts. Plus ALWAYS and I mean ALWAYS make it easy for people find what they are looking for and easy to buy it / contact you.
More soon
Sunday, 14 February 2010
What sort of Person / Business Person are You?
I was out having my morning walk through the country when a farmer started feeding his sheep. Watching them was very interesting indeed and it got me thinking 'Are people very much like Sheep, or are Sheep very much like people?'
You see the way each sheep fed, or tried to feed seemed very much just like how people act in life. Watching them I saw four distinct types, each one with it's good and bad points (this depending on your views on life).
The first type were there waiting for the farmer to put the food in the troughs. They were the thinkers, the ones with forethought and knowledge of what was to come. They were there and were sure to get food.
The second type were the hard nuts. They had not seen the food coming, but were sure going to get some. They pushed their way to the troughs, not caring about who was in their way. They were going to get fed, that was it, the only thought on their minds.
The third group ran around the mass of woolly bodies looking for a weak spot in the crush, and finding one dived in. These were the opportunists and they too got fed. They had not seen the food coming, but were quick enough to react when it did. They slid into the pack more than barging their way in.
Then there was the fourth type, the ones that ran around the pack vainly trying to get to the food. Back and fourth they would go, hoping just hoping that they would find their way in.
Watching those sheep really bought home to me the different types of people and business people that are around. I'm not saying any of the above are good or bad, but they are all different and all have their good and bad points.
The question is, what type are you?, and perhaps more interestingly what type would you like to be?, for even the fourth type of sheep is good. True they may be hungry sometimes, but they are, for the most part 'nice sheep', they don't want to hurt anybody, they just want to 'be.'
It is when it comes to business that the types really come into their own. For me, being there first (seeing the next 'Internet' wave before it hits you)is the best bet as I don't want to shoulder people out of the way (mind you saying that I will pinch their top rankings on Google if they don't watch out).
Failing that, I take on the role of the opportunist, making sure that I take advantage of anything I can for my clients (weak spots in the keywords that people are chasing for example).
But sometimes, just sometimes, in my private and business life I find myself milling around on the edge too. I don't see this as a problem, it is good to see things from a different perspective sometimes and anyway, I quite like being a 'nice sheep' some of the time.
More (on a more business like topic) tomorrow.
You see the way each sheep fed, or tried to feed seemed very much just like how people act in life. Watching them I saw four distinct types, each one with it's good and bad points (this depending on your views on life).
The first type were there waiting for the farmer to put the food in the troughs. They were the thinkers, the ones with forethought and knowledge of what was to come. They were there and were sure to get food.
The second type were the hard nuts. They had not seen the food coming, but were sure going to get some. They pushed their way to the troughs, not caring about who was in their way. They were going to get fed, that was it, the only thought on their minds.
The third group ran around the mass of woolly bodies looking for a weak spot in the crush, and finding one dived in. These were the opportunists and they too got fed. They had not seen the food coming, but were quick enough to react when it did. They slid into the pack more than barging their way in.
Then there was the fourth type, the ones that ran around the pack vainly trying to get to the food. Back and fourth they would go, hoping just hoping that they would find their way in.
Watching those sheep really bought home to me the different types of people and business people that are around. I'm not saying any of the above are good or bad, but they are all different and all have their good and bad points.
The question is, what type are you?, and perhaps more interestingly what type would you like to be?, for even the fourth type of sheep is good. True they may be hungry sometimes, but they are, for the most part 'nice sheep', they don't want to hurt anybody, they just want to 'be.'
It is when it comes to business that the types really come into their own. For me, being there first (seeing the next 'Internet' wave before it hits you)is the best bet as I don't want to shoulder people out of the way (mind you saying that I will pinch their top rankings on Google if they don't watch out).
Failing that, I take on the role of the opportunist, making sure that I take advantage of anything I can for my clients (weak spots in the keywords that people are chasing for example).
But sometimes, just sometimes, in my private and business life I find myself milling around on the edge too. I don't see this as a problem, it is good to see things from a different perspective sometimes and anyway, I quite like being a 'nice sheep' some of the time.
More (on a more business like topic) tomorrow.
Saturday, 13 February 2010
BBC's Virtual Revolution & Recommendation Engines
Recommendation Engines Are They a Good Thing?
The BBC programme Virtual Revolution will have brought to the attention of many the fact that today businesses are in effect taking and storing our Electronic DNA. Armed with these facts businesses can and do use the information to decide which adverts and products to show us when we go online, Amazon being one of the major users of this process.
The question is, is this a bad thing? Some say that it is Ok, as it means that their online experience is better and that the information is used to ‘help’ them get the very best out of their online time. On the other hand, some argue that the information is being used to ‘control’ us, to show us things that in essence we ‘should’ like. Those that are worried go on to state that this influences behaviour in a way that has never been possible before and that this influence may not be in the end in our best interest.
How does it work and how far does it go?
Basically, when anyone searches the web and visits a website, the chances are that to some degree or another, the pages you have looked and the products you have viewed and bought will be recorded. This data becomes more accurate when you log into a site (like Amazon), often automatically via cookies. This logging on identifies you and allows the website to really see what you like. When you are not logged on in such a ‘definite’ way, the data recorded is not so easily connected with you as a person, but it is nevertheless useful to business as even thought they don’t know who is searching and looking for things, they know what lots of people do and thus what anyone person is likely to want to see in the future.
This ‘surveillance and recording’ goes on in the free Emails services too (like Gmail) as every email is scanned and keywords extracted from it, this in Google’s example being used to determine what adverts they should show you on the Gmail screen.
So whatever you do your behaviour on the web will be recorded in one way or another and this data will be used in some way by businesses to decide what to show you.
Social Networks
Search behaviour and the sites you visit are not the only way by which business decides what to show you, as they also take into account the info that people share on the web on the Social Network sites. The amount that this is taken into account is I’m sure not fully known yet, but there are rumours in the Search Market place that Google will be using the information ‘contained’ in anyone’s Social Network to decide what to show them when they are searching using Google.
Personalisation or Control?
All of the above basically means that your behaviour (or that of others) will influence what pages, information and products you are ‘served’ on the Internet. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Does this process destroy or damage the ‘serendipity’ that the Web offers, or ‘help’ people get the most out of their online time.
The thing that worries some is that this process influences people in a way that they might not fully realise. This does worry some people quite a lot and one day there may well be a backlash by internet users in that they will demand that their behaviour is not tracked and that they are not given results based on behaviour, whether theirs or someone else’s.
I am not sure what the future holds here, but I do know that today businesses can and do use these methodologies and that the process is becoming more and more refined and also that it’s use is set to increase.
At Serendipity Online Marketing we do assist our customers to make the best use of the data available, for example Keyword Research allows us to see what people are looking for and therefore what terms they should target in SEO and PPC. We also assist businesses make the best out of their websites by the use of Google Analytics. However, we do not, in line with privacy rules that exist today, track people down to an individual level. Instead we simply help our customers present to their customers the best possible browsing experience in the hope that all parties will be best satisfied.
Hopefully this is in order and correct, but we will be keeping a careful check on the ‘morals’ of the web and will never do anything that could be damaging to the end consumer.
The BBC programme Virtual Revolution will have brought to the attention of many the fact that today businesses are in effect taking and storing our Electronic DNA. Armed with these facts businesses can and do use the information to decide which adverts and products to show us when we go online, Amazon being one of the major users of this process.
The question is, is this a bad thing? Some say that it is Ok, as it means that their online experience is better and that the information is used to ‘help’ them get the very best out of their online time. On the other hand, some argue that the information is being used to ‘control’ us, to show us things that in essence we ‘should’ like. Those that are worried go on to state that this influences behaviour in a way that has never been possible before and that this influence may not be in the end in our best interest.
How does it work and how far does it go?
Basically, when anyone searches the web and visits a website, the chances are that to some degree or another, the pages you have looked and the products you have viewed and bought will be recorded. This data becomes more accurate when you log into a site (like Amazon), often automatically via cookies. This logging on identifies you and allows the website to really see what you like. When you are not logged on in such a ‘definite’ way, the data recorded is not so easily connected with you as a person, but it is nevertheless useful to business as even thought they don’t know who is searching and looking for things, they know what lots of people do and thus what anyone person is likely to want to see in the future.
This ‘surveillance and recording’ goes on in the free Emails services too (like Gmail) as every email is scanned and keywords extracted from it, this in Google’s example being used to determine what adverts they should show you on the Gmail screen.
So whatever you do your behaviour on the web will be recorded in one way or another and this data will be used in some way by businesses to decide what to show you.
Social Networks
Search behaviour and the sites you visit are not the only way by which business decides what to show you, as they also take into account the info that people share on the web on the Social Network sites. The amount that this is taken into account is I’m sure not fully known yet, but there are rumours in the Search Market place that Google will be using the information ‘contained’ in anyone’s Social Network to decide what to show them when they are searching using Google.
Personalisation or Control?
All of the above basically means that your behaviour (or that of others) will influence what pages, information and products you are ‘served’ on the Internet. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? Does this process destroy or damage the ‘serendipity’ that the Web offers, or ‘help’ people get the most out of their online time.
The thing that worries some is that this process influences people in a way that they might not fully realise. This does worry some people quite a lot and one day there may well be a backlash by internet users in that they will demand that their behaviour is not tracked and that they are not given results based on behaviour, whether theirs or someone else’s.
I am not sure what the future holds here, but I do know that today businesses can and do use these methodologies and that the process is becoming more and more refined and also that it’s use is set to increase.
At Serendipity Online Marketing we do assist our customers to make the best use of the data available, for example Keyword Research allows us to see what people are looking for and therefore what terms they should target in SEO and PPC. We also assist businesses make the best out of their websites by the use of Google Analytics. However, we do not, in line with privacy rules that exist today, track people down to an individual level. Instead we simply help our customers present to their customers the best possible browsing experience in the hope that all parties will be best satisfied.
Hopefully this is in order and correct, but we will be keeping a careful check on the ‘morals’ of the web and will never do anything that could be damaging to the end consumer.
Thursday, 11 February 2010
Google Buzz - Is it set to change the World?
Have you heard about Google Buzz yet? Perhaps not, but I'm sure you will soon. It is very very new and not released to all users yet, but it will be soon, that is for sure.
What exactly is it though? Well in a nutshell is a 'Social Sharing Service' based on Gmail and is meant to make it easier to share photos, videos etc as well as to start conversations about the things you find interesting.
Many will ask the question "Can't we already do that with Facebook or one of the many other Social Networking sites?" and of course they would be right.
However, Google say "Our belief is that organizing the social information on the Web — finding relevance in the noise — has become a large-scale challenge, one that Google's experience in organizing information can help solve."
Buzz will work with other social media services such as Twitter, Flickr and Google's Picasa and Google Reader. Google Buzz users also can use their mobile phones to tag posts by location.
The big question is can Google Buzz steal users from other social networking sites? According to a leading pundit, Augie Ray (of Forrester Research) "While bringing relevance filtering to the noisy social media world could prove a significant advantage, this doesn't (yet) seem to be enough to pull people away from the networks they've already created elsewhere." But he did also say that "Buzz could end up supplementing rather than replacing users' other social networks for now." Here the critical bit is 'for now' who is to say what Google might be able to do here.
From a Search Engine Marketing perspective, this whole thing may be more important than it looks, especially when it is added to rumours that Google will use a searchers 'personal network' when deciding what sites to list in its results..
More research required here I think..
More tomorrow
PS - My quote of the day:-
“You have to learn the rules of the game. And then, you have to play better than anyone else” – Albert Einstein, Scientist Genius
What exactly is it though? Well in a nutshell is a 'Social Sharing Service' based on Gmail and is meant to make it easier to share photos, videos etc as well as to start conversations about the things you find interesting.
Many will ask the question "Can't we already do that with Facebook or one of the many other Social Networking sites?" and of course they would be right.
However, Google say "Our belief is that organizing the social information on the Web — finding relevance in the noise — has become a large-scale challenge, one that Google's experience in organizing information can help solve."
Buzz will work with other social media services such as Twitter, Flickr and Google's Picasa and Google Reader. Google Buzz users also can use their mobile phones to tag posts by location.
The big question is can Google Buzz steal users from other social networking sites? According to a leading pundit, Augie Ray (of Forrester Research) "While bringing relevance filtering to the noisy social media world could prove a significant advantage, this doesn't (yet) seem to be enough to pull people away from the networks they've already created elsewhere." But he did also say that "Buzz could end up supplementing rather than replacing users' other social networks for now." Here the critical bit is 'for now' who is to say what Google might be able to do here.
From a Search Engine Marketing perspective, this whole thing may be more important than it looks, especially when it is added to rumours that Google will use a searchers 'personal network' when deciding what sites to list in its results..
More research required here I think..
More tomorrow
PS - My quote of the day:-
“You have to learn the rules of the game. And then, you have to play better than anyone else” – Albert Einstein, Scientist Genius
Wednesday, 10 February 2010
Conversations and Twitter
In a previous post I mentioned that I was trying to find out how people start conversations in Twitter. People will do this for various reasons, to find friends to find information and of course to try to sell their goods. All of these are valid but for many businesses, it is the latter reason that they are really on Twitter.
Of course the first thing that should be said is that the 'sell, sell, sell' approach is not likely to get you far on Twitter. No, you have to be more thoughtful and 'Engage' (that word again) with your potential customers.
The real reason that you want to start conversations is thus that you want to start the 'Engagement Process'. Again this is just fine and dandy, nothing wrong with it (as long as your motives are good of course). So how can you start a conversation?
I asked the Linkedin community this very question and got some very useful answers, including one that said that Twitter was not being used (much) for holding conversations.
The replies:-
***
From Susan Applegate of Applegate Media Group.
My recent observation is that there aren't a lot of "conversations" going on. It's feeling less and less social and more and more like a one way street!
From Beatriz Alemar of Inktel Direct
I start conversations on Twitter one of 3 ways:-
1. I make an observation or ask a general question. People will usually respond.
2. Directly ask a person or group a question or comment.
3.. Answer a question or jump into a conversation.
Twitter is like a large cocktail party - sometimes you have to jump into a conversation. People don't mind. In fact, they might appreciate another person to bounce things off of.
and from
Cyrus Afzail of Astoria Communications
First off, start by asking what you want Twitter to accomplish for you or your business and what types of conversations can best make this happen. The specific types of conversations will differ, depending on the type of company you are and/or who you're trying to reach.
I think one of the best ways to use Twitter is to increase the awareness others have about content you're already producing. For example, when I write a new blog posting or do something similar in the course of marketing either my business or a client, I "push" the information out to followers on Twitter. Since most of the content I produce is informational in nature, even though it has a marketing context behind it, there's not that much resistance to receiving it.
Finally, if you're using Twitter in a business context, I would restrict your content to a business nature because, unlike Facebook and other platforms, you can establish multiple accounts for different purposes. If you want to use Twitter to maintain personal connection, that's fine, but I'd do it under a separate account.
***
I do hope that these were informative, they have certainly got me thinking.
More on this topic (and others) over the next few days
Of course the first thing that should be said is that the 'sell, sell, sell' approach is not likely to get you far on Twitter. No, you have to be more thoughtful and 'Engage' (that word again) with your potential customers.
The real reason that you want to start conversations is thus that you want to start the 'Engagement Process'. Again this is just fine and dandy, nothing wrong with it (as long as your motives are good of course). So how can you start a conversation?
I asked the Linkedin community this very question and got some very useful answers, including one that said that Twitter was not being used (much) for holding conversations.
The replies:-
***
From Susan Applegate of Applegate Media Group.
My recent observation is that there aren't a lot of "conversations" going on. It's feeling less and less social and more and more like a one way street!
From Beatriz Alemar of Inktel Direct
I start conversations on Twitter one of 3 ways:-
1. I make an observation or ask a general question. People will usually respond.
2. Directly ask a person or group a question or comment.
3.. Answer a question or jump into a conversation.
Twitter is like a large cocktail party - sometimes you have to jump into a conversation. People don't mind. In fact, they might appreciate another person to bounce things off of.
and from
Cyrus Afzail of Astoria Communications
First off, start by asking what you want Twitter to accomplish for you or your business and what types of conversations can best make this happen. The specific types of conversations will differ, depending on the type of company you are and/or who you're trying to reach.
I think one of the best ways to use Twitter is to increase the awareness others have about content you're already producing. For example, when I write a new blog posting or do something similar in the course of marketing either my business or a client, I "push" the information out to followers on Twitter. Since most of the content I produce is informational in nature, even though it has a marketing context behind it, there's not that much resistance to receiving it.
Finally, if you're using Twitter in a business context, I would restrict your content to a business nature because, unlike Facebook and other platforms, you can establish multiple accounts for different purposes. If you want to use Twitter to maintain personal connection, that's fine, but I'd do it under a separate account.
***
I do hope that these were informative, they have certainly got me thinking.
More on this topic (and others) over the next few days
Tuesday, 9 February 2010
Economics - Fancy a Laugh???
21 Economic Models explained with Cows
SOCIALISM
You have 2 cows.
You give one to your neighbour.
COMMUNISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and gives you some milk.
FASCISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and sells you some milk.
NAZISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and shoots you.
BUREAUCRATISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and then throws the
Milk away...
TRADITIONAL CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell one and buy a bull.
Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows.
You sell them and retire on the income.
SURREALISM
You have two giraffes.
The government requires you to take harmonica lessons
AN AMERICAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows.
Later, you hire a consultant to analyse why the cow has dropped dead.
ENRON VENTURE CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters
of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a
debt/equity swap with an associated general offer so that you get all
four cows back, with a tax exemption for five cows. The milk rights of
the six cows are transferred via an intermediary to a Cayman Island
Company secretly owned by the majority shareholder who sells the
rights to all seven cows back to your listed company. The annual
report says the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more.
You sell one cow to buy a new president of the United States , leaving
you with nine cows. No balance sheet provided with the release. The
public then buys your bull.
A FRENCH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You go on strike, organise a riot, and block the roads, because you
want three cows.
A JAPANESE CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You redesign them so they are one-tenth the size of an ordinary cow
and produce twenty times the milk.
You then create a clever cow cartoon image called 'Cowkimon' and
market it worldwide.
A GERMAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You re-engineer them so they live for 100 years, eat once a month, and
milk themselves.
AN ITALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows, but you don't know where they are.
You decide to have lunch.
A RUSSIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You count them and learn you have five cows.
You count them again and learn you have 42 cows.
You count them again and learn you have 2 cows.
You stop counting cows and open another bottle of vodka.
A SWISS CORPORATION
You have 5000 cows. None of them belong to you.
You charge the owners for storing them.
A CHINESE CORPORATION
You have two cows..
You have 300 people milking them.
You claim that you have full employment, and high bovine productivity.
You arrest the newsman who reported the real situation.
AN INDIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You worship them.
A BRITISH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Both are mad.
AN IRAQI CORPORATION
Everyone thinks you have lots of cows.
You tell them that you have none.
No-one believes you, so they bomb the **** out of you and invade your
country..
You still have no cows, but at least now you are part of Democracy....
AN AUSTRALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Business seems pretty good.
You close the office and go for a few beers to celebrate.
A NEW ZEALAND CORPORATION
You have two cows.
The one on the left looks very attractive
Hope it made you smile, sure did me!
Back to serious stuff tomorrow..
SOCIALISM
You have 2 cows.
You give one to your neighbour.
COMMUNISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and gives you some milk.
FASCISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and sells you some milk.
NAZISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both and shoots you.
BUREAUCRATISM
You have 2 cows.
The State takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and then throws the
Milk away...
TRADITIONAL CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell one and buy a bull.
Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows.
You sell them and retire on the income.
SURREALISM
You have two giraffes.
The government requires you to take harmonica lessons
AN AMERICAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows.
Later, you hire a consultant to analyse why the cow has dropped dead.
ENRON VENTURE CAPITALISM
You have two cows.
You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters
of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, then execute a
debt/equity swap with an associated general offer so that you get all
four cows back, with a tax exemption for five cows. The milk rights of
the six cows are transferred via an intermediary to a Cayman Island
Company secretly owned by the majority shareholder who sells the
rights to all seven cows back to your listed company. The annual
report says the company owns eight cows, with an option on one more.
You sell one cow to buy a new president of the United States , leaving
you with nine cows. No balance sheet provided with the release. The
public then buys your bull.
A FRENCH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You go on strike, organise a riot, and block the roads, because you
want three cows.
A JAPANESE CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You redesign them so they are one-tenth the size of an ordinary cow
and produce twenty times the milk.
You then create a clever cow cartoon image called 'Cowkimon' and
market it worldwide.
A GERMAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You re-engineer them so they live for 100 years, eat once a month, and
milk themselves.
AN ITALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows, but you don't know where they are.
You decide to have lunch.
A RUSSIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You count them and learn you have five cows.
You count them again and learn you have 42 cows.
You count them again and learn you have 2 cows.
You stop counting cows and open another bottle of vodka.
A SWISS CORPORATION
You have 5000 cows. None of them belong to you.
You charge the owners for storing them.
A CHINESE CORPORATION
You have two cows..
You have 300 people milking them.
You claim that you have full employment, and high bovine productivity.
You arrest the newsman who reported the real situation.
AN INDIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
You worship them.
A BRITISH CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Both are mad.
AN IRAQI CORPORATION
Everyone thinks you have lots of cows.
You tell them that you have none.
No-one believes you, so they bomb the **** out of you and invade your
country..
You still have no cows, but at least now you are part of Democracy....
AN AUSTRALIAN CORPORATION
You have two cows.
Business seems pretty good.
You close the office and go for a few beers to celebrate.
A NEW ZEALAND CORPORATION
You have two cows.
The one on the left looks very attractive
Hope it made you smile, sure did me!
Back to serious stuff tomorrow..
Just Twittering on..
While I was musing about this blog, the term 'just twittering on' popped into what I loosely call my mind and immediately rung a bell. The note lingered long enough to tell me that that is what many people seem to do, just 'twitter on', like someone at a party trying to impress, while not really saying anything and certainly not making any real friends.
This I thought cannot be the right way to use Twitter, it must be used to engage a response and not "I'm not following you" or "I'll just block you then" either. So how do you do this, how do you start a conversation. Well in a networking meeting you would ask an open question wouldn't you.
This sounded like a good idea, but I thought I'd test it somewhere other than Twitter (where to date my open questions and those I've seen have not been too hot) and so posted a 'discussion' on to Linkedin (best not to have all your social networking eggs in one basket). The question was an open one, asking people to share their successes on Twitter.
Perhaps the question was not the best, sort of like 'So what success have you had in using a piece of string?' to which of course came the inevitable reply 'depends on how long the string is'.
In my instance the question did get a better answer than that, but only one and it was not the type I was expecting, but it did help me (Linkedin is by the way one of the best place to get high quality answers to questions).
The reply was:- 'Depends what your promoting. A lot about Twitter is not just sending out tweets but interacting with your followers. Let them know you're a real person on the other side and not just a "sales machine". Make sure you're tweets are short enough so that followers can retweet for you. There's a lot more to maintaining relationships on twitter!!'
As you can see it was a good answer, it says a lot. It tells you to
1. Ensure you interact with your followers
2. Make sure that they know it is you and not an autotweeting machine
3. Don't try to sell, sell, sell
4. Do short Tweets so that they can be retweeted without loosing some words
and finally
5. That there is a lot more to maintaining relationships on Twitter than you might think
All of the above is good stuff and all very very true.
It did not answer my question though. Is this a bad thing, did I get more than I bargained for? Well yes in a way, but that is what an 'open question' can lead to isn't it?
So open questions are the way forwards then? Perhaps, but here I am not sure as Twitter is very different from Linkedin. The two communities are therefore likely to act in different ways, so the 'open question' might work on one but not another. Certainly to date my open questions on Twitter have not been as successful as I'd have hoped.
So, my next step is to ask the same question on both, and I will report back with the results, plus of course any answers to my question "SO how do you start a conversation on Twitter?"
By the way, on the success front. I can report that we've had several good contacts from Twitter and so far one piece of work. Also 15% of traffic to our website comes from Twitter now.
All good stuff indeed and thus I will keep 'Twittering On' (but I will try to make it interesting).
More tomorrow
This I thought cannot be the right way to use Twitter, it must be used to engage a response and not "I'm not following you" or "I'll just block you then" either. So how do you do this, how do you start a conversation. Well in a networking meeting you would ask an open question wouldn't you.
This sounded like a good idea, but I thought I'd test it somewhere other than Twitter (where to date my open questions and those I've seen have not been too hot) and so posted a 'discussion' on to Linkedin (best not to have all your social networking eggs in one basket). The question was an open one, asking people to share their successes on Twitter.
Perhaps the question was not the best, sort of like 'So what success have you had in using a piece of string?' to which of course came the inevitable reply 'depends on how long the string is'.
In my instance the question did get a better answer than that, but only one and it was not the type I was expecting, but it did help me (Linkedin is by the way one of the best place to get high quality answers to questions).
The reply was:- 'Depends what your promoting. A lot about Twitter is not just sending out tweets but interacting with your followers. Let them know you're a real person on the other side and not just a "sales machine". Make sure you're tweets are short enough so that followers can retweet for you. There's a lot more to maintaining relationships on twitter!!'
As you can see it was a good answer, it says a lot. It tells you to
1. Ensure you interact with your followers
2. Make sure that they know it is you and not an autotweeting machine
3. Don't try to sell, sell, sell
4. Do short Tweets so that they can be retweeted without loosing some words
and finally
5. That there is a lot more to maintaining relationships on Twitter than you might think
All of the above is good stuff and all very very true.
It did not answer my question though. Is this a bad thing, did I get more than I bargained for? Well yes in a way, but that is what an 'open question' can lead to isn't it?
So open questions are the way forwards then? Perhaps, but here I am not sure as Twitter is very different from Linkedin. The two communities are therefore likely to act in different ways, so the 'open question' might work on one but not another. Certainly to date my open questions on Twitter have not been as successful as I'd have hoped.
So, my next step is to ask the same question on both, and I will report back with the results, plus of course any answers to my question "SO how do you start a conversation on Twitter?"
By the way, on the success front. I can report that we've had several good contacts from Twitter and so far one piece of work. Also 15% of traffic to our website comes from Twitter now.
All good stuff indeed and thus I will keep 'Twittering On' (but I will try to make it interesting).
More tomorrow
Monday, 8 February 2010
The Importance of Being on Twitter
One of the biggest reasons to be on Twitter and to tweet, tweet, tweet is that there is a chance (however small) that you might be noticed by a journalist and that they are, just when you send that tweet, looking for a story about what you do or have done.
It is only a slim chance, but it is worth taking as the free publicity you could get would be worth many thousands of pounds.
In the days before Twitter, journalists used to check just the online press releases, using keyword sniffing tools to find things that contained a key word of their choice. That saved them many hours of sifting and as I know from experience (I got a company on local radio this way) works.
Now of course they can use Twitter's in built search tool (and you should too by the way, just to see what is going on in your field) and you can be sure they are doing just that.
If you want an insight into how journalism are using Twitter to day, have a look at this article about 'how to track conversations in Twitter', sure is a good read.
Good luck in getting noticed...
More tomorrow
It is only a slim chance, but it is worth taking as the free publicity you could get would be worth many thousands of pounds.
In the days before Twitter, journalists used to check just the online press releases, using keyword sniffing tools to find things that contained a key word of their choice. That saved them many hours of sifting and as I know from experience (I got a company on local radio this way) works.
Now of course they can use Twitter's in built search tool (and you should too by the way, just to see what is going on in your field) and you can be sure they are doing just that.
If you want an insight into how journalism are using Twitter to day, have a look at this article about 'how to track conversations in Twitter', sure is a good read.
Good luck in getting noticed...
More tomorrow
Friday, 5 February 2010
Twittering - Some Basic Rules
Many of my blogs have been about Twitter and the fact that to get the most out of it you have to converse with people. Now getting a conversation going is not easy, but I have some basic rules that will help start them, help you keep them going and also, perhaps, spark some interest in other readers.
1. When someone raises a question or a point with you, make sure you answer it as best as you ca. If you don't know the answer, either say so with a note to say that you will find out and get back to them, or pass them on to someone that does know (and thus get points that way too).
2. Use the Real Time search facility that Twitter offers to see if people are talking about you or your brand / company. If they are having problems find out what, if they are enjoying things even better. Either way it is good to talk.
3. If you have something that you can give away, then don't worry about offending people. What is more the fact that you have done so may really impress them.
4. If you find someone has said something nice about you, then make sure you thank them. If this is done publically reply that way, if in a private message use that method first and then ask if you can use the testimonial.
5. Be nice to everyone!
Hope this helps, more details on using Twitter and SEO next week week.
5.
1. When someone raises a question or a point with you, make sure you answer it as best as you ca. If you don't know the answer, either say so with a note to say that you will find out and get back to them, or pass them on to someone that does know (and thus get points that way too).
2. Use the Real Time search facility that Twitter offers to see if people are talking about you or your brand / company. If they are having problems find out what, if they are enjoying things even better. Either way it is good to talk.
3. If you have something that you can give away, then don't worry about offending people. What is more the fact that you have done so may really impress them.
4. If you find someone has said something nice about you, then make sure you thank them. If this is done publically reply that way, if in a private message use that method first and then ask if you can use the testimonial.
5. Be nice to everyone!
Hope this helps, more details on using Twitter and SEO next week week.
5.
Thursday, 4 February 2010
Google Maps - The New Yellow Pages?
I interrupt my series of blogs on Twitter for a most important news flash about Google and the effects that 'smart phones' are going to have on the Search Market Place over the course of 2010.
In the USA, the effects are already being felt, and as ever, we in the UK are going to start feeling the same wind of change sooner or later. But what is this change and what does the business owner need to do right now if they are to benefit / not lose out?
The change is being caused by the way that people (especially the younger elements of society) use their mobile phones. Now I use the term 'phone' loosely here as these 'smart phones' are hardly phones at all, no they are powerful computers and are being used as such (did you know that more than 80% of Tweets come from phones!).
This use of the phone to 'to do it all' means that many (most) people will / are using their phones to SEARCH for things, especially for those things that are local to them at that time e.g Italian restaurant or pet shop. This so that they can quickly satisfy their needs then and there (we do after all now live in a society that almost demands 'instant satisfaction'). Google helps them here as it 'knows' where they are, so they don't even have to tell it that, just what they want.
Google then serves up a list based on it's Local Listings and hey presto they have all the info they need (even down to reviews on the businesses listed).
What does this mean for the business owner? Simple, that they MUST:-
1. Get listed in all of the relevant directories
2. Claim & verify their listings,
3. Get some customer reviews,
4. And thus secure your position on Google Maps.
If they cannot do this themselves, they should contact a Search Engine Marketing company that they trust and get it set up asap, before the rules change and the 'claim jumpers' get to work.
The clock is ticking here and time is running out fast..
More on Twitter and Search Engine Marketing soon...
In the USA, the effects are already being felt, and as ever, we in the UK are going to start feeling the same wind of change sooner or later. But what is this change and what does the business owner need to do right now if they are to benefit / not lose out?
The change is being caused by the way that people (especially the younger elements of society) use their mobile phones. Now I use the term 'phone' loosely here as these 'smart phones' are hardly phones at all, no they are powerful computers and are being used as such (did you know that more than 80% of Tweets come from phones!).
This use of the phone to 'to do it all' means that many (most) people will / are using their phones to SEARCH for things, especially for those things that are local to them at that time e.g Italian restaurant or pet shop. This so that they can quickly satisfy their needs then and there (we do after all now live in a society that almost demands 'instant satisfaction'). Google helps them here as it 'knows' where they are, so they don't even have to tell it that, just what they want.
Google then serves up a list based on it's Local Listings and hey presto they have all the info they need (even down to reviews on the businesses listed).
What does this mean for the business owner? Simple, that they MUST:-
1. Get listed in all of the relevant directories
2. Claim & verify their listings,
3. Get some customer reviews,
4. And thus secure your position on Google Maps.
If they cannot do this themselves, they should contact a Search Engine Marketing company that they trust and get it set up asap, before the rules change and the 'claim jumpers' get to work.
The clock is ticking here and time is running out fast..
More on Twitter and Search Engine Marketing soon...
Wednesday, 3 February 2010
The Three Twitter Camps
Twitter and Conversations
Twitter it seems is viewed by different people in different ways. Some see it as an electronic soapbox that allows them to vent their feelings on political or social matters, others just as a way of saying what they are doing. Another group is using it to make friend, whilst still another, the business people are trying to use it to get customers and ultimately make money.
There is nothing wrong with any of the above, Twitter itself providing all users with the ability to see what they want to see and block that they don't. It is also totally true that friends can be made online, many married couples being the proof on that one, if proof is needed.
The Three Twitter Camps
What interests me is that in the end all of Tweets these 'groups' make fall into one of three camps, those that just speak (and don't necessarily listen), those that are desperate for a conversation, something that they can build a 'relationship' on; whether this is friendship, marriage or a business transaction, and those that are just 'listening' to see what is going on, only making contact when something that really interests them happens.
I reckon that everyone will do some of each type of 'Tweet action' in their time, however, to be sure, many Twitterers will spend more time sending one 'type' of Tweet than another, this being quite simply because they have a different agenda for using Twitter.
To Converse, Just Speak or Listen
Now I must admit that I am still very much in the learning phase of my TwitterLife and thus, in true student style have been doing a fair amount of listening, trying to find out what the secret of Twitter is, primarily I will admit for the third type of user, that of the business trying to gain customers.
In the courses I have attended, there have been some fantastic examples of how Twitter has changed the fortunes of some businesses. The trick is of course to be able to replicate this success. So how has Twitter helped these people?
The majority of "winners" it seems have gained success by being noticed on Twitter when otherwise they would have remained in the shade. These lucky businesses have therefore gained the light that the conventional press and TV/radio services can provide. Why were they chosen, well here as ever lady luck has a part to play, in that someone was looking for a story about something just when these Tweets were new and fresh. The result, massive publicity, which in turn led to orders..
For others, success has too been caused by simply 'being there', people seeing the tweet and making contact. Sometimes this is caused by the fact that people have lost touch with old business contacts and in others they are brand new. Whatever, both result in sales and that is what counts for the business person in the end.
Both of the above are just about Speaking, about Tweeting, there is no conversation to speak of, the Tweet going straight to the point of 'success', this being basically caused by someone in the 'Speaking' camp being noticed by someone in the 'Listening' camp. This is great and in itself a great reason for using Twitter, but what about the other area of 'use' that of the 'Conversation' camp?
Stangers are just customers you haven't met yet
This area seems to be the most difficult to grasp, as it means that you have to elicit a response from a total stranger before the conversation can commence, for, if we are to turn these strangers in to customers we must 'talk' to them first. The key here is I understand not to Sell,Sell,Sell, but to 'chat, chat, chat' just as you would in a networking meeting. This will not be easy, especially with the time delays between Tweets. However, the rewards could be immense. Dell for example, used the Speaking camps methods to tell others of offers, used the Listening camps methods to monitor what was being said about them and then used the Conversation camps tools to engage, the result a huge boost in sales.
So we know that just 'being there' can be enough to get you noticed by journalists and by people who knew you or are excited about what you have to offer, this leaves the 'starting and continuing conversations' part to master.
I'll cover this is my next Blog
Retweet this article
Twitter it seems is viewed by different people in different ways. Some see it as an electronic soapbox that allows them to vent their feelings on political or social matters, others just as a way of saying what they are doing. Another group is using it to make friend, whilst still another, the business people are trying to use it to get customers and ultimately make money.
There is nothing wrong with any of the above, Twitter itself providing all users with the ability to see what they want to see and block that they don't. It is also totally true that friends can be made online, many married couples being the proof on that one, if proof is needed.
The Three Twitter Camps
What interests me is that in the end all of Tweets these 'groups' make fall into one of three camps, those that just speak (and don't necessarily listen), those that are desperate for a conversation, something that they can build a 'relationship' on; whether this is friendship, marriage or a business transaction, and those that are just 'listening' to see what is going on, only making contact when something that really interests them happens.
I reckon that everyone will do some of each type of 'Tweet action' in their time, however, to be sure, many Twitterers will spend more time sending one 'type' of Tweet than another, this being quite simply because they have a different agenda for using Twitter.
To Converse, Just Speak or Listen
Now I must admit that I am still very much in the learning phase of my TwitterLife and thus, in true student style have been doing a fair amount of listening, trying to find out what the secret of Twitter is, primarily I will admit for the third type of user, that of the business trying to gain customers.
In the courses I have attended, there have been some fantastic examples of how Twitter has changed the fortunes of some businesses. The trick is of course to be able to replicate this success. So how has Twitter helped these people?
The majority of "winners" it seems have gained success by being noticed on Twitter when otherwise they would have remained in the shade. These lucky businesses have therefore gained the light that the conventional press and TV/radio services can provide. Why were they chosen, well here as ever lady luck has a part to play, in that someone was looking for a story about something just when these Tweets were new and fresh. The result, massive publicity, which in turn led to orders..
For others, success has too been caused by simply 'being there', people seeing the tweet and making contact. Sometimes this is caused by the fact that people have lost touch with old business contacts and in others they are brand new. Whatever, both result in sales and that is what counts for the business person in the end.
Both of the above are just about Speaking, about Tweeting, there is no conversation to speak of, the Tweet going straight to the point of 'success', this being basically caused by someone in the 'Speaking' camp being noticed by someone in the 'Listening' camp. This is great and in itself a great reason for using Twitter, but what about the other area of 'use' that of the 'Conversation' camp?
Stangers are just customers you haven't met yet
This area seems to be the most difficult to grasp, as it means that you have to elicit a response from a total stranger before the conversation can commence, for, if we are to turn these strangers in to customers we must 'talk' to them first. The key here is I understand not to Sell,Sell,Sell, but to 'chat, chat, chat' just as you would in a networking meeting. This will not be easy, especially with the time delays between Tweets. However, the rewards could be immense. Dell for example, used the Speaking camps methods to tell others of offers, used the Listening camps methods to monitor what was being said about them and then used the Conversation camps tools to engage, the result a huge boost in sales.
So we know that just 'being there' can be enough to get you noticed by journalists and by people who knew you or are excited about what you have to offer, this leaves the 'starting and continuing conversations' part to master.
I'll cover this is my next Blog
Retweet this article
Tuesday, 2 February 2010
Internet Marketing Ologist
Want to know the definition of an InternetMarketingOlogist?
Please see:- http://knol.google.com/k/graham/internetmarketingologist/2dhi9q9r1dmdu/17#
Please see:- http://knol.google.com/k/graham/internetmarketingologist/2dhi9q9r1dmdu/17#
The Future of Search Marketing
As I write Google are set to introduce yet another twist to the way they interpret the Search Market place, this one seeming to be about increasing how much 'note' they take about an individuals social circle. At the moment Google already change the listings based upon where you have been before (beware of this if you stay logged into your Google account all the time as it WILL skew the results you see when searching). In fact, my tests have shown that your results can be skewed to some degree even when you are not logged in, Google it seems taking note of your IP address...
The latter points (about Google 'using your search history') has been around for sometime. This and the fact that Google alters what you see in the Search Results depending on where you are in the world (here providing more results from your apparent country as per your IP address) means that to some degree no one sees exactly the same first page results in any case, however, the latest changes may take it one step further than this.
But here I want to deal with one of the comments that I have heard from a few sources recently. The quote being that 'Search Engine Marketing is Dead', this being said as, as far as the proponents of this statement are concerned: "People will have details of the products and services they are interested in being sent to them directly, WITHOUT the need for them to search for them in the first place." If indeed this turns out to be true, then no one will use Google and the like to find things, but, there is one big flaw in their argument.
Let us examine the meaning of the phrase "People will have details of the products and services they are interested in being sent to them directly, WITHOUT the need for them to search for them in the first place." What does this mean? Well I think it means that today (yes even today) people make sure that information comes to them without the need to search. To do this people subscribe to Newsletters, RSS feeds, offers by email and Google Alerts to name but a few. In all these cases information is delivered directly to the recipient, so in that respect they are right, people do get info and news without the need for search.
Taking this one step further to include the Social Media arena, here too people get news and views on all sorts of things (perhaps too much at times) as those that they congregate with post this and that on the web. Again it is quite possible that they may well get to know about a fantastic new tumble dryer that irons the clothes as well and could then well go straight out and buy it, all without Searching for it at all.
But here lies the interesting point, as if people are to start talking about something, they have to know about it first. The 'news' has to start somewhere before it can be propagated. Now let us assume it is Twitter that is used to start the ball rolling. Now Twitter as we know has a very small message 'window' and so people use it to point to blogs or websites so that the message can be delivered in full. This of course means that there still has to be content on the web, content that will no doubt continue to be optimised until the last person stops using Google (please turn off the light) as no business will want to miss an opportunity.
We also have to consider exactly how the news 'leaks out' in the first place, how does the manufacturer tell all about his marvellous new machine? Of course for something as great as this the TV and radio will no doubt to be pleased to pass the message on, but for lesser products/services other means will be needed.
Twitter and the other Social Media sites will I'm sure be used here, but will they not also be using Online Press Releases and their website to promote it as well, so that people SEARCHING for things like this find them? If this is true then both the press releases and the websites must be optimised if they are to be easily found and that means in turn that SEO will be used (and that must include all the SEO tactics like building links will be put into place).
Lastly, if we are to assume that people let the news about this tumble dryer come to them (not searching for it in the first place), then you can be sure that when the time comes to buy it that they will seek reviews on the device and also for the best place they can buy it from. BOTH of these will mean, you guessed it, SEARCHING for these reviews and shops on the web.
Thus those wanting to make sure that their reviews or offers are seen by those searching WILL optimise their site in order that it gets the very best ranking possible.
We also need to come back to the point about users 'subscribing' to information sources. This too at least to a point will rely on good optimisation of the news source. For, to be found in the first place, people will more than likely have come across the site whilst they are using a search engine. OK some will be pointed to the blog etc via Social Media, but many will find sites using search, at least for some time to come.
So Search Engine Marketing is not dead (and is never likely to be either) in my opinion, but as with all things in life I am willing to discuss the matter and be proved wrong, I just wouldn't bet on it that's all.
More tomorrow!
Retweet this article
The latter points (about Google 'using your search history') has been around for sometime. This and the fact that Google alters what you see in the Search Results depending on where you are in the world (here providing more results from your apparent country as per your IP address) means that to some degree no one sees exactly the same first page results in any case, however, the latest changes may take it one step further than this.
But here I want to deal with one of the comments that I have heard from a few sources recently. The quote being that 'Search Engine Marketing is Dead', this being said as, as far as the proponents of this statement are concerned: "People will have details of the products and services they are interested in being sent to them directly, WITHOUT the need for them to search for them in the first place." If indeed this turns out to be true, then no one will use Google and the like to find things, but, there is one big flaw in their argument.
Let us examine the meaning of the phrase "People will have details of the products and services they are interested in being sent to them directly, WITHOUT the need for them to search for them in the first place." What does this mean? Well I think it means that today (yes even today) people make sure that information comes to them without the need to search. To do this people subscribe to Newsletters, RSS feeds, offers by email and Google Alerts to name but a few. In all these cases information is delivered directly to the recipient, so in that respect they are right, people do get info and news without the need for search.
Taking this one step further to include the Social Media arena, here too people get news and views on all sorts of things (perhaps too much at times) as those that they congregate with post this and that on the web. Again it is quite possible that they may well get to know about a fantastic new tumble dryer that irons the clothes as well and could then well go straight out and buy it, all without Searching for it at all.
But here lies the interesting point, as if people are to start talking about something, they have to know about it first. The 'news' has to start somewhere before it can be propagated. Now let us assume it is Twitter that is used to start the ball rolling. Now Twitter as we know has a very small message 'window' and so people use it to point to blogs or websites so that the message can be delivered in full. This of course means that there still has to be content on the web, content that will no doubt continue to be optimised until the last person stops using Google (please turn off the light) as no business will want to miss an opportunity.
We also have to consider exactly how the news 'leaks out' in the first place, how does the manufacturer tell all about his marvellous new machine? Of course for something as great as this the TV and radio will no doubt to be pleased to pass the message on, but for lesser products/services other means will be needed.
Twitter and the other Social Media sites will I'm sure be used here, but will they not also be using Online Press Releases and their website to promote it as well, so that people SEARCHING for things like this find them? If this is true then both the press releases and the websites must be optimised if they are to be easily found and that means in turn that SEO will be used (and that must include all the SEO tactics like building links will be put into place).
Lastly, if we are to assume that people let the news about this tumble dryer come to them (not searching for it in the first place), then you can be sure that when the time comes to buy it that they will seek reviews on the device and also for the best place they can buy it from. BOTH of these will mean, you guessed it, SEARCHING for these reviews and shops on the web.
Thus those wanting to make sure that their reviews or offers are seen by those searching WILL optimise their site in order that it gets the very best ranking possible.
We also need to come back to the point about users 'subscribing' to information sources. This too at least to a point will rely on good optimisation of the news source. For, to be found in the first place, people will more than likely have come across the site whilst they are using a search engine. OK some will be pointed to the blog etc via Social Media, but many will find sites using search, at least for some time to come.
So Search Engine Marketing is not dead (and is never likely to be either) in my opinion, but as with all things in life I am willing to discuss the matter and be proved wrong, I just wouldn't bet on it that's all.
More tomorrow!
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