tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1 2006-10-09T16:41:27Z Movable Type 3.31 tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.118 2006-10-09T16:25:14Z 2006-10-09T16:41:27Z

This article is part two of a two part article; the first part can be found here. Shopping or Price Comparison Results As price comparison engines like DealTime (now Shopping.com), Kelkoo, and Price Runner grew in popularity, so the search...

OMAstaff found here. Shopping or Price Comparison Results As price comparison engines like DealTime (now Shopping.com), Kelkoo, and Price Runner grew in popularity, so the search engines began to see them as a potential threat; somewhere else consumers could search for products and online stores other than the search engines themselves. Over time they have integrated shopping results into their search results, either by buying a shopping search site (Yahoo! bought Kelkoo in Europe) or by building their own (Google built Froogle to provide shopping search and price comparisons). ]]> Figure 2: Link to Nokia 6230 shopping results on Yahoo! UK Figure 3: Froogle results for an Acer 4200 laptop on Google. News Results One of the most common uses of the web is of course reading the latest news – and searching for articles from the past. The search engines show news results for searches they believe they will be the most useful for. Google have built their own news search engine (Google News) which allows searchers to search multiple news stories around the world, including national and regional news sites and specialist publications. MSN use the news syndication technology of Moreover with their own technology on top; Yahoo also have a news search engine. Websites that are listed in these results contain regularly updated news sections or may be pres release websites; the later are sometimes criticised for adding biased results to the news search results. Figure 4: News results for Virgin Galactic on MSN UK News Shortcuts in Search Results For some searches it’s not possible for the search engines to show a result straight away; they may need more information from the searches (such as their location) or there may not be enough space in screen to show all the information available. Increasingly the search engines are tempting the searcher to view this additional content or supply more information with what are loosely described as shortcuts – links or search boxes that when used lead to pages with more information. For example, a search for a movie currently showing at the cinema might produce an additional search box at Google into which a zip code or postcode can be entered to show cinemas near by showing the film, as well as links to reviews. Other example are links to price comparison results at Yahoo (as described above) and Local and Map results at Google. These are sometimes referred to as “invisible tabs” – the searcher does not have to specify a type of search by clicking a particular tab; the search engine analyses the words hey used to search and adjusts the shortcuts shown accordingly. This is an area the engines constantly seek to improve and therefore provide a better experience to their users. Figure 5: A cinema search box at Google, triggered by a search for the film “Cars” Local Results and Maps The offline Yellow Pages industry is worth billions of dollars and the public are increasingly searching online for local business and information. This has led to the development of local search websites including Yellow pages websites (known as Internet Yellow Pages, IYPs) and in the last couple of years, local search services from the search engines, merging easy to using maps, satellite photos, driving directions and local business listings. Google, Yahoo and MSN all have local search services. Figure 6: Local Search Results on MSN UK These two articles have provided an overview of the most commonly used types of search results; however there are others, including: • Image search • Newsgroup search • Book search • Academic search • Video and audio search • Topical search • RSS / Feed search • Answers and help • Local computer (desktop) search These can be read about and used from the advanced search options pages of the different engines. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Duncan Parry helps UK companies meet their objectives for their websites using pay per click advertising and search engine optimization to increase visitor numbers and sales levels. He has previously worked for the search engines Espotting (now Miva) and Lycos in the UK. Duncan Parry began working in search at the end of 1999 when he joined Lycos UK to work on the Link project, a new directory of UK websites. As a directory editor he researched, categorized and wrote short descriptions of hundreds of UK-specific websites in categories including genealogy, finance and business before taking responsibility for three of the fastest growing categories - computing, telecommunications and the Internet. Results from the directory feed into Lycos search results. In November 2001 he left Lycos to join pay per click search engine Espotting at the beginning of a time of remarkable growth for the company and the search industry as a whole. Espotting won deals to power the advertising on the search results in Europe of Yahoo!, Ask Jeeves, Lycos and many ISPs and destination sites. Whilst at Espotting Duncan rose to Agency Editorial Manager, responsible for an Editorial team that managed the UK search advertising across Espotting’s network of the clients of major advertising agencies. He also personally managed the UK campaigns of famous-name ecommerce websites and consistently improved advertiser spend and performance. He also worked with management to develop internal systems and business processes as the company rapidly expanded across Europe from 50 employees to over 180 and then merged with US-based FindWhat.com. Duncan left Espotting in February 2004 to act as a search marketing consultant for companies including VNU Business Publications, a network of IT, business and finance titles in the UK. In February 2005 he setup Steak Media , one of the UK’s fastest growing search marketing firms. All of Duncan's articles represent his own opinion and not those of his employers, present or past. ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.117 2006-10-09T14:48:31Z 2006-10-09T15:38:02Z

It is a fast, simple and highly effective way to reach out to your audience. For the first time you can connect directly to your audience allowing you to react swiftly to changes in market conditions, new product launches...

OMAstaff It is a fast, simple and highly effective way to reach out to your audience. For the first time you can connect directly to your audience allowing you to react swiftly to changes in market conditions, new product launches and to react to your competitive landscape. “An absolutely valuable form of audience contact” – Don Makoviney, Maksys Internet Programming and Development ]]> ARTICLE PAGE Using Content Connect really is as easy as 1, 2, and 3. Step 1 Email John Brock to get started. Step 2 - Using any blog software or any application that allows for RSS or XML creation, ad a new post or update your current post and Online Marketing Analyst will pull it in automatically. The posts can be up to 100 words in length. If an you do not have software to create your RSS or XML feed, no problem, Online Marketing Analyst will provide you access to its software at no additional cost. - Provide Online Marketing Analyst with your RSS or XML feed (100 words maximum) Step 3 Type and save your first post in your blogging or other appropriate application. You Are Done! Content Connect will pull in your feed adding your content to the home page and before each widely read article throughout payperclickanalyst.com. As you change your post or add a new one, Content Connect will pull in your new content. ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.116 2006-10-04T21:04:38Z 2006-10-04T21:12:24Z

Welcome to the first in our Search 101 series. These articles will provide introductions to topics in search marketing, starting with understanding how the search engines work and moving on to the opportunities they present business owners and how to...

OMAstaff Welcome to the first in our Search 101 series. These articles will provide introductions to topics in search marketing, starting with understanding how the search engines work and moving on to the opportunities they present business owners and how to manage different types of campaign. Figure 1: Results on Google for “cameras”. Part Two of this article will be published shortly. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Duncan Parry helps UK companies meet their objectives for their websites using pay per click advertising and search engine optimization to increase visitor numbers and sales levels. He has previously worked for the search engines Espotting (now Miva) and Lycos in the UK. Duncan Parry began working in search at the end of 1999 when he joined Lycos UK to work on the Link project, a new directory of UK websites. As a directory editor he researched, categorized and wrote short descriptions of hundreds of UK-specific websites in categories including genealogy, finance and business before taking responsibility for three of the fastest growing categories - computing, telecommunications and the Internet. Results from the directory feed into Lycos search results. In November 2001 he left Lycos to join pay per click search engine Espotting at the beginning of a time of remarkable growth for the company and the search industry as a whole. Espotting won deals to power the advertising on the search results in Europe of Yahoo!, Ask Jeeves, Lycos and many ISPs and destination sites. Whilst at Espotting Duncan rose to Agency Editorial Manager, responsible for an Editorial team that managed the UK search advertising across Espotting’s network of the clients of major advertising agencies. He also personally managed the UK campaigns of famous-name ecommerce websites and consistently improved advertiser spend and performance. He also worked with management to develop internal systems and business processes as the company rapidly expanded across Europe from 50 employees to over 180 and then merged with US-based FindWhat.com. Duncan left Espotting in February 2004 to act as a search marketing consultant for companies including VNU Business Publications, a network of IT, business and finance titles in the UK. In February 2005 he setup Steak Media , one of the UK’s fastest growing search marketing firms. All of Duncan's articles represent his own opinion and not those of his employers, present or past. ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.108 2006-10-02T20:17:16Z 2006-10-02T20:20:43Z

A revolutionary marketing device that I call article marketing I now will share with you. Now the sole question is can article marketing me? That depends on if you are looking to build pr, increase your inbound links, and boost...

OMAstaff A revolutionary marketing device that I call article marketing I now will share with you. Now the sole question is can article marketing me? That depends on if you are looking to build pr, increase your inbound links, and boost your traffic. If you answered yes to any of the above questions then continue to read, and learn the tricks of the trade. Before you begin to write your first article, you should ask yourself why I would use articles to market my website, in opposition to other methods. Well first of all it’s free, and what is more desirable than a new fresh free way to promote your website for free. Article marketing will also help build your inbound links and bring in a good amount of traffic, when written and distributed correctly. http://www.webmastershed.com/articles/resources Submit to all the resources in the link above and your inbound links will increase while also helping you build PageRank and traffic. Remember, articles take time to write and distribute, but they ultimately prove to be one of the most effective marketing tools out there that haven’t been oversaturated. Written by: Michael McLaughlin at http://www.webmastershed.com – webmaster forum, for more articles by this author please visit: http://www.webmastershed.com/articles ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.107 2006-10-02T20:05:30Z 2006-10-02T20:16:56Z

Two years ago, I began using ezine advertising as the cornerstone of my online marketing efforts. From the need to determine the most productive and cost effective ezines to advertise in, I stumbled upon a method that revealed the secrets...

OMAstaff The Method My method is easy to follow. There's 3 basic steps: 1.Examine several communication tools the experts use such as an email or sales page. 2.Compare these tools and search for similarties. 3.Collect the common points and implement those findings. For example, suppose I want to find out how to construct or improve a sales page for a product I own or have resell rights to. The first thing I do is to get online and do a search. In this example, I search using the phrase "internet marketing experts index". Second, I open every sales web page the search produces in a multi tab browser (Mozilla). Third, I compare the pages looking for similarities. I note these down in Windows notepad, taking care not to overlook details such as fonts, colors, graphics, etc. Finally, I incorporate the information I collected into my own sales pages.]]> Web Sales-Copy Page I've looked at, and studied countless web sales pages. (I estimate at least 50) Most of them have: - Red verdana headline in quotations - Testimonials (usually near the top) - Time or quantity limitations - A guarantee symbol graphic - Photo scan of their signature - Professional photograph - Background logo images - An audio or video - Free bonuses - Prices ending in the number 7 Most Cost Effective and Productive Ezines to Advertise In I'm currently subscribed to about 30 ezines that I advertise in. My experience has shown that the most cost effective and productive ezines to advertise in usually have: - A testimonial page - Contact info including phone number and address - Solo ads running regularly (If they sell solo ads and you never see any, it's a bad sign) - A form for submitting ads - Require subscribers to double opt-in - Have a long waiting period for running my ad (indicates a very popular ezine for advertising) Email Advertising About 15 of the newsletters I'm subscibed to are from online experts like Yanik Silver, David Vallieres, Mike Filsaime, Russell Brunson, Len Thurmond, and others. When they send an advertisement in the email I note the common points are: An irresistible headline that poses an open-ended question or statement - It's personalize - Short double spaced paragraphs - Bulleted benefits statements - Limited time of offer or quantity available - Special price or bonus for limited number of responders (i.e. the first 50 customers get half off) - Guarantee - P.S. that states a major benefit Note: I save the most persuasive ads in a separate folder for study. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) I learn a lot about my competitors' SEO techniques by examining their linking campaign. I initially do a search for keywords related to my website. Next I get the url's of my competition. Finally, I use an online tool at http://www.marketleap.com/publinkpop to reveal the following: - How many links my competition has - Who links to them - Ideas for who to approach for link exchanges - Other related websites I also use SEO Elite, a free tool to compare: - Keywords used - Keyword Density - Meta tags - Meta Description That's just some of the specifics. More can be revealed by examining the benefits statements listed on the expert's sales page or in their emails. You can get clues to the info. you need to study. For example, one benefit statement for a sales page info. product might say "The 3 Things Every Sales Copy Page Must Have to be Successful." So, now you know you're looking for 3 things they ALL have in common. Remember to get the big picture, look for similiarities, then study the details. That's the key to reveal the marketing secrets of the masters. Greg Root started using ezine advertising almost exclusively since 2003 and owns and maintains 'The Ezine Ad Tester' at http://www.maxprofitpro.com/ . See the results of his ezine advertising campaigns to find the best ezine advertising resources on the internet.]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.106 2006-09-29T21:56:40Z 2006-09-29T21:57:58Z

So much choice and so much to choose from! Paying someone to design and develop a web site is not an easy task today with all the competition in the market, let alone hosting and supporting your site. And what...

OMAstaff So much choice and so much to choose from! Paying someone to design and develop a web site is not an easy task today with all the competition in the market, let alone hosting and supporting your site. And what about search engine optimization? This guideline will help you ask the right questions before you decide to whom you are going to assign this task. So much choice and so much to choose from! Paying someone to design and develop a web site is not an easy task today with all the competition in the market, let alone hosting and supporting your site. And what about search engine optimization? This guideline will help you ask the right questions before you decide to whom you are going to assign this task. One of the very first questions you need to ask yourself is: Why do I need a web site? Several answers might pop up; to boost my sales, to make myself known, to have a reference for my clients, to start a new business,…the list can go on and on…but how do you determine what’s right for you and your business? The way to evaluate possible contenders for the job is to ask the right questions. Here are some questions you cannot afford not to ask. In reference to the company that provides web services, you should ask… 1. Are they offering just web development, or, just web hosting, or do they have a vast range of services linked to the web industry?…i.e. do they offer the whole spectrum of services linked with web sites? 2. How do their prices compare to other companies who are providing the same services? 3. How flexible are they to my requirements…a) do they offer extra pages? b) do they offer additional hosting? c) is support part of the price I’m paying? 4. Do they offer dynamic sites? Normally this would give an indication of how experienced their programmers are in developing sites. 5. Are there any references to ‘search engine optimization’ on their site? If not, most probably they are not going to write my site in a way that major search engines can find it and rank it highly. 6. Do they offer search engine optimization? This is very important if I need to rank high and make the task for prospective customers to find me an easy one. These are questions you should ask and if in doubt don’t hesitate to contact the company before investing your money in them. Most importantly they need to have fast and reliable support, although this can only be verified when it’s too late, i.e. you have already paid for it. Other decisions you need to take is how your web site should look like. Do you require a static site with a lot of content, or minimum content with impressive graphics, sounds and animations? This would obviously depend on the nature of your business and the way you need to promote your image. The company you choose need to have enough experience to help you make this decision based on your business’ perspectives. Whatever the case, as in nearly all things in life, a moment of reflection and some research are fundamental in order to make the right decision. tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.105 2006-09-29T21:53:44Z 2006-09-29T21:58:31Z

Search Engine Optimisation: How Accurate are Keyword Tools? In search engine optimisation, it is a crucial element to select the right keywords when optimising a website. The obvious reason being, if you have keywords with no search volume, you will...

OMAstaff Search Engine Optimisation: How Accurate are Keyword Tools? In search engine optimisation, it is a crucial element to select the right keywords when optimising a website. The obvious reason being, if you have keywords with no search volume, you will not receive any traffic. Secondly, if you have keywords that are too competitive, you will find it very difficult (almost impossible) to win high ranks. So how do we find the in between balance for both obstacles? This is where keyword tools would come into place, but how accurate are they? In search engine optimisation, it is a crucial element to select the right keywords when optimising a website. The obvious reason being, if you have keywords with no search volume, you will not receive any traffic. Secondly, if you have keywords that are too competitive, you will find it very difficult (almost impossible) to win high ranks. So how do we find the in between balance for both obstacles? This is where keyword tools would come into place, but how accurate are they? To start, the main keyword research tools that are found on the market today are Wordtracker, Overture Keyword Tool and Trellian Keyword Discovery. Now I bet many of you are pulling your hair out over which keywords are going to be suitable for optimisation. What makes it probably even more stressful is the varying results between the three different keyword tools i.e. one keyword tool may show a particular keyword to be very good, while another tool may suggest a whole different result for the same keyword. Well stop stressing right now! The truth is that we don’t really know how accurate these keyword tools are and we should only use their search volume figures as an indication as to whether a keyword is popular amongst search engine users. Let’s say a keyword phrase, “dog products”, has a search volume of 5,000 searches per month on the Overture Keyword Tool. To make an assumption that “dog products” is a good keyword for optimisation, based ONLY on the Overture figure, would be a very bad assumption. However, it gives us a rough idea of the search volume for that particular keyword. The next step would be to use Wordtracker or Keyword Discovery to see if a similar amount of search volume is present for “dog products” (remember to convert searches for each tool to a common time frame i.e. monthly or daily). If we have a very low search volume in BOTH Wordtracker and Keyword Discovery, then I would be very skeptical about using “dog products” for optimisation. The whole idea is to get at least two of the three keyword tools to reflect reasonable / high search volumes before considering that keyword to be suitable for optimisation. If you have all three keyword tools returning reasonable / high search volumes for “dog products”, then the chances are that this keyword is reasonable / high in search volume and definitely worth considering for optimisation. Once a good set of keywords have been agreed upon through the use of the keyword tools, you should then focus on the keywords that have a low / reasonable amount of competing web pages. There is no point trying to compete for a keyword that has 1,000,000 web pages in competition for it. If you are good at SEO then you could achieve high ranks for that keyword, but it would require a lot of time and investment which could be spent on better things. The lower the competition is, then the more chance of achieving higher ranks. To recap, there is no indication to say that keyword tools are 100% accurate. Whilst the reseller of the tool may suggest otherwise, I highly doubt it. The results should be taken like a “grain of salt” as they are only useful to give you an idea as to what the search volume might be like for a particular keyword (high, moderate or low). With each tool obtaining its results using different algorithms, in some cases their results will not support each other. Provided you use two of the keyword tools to investigate the search volume for keywords, you should be able to make a good decision as to whether a keyword might be worth optimising for. With that in mind, it would also be wise to use your common sense to determine if a keyword is one that YOU would actually use in a search. Otherwise, what would be the point of optimisation in the first place? David Touri works for SEO Sydney, providing search engine placement services. He is currently working on The Love Club single matchmaking website and Gay Match Maker gay dating service website. tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.86 2006-09-28T16:27:25Z 2006-09-28T19:21:47Z

OMAnalyst has FREE webinar fever! Our goal, our mission in life is to help educate our readers on how to maximize the return on their online investment. Holding true to that promise we are offering our first FREE webinar!...

OMAstaff OMAnalyst has FREE webinar fever! Our goal, our mission in life is to help educate our readers on how to maximize the return on their online investment. Holding true to that promise we are offering our first FREE webinar! Don’t miss it. It will be hosted by Kevin Gold CEO and co-founder of Enhanced Concepts. Kevin will kick it into overdrive in Maximizing Customer Experience to Skyrocket Website Sales! ]]> Gold Series Topics will include: • Customer experience spans across traffic (advertising) to the website (conversion isn't just about the website) • Connecting with different visitor types • Four layers of a high performance website • Strategies for converting visitors into buyers • Case studies and examples Please don’t hesitate to register. Availability is limited. October 25, 2006 | 11:00 AM – 11:45 AM EDT About Your Partner in Learning Kevin Gold - CEO and Co-founder Kevin Gold is a Partner and Co-founder of Enhanced Concepts, Inc. which specializes in turning website visitors into leads or sales through tested website conversion strategies and performance-focused search engine marketing. Kevin is a contributing author to multiple online publications and the author of FroogleMaximizerTM, the first comprehensive e-book on how to maximize your sales results from Google's Product Search Engine, Froogle. Kevin has extensive experience and proven expertise in marketing, corporate strategy, professional sales and business consulting with companies ranging from Fortune 1000 to small, privately-held and venture-funded start-ups. Through an intense passion for learning and dedication to his commitments, Kevin assists clients in achieving sustainable financial results from their online endeavors. His cutting-edge insight, integrity and hard work ethic have assisted Enhanced Concepts in building long-standing business and partner relations. Kevin has worked with over 200 companies in diverse markets and across the world to maximize their search engine marketing and to enhance their website conversions. He earned an MBA in Marketing from Xavier University and graduated Summa Cum Laude as an Honors Scholar from a private college. He is an avid reader and researcher of topics ranging from psychology to entrepreneurialism and from direct response marketing to Internet usability. He is a member of the American Marketing Association and is on the Board of Advisors for a privately-held company. ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.85 2006-09-28T15:19:02Z 2006-09-28T15:29:00Z

by Kevin Gold Ehnhanced Concpets Whether you want to maximize your paid search marketing or you are in the process of redesigning your website, you must think like your customer. Sure you heard it all before yet how well are...

OMAstaff Ehnhanced Concpets Whether you want to maximize your paid search marketing or you are in the process of redesigning your website, you must think like your customer. Sure you heard it all before yet how well are you implementing it?]]> Full Article ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.84 2006-09-27T16:46:35Z 2006-09-27T16:49:22Z

Unbeknown to the average consumer there is a war raging within the world of advertising. The battle of news services vs. search services is intense. I just wonder if print will suffer from post traumatic stress disorder....

OMAstaff Unbeknown to the average consumer there is a war raging within the world of advertising. The battle of news services vs. search services is intense. I just wonder if print will suffer from post traumatic stress disorder. More>> ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.83 2006-09-26T14:41:13Z 2006-09-26T14:56:12Z

MySpace Gaining Ground Accounting for 2.53% of Visits to Shopping Sites "MySpace and other social networks are prime targets for online retailers to take aim at in order to drive more traffic and increase their sales." - OMAnalyst "Social networks,...

OMAstaff MySpace Gaining Ground Accounting for 2.53% of Visits to Shopping Sites "MySpace and other social networks are prime targets for online retailers to take aim at in order to drive more traffic and increase their sales." - OMAnalyst "Social networks, with their inherent behavior-twist could prove extremely beneficial to online retailers, as opposed to general search engine traffic. This is an option that retailers should not pass up." - OMAnalyst Full Article]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.82 2006-09-25T17:28:26Z 2006-09-25T17:29:04Z

Sponsors page [edit]...

OMAstaff Sponsors page [edit] tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.81 2006-09-25T17:01:44Z 2006-09-25T17:10:19Z

One of the most challenging aspects of doing business is getting noticed. The challenge is exaggerated if you are a small business with a limited marketing budget. So how do you go about advertising like the big fish? The very...

OMAstaff One of the most challenging aspects of doing business is getting noticed. The challenge is exaggerated if you are a small business with a limited marketing budget. So how do you go about advertising like the big fish? The very first thing you need to do is to think tactically. Think about all the ways you could possibly advertise your online business; organic search, paid inclusion, pay-per-click / local search, behavioral targeting, contextual targeting, email marketing, viral marketing, word-of-mouth marketing, affiliate marketing. Oh yea, there are tons of ways to advertise and market your products. But you should pick just 3. Let’s say you are an online catering business. Now pick 3 advertising and marketing vehicles from the above list that you can use to maximize your budget. Let’s choose; paid inclusion; pay-per-click / local search and word-of-mouth. Paid Inclusion Paid inclusion is a good, easy and quick way to get your online business indexed by major search engines. There are many companies out there who will (for a fee) submit your website to multiple search engines. I like to go directly to the source. For example; you can here submit your website to Yahoo! If you are going to use a multiple inclusion service, I recommend ineedhits.com. They are quick, easy to use and very affordable. Keep in mind that it is possible to often submit your website for free to various search engines. However, it is my experience that if you submit a site for free, it takes longer to show up (only if the search engine has a paid inclusion program). Why, simply because they want you to pay to get your website included in their index quicker. Pay-Per-Click / Local Search Pay-per-click or local search (if you are a brick and mortal business) are extremely affordable ways to drive qualified traffic to your website. Often for just pennies you can receive good leads. The number one PPC / local search network is Google. But it can also be the most expensive. Why? Because tons of advertisers are using it, therefore you will be bidding against a boat load of competitors and you can get slammed with loads of traffic if you are not careful. If you are looking to drive a fair amount of traffic to your business and want to be able to advertise a little bit on each of the major networks, without focusing too much on one (unless it is paying off for you), I recommend ReachLocal. It is affordable, has a great user interface and best of all you work with a local agent that will see to it that your hard earned revenue is spent well. Word-of-Mouth Word-of-mouth marketing is in my opinion the number one most effective way to advertise and market your business. It doesn’t yield the tons of traffic that you can get from other forms of online advertising, but, it has a very high conversion rate. Why? Because more often than not, when someone goes to your website due to WOM, it is because someone they know recommended you. You can not get a better qualified lead than that. For effective ways on how to use WOM, you can visit the Word of Mouth Marketing Association at http://www.womma.org/. ]]> tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.80 2006-09-25T13:11:34Z 2006-09-25T19:45:58Z

OMAstaff tag:www.onlinemarketinganalyst.com,2006://1.79 2006-09-22T16:46:25Z 2006-09-22T16:50:26Z

Warning: If you sell 20” rims, don’t think that your online shoppers are all black, white guys and Spanish chicks love’m too! Why is it important to know that according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, as of...

OMAstaff Warning: If you sell 20” rims, don’t think that your online shoppers are all black, white guys and Spanish chicks love’m too! Why is it important to know that according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, as of April 2006, Black online internet users trail behind at 61%. While Whites (non-Hispanic) reside at 73% and English-Hispanic are at 75%? If you are a member of the Black, Hispanic or White community, it is important for you to know just what percentage of your ethnic population is online, because it helps you to gauge your general standards of living. While it is true that a family that enjoys a fairly good standard of living may choose not to go online, it is very unlikely and usually families that are not online are experiencing some sort of standard of living issue. The numbers are encouraging all the way around, however, as over 50% of all 3 demographic groups are online according to the survey. If you are an online advertiser, it is of the utmost importance that you become completely aware of the ethnic internet usage. Even if your product or service is “ethnic neutral”, you may be selling yourself short if your campaign mix is not optimized accordingly. The fact is that certain ethnic groups respond positively to different types of copy and imagery. Why is this so important? Why should I care so much about these seemingly petty details? Because according to the survey just 6% responded that they bought a product online. The other 94% were doing anything from checking out the weather to listening to Anderson Cooper reporting live from Pluto. Man that guy is everywhere. The fact is that as soon as you go online you have enlarged your neighborhood competitive landscape by millions. There may actually be a million other people trying to sell the same product as you in one way or the other. Every single competitive conversion advantage you can get your hands on, the better off you are. It is up to you however to turn those tidbits of knowledge into action. Paid search and other forms of online marketing may have made it easier for you to get eyeballs to your products, but they have not made it easier for you to turn those eyeballs into cash wielding customers. “A prospect is a prospect until the credit card transaction is validated” In other words, you are selling that person on your product or service up until the very last minute they leave your site and even after word, during your post transaction retention program. What! You don’t have a PTRP! I’ll save that for another time. There are 3.534 separate steps you can take to make sure each pay-per-click / paid search campaign meets ethnic usage requirements: • Make sure you write 3 keyword ads. One for each leading online ethnic group. • Make sure that each keyword ad leads to a page that is written specifically to appeal to each leading ethnic group. • And for goodness sake use imagery that will appeal to each. Don’t for the sake of all mankind use an image of a white family buying a car, if you wrote copy appealing to Hispanics. What’s the other .534 percent? There is none. It just sounded different! Making sure that your campaigns appeal to the widest possible audience is hard work. Some think too much work. Those are the losers who will be forking up their customers’ dead presidents to you. Forget about the hard work, do it and make it happen. If you build it the validations will come.