Search Engine Optimisation SEO

Interesting that search is still the cornerstone even of social media in the sense that ultimately keyword analysis is a critical part of understanding the subjects landscape online. Search engine optimisation , SEO ,will remain a prominent strategic digital marketing channel for some time. It will however adapt to the ever chnanging algorythmic landscapes

"No way" SEO will become outmoded

An expert has informed SEO marketers that the technique will not become obsolete, but the focus may shift on to the quality of content.
Search engine optimisation (SEO) will continue to be important in the future, but new features could come to the fore, according to an industry commentator.
Will Cooper, deputy news editor at New Media Age, stressed that there will be plenty of opportunities for using SEO, but marketers may need think more about the content they are producing.
He said: "There's no way they're going to be obsolete in the slightest. I do think the emphasis will be placed back onto new and more exciting content."
Mr Cooper made his comments following the release of Google's Social Search tool, which Punch Communications recently claimed will force all companies to have a social media presence.
In his view, the next big step for the search engine will be to introduce home hubs in consumers' living rooms, which he explained will allow people to stream everything at home.
He also suggested that Google may begin to introduce widgets into its start-up portal.

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Keywords 'essential for SEO success for blogs'

Companies should think carefully about which keywords they are going to use to ensure a blog has SEO success, an industry insider has asserted.
Having an effective list of keywords to include in a blog is a vital factor in achieving successful search engine optimisation (SEO), according to an industry insider.
Speaking to Marketing Sherpa, Acoustics By Design president Kenric Van Wyk suggested focusing on the different types of reader that a blog is aimed at and selecting keywords that they might use.
He also recommended looking using phrases that are generally used in the targeted sectors, as well as making sure the company's own services are included.
To ensure that there is an even spread of content throughout the year, Mr Van Wyk advised planning out an editorial calendar.
"We schedule posts to really ensure the diversity of content within each market sector and not hit on one particular issue too often," he explained to the website.
This week, deputy editor of New Media Age Will Cooper said that there is "no way" SEO techniques will become outmoded in the future.

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'Micro-conversions needed' to measure PPC impact

The impact of PPC strategies should be measured not just by full conversions, but by enquiries that might lead to offline purchases, according to an expert.
An industry insider has commented that advertisers should set up micro-conversion rates to see if pay per click (PPC) marketing techniques are driving offline sales.
Interactive marketing manager for Extra Space Storage Scott Jensen told Marketing Sherpa that often people will find out about a service online, but then complete a purchase in person at another time.
In order to measure this impact, he recommended that companies should create micro-conversion rates for customer enquiries and apply a monetary value to each one of these conversions.
Mr Jensen claimed that using this matrix of how much each enquiry is worth allows businesses to better quantify how useful PPC techniques have been.
He explained: "A keyword might [fully] convert online once every six months. That being said, that does not mean that it is not contributing to sales."
Last month, Marketing Sherpa advised advertisers to improve the quality and accuracy of product descriptions to improve natural search rankings.
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Marketers 'must adjust to maintain SEO rankings'

Advertisers have to alter their SEO campaigns to ensure that they maintain successful search rankings, according to an industry insider.
An industry commentator has told marketers to monitor their search engine optimisation (SEO) rankings, to make sure they do not fall behind their competition.
Writing on a blog for SEOmoz, Scott Willoughby pointed out that many of the tactics marketers use in SEO will stay the same, but there is a need to "future-proof" strategies.
He highlighted the need to concentrate on delivering the fundamentals of search marketing, while at the same time tweaking the details to maintain success.
"In order to stay on top of your game, you need to keep an eye on your rankings over time and adjust accordingly," Mr Willoughby wrote.
In his view, SEO is not a one-off campaign that advertisers can forget about once they have completed a campaign, but an "ongoing process".
Last month, an online marketing executive at Coast Digital pointed out that a good SEO organisation will be able to show what they have achieved through web analytics statistics.

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Google 'will not be sole SEO platform in future'

Portals other than Google will still have a vital role to play in search marketing, says an expert.
Search engine optimisation (SEO) will need to be carried out across a range of portals in the future, with the focus not just on Google, according to an industry expert.
Deputy news editor at New Media Age Will Cooper noted that Google does provide consumers with a solid base to search for what they want on the internet.
However, he claimed that people will still search across various company portals.
In his view, one company will always dominate an area, but it is another point entirely to suggest that a search engine such as Google will displace all other search sites and portals.
"I wouldn't imagine - I might be wrong - we'll get to a point where Google will become the main place you start for everything," he explained.
Mr Cooper made his comments following the launch of the Google Social Search tool, which the organisation has advised will work best if users create a public profile with the company.

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Expert champions SEO work

Search engine optimisation is a valuable service with proven results which must be differentiated from spam, says an industry commentator.
A marketing expert has discussed the positives of hiring a search engine optimisation (SEO) team to work on developing online presence.
James Fairweather, online marketing executive at Coast Digital, noted on his blog noted that the key to good SEO is quality content combined with effective delivery techniques.
He stated that this makes search marketing a completely different ball game to spam, since the content must be fresh and unique otherwise it will not drive traffic.
Mr Fairweather pointed out that a reputable SEO company will be able to prove what their work has achieved through web analytics statistics, so clients can see what they are paying for.
"Realistically, I could do my own accounting, or write my own will - yet many people will pay an accountant or a solicitor because they will do a better job," he commented.
This week, the marketing manager at Canterbury of New Zealand highlighted SEO as a key feature of the company's online strategy.

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SEO "critical" feature of online promotion

SEO techniques have proved to be very useful as part of a sportswear brand's online promotion campaign, according to the organisation's marketing team.
An industry insider has claimed that search engine optimisation (SEO) is an important part of branding online.
Steven Morris, e-commerce marketing manager at Canterbury of New Zealand, noted that SEO is a key feature in the launch of the company's new website.
He described how the sportswear brand has used the marketing technique alongside paid search to drive traffic since being bought by JD Sports Fashion in August.
Mr Morris said that the campaign is "working well" in pushing through conversions, following its campaign to improve natural search rankings.
"SEO is critical in our online strategy, most immediately as we prepare for the busy Christmas period and the 2010 Six Nations competition," he explained.
Earlier this year, Canterbury of New Zealand added email marketing to its advertising portfolio.
This week, a content quality analyst on the Yahoo! Search Marketing blog recommended writing "concise and well written" descriptions of products to boost SEO efficiency.

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Technical and witty descriptions 'can drive SEO'

Hiring writers to produce high-quality descriptions can improve retail SEO, says an expert.
By describing products in the right way, retailers can improve the search engine optimisation (SEO) of their products, according to an industry expert.
Eric Deniger, chief executive officer of Working Person's Store, told Marketing Sherpa that having writers produce high-quality descriptions of products can be beneficial.
He recommended that they show technical aptitude about the product they are describing.
It is also important to use a conversational style, because this will build trust with the customer, Mr Deniger continued.
"We want to make sure that we maintain a position of technical aptitude in the marketplace far beyond the retailers who copy and paste the bullet points from the manufacturer's website," he told the website.
As well as these style points, Mr Deniger noted that a keyword-rich approach is necessary to reach different demographics.
This week, online marketing director of Zoombits.co.uk recommended using links from journalists to boost SEO efficiency, because they will often be high-authority and natural sources.

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Making adverts accurate 'is vital for SEO'

Search engine marketers will improve the success of their campaigns by making sure adverts clearly explain the product on offer, says an expert.
Advertisers must make sure that adverts are well written if they want consumers to pay attention and improve search engine optimisation (SEO), one sector analyst has claimed.
Writing on the Yahoo! Search Marketing blog, content quality analyst Noah Belson pointed out that advertisers must make their promotions as appealing as possible.
An important part of this is making sure that adverts make sense, so they must be "concise and well written", he continued.
"As in school, grammar and spelling count. Users tend to ignore poorly written ads that are hard to decipher, or those that simply indicate a lack of attention," wrote Mr Belson.
In his view, marketers will be helping themselves by explaining as clearly as possible who they are and what they are offering.
This week, an industry expert speaking to Marketing Sherpa claimed that high-quality descriptions of products can drive SEO, with technical aptitude and a conversational style being two key features of successful style.

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Effective SEO tactic is to "get journalists on board"

SEO marketers have been told that getting links from journalists could be a good way to improve search efficiency, according to an expert.
Journalists could hold the key to efficient search engine optimisation (SEO), an industry insider has suggested.
Online marketing director of Zoombits.co.uk Sam Tilston made his comments following research by Econsultancy and Guava, which showed that 48 per cent of companies have reported an increased return on investment on SEO over the past year.
Mr Tilston observed that SEO marketers could improve their service by concentrating on getting good links to the right journalists, rather than link building, since Google will see through this latter tactic.
He explained: "The only way you'll stay on top is if you get natural, high-authority website links. The only way to do that is to get journalists on board and get them to link to you."
It is also vital for businesses to keep in contact with SEO companies, because Google will make about 400 changes to its algorithm each year and it is beneficial to know how each alteration affects search strategies, continued Mr Tilston

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SEO 'gives longer-term rewards'

An industry insider has claimed that businesses who want a better return on investment should choose search engine optimisation over paid search.
Using search engine optimisation (SEO) to build up traffic to a website gives a much longer-term reward than paid search campaigns, according to an industry expert.
Sam Tiston, online marketing director of Zoombits.co.uk, claimed that using paid search is similar to "renting the traffic", since companies are paying for all the business they receive.
In comparison, he commented that concentrating on SEO can offer a better return on investment.
Mr Tiston explained: "You're investing up front for a longer term, but after six months or so you're going to have those positions and you're going to get the constant flow of traffic."
He suggested that online retailers will use traffic through the website in order to sell their product and SEO and paid search will be two of the main ways of doing this.
Recently, Econsultancy announced that 45 per cent of companies are planning on increasing their paid search budget in the future.

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SEO "like creating a masterpiece"

Undertaking search engine optimisation (SEO) strategies on a website is similar to the creation of a beautiful painting, according to one sector commentator.
Carrying out search engine optimisation (SEO) strategies on a website has a number of similarities with the creation of a masterpiece, one sector commentator has asserted.
In an article for online resource SEO Consult, a user known only as Michael said that an SEO strategy needs a solid foundation upon which to be based, in the same way that a masterpiece painting requires a blank canvas.
"Doing SEO on your website is like creating a masterpiece. If your canvas is moth-eaten and stained, your masterpiece is not going to come out as such. On the contrary, you will end up with a half-cooked job instead," he stated.
As such, he recommended taking SEO into consideration when a site is just a blank canvas and ensuring that it permeates every element of its design and structure.
Earlier this month, Matt McGee, editor at Search Engine Land, told web resource SmallBusinessComputing that SEO is not as complex an idea as some might think.

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Yahoo! identifies possible retail SEO spikes

With the holidays just around the corner, Yahoo! has told marketers to begin their preparations for potential spikes in SEO.
Yahoo! has pointed out several potentially positive windows in retail search engine optimisation (SEO) coming up soon and warned advertisers to prepare well.
Writing on the Yahoo! Search Marketing blog, content quality analyst Noah Belson claimed that the holidays give marketers plenty to cheer about.
He highlighted Black Friday and Cyber Monday either side of Thanksgiving weekend as established shopping days.
Also, the first or second Monday of December has been coined by eBay as Green Monday, which Mr Belson commented is widely accepted as a very popular day for online retail.
"Advertisers need to get started now, to make sure that their campaigns are ready when consumers are," wrote Mr Belson.
He claimed another important day is known as Brown Monday, when retailers offer their biggest discounts and last-minute deals before Christmas.
This week, White Hat Media reported that SEO has been vital in raising online awareness of its client The Gym Group, as it drives web traffic.

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SEO 'vital to gym advertising campaign'

The marketing specialist at the centre of an advertising campaign for The Gym Group has said that SEO and social media are the key drivers of online awareness.
The marketing company which helped launch a new promotional campaign for a gym has highlighted the importance of search engine optimisation (SEO) in attracting customers.
White Hat Media designed the website and the SEO campaign for The Gym Group, which currently offers budget gym facilities in London, Surrey and Liverpool, but is planning major growth in the near future.
Jeremy Spiller, managing director of White Hat Media, commented that SEO is a key factor in generating web traffic and the online awareness that the organisation is aiming for.
He said: "We are working together on various ongoing online marketing activities to further drive sales and increase brand awareness."
Social media was also used to get the attention of consumers, added Mr Spiller.
This week, editor-in-chief of Search Engine Land Danny Sullivan bemoaned the criticism that SEO often receives and claimed that it is different to spam because it is more content-focused.

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Search engine's marketing campaign "very focused"

Google's new advertising campaign looks very effective and should not be considered a scare tactic by the search giant, says an industry insider.
Following the release of a new marketing campaign by Google, an industry insider has commended the search engine.
Ray Jones, head of communications and external affairs for the Chartered Institute of Marketing, dismissed the idea that these latest adverts are a scare tactic to show rivals the extent of their influence and financial muscle.
He suggested that the search engine is just trying to stay ahead of its competitors, as he claimed Google has been "exemplary" in the nature of its advertising in the past.
"For people on increasingly scarce budgets a campaign like this, focusing on the problems people endure every day, makes it seem like a very focused campaign on a clear market," explained Mr Jones.
In its official blog, Google stated that its applications are used across two million businesses in more than 100 countries.
Mr Jones added that there is a huge market for search and display advertising online, so it is likely that the company is trying to extend its influence with this latest advertising campaign.

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SEO 'not the same as spam'

Search engine optimisation is different to spam and should not be treated as the same sort of content, according to an expert.
An industry commentator has stressed that search engine optimisation (SEO) should not be confused with spam.
Danny Sullivan, editor-in-chief of Search Engine Land, wrote on the website that too often people who complain about SEO are not aware of how it differs to spam content.
He claimed that saying all SEO is spam is like declaring that all advertising and email marketing is spam, when in fact the basis of it is ensuring relevancy to what users are searching for.
Mr Sullivan pointed out that effective SEO will be based on top quality content, with everything else built on top.
"They should have good content. Trust me, a good search engine optimiser would love nothing more than to deal with a site that has outstanding content from the get-go," he wrote on the website.
In his view, the problem is that there is always going to be spam due to the lack of moderation online.
Last week, Marketing Sherpa advised search marketers that keywords which produce the most effective SEO will change over time.

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Relevancy 'vital in PPC marketing'

Pay per click advertising can be expensive so people must make sure that they carry out the process as efficiently as possible, says a commentator.
It is essential that website operators utilise their keywords in all parts of their advertisement page if they are going to employ pay per click (PPC) marketing, according to an industry commentator.
Peter Kolat, a representative from Realestateids.com, wrote in a Bigger Pockets blog post that PPC adverts can cost a lot of money if the process is not carried out correctly.
He suggested studying the topic or hiring someone else to organise a campaign if possible.
However, if people decide to do their own PPC marketing then he stressed the importance of making all content relevant.
Mr Kolat informed readers that no matter what the keywords are, "make sure that the phrase appears in the ad headline, ad body, ad destination url and the headline of the landing page itself".
Last week, Yahoo! announced that it is aiming to improve relevancy in its search results pages by allowing users to select specific providers when they look for a product.

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'Monitor keywords' for successful SEO

Search engine marketers have been told to pay attention to which keywords are being used by consumers.
Search engine optimisation (SEO) can be improved by keeping an eye out for any changes in the keywords that consumers are using, it has been suggested.
Advice from Marketing Sherpa suggests that marketers can expect to see different keywords gaining in popularity at different times.
The website spoke to SEO expert Eric Ward, president of EricWard.com, who suggested using data from a site's internal search tool to root out which phrases are being used.
As well as making sure the right keywords are present, Mr Ward recommended making navigation around the site easy, as he claimed this can improve natural search results.
"If you let the user experience drive your choices, it gets easier. But you still run into the same challenge, which is what do we show versus what do we not show?" he added.
This week, online media site Stuck On remarked that to achieve effective SEO, it is more important to have quality content than having the right links on the page.

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Testing internal links 'can improve SEO'

Website owners should use testing to decide how many internal links they need on a webpage, says an expert.
It is essential to test and tweak the number and style of internal links on a website, in order to improve search engine optimisation (SEO), an industry insider has suggested.
Eric Ward, president of EricWard.com, spoke to Marketing Sherpa and highlighted the importance of conversion rates during testing, rather than just improvement in Google rankings.
He pointed out that it is difficult to know how many internal links a webpage should have, so the only way of ensuring improvement is to gradually make changes and test for traffic, conversion rates, clickthrough and search rankings.
Mr Ward told the website: "Testing is vitally important because every website and industry is unique. There are no absolute rules that apply to all situations."
Another difficult decision is whether it is a good idea to have more than half of the links on the page containing the same anchor text, he added.
This week, iCrossing claimed that it used the principles of SEO with the content on social media websites to create its latest product - Say What?.

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SEO "a researching and writing skill"

One sector commentator has assured people who are unsure about technical matters that they need not be intimidated by search engine optimisation (SEO).
People who are intimidated by the idea of search engine optimisation (SEO) should not be overly concerned, one sector analyst has asserted.
Nicolette Beard, a marketing expert with 25 years' experience in the marketing sector, explained that some people will think "I'm not a techy-type person" automatically when they hear a phrase such as SEO.
However, she urged users not to be put off.
"While there are technical aspects to SEO, it is really a researching and writing skill, which is good news for corporate and business communications professionals," said Ms Beard, who works at Searchlight Marketing.
Effective SEO strategies can help attract a range of different people to websites, she concluded, noting that these may include journalists who receive news alerts that are based around specific keywords and phrases and consumers who type queries into search engines.
In recent days, Matt McGee, editor at Search Engine Land, told SmallBusinessComputing that implementing effective SEO strategies is not as complicated as some people might think.

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Press release SEO tips offered

One sector commentator has offered hints and tips on how to improve the search engine optimisation (SEO) credentials of press releases.
A number of hints and tips on how to enhance the search engine optimisation (SEO) credentials of press releases have been provided by one industry analyst.
Joan Stewart from 89PressReleaseTips.com explained that failing to include keywords in a press release is one of the most common mistakes she spots while on the web.
She stated that keywords are like "magnets" for search engine web crawlers and are very useful when it comes to ranking higher in results pages, regardless of the products or services being promoted by a particular press release.
Ms Steward noted that a wide range of different users carry out search queries, meaning that press releases with good SEO credentials can effectively reach a variety of distinct audiences.
"Journalists use search engines to find stories. Your customers use search engines to find products and information. An optimised press release sends people to your web site long after the news is stale," she concluded.
Earlier this month, ITPro noted that Microsoft's search engine Bing is "worth optimising for", based on its "healthy" market share.

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Holidays 'provide opportunity for effective SEM'

Search engine marketers have been advised to promote their products in the run-up to Thanksgiving, since conversion rates are high on national holidays, reports an expert.
Search engine marketing (SEM) during national holidays can be more successful, according to advertising experts.
The Yahoo! Networks Insight team wrote on the company's advertising blog that conversion rates were higher during the national holidays around Thanksgiving in the US than they were during the rest of November 2008.
It showed that the day after the holiday - referred to as Black Friday - is now a very popular for consumers to make online purchases.
While conversion rates on Black Friday and Cyber Monday were up 147 per cent and 73 per cent respectively on the average day in November, clickthrough was down by 27 per cent on both days.
The team explained: "Not only is Cyber Monday still a top online shopping day, but the traditional offline shopping day Black Friday also proved to be a significant day for online sales conversions."
In order to profit from this trend, the team recommend raising awareness of products in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving.
Thanksgiving is on November 26th this year.

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Yahoo! 'aiming for relevancy in PPC advertising'

Users of Yahoo! will now be able to select a specific provider when they search for a product, according to the company's official search marketing blog.
Yahoo! has announced that it has developed its search engine to allow users to filter results more effectively, which it claims will enhance the use of pay per click (PPC) advertising.
Writing on the official Yahoo! Search Marketing blog, Jeff Hecox stated that a menu on the left-hand side of the screen will add the option of getting search results from only one provider.
The example he used was if somebody were to search for "buy Pink Floyd", then they could also refine the results down to just seeing those products from Amazon, which will be organic and paid links.
Mr Hecox stressed that it would not change the nature of PPC cost, as advertisers will still only have to pay if a user clicks on a sponsored link.
He explained: "The filtering option, along with the other cool features added to Yahoo! Search last month, is designed to increase relevancy and user control of the search experience."
Last week, David Pann, vice-president and general manager of search marketing at the organisation, commented that Yahoo!'s recent advertising campaign is all about attracting more engaged customers to the service.

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Social media expansion 'focuses on people, not technology'

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone has announced that he will be encouraging users to help the service translate its website into four other languages.
Social media site Twitter has stated that it is aiming to expand its user base by concentrating on the people using the service over the technology being utilised.
Mr Stone, co-founder of the social networking service, wrote on the organisation's official blog that as part of this philosophy it will be inviting a small team of volunteer translators to gradually make the website available in other languages.
He commented that a new tool has been set up by Twitter so that people can start to make the translations into French, Spanish, Italian and German.
Currently the website is only available in English and Japanese.
Mr Stone wrote: "No matter how sophisticated technology gets, we're reminded daily that it's about people and that's something we've taken to heart regarding translating Twitter."
Last week, the organisation encouraged its users to take part in a charity fundraising activity through DonorsChoose.org, where people follow and support one another's events through Twitter.

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'Plenty of potential' in Google Wave social media service

There are some bugs to fix in the new Google Wave product, but there are plenty of exciting features to look forward to when it is perfected, says an expert.
There is plenty of potential in social media service Google Wave, although there are bugs to fix, according to an industry commentator.
Will Cooper, writing for new media age, reviewed a beta version of the new Google product and initially remarked that it is a glorified instant messaging service, but he saw a lot of positives too.
Although he feels unsure how advertisers will see the platform in terms of engaging with consumers, for users he remarked that it could be successful.
Mr Cooper explained: "The principle of having real-time conversations with others, dragging in content to share, like maps, videos and - maybe one day - ads, is an exciting prospect."
He pointed out that some of these features, such as map sharing, involved a few hitches, but he noted that this is what beta versions of applications are there for - to iron out any faults.
As well as being able to use current Google programs such as Documents and Maps, the company has also developed social gadgets called Wave APIs.

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Occupation 'affects social media usage'

If a person has web access at their place of work they are more likely to use social media websites, according to an expert.
The amount of time that consumers spend using social media can be influenced by the type of work they do, according to an industry commentator.
Ben Camm-Jones, news editor at Web User, remarked that many people do not have internet access at work, which is a time that a lot of users will check their Facebook or MySpace account.
He noted that those who have free use of the web during their employment have more of an opportunity to use social networking services, even if they just visit them during break times.
"How engaged people are with social media depends on a lot of factors, one of the most important of which is their line of work," explained Mr Camm-Jones.
Another significant factor in whether people use social media can be privacy issues, fears that may be intensified by negative reports from the press, he added.
Mr Camm-Jones made his comments following a statement by Dadooda.com founder Neil Stapley, which indicated that social networking sites do not cater for all age groups.

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Special offers 'are key factor in lead generation'

Improved lead generation can be achieved by presenting additional offers on a website, says an industry expert.
Lead generation can be given a significant boost by presenting the right special offers to customers, an industry expert has suggested.
Speaking at a recent Marketing Sherpa summit in Boston, Dave Laverty, vice-president of marketing at IBM Cognos, commented how his company were failing to engage with consumers a few years ago until they worked on new approaches on generating leads.
He noted how his team decided to treat the website as a "demand-generating tool" and experimented by offering a wide variety offers and making sure to get customer details when they sign up for a product.
"We have a lot of people passing by our window, so to speak. What are we doing to encourage those people to come in, browse and engage with us?" Mr Lafferty told the marketing website.
The results of their use of additional offers on their website, combined with other strategies such as analysis of customer data, is that the company has reduced its cost-per-lead by up to 40 per cent.
Last week, Jonathan Attwood from SwapitShop suggested that businesses should not be afraid to let their brand go to improve lead generation in the youth market.

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Social media use in fashion is "huge"

Twitter is being used as a live feed to comment on each model that comes down the runway at fashion shows, says an industry insider.
Social Media service Twitter is taking off in a big way in the fashion world, although the novelty may soon wear off slightly, an industry commentator has suggested.
Kristina Knox, writer of fashion blog The Clothes Whisperer, pointed out that the immediacy of tweeting allows fashion writers to remark on every look they see coming down a runway.
She noted that Twitter was not quite as popular at the recent Chanel show in Paris, but said it was all the rage in New York.
Ms Knox explained: "Tweeting especially has been huge.
"The fashion bloggers haven't even been putting up their blogs, they've just been tweeting from shows. Every look which comes down the runway they will tweet about it."
Looking to the future, Ms Knox predicted that there may be a drop in the volume of tweets at fashion shows when it all becomes more commonplace, but they will not die out.
This week, the Federal Trade Commission announced new guidelines which will restrict celebrity endorsement on social media posts in the US.

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Profitable lead generation 'requires ownership'

In order to improve conversion rates and achieve cheaper lead generation businesses must be willing to employ someone solely to look after this issue, says an expert.
Companies should have someone dedicated to improving conversion rates as it will make lead generation more cost-effective, an industry expert has suggested.
Linus Gregoriadis, research director at Econsultancy, made his comments following research by RedEye and Econsultancy, which indicated that 70 per cent of client-side companies had seen improved conversion rates in the past year.
He highlighted the importance of having someone taking the lead on conversion and was surprised to find that 40 per cent of respondents in the survey do not have anyone in this role.
"If an organisation has someone directly responsible for conversion they are more than twice as likely to have experienced improved conversion rates in the last 12 months," Mr Gregoriadis explained.
RedEye chief executive officer Mark Patron claimed that in terms of cost, improving conversion by ten per cent can be more effective than spending ten per cent more with a search engine such as Google.
This week, industry specialist Dave Laverty told a Marketing Sherpa summit that adding special offers to a website can lift lead generation.

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Social media site gauges mood of the US

Facebook has collated information from status updates over the past few years to find out when users in the US were happiest and when they were saddest.
Social media site Facebook has put together a Gross National Happiness Index to gauge the emotions of the US over the past few years.
By monitoring the positive and negative words used in status updates, the social networking site made a graph of when the country was happiest and saddest on the whole, Facebook data team member Adam Kramer wrote on the official blog.
The unhappiest day recorded was January 22nd 2008, which was the day of the Asian stock market crash and also when young actor Heath Ledger passed away.
"Some of the happiest days include US national holidays like Thanksgiving and fourth of July, social holidays like Halloween and religious holidays including Christmas and Easter," Mr Kramer said.
He stressed that people's privacy was respected during the research and positive and negative words in statuses were picked up by a computer and not by a person scouring private updates.
This week, Web 2.0 practitioner Leon Benjamin claimed that the most valuable asset that social media sites possess is data about their users.

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PPC 'will see increase in clickthrough per conversion'

Pay per click advertisements increased by eight per cent in July and August and an industry expert has predicted that it will continue to rise for the rest of the year.
Pay per click (PPC) advertisements will see more customers clicking through to their offers over the next few months, an industry expert has predicted.
Chief executive officer and founder of NetElixir Udayan Bose made his comments following the release of figures by the organisation which indicated that PPC clickthrough had increased by eight per cent in July and August.
Mr Bose pointed out that this is a growing trend whereby customers now click on more adverts before any conversion takes place.
He explained: "People are clicking more advertiser listings on search engines - gathering information, comparing offers - and then making a purchase."
NetElixir estimated that there will be a year-on-year increase of between three and four per cent in search advertising clicks over the holiday season in the US.
Last week, Elizabeth Clifford-Marsh wrote in Revolution Magazine that the number of people clicking on display adverts had halved in the past two years.

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"Further developments" expected for online video production

Online video production still has a long way to go, but the release of Flash Player 10.1 for smartphones is another step in its evolution, says an industry expert.
There are "further developments to come" in the evolution of online video production, according to an industry insider.
Andrew Laughlin, a spokesperson for Digital Spy, made his comments following the news that Adobe is launching Flash Player 10.1 for smartphones, which should be available on high-end handsets by the end of next year.
Flash Player is currently the standard medium for playing videos on PCs.
He pointed out that there are still too many problems with internet coverage for video use to really take off on mobiles, but he said that it is a step in the right direction.
"Mobile will probably take a while before it becomes a seriously prominent platform. There are plenty of further developments to come in online video, mostly on fixed networks before mobile," he explained.
Mr Laughlin remarked that services such as video on demand and live video streams are still in the early stages, so they have plenty of growth left in them.

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New features on smartphone 'nurturing mobile content'

Google will begin to offer richer media content to advertisers through its AdSense program, which the search engine believes will encourage more mobile content production.
Google has claimed that developing new advertising features for smartphones will encourage the creation of more mobile content.
Danielle Van Dyke, a software engineer writing on the official Google blog, made her comments following the release of AdSense on smartphones such as the iPhone, Palm Pre and all Android-powered mobiles.
She pointed out that if more companies are able to create quality adverts for the mobile internet, then there should be more funding made available to develop mobile-specific sites.
Ms Van Dyke explained: "We're excited to announce a new feature for our AdSense mobile publishers that enables them to serve text and image ads on their sites - specifically on these high-end smartphones."
In her view, it has not been easy for advertisers to reach smartphone users and the release of AdSense will allow this connection to be made.
This week, Meghan Keane wrote on the Econsultancy blog that Google is effectively betting on the future of this new generation of phones by starting to serve up richer media adverts.

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Email marketing 'must compete with social media'

Email marketing will need to compete with social media more over the next 12 months, although the content of emails will still be of greater importance, claims an industry website.
Email marketing campaigns must focus their energies on competing with social media websites for the time of consumers, an online advertising website has suggested.
The results of a survey of email marketers by Marketing Sherpa showed that this challenge has come to the fore over the past year.
Only 23 per cent of people polled said that vying for the attention of online consumers was an important challenge last year, whereas 71 per cent believe that its importance will increase in the next 12 months.
Meanwhile, the content of email marketing campaigns came top of the poll in terms of significance, with 76 per cent stating that it will be key over the next year.
The website explained: "While 'delivering highly relevant email content to recipients' continues to rank at the top, it is declining slightly in importance as email marketers conquer the complexity of this essential tactic."
This week, Marketing Sherpa advised email marketers to try to re-engage inactive subscribers as a way of increasing the number of consumers being reached.

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Email marketing 'boosted by social sharing'

Email marketers can boost the success of their viral productions by making an email which can be shared on social networks, says an industry expert.
Email marketing campaigns should use social sharing to spread a viral production rather than asking customers to forward to a friend, an industry insider has recommended.
Will Schnabel, vice-president and general manager of international markets at Silverpop, made his comments following the release of a study by his organisation, which indicated that social sharing is more than 500 times more effective than forwarding emails.
He pointed out that when consumers use social networks they will on average have up to 200 friends, so if an email is combined with these sharing sites then it will create a very powerful viral tool.
Mr Schnabel explained: "Developing an email that is socially shareworthy can turn messages viral very quickly and reach a new group of customers very similar to the ones you already have."
This week, online advertising website Marketing Sherpa released a study showing that 71 per cent of email marketers believe that they must focus on competing with social media sites for the attention of consumers over the next year.

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Data is most useful social media asset, says expert

In order to create a new revenue stream, social media websites may need to sell data, according to an industry expert.
The most valuable asset that social media sites possess is data about emerging trends, an industry expert has suggested.
Leon Benjamin, a Web 2.0 practitioner, made his remarks following comments by Dadooda founder Neil Stapley that social networking websites will need some sort of new revenue to ensure that they have sustainable business models.
Mr Benjamin claimed that it is generally accepted that one way that companies such as Twitter can make money is to sell the data that it generates.
"The reason why it's important is that it can tell brands, governments, other organisations, about trends and patterns which are emerging in real time," he explained.
It is not just useful for making people aware of products, it can be useful politically too, claimed Mr Benjamin.
He highlighted the reported use of Twitter in Iran as an example of this.
Last month, Twitter received a new set of funding from six companies including Morgan Stanley, Insight Venture Partners and Spark Capital.

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Social media site 'keeps ancient language alive'

Facebook users can now use Latin on the social networking website, which a representative from the organisation has said will be good news for students of the language.
Social media website Facebook has announced that users will now be able to change their language settings to Latin.
Elizabeth Linder, an associate on the organisation's communications team, wrote on the official Facebook blog that she was hugely grateful to all those people who helped translate the website into the "dead" language.
She pointed out that Latin will always be intriguing even if it has long been out of use, with only legal terms, school mottoes and plant names ever really referred to using its classic terms.
"To students of Latin, the availability of the language on Facebook may be just what's needed to narrow the distance between themselves and the venerable language," explained Ms Linder.
There are now more than 70 languages available on the social networking website, from hugely popular tongues such as English and Spanish to less utilised ones like 'Pirate'.
Last week, Facebook encouraged its users to become fans of the organisation's security page in order to stop people falling victim to scams.

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Social media must show "enduring value"

Social media websites will have to find a way to bring in more revenue, because advertising alone will probably not suffice, according to an industry insider
Social media websites will only continue to succeed if they show "enduring value", because otherwise people will not want to pay for them, according to an industry expert.
Neil Stapley, founder of Dadooda.com, pointed out that online companies will find it hard to survive on advertising revenues so there needs to be some other form of income.
He claimed it is fine to establish a brand through free access but eventually it will need to either switch to a paid-for service or sell the whole company to another big firm, which may see potential in acquiring the user list.
Mr Stapley suggested that of all the social networking sites, Twitter may be one which has the ability to start charging for content.
"The key is to have a product which people perceive to have real and enduring value and for which they are therefore prepared to pay," he explained.
Twitter increased its number of unique users from 2,612,058 in August 2008 to 23,579,044 in the same month this year, according to siteanalytics.

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Smaller prizes 'can increase email marketing success'

People may respond better to smaller prizes as they believe there is more chance that they will win, says an industry insider.
When offering prizes as part of an email marketing campaign, it can be beneficial to offer smaller gifts, an industry insider has suggested.
Erin Daly, enterprise marketing program manager at PTC, told Marketing Sherpa that her organisation carried out a study comparing response rates between a campaign offering a $10 gift card and another offering an expensive mattress set.
What she concluded from the experiment is that people will assume that they are not going to win the prize if it is too expensive, because the gift card offer ended up giving a 467 per cent increase in the response rate.
She told the website: "If the incentive is 'You get a $10 Starbucks gift card,' I know I'm getting that gift card and I'm much more likely to respond."
Last week, Shera Sherago, senior manager at Interactive Marketing, suggested to Marketing Sherpa that email advertising needs to be managed just as carefully as any other part of a promotional campaign.

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Google announces new Adobe SEM deal

Google has announced a new partnership with Adobe.
Google has embarked on a new search engine marketing (SEM) relationship with Adobe, it has announced.
In a post on the search company's official blog Bill Coughran, senior vice-president of engineering at Google, explained that the firm has been working with Adobe on a range of different projects "for years".
He explained that Google Chrome, YouTube and Google Android all require close integration with technologies provided by Adobe.
"We're excited to be joining Adobe's Open Screen Project, an initiative established a year and a half ago to help developers more easily design content for the web across multiple screens using the Flash platform," Mr Coughran added.
Concluding, he said that Google is excited to be working with the firm on an open platform as this can allow for "greater innovation" on the internet.
In recent days, Google launched a range of new tools in its Search Options panel, such as an enhanced search history setting to improve efficiency with new queries.

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'Consider SEO' when redesigning websites

Search engine optimisation (SEO) should be taken into consideration when websites are being redesigned, it has been asserted.
When websites are being redesigned and updated, search engine optimisation (SEO) should be taken into consideration, a sector analyst has asserted.
In an article for online resource PromotionWorld, Kabir Bedi explained that the internet is a constantly evolving sphere and that in order for businesses to keep pace with their competitors, they must adapt and evolve to exploit the latest technology.
He noted that redesigning a website is one of the best ways to do this, but urged companies to consider the SEO implications of doing so.
"Run down the last minute check list before launching the new redesigned website. The search engine ranking of your website depends on a variety of factors - including the website structure, the design and layout and the content," Mr Bedi commented.
Meanwhile, an article posted on Write About Property in recent days noted that website titles are the most important SEO elements of any page and urged users to include key words and phrases in these sections where possible.

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Social media site Twitter "could generate revenue today"

Twitter is not focusing on generating a profit at the moment because of its long-term strategy, says an industry insider.
The social media service Twitter could be profitable if that was its current goal, but instead it is trying to ensure its long-term future, an industry insider has suggested.
Alberto Nardelli, co-founder of tweetminster.co.uk and chief executive officer of unltdworld.com, made his comments following the news that Twitter has secured new funding this week, from six different companies including Insight Venture and Benchmark Capital.
Mr Nardelli stated that this showed that the social networking platform is building a lasting business.
He explained: "Twitter could easily generate revenue today if it wanted to, instead and rightly so, they are focusing on creating long-term and durable value."
In terms of traffic, the website is now the fifth most popular social networking service with 1.27 per cent of the market share, according to recent figures by Hitwise.
The study showed Facebook and MySpace have the largest share with 41.75 per cent and 21.5 per cent respectively.

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Social media 'could be bought by telecoms companies'

Telecoms companies could be involved in the ownership of social media websites in the future, according to a web expert.
As social media could be described as communications platforms, it would not be a surprise if telecoms companies ended up buying them, according to an industry expert.
Leon Benjamin, Web 2.0 practitioner and author of Winning by Sharing, pointed out that social networking sites, such as Facebook and Twitter, are just another communication channel.
He suggested that in the future, when those companies mature and aim to consolidate, there is a lot of evidence to suggest that telecom firms may be involved.
Mr Benjamin explained: "The most mature market in social media is actually South Korea in terms of its reach, and it had a huge social website – Cyworld- which was actually bought by a Korean telecom company."
Recently PostRank released an online tool, which it claimed will allow companies to monitor the number of people who visit their social media web pages and find contextual information about how they get there.

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'Restrict keyword strings' for effective SEM

Using longer keyword strings can assist SEM, but businesses should be careful not to make them too long as they may not reach as many potential customers, says a marketing website.
To achieve successful search engine marketing (SEM) campaigns, a company's keyword string should not be too long, otherwise it will not be reached by enough consumers, according to an online advertising website.
Although longer strings achieve higher conversion during tests by Marketing Sherpa, it found that it is counterproductive to use more than six words.
This is because it noted that 95 per cent of searches use fewer than seven words, so the question arises whether it is worthwhile to restrict the number of potential customers to five per cent of the total.
The website observed: "Marketers need to identify, understand and speak the same language used by their target audience, and emphasise words that lead to the highest conversion levels.
It advised using site log files to work out what keywords to focus on, as it is something that copywriters already do.
This week, an eMarketer spokesperson predicted that there will be "increasing commitment" to search in the future, because of its proven return on investment.

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"Let your brand go" to get youth market lead generation

Companies must be willing to engage with youngsters and possibly let their brand image slip in order to be successful in the youth market, says an expert
Companies must not be afraid to let their brand image slip when chasing lead generation in the youth market, an industry expert suggested.
Jonathan Attwood, founder and chief executive officer at SwapitShop, commented that young people are "incredibly bright", so the only way of understanding what they like is to ask them and then take note of their responses.
He remarked that there is also a ruthless streak to youngsters, which means that if a company does not give them the right reason to do something, they will not do it.
"You've got to really understand them. If you try and be cool with them, it's probably too late. Don't be afraid to let your brand go," said Mr Attwood.
Recent research by Nielsen Online indicated that young people between the ages of two and 11 accounted for 9.5 per cent of the online population in May 2009.
It also found that boys spent seven per cent more time on the web than girls.

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Web is natural space for 'lead generation of young people'

Young people spend most of their time online which makes it the perfect place to market to them, according to a Nike representative.
The web is the world that young people inhabit, so it is the logical place for successful lead generation, according to sports company Nike.
Ed Elworthy, head of branch connections in UK and Ireland at the organisation, stated that in order to successfully market to youngsters, businesses need to understand the internet and the way that they use it.
He pointed out that many advertisers talk about a split between online and offline marketing, but that young people generally reside on the former rather than the latter.
Mr Elworthy explained: "It's more about approaching them in their space as opposed to dragging them to our space. I think that's a macro trend that's happening."
Last month, Symantec released a study of the top 100 search terms used by young people and it included social media sites such as Facebook and MySpace, although both "sex" and "porn" made it into the top ten.

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Social media users 'must learn to spot scams'

Facebook has advised users to report any suspicious activity to the security team after several people came across the '419 scam'.
Social media site Facebook has told users they should 'become a fan' of the company's security page to help identifier scammers.
The advice from Alok Meghrajani, a software engineer on the site integrity team, writing on Facebook's official blog, comes in response to people falling victim to something known as the 419 scam.
In this situation, he stated that user accounts are hacked and the scammer then asks friends to send money through Western Union because they are stranded in a foreign country.
Mr Meghrajani pointed out that the best way of protecting users of the site from this kind of fraud is for people to become a fan of the Facebook Security Page and report suspicious activity to them.
He added: "While only a small number of people have experienced this type of scam on Facebook, we are committed to constantly improving our systems and implementing additional measures to better respond."
Recently, the social networking site announced that it would be making revisions to its privacy policy following advice from the Canadian privacy commissioner about the nature of information that the company stores.

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Online retail offers 'increased value for money'

The internet has allowed users to get more for less from retailers, because they can now compare the price of products from different providers, says an industry expert
The internet is becoming more important for retailers because it can offer more value for money for their customers, according to an industry expert.
Matthew Cushen, senior manager at Kurt Salmon Associates, pointed out that some online retailers are now attempting cross media optimisation too, such as online grocery retailer Ocado which has its own mobile application in the Apple App Store.
Last week, Ocado announced that purchases through this application account for two per cent of its total sales.
But Mr Cushen highlighted the importance of the web as a conduit for price transparency, as customers can get more for less by comparing the cost of products across a range of providers.
He said: "Price is increasingly important but retailers will need to continue to focus on other factors - that's product quality, shelf life, and timely delivery on their online offers."
People are no longer just comparing individual products on the internet, but entire shopping baskets to see which retailer will offer the best deal, Mr Cushen also noted.

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'Breaking even not as vital' for social media

Social media companies are not as concerned as traditional businesses with breaking even, as their importance lies in how many users they reach, says an expert.
Breaking even is not as important as other factors for social media sites, even during the current economic climate, says an industry insider.
Tim Gibbon, founder of Social Media Portal, pointed out that many people are seeing websites such as Twitter as channels of communication rather than a conventional business opportunity.
He highlighted the way new technology can change the way consumers act and express themselves, as well as allowing businesses to engage with their customer base.
Mr Gibbon explained: "For many Web 2.0 companies the value lies with the number of users, its brand and profile, the market share it may hold and its potential in turning a profit."
Another key factor in the popularity of social networks is how easy it is to set up an account.
Last week, Twitter announced that it had secured new funding from a group of companies including Morgan Stanly, Institutional Venture Partners and Spark Capital.

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'More SEM spending' on the horizon

Search engine marketing has proven return on investment, which is why it has survived the current economic climate and will continue to grow, says an industry expert.
There will be more spending on search engine marketing (SEM) in the future because it is a proven method of marketing, according to an industry expert.
Karin von Abrams, senior analyst at eMarketer, pointed out that there is an evident return on investment when a company uses SEM.
She noted how this form of promotion has done well even in the current economic climate and predicted that it will be the "bedrock" of online marketing for the next two years.
Ms von Abrams explained: "We think that even after the economy and the online economy bounce back, we're still going to see an increasing commitment to search."
However, she commented that this will not stop other forms of advertising, such as rich media and video, from gaining popularity as well.
Recent research by ZenithOptimedia predicted that internet advertising will have a 15.1 per cent share of the global marketing sector in 2011.

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