While newspaper readership maybe waning for old style broadsheet and tabloid papers , there are some media outlets that are being given new life by technology.
Demographics have a lot to do with this trend and the current 20 yr old is more apt to receive their news on their mobile devices. I discovered this when I asked my 23 yr old daughter a question about a news item and she responded that she had gotten an alert message on her smartphone about it a few minutes earlier. I thought I knew the younger folks but I learn something new every day.
She is not alone in this habit according to a Pew Internet and American Life Project Report, Understanding The Participatory News Consumer
“The survey reports that some 37% of US cell-phone users get their news online on their wireless devices and that
72% check weather reports on their cell
68% get news and current events information on their cell
49% have downloaded an application that allows them to access news, weather, sports, or other information on their cell
44% check sports scores and related information on their cell
35% check traffic information on their cell
32% get financial information or updates
31% get news alerts sent by text or email to their phones
88% say yes to at least one of the above
Overall, cell users under age 50 are almost three times as likely as their older counterparts to get news on the go (43% v. 15%), and they engage in all cell-based news consumption activities at higher rates than older cell phone users. ”
One company that is helping the old newspaper industry keep up is the Canadian startup Spreed Inc. which provides the platform for the Toronto Globe and Mail to be on wireless smartphones today and has allowed the paper to serve up over 7.5 to 10 million ages views a month. Their Director of Marketing, Dave Coleman was interviewed at Podcamp Toronto 2010 and described the initiatives underway o the Iphone.
Geolocation and analytics are giving a lot of local advertisers new opportunities to have have coupons or targtted messages delivered when a consumer is within a radius of the business and to know the size of their local mobile market. Given the number of Iphones, the introduction of the Iphone 4,Ipad and Blackberry’s in the US this is likely to ramp up considerably in the months ahead. To learn more about these mobile apps and ad serving platform you can go to Spreed Inc or read theSpreed Blog at
Filed under analytics, Internet Marketing by 
Do You Know Your Numbers: The Whats and the Whys of Analytic Data
No, I am not talking about your Social Security Number or your telephone numbers. I am talking about your Web Analytics. What numbers are important and what are the keys to understanding your site and its visitors.
I will give you a brief overview below but I would encourage you to get into the habit of reading the blogs of the masters in this field and the books that they have published . My first and foremost leader and teacher is Avinash Kaushik author of the blog Occam’s Razor and books under the Sybex imprint, Web Analytics in an Hour a Day and Web Analytics 2.0 The Art of Online Accountability & The Science of Customer Centricity. To get a scan view of the best analytics blogs subscribe to Alltop’s Top Web Analytics which might be like asking you to sip from a firehose.
The others I would encourage you to follow are Bryan Eisenberg and Mitch Joel Eisenberg is the author of the New York Times bestseller Call to Action and co-author of a/b always be testing- The Complete Guide to Website Optimizer. Mitch Joel, a prominent thought leader in digital marketing is the author of the book Six Pixels of Separation :Everyone is Connected Connect Your Business to Everyone. He also has a podcast with the same name where the “cool guys” like Chris Brogan, Julien Smith,CC Chapman,Mitch and others do sort of a weekly call “Media Hacks” as well as a number of interviews. I include Joel who is not an analytics maven but who is very very good at the insights and creative dimension of the Why? side of Web 2.0 and who Google calls in to consult on marketing.
I describe analytics in two camps the What Has happened and the Why It Did and What You Can Do About It. The former being more quantitative and the latter qualitative.
There are a number of tools you can use that are free for the quantitative view.
If your site has a Cpanel installation you can use Awstats . It provides counts on who has visited,where did they come from, what kind of browser did they use,what kind of operating system, what search engine bots have visited and a lot of other specific data.
You can place Google Analytics Code, Clicky Code Code on your site for more detailed analysis at no cost. Both tools have reporting interfaces that are customizable to your needs.
For the qualitative side Google’s free Website Optimizer Tool allows you to to a variety of tests on the landing pages and content you have placed. You can do simple A/B testing, where you test two variations of content, for example changing the content of a headline or the colour of the type separately to find what converts better . You can do multivariate testing also on various variables and variations and see and test them to maximize your returns. The video below explains it’s use for you:
The 4Q tool by iperceptions is a free tool which provides you answers directly from your users and their experience with your site. This can yield valuable Voice of the Customer Information and your users can rate their experience. See below as Avinash Kaushik introduces it to you.
Filed under analytics, Web Conversion Testing by
Facebook and Facebook Page status updates are read according to information I just heard on the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast.
Not only are they read, author and Social Media commentator AmberMac says. but from her discussions with inside sources at Facebook they are the most read item. It is important to keep your status updates posted there as well as on other social sites. They should be compelling and interesting and allow you to draw people in for more. Your updates are usually accessed via other people’s news feeds.
There are a great many useful tools such as Hootsuite, and TweetDeck to name a few that allow you to update and review multiple sites at the same time. Others may want to use tools such as ping.fm which can post to over 28 sites at my last check. As a sage marketer you should know what playground your social friends and readers play in and make sure you play there too. Hootsuite also has some excellent analytics built in also.
These are not just what Twitter users would call noise like “I ate a pb&jam sandwich for lunch” but posts that help and assist your readers or share valuable content. By using your Facebook pages postings you can drive more readers to your blog or let them know a little bit more about you.
Facebook, it goes without saying, is the ultimate social tool as people generally are very open and honest about their interests,activities and experiences. It is also wise to attach a photo when you can, to your update to reinforce your message. And as for social it is the 600 lb gorilla in the room.
Also while you are at it you might want to check your name and reputation in Facebook by trying your luck at YourOpenbook.org and see what is being said about you.
Filed under analytics, social media marketing by
PPC Management requires you to be on top of your game. When you make mistakes you may not achieve the conversion results and end up wasting money.
Here are some ideas to avoid the mistakes
1. Not doing good keyword research. Good keyword research using free tools like Wordtracker, Wordstream or Google’s own Keyword Tool will provide you the right words to target. See what successful and long standing advertisers are doing and emulate their keywords that should be in Line1,Line2, and Line 3 of the ads.
2. Having a slew of keywords,Organize your keywords into ad groups of one per keyword, with the three variations broad,phrase and exact. Have (2) separate ads in each grouping. This will give you the maximum granularity to discover the winners and improve your ads.
3. Lackluster Ads. Write compelling ads that are not about your business or product but about the exact item the searcher is looking for. For example:
{Pilgrim’s Pride Turkeys}
{ Pilgrims Have the Best Birds}
{PilgrimsPride.com}
is an bad example where the ad
{Premium Turkey at Discount Prices}
{Succulent Turkey for Your Family}
{ premiumturkey.com }
would be better as it addresses the solution that the consumer is looking for.
4. Experiment with Variations of the Ad in each ad group with small changes. Perhaps add a? mark at the end of the First Line.
5. Deliver what you promise in the ad by matching it with the copy on the landing page you are sending it to. Make it easy for the consumer to buy from you by providing clear navigation. Do not send them to a general information page when they are looking for a specific item,. When you deliver what you promise your quality score should be optimal, improving your position and lowering your costs while you are meeting the searchers needs.
6. One Campaign for all. Split your campaigns into search campaigns and Content Network Campaigns. They behave differently and reach different targets. Maximize your effectiveness by crafting different messages for each network and testing the results.
7. No Negative Keywords.Use negative words to weed out and refine your campaign to buyers. For example in these examples the word Free, Chicken,Fowl,Pheasant,Recipes,Gravy, or the country of Turkey which might come up may qualify the buyers you want versus general interest.
8. Test,test and Test. Always be Testing your copy,offers, fonts,colors and positioning. Be aware of your conversion metrics. Free tools such as Adwords conversion testing or Google Analytics and Website Optimizer make it relatively easy to use.
These are just a few tips you can use to save you time, money, and give you the best bang for your Adwords dollars. Pay Per Click is a dynamic advertising tool so you cannot afford to stop learning in the world of Pay Per Click marketing.
Avoiding mistakes is the key to better PPC campaign management. I advise you to constantly be aware of your buyers view.and would invite you to continue learning cool tips and better techniques for your Adwords management tasks and constantly be learning about PPC Management Strategies to keep you at the top of your game.
Related Blogs
- Understanding & Improving Google AdWords Quality Score – The …
- Google Adwords Content Network – Get the Most Out of It! | Bulk …
- adCenter Conversion Tracking: Helping advertisers improve their …
- The Google AdWords Training Workshop DVD « Search Engine Marketing …
- Keyword Research: Beyond the Ordinary – SMX West 2010 « Internet …
- Google AdWords Quality Score – How You Can Make a Better Landing …
- How to Use Wordtracker KeyWord Question Tool To Drive Web Site …
Filed under analytics, PPC-Pay Per Click Ideas, PPC-Pay Per Click Management, Training, Web Conversion Testing by
