November 30, 2006 by ian
Google appears to be doing an update right now (what they call a 'data refresh'). It's not a full on Google Dance. I call it more of a Google Wiggle. So if you're one of those folks who watches your rankings obsessively, whimpering every time you slip a spot, the next day or two may be a bit exciting. Why this always happens right in the middle of the Christmas shopping season, I don't know. I just go buy some Tums, rent some funny videos and hold on tight... Technorati Tags: Google, search engine optimization, seo…
Continue Reading Google Wigglin »
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November 29, 2006 by ian
As the holidays approach a lot of clients are asking me where they can find new customers. Have you tried your old customers? Opt-in direct e-mail is still one of the best online marketing tools, and your existing customers are your best resource. My favorite method, which I learned from Ogilvy on Advertising, is the Thank You Note: An e-mail from the company's founder or CEO telling existing customers “We know you are responsible for our success. I want to say thanks by giving you... [insert special offer here]â€. That sounds trite when I write it here, but if…
Continue Reading E-mail 101: Remember the House List »
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November 27, 2006 by ian
Barry sent me a great example of horrifically bad usability: If You Have to Ask the Price You Can't Afford it? He states the problem quite eloquently. Very briefly: If there's no price, and no way to find out the price, and no way to buy online, would you pursue the matter any further, or just call a competitor?...…
Continue Reading Usability Smackdown: Simply Accounting »
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November 27, 2006 by ian
Do you think Microsoft will deal with negative reviews of the Zune? Online? See this review in the Chicago Sun Times. Hardly a small-time publication. If I were Microsoft I'd: 1. Write a detailed blog post breaking down the article and addressing each concern. Especially the one regarding the failed install. Acknowledge failure, then address it. 2. Respond to the thousands of comments on Digg.com to at least demonstrate that I'm listening. 3. Maybe point out, somewhere, that the author of this article writes a regular column with MacWorld? So maybe he's a teeeeny bit biased? 4. Do a…
Continue Reading Microsoft: Online PR Management? »
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November 27, 2006 by ian
Gaping Void, best known for hilarious back-of-business-card cartoons, posted an SEO Manifesto. My favorite points: “2. It’s much easier to plan a website than to retrofit it. Understanding fundamentals makes it much more valuable when you hire a consultant or agency.†I can't tell you how many clients of mine have had to rebuild their sites because we weren't involved in initial site construction. Plan for SEO as you build your site. Don't tack it on to the site afterwards. “5. Any marketing decision impacts search engine rankings - and vice versa TV, radio, print and other ads can…
Continue Reading Stunt Train SEO Manifesto »
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November 26, 2006 by ian
We've all had a time when a developer tells us that their code is perfect, and something else is wrong. Right? Question is, how do you know whether they're correct? Well, if the developer's answer is on this list, you can call their bluff. Trust me.…
Continue Reading Top Replies by Developers When Something Breaks »
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November 26, 2006 by ian
Neil Patel has a great collection of blogging resources here. Technorati Tags: blogging…
Continue Reading Blogging Resources »
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November 20, 2006 by ian
Last night my family and I climbed into a Towncar for the ride from Newark Airport to the grandparents' house. About 15 minutes out, the car's engine started racing and the 'check transmission' light came on. A sure sign that the car's transmission was about to fall out. The driver, not wanting to lose the fare, kept driving. I finally turned to him and said 'are you going to call for another car or am I?' He didn't. As it turned out, I couldn't. We had a very, very long trip to our destination, and I'll never use that…
Continue Reading Knowing When To Stop »
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November 10, 2006 by ian
Everyone should know what a click to their website is worth. And everyone should know they're spending less than that to get those clicks. Yet almost no one does. Which is sort of like landing an airplane when you're not sure where the ground is. It's not too hard, trust me. As an experiment, I just finished a little quick worksheet that figures it out for you. Check it out here: www.conversationmarketing.com/clickworth.html If you have any questions about it post 'em as comments here and I'll answer as best I can. Technorati Tags: internet marketing, ppc marketing…
Continue Reading What's a Click Worth? »
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November 9, 2006 by ian
In case you're wondering: Google gets 44.1% of all searches right now. That's up 7% over last year. Yahoo gets 28.7%. Down 1%. MSN gets 12.5%, down 3%. AOL gets 5.6%. Ask.com gets another 5.5%. All other search engines on earth fight over the remaining 3.6% of available search traffic. So if anyone ever calls you telling you they'll 'register' you with '2,000 search engines', scream foul and run... (stats are from comScore qSearch) Technorati Tags: search engine optimization, seo…
Continue Reading Factoid: Search Engine Market Share »
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November 3, 2006 by ian
I just watched Benjamin Zander speak about transformation, creativity and his book, The Art of Possibility. He made one point that really stuck with me: A great concert pianist will often sway and lean with their music. They're lost to it, taking risks and not worrying, right then, about what the audience will think. As they lean they end up playing, most of the time, on one buttock. And they play beautiful music that leaves their audience spellbound. So much of marketing is so conservative, so stuck on older creative principles, not because we know they work best, but…
Continue Reading Playing On One Buttock »
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November 3, 2006 by ian
I'm at a convention for a client of mine right now. They just announced that the internet generated 9000 new customers for them during a 7-month test campaign run by us. Their last national campaign that did anything - a print ad in a perfectly-targeted magazine - generated 300. These customers cost them about $15 each. They make $400 on each customer. We ran the whole campaign around PPC ads, blog advertising and targeted landing pages that we tested and then launched. Nothing tremendously fancy, just fundamentals. I think this internet marketing thing might just work.... Technorati Tags: internet…
Continue Reading This Internet Thing May Work... »
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