Internet Marketing

Content Marketing Ranked By Return On Investment

Thursday, March 7th, 2013

The education marketing company worth its salt knows about content marketing. Not only is it an attempt to create authority to help search engine rankings, but also content helps convince potential customers about the value a brand can provide to their lives. One of the big problems with content marketing is its expense in relation to the pay-offs, both immediate and long term. A new study by eMarketer helps break down content types into a ranking of which offers the most ROI (Return On Investment).

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Photo by jrhode

The good news of this study is that it panned out as hoped. Feature Articles are considered the most effective method to create content and create value. This makes sense because an article can best accomplish what content is supposed to do: create an authorial leadership. Video is the second most effective and white papers finished as the third most effective method of content marketing. Data such as this one are helpful for the agency that engages in content marketing strategies. The most effective are also the most difficult and require the most investment, but this will help convince clients that the cost is worth it.

Which Content Marketing Tactics Get the Best ROI.

Tags: content, Internet Marketing, Online Advertising, ROI
Posted in Content Marketing, Digital Marketing, advertising | No Comments »

Amazon Opens Its Mobile Advertising Unit

Wednesday, March 6th, 2013

Amazon has now released an API for developers of its soon to come mobile advertising unit. For the social media agency this is good news because Amazon is sitting on years of data of actual purchases. It is the only other dataset that is as large is Facebook’s and it is about what people actually purchase and not what those users profess to like. There is every reason to believe that Amazon’s data set is better because it reflects not only how users prioritize their purchases but also because Kindle users tend to be avid consumers.

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Photo by topgold

So far there are only two types of ads. One is a static banner ad and the other is dynamic where a mouseover expands the ad into rich media. The release of the API comes on the heels of other Amazon developments for its Kindle device platform. The digital agency should look into these new advertising units. The prices may not be worth it, but over time Amazon will figure it out to make the ads competitively effective.

Amazon Takes More Steps Toward Building A Mobile Ad Network With An API In Beta

Tags: advertising, Amazon, Internet Marketing, Online Advertising
Posted in Amazon, Digital Marketing, advertising | No Comments »

Instagram Now a Full Social Network

Thursday, February 7th, 2013

Instagram had been a limited service only on mobile devices using the Instagram app. On Tuesday, however, that changed as Instagram is now available to PCs via web browsers. Because of the social component to Instagram that means it is a new social network and one, like Pinterest, based completely on visual models.

Photo by: BrentOzar

Like other social networks there is a newsfeed. There is also an ability to share pictures, which is the same as liking a picture and a commenting function is available on each picture as well. Some things are missing such as an explore function. An interesting addition to the newsfeed is a significant chunk of blank real estate. The speculation is that Instagram will be bringing in advertising. This is the real gain for the internet marketing firm. A new advertising exchange will help increase the available inventory on the web. The social and visual components should help make that advertising successful. The internet marketing firm can also use Instagram the way other social networks are used, as platforms for clients and brands. We must wait for more details to see how effective the service is or how effective they want it to be, but for now it is an encouraging debut.

Instagram No Longer A Mobile-Only Social Network: The Feed Makes Its Web Debut.

Tags: Internet Marketing, Mobile, New Media, social media
Posted in Instagram, Mobile applications, social media | No Comments »

Against Do Not Reply

Thursday, September 20th, 2012

Marketing Profs is a service that teaches the social media agency how to build better engagement between customers and a brand. While email exchanges are often beyond the purview of the social media agency, the agency is in a unique location to educate clients about better online engagements with customers.

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One of the most common forms of communication between a brand and customers is through emails, usually a simple confirmation of an online action. Marketing Profs argues that most of these exchanges are done incorrectly because they deny customers an opportunity for engagement. An email confirming a purchase or a subscription is usually sent through a remote email address that warns the customer not to reply to the email but to instead use a different email address for further questions. This is a denial of further engagement opportunities by requiring the customer to do more work in order to have a question answered.

The do not reply email is so well known that there does seem to be little risk to the practice, sensibilities are no longer offended by them. However, even the one moment when a customer does have a question is met by a burden and hence that serves as a barrier in the relationship. The social media agency is in a unique position to teach brands that this is a less than optimal, even if it is not a bad, practice.

The Argument Against ‘Do Not Reply’

Tags: Business, customers, Email, Internet Marketing
Posted in Branding, Customer Serivce, digital agency | No Comments »

New Mobile Advertising Venture May Change It All

Thursday, August 16th, 2012

Wrapp is a new company that allows people to purchase gift cards for friends. Not only can the cards be bought for friends, but groups of friends can “pile on” to purchase large gift cards for friends. The recipient has to go to the vendor for redemption of the gift card. Wrapp takes a small percentage of the total value for its share.

The advantage to the vendor besides the value of the gift card is the free advertising that comes with each transaction. Because it is a FaceBook app, all of the transactions occur inside the newsfeeds of users. Wrapp is hoping to attract the social media company to its service because it can offer advertising, even on mobile platforms, that does not involve charging for impressions or charging for clicks. Not only do the newsfeed inserts promote advertising but the gift cards are like other gift cards. They force people to come into the stores. They often force additional point of sales purchases and there is a likelihood that some of stored value becomes unused, which is added value to the vendor.

FaceBook has purchased a startup, Karma, which offers a similar service. As of yet, however, FaceBook has not made anything out of the startup. If Wrapp does live up to its promise, then we can expect FaceBook to enter into the fray which will increase the quality of services to the internet marketing agency as well as bring down the fee charged for each gift card redemption.

Are Gift Cards Mobile Advertising’s Money Maker?

Tags: advertising, Facebook, Internet Marketing, Mobile
Posted in Facebook, Mobile, advertising | No Comments »

Google Search Will Now Include Gmails

Thursday, August 9th, 2012

At Google’s Search breakfast on Wednesday Google announced that searches will now show a user relevant Gmails in their account as well. Searching for barbecue grills will result in the usual returns, but if the user had a Gmail exchange with a friend about barbecue grill, then that email will also show up in the search results. For now the program is an experiment, which is limited to the first million users that sign up for it.

Gmail

Integrating this into the larger schema for Google Search is likely to raise some privacy concerns, but those may resolve favorably or possibly with an opt-in system. If this does become part of the regular search scheme then that would be good news for the internet marketing agency. Email is still an important channel that the agency can use to reach potential clients as well as keep them up to date about new products and information. Those emails, even though Gmail is only one email server it has a massive user base, being inserted into search results will increase the productivity of marketing emails. It is also possible to reach an arrangement with Google that may not fully delete the marketing emails, so they are always in the archive.

Google Tests Showing Gmail Results in Search Queries

Tags: Digital Marketing, Gmail, google, Internet Marketing
Posted in Digital Marketing, google | 1 Comment »

Email Still a Leading Channel For Driving Exposure

Friday, July 6th, 2012

Sending an email is a simple idea, borrowed form the mass mailings of direct marketers. Despite its age as a method and the rise of newer channels for mass digital communications, email remains an effective tool for driving customers to make sales. A new study by Direct Marketing Association shows that both house lists (email lists drawn from past and current customer lists within a brand’s database) and prospect lists have high acceptance rates from emails.

From 2010 to 2012 house lists improved by 2.6% in customer openings (when a customer opens an email). The opening rate for the prospect lists only improved a little over the 2010 number, but the clickthrough rate also showed a significant jump in the two-year gap.

Despite the uptick in exposure to a brand’s message, there is a slight downtick in actual conversions. The speculation is because the user is now weighing information from several touch points, and even when the same brand is involved might be waiting until a reinforcing message on a different channel closes the sale.

Like all digital channels now, certain industries are favored more by emails to customers. Apparel providers have a nearly perfect opening rate and financial services have a near zero opening rate.

Even though the social media agency does not make email its main focus for clients, email needs to be considered a complimentary channel of communication. Some users will respond better to emails, and some users will vary their responsiveness based upon factors such as time of day or time of the week. What is important for consideration, though, is that emails can aid exposure to a brand’s message on social channels.

Latest Benchmarks Prove Email Still an Effective Marketing Channel

Tags: advertising, Business Social Networking, Internet Marketing, Online Advertising, Social Media Marketing
Posted in Business Social Networking, Digital Marketing, advertising | No Comments »

Tablet Users Spend More than Smartphone Users

Thursday, June 21st, 2012

By the end of 2012 it is expected that there will be almost 70 million tablet users in the US. By the end of 2015 that number will double. A new report by comScore shows that most tablet owners are also smartphone users, but their spending patterns differ greatly depending upon the device being used.

tablet users

53% of tablets are used to watch video content at least once a month and 10% are used to watch video content daily. Only 3% of smartphones are used daily as a video device. What is especially important for the social media agency is that much of that video content is being paid for. Tablet owners are taking advantage of the larger display and using it for NetFlix, Hulu Plus and other video delivery services.

The tablet owner is also older and more affluent than the smartphone only crowd. The male skew of smartphone usage flips when tablets are considered. More than half of tablet users are female and the largest age demographic is 25 to 34 at 24.4% of all women tablet users.

The main lesson for the social media agency is the difference in expectations when a tablet browser calls for a web page versus when a smartphone calls for a web page. Because of the increased willingness and the differing demographics, the wise brand will offer a different landing page than the one offered to desktops or mobile devices. This data also helps cement the growing argument that tablets should not be considered as mobile devices, but as a hybrid portable device.

Increased use of Tablets

Tags: Internet Marketing, Mobile, smartphones, Tablet
Posted in Digital Marketing, Mobile, Mobile applications | No Comments »

FaceBook’s Mobile Advertising Will Be Location Specific

Tuesday, June 19th, 2012

On the heels of FaceBook’s lackluster stock performance, FaceBook is being very active not only developing an advertisement exchange and a mobile advertising platform but also in announcing those plans. Hoping to prevent further slides in stock prices, FaceBook has announced that its upcoming mobile advertising platform will be location sensitive.

FaceBook currently offers up desktop ads that can target a user based on zip code, but the mobile platform will tap into the GPS locator of smartphones and be able to offer advertisers the ability to serve ads that are entirely specific upon the exact location.

When this is finally available it will present a huge boon for the social media agency. If a user is a fan of Jimmy Johns, then sandwich makers (not just Jimmy Johns) will be able to offers ads when a user is within a certain location. The proximity barrier is entirely dependent upon the smartphone’s GPS accuracy, so ads can be offered with increasing levels of accuracy. This level of context and targeting will be a windfall for advertisers. The other benefit will be FaceBook’s ability to gather data about where people like to go and where they access their mobile device. Google currently offers this, but it will help the social media agency to have another provider especially as the Google becomes increasingly ostracized from iOS devices.

Facebook’s Mobile Advertising with be GPS based

Tags: advertising, Facebook, Internet Marketing, Mobile, Online Advertising
Posted in Facebook, Location based, advertising | 1 Comment »

Microsoft’s Internet Explorer Ships With Tracking Protection Engaged

Friday, June 8th, 2012

Last week Microsoft announced that its new version of Internet Explorer, version 10, ships with Do Not Track data protection turned on. This is in opposition to industry standards that have Do Not Track provisions as an opt-in function. Members of the Digital Advertising Alliance issued public statements condemning Microsoft’s move. Now the group of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) pounding out standards for data protection has decided that Internet Explorer will not meet the standards and hence not receive an endorsement.

This conflict has some implications for the social media agency. The immediate result is that Do Not Track will be an opt-in system for browsers. It is no secret that this is good for advertisers who rely on cookies for better targeting of ads. The long run effect of this conflict is possibly disastrous. If IE 10 is able to gain a large marketshare and be non-compliant, then that will signal the uselessness of that working group of the W3C. The only thing that keeps legislatures from ratcheting down on data protection are self-imposed industry regulations. Congressional involvement would overreach and make things harder for social media agencies.

Until it is worked out, a noncompliant browser Do Not Track ping is likely to be ignored by the web site. Widespread ignoring of that message could also be disastrous and risk the industry standards in the public opinion war. If brands start disregarding the wishes of millions of consumers, then the issue can get out of hand very quickly. The social media agency needs to prepare itself for what to do. IE 10’s non-compliance is an issue and a Do Not Track ping might not be the customer intention since it is a default signal, however, that’s a risky proposition with some potentially serious risks.

Web-Standards Body to Reject Microsoft’s ‘Do Not Track’ Browser

Tags: Digital Marketing, Internet Marketing, Online Advertising, Social Media Marketing
Posted in Internet Advertising, Microsoft, digital agency | No Comments »

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