Good Read and a Must Understand: Drake Morton

Why Web Sites And Online Marketing Suck

By Joe Marchese

I have long been convinced that standard online marketing metrics were not only ineffective and inefficient for marketers, but were also destroying the quality of content on the Internet. Over a year ago I wrote about “Advertising’s Role In Crippling The Internet As A Medium” and again in ” The Online Advertising Conundrum - More Metrics, Less Meaning.” The basic gist was this: because marketers were demanding metrics (i.e. impressions, clicks) that did not necessarily equate to value for a marketer, and could be faked or gamed, traditional media metrics were creating a lose-lose-lose eco-system on the Internet for publishers, advertisers and people.

I have never met Avinash Kaushik, Google’s new Analytics Evangelist. But after reading “Google’s ‘Analytics Evangelist’ Explains Why Websites ‘Suck,”‘ an article by Mya Frazier about a talk Kaushik gave to a group of marketers, I think he and I would get along very well. From the article by Frazier: “Mr. Kaushik employed the word ’sucks’ frequently when he talked about the traditional metrics used for measuring online marketing. And as far as online marketing goes, it sucks too. He likened it to a ‘faith-based initiative.”‘
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A Must Read: Drake Morton

Make Them An Offer They Can’t Refuse

by Irv Brechner , Thursday, May 22, 2008

EVERYONE INVOLVED IN LEAD GENERATION should read “Why $0.00 is the Future of Business” by Chris Anderson, in the March, 2008 issue of Wired. It has invaluable lessons for those of us who make our livings generating leads online.
The author, Chris Anderson of “The Long Tail” fame, starts off with the story of King Gillette, a frustrated inventor who essentially started the disposable razor blade industry. Of course, his model has been dramatically refined over the years to the point where the razors themselves are disposable. But you get the point: give away the razors and sell the blades.
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Very Interesting Online Video Stats: Drake Morton

Online Video Viewing Surges

According to data from the comScore Video Metrix service, U.S. Internet users viewed 11.5 billion online videos during March, 2008, representing a 13-percent gain versus February and a 64-percent gain versus March 2007.

In March, Google Sites ranked as the top U.S. video property with more than 4.3 billion videos viewed (38 percent share of all videos), gaining 2.6 share points versus the previous month. YouTube.com accounted for 98 percent of all videos viewed at Google Sites. Fox Interactive Media ranked second with 477 million videos, followed by Yahoo! Sites and Viacom Digital.

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Great Read, Great Marketing Opportunity: Drake Morton

Leveraging Social Media

To Create Social Commerce

By Cory TreffilettiWednesday, May 21, 2008
If you recall, way back in November of last year, I laid out my predictions for 2008. Among those predictions, of which I have to say I’m not doing too well, there was one for the “killer app” in social media — and I want to revisit that topic because I’m still flabbergasted that no one has come up with it yet!
The beauty of social media lies in the aggregation of the everyday consumer. Most of social media is currently being used as a networking or a (as the name implies) social interaction tool.    I use it for keeping in touch with old friends and my extended business network, but the opportunity lies in going far beyond social interaction. How come no one has cracked the code or determined the application of social interactions for creating commerce?
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Essential “Cultural” Business Goals

• Recruit and Retain the Best Talent at all Levels
• Speak Frankly and Clearly (but not rudely)
• Face Reality, However Painful
• Conduct Ourselves and Business with Integrity & Trust
• Empower & Develop the Staff–- “Shift the Power”
• Continuously Grow and Improve–Think Globally
• Play to Win–Make a Difference
• Allow Those Around You to Fail Without Feeling Threatened
• Create and Maintain a Sense of U R G E N C Y
• Remember to Have Fun and Celebrate Your Successes Along the Way

Retailers Must Read: Drake Morton

Merchandising and

Point-of-Purchase Selling

by
Robert Grede
Your store is a battleground. Every inch of floor, wall and counter space is contested savagely
by hundreds of manufacturers, wholesalers, and distributors. This is the final proving ground.
Will your customer buy your products? Or will she walk away?
As a retailer, it’s up to you. How effectively you display your wares may be the difference
between winning and losing the battle for your bottom line.

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Good Read: Drake Morton

Video’s Challenge: Targeting Micro-Communities

by Phil Leggiere , Wednesday, May 14, 2008

The usually unexamined premise of behavioral-based marketing is that personalizing content means ever more deeply scrutinizing what makes individual consumers unique — the better to forge that proverbial one-to-one relationship between brands and consumers. As important as the drive to personalize and individualize content is, however, it sometimes neglects the fact that consumers as people are socially bonding animals. Which is to say, as Deborah Richman, senior vice president of Collarity, explains below: Paradoxical as it may seem, sometimes what makes individuals unique is their relationships to other individuals.
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You need to Understand: Drake Morton

Email On Mobile Devices

by Melinda Krueger , Tuesday, May 13, 2008

There was a lively discussion among the Inbox Insiders recently that provides food for thought for all email marketers. It started simply enough with a question about how to help a user view email via a BlackBerry.

Deirdre Baird, president and CEO of Pivotal Veracity, pointed out that both her firm and Return Path have rendering tools that show what a user sees on a BlackBerry, which are incorporated into the offerings of many top-tier ESPs.
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Customer Care Reputation Studied Online Before Making Purchases

Among the initial findings of a new study, “Exploring the Link Between Customer Care and Brand Reputation in the Age of Social Media,” by the Society for New Communications Research, “… there is a growing group of highly desirable consumers using social media to research companies: 25- to 55-years old, college-educated, earning $100,000+…” said Dr. Ganim Nora Barnes, senior fellow, SNCR.

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Must Read: Drake Morton

Streamlining Discovery

by Steve Smith , Friday, May 9, 2008

“DISCOVERY” HAS BECOME ONE OF the hot new alternatives to the more common forms of behavioral tracking. One company in the space, MatchMine, lets users create MatchKey profiles of their content “likes” at MatchMine.com or one of its partners like music site Fuzz or film site FilmCrave. The technology creates this profile from the ways a user interacts with different content. Opted-in members can use the MatchKey only at a specific site or bring it with them to other sites in the growing network to inform content recommendations. We caught up with CEO Michael Troiano as MatchMine evolves from its test phase with early partners to a more expansive rollout with new partners Odeo, blogged, and others.
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