Posts Tagged ‘marketing’

The Big Money Makers Online

Monday, August 24th, 2009

Website Video Ad

The Internet has developed no end in the last ten years where seeing more and more video presenters on websites today. The web has grown from simple sharing information to an all encompassing, singing and dancing virtual world. This growth in Internet use and the advances in technology have begun to challenge the media industry, TV can now be viewed anytime, and any place online, the same with films and music. This has obviously added to illegal downloading issues, but also created a whole new market, which has caught the attracted the interest of advertisers.

Online marketing is worth big money, for a few key reasons:

TV adverts are only shown between programmes, whereas Internet adverts and banners are on screen nearly all the time. Giving the web advertiser so much targeted coverage.

*The amount of people that can be reached is incredible. For example last year google had 1,118,000,000 view their advert that’s over 18 times the population of the UK.

*Targeting the right market is fairly easy, working out the markets interests and then placing adverts on the main sites of these interests can quickly aim the information straight into the segment the advertiser wants to reach.

Some sites such as myspace and facbook know that their users visit the site almost everyday to check their messages or comments and they know this regular traffic is worth a lot of money. Linking between sites is a technique less well known websites can use to gain traffic, by making a post on for example myspace which includes the web address to their site, owners can guide a section of myspace’s users towards their website and therefore boost their own traffic.

Some website owners have even used internet user’s mistakes to gain traffic. Each country has its own website domain names, such as England .co.uk, America .com and France .fr. Cameroon in Africa has .cm and one entrepreneur came across a brilliant and highly profitable idea. He bought up hundreds of domains ending in .cm that sounded similar to their .com equivalents. By using user mistakes to gain traffic Kevin Ham made well over 2 million dollars!

Company owners are also starting to realise that text based websites don’t hold their audience interests for as long as needed. Website creators are attempting to combine web video ad and website to create new, more interesting sites that not only entertain but more importantly sell. These website tour guides can greet site guests, show them round and help a company communicate their brand image and intentions. Not only this, but tests have proved that people stay longer on sites that feature a video tour guide rather than just text and user retention is highly important to potential advertisers.

As you can see the world of online sales and advertising is fast moving and constantly changing. The question is where will it go next and if you know then it’s definitely time to invest.

The Growth Of Online Video

Sunday, August 23rd, 2009

Virtual Presenters

The use of video on websites has many positive effects on people who become interactive with the website. Websites that use website video production include, YouTube, Face Book, MySpace, E4, 4od etc. the way in which the video’s connect with the audiences are on many levels as the viewers can have a visual on things that they properly wouldn’t bother to read about.

Information is presented in lots of ways web video, graphics and standard text.

With the internet becoming very popular and people relying on information on the internet, audiences will look for a specific type of information that they will be able to understand and connect with, the most popular source of information is video based.

When people are given the chance to either read or watch something giving out information on the internet, people are more likely to prefer to watch a video presenters. As this will give them the chance to see what the product offers, give them a clear explanation and demonstration of the product.

Paid advertising on sites like Youtube are very popular and allow advertising to be targeted to specific searches or content.

Another very successful way to advertise a product is to use a presenter to encourage people, this can be evidenced on websites such as homepages to internet services i.e. SKY, MSN etc. on these particular pages I found a detailed advertisement advertising “weight loss products” within this advertisement a woman is shown before and after in a bikini, with her discussing how the product worked for her and giving people details of how to use the product. By being able to see and hear positive feedback about a certain product convinces people to believe in the product.

Audiences need information to be laid out for them in the ways that they will want to watch it, if the information they are looking for is not set out in a specific way (Text, Video’s etc) they will immediately leave the website and look else where.

Certain websites only give out specific ways of presenting information, some are completely text based, video based or they could be a mixture of both.

Video is quite simple the best meduim to keep web visitors more interested in what you do.

YouTube is a website that offers millions of video’s that can be easily found in the search engine, when logging into You tube it immediately gives you things that you may like to watch on the basis of videos you have already viewed. Video sharing sites track user activity and suggest other videos that may interest them. You tube is a very reliable website to find information by video.

The internet overall generates information in many ways. As people rely on the internet for information, it is very important that the popular and not so popular websites keep up to date with how information should be presented to audiences as this will have a huge impact on the views that the website receive.

 

Is your Logo Design Recession proof?

Friday, August 14th, 2009

The current recession is causing a definite shift in consumer behaviour. Throughout the boom of the last few years, we have seen very small business adequately competing with the bigger brands. And many of them have been amazing success stories, particularly online. Then consumers were used to choice and less demanding of reliability in their brands, they wanted the cheapest items and they wanted them now. But now that more and more businesses are going belly up, and consumer confidence is falling as a result. What does this mean? well it means that all of those bargain hunters are returning to the big brands that they recognise, even if that means spending more money, because they don’t want to take the risk.

Although in times such as these when people are worried for their jobs or loosing them, some start to consider their dream business online and of being their own boss. With around 98,000 new business being created every three months, the competition isn’t getting any smaller. Yet it’s a tough road to go down. When you take into account that around 80,000 new businesses failed during the same time period, kind of puts it into perspective doesn’t it!

For me, without a doubt many startups fail because they underestimate the importance of branding. Your logo and identity is the first impression customers have of you. It’s crucial to what people use to judge whether you are trustworthy or not. But it’s so often the case that startup owners put off paying professional logo design in the initial stages. They think “wait till I get a few more customers, then I can afford it”.  In the meantime they try and do it themselves, or get an amateur “designer” friend to design a logo. Many new companies unfortunately opt for cheap Vista Print Logos or free clip art to design their brand.

Brands shouldn’t underestimate the importance of their image. You need to look like a professional organisation that’s in it for the long haul.In the middle of a recession, most consumers are nervous about who to trust, so a brand needs to demonstrate that they are trustworthy and dependable. You also want to avoid looking like a very small business, even if you are one. As I’ve touched on above, people nowadays are more and more attracted to bigger brands and bigger companies. Ultimately, a brand that consumers thinks of as credible and dependable will be the brands that they will recommend to family and friends and so on.

The fact of he matter is. Around half of all new businesses go bankrupt in the first few years. Badly planned marketing strategies are thought to be the main cause of most websites decline. A custom logo design helps you create the right image for this marketing to succeed. So do yourself a favour – start looking at some sample logos in your industry and see what the successful ones have in common.Finding yourself a talented graphic designer is key to your business, not only surviving but thriving in this current climate.

Video On Websites Is The New Media Opportunity

Thursday, August 13th, 2009

Virtual Presenter

Having video content on websites is much more effective then standard text because it creates a visual interaction with the audience so there for the audience will receive instant information about the web video production or services available. Also it keeps browsers interested with the information that is given, as there is direct interaction with the browser.

There are various online presenters out there one example is Marino Olova who hosts a web show on youtube called too hot for words where people will ask her random questions and she will give them an answer however her unique selling point is her breast as you may see in her videos and this has attracted viewers to watch her productions as sex sells, because she has a mass audience who watch her productions she now receives funding form marketing sources such as google where they will post a links on her pages and will get a certain amount of money every time her videos have been viewed.

In the year 2008 it came to knowledge that internet marketing has surpassed television hence why itv had a loss of 600 jobs because they where not turning in enough revenue from advertisement to keep staff on. Google ppc campaigns can be used to target specific audiences on sites like youtube where viewer are watching material related to company products. Hence they can place their products on a specific website either 1 of two things that there product suits the target audience which visit that site or website that is popular and has an large audience which visit the website, hence why youtube has taken the nation and advertisement world by storm as they have a mass audience going into millions. This is why advertiers are targeting well support video chanels because they have can reach more people with their products.

The popularity with video based content such as you tube, facebook and myspace, is growing as people are interested in watching other peoples productions and load up their own productions for the public to watch, same with face book which is a social network site and myspace where you can upload your own videos for your friends and family to watch and also add comments expressing their opinions on what they think of the production.       

Market Research – The Benefits

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

By conducting effective market research what you can learn?

Know your customers – Market research will help you better understand your customers in a number of ways including demographic information such as their age, gender and geographic spread. The better you know your customer the easier it is to target your marketing and fine tune your product or service.

Know your target market – Who exactly are your existing customers and where do they live? Does your service or product appeal to specific age group? Who are your potential customers and where do they live?

Know your competition – Market Research will help you measure your service compared to others. What are the strengths and weaknesses of your business and are you improving in the areas that customers demand?

Products and services – Do you have the products or services that people want? Is what you offer value for money? How do your services and products compare to that of your competitors? Can you, do you, should you deliver?

Ease of doing business – Do your customers find it easy to deal with you and when they visit your store and/or website do they find what they want? Is there adequate advice and assistance on hand? Do you make it easy for your customers to buy? Are your staff properly trained, knowledgeable, helpful and available?

Marketing – Is your marketing reaching the right people and is the marketing message clear and effective. Which are the least effective and what are the most effective marketing channels?

Is your marketing message understood? Does the marketing material properly represent your brand? Do you advertise and promote through the right channels? Are you reaching the right people?

With the power of the Internet it is now very easy to conduct market research using one of the many online survey software sites that make conducting surveys and collating good market research intelligence quick, easy and extremely cost effective.

Market Research Will Help Make a Good Company Better

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

What can you learn by conducting effective market research?

Know your customers – Market research will help you better understand your customers in a number of ways including demographic information such as their age, gender and geographic spread. The better you know your customer the easier it is to fine tune your product or service towards the target market.

Know your target market – Who exactly are your existing customers and where do they live? Does your product or service appeal to specific age groups? Who are your potential customers and where do they live?

Know your competition – Market Research will help you measure your service compared to others. What are the strengths and weaknesses of your organization and are you improving in the right areas?

Products and services – Do you have the products or services that people want? Are your products and services value for money? How do your services and products compare to that of your competitors? If you have a product can you deliver, do you deliver, should you deliver?

Ease of doing business – Do your customers find it easy to deal with you and when they visit your store and/or website do they find what they want? Is there sufficient advice and assistance on hand? Do you make it easy for people to buy from you? Are your staff properly trained, helpful, knowledgeable and available?

Marketing – Is your marketing reaching the right people and is the marketing message clear and effective. Which are the least effective and what are the most effective marketing channels?

Do people correctly understand your marketing message? Does your marketing material accurately reflect your brand? Do you advertise through the right channels? Are you reaching your target audience?

With the power of the Internet it is now very easy to conduct market research using one of the many online survey software sites that make conducting surveys and collating good market research intelligence quick, easy and extremely cost effective.

The Benefits of Good Market Research

Wednesday, August 12th, 2009

By conducting effective market research what you can learn?

Know your customers – Market research will help you better understand your customers in a number of ways including demographic information such as their age, gender and geographic spread. The better you know your customer the easier it is to target your marketing and fine tune your product or service.

Know your target market – Who exactly are your existing customers and where do they live? Does your product or service appeal to specific age group? Do you know who your potential customers are and where they live?

Know your competition – Market Research will help you measure your service compared to others. What are the strengths and weaknesses of your business and are you improving in the areas that customers demand?

Products and services – Do you have the products or services that people want? Are your products and services value for money? How do your products and services compare to that of your competitors? Can you, do you, should you deliver?

Ease of doing business – Do your customers find it easy to deal with you and when they visit your store and/or website do they find what they want? Is there sufficient advice and assistance on hand? Do you make it easy for people to buy from you? Are your employees properly trained, knowledgeable, helpful and available?

Marketing – Is your marketing reaching the right people and is the marketing message clear and effective. Which are the most effective marketing channels?

Is your marketing message understood? Does your marketing properly represent your brand? Do you use the right promotion channels? Are you reaching the right people?

With the power of the Internet it is now very easy to conduct market research using one of the many online survey software sites that make conducting surveys and collating good market research intelligence quick, easy and extremely cost effective.

The Reason Why Market Research is Important

Monday, August 10th, 2009

For any business that wants to offer products or services that are highly focused and well targeted market research is important. Business decisions that are based on good intelligence and good market research can minimise risk and pay dividends. By making market research part and parcel of the business process and conducting market research throughout the life cycle of a product or service market research will bring the following benefits:-

 

  • Market research will help you better communicate – Your current customers experiences are a valuable information source, not only will they allow you to gauge how well you currently meet their expectations they can also tell you where you are getting things right and more importantly where you are getting things wrong. By asking the customer you not only show them that you care but you also take the guesswork out of customer services.
  • Market research helps you identify opportunities – If you are planning to launch a new product and want to know how people will react then market research will help, not only in predicting how well the product will be received, but also by testing the marketing message to see if that needs to be adjusted.
  • Market research will minimise risk – Market research can help shape a new product or service, identifying what is needed and ensure that the development of a product is highly focused towards demand.
  • Market research creates benchmarks and helps you measure your progress – Unless you measure you will not be able to properly gauge how well your business is performing. Early research can identify flaws in your service or areas where a product needs to be improved, by conducting regular market research it will identify if improvements are being made and, if positive, will in turn help motivate a development team.

Considering the benefits that market research will bring to any organization it is perhaps surprising how few businesses invest sufficient resources to gather good intelligence that will help them improve business. Many may think that market research takes too much time and effort but that is just not the case anymore as through the power of the Internet online survey software is readily available and vital market research data can now be gathered in a quick, simple and cost effective manner.

Market Research Will Help Make a Good Company Better

Sunday, August 9th, 2009

What will conducting effective market research teach you?

Know your customers – Market research will help you better understand your customers in a number of ways including demographic information such as their age, gender and geographic spread. The better you know your customer the easier it is to target your marketing and fine tune your product or service.

Know your target market – Who exactly are your existing customers and where do they live? What age group does your product or service appeal to? Who are your potential customers and where do they live?

Know your competition – Market Research will help you measure your service compared to others. What are the strengths and weaknesses of your business and are you improving in the areas that customers demand?

Products and services – Do you have the products or services that people want? Are your products and services value for money? How do your services and products match up to that of your competitors? If you have a product can you, do you, should you deliver directly to your customer?

Ease of doing business – Do your customers find it easy to deal with you and when they visit your store and/or website do they find what they want? Is there sufficient advice and assistance on hand? Do you make it easy for your customers to buy? Are all your staff properly trained, helpful, knowledgeable and available?

Marketing – Is your marketing reaching the right people and is the marketing message clear and effective. Which are the least effective and what are the most effective marketing channels?

Do people correctly understand your marketing message? Does your marketing correctly represent your brand? Do you advertise through the right channels? Are you reaching your target audience?

With the power of the Internet it is now very easy to conduct market research using one of the many online survey software sites that make conducting surveys and collating good market research intelligence quick, easy and extremely cost effective.

What is Market Research Going to Tell You?

Sunday, August 9th, 2009

What will conducting effective market research teach you?

Know your customers – Market research will help you better understand your customers in a number of ways including demographic information such as their age, gender and geographic spread. The better you know your customer the easier it is to fine tune your product or service towards the target market.

Know your target market – Who exactly are your existing customers and where do they live? Does your product or service appeal to specific age groups? Who are your potential customers and where do they live?

Know your competition – Market Research will help you measure your service compared to others. What are the strengths and weaknesses of your organization and are you improving in the right areas?

Products and services – Do you have the products or services that people want? Do you represent value for money? How do your services and products compare to that of your competitors? Can you, do you, should you deliver?

Ease of doing business – Do your customers find it easy to deal with you and when they visit your store and/or website do they find what they want? Is there adequate advice and assistance on hand? Do people find it easy to buy from you? Are all your staff properly trained, knowledgeable, helpful and available?

Marketing – Is your marketing reaching the right people and is the marketing message clear and effective. Which are the least effective marketing channels?

Do people understand your marketing message? Does all your marketing correctly embody your brand? Do you use the correct advertising and promotion channels? Are you reaching the right people?

With the power of the Internet it is now very easy to conduct market research using one of the many online survey software sites that make conducting surveys and collating good market research intelligence quick, easy and extremely cost effective.