MarketingBeyond

Optimizing Mobile Websites: Podcast Interview with Eric Hansen of SiteSpect

Mobile website owners, similar to non-mobile website owners, may believe that website optimization, mobile analytics, search engine marketing and other digital marketing techniques are too challenging, take excessive time and, in many cases, become impossible to manage. This convinces some mobile marketers to "fly by the seat of their pants" when assessing mobile website performance.

Eric Hansen, Founder and C.E.O. of SiteSpect, a Boston-based marketing-focused website testing and optimization firm, will probably disagree with you. Since starting the firm in 2004, Hansen's team has helped numerous companies, including J.C. Penney, Overstock.com, The New York Times, CreditCards.com and others that have greatly improved their website marketing performance by optimizing mobile content and placement. According to Hansen, SiteSpect is the only company in its space providing accurate mobile website user behavior on phones that don't support Javascript and cookies. Per Hansen, 50% of worldwide mobile handsets are not Javascript enabled.

Hear the podcast on IM-Mobile.

Is Advertising Necessary?

Mobile advertising continues its relentless growth, while Internet revenues are falling. As with print advertisers, especially newspapers, that continue losing revenue to online placement, the community of mobile advertisers, mobile ad networks and mobile publishers is dominating worldwide advertising. So much for mobile.

But this post goes beyond mobile ads. It’s about the necessity of  any advertising.  Periodically, we should expose our minds to opposing opinions and views that contradict–and even imperil–our business models.

Such is the case with Eric Clemons at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Clemons just posted an article (available in PDF form) on TechCrunch. His predictions about the demise of PC-based Internet advertising and his comments on social media and mobile ad personalization are controversial with a grain of truth and 100 grains of speculation and flabbergast.

Clemons generally opposes advertising “pushed” to potential customers who haven’t requested the ads. He believes that Internet and other advertising is similar to email spam and non-participatory, shatters the Internet experience and will ultimately fail. In Clemons view, pushing ad messages to people not seeking them is a grave sin.

The full story on IM-Mobile

New Mobile Internet Marketing & Advertising Site Launches

IM-Mobile is a mobile Internet marketing and advertising site. The world is quickly turning from desktop--even laptop--computers to mobile phones for information and entertainment.

Many sophisticated applications written for smartphones are available now and the market for mobile applications is growing rapidly. Likewise, companies, large and small, are launching dot mobi websites that bring content-rich Internet experiences to smartphone users.

IM-Mobile focuses on these developments in mobile technology from a marketing and advertising perspective. How can mobile publishers monetize their websites and blogs? Which  marketing strategies work best for advertisers to reach target audiences? How do marketers create conversations and connectedness among mobile users?

IM-Mobile is not only a blog; you'll find podcasts, including interviews with mobile marketing and advertising professionals. (Subscribe to the podcasts either on the IM-Mobile site or through iTunes.)

Online Small Business Strategies and Resources in Hard Times

This morning's Wall Street Journal brought new hope to online small businesses. Holiday revenues only dipped a mere 2% while brick-and-mortar retailers experienced 20-40% sales declines year-over-year. With prices down, 2009 may be a great year to start an online business.

Small businesses--those under 500 employees--are the cornerstone of the American economy. They hire half of all private-sector workers and generate 60% to 80% of net new jobs. Best yet for our dour economy, small businesses create more than half of non-farm private gross domestic product (GDP). Bottom line: Small businesses will play a significant role in pulling us out of the global economic crisis.

Before jumping into the deep end of the pool and raiding your declining 401K, however, do your homework:

Write a business plan--an essential--that addresses these important requirements:

• Your niche market (describe your target customers in detail)
• A description of your products and services (use online research tools; Google Trends is great)
• Your first year's budget, including a start-up business loan if necessary. Consider these essentials:
  • Affiliate Internet marketing (paying others to market your services or products)
  • Web design services ensuring your website receives high search engine organic traffic
  • Web hosting of your site (s)
  • Internet marketing services, such as pay-per-click advertising on Google, Yahoo and other search engine advertising sites
  • Sales lead generation. As prospects and customers visit your site, it's essential  you capture their names and email addresses for further contact. Remember it takes five to eight impressions before people buy most things. If you continually build an email list, you can contact people interested in your company's products and services. 
  • An email list management company. For under $20 per month, companies like aWeber Communications will manage your lists. Then communicate with your list through regular contacts using promotional emails and newsletters.
  • Consider taking an an Internet marketing course. Many are low cost and help you  understand online business effectiveness. Super Affiliate Handbook, while focused on affiliate marketing, covers the basics for online small businesses
• An Internet marketing strategy. Ask yourself how your product or service is different from others online. Then differentiate your company. You can't be all things to all people and you'll make more money in a narrow segment of a hot market.

For other informative articles and additional resources, check out our new site: ICS Web Marketing: Small Business Strategies.

Credit Card Theft Goes High Tech: Banking's Next Challenge

Before the debacle of sub-prime mortgages...before the creation of CDO's and CDS'...before the near collapse of the banking system...before George Bush entered the White House...and after God created the Earth in seven days...credit card theft reigned supreme.

Today, the Wall Street Journal reported that Target customers, who accepted the enticing offer of a free Target credit card, are in default to the tune of over $300M. CitiBank, which announced the elimination of 20% of its workforce yesterday, American Express and other major banks are also losing billions in their credit card operations. And the good news keeps dribbling in.

Just to add to your list of worries, however, the Department of Justice recently announced a masssive credit/debit card theft, CBS News reported a case where 11 people stole information off 40 million credit cards wirelessly by driving past retail outlets, then transmitting the stolen data overseas. And CrediMom, a blogger, wrote a post describing how credit card thieves clone and skim your private information off the metallic strips on the back of your cards.

Let me tell you a personal eCommerce story that should keep you awake at nights...a secret that few people know about credit card transaction processing in the U.S.

I spent three hours on the telephone today speaking with my former merchant account company (merchant account companies work in tandem with Authorize.Net and banks to approve credit card transactions). I also chatted with a police officer in West Virginia about a $2,500 loss I recently experienced in my business due to credit card fraud.

What I discovered is startling. Do you know that if someone has your credit card number, the three or four digit CVS security code printed on the front or back of your card, your zip code and numeric street address, a credit card transaction can be approved?

If it's an online transaction, the thieves don't even need your NAME. That's right. If the card is valid and the charge is within the credit limit, an online purchase can be approved even if the purchaser writes "Donald Duck" in the bill-to area of the shopping cart screen.

No one at my merchant account company, Authorize.net, a "gateway" company that coordinates CC transactions and the bank that processes approvals could tell me why credit card holder NAMES are not part of the authorization requirements. The answer from everyone with whom I spoke: "That's just the way it is."

Fraudulent credit card transactions--now estimated in the billions each year--are either charged back to online merchants, who have insuffiicent proof-of-delivery, or written off by the issuing bank. The owner of the credit card disputes the charge and that's it.

Now you know why credit card companies charge outrageous interest rates. Someone has to pay for credit card fraud and, guess what, it's you and me.

So, while Americans worry about losing their jobs, homes, 401k's and next year's vacations, don't forget about the plastic. Remember, the thieves are out there--and many have gone high tech.

Social Media Advertising: Is FaceBook an Effective Marketing Tool?

Yesterday, MobileDiscoveries, Innovative Communication Solutions' e-commerce mobile and portable gadget store, started advertising on FaceBook. With Google charging $5+ per click for electronic items, we thought we'd give FaceBook a try.

For our first day, the click-through-rates varied from .02-.04  with GPS devices and Lenovo notebooks generating the higher number. While some say this is horrible and FaceBook users are only a bunch of kids clicking away, we don't have enough conversion data yet to calculate our ROI.

One feature that attracted us is the use of keywords representing member interests. I thought I'd share a few of our online ads and keywords with you so you can better determine if social media site advertising is worth a try.

Unlike advertising on Google, Yahoo or Microsoft, FaceBook provides an opportunity to choose very specific keywords and phrases matching FaceBook member interests. Here's the ad copy and associated keywords for ads with the highest CTR's:

 

Lenovo V200 12 Notebook

12 inch WXGA notebook features
a Core 2 Duo processor with Intel
graphics, 1GB memory, Corel and
XP Pro. 10% off at MobileDiscoveries.

Keywords: You are targeting people between 18 and 50 years old in the United States who like Bluetooth, Business, Business Development Manager, Computers, computing, Electronics, engineer, my laptop, Marketing Consultant, Marketing Director, Marketing Executive, Marketing Manager, Microsoft, The Notebook, Programmer, Sales Consultant, Sales Executive, Marketing and Sales, Sales Representative, Software Engineer, Travel, or Windows Live Messenger.

Here's a GPS placement:

GPS Navigation

MobileDiscoveries features
handheld and vehicle GPS units,
map software, cases and
other accessories at
great prices. Visit us soon.

Keywords on this one: You are targeting people between 18 and 50 years old in the United States who like Apple Computers, Autos, Computers, Electronics, Gadgets, Going On Vacation, my laptop, mobile phones, Sales Consultant, Sales Manager, Marketing and Sales, or Sales Representative.

We used more specific keywords in this Garmin GPS device that's geared for active lifestyles. This ad also identified 3.5 million FaceBook members matching the keywords, a million or so higher than the first GPS ad above:

Garmin Edge 605

Bikers. Add maps and get
motivated. This GPS enabled
cycle computer comes
loaded with everything
you need. MobileDiscoveries

Keywords: You are targeting people between 18 and 45 years old in the United States who like Anything Outdoors, being healthy, Bike Rides, Bikes, Computer, Computer Games, Cycling, Dirt Bikes, Electronics, Exercise, Exercising, Friendship, Gadgets, Garminchipotle Cycling Team, Going On Computer, Going On Vacation, The Great Outdoors, Health And Fitness, Health Nutrition, healthy living, Losing Weight, mapping, Maps, Men's Health, Mountain Biking, Outdoor Activities, Outdoors, Playing On The Computer, Relaxation, Relaxing, Riding My Bike, Street Bikes, Streetlight Manifesto, Weight Watchers, or Workout.

We started thinking about the product's features and benefits, then came up with a few keywords that seemed applicable to the demographics of our target audience. As you start typing keywords, FaceBook suggests words and phrases to use. Beneath the keyword section, FaceBook shows the total number of members who have indicated these interests in their profiles. Try doing that on Google or Yahoo.

As of a moment ago, in our second day of FaceBook advertising, we've generated over 300,000 impressions, 86 clicks and an overall CTR of .03. Again, It's too early to assess the results. But we've run Google ads with 0 clicks based on 50,000+ impressions. So at least we're getting potential customers to visit our site on a very small budget. (Average CPC is 33 cents.)

Here are the other ads currently running:

Personal Internet Radios
Garmin Geko 201
Nokia E62 10% Off
GPS Gadgets Galore
Never Get Lost
Portable DVD Players
Podcasting for Business
GPS Navigation
Portable Electronics

Our experience with FaceBook will naturally determine how we allocate our advertising budget. However, I like the narrow targeting, low CPC and ability to test dozens of ads simultaneously.

Oh, our daily budget? $20

 

ShopZilla and NexTag's Advertising Cash Cow: "Keep the Donut Machine On"

Ever hear the story of the donut machine that couldn't be turned off?  That's the situation at ShopZilla/Bizrate, NexTag and other so-called "shopping services"--the place you go for comparison shopping on the Web.

My recent experience with both advertisers, promoting MobileDiscoveries, my consumer electronics site, is a case in point. Each site attempts to list thousands of products available from online merchants to drive business to their E-Commerce sites. ShopZilla and NexTag charge per click, based on minimum bids associated with product categories. Computers, peripherals and other electronics items carry the highest minimum bids.

The online shopping cartels have created cash cows in the the Web shopping industry where the donut machine can't quickly be turned off. Unlike search engine advertising, which permits pausing campaigns--no donuts there--shopping service advertisers must submit "product feeds" to the sites, wait days for product categorization, fund a draw account (a hefty $700 for NexTag and $100 for Shopzilla/Bizrate), then bid on product placement. 

Like Google, Yahoo and other online advertisers, merchants who place the highest bids get listed in prime positions. Unlike the search engine advertisers, however, it takes ShopZilla and Nextag from 24-36 hours to make any changes--whether bids, campaign pausing or product listing updates. As a result, hundreds of clicks, priced from 15 cents up and averaging  85 cents, continue mounting for days, despite merchants' attempts to stop them. The donut machine can't be turned off.

ShopZilla has two programs, a "continuous" program that keeps replenishing ShopZilla's coffers, as shoppers click away, and a "monthly budget" plan. However, ShopZilla's monthly plan doesn't stop when the budget is reached. If clicks are excessive--as with my campaign--the charges continue creating a negative balance that accrues with additional clicks until ShopZilla can remove the product listings. This method differs 180 degrees from search engine companies that  "stop the press" when your budget is exhausted.

NexTag and ShopZilla argue they don't have the technical ability to immediately pause campaigns, change bids or product information. However, I find it very convenient that ShopZilla and NexTag in the Internet age avoid technology that would stop the donut machine in midstream. One sales rep at NexTag told me "we're working on it." But until then, money flows into the online shopping engine coffers unabated.

In terms of customer service, NexTag is virtually unreachable. Customer service never responded to my queries except with boiler-plate emails. And I finally had to engage American Express to investigate and get my deposit back. That got NexTag's attention, generating a short NexTag customer service survey. Not good.

ShopZilla provides better advertiser support, but the account reps have to follow the company line on maximizing revenues and profits.

Complaints from merchants and consumers abound on the Internet about the shopping services. NexTag clocks in at over 82,000 while ShopZilla receives only a mere 42,000. BizRate takes the prize at over 353,000, with many complaints related to its $100 survey promotions. Click rate fraud, as with Google Yahoo and others, is also a hot discussion topic.

The donut machine is alive and growing at ShopZilla and NexTag.

Tiffany Appeals Ruling: Charge eBay 50% of Total Counterfeit Sales

Tiffany, which recently lost a trademark case in U.S. District Court, has rightfully appealed the judge's ruling that eBay is not responsible for the sale of counterfeit goods, as long as eBay removes listings identified as fake by the trademark holder.

(Listen to my podcast on MarketingVisions.)

The judge's decision is the first of its kind to dismiss a major e-commerce seller from the responsibility of policing its own site for the millions of dollars exchanged each year of fake goods. eBay says it's the responsibility of the trademark holder to notify them of infringement. eBay is not only wrong. The company's management is stupid. They have nothing to gain and everything to lose by not proactively stopping counterfeit sales.

While the case is in litigation, possibly ending in a change in the trademark laws by Congress and regulators, eBay's responses to Tiffany's claims only convince additional buyers not to trust eBay.  eBay's response, according to today's Wall Street Journal? "'Tiffany's decision to carry this litigation on doesn't do anything to combat counterfeiting. The best way to stop counterfeiting is ongoing collaboration between companies, government agencies and law enforcement.'"

Since eBay refuses to remove all but the most flagrant counterfeit abuses--and continues profiting from counterfeit sales--the company should be fined for every authenticated fake transaction.

When a buyer files against an eBay seller through PayPal and/or a credit card company--and the decision is in favor of the buyer--eBay is fined 50% of the sale price. The 50% goes to the holder of the trademark. eBay's listing and final value fees, charged to sellers who sold the merchandise, are also given to the trademark holder.

The 50% trademark infringement fine should encourage eBay to better police its own Internet portal. One of the largest e-commerce and technology companies in the world, eBay has the ability to scan keywords and content listings for suspect listings and remove them. It is not the responsibllity of copyright holders to scan eBay's listings.

eBay's continuing failure to recognize its responsibility to monitor listings for fake goods must come to an end.

Need Lambchops? Maybe Better Retail & Online Customer Service?

Viewed an interesting TV show today--on my PC, nonetheless. Two consumer journalists were discussing the pros and cons of buying online. They chose a number of well-known major chain stores that have an online presence to accommodate customers who prefer buying online and/or want to save on the high price of gas and hassle shopping in a retail store.

More on MobileBeyond, including a podcast that's easy on the ears...

Sorry, Tiffany, eBay Doesn't Care About Trademarks. Buyers, Beware...

The Wall Street Journal reported today that a Federal judge ruled that online e-commerce sites--in this case, eBay USA--are NOT responsible for trademark infringement by its sellers, as long as it removes listings brought to its attention. (eBay lost a similar lawsuit in Europe recently where the courts ruled that eBay IS responsible for fraudulent sellers listing counterfeits on its e-commerce sites.) The fine: $63.7M. payable to LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA and other elite brand name manufacturers.

Although Tiffany is appealing the case, the courts have effectively ruled that eBay is similar to Internet Service Providers (ISP's) that allow customers to profit from selling fake items online. eBay is essentially an "Internet portal."

Unlike a newspaper or magazine that could be sued along with an advertiser selling products breaking trademark law, eBay and other Internet e-commerce sellers are different, according to the courts.

I think eBay is crazy thinking it won this case. Despite the listing fees retained by eBay from canceled listings, does eBay truly want buyers believing counterfeit brand goods are not monitored? For God sakes, eBay has the technology to flag suspect listings based on brand, keywords and other listing content. 

What if I decide to list a $1M fake De beer's diamond on eBay? Are eBay and the courts claiming that eBay shares no responsibility in a flagrant abuse of the trademark laws? I realize eBay can't review every listing it accepts, but to hide behind the mantle of innocence, when eBay can scan keywords for likely fraud, is a bad business practice and hurts everyone in eCommerce.

The Federal court judge ruled it's the responsibility of Tiffany and other trademark holders to identify online trademark infringement and report it to eBay--that the burden falls on the holder of the trademark. This is utter nonsense when a technology company, colllecting high listing and final value fees from sellers, claims otherwise.

Rob Chesnut, Senior VP and Legal Counsel at eBay said, per the Journal, " 'This ruling appropriately established that protecting trademarks is the primary burden of rights owners--not market places like eBay...' "

I think not, Mr. Chesnut. I think you and eBay are trying to hide the truth about the millions of eBay listings that are suspect. Everyone is aware of the exacting replicas of high-end merchandise  you're allowing for sale on eBay. And even your feeble attempts to control the onslaught is rewarded by retaining millions of dollars in listing fees when sellers are caught.

Here's my proposal, Mr. Chesnut. Whether it's Tiffany, Nike, Debeers or other well-known brands. Insert the following paragraph at the top of every brand listing:

"Buyers, you should be aware that some products listed on eBay are replicas of the originals. Therefore, we encourage you to review the seller's ratings and customer feedback before purchasing. While eBay attempts to remove fraudulent listings, it's impossible to identify all listings that may represent forgery or replicas. Thank you for your cooperation."

eBay should use its technology to slow the growth--not enhance it--of fake merchandise pawned off to unsuspecting buyers. If not, eBay and other eCommerce marketplaces will rightfully feel the wrath of the courts and, if not the courts, a massive change in the trademark law by Congress. Then, Mr. Chesnut, eBay and legtimate eCommerce sellers will really end up in quicksand, as all online sellers are forced to notify buyers of potential fraud.