Sweetmantra: Internet Marketing Advice

Invasion of the Fake Blogs

Last fall I became a fan of the ABC TV series "Invasion" and not just because one of the main characters is a blogger, although in a typically dumbed-down TV sort of way.

Recently, I was wondering when the series would start up again, so I went to the ABC Website in the hopes of finding out some more information. Instead of a traditional show page or mini Website about the series, the ABC Website links to a fake blog titled "Dave's Diatribe" located (rather cleverly) at:

www.didyouseethelights.com

The 'blog' is 'written' by Dave Groves, the character in the show that is the blogger, played by Tyler Labine, an actor from Brampton, Ontario. I doubt the actor writes the 'blog' himself, though.

"Dave's Diatribe" features "Dave-Approved Extras", profiles of Dave's "Family, Friends & Foes" and "Links to the Truth" (a quasi blogroll). The whole thing is wrapped up in a faux cheesy design complete with frosted beer glasses.

On the one hand, it's noteworthy to see a blog (sort of) being used in this manner to promote a television show, especially considering ABC used to be a pretty stodgy network.

"Dave's Diatribe" is so obviously fake, however, and blatantly toes the corporate party line, that once you get over the initial "wow, that's cool" reaction it becomes a let down.

It awkwardly intermingles informal blog 'entries' by Dave with official flak-approved marketing copy. Even the 'comments' seem overly sanitized; I wonder if they are even real.

I do admire the fact that the 'blog' is written in character (as opposed to being an on-set "journal" by the actor, which has been done to death), but I am not aware of ABC or the show's producers promoting the blog's URL (or even its name) in the show, which screams lost opportunity.

Call me old school if you like, but where are the downloadable desktop wallpaper images of the mysterious "Dr. Frosty" (played by Kari Matchett, yet another Canadian) and the other attractive cast members?

Finally, and somewhat ironically, there's also a whack of more 'mundane' content related to the show that I would be interested in (such as information on when the next episode will be aired) that is obscured (or has been omitted) due to the blog format.

ABC, I commend you for promoting "Invasion" via this fake blog, but in your attempt to jump on the blogging bandwagon you have forgotten some of the marketing fundamentals.

How to Avoid the Sleazy SEO Up-Sell

My ever-trustworthy Snake Oil Detector registered a big one last week after I was approached by an online retailer with questions about search engine optimization (SEO).

Turns out they'd recently launched their Website and were shopping around for some much needed SEO help. They had been speaking with another firm that purported to do SEO work, and they were a bit suspicious of what they heard. Turns out they had every right to be.

When I did a bit of digging, I uncovered one of the most egregious scams I've come across in a while.

The main business of the other SEO firm (hereinafter referred to as "Scamco") is designing Websites. Nothing wrong with that, of course. But here's what is.

The Websites Scamco builds aren't search engine friendly at all. In fact, they're great examples of what not to do if you want your Website to be found by search engines. But, and here's the kicker, for an extra $5,000 on top of your Website production budget, Scamco will 'optimize' your Website.

Now hang on a second here. If Scamco knows how to build search engine friendly Websites in the first place, which they should if they offer SEO services, why don't they just incorporate SEO best practices into the initial build of the Websites in the first place? (The answer, of course, is that this way they can hose their customers for more money.)

Which is precisely the way Scamco operates, I found out. When their unsuspecting customers, upon discovering that their Websites can't be found in search engines, turn to their Web developer for help 'correcting' this, Scamco is happy to help - for the aforementioned $5,000 fee.

Don't fall prey to the Scamcos of the world and their sleazy SEO up-sell. If you want your Website to be found by search engines, make SEO a priority component of the initial build of the Website, and insist that your Web development firm adhere to SEO best practices. In fact, make following SEO best practices a part of your initial selection criteria when choosing a Web development firm.

And if you suspect that your Web developer isn't familiar with SEO best practices (most aren't, in my experience), bring in a SEO consultant who is. He or she will straighten the Scamcos of the world out, and the bill will probably be way less than $5,000.

iSummit 2006

I will be speaking at, and attending, iSummit 2006, March 29-31, 2006 in Toronto, Canada.

iSummit is described as "an international entertainment and media event dedicated to the business of digital content on interactive platforms." I am especially excited about this conference because it's focused on interactive content versus technology.

I will be one of the panelists on a session entitled "What's Clicking? The Evolution of Interactive Advertising" that will be held on Friday, March 31 at 10:30 AM.

The "Get GOT" Gotcha with Campaigner

When does 'branding' cross the line and become annoying? Here's when...

I've been a fan, and customer, of GOT Corporation (formerly GotMarketing) and their Campaigner self-serve email marketing system for many years. I've also set up a number of my smaller clients with their own Campaigner accounts so they can manage their own email newsletters.

The last time I set up a new client with a Campaigner account I made a shocking discovery.

In the good old days, Campaigner users had the option of toggling on or off a "Get GOT" logo and link in the footer of every email they sent using the system. If you felt like promoting the fact you use Campaigner, you could include the GOT Corporation branding at the bottom of your emails. If you didn't feel like giving GOT free advertising, you could choose to omit this footer.

Today, if you sign up for a new Campaigner account of less than USD $150 a month, you have no choice whether or not your emails get the "Get GOT" branding on them. The only way you can remove this free advertising is to pay an additional USD $250 service charge, and you have to contact an account manager at GOT to find this out.

I think GOT has this completely ass-backward. Why should I, as a paying customer, have to pay GOT an additional fee to stop involuntarily shilling for them? If anything, GOT should be paying its customers a fee for all the free advertising it is getting, or at least giving its customers an affiliate commission on any sales they generate.

Imagine if this obnoxious 'branding' strategy was applied to other similar services, like your phone, so that every time you called someone the person on the other end would be forced to hear "this phone call powered by Bell."

Of course, GOT did not invent this annoying practice, although they are apparently well on their way to perfecting it. Many other email service providers, as well as other online marketing Application Service Providers, have gone 'branding' berserk, although multiple wrongs do not make a right.

Mark my words, a major selling point and differentiator for email service providers (even at the low-end of the market) will be their willingness to let their customers choose whether or not they want to feature the service provider's branding in their emails.

URLs Gone Wild

I still kick myself for not following through on an idea for a book I had during the early days of the Dotcom boom. I had been on a business trip to San Francisco - arguably the epicentre of the Internet 'gold rush' - and while I was there I started to notice all the unusual places that URLs were plastered.

Sure, people were promoting 'MyGoofyBusinessIdea.com' on billboards and posters, but creative (or maybe desperate) marketers were also putting their URLs on other, uh, interesting things. Had I been more on the ball at the time, I would have started documenting this phenomenon with my camera.

Even without photographic evidence, I still thought it would be beneficial, even inspirational, to share with you some of the more memorable places I've seen URLs advertised over the years.

• printed onto tiny stickers affixed at eye level above a men's urinal
• stencilled onto highway signs and overpasses (like graffiti) on a busy highway
• printed on the 'fortune' inside a fortune cookie
• carved in ice and used as a dinner table centrepiece
• painted on the entire side of a Volkswagen Beetle
• written in the sky in little 'digital' puffs of smoke by a skywriter plane
• encased in layers of ice on the surface of a hockey rink
• moulded into the top of a chocolate bar
• printed on the side of a hot air balloon
• written into the sand on a public beach before it opened for the day
• temporarily tattooed on a woman's bust (at least I think it was temporary!)

I'd love to hear about the strange places you've seen URLs advertised.

The $1.90 E-Commerce Course

Want a fast, cheap, and practical course in the art and science of online retailing? Look no further than trying to sell something yourself on eBay. I'm serious.

It really doesn't matter what you sell on eBay, or even if you make a profit the first time out, the experience and learning you will get is far more valuable. Here's why...

First you have to write a short item listing line, which teaches you the importance of writing compelling copy in a very short amount of space. This will come in handy when you have to write email subject lines, copy for banner ads, and search engine advertising text ads.

Then you have to shoot and upload a photo (or photos) of the item you are selling, which teaches you how to do product photography (and how hard it is) and how to convert a high-resolution digital photo into a low-resolution file suitable for viewing on the Internet.

You have to craft an item description, which teaches you how to write engaging copy that accurately describes what you are selling, highlights its benefits, conveys the credibility of the seller (you), and inspires the reader to take the desired action: bid on your item. You will also want to figure out how to include heavily searched keywords and phrases in your copy, which will come in handy when you have to write copy for Websites.

You have to set a minimum price you're willing to accept for the item, which teaches you how competitive the pricing of products is on the Internet and how important it is to do your research before you set your price.

You have to select a product category to list your item in, which teaches you how cluttered and confusing the competitive landscape can be and the importance of distinguishing yourself from the competition.

You have to respond to email queries from potential customers, which teaches you about email customer service and how important timely and clear communication with people is, especially those who do not have a solid grasp of the English language.

You have to handle the actual financial transaction for the sale, which teaches you about the various online (and offline) payment options as well as the commissions and fees anyone selling on the Internet has to pay in order to receive payment.

Finally, you have to package and ship your item to the customer, which teaches you how time and labour intensive fulfillment of e-commerce orders can be.

Leaving aside how much fun it can be (even just as a hobby), selling on eBay is like e-commerce boot camp, and I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to get some affordable and hands-on experience in the e-commerce trenches.

You Must Become a Search Voyeur

As far as I'm concerned, you can't call yourself an Internet marketer unless you've spent at least 15 minutes contemplating the output of a "search voyeur" tool like Dogpile.com's SearchSpy.

While there are dozens of more statistically accurate tools out there, such as Wordtracker, that count and rank the millions of searches conducted on the Internet every day, there is no better (or more eye-opening) way to get a sense of how Joe or Jane Public actually conducts searches than a search voyeur tool.

SearchSpy, like most search voyeur tools, provides a real-time, 'behind-the-scenes' view of current searches by showing the actual search terms people are typing in. Although it's not for the faint of heart, the "unfiltered" version of this tool provides the most accurate view of how people search.

As I'm writing this, each and every one of the real-time searches scrolling by on SearchSpy reveals a wealth of insights for the discerning marketer:

food – This one-word, generic search suggests a rather naive search(er)? Remember, not everybody on the Internet is a rocket scientist.

"shock proof laptop" – Here's a three-word key phrase enclosed in quotation marks, very specific, from a sophisticated researcher looking for product information? Smart retailers of this type of product will have optimized for this specific phrase.

bikini waxing tips – It's a three-word key phrase, very specific, from someone looking for free advice. If you're the owner of a spa, does your Website feature tips?

phantom of the opera lyrics – A five-word key phrase, very specific, using a well-known brand, maybe from a fan looking to add to their collection? Are you taking advantage of the well-known brands you sell?

www.temeculawine.com – You'd be amazed how often people type URLs into search engines, either because they typed into the wrong box on their screen, or they are not clear about how to do a proper search! Is your domain name on your search engine marketing keyword short list?

cabin rentals in estes park, colorado – A vacation planner who knows exactly what he/she wants, perhaps? Let's hope the marketers of vacation properties in Estes Park have optimized for this phrase.

human reporduction – Here's a two-word phrase with a misspelling, another all-too common occurrence. Are you taking spelling mistakes into account when you plan your search engine marketing?

You owe it to yourself to spend a few minutes with a search voyeur tool like SearchSpy. Learning about the mind of the common searcher has never been so entertaining, and think of the fun you can have building a drinking game around this!

AdWords Espionage With GoogSpy

If you're a fan of AdWords, Google's popular paid search system, you'd probably love to get a behind-the-scenes view of how your competitors (or your clients' competitors) are using it. Before you hire a rogue operative to infiltrate the competition's headquarters, spend some time surfing GoogSpy. But be warned, it can be addictive!

GoogSpy is one of my favourite (albeit arcane) research tools, and I still can't believe it is both legal and free. GoogSpy has analyzed (and archived) millions of Google search results and allows you to do research into how other companies are using the AdWords system.

You can browse by company or browse by search term or just type in a company name, URL, or search term you are interested in researching.

If you type in a search term, for instance, you will see the URL of the different Websites that the AdWords ads link to for that term.

Click on one of the advertisers' URLs and you will be presented with the various search terms this advertiser is ranked in the top 10 for, the ad display ranking, and the text of their Google ads. You can also find out if this advertiser pays for any other Google search terms, what those search terms are, and get a list of their competitors (defined in this case as other advertisers competing for the same search term).

Back on the main results page, click on the search term and it will show you the advertisers that pay for that search term on Google, along with the copy of their ad and URL the ad links to. You will also see a list of other search terms that companies using that keyword use as keywords in AdWords.

One of the most valuable aspects of GoogSpy for Canadian Internet marketers is that it reveals what advertisers are buying even if you aren't located in the geographical region that their ads will be displayed in.

The best way to understand the power of GoogSpy is to spend some time experimenting with it. I find that the more I use it, the more I appreciate its value.

Next to conducting corporate espionage, GoogSpy is one of the best ways to do competitive AdWords research.

Don’t Fixate on Brand Names When Doing SEO

Sometimes I feel my real job title is Professional Bubble Burster. This week I had to burst the bubble of a company that wanted their Website to rank “number one in Google” for a particular phrase. Sounds like an innocent enough request, right?

So why was I compelled to give this company a mini-lecture on the realities of search engine optimization (SEO)? Because the phrase they wanted to be “number one in Google” for is so common (let’s pretend it was “box open” and the company makes boxes) that it already exists on over 65 million Web pages indexed by Google!

My first question to them was, “why do you care?” What was so special about this phrase that they wanted to invest a lot of time and money into SEO for? Turns out “box open” is the brand name of one of the company’s products.

Then I asked the company if they had any evidence to prove that their target market was actually searching for this brand name? Nope. Keep in mind we’re talking about “box open,” an arbitrary, two-word phrase that means almost nothing versus, for instance, a phrase like “cardboard boxes” (another pretend example) that means something to humans. And guess what, a way more specific and meaningful phrase like “cardboard boxes” exists on far fewer Web pages indexed by Google. If the company optimized for “cardboard boxes” they’d have a much greater chance of improving their ranking (not to mention their conversion rate, but that’s another discussion.)

I went on to explain to them that if lots of people were searching for their “box open” brand name, there would be a valid reason to optimize their Website for it. But if nobody is searching for “box open” (in terms of this company’s particular product) then, to be blunt, who cares! The people who were searching for “box open” certainly wouldn’t.

So, in order to avoid getting your bubble burst, remember this: Unless you have a really well known and frequently searched brand name, don't make the brand name the main focus of your search engine optimization efforts. (I’m not saying you should ignore your brand name, but it probably shouldn’t be your main SEO focus of attention.) Instead, do your homework (or hire someone to do it for you) and optimize your Website for meaningful phrases that people are actually searching for.