Continuing on with my mission of a better working culture within the organisation. I thought of sharing few nuggets which are quite effective in creating better working environment and telling employees we care.
First and foremost we have started taking online tests on Process we work on. The tests could be conducted anytime and has no fixed schedule which keeps every team members on its toes always.
Moreover the person who scores the most is given a candy or chocolate as prize. It solves few HR and Team related headache. 1st process is getting streamlined, 2nd healthy competition within team members and 3rd the Booty which helps them feel that they are getting better day by day.
Continuous improvement is something we all lounge for, and achieving it is a great motivation.
Furthermore, we have also initiated certification system wherein we award team members for their work.
Some of the awards we have are
1. Star performer of month
2. Great idea award
3. Award for extreme consistency in work
4. Award for great dedication shown towards work and organisation etc
These all awards cost nothing as templates are easily available on web. But the benefits of all these are far more.
And to say it all it gives a clear message to everyone that we indeed care and we are because of you all.
I say it again a company is made of employees not infrastructure.
Happy go lucky
Monday, December 24, 2007
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Branding, employee loyalty and T shirt
Branding, employee loyalty and T shirt
How can any branding, marketing initiative can actually enhance employees satisfaction & its loyalty to company. Have you ever wondered? Before I answer this enigma, guesses are all yours.
The answer is a T - shirt. Don’t get flustered, in few more sentences I would prove my point beyond wildest thought of any Doubting thomasses.
Yes, A T-shirt with company logo enshrined into it. Let’s suppose we all get a T shirt which we all love to wear with company logo. Now if out of 125 guys in communicate2 even if 50 make it a point to wear it frequently. (I bet numbers would be pretty more). Isn’t it free branding for company.
Add to it a catchy slogan on it which clearly matches with the company beliefs, core values and bingo. What we get is a heady concoction of Brand awareness, marketing, employees pride & relations with the company.
Why do you think all the big software companies give T shirts so casually, the cost on that accessory far supercede that of intangible benefits which we accrue.
Even I have a t shirt of cognizant which I got from company when I qualified for Cognizant sponsored ET – in the classroom regional finals. I still can relate to it. So why can’t others. And that too in a company where they give 9 hours a day.
Let’s start it somewhere, there should be some mode to feel one as a company and entity and what better than T shirt to start with.
How can any branding, marketing initiative can actually enhance employees satisfaction & its loyalty to company. Have you ever wondered? Before I answer this enigma, guesses are all yours.
The answer is a T - shirt. Don’t get flustered, in few more sentences I would prove my point beyond wildest thought of any Doubting thomasses.
Yes, A T-shirt with company logo enshrined into it. Let’s suppose we all get a T shirt which we all love to wear with company logo. Now if out of 125 guys in communicate2 even if 50 make it a point to wear it frequently. (I bet numbers would be pretty more). Isn’t it free branding for company.
Add to it a catchy slogan on it which clearly matches with the company beliefs, core values and bingo. What we get is a heady concoction of Brand awareness, marketing, employees pride & relations with the company.
Why do you think all the big software companies give T shirts so casually, the cost on that accessory far supercede that of intangible benefits which we accrue.
Even I have a t shirt of cognizant which I got from company when I qualified for Cognizant sponsored ET – in the classroom regional finals. I still can relate to it. So why can’t others. And that too in a company where they give 9 hours a day.
Let’s start it somewhere, there should be some mode to feel one as a company and entity and what better than T shirt to start with.
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Talent recognition and poaching tactics
If you notice properly you will find a major difference in Poaching techniques of animals.
Yes it could easily be another episode from Man Vs wild. Make no mistake I am not mentioning the famous Discovery programme out here which is all about survival tactics in wild, but it is all about new hunting techniques.
Yes the new hunting tactics rampant in professional world. The King of jungle always chooses the weaker prey for hunting. Whereas in hard core professional world the fight is all about getting the best in the business.
There were talent recognition and retention becomes all very important in industry.
Especially for IT & ITes industries and upcoming or growing entrepreneurial ventures.
The Prime motto should be very clear in this respect, Right recruitment, right grooming and right growth.
Giving growth chance to a person you have groomed within the organisation rather than hiring one from outside is always a better alternative available. There are few reasons behind this, which I wish to list.
1. Motivation level would be high among all the employees as they too can sense their growth within organisation.
2. Easy acceptability as new guy is not from outside the organisation hence his/her progression to the top job becomes foregone conclusion.
3. The new guy from outside world may be very experienced but may not be aware of the domain of existing company, hence may suffer from toothing problems, The person groomed within the organisation on the other hand is battle hardened and know process pretty well.
4. Final and foremost is loyalty which he shows towards the company would be far more than the any other guy from different industry.
An afterthought could be that if the new guy from a different industry could be considered idf he have some skills which rest doesn’t have. But in that case too employees from the company should be given a fair enough chance to present their case for the top job.
This is the tradition which is being followed by most of the companies.
Any amount of dissatisfaction, lack of motivation among employees can have far more grave consequence than his inexperience for the top job.
I must state that this rule doesn’t hold true in companies which work under vertical domain like search, where real talent is scarce and experience in other industries hardly count. So, trusting a guy you have groomed for so long time makes a logical decision.
Also Poachers would be more than happy to attract such dissatisfied employees to their fore.
The tactics is simple, money, position or mixture of both.
Small companies always tend to be on the wrong side of this practice. So they need to be extra cautious in rapid strides they make. As they run the risk of being hunted.
But as the saying goes “Don’t look at the problem, look at opportunities”.
This could be easily turned to one advantage when hunter becomes hunted and again theory is simple.
Make your company best in business, i.e. top clients, top exposure, top growth rate, top employee satisfaction. A hotspot for new talent pool. And don’t look to far in this regard. The testimony is on which we all work. You guessed it right “Google”.
Yes it could easily be another episode from Man Vs wild. Make no mistake I am not mentioning the famous Discovery programme out here which is all about survival tactics in wild, but it is all about new hunting techniques.
Yes the new hunting tactics rampant in professional world. The King of jungle always chooses the weaker prey for hunting. Whereas in hard core professional world the fight is all about getting the best in the business.
There were talent recognition and retention becomes all very important in industry.
Especially for IT & ITes industries and upcoming or growing entrepreneurial ventures.
The Prime motto should be very clear in this respect, Right recruitment, right grooming and right growth.
Giving growth chance to a person you have groomed within the organisation rather than hiring one from outside is always a better alternative available. There are few reasons behind this, which I wish to list.
1. Motivation level would be high among all the employees as they too can sense their growth within organisation.
2. Easy acceptability as new guy is not from outside the organisation hence his/her progression to the top job becomes foregone conclusion.
3. The new guy from outside world may be very experienced but may not be aware of the domain of existing company, hence may suffer from toothing problems, The person groomed within the organisation on the other hand is battle hardened and know process pretty well.
4. Final and foremost is loyalty which he shows towards the company would be far more than the any other guy from different industry.
An afterthought could be that if the new guy from a different industry could be considered idf he have some skills which rest doesn’t have. But in that case too employees from the company should be given a fair enough chance to present their case for the top job.
This is the tradition which is being followed by most of the companies.
Any amount of dissatisfaction, lack of motivation among employees can have far more grave consequence than his inexperience for the top job.
I must state that this rule doesn’t hold true in companies which work under vertical domain like search, where real talent is scarce and experience in other industries hardly count. So, trusting a guy you have groomed for so long time makes a logical decision.
Also Poachers would be more than happy to attract such dissatisfied employees to their fore.
The tactics is simple, money, position or mixture of both.
Small companies always tend to be on the wrong side of this practice. So they need to be extra cautious in rapid strides they make. As they run the risk of being hunted.
But as the saying goes “Don’t look at the problem, look at opportunities”.
This could be easily turned to one advantage when hunter becomes hunted and again theory is simple.
Make your company best in business, i.e. top clients, top exposure, top growth rate, top employee satisfaction. A hotspot for new talent pool. And don’t look to far in this regard. The testimony is on which we all work. You guessed it right “Google”.
Friday, August 24, 2007
Diplomacy OR Authenticity: - HR‘s Prerogative
“There are two types of companies one good and another Great. Good companies follow known path but great companies follow the less traversed path."
Excerpt from Jim Collins Book “Good to Great.”
So what maketh a great company? Or what separates a good company from great? Is it infrastructure, is it swanky floors & services or is it fat pay check. The answer is neither. It is man power or employees out there. Because you can buy everything but not quality man power.
That’s why an HR department is so important in every organisation. But what role should it play in an organisation. As a father figure to all employees or a mediator between multifarious voices heard in the organisation.
Voices in the organisation lead us to an important point in the organisation. Whether to heard and address the authentic voice or go on sing the chorus of the gang.
A famous quote says
“Competent people get going in team and incompetent find solace in gang”.
Ironically it is the voice of incompetent which are in plenty and are almost in unison are addressed to and there lies the radical difference between good & great.
A small example would make things pretty clear.
“Nehru and Gandhi both played important roles in India’s freedom movement. One was staunch diplomat with great legacy & another, a truthful nobody who became father of the nation. Don’t you all think when violence was the norm those days peaceful protest was the road less travelled. So who became Great leader & who remained a good one. Your answer is as good as mine.”
So the catch for emerging companies lies in travelling along the path where nobody has set foot on. i.e. Hearing the authentic voices within the organisation which may feel very curt & rude but are the honest interpretations of organisations present scenario rather than soothing nerves of members of gang who just want solid fun in the organisation & owe their loyalty to none.
The moment pandering to incompetents will stop and right voices are being addressed in the organisation, one can assume that is the first step towards achieving greatness.
Remember Google, it has surpassed every milestone in its arena only due to its satisfied and ambitious employees.
So the zillion dollar question is to take right call. And that should come from HR department.
So all HR managers in the industry stop being diplomatic & face the authentic queries and concerns.
That may feel curt, rude & might hurt you.
But there goes a famous saying “you don’t travel the road to greatness without a ditches or two”.
Go on, take your call.
Excerpt from Jim Collins Book “Good to Great.”
So what maketh a great company? Or what separates a good company from great? Is it infrastructure, is it swanky floors & services or is it fat pay check. The answer is neither. It is man power or employees out there. Because you can buy everything but not quality man power.
That’s why an HR department is so important in every organisation. But what role should it play in an organisation. As a father figure to all employees or a mediator between multifarious voices heard in the organisation.
Voices in the organisation lead us to an important point in the organisation. Whether to heard and address the authentic voice or go on sing the chorus of the gang.
A famous quote says
“Competent people get going in team and incompetent find solace in gang”.
Ironically it is the voice of incompetent which are in plenty and are almost in unison are addressed to and there lies the radical difference between good & great.
A small example would make things pretty clear.
“Nehru and Gandhi both played important roles in India’s freedom movement. One was staunch diplomat with great legacy & another, a truthful nobody who became father of the nation. Don’t you all think when violence was the norm those days peaceful protest was the road less travelled. So who became Great leader & who remained a good one. Your answer is as good as mine.”
So the catch for emerging companies lies in travelling along the path where nobody has set foot on. i.e. Hearing the authentic voices within the organisation which may feel very curt & rude but are the honest interpretations of organisations present scenario rather than soothing nerves of members of gang who just want solid fun in the organisation & owe their loyalty to none.
The moment pandering to incompetents will stop and right voices are being addressed in the organisation, one can assume that is the first step towards achieving greatness.
Remember Google, it has surpassed every milestone in its arena only due to its satisfied and ambitious employees.
So the zillion dollar question is to take right call. And that should come from HR department.
So all HR managers in the industry stop being diplomatic & face the authentic queries and concerns.
That may feel curt, rude & might hurt you.
But there goes a famous saying “you don’t travel the road to greatness without a ditches or two”.
Go on, take your call.
Thursday, August 9, 2007
भारत और गूगल
गूगल के भारतीय संस्करण में आपका स्वागत है।
आइये भारतवर्ष और गूगल मिल कर सर्च इंजन मार्केटिंग मॆं एक नया प्रतिमान बनाए।
हार्दिक अभिनन्दन
अमित कुमार
आइये भारतवर्ष और गूगल मिल कर सर्च इंजन मार्केटिंग मॆं एक नया प्रतिमान बनाए।
हार्दिक अभिनन्दन
अमित कुमार
Latest in SEM
Google News Experiment Displays User Comments
Google's Acquisition of Postini Gets Antitrust OK
Ad Wars: Online Ad Spend To Overtake Newspapers
Google Joins OIN (Open Invention Network)
Music Publishers Join YouTube Copyright Suit
Wikipedia Criticises Chinese Search Engine Baidu
Google Adwords Editor 4.0 Released
Amazon Flexible Payments Service (Amazon FPS) BETA
Answers.com Moves to Mitigate Dependence on Search Engine Algorithms
Kids Site Sold for $350 Million USD
New Microsoft HD Photo Format Could Replace JPEG
Google Shies Away From Behavioral Ad Targeting
FCC Stops Short on Google's Plea to Resell Access
Firefox Patch Fixes Flaws: V2.0.0.6
Online Communities Benefit 93% of IT Professionals
Business.com sold for $340 million - $360 million to Donnelley corp
Digg.com Partners With Microsoft
Facebook Founder Accused of Stealing The Idea
Google's Guidelines on Link Exchange
AOL Buys Behavioural Targeting Ad Firm Tacoda
Google's Acquisition of Postini Gets Antitrust OK
Ad Wars: Online Ad Spend To Overtake Newspapers
Google Joins OIN (Open Invention Network)
Music Publishers Join YouTube Copyright Suit
Wikipedia Criticises Chinese Search Engine Baidu
Google Adwords Editor 4.0 Released
Amazon Flexible Payments Service (Amazon FPS) BETA
Answers.com Moves to Mitigate Dependence on Search Engine Algorithms
Kids Site Sold for $350 Million USD
New Microsoft HD Photo Format Could Replace JPEG
Google Shies Away From Behavioral Ad Targeting
FCC Stops Short on Google's Plea to Resell Access
Firefox Patch Fixes Flaws: V2.0.0.6
Online Communities Benefit 93% of IT Professionals
Business.com sold for $340 million - $360 million to Donnelley corp
Digg.com Partners With Microsoft
Facebook Founder Accused of Stealing The Idea
Google's Guidelines on Link Exchange
AOL Buys Behavioural Targeting Ad Firm Tacoda
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Fathers and gurus of the search engine
Can anybody have numerous fathers and gurus? Biologically possible, but this question attains altogether different dimensions in search engine domain. Ever since the Google IPO, the scenario has changed drastically all over the world.
Suddenly you can find of every tiny bopper in this field having 3 to 5 years of experience calling oneself father of Adwords or Google guru or more originator of search engine.
I was flabbergasted with all these when I was new in this field. Slowly even I was beginning to feel that these gurus are role models to be followed in this field.
After my brief but continuing attachment with this field I have reached to a conclusion that these so called gurus and fathers are no more than morons who consider themselves big guns because world is not fully aware of this field.
I am sad to say but the avg. IQ level of so called champs in SEM would not be even 20% of a good engineer from a prestigious college. Well the case is for Indian sub continent especially, situation may vary worldwide.
So a sincere advise to self styled gurus, fathers and champ of SEM. Don’t consider your small home to be whole world you may still be a king in fool’s paradise. In an intelligent world you can be only compared to MR. Bean. (Remember hit sitcom).
Suddenly you can find of every tiny bopper in this field having 3 to 5 years of experience calling oneself father of Adwords or Google guru or more originator of search engine.
I was flabbergasted with all these when I was new in this field. Slowly even I was beginning to feel that these gurus are role models to be followed in this field.
After my brief but continuing attachment with this field I have reached to a conclusion that these so called gurus and fathers are no more than morons who consider themselves big guns because world is not fully aware of this field.
I am sad to say but the avg. IQ level of so called champs in SEM would not be even 20% of a good engineer from a prestigious college. Well the case is for Indian sub continent especially, situation may vary worldwide.
So a sincere advise to self styled gurus, fathers and champ of SEM. Don’t consider your small home to be whole world you may still be a king in fool’s paradise. In an intelligent world you can be only compared to MR. Bean. (Remember hit sitcom).
Wednesday, July 25, 2007
PPC OR CCP
Remember coffee or toffee ads of parry’s coffee bite. This debate gives me the same sense of déjà vu. PPC or pay per click professional and CCP means cut, copy & paste professional. This is one of the most light hearted discussions going in search engine field especially for affiliates which are indulged in bulk of reporting tasks.
So isn’t it true that with the advent of web getting information, channelling it and making money out of it has become so easy. So why CCP is still a dreaded word? After all don’t you think scrounging through billions of web pages isn’t easy task? I am a firm believer that knowledge like god is everywhere. What one requires is that sight to catch hold off that.
Cut, copy, paste is ok as far as you have learnt from it and moreover never tracked. But on the other side of the coin you will never be credited for it, if world knows you are a copy cat. But who cares if you can derive money out of it. Aren’t affiliates a copycat of Google, Yahoo and Msn?
In wider perspective they all are. But are they really unwanted? No! Not at all. They are here to stay and forms an indispensable part of SEM world.
As far as I am concerned I would always be called a PPC professional or may be pay per action or lead professional or even better than that. But important question which arises is :- Will affiliates change the revenue mode of Reporting to something more exciting, challenging?
This is just a beginning of SEM in India though and I feel some day even this question of PPC or CCP would fade into oblivion (as we would certainly move up the value chain of pyramid.)
Let’s hope for better. After all whole world is living on it.
So isn’t it true that with the advent of web getting information, channelling it and making money out of it has become so easy. So why CCP is still a dreaded word? After all don’t you think scrounging through billions of web pages isn’t easy task? I am a firm believer that knowledge like god is everywhere. What one requires is that sight to catch hold off that.
Cut, copy, paste is ok as far as you have learnt from it and moreover never tracked. But on the other side of the coin you will never be credited for it, if world knows you are a copy cat. But who cares if you can derive money out of it. Aren’t affiliates a copycat of Google, Yahoo and Msn?
In wider perspective they all are. But are they really unwanted? No! Not at all. They are here to stay and forms an indispensable part of SEM world.
As far as I am concerned I would always be called a PPC professional or may be pay per action or lead professional or even better than that. But important question which arises is :- Will affiliates change the revenue mode of Reporting to something more exciting, challenging?
This is just a beginning of SEM in India though and I feel some day even this question of PPC or CCP would fade into oblivion (as we would certainly move up the value chain of pyramid.)
Let’s hope for better. After all whole world is living on it.
Monday, July 23, 2007
Tele density and the Search Market
India is said to be land of wonders. True if one consider so many archaeological landmarks or its rapid economic growth despite pathetic infrastructure & deeply entrenched corrupted system.
But what surprised me was a report in daily newspaper that Tele density has reached to surprising high levels (80% and more) in all major metros and semi metros. Surprise of the surprises! if I would have known it earlier I would have certainly started a campaign for this being considered modern wonders of new world.
Consider India’s Tele density was pathetic 2.3% overall and less than 10% few years ago. So what propelled it to amazing proportions? Cheap mobile phones & cheaper call rates may be the prime reason behind it. This gives us all professionals of search a unique opportunity to tap into mobile search market. The concept is same as of SEM. Just the interface has changed. Why not sell service through mobiles?
Internet penetration is nowhere near 30% in major metros. (It doesn’t include cyber cafes but personal computers and laptops.) . Google - the search king has entered into print, radio and mobiles. Why can’t the small affiliates.
Some companies like M Ginger are paying u money for getting advertisements. And I feel it is just the beginning of another lucrative minefield for search marketers.
Let’s see who catches the wind first and tames it for a better & bigger catch.
But what surprised me was a report in daily newspaper that Tele density has reached to surprising high levels (80% and more) in all major metros and semi metros. Surprise of the surprises! if I would have known it earlier I would have certainly started a campaign for this being considered modern wonders of new world.
Consider India’s Tele density was pathetic 2.3% overall and less than 10% few years ago. So what propelled it to amazing proportions? Cheap mobile phones & cheaper call rates may be the prime reason behind it. This gives us all professionals of search a unique opportunity to tap into mobile search market. The concept is same as of SEM. Just the interface has changed. Why not sell service through mobiles?
Internet penetration is nowhere near 30% in major metros. (It doesn’t include cyber cafes but personal computers and laptops.) . Google - the search king has entered into print, radio and mobiles. Why can’t the small affiliates.
Some companies like M Ginger are paying u money for getting advertisements. And I feel it is just the beginning of another lucrative minefield for search marketers.
Let’s see who catches the wind first and tames it for a better & bigger catch.
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Paeons to Google desktop
I can’t help it. May be I am suffering from paranoia. But whenever in my free time (which I seldom get), because of the strange thumb rule of assigning more no. of tasks to the most efficient one prevalent in industry, I hardly have time left for my own brainchild i.e. my blog. Nevertheless my motto is not to sing paeons about me but about Google desktop. Strange it may seem but whatever Google launches or have in form tools are exemplary good.
Google desktop is one of such tools. From health, to entertainment, to live feeds from websites to astrology, to local weather to sexy pictures and what not. It has everything one look for in real life. All the websites of the world enrolled into one small gadget,” Google desktop” . The most exciting part is it is entirely free of cost and easily downloadable.
Imagine u slugging out tirelessly at work, unable to watch live scores or updates on cricket, football or your favourite movie. And pop ups from desktop tells u in detail about Messi ‘s wonderful goal last night. Wouldn’t u be pleasantly surprised. This is a simple example of what happened on to me. Try it soon and may be u’ll surprise yourself with this gadget.
My rating to this Google tool is 10 out of 10. What about you?
Google desktop is one of such tools. From health, to entertainment, to live feeds from websites to astrology, to local weather to sexy pictures and what not. It has everything one look for in real life. All the websites of the world enrolled into one small gadget,” Google desktop” . The most exciting part is it is entirely free of cost and easily downloadable.
Imagine u slugging out tirelessly at work, unable to watch live scores or updates on cricket, football or your favourite movie. And pop ups from desktop tells u in detail about Messi ‘s wonderful goal last night. Wouldn’t u be pleasantly surprised. This is a simple example of what happened on to me. Try it soon and may be u’ll surprise yourself with this gadget.
My rating to this Google tool is 10 out of 10. What about you?
Monday, July 2, 2007
Some More On Trends
Continuing my fascination with Google trends, I searched and came across some very good revelations which would help us a lot in keyword creation.
First and foremost adding uk or any country after or before a keyword seldom makes different. So don’t spoil time thinking about what user can search for “uk car insurance” or “car insurance ok”.
Second interesting fact is the usage of word cheap which is far less than that of word free.
Alas! I wonder who said “there are no free lunches “or “everything in this world has a price”
Final but not the last that people or masses prefer to use plurals of the word while searching like “book tickets” rather than” book ticket” and “flights” rather than “flight”
Below are some screen shots from Google trends for the doubting Thomasses.
Hope u all will like it.
First and foremost adding uk or any country after or before a keyword seldom makes different. So don’t spoil time thinking about what user can search for “uk car insurance” or “car insurance ok”.
Second interesting fact is the usage of word cheap which is far less than that of word free.
Alas! I wonder who said “there are no free lunches “or “everything in this world has a price”
Final but not the last that people or masses prefer to use plurals of the word while searching like “book tickets” rather than” book ticket” and “flights” rather than “flight”
Below are some screen shots from Google trends for the doubting Thomasses.
Hope u all will like it.
Thursday, June 28, 2007
I am back with the analysis
Well my earlier post about the keywords on travel may have evinced some interest in the boring professionals of our field.
They might scoff at the trends saying it to be too silly but in the industry where millions of dollars are made and lost on use of single word or letter I feel small observations do matter.
So analysis: - Right for you.
1. ‘Bus’ is the most common medium of travel followed by ‘flight’.
2. Most people type’ bus’ while searching for one and’ flights’ not ‘flight ‘while booking or looking for an air flight.
3. “Travel to, bus to or rail to and flight to” is used more often than “travel from, bus from, rail from “etc
4. Most people worldwide prefer or understand ‘cruise’ as a mode of sea travel rather than ‘ferry’
5. ‘Train’ is used more than ‘rail’
Bye for Now .Hope would meet soon
They might scoff at the trends saying it to be too silly but in the industry where millions of dollars are made and lost on use of single word or letter I feel small observations do matter.
So analysis: - Right for you.
1. ‘Bus’ is the most common medium of travel followed by ‘flight’.
2. Most people type’ bus’ while searching for one and’ flights’ not ‘flight ‘while booking or looking for an air flight.
3. “Travel to, bus to or rail to and flight to” is used more often than “travel from, bus from, rail from “etc
4. Most people worldwide prefer or understand ‘cruise’ as a mode of sea travel rather than ‘ferry’
5. ‘Train’ is used more than ‘rail’
Bye for Now .Hope would meet soon
Travel Trends worldwide
Google trends is one of the most happening innovation from the search king Google.
A little playing with the keywords on “travel”, one of the most frequently used by the users worldwide.
And Eureka! What u gets is a whole new concept on words to be used or not while making campaigns for this segment.
Just look at some of the trends and I am sure search engine nerds will get the meaning of it. For the rest mortals,analysis in the next edition.
A little playing with the keywords on “travel”, one of the most frequently used by the users worldwide.
And Eureka! What u gets is a whole new concept on words to be used or not while making campaigns for this segment.
Just look at some of the trends and I am sure search engine nerds will get the meaning of it. For the rest mortals,analysis in the next edition.
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Interesting trends on call to action
My desire to learn something new led me to a road where I stumbled upon interesting facts on how call to actions is used worldwide. Call to action is quite common jargon for a search engine professional specialising in pay per click or pay per lead. But for the lay man it is in simple words.
“Phrases or words which allure a person to take action“. In other words it is calling one to take action on the ads as said. Some of the worldwide used call to actions is ‘buy now’, order online, buy now, order online.
I’ve attached some screen shots on this issue.
Hopefully it would be quite handful
“Phrases or words which allure a person to take action“. In other words it is calling one to take action on the ads as said. Some of the worldwide used call to actions is ‘buy now’, order online, buy now, order online.
I’ve attached some screen shots on this issue.
Hopefully it would be quite handful
Thursday, June 21, 2007
Rat race with Google
Google is surely and certainly spreading its wings and competitors are feeling the heat.
What would otherwise explain change of guard at the helm of yahoo? MSN desperate measures to buy –a Quantive for more than its price and launch of new search engine by yahoo namely panama . The race to catch up with Google is getting hotter and more exciting .
So what is in the offing, a new acquisition or merger or a buyout?
Keep on watching this space for the latest on this. Open to comments on this
What would otherwise explain change of guard at the helm of yahoo? MSN desperate measures to buy –a Quantive for more than its price and launch of new search engine by yahoo namely panama . The race to catch up with Google is getting hotter and more exciting .
So what is in the offing, a new acquisition or merger or a buyout?
Keep on watching this space for the latest on this. Open to comments on this
Friday, May 25, 2007
Search Engine Jargons- Vol:-8
AdCenter
Microsoft's cost per click ad network.
While it has a few cool features (including dayparting and demographic based bidding) it is still quite nascent in nature compared to Google AdWords. Due to Microsoft's limited marketshare and program newness many terms are vastly underpriced and present a great arbitrage opportunity
AdSense
Google's contextual advertising network. Publishers large and small may automatically publish relevant advertisements near their content and share the profits from those ad clicks with Google.
AdSense offers a highly scalable automated ad revenue stream which will help some publishers establish a baseline for the value of their ad inventory. In many cases AdSense will be underpriced, but that is the trade off for automating ad sales.
AdWords
Google's advertisement and link auction network. Most of Google's ads are keyword targeted and sold on a cost per click basis in an auction which factors in ad clickthrough rate as well as max bid. Google is looking into expanding their ad network to include video ads, demographic targeting, affiliate ads, radio ads, and traditional print ads.
AdWords is an increasingly complex marketplace. One could write a 300 page book just covering AdWords. Rather than doing that here I thought it would be useful to link to many relevant resources.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing programs allows merchants to expand their market reach and mindshare by paying independent agents on a cost per action (CPA) basis. Affiliates only get paid if visitors complete an action.
•Most affiliates make next to nothing because they are not aggressive marketers, have no real focus, fall for wasting money on instant wealth programs that lead them to buying a bunch of unneeded garbage via other's affiliate links, and do not attempt to create any real value.
Alexa
Amazon.com owned search service which measures website traffic.
Alexa is heavily biased toward sites that focus on marketing and webmaster communities. While not being highly accurate it is free.
AllTheWeb
Search engine which was created by Fast, then bought by Overture, which was bought by Yahoo. Yahoo may use AllTheWeb as a test bed for new search technologies and features.
AltaVista
Search engine bought out by Overture prior to Overture being bought by Yahoo. AltaVista was an early powerhouse in search, but on October 25, 1999 they did a major algorithmic update which caused them to dump many websites. Ultimately that update and brand mismanagement drove themselves toward irrelevancy and a loss of mindshare and marketshare.
Anchor Text
The text that a user would click on to follow a link. In the case the link is an image the image alt attribute may act in the place of anchor text.
API
Application Program Interface - a series of conventions or routines used to access software functions. Most major search products have an API program.
Arbitrage
Exploiting market inefficiencies by buying and reselling a commodity for a profit. As it relates to the search market, many thin content sites laced with an Overture feed or AdSense ads buy traffic from the major search engines and hope to send some percent of that traffic clicking out on a higher priced ad. Shopping search engines generally draw most of their traffic through arbitrage.
Microsoft's cost per click ad network.
While it has a few cool features (including dayparting and demographic based bidding) it is still quite nascent in nature compared to Google AdWords. Due to Microsoft's limited marketshare and program newness many terms are vastly underpriced and present a great arbitrage opportunity
AdSense
Google's contextual advertising network. Publishers large and small may automatically publish relevant advertisements near their content and share the profits from those ad clicks with Google.
AdSense offers a highly scalable automated ad revenue stream which will help some publishers establish a baseline for the value of their ad inventory. In many cases AdSense will be underpriced, but that is the trade off for automating ad sales.
AdWords
Google's advertisement and link auction network. Most of Google's ads are keyword targeted and sold on a cost per click basis in an auction which factors in ad clickthrough rate as well as max bid. Google is looking into expanding their ad network to include video ads, demographic targeting, affiliate ads, radio ads, and traditional print ads.
AdWords is an increasingly complex marketplace. One could write a 300 page book just covering AdWords. Rather than doing that here I thought it would be useful to link to many relevant resources.
Affiliate Marketing
Affiliate marketing programs allows merchants to expand their market reach and mindshare by paying independent agents on a cost per action (CPA) basis. Affiliates only get paid if visitors complete an action.
•Most affiliates make next to nothing because they are not aggressive marketers, have no real focus, fall for wasting money on instant wealth programs that lead them to buying a bunch of unneeded garbage via other's affiliate links, and do not attempt to create any real value.
Alexa
Amazon.com owned search service which measures website traffic.
Alexa is heavily biased toward sites that focus on marketing and webmaster communities. While not being highly accurate it is free.
AllTheWeb
Search engine which was created by Fast, then bought by Overture, which was bought by Yahoo. Yahoo may use AllTheWeb as a test bed for new search technologies and features.
AltaVista
Search engine bought out by Overture prior to Overture being bought by Yahoo. AltaVista was an early powerhouse in search, but on October 25, 1999 they did a major algorithmic update which caused them to dump many websites. Ultimately that update and brand mismanagement drove themselves toward irrelevancy and a loss of mindshare and marketshare.
Anchor Text
The text that a user would click on to follow a link. In the case the link is an image the image alt attribute may act in the place of anchor text.
API
Application Program Interface - a series of conventions or routines used to access software functions. Most major search products have an API program.
Arbitrage
Exploiting market inefficiencies by buying and reselling a commodity for a profit. As it relates to the search market, many thin content sites laced with an Overture feed or AdSense ads buy traffic from the major search engines and hope to send some percent of that traffic clicking out on a higher priced ad. Shopping search engines generally draw most of their traffic through arbitrage.
Thursday, May 24, 2007
Search Engine Jargons- Vol:-7
Share of Voice
Share of voice is defined as a relative portion of inventory available to a single advertiser within a defined market sector over a specified time period.
Test Page
If you're using multivariate testing, the test page is the page where you'll experiment with different variations in your content. You decide which variations you'd like to use, and we'll rotate different combinations of those variations on your page in order to determine what will be most effective in getting results for your site.
Text Ad
Concise, action-oriented copy that links to your website. Also known as a sponsored link.
Trademark
A word, name, symbol, or device (or a combination thereof) that identifies the goods or services of a person or company and distinguishes them from the goods and services of others.
Unique User
A single individual or browser who accesses a site or is served either unique content or unique ads. Also known as unique visitor.
Value / Click
The conversion value generated per click. For example: Value / Click = Total value (total_value) / Total number of ad clicks (num_clicks). Conversions are only counted on Google and some of Google Network sites or products. The conversion rate is adjusted to reflect only the ad clicks on which we can track conversions
Value / Cost
Total value divided by total cost for all ad clicks. If you've entered in your revenue or profit value, this statistic will be equal to your ROI. For example: Value / Cost = Total conversion value (total_value) / Total cost (total_cost). Conversions are only counted on Google and some Google Network sites or products. The value-per-cost is adjusted to reflect only the cost of ad clicks leading to conversions
Variations
A variation is a different version of a page section. Each page section includes the original version, the version that is live on your site right now, and the different variations that we'll test on your page. For example, your page currently may have a headline that says, "High quality widgets available at Example.com!" You could test different variations of this headline, such as "Example.com has the widgets you're searching for!" or "Who knows high quality widgets? We do!"
Zero Impression Keywords
Keywords that have generated no impressions of your ads. This may be caused by lack of relevancy to user searches due to keyword obscurity, specificity, or a significant misspelling of the intended keyword.
Opening Image
The opening image is the static image that will be displayed on your video ad before the user initiates the video. When a user clicks the opening image or the play button, the video component of the ad will be played.
Share of voice is defined as a relative portion of inventory available to a single advertiser within a defined market sector over a specified time period.
Test Page
If you're using multivariate testing, the test page is the page where you'll experiment with different variations in your content. You decide which variations you'd like to use, and we'll rotate different combinations of those variations on your page in order to determine what will be most effective in getting results for your site.
Text Ad
Concise, action-oriented copy that links to your website. Also known as a sponsored link.
Trademark
A word, name, symbol, or device (or a combination thereof) that identifies the goods or services of a person or company and distinguishes them from the goods and services of others.
Unique User
A single individual or browser who accesses a site or is served either unique content or unique ads. Also known as unique visitor.
Value / Click
The conversion value generated per click. For example: Value / Click = Total value (total_value) / Total number of ad clicks (num_clicks). Conversions are only counted on Google and some of Google Network sites or products. The conversion rate is adjusted to reflect only the ad clicks on which we can track conversions
Value / Cost
Total value divided by total cost for all ad clicks. If you've entered in your revenue or profit value, this statistic will be equal to your ROI. For example: Value / Cost = Total conversion value (total_value) / Total cost (total_cost). Conversions are only counted on Google and some Google Network sites or products. The value-per-cost is adjusted to reflect only the cost of ad clicks leading to conversions
Variations
A variation is a different version of a page section. Each page section includes the original version, the version that is live on your site right now, and the different variations that we'll test on your page. For example, your page currently may have a headline that says, "High quality widgets available at Example.com!" You could test different variations of this headline, such as "Example.com has the widgets you're searching for!" or "Who knows high quality widgets? We do!"
Zero Impression Keywords
Keywords that have generated no impressions of your ads. This may be caused by lack of relevancy to user searches due to keyword obscurity, specificity, or a significant misspelling of the intended keyword.
Opening Image
The opening image is the static image that will be displayed on your video ad before the user initiates the video. When a user clicks the opening image or the play button, the video component of the ad will be played.
Search Engine Jargons- Vol:-6
Local Business Ad
Location-based AdWords ad associated with a business listing in Google Maps.
Maximum CPM bid
Your maximum CPM bid is the highest amount that you're willing to pay for each 1000 impressions on your site-targeted ad. CPM stands for cost-per-thousand impressions
Minimum CPC bid
A minimum cost-per-click (CPC) bid is assigned to each keyword in your account based on its quality (or Quality Score). The minimum bid is usually the least amount you can pay per click in order for your keyword to show ads.
Multivariate Testing
Multivariate testing is a method of experimentation that allows you to test multiple variables simultaneously. For example, using multivariate testing, you could identify the headline, image, and promo text on a page as your page sections, and then create three different variations for each one. When the experiment was running on your page, a user might see Headline A, Image B, and Promo Text C all together, or Headline B, Image C, and Promo Text A.
Optimization
Optimization is the process of modifying your ad campaigns to improve the quality and performance of your AdWords ads. This often involves changing the contents and settings of your campaigns and ad groups, and editing your keyword lists and landing pages.
Play Rate
The play rate column in your video ad reports indicates the number of plays your video receives divided by the number of times your video ad is shown (impressions).
Position Preference
Position preference lets you tell Google which ad position you like best for your ad among all the AdWords ads on a given page. If you find that your ad gets the best results when it is ranked (for example) third or fourth among all AdWords ads, you can set a position preference for those spots. Separate position preferences can be set for any or all of the keywords in your campaign
Quality Score
Quality Score is the basis for measuring the quality and relevance of your ads and determining your minimum CPC bid for Google and the search network. This score is determined by your keyword's clickthrough rate (CTR) on Google, and the relevance of your ad text, keyword, and landing page.
Reach
The total number of unique users who will be served your ad over a specific period of time. Reach is often expressed as a percent of the universe for the demographic category. Also known as an unduplicated audience.
Return on Investment (ROI)
Return on investment (known as ROI) is the ratio of the cost of advertising relative to the profit generated from conversions such as sales or leads. Your ROI indicates the value to your business gained in return for the cost of your ad campaign
Location-based AdWords ad associated with a business listing in Google Maps.
Maximum CPM bid
Your maximum CPM bid is the highest amount that you're willing to pay for each 1000 impressions on your site-targeted ad. CPM stands for cost-per-thousand impressions
Minimum CPC bid
A minimum cost-per-click (CPC) bid is assigned to each keyword in your account based on its quality (or Quality Score). The minimum bid is usually the least amount you can pay per click in order for your keyword to show ads.
Multivariate Testing
Multivariate testing is a method of experimentation that allows you to test multiple variables simultaneously. For example, using multivariate testing, you could identify the headline, image, and promo text on a page as your page sections, and then create three different variations for each one. When the experiment was running on your page, a user might see Headline A, Image B, and Promo Text C all together, or Headline B, Image C, and Promo Text A.
Optimization
Optimization is the process of modifying your ad campaigns to improve the quality and performance of your AdWords ads. This often involves changing the contents and settings of your campaigns and ad groups, and editing your keyword lists and landing pages.
Play Rate
The play rate column in your video ad reports indicates the number of plays your video receives divided by the number of times your video ad is shown (impressions).
Position Preference
Position preference lets you tell Google which ad position you like best for your ad among all the AdWords ads on a given page. If you find that your ad gets the best results when it is ranked (for example) third or fourth among all AdWords ads, you can set a position preference for those spots. Separate position preferences can be set for any or all of the keywords in your campaign
Quality Score
Quality Score is the basis for measuring the quality and relevance of your ads and determining your minimum CPC bid for Google and the search network. This score is determined by your keyword's clickthrough rate (CTR) on Google, and the relevance of your ad text, keyword, and landing page.
Reach
The total number of unique users who will be served your ad over a specific period of time. Reach is often expressed as a percent of the universe for the demographic category. Also known as an unduplicated audience.
Return on Investment (ROI)
Return on investment (known as ROI) is the ratio of the cost of advertising relative to the profit generated from conversions such as sales or leads. Your ROI indicates the value to your business gained in return for the cost of your ad campaign
Wednesday, May 23, 2007
Search Engine Jargons- Vol:-5
Frequency
The average number of times a unique user saw your ad over a given time period.
Google AdSense
Google AdSense delivers text-based Google AdWords ads that are relevant to what visitors see on website pages - and Google pays web publishers for it. Google AdSense is for web publishers who want to make more revenue from advertising on their site while maintaining editorial quality.
Google AdWords
Google's advertising program based on cost-per-click pricing.
Image Ads
Graphical AdWords ads appearing on select content sites in the Google Network
Impression
The number of impressions is the number of times an ad is displayed on Google or on sites or products in the Google Network.
Invalid Clicks
Clicks that Google does not charge to your account because we determine they were generated by prohibited methods. Examples of invalid clicks may include repeated manual clicking or the use of robots, automated clicking tools, or other deceptive software
Impression Share
Impression share is a new metric that represents the percentage of times your ads were shown (i.e. your accrued impressions) out of the total number of page impressions (i.e. pages where your ad appeared or could have appeared) in the market you were targeting.
Keyword
The keywords you create for a given ad group are used to target your ads to potential customers.
For example, if you deliver fresh flowers, you can use 'fresh flower delivery' as a keyword in your AdWords campaign. When a Google user enters 'fresh flower delivery' in a Google search, your ad could appear next to the search results. In addition, your ad can appear on sites in the Google Network that relate to your keyword.
Keyword Status
Keyword status reflects whether your keyword is eligible to enter the ad auction and trigger ads. The keyword states below may affect any keyword except a negative keyword.
Landing Page
An active web page where customers will 'land' when they click your ad. The web address for this page is often called a 'destination URL' or 'clickthrough URL.'
The average number of times a unique user saw your ad over a given time period.
Google AdSense
Google AdSense delivers text-based Google AdWords ads that are relevant to what visitors see on website pages - and Google pays web publishers for it. Google AdSense is for web publishers who want to make more revenue from advertising on their site while maintaining editorial quality.
Google AdWords
Google's advertising program based on cost-per-click pricing.
Image Ads
Graphical AdWords ads appearing on select content sites in the Google Network
Impression
The number of impressions is the number of times an ad is displayed on Google or on sites or products in the Google Network.
Invalid Clicks
Clicks that Google does not charge to your account because we determine they were generated by prohibited methods. Examples of invalid clicks may include repeated manual clicking or the use of robots, automated clicking tools, or other deceptive software
Impression Share
Impression share is a new metric that represents the percentage of times your ads were shown (i.e. your accrued impressions) out of the total number of page impressions (i.e. pages where your ad appeared or could have appeared) in the market you were targeting.
Keyword
The keywords you create for a given ad group are used to target your ads to potential customers.
For example, if you deliver fresh flowers, you can use 'fresh flower delivery' as a keyword in your AdWords campaign. When a Google user enters 'fresh flower delivery' in a Google search, your ad could appear next to the search results. In addition, your ad can appear on sites in the Google Network that relate to your keyword.
Keyword Status
Keyword status reflects whether your keyword is eligible to enter the ad auction and trigger ads. The keyword states below may affect any keyword except a negative keyword.
Landing Page
An active web page where customers will 'land' when they click your ad. The web address for this page is often called a 'destination URL' or 'clickthrough URL.'
Search Engine Jargons- Vol:-4
Channel
A network or service advertisers use to create online advertisements to be displayed on search engines or other webpages. Google AdWords is a channel. Channels are identified as PPC (pay-per-click) or non-PPC
Channel Campaign
A shell, or mock, campaign created specifically in your AdWords account to track the ROI (return on investment) and other advertising information for one or more of your ads running on a non-AdWords channel. Channel campaigns usually include one destination URL and one or more keywords.
Contextual Advertising
Google leverages our award-winning search technology to deliver relevant AdWords ads to content pages of sites and products in the Google Network. Our technology draws upon our understanding of the billions of pages in our search index and our ability to crawl web pages to figure out which keywords would lead a user to the page. Then, we match ads to the page based on those keywords
Conversion Page
The conversion page is the page that, when reached by a user, means business results for you. Depending on your type of site, it may be the page where a user will complete a purchase or fill out an interest form.
Conversion Rate
Your conversion rate is the number of conversions divided by the number of ad clicks. Conversions are only counted on Google and some of our Google Network partners. Using Website Optimizer, you'll be trying to increase your conversion rate and therefore improve your return on investment
Conversion Types
The type (purchase/sale, signup, page view, or lead) recorded in the generated code, allowing you greater specificity in your conversion statistics.
Cross-channel Conversion Tracking
A tool to analyze all your online advertising channels - such as search, email, or banner ads - through your AdWords account.
Daily Budget
The amount you're willing to spend on a specific AdWords campaign each day.
Destination URL
The destination URL is the exact URL within your website that you want to send users to from your ad.
Display URL
This is the URL displayed on your ad to identify your site to users
Double Serving
Displaying more than one ad for the same company or person at a time
A network or service advertisers use to create online advertisements to be displayed on search engines or other webpages. Google AdWords is a channel. Channels are identified as PPC (pay-per-click) or non-PPC
Channel Campaign
A shell, or mock, campaign created specifically in your AdWords account to track the ROI (return on investment) and other advertising information for one or more of your ads running on a non-AdWords channel. Channel campaigns usually include one destination URL and one or more keywords.
Contextual Advertising
Google leverages our award-winning search technology to deliver relevant AdWords ads to content pages of sites and products in the Google Network. Our technology draws upon our understanding of the billions of pages in our search index and our ability to crawl web pages to figure out which keywords would lead a user to the page. Then, we match ads to the page based on those keywords
Conversion Page
The conversion page is the page that, when reached by a user, means business results for you. Depending on your type of site, it may be the page where a user will complete a purchase or fill out an interest form.
Conversion Rate
Your conversion rate is the number of conversions divided by the number of ad clicks. Conversions are only counted on Google and some of our Google Network partners. Using Website Optimizer, you'll be trying to increase your conversion rate and therefore improve your return on investment
Conversion Types
The type (purchase/sale, signup, page view, or lead) recorded in the generated code, allowing you greater specificity in your conversion statistics.
Cross-channel Conversion Tracking
A tool to analyze all your online advertising channels - such as search, email, or banner ads - through your AdWords account.
Daily Budget
The amount you're willing to spend on a specific AdWords campaign each day.
Destination URL
The destination URL is the exact URL within your website that you want to send users to from your ad.
Display URL
This is the URL displayed on your ad to identify your site to users
Double Serving
Displaying more than one ad for the same company or person at a time
Monday, May 21, 2007
Search Engine jargons - Vol.3
Account Activation
After signing up for AdWords, you will receive an email to verify your email address. You can then activate your account by logging in and submitting your credit card information. At that point, your ads start running
Activation Fee
A one-time fee applies when you activate your account. This amount is not credited toward the cost of clicks received
Activity
The Activity column of your Billing Summary page contains a list of charges and payments for the relevant time period. Fees and adjustments will also be included in this column.
Ad Group
An ad group contains one or more ads which target one set of keywords or sites. You set a bid (or price) for all the keywords or sites in the ad group. This is called a cost-per-click (CPC) or cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM) bid. You may also set prices for individual keywords or sites within the ad group.
Ad Rank/Positioning
A keyword-targeted ad's position is based on its Ad Rank, which is determined by your keyword or ad group's cost-per-click (CPC) bid times the matched keyword's Quality Score. For the top positions above Google search results, your ad's actual CPC is used instead of its CPC bid to determine its position.
Ad Scheduling
Ad scheduling lets AdWords users control the days and times their ad campaigns appear. Ad scheduling can be enabled for any AdWords Standard Edition campaign. Users may also choose an advanced mode, which allows them to raise or lower their bids for a campaign at certain times of the day.
Ad Serving
Ad serving is how often active ads within an ad group show in relation to one another. You can have one of the following two ad serving settings in your ad group
Ad Variations
Ad variations are multiple versions of an ad for a single product or service, all based on the same set of keywords. Variations are a good way to test many versions of the same message to see which works best with potential customers.
Affiliate
An affiliate is an individual advertiser or website owner who has a business relationship with a merchant to promote the merchant's product or service. The affiliate earns a small commission from the merchant for each referral that results in a sale; the merchant handles payment and fulfillment.
Average value
The total value of all conversions divided by the total number of conversions
After signing up for AdWords, you will receive an email to verify your email address. You can then activate your account by logging in and submitting your credit card information. At that point, your ads start running
Activation Fee
A one-time fee applies when you activate your account. This amount is not credited toward the cost of clicks received
Activity
The Activity column of your Billing Summary page contains a list of charges and payments for the relevant time period. Fees and adjustments will also be included in this column.
Ad Group
An ad group contains one or more ads which target one set of keywords or sites. You set a bid (or price) for all the keywords or sites in the ad group. This is called a cost-per-click (CPC) or cost-per-thousand impressions (CPM) bid. You may also set prices for individual keywords or sites within the ad group.
Ad Rank/Positioning
A keyword-targeted ad's position is based on its Ad Rank, which is determined by your keyword or ad group's cost-per-click (CPC) bid times the matched keyword's Quality Score. For the top positions above Google search results, your ad's actual CPC is used instead of its CPC bid to determine its position.
Ad Scheduling
Ad scheduling lets AdWords users control the days and times their ad campaigns appear. Ad scheduling can be enabled for any AdWords Standard Edition campaign. Users may also choose an advanced mode, which allows them to raise or lower their bids for a campaign at certain times of the day.
Ad Serving
Ad serving is how often active ads within an ad group show in relation to one another. You can have one of the following two ad serving settings in your ad group
Ad Variations
Ad variations are multiple versions of an ad for a single product or service, all based on the same set of keywords. Variations are a good way to test many versions of the same message to see which works best with potential customers.
Affiliate
An affiliate is an individual advertiser or website owner who has a business relationship with a merchant to promote the merchant's product or service. The affiliate earns a small commission from the merchant for each referral that results in a sale; the merchant handles payment and fulfillment.
Average value
The total value of all conversions divided by the total number of conversions
Search Engine jargons - Vol.2
Ad: The text to support a search result after a user queries a term.
Advertiser: A person or company who wants to publicize the qualities of their product, service, business, or event in order to encourage people to buy or use it.
Algorithm: A set of rules that a search engine uses to rank the listings contained within its index, in response to a particular query.
Beta Site: Refers to the adCenter Beta Site.
Choices: Refers to various options for advertisers to choose from in their Content Ads settings—choices delivers advertiser control.
Click through rate (CTR): The percentage of those clicking on a link out of the total number who see the link.
Content-targeted advertising or contextual advertising: Based on keywords and phrases, contextual ads will appear on Web pages that have relevant content to those keywords and phrases.
Content Ads: Microsoft adCenter’s contextual advertising product.
Conversion Rate: The relationship between visitors to a website and actions considered to be a "conversion," such as a sale or request to receive more information. Often expressed as a percentage.
Cost per click (CPC): A system where an advertiser pays an agreed amount for each click that someone makes on a link leading to their website.
CPC: Cost-per-click, advertiser only pays when the consumer clicks on their ad.
Crawler: A component of a search engine that gathers listings by automatically crawling the web. A search engine's crawler (also called a spider or robot) follows links to web pages. It makes copies of the web pages found and stores these in the search engine's index.
Distribution Method: The method by which adCenter distributes or targets ads to a specific Web page (either search or content).
Keywords: Query terms that a user enters into the search field.
Metatags: Information placed in a web page not intended for users to see, which typically passes information to search engine crawlers, browser software, and some other applications.
Metadescription Tag: Allows page authors to say how they would like their pages described when listed by search engines. Not all search engines use the tag.
Microsoft adCenter: The Search advertising tool from Microsoft that allows you to bid on keywords to expose your business to the Live Search audience.
Migration: Term to use in reference to advertiser “migration” to the adCenter Beta site.
On-network: Ads will be shown on a company’s network of Web properties. For example, with Content Ads, the ads will run on the MSN network.
Off-network: Ads will be shown on other Web site networks other than the MSN network. The term generally means “publishers”.
Organic Listings: Listings that search engines do not sell (also referred to as natural or algorithmic listings).
Paid Inclusion: Advertising program where pages are included in a search engine's index in exchange for payment, although there is no guarantee of ranking well. Marketers pay to be included in the directory, on a CPC basis or per URL fee basis, with no guarantee of specific placement.
Pay-Per-Click (PPC): See Cost per click.
Paid Listings: Listings that search engines sell to advertisers, usually through paid placement or paid inclusion programs. In contrast, organic listings are not sold.
Parameter: Words that are "plugged in" to an ad title or description at display time to customize the ad in response to a search query.
Pay-for-Performance (P4P): Term popularized by some search engines as a synonym for pay-per-click, stressing to advertisers that they are only paying for ads that perform in terms of delivering traffic measured by clicks.
Publisher: A person or company that publishes online Web site and content.
Query: A request for information.
Rank: How well a particular web page or website is listed in search engine results.
Return on Investment (ROI): Refers to the percentage of profit or revenue generated from a specific activity.
Search advertising: Based on keywords and phrases, search ads appear on the Search Results page.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM): The act of marketing a website via search engines - whether this be improving rank in organic listings, purchasing paid listings or a combination of these - and other search engine-related activities.
Search Engine Optimization: The act of altering a website to improve search engine listings.
Upgrade: Advertisers are upgraded to Content Ads—in that they have access to expanded distribution options.
Advertiser: A person or company who wants to publicize the qualities of their product, service, business, or event in order to encourage people to buy or use it.
Algorithm: A set of rules that a search engine uses to rank the listings contained within its index, in response to a particular query.
Beta Site: Refers to the adCenter Beta Site.
Choices: Refers to various options for advertisers to choose from in their Content Ads settings—choices delivers advertiser control.
Click through rate (CTR): The percentage of those clicking on a link out of the total number who see the link.
Content-targeted advertising or contextual advertising: Based on keywords and phrases, contextual ads will appear on Web pages that have relevant content to those keywords and phrases.
Content Ads: Microsoft adCenter’s contextual advertising product.
Conversion Rate: The relationship between visitors to a website and actions considered to be a "conversion," such as a sale or request to receive more information. Often expressed as a percentage.
Cost per click (CPC): A system where an advertiser pays an agreed amount for each click that someone makes on a link leading to their website.
CPC: Cost-per-click, advertiser only pays when the consumer clicks on their ad.
Crawler: A component of a search engine that gathers listings by automatically crawling the web. A search engine's crawler (also called a spider or robot) follows links to web pages. It makes copies of the web pages found and stores these in the search engine's index.
Distribution Method: The method by which adCenter distributes or targets ads to a specific Web page (either search or content).
Keywords: Query terms that a user enters into the search field.
Metatags: Information placed in a web page not intended for users to see, which typically passes information to search engine crawlers, browser software, and some other applications.
Metadescription Tag: Allows page authors to say how they would like their pages described when listed by search engines. Not all search engines use the tag.
Microsoft adCenter: The Search advertising tool from Microsoft that allows you to bid on keywords to expose your business to the Live Search audience.
Migration: Term to use in reference to advertiser “migration” to the adCenter Beta site.
On-network: Ads will be shown on a company’s network of Web properties. For example, with Content Ads, the ads will run on the MSN network.
Off-network: Ads will be shown on other Web site networks other than the MSN network. The term generally means “publishers”.
Organic Listings: Listings that search engines do not sell (also referred to as natural or algorithmic listings).
Paid Inclusion: Advertising program where pages are included in a search engine's index in exchange for payment, although there is no guarantee of ranking well. Marketers pay to be included in the directory, on a CPC basis or per URL fee basis, with no guarantee of specific placement.
Pay-Per-Click (PPC): See Cost per click.
Paid Listings: Listings that search engines sell to advertisers, usually through paid placement or paid inclusion programs. In contrast, organic listings are not sold.
Parameter: Words that are "plugged in" to an ad title or description at display time to customize the ad in response to a search query.
Pay-for-Performance (P4P): Term popularized by some search engines as a synonym for pay-per-click, stressing to advertisers that they are only paying for ads that perform in terms of delivering traffic measured by clicks.
Publisher: A person or company that publishes online Web site and content.
Query: A request for information.
Rank: How well a particular web page or website is listed in search engine results.
Return on Investment (ROI): Refers to the percentage of profit or revenue generated from a specific activity.
Search advertising: Based on keywords and phrases, search ads appear on the Search Results page.
Search Engine Marketing (SEM): The act of marketing a website via search engines - whether this be improving rank in organic listings, purchasing paid listings or a combination of these - and other search engine-related activities.
Search Engine Optimization: The act of altering a website to improve search engine listings.
Upgrade: Advertisers are upgraded to Content Ads—in that they have access to expanded distribution options.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Search Engine jargons - Vol.1
Click-through rate
Click-through rate or CTR is a way of measuring the success of an online advertising campaign. A CTR is obtained by dividing the number of users who clicked on an ad on a web page by the number of times the ad was delivered (impressions). For example, if your banner ad was delivered 100 times (impressions delivered) and 1 person clicked on it (clicks recorded), then the resulting CTR would be 1%.
Banner ad click-through rates have fallen over time, often measuring significantly less than 1%. By selecting an appropriate advertising site with high affinity (e.g. a movie magazine for a movie advertisement), the same banner can achieve a substantially higher click-through rate. Personalized ads, unusual formats, and more obtrusive ads typically have higher click-through rates than standard banner ads.
CTR is most commonly defined as number of clicks divided by number of impressions and generally not in terms of number of persons who clicked. This is an important difference because if one person clicks 10 times on the same advertisement instead of once then the CTR would increase in the earlier definition but would stay the same in term of later definition.
Pay per click
Pay per click (PPC) is an advertising technique used on websites, advertising networks, and search engines.
Advertisers bid on "keywords" that they believe their target market (people they think would be interested in their offer) would type in the search bar when they are looking for their type of product or service. For example, if an advertiser sells red widgets, he/she would bid on the keyword "red widgets", hoping a user would type those words in the search bar, see their ad, click on it and buy. These ads are called "sponsored links" or "sponsored ads" and appear next to and sometimes above the natural or organic results on the page. The advertiser pays only when the user clicks on the ad.
Cost Per Mille
CPM Cost Per Mille or cost ‰ or Cost per thousand or cost per mille (abbreviated as CPT or, more commonly, CPM). In Latin mille means thousand, therefore, CPM means cost per thousand. CPM is a commonly used measurement in advertising. Radio, television, newspaper, magazine and online advertising can be purchased on the basis of what it costs to show the ad to one thousand viewers (CPM). It is used in marketing as a benchmark to calculate the relative cost of an advertising campaign or an ad message in a given medium. Rather than an absolute cost, CPM estimates the cost per 1000 views of the ad.
Calculation
An example of computing the CPM:
1. Total cost for running the ad is $15,000.
2. The total audience is 2,400,000 people.
3. The CPM is computed as CPM = ($15,000 x 1000)/2,400,000 = $6.25
4. CPM can also be calculated as CPM = $15,000/(2,400,000/1000) = $6.25
Effective Cost Per Mille
Effective Cost Per Mille or eCPM (as it is often initialized to) is a phrase often used in online advertising and online marketing circles. It means the cost of every 1,000 ad impressions shown.
CPM is considered the optimal form of selling online advertising from the publisher's point of view. A publisher gets paid every time an ad is shown.
eCPM is used to measure the effectiveness of a publisher's inventory being sold (by the publisher) via a CPA, CPC, or CPT basis. In other words, the eCPM tells the publisher what they would have received if they sold the advertising inventory on a CPM basis (instead of a CPA, CPC, or CPT basis).
CPA as "Cost Per Action"
CPA is considered the optimal form of buying online advertising from a direct response advertiser's point of view. An advertiser only pays for the ad when an action has occurred. An action can be a product being purchased, a form being filled, etc. (The desired action to be performed is determined by the advertiser.) Google has incorporated this model into their Google AdSense offering while eBay has recently announced a similar pricing called AdContext.
A related term, effective Cost Per Action, is used to measure the effectiveness of advertising inventory purchased (by the advertiser) via a CPC, CPM, or CPT basis.
The CPA can be determined by different factors, depending where the online advertising inventory is being purchased.
CPA as "Cost Per Acquisition"
CPA is sometimes referred to as "Cost Per Acquisition", which has to do with the fact that most CPA offers by advertisers are about acquiring something (mostly new customers, prospects or leads). Using the term "Cost Per Acquisition" instead of "Cost Per Action" is not incorrect. It is actually more specific. "Cost Per Acquisition" is included in "Cost Per Action", but not all "Cost Per Action" offers can be referred to as "Cost Per Acquisition".
Click-through rate or CTR is a way of measuring the success of an online advertising campaign. A CTR is obtained by dividing the number of users who clicked on an ad on a web page by the number of times the ad was delivered (impressions). For example, if your banner ad was delivered 100 times (impressions delivered) and 1 person clicked on it (clicks recorded), then the resulting CTR would be 1%.
Banner ad click-through rates have fallen over time, often measuring significantly less than 1%. By selecting an appropriate advertising site with high affinity (e.g. a movie magazine for a movie advertisement), the same banner can achieve a substantially higher click-through rate. Personalized ads, unusual formats, and more obtrusive ads typically have higher click-through rates than standard banner ads.
CTR is most commonly defined as number of clicks divided by number of impressions and generally not in terms of number of persons who clicked. This is an important difference because if one person clicks 10 times on the same advertisement instead of once then the CTR would increase in the earlier definition but would stay the same in term of later definition.
Pay per click
Pay per click (PPC) is an advertising technique used on websites, advertising networks, and search engines.
Advertisers bid on "keywords" that they believe their target market (people they think would be interested in their offer) would type in the search bar when they are looking for their type of product or service. For example, if an advertiser sells red widgets, he/she would bid on the keyword "red widgets", hoping a user would type those words in the search bar, see their ad, click on it and buy. These ads are called "sponsored links" or "sponsored ads" and appear next to and sometimes above the natural or organic results on the page. The advertiser pays only when the user clicks on the ad.
Cost Per Mille
CPM Cost Per Mille or cost ‰ or Cost per thousand or cost per mille (abbreviated as CPT or, more commonly, CPM). In Latin mille means thousand, therefore, CPM means cost per thousand. CPM is a commonly used measurement in advertising. Radio, television, newspaper, magazine and online advertising can be purchased on the basis of what it costs to show the ad to one thousand viewers (CPM). It is used in marketing as a benchmark to calculate the relative cost of an advertising campaign or an ad message in a given medium. Rather than an absolute cost, CPM estimates the cost per 1000 views of the ad.
Calculation
An example of computing the CPM:
1. Total cost for running the ad is $15,000.
2. The total audience is 2,400,000 people.
3. The CPM is computed as CPM = ($15,000 x 1000)/2,400,000 = $6.25
4. CPM can also be calculated as CPM = $15,000/(2,400,000/1000) = $6.25
Effective Cost Per Mille
Effective Cost Per Mille or eCPM (as it is often initialized to) is a phrase often used in online advertising and online marketing circles. It means the cost of every 1,000 ad impressions shown.
CPM is considered the optimal form of selling online advertising from the publisher's point of view. A publisher gets paid every time an ad is shown.
eCPM is used to measure the effectiveness of a publisher's inventory being sold (by the publisher) via a CPA, CPC, or CPT basis. In other words, the eCPM tells the publisher what they would have received if they sold the advertising inventory on a CPM basis (instead of a CPA, CPC, or CPT basis).
CPA as "Cost Per Action"
CPA is considered the optimal form of buying online advertising from a direct response advertiser's point of view. An advertiser only pays for the ad when an action has occurred. An action can be a product being purchased, a form being filled, etc. (The desired action to be performed is determined by the advertiser.) Google has incorporated this model into their Google AdSense offering while eBay has recently announced a similar pricing called AdContext.
A related term, effective Cost Per Action, is used to measure the effectiveness of advertising inventory purchased (by the advertiser) via a CPC, CPM, or CPT basis.
The CPA can be determined by different factors, depending where the online advertising inventory is being purchased.
CPA as "Cost Per Acquisition"
CPA is sometimes referred to as "Cost Per Acquisition", which has to do with the fact that most CPA offers by advertisers are about acquiring something (mostly new customers, prospects or leads). Using the term "Cost Per Acquisition" instead of "Cost Per Action" is not incorrect. It is actually more specific. "Cost Per Acquisition" is included in "Cost Per Action", but not all "Cost Per Action" offers can be referred to as "Cost Per Acquisition".
Microsoft New Move In SEM
For $6 billion, Microsoft buys huge slice of online-ad pie
Microsoft on Friday announced the biggest acquisition in company history in a bid to grab more of what Microsoft estimates is a $40 billion global digital-advertising market from arch-competitor Google. The Redmond company that made its fortune building software will pay a premium price of $6 billion for aQuantive, a Seattle-based pioneer in next-generation advertising.
The high-stakes deal, which will be reviewed by regulators, is the latest in a string of recent advertising acquisitions that promise to reshape how commercials are bought, sold and presented online -- and who profits.
The global technology giant has shied away from transactions of this size, spending $1 billion or more on acquisitions only four other times in its history. Its tendency has been to acquire smaller companies or just their technology, avoiding the potential pitfalls of combining large work forces.
If the combination with aQuantive goes well -- a process the companies will be planning in the next two months -- Microsoft executives could be emboldened to go after other major deals, said Mark Anderson, a technology analyst in Friday Harbor.
More high-profile acquisitions could also juice Microsoft's stock price, Anderson said, which has been largely stagnant over the past six years, much to investors' chagrin.
Microsoft shares dipped slightly on Friday to close at $30.83 each. Meanwhile, aQuantive stock skyrocketed almost $28, or 77.8 percent, to $63.79 a share. Microsoft is planning to pay $66.50 in cash for each aQuantive share.
No bargain buy
Microsoft is paying a premium price -- well above what several analysts thought aQuantive was worth -- likely because of a competitive bidding process and a frenzy of recent acquisitions in the industry.
In April, Google, which makes most of its money selling advertising next to results from its market-leading Internet search engine, announced a $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick, the biggest seller of online-display advertising, such as the banners that run along the top and sides of Web sites.
Microsoft was rumored to be a bidder for DoubleClick and has since complained to regulators that the deal puts too much control in the hands of one company -- the same charge that landed Microsoft in the protracted antitrust battle over its monopoly of computer operating-system software.
"Yahoo! was making moves, everybody was making moves, and Microsoft had visibly lost out on a couple of these battles at a time when they've got more money than God in the bank," Anderson said.
Asked whether the acquisition is in part to prevent a competitor from getting aQuantive -- one the last large independent digital-advertising houses -- Johnson talked only of the opportunity.
"We looked at how rapidly this industry is consolidating and unfolding, and we felt like now was the time to put a stake in the ground that says we are going to take our advertising platform to the next level and we are committed to this industry for the future growth of our company," Johnson said.
Microsoft on Friday announced the biggest acquisition in company history in a bid to grab more of what Microsoft estimates is a $40 billion global digital-advertising market from arch-competitor Google. The Redmond company that made its fortune building software will pay a premium price of $6 billion for aQuantive, a Seattle-based pioneer in next-generation advertising.
The high-stakes deal, which will be reviewed by regulators, is the latest in a string of recent advertising acquisitions that promise to reshape how commercials are bought, sold and presented online -- and who profits.
The global technology giant has shied away from transactions of this size, spending $1 billion or more on acquisitions only four other times in its history. Its tendency has been to acquire smaller companies or just their technology, avoiding the potential pitfalls of combining large work forces.
If the combination with aQuantive goes well -- a process the companies will be planning in the next two months -- Microsoft executives could be emboldened to go after other major deals, said Mark Anderson, a technology analyst in Friday Harbor.
More high-profile acquisitions could also juice Microsoft's stock price, Anderson said, which has been largely stagnant over the past six years, much to investors' chagrin.
Microsoft shares dipped slightly on Friday to close at $30.83 each. Meanwhile, aQuantive stock skyrocketed almost $28, or 77.8 percent, to $63.79 a share. Microsoft is planning to pay $66.50 in cash for each aQuantive share.
No bargain buy
Microsoft is paying a premium price -- well above what several analysts thought aQuantive was worth -- likely because of a competitive bidding process and a frenzy of recent acquisitions in the industry.
In April, Google, which makes most of its money selling advertising next to results from its market-leading Internet search engine, announced a $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick, the biggest seller of online-display advertising, such as the banners that run along the top and sides of Web sites.
Microsoft was rumored to be a bidder for DoubleClick and has since complained to regulators that the deal puts too much control in the hands of one company -- the same charge that landed Microsoft in the protracted antitrust battle over its monopoly of computer operating-system software.
"Yahoo! was making moves, everybody was making moves, and Microsoft had visibly lost out on a couple of these battles at a time when they've got more money than God in the bank," Anderson said.
Asked whether the acquisition is in part to prevent a competitor from getting aQuantive -- one the last large independent digital-advertising houses -- Johnson talked only of the opportunity.
"We looked at how rapidly this industry is consolidating and unfolding, and we felt like now was the time to put a stake in the ground that says we are going to take our advertising platform to the next level and we are committed to this industry for the future growth of our company," Johnson said.
10 Must DO's For Best Online Ad Copy
1.) Be reader-centered, not writer-centered.
Many ads, brochures, and Web sites we see talk endlessly on and on about how great their products and companies are. Hello? Customer, anyone? Think of your reader thinking, “What’s in it for me?” If you can, talk with some of your current customers and ask them 1) why they chose you, and 2) what they get out of your product or service. TIP: To instantly make your copy more reader-focused, insert the word “you” often.
2.) Focus on the benefits —
not just the features.The fact that your product or service offers a lot of neat features is great, but what do they DO for your customer? Do they save her time or money? Give her peace of mind? Raise her image to a certain status? Here’s an example: If you go buy a pair of Gucci sunglasses, you’re not just looking for good UV protection. You’re buying the sleek, stylish Gucci look. So that’s what Gucci sells. You don’t see their ads talk about how well made their sunglasses are. Think end results. Now, what does an insurance broker sell? Policies? No — peace of mind. (See? You’ve got it.)
3.) Draw them in with a killer headline.
The first thing your reader sees can mean the difference between success and failure. Today’s ads are chock full of clever headlines that play on words. They’re cute, but most of them aren’t effective. There are many ways to get attention in a headline, but it’s safest to appeal to your reader’s interests and concerns. And again, remember to make it reader centered — no one gives a hoot about your company.Bad: “SuccessCorp Creates Amazing New Financial Program” Better: “Turn Your Finances Around in 30 Days!”
4.) Use engaging subheads.
Like mini-headlines, subheads help readers quickly understand your main points by making the copy “skimmable.” Because subheads catch readers” eyes, you should use them to your benefit! Read through your copy for your main promotional points, then summarize the ideas as subheads. To make your subheads engaging, it’s important to include action or selling elements. Bad: “Our Department’s Successes.” Better: “Meet Five Clients Who Saved $10K With Us.”
5.) Be Converational
Write to your customers like you’d talk to them. Don’t be afraid of using conversational phrases such as “So what’s next?” or “Here’s how do we do this.” Avoid formality and use short, easy words. Why? Even if you think it can’t possibly be misunderstood, a few people still won’t get it.
6.) Nix the jargon.
Avoid industry jargon and buzzwords — stick to the facts and the benefits. An easy way to weed out jargon is to think of dear old Mom reading your copy. Would she get it? If not, clarify and simplify. (This rule, of course, varies, depending on who your target audience is. For a business audience, you should upscale your words to what they’re used to. In these cases buzzwords are often crucial. Just make sure your points don’t get muddled in them!)
7.) Keep it brief and digestible.
No one has time to weed through lengthy prose these days. The faster you convey your product or service’s benefits to the reader, the more likely you’ll keep her reading. Fire your “biggest gun” first by beginning with your biggest benefit — if you put it toward the end of your copy, you risk losing the reader before she gets to it. Aim for sentence lengths of less than 20 words. When possible, break up copy with subheads (see no. 4), bullets, numbers, or em dashes (like the one following this phrase) — these make your points easy to digest.
8.) Use testimonials when possible.
Let your prospects know they won’t be the first to try you. Give results-oriented testimonials from customers who have benefited immensely from your product or service. Oh, and never give people’s initials only — it reminds me of those ads in the back of magazines with headlines like “Lose 50 Pounds in Three Days!” Give people’s full names with their titles and companies (or towns and states of residence) — and be sure to get their permission first.
9.) Ask for the order!
Tell your reader what you want her to do — don’t leave her hanging. Do you want her to call you or e-mail you for more information? Order now? Call to schedule a free consultation? Complete a brief survey? Think about what you’d most like her to do, and then ask her. It’s amazing how many marketing materials I come across every day that don’t make it clear what the reader should do. If you wrote interesting copy, your reader may forget you’re trying to sell something. Tell her what to do, and she’ll be more likely to do it.
10.) Have your copy proofread!
Good. Now have it proofread again. Don’t risk printing any typos, misspellings, or grammatical mistakes that will represent your company as amateurish. Hire a professional editor/proofreader to clean up your work and double-check your grammar. Remember, you only get one chance to make a first impession! Oops — *impression*.
1.) Be reader-centered, not writer-centered.
Many ads, brochures, and Web sites we see talk endlessly on and on about how great their products and companies are. Hello? Customer, anyone? Think of your reader thinking, “What’s in it for me?” If you can, talk with some of your current customers and ask them 1) why they chose you, and 2) what they get out of your product or service. TIP: To instantly make your copy more reader-focused, insert the word “you” often.
2.) Focus on the benefits —
not just the features.The fact that your product or service offers a lot of neat features is great, but what do they DO for your customer? Do they save her time or money? Give her peace of mind? Raise her image to a certain status? Here’s an example: If you go buy a pair of Gucci sunglasses, you’re not just looking for good UV protection. You’re buying the sleek, stylish Gucci look. So that’s what Gucci sells. You don’t see their ads talk about how well made their sunglasses are. Think end results. Now, what does an insurance broker sell? Policies? No — peace of mind. (See? You’ve got it.)
3.) Draw them in with a killer headline.
The first thing your reader sees can mean the difference between success and failure. Today’s ads are chock full of clever headlines that play on words. They’re cute, but most of them aren’t effective. There are many ways to get attention in a headline, but it’s safest to appeal to your reader’s interests and concerns. And again, remember to make it reader centered — no one gives a hoot about your company.Bad: “SuccessCorp Creates Amazing New Financial Program” Better: “Turn Your Finances Around in 30 Days!”
4.) Use engaging subheads.
Like mini-headlines, subheads help readers quickly understand your main points by making the copy “skimmable.” Because subheads catch readers” eyes, you should use them to your benefit! Read through your copy for your main promotional points, then summarize the ideas as subheads. To make your subheads engaging, it’s important to include action or selling elements. Bad: “Our Department’s Successes.” Better: “Meet Five Clients Who Saved $10K With Us.”
5.) Be Converational
Write to your customers like you’d talk to them. Don’t be afraid of using conversational phrases such as “So what’s next?” or “Here’s how do we do this.” Avoid formality and use short, easy words. Why? Even if you think it can’t possibly be misunderstood, a few people still won’t get it.
6.) Nix the jargon.
Avoid industry jargon and buzzwords — stick to the facts and the benefits. An easy way to weed out jargon is to think of dear old Mom reading your copy. Would she get it? If not, clarify and simplify. (This rule, of course, varies, depending on who your target audience is. For a business audience, you should upscale your words to what they’re used to. In these cases buzzwords are often crucial. Just make sure your points don’t get muddled in them!)
7.) Keep it brief and digestible.
No one has time to weed through lengthy prose these days. The faster you convey your product or service’s benefits to the reader, the more likely you’ll keep her reading. Fire your “biggest gun” first by beginning with your biggest benefit — if you put it toward the end of your copy, you risk losing the reader before she gets to it. Aim for sentence lengths of less than 20 words. When possible, break up copy with subheads (see no. 4), bullets, numbers, or em dashes (like the one following this phrase) — these make your points easy to digest.
8.) Use testimonials when possible.
Let your prospects know they won’t be the first to try you. Give results-oriented testimonials from customers who have benefited immensely from your product or service. Oh, and never give people’s initials only — it reminds me of those ads in the back of magazines with headlines like “Lose 50 Pounds in Three Days!” Give people’s full names with their titles and companies (or towns and states of residence) — and be sure to get their permission first.
9.) Ask for the order!
Tell your reader what you want her to do — don’t leave her hanging. Do you want her to call you or e-mail you for more information? Order now? Call to schedule a free consultation? Complete a brief survey? Think about what you’d most like her to do, and then ask her. It’s amazing how many marketing materials I come across every day that don’t make it clear what the reader should do. If you wrote interesting copy, your reader may forget you’re trying to sell something. Tell her what to do, and she’ll be more likely to do it.
10.) Have your copy proofread!
Good. Now have it proofread again. Don’t risk printing any typos, misspellings, or grammatical mistakes that will represent your company as amateurish. Hire a professional editor/proofreader to clean up your work and double-check your grammar. Remember, you only get one chance to make a first impession! Oops — *impression*.
Monday, April 23, 2007
Google- the next king of the world
Who rules the world? A majority of you would answer United States and would immediately start blurting about its achievements and failures. The most recent being Iraq. But who really owns it. Microsoft whose software and operating system powers almost 90% of the world’s computers or is it Wal- mart whose retail hegemony has sweeped almost every nook and corner of the first world and is raring to go in third world nations. Well if you tell me to pick my choice it would be the new kid on the block Google. The rapid and enormous growth it has shown in the past five years in its own field which defies every marketing thesis or hypothesis. The Google juggernaut is expanding at such a rapid pace that it seems like swallowing every other company which comes its way. The liquid resources (cash) it has spawned many affiliates to rake in great moolahs. It has shown the world and is continuously showing the world how to become a behemoth if one has right combination of talent, skills and yes the sense of business opportunity. Google is moulding itself on the lines of AOL and other media houses and it’s objective is same .To become the no.1 in the world. One may not like the ways of it in pure sense but its pure business ruthlessness reminds one of Alexander the great one who won the world too soon. Let’s hope this momentum continues and we pay salutation to the new king on the block
Long live the king.
Long live the king.
Wednesday, April 18, 2007
Google Bomb
A Google bomb (also referred to as a 'link bomb') is Internet slang for a certain kind of attempt to influence the ranking of a given page in results returned by the Google search engine often with humorous or political intentions. Because of the way that Google's algorithm works, a page will be ranked higher if the sites that link to that page use consistent anchor text. A Google bomb is created if a large number of sites link to the page in this manner
The first Google bomb known about by a significant number of people was the one that caused the search term "more evil than Satan himself" to bring up the Microsoft homepage as the top result.
In addition, since all major search engines make use of link analysis, they can be affected: a search for "miserable failure" or "failure" on September 29, 2006 brought up the official George W. Bush biography number one on Google, Yahoo! and MSN and number two on Ask.com. On June 2, 2005, Yooter reported that George Bush is now ranked first for the keyword 'miserable', 'failure' and 'miserable failure' in both Google and Yahoo!. And on September 16, 2005, Marissa Mayer wrote on Google Blog about the practice of Google bombing and the word "failure." Other large political figures have been targeted for Google bombs: on January 6, 2006, Yooter reported that Tony Blair is now indexed in the U.S. and UK versions of Google for the keyword 'liar'.
Some Google Bombs :-
French military victories
Out of Touch Executives (try in Yahoo search)
The first Google bomb known about by a significant number of people was the one that caused the search term "more evil than Satan himself" to bring up the Microsoft homepage as the top result.
In addition, since all major search engines make use of link analysis, they can be affected: a search for "miserable failure" or "failure" on September 29, 2006 brought up the official George W. Bush biography number one on Google, Yahoo! and MSN and number two on Ask.com. On June 2, 2005, Yooter reported that George Bush is now ranked first for the keyword 'miserable', 'failure' and 'miserable failure' in both Google and Yahoo!. And on September 16, 2005, Marissa Mayer wrote on Google Blog about the practice of Google bombing and the word "failure." Other large political figures have been targeted for Google bombs: on January 6, 2006, Yooter reported that Tony Blair is now indexed in the U.S. and UK versions of Google for the keyword 'liar'.
Some Google Bombs :-
French military victories
Out of Touch Executives (try in Yahoo search)
Vertical search
Vertical search, part of a larger sub grouping known as “specialized” search, is a relatively new tier in the Internet search industry consisting of search engines that focus on specific businesses. While Google, Yahoo!, and the like will continue to dominate the online consumer search market, research analysts say myriad specialized search engines are emerging to address the particular information needs of niche audiences and professions.
Vertical search vs. broad-based search
To see how these sites differ, it’s helpful to know how they are designed. The term “search engine” refers to a software program that searches the Web and Usenet groups to find documents for a specified keyword and returns a list of documents in which the keyword was found.
Broad-based search engines such as Google or Yahoo fetch very large numbers of documents using a Web crawler. Another program called an indexer then reads these documents and creates a search index based on words contained in each document. Each search engine uses a proprietary algorithm to create its indexes so that, ideally, only meaningful results are returned for each query.
What’s driving growth in vertical search?
Advertisers on vertical sites are able to reach potential customers who are much closer to making a purchase decision than the average user on Google or Yahoo, The cost of advertising on the large search engines is also likely to drive more marketers to vertical search.
“Increasing competition and rising keyword prices should motivate search marketers to look for newer, viable opportunities to diversify their incoming traffic.
Vertical search vs. broad-based search
To see how these sites differ, it’s helpful to know how they are designed. The term “search engine” refers to a software program that searches the Web and Usenet groups to find documents for a specified keyword and returns a list of documents in which the keyword was found.
Broad-based search engines such as Google or Yahoo fetch very large numbers of documents using a Web crawler. Another program called an indexer then reads these documents and creates a search index based on words contained in each document. Each search engine uses a proprietary algorithm to create its indexes so that, ideally, only meaningful results are returned for each query.
What’s driving growth in vertical search?
Advertisers on vertical sites are able to reach potential customers who are much closer to making a purchase decision than the average user on Google or Yahoo, The cost of advertising on the large search engines is also likely to drive more marketers to vertical search.
“Increasing competition and rising keyword prices should motivate search marketers to look for newer, viable opportunities to diversify their incoming traffic.
Google juice
Google juice is an internet slang for the ability or power of a website to turn up in Google searches. A website that commonly turns up as the first or second entry in a variety of searches — especially for keywords that are not part of the site's name — can be said to have a lot of Google juice. It is frequently used by bloggers and webmasters Google's PageRank system plays a large role in ranking results for a given search. It works by counting how many times a page has been linked to and by the "quality" of those links — namely how many times the page that is linking has itself been linked to. In this way, sites with high Google rankings (i.e., lots of "Google juice") can offer to "share" or "give" Google juice to a less popular site. A link from a site with less Google juice can also be helpful in this regard to a lesser degree: there is less juice to give.
Wednesday, March 7, 2007
The Advantage Of GAP
Continuing with my topic of search engine marketing. I've taken a short break on to this journey to explore the much vaunted & lauded land of search. Google is the king of search, so who should rule the kingdom, the reign must be in the hands of able masters. GAP comes in picture at this junction. It is one of the qualifications which can ensure that the professionals working on campaign of many companies can handle it properly. This certification not only adds feather into one's own crown but also satisfies and soothens the nerves of wary advertisers which want more return on their investment. Think it on the lines of a prestigious degree from stanford, howard or iims which assures any management that their business is on sound footing.
So how much its cost one technically. $50(US) in monetary terms and invaluable in terms of knowledge of the phenomena better known as Google Adwords.
Open to views, comments, criticism on this issue
and taking a well deserved rest for now.
So how much its cost one technically. $50(US) in monetary terms and invaluable in terms of knowledge of the phenomena better known as Google Adwords.
Open to views, comments, criticism on this issue
and taking a well deserved rest for now.
Monday, March 5, 2007
the market of search
Created and popularised by google avant garde duo of larry and sergey, the search market has outgrown every other business idea or potential which ever lasted or existed on this earth. No surprise that google has been ranked one of the world's greatest inventions of this century. The market cap which grew to $80 billion in just 5 years of its inception is just a vindiction of its growing potential. So why not many organisations are taking chances to cash on this trend? The fear of being marginalised in the the rat race looms large on the prospect of many companies and that's why they prefer to play safe and be the kings of their respective fields but the real potential lies in not becoming competitors but allies to tap the growing potential of this field. The role of entrepreneurs willing to take risk is seemingly becoming valuable. That is the power of one. 1+1 =11 it is said in indian mythology. It's time to join the party in true corporate sense. Let's raise a toast to this inevitable probability.
Feel free to add on to this point.
Feel free to add on to this point.
Wednesday, February 14, 2007
Mergers & Acquisitions
An intrinsic nature of human beings have inspired me to start this blog. why mergers & acquisitions? aren't there other relevant topics to be discussed about. yes ! indeed there are plenty happening in economic, political, socio- cultural front and yes, i've a definite answer to all the queries and questions which keep on confronting our conscious and sub- conscious mind to hilt. mergers and acquisituions can explain each and everything.
the theory of M&A is is what i call it and leave it for further explanation in the cdertain case of our next meeting.
the theory of M&A is is what i call it and leave it for further explanation in the cdertain case of our next meeting.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
