Web 4 Marketing tips

Lies, Damned Lies and Web Analytics

Tue, 6 May 2008 11:53:41 +0100

The reason for the growth of the internet as a key marketing tool in preference to traditional media is its measurability.
Yet each analytics program is liable to give different results from its competitors due to the program design and the limitations inherent in the internet and its use.
Use the data, but remember the pitfalls.

Increase customer feedback at no cost

Mon, 7 Apr 2008 14:01:24 +0100

Use the information you gain from enquiries and downloads from your website to generate feedback from those that otherwise you may never contact again. A follow-up email can be automated to provide key tracking data to improve your business.

Double Your Business - at no cost!

Tue, 4 Mar 2008 11:54:49 +0000

The key to the profitability of websites is their effectiveness in converting visitors to customers. Yet most marketing budgets are spent first on Pay per Click and second on search engine optimisation. Improving your conversion rate from 1 to 2% doubles your business for the same promotion cost.

Using Web 2.0 - Experimenting with Blogs

Mon, 4 Feb 2008 13:21:57 +0000

Active networking required by some Web 2.0 sites seems not to add real value for the searcher. However blogs could be a major tool for generating niche discussions. Here is an experiment at UKEducationPolicy.blogspot.com

Top 10 SEO companies for 2008

Fri, 28 Dec 2007 15:50:22 +0000

7th annual survey of the UK top 10 SEO companies based on their own performance of achieving top ranking positions for themselves.

Should SME companies use Web 2.0?

Wed, 5 Dec 2007 10:16:35 +0000

Web 2.0 offers a new level of interaction with potential customers. Success requires significant investment in time and results are difficult to measure. Entrepreneurs must either find the time themselves or rely on a sophisticated Web 2.0 PR strategy

How Valuable are Email Newsletters?

Fri, 2 Nov 2007 15:53:13 +0000

The great majority of newsletters are never read. Are they still a valuable promotional tool? They work better for those already committed to your services rather than persuading totally fresh readers.

Business Start-Ups - Increasing the Chances of Success

Wed, 26 Sep 2007 16:34:21 +0100

TestYourMarket is a new service to help Entrepreneurs focus on refining web business strategy and marketing quickly and cheaply before major spend.
Look at www.TestYourMarket.co.uk
We are trying to increase the chance of business success rather than putting right a web site that does not work.

New Business Start-Ups in Malawi

Thu, 6 Sep 2007 14:42:06 +0100

The Microloan Foundation has proven success in financing micro businesses in Malawi. Expansion requires more charitable donations. Web 4 Marketing is a keen supporter.

Make your Website Work

Fri, 3 Aug 2007 12:16:08 +0100

Use online enquiry forms rather than simple email so that you can track the source of successful clients and understand their needs.
The right form also enables you to ensure you collect crucial information to help sales follow up.

Solving Web Marketing Problems

Thu, 5 Jul 2007 11:01:03 +0100

Most new web campaigns will need improvement in the light of results. The crucial stage is to analyse the reasons for any problem areas and test improvements. For this a Pay per Click campaign provides the cheapest test bed for measuring results quickly.

Learn from competitors' websites

Thu, 5 Jul 2007 11:12:12 +0100

One of the best sources of new ideas for improving your own websites is your competition. After all they are interested in the same market as you and have directly relevant experience.
Competitors' sites are particularly useful for providing a measure against which you can test your own site. Visitors find it easier to choose between 2 options than evaluating a proposition in a vacuum.

How Important are Sitemaps?

Fri, 27 Apr 2007 15:46:50 +0100

Sitemaps must fulfill 2 uses: Human and Search Engine. Each has their own needs and format and must be automatically updated as new content is added.

Generating More Leads at Less Cost via the Web

Sat, 3 Mar 2007 10:24:19 +0000

Read the story of how Ziptech Services learned to improve the profitability of their website. A series of gradual improvements made a radical difference to the cost per sales lead.

Guidelines for a Marketing Website

Mon, 5 Feb 2007 15:53:09 +0000

7 simple guidelines to ensure new websites are effective in marketing. Or use them to check on an existing site that may not be performing as required.

The best UK search engine marketing companies for 2007

Wed, 3 Jan 2007 16:00:28 +0000

The fifth annual survey of the top UK search engine marketing (SEM) companies based on their achieved rankings for themselves.

Writing effective white papers

Tue, 5 Dec 2006 11:38:13 +0000

White papers should be written with reader reactions and needs always in mind. Once you know the paper is effective, maximise its use throughout relevant sites.

Increasing your B2B conversions

Mon, 6 Nov 2006 14:52:58 +0000

Downloadable white papers now seem to be the most effective method of encouraging web visitors to leave their names and contact details. Conversion rates achievable are 10-20%

The best website tool of 2006 - and it's free!

Wed, 4 Oct 2006 16:58:33 +0100

Google Analytics is the free web stats program designed for marketers. It focuses on measuring 'successful' outcomes and thus provides directly useful information.
Setting up the program is not always straight forward so every step has to be checked.

Small business finance in Malawi

Wed, 30 Aug 2006 10:20:01 +0100

The Microloan Foundation provides micro finance and support to enable the poor and Aids sufferers in Malawi to start their own businesses and become self-reliant. Please sponsor my charity walk to assist raising more monies.

B2B Marketing by size of customer

Thu, 3 Aug 2006 13:53:06 +0100

MarketingSherpa.com in the USA recently studied a sample of technology companies and their online marketing methods. One conclusion likely to be relevant to the UK in many B2B sectors is the importance of adapting your strategy to the size of prospect. Large companies have different decision processes from small ones.

Where are your best potential customers?

Tue, 27 Jun 2006 13:49:58 +0100

our marketing budget should be targeted according to the potential of each group to return real business profit. A study of the relative performance of different customer channels on the internet proves the importance of existing contacts, then search engines as against all other links.

Watching Google watching You!

Mon, 5 Jun 2006 13:52:18 +0100

Google Sitemaps are an increasingly valuable tool for all webmasters. The main benefit is the ability to check that communication is effective and that Google has correctly indexed the information on your site.
You should also check that your pages have been indexed in the primary rather than supplementary index. If not, you should understand the reasons for the classification and take the necessary action to improve their ranking.

5 Objectives for the Home Page

Fri, 5 May 2006 13:53:55 +0100

Half your visitors are likely to see your home page only and spend less than 30 seconds on it. What, then, makes a good Home Page?

Website Performance Guidlines

Thu, 6 Apr 2006 09:37:00 +0100

How do you know when to be satisfied with your site's performance and when an immediate upgrade is required? Here are some guidelines base on a recent anaysis of my clients' data.

SEO made simple

Thu, 6 Apr 2006 09:28:46 +0100

Web marketing rests on simple principles:
1.Define your target market
2.Create the relevant website
3.Test the effectiveness of the site
4.Promote

The principle least observed is that of testing. But this is an absolute requirement for continuous progress.

Are your web links consistent?

Tue, 31 Jan 2006 13:35:28 +0100

Ensuring search engine spiders index your site is just the first stage. The information must be in the right format and the link structure consistent

2006 survey of top UK SEO companies

Wed, 28 Dec 2005 12:03:14 +0100

The annual update of a survey of the performance of the top UK search engine optimisation companies based on their successful promotion of their own sites.

Local Search Options

Sat, 3 Dec 2005 11:27:37 +0100

Local search accounts for 37% of all web searches and is important even for B2B marketing. Here are the main options and costs for the UK directories

How stable are search engine rankings?

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 17:23:37 +0100

If your rankings change from month to month, how do you decide when to make improvements?

Bidding strategy for Google AdWords

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 17:18:43 +0100

The ranking of your ad depends on how much you bid and on the 'quality' of the ad. But Google's assessment of the quality is itself linked to the position it starts at. How do you maximise your results without over paying?

So you are converting just 1% of your visitors?

Mon, 31 Oct 2005 17:14:16 +0100

If your website is optimised to attract the right visitors, why are only 1% often making an enquiry or purchase? What happens to the other 99%

Local Search provides new tool for Web Marketing

Thu, 7 Jul 2005 16:24:16 +0100

The new UK Google local search facility is now on beta test. Any UK company selling particularly in their local area should ensure they are signed up for this service. It is run in conjunction with Yell.com so you need to be listed there first.

Proof of Effective Web Marketing

Fri, 3 Jun 2005 14:57:23 +0100

eRetail sales in UK grew 30% when shop sales fell by 1.3% in April 2005 compared to the previous year.

Do the search engines list your site?

Wed, 4 May 2005 13:59:10 +0100

Do the search engines list your site? How to check your pages are indexed and see if they need further optimisation.

Restricted Growth for new websites

Thu, 7 Apr 2005 13:30:36 +0100

The Google sandbox will limit the immediate returns for a new website. But the quality of the search results should improve. This is in the interest of serious webmasters and should encourage the regular improvement of content

Web Planning Template

Fri, 4 Mar 2005 13:18:56 +0100

Here is a form to assist planning a new website or just its upgrade. The aim is to ensure overall objectives are achieved and resources not wasted on minor concerns

Email Newsletters R.I.P.

Thu, 3 Feb 2005 17:21:18 +0100

RSS News Feeds and Blogs will gradually take over from email newsletters as the advantages are realised by both publisher and reader

Backup is the key business insurance

Fri, 7 Jan 2005 16:53:44 +0100

More business owners insure their car than have secure backup systems in place. Yet the risk of loss is far greater. Here you have a free trial of an online backup system that can be used on just one PC or a complete network.

Online backup gives security and support

Thu, 23 Dec 2004 12:08:00 +0100

Backup systems are too often neglected. For most o the time they are a time-consuming burden and there are so many more interesting ways of spending your time.
BUT, when you need it, it is too late if you have not already installed the right solution.
The most effective service is now online backup and it provides both security and time-saving.

UK internet sales more than doubled in 2003 over 2002

Thu, 23 Dec 2004 11:52:19 +0100

The UK Government survey of e-commerce showed dramatic increases over the previous year. 67% of all Internet sales were of physical products.

Sales to households rose to £11.4 billion

Top 10 SEO companies in the UK

Mon, 6 Dec 2004 11:21:52 +0100

When 720,000 companies are listed by Google UK under 'search engine optimisation', how do you choose a supplier you can trust? Here are the results of a survey to find which performed best for their own search engine rankings

How to build customer confidence in your website