Web 2.0 Attracting Small Firms

The number of small businesses using social networking is expected to double in the next year, a study finds.

More small businesses are catching on to Facebook, LinkedIn and other social networking sites as powerful workplace tools, a new study shows.

According to AMI, the number of small companies using integrated social networking services is expected to jump from 300,000 to more than 600,000 in the coming year. The current figure represents only about five percent of all U.S. small businesses, the New York-based consulting firm said.

To encourage more businesses to get involved, many sites now offer features aimed specifically at smaller companies, including contact and client groups.

Within the next year, about 500,000 businesses will use social network as tools for promotional efforts, researchers said.

“Those businesses not currently using social networking services will find that the resources available will be especially useful in competing under current market conditions,” AMI analyst Nikki Lamba said in a statement.

In a similar study by 8e6, an Orange, Cali.-based Internet security firm, about half of 500 employees interviewed said they used social networking sites at work. Younger workers were especially likely to communicate with colleagues, prospects and clients through social networks.

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At First, Funny Videos. Now, a Reference Tool.

I was rummaging through piles of newspapers and an article jumped out at me. It’s from earlier in the year, but the content is current nonetheless…

I know that video is a more efficient way to communicate ideas. It’s interesting now to see how much the use of online video is changing. Below is an article from The New York Times about a nine year old boy who searches YouTube instead of Google when he wants to learn something. I wonder if YouTube will be the next Google?

(Excerpted from The New York Times, by Miguel Helft)

Faced with writing a school report on an Australian animal, Tyler Kennedy began where many students begin these days: by searching the Internet. But Tyler didn’t use Google or Yahoo. He searched for information about the platypus on YouTube.

“I found some videos that gave me pretty good information about how it mates, how it survives, what it eats,” Tyler said. Similarly, when Tyler gets stuck on one of his favorite games on the Wii, he searches YouTube for tips on how to move forward. And when he wants to explore the ins and outs of collecting Bakugan Battle Brawlers cards, which are linked to a Japanese anime television series, he goes to YouTube again.

While he favors YouTube for searches, he said he also turns to Google from time to time.

“When they don’t have really good results on YouTube, then I use Google,” said Tyler, who is 9 and lives in Alameda. Calif.

Tyler’s way of experiencing the Web — primarily through video — may not be mainstream, at least not yet. But his use of YouTube as his favorite search engine underscores a shift that is much broader than the quirky habits of children.

The explosion of all types of video content on YouTube and other sites is quickly transforming online video from a medium strictly for entertainment and news into one that is also a reference tool. As a result, video search, on YouTube and across other sites, is rapidly morphing into a new entry point into the Web, one that could rival mainstream search for many types of queries.

Read the rest of this article at the following link. http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/18/business/media/18ping.html?_r=2

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Investments Rise in Rich Media, Social Networks, Mobile

Web commerce businesses this year plan to invest in the delivery of new rich media and merchandising features, as well as social networking, mobile, and personalization applications to enhance online customer experience and drive conversions, according to the third annual Adobe Scene7 survey from Adobe Systems, Inc.

The survey, which was run in conjunction with industry trade associations and online publications located around the world, found that more than 20% of all respondents have deployed blogs, RSS feeds, user ratings/rankings/comments, and syndicated content:

Comparing these results with the Scene7 2008 survey on deployed features, blogs, RSS, and user ratings significantly rose in usage (up to a 40% increase), Adobe found.

Moreover, respondents are planning to deploy the following features in the coming year:

• Blogs (32%)
• User ratings, rankings and comments (31%)
• 360-degree spin (29%)
• Catalogs & circulars (28%)
• Podcasts or live video feed (28%)
• Product comparisons (27%)
• Videos (27%)

Respondents indicated that increased clicks, usage and conversion rates remain the top metrics used for measuring effectiveness of deployed features. This, together with revenues and order size metrics, are used for measuring effectiveness of online marketing efforts.

Additional survey findings:

• 92% of all respondents will be conducting customer experience projects within the coming year. Compared with last year, when more 53% were planning new projects within six months, this year’s projects have shifted to the second half of 2009.
• When analyzing only the rich media/merchandising area, the top four rich media features deployed, representing approximately one-third of all respondents, were (in order) lifestyle imagery, alternative views, audio/animation, and zoom; while the top four most effective features were zoom, visual filtering & advanced search, lifestyle imagery/photos, and search landing pages according to worldwide respondents having deployed or planned these features.

• Globally, the highest ranking planned rich media features for 2009 were 360-degree spin, online catalogs, podcasts, product comparisons, and videos, each with over 25% of respondents. The greatest adoption of planned vs. already deployed rich media features are in the areas of product comparisons, podcasts, 360-degree spin, mix and match, and 3-D visualization.
• Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA) had the use of microsites/brand boutiques as one of its top deployed features, higher than zoom. For zoom, EMEA was significantly lower in deployment rate (21%) versus North America (36%).

“Web marketing continues to be an area of investment and innovation because in challenging economic times it can deliver high-impact marketing programs that can be easily and immediately measured,” said Doug Mack, VP of consumer and hosted solutions at Adobe. “More than 90% of our survey’s respondents are planning to invest in new rich media and social networking technologies to ensure their brands and products stand out on the web.”

About the survey: The “Adobe Scene7 2009 Online Customer Experience – The Next Generation Survey”(registration required) received 474 responses from brand-name retailers, as well as agencies, media, manufacturers, and high-tech companies worldwide that sell a variety of products and services online. Retailers represented the highest number of responses, representing more than 22% of the total.

If you are thinking about developing or deploying rich media give me a call to discuss your options.

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What Inc. Magazine is saying about SEO

Q: We have created a new website, and we would like to incorporate the best practices in search-engine optimization. Do we need to hire an SEO firm, or can we do things on our own?

A: Clearly, it’s pointless to have a site that’s all dressed up with no place to go. But SEO firms can charge anywhere from a few thousand dollars to more than $100,000, depending on the project. Fortunately, there are cheaper ways to give your new site the head start it deserves, and you have a friend in Google.

But first, you must see yourself through Google’s eyes. At Google Webmaster Tools (google.com/webmasters), you can submit pages for indexing by the mighty engine. The service analyzes your website and identifies the top search terms that lead visitors to your site. You can also create a site map to ensure that Google’s Web crawlers know where to go when they swing by. Crawlers are text bigots: They can’t read JavaScript, image files, and many types of Flash files. So sites that are image-heavy and use JavaScript can run into difficulties. “Yes, a picture may be worth a thousand words, but Google doesn’t always know that,” says Kevin Lee, co-founder and CEO of Didit, a search-engine marketing firm in Rockville Centre, New York. The solution: Add more text. In this situation, brevity is the soul of not being found.

If your site still fails to rise and shine, or if you are struggling with the technical stuff, it may be consultant time. Before you hire one, request references and call up previous customers to inquire about the dark side of their experiences, suggests Blake Brossman, founder of PetCareRx.com, a Lynbrook, New York-based online pet pharmacy. Brossman thinks he overpaid nine years ago when he hired a firm that charged by the hour to optimize his site. “They gave us a large-company approach for large-company dollars,” he says. “It’s better to set a fixed cost so you know the upside or downside.” (On the other hand, don’t pinch pennies by choosing someone toward the bottom of the nearly 1,500,000 Google results for “SEO consultant.”)

And, hey, be real. You won’t be top of the heap for the search term outdoor advertising. Maybe aim for outdoor advertising Ohio. And be patient — results may take months to show up. The wait is worth it, says Brossman. “The right expert with the right solution can give you a lot of competitive advantages.”

At IML we offer a self managed tool that allows you to make adjustments to your website content, page names, tiles descriptions and other items that can maximize your SEO efforts. You can do-it-yourself with some research and training or you can let us help. Either way it’s about having the right solution.

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Is Professional Content the Future of Online Video?

Higher production values come online.

After watching millions of short user-generated video clips on YouTube, are online viewers looking for something, well…better?

According to the report “Pro Online Video Views 1998–2012” from AccuStream iMedia Research, they might be. The firm found that professionally produced online video grew nearly 25% last year, accounting for 41.6 billion views.

Material originally produced for television viewing made up 17% of that long-form content.

Over 30% of the professionally produced online video was children’s entertainment.

“The sharp escalation of professional video content on the Web—mainly from TV networks—is creating a viable base for brand marketers,” said David Hallerman, senior analyst at eMarketer.

The Diffusion Group (TDG) found that in 2008, short and user-generated clips made up 60% of US video advertising revenues.

 

But TDG analysts predicted that 70% of streaming video ad revenues will come from long-form videos in 2013.

It looks like both viewers and ad dollars are shifting.

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