Coast Digital Blog

We all got rather excited about this morning's news that online marketing spend in the UK has overtaken that invested in TV advertising - for the first time ever.

I was busy putting together this story about it for our news section when online marketing executive James Fairweather dropped me a line about it, cc'ing in consultant Kayas Fayez at the same time. I told him I was busy posting about it, when Kayas kicked off a series of exchanges that showed we all had strong feelings about the news, but didn't necessarily agree...

We thought we'd share our emails with you and find out what you thought. I've not edited them, as I think it's nicer to keep the flavour of how we communicate at the beginning of the day.

So, over to Kayas:

This is good news for the industry. However, have to bear in mind that there are a lot (85% of all UK businesses are SMEs I believe) of businesses that can’t afford TV advertising as there’s little bang for their buck. Digital is usually the only channel that’s commercially viable for them.
 
A better examination of this would be to carry out a separate report for businesses that engage in both TV and Online and see what the overall split (media spend) is for those businesses.

I came back with this (I'm Ben Locker, by the way):

If there were figures for effectiveness of TV spend compared to digital spend, that would be interesting. Though the rogue factor would be that all TV advertising has to be done professionally, whereas a lot of online spend will be done by amateurs (esp PPC). So a more accurate comparison would be, say, ROI comparison between the top (say) 100 TV agencies and the top 100 digital ones...
 
Thinking out loud. Do excuse it!

Kayas developed his ideas further:

Good point. However, just because an amateur runs a digital campaign doesn’t mean it should lose weight in the fact that it is still media spend. By comparing top 100’s you’re essentially omitting recognition for the primary USP of digital – it’s available and accessible to all to use as an advertising tool.
 
Also, ROI shouldn’t be considered for reporting media spend – the big boys spend millions on digital brand campaigns for brand (and not direct response) purposes because digital works. ROI is not a KPI for those campaigns.
 
Feel free to jump in – I’m up for a Wednesday morning discussion :-)

Me again:

Yes, I agree, but I'm looking at it from the selfishly commercial POV of encouraging greater online spend away from TV. In other words, if you can say to the big boys that digital gives you more bang for your buck, you will attract more of them to agencies like Coast (especially in tight times, when TV and print spend is dropping). But as you say, the fact it is accessible to everyone is a great attraction to SMEs, that form the bulk of the market (I think - do they?).

So, no - ROI isn't a KPI for the TV campaigns, but it's a great marketing tool for online agencies.

What interests me about what you're saying is about brand. It's not easy building brands online - it would be great to find ways of doing so. After attracting a lot more people to online marketing, it would be easier to retain them if you could add better brand building into the mix.

James jumped on the question of brands:

I think the real issue is that there aren’t many brands that can afford television presence that have no existing brand awareness in the marketplace. From the Web Analyst’s perspective, this essentially means that if you measure the website visits, TV coverage will drive both brand and direct traffic, Brand awareness from other efforts will also drive brand and direct traffic. This ‘pot’ of brand and direct traffic is where things blur, as it is very difficult to measure where these have really come from – TV, other offline advertising or returning visitors from any possible initial source.
 
The ‘Compare the Meerkat’ ads were probably the smartest way to measure just that – run a separate site with a TV campaign to assess the effectiveness of that channel alone. Again, the boundaries blur as soon as you get involved with social media and people start passing links around virally and through email and social networks.

I ended with this, and I'm sure the matter isn't going to rest here:

I suppose if you then look at it from the point of view of an SME, the advantage of digital marketing is that agencies like Coast can prove - and deliver - an impressive ROI. So, assuming people want to buy your products and services in the first place, services like SEO and PPC are going to result in measurable profit. And that's extra money that can be investing in brand building exercises like TV ads etc, which in turn drive more online traffic as well as bolster brand.

I think my point is that digital marketing is, or should be, a core part of every business's strategy (for sales, and for growth) - whereas it's part of a virtuous circle for companies that use brand-building marketing such as TV.

So, that's what we do in the mornings when a good story comes along. But what do you think? Why is digital marketing spend overtaking TV? What do you think about comparing the effectiveness of online marketing with TV advertising. What are your thoughts about using digital direct marketing for brand building?

So many questions, and even more answers. Let's hear yours in the comments below.

For many business, it has been a tough year that has required significant sacrifices, quick-thinking and patience.

If you are in business, the question on your mind will be whether 2010 will be as challenging, or whether it will create a kinder environment. Only time will tell, but if you haven’t started to plan then it’s definitely the moment to do so.

These are my top ten tips for businesses that need to address their planning for next year. You may have your own priorities – so be sure to share them in the comments.

1. Don’t underestimate the power of engagement

If you want to generate a lot of positive consumer behaviour, you must communicate with your target audience. You can do this by using any of the four main engagement techniques (i.e. content, message, platform and experience), but be sure to record and evaluate the response as this will shape the way you present your brand to a mass audience. Your sole objective should be brand engagement.

2. The new generation of consumers expects a great deal more

Too many brands these days are oblivious when it comes to assessing what their customers want. If yours is one of them, revenue will be slipping through your fingers.

Consumers snap up the latest pocket-technology and web wizardry and, if your business acts intelligently on this trend, you should soon introduce lucrative and profitable new revenue channels. Businesses simply have to become more savvy about the digital world – mobile devices and evolved web technology are quickly going to be central to the way we do business.

3. Green is the new black

Climate change and the environment are no longer seen as fringe issues, and your business and brand need to speak and act green. Your environmental activity also needs to be authentic, sincere and likeable – and if it’s not, consumers will give their business to your competitors. Green issues will be more crucial than ever to brand promotion in 2010.

4. Price is more important than ever.

Businesses that failed to adapt during the recession, particularly by failing to change their pricing strategy, usually lost sales. In 2010 you will need to be kind to customers with competitive pricing, and in return you will build up brand loyalty. As many companies have found in recent months, if you don’t cultivate a loyal customer base you could easily go bust.

5. The ‘Three Simplicities’ – websites that are simple to find, simple to understand and simple to use

If a website is simple to find, simple to understand and simple to use, then it will be simple to buy from. By all means focus on price, promotion and brand – but if you don’t keep your website simple, your eBasket will leach sales like a colander. Talk to a web design agency if you need help.

6. Don’t make assumptions about your target audience – behaviour is what matters

There’s no need for generic audience profiling these days. With tools such as Google Analytics and social media platforms, you can tailor your planning to your actual audience. If you interrogate your data properly, then you will have a major competitive advantage – but do employ specialists who have necessary skills in disciplines like web analytics and competitor benchmarking.

7. Give customers that little bit extra

Consumers love knowing they are getting more bang for their buck, so if your brand adds extra value compared to your competitors, then they are more likely to choose you. Adding value can also be a much better option than price slashing, which can spark off detrimental price wars.

8. Give customers customisation and control

Whether it’s a product or a service, customisation options are becoming more visible than before.  With many luxuries raised to the status of essentials (e.g. iPods, mobile phones, laptops etc), you need strategies to help buyers personalise their purchases (e.g. offer different colours or cases).

This technique has migrated to the services industry and is strong within the online environment and it’s an effective way to generate a buzz about a product and increase sales.

9. Bring your marketing activity together

Culturally, marketing activity tends to be conceptualised, developed and executed within its department (offline, online, digital, PR), ignoring the activities being created within the other departments. This often results in campaigns that have very little (if any) synergy, which is a strategic no-no. Lack of communication can also result in mixed messages, which confuse your audience – to the detriment of your brand. Bring departments together more often and more intelligently and your marketing will improve significantly.

10. Affinity marketing will see brands coming together for a common cause – more sales

Affinity marketing that brings complementary brands together is nothing new, but in the UK is has predominantly taken place within the ‘white labelling’ sector – mainly supermarkets and financial organisations. However, over the past year a growing number of smaller businesses have joined forces to offer consumers more enticing offerings.

This is a great area to explore, and if the partnership makes sense to your target audience then the potential benefits can be huge. Activity costs can also be split, making it an economical and increasingly popular strategy.  

Summary

2010 will definitely be a challenging and aggressive year for businesses, particularly as many will want to compensate for the recent downturn and will be competing against new firms that have capitalised on recent opportunities. Although we can’t predict exactly what the commercial climate will throw at the business sector, logical and strategic planning is essential – and if that requires the help of an online marketing agency, then it’s worth talking to one now.

What are your business aims for 2010? Leave your comments below or contact us to discuss your digital marketing plans.

On Wednesday, I spent the morning at ad:tech London, the show that bills itself as being “all about interactive marketing”. For those who didn’t make it and are interested in what they might have missed, here’s a quick run through of this first-timer’s observations.

Footfall indicates a flourishing industry

Unsurprisingly, the exhibition floor at Olympia was packed from the moment I got there until the moment I left. Forrester Research recently predicted a further 15% growth for search marketing between 2009 and 2014, so it’s no surprise that so many people want a slice of the action. Don’t underestimate the increasing importance of social media though (also discussed in detail at ad:tech), for which Forrester is predicting a 34% expansion.

I took a sneaky peek at other visitors’ badges and found a healthy mix of marketers and small business owners. Exhibitors and speakers alike therefore needed to adjust their pitches if they were to address the many different levels of understanding possessed by this mix of visitors.

Seminars cover the basics – in a good way

I attended a range of seminars throughout the day – alternating between the analytics/affiliates and search/ad networks theatres. The first seminar was pitched at a relatively basic level, but the speaker made some good points. This is my summary of the most interesting ones. 

• Web marketing activity should be integrated with offline marketing activity. A good point and one that too many people overlook. If your online marketing agency is aware of offline campaigns that might be driving additional traffic to the website, it will be able to track success with analytics and ensure that those visitors are driven to relevant landing pages that meet their expectations, rather than just a generic homepage. 
• Pay per click results should inform natural search campaigns, and vice versa. This is often one of the primary benefits of working with an agency that manages both. PPC data can tell you which keywords are resulting in the best conversions, allowing you to be more targeted with natural search efforts
• Many people who manage their own online marketing campaigns fail to set up analytics accounts properly – and some don’t have any monitoring in place at all. This concern was echoed by Microsoft’s Group Search Manager whose lasting message was “Know your searcher”. Analytics data can be used to help you plan more efficient campaigns. Microsoft also argued that you not only need to track everything, but you also need to be able to respond...
• Be flexible with your online marketing budget. This by no means implies that you need to be prepared to plough more money into the campaign at any given time, but simply that you need to take advantage of seasonality and ROI trends. You can achieve this by reallocating budget if there is a surprising upturn in search volumes earlier – or later – than you expected.
• Invest in your brand as well as your keywords. This message resonated well with me, particuarly as I’m someone who has come to the online arena with a background in more traditional forms of marketing. It is an irrefutable fact that people still click on the brands that they recognise ahead of those that they don’t – even if the known brands are further down the SERPs (search engine results pages).

This links back to my very first point – get your PR agency talking to your online marketing agency and make sure that your various campaigns support and strengthen one another. According to Microsoft, 54% of people are more likely to search on a brand term (company name, tagline, key phrase from adverts, etc.) once they’ve seen a display ad. And, of course, this can all be tracked online.

Why should you go to ad:tech 2010?

Overall, it was a good day and I’d recommend the seminar programme to anyone who is interested in increasing their basic understanding online marketing. The main seminars were completely free (you can pay to attend the Google University if you so wish), so they’re a good option if you want to learn whilst avoiding the persistent sales pitches from the exhibitors with stands.

If you’re a seasoned online marketing professional, I couldn’t say with confidence that you’re likely to get a lot out of a visit to this exhibition – unless it’s a bit of competitor analysis that you’re after, of course.

If you didn’t make it to ad:tech this year and would like to talk to someone about online marketing – or if you did go, but were disappointed by the companies you spoke to – give Coast Digital a call. We’ll be happy to help you with any aspect of digital marketing that interests you.

If, like me, you’ve got a background in public relations — a form of promotion that’s notoriously difficult to measure by ROI — the transparency and accountability of online marketing is a very welcome breath of fresh air.

Like all the members of Coast Digital’s newly formed account management team, my main focus is on giving our clients the best possible support and making sure levels of customer satisfaction stay high. This means reviewing what our clients are able to spend on their online activities, how that investment is distributed across the various digital services we offer, and how we can develop their particular strategy to ensure it goes on delivering the best possible results.

We can do that well because digital marketing is measurable.

Google Analytics 101

Google Analytics is an absolute godsend for reviewing the successes and ironing out the shortcomings of every online marketing strategy. Although I’d briefly explored the tool in a previous role, I’d never really taken the time to appreciate what a rich source of information it can be if you take the time to interrogate it.

Google Analytics can instantly give you the information required to calculate an overall ROI but, if you so wish, you can also use it to analyse the data that has been collected from your site and review the precise impact of individual keywords, adverts and landing pages. I’d recommend reading my colleague Darren Bond’s post on ROI to find out more.

Marketing you can measure

Coast Digital is an online marketing agency that prides itself on delivering “marketing you can measure”, and we can do that because web analytics are all about facts and results. You certainly won’t get any unsubstantiated claims, ambiguous assertions or vague estimates about the success of your campaign.

Instead, you will not only be able to identify the exact keywords that are driving the most traffic to your website, but you will also see which ones result in the highest number of sales – an important distinction as the keywords with the highest click-through rates might not be the ones that make you the most money. Indeed, they could be the most costly.

Tracking success

For e-commerce customers, tracking a campaign’s success is simple – we can calculate the return on investment down to the very last penny. However, if you own or work for a business with a more technical focus, or one that trades in high-value goods, most enquiries might bear fruit away from the website – via a sales hotline for example – making it a little more difficult to match success to the correct elements of a campaign.

It can be done, though, and this is where the strong partnerships we have with our clients really come into play. The more information they feed us about the quantity, quality and relevance of the enquiries they receive, the better able we are to hone and tailor their digital campaign – resulting in a golden circle of even more enquiries and sales, and an even better ROI.

Above all, though, we love working with people to create strategies that work, month in, month out. So, if you’re looking for an online marketing strategy that is completely measurable, and a team that will continuously review its progress to ensure that it is working as hard as it can for you, please get in touch. We’re looking forward to doing some measuring on your behalf.

Last week Google broke the news to an eagerly-expectant crowd at the San José Convention Center that a new algo update is round the corner. This change is set to speed up the SERPs, carry more data and generally make the world a better place.

For the first time, Google has jumped on the PR wagon and released a sandbox test for us all to admire: www2.sandbox.google.com. The search giant suggests – not very descriptively – that there is much more 'under the hood' in this version.

I’ve noticed this type of PR around Google products has picked up pace over the last six to nine months. For example, similar coverage about Google’s street maps generated a lot of brand buzz. Google has definitely made a recent and welcome change to its stance on openness and communicating to the public.

I remember back to the days when Google would roll out a 'Google Dance': listings would be shaken up for a few days, and then things would settle down. No one knew why, how or what had happened – it was up to us to guess the changes from the rumour mill on forums.

Over the last two years, changes have been more frequent, fast and published with limited explanations from Google. I believe it is a credit that the industry we work in that it’s always looking to improve the SERPs.

I also believe some of the recent changes implemented to the algo could be reactive and designed to pick up on specific trends some SEO experts use to manipulate results (link sculpting?)

Here is a brief summary of some of the notable Google Dance updates over the years.

So, what can we expect from the Caffeine update when it is rolled out?

From using the sandbox version I have noticed that the load time is much quicker - the use of Ajax will increase efficiency. I also predict that the 'Vince' update will be rolled out to a larger set of keywords when this goes live – not just vanity keywords. With so many brands to focus on and give weighting to, I can’t think that this will be a ‘one-click’ update.

One of the most significant examples of a viral marketing phenomenon doing the rounds on the internet at the moment is the new video for Weezer’s current single, “Pork and Beans”.

A favourite band amongst the marketing team at Coast Digital, we’ve certainly notched up a few views between us in the office, not only for the musical content, but for the incredibly digital-marketing-savvy video.

The video for “Pork and Beans”, released on YouTube weeks before international music TV channels began showing it, is a collection of Weezer’s ‘favourite stuff’; in other words various internet video ‘stars’ miming along to their latest track.

Essentially Weezer brought together various cult internet ‘memes’ and flew a number of self-made YouTube ‘stars’ to Los Angeles to film parodies of the videos which first made them popular.

The smart marketing ploy was to create a video featuring the creators of previously viral content – if one thing is bound to get your brand or message noticed, it’s through endorsement by people already popular in the public eye.

Weezer are certainly not the first band to come up with the idea of a collaboration of YouTube Celebrity – The Barenaked Ladies produced a similarly themed video for the track "The Sound of Your Voice" last year, but to less fanfare.

A great contributing factor to Weezer’s success, is that they had the good grace to allow the “embed item” link in the YouTube channel – something many record companies don’t seem keen to allow, often preferring to direct traffic to the official website. But this move allowed bloggers to spread the video at an even greater rate - us included.

The video reportedly had over 1.2 million views in its first 24 hours on YouTube, reaching 7.5 million views by June 19th.

Obviously Weezer’s marketing efforts have paid off, providing the band with their fastest rising single to date in the American Billboard Modern Rock Charts, shooting up to number 1 after just 3 weeks release.

E-consultancy report that research into the global impact of social media indicates significant growth across all social media platforms; with video clips growing the fastest; now commanding 81% penetration worldwide.  This kind of growth signals an exciting boost for non-traditional marketing methodologies and strategies.

Weezer front man Rivers Cuomo is no stranger to YouTube – he is currently compiling a series of homemade videos entitled “let’s write a song”, encouraging viewers to provide feedback and ideas for a track, which is evolving through a number of stages, from title, style and feel, through to lyrics and more subtle production elements.

This kind of transparency and involvement is one way bands are proactively using the internet to create buzz and differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack. Nine Inch Nails founder, Trent Reznor openly makes high quality multi-track versions of his tracks available on the internet for the general public to remix, modify and upload. The director of the ‘Pork and Beans’ video, Matthew Cullen, hopes others will use the video to create their own video mash-ups.

"We've already got a website, so why do we need a blog too?"

It’s becoming increasingly important to represent your brand or business with a blog in corporate cyberspace today. There are a number of benefits to be had from embracing the technology, some more obvious than others.

Here’s my ‘top ten’ list of why it's crucial to consider a blog for your business – if you haven't done so already. If you have – congratulations – read on to make sure you’re making the most of one of the ‘hottest’ digital marketing trends of the past few years.

1) Personify your business – lose that 'faceless' corporate image and present a softer, more accessible side. With a blog you'll ensure that visitors to your site see there are real people behind that snazzy business branding.

2) Manipulate publicity and press – use your blog as an outlet for comment and retaliation to press, both good and bad. Turn negative publicity on its head, use it as a point for discussion and benefit from extra, relevant site content and visitor interaction. They do say that ‘all publicity is good publicity’ after all.

3) Low cost, instant publishing – add new content quickly and easily at a fraction of the cost of traditional media. You don’t even have to get your web design team or agency involved. With a blog you can post straight from your desktop in no time. Respond immediately to breaking news and current affairs and get people talking.

4) Build brand buzz – get people interested in what you’re doing as a business. How can you expect people to be excited about what you do, unless you show it?

5) Sell indirectly – benefit from an extra channel for sales. There’s no need to force sales, a blog offers the opportunity to ease potential customers into position in their own time, without the need for the traditional ‘hard sell’.

6) Become a household name – subscribers to your blog can see your posts each time you update when they check their RSS reader or blog syndication application, like Google Reader or Yahoo’s Pipes. The more interesting and relevant the content, the more exposure your brand will gain. And if you become an authority in a field i.e. with an opinion that people respect and trust, this exposure can increase greatly.

7) Breathe new life into press releases – historically these would go out by email or newswire, perhaps to catch a 9am inbox-scan with hazy eyes, only to never be looked at again. Conversely presenting press releases in a blog allows your site to benefit from fresh content which will be indexed by the search engines.

8) Create link bait – one well-constructed, thought-provoking blog post might be deemed interesting enough to be picked up and made 'hot' by one of the major social bookmarking sites like Delicious, Technorati, Stumbleupon or Digg. What better way to market your brand than capitalise on the ‘viral effect’ and let other people do it for you?

9) Marketing you can measure – visits, traffic sources and comment frequency can all be measured, compared and analysed. Historically it’s been difficult to measure the "buzz" about a brand or product, the traditional method in printed media uses the concept of 'column inches'. Analytics packages and modern blogging platforms allow for a complete breakdown of visits, visitor activity and page popularity.

10) Understand your customers – what better way to find out how existing and potential customers feel about what you’re doing, how you’re doing it and any changes you’re making, than through informal discussion online? Spark a debate and learn what you can do to make the experience more satisfying.

Blogs are great when you have a real passion for writing something, whether it's for business or pleasure. And blogs are a great online marketing tool; the best will draw a large audience, and will boost your SEO activity.

Here are my 10 golden rules for blogging:

• Be very clear of your aims and objectives for the blog.
• Keep it simple and focused – try to avoid corporate speak or industry jargon – it's not just another website.
• Be passionate and authoritative but with an element of fun. 
• Update your blog regularly. On average I recommend twice weekly.
• Create fresh, eye-catching content – originality is key – be passionate in what you want to say.
• Be honest if your blog relates to your products and services.
• Encourage conversation; invite and encourage fellow-bloggers to comment, and listen to what they have to say. Invite guests onto your blog.
• Bloggers hate being sold to, so avoid using hard sell tactics.
• Add inbound and outbound links to your site. The idea is to entice people to your website.
• Socialise with other bloggers and encourage them to communicate your key messages.

Early last week I was reading an article in Marketing Week and was delighted to see the breadth of organisations embracing the power of social networks, in particular the Government.

The Department for Work and Pensions is the latest organisation to welcome social networking. They will be trialing a new site on Wordpress.com with the Hansard Society as part of the Government’s Generation Experience Initiative, with the express aim of targeting the older generation.

The site http://generationxperience.wordpress.com will be linked to other social networks including MySpace, Facebook, YouTube and Flickr. It will encourage discussion on every aspect of life, including work and pensions.

Age Concern and Help the Aged are among the groups invited to participate and create debate. Pensions Minister Mike O’Brien commented: “This site fills a gap in the market by providing an online forum for older people to get their views heard.”

Personally, I think social networks offer a fabulous way for ‘silvers surfers’ to voice their opinions. Though widely regarded as orientated towards young people, my belief is that social networking offers opportunities for all age groups, lifestyles and cultures. Most importantly, it brings everyone together online.  

From an online marketing perspective we’re seeing increased interest in social networking from businesses in the public and private sectors. Companies are keen to embrace online PR and create buzz through blogging and forums. I believe social networks provide a great channel to engage and build relationships with every age group.