out of the blue

An important aspect of web marketing that is oftentimes overlooked is the choice of your domain name. While this choice initially seems like one that can be easily checked off the “To Do” list, it is, in fact, as important as naming your child. Your website, your company, your product, and you are going to carry this name with you for a good portion of your life (well, at least for the duration of the website’s life). Your domain name will not only affect how people view your product/company, it will also affect how many people actually visit your site (aka translating to your revenue)! Some important tips to keep in mind when sweating over your domain name (because now you’re aware that you should have at least one bead of sweat dripping off your forehead):

*Describe your product. Your domain name should be a simple, yet descriptive title of your product. Example: say you sell customized dollhouses. Your domain name should not be dollhouses.com, but rather customizeddollhouses.com. The reason for this is two-fold. One: This will make your website go to the top of search engine results, and two: those chumps sitting at their computer staring at the screen just typing in domain names blindly will have a better chance of finding you (come on, admit it, you’ve been known to do this-why do you think bored.com was such a success?).

*Leave out those quirky gimmicks! Sure, it’s cute when write your girlfriends that you are saving “All of my luv 4U,” but that’s not going to cut it when people are searching for your type. You need to be aware of any gimmicks you may be using-accurate spelling is usually best, although there are exceptions to this rule. Know your audience.

*Be aware of common misspellings. Even the word “misspell” is misspelled constantly (oh, the irony of it all). Therefore, when choosing your domain name, you need to choose words that the average Joe knows how to spell. This, many times, means leaving out those words such as receive (which is still the hardest word for me).

*Keep it a .com. This one is obvious enough- people always type .com first. This is going to be your ideal address.

*Short & Sweet. Enough said.

*Don’t be a thief! Sure, you might think it’s a great idea to steal a major company’s .com address, but in the end it could bite you in the ass. If I typed in Starbuckscoffee.com and get your jank coffee, I’m instantly turned off and in search for the real Starbucks. Think it through.

Once you do come up with the ideal .com name, SNATCH it up! Go to godaddy.com, check it’s availability, and purchase it!

It almost seems ironic to blog about blogging, but in today’s internet-crazed, social media driven marketing society, it’s also necessary. What began as a Livejournal.com craze evolved into the money-making, marketing ploy of the decade. Blogging is not only a way to vent your feelings and make yourself feel increasingly important, but it is now a marketing tool that can win the hearts of potential advertisers (thus increasing the dough in your pocket) and increase your customer base. If you are considering beginning a blog website for your company, here are some things to keep in mind.

Blogging is an important tool, but it should not replace good old-fashioned marketing. Just because you have a blog up on the internet where you impart all of your knowledge does not mean that you should neglect your company’s main page. Keeping BOTH up to date will prove to your customers that you know how to keep your personal and professional life separate. Sure blogging in the name of your company can be considered “professional” but at the same time, it does not carry with it the weight of professionalism that a good sturdy informative website does. It’s kind of like this: if your .com shows your customer what great work you do and represents you as a business, your blog could be considered to show your customer that you do have some experience (and thus knowledge) in your field, and also show them that you are a human, not a machine. Blogging can almost be considered a small peek into your personal life, therefore earning the trust of your customer and “friending” them.

As for the content of your blogs, it does matter what you’re babbling about. Of course, relevancy is key in blogging, but so is originality. With the ENDLESS amounts of blogs out there, people want to read something new (obviously). Be sure to put your voice into your piece too- your website is for the professional, no-nonsense and (oftentimes) boring information. Have a little fun, go a little wild, throw in some passion! This is probably one of your only forums where you can just be yourself-but also keep it real. Don’t try and make yourself seem like a genius on topics you aren’t really knowledgeable about. Say what you know, give people links to what you don’t know, and just have a good time.

One last thing to keep in mind before setting off into the sunset holding your blog’s hand- while blogging is increasingly important in marketing today, it’s also not that serious. If you have a bad day and write a bad blog, make up for it the next day. Life will go on.

Blog on reader…blog on!

After spending countless hours on social media websites such as Facebook, MySpace, LinkedIn, Imeem, Plaxo (believe me, the list goes on and on), I consider myself to be somewhat of an expert in the field. Okay, maybe not an expert expert, but at least a novice expert if that makes sense. I not only use these sites for my own personal pleasure and interest, but I also help set them up and “farm” them for bands and companies. After working at this tediously for a few months, I can personally offer some tips for what is becoming an increasingly important way to get yourself “known” on the web. If you want to be somebody (and who doesn’t??), you need to have a Myspace, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc., profile. When a younger crowd goes to find out about a company or person, guaranteed one of the first places they’ll check is Facebook or MySpace. Google is still a possibility of course, but you’ll get extra traffic if you’re in the hot spots of the web.

Setting up these sites are simple enough- next to the log on button is always a question posed for the viewer, “Not a member? Sign up!” It’s that easy! After entering some standard information about your likes/dislikes and personal data, add a picture (one where you don’t have broccoli stuck in your teeth) and you’re ready to go! While nearly all social media sites are free to join, many do have a VIP upgrade feature (for a price, of course). This is not necessary, especially at the beginning. Wait until you see if a site is working for you before you put your green into it. Some other things to remember when gaining “friends” on the sites:

        ● Personalize, personalize, personalize! You do not want to be known as that creepy spammer trying to          befriend everyone on the internet. One way of going about gaining massive amounts of friends without coming off as a “bot” (software that automatically adds friends) is to let your potential friends know your intentions. Be genuine! If you’re a singer and have a great song you think someone would enjoy, let them know. Nine times out of ten, they’ll accept your friend request and listen to your music. Also, if they write on your wall, Hey I like your music, THANK THEM. Manners go a long way in the real world, and the same works for the web! Commenting on other walls goes a long way, you’d be surprised. If you are an actual person working the site instead of a bot, people will recognize and respond in a positive manner. They’ll be interested to learn who you are.

● There is a time to be choosy. Sure it is nice when people ask you to be their friend, but there is a time to be choosy about the friends you accept and the groups that you join. At first, you don’t really want to be turning people down, but the time will come when you notice that JoeGreen has 25,0000 friends and loves Hard Rock. You play classical music. Check into the situation. Maybe Joe does have a genuine interest in your music, but chances are he’s a bot that is asking everyone for friends. The friends you accept reflect what your plans for social networking are to others. If you really want to find people who enjoy your music or company, but you accept all offers that come to your table, others could view you negatively. There are, however, some sites this is acceptable on, so just know your audience and your purpose.

●Patience is a virtue. It takes time to get friends, just like in real life. Sadly enough, you do not become top of the MySpace charts overnight. You have to work to earn your friends. Farming (the term I use which is basically updating, adding friends, and commenting on other’s profiles) is key to your success. You have to be patient in your endeavors. If you build it, they will come, but only after some time has passed. In the same way, you need to be patient in learning which sites work for you and which sites don’t. If a site isn’t working for you, let it go- there are TONS out there. Patience is key in learning the sites and making friends, thus gaining popularity in the world of web.

Overall, social media networking is a key marketing tool in today’s society and one that does not come easy. It takes practice just like anything else, but it will be crucial in gaining popularity on the web, as well as in “the real world” (although I argue there’s a thin line between the web and the real world today). It’s definitely worth trying, this “free” advertising is beneficial both to your company, and hey, you might just make a real friend or two out of it.

 As mentioned before, part of the genius of Victoria’s Secret marketing and advertising lies within its subtlety.  Consumers don’t always initially realize they are being advertised to, and therefore are more likely to buy from the company.  This week, however, when I was researching the latest trends in marketing, I came across a website that begs the question, Can you ever be too subtle in your marketing campaign?.  As of right now, I am still undecided as to the exact answer to the question, but I’d like to share a few thoughts.

After reading Chris Reidy’s article, “Nuance Website May Leave You Tongue-tied” in the Boston Globe, I was curious to check out a website recently launched by Mullen ad agency for Nuance Communications, Inc.  Nuance Communications is creator of the DragonNaturallySpeaking products, a line of programs that afford you the convenience of putting away your writing instruments and your typing fingers- basically talk to type programs where the program magically knows what you are saying and the words appear on your computer screen, in your email, etc.  Mullen has created frozenpole.com, a website so seemingly-pointless, you don’t even realize you’re being advertised to.  But will it work?

Frozenpole.com is simple.  Basically, you upload a picture of your face, pick an outfit for your little skier to wear and then attach yourself to a place in a ski resort that has metal.  Once attached to something metal, you can pick a holiday greeting and customize it.  Your skier will then “say” your greeting as though his or her tongue is attached to a pole.  You can send this animation greeting to anyone via email.  It sounds bizarre, I know- you really have to check it out yourself to understand what it is.  The only hints of this frozenpole.com being an advertisement come with the tiny little icon that says “DragonNaturallySpeaking” on the bottom left hand corner of the animation or in the email that your recipient receives with the link to the animation.   You can click on this icon and it will take you to the company’s website. That’s it!  There is no other way to know why this website is up- it could be some creepy old man in a basement with too much time on his hands.  

The pro of frozenpole.com or subtle advertising is that you keep your consumer entertained.  Even while I write this article, I am tempted to run home, upload a picture of my face, and send it to all my friends.  I really just might do this too.  I, the consumer, am endlessly entertained by frozenpole.com.  If I were in the market to buy talk to type software, I just might consider DragonNaturallySpeaking.  I’m not, however, and I can tell you what- I would still compare prices and if someone boring offered me the same program for less, I would use it.

So, that leads me to the obvious con of subtle advertising-inability to reach an audience that cares.  With frozenpole.com, you’re probably going to get a bunch of kids who don’t have any interest in your product going to make skiers with tongue-tied greetings. It will snowball (hah, pun intended) and soon more and more kids will receive this message and pass it on to more and more kids who don’t care.

Of course, I have to look at the fact that this website has already drawn nation-wide attention. So companies/individuals who are interested in talk to type software have inadvertently just been advertised to.  So maybe it is working?

Overall, it’s best to consider your budget when thinking of taking subtlety to the extreme when marketing your product.  If you have money to blow-go for it! Otherwise, I‘d recommend being a little more straightforward in advertising your product. Sure it’s good to be subtle, but the consumer needs to know why a website is up. It’s nice to make life fun for people- but do it for yourself too- by putting a little extra green in your pocket. 

Sources: http://www.boston.com/business/ticker/2008/12/nuance_website.html

              www.frozenpole.com