Trends

• What’s the True Cost of “Free” Online Information?

  January 26, 2012

  Sean Shoffstall, VP Innovation and Technology

  If you’ve visited Wikipedia lately, you’ve probably seen the impassioned fundraising pleas from the site’s founder and his colleagues.

  In fact, you can’t miss them. The banners have been appearing across the top of each page, imploring visitors to make a donation to keep the site running. I was a little taken aback the first time I saw one.

  But then I asked myself: why do we always assume information on the web will be free? After all, this content is often incredibly valuable. It has become fashionable to mock Wikipedia for not being an authoritative source, but at the very least, it’s a great place to begin researching any topic (and many of the articles are, in fact, outstanding).

  Type any term into a search engine, click Search, and you’ll be presented with links to thousands upon thousands of sites. Oh, sure, many of them are a total waste of time. But most contain at least a nugget of value. Sift through these sites for a few minutes, and you’ll develop a working knowledge of the topic you’re researching.

  Best of all, this information is free—at least for you, the searcher. For content providers, though, online information is anything but free.

  Can You Really Afford to Give Away Information?
  Got some knowledge you want to share online for free? It’s gonna cost you.

  Every website is hosted on a server somewhere—whether it’s in your spare bedroom or a massive data center. Each of these servers requires electricity, maintenance, and eventually, replacement. Right there, you can see why even “free” sites aren’t free.

  If you want your content to read well and you’re not much of a writer, you’ll need to hire a professional. If you want those well-written pages to show up in search engines, you should make sure your writer knows something about SEO. Depending on your traffic goals, you may also need to invest in other methods of driving visitors to your site, such as buying pay-per-click ads or ad space in popular e-newsletters.

  It all adds up. Seeking to not only defray these costs, but also make a nice little passive income online, many content providers are exploring ways of monetizing the valuable information they provide.

  Monetization Options for Online Content Providers
  One way to monetize an information website is to run banner ads. Once you have enough website traffic, you can simply charge advertisers a set monthly fee to display their ads.

  An easier way to make money from online advertising is to sign up with Google AdSense or a similar service. Google will run contextually relevant ads in designated areas on your site, and you’ll get paid each time someone clicks one. More traffic means more clicks and more revenue.

  Alas, once you start placing ads on your site, you’ll have to start asking yourself: how much is too much? If two banner ads are generating enough revenue to pay for your site, should you risk running a third? If your Google AdSense box is getting lots of clicks in the right sidebar, should you risk moving it into the main flow of your content?

  Which brings us back to Wikipedia. Their monetization strategy is to come right out and ask us for donations. Do the fundraising banners bug you, or have you donated? Would you look at Wikipedia any differently if they began running banner ads or Google AdSense on the site? Would you pay a subscription fee for Wikipedia—or for any other strictly informational site?

  We’d love to hear your thoughts on the notion of “free” online information. Please comment below, and thanks for reading.
   

   

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  Sean Shoffstall, VP of Innovation and Technology Social media, search and metrics are the driving force behind today's online marketing. Sean specializes in driving the best results for clients in all aspects of their business. He gives them a solid platform to build key learnings in all online media through proven metrics and testing strategies, and by leveraging years of best practice learnings from the top companies online. Email Sean.

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• Preparing for Life After Flash

  December 13, 2011

  Sean Shoffstall, VP Innovation and Technology

  I know it’s wrong to celebrate the downfall of another person. But if it’s just a software application, I figure it’s OK. So….hooray. Mobile Flash is finally dead.

  Just weeks ago, Adobe announced plans to stop developing its Flash Player plug-in for mobile browsers. The company will instead be focusing on alternative application packaging programs and the HTML5 protocol.

  As soon as I got the news, two thoughts popped into my head. First and foremost, my iPhone and I would like to know, what took Adobe so long? And second, how long will Adobe Flash even be around if Adobe is pulling it off mobile devices and suggesting that HTML5 is the way forward?

  Proving Steve Jobs Right
  If Flash does disappear entirely, Apple customers won’t be any worse off. The truth is, Adobe has never really delivered a mobile version of Flash that, well, worked.

  In fact, the late Steve Jobs famously banned Flash from iOS devices. Sharing his Thoughts on Flash, Jobs remarked, “Though the operating system for the iPhone, iPod and iPad is proprietary, we strongly believe that all standards pertaining to the web should be open. Rather than use Flash, Apple has adopted HTML5, CSS and JavaScript – all open standards.”

  Jobs went on to point out that it doesn’t matter that iPhones can’t view Flash videos because most of these videos are also available in the superior H.264 format. And it doesn’t matter that iPhones can’t play Flash games, because there are tens of thousands of free games in the App Store.

  And then he mentioned that Flash crashes Macs. Smack!

  Steve Jobs may have left us, but today, Adobe is practically admitting he was right.

  What Comes Next?
  Standards come and go. Remember Shockwave? It slowly faded away. Will Adobe simply allow Flash to do the same?

  If so, what will come next? Will Adobe fully embrace HTML5, simply come back with a modified version of Flash, or go in a different direction entirely? Will website developers use HTML5’s support for semantic markups to dramatically enhance the accessibility of websites? Will they tap into its features for enhancing SEO? For preventing piracy?

  And with HTML5 as the new web standard, which other technologies may be on the chopping block?

  We’d love to know what you think. Please take a moment to share your thoughts below about the demise of Flash, the rise of HTML5, or the future of web technology. 

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• Website Optimization: A/B and Multivariate Testing 101

  August 4, 2011

  Joel Lockwood, Partner and Chief Marketing Officer

  A/B and multivariate testing is a lot like going to the gym.

  You know you should be doing it. You understand the benefits of doing it. Your friends who do it swear by it.

  But getting started is, well, painful. So it’s much easier just to keep procrastinating.

  Keep in mind, though, that when you put off testing, you’re really just putting off getting better results from your website or online marketing campaign.

  The best way to get started is to learn the ins and outs of A/B and multivariate testing, and when to use each. Here’s a basic overview.

  A/B Testing
  In A/B testing, you test a change in a single website element against the original (control) version. For example, you might tweak the headline on a landing page, or change the size of the product image on a product page.

  A/B testing is a quick way to determine whether one idea works better than another. For best results, test new ideas that are drastically different from your control. Got a dull, gray “Buy” button? Test canary yellow, or fire engine red.

  Here are some tips on executing an A/B test:

  • Test a change to only one element. If you change your headline copy, while also bumping up the font size and changing it to red text, you won’t be able to tell which change caused the increase (or decrease) in your conversions. And that would defeat the purpose of testing.
  • Split your traffic 50/50, so that equal numbers of visitors will see option A and option B.
  • Test enough for statistical relevance – but strike a balance. Too many marketers either pull a test too early, or let it run beyond the point when it is yielding useful results.

  Multivariate Testing
  A/B testing is clear, crisp, and to the point. There’s no arguing with the results. But if you have a variety of elements to test and want to speed up the process, consider multivariate testing.

  In multivariate testing, you test multiple elements simultaneously. For example, on a product page, you might want to test two new headlines, two new product images, and two new order buttons. Assuming you use your current headline, image, and button as the control, that means you’ll have 27 different combinations of elements to test (3 x 3 x 3).

  One of the goals here is to determine which combination of elements results in the most conversions. It’s all well and good to know that headline A beats headlines B and C, but multivariate testing also helps you determine that headline A works best with image B and button C.

  Another goal is to find out which individual elements influence visitor behavior – and which don’t. Using your control as the baseline, you can then determine what change you caused by swapping in different headlines, versus different images or buttons. You might find, for example, that neither of your new headlines caused much of a change, whereas your new order buttons both caused significant spikes in conversions.

  Because multivariate testing involves many variants, you’ll need more traffic to gather a significant sample size. This may mean you’ll need to run your test for a longer period of time. But because you’ll be testing multiple elements at once, you’ll probably still find that multivariate testing yields faster results than running a series of A/B tests.

  Building a Testing Strategy
  If you’re just getting started with testing, we recommend a simple, five-step approach:

  1. Figure out where you’re at.
  Determine your current conversion rates for the pages on your site that seek to drive conversions. Keep in mind that a conversion doesn’t necessarily involve a sale – it can also be someone signing up for your email list, filling out your form to request more information, or downloading your white paper.

  Next, you’ll need to assign a value to each conversion. When a visitor downloads a free white paper, you don’t make any money up front. But if 2% of white paper downloaders typically go on to become customers, and the average lifetime value of your customers is $1,000, then you can say the long-term value of a white paper download is $20.

  2. Decide where you want to be.
  Identify your most important conversion goal for a section of your site – or for the entire site. Whether you want to collect more email addresses, convince more people to friend your company on Facebook, or persuade more people to actually buy a product, focus your testing efforts on this one goal. Also, make sure you know exactly which metrics you’ll use to track your results.

  3. Get buy-in.
  When you start trying to make changes on a website, you’re going to step on some toes. One of your executives may love the headers you’re using on your landing pages. Another colleague may insist that large product images are a waste of space.

  You’re going to have to manage these expectations – and be prepared to slay some sacred cows – before you start testing. Before you dive in, have a meeting in which you clearly articulate the goals of your testing project and give everyone a chance to discuss. Take comments and suggestions – but avoid letting “committee-think” clutter up your testing program with secondary and tertiary objectives that distract you from your true focus.

  4. Determine a testing order.
  You can’t test all pages at once – but whatever you do, don’t start “safe.” Start your testing on the pages that have the most potential to deliver greater revenue. You’ll find them close to the end of your conversion funnel – your lead-gen forms, opt-in pages, and shopping cart pages.

  Your next testing priority? We’ve all heard the expression, “You only get one chance to make a first impression.” Open Google Analytics (or a similar program) to determine which pages are your most popular entry pages. Are there any with high bounce rates? Focus on turning that around by pulling people deeper into your site.

  Next, optimize any pages that have high abandon rates. By tweaking specific elements, can you prevent more visitors from jumping ship?

  5. Identify which elements to test.
  On the pages you’ve decided to optimize, give some thought to which elements may be driving visitors away, rather than compelling them to take the action you want them to take. Test some better alternatives.

  Focus on eliminating clutter and distractions, making calls-to-action more visible, rewording copy to increase urgency, and reassuring the prospect about their decision to convert.

  Testing Tools
  Check out some of these testing tools to help you in your optimization process:

  • Google WebSite Optimizer 
  • Optimizely 
  • Visual Website Optimizer
  • Unbounce 

  Parting Thoughts
  Testing isn’t just about confirming what you already know – it’s about taking chances and being willing to fail in pursuit of the Next Big Breakthrough. You’ll make greater progress if you “fail faster.” That means you should run your tests on high-volume pages, and, if possible, use multivariate testing to execute multiple experiments at once.

  Once you’ve learned what you can from your high-volume pages, apply those lessons to lower-volume pages. And don’t forget to share what you’ve learned with your email marketers and web designers.

  After all, just like going to the gym, testing and optimizing your online marketing is much easier to do in a group.

   

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  Joel Lockwood, Partner, President Joel brings over 20 years of marketing experience to Ozone Online. He has held executive marketing positions at large corporations such as Computer Associates, Sun Microsystems, Netscape and America Online, as well as several successful start-up companies. Joel excels at helping Ozone’s clients sync their online campaigns with their corporate marketing objectives. Email Joel.

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• Why Most Online Advertisers Are Still Socially Awkward

  May 10, 2011

  Elodie Bouneau, Marketing Intern

  
  Is it just me, or are Americans spending more time than ever on social networks?

  As it turns out, it’s not just me. In June 2009, Americans were spending 16% of their total online time on social networks. By June 2010, that number had risen to 23%. (For reference, Americans spend just 8% of their online time reading and writing emails.)

  Advertisers are gradually waking up to this rapid growth. Between 2009 and 2010, they increased their social advertising spend by 20%.

  But even their current budget of $1.68 billion represents only 6.7% of their total online advertising spend.

  In other words, online advertisers are still, well, socially awkward.

  Why?

  The Challenges of Breaking Into Social Networks
  It’s not that advertisers don’t want to socialize. It’s not that they don’t realize people are spending more and more time on Facebook, MySpace, and Twitter.

  It’s just that breaking into these networks is more difficult than making a splash in other types of online advertising.

  When you want to run a banner ad, for example, you create your ad, pay your fee, and voila’ – you’re getting your message in front of people.

  But to break into a social network, you must figure out how to become part of the conversations people are having within that network.

  As I said, this can be difficult – but it’s not impossible. To guide your efforts, try using what I call the Three T’s.

  The Three T’s of Social Advertising
  If you really want your products and services to become part of the conversations people are having online, just remember: Target, Test, Tweak.

  1. Target. Social networks are all about communities and groups. This can play in your favor – if you’re willing to do the up-front work.

  You can target your ads to a very specific audience that’s defined by gender, age, locality, and interests. But beware: social networkers have become spoiled by an environment that’s tailored to their precise wants and needs. If you’re not ultra-specific about how your product or service is relevant to this audience, they’ll ignore your messages.

  2. Test. As soon as you begin investing in social media advertising, be sure to set reasonable daily budgets for testing your ads.

  When placing your social media ads, make sure you put tracking tags on your ads to measure your important metrics. Depending on your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), you will be interested in testing and optimizing for different metrics. For example, if your KPI is to drive registrations for a newsletter, you want to track the click through rate from your social media ad to your sign up landing page, and your registration conversion rate for newsletter signups. You can then look at your cost/registration for each of your ad placements as a measure of performance. If your KPI is brand awareness, you can optimize your banner cost/click, since you want as many people clicking to your website as possible.
  
  3. Tweak. Once your ads have been up for a while and you’ve gathered data in the form of metrics related to your key performance indicators, analyze and adjust your overall campaign to trim the fat and maximize your results. Bring your best-performing creative to the forefront, find the social media placements that give the best results, and always continue to test new approaches.

  As you can see, there’s no shortcut to social advertising success. But by taking the time to craft messages that appeal to specific groups and continuing to optimize, you can dramatically boost your results.

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  Elodie Bouneau, Ozone Marketing Intern Elodie is excited to join the Ozone Online Marketing Team for a year long internship as part of her curriculum at Sciences Po (IEP Paris, France) where she is majoring in Marketing. Elodie seeks to learn more about branding and web-based advertising campaigns. Email Elodie.

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• Reducing Sales Cycles, Part 1: Using Web Analytics

  March 31, 2011

  Sean Shoffstall, VP of Innovation and Technology

  
  Everyone says they want to reduce their sales cycle. But most of us find the task daunting at best. If we’re going to get serious about improving the way we move prospects towards a purchasing decision, we’ll need to break down some lofty concepts into actionable chunks. This is the first in a series of articles that will do just that.

  So, where to begin?

  I’ll start by expressing my fervent hope that you’re tracking your website visitors. Whether you’re using a free tool like Google Analytics or have invested in a powerful solution such as Adobe Site Catalyst, you’ve laid the groundwork to minimize the time from first customer interaction to sale.

  We’ve touched on all these points before. This article will explain how you can use those tracking metrics to identify your hottest prospects and close the sales cycle faster. First, I’ll share two tips on converting faster through optimization and acceleration. Next, I’ll give you two ways to highlight the opportunities that are ready for your sales team.

  Build a Follow-Up Strategy for Conversions
  This tip is the most basic of the four. After your visitors have responded to an offer or downloaded a trial, provide them with an appropriate follow-on. For example, on the thank-you page that appears after you deliver the offer, you can supply a few additional offers to drive further engagement.

  The key, of course, is relevance. If someone downloads an industry white paper, don’t follow up by offering a 5% discount on top-of-the-line server hardware. Your prospect is probably not ready to make a purchase decision.

  Instead, the follow-on offer should be mapped along your nurturing flow. Offer something that will drive the visitor from awareness to interest, such as a case study or an interactive educational tool. Then use your web analytics to see which offer combinations have the highest take-rates and which also increase social sharing and return visitors. These metrics indicate relevance with your visitors and can help your sales team drive the direction of the conversation.

  Analyze Funnel Conversion Drop-Offs
  For this next idea, it’s critical that you take the time to set up your goal conversions and funnel path. We all hope that someone will land on our site, read a page or two, and then click to have a sales person contact them. Unfortunately, that rarely happens. It’s our job to lead the prospect, step by step, to that glorious conversion. But some of our prospects have SOS (Shiny Object Syndrome) and drop off our path to enlightenment.

  That’s where funnel conversion analysis comes in. When set up properly, this analysis can help us understand where prospects are falling off. We’ll then need to take a look at our flow and see what adjustments we can make – in terms of how information is presented, what type of information is shown, and in what order – to optimize the prospect’s experience and drive better conversion performance.

  Measure Multiple “Goal Page” Touches
  This strategy plays off the previous one. After your prospect has converted once, watch to see whether they come back and convert multiple times. Start building a “hot leads” list (this is a basic scoring that we’ll examine in depth in a future article) based on people who have touched n goal pages.

  A goal page is a page that contains high-value content. If a prospect visits a goal page, it’s an indication that they’re looking for information to help them make a buying decision. With Google Analytics or Omniture, it’s easy to create and apply segmentation, and then look into your Marketing Resource Management or Customer Resource Management system to generate your hot leads list. You can also use the segmentation to find optimal flows for your site – and then apply these learnings to other key pages.

  Monitor Return Visitors or Multiple Visitors from the Same Company
  WARNING: Custom coding ahead

  This last strategy is the most fun. In the B2B space, I’ve worked with many clients who want to target not only specific customers for lead nurturing and scoring, but also their associated companies. Google and Omniture both have some basic domain reports that can help you find out which companies are visiting your site.

  Want to take it to the next level? Capture IP addresses in a custom variable. Here’s where to do it in Google Analytics (Omniture also has this capability).

  Why capture IP addresses? So that you can target specific companies. It makes sense that when a company wants to do business with you, multiple people from that company will probably visit your site for research. You may get visits from end users, Finance, IT, Legal, and possibly even an executive or two. Use your web analytics to set an alert that identifies any spike in the number of visits from a set of key accounts. You can then identify which pages and products they’re most interested in and have your sales team follow up proactively.

  Next Steps
  We’ve only scratched the surface here. You can easily take the foundation I’ve given you and create any number of different scenarios to leverage your web analytics. In future articles, we’ll explore how you can also use Lead Nurturing, Lead Scoring, and Testing and Targeting to shorten the sales cycle. Subscribe to our RSS feed to stay up-to-date on these and other topics.

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  Sean Shoffstall, VP of Innovation and Technology Social media, search and metrics are the driving force behind today's online marketing. Sean specializes in driving the best results for clients in all aspects of their business. He gives them a solid platform to build key learnings in all online media through proven metrics and testing strategies, and by leveraging years of best practice learnings from the top companies online. Email Sean.

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