Archives for the month of: November, 2008
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Social Media Wins Barack Obama US Election

November 5, 2008 //
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OK, so maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but it may well have contributed.  Whilst reading through the news surrounding Obama’s historical victory this morning on the BBC website I found links to both candidates own campaign websites.  So I had a quick look over the websites out of interest and to see how the different campaigners were utilising an online presence in their bid for the white house.

Both websites contain a blog (although McCains doesn’t load very well) but the striking difference on Barack Obama’s is that he has utilised social media elements to allow tagging and sharing of the website content and individual posts.  He also provides links to his various official social networking pages including facebook, linked in, myspace, twitter, flickr, youtube and many more.

This shows a candidate who is using all the modern day tools which are at his disposal to good effect and potentially shows a new approach to political campaigning which we will see come to the fore in forthcoming elections.  It might not have been the main reason he was elected, but it at least shows that the power of social media is reaching out past its usual boundaries and more into the mainstream.


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Categories Social Media

Microsoft Attempts to Prove Paid Search Branding Effect

November 4, 2008 //
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Microsoft is aiming to prove the branding influence of paid search ads by tracking the impressions and allocating them back to repeat searches, website visits and subsequent purchases.  The branding influence of search has long been debated with many believing that there is a branding benefit to be had by appearing high on PPC listings which comes as a hidden benefit to the pure direct return which is often associated with paid search channel.

True branding connoisseurs I’m sure would argue that it isn’t possible to build a brand experience, and certainly a significantly positive one, through 3 lines of text.  But the fact of the matter is that a searcher on a generic term will scan the paid search listings (as well as the natural search results) to see who is appearing before deciding which PPC ad to click.  So there is surely some conversion attribution to be had from PPC impressions which could then ultimately result in a brand term search and conversion.

This is what Microsoft are aiming to prove.  Presumably using similar technology to that which is used by adserving software, placing a cookie on the users computer upon impression which remains in place to allow the tracking of future actions.  This technology wont be able to track through to conversion without placing code on the advertisers sites but some may be willing to do this for greater visibility of the impact of paid search impressions on the buying cycle.

The timescales of such a cookie can be all important in this form of tracking in order to gauge its accuracy.  Adserving softwares track post impression conversion up to 90 days after the original viewing which is pretty excessive in my view.  this is far longer than the normal buying cycle even for a considered product and so it will be important for Microsoft and any advertisers participating to set a realistic timescale in which the impression could have an impact.

The results should be interesting and could lead to more emphasis on PPC if a branding impact can be proven.  By allocating both a direct return and a brand impact Microsoft will be hoping that advertisers will be willing to increase CPCs and inflate the cost of sale they are willing to pay, obviously resulting in more revenues for the search engine.  I’m sure most advertisers will take some convincing though so the results will have to be pretty impressive.

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Categories PPC

Tesco Announces the Launch of Digital Fridge Door

November 3, 2008 //
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Tesco have given a sneak preview of their latest project at the Microsoft Professional Developers Conference in Los Angeles.  In conjunction with media agency Conchango, Tesco are looking to build a digital application which acts as the proverbial fridge door.  The main purpose of the tool from Tesco’s perspective is for the placing or grocery orders via an Internet connection as and when food is used up in the fridge but the tool will also act as notice board, family calender, email inbox, social networking tool and recipe book.

The system will include a shopping cart tool which populates as items are marked as used as well as the functionality to find recipes and order the ingredients at the touch of a button.  You will also be able to plan a weeks worth of meals using the diary planner tool and order all the food you will need to produce it at the end.

It is a very ambitious project for Tesco but the benefits of getting it right are obvious.  Through tying people in to the tool through purchase they are essentially guaranteeing their grocery orders for the period it is in use.

This project fascinates me as it is a real insight into how the Internet could (and should) be used in years to come.  i have speculated in the past about the use of digital TV to make purchases direct from the television and this is a similar revelation.

The future of the Internet could well involve taking it away from the confines of the PC and integrating it fully in our everyday lives through mobile, TV and innovative systems such as the one Tesco are looking to produce.  by definition the Inetenet is “The wide collection of connected networks that all use the TCP/IP protocols” and bears no connection with the means used to interact with it.  Hats off to Tesco for foreseeing what the future might hold and trying tor preempt it, it si this sort of innovation which will push the Internet and its usages forward.

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Categories Digital Marketing

Mobile Social Networking – is it the future?

November 1, 2008 //
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If you read the digital press and Internet related news sites you will notice that the perceived future of social networking is mobile.  Both Myspace and Facebook have mobile sites which are essentially a stripped down version of the web interface.  But is this what constitutes the future of social media on the web?  Or is it something more?

At a recent seminar I attended on mobile marketing the general message portrayed by the speaker was don’t just regurgatate your website for mobile, think about people will want to use the mobile site for and provide that.  Facebook have done this to a certain degree by stripping back their main website and providing a simplified mobile interface where the most prominent feature is the profile update.  This is fine, but I cant help thinking that it doesn’t really play utilise the benefits of mobile  to make it something more.

Social networking plays into the hands of mobile phones and mobile Internet by its very nature.  Social networks are a communication tool, a tool used to connect with friends and like minded people, as are mobile phones.  But there is a huge difference to the PC based world wide web, and mobile web, and so the networks which are going to be successful need to be adapted to suit the world of mobile Internet.

Gigaom are dubious about the possibility of a social network existing purely on mobile alone quoting the example of Rabble who started as a mobile only social network and are now making strides by partnering with existing web based networks and enabling them to go mobile.

Information Week are a little more confident stating mobile social networks as an untapped market ripe for the picking.  they do however raise questions about the most appropriate monetisation model as standard advertising models don’t really suit.

So why should it work?  Here are some of the main arguments why mobile social networking should work:

Communication tools: as mentioned above, both elements are communication tools, so combined they should compliment each other.

Simplicity: the mobile web is tough to get right, but the simplicity of some key elements of social networking can bypass this if done correctly.  For example Facebook status updates are regularly done via mobile and twitter is also a big player in mobile social.

Growth in Mobile Internet:mobile Internet usage is growing as charges come down and handsets advance.  This makes the potential for those that can get it right even greater.

Reach of Mobile: I don’t know anyone who doesn’t own a mobile, that means everyone is a potential user!

And now for the converse; what are the barriers to it being the next big thing?:

Mobile Internet Usage: although growing, this still isn’t great.  For years now mobile Internet and more specifically mobile advertising has been the "next big thing" but but has never really materialised.

Handset Limitations: Linked to the need for simplicity, lets face it, viewing web pages on a handset just isn’t that good.  navigation is difficult and page load is slow, so anything that is going to take off, is going to have to be simple and compatible.

Revenue models:  Mobile advertising to date, doesn’t really work, so CPM based revenue models are out.  Subscription models could work, but you would need ot give people a pretty good reason to sign up.  Without the two obvious options it is going to take some out of the box thinking to monetise any network which does break down the initial barriers.

I’m sure there are more why’s and why not’s which I could come up with given more time.  Do I think mobile social networking is the next big thing…maybe.  I can see it working, but not in its current form, and as for it working as a stand alone network with no web presence, I’m even less sure about that.  Ill have to give it more thought before writing the business plan to take over the mobile social networking world ; )

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Categories Social Networking
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