Many changes in consumer habits in regards to media are directly affecting the way marketers are allocating the advertising and media budget. The emergence of the Web 2.0 era has shown immediate changes in consumer behavior in regards to media consumption. With many new media options for advertising it has been difficult for companies to justify spending money on traditional advertising. Recently, researchers have determined that the media habits in consumers are changing dramatically. Many changes are directly related to the explosion of new technologies such as the PC and smart phones which make accessing internet fast and simple. This change in media access is having a large affect on traditional advertising such as television, newspaper and magazines. Shocking numbers show a large decline in television audiences due to many shows broadcasting online. When networks broadcast online this in some ways eliminates the chance of many companies to expose their ads to a broad audience. Due to these situations the cost of purchasing advertising spots on television has been increasing year after year. Newspapers and magazines are facing a similar situation due to the fact that many newspapers are read online and magazines now have smart phones apps which can be purchased at a discount.
These many changes in media consumption have proven to us that the average consumer is now spending the majoring of his/her time online in comparison to other forms of media such as television, radio, magazines and newspapers. This shift is increasingly common among the younger generation who are referred to the Y Generation given the fact that they were born between the years 1981-2000. This online consumption among the younger generation is having a large affect on television audiences and ratings due to the fact that the amount of hours spent watching T.V. have declined dramatically. This is especially the case among teenage girls whose television viewing has declined much more than teenage boys.
Many new and emerging ways to access media means that it has become even more difficult for marketers to effectively reach their target markets. Many new media outlets bring about the concept of advertising clutter. Advertising clutter has to do with the fact that consumers are exposed to and bombarded with a large amount of advertising messages every day. This is an increasing problem for marketers to find the right media outlet for advertising to ensure they are exposing their message to the correct target audience. Being exposed to so many advertisements and forms of advertising has an effect on the consumer in the sense that it is impossible to remember advertisements. This then creates a challenge for marketers to develop messages that effectively retain in memory.
The rapid growth of online advertising has helped marketers access a larger audience in comparison with traditional media outlets but has also posed many problems for consumers. Consumers complain that many online advertisements contribute to the concept of advertising clutter and some ads can be intrusive. Many forms of online advertising exist such as: banner or display ads, classified ads, and search advertising, all of which make it easier for companies to leverage advertising options. Although some consumers complain about online advertising the fact is that it is growing more and more each year proves there is little way to escape it. Companies who have not made the decision to advertise online may be at a disadvantage in regards to competitors who do choose to create online ads. In order to be successful companies must leverage the costs and benefits of online advertising and create new and innovative ways to reach new and existing customers. The most important aspect of advertising online is to select online trends in the Web 2.0 era that are unique and attractive but at the same time stay true to the company’s core values and brand image.
Friday, January 6, 2012
Sunday, December 11, 2011
SEO Techniques
The main goal of search engine optimization (SEO) is to create high visibility of a website in search engines such as Google, Yahoo, Bing etc. The main idea behind successful SEO is that your company or webpage is first in ranking under the organic listings. The benefits of search engine optimization can be very rewarding for a new website launch given that customers will be able to identify your website as first on the list which will dramatically increase website traffic. It is estimated that 90% of clicks are done in the organic area of a search engine while only 10% of clicks are done in the paid search area. The reality is that the majority of online users add more credibility to website rankings in the organic search area and generally view the sponsored and paid search advertisements as less credible and highly biased. Many search engines such as Google do not accept money to include or rank sites in their search results in the organic area of the search engine which means search engine optimization success is highly reliant on the knowledge and know-how of the company or website to ensure effective visibility.
Many recently launched websites use damaging techniques in order to quickly maximize search engine ranking and visibility for certain keywords. One of these techniques is referred to as Keyword Stuffing which occurs when a website is loaded or "stuffed" with keywords in the meta tags. Search engines such as Google are now able to detect the repetition of words in meta tags and no longer give good rankings to websites using this method. This method can be seen as an unethical use of SEO due to the unnecessary overuse of certain keywords in the meta tags in order to obtain a high ranking. The main purpose of SEO is to create a better online user experience by making the website better for both users and search engines and it is important to look at SEO techniques that lead to a successful outcome.
When a company or website wishes to launch a new website it is important to begin by doing a keyword research. The idea behind a thorough keyword research is to be able to identify keyword variations and how many times a word is searched for on Google, Yahoo, Bing etc. Another aspect to take into consideration is the on page optimization and the quality of the content provided on the webpage such as keyword density, freshness of content, and text rich content. Keyword density is important because for example, in the case of Wikipedia as many times as a word is repeated Wikipedia is pointing to other websites internal and outbound which enhances linking abilities. The freshness of content is important when creating the page structure and meta tags because meta words and meta descriptions are of little relevance anymore because the emphasis is being put on the meta titles. The meta title is now the most important attribute and it is recommended to take time and create meta titles that are relevant to the company or website. In the header tags it is essential to focus on proper keyword density by creating content that is essentially correct and related to the company or website. In order to optimize the URL it is recommended to use a a simple and direct approach by choosing a URL which is short and most importantly relates to the page content.
When creating on page content it is crucial to use a text rich content due to the fact that search engines cannot detect pictures and identify what they are about. If pictures are inserted onto the website it is important to add image Alt tags which will help the search engine determine what the picture are communicating by helping them index images properly. In terms of linking possibilities it is suggested to create an html sitemap of under 100 links to not overwhelm the user. Some companies and websites also create xml sitemaps which are important for when spiders crawl the site, skim the text and then follow the links which effects the weight algorithm. Depending on different weight algorithms many companies may create different xml sitemaps for different search engines because websites are ranked according to their key term rank.
In terms of off page optimization it is essential for a new company or website to immediately create a directory submission by submitting the new website to all large search engines. The fact is that there is no immediate guarantee of a number one ranking on a large search engine such as Google and many other large search engines do not give priority to any website in the organic search area which makes it very important to submit the site as soon as possible. In the case of Google it can be done by submitting a site to Google directly through the Add URL page or by submitting a sitemap at no cost whatsoever. After doing this the new website will be able to develop better linking capabilities in terms of one-way links, two-way links, and three way links. The benefit of having many links is the fact that the more links you have the more often a spider will crawl the site which proves that without many links the website may not be very successful. In conclusion, it is important for companies to consider successful and efficient SEO techniques that will attract the most relevant audience for the product offered which will in the end decrease the bounce rate and enhance the overall user experience.
Provided is a short tutorial about SEO Link Building:
Short tutorial about SEO Site Command:
Short tutorial abourt SEO Title Tags:
Many recently launched websites use damaging techniques in order to quickly maximize search engine ranking and visibility for certain keywords. One of these techniques is referred to as Keyword Stuffing which occurs when a website is loaded or "stuffed" with keywords in the meta tags. Search engines such as Google are now able to detect the repetition of words in meta tags and no longer give good rankings to websites using this method. This method can be seen as an unethical use of SEO due to the unnecessary overuse of certain keywords in the meta tags in order to obtain a high ranking. The main purpose of SEO is to create a better online user experience by making the website better for both users and search engines and it is important to look at SEO techniques that lead to a successful outcome.
When a company or website wishes to launch a new website it is important to begin by doing a keyword research. The idea behind a thorough keyword research is to be able to identify keyword variations and how many times a word is searched for on Google, Yahoo, Bing etc. Another aspect to take into consideration is the on page optimization and the quality of the content provided on the webpage such as keyword density, freshness of content, and text rich content. Keyword density is important because for example, in the case of Wikipedia as many times as a word is repeated Wikipedia is pointing to other websites internal and outbound which enhances linking abilities. The freshness of content is important when creating the page structure and meta tags because meta words and meta descriptions are of little relevance anymore because the emphasis is being put on the meta titles. The meta title is now the most important attribute and it is recommended to take time and create meta titles that are relevant to the company or website. In the header tags it is essential to focus on proper keyword density by creating content that is essentially correct and related to the company or website. In order to optimize the URL it is recommended to use a a simple and direct approach by choosing a URL which is short and most importantly relates to the page content.
When creating on page content it is crucial to use a text rich content due to the fact that search engines cannot detect pictures and identify what they are about. If pictures are inserted onto the website it is important to add image Alt tags which will help the search engine determine what the picture are communicating by helping them index images properly. In terms of linking possibilities it is suggested to create an html sitemap of under 100 links to not overwhelm the user. Some companies and websites also create xml sitemaps which are important for when spiders crawl the site, skim the text and then follow the links which effects the weight algorithm. Depending on different weight algorithms many companies may create different xml sitemaps for different search engines because websites are ranked according to their key term rank.
In terms of off page optimization it is essential for a new company or website to immediately create a directory submission by submitting the new website to all large search engines. The fact is that there is no immediate guarantee of a number one ranking on a large search engine such as Google and many other large search engines do not give priority to any website in the organic search area which makes it very important to submit the site as soon as possible. In the case of Google it can be done by submitting a site to Google directly through the Add URL page or by submitting a sitemap at no cost whatsoever. After doing this the new website will be able to develop better linking capabilities in terms of one-way links, two-way links, and three way links. The benefit of having many links is the fact that the more links you have the more often a spider will crawl the site which proves that without many links the website may not be very successful. In conclusion, it is important for companies to consider successful and efficient SEO techniques that will attract the most relevant audience for the product offered which will in the end decrease the bounce rate and enhance the overall user experience.
Provided is a short tutorial about SEO Link Building:
Short tutorial about SEO Site Command:
Short tutorial abourt SEO Title Tags:
Friday, December 9, 2011
How Wikipedia leverages crowdsourcing
Wikipedia is a free encyclopedia website which bases its model on an open and editable internet platform accessable to anyone worldwide. The website is based on a concept called crowdsourcing which is a collaborative tool which allows the website to gather information by essentially outsourcing a task to an outside crowd of people. In Wikipedia´s case the crowd of people being outsourced happens to be anyone who has internet access and desires to contribute valuable information to the website. The advantage to contributing information on Wikipedia is that the user doesn´t require any type of academic or professional background to contribute information. The company believes that the most important thing is the actual content being posted and doesn´t put importance on the personal background of the contributor.The reason behind this is the very concept of crowdsourcing and outsourcing information from the general public. This very model created by Wikipedia has dramatically changed the traditional concept of an encyclopedia. It is clear that the company understood from the beginning that typical encyclopedias have the tendency to become outdated and obsolete and the need for a new model was necessary. It is clear that in the internet age we live in a world that is constantly changing and the need to constantly update information on the internet has become a reality. In the case of Wikipedia information becoming obsolete is not a problem because the information can be added or edited at anytime.
The fact that Wikipedia relies on input from crowdsourcing it is important to leverage the quality and validility of the information provided by the general public. In order to provide an open encyclopedia which provides reliable and accurate information it is necessary to oversee and have some type of control over the information being posted. In order to leverage crowdsourcing Wikipedia uses a number of editors which frequently scan information making sure the information is accurate, up-to-date and most of all abides by the company´s policies and guidlines. The policies and guidlines are a set of five pillars that the company has created which are expected to be followed by the users and contributors. The five pillars were created to help control the type of information provided from the public and also serve as a way to guide contributors in determing what Wikipedia stands for and the type of service they want to provide to users. The five pillars include policies such as: 1) Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia. 2) Wikipedia has a nuetral point of view. 3) Wikipedia is free content that anyone can edit or contribute. 4) Wikipedians should interact in a respectful and civil manner. 5) Wikipedia does not have firm rules.
The five pillars are an important way that Wikipedia leverages crowdsoucing because by outling a set of policies and pillars which are required by the contributors and users helps prevent a loss of control of the website. This concept is clearly an effective way to communicate the company´s business model and strategy to its users which is fundamental when a company relies on crowdsourcing. If the company fails to effectively communicate its pillars to users it becomes difficult for users to trust the website and to really understand what the company stands for. It is clear that crowdsourcing has been leveraged very well by Wikipedia and for this reason they have been so successful. An important aspect that has contributed to their success is that the compnay has effectively aligned its strategy with the concept of crowdsourcing. For example, the number five pillar states: "Wikipedia does not have firm rules" and this is very important in regards to leveraging crowdsourcing because it is important to remain flexible and allow a certain amount of autonominity of the user whithout damaging the five pillars and the foundation of the company.
The fact that Wikipedia relies on input from crowdsourcing it is important to leverage the quality and validility of the information provided by the general public. In order to provide an open encyclopedia which provides reliable and accurate information it is necessary to oversee and have some type of control over the information being posted. In order to leverage crowdsourcing Wikipedia uses a number of editors which frequently scan information making sure the information is accurate, up-to-date and most of all abides by the company´s policies and guidlines. The policies and guidlines are a set of five pillars that the company has created which are expected to be followed by the users and contributors. The five pillars were created to help control the type of information provided from the public and also serve as a way to guide contributors in determing what Wikipedia stands for and the type of service they want to provide to users. The five pillars include policies such as: 1) Wikipedia is an online encyclopedia. 2) Wikipedia has a nuetral point of view. 3) Wikipedia is free content that anyone can edit or contribute. 4) Wikipedians should interact in a respectful and civil manner. 5) Wikipedia does not have firm rules.
The five pillars are an important way that Wikipedia leverages crowdsoucing because by outling a set of policies and pillars which are required by the contributors and users helps prevent a loss of control of the website. This concept is clearly an effective way to communicate the company´s business model and strategy to its users which is fundamental when a company relies on crowdsourcing. If the company fails to effectively communicate its pillars to users it becomes difficult for users to trust the website and to really understand what the company stands for. It is clear that crowdsourcing has been leveraged very well by Wikipedia and for this reason they have been so successful. An important aspect that has contributed to their success is that the compnay has effectively aligned its strategy with the concept of crowdsourcing. For example, the number five pillar states: "Wikipedia does not have firm rules" and this is very important in regards to leveraging crowdsourcing because it is important to remain flexible and allow a certain amount of autonominity of the user whithout damaging the five pillars and the foundation of the company.
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