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My friend Kathryn (the wonderfully talented designer behind Zoonini Web Services) told me about a bizarre little booklet put out by Canada Post for its VentureOne members called "Tips to Save Time". This is one of them.
Obviously written by a man (If I took me 20 minutes every day to shave my legs I'd run - not walk - to my nearest electrologist) it is a fine example of what happens when attempted humour goes terribly, terribly wrong. All of the other tips flop on the same monumental scale. And, the whole thing tanks because of the dichotomy between something called "Tips to Save Time" and the time-wasting, funny-strange-vs-funny-ha-ha tips.
Rule #1 in copywriting: Respect your audience.
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Attention all Montreal podcasters, listeners of podcasters, and even those of us (and by this I mean me!) who have only the faintest grasp of podcasting (but are eager to learn more)... you're invited to:
Montreal Podcast Meet-Up
Thursday, December 28th, 2006
7:30 pm
Cafe Melies
3530 St-Laurent Blvd.
Reservation under the name Twist Image or Mitch Joel
Mitch says, "Whether you're into audio or video Podcasts, this Montreal Podcast Meet-Up is geared towards independent content producers. If you're into Blogs or you're a Blogger, don't be shy and please feel free to join as well - we'd love to have you. There will also be a ton of recording (no surprise) and you can bet I'll have the M-Audio MicroTrack firing on all pistons."
Unfortunately, a previous engagement prevents me from attending but I know it will be a good time had by all!!
I came across this on Clickz - the Top 10 Search terms in 10 categories. I always find lists like this fascinating. The whole idea that people are entering the URL into a search engine (Wha the...??) still amazes me, and "elf bowling" - who knew?!! Obviously not me!
Wishing you a safe & happy holiday season.
I'll be back in full force in the New Year!!
Yesterday I had a colleague ask me whether or not there was any truth to the notion that a unique IP is better for search engine optimization than the usual shared one. There has been a lot of debate over this in SEO circles. In July 2003, Craig Silverstein (Google's Director of Technology) tried his best to put this rumour to rest in a Slashdot interview. Nonetheless, the perception continues today. In fact, "GoogleGuy" Matt Cutts has recently written a post confirming that there is no PageRank advantage to a dedicated IP.
Why are myths and half-truths so rampant in the search engine optimization industry? Because a lot of people are looking for the easy route...the magic elixir that causes a site to instantly leap into the Top 10. There are SEO companies claiming to have figured out Google's algorithm - that they have a room full of miscellaneous PhDs and mathematicians "reverse engineering" the secret ranking formula. As a very sweet friend of mine says, "That is such el-toro-poo-poo!"
There is one plain truth about search engine optimization and one truth only: create a really fab site - a site that people can find what they are looking for quickly and easily, a site with keyword-rich "heroin content" (give 'em a reason to come back a second time) and a site that people really want to link to.
Hard work? You betcha!
I first met Maggie when she commented on a B(abble)log entry I made about the Wondercafe.ca site, where I was ranting about Frames... being curious by nature I checked out her site, Social Media Group. Yowzer. It epitomizes everything a blog should be. A prolific writer, Maggie keeps us up-to-date on the world of social media and along the way entertains us, dazzles us with her wit and intelligence and shares her wealth of knowledge about the blogosphere. Here she answers five questions and gives us some valuable tips on how to create an authentic, engaging conversation with your target market.
1.) You describe Social Media Group as a firm that helps "companies connect with their internal and external audiences by strategically leveraging the power of emerging social media channels." What does that mean?
Our company, Social Media Group, fills the gaping void that lies between the technology firms who provide social media tools and the businesses that would like to employ them but are wary (and rightly so) of navigating the blogosphere. Because of it's (for now) unique self-correcting culture (I actually think it's just how people have always reacted to B.S., only with Web 2.0 for the first time the marketplace can actually HEAR them) there is a learning curve, and lots of traditional issues around content and new ones around communications. We use our years of expertise in both new and old media to help companies develop social media strategies that suit their objectives and markets. Sometimes we tell companies that they shouldn't blog - and that can be very good advice.
Ultimately, companies need to sell stuff. If you want to sell stuff to more people more often, you must get them to engage with your brand, to form a relationship with your company. The problem is, a broadcast ad (for example), "interrupt and repeat", tends not to accomplish this because there's nothing engaging about it (unless it's very, very good), and ads are also omething that new technology like TiVo allows many consumers to bypass. Put it this way: the best salespeople are not Herb Tarlek - they're personable individuals who engage and listen to their clients. Social Media (particularly corporate blogs) allow companies to transform their marketing efforts into one-on-one (actually one-to-many, but it feels more personal) communications, much like salesperson to client.
2.) For all those analytical types who want to pin down the ROI - is a company blog measurable?
Internal or external? I'm a member of the Social Media Collective, an invite-only group of 2.0 thinkers, and we were having a really interesting discussion around this last week. Someone noted that from an internal perspective, use = ROI. That is, if it's used, a tool has value within an organization. As an external marketing channel, there are no hard and fast measurements for blogs (as there are none for taking a client out to lunch or making regular calls to keep in touch - all important relationship-building tools). It's interesting that we seem to need to hold blogs up to this standard (what's the true ROI on a :30 second broadcast spot or a full page ad in the paper?). In the end, my personal opinion is that there are a lot of decision-makers out there who are still not comfortable with how their website works. Throwing the whole social media thing at them is just completely overwhelming, and in order to make a decision about something they don't understand (and to be able to justify it later) they fall back on ROI - all bosses understand numbers. The important thing to remember is that marketing is about creating demand in the marketplace - and how do you measure that beyond, uh, increased sales?
3.) What are some of the perceived risks of blogging?
"People will say bad stuff about us". To which I answer, "They already are. You just can't hear them, and because you're not engaging in the conversation taking place online, you have zero credibility. When you need to do some damage control or refute something that's untrue, you need to be able to influence this conversation; you have to have cred to do that effectively."
4.) Do you feel that Canadian companies are using blogs as a way of customer engagement? Or because the channel is still new to many companies, is it still one-sided PR?
Hardly anyone's doing it except the PR companies and a few tech firms. It's mostly PR and the industry talking to itself, with a few exceptions. The market is quite conservative, so a lot of what I'm doing with firms is education. 2007 will be a big year, however - we've got some great projects in the works.
5.) What are some of the tricks of the trade, best practices or principles -- whatever you want to call them -- for developing a unique company voice that resonates with its target audience?
Be yourself, for crying out loud! And make sure you have something to say. There are no new rules about content; amazingly, people still want to be entertained and engaged (just as they did with cave paintings, vaudeville, radio, television, etc), so your content must be of value, well-written and provide some unique perspective that makes people want to read it. Every company has a handful of individuals (not necessarily executive-level, and most often NOT) who are veritable fonts of knowledge. Unlock these resources, let them engage with your consumers and watch the conversation unfold!
One of the hardest parts of writing is proofreading our own work. The brain subconsciously fills in missing words and it is so difficult to see our own mistakes until someone else points them out.
I was thinking about this recently as I have been talking to a lot of people about why their sites don't rank well. Search engine optimization (for me anyway) is a "holistic" endeavour, with every aspect playing a role: design, coding, content, linking strategies and on and on. However, the most common stumbling block for many companies is as simple as the words on the page. Or rather, the lack of keywords on the page.
The two most frequent errors are "implied products or services" and "speaking in marketingese." Too many times a company will say something like, "our premium products are snonymous with quality" instead of using their keywords. If you make organic, sugarfree cookies or handcrafted teak chairs make sure you use these words in your copy.
The next thing you tend to see a lot is "marketingese." Instead of offering "widget inventory software" a company will talk about their various "solutions for widget suppliers".. and the keywords slip away. Let's say you were looking for an accountant in Toronto to oversee the books of your small business - would you go to Google and type in "accounting solution"? No, it would more likely be "small business accountant in Toronto" or something similar. Companies need to think like their clients.
This brings me to my next tip - never overlook your local market. More people use the Internet to find local services than use the Yellow Pages - so make sure you include your location or service area!
So, fair readers, with this in mind, examine your Web pages - are your keywords there?
I was reading a fascinating tidbit at Clickz this morning that relayed the following: A report, released by Mediamark Research, shows that Internet users are gobbling up online videos, blogs and online phone calls - they are the fastest growing areas in Internet usage. However email, news, shopping and paying bills are still the old favourites. To try to get a little more info, I hopped over to MediaMark.
Now there's a trip not worth taking.
Beyond the humdrumness of it all, I started to get really irked as I clicked and explored. Why? Well, they've got a lot of nerve. Follow me on a tour of bad usability. And I only mean that figuratively as quite literally you can't... it's in frames! Arghhhhhhhhhh. Can you hear my primal scream?? Frames, people, frames!! Just say no!!!
But here's the nervy part: Go to the homepage, click on the category called "MRI Interactive" and you will see a section called "Website Usability Tests" (I can only link to the unbranded, lack-of-navigation interior frame...so here ya go.) And in the irony of all ironies they profess:
MRI RelevantView allows you to answer those critical questions that could translate to the success or failure of your online presence:
- How does the usability of my website compare to my competition?
- Are my visitors finding what they want?
- How can I attract more visitors?
- Why am I losing traffic?
- Is my site easy-to-use? Confusing? Frustrating?
- How can I keep my visitors coming back for more?
- Can I offer more compelling content?
- Why aren’t they buying something?
Well, Mediamark, let's get one thing straight. If you are going to have the audacity to offer usability tests, perhaps you should get your own site out of frames.
But there are other issues too - for instance when you press on the menu item "MRI+" it whisks you to another site. Confusing? Frustrating? Yes. My initial reason for going there was to find out more about the study referenced by Clickz...I looked all over and nada, nyet, nein. A news section on the homepage might be a good idea.
If I sound a little harsh about this, well, I am...a Web site is an investment. It tells the world who you are and what you stand for. And Mediamark is a major player - they are a quality company with a solid reputation for excellence. So why doesn't the site reflect this? Google has managed to crawl the interior frames, and while I don't think for an instant that they will be popping to the top of any search engine queries, I would bet a nickel that this isn't how the company wants to be represented online. Mediamark, looking for a usability analysis, or a new site? Contact me.
My next entry will be about getting clueful before you design a site.
David t Jones came across my November newletter, and very kindly dropped me a note to say that he was thrilled to see his Adland Viral Cartoon as one of my favourite things, and thanked me for "helping reach its ridiculous and undeserving goal of going viral." Never one to miss an opportunity to chat with someone who sparked so much debate about what is and what isn't viral (while we all linked crazily to it!), I fired off three questions for David to answer. David, who is also executive creative director (Emerging Platforms) at Draft FCB, responded, and sent along his follow-up cartoon! Oh lucky day!
Why did you decide to create the Adland viral cartoon?
I drew the Adland cartoon in the first place because I love the forum to comment on this incredibly ridiculous business. I make fun of everyone - nobody more than myself. I am currently my agency's ECD of Emerging Platforms (when I'm not doodling cartoons) so as much as I am making fun of emerging media in the strip I am genuinely learning about and promoting all those new and exciting ways we can communicate on behalf of our clients. I made the "Viral Cartoon" as an experiment to see just what was possible, and what the reaction might be.
We're a pretty confident bunch, us advertising people. We really do think we can bend anything our way. Word of mouth, popular opinion, elections, consumer confidence. It is our job to do so, of course, but I think we've gotten cocky. "New Media" as it has been called is much more democratic. People get to decide on their own, so the ad manipulation isn't as much of a lay-up as it has been in the past. I wanted the cartoon to be a measuring stick for how far we can go.
For you, what makes a truly innovative and successful WOM/viral campaign?
The standards of what makes a successful viral campaign are evolving. The whole thing is much more fashionable than other mediums, in that certain things go in and out of style very quickly. Things used to need to be SHOCKING to go viral. Or they had to be something you THOUGHT was real but questioned. The length of a "normal" viral clip has changed as well. Things used to be 14 seconds or so. Now with work like the Axe "Ravenstoke" or the "Tea-Par-tay" virals are more long form, which I like better. I loved the "Happy Morning" spot from Folgers as well. That was just a great ad, but like Sony "Balls" or the "Big Ad" I only ever saw it online.
So is that viral or just another channel - with better ads?
I'll share one I created recently for Shout Wipes. A 2+ minute spot featuring hunters trying to stain a pair of pants, and activists trying to stop them. It's on You Tube and all that, or at www.shoutitout.com. We just launched it a couple weeks ago.
What is it that most companies fail to consider about using emerging technologies as an advertising channel?
Viral advertising, or better stated advertising that is made with the intent of "going viral", is a tremendously exciting and misunderstood creature. Some clients think it means FREE. That is usually where the trouble starts. My opinion is that viral just means GOOD. If anything, including an ad, is good enough - and digital media makes it easy enough - it will be shared. Many clients think of the viral medium as a place to use any extra stuff lying around. B-Roll from a TV spot or some convention video from years ago (I am not making that up) and they get the non-reaction you would expect. Content that is to go viral should be unique, creative and better than anything else you've done on TV. Think about it, if you opened a restaurant called "LEFTOVERS" you wouldn't stay in business very long.
Thanks David!!
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