Privacy challenges by public interest groups and the FTC are threatening to dismantle or seriously curtail the behavioral targeting model of interactive advertising as it stands today. Fearful of damaging relationships with their readers, many publishers are removing third-party widgets and other technologies when those technologies are found to capture and sell user data without the user’s express permission.

Even Facebook itself has cracked down on unauthorized data scraping. Recent “Do Not Track” efforts are trying to move choices about data sharing from publishers to the people via browser technology. But these are merely symptoms of a larger problem with interactive advertising: a lack of transparency. It’s a problem that new social tools will play a significant role in addressing.

Rather than an endgame where consumers completely block any sort of data sharing, I see a future where marketers take the high road and both sides benefit from better quality data, advertising and content.

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Permission Marketing

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The concept of “Permission Marketing” isn’t new; in fact, Seth Godin’s 1999 book about “turning strangers into friends and friends into customers” seems remarkably prescient in today’s age of “Friending,” “Liking,” and “Following.” Godin told the (then e-mail-dominated) interactive industry, “By talking only to volunteers, Permission Marketing guarantees that consumers pay more attention to the marketing message. It serves both customers and marketers in a symbiotic exchange.”

Today, technologies like Facebook Connect and OAuth are helping to redefine the concept of permission marketing. Using these technologies, brands, retailers, publishers and other sites are able to actively establish a permission-based relationship with their users and customers on their own websites. Now websites have the opportunity to embrace transparency, to be upfront with people during the registration process about how their data will be used, as well as how it will benefit both parties.

We have a new generation comfortable using Facebook and other mobile apps and who, according to recent survey data, are quite willing to share personal information with companies and brands in exchange for value provided. They are also relatively unconcerned about the security of data they share on social networks. The bottom line is that this type of authorization-based relationship between brand and user is likely to become the norm.

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This Year’s Model

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So what exactly is the data and advertising opportunity for sites? The Huffington Post is the poster child for this new social data-based permission marketing approach. Readers register on the site using their existing Facebook, Twitter or other social identity, thereby giving HuffPo access to data with which the site can personalize the user experience.

For readers, this means they can see what their friends are reading and sharing on their site, giving them a powerful social filter for relevant content. It also means The Huffington Post can sell advertising on their own site based on everything they know about the user from a social perspective.

I had a chance to meet Huffington Post CEO Eric Hippeau at last year’s IAB leadership summit, where publishers get together to talk about the future of interactive advertising, and he shared with me that their integration and application of Facebook Connect and similar technologies to create a social news experience has been the key driver of their phenomenal traffic growth over the past year plus. Social advertising is also a key source of their revenue growth. HuffPo considers their site to be in the category of social media, and structures their ad sales team to serve that unique buyer. For publishers and advertisers, this approach has the power of Facebook ads, yet is superior because it combines the best of both worlds –- deep context plus social data.

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Social Sign-On

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While Social registration, also known as Social Sign-On, is the foundation for this new relationship-based model, the layers on top of that foundation are the most promising for the future of advertising. In addition to basic demographic targeting, sites could offer advertising based on interest data, targeting movie fans or iPod fans for example. Sites could also sell against social influence and activity — factors such as the number of friends, propensity to share and history of driving referral traffic, or even the number of items “Liked” as an indicator of engagement. Reward programs driven by game mechanics are a key part of the nurturing process in this new model, where a loyal, engaged and most importantly non-anonymous audience is the new currency of advertising.

Sites and brands need to ask themselves: What am I offering people that they will truly value in exchange for permission to talk to them as a friend and not an anonymous user? Badges may not be right for every site experience, but successful apps and other web experiences like those on The Huffington Post prove that it is not an unattainable goal.

As with all new models, there are challenges to address. Sites need a critical mass of users to grant them these permissions in order to sell advertising effectively. Privacy concerns with social network data will evolve over time and regulatory pressure will certainly cause the interactive industry some headaches as we move to a new equilibrium. But it is inevitable that a permission-based model will prevail, and those that are able to rapidly embrace this model and experiment with its possibilities will win higher CPMs, new ways to differentiate against the competition, and a more loyal audience.

About the Author

David A. Yovanno is the CEO of Gigya, Inc., a leading social optimization platform for online business. He can be reached on Twitter at @daveyovanno, or via e-mail: dave(at)gigya(dot)com.

[Via Mashable]

Advertising, Business, Facebook, Online Marketing

The hyperlink is the fundamental building block of the Internet, and effectively ties reference points to useful content. Without the hyperlink, the web would be nothing more than silos of content lacking semantic connections.

Traditionally, hyperlinks live in browser windows on desktop monitors. Today, however, some hyperlinks are moving offline, where they can be “clicked” by people roaming the real world.

By printing a Quick Response (QR) bar code on any item — a lamp, the program booklet of an event, or a retail store window -– a consumer can quickly link from the real-world experience to rich web content via his smartphone. Using QR codes, jump points to the Internet can be placed anywhere in the physical world.

The ability to place a QR code on anything offers opportunities for businesses and consumers. These are a few examples of how a business can leverage QR codes and turn real-world “clicks” into sales:

• You have been looking for the perfect lamp for your living room for a long time. You see the perfect one — not in a furniture show room, but in a hotel lobby. At the base of a lamp is a QR code. You scan it with your phone, click a link to “buy it now,” and purchase the lamp on the spot.
• You drive across town to purchase a leather jacket from a fashion boutique. By the time you arrive, the store is closed. A retail window badge reads: “Sorry, we’re closed! Scan this code to buy online, and receive free shipping!” The free shipping offer is normally not available online, but since you made the trek, the store offers you a reward.
• You attend a musical and have a great time. Reviewing the Playbill at home, you encounter a QR code that you can scan to order tickets for the next musical at the venue. The tickets are offered at 40% off, and the offer is only good for seven days. With the offer laid perfectly in front of you, and positive memories of tonight’s musical fresh in your mind, you purchase the tickets.

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Context-Sensitive Marketing

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These examples illustrate the power of a new opportunity created by QR codes that we call context-sensitive marketing, or CSM.

Remember those impulse items in the supermarket checkout aisle? The savvy merchant, knowing you are likely to be hungry while food shopping, shows you quick fixes like a candy bar. CSM enables the same type of impulse buying, only this time, it’s “virtual impulse buying.” The idea behind CSM is to reach your customers when they are most likely to be interested in your product. With the knowledge of what context you’re in –- staring at furniture, attending a musical, or shopping for clothes — the ability to engage in virtual impulse buying is literally at your fingertips.

From the consumer’s standpoint, CSM is a convenience. Scanning a QR code is a deliberate act the consumer is choosing to take part in. On the other hand, GPS-triggered smartphone pop-ups are not part of the CSM playbook, because the consumer never opts-in (or out) of the content.

In addition to purchasing convenience, a real-world hyperlink can trigger multimedia or crowdsourced wisdom that can help you in a pinch. Imagine, for example, needing to re-thread the belts on a child’s car seat, but not having the manual in front of you to show you how. There is no need to Google the product or scavenge through your file cabinet for the manual; just scan the QR code and have the manual or a how-to video appear right on your phone.

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Is the Real World Ready for Contextual Links?

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All of this technology may sound great, but is the world ready for QR codes? Changing consumer behavior is notoriously difficult. Will consumers find scanning items with their smartphones to be a natural and useful act?

Technologically, the convergence of three trends are equipping consumers with the tools to make QR code scanning seamless:

• The growth of wireless data transmissions through 3G+ and Wi-Fi;
• The ubiquity of Internet-connected mobile mini-computers, a.k.a. smartphones (equipped with GPS and high-definition cameras); and
• The emergence of data storage in the Internet cloud.

According to Nielsen, 51% of all Americans will be carrying smartphones by 2011. The number of QR codes in circulation is reported to increase significantly. QR reading apps are quick to launch, quick to scan and available on every smartphone operating system.

Behaviorally, the mass adoption of QR codes will depend most critically on the utility of what is behind the QR code. Businesses need to provide scan-worthy content that truly makes the lives of consumers better after taking the time — however short — to scan a QR code. To this end, businesses simply need to be creative. Provide a special offer to incentivize the scan or save time for the consumer by providing context-triggered helping hands.

As a final example, imagine discovering that the water dispenser on your home fridge isn’t working. You open the fridge and see the indicator light informing you that your water filter cartridge needs replacing. What do you do? Will you fire up your laptop and type into a Google search box the exact model of your water filter cartridge replacement, then hunt for the best deal online? That’s what I did last year. But with any luck, next time around, a QR code will be printed on the water filter with the prompt: “Scan me to reorder.” Grabbing my phone, I scan the code, pulling up a 15% manufacturer’s discount if I order the cartridge directly. I click to buy, knowing I saved time and money, which I can now spend on more worthwhile activities.

That is the power of context-sensitive marketing.

About the Author
Hamilton Chan is CEO of Paperlinks and Paperspring. Through itsiPhone app and QR web platform, the just-launched Paperlinks platform makes context-sensitive marketing plug-and-play for small, medium and large businesses.

apps, Business, Marketing, Mobile 2.0, Online Marketing, QR Codes, small business

A couple of weeks ago, we told you how to earn inexpensive exposure for your small business. A successful PR activity is as essential as launching a new brand, product or a relaunch. Following are some of the basics of planning a successful PR activity.

You first need to identify the very good reason on which to expend energy, time or resources on trying to get the media interested in what you want them to know.

Six Reasons for a PR Campaign

The very good reason(s) might be:

- A new product or service
- A new book or DVD
- A business growth story
- Charitable/philanthropic activities
- A business award achievement
- A tie-up/collaboration

If you don’t have a very good reason, wait until you do.

Here are some basic steps to getting ready for  PR activity:

- Identify ‘the story’ and requirement for media exposure and what you hope the exposure can do for your business i.e: sell more of something or create awareness or recognition

- Have high quality photography ready (print media prefer 300 dpi hi res jpegs)

- Decide your core target media, print, broadcast and online – get familiar with these outlets – make time to watch and read what you want to appear on or be in!

- Create your contacts list relative to the different media outlets, identify their lead times and pitch appropriately. For example: if you are launching a new business service in 5 months time, now is the time to be talking to monthly business media, not nationals

- Devise a well honed press release (a News Release for a news announcement) – seek expert help if you need to avoid press release blunders

- Be traditional where you can and pick up the telephone to speak to the journalist in person and have an appropriate email ready as back-up referencing your telephone conversation. Avoid sending attachments to press other than hi res images when requested. Generate a short introductory email template with key points, messages and copy and paste the final press release below your signature/sign off and refer to that in the body copy of your email

- Follow up with a telephone call or short ‘enquiry’ email

- Build on your social media connections, search for some of your key press, become a follower and review what they are writing about in their social media networks

At the end of the day, it’s important to be realistic about any PR activity as there are no guarantees of exposure. Each time you pitch yourself to a journalist you should bear in mind that they may be on a deadline and have limited time to speak to you. You need then to be ready with a short and sweet introduction and know when not to ‘sell’ or suggest you call back. Each time you pitch you are building a new layer onto the perception and memorability of your personal brand and that of your company.

Tips

Be considerate
Be meticulous
Be appropriate
Be relevant

[Via EBA]

Business, Business Tips, Marketing, Online Marketing, PR, PR Activity, Public Relations, Tips For Success

The market is awash with advice from Social Media Gurus.  I remember the 1980’s when the PC was becoming available to the masses and I was told ‘where there is mystery there is margin.’ Beware, advice is often given as facts, but it is always ‘opinion.’

There are a lot of people trying to profit from giving advice now. The first thing I want to say here is, this is my advice and my opinion – take it as such, but find those who you can trust.

Before you take any advice and spend money take a look at the person who is giving it. Are they ‘connected’, do they have excellent social media presence and what is their track record? Most importantly, are they a role model for you? A barrow boy at a market stall could show you how to sell, but would that be the way you would want to behave? The online world is much more than a ‘sales channel’. All the time you are creating your reputation and you are either attracting or repelling ‘followers.’

In this post I would like to encourage you to learn to have a Digital Mindset, enter the Digital world with the right mindset.

Here are 5 tips for achieving this:

1. Know yourself

To begin with, do you ‘know yourself’ what your value as a person is to others? There is a clue in the word ‘Know’ and that is know-ledge. Online you are sharing your know-ledge. You are not seeking sales. Through sharing your knowledge with others you will become ‘known.’

2. Understand the difference between broadcast and building trust

The online world gives you two diverse and curiously linked opportunities. One is to ‘broadcast’ your message through Social Media, the other is to build trust through Social Networking. Most sites now allow you to do both. Ecademy allows you to write a Blog in a public place within the community where many random people will pass by and see it. They will view it and if they like it they might stop and start a conversation on it by commenting. At this point you are now social networking. YouTube, Flickr, SlideShare, most ‘Social Media sites allow you to do this. Don’t forget to talk: being a Broadcaster will not serve you if you only do this.

3. Release yourself online – be ‘ORS’

Be yourself online and be the best you can be. I like to use the phrase ‘Open, Random and Supportive’ as I believe this is what we are like when we are being a friend.  If we are ‘Closed, Selective and Controlling’, we are showing an old approach to business, targeted and in it only for yourself.

4. Notice and Share

When you read good stuff you are noticing it and consuming it for yourself. Start sharing it too and most sites allow you to share on FaceBook, Twitter, Ecademy, LinkedIn. This requires you to set up the ‘feeds’ Twitter is a great place to start, make sure you link your content into Twitter as it is so easy for others to then ‘notice and share’ what you are writing and thinking.

5. Create daily habits

Finally, don’t do this social media stuff only when you feel like it: start creating daily habits that enable you to do it more often. Make sure you have set up the technology so it is easy to do and then do it through a Smartphone while you are on the move.  I hate to be tied to a PC, as do most people. Go out and service your clients and at the same time support your network of friends online.

Business, facebook fan page, Marketing, Online Marketing, small business, Social Media, social media marketing, Tips

So you’ve started a business. You’ve incorporated, you’ve set up a great website and/or blog, and your social media strategy is in place.

Now, if only you could get the word out. Sometimes you need to do more than rub two tweets together to generate a little buzz. If you’ve exhausted your personal social networks, the next step is to reach out to the online media world and get some exposure.

If you’re just starting out, you may not have the capital for a water cooler, let alone a full-time PR agency. But there are a few ways to get your biz covered in the right online circles if you’re willing to put in some time and effort. We spoke to some PR pros to find out how to tap into the online media and get your biz a little exposure without breaking the bank.

Answer Public Media Queries

Bloggers and reporters are always hunting for interesting stories, products and companies to cover and discuss with their audiences. For news outlets and blogs that fosters very niche coverage, it’s not always easy to find sources.

That’s where media query services like HARO (Help a Reporter Out) come in. It’s a place where media pitches are sought out, which isn’t always the case elsewhere.

“Reporters’ queries are aggregated, categorized and distributed via e-mail to subscribers several times a day,” said Leyl Master Black of Spark PR. “When you find a relevant query, send the reporter a brief ‘pitch’ saying that you saw their query and explaining why you’re a good resource for their story. Make sure to respond as soon as you see the query so you don’t miss the reporter’s deadline!”

Take time away from “cold pitches” via e-mail, and focus it on those reporters who are requesting information for their stories. The value proposition here is a no-brainer.

Make Your Business Blog SEO Friendly

You’re probably already aware that business blogging, if done well, can be a huge asset for a small company. It’s a better showcase of your expertise than a simple “About Us” page, and has the added benefit of boosting your brand higher in search results that are relevant to your business. After all, people generally don’t search for “Joe’s Plumbing Supply Shop.” They search for “how to fix a leaky faucet.”

“Blogs can be a very effective low/no cost vehicle if you make sure the posts are on trend, useful and findable,” said Kari Moe Straley, principal at Linked Communications. “Use your blog to comment on bigger ‘searchable’ trends so that you can get found by reporters and bloggers. This works really well for ‘day two’ stories.

“For example,” Straley added, “today a story about the future of Digg was covered on the front page of The New York Times biz section. Tomorrow, bloggers and reporters will be looking for ways to expand on this story. A blog post with a well thought and insightful opinion, and perhaps some data could be useful for bloggers/reporters looking for a quick source.”

Straley notes that a strong and search-optimized title is key, along with spending a little time in the comments sections of fellow bloggers where you can add to the discussion and share links to your posts around relevant key words.

“Comment regularly on relevant articles,” Black adds. “This is a great way to join the industry conversation, get your name in front of key reporters and your target audience.”

All of these efforts, if done regularly, will start to build a stronger rank for your business blog around relevant search terms, and eventually drive customers and reporters to your site in an organic way.

Low-Cost Press Release Services

The press release is still a go-to method for getting the word out, but using an established service doesn’t have to cost an arm and a leg.

“While PRNewswire, Businesswire and other services offer very wide distribution of your press release, these can be quite pricey,” said Black. “If you’re just looking to get your news ‘out there’ and picked up by the search engines, it makes more sense to use a lower-cost distribution service such as PRWeb, which lets you distribute a press release for as little as $80 and also enables search engine optimization of your release.”

This approach gets your business and product names out on the Web in places other than your own website or blog. It’s not a plan for viral domination, but a baseline for search strategy and an inexpensive way to get your content in front of eyes that are seeking it out.

Need to get your release looking sharp before sending it out into the wild blue ether? Check out PitchEngine and PressLift for services that can help you build great looking, multimedia rich, and socially sharable press releases in a snap.

Contribute to Relevant Publications

If your business blog doesn’t yet have the reach to help drive sales, think about contributing to one that does.

Many mid-to-large blogs and media sites accept guest writer contributions that are focused in a particular coverage area. If you’re a fan of an industry site, why not contribute content to the discussion in exchange for a promotional byline?

“Once you’ve found a publication to target, send a short e-mail to the editor outlining what your article will cover and the key takeaways for readers,” said Black. “Note that these articles cannot be a sales pitch for your company — they should provide tips, fresh insights on the industry or macro-level trends.”

If a site with reach pops up in a potential customer’s search query and your business website is linked in your byline, that’s direct and targeted traffic that only cost you a single investment of time.

Your Thoughts

There are so many ways people can find your business on the Web. Unless you’re putting yourself out there strategically, you may be squandering an opportunity for free or low-cost PR.

What tricks have you learned or stumbled upon as you share your brand around the Web? Add them in the comments below.

[OPEN Forum]

Marketing, media, Online Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, small business, Social Media, social media marketing

It does not take a genius to work out that ads for strollers are likely to be wasted on parents with older children or that you shouldn’t put a Starbucks ad in front of someone who doesn’t drink coffee. But how can you tell who is really looking at your ad? This week Google publicized various innovations it is bringing to display advertising that are designed to generate a better match between what is displayed and what a web surfer might actually want to buy.

Google uses your browsing history to make a prediction as to what type of person you are. For instance, I received some emails about summer camps for my children and ads popped up in Gmail for other possibilities. And, indeed, my daughter went to one of those alternatives this summer. Put simply, being able to keep track of what appears to interest a consumer is important information in improving the efficiency of matches with advertisers.

But it is instructive to think about what other information could be brought to bear to improve advertising. Advertisers care not only about getting in front of the right consumer but also about getting those consumers to pay attention, click, and purchase. Ads that are annoying — ads that flash or move to get your attention, for instance — do not fulfil this goal. In fact, an annoying ad in front of a consumer who is your target could be explicitly counter-productive, causing her to think worse of you and better of a rival. This has prompted Ian Aryes and Barry Nalebuff to suggest that ads receive ratings. Some platforms already ask consumers whether they find an ad useful or not. But these are small in-roads. So how can we help reduce the annoyance factor and increase the effectiveness of ads?

An obvious idea comes to mind: why not use a consumer’s social network to help in making ads more targeted and less annoying? Social networks already have mechanisms to assist their users in sharing recommendations with their friends. Many, including Facebook, have a “like” tag for members to indicate to their friends whether their comments or links are, well, “liked.” This assists everyone in understanding what is valuable and improving what is being shared.

What if social networks had the same option for ads so as to exploit socially held knowledge? Members could be asked to indicate whether they think their friends would like an ad, resulting in those friends seeing more or less of it. Advertisers could tap into social knowledge about what is likely to be an effective ad; something that is currently hard to achieve.

Why would consumers bother to “help out” advertisers by actively evaluating ads? My hunch is that a social norm could evolve to achieve just that. The “social contract” could become: you should help us bring less annoying ads to your friends by actively evaluating ads for them and then, to reciprocate, your friends will do the same for you. Everyone will be better off as the annoyances of ads you see are reduced, and advertisers will pay more for ad space.

Of course, one might be concerned about whether advertisers and platforms might exploit this newfound effectiveness to throw more ads at us. That is a legitimate concern, but also an opportunity to help the social norm evolve: the platform could guarantee that members who evaluated ads for their friends saw fewer of them.

Using social information to improve ad effectiveness has until now been at best a passive instrument. Bringing active engagement to the process is surely something worth considering.

About the Author

Joshua Gans is an economics professor at the Melbourne Business School, University of Melbourne. He is currently a visiting scholar at the Harvard University Department of Economics, and the author of the book Parentonomics.

(Via HBR)

Advertising, Crowdsourcing, Google, Marketing, Online Marketing, Social Media, social media marketing

by John Deighton

Sarah Palin can turn a phrase. Hers is not the style of Churchill or JFK; in fact, it’s quite the opposite. And that’s the point. Once we thought of political oratory as speech used to build community, unite people, and inflate the spirit, as in “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” Instead, Palin has shown us how it can be used to deflate if not the spirit, then at least the opponent. “How’s that hopey, changey stuff working out for ya?” she asks, and in no time the line is on Twitter, the clip on YouTube, and Zazzle.com is selling it on bumper stickers.

Read the rest of this entry

Branding, Communication, Marketing, Online Marketing, Social Media