Objective Marketing

Flash has been a naughty Word as far as SEO or Search Engine Optimisation is concerned now for some years. It was always a shame that Google and the other engines could not read into the code of a Flash made website, or Flash elements within an HTML site until now.

The Google Webmaster Central Blog announced on the 30th June that it has improved the ability to index textual content in SWF files of all kinds. This includes Flash “gadgets” such as buttons or menus, self-contained Flash websites, and everything in between.

Flash is owned by giant Adobe and they must have been scratching their heads for ages about this problem. Marketing companies like us would tell clients “avoid Flash” wherever you can as it cannot be read by Google or other search engines. We often did this with a heavy heart as Flash websites are the most attractive on the internet for sure!

So the era for more dynamic content with SEO capabilities is upon us and it’s well overdue. Though this is still in its infancy, I predict that within a year we will see much movement in this area.

Google has developed an algorithm that explores Flash files in the same way that a person would by clicking buttons, entering input, and so on. The algorithm remembers all of the text that it encounters along the way, and that content is then available to be indexed – perfect!

One of Objective Marketing’s specialties is that of Search Engine Optimization and we are absolutely delighted with this news. Albeit, HTML sites can have dynamic content and look dynamic, there are still restrictions.

Flash will enable marketers like us to serve clients better, hone their key messages with more clarity, USPs and give them something more outstanding that we are able too now. The revolution has begun!

Flash meets Google – it had to come and thank God it did! Watch this space for more information (you can tell we are excited!).

The number of people accessing the Internet from their mobile pones is on the slide, according to exclusive figures supplied to PC Pro Magazine by TNS Technology

In the UK, 35% of users access the internet from their mobile phone – down from 39% in 2006 – and no wonder as the rendering of .mobi web sites is appalling.

Only 6% use their mobile internet daily, and this has to be about our handsets and what they are capable of. These figures mirror a worldwide decline in mobile internet usage, with only a fifth of people browsing the web on their handset, a 5% decline on last year.

Smartphone users are far more active on-line, with 77% of them using their handset to access the internet.

The report goes on to say that it is believed that the access will decline. We fervently disagree! As handset becomes more internet friendly, we will see massive increases in usage and my thinking is purely based on the experience with a Smartphone, reflecting the figures above.

Now, haven’t Apple and the iPhone got it just right, and especially with the new 3G version. Though web browsing is faster on the new model, there is no need to see a .mobi web site that all marketing companies and graphic designers have hated from day one – having to re-purpose already well made content into something ugly and not user friendly made us all very unhappy!

The iPhone allows you to surf the web and increase or decrease size of the page, which makes reading easier – albeit not perfect. This means that we do not have to repurpose content but can use it completely as it is, saving everyone a huge amount of money!

Evidently, the other Smartphones are to follow suit, but this is still a way off to match the capability and excellent design of the iPhone.

Now, for us and our clients we can get much more out of our marketing Pounds through this medium knowing, that on a PC or Smartphone our web site can be accessed, seen and enjoyed and our message delivered!

Personally, I never thought the mini web sites of the .mobi era would last and this time I was right and I am so relieved.

Internet capable Smartphones, Apple or otherwise, offer our clients the ability to use and enjoy the internet as it should be.

Long live the iPhone and all that follow her or him or it – it’s just fantastic, whatever gender it is!

Are you going to let the “Credit Crunch” crunch you? Even though the present negative press and media coverage is enough to make you pack up and head for the hills - don’t! Or, burying your head in the sand isn’t going to help either - you need to take some positive action!

In ignorance, many companies pull the plug on their marketing budgets when times get tough - but that is very short sighted. Why is your business in decline? It’s because you have less clients, or your current clients are spending less. So what is the solution? Yes, you need more clients or encourage those you work with to spend more with you.

As a marketing company, we often have people come to us when they are in trouble. Through months or possibly years of neglect of their sales pipeline, they have reached difficultly where their cash flow dries up, and their forward forecasts will no longer gain them credit with their bankers. That’s such an awful place to reach! So, please learn from other’s mistakes and concentrate your efforts on sales and marketing.

So - how’s your sales pipeline? Have you dedicated sufficient man hours or staff to ensure that new business will continue to flow your way?

It’s highly recommended to introduce new practices in the current climate and here are a few suggestions to get you going:

1. Re-educate your sales staff to the new demands of business under the Credit Crunch i.e. you are going to have to negotiate harder than before and deliver more
2. Re-evaluate your current spend on marketing and where possible increase it
3. Adapt new methods of lead generation and find new sources
4. Network with increased intensity amongst your clients, prospects, collaborators, partners, suppliers and competitors
5. Rekindle your relationship with current clients and ensure you are getting your share of business if other suppliers are involved
6. Tighten your credit control to ensure constant cash flow
7. Take fewer financial risks than before, and if possible, increase the level of deposits on orders to spread your risk or costs (if applicable)
8. Introduce something new (Product or service) to make sure your visibility levels remain high with current and potential clients
9. Automate your sales pipeline using a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system like www.salesforce.com - so you never ever miss another lead or opportunity, and you can track your sales pipeline accurately
10. Ensure that you confirm at least 30% of this quarter’s pipeline - more if possible
11. Ensure you are using the internet to your advantage using Search Engine Optimisation, Web 2 practices such as blogging, and raise your presence in social networking and book-marking sites such as Digg, Reddit, StumbleUpon, Facebook etc

As a marketing company, we are often asked about how to get the best “lead generation” from local advertising for Fitness Centres, Gyms, Yoga and Meditation Classes, Beauty Salons, Hairdressers, Nurseries and Non-Profit organisations. As the world of traditional print and online advertising merge, how can you take best advantage of your local and immediate population from print advertising? (You also find plenty of information on our web site about internet online advertising)

One of the most effective forms of advertising, from our experience working with clients in the sectors mentioned previously, has been with UK local government publications. These are delivered into households within Boroughs, Municipalities or Counties. Most of these publications are focused on around 200-225k households, so not huge (UK statistics). However, because they go into each home in the area, their penetration value is excellent and their readership is correspondingly high. In comparison, readership of a local newspaper, free or bought, is usually around 30k - so you see the difference and the potential. Also, the costs are similar between both publications, but the return on investment is much higher for the government publications. Many of these local governments require external funding to afford a large print run, and that’s why they need advertisers like us.

From our experience, these types of publications work extremely well for the aforementioned businesses, and we have a number of our clients benefiting from very positive lead generation by using them.
Many companies and organisations give up on a print advertising campaign too soon. We have a superb article on Life Value Cycle - The Cost of Client Acquisition which shows that if print advertising is performed correctly, it can bring very positive results. This article explains that just one response to an ad could have well paid handsomely for your investment.

Define your Target Audience
Firstly, it is important to define your target audience. With researching your current client’s ages and other demographics like income, size of home, number of cars etc, you may find that the majority of sign ups were from people aged 30-45, as an example. Remember that it is not effective to target over many different demographic levels and ages, so settle for the obvious core or most popular age band, income or ethnicity - whatever is more relevant to the service or product you are selling.

Firstly, design your ad so as to appeal to this audience with the correct wording. Make sure the ad looks professionally created and do not use clipart and amateur photography. A perfectly formed ad can convey a message effectively, and a well chosen photograph can work wonders! (Have a look at photo library www.dreamstime.com where you should find the images you require and many for less than £1)

So, what do you need to do?
Firstly, check your local municipality, borough, country or state online via the internet and see if you can find the details (as you may not receive the publication personally). If you receive the publication, give them a call to discuss your requirements and target audience, however broad or narrow.

The art of marketing is to test - test - test - so give it a go, but make sure that the message in your ad reflects your expected response outcome. Ask yourself, “Will my target audience respond to such an ad”?

Why not offer some free inductions or courses? Do also remember that the most powerful word in Marketing is “free” - we all love something for nothing!

Please do get in touch if you require any further information on this subject.

The team at Objective Marketing have again scored a success with a client’s web site. This time it is Affordable Millionaire who benefits from our wealth of SEO experience as they are now positioned on the first page for UK Fractional Property Ownership and other keywords.

Search Engine optimisation is an art, that when perfected, produces sound results, greater visibility and additional traffic. It’s not rocket science, but let the experts like us guide as we have proven success.

On behalf of our client: Affordable Millionaire, Birmingham - Specialist in Fractional Property Ownership

10 years ago no one had heard of Fractional Ownership in the US. In 2006 this type of deeded property investment grew by 32% over 2005 to sales of $1.5 billion*. Furthermore, in locations such as Aspen, Colorado (A mountain ski resort where Fractional Ownership began) the capital appreciation for Fractionals is higher than fully owned property.

Will the UK follow the same path? Our indications from our clients and enquirers confirm that this method of shared ownership will see the demise of the “timeshare” market, as savvy buyers would rather have a deeded share investment in bricks and mortar rather than in time.

With increasing interest rates challenging disposable income and lending, Fractional or Shared Ownership offers the ability to share ownership and maintenance costs of a property that would have possibly been out of our financial reach.

Affordable Millionaire clients can enjoy a share of a luxury property and just pay for a single fraction, or multiple fractions for longer stays. As the average time spent in a second home is around 17 days, Fractional Ownership becomes a very viable and attractive option.
Clients can create international property portfolios: a home on the beach, one on the ski slopes and another in a favourite shopping city.

Our international property portfolio starts at £7000 for 4 weeks in Dubai, £9,999 for 2 weeks in South Africa, £12,000 for 4 weeks in Buenos Aires, and £25,000 for 4 weeks in Estepona, Spain.
Affordable Millionaire is exhibiting at the UK’s first Fractional Life Ownership Expo in the Broadgate Centre, London City, EC2, 20-22 August 2007. The Expo will feature property as well as the fractional ownership of planes, yachts and classic cars.

More details can be found at www.affordablemillionaire.com or by calling Robert Ward, Objective Marketing Limited on 0208 523 2028 or 07793 562103 – email: info@objectivemarketing.com.

Available for Interview or comment: Karen Kennaby – Founder of Affordable Millionaire
John Ahern – Sales Manager, Affordable Millionaire and former UK Sales Manager, Marriott Timeshare Vacation Club. Please arrange through Objective Marketing Office.

*Source - 8th Annual Fractional Interest Report from North Course SM Leisure Real Estate Solutions – an investment and property consultancy

15th August 2008

End

Pay-Per-Click is a paid form of advertising and the concept is fairly simple. Businesses bid to be placed at, or near the top of the search results for particular keyword phrases. The bidding is done on a “per-click” basis, meaning that a company pays a specific amount every time the engine sends them a visitor. In addition, the top results also show up in the results of many of the popular search engines (usually listed as “sponsored” or “featured” results).

For some of our clients Google AdWords drive much of their business, for other not so. You will only know the benefits if you try it, but do read our Pay Per Click information first and if necessary, call or write us for further advice.

Then go here and request a £30 free Google AdWords voucher now. They will then send you an email containing your promotional code and will explain how to set up your campaign in as little as 15 minutes. There’s no additional spend commitment, so this is risk free.

• Improve your visibility on the number 1 search engine
• Target your ads to people searching on terms specific to your business
• Choose to only show ads to people in your local area
• Only pay when someone clicks on your ad
• Control your daily spend by setting budget limits
• Monitor your ad’s effectiveness with easy to use online tracking tools

Clients often ask us how much they should spend on acquiring new clients. It is important to know what the average client will spend over their life time with you. Statistics indicate that companies keep clients for an average of 3 years; however, please do not take this figure as gospel, as it could be far longer. One on my veterinary clients keeps their clients for 10 years, so it greatly depends on the type of industry you are in.

If you know, without doubt, that your clients stay, an average of 5 years, then use this figure in your calculations based on the example below.

Here’s why lifetime value is so important and how you can use it to increase clients, referrals and your income. Knowing this value is important for one major reason; when you know how much profit a client is worth to you, you know how much money you can afford to spend to find them.

Cost of Client Acquisition
How much you spend to get clients is called the ‘cost of client acquisition’ (that’s the fancy name!). So let’s have a look at an example of a Therapist…

• Let’s say a client uses your services once every month - 12 invoices a year - and it costs them £100 each time.
• Let’s also say they remain your client for 3 years and the profit margin is 50%. (You’ll know what your average client lifetime and profit margin is - it could be less or more than the example shown here.)
• Now multiply these four numbers and you have the lifetime value of an average client.
• £100 (Spend) x 12 (Months) x 3 (Years) x 50% (Net Profit Margin) = £1800
• That’s how much profit your average client is worth using this example!

Here’s where it gets interesting… If you manage to get your clients to have longer consultations, or a combination of services, or increase the frequency of transactions, the lifetime value goes up. So let’s say they opt for longer consultations each time, costing them £150, and increases the number of transaction from 12 a year to 18. Their lifetime value goes up to £4050 (£150 x 18 x 3 x 50%).

Imagine 100 clients like that! That’s an income of £405,000 over 3 years… or £135,000 a year! And it’s not difficult to increase the amount a client spends with you.

No longer doubt your marketing or advertising spend - calculate the ROI
So, if you only receive one conversion from an ad or promotion (and you spent £100 on the ad), knowing these above facts, it is quite possible that you have made a handsome profit on your marketing activity, though it did not seem very cost effective without these facts.

Further details of this subject can be found on our web site at: http://www.objective-marketing.com/marketing/the-essentials/lvc-life-value-cycle/ or by calling us on 020 8523 2028, or please feel free to post a comment or question on this blog.

Apple has finally unveiled the iPhone
- potentially one of the most revolutionary consumer products in history. It will act as a catalyst for change, stimulating a host of mobile-enabled services that will change the way we work forever. mCommerce - mobile commerce has truly arrived!

Whether this becomes a threat or an opportunity to your business is largely down to how you react over the next 18 months. But let’s start by validating the facts. First, the numbers are huge. The Economist recently published a report into mobile phone usage in the UK, indicating that there are 102 phone contracts for every 100 people. It anticipates that Smartphones will outnumber computers by 2008 and that internet access via mobiles will exceed home broadband access by the end of this year.

Second, the major limitations of mobile commerce to date - small screens, bulky handsets, low speeds, unproven security and unreliable connections - should be obliterated by the iPhone. It is well designed, functional, intuitive and can capitalise on the hugely successful iPod. (www.apple.com/itunes) View an online demonstration of the iPhone.

It will provoke a flood of web-enabled devices into the market, providing businesses with access to a far wider audience than the PC-enabled internet. This is a compelling proposition for various sectors, significantly reducing distribution costs and bringing to bear the real opportunity of “on demand”.

Many companies are working on technologies to exploit this market, while several have already registered .mobi domain names in preparation. The first tier of products will be service driven, updating customers on schedules, flight departures and arrivals, and providing traffic and weather reports etc But once these services are established, it is anticipated that there will be huge demand for transactional-based services.

Location-based m-commerce services will follow. It is possible to determine the location of a switched-on mobile within about 500 meters. This will allow users to search for local hotels and restaurants, with live availability and pricing.

The delivery of commodity products through hand-held devices will create a new marketplace. Consumer expectations will rise, while there will be less reliance on human contact and an empowerment that will far outweigh that created by the internet.

The growth of the wireless revolution is inevitable. Companies must start to think how it will affect their businesses and how they will service this new channel. Mobile must become part of every company’s distribution strategy - and the time to act is now.

One of the forerunners in enabling and repurposing content for mobile is Wapple . Wapple is an online facility, the Adobe Dreamweaver equivalent for creating web content for mobile phones.

How will you adapt? Please do add your comments.

Regards

Robert

Hakia is building the Web’s new “meaning-based” search engine with the sole purpose of improving search relevancy and interactivity, pushing the current boundaries of Web search. The benefits to the end user is search efficiency, richness of information, and time savings.

The basic promise is to bring search results by meaning match - similar to the human brain’s cognitive skills - rather than by the mere occurrence (or popularity) of search terms. Hakia’s new technology is a radical departure from the conventional indexing approach, because indexing has severe limitations to handle full-scale semantic search.

Hakia’s capabilities will appeal to all Web searchers - especially those engaged in research on knowledge intensive subjects, such as medicine, law, finance, science, and literature. I would also add marketing here and hope that is not too presumptuous! Seriously, though, Hakia does take an interesting approach to search. If the company can truly make its search engine understand content in a way similar to a human brain, it will definitely have something special if not scary!!!

Personally, I plan to check back with Hakia a few times over the next month or so to see how the developments are unfolding. I’ll run some queries to find out whether it can help me with my work. A search on relative keywords for my business led me to a list of useful-looking results and ones I don’t usually find in Google, so I’m quite optimistic. Time will tell how well it delivers!

Go and have a look yourself and let me know what you think. It’s still in development, but it could end up being an additional useful tool in the Search Marketing and Optimisation arena.

Regards

Robert