E-consultancy - Internet Marketing News and Blogs

Site review: Hellomagazine.com

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:43:00 GMT

Hellomagazine.com, the online version of the celebrity magazine, was redesigned a couple of months ago.

I've been having a look around the Hello website to see if the revamp has improved the site, and how it compares to those of its rivals; sites like iVillage, More, and heatworld.

The Web Week in Review

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:00:00 GMT

It was an interesting week. As news of the debate over the possible bailout of the United States' struggling automakers captured the headlines and largely dictated the mood in the major financial markets around the world, newspaper titan Tribune Co. filed for bankruptcy and the Pulitzer Prize Board decided to fully embrace online journalism.

ITV updates its video player

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 09:30:00 GMT

ITV has been tweaking its online catch up TV service, and has introduced a few improvements for customers viewing video on its website, using Microsoft Silverlight.

The service is going to be rebranded as the 'ITV Player', which is at least a bit more distinctive than 'catch up'. As well as a new name, ITV needs to be improve the usability of its online video, so what difference has Silverlight made to this?

Q&A: Chris Roe of Virgin Holidays

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 09:00:00 GMT

Chris Roe presented at our recent Online Marketing Masterclasses event, talking about the improvements he has implemented there, which have helped to increase conversion rates on the site by an impressive 90%.

Chris is General Manager of Sales & Distribution, responsible for web, call centre and trade sales. We have been talking to him about the improvements made to the user experience on the Virgin Holidays website.

Expanding e-commerce across borders

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 16:34:00 GMT

The key to continued growth for many UK online retailers during 2009 could well lie in cross-border selling, with the biggest opportunities right on the doorstep in Europe.

Here, this is discussed, to coincide with the release of E-consultancy�?s Online Transaction Processing Guide.

Mobile site review: Newsnow.co.uk

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 14:00:00 GMT

News aggregator Newsnow has recently released a version of its website optimised for mobile users.

Newsnow uses a wide range of sources, I find it useful for keeping up with football news for instance, so how well has it translated to mobile?

Social media's metrics problem

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 12:05:00 GMT

Last week, I discussed the success story of Stephanie Meyer and her Twilight series of vampire romance novels. Meyer's use of social media played a role in the successful promotion of books that have sold over 25 million copies and that led to the blockbuster adaptation of her first book as a motion picture.

Q&A: Dan Hart of nowfly.co.uk

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 10:20:00 GMT

Nowfly.co.uk is a newly launched flights search engine which aggregates flights from 340 airlines.

I reviewed the website yesterday, and have also been finding out more from founder and CEO Dan Hart...

All I want for Christmas ... is a new mobile phone

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 09:00:00 GMT

One of the first lessons in usability is that people vary and that designing for �?average�? doesn�?t work. Nowhere is this more true than in the highly competitive world of mobile phone design.

Actually I don�?t want a new mobile because I have an iPhone and I love it. Of course, it�?s not perfect but once again Apple has demonstrated that it understands the importance of the �?user experience�?. Even its cardboard box is beautiful.

Site review: Nowfly.co.uk

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 13:44:00 GMT

Flights search engine Nowfly.co.uk launched this week, offering fast and accurate results from a wide range of flight operators.

There are already plenty of travel comparison sites out there; I have looked at both Travel.co.uk and Skyscanner in the last six months, so how does Nowfly compare?

Site review: nowfly.co.uk

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 13:44:00 GMT

Flights search engine Nowfly.co.uk launched this week, offering fast and accurate results from a wide range of flight operators.

There are already plenty of travel comparison sites out there; I have looked at both Travel.co.uk and Skyscanner in the last six months, so how does Nowfly compare?

Scott Adams on confusopolies

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Scott Adams is best known as the creator of the popular Dilbert comic strip. Dilbert, of course, has risen to popularity by poking fun at the typical white-collar office that so many of us have experienced first hand.

Social Media ROI: It can't be done in isolation, but...

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 10:20:00 GMT

Last week I posted some tips for brands wishing to engage with their customers via social media. It would appear to have been well received and I hope it helped provoke some thought around this subject.

One tip which received a lot of attention was "Forget ROI" and because this appeared to be a hot topic of interest, I thought I'd offer a little more detail and context around this and provide some further thought of how a return (in some shape or size) could be measured and then used to build a business case. I hope it helps.

Experimenting with social media

Wed, 10 Dec 2008 09:00:00 GMT

There's a lot of talk these days about using social media to engage with your customers (and prospective customers). A huge amount of debate has taken place between those who argue that social media is crucially important to businesses today and those who say the emperor has no clothes.

'Ad nausea' an online problem too?

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Last week, AdAge.com published an article discussing the disgust consumers are developing for the increasing number of ads that are being aired over and over again.

AdAge.com's Brain Steinberg cites an ad that Toyota has flooded the airwaves with that led to the creation of a Facebook group with nearly 9,000 members that is calling for the ad to be killed.

'Ad naseau' an online problem too?

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Q&A: Firebox�?s Naomi Brown on affiliate marketing

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 11:31:00 GMT

Here, we speak to Firebox�?s Naomi Brown about how she�?s been developing the gadget retailer�?s in-house affiliate marketing programme since taking it over two years ago.

Amazon gets the Watchdog treatment

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 10:00:00 GMT

Amazon Marketplace was featured on Watchdog last night, with complaints about dodgy sellers and the availability of pepper spray on the site the target of the consumer programme.

Watchdog (on iPlayer) found several instances of customers buying items on the Marketplace, receiving emails purporting to be from Amazon, paying by transfer service Moneygram and not receiving the products.

Site search used by 5% of visitors - study

Tue, 09 Dec 2008 09:00:00 GMT

While a relatively small number of visitors are using the search function on websites, conversion rates through site search are up to 50% higher than the average.

This is the verdict of a Screen Pages study into 39 of its clients' websites, using Google Analytics data. The stats cover almost 3m site visits over a three month period.

Paul Graham - source code or solutions?

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Paul Graham is one of the more interesting personalities in the American startup scene today.

Recognizing some of the flaws inherent in the venture capital model as it relates to consumer internet startups, he launched YCombinator.

Google AdWords: When the going gets tough, do the rules get going?

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 11:15:00 GMT

Google seems to make it up as they go along, according to how its financial sheet looks at the time...

Back in October, Google announced that it was lifting restrictions on gambling, which opened the floodgate for the gambling companies that had since 2004 been left to look at alternatives to PPC to drive traffic to their sites.

However, as Google�?s profits took a little slip, they lightened up.

Would you buy fashion from Microsoft?

Mon, 08 Dec 2008 09:31:00 GMT

In its effort to make itself cool again, Microsoft and ad agency Crispin Porter & Bogusky have launched a Microsoft clothing line called 'Softwear by Microsoft.'

The Web Week in Review

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Perhaps I'm simply tiring of the economic news (or becoming immune to it). Increasingly, I find myself being drawn more and more to random news stories unrelated to the flurry of bad news that seems to come on the economic front.

Tis the season to be jolly, right? Here's this week's hodgepodge of news and it's not all bad.

Site review: Reevoo.com

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 11:06:00 GMT

Reevoo provides reviews for retailers like Currys and Tesco, and launched its own website last year. It has recently had a revamp, including a new homepage and updated product pages.

The Reevoo website gathers together a wide range of product reviews, and should be a good resource for online shoppers, so how does it shape up?

Top ten tips for brand engagement via social media

Fri, 05 Dec 2008 10:00:00 GMT

Brands seeking to engage their consumers via social media seem to be misunderstanding the whole concept of social media itself. It's for the people, by the people and business needs to recognise this. The consumer now has the power, and consumers in numbers can carry a lot of influence.

The main article covers five misconceptions that brands appear to have around the area, such as ROI expectations and the risks associated with getting involved.

I've also offered ten tips for those businesses wishing to engage with their target market through social media, which I hope are useful. If you're an organisation that is chosing to ignore the soial media phenomenon I'd like to draw your attention to the last tip, entitled Do It! Enjoy the read...