At Web Wise Business we aim to work closely with clients to really benefit them. Our goal is to provide value by working hard for clients, going beyond the point where many would draw the line.

An example of how we do this can be seen on one of the latest sites we have launched and run -

Now Retirement aims to service both financial advisers and individuals searching for retirement financial advice. But unlike traditional financial advice websites, Now Retirementgoes beyond the normal level of service, offering individuals finding advice through the website cashback and financial advisers no-risk, qualified leads.

The site also utilises some pretty clever Artificial Intelligence (AI), developed in conjunction with the team at Winterwell Associates, to optimise the content presented based on users' viewing preferences. For more information on how the AI works on the site, check out the article "Pension Advice and Artificial Intelligence" on Objective Associates.

How it Works - Users

We want to ensure a rewarding experience for users of Now Retirement, which is why we offer cashback on all deals completed through the website. We also make it easy to keep up to date on the latest retirement finance news and information with our News articles covering everything from Pension Advice to Investments and Annuities.

Contacting an adviser through the site is easy. Users can utilise the search functionality to find advisers local to them and specialising in particular financial products.

Because we understand that dealing with a financial adviser can be a very personal working relationship, we make it quick and easy for users to decide whether the adviser is right for them based on their accreditations and personal biography in their adviser profile.

All advisers listed on the website are checked to ensure they are FSA registered, giving you complete peace of mind.

How It Works - Advisers

We go the extra mile in promoting advisers who have registered with our financial advice lead generation system - Now Admin.com - by not only ensuring that their profile is search engine optimised for the financial products and geographic location they operate in, we also ensure that the no-risk leads they receive are as qualified as can be through SMS and email address checking.

Advisers who have registered on the adviser sign-up website Now Admin.com, and who have agreed to our Introducer Appointed Representative Agreement (IAR), can create a profile that will appear on Now Retirement and which they can edit and update as they see fit.

Adviser profiles are assigned and displayed in search results based on their "Now Star Rating" - a ranking influenced by how complete their profile is and how many articles and comments they have contributed to the site. Our research has shown that the higher an advisers profile is displayed, the more visits it receives - therefore leading to more inquiries, so it really pays off to be active!

So whether your a Financial Adviser, or somebody looking for financial advice - or even simply looking for an example of a sophisticated community and lead generation website - head on over to www.nowretirement.com to take a look for yourself.

Anyone who has used Google in the last day or so can't fail to have noticed the latest upgrade - Google Instant.

Google Instant

Google Instant enabled search results to be returned as you enter your search term. This means that, as you type what you are searching for, Google is actively displaying and modifying the results it is presenting based on the letters you are entering. The aim of this is to enable users to refine their search results quicker in order to find what they are looking for.

However, it also serves another purpose for Google - increasing engagement with Adwords adverts and increasing the need for spend on ads on the behalf of advertisers.

Increased Competition

If by showing and refining results as you type, Google is attempting to help you more quickly refine incorrect searches then chances are users are rarely going to look beyond the top 2-3 results on a page (all that is visible on standard screen resolutions) before either refining their search, or clicking a result.

This means that competition for the top 3 spots in results is going to get even fiercer than it is already. It can also be proposed that, rather than competing for "long tail" keyword terms (longer terms such as "dnn developers scotland" - rather than simply "dnn" or "dnn developer"), search engine marketers will begin to look to optimise for shortened search terms to gain extra traffic.

For example, a search with only "the" entered presents a first page dominated by "The Sun" newspaper - no mention of "The Times" or "The Guardian".

Instant Impact On Adwords

This competition for top results placement will also help Google drive an increased spend amongst Pay Per Click advertisers using it's Adwords service, as the higher placed adverts tend to command a higher cost per click and the increased competition for these places will only serve to drive this higher.

It seems that the already important activity of Search Engine Optimisation in assisting the success of business websites is going to see increased focus as a vital part of the online marketing mix for many businesses in the coming months.

If you would like help with the Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) and online marketing of your website, why not give us a call on 01786 430 076, or emails us.

Attempting to create a marketplace for Web App's akin to Apple's App Store, Google are moving closer to launch of the Chrome Web Store with the recent developer preview.

Designed to be a central location for buying and selling HTML5-based web applications (such as the Pac-Man Google logo), the Chrome Web Store is most notably different from Apple's App Store because Google only intend to take a 5% processing fee, rather than the 30% cut Apple demands for apps.

This would seem to suggest that, at least initially, Google don't intend to monetise their app store. However, there may be good reason for this. Google are set to launch a number of Chrome OS (opperating system) products, including a tablet computer to rival Apple's iPad and therefore may be looking to encourage further browser and operating system adoption amongst consumers, especially since Google's Chrome internet browser is one of the most HTML5 friendly.

As part of the public promotion of our recently launched finance websites, NowAdmin and Now Retirement, we are holding a competition to win a £100 B&Q gift card.

Entry is completely free, all you have to do is visit the website and fill in the entry form - simple!

Now Retirement

Now Retirement is the new retirement finance advice site that helps consumers get the financial advice they need by putting them in contact with financial advisors and brokers in their local area and offers cash-back on any deals they do with advisors contacted through the website.

Already gaining significant attention, Now Retirement is part of NowAdmin, the new online qualified lead generation system available to financial advisors and brokers.

NowAdmin

NowAdmin works very differently from the typical lead systems many advisors and brokers will be used to using.
Instead of having to pay costly fee’s for leads that lead to nothing, NowAdmin works on a commission share basis and rewards the client for using the site – cash back for completing a deal and win:win for all involved.

Advisors and brokers are already signing up at www.nowadmin.com where they can review the terms before “going live”.
Once live, Now Retirement (www.nowretirement.com) actively promotes advisors to individuals seeking retirement finance advice through online marketing and PR activity.

The more advisors do on the site the more they will be promoted and the more leads they will get – so if you are a financial advisor, simply visit www.nowadmin.com to get started on your profile.

There is a reason Google is heavily investing in bringing location services to many of it's products (Maps, Search, Latitude, etc) - new potential business models.

With an ever increasing percentage of the population now in possession of smart phones with geo-location technology, we are already beginning to take for granted the idea that applications can pinpoint our location (Google maps for example) and it just so happens that location happens to be handy for not only consumers, but businesses too.

For Google, this means that a number of opportunities exist to create viable revenue streams from location based advertising, similar to how it's search advertising platform, AdSense, works.

While a number of location based ad's already exist, as with the majority of advertising, the creative ways which businesses find to implement location based campaigns will play a large part in determining it's success.

Social media site Foursquare is already showing the early stages of what has the potential to become a very interesting model, attracting customers in, but also helping build brand loyalty and repeat custom.

Foursquare

Designed for the smart phone age, Foursquare users "check in" through an application downloaded to their handset which picks up their location using the handset's geo-location software and logs this in their profile. Alerts can then be posted to the user's Twitter or Facebook profiles to share their location with friends.

So what does Foursquare offer for businesses?

Businesses who have "claimed" their location on Fouresquares maps can create "Specials" for visitors to these premises. The site offers simple, self-service tools to enable you to create and manage different kinds of special offers and track how they perform.

For example, fast food retailers could offer users who check in at least 5 times in one of their premises, a free drink. Or a clothing retailer could offer the user who is "Mayor" (the user who has checked in the most in the last 60 days) of their venue 25% off their next purchase.

These might sound like the kinds of offers we already see plenty of, marketed physically, but it might surprise how effective the simple competitive game element of Foursquare can be in driving customers to a venue. That's before you even consider the ability to track who your regular customers are, how often they visit, when and whether they are telling their networks of friends!

The reporting functionality Foursquare offers business users for tracking specials allows you to see information such as; total number of visitors, most recent visitors, most frequent visitors, time of day people check in, gender breakdown, proportion sharing check ins on Twitter/Facebook, etc.

All of this information can be of great value when it comes to knowing who your customers are and building lasting customer relationships.

High street clothing retailer GAP today announced it would be offering a 25% discount on all purchases for customers who check in on the site as part of it's "The Black Magic" event which runs today only, showing that large retailers already see the potential offered by the site for providing valuable customer data.

Certainly something worth taking a look at, especially if your business is retail.

What's On Your Mind?

Self Service

Customer Loyalty

To put things into perspective a little, that many users is equal to the combined populations of (deep breath!) : - Albania, Austria, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, the Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and the UK...

 

...or about

 

 

So why has Facebook managed to become so popular?

1. Learnability - Facebook is easy to adopt for it's target audiences (which these days are wide ranging). With a very intuitive and simple to navigate user interface, everyone from children to grandparents is capable of creating and maintaining a profile. (Worth noting that the various applications available from 3rd party developers on the site may not necessarily conform to this however)

In-Image Advertising

The service, which can be added to a website through a single line of code, allows consumers to browse the photographs on a website and mouse over to reveal information and pricing about similar products featured in, or related to the image, with the option to click to purchase.

Visual Search

Tesco Off Target

Are You On Target?

Record Breaker

The month of May was a record breaker - not only was the record for hottest May day in Scotland broken by a prolonged period of warm Scottish weather (a record in itself surely!), but the BBC's iPlayer also delivered a record number of programmes, with over 130 million requests for on-demand TV and radio.

The iPlayer, which lets viewers catch up with programs they have missed by viewing online, broke the previous record month of 123 million requests which it had set last year.

Averaging 1.4 million users per day, the BBC noted an increase in the numbers of users viewing live streaming television through the player as opposed to "catch up" content, with live TV now accounting for 10% of all requests.

Web-Enabled Tech and IPTV

The advancements in Web-Enabled Consumer Electronics (Web-Enabled CE) are also building the foundations of a potentially lucrative Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) market according to In-Stat, a market intelligence provider for the Digital Entertainment industry.

Many consumer electronics device manufacturers are understood to be introducing software platforms which support widgets in the coming months and years, enabling developers to create all manner of applications to enhance and augment the viewing experience.

The study predicts that, by 2013, TV applications have the potential to generate over $1.7 billion (or £1.2 billion) in annual revenues globally, with households of adults under the age of 40 expressing the most interest in using TV widgets. In particular, substantial interest has been indicated towards widgets which enable simple online purchases, such as take-away food, clothing (items seen in adverts etc) and movie tickets.

With massive potential for a myriad of creative applications, watching TV may be about more than simply what your viewing sooner than you may think!

The Mobile Market

Examples

H&M - 2d Barcodes (Semacodes, Quick Response Codes etc)

 

Fashion retailer H&M enabled viewers of it's print and outdoor advertising to quickly find and buy the products shown in magazine and poster adverts by scanning the codes with their handset's camera. Once scanned, the code opens a web-based menu allowing the customer to select size and colour options for the product before buying. The cost of the goods is then added to the customers regular telephone bill.

Kick Off!

"World Cup"

Information In Results

It Was Acceptable In The 80's...

 

The Cost

Calling Loud and Clear

Colour

Examples

Amazon are a prime example of this, using orange and yellow for the most important "buy" buttons, while using a light blue background which makes the two stand out more but also creates a larger surface area for the call to action, meaning the eye is easily drawn to it.

Happy Tweeting...

Ed Cochrane, a PhD researcher in Emotional Intelligence and Dr Martin Peddie of Emotional Sciences used a computerised emotional processor to analyse free text and examine the myriad patterns between emotional words and everything associated with those emotions. Cochrane and Peddie examined a selection of messages posted by the top 13 Twitter users from a list produced by The Times. The 13 Twitter users in the survey, all celebrities, have a combined total of over 19 million followers.

Messages with Meaning

• Politicians tend to only be passionate on a single topic through their Twitter accounts and are largely informative on other issues. For example, Al Gore is passionate about climate change, however employment figures were mentioned without emotion. Similarly, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Barack Obama were found to be passionate only about Health Care. Overall, political Twitter users were found to be less emotional than other celebrities - see, it's not just Gordon Brown!
  
• All male Twitter users surveyed family priorities are; mother, wife, then kids, in that order. Except for Andy Murray who never mentions family.

Wider Applications

'The Times they are a'changing'

Facts and Figures

Recent ABCe traffic figures suggest that the Times Online, the website which includes both The Times and the Sunday Times receives roughly 1.22 million daily users and 20.42 million monthly users. Should the papers receive a 5% conversion rate of daily users to the paywall system (a fairly standard metric for paywall systems) at £1 per day, the website would bring in £1.83 million per month. However, if users decide to opt for the more attractive option of a whole weeks worth of access for £2, then the revenues will be significantly lower.

This Means...

This means that, even when being generous with the conversion percentage, the maximum revenue figures for a week would only just be able to cover the losses The Times makes over the same time period (remember - losing £240,000 a day!). While obviously we haven't factored in advertising revenues in these calculations,  it is still pretty clear that The Times and Sunday Times need to start making money from their content online in order to at the very least stem their losses.

UK Election Fever

The Media Driven Rise of Nick Clegg

Twitter Support

Leadership Debate: Round 2

Want to know where the most important information on your website should be? Read on!

At Web Wise Business, we are firm believers that your contact information should always be visible above the fold, as should your main call(s) to action. This advice is adequately supported by images created through an eye-tracking study of American retailer JCPenny's e-commerce site. The images show how users view the products on the JCPenny sofa product page, making a good case for why cramming lots of products on a page might not be the best idea. It's clear from the images that, as Nielsen says, users' attention diminishes as they scroll down the page, with the first few rows getting between 5 and 10 "fixations" per sofa, while after that the number of fixations drops off rapidly.

By the time users get towards the bottom of the page, they are clearly "running out of gas", to use Nielsen's analogy, with the bottom rows of items receiving no attention. Long Pages   That said, it is by no means a hard and fast rule that you can't have long pages.   Undoubtably, real estate above the fold is the most valuable for getting your visitors' attention. However, if you can structure your content well and write engaging enough copy, coupled with attractive images, then users can be enticed to read on.

• Keep contact info, important navigation and call(s) to action above the fold.
• Avoid long scrolling product search pages - consider further segmenting product range if necessary.
• But, be sure to provide plenty of information on product pages to help inform the buyers decision.

• Where were all the competitions and free stuff?! - Web Wise Business seemed to be among only a handful at best of exhibitors offering some kind of give-away (we gave away 2 brand new Apple iPod shuffles, t-shirts and whisky at our workshops, not to mention a website at the Bright Business Competition!)

• It's a confidence thing...  - A number of exhibitors seemed to be lacking in energy and "oomph!" (the technical term), failing to engage with passers-by. Some didn't even bother showing up on the Saturday, showing a pretty telling lack of motivation and desire. Thankfully this wasn't the case at the Web Wise Business stand as the guys talked themselves hoarse through conversation with all of those who stopped by!

• Getting it! - One of the most evident things we noticed at the event was the fact that new-start's and small businesses "get" the need to properly market and sell online. The ever-evolving world of the web has made it easier than ever for small businesses to compete and sell out-with their geographic area. 

• Your Numbers Up... - While exhibitor numbers were pretty clearly down, the organisers were reporting record attendance and we certainly found the event busy!

• Now Pay Attention... - Attendance at all of the seminars and workshops (both our own and those we passed by) seemed to be pretty full, showing that many new-start and small business owners were making the most of the opportunity of free advice and tips from industry experts.

Last week saw the launch of controversial new website Please Rob Me, aimed at highlighting the dangers of telling people where you are, or more importantly, where you are not, using social media sites such as Twitter and Foursquare. Dangers which may soon affect users of such sites home insurance premiums.

The website, created by a group of Dutch developers, posts minute by minute updates on people who have indicated they are not at home, publishing a regularly updated stream of "opportunities" by monitoring activity on sites such as Twitter and Foursquare and then providing details on users who have mentioned phrases such as "just leaving", or "going to", including the time they left (or the time at which they posted their message) and their current geographic location.

Understandably, the website has created a stir with privacy campaigners, who have expressed outrage at the open creation of a tool "designed to assist criminals" in such a direct manner.

However, the three founders have denied such claims, suggesting that they were only attempting to highlight the dangers of the newest social networking craze - geo-location tagging and constant publically available information updates.

They say that they were merely pointing out that users of Twitter and Foursquare openly share information online, information such as precise location and what they are doing, which previously people would be hesitant to do due to the associated risks of doing so.

Risks which could soon see up to a 10% rise in social networking site users' home insurance premiums according to sources at price comparison service Confused.com.

Darren Black, the head of home insurance at Confused.com, said "Criminals are becoming increasingly sophisticated in their information gathering, even using Google Earth and Streetview to plan their burglaries with military precision. Insurance providers are starting to take this into account when they are assessing claims and we may in future see insurers declining claims if they believe the customer was negligent."

With sites such as Please Rob Me being described by campaigners as a "one-stop-shop for burglars", it is certainly worth taking more care over the information you make available about yourself online.

At Web Wise Business, we have been discussing the issue of privacy online recently (as you can see in the video above) and have come up with the following advice to users of social networking websites:

1. Never post your home address or other personal information such as your home phone number on social networking sites.

2. If your using a private account for personal networking, use block or privacy features to stop your profile being visible to the general public and people you don't know or don't want to know.

3. Turn off location-based services on Twitter and Facebook unless you absolutely need to use them or know someone is at home.

CEO Eric Schmidt said, “Google had a strong fourth quarter, with 17% year-on-year revenue growth. Given that the global economy is still in the early days of recovery, this was an extraordinary end to the year.

“As we enter 2010, we remain hugely optimistic about the internet and are continuing to invest heavily in technological innovation for the benefit not only of our users and customers, but also the wider web,” he added.

Update (21/12/2009): The Rage Against The Machine campaign eventually went on to win the race to Christmas number 1, eventually selling over 500,000 copies and raising £65,000 for charity Shelter. Joe McElderry finished the week at number 2 after selling 450,000 copies.

 

Despite predictions of yet another X Factor winner Christmas No. 1 this year, the show's most recent champion, 18 year old Joe McElderry is currently trailing 40,000 copies behind a 17 year old song by Rage Against The Machine (RATM), a rock/metal band who no longer exist.
 
The reason for this, as you will no doubt be aware if you have watched the news lately, is because of the actions of a protest group created on social networking website Facebook, fighting against Simon Cowell's dominance of the Christmas charts for the last 5 years.

The battle for the Christmas number 1 is the most hotly contested since 1998 when the Spice Girls' "Goodbye" squared off against South Park character Chef's "Chocolate Salty Balls", a battle the former won 380,000 to 375,000. However, this most recent chart battle is already set to eclipse 1998's sales figures, with both tracks on target to sell over 500,000 copies each by the weekend.

McElderry fans were out in force yesterday for the launch of the singer's single on CD, which sold more than 100,000 copies. Yet, despite closing the gap, the X Factor singer is still significantly behind his rivals.

RATM's track has been championed by the Facebook campaign in protest against Cowell and the X Factor due to it's anti-establishment and non-conformist sentiment.

However, music writers and bloggers alike have noted, with some mirth, the irony in both the choice in song, and the aims of the group.

Firstly, the rights to both songs belong to retailers and record company Sony, who also happen to own Cowell's record label SyCo. Therefore, the company will be sitting back and enjoying watching the money pour in as both tracks look set to sell almost 1 million copies in the space of one week. Way to stick it to the man and upset the establishment!

The big “four oh” is always a “big” birthday and it deserves to be celebrated – so well done to the commercialisation arm of The University of Edinburgh in making it to the landmark birthday, Edinburgh Research and Innovation (ERI) are 40. The birthday was celebrated at a reception attended by HRH The Prince Philip Duke of Edinburgh, Chancellor to the University featuring many of the businesses that have been “spun out” from the University over the years. The team at Objective Associates and at Web Wise Business would like to add their voices to the happy birthday message.

Alex Ogilvie , Director with Objective Associates, has long been a supporter of the commercialisation efforts at Edinburgh and in particular of EPIS one of ERI’s incubators. As a voluntary business mentor, with the business incubator since day one, Alex is an enthusiastic supporter of EPIS believing it to be “a powerfully cost effective way to support and nurture innovative businesses”. Alex is also involved with The Knowledge Exchange and Transfer office of The College of Humanities and Social Science within the University assisting academic staff with commercialisation strategies including the provision of spin out advice. Alex is not the only one who has been helping EPIS, the team at Web Wise Business have also been doing “their bit” by supporting the incubator’s website and providing support for the mentors and companies who use it.

But the stars of EPIS are undoubtedly the start ups that it produces such as Pufferfish, whose lighting systems have powered Coldplay and The Eurovision Song Contest, and Ecometrica, carbon performance specialists. The success of EPIS is undoubtedly down to it’s highly innovative model – accommodation within a supportive School at The University, a host academic to assist, access to University equipment, a business mentor to provide pragmatic advice and a £10,000 loan to help get the business going. As Alex explains, “Many of the companies at the 40th birthday reception simply would not have enjoyed the success they have had had it not been for the EPIS team and the support it can bring to bear. Where else can a new start get support like this?”

The result of EPIS has been a steady stream of innovative and growth hungry businesses since 2004, all contributing significantly to the Scottish economy. Supported by Scottish Enterprise the scheme is unique in the UK and proves that with relatively modest funding that entrepreneurs incubated within a supportive and multi faceted academic environment can do exceptionally well. EPIS is a real Scottish success, and one that demonstrates that state support can make a real difference to the entrepreneurial ambitions of Scotland.

Twitter , the latest social media phenomenon has garnered sizeable media coverage lately for its ability to allow individuals from across the globe to remain in communication on an almost continuous basis and for the speed with which news is spread over the platform.

1.  What's in it for your followers? - As with any social media platform, in order to have any hope of gaining any significant following  that can then be converted into value for your business, it is important to consider why someone would want to take the time to read what you have to say or even follow you in the first place. What's in it for them? What value are you providing them in return for them following you?
   
   With What's On Central, we have enabled followers to quickly find out which events are on, when and where, with a quick link to the actual event listing for more information.
   
   
2. Clearly present your business and what you provide -  When you create your business twitter account, be sure to create an appropriate and attractive background design, including your business logo and contact details. Also ensure that you provide an accurate description of what you do and a link to your website in the appropriate fields in order to make it as easy as possible for your followers to get to your website.
   
   
3. Be a part of the community - Perhaps most importantly, be a part of the community on Twitter. Try to get involved in discussions relating to the services you provide or the industry in which you are involved. Such discussions can be found using the Twitter search function or a variety of 3rd party applications. Being involved is the easiest way to build your Twitter following and also present yourself as a respected authority on the services your business provides. 

• "How did you first hear the news break that president Kennedy had been shot?" - News Source: Tv, Radio.
  
  
• "How did you first hear the news break that princess Diana had died?" - News Source: Tv, Radio, SMS Text Message, Mobile Phone Call.
  
  
• "How did you first hear the news break that Michael Jackson had died?" - News Source: Twitter, Facebook, Tv, SMS Text Message, Mobile Phone Call.

• World Health Organisation (WHO) Disease Outbreak Center
  WHO is the worlds leading source for disease and infection related information. If you are searching for breaking news updates on major virus outbreaks, visit their disease news website for the latest information along with archived history of past outbreaks.
  
  
• Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) Travel Notices  
  The FCO is the UK body responsible for providing travel information to British travellers. The FCO have varying levels of notices and provide regular updates of where is deemed safe to travel. If you are planning on travelling, check their "swine flu travel updates" to make sure you avoid any outbreak areas.
  
  
• HealthMap  
  While both of the above provide up to date information about virus outbreaks and their spread, HealthMap actually pinpoints specific areas in the world where outbreaks have been registered. Through aggregated news feeds from sources such as WHO, Google News and ProMED, among others, the site maps out the locations of outbreaks and provides a "Heat Index" to indicate how severe the situation is in a given outbreak area. The tool can be used to track the outbreaks of any particular health issues from common flu to the latest "swine flu", again, helpful for ensuring you avoid infection areas.
  

 - The Benefits of using Offline Advertising to Get Prospective Customers to Your Website

Offline marketing and advertising can still be used effectively to provide a number of Online benefits, including:

• Driving more direct traffic  to your website - people directly typing in your web address.
• Improving brand awareness - you can say more to a prospective client on your website than you can in any advert/flier/business card or brochure, these are just the tools to get their attention.
• Increase conversion rates - if someone arrives on your website and you make them capable of making a decision to buy your service/product then and there, by providing a compelling reason to do so, conversions to sales will go up. 
• Reduce costs - converting Offline customers to Online customers can significantly reduce your cost per conversion depending on your line of business. Just look at the resurgence and success of Dixons since they moved to being an entirely Online retailer. No overheads for store fronts etc mean lower prices can be passed on to consumers, meaning more consumers!

Now that it's clear there are a lot of good reasons to use your Offline advertising to get potential clients to your Online presence, lets consider how you go about doing so.

 - How to Send People to Your Website

Simply putting your website address and telling people to visit your website on your promotional literature is no longer enough to recipients to get Online and check it out. In the current age of Web 2.0, something more creative and engaging is required. Click on this link to see our 3 Free Tips on How to Send People to Your Website.

 - A Google Call to Action

The reason this type of message is so hugely successful is because it is more memorable than a web address, and it fits in with the way we react to advertising in this modern-age. If something catches our eye, we have become programmed to get on Google and find out more. However, it can also be hi-jacked unless you have some serious professional Search Engine Optimisation(SEO) work going on to ensure you continue to rank top for the term you are encouraging potential customers to search for.

Even big brands can be prone to getting it wrong. Samsung's latest line of print advertising for their new LED televisions tells readers to "Search on Google for LED". However, a quick Google for "LED" shows....well evidently they hadn't optimised well enough, or far enough in advance, for this highly competitive term. That said, since you are telling the viewer of your Offline advertising what to search for, it is possible for almost all businesses, regardless of size, to perform a successful "Google Call to Action" by selecting a memorable keyword term that your already rank top for (for example, "DNN Scotland" - you can't miss us), or simply your brand name which you really should rank top for if you are serious about getting business from your website. 

 - The Really Important Part

Finally, the really important thing to remember is: if your aiming to send lots of people to your website, make sure it's ready for them. After all, nothing is going to turn a potential customer off quicker than a website that isn't up to scratch and doesn't provide what your Offline advertising promised.

The row over trademark infringement and Pay Per Click(PPC) continues as LVMH, the company behind the Luis Vuitton brand of hand bags and luggage, have taken Google to court in a row over trademark usage.

LVMH have accused Google of selling keyword terms such as "vuitton" to PPC campaign managers for rival brands and firms selling counterfeit copies of Luis Vuitton designs. LVMH argue that when users Google the brand name, they will now be directed to competitors or counterfeiters.

Originally disputed in a lower French court, which ruled against Google, the case has since been escalated to the European Court of Justice (EJC) in Luxembourg following an appeal.

LVMH have been actively defending their trademarks online or late, having sued eBay to the tune of 40million euros last June. The French court ruled that eBay had not done enough to stop the sale of counterfeit handbags, perfumes and luggage under LVMH brand names such as Luis Vuitton, Givenchy and Christian Dior.

The case, which is unlikely to be resolved for months, follows the recent case lodged by world-wide florists Interflora against Marks and Spencerover M&S bidding on the Interflora brand name as part of their PPC campaign for their own florist services.

The outcomes of both of these cases could set a precedent for online marketing, which has for years considered targeting rival brand names as accepted practice for PPC and Search Engine Optimisation campaigns.

The snowballing popularity of social media’s latest phenomenon, Twitter, is inescapable. Rarely a day goes by without the application featuring in the national papers or on the news. While the merits of the service for providing instant news, as it happens, have already been well covered, Channel 4 recently notched two Twitter firsts, adding to the discussion of how new media is irreversibly changing the face of journalism.

First, Channel 4 news conducted a live interview with an eyewitness Twittering live from the scene of the February 25th Turkish airline crash in Amsterdam. Effectively taking the first steps towards attempting to harness instant journalism by the public for the public by opening up the vast amounts of eye-witness accounts of news world-wide, to the general, non-Twitter using public as they happen.

Then, last weekend, Channel 4 attempted another use of the application by allowing Twitter users to provide questions for an interview held with co-founder of new streaming music service Spotify, Daniel Ek.

Channel 4 news presenter Krishnan Guru-Murthy selected a number of questions submitted to the @channel4news Twitter account for Ek to answer during their interview, allowing the public to have a more active role in shaping the interview and getting answers to more interesting and pertinent questions than might typically be covered in a number of the, normally, tame interviews aired on the majority of news channels.

The novel approach to news interviewing is also potentially beneficial to the interviewee since it allows authoritative figures from corporations, councils etc, to be seen and heard “fighting fires” on current public issues relating to the organisation they represent, something which may not otherwise take place normally due to these issues typically being handled by an appointed spokesperson. This is particularly notable in the “grilling” Ek takes over why people should use Spotify, the business model and why you would pay for the premium version of the application. After-all, it’s always nicer to be able to hear the reasoning behind such things from the horses mouth rather than the slightly less credible source of a meticulously prepared statement delivered by an appointed spokesperson, un-equipped to truly deal with any off-the-cuff questions.

No doubt this won’t be the last use of Twitter on the news, and if anything, it will probably see increased use in the coming months as Twitter membership statistics continue to grow and an ever increasing percentage of the general public find yet another medium to voice their opinions through.

News has surfaced recently that international florists Interflora are to sue supermarket and fashion retail chain Marks & Spencer for buying the Interflora brand name as a keyword for a Pay Per Click campaign for their own florist services.

Interflora are accusing M&S of bidding on both the term "Interflora" and a number of miss-spellings of the brand name, including "Inter-flora" and  "Intaflora" as part of their online marketing campaign in an attempt to "steal" customers from the Detroit based florists. The company claim it is an infringement upon the Interflora trade mark.

A spokesperson for Marks & Spencer stated "We are extremely surprised Interflora has taken this course of action. This is industry-wide practice and is not unlawful."

The case could set a precident on the practice of bidding on competitors brand names for PPC marketing with only two other related cases having passed through UK courts.

In 2008 the High Court dismissed a keyword advertising case against Yahoo! by ruling that Yahoo! did not infringe upon a businessmans trade mark by displaying advertisments for supermarket Sainsbury's and others when users searched for his trade mark as a search term. While Victor Wilson argued that his mark "Mr Spicy" was being infringed upon, the court ruled that only the English word "spicy" was being sponsored and therefore, not Wilson's trade mark.

Prior to this, the only other recorded case on this subject was between recruitment agency Reed Executives and publishers Reed Business Information over a dispute over the display of banner ad for totaljobs.com operated by Reed Business Information, on the Yahoo! search results page for the term "Reed". Reed Executives sued the publishers aleging trade mark infringement.

The case, brought forward under section 10(2) of the Trade Marks Act 1994, which requires evidence of "a likelihood of confusion on the part of the public", was ruled against by Lord Justice Jacobs who cited that the average customer would not be confused into thinking the banner ad carrying the brand totaljobs.com, with no reference to Reed, could be confused for Reed Executives.

The sections of the Trade Marks Act that Interflora are relying upon (sections 10(1) and 10(3)) do not require evidence of confusion, effectively giving Interflora a good case.

The outcome of the decision could have serious implications for a number of PPC marketers who develop strategies specifically designed to compete with brands over their own names and trade marks.

1.       Are you operationally efficient?  Do you have the right people in the right place at the right time?  How is the work currently organised. Does the workload match the working patterns of your people?   If not, what can you ‘tweak’ to redress the balance?

2.       How flexible are your staff?    Rather than seeking to spend less on training are there opportunities to use experienced staff to coach less experienced staff and make your workforce more flexible, adaptable and multi skilled. Ask yourself how this will help you position the business for the upturn which will come!

3.       Are your staff motivated and engaged with you and your business?    Being inundated by press and media of all that is wrong in the world can make even the most motivated people feel stressed and worried. (Think how you feel!) This impacts on their overall productivity, potentially increases absence levels and ultimately impacts on your results and the operational environment.   Communication and involvement are key at all times but even more so at present.   Take the time to talk to people; tell them what is going on; ask them for their ideas on what they can do / suggest;  make them feel a part of the business by inviting them to bring business / customers in.    Ask yourself how your own behaviour and your managers’ behaviour and demeanour are setting the tone?

• be legally compliant
• sustain motivation, business continuity and productivity
• avoid adverse reputational impact for your customers
• minimise financial liability

*Please note that changes to the way people are contracted, organised and managed may incur issues for an employer. It is important and cost effective to seek professional advice at the outset."

Annette Hogg Chartered FCIPD

H2R Solutions Ltd

The press recently reported that every two searches conducted on Google uses the same amount of energy required to boil a full kettle of water, the equivalent of 7g of CO2 per search. With an estimate of more than 200 million internet searches conducted worldwide on a daily basis ,  the electrical consumption and greenhouse gas emissions produced by computers and the internet is a growing concern for environmentalists. Particularly with Global Warming a frequently recurring topic worldwide.

So how can you do your bit to save the world by cleaning up your internet emissions? 

2. Bookmark links to content you access regularly. If you have a favourite website you check every day, why not bookmark it rather than adding to Google's carbon footprint?

The social communication website Twitter, designed to allow people to communicate and stay connected with friends, colleagues, family and increasingly, celebrities and brands, has been gathering steam lately. Chances are you will have heard of it in one of the growing number of press stories relating to the website of late, the most notable of which detailed how victims of the Mumbai terrorist attacks kept "followers" (people who you are connected with on Twitter) up to date on their situation as the attacks took place.

The service is a phenomenon of sorts, rapidly revolutionising online interaction by allowing users to provide practically real time updates on their situation or what they are doing via 140 character "micro blog" posts which can also be submitted and received via mobile phone, effectively meaning you can "tweet" (the term used to describe creating a post) wherever and whenever you want!

The service has begun to be adopted by both celebrities and major corporate brands, as well as businesses of all sizes, as a means of improving interaction and engagement with their clients, customers and fans. Notable celebrities include Jonathan Ross of movie review and BBC radio scandal fame, who maintains a regular stream of updates and is continually haranguing his celebrity friends into joining him on Twitter. Andy Murray, world no. 4 ranked tennis player, also keeps fans up-to-date on his comings and goings. 

Global sports brand Nike have also recognised the opportunities this site presents and maintain a Twitter account for their "Nike Plus" range of running products. The account allows them to keep on top of customer opinion  of their brand as well as promote their products and events directly to people who have displayed a clear interest by following their updates.

Effectively, Twitter is allowing brands like Nike to run focus groups at no cost, garnering opinion on products and possible improvements that customers would like to see. It also allows companies to monitor public opinion and respond to any issues clients, customers and the public in general, may have with them before they become a significant problem.

Of course, this is all well and good for celebrities and global companies, but how can you put the growing power of Twitter to work for you? Well, one of the best things about Twitter for businesses of all sizes is that it is very easy to find people interested in your particular niche, be it website design, property rental, yacht charter or anything in between. Simply search twitter for the terms you feel relate to your business and then search through the results for people who might be interested in your product or service. From there you can message to these people either publicly or privately to determine their interest.

So maybe next time your stuck on a train or taxi, or patiently waiting for your plane with nothing to do, why not do a little more to benefit the online presence of your business and generate some good leads at the same time by having a "tweet" on Twitter.

Online sales for the festive period were up almost 15 per cent on 2007's figures for the same period according to the press today. British shoppers spent more than £4.6 billion online last month which works out to be the equivalent of £76.67 for every person in Britain according to the IMRGCapgemini e-Retail Sales Index. Following the release of these figures, economic experts are predicting that online spending will continue to increase, playing a significant role in mainstream spending throughout the current economic downturn.

Online Advertising Growth

Hardly any surprise then that the Internet Advertising Bureau UK (IAB UK) report that all formats of online advertising (Pay Per Click, Search Engine Optimisation, Rich Media Creation etc) have experienced better than average growth despite the tough trading conditions of late, taking total online advertising spend to over £2 billion last year. The successful growth of online advertising has been attributed to both the increase in online audience in Britain (31.6 million people online) and to the fact that the return on investment for online advertising is significantly more measurable than any other format of advertising due to analysis packages such as Google Analytics.

With mobile wireless "dongles" and 3G phones no longer considered luxury items, and the continual fall in price of laptops and broadband services, the number of people browsing online, and the amount of time they spend doing so, is only likely to increase further. Therefore adding to the importance of a focused online presence.

Improve Your Online Presence

If you would like to find out more about how Web Wise Business could help your business take advantage of this growth in online sales, why not give us a call on 01786 498 079, or drop us an email.

In the current economic climate, businesses are facing up to increasingly difficult and uncertain times ahead with the famous line "It's time to step up or step out" being banded about. While simple in idea, how exactly does one go about making their business "Step Up", after all, aren't you already working to the maximum extent of your abilities?

Sometime it takes analysis from a different perspective to realise where improvements can be made and this is where Business Coaches step in.

The concept of "Business Coaching" is not a new one, there are a number of companies and businesses in Scotland already that provide a variety of different services and types of training related to the concept. Everything from courses and continual training for the development of managerial and leaderships skills, to Neural Linguistic Programming (NLP) courses aiming to improve business performance through changing thought patterns, processes and the way in which we interact with others.

However, it is important to select a Business Coach with whom you feel you can fully interact with. After all, personal development and improvement often involves facing up to, and admitting, ones own personal failings in order to understand and implement action to correct and improve upon these failings. Therefore, there is no point selecting a business coach that you don't feel completely comfortable in opening up to. 

We, at Objective Associates, have come into contact with a number of different  coaches in our time, including clients such as Pro-tential Coaching and Training. Founded and managed by Hayley Phipps, an experienced corporate executive and active member of the Worldwide Association for Coaching, Pro-tential work with a clients from a variety of industry sectors to provide clarity on specific issues relating to their business and to implement effective action plans and goal setting which leads to the very real and tangible achievement of extraordinary business and personal results.

So if your finding yourself in need of "stepping up" your business and require advice on how to successfully survive and prosper in economically uncertain times then why not consider making a sound investment and find out how a business coach could help to improve your business.

As bank support declines it is only natural that many businesses will consider reducing their Research and Development spend, however for some companies with an innovative idea the new approach to innovation support from both The Scottish Government and Scottish Enterprise will be very welcome.

Long seen as an extremely valuable support mechanism the Smart Award scheme has been simplified and made non competitive. The result is that if your business has a genuinely innovative idea requiring the use of or invention of new technology you could qualify for as much as £70,000 in support (subject to a maximum support level of 75% of total project spend). Applications can be submitted at any time of year ensuring that the application process fits in with your business requirements rather than those of the awarding body.

Equally welcome is the approach taken for lesser awards which have now not only been streamlined but also increased. The popular Small Company Innovation Scheme has been rebranded to become simply an R&D Award and has had it’s upper limit lifted ensuring that grants of more than £25,000 can be awarded subject to certain job retention criteria being met.

For businesses seeking to de-risk a complex and innovative technical project the changes in the grant system should be welcome. The previously competitive Smart Award was an undoubted frustration for many while the cap placed on SCIS ensured that projects had to be of a limited size in scope. However, the SNP administration in conjunction with Scottish Enterprise has removed those frustrations. The signal seems clear and obvious – go forth and innovate.

Getting rewarded for the things that you do naturally is never a bad thing. We are all familiar with loyalty schemes such as Airmiles and Nectar but now Microsoft has introduced a particularly interesting loyalty incentive scheme – SearchPerks!

The more you search on the internet the more points you collect. What do points make? Prizes! Or in the words of Microsoft, SearchPerks!

Microsoft is attempting to wrestle to the ground none other than search giant Google by offering prizes to those using their Microsoft Search Engine, Microsoft Live. But before you dash off and start searching for things you really have no interest in there is some small print we need to point out….. the offer is only open to citizens of the USA.

However, the initiative is important for a couple of reasons, even if UK residents are excluded. It shows that the Search Engines are increasingly prepared to pay for addressing your queries and highlights the growing importance of Search and the related online advertising world. The 2007 survey from The Interactive Advertising Bureau reported that online advertising spend in the Eurozone reached 11 Billion Euros in 2007 up a remarkable 4 billion in just one year. A blip? No! The first half of 2008 shows similar growth on online advertising in the UK - up 21% to £1.68 Billion. The rise signals a very tangible shift from conventional to online advertising and marketing. With such huge shifts in advertising spend it is no wonder there is a wrestling match going on between Google and Microsoft.

The website has been developed by Web Wise Business. This is an online identity of Objective Associates Limited, a privately owned company who specialise in Microsoft .Net, database design, website development, search engine optimisation, and software development from its offices in the Stirling University Innovation Park.

Contact Alex Ogilvie
01786 498079
www.objectiveassociates.co.uk
www.webwisebusiness.co.uk

Although the vast majority of business for mortgage brokers and IFAs (Independent Financial Advisors) is driven to them via personal referrals it’s clear that the sector is beginning to grasp the importance of a strong online presence.

That was evidenced recently when Web Wise Business were invited along to talk at one of the Retirement Plus partner roadshows. The topic suggested by Fred Paton, of Retirement Plus, was “lead generation” and for Web Wise Business that means online lead generation. Web Wise Business operate a number of lead generation sites, Now Retirement being one, and using that background and experience, Alex Ogilvie was able to explain to the audience of IFAs and brokers the challenges and opportunities that the online world brings.

Following a short presentation on the challenges of Acquiring, Converting and Retaining online customers the gathered audience were keen to find out more and to share their own experiences. One advisor felt he had gone backwards when he changed web developers and web design – traffic was down considerably. Others had taken the view that their website was a simple electronic brochure or business card and in itself was not a lead generator.

From the questions asked it is clear that there is a growing interest, and in certain instances a good understanding, of the importance of a good online presence. When you consider that around 65% of the UK population are now online, and that the highest online growth rate is among the over 55’s the importance of the online world for IFAs advising on retirement products such as Home Reversion or Equity Release  should not be overlooked.

IFAs have made a start when it comes to the web but it is not enough, claims Ifap

Story by: Joy Dunbar
Magazine: FinancialAdviser
Published Thursday , July 17, 2008

One third of IFAs do not have website

Press Release

Stirling, 12 September 2008:

Title: Win free tickets for The Red Hot Chilli Pipers

Summary:

Win free tickets to see The Red Hot Chilli Pipers. To celebrate The Red Hot Chilli Pipers coming to the Stirling home of their website developers, Web Wise Business, we are given away 3 pairs of tickets for their show at The Albert Halls, Stirling, on 23rd October.

Press Release:

The Red Hot Chilli Pipers (www.redhotchillipipers.com) come to Stirling’s Albert Halls on Thursday, 23rd October, 2008. With the concert a likely sell out, local website business, Web Wise Business are giving away 3 pairs of tickets for the show.

Alex Ogilvie of Web Wise Business said, “We have been supporting The Red Hot Chilli Piper’s website for some time and have been delighted to see the band go from success to success. We felt that with the guys coming to Stirling it was a chance for us to say well done and to offer something to their legions of fans.”

With a DVD coming out soon and an international profile, which is increasing all the time, The Red Hot Chilli Pipers have made a big impression on the music scene. The band is now truly famous for turning the bagpipes into the coolest rock instrument around.

Red Hot Chilli Piper, Stuart Cassells added, “It’s been fantastic playing around the world but it’s now great to be playing on our own doorstep – many of the band are local to the Stirling area. It’ll be a great night.”

With the band increasing in popularity all the time make sure you secure your tickets for the show. To win tickets the competition entry is at  www.webwisebusiness.co.uk/redhotchillipipers.

End.

 
Information for editors:

About Web Wise Business
Web Wise Business is an online identity of Objective Associates Limited, a privately owned software and website development company. The company specialises in Microsoft .net, database design, website development, search engine optimisation and software development, delivered from their offices in Stirling, Scotland, UK.

For more information contact Alex Ogilvie on 01786 498079
www.webwisebusiness.co.uk
www.objectiveassociates.co.uk

About The Red Hot Chilli Pipers
The Red Hot Chilli Pipers combine the sound of the Bagpipes with the sound of Rock. Winners of Graham Norton’s “When Will I Be Famous” the band tour internationally playing at festivals and shows throughout the world.
 
For more information contact Douglas Gillespie on 01324 715083
www.redhotchillipipers.co.uk
www.entertainersagency.com