Media Plans & Budgets for 2009 – How’s It Looking?

Yes, it’s that time of year, planning.  At the recent Association of National Advertisers Conference, marketers, media and creative agencies and others participated in a poll about their marketing mix, budgets, plans and strategies for 2009.   I thought it was interesting to see the outcomes and that situations vary.  Some businesses will spend more, some less and some will spend roughly their current marketing budgets, but in different methods.

  

The following information is courtesy of an article published by “The Verified Audit Newsletter”.  We thought you’d be interested to review the results of the poll while you’re completing your own plans for the upcoming year.

 

Adjustment to current marketing and media plans to account for the recent downturn in the financial markets:

• 33% say spending will be reduced
• 33% say spending will be constant / marketing mix will be reallocated
• 27% expect to spend more
• 8% will keep everything status quo

CEO view of marketing efforts with respect to growth:

• 56% think of brand building as an investment
• 21% think it’s an unaccountable but necessary expense
• 15% are not sure
• 8% consider it an unnecessary expense

Preferred social media site for driving brand growth:

• 32% say none
• 20% say YouTube
• 18% say Facebook
• 12% like them all
• 10% say LinkedIn
• 6% MySpace
• 3% Twitter

Plans for marketing expense in 2009 vs. 2008:

• 26% plan to increase spending more than 10%
• 13% plan to increase spending less than 10%
• 28% will hold stable
• 14% will decrease spending less than 10%
• 19% will decrease spending more than 10%

The largest branding discipline offering opportunity for growth:

• 28% say social media integration
• 19% say grassroots, viral public relations
• 17% say traditional 30-second spots
• 16% say web advertising
• 7% say one-page advertisements in a newspaper/magazine
• 7% say direct marketing
• 5% say radio

Company’s current measurement method of brand growth:

• 70% say sales and net income
• 15% use third-party brand equity valuations
• 9% think shareholder value
• 4% measure by household penetration
• 3% say company culture

Source: Association of National Advertisers, October 2008

Web Development and Marketing – So Happy Together

Why a successful online presence starts with web development and web marketing working together.

 

For an online business to be truly successful, there should be a complimentary relationship between web development and online marketing. This is because web development and web marketing can influence each other greatly in either a positive way or in a negative way depending on your approach.

 

Let’s start here; you can have the best looking web site on the web, but if no one can find your web site then it’s all for not, right? On the other hand, you can have the most traffic on the web, but if it looks unprofessional and is difficult to use, your chances of getting a sale or a desired action from your users are slim to none, correct? The point being that an effective web presence requires a blend of form and function. Your web presence should portray your business accurately and in a professional manner, all while being very easy to use and accessible to all types of users. With all of that said, it also needs to be built to perform well in the search engines and be found by users searching for your products, services or information so people can benefit from how great and wonderful your site is.

 

So how do we ensure that your online presence is getting the best of both worlds? It’s fairly simple; make sure that when developing your web site or putting together your marketing strategy that you approach it so development and marketing are working together and in sync.

 

When you start to consider building a new online presence or modifying an existing one, think about how your desired functionality or layout will affect your ability to be found in the search engines and how it could effect the user experience. For example, flash and images and all that fancy design stuff are great for aesthetic appeal when done properly. When done improperly, these types of activities can potentially lead to important content on your site not being found in the search engines, not to mention excessive page weight (will effect the speed at which your site pages load for a user), and other usability issues. What happens if the person looking for your goods or services is visually impaired? Will they be able to still gain access to your content? What if a person trying to get information on your company is using a mobile device? Will your site load in a respectable amount of time and will the information display properly? These are just two of the many potential scenarios that need to be thought through when considering the development of a web site.

 

For some, web sites are viewed as just another place to display your information, but they can and should be so much more than that. Your web site is a business in itself: open 24/7/365 (for those of you with an unreliable host you may disagree with that statement!), and is often a potential client / customer / patients first impression of your business. Take pride in your web site and make sure you take the extra time to be certain your development team and marketing team are knowledgeable of activities outside of their specialty to ensure the best possible representation on the web! Too often we see businesses that have spent money to only have one piece of the puzzle solved. Having a web site done the right way may end up costing you more up front – like most things in life: you pay for what you get, but the savings in the long run and the return on your investment will be far greater if you have that perfect blend of form and function from the start.

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to read! I hope you all have a wonderful Thanksgiving and no one is short on things to be thankful for!

 

And speaking of thanks, we at Academy would like to thank Josh Best of TKG (The Karcher Group) for sharing these helpful tips with our readers!

Recycle Your Phone Book and Get a $10 Coupon

Wouldn’t you like to be in a win-win situation?  Well, here’s your chance! If you live in the state of Maryland, make sure you participate in the Recycle As You Shop (RAYS) Program initiated by Publisher, RR Donnelley and others which kicked off November 1st. 

Twenty-five participating Office Depot stores throughout the state of Maryland will place in-store recycling containers displaying signage that says “Don’t Come in Emply Handed”.  This will encourage shoppers, both business and consumer, to do their share in helping the environment, plus you’ll have the opportunity to receive a $10 coupon for use in the Office Depot Store.  You can’t beat that!  If you’re like me, you can always use another toner cartridge, file folders or something for the home office, so go shopping and remember to recycle.

We really hope the residents of Maryland will do their part as their participation could lead this pilot program to roll out to additional areas in the country.

By the way, don’t forget………November 15, is America Recycles Day (ARD) and you don’t have to live in Maryland to participate.  This deal is for everybody so do your part and recycle.  Be sure to reference the Yellow Pages “Recycling Centers”, to find a location near you!

Hey, guess what? People are still using the phone book!

Okay, I’m climbing back up on my soapbox.  I’ve been meaning to address this issue, yet again, for a while now but an article recently forwarded to me reminded me that it’s time to put the gloves back on and duke it out with you Yellow Pages nay sayers. 

First of all, let me state for the record that I am a proponent of the Internet.  I love it!  I’m on it all day long, for personal and professional reasons.  On those rare occasions I am unable to get online I’m not a happy camper.  But as much as I love you Google, MSN and Yahoo, you have done me wrong from time to time and have lead me down the wrong path, causing me extreme frustration.  I know you’re taking steps to clean up your databases and make the search function a more user-friendly and relevant experience but you could learn a thing or two from my good friend the phone book.  Advertisers in the Yellow Pages pay to make sure their information is correct and it’s updated at least once a year.  You’re not likely to find advertising for a company that’s gone out of business.  And if you do, you’d better believe it’s going to be cleaned up by the time the next issue publishes.  And yes, I sell national Yellow Pages advertising for a living so you may think I’m biased.  I prefer to think of myself as an open-minded sorta gal.  Like I said, I’m a big fan of the Internet, and I sell advertising space there, too, so it certainly wouldn’t behoove me to discount the value of Search Engine Marketing and Local Search.  But don’t diss the print directory!

I could throw a bunch of stats at you and if you’d like to contact me I’d be happy to provide you with all the data and research your little heart desires.  But for the sake of keeping this short and sweet I’m going to leave you with this simple, yet powerful stat…85% of the U.S. population used a Yellow Pages directory last year.  85%! 

I know folks want (and are using) the phone book and I have to look no further than my neighbors to help me back up that statement.  I live in an apartment complex.  In the past our directory publisher AT&T delivered the books to our front doors.  This year they decided to give folks the option of receiving the books.  Instead of dropping them off on every door step they built shelves in the lobby of each building.  If the residents want a book they simply have to help themselves.  Because I do what I do for a living I have a particular interest in that stack of phone books.  And guess what…I’ve watched the stack get smaller and smaller every day until the supply had to be replenished…more than once.  So there you have it…the books are not forced on anyone, yet the demand is there.  Proof that people still use and rely on their print directories!

 

 

Print Yellow Page Users Take Action

Posted October 28th, 2008 by Jack Loechner

According to new research by Knowledge Networks on behalf of the Association of Directory Publishers (ADP), the ADP National Yellow Pages Study shows that 85% of the U.S. population used a printed directory last year. Independent publishers (those not affiliated with local telephone companies) enjoyed a strong share of this consumer usage, with 40% of overall Yellow Pages look-ups going to independent directories.

Larry Angove, ADP President & CEO, says that “The usage share number confirms that independent publishers still have growth opportunities in print… the fact that independents are responsible for 40% of overall directory usage… indicates to national advertisers and their CMRs that independent directories are a choice for their national placements.”

Print Yellow Pages provides advertisers with consumers who take action after referencing a directory, says the study, with 78% of directory users contacting an average of two businesses:

• Telephone contact is the most common action taken (93%)
• In-person contact (31%)
• Online contact (10%)
• Mail (1%)

Happy Birthday Academy Media Group!

Celebrating 12 Years in Business

Today marks the 12th anniversary of Academy Communications, Inc. (now known as Academy Media Group).

We’ve had some great times during the twelve years we’ve been in business and we’re really excited about the recent marriage of divisions within our organization and expanded menu of services.

A heartfelt thanks goes out to our hardworking employees and loyal clients.  Without each and every one of you this day wouldn’t be possible!

Facebook Opens Its Doors to Live Search

Although I don’t currently have a Facebook profile I do realize that it’s extremely popular and used by a lot of people within my own personal network of family and friends.  What I’m hearing from the folks who do have profiles is that Facebook is a great way to display an overview of yourself; your personality, likes/dislikes, and is a tremendous source for connecting with friends, both personal and professional, old as well as new.  And now, according to a Kelsey Group blog post I stumbled upon, it’s gotten even better! 

 

With its October partnership with Microsoft, Facebook will now provide search capabilities while staying within the Facebook platform.  Check out the comment from the Facebook blog:

 

“By integrating web search into Facebook, you can increase the information available to share with your friends, family and coworkers on the site.  For example, your friend may invite you to an event at a new restaurant. Without leaving Facebook, you can check out the details of the restaurant on the web.”

 

So it’s my understanding that this capability will serve up tremendous opportunities for small and large businesses alike, as it involves local search and utilization of the ad platforms within the site.  How cool is it that you can connect with friends and family within Facebook, research and even book an event while in the site?  Convenient, right?  So, if you’re in business trying to target this large, viable audience with your products or services, why not consider adding Facebook to your marketing mix.

 

And talk about a timely subject matter!  We’re always looking for new and innovate ways to market ourselves and our company and Patti Spirko and I were just discussing the advantages/disadvantages of creating a Facebook and/or MySpace profile for our company or recommending it to our clients.  This topic was discussed during a blogging workshop Patti attended at the Small Business Marketing Unleashed conference in Columbus last month.  The question was thrown out to the group, “has any one gotten any new business from your Facebook account.”  No one in the group could say for sure that they had.  Facebook, it seems (at least to that particular group) is a great way to connect with friends but for professionals truly looking to gain valuable business leads, LinkedIn may be the better option.

I’m still undecided about a Facebook profile.  I do, however, rely heavily on LinkedIn for generating new business leads and keeping professional contacts in one place.  So I’ll pose this question to you folks that may have a Facebook and LinkedIn profile.  From a business standpoint, which of the two sites do you find more beneficial?

Small Business Marketing Unleashed, Columbus Ohio

I can’t believe SBMU, Columbus Ohio is over!  We surely made the right decision by attending.  Where do I begin?  There were so many great sessions that I’m not sure where to start.  They covered Website Development, Keyword Research, Copywriting basics, Link Building, Email Marketing, Search Engine Optimization and Pay-Per-Click Marketing to name a few topics.

 

We received tons of handouts and plan to review them and provide some of the key tips and information for you over the next several weeks.

 

I’d also like to say “Thank You” to Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends.  During her session on “Marketing Mania: Driving Business Without Driving Yourself Crazy” I answered one of her questions correctly and won the book, “How to Make Money with Myspace”!  Also, we’d like to thank Rachel Phillips of Search Engine Guide for posing with us so that we could add to our pic collection.

 

So, all in all, great people, good food, helpful tips and information we can use to help our clients.

 

Check back in from time to time for more updated posts regarding this conference.  You could possibly learn something new or enhance what you already know.

Thanks to my Flashlight, Candles and White Pages Phone Book

Well, it was a Sunday evening and I was catching up on some reading while my husband eagerly awaited the Browns Game.  Right about the time to get the game underway, it happened.  The effects of Hurricane Ike were felt all the way from Texas to Ohio.  It had been extremely windy all day anyway and a “wind warning” was actually in affect.  The lights flickered a couple times and then the power went out.

 

Reading by candlelight/flashlight wasn’t what I’d envisioned for the evening, but that’s how things turned out. (Can’t tell you how aggrevated my husband was about the game.)  Anyway, routine activities like viewing my favorite Search Engines, connecting with others on LinkedIn, and working on my laptop weren’t going to happen. 

 

One thing we did do, though, was find our local White Pages Directory in the kitchen cupboard to search for the telephone number for our local electric company.  (Thank goodness for cell phones, because our home phone system is electrical too, so there was no land-line phone).  With flashlight in hand, we called to report the power outage.  Help was on the way!

 

Turns out, the power was off for about 26 hours (not as bad as some in our area) but the phone directory certainly came in handy.  So, it’s my opinion that the print directory and Internet Yellow Pages both have a place in the world of search to help you find what you’re looking for.

 

Finally, just a side thought, when’s the last time you checked your inventory of 9V batteries, matches, flashlight and candles?  I recommend stocking up!

 

Cell Phone’s #1 Feature: Talk

I’m going shopping for a new cell phone this weekend.  It’s kind of a big deal for me because, like my cars, I keep my phones until they’re on their last leg.  I’ve been doing a little online previewing and it’s simply amazing to me how far we’ve come.  Once upon a time I worked for one of the major wireless carriers, back in the day when there were only two of them.  My first mobile phone was just that…mobile…as it was installed in my car.  And the portable phones came in bags that you had to carry around and I swear those things weighed 10 lbs!  So yes, I’m blown away by the advances in modern technology and all the amazing things we can do with our little phones these days.

I’m not fancy.  Okay, yes, I carry a Pink Razr and it’s got a rhinestone encrusted cover, but that’s strictly cosmetic   What I mean by that is my phone has three basic functions…I use it to make phone calls, to send text messages and occasionally to check my personal email.  It may have more features I am simply unaware of but it’s served its purpose so I don’t feel like I’ve been missing out on anything.

But when I hit Circuit City this weekend and talk to my friendly Verizon rep I’m sure he’ll tell me all about the wonderful new things phones can do these days, features I simply can’t live without and of course I’ll buy into it and upgrade to a model with more bells and whistles.  Will I use the features?  I suppose with a little education, I think maybe, yes.  Especially if I purchase a phone with the MP3 player built in.  Video.  Local Search.  Mobile coupons.  There’s an awful lot we can do and some days it’s just downright overwhelming.  I still type in complete sentences when texting so I’ll need a little time to wrap my head around all these other very cool features.  Baby steps, baby steps.   

But this brings me to an article I read in Advertising Age.  Not unlike me, it seems most folks simply want to talk on their cell phones.   I’m certainly not denying there has been a healthy shift to mobile.  I know more than one “Crack”berry addict   The invention of the iPhone is driving more people to watch online videos, surf the web and check their email. I think the younger population is a driving force in the use of the some of the newer, fancier applications found on today’s mobile devices. 

But according to the Ad Age survey 3 out of 10 wireless device owners would prefer a small phone with fewer features in the future.  I wonder who these people are?  I’m guessing the older generation, a little reluctant to embrace change, maybe?  But I can’t wait to see what very cool features my next phone will include…and of course it will be pink!

Daily Web Habits Revealed

A survey conducted by the Pew Internet & American Life Project (as reported by Mediaweek) shows that search ranks #2 in the daily online activities of American adults.  Over 2200 individuals were polled this past April and May.  Here’s the breakdown of the group’s Web habits.

Coming in at #1 — no big surprise here, is email.  60% of users access email on a daily basis.

#2 — belongs to search at 49%.  Yes, that’s 49% utilizing search on a daily basis.

#3 — News sites are visited by 39% of users every day

#4 — Weather sites at 30%

And rounding out the top 5 — Social Networking.  Surprisingly, despite the enormous amount of people jumping on the social networking bandwagon, only 13% of users log in to the social networking sites on a daily basis.

Do these numbers surprise you?  I guess I’m your typical Web user because these stats seem to fall right in line with my own personal activities.  First thing in the morning, I grab that cup of coffee and check my email.  But I’m online all day (and some of it is even business related.  Said with a wink, of course!!). 

The percentages for search are sure to increase as it becomes more accessible and faster thanks to the estimated 55% of Americans using broadband connections these days.  And let’s give credit to the search engine sites for diligently working to improve the user experience by making the information easier to find and, thank goodness, relevant. 

So, now that you know how popular search is among the general population…anyone wanna talk SEO? 

We’re About to Get Unleashed!

So, we’re less than a month away from Small Business Marketing Unleashed in Columbus!  Even though we expect to network and enjoy the company and the food, that’s not our main reason to attend this conference. 

We’re anticipating the really cool topics for discussion such as website architecture, blogging for business, link building, viral marketing, copywriting and usability.  The bottom line is help businesses develop a plan to improve traffic and sales on their website.

The group of attendees is limited to 100 and Patti Spirko and I are fortunate enough to be registered!  Be sure to come back and visit us for updates from our notes and comments once we return.  If you attended SBMU in Houston,Texas we’d love to hear from you.

The Basics of Effective SEO

In my last post I gave a general overview and definition of “web marketing.”  As I mentioned in that post, there are a variety of different activities under the web marketing umbrella. The one I will be focusing on in this post is search engine optimization, also known as SEO.  Of all the web marketing activities, SEO is quite possibly the most widely know and there’s good reason for that.

There are two main ways to show up in a search engine: natural rankings (those results whose position in the listing is based off the quality, content, and popularity of the site), and paid listings (activities such as Pay Per Click campaigns).  Although it is always a good thing to show up in the search results for a given search word / phrase, more value will typically come from those results that are on the “natural” side of things. Now don’t get me wrong, there is alot of value in PPC campaigns as well, but for the sake of keeping your attention and not getting off track I’m going to remain focused on giving a basic explanation of SEO and the natural side of things for now. I’ll go into greater detail regarding PPC and other paid activities in the future.

To sum it up, SEO is basically the process of improving one’s web site to help with its appeal and usefulness to not only the search engines, but also to its users. One thing to understand, and it seems many people lose focus here, is that a search engine has never purchased anything from a web site. It’s never requested a quote or inquired about volunteering either. The point being, a search engine result can do you a world of good, but it means nothing if the information on your site and the usability of your site is not up to par for your users –  the ones who DO purchase, inquire, and submit requests for quotes or additional information. A rule of thumb for an effective SEO campaign is to optimize your site for your users while following the general guidelines of the search engines. Do this well, and your site will naturally do well in the engines.

There are three main things that go into determining how your site will rank in the natural search results.

1) Site architecture – this refers to the site’s programming, design, layout, etc. It allows the search engine “bots”, also referred to as a “crawlers” or “spiders” to index your site’s content. If your site isn’t programmed properly or if your site is made up entirely of images, the search engine bots will not be able to find your content, thus you will not be indexed for certain keyword or phrases. So when you have content about hammers on your site and someone searches for “hammers”, if your site is search friendly the search engine will be able to index you as a potential result for that phrase. If the bots cannot find you, you aren’t even in the game let alone ranking highly.

2) Content - content is king! The more relevant content you have on your site the better.  A search engine’s ultimate goal is to return the best and most thorough results to a user for what they searched for. So, with that said, the search engines scan all the millions of sites out therefor content relevant to possible searches. Using the hammer example again, if site owner A has the term “hammer” listed on one of its product pages one time, it does have content relevant to the search keyword “hammer” and it could potentially rank for that keyword. Now, site owner B not only has product pages talking about hammers, but also a “history of the hammer” page and specific descriptions of their hammers (claw hammer, craftsman hammer, etc.). Because of this additional content, Site owner B has a much higher likelihood of ranking further up in the search engines because of the extensive amounts of content and thorough knowledge of the subject, so, when it comes time for the search engine to display results for the search term “hammer” it’s going to want to present the most thorough results possible, i.e. site B. Now remember, none of this is even possible if we don’t have the proper architecture (#1) in place.

3) Popularity - popularity refers to the amount of links you have to and from your site. Think of a link from a web site as a vote of confidence. If a web site links to your web site, the search engines basically view this as confirmation that the linking site believes your site has valid and helpful information. Having a link from a web site that is also in your industry or, better yet, an authority in your industry, will weigh much more heavily in the search engines than a site completely unrelated to yours. So to once again go to the hammer example; if you sell hammers and you have a link from Mom and Pop’s Bakery, yes, you have a link but what does Mom and Pop’s know about hammers? Now if Craftsman Tools is linking to your web site, this link will benefit you much more because Craftsman obviously knows about hammers and is considered by the search engines as an authority.

Another thing to consider is reciprocal linking and one way linking. The most beneficial type of link is from a web site to yours and that’s it. Less benefit is given to a link when you are linking right back to them rather than them simply linking to you. Again, we are simply skimming the surface of the art of increasing your sites popularity and the intricacies of proper linking.

Proper SEO is an art form. It requires a combination of research, implementation and tracking (analytics and stats). In blog posts to come, I will elaborate further on those three items. For now, I hope I was able to give you a very basic overview of what SEO is and how it works. As always, if you have any questions, I will be more than happy to answer them.

For more information, or to begin dialog, contact our friends at Academy Media Group.  We look forward to helping you further understand the basics of effective Search Engine Optimization. 

Thanks for reading!

— Josh Best, The Karcher Group

Josh Best is a Sales Rep / Account Executive for The Karcher Group, a web development, marketing and hosting firm located in North Canton, Ohio.    

Common Headings For Print and Internet Yellow Pages and the IYP User Profile

So, the stats are in!  It’s been determined which headings are most searched by consumers looking for products and services online through Internet Yellow Pages (IYPs).  On August 4th, the Yellow Pages Association (YPA) released the Top 10 IYP headings based on consumer usage according to research firm Knowledge Networks/SRI.  They are:

 

1. Restaurants
2. Physicians & Surgeons
3. Hotels
4. Auto Repairing & Service
5. Florists-Retail
6. Auto Dealers-New & Used
7. Dentists
8. Auto Parts & Supplies – New & Used
9. Beauty Salons (tie)
10. Hospitals (tie)

 

Not only were top headings revealed, but also the profile of IYP users.

This is really something to think about.  If you offer a product or service in these categories, and others for that matter, but haven’t developed your IYP presence, you could be missing out on a huge piece of the pie.  The IYP profile reflects that over 60% of IYP users are female, many of which are college educated and very stable in their lives.  It’s become very evident that females represent a large segment of buying power and are the decision makers in many households.  So why not reach out to the IYP customer?  If you’ve already developed an online presence, great!  Hopefully, you’re tracking your campaigns with test lines at various headings to analyze what’s working and what’s not.  If you haven’t implemented a targeted, strategic online program, get going!  If you’re a little timid about the whole online thing, just get your feet wet.  Start slowly, perhaps with a 3-6 month campaign integrating test lines and monitoring the campaign’s effectiveness.

 

One thing is for sure, consumers are using Print and Internet Yellow Pages to find the products and services they need.

Not Knowing What Your Customers Want Can Be a Big Problem

So, you’ve just taken a long trip, you’ve arrived at your hotel tired and hungry and all you’re really interested in at that moment is knowing which restaurants are near your hotel. You’ve experienced this, right?  You get checked in, and begin searching your night stand for the print Yellow Pages.  What?  No Yellow Pages?   Well, according to an article that recently ran in USA Today, a number of hotel chains will no longer provide print directories for their guests.

 

I don’t think that’s a move in the right direction.  Aren’t we, as businesses in dealing with our customers, supposed to focus on customer service and strive to give the customer what he wants?   Maybe the hotels need to review the 2007 Simmons data below shared by Dennis Fromholzer, Ph.D, CRM Associates, that clearly shows that people who travel frequently are much more likely to reference the print Yellow Pages in a given month than people that don’t.

 

Below are some stats, taken from the 2007 Spring Simmons data.  I define a “heavy YP print user” as one who uses YP print directories on average at least once a week.

 

·         Those who have stayed at a hotel/motel in the past 12 months are 1.8 times more likely to be heavy YP print users while on the road than those who have not.

 

·         Those who are members of hotel frequent guest programs are 1.4 times more likely to be heavy YP print users while on the road than those who are not.

 

·         Those who stay at hotels 3 or more times per year are 1.6 times more likely to be heavy YP print users while on the road than those who do not stay at hotels or who stay only 1 or 2 times per year.

 

·         53% of those that stay at hotels 11 or more nights per year have used YP print directories in the past month at home;  24% have used YP print while traveling or for business.   Compare this to:  37% of those that have not stayed at hotels in the past year have used YP in the past month at home, and 11% have used YP print while traveling or for business (17% for those that stay only 1 or 2 nights per year).   Bottom line:  those that travel a lot are 40-100% more likely to use YP print directories in an average month than those that do not travel much.

 

·         Similarly, 53% of frequent “guest” program members have used YP print for personal purposes in the past month (vs. 45% of non-members); 25% of frequent guest program members have used YP print in the past month for business/travel purposes (vs 16% of non-members). 

 

These data would suggest that continuing to provide directories in hotel rooms amounts to good customer service.  As Stephanie Hobbs of the Yellow Pages Association notes in the article:  “The move will upset many guests. “You have to ask what your customers want, not what’s easier for hotels.”

 

My hope is that this initiative won’t be adopted by most hotels.  I need my Yellow Pages to find the nearest steak and baked potato!

Email Marketing – Some Big DON’TS

I subscribe to MediaPost’s Email Insider newsletter and every day I receive some valuable little nugget of information.  This post by Loren McDonald, vice president of industry relations for Silverpop, details some generally accepted best practices for email marketing.  It’s so great I simply had to pass it along to our readers.  I’ve condensed the info to highlight Loren’s important DON’Ts of a successful email marketing campaign.  You can read the post in its entirety by subscribing to MediaPost’s Email Insider blog.

DON’T

1. Make it difficult to unsubscribe.  When you camouflage your unsubscribe link, recipients will click the spam button so frequently that ISPs block your emails. Make it easy to unsubscribe, but also make it easy to give your subscribers alternatives to do what they really want, like changing format, frequency, email address or interests.

2. Forget to include a “Welcome” message and/or wait weeks to send the first message.

3. Overmail. This is typically the number one or two reason people hit the spam-complaint button or unsubscribe.

4. Use a large single image as the core of your email.  Not only does this create a problem with recipients who use preview panes, have images blocked, it can also get your email blocked or filtered to junk folders by ISPs such as Hotmail. 

5. Overlook the use of alt tags.  An alt tag is the HMTL code that describes an image and displays when the email client/ISP blocks the image. Have your email designer and copywriter create descriptive tags for each image.

6. Rely on graphical links.  If recipients can’t see the image-based link, then they won’t click on it.  Use text links, especially for navigation and key calls to action, and create HTML buttons that render even when the email client blocks the corresponding image buttons.

7. Omit a preference center.  Make it easy for subscribers to change their email address, frequency, format and profile/preferences

8. Forget to design your email for the preview pane.  More than a quarter of consumer users and half of all business users read email in a preview pane.

9. Use a person’s name in the “from” line. Tell the recipient the email is from “Company A”. 

10. Hide email registration.  Sell potential subscribers at every possible turn, with an invitation that highlights your email benefits, on every page of your Web site.