Search Engine Marketing
Does Google Index Flash?
On November 11, Google’s Webmaster Central Blog announced its progress with indexing Adobe Flash content. A webpage is indexed when Google becomes aware of its existence and is added to Google’s database. In the past, Flash was a big problem for search engine optimization because search engines like Google, were not able to crawl (read) content within Flash files. As a result, Google was not able to understand and properly rank websites created largely in Flash.
In June 2008, Google announced significant improvements for indexing Adobe Flash files, such as the ability to index textual content and discover URLs within Flash files. Further improvements were announced in June 2009.
In the announcement on November 11, Google explained improvements with JavaScript compatibility which helps index sites that use JavaScript to embed Flash files. Video indexing technology also improved to help detect pages with videos.
Flash content and videos offer a richer medium to engage website visitors. There is always a trade-off between making a website look attractive with Flash content and making it more search engine friendly. With these improvements, the trade-off is reduced and ultimately allows website developers to improve the visitors’ experience, from finding a website to exploring it.
Victor
Tags: adobe, engagement, flash, google, index, SEO, video
A Digital Strategy Solution for PR, Marketing and Ad Firms!
INTRODUCING ALERT™ LICENSING … aka “HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MARBLES?”
Well, friends, after more than two years developing and refining our proprietary ALERT™ system, it’s ready for licensing as a web app! Check out the ALERT™ LIcensing-Press Release.
ALERT™ is an acronym that represents the five phases of the process we use to create measurable, online marketing strategies for Magnify’s valued clients. Assess. Locate. Engage. Respond. Track.
About a year or so ago, we started hearing from PR, Marketing and Ad firms that they wanted the tools to be able to create and deliver strategies themselves. So, we turned ALERT™ into an easy-to-use web app that provides the tools, templates and training for firms looking to create high impact online marketing strategies for their clients.
Last night, upon learning of the ALERT™ launch, a colleague asked if perhaps I had “lost my marbles?” ”Why on earth would you give your tools to your competitors??” The comment made me laugh out loud. It was such an old paradigm statement.
In this, the new era of business where authenticity, collaboration and win-win approaches are replacing old protectionist, win-lose, and scarcity thinking, there is more than enough business to go around. What’s bad about a business model that enables us to do what we love, to share our expertise, and support other businesses in their success? So far, the chorus seems to be screaming — “nothing wrong with that!” The interest and positive feedback has been tremendous.
Time will tell. However, the response to my concerned colleague came quickly and easily. With this model, indeed, I feel as though I have found my marbles!
Don’t hesitate to be in touch to find out more about ALERT™ or to request a demo.
Best,
Moyra
Transmedia Marketing … or “Just Marketing?”
At the recent Merging+Media Conference in Vancouver last week (which was great, btw!), there was a lot of talk about online marketing versus transmedia. The general message was that it’s “just marketing” when multiple platforms (mobile, social media, etc.) are used to convey a brand’s message and to create opportunities for customers to engage with that brand. True transmedia projects involve orchestrating multiple platforms to build out the “story-world.” The narrative is unique to each platform and doesn’t repeat.
I’ve been pondering this all weekend because I’m not convinced the distinction is that simple. Good online marketing is all about creating a rich narrative for a brand. Content shouldn’t repeat on different channels. Rather each platform should be selected because it allows customers to navigate a different part of the story, in a different way. For example, a brand shouldn’t use video if they intend only to create a moving picture version of their press release. Video should be a chosen platform because the narrative is served by moving images, music, dramatization, animation, factual presentation, etc. The content should be suited to the passive form.
Another key differentitator between marketing and transmedia storytelling is the degree of audience involvement. It was suggested that the audience has substantive input into the transmedia story world, more so than in the multi-platform marketing of a product. However, this line is often blurred, too. Digital marketing campaigns often work best when brands are confident enough to place their narrative in the hands of their customers.
Sure there are going to be instances where a product or service does not have an interesting or engaging story, where the foundation is too flimsy to build out an engaging mythology or story-world. In those instances, presenting the product/service with authenticity and transparency, connecting with, and listening to, customers can be both the means and the end.
However, there are times when a brand or product can support, and benefit from, a multi-level narrative, the likes of which are typically reserved for original transmedia stories. Transmedia marketing, in essence.
I Googled the term and sure enough there are no shortage of posts on the topic. Will Renny has an interesting take in his post “Transmedia Storytelling and Multi-Modal Brands:”
“Transmedia brands need to provide a world that audiences can participate in; a world in which consumers can shape brands, twist and stretch them, to fit their needs. Consumers now expect to curate and control more of their consumption experiences.”
Upon reading and researching, it’s easy to say, “Well, of course!” However, I think it may just change everything to begin every brand strategy questioning whether the brand can support a transmedia, trans-modal approach … or whether the plan needs to be “just marketing.”
What do you think?
Best,
Moyra
Behaviourally Targeted Online Ads…On the Rise!
Check out the eMarketer’s forecast as summarized by the fabulous daily, CynopsisDigital. Based on our team’s experience and success using behaviourally targeted online ads, this trend makes perfect sense. Still, the numbers are staggering.
“Assuming that privacy concerns are adequately addressed, behavioral targeting will generate more than $1 billion in ad sales in the U.S this year, according to a forecast from eMarketer, with that number more than doubling to $2.6 billion by 2014. Behaviorally targeted ad dollars will rise as a proportion of online display spending from 14.2% in 2010 to nearly 20% by 2014, when ads targeted based on interests or intentions will account for 7.6% of total US online ad spending.
U.S. Behavioral Targeting Online Advertising Spending 2008-2014 (millions)
Year Spending % Change
2008 $775 47.6%
2009 $925 19.4%
2010 $1,125 21.6%
2011 $1,350 20.0%
2012 $1,700 25.9%
2013 $2,100 23.5%
2014 $2,600 23.8%
Source: eMarketer”
- Moyra
Tags: ad spending, behavioural advertising, online advertising, online marketing, PPC, SEM
ALERT! 5 Steps To Creating and Maintaining A Successful Online Presence
I’m an information junkie. I read almost everything I can get my eyes on if it relates to a topic of interest – social media, television, online marketing, cooking, travel, raising a toddler. Of course the problem is, there’s way more information than there is time.
A similar challenge faces businesses today. There are far more online marketing opportunities than time and money to support them. On one hand, it’s an embarrassment of riches. On the other, it’s a pain in the posterior for businesses trying to decide which tools will deliver the greatest ROI.
When I step into a bookstore, sometimes I “lose it.” My pulse quickens as I roam from section to section grabbing books I want to read that instant. Many of these books litter my home office waiting for me to crack their covers. The reality is, I can’t get to them all, just like I can’t get to every blog, forum and tweet.
Some businesses are “losing it,” too. I’m watching as they dabble with Twitter, Facebook, blogs, social bookmarking, and shiny apps that grab their attention. Trouble is, companies sometimes sew the seeds and forget to water them. They sit dormant, like my stacks of books.
For some reason, quite likely a combination of reasons actually, businesses are experimenting online without applying much thought or resources. When it comes to building an online presence, I’m all for experimentation. In fact, it’s necessary. But, that doesn’t mean playing fast and loose with your brand.
Perhaps it’s because many CEOs still dismiss the Internet as a frivolous frontier where their teenagers hang out and play games, where singles search for mates, serious types read news, and a whole lot of people watch porn. Perhaps, when it comes to engaging customers online, the barriers to entry are so low and so unregulated that it’s too far outside the costly and complex world of traditional marketing and advertising to make these opportunities seem credible … or comfortable. Whatever the reason, after fifty years of business obsessing about brand, it is remarkable that so many companies are throwing caution to the wind and jumping online without so much as a whiff of a plan.
That’s why we created A.L.E.R.T. It’s an acronym that spells out the five steps to creating and maintaining a successful online strategy. It’s a philosophy and for the Magnify team, a comprehensive system.
The core concept goes like this …
A.L.E.R.T. – ASSESS. LOCATE. ENGAGE. RESPOND. TRACK.
Assess – You need to know where you stand before you can figure out where you are going. This stage is all about figuring out what people online are saying about your brand, product or service, and what the conversations are about your competitors. It usually means paying attention to how users are finding and interacting with your website, too. And the websites of your competitors.
Locate – Where is your audience hanging out online? Once you start to find them, listen. Learn where they cluster, what matters to them, and how they like to engage in terms of platforms and communication style.
Engage – This is literally and figuratively the pivot point. It’s the most creative and often the most comprehensive part of the plan. How are you going to engage your target market? A paid advertising campaign? A simple blog? An aggressive Twitter and Facebook strategy? Quirky or eye-popping video? Games? Quizzes? All of the above? Whatever the plan, ensure you have the resources to make it thrive.
Respond – Listen more than you speak. It’s not a bad mantra for life and a darn good rule of thumb online. Monitor what is being said about your brand online. When someone asks a question, offers a compliment or throws a flame, a timely and authentic response can go a long way toward turning feedback into opportunities and critics into champions.
Track – Be sure to track your results each month. Dig into Google Analytics, Hootsuite, and the myriad other free monitoring tools. The only way to ensure ROI is to pay attention to the trends. Tweak the initiatives that aren’t working and amp up the ones that are.
Whether your company sells shoes or dreams, this process will help you build and maintain a successful online presence. It pays to be ALERT!
- Moyra
Tags: Business, facebook, internet marketing, online marketing, ROI, Social Media, Twitter
