Online Strategy Discussion Primer
Transcript of Online Strategy Discussion Primer
Online Strategy & Discussion Document
Marcus Stuart Vannini
Contents
Position Objectives, Priorities & Metrics
Appendix I: Online Acquisition Marketing
Appendix II: Email Marketing Strategies & Best Practices
A. Social Media MarketingB. Organic Search Engine OptimizationC. Display Advertising (Cost Per Impression)D. Cost Per Click AdvertisingE. Co-registration DealsF. Affiliate/CPA Marketing
A. Enhancing Email List Growth - Online & Offline AcquisitionB. Delivering More Emails to the Inbox – AKA DeliverabilityC. Achieving Higher Open RatesD. Improving Click-through RatesE. Increasing Conversion Rates
Review of Key ObjectivesReview of Key Objectives
General Objectives• Identify gaps and enhance site functionality across all sites
• Oversee enhancements in web development
• Interface with management, creative and web development teams
• Reduce development and design costs while keeping quality equal or greater
• Manage Member website, Prospect Website and Consumer Website
Online Marketing• Improve direct response & email collection features
• Coordinate email campaigns from collected emails
• Oversee SEO team and interface between SEO, Web Development and Management
• Analyze SEM-PPC campaigns and identify areas to improve Interface with SEM team and management Review statistics and analysis of SEM results
Review of Key ObjectivesReview of Key Objectives
e-Commerce & New Features / Sites• Launch and manage CMWL consumer store
• Develop subscription services and determine / manage resources needed
• Manage development of Corporate Wellness Website (brief available)
Content• Oversee development and management of CMS systems
• Oversee addition of content (and revolving content needs)
• Ensure addition of news articles
• Set up site to better accept and display content.
Develop web interface with Meal Delivery program and add this to CMWL
online consumer store
Target AudiencesTarget Audiences
• Physicians– Other Health professionals? Dieticians? Mental health practitioners?
• Patients / Consumers – Prospective Patients seeking care
– General consumers seeking nutritional products and weight-loss products
• Corporations / Corporate Wellness Programs
• Other?– General public seeking weight-loss, quality meals and health information
– Researchers
– Professional Development
– Community groups
– Patients / Physicians seeking trials?
Objectives & Key Priorities• Develop, enhance and manage all
web-sites
• Developing the required CMS, content and functionalities
• Improve direct response & email collection features
• Improve & drive better SEO and SEM-PPC results
• Launch and manage CMWL consumer store
• Oversee development and addition of content including revolving content needs and site changes
• Manage development of Corporate Wellness Website
Strategic InitiativesStrategic Initiatives
Strategic Initiative #1:e-Commerce & Subscription Growth / Services
Launch and manage CMWL consumer store with interface to Meal Delivery service. Refine and increase subscription services.
Strategic Initiative #1:e-Commerce & Subscription Growth / Services
Launch and manage CMWL consumer store with interface to Meal Delivery service. Refine and increase subscription services.
Strategic Initiative #2:Content and Functionalities
Develop Web site CMS, content and functionalities that are rich, timely and meet the needs of our target audiences.
Strategic Initiative #2:Content and Functionalities
Develop Web site CMS, content and functionalities that are rich, timely and meet the needs of our target audiences.
Strategic Initiative #3:Infrastructure Development
Develop the infrastructure necessary to implement, scale and maintain the defined strategy: staffing, policies, budget, etc.
Strategic Initiative #3:Infrastructure Development
Develop the infrastructure necessary to implement, scale and maintain the defined strategy: staffing, policies, budget, etc.
Strategic Initiative #4:Marketing and Promotion
Promote and position the sites to the identified key target audiences.
Strategic Initiative #4:Marketing and Promotion
Promote and position the sites to the identified key target audiences.
Strategic Initiative #5:Tracking and Evaluation
Develop and implement a process and benchmarks to track, easily monitor and communicate the Internet strategy across management.
Strategic Initiative #5:Tracking and Evaluation
Develop and implement a process and benchmarks to track, easily monitor and communicate the Internet strategy across management.
I boiled down the project description documents into five major Strategic Online Initiatives for ease in discussion and tracking.
Three Buckets of Metrics
Improved Relevance and Engagement,
Tailored Connections with Users,
New Revenue Potential,
Are All Here
External to Site
Performance, Audience, Control,
SEO
Internal to Site
MarketingManagement
Market Share & Rank
Common Tools for Each Bucket
External to Site
• ComScore• Nielsen/NetRatings• Alexa• Compete• HitWise• Nielsen Buzz Metrics• Socialmeter• TNS Media
Intelligence• IMS Web Spyder• Biz 360• Cymfony
Internal to Site
• Omniture• WebSideStory• Coremetrics• WebTrends• Google Analytics• Creative Good• Offermatica• Optimost• Google Optimizer• NetTracker• Clickdensity• EyeTracking, Inc.
• DART• iProspect• Bruce Clay, Inc.• 24/7 Real Media• IMPAQT• ValueClick• ContextWeb• Tacoda Systems• Click Fraud Network• ValidClick• Media Ratings
Council• IAB• SEMPO
Market Share & Rank, Usage Across Sites
and Advertisers
Performance, Control, SEO, Profiling,
Usability,Testing
Marketing Management:SEM, Ad Networks, Ad & E-mail Mgmt,
Click Fraud
How are Analytics Currently Used?
Reporting and Tracking
Drives Online Operational
Improvements
Leads Way to New Users and New
Revenue
Majority of Companies
Has Become the New Goal
Still RareToday
• % increase or decrease in unique visits
• Change in page rank - i.e. a list of the top ten most popular areas and how it has changed in the last week
• Click-Depth Index: Percent of visitor sessions of "n" or more pages
• Recency Index: Percent of visitor sessions occurring in the last "small n" weeks
• Duration Index: Percent of visitor sessions of "n" or more minutes
• Brand Index: Percent of visitor sessions originating directly, from links or originating from search
• Blog Index: Ratio of blog reading sessions to all sessions
• Conversion Index: In this case, % of visitors that become a subscriber or order-based conversion
• % of visitors that come back for more than 5 sessions
• % of visitors that download something from the site
• % of visitors that provide an email address
Key Web & Engagement MetricsKey Web & Engagement Metrics
Engagement is an estimate of the degree and depth of visitor interaction on the site against a clearly defined set of goals.
Quick-hits & Food for Thought
• Microsites and blogs
• RSS Feeds, simple widgets
• Sponsorship and advertising revenues
• Social network dedicated to medical weight loss, weight loss products and we should be on all major social networking sites
• Toolbar and widgets
• Email marketing newsletters (weekly), daily consumer tips
• Podcasts
• Long-term mobile strategy
• Social bookmarking links added to content
• Radio / Media tour in future to promote communities and medical weight loss vs. other programs
• Surveys to find out what other services and products members want
Contents
Position Objectives, Priorities & Metrics
Appendix I: Online Acquisition Marketing
Appendix II: Email Marketing Strategies & Best Practices
A. Social Media MarketingB. Organic Search Engine OptimizationC. Display Advertising (Cost Per Impression)D. Cost Per Click AdvertisingE. Co-registration DealsF. Affiliate/CPA Marketing
A. Enhancing Email List Growth - Online & Offline AcquisitionB. Delivering More Emails to the Inbox – AKA DeliverabilityC. Achieving Higher Open RatesD. Improving Click-through RatesE. Increasing Conversion Rates
Appendix I:Online Acquisition Marketing
Contents
A. Social Media Marketing
B. Organic Search Engine Optimization
C. Display Advertising (Cost Per Impression)
D. Cost Per Click Advertising
E. Co-registration Deals
F. Affiliate/CPA Marketing
Section A. Social Media Marketing
Social Networks
• Facebook, Myspace, Bebo, Hi5, Orkut, Multiply, Ning
Content Aggregators
• Digg, Reddit, Propeller, Newsvine
Content Networks
• Squidoo
Blogging Tools
• Blogger, Typepad, Wordpress, MyBlogLog, Technorati
Social Search/Bookmarking Tools
• StumbleUpon, Mahalo, FreeIQ, Wikimedia, Del.icio.us
Video Tools
• YouTube, MetaCafe, Vimeo, Viddler
SMO is a great way to drive convertible traffic and future-proof SEO investments
eMarketer estimates by 2011 one-half of all Internet users will use social networking regularly.
• $0-budget YouTube videos about Barack Obama were seen by 120 times the audience of Hilary Clinton’s “largest town hall meeting in US history” that cost millions
• IBM receives more leads, sales and exposure from a $500 podcast than it does from an ad
Social Media Primer
• Social Media Optimization (SMO) is defined as a way to augment a website so that it can be easily connected, linked to, or interlaced with social media.
– SMO is a stand-alone service that when implemented correctly can not only drive traffic in a guerilla marketing fashion but can also serve to multiply and future proof your investment in SEO.
• Social Media is an umbrella term referring to media usually delivered through a Social Network or UGC.
– Further Defined: the democratization of information, transforming people from content readers into content publishers. It is the shift from a broadcast mechanism to a many-to-many model, rooted in conversations between authors, people, and peers (social).
– Examples: discussion forums, messages boards, blogs, music sharing, Wikis, Podcasts
• User Generated Content A.K.A. Consumer Generated Media (CGM) is media content that is publicly available and produced by end-users (user).
– Usually supported by a social network such as YouTube video, Flickr photos, Blog comments, LinkedIn discussions, Wiki content, Facebook wall posts, even Second Life objects
• Social Bookmarking is a method for Internet users to store, organize, search, and manage bookmarks of web pages on the Internet with the help of metadata.
• Relevance and value is determined by the community; The more people who bookmark a piece of content, the more value it is determined to have.
• Examples: Digg, Del.icio.us, StumbleUpon, and Reddit
Weight Loss & Social Networks
Medical Weight Loss & Facebook – Open Territory
Surgical Weight Loss Community Site (UK)
Top Weight Loss & Health Social Networks
Top Weight Loss & Health Social NetworksSparkPeople was voted best online health site in Business Week's 2006, 2007 and 2008 "Best of the Web" awards.
Physician Social Networks Are Proliferating
Doctornetworking.com
Additional MD Social Networks
• http://www.socialmd.com/
• DoctorsHangout.com: DoctorsHangout.com social network can help you maintain existing personal and professional relationships and establish new ones by reaching out to Doctors you’ve never met before
• Ozmosis: a new community, currently in private beta, created by physicians for physicians. Members have to be verified during the registration process (more).
• Sermo: We are a practicing community of 65,000 physicians who exchange clinical insights, observations, and review cases in real time — all the time.
• Tiromed: Ask a mentor or become a mentor. Upload your CV and find collaborators from around the world, or find a job via this community
• Doc2doc: doc2doc has a range of tools to help you network with other doctors on a professional and social level.
• Doctrs.com: It’s an exclusive social net for physicians that was founded by Michael Kamleitner and Lukas Zinnagl in 2008, according to the FAQ page.
• PHYZOOM: you can find the physicians in your community who are staying on top of the latest health trends, products and services. In addition, your search options are much more dynamic than your average physician directory available from your local hospitals and health systems.
• Web of Medicine: it was created for busy clinicians who want to build and join professional networks of medical colleagues. Users have expressed a clear requirement to connect with colleagues in their own practices and hospitals but also nationally and internationally.
Weight Loss Programs Gaining Traction on Twitter
More on Twitter…
Diabetes Social Networks
TuDiabetes.com - “MySpace on Insulin”Awarded 2nd place for Niche Social Network 2008 Web 2.0 Awards.
WebMD the B2C Juggernaut – Above the Fold Content
WebMD – Below the Fold Content
Diet.com
The Looking Glass
• Open integration and greater consolidation of social media companies
• Better user interface & experience, more efficient
• Higher adoption and higher ROI
• Extensive worldwide industry growth
• Use of SMM to solve global and individual issues
• The services you are connected to are connecting with each other.
• Watch for the OpenSocial API Standard
• Watch for more mobile integration
What does the future hold for widgets, gadgets and social apps in the online weight-loss community?
Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs
Online Pyramid of Needs
Self Actualization
Esteem
Social
Safety
Express Influence
Connect, Interact, andCommunicate
Trust, Safety, Security
Online actualization Discover, Fulfill
Access, storage, organize,Basic commerce, news,
InformationPhysiological
Medical Social Networks Will Evolve
Consumer Social Networks
Collegiate Social Networks
Sharing
Conversing
Problem Solving
Crowdsourcing
Professional Social Networks
Enterprise Networks
Source: Outsell, Inc.© 2008 Outsell, Inc. Reproduction strictly prohibited.
Social Media Best Practices
• Attempt to leverage an existing social networks.– Examples: Facebook: Weightwatchers 20k+ members, Facebook: RedBullU, Facebook NBA
• Avoid creating your own network surrounding your brand, focus on an existing community or market segment:
• Experiment with creating networks catering to specific audiences or special interests, again not brands:
– Examples: Diabetes, Care2, CareSeek,
• Leverage Social Video Search Engines are Huge and the fastest growing Social Media
• Listen and study the community before you enter the discussion
• Converse, don’t oversell and don’t shout
• Be prepared to relinquish control of the brand
• Be honest and transparent about your involvement
• Learn through experimentation
Considerations on SEM / PPC vs. SEO…
• Only 27.7% of Google Users will click on a sponsored PPC link.
• 72.3% of Google’s users choose a natural (SEO) result rather than a PPC result
• 1.3 Billion People Online1
• 99% of all searches in English in the US occur on Google, Yahoo, MSN, AOL and Ask (or websites empowered by these search companies)2
• Less than 3% ever go past page two of results 3
Don’t forget Long Tail Marketing - Less popular phrases in greater quantities are more effective than a few blockbuster phrases.
Sources:
1 Computer Industry Almanac
2 GregOutlaw.com
3 comScore Media Metrix
Section B. Organic Search Optimization
Basics for Developing an SEO Strategy
• Set Goals• Optimize the Site
– Optimize for “conversions”– Optimize for search
• “Pull” Traffic– Linking strategy & PR– Advertising, including paid search– Email
• Constantly Measure and Adapt– Constantly changing environment
Google’s Algorithm Simplified
• 65% Links– 50% Links from Authority Websites (Directories, Trusted Sites, Press Releases, etc)
– 50% Topical Links (Non-Reciprocal Links from topically relevant websites)
• 35% On Page Factors– Web Design and Internal Structure.
Source:
GregOutlaw.com
Proper SEO is like Football – “a Battle of Inches”
SEO Best Practices – On Page Factors
• Website platform • Website design & content• Meta keywords• Website description• Page titles• Alt tags• Same site hyperlinks• Site map
SEO Best Practices – Site Platform Factors
• ASP.Net, PHP, HTML SEO friendly• Flash, ColdFusion… not SEO friendly• Must be linear• Must be scalable• Content Managed System (CMS)• w3c standards
SEO Best Practices – Site Design Factors
• Targeted to audience• Key information above-the-fold• Easy to navigate- user friendly• Fast loading• Minimal clicks• Add Video• Creates an overall feel without calling too much
attention to itself• Enables visitors to easily perform tasks• Reinforce brand without seeming like an ad
• Pay attention to keywords• Cover Short and Long tail - Words that describe your business,
products & services• Use consistent wording• Use benefit text and offers• Use call-to-action (CTA) verbs• Add Thematic Content: Add 20-30 articles to your web site about
topics related to your keyphrase.• Place CTA’s where eye-path ends• Use text hyperlinks• Keep it clean – don’t overdo hyperlinks• Use Arial or other “web safe” typeface
SEO Best Practices – Content Factors
Short Keyword
High search volume
Increased visibility
Less qualified traffic
Lower conversion rate
Potential higher cost
Long Tail Keyword
Highly qualified traffic
Higher conversion rate
Lower cost
Low search volume
Identifying right keywords
Short vs. Long Tail Keywords
Following & Refining SEO Best Practices
– Provides a better customer experience– Drives brand consistency & awareness– Makes you more connected– Brings in more customers– Drives subscriber growth
Ad Servers• DoubleClick (Google), Atlas (Microsoft), Zedo, or Open Adstream• MediaVisor, RFPs, IOs
Ad Networks• Tribal Fusion• Advertising.com• Tacoda• AdBrite• 24/7 Real Media• aQuantive• Blue Lithium• Casale Media• Revenue Science• DrivePM• Value Click
Section C. Display Advertising
Section D. Cost Per Click Advertising
Major Networks (90%)
• Google Adwords (65%)
• Yahoo Panama (17%)
• Microsoft AdCenter (8%)
All Other Networks (10%)• Kanoodle• Miva• Findwhat• 7Search• Zango
Section E. Co-Registration Deals
Co-Registration networks
• Opt-intelligence
• Q Interactive
• Lead Point
• CoregMedia
Co-registration is the practice of collecting opt-ins for multiple organizations, and sometimes
for types of products or services, on a website's registration page or on a paper subscription
form. An individual provides registration information once, but then opts in (via checkboxes) to
receive marketing communications from multiple companies.
Section F. Affiliate/CPA Marketing
Affiliate Networks/Programs• CommissionJunction• LinkShare• Share A Sale• 1 ShoppingCart• MyAffiliateProgram
CPA Offer Networks (Primarily for Consumer Offers)• Primary Ads• AzoogleLeads• CPA Empire• HydraNetwork• ClickBooth• Value Click Media
Contents
Position Objectives, Priorities & Metrics
Appendix I: Online Acquisition Marketing
Appendix II: Email Marketing Strategies & Best Practices
A. Social Media MarketingB. Organic Search Engine OptimizationC. Display Advertising (Cost Per Impression)D. Cost Per Click AdvertisingE. Co-registration DealsF. Affiliate/CPA Marketing
A. Enhancing Email List Growth - Online & Offline AcquisitionB. Delivering More Emails to the Inbox – AKA DeliverabilityC. Achieving Higher Open RatesD. Improving Click-through RatesE. Increasing Conversion Rates
Enhancing Email List Growth (Online & Offline Acquisition)
The average cost of an email order is less than $7
– Shop.org, 2008
Email marketing is expected to generate $43 in revenue for each $1 spent in 2009
– DMA, 2008
50 million people will check email at least 5 times today
– ClickZ, 2008
55% of marketers surveyed expect ROI from email to be higher than any other channel
– Datran Media, 2008
Online Email Acquisition - Best Practices
• Provide a benefit-oriented reason to subscribe - offer an incentive, specify benefits to your target audience!
• Include a privacy statement/link• Simple email address field to start process is best• Put field in a prominent place - above the fold• Ideally, include on most pages of website• Data requested should be driven by and cater to our market
segments• Minimizing fields maximizes sign-ups
LESSON: Thoughts become things
Online Email Acquisition: Best Practice Form Illustration
LESSON: Thoughts become things
Email Acquisition – Always Be Building!
Delivering More Emails to the Inbox (Deliverability)
Key Factor Determine Campaign Inbox Deliverability
• Authentication– Confirming that your email headers match your SPF (Sender Policy Framework) record!!– Ask your subscribers to add your email address to their address book– Use SpamCheck to ensure your message doesn’t have any trigger words or trigger elements
• Content of the email– Filters like SpamAssassin assign values to words, formats and other things that seem
“spammy”– Don’t use trigger words in your subject lines– Use consistent from names– Use the same from address every time
• HTML Code– If it’s not perfect, you may be blocked– You are more likely to be filtered for code than for content
• Reputation– Spam reports and blacklists– Make sure your Email Service Provider is whitelisted with AOL, Yahoo, Gmail, and Hotmail
• Speed of send– Sending too fast will get you blocked
Email Service Providers (ESPs) Typically Improve Deliverability
• Moving to an ESP often results in greater deliverability and significant lifts in key metrics– 93% lift in open rate
– 171% increase in click-through rate
– 13% increase in conversion rates
Key Features to Look for with ESPs:
Best Practice: Continually Investigate Ongoing Deliverability
• Monitor appearance on blacklists– www.SenderBase.org– www.BlackListMonitor.com
• Check feedback loops– Unique to each ISP – Detailed information on deliverability provided to “white hat” senders
• Deliverability audits– Habeus, Return Path, etc.
• Answer what’s it in for them• Open with a benefit or curiosity• Create a sense of urgency• Personalize it• Keep it under 35 characters
Best Practices for Email Subject Lines & Content
• Avoid CSS• Avoid Javascript• Avoid Forms• Avoid using ALL CAPS• Avoid using just an image with
no text• Avoid Big Red Lettering
Subject Lines Email Content Best Practices
Best Practices: Words to Avoid to Improve Deliverability
CAN-SPAM Provisions in Brief
Achieving High Open Rates
A good open rate is 20% A great open rate is anything
above 30%Note: Open Rates are usually underreported by 10-15% due to images being blocked by default in some email clients
Best Practices – The Sending Address
“Knowing and trusting the sender” was cited as a reason for opening by 56% of consumers
- Return Path, 2007
73% of those surveyed clicked “report spam” based on the from line
- Email Sender and Provider Coalition, 2007
Use Proper Sender Address!!
35%of consumers open messages based on what’s in the subject line
- JupiterResearch, 2006
69% of those surveyed clicked “report spam” based on the subject line
- Email Sender and Provider Coalition, 2007
Best Practices – The Subject Line
Best Practice: Transactional Messages
• Higher open rates and higher click-through rates
– Than other types of email
• Incorporate relevant promotional messages
– Even better: position as a benefit
Snippets and AutoPreview are standard in Gmail and Outlook Email Clients
Correcting this in the past for me led to a 48% lift in open rate
Best Practices – Cater to Snippets / Auto-Preview
Improving Click-through Rates
A good CTR is 2% A great CTR is anything above 4%
Design & Test Emails for Good Preview Pane Viewing
64% of web users offered preview panes use them as their default – MarketingSherpa 2007
Client success story: 220% lift in leads generated from preview pane test
Design Emails with Image Blocking in Mind
87% of users have email clients that block images by default
- EmailLabs, 2007
59% of those asked routinely block images in email
- Marketing-Sherpa, 2007
Increasing Conversion Rates
Best Practice: Segmentation & Timing
• Segmentation = Relevant to Your Reader
– Reported interests: information provided at opt-in– Observed behavior: click tracking, Web paths
• 57% of marketers reported that providing unique content by segment was “routinely justified by results”
• Only 6% reported that it was “not justified by results”
– MarketingSherpa, November 2007
•The best times to send an email to consumer addresses are: Tuesday through Thursday 6pm to 8pm and Sunday 7pm to 9pm.
•The best times to send an email to business addresses are: Tuesday through Thursday 9am to 11am, 1pm to 3pm.
Best Practice: Testing, Tracking & Reporting
• Landing page tests return an average lift of 40%; even better results were not unusual
– MarketingSherpa, 2007
• 34% of email marketers reported that creative optimization had the most impact on response
– Datran Media Research, 2007
• Test Strategically– A/B splits, multivariate testing
– Confirm the statistical significance of your results
• “Lack of accountability/measurement” was cited by only 6% of marketers as one of the biggest challenges to email marketing
– Source: MarketingSherpa, November 2007
• Think past the email– Bounces, opens, clicks are good
• Use industry benchmarks as a guide to areas of potential improvement
– Click-streams, sales, conversions are better • Usually require Web analytics
Don’t Forget Retention Marketing Online
Often times companies focus WAY
too much time and money on
acquiring new customers and not
nearly enough on converting existing
prospects and getting existing
customers to buy more.
Marcus Stuart [email protected] (1) 917.957.0690UK (44) 772.567.6646
USErin TaylorTen Post Office Square Boston MA 02109
Dan Defnall (Finance Director)661 Tahoe CircleAtlanta, GA 30083404.292.7008
UKMarcus Stuart Vannini4 Phillimore GardensLondon W8 7QD
Russian FederationAvi HershEmc319/10 Protopopovsky PereulokMoscow Russia7 917 599 5500
India (New Media & Development Operations)Parth GhandiRaheja Centre-Point294, C.S.T. RoadSantacruz (E) Mumbai(91) 22 6641 4141