Five Ways to Fix Your Forms (and Increase Conversions)

Whether used to generate leads, or to help with searching, web forms are arguably the most critical element in a website – yet often they are neglected to the detriment of your business.

Worse, you may never discover that a little attention could double your performance. So here are our five ways…

1. Make it obvious what is wanted

Too many forms suffer from not making it clear which information is mandatory – the common symbol for a mandatory fields is an asterisk (*). Continue reading “Five Ways to Fix Your Forms (and Increase Conversions)”

Yahoo! Search Marketing – The Final Insult

The clock is ticking… and soon the final curtain will come down on what was the founding father of PPC – Yahoo! Search Marketing (nee Overture).

All we can say is: the end can’t come soon enough. The clunky interface was delivered late and was dated even before it was birthed. Little was done to improve it, and as Google evolved and Microsoft entered the market, there it stood, stuck in time.

However, that was just about bearable as long as the performance worked. But, as the months went by the slide continued… 20%, 15%, 10% … now about 5% of Google’s reach.

Yet, this article is not about that… What has become increasingly unbearable is the active encouragement of click misbehaviour on Yahoo’s part. We won’t use the word ‘fraud’ for fear of litigation – but let’s call it click ‘flawed’.

We give you a tale of increasing desperation which has led to the final insult as Yahoo! enters it’s last days. Continue reading “Yahoo! Search Marketing – The Final Insult”

The Tree Surgeon and the Leylandii

Leylandii TreeJust the other day the MD was with a tree surgeon in his back garden. A Leylandii needed cutting, again… and we were chatting about his work. The surgeon said:

“The amount of these £$*%£$ trees I have to see EVERY week. They’re a real pain. An imported blight. It would be better if it were chopped down.”

We replied

“True. But where would your business be if it weren’t for these trees?”

The surgeon went very quiet.

Continue reading “The Tree Surgeon and the Leylandii”

Google Opens Up for Legitimate Brand Ads

You can read the full ruling from Google here, but finally a triumph of sense over solicitors.

For most, the above page is a dull footnote in the ocean of Google blog posts, but for those using Adwords, this is exactly what we were expecting (and hoping) for.

What Was the Problem

A few years ago, brand owners threatened Google by arguing that they were using their trademarks unlawfully by allowing businesses to use their brands in keywords and adverts.

Continue reading “Google Opens Up for Legitimate Brand Ads”

Google Instant ‘Coffee’

Google InstantJust like the instant version of coffee, Google Instant has ‘freeze dried’ the flavour of search and reformed it in a more immediate format. But, just like instant coffee, what you get is a poor imitation of the ‘real thing’.

‘It’s even better and it saves you time’ goes the Google Inc. mantra, yet we’re not convinced. Not really that sure at all.
Continue reading “Google Instant ‘Coffee’”

The Case for Thinking Smart… Phones

Mobile BrowserWe think it must have happened sometime this year… a sudden realisation that after all the unnecessary wastage of effort (and marketing spend) on WAP and Apps – yes, you know who you are and are probably still feel the hurt – there is now a compelling case for looking at your site on the move.

We don’t mean looking at the screen whilst running around it, but thinking about mobile devices.
Continue reading “The Case for Thinking Smart… Phones”

User Interfaces and Bad Experiences

Few businesses really spend enough time on user experience. They think they do, but they don’t – they normally put their needs first and then are surprised when the response is different to what they expected.

For smaller businesses much of what they do has to involve some educated guesswork, but it is encouraging that the bigger fish, with all their access to focus groups, beta tests, online research and user feedback, also make mistakes.

Strategic Mistakes – Microsoft…

Continue reading “User Interfaces and Bad Experiences”

5 Top Mistakes to Avoid in S.E.O.

The ‘art’ of SEO is discussed a lot… but the main issue that is often avoided, which is: ‘is it worth it?’ In this article we tackle this question and offer up the five biggest mistakes you can make when thinking about SEO.
Mountain Top

1. YOU NEED HELP GETTING TOP FOR YOUR BRAND NAME

As long as your domain name has your brand name in it (and most of the time, even if it doesn’t) and your brand name isn’t completely generic (i.e. all the words in it are commonly used) then you will rank top or in the top 2-3 for it pretty quickly and stay there.

You don’t need anyone’s help to achieve this (nor should you give credit for it).

2. PPC = EXPENSIVE; SEO = CHEAP

Continue reading “5 Top Mistakes to Avoid in S.E.O.”

Old Media Fight Back, Or Game Over?

Newspapers Out of ScreenThese are both exciting and challenging times as the print media still tries to make revenue out of its’ failings. You could see this as the 12th round of a particularly intense boxing match, with the old champ on the ropes, face bloodied… knowing that returning fire is the only option.

The Case for Print

It seems that the concern has been long held that Google has been surreptitiously ‘stealing’ content from their websites using Google News and the new entrant Google FastFlip. By hosting pages on their own websites containing this content they have been using other media’s work to fill their advertising boots as well as stop visitors to these sites.
Continue reading “Old Media Fight Back, Or Game Over?”

How to Value Search Engine Optimisation

One of the common concerns we have with Search Engine Optimisation is that few businesses are fully informed of how to measure the value of performing optimisation and the benefits.

The ‘Con’ First

Ladder to Success

Often you’re led to believe that getting to page one of Google is ‘it’ for a reasonably specific keyword phrase, and that you should pay for this privilege. But, almost certainly this is not a cost-effective route, particularly if you’re paying a monthly fee. Here’s an illustration for you:

SEO Firm offer:
“We can get you onto page 1 of Google for a relevant phrase for only £79 per month”

The Maths

They write copy for a single page on your site, and optimise it for you (cost to them – £50 copywriting, £30 to research, ongoing cost – negligible). They choose a reasonably relevant phrase for SEO purposes but one without much competition. Total Cost £80 covered by the first month’s fee you’ve already paid.
Continue reading “How to Value Search Engine Optimisation”

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