Web Science Stream

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Web Science Stream

• Strategies for Marketing, Sales, and Promotion

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Creating an Effective Web Presence

• Businesses always create a presence in the
  physical world by building stores and office
  buildings.
• The only contact that customers and other
  stakeholders have with a firm on the Web is
  through its presence there.
• Creating an effective Web presence can be
  critical even for the smallest and newest firm
  operating on the Web.

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Why is it so important?

• 97 Million People Online
• 7 Trillion This Year
• 50 Times More Than 1999
• 1 Billion Emails Each Day in US
• Doubling Every 17 Months
• Within 5 to 10 Years expected to double every 11
  Hours

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The situation today
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Online vrs Traditional marketing

• Consumers Want Time Savers
• Education Research
• People Communicate Differently

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Revenue Models

• Web Catalogue Revenue Models
• Digital Content Revenue Models
• Advertising Supported Revenue Models
• Advertising-Subscription Mixed Revenue Models
• Fee-for-Transaction Revenue Models
• Fee-for-Service Revenue Models

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Web Catalogue Revenue Models

• 130 year old idea
• Mail Order catalogue revenue model
• Seller
• establishes a brand name
• using brand strength to sell through catalogs
• order via a toll-free number or website
• important for the web-weary
• Computers, consumer electronics, books, music,
  videos, luxury goods, clothing , flowers and
  gifts
• http//www.amazon.com

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Digital Content Revenue Models

• Reduction of Printing costs
• Reduction of fees charged
• Examples
• Legal research tools
• Doctoral dissertations and masters thesis
• Journals and Books
• First pioneers where sellers of adult digital
  content!
• http//search.epnet.com/

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Advertising Supported Revenue Models

• As used by network televisions
• Sales grew by 1998 but reached a plateau in 2000
• Now improving gradually
• Major problems
• No standard for advertising charges
• few web sites have enough visitors to interest
  advertisers
• Examples Web Portals, Newspaper publishers,
  Niche Market sites
• http//www.timesofmalta.com/

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Advertising-Subscription Mixed Revenue Models

• Subscribers pay a fee and accept a limited amount
  of advertising
• Used by distinguished newspapers
• New York Times
• Wall Street Journal
• Others provide free access to recent news but
  charge a fee for archived news
• Others require subscription to print version for
  access to entire site
• http//www.nytimes.com/

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Fee-for-Transaction Revenue Models

• Fee charged based on number/size of transaction
• Disintermediation
• removal of middle-men in selling
• ReIntermediation
• Use of fee-for-transcation sites in selling
• Examples
• Travel Agents
• Automobile Sales
• Stockbrokers
• Insurance Brokers
• Event Tickets
• Real Estate and Mortgage Loan Brokers
• Online banking and Financial Services
• http//www.hsbc.com.mt/
• http//www.bov.com/

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Fee-for-Service Revenue Models

• Fee charged based on value of service provided
• Examples
• Online Games
• Streaming of Concerts and Films
• Professional Services
• limited by state-licensed professions
• http//www.java.com/en/

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Revenue Models in Transition

• Subscription to Advertising-Supported
• Microsoft Slate Magazine
• Advertising-Supported to Advertising-Subscription
• Salon.com
• Advertising-Supported to Fee-forServices
• XDrive
• Advertising-Supported to Subscription
• Northern Light
• Multiple Transitions
• Encyclopedia Brittanica
• info-seller to advertising-supported to
  advertising subscription models

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Revenue Strategy Issues

• Channel Conflict and Cannibalization
• competition between different selling channels
• Strategic Alliances and Channel Distribution
  Management
• companies join in an activity over a long period
  of time (Amazon)
• web portals and web services
• Mobile Commerce
• Growing, but not as fast as expected

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Identifying Web Presence Goals

• On the Web, businesses have the luxury of
  intentionally creating a space that creates a
  distinctive presence.
• A Web site can perform many image-creation tasks
  very effectively, including
• Serving as a sale brochure
• Serving as a product showroom
• Showing a financial report
• Posting an employment ad
• Serving as a customer contact point

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Achieving Web Presence Goals

• An effective site is one that creates an
  attractive presence that meets the objectives of
  the business or other organization.
• Possible objectives include
• Attracting visitors to the Web site
• Making the site interesting enough
• Convincing visitors to follow the sites links
• Creating an impression of corporate image
• Building a trusting relationship with visitors
• Reinforcing positive images of the organization
• Encouraging visitors to return to the site.

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The Toyota Site

• The Toyota site is a good example of an effective
  Web presence.
• The site provides
• A product showroom feature
• Links to detailed information about each product
  line
• Links to dealers
• Links to information about company
• http//www.toyota.com/

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Quaker Oats

• Quaker Oats has created Web sites that did not
  offer any corporate presence until 1999.
• In 1999, Quaker Oats changed its Web page to
  improve its general appearance and
  user-friendliness.
• The Toyota and Quaker Oats examples illustrate
  that the Web can integrate an opportunity for
  enhancing the image of a business with the
  provision of information.

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Quaker Oats in 1998
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Quaker Oats in 2002
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Quaker Oats in 2002
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Not-for-Profit Organizations

• A key goal for many not-for-profit organizations
  is information dissemination.
• The combination of information dissemination and
  a two-way contact channel is a key element in any
  Web site.
• The American Civil Liberties Union and American
  Red Cross have created effective Web presences.
• Political parties and museums also use Web site
  for their image presences.

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How the Web is Different

• The failure to understand how the Web is
  different from other presence-building media is
  one reason that businesses fail to achieve their
  Web objectives.
• Firms must use the Webs capability for two-way,
  meaningful communication with their customers.

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Meeting the Needs of Web Site Visitors

• Businesses that are successful on the Web realize
  that every visitor to their Web site is a
  potential customer.
• Creating a Web site that meets the needs of
  visitors with a wide range of motivations can be
  challenging.
• Technology variation can be another concern to
  Web presence.

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Meeting the Needs of Web Site Visitors

• A good Web site should give the visitor the
  option to select smaller versions of the images.
• A good site design lets visitors choose among
  information attributes, such as level of detail,
  forms of aggregation, viewing format, and
  downloading format.
• Flash Debate

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Trust and Loyalty

• When customers buy a product, they are also
  buying that service element.
• A seller can create value in a relationship with
  a customer by nurturing customers trust and
  developing it into loyalty.
• Customer service is a problem for many corporate
  sites.
• A primary weak spot for many sites is the lack of
  integration between the companies call centers
  and their Web sites.

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Customer-Centric Web Site Design

• Design site according to visitors navigation,
  not company organization
• Avoid jargon and business terms
• Cater for low-end clients
• Consistent features and colours
• Visible text and navigation controls
• Test colour combinations for colour blind
  visitors

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10 Marketing Tips

• Grab em
• Dont mix messages
• Feature a call to action
• Retain your branding
• Make it easy to contact you
• Use expected colors and imagery
• Optimize for search engines
• Feature testimonials
• Focus on the visitor
• Adopt a privacy policy

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Grabem

• A good headline
• Is focused on the visitor, with words such as
  you and your
• Is the dominant element on the home page
• Appears larger than even your logo, company name
  or tagline

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Dont mix messages

• Be clear
• Feature what you offer
• Use pictures
• Use relevant text
• Link directly from those images on the home page
  to detailed pages with extensive information and
  more pictures

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Always observe the 1-2-3 rule

• 1 2 3 Im Outta Here!
• Can visitors find whatever they want within 3
  clicks?
• Based on experimental results.

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Feature a clear call to action

• Tell the site visitor, on the home page, exactly
  what you want them to do
• Visitors will read your site content at length if
  it answers their questions
• Be sure to ask for the business at the end of the
  page or article (get to the point)

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Retain your branding

• Building upon your existing brand identity is key
  to
• immediately establishing trust
• These elements need to be consistent with your
  brands off-line identity
• Brand logo
• Brand name
• Key messaging
• Graphics

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Make it easy to contact you

• Your visitors dont want to dig for the basics,
  so make sure its easy to find the following
• Telephone numbers
• Contact forms (mini and full)
• E-mail links
• Physical address of your place of business in an
  easy to copy format

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Make it even easier to contact you

• E-mail Signature w/ Contact
• Hyperlink to Your Site
• Peak Interest w/ Free Offers
• Focused E-mail Subject Line

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No surprises

• Use industry-appropriate color and imagery
• Give your visitors what they expect exactly as
  they
• expect it
• Dont attempt to re-brand your industry
• This is your opportunity to be consistent and
  professional at the beginning of the sales
  process

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Optimise for search engines

• Search engine optimization is the art and science
  of increasing your websites visibility in the
  major search engines across a strategically
  defined set of keywords and phrases that apply to
  your products or services
• An estimated 77 percent of Internet users employ
  search engines to find Web sites
• 20,000 Search Engines Directories
• If you are not listed on Google or Yahoo, you
  are invisible
• It doesnt matter how well known your brand is!
• Visitors will not guess your site name but will
  go through Google or Yahoo just to be safe

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But how to market to Search Engines?

• Unique Content
• Links to Your Site (ask!)
• Design Fundamentals make a difference
• Top Search Engines by Search Share, January 2005,
  U.S., Home Work
• Search Engine Searches in thousands Share of
  Total Searches
• Google Search 1,923,153 47
• Yahoo! Search 868,174 21
• MSN Search 523,188 13
• Total 4,085,880 81
• Note Searches are the total number of queries
  conducted at a search engine during the
  specified reporting period, excluding internal
  site searches.

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Search Engines count in links

• Search Engines measure popularity through links
• Dont be a copycat unique content matters

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Speak the Search Engine language

• Find out what you are saying to the search
  engines
• Keyword Density
• Bloggers Linking to you?
• Test Your Web Site Herehttp//www.schipul.com/en
  /sem/keywords/

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Buy your way to the top
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Get a hand from popular sites

• Often overlooked quality links
• Make sure your link is done right!
• Organization sites typically rank well.

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Feature Testimonials

• Assure visitors that you are a real company
  with a solid reputation
• Gain client approval to use a quote
• Even better, use client logos and link to their
  Web sites
• Never assume that everyone knows you want their
  business

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Focus on the visitor

• Cater to what the visitor wants and needs from
  your site, then give it to them
• If you are a association, offer online
  registration and
• case studies
• If you are a plastic surgeon, offer dynamic
  before-and-after photo galleries
• If you are targeting the younger generation,
  offer games
• or social software tools (myspace.com) that
  feature your brand

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Adopt a privacy policy

• Respect the privacy of your site visitors with a
• privacy policy
• Link to a written privacy policy at the bottom of
• every page
• Be sure policy is written in normal language,
• not legalese

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Come back

• How to make people return to your site?
• Whats New Section
• Ask The Expert or FAQ
• Testimonials
• E-Zines (information rich focused)
• Giveaways, Surveys Contests

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E-Zines

• E-Zinez.com EzineQueen.com
• Speed to Market
• Low cost No Cost Low Risk!
• Wide Distribution
• Easy Effective
• As easy as
• A) Copy Format Text
• B) Cut Paste Your Message
• C) Test Send BCC

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E-Zine Subscribers

• Existing Customer Database
• Give something For FREE
• Opt-in Sign Up On Web site
• Buy E-mails From List Companies
• Articles Featuring Your Expertise
• Publicity
• Post On E-zine Directories

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Website R.I.P

• Dead Links
• Site or Page Under Construction
• Too Many Fancy Graphics/Gadgets
• Backgrounds Take Too Long To Load
• Mixed Messages and Scroll Bars
• Burying Your Message
• Overall Unprofessional Image

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Time for time travelling

• Thanks to the Way Back Machine
• http//www.archive.org/web/web.php

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WayBackMachine
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Analysis

• Is the website effective?
• Is/can it being promoted?
• Are there signs of branding? Which?
• Visitors
• What are their needs vis-à-vis the organisation?
• Does it meet them?
• How is trust and loyalty being boosted?
• How is it reaching customers?
• Is it saving them time?
• Does it cater for different customers
  (Personalisation)?
• Is it usable? Why?
• Is the company diversifying or focusing on core
  business?
• What business model is being used?
• Web Catalogue Revenue Models
• Digital Content Revenue Models
• Advertising Supported Revenue Models
• Advertising-Subscription Mixed Revenue Models
• Fee-for-Transaction Revenue Models
• Fee-for-Service Revenue Models

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Questions?