Companies of all different sizes are spending considerable money on web analytics. In addition, the marketing departments are being transformed into analytical data intelligence centers. They are spending large sums of money on tools such as Ominiture, Coremetrics, and Webtrends. They are in hiring mode for analysts and analytics managers. This is starting to raise some questions about the viability of a corporate analytics initiative. Specifically, how efficiently are these tools being used? If you have not done so recently, you might want to take a closer look at your analytics platform and determine the features you are using. Some of these analytics platforms are very feature rich and do many things. Remember, you are paying for this platform as an ongoing expense to the business. Are you REALLY using the unique dash boarding capabilities of the platform and leveraging it to justify the ongoing expense and resources to support it. The goal of intelligence dashboards are to be simple and easy to read. If your reporting needs are fairly simple (and many are simple!), you might want to re-evaluate and consider something free such as Google Analytics, or a platform that is a bit more bare bones. This might be an opportunity to reduce this expense from your marketing budget.

If you run a sizable online affiliate program, then you surely have some affiliates who do squirrel marketing for you. Squirrel marketing is a type of marketing where an affiliate writes reviews, blogs, and articles about a website to drive traffic to another website. The website they are directing traffic towards, is a website they belong as an affiliate member. These affiliates may have their own website and write about the products marketed by the affiliated website. They will discuss the affiliated website as a review or simply answer questions and emails. This entire effort by the affiliate is to gain the trust of potential customers and get them to click on their affiliate link. Once the customer clicks on the affiliate link, a cookie follows them to the affiliated site. If they make a purchase, the affiliate will get a commission… yeah, I know… those last two sentences are affiliate programs 101. The novelty is the affiliate doing the squirrel marketing. They are positioning themselves to sound like a 3rd party opinion. Little do many customers know they are actually a business partner (affiliate) of the affiliated website. The squirrel marketing technique is perhaps one of the quickest ways to build trust with a customer, and get them to buy. This fits nicely into a commerce environment as a customer only buys two things: Solutions to their problems and good feelings. The good feelings come from trust and credibility. It’s an old technique that has been brought into the digital world and is being used with great success. What makes this an old technique? Think back to many of the reviews you see in popular trade publications. Often times the car deemed “Car of The Year” is often built by a car company who spends the significant advertising dollars with the publication. Online affiliate squirrel marketing has a similar relationship. The site they recommend in their review, is often the site they are an affiliate.

Today Google announced it was going to focus on more “Quality” results in searches. This comes on the heals of mounting criticism that its results favored information of little value to users. Ah, those content farms that consist mostly of spam and duplication of other sites. You know who you are *cough* *cough* Demand Media *cough* Incorporated *cough*. Seriously, if you are not familiar with content farms, and you manage a website, you should know about them. Demand Media is perhaps the king of generating content spam to skew search results in Google. They own sites like cracked.com, eHow.com and answerbag.com. In the world of SEO the saying has long been “content is king”. The new saying will now be “value centric content is king”. This goes well beyond the relevancy weighting in the search algorithm. Only on a content farm site would you find article content such as “How to put toothpaste on a toothbrush”. The problem is this would show up on the front page of your Google search while you were searching for periodontal diseases. Toothpaste and toothbrush are relevant terms in Google, but the article is worthless to the searched topic. Content farm articles are out to get the top rankings to sell their ads. Valuecentric information about the subject matter is not their focus. This is why so many Google users have become upset with the search engine.

So why now?

This is not a new problem for Google. It has been around for many years. The answer is simple.

The term recycling can mean many things, but most conjure a positive image of eco friendliness. I’m sure many of you can remember the classic image of a person with a poker walking roadside spearing aluminum cans and placing them into a bag. This is still the popular method of choice in outdoor event clean ups. It is not a fun job, but an important one. It would be safe to say many of us consider recycling as a necessary task. Notice I use the word “task” in that last sentence. It begs the question: Is recycling fun or is it just simply a task? The website ecycler.com has done something that has sparked a little fun into recycling. They have developed an interesting series of recycling videos called Crush That Can that are mesmericly fun. If you like seeing stuff smashed, bashed and pulverized into submission…in SLOW MOTION, then a quick visit to their blog ( http://blog.ecycler.com/crush-that-can/ ) is a must see. The focus is typically an aluminum can getting bashed and thrashed. Besides, where else can you go to see an old 8-inch floppy disk drive crush a Coke can in slow mo?

The DIY (Do-It-Yourself) market has always been strong, and will remain that way, particularly in lean economic times. One of the most important ingredients in the DIY segment has been the information that comes with it. If it is something dear ‘ol dad didn’t teach you, then we look for instruction. In pre-Internet years, I’m talking about those Chilton auto repair manuals, Mel Bay music instruction books, and Betty Crocker cookbooks to name just a few. In post-Internet years, those are now something we could see somebody bring to the popular TV show The Antique Roadshow. Today, the Web is now the How-To manual for most of us. There are countless websites giving us the information with a simple finger tap on the touchpad. However, there is one website that continues to be the top research tool for many. It offers something many of us did not see years ago…non-professionals giving everyday people instruction. It shows people doing a job correctly or incorrectly. In the case of people attempting to do the job incorrectly, it often leaves us laughing. These videos are helpful too, as it sometimes leaves you thinking, “Wow, I’m glad to see other people struggling with this…” which, ironically, can be a real confidence builder for some. We also see some of the world’s best professionals, giving instruction on this website. The website I am talking about is YouTube. DIY videos on YouTube range from just about everything including watch repair, blending cosmetic blush, and somebody chopping onions without shedding a tear. The best part? These videos are free. Which begs the next question: Is there money to be made with DIY videos served from a royalty free platform? The answer is “Yes”, but it sometimes takes on a different twist. Let’s take a look at an example.

1A Auto has developed a series of videos demonstrating how certain parts can be replaced on your car with some simple instruction. The videos feature an experience mechanic (and co-founder of 1A Auto). One of their videos demonstrates how to replace the window actuator on an older Pontiac Grand Am. This is a whopping $600 job at the local dealer. 1A Auto shows you how to do it yourself for under $50. I followed their video step by step, without paying a fee to see it, and fixed my wife’s driver side window. The total cost of repair was $34.52. 1A Auto spent time and money creating that video. How did they make money? They are in the business of selling auto parts. Their videos show people how replace the part AND provide them a link where to buy the correct part on 1A Auto’s website. I clicked on the link and bought the window part from their website. They have figured, if more people are shown how to replace the part easily, they will buy the part, and attempt the repair. There are many parts on the A1 Auto website which have an accompanying YouTube installation video created by A1 Auto.

People come to the Web for two things: Information and socializing. In the case of DIY, we are not only talking about information, but who can communicate it the best and make life easier. This has long been the principal of any How-To manual. The only thing that has changed is how that information is now delivered.

To those of you unfamiliar with the squeeze page, it is created to solicit opt-in email addresses from prospective subscribers. Those of you familiar with website squeeze pages know the dynamics behind of making these click throughs the carrot on the stick. Squeeze pages are often a single web page intended to get a user’s information (i.e. email address, name,…etc.), that do not provide any means of exit until they are satisfied. Navigation and hyperlinks are almost always absent from squeeze pages. Their focus is to get your email address for following up later with direct marketing materials. You most likely have ran into the squeeze page without recognizing it. How do they get you to want to hand over your information? It is simple, they offer something you want. It’s similar to a dog trainer. The trainer requires the dog to do a trick before the it gets what it wants: A treat! Sometimes a simple offer of something “Free” is all it takes. The link might read, “Click here for your free guide on how to get rich in the stock market.” You click on the link thinking a page or PDF will open with the free guide. However, a page opens asking for your email address. You must give your email address to get the free guide. This is the squeeze. Once you give your email address, the guide begins to open. We often connect something advertised as “Free” being something that does not require our money. On the Web, information is the currency. Your information is pure gold to marketers. In fact, many job sites have created the ultimate in squeeze pages. Give us ALL your information, and we will let you submit your resume. For those hurting for employment, they will gladly hand it all over. I have seen job sites stack up to fifteen pages of information gathering before you are allowed to submit your resume. Do you think all those pages are necessary for a job application? It’s a squeeze. Flash technology has created something I have called a squeeze ad. They appear often in sites with advertising revenue models. Sites such as the ChicagoTribune.com have large ads that take over nearly half your browser space until you find a tiny link that allows you to collapse the ad. The ad stays in your face until you hit that link. It’s a squeeze. However, they are not collecting email. Rather, your click is being counted as a confirmation of you seeing the ad. That is information. Again, information is currency on the Web. Marketers are getting a wealth of information everyday as the squeeze continues.

Data is like money. Money does not care who owns it, how people feel, or what people do with it…etc. Money has no feeling or emotions. It does not grow on trees. Money does not care if it is poorly managed or properly managed. There is no crime for mismanaging money, but there is often a price to be paid. The same holds true for data. When money is properly managed, it can create new money via investing. In turn, the new money can be used to acquire new things and privileges. The same holds true for data. When data is properly managed, it can be used to create new data via mining. Business intelligence created from data mining can be used to acquire new things (or create new products). When data is mismanaged, there is often no crime committed, but there is often a price to be paid. The sheer loss of data is similar to the loss of money. Without data, the power to create something new is lost. Likewise, the loss of money creates a loss in the power to acquire something new. Given the relationships just described between data and money, why do so many organizations mismanage their data? There is a divergence the occurs, and it is this: Data is often worth money, but money is not worth data. In other words, they are not completely interchangeable. Data must be converted into money before it can be used in commerce. The is the role of a financial institution. Your bank statement is data, but that data can only be converted into cash by a financial instrument (i.e. ATM, Debit Card, Cashier…etc.). Why do so many organizations respect their money, but disrespect their data? As society continues the transition from an industrial age into an information age, keep a close eye on the role of data. It may soon become the currency of choice as the dollar may someday lose respect.

Creating something from nothing is one of the best talents a person could possess. What is the best part about this talent? Everybody has it. Yet, very few use it. I have many people ask me about various patents, websites, e-books and products I have developed. They ask, “How did you come up with that?” or “What made you decide to do that?” Once I answer their question(s) they almost always respond with this statement: “Wow…I wish I could do that.” I often explain how they could create. Yet, still, the resistance in thought continues.

Question: Where is this “cannot do it” mindset coming from?

It’s a real tragedy…Particularly for a nation known for innovation and invention. I’m sure many of you have an answer to offer. Some of these people are hell bent on convincing others that they cannot create something meaningful. Interestingly, these same people are loaded with thoughts and information about various things. I often come to them for ideas…and they deliver! There is an overwhelming amount of people who think their ideas are not worth something monetarily, or their ideas do not offer enough substance. Phewy! Think about it. There are people making millions of dollars writing songs about their depression and heartache. These people got rich from their feelings of worthlessness and inadequacy. Gretchen Wilson wrote a song about being a redneck woman, and made history. Prior, she had never written a song before. She felt she had nothing to write about. She felt inadequate to be a country star after watching Faith and Shania showcase their beauty on videos. “I could never be that. I’m a redneck from a small town in Illinois.” It wasn’t until John Rich (of Big ‘n Rich) said “Write about being a redneck.” Once Redneck Woman hit the airwaves, it was a hit. Women across the country could relate. Gretchen was not alone in her thinking. They were not beauty queens in a video either. They could relate to the feelings of inadequacy.

One of the biggest things holding people back today is something called Compare and Despair. Compare yourself to somebody who has more than you, and see yourself as the deprived one. It is stink’n think’n. To achieve a higher level of thought and creativity, you must get past yourself. The best part about being you is simply being YOU. Believe in it, and believe in yourself. Creating something from nothing is often about having faith in yourself. Confidence is the engine powering invention.

The search engine is an online tool with two faces. On one hand, it is a tool designed to search for things on the Web. On the other hand, it is a tool for achieving visibility. The majority of folks use a search engine for finding things on the Web. However, for those of us in the Web marketing world, getting found on the Web is the quest. The search engine is actually a visibility engine. We want people to see us listed on the search results. We want people to know about us. We want to be discovered by everyone. We want people to click on our Web link. Many clients request to be placed in the top ranks of a search engine. They spend good money on SEO and SEM efforts. There is a list of keywords they always want to be seen under in search results. However, there is almost always a problem with their list. Their list is full of a bunch of common words they are interested in targeting. What makes this a problem? The words will almost always have stiff competition as other people want to be seen when those words are searched upon. Common words such as consulting, cars, phones, tomatoes or shoes are surely to be expensive in pay-per-click and very difficult to be organically ranked.

Question: How do you get visible in a visibility engine?
Answer: Be unique.
Unique words get found in a visibility engine. What are unique words? Words that are made up, misspelled, or appear in a unique pattern with other words. Let’s take a quick look at an example. Let’s say you are interested in getting visibility related to tomato soup. If you have a forum, blog or video series you might want to cleverly name it one of the following:
Toomato Soup – A misspelled word
Twomato Soop – A made up word
Twomade Oh Soup – A unique pattern of words
Two Made A Soup - A unique phrase
As of this writing nobody shows up under those words in reference to tomato soup. Is this a visibility opportunity? You bet! These four examples would only cost pennies in an SEM campaign because nobody is investing in those words. Organically in SEO, these four examples are winners again. Nobody is using them. Yet, when these four examples are said out loud, they all sound like tomato soup…a couple of expensive pay-per-click words with heavy organic ranking competition.

There is a skill rarely discussed, and it is so important, that you must know about it. It is a skill that is completely overlooked in the academic world. Yet, it is a skill used almost daily by just about every profession. If you are in business development or technology, then you have certainly used this skill. If you have ever tried to sell an idea to somebody, then you have used this skill. If you have ever tried to keep people’s undivided attention, then you have used this skill. Are you wondering what skill I am talking about? I will tell you in a minute. Some folks have become very good at this skill. As a result, they have become very successful. They have been able to convince crowds to listen closely. In fact, if you want somebody to immediately focus on something, this is the skill to master. If you want people to listen to every word you say, this is the skill to master. If you want people to read through your website and buy things, then this is the skill to master. By now, you are probably thinking, “Okay, enough already! What is this skill? Please state it!” If you have read to this point, then you have just experienced somebody using this skill on you. Do you want to know what the skill is I am talking about? Okay. Here it is…The skill is the ability to build curiosity. When people are curious, they are open. You cannot be pushing something away at the same time you are curious about it. This is powerful when you meet people who are resistant or unapproachable. Curiosity is the nutcracker. It can make the most stubborn turtle come out of it’s shell. That tough customer or manager that keeps saying “No.” to everything…make him or her curious. You will watch that “No.” turn into “Oh?” Building curiosity and learning how to manage it, is a skill. Be sure it is in your toolbox.