by Center for American Progress

Start Internet Marketing: Web Technology 2.0

Web 2.0, the web technologies of today that allow for easier to use and more dynamic pages, makes Internet marketing for businesses increasingly flexible and affordable. Additionally, Web 2.0 provides midsize companies with opportunities to reach new audiences and measure marketing success. Before venturing into Web 2.0 Internet marketing, however, you need to survey all of your options and understand the conditions surrounding the use of each of these new marketing strategies. 

Blogs

Blogs are all over the web. Because of their informal style and use of dynamic web 2.0 content, blogs have become effective Internet marketing venues where companies can subtly market their business or for help go to www.split-test-profits.com. What’s great about blogs is that they invite discussion among consumers and can thus be used to see how consumers react to new products or services. 

One caveat about blogs as Internet marketing channels is that they need to be updated frequently – perhaps even several times a day. Also, blog content needs to be honest. Readers are becoming increasingly more alert to blog posts written for the sheer purpose of boosting a company’s sales. 

Social networking sites

Facebook, My Space, and Fraudster are some of the most popular social networking sites. Given the rising trendiest of such sites, it is no surprise that businesses are using them as a new Internet marketing medium. 

One thing to keep in mind when using social networking sites for your Internet marketing purposes is that the consumers in this particular channel are generally young. Expect them to be very critical of the way you carry out your marketing. Be sure to keep your marketing concepts innovative, especially as the younger generation is easily bored with traditional marketing techniques. 

In particular, take advantage of the various web 2.0 technologies found on these social networking sites. Widgets are a great example of web 2.0 tools that can be used as Internet marketing mediums. American Airlines, for example, has created a Facebook widget called “Travel Bag,” which the company uses to gather information about consumers. Aware of what individual Facebook users’ travel interests are, American Airlines is able to carry out their Internet marketing by sending the users emails and discount coupons that are in line with their individual preferences. 

Podcasts 

Podcasts are audio files that are played on a computer or an mp3 player. Podcasts available on the web feature topics ranging from home improvement to sports to personal life. These audio programs are now commonly being used as an additional Internet marketing channel. Whirlpool, for example, regularly releases podcasts that focus on family-centered topics, such as helpful cooking tips and Halloween costumes or go to www.popups-generator.com. Although these topics have nothing to do with Whirlpool products, the podcasts allow Whirlpool to convey an image of what kind of company they run – that is, one that focuses on catering to the needs of families. 

A caveat of using podcasts as an Internet marketing tool is that the effectiveness of this medium has yet to be verified. Marketers are currently unable to determine how many of the downloaded podcasts are actually listened to and this has lead to ambiguity regarding the potency of using podcasts for marketing.

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What Tiger Woods Can Learn From the Social Media Marketing Experts

As Tiger Woods demonstrated at the Masters, he still is one of the best golfers in the world, five months after the scandal surrounding him first broke. However, there are lessons that Tiger could have learned from the some of the biggest names in social media.

At one time, in a sports marketing world filled with risk, Woods is was as safe as it could get. He exuded class, consistency and excellence – qualities that prompted companies and brands, such as Buick, Electronic Arts, Tag Heuer and Accenture, to pay top dollar for the rights to capitalize on his name and image.

No company had a stronger association with Woods than the marketing goliath Nike. For more than a decade, Woods has been the driving force behind the company’s 0 million golf business. “Frankly, I think no one can argue that he’s probably one of the best hangars in the business in regards to clothing; he always does a great job in presenting our apparel and footwear and really makes a statement in how he looks on that golf course,” says Cindy Davis, general manager of Nike Golf.

THE RISE OF THE PERSONAL BRAND Nearly 10 years ago, management guru and best-selling business book author Tom Peters, launched the concept of personal branding with the cover story for Fast Company. Through the years, since Peters first brought the concept of “Me Inc.” forward, many image consultants, HR professionals, and sales trainers have encouraged their clients (and anyone else who would listen) to think about themselves as personal brands as they grew their entrepreneurial endeavours. No one more embodied this than Tiger Woods.

NEWS FLASH TIGER: “YOUR BRAND IS NOT WHAT YOU SAY IT IS…IT’S WHAT GOOGLE SAYS IT IS” So says Chris Anderson (editor-in-chief at Wired magazine and bestselling author of The Long Tail). For Tiger Woods that “golden image” all came to a crashing halt, when on November 17th, Eldrick “Tiger” Woods crashed his Cadillac SUV outside his home during a dispute with his wife. However, the SUV was not the only thing that crashed that day: so did the reputation of a once spotless brand. Yes, Tiger Woods was a brand, probably one of the most valuable brands in the world.

LESSONS FROM CHRIS BROGAN Now “Tiger”, one of the best students of the game there ever was, is having to learns lesson from social media gurus such as Chris Brogan. For many years, getting to “know” the real Tiger was not possible. He was very guarded of his life and image. He had built a persona that no one could ever live up to. Many believed that to be a result of the intense media attention he had on him since a young age.

At one time, there were a few similarities between Tiger Woods and Chris Brogan, such as:

* Extremely marketable brand
* People wanted to be connected with both of them
* People wanted to be them

However, there is one great difference, Chris Brogan built his brand by being open, available, quick, and responsive in all of the spaces he occupies. He is a prime example of a person who has seen a total shift in his professional and personal life through use of online communities to share his ideas and insights; and that has turned that into real-benefit for him.

The first lesson that Tiger could learn from Chris: do not lie or deceive your audience. A brand is about trust, and Brogan knows that a personal brand requires an even deeper trust – similar to that which we extend to our immediate family. Brogan respects that and knows that social communities are all about transparency and trust.

Chris Brogan manages and develops a very personal brand that has a huge audience (bigger than most big corporations, though maybe not as large as Tiger’s). Thus, the second lesson to Tiger is clear: In this new social media world, it is not about how your business connects and communicates, it is about how you as an individual build, nurture, and share personal brands.

In the end, the third lesson Tiger needs to learn is that a personal brand comes from within. As Mitch Joel states in his bestselling book, Six Pixel of Separation, a strong brand shines when the core values and belief systems of why it was created are as obvious as the logo, packaging, website, and supporting marketing materials. That being said, brands rise (and fall) every day because each and every one of us is making decisions about that brand based on our own values and beliefs. From our internal gauge, we decide if the products or services “fit” with who we are – or who we want to be. Has there ever been a more public display of this than with Tiger Woods? It was not his golf game that brought him down; it was how he, in particular his actions, measured against our core values that has knocked him off his pedestal.

YOU CAN’T FAKE SINCERITY As you listen to Tiger talk about finding the love of the game again, and see him interact with fans, it reminds me of what Dan Pink wrote in his excellent book A Whole New Mind. In it, he writes about testing on the human face and the muscles used to control emotions. It turns out that, when we smile out of true happiness, certain muscles are activated that can’t be controlled. That means that when we fake smile versus making a genuine smile, our faces actually look different. So when you watch Tiger go around Augusta National Golf Club this weekend, in search of his fifth Masters title, ask yourself is he faking it? We all know he has the passion to win, that has never been in doubt. I mean is he faking his passion to connect with the people around the game. Because making real connections is what really counts in the new social media world.

There is no doubt that the world’s number one golfer will regain his top golf form as some point. The question remains is will “Tiger Woods the brand” regain its marketing ability? As Geoffrey Colvin’s book, Talent is Overrated, points out, one of the things that made “Tiger” great was his willingness to put in the 10,000 hours of deliberate practice needed to achieve that greatness. Let us hope he learns the lesson that many of our social media gurus already know: you cannot fake your personal brand in less than 10,000 hours.

Erik Qualman is the author of “Socialnomics: How Social Media Transforms the Way we Live and Do Business.” Socialnomics made Amazon’s No. 1 best sellers list in the US & UK after three weeks of publication and is consistently on the top 100 best selling business books list. Qualman is a frequently requested international speaker for the Fortune 500 and has been highlighted in numerous media outlets including: BusinessWeek, the New York Times, CNET, the San Francisco Chronicle, Mashable, USA Today, Forbes, CBS Nightly News and The Huffington Post. He has been fortunate to share the stage with Alan Mulally, CEO of Ford, Lee Scott, CEO and chairman Walmart, Jose Socrates, prime minister of Portugal, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, CEO of Nokia, Actress Julie Andrews, former Vice President Al Gore and former Republican presidential candidate Sarah Palin. His video, “Social Media Revolution,” is one of 2010′s most viral YouTube videos. Qualman is an MBA professor at the Hult International Business School. For the past 16 years Qualman has helped grow the online marketing and eBusiness capabilities of many companies including Cadillac, EarthLink, EF Education, Yahoo, Travelzoo and AT&T. He is a columnist for ClickZ, while also owning the social media blog socialnomics.com. Qualman has a BA from Michigan State University (MSU) and an MBA from the University of Texas. He is currently the global vice president of Digital Marketing at EF Education. He was Academic All-Big Ten in basketball …

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What Tiger Woods Can Learn From the Social Media Marketing Experts

As Tiger Woods demonstrated at the Masters, he still is one of the best golfers in the world, five months after the scandal surrounding him first broke. However, there are lessons that Tiger could have learned from the some of the biggest names in social media.

At one time, in a sports marketing world filled with risk, Woods is was as safe as it could get. He exuded class, consistency and excellence – qualities that prompted companies and brands, such as Buick, Electronic Arts, Tag Heuer and Accenture, to pay top dollar for the rights to capitalize on his name and image.

No company had a stronger association with Woods than the marketing goliath Nike. For more than a decade, Woods has been the driving force behind the company’s 0 million golf business. “Frankly, I think no one can argue that he’s probably one of the best hangars in the business in regards to clothing; he always does a great job in presenting our apparel and footwear and really makes a statement in how he looks on that golf course,” says Cindy Davis, general manager of Nike Golf.

THE RISE OF THE PERSONAL BRAND Nearly 10 years ago, management guru and best-selling business book author Tom Peters, launched the concept of personal branding with the cover story for Fast Company. Through the years, since Peters first brought the concept of “Me Inc.” forward, many image consultants, HR professionals, and sales trainers have encouraged their clients (and anyone else who would listen) to think about themselves as personal brands as they grew their entrepreneurial endeavours. No one more embodied this than Tiger Woods.

NEWS FLASH TIGER: “YOUR BRAND IS NOT WHAT YOU SAY IT IS…IT’S WHAT GOOGLE SAYS IT IS” So says Chris Anderson (editor-in-chief at Wired magazine and bestselling author of The Long Tail). For Tiger Woods that “golden image” all came to a crashing halt, when on November 17th, Eldrick “Tiger” Woods crashed his Cadillac SUV outside his home during a dispute with his wife. However, the SUV was not the only thing that crashed that day: so did the reputation of a once spotless brand. Yes, Tiger Woods was a brand, probably one of the most valuable brands in the world.

LESSONS FROM CHRIS BROGAN Now “Tiger”, one of the best students of the game there ever was, is having to learns lesson from social media gurus such as Chris Brogan. For many years, getting to “know” the real Tiger was not possible. He was very guarded of his life and image. He had built a persona that no one could ever live up to. Many believed that to be a result of the intense media attention he had on him since a young age.

At one time, there were a few similarities between Tiger Woods and Chris Brogan, such as:

* Extremely marketable brand
* People wanted to be connected with both of them
* People wanted to be them

However, there is one great difference, Chris Brogan built his brand by being open, available, quick, and responsive in all of the spaces he occupies. He is a prime example of a person who has seen a total shift in his professional and personal life through use of online communities to share his ideas and insights; and that has turned that into real-benefit for him.

The first lesson that Tiger could learn from Chris: do not lie or deceive your audience. A brand is about trust, and Brogan knows that a personal brand requires an even deeper trust – similar to that which we extend to our immediate family. Brogan respects that and knows that social communities are all about transparency and trust.

Chris Brogan manages and develops a very personal brand that has a huge audience (bigger than most big corporations, though maybe not as large as Tiger’s). Thus, the second lesson to Tiger is clear: In this new social media world, it is not about how your business connects and communicates, it is about how you as an individual build, nurture, and share personal brands.

In the end, the third lesson Tiger needs to learn is that a personal brand comes from within. As Mitch Joel states in his bestselling book, Six Pixel of Separation, a strong brand shines when the core values and belief systems of why it was created are as obvious as the logo, packaging, website, and supporting marketing materials. That being said, brands rise (and fall) every day because each and every one of us is making decisions about that brand based on our own values and beliefs. From our internal gauge, we decide if the products or services “fit” with who we are – or who we want to be. Has there ever been a more public display of this than with Tiger Woods? It was not his golf game that brought him down; it was how he, in particular his actions, measured against our core values that has knocked him off his pedestal.

YOU CAN’T FAKE SINCERITY As you listen to Tiger talk about finding the love of the game again, and see him interact with fans, it reminds me of what Dan Pink wrote in his excellent book A Whole New Mind. In it, he writes about testing on the human face and the muscles used to control emotions. It turns out that, when we smile out of true happiness, certain muscles are activated that can’t be controlled. That means that when we fake smile versus making a genuine smile, our faces actually look different. So when you watch Tiger go around Augusta National Golf Club this weekend, in search of his fifth Masters title, ask yourself is he faking it? We all know he has the passion to win, that has never been in doubt. I mean is he faking his passion to connect with the people around the game. Because making real connections is what really counts in the new social media world.

There is no doubt that the world’s number one golfer will regain his top golf form as some point. The question remains is will “Tiger Woods the brand” regain its marketing ability? As Geoffrey Colvin’s book, Talent is Overrated, points out, one of the things that made “Tiger” great was his willingness to put in the 10,000 hours of deliberate practice needed to achieve that greatness. Let us hope he learns the lesson that many of our social media gurus already know: you cannot fake your personal brand in less than 10,000 hours.

Physics and marketing don’t seem to have much in common, but Dan Cobley is passionate about both. He brings these unlikely bedfellows together using Newton’s second law, Heisenberg’s uncertainty principle, the scientific method and the second law of thermodynamics to explain the fundamental theories of branding.
TEDTalks (video)

Ramon Ray, Technology Evangelist, is the editor of Smallbiztechnology.com and author of Technology Solutions for Growing Businesses (Amacom). He has written thousands of technology articles and news items for Smallbiztechnology.com and other media including: Inc Magazine, New York Enterprise Report, Black Enterprise Magazine, CNet, Var Business, TechTarget, Entreprenuer.com, Small Business Resources and others. He has also written for technology vendors including Microsoft, FileMaker and Everest. Ramon is not “just” a technology writer, but as a former small business technology consultant, he has years of hands on experience in building networks, installing software, upgrading computers and supporting the technology small businesses use on a daily basis. He is often quoted in the media, including the New York Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Entrepreneur Magazine, Inc Magazine, WCBS Radio, Crains New York, National Federal of Independent Business, Small Business Advocate Radio Show, Wells Fargo Small Business Roundup, Tech Talk with Craig Peterson and Smart Money. Ramon has brought his unique does of humor, technology insight and practical advice to many events including the United States Small Business Administration Service Core of Retired Executives “Strategies for Succeeding in Business”, Inc 500, PC Expo, Internet World, American Woman’s Economic Development Corporation, Business Development Institute and SMB Nation. Small Business Summit 2006, 2007 and upcoming 2008 …
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US $7.99 End Date: Monday Jun-04-2012 4:50:35 PDT Buy It Now for only: US $7.99 Buy it now | Add to watch list