On April 10th 2009 we wrote a blog entry entitled New AdWords Ads Increasingly Getting Stuck in the ‘Under Review’ Black Hole: “It seems like every new ad I create takes longer and longer to actually begin running. Depending on the client, and which AdWords GUI format they’re using, the new ads assume the label of ‘under review’ or ‘Active’, … Read More
Why won’t website visitors do what I want?
Pulling-in targeted visitors to your website is relatively easy. There’s Google AdWords, AdCenter, press releases, twitter, blogs and hundreds of other opportunities for jumping in front of the right people and waving your arms around so they don’t forget you. Getting them to stay, however, is more difficult. Many small and medium-sized companies make the mistake of too many assumptions. … Read More
Microsoft users more gullible?
An article on TechCrunch reveals that Microsoft users are significantly more likely to click on online ads than other users. The article suggests that Internet Explorer users are 40% more likely to click on an ad than Firefox users, 50% more likely than Apple Safari users, and 80% more likely than Chrome users. (Note that this is from a sample … Read More
There’s no such thing as too much reassurance
Trust is more important an idea than ever before, especially online. And high levels of cynicism and fear warrant taking as many measures to reassure your users as possible. The people interested in the solution provided by your product need to feel that they can trust you. They need to believe what you say on your website, to trust that … Read More
Embrace the disposable customer
In days gone by, it was considered good business practice to treat your customers well. They were handled promptly, courteously and with genuine respect. Thank goodness those days over. Today’s customers are disposable. As soon as their credit card details have been processed we can cut them off, forget about them, and ignore them when they need our help. Why? … Read More
Plagiarism, theft and business – why are so many companies stealing our content?
We all work hard to create and fine-tune our website content. And an unfortunate reality is that there are a lot of people out there who are quite happy to steal our content for their own purposes. Take this page on our own website, actually I should rephrase that. Take a look at our Google AdWords Management page: In particular: … Read More
How the mighty are falling – Microsoft’s lesson for 2010
Ten years ago Microsoft were indestructible. Google were operating out of a garage, and Apple were getting ready to release their first iBook. It was a very different world. Today, the once-mighty Microsoft are facing serious threats from major competition. And while I don’t believe that the demise of Microsoft is going to happen any time soon, I do believe … Read More
Twitter is dying (again) – my first New year’s prediction
WebProNews are reporting that new Twitter accounts are on the decline for the fourth month on the run. At risk of sounding extremely old-fashioned, Twitter are yet to reveal how they’re actually going to make money. Yet if or when they do finally start producing revenue, there’s little doubt that only a very small percentage of their user base will … Read More
Optimize at your own peril
The word “Optimize” implies a sense that it is a worthwhile or a good idea. For example: Financial optimization – sounds like a good idea. Search engine optimization – we know that we should all be doing this. However, optimized ad rotation is not a good idea when it comes to AdWords. You may have noticed when setting up an … Read More
The beginning of the end for free news?
It’s a classic story of old and new butting their heads against each other. Rupert Murdoch wants to make readers pay for some of their online content, while Google want to make it freely available. The twist here lies in trying to decide who has the power. Murdoch could simply forbid Google to index his content, but I doubt he’d … Read More
