My firm’s online but I am real…
Just a quick note to say that I’m featured in the UK’s “The Independent” daily newspaper. The article quotes me as saying that many Internet businesses fail because the people running them don’t plan properly.
Graham Jones
Blogs are more persuasive than advertising
According to this month’s Entrepreneur magazine, consumers are 50% more likely to be influenced by blogs and emails than by radio or TV advertising. So don’t let anyone tell you that blogging or email marketing have had their day. And if you’re in the TV advertising business – or if …
Companies need to set up internal blogs – now!
A new survey released by Accenture today shows that the availability of information within a business is seriously hampering productivity. Indeed, it seems that six out of every ten managers are unable to find the information they really need. And most managers waste around two hours a day trying to …
Five prerequisites for blogging success
Just came across a blog entitled “5 prerequisites for blogging success“. It contains solid, useful advice to help anyone who wants to use blogs in their business. One point it makes is the need to put in time and commitment to making your blog a success. You need to see …
Holiday web sites arrive late to the party
You would think that the travel industry knew a thing or two about Internet marketing. After all, many people now book flights, holidays and other travel online, rather than in traditional travel agencies or booking offices. However, the latest “Online Retail Holiday Readiness Report” from WebTrends shows that only 23% …
Business urged to respond to changing behaviour
A senior research executive at Universal McCann, Tom Smith, has urged companies to respond now to the changing behaviour of people, rather than wait until it’s too late. He makes his comments in the January 2007 Revolution magazine which published details of Universal McCann’s latest research on blogging. This has …
Is Six Apart blogging company ready to sell?
Today’s UK Sunday Times newspaper reports that Mena Trott, the co-owner of Six Apart (who produce TypePad and Movable Type) would be prepared to sell the company for less than $1bn. She also reveals that she wants a family and is going to review the future of the company this …
A new year, so expect changes to Internet marketing
At this time of year you will find dozens of people and organisations making all sorts of predictions about 2007. Many of the predictions will be complete tosh. Others will have some substance. However, there as one prediction tucked away in a list of ten for 2007 that caught my …
Don’t know what to blog about? Try politics.
If you want to get a top blog you need to write about politics or blogging itself. That’s the conclusion you can draw from a year-long study by Internet metrics analysts Nielsen. They measured the top blog postings according to how many people commented on them and how many links …
Big business is catching up with the Internet – at last
If you’ve heard me speak in public, you’ll know that one of the regular themes I talk about is the fact that a business needs several web sites, not just one. In the offline world, few businesses have one point of contact. But in the online world they seem to …
User-generated content wins at Google
Google has just published it’s list of the most searched terms for 2006. Seven out of the top ten are for user-generated sites. That tells us that most people are searching for sites where they can contribute – not just read. Your web site users want to take part – …
Stop focusing on your web site – talk to people!
Every day, web site owners ask me how they can get more business online. Often they are shocked when I say that the most important thing to do is to concentrate their activities offline. The main reason I give is that around 60% of people visit a web site having …
User generated content – it really, really is important
You will have read a few times in this web site that user-generated content, in my view, is an essential component of a good web site. (You can add your comments below if you disagree..!) However, it’s not just me bleating on about this. Every year, Time Magazine announces its …
Don’t make your web site too restrictive – someone will try to get round you
Think back to when you were a child; did you ever try to get round your parents? My seven year old son, Elliot, took us by surprise yesterday. We had been out to the annual Christmas dinner and party held by my wife’s employers. We had left the house at …
Blogging set to peak next year? What tosh..!
This morning I’ve already received a press release and several links to news stories based on it, all telling me that blogging is “set to peak” next year. According to Gartner, the IT consultancy organisation, blogging and user generated content will hit its peak in 2007. Even the BBC has …