the Web Chef's e-Bytes

Web Tidbits - So What's in Store for 2008?

I thought I'd look at a few projections for online marketing in 2008 from prognosticators around the Internet.  Reflecting the continued interest in online video, eMarketer is projecting that online video ads typically pre-rolls will increase 70% according to BrandWeek.  Search engine marketing will still capture the bulk of the projected $27.5 billion in expenditures with 40% of all online dollars. 

ZenithOptimedia is projecting that online advertising will surpass radio advertising in 2008 and will do the same for magazine advertising in 2010 according to PaidContent.org. 

2007 is touted as the year that page views as an online advertising metric begin to disappear due to the changing nature of served ads that are often not delivered in the same fashion according to MediaPost.  Newer metrics like time-based viewership are taking over.

In mobile advertising, Business Week reporter Olga Kharif, reports on Didier Kuhn's, Screen Tonic's CEO  sense that projections for mobile advertising are way too high.  He cites Gartner and Strategy Analytics estimates of $11 and 14.4 billion by 2011 as being way out of line.  He and others feel that consumer acceptance of mobile browsing still lags and that wireless carriers have also been slow to implement online advertising.  The growing number of iPhone users is seen as a positive in this area.  Another factor that could move this along is the growing convergence of the web and the phone worlds according to analysts.

JupiterResearch is estimating that e-mail spending both "relational and sponsored" will grow from $1.2 billion in 2007 to $2 billion by 2012 according to Online Media Daily.

The Consumer Electronics Association reports in enGadget, that over half of Americans now have a digital television, a good thing given the upcoming demise of analog delivery.

AdWeek reports on trends that they see in overall marketing that could impact online as well.  These include growth of branded entertainment, casual gaming, handmade goods, faux traditionalism and the growth in authenticity and transparency.  Mmmm, I wonder if any of the Presidential candidates have tuned in to these... 

Bacn Management - e-mail infoglut management strategies

According to The Wall Street Journal, the Radicati Group reports that "the average corporate e-mail user received 126 messages a day, up 55% from 2003".  This infoglut is the result not only of continuing problems with spam, but with the growth of what is now being called "bacn" or "e-mail you want, but not right now". While spam filters, white lists, black lists, trusted senders and other tools have been and continue to make inroads against spam; "bacn" both from external and internal sources is clogging e-mail inboxes.  This infoglut is creating major headaches for recipients and corporations alike.  The importance of this problem is clear with The Wall Street Journal article stating "Email overload is now considered a much bigger workplace problem than traditional email spam."

Companies are approaching the "bacn" growth with a number of strategies.  According to a recent article in Computerworld, one strategy being pursued is the introduction of enterprise RSS feeds.  These RSS feeds, much like those consumers are latching on to, allow workers to subscribe or be subscribed to content feeds that are relevant or critical to their work.  This narrowcasting can reduce the infoglut of e-mail.  I know that when given a choice between e-mail and RSS, I'll subscribe to an RSS feed, however if it is what I call "crispy bacn" (mmmm, my favorite) or messages that I really want to see, I like to receive these via e-mail.  The reason for this is that I subscribe to so many feeds (I know a glutton for punishment) that it can often be weeks or days to get to the feeds that I'm less interested in.  Among the enterprise RSS feed companies that are referenced in the article are Attensa, KnowNow and NewsGator,

In a different strategy for e-mail infoglut management, The Wall Street Journal reports (subscription required) on the growth of start-ups that are helping users manage their e-mail by tagging, sorting or re-directing it to different users.  The sorting takes place based on algorithms rather than user supplied factors.  For ClearContext, one of the companies cited in the article they reportedly look at your inbox and the speed in which you normally respond to that sender to determine how to tag the e-mail content. Other companies that are referenced in this article are Seriosity and Xobni (inbox spelled backwards - cute!).

As a professional with a background in corporate and marketing communications, efforts to improve internal communications like these will prove popular and useful in improving team productivity.

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Need help with your internal communications strategies? 

Drop me an e-mail or give me a call (608) 255 4092, I'd be happy to work with you to develop strategies for your Intranet, RSS feeds, internal e-mail, wikis or other tools that could be of use for improving worker productivity.

Paul Gibler
the Web Chef

Web Tidbits - Acquisitions of Interest to Marketers

September was a busy month in the M&A (Mergers and Acquisition) space for companies of interest to e-marketers.  Among the acquisitions that were announced during the month and the value of the acquisitions were the following:

• Nokia acquires Enpocket a global leader in mobile advertising. Value - Undisclosed, private company.
• Yahoo acquires Zimbra a "leader in e-mail and collaboration software". Value - $350 million..
• Idearc (Superpages.com and Verizon Yellow Pages) acquires Switchboard.com increasing their local search reach and opportunities for local advertisers. Value - $225 million.

New Column in Wisconsin Technology Network - 583 reasons to wonder is e-mail dead or alive?

I've written a new article for Wisconsin Technology Network "583 reasons to wonder is e-mail dead or alive?" that discusses where e-mail is at as a communications and marketing medium. 

The article is one in an ongoing series that I've written called Buzz Networks on some of the latest trends effecting e-business and marketing.

Paul Gibler
the Web Chef

Web Tidbits - e-Mail

Wireless e-Mail Access
Gartner analysts are predicting that wireless e-mail access will reach commodity status by 2012.  Given that only 2% of business e-mail accounts are currently wireless enabled this is a significant increase in a relatively short period of time.

e-Mail Marketing Trends
38% of companies have a centralized e-mail marketing department according to Jupiter Research. 

83% of companies are using e-mail marketing according to Forrester Research.

e-Mail Usage is lower and declining among teens as they substitute instant messaging, text messaging and social network messages according to a recent iMedia Connection article. The article references that even among college students we're seeing a declining usage of e-mail as they engage with the immediacy of alternative message delivery.

e-Marketing Nibblets - At Home and At Work e-Stats

Business Week has compiled a nice visual representation with data from Forrester and the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth that showcases some of the trends in at home and at work usage of the Internet.  At home data (from Forrester) includes 2005 and 2006 statistics on the number of people buying and downloading music files - 9.4 million (2006), those using social networking sites - 7.9 million (2006), those watching online video - 15.5 million (2006), receiving photos via e-mail - 48.7 million (2006) and using e-mail - 75.5 million (2006).  At Work data (from the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth) includes some similar data looking at the social networking tools that companies are using online video - 24%, social networking sites - 27%, and adds in message/bulletin boards - 33% and 3 Web 2.0 techniques - blogging - 19%, wikis - 17% and podcasting - 11%.

In the same synopsis of data they reference LinkedIn and IBM, with the IBM data stating that 20,000 IBM employees use wikis and 2500 publish internal blogs.

IAB e-Mail Deliverability Guide

The IAB (Interactive Advertising Bureau) has issued a white paper "IAB Marketer and Agency Guide to e-Mail Deliverability".  The report defines deliverability, explains why you should care, examines reasons for deliverability problems and covers recommendations for improving deliverability.

Research Reports on Word of Mouth Marketing

WOMMA (Word of Mouth Marketing Association) reported on a research study by Sharpe Partners that found that 89% of Internet users shared content via e-mail, with 25% sharing content with others at least once a day.  Humor led the way in terms of category of message that was shared.

The takeaway message for marketers is help encourage message transmission by including "mail to a friend" or "mail to a colleague" on key information you want to have shared with others. 

Meanwhile, Jackie Huba reports on research conducted by Keller Fay that shows that brand mentions come up during conversation on average 56 times in a week.  Interestingly, the research showed that discussions were generally positive with 62% of conversations falling in this category and were often, 41% of the time, generated as the result of advertising campaigns or something heard in the media.