The 7 Pillars of Digital Marketing Blog

Classified Folder On Cross-Media Metrics: By IAB, 4As, and ANA March 1, 2011 – 5:23 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

This is hardly a new theme in the discussion.  Consumers are embracing content on various channels in various forms. The interactive marketing sector will need to find appropriate methodologies for measuring viewers.

The Interactive Advertising Bureau, the Association of National Advertisers, and the American Association of Advertising Agencies are collectively taking the matter into their own hands.  I admire this level of aggressiveness because trade bureaus are the gatekeepers to an industry. They understand the purchasing habits, the ecosystem, and the neuroses.  The Federal bureaus have stepped in to regulate the transfer of content through net neutrality.  It will be the first of several legislative acts bandied around Capitol Hill.

This report has the finer details of the initiative named, “Making Measurement Make Sense”.  It will be interesting to see how these trade organizations conduct their research.  As the release states, the purpose is to give a benchmark for digital buyers to organize their finances and set currency for cross-channel content.    

It will be interesting to see the end result for several reasons. Will greater priority be given to nascent industries like mobile, especially with smartphone technology enabling content to travel between the laptop? Apple and Google are prime players in software for both the software and hardware marketplaces for consumers.  Who will they align with?  How will the trade association handle the growing chasm of ISP service quality between metropolitan centers and agrarian landscapes?  Do they have the clout to lobby for federal involvement? It is a neglected marketplace where growth is possible.

I am also curious about the currency.  Will small digital marketers have a say when new metric categories arise that may better accurately reflect demographic habits?  Are advertisers willing to be flexible for that education to see the light of day, enabling a marketplace to set the price for those technologies? We will stream content live for the answer.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in 7 Pillars of Digital Marketing, blog, Digital Media, Interactive Marketing, Marketing, Mobile Applications, Pay Per Click (PPC), Website Analytics | No Comments »
Tags: Blueliner Marketing, digital marketing agency nyc, marketing trade associations, new york digital marketing agency, new york interactive marketing agency, online advertising agency nyc

Does Site Speed Still Matter For SEO? February 22, 2011 – 6:39 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

On blog SEOmoz.com, Google recently announced this statement. Site speed will be a critical metric to understand a site’s usability. Then it will be ranked accordingly on the search index.  For the uninitiated, site speed is the measurement of how long a queried page loads to full resolution. That result is measured in conjunction with its success in comparison to other pages in cyberspace.  Google has a Webmaster Analytics blog site to answer more details about the mechanisms of its search algorithm.  

How does this affect web architects and copywriters who look to optimize the site for SEO? The relevance of site speed is negligible for SEO rankings, according to Google.  Fewer than 1% of web pages are affected by site speed in their implementation. Google also is only measuring queries written in English on Google.com.  A page’s relevancy is important, meaning that web site content remains the last word for a good web site. That content must be filled with relevant keywords, pertinent copy, and an integrated design palette. I could ask web analytics if it is the chicken or the egg?

The consumer wants a website that will load up smoothly with crisp, vivid design and some flash.  Nothing more or less.  In New York, a fair number of people pay for good ISP (internet service protocol). When making a decision about purchasing goods online, a website that does not load properly is a death knell. Customer service never has an opportunity to engage with potential customers.  Conversions and sales do not happen. The bottom line lies unnourished. To conclude, speed kills. Again.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in 7 Pillars of Digital Marketing, blog, Search Engine Optimization, Website Analytics, Website Design | No Comments »
Tags: Blueliner Marketing, digital marketing agency nyc, internet marketing ny, new york seo media agency, SEO, web analytics news

A Mystery File: Retail Web Analytics February 9, 2011 – 12:36 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

Web analytics are still a mystery to many common internet users.  Some are unaware of its functionality in terms of measuring digital behavior.  They view it as yet another tool that is created by tech czars to befuddle.  E-commerce developers are fully aware of their existence, but not always clear of its importance in campaign strategy.  

According to this entry from Adobe’s blog, the online retail industry is a $135 billion business which projects to grow exponentially over the next three years to $234 billion. This level of development makes it critical for retailers to understand the role of web analytics in their digital strategies.  Adam Egbert lists some key points your business should consider when reviewing your cyber commitments.

1.  Know Your Site.

I’m serious.  The statement is so simple that businesses easily confuse it.  Is your website providing video content? Are you selling digital coupons? Are you providing a forum to discuss businesses? Goods and services?  Many people develop websites because the cost is hardly prohibitive.  The website mission, when clarified, will go a long way towards structuring your web analytics.  These tools should be integrated into your digital strategy rather than an appendage.

Are they looking at subdomains (site pages)? If your website displays goods available for purchase, then a PPC budget is necessary for advertising.  Page views and bounce rate are pertinent metrics to see the effectiveness of your campaign. Unique visitors are also a nice start. You can upgrade your user experience according to their profiles. One key is implementing relevant design.   Those metrics grow with a solid list of SEO keywords that rise on the index list.  Your products need to be associated with keywords that will drive traffic to the site.

For more details on building a strong analytics platform, click .

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in 7 Pillars of Digital Marketing, blog, eCommerce, Website Analytics | 1 Comment »
Tags: Blueliner Marketing, digital marketing agency nyc, ecommerce development agency nyc, web analytics agency new york, web marketing new york

Numbers Can Lie November 18, 2010 – 6:08 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

With Twitter announcing the impending release of an analytics toolboard this week, social media gains a little more credibility as a distributor of real-time content.  According to Twitter executives, the microblogger will measure user accounts’ tweets for the most popular, unfollowed users, and hashtags.  Tweets also can be filtered into specific categories.  It is a sound strategy to ensure corporations that social media has tools to get an accurate reading of consumer products and the value of their services. One interesting point in the article, however, was this.  Twitter and Gnip, a social media data aggregator, currently entered an interesting partnership.  Businesses are able to buy and analyze specific tweets, but not display and resell them. It is possible that Twitter executives fear that security protocols would be compromised.  I also think that Twitter will take this step and find a third party suitor in the future.  They have a methodical business strategy and it has worked well for them.

We know that the days of clipping images onto a cork board and rubber cement are over.  Nowadays, you have programs like Adobe and Avid to brush up images.  Web analytics help corporations become more accountable with their account strategies.  You can gain an understanding through pay per click advertisements, unique page visits, the percentage of time spent on a site, and conversion rates (linked sale transactions).  These are just a few metric categories.  Carl Warner wrote a reflective piece on AdWeek discussing the nature of today’s advertising philosophy.  He warns that “metrics can illuminate things we couldn’t dream of being able to see 25 years ago, but the science should complement the ‘art’ in a decision, not supersede it”.  This is the danger of viewing metrics too closely. Numbers can fill in a space, but they don’t tell the story.  Hastiness can also hurt your business twice as much.  Be careful when pulling the plug.

At Blueliner, we are using analytics to improve client campaigns and website performance, but a report will never tell you everything. It takes a person analyzing the numbers to determine what they really mean and what the implication is. This is our mission, and we carry it outside of the box daily.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in Affiliate Marketing, blog, Blog Marketing, Business News, Interactive Marketing, Marketing, Pay Per Click (PPC), Social Media Marketing, Website Analytics | No Comments »
Tags: adweek, Blueliner Marketing, carl warner, digital marketing agency nyc, new york seo media agency, new york web analytics agency, online advertising agency new york, twitter analytics

Weekly Blueliner Newsminer October 22, 2010 – 4:42 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

1.  Networks Not Googling For TV

In an early strike, television rivals, set with websites that spool their programming such as Hulu, are balking to offer the same liberty for Google’s nascent television module.  Seeing the cannibalization of music from Google’s legendary search algorithms, networks are smart to hold onto their valued assets until an appropriate structure of online advertising can be developed.  Google in turn has asked network televisions to do a quality search engine optimization to ferret out piracy sites.  They have also offered to do an automatic deletion of unauthorized results.  The model is still in construction, so return to your regularly scheduled program.

2.  An Acid Tablet Market

Apple CEO Steve Jobs ripped the tablet competition earlier this week, saying that smaller models are not capable of creating good mobile applications. In his words, the 7-inch tablet is “DOA.  Dead On Arrival.”  Other people aren’t so sure, thinking that everyone could find a niche for their device.  It’s clear that Jobs is feeling some heat from Android’s burgeoning rise in the mobile sector for both smartphones and hardware.  The MacBook Air was released this week with a new Mac App store that lists guidelines for development.  Earlier this year, that move would have been unthinkable.  The tablet competition is interesting right now.

3.  HP Releases The Slate, at $800

After a lot of press snippets and some kinks ironed out, H-P releases its own tablet, The Slate.  As mentioned earlier, the consumer demand is unclear, but HP will give it a shot.  The device runs on a Windows 7 platform and has a USB Port with a megapixel camera.  Here’s a longer write-up on Endgaget with a short video.  Check there for a future recap.

4.  China Launches Own Map Service

As Google still fights for its web marketing presence in the People’s Republic, Map World was released for the populance by The State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping. The website is quite rudimentary, looking like it was created back in 1999. It promises to possess millions of topographic images taken via satellite of the global parameters.  Google Earth does this scanning in milliseconds.  I don’t know who is playing who here, but Google Earth is still the champion of online map surveillance.

5.  USPS Plans To Appeal Price Increase Rejection

The USPS, in response to a ruling made on September 30 by the Postal Regulatory Commission, is not leaving their demand for an exigent price increase to grow cold.  After the USPS files with the Court of Appeals, then other parties can make their case for either side.  Direct marketers have already sides with the Postal Regulatory Commission, claiming that the law was interpreted correctly regarding the ability to set postage pricing under extraordinary circumstances.  This ruling could be crucial for philanthropic organizations that depend on direct marketing to engage loyal donorbases.  A continuing shift to e-mail marketing could be in the cards if the ruling is overturned.

That’s the Blue News.  Have a good weekend.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in blog, Business News, Digital Media, Interactive Marketing, Marketing, Marketing Agencies, Mobile Applications, Mobile Marketing, Website Analytics, World | No Comments »
Tags: apple, Blueliner, Blueliner Marketing, digital marketing agency nyc, e-mail marketing agency nyc, hp tablet, online advertising agency nyc, seo media agency nyc, usps, weekly blueliner newsminer

The Online Ad Is Back..And Back In Black October 19, 2010 – 10:29 am				Abdul Fattah Ismail

Online advertising is coming back with strength.  According to this note from paidContent.org via Magna Global, web advertising revenues will reach $25.6B, an increase of 12%.  Display advertising has led the charge, as e-commerce merchants gear up for the holiday spending season, which starts in earnest after Thanksgiving.  Strangely, however, analysts have noticed the decrease in market share of direct media. Direct media is the umbrella term given to lead generation, pay per click advertising, online yellow pages, and e-mail marketing.  Large technology firms nevertheless continue to integrate websites in order to generate click-throughs and collect personal data for web analytics.

Yahoo aims to emulate the Facebook Connect module of multiple site integration with Y! Connect. An opportunity exists for Yahoo! to present the module as a potential boom for small and mid-size businesses looking to organize their interactive marketing services.  Philanthropic organizations can use Yahoo! for their e-mail marketing campaigns. E-mail marketing involves gathering extensive data on donors’ web activities to observe behavior, then tailoring your message using a hybrid of images and text to elicit the desired feedback:  revenue.  If a campaign has an extensive reach with quality content, then traffic flows. The Y! Connect hopes to deliver on this elusive adage.

Yahoo!, despite its management uncertainty, remains credible with the public as an e-mail provider. Facebook’s continual privacy issues have left the door open.  Can Yahoo! step in and yodel? Only if they can step up their security protocols, and the market is always kind to those with capital.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in blog, Business News, Content Marketing, Digital Media, Email Marketing, Interactive Marketing, Marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Small Business, Website Analytics | 1 Comment »
Tags: Blueliner Marketing, click fraud agency new york, digital marketing nyc, interpublicis group, new york e-mail marketing agency, paid content.org, y connect, Yahoo

Blueliner Webinars 2010 September 30, 2010 – 6:41 pm				Riyaad

Blueliner Marketing, LLC is proud to reintroduce its successful webinar series on Internet Marketing. For years, various members of the Blueliner team have lead webinar discussions on Internet Marketing, SEO Best Practices, Web Development, and Marketing Strategy for companies worldwide.

This fall, Blueliner CEO and visionary Arman Rousta will lead a series of webinars, giving audiences insight into Blueliner’s award-winning strategy. These hour-long, informative sessions will take place twice a month from the comfort of your home or office, with different members of Blueliner’s team providing insight and lending their expertise.

The first of these webinars is set to take place on Tuesday October 12^th, 2010 at 2 PM EST.  Blueliner CEO Arman Rousta will lead you through the top Web Design Trends of 2010, where you will discover the difference between a good website and a great website. Your website’s navigation, graphics, and layout could be the difference in hundreds of thousands of dollars of potential revenue. Learn where your company stands and what you can do to improve. Rousta will also lead audiences through the 7 Pillars Approach to web design and provide insight to social media trends and the importance of mobile integration.

Blueliner will follow the October 12^th webinar with Arman Rousta’s renowned “7 Pillars of Internet Marketing” on Wednesday October 27^th. Rousta’s “7 Pillars” outlines the basic principles of Blueliner Marketing and has led us to be one of the most successful Internet Marketing companies.

Blueliner’s success is partly credited to their “World is Flat” business model. This model provides 24/7 implementation and ROI-centric Internet marketing methodologies. With offices already in New York, India, Bangladesh, and an office opening in Macedonia (2011), Blueliner has become a world-wide success and a model for all businesses looking to expand overseas. A webinar scheduled for November 11^th, 2010 will discuss expanding into Asia and making your business more efficient and cost-effective.

Information on upcoming webinars can be found in the Events Section of BluelinerNY.com. Join Blueliner for a webinar and let their successful business strategies work for you!

Reservations for the Web Design Trends 2010 webinar are being taken now. Registration is free!

Posted by Riyaad
Posted in 7 Pillars of Digital Marketing, blog, CRM, eCommerce, Email Marketing, Interactive Marketing, Marketing, search engine marketing, Search Engine Optimization, Small Business, web development, Website Analytics, Website Design | No Comments »
Tags: arman rousta, Blueliner Marketing, blueliner webinars 2010, digital marketing nyc, riyaad edoo, web development agency nyc, website design agency nyc

Viralheat Lets You Know It’s Coming August 25, 2010 – 12:33 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

Viralheat is a new start-up company based in San Jose that tracks social media networks to help businesses track their campaign progress.  Their new service called Social Trends lets users gain instantaneous access to data and embed web analytics into editorial content.  Several large brands ranging from Oracle, MTV, and Disney are using the service to monitor feedback on brands, support programs, and other services.  The venture represents a more specialized version of Google Analytics, and could prove invaluable over time once social media marketing emerges as a lucrative force in the industry.  On the surface, an overlap of reporting capabilities is a concern

At the moment, corporations are still having difficulty tracking absolute revenue metrics from social media networks.  This tool is a solid first step in not only solving this quandry, but also to better engage with customers on products and services.  Corporations can also enforce quality control over their social media strategies rather than simply relying on an agency to do the heavy lifting.  They can work with a shop that has the specific tools to drive ROI with more cost certainty and aplomb to maximize efficiency.  We will see if Viralheat has an analytics goldmine on their hands.

Tweet

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in blog, Interactive Marketing, Social Media Marketing, Website Analytics | No Comments »
Tags: Blueliner, Blueliner Marketing, internet marketing agency ny, new york social media agency, social media analytics, viralheat social trends, viralheat.com

Agile Methodology In A Web Design Era August 11, 2010 – 5:25 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

Common folk who know little about their software besides the name think of the world agile as the physical characteristic they had during Pop Warner days.  It could also describe your abilities when you were a star shortstop in the Babe Ruth or American Legion leagues.  Maybe you were the cheerleader that jumped above the rafters with pom-poms dotting the air.  The prior definitions of agile do not apply in this piece.

We are discussing the agile methodology, which is growing as the choice for web development.  IT professionals have been going back and forth between the waterfall and agile developments.  The waterfall development is a classic linear, sequential approach to software design.  It is a methodical, fastidious approach for product building.  A glitch in the system can crumble a waterfall approach, and new code must be developed again.  A project’s capital structure crumbles if bugs consistently surface.  

Agile methodology fits the namesake like a glove.  The adaptability comes with a low overhead costs and is efficient for smaller teams.  These teams range from the project to the deployment, and break a project into separate puzzles that are affixed into a final portrait over time. A client, therefore, must be willing to take more initiative in the final product.  The rate of software development has increased, especially with mobile technology, and platforms must be ready for the synchronicity between desktop and mobile.  It’s coming by the nanosecond, and project development needs to be agile in a shift age.

In short, waterfall development is good if you have a client with clear, strict guidelines and the resources to cover any potholes in the langorous process.  Once these elements are in doubt, then the agile methodology deserves a review.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in blog, Interactive Marketing, web development, Website Analytics, Website Design | No Comments »
Tags: agile development strategy, agile methodology, bllueliner marketing, Blueliner, new york web design agency, new york web development agency, waterfall development strategy, waterfall methodology

Little Words Mean A Lot July 19, 2010 – 1:22 pm				Abdul Fattah Ismail

The developers at Smashing Magazine are versed in all programs and the transient dynamics of code.  Nobody can keep up, and that’s just factual.  We all know, however, that two sides exist to every coin, even the Canadian ones.  As Niels Matthijs notes, developers can slip up and make errors.  He feels that naming conventions and constructing better HTML templates will translate into better websites.  I’ll highlight a sample of subtopics for the uninitiated.

The Bare Necessities Of Semantics

Nowadays with Google Caffeine, content must be recognizable to all kinds of crawlers and search engines for full SEO optimization.  The engine just debuted, so its effectiveness must be intensely tracked in order to make a proper assessment. If Google Caffeine hits, then surfing the internet will be a much greater experience and e-commerce stands to benefit.

Think Components, Not Pages

Websites should have common components that fit together than a jangled collection of pages. In order to achieve this feat, developers need to focus on a single component at a time.  When one needs to write the HTML code for a product, check each wireframe for product variations.  Then one can write a code that handle the existing variants.  This model will be solid and can be used anywhere.

For more information on semantics, click the photo.

Posted by Abdul Fattah Ismail
Posted in blog, web development, Website Analytics, Website Design | No Comments »
Tags: Blueliner, Blueliner Marketing, coding semantics, html coding, niels matthijs, smashing magazine, web development, web programming