Mobile Purchases You Should Stock Your Shelves With

Here’s the top 10 most popular mobile purchases:

• Event tickets and daily deals: 38 percent of mobile device owners have made these purchases (tie)
• Apparel or accessories: 36 percent
• Travel; physical copies of books, video games or movies: 33 percent (tie)
• Consumer electronics (TVs, etc., but excluding mobile phones): 32 percent
• Flowers and gifts; toys: 30 percent (tie)
• General services (photo printing, shipping services, etc.): 26 percent
• Consumer packaged goods; sports and fitness: 25 percent (tie)

To read more about Jumptap’s study, click HERE.

Big box retailers will have no problem meeting mobility demand, as they are well prepared with large marketing budgets and personnel. Independent retailers, however, who have their money tied up in inventory usually find themselves with a much smaller marketing budget and more often than not, do-it-yourself (DIY) campaign projects that take up time and resources. However, as these retailers finish out the fourth quarter and prepare their 2012 business and marketing plans, m-commerce is being discussed as an indispensable necessity to successfully communicate and connect with consumers. And while not everyone is digitally savvy and well versed in mobile technology, it’s mobile content creation solutions such as Magmito that help those entrepreneurial, DIY retailers think beyond their brick and mortar storefront to consider a world of mobile possibilities.

Magmito Makes Mobility Real for Independent Retailers

As the content creation site boasts, “Magmito is a mobile application generator that is easy-to-use and helps its users produce rich and engaging eco-apps that can be viewed on any mobile phone, from Android to iPhone and everything in between.” Targeting the DIY community and small to mid-sized business (SMB) users, Magmito enables anyone to create rich and engaging apps to promote products, services, events, etc. For free app development, your Magmito app will be required to feature unobtrusive advertising relevant to the target audience. However, for the low cost of $99, Magmito offers an interactive app free of ads, and affordable for those tight marketing budgets.

To Download Click HERE

Magmito’s coined “eco-apps” are economical (to produce), ecological (saves trees) and are an integral part of the mobile ecosystem. Apps can be created and published in just a few hours, and updated with new specials as often as needed. They can also easily be distributed through auto-generated QR Codes, popular app stores, Facebook, Twitter, SMS, email-to-mobile and more, depending on a retailer’s marketing plan. Magmito delivers apps both as a native app or Web app for all J2ME, Android, Windows Mobile and Blackberry devices. IPhone users automatically get an enhanced Web App version, avoiding the Apple approval process.

For more information:
DIDMO USA
Naples, FL
Tel.: 239-963-9396
Fax: 203-286-1961
Email: angelo@didmo.com
Website: www.didmo.com, www.magmito.com

As retailers finish out the fourth quarter, focus on holiday sales and prepare the 2012 marketing budget, m-commerce will continue to be a topic of interest and exploration. NetworkWorld.com reports IBM’s recent research findings, saying, “Record numbers of consumers are already shifting their shopping from PCs to mobile devices. In October, nearly 11 percent of online shoppers used a mobile device to visit a retailer’s site. This month 15 percent of people in the U.S. who log onto a retailer’s website are expected to do so through a mobile device.” Below are some of the ways both retailers and their consumers can be found utilizing mobile devices and the shopping channel they provide this holiday season.

DIY Mobility for Retailers

Small and independent retailers can be hands on this holiday season, creating a mobile app for Black Friday or promoting holiday shopping specials. Magmito, a mobile content creation solution to make apps for any phone or platform, targets the Do-It-Yourself (DIY) community, small to mid-sized business (SMB) users, enabling anyone to create rich and engaging apps to promote products, services, events, etc. Magmito offers free development of an app with ads, or a $99 deal for an app without ads.  Apps can be created and published in just a few hours, and updated with new specials as often as needed.

The apps can easily be distributed through auto-generated QR Codes, popular app stores, Facebook, Twitter, SMS, email-to-mobile and more, depending on a retailer’s marketing plan. The apps will also work on both smartphones and feature phones. Magmito delivers apps both as a native app or Web app for all J2ME, Android, Windows Mobile and Blackberry devices. IPhone users automatically get an enhanced Web App version, avoiding the Apple approval process.

Holiday Deals for Consumers

Appitalism.com launched its combined social community with an online store providing digital content for all devices in November 2010. Compatible with smartphones, tablets, PCs and eBook readers, the site debuted a catalog of more than ten million premium apps, songs, books, games and videos. Simon, CEO of Appitalism, announced in a statement Appitalism’s “goal is to be the leading destination for consumers seeking to learn about and purchase the highest rated apps and content for any device.” These include those discount and coupon apps for the holiday that more than two out of five shoppers are looking for to aid in their shopping. Among some of the apps available are:

Black Friday Deals: Get all the info you need for Black Friday shopping! Browse hot deals and buying guides, look through ad scans and check store hours. Create a shopping list, win prizes! Everything you need to be prepared this Black Friday is here.

Black Friday Deals & Coupons: Great coupons for saving money on Black Friday – the biggest shopping day of the year. We will also update the app for cyber Monday and throughout the holiday season and onward.

Black Friday Survival Guide: Black Friday is one of the biggest shopping days of the year and a great time to find incredible deals. blackfriday.fm wants you to be ready when the big day rolls around this year on November 26th, so we’re bringing the latest news, the biggest sales, and the best deals right to your phone with the blackfriday.fm app.

Small Business Saturday Initiative Promotes Indie Sales

Last year, New York City became the first city in the country to endorse the nationwide initiative, two days after Thanksgiving. Launched at New York City Hall by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and American Express Chief Executive, Kenneth Chenault, the objective was to get consumers shopping at their locally owned, independent businesses. To boost interest in participating among small businesses and consumers, American Express offered $100 worth of Facebook advertising to 10,000 business owners who signed up for the program. The company also gave a $25 statement credit to 100,000 card members who registered their card and used it at a small business on the day of the initiative.

Once again, American Express is looking to make this annual event a success, providing retailers with tools that will help generate ideas on creating in-store offers and build an online presence to rally customers. A limited number of American Express cardholders will once again receive a $25 statement credit if they register their cards and use them at participating small businesses on Nov. 26. And for those independents wondering, “Will I see a significant increase in my sales on this day by participating?,” international customer service expert and author of the book, The Greet Your Customer Manual, Laurie Brown, says, “Small businesses can truly capitalize on Small Business Saturday by following a few important steps.” American Express is supporting the initiative and providing the initial tools to make the event a success, but the retailers must do their part.

1) Provide exceptional personal service. While the big box stores may have the lowest prices, the small businesses can provide the kind of unique personalized service that customers really want and need.

2) Create a party atmosphere. Make the day seem like a special event in your store. Offer “treats” your store would not normally offer customers, such as cookies, hot cider or even a cup of cocoa.

3) Go the extra mile. Offer free wrapping or have someone help the customer get their packages in their car. If you don’t have what the customer is looking for make a few calls to see if you can find it.

Brown adds, “The real opportunity of Small Business Saturday is in being the opposite of what customers experienced on Black Friday. Customers likely dealt with disengaged, overly tired, stressed out employees who couldn’t care less if they were there.”

To learn about other small business holiday shopping movements, click HERE.

Retailers Can Invest in Better eCommerce

Some of the services available to B2B or B2C companies selling products online include:

1) Help in developing a state of the art ecommerce website that is user friendly and has one page checkout, as well as an easy-to-use admin or back end for data import or export (also includes mobile ecommerce).

2) Automated email marketing (e.g., If someone buys an engagement ring, then two weeks later they automatically receive an email to buy a wedding band).

3) Search engine optimization (SEO) of the keywords that are specific to the nature of the business.

4) Content creation for regular posting of blogs, newsletters and the website. This form of social media marketing (SMM) also includes video optimization for keywords, Facebook campaigns, and publishing press releases.

5) Online marketing consultation to map web marketing strategy. Once a month is recommended (for smaller organizations, once every quarter). Consultation is also available for special campaigns and the launch of new products.

6) Web analytics reporting that will help in determining whether goals are being met, and allow for preventative tweaking of the marketing campaign if necessary.

7) Pay Per Click (PPC) campaign tutorials for new companies that are waiting for their SEO efforts to take effect.

OMguru indicates that goals can only be achieved with teamwork, involving both consultant and client. “We outline the responsibilities of the client. When all our recommendations are honored, we usually exceed our client’s expectations,” notes Bedi. Among some of the client responsibilities are the provision of topics for blogs, newsletters and campaigns, updating inventory, and following up with customer requests on social media sites. Aware that every company has different requirements, goals and budgets, OMguru’s online marketing packages greatly vary in price, starting at $2,500 and available up to $50,000 plus, depending on how aggressively the company wants to increase their online sales and brand awareness. For instance, the popular ecommerce and mobile ecommerce website package starts at $10,000, and goes up to $100,000 plus, depending on the amount of customization. And while a budget may determine the package in which you invest, OMguru also offers specials that provide personal benefits and have the potential to change any online marketing strategy.

For more information:
OMguru USA
7545 Irvine Center Drive
Irvine, CA 92618
Tel.: 949-450-9991
Email: info@omguru.co
Website: www.omguru.co

Social Marketing Requires Professionalism

Social networking began as a personal communication tool, but the integration of business and branding have transformed these platforms and given birth to a new code of conduct. While the publication of personal information online has led us all to partake in a little social stalking of friends and family members from time to time, the expectation of businesses sharing this social space is different. As SocialBeat columnist, Laura Horton, explains, Every company has its own rules for social media marketing, but keep in mind that social networking is a person-to-person tool. Few people enjoy hard-sell marketing ploys on social networking sites, and they certainly don’t want to feel as if they are being stalked by your company.” Below are a few simple rules to follow, in order to keep it professional while being personal.

1. Be helpful, not pushy. Tweets, statuses, and other moment by moment updates can keep you in the loop about what your customers are doing, what they like and what they are looking for. If they are nearby or you offer a product or service that fits their liking or their need, social sites are great way to make an introduction. But that is all, don’t make a pitch. It is about establishing a relationship.
2. Be a thought leader. While you may think sharing news and updates on your brand alone is all your customers really want to know when interacting with you online, you are wrong. They are looking for you to prove your knowledge and your experience in the industry, and expect you to be a thought leader on associated topics of your brand.
3. Stay on top of social marketing best practices. As more people join social media sites and new features are added, the code of conduct is always evolving. Businesses using social media in their marketing plan should stay current on best practices and trends. It’s important to have a strategy and more important to keep this strategy updated with the DOs and DON’Ts of social marketing, especially when looking to earn customers’ trust and not creep them out.

For more guidelines on B2C social media conduct, click HERE.

Keyword Metatags

As an example, take a look at the page source of any dozen or so websites you find on the Web (write to info@globalb2bcommunications.com if you want step by step instructions on how to do this, it is easy and available to everyone).  Start with your competitors.  At the time of this writing, my sampling shows me again and again that more than half go to great pains to list “keyword metatags.”  “What’s wrong with that?,” you ask, as an SEO advisor for one of  ALM Communication’s global PR firm’s clients recently inquired.

To start, Google’s official spokesperson, Matt Cutts, tells you not to use keyword metatags.  He did so in 2009, and those who watch Google closely will tell you that when such announcements are made, the changes have been extant for quite some time.

Secondly, what’s with the laundry lists of unrelated keyword metatags, and few of them having anything to do or being mentioned once in the body of the Web page?  You find words like “sale,” “service” or “reliable.”  These are telltale signs that there is lack in understanding. Did somebody really think that a person would go to his or her search bar and type in “service” to find their company’s offerings?

But the bigger problem is this: why tip your hand to your competition?  Yes, it’s like a poker player insisting on sharing all the cards in his or her hand with everyone else at the poker table. YOU ARE ALWAYS COMPETING ON THE WEB. The good news, however, is that you are only competing with the Web pages that are using keywords identical to yours. Web pages that are optimized for different keyphrases are not your competitors and there is absolutely no reason to pay any mind to what their Web pages look like.

You are graded on a curve always.  If you are lucky, your competitors will be crippled by out-of-date SEO techniques. Chances are, whether you realize it or not, you are lucky in this regard.

How many inbound links do you need?  What is the correct “phrase depth” to pursue?  What is the authority of inbound links that you need to draw traffic away from competitors? There are answers to such questions, but you can only determine them by using high-powered mathematics tools built for web competitive analysis that zero in on your company’s unique competitive landscape on the Web.

You know how big box stores are able to spend significant dollars on analytical tools that help them determine optimal ways to price and display merchandise in each store?  The clerks stocking the shelves are not required to know the math behind the methods for displays or the logic of sku pricing.  They just need to follow instructions.   This is not news; it’s been an open secret of big box success for well over a decade.

The price tag for the best mathematical tools to help determine pricing, shelf displays, etc. is somewhat steep.  GOOD NEWS:  That is certainly not the case with web competitive analysis tools for search engine optimization.   You can do a month’s kick of the tires on these tools to your heart’s content for less than your store pays for a seasonal sale window sign!

Warning:  The bigger expense is in time budgets.  You can succeed with math-based tools for SEO even if you flunked HS math—I kid you not!  But you have to take time to get up to speed on the only SEO approach that matters: Web competitive analysis.  It will take one week at least.

Amy Munice is president of ALM Communications, now also d.b.a. Global B2B Communications, www.globalb2bcommunications.com and Web and Design Science, www.webanddesignscience.com, a marketing/public relations firm that both gives, guarantees and fully integrates high-powered artificial intelligence search engine optimizers for lead generation and online sales, into all communications strategies. Contact Ms. Munice at info@globalb2bcommunications.com, or 773-862-6800.

Mobile Loyalty and Gift Card Programs for Brick and Mortars

SparkBase CEO, Doug Hardman, a supporter of small business and independent merchants, is also an advocate of the technological advances that assist in competing with big box retailers and chain stores, and that includes m-commerce. And with the launch of his latest offer, Paycloud Mobile Wallet, retailers will be given the opportunity to embrace m-commerce through their loyalty and gift card programs. “Paycloud is the first multi-terminal, integrated mobile wallet for loyalty and gift card programs. It eliminates the need for plastic loyalty cards by directly integrating with a merchant’s existing credit card terminal,” says Hardman. And while it offers an additional alternative channel in which customers can interact with products and services, Paycloud eliminates fees, fear and frustration for the merchant.

Brick and mortars can easily be nickeled and dimed out of affording a loyalty or gift card program, as they are faced with the expense of plastic cards, as well as individual transaction fees with every swipe of the card.  By enrolling in Paycloud, business owners can establish a loyalty program in days and for less than $100. “We maintain flat rate pricing, without any additional transaction fees,” adds Hardman. Costs will include terminal programming (using existing terminal), a sensor that plugs into the terminal to allow secure transactions, and artwork for the merchant’s virtual card. Free apps allow instant enrollment, helping merchants gain more customers with less advertising dollars spent. And while the thought of venturing into the m-commerce world, something outside the brick walls of the store, can create a feeling of fear and even frustration, Paycloud requires no new technology or hardware. Hardman confirms, “There is no need to switch providers or train staff. Paycloud brings advanced technology to applications business owners are already using. It only changes the way merchants can take mobile payments; not the way they operate.”

Retailers are advised not to expect instantaneous ROI, as all loyalty and gift card programs need to percolate, but repeat customers can be expected along with a fruitful program. Customers won’t be faced with carrying another plastic card and will have easy access to the deals you have to offer. When customers reach the front of the line, they simply wave their phone in front of the countertop sensor to check in, redeem rewards and coupons, and track their account status. Enrolling is even easier, as smartphone users launch Paycloud on their phones, check out the merchants supporting the software and tap to enroll.

For more information:
SparkBase Inc.
Website: www.sparkbase.com

Competing and Winning in a Shifting Web Landscape: Part One

Take notice of this concept because the success of your online marketing efforts hinges first and foremost on knowing that the World Wide Web is an ever changing entity; one reason why it is a total waste of time reverse engineering Google algorithms or the algorithms of ANY search engine. It is impossible to do, or as Michael Marshall, the man whom the U.S. Patent Office hires to teach its patent officers about how search engines really work, says, “Trying to reverse engineer Google algorithms is equivalent to trying to reverse engineer the cake baking process.”  Yet in one way or another, reverse engineering Google Algorithms is very much “the trade” of more SEO consultants than I dare to count.  You see it in the static “to-do” lists they carry with alleged up-to-date rules on “phrase depth,” “inbound link text,” “keyword title counts,” etc.

Don’t get me wrong! There truly are both on-page and off-page factors that do affect how and where your various site pages show up when searchers make queries. But the factors that affect one page or one site are always UNIQUE, and are always changing because of the unique competitive landscape your pages “live” in: the World Wide Web, which is only constant in the way it changes.

My guesstimate is that there is a 50-50 chance that you read the above and think, “Oh, that explains why we didn’t get anywhere following that to-do list given to us by the SEO consultant.”  But there is also a 50-50 chance that you read the above and think, “Hmmmm. Our SEO consultant did give us a to-do list and it did have positive effects and very good ones at that.  How do you explain that?”

The “50-50” rule refers to the fact that on the web you are always graded on a curve.  How good does your website optimization need to be?  Your pages just need to be “better” than the competitors in your unique competitive landscape on the web.  Half of the competitors (50 percent) in any unique competitive landscape are “above the curve” and half (50 percent) are “below the curve.”

Perhaps because half of the web pages in any competitive landscape on the web are on the bottom at any one time, it helps explain the attitudes of many company presidents or VPs of Marketing (and even the European Union!), who say, “Why bother! Google just stacks the deck! It’s rigged! It’s fixed to help their advertisers win!”

Good News! That’s just not so. Part 2 of this article will explain why.

Amy Munice is president of ALM Communications, now also d.b.a. Global B2B Communications, www.globalb2bcommunications.com and Web and Design Science, www.webanddesignscience.com, a marketing/public relations firm that both gives, guarantees and fully integrates high-powered artificial intelligence search engine optimizers for lead generation and online sales, into all communications strategies. Contact Ms. Munice at info@globalb2bcommunications.com, or 773-862-6800.

A Strategic Combination of Online Marketing Services

Some of the services available to a B2B or B2C company selling products online include:

1)    Help in developing a state of the art ecommerce website that is user friendly and has one page checkout, as well as an easy-to-use admin or back end for data import or export.

2)    Automated email marketing (e.g., If someone buys an engagement ring, then two weeks later they automatically receive an email to buy a wedding band.)

3)    Search engine optimization (SEO) of the keywords that are specific to the nature of the business.

4)    Content creation for regular posting of blogs, newsletters and the website. This form of social media marketing (SMM) also includes video optimization for keywords, Facebook campaigns, and publishing press releases.

5)    Online marketing consultation to map online marketing strategy. Once a month is recommended (for smaller organizations once every quarter). Consultation is also available for special campaigns and the launch of new products.

OMguru indicates that goals can only be achieved with teamwork, involving both consultant and client. “We outline the responsibilities of the client. When all our recommendations are honored, we usually exceed our client’s expectations,” notes Bedi. Among some of the client responsibilities are the provision of topics for blogs, newsletters and campaigns, updating inventory, and following up with customer requests on social media sites. Aware that every company has different requirements, goals and budgets, OMguru’s online marketing packages greatly vary in price, starting at $2,500 and available up to $50,000 plus, depending on how aggressively the company wants to increase their online sales and brand awareness. And while a budget may determine the package in which you invest, OMguru also offers specials that provide personal benefits and have the potential to change your online marketing strategy. The current special advertised online ends on Sept. 5, in which customers receive an iPad 2 for free when signing up for an ecommerce and mobile ecommerce website with an annual online marketing package.

For more information:
OMguru USA
7545 Irvine Center Drive
Irvine, CA 92618
Tel.: 949-450-9991
Email: info@omguru.co
Website: www.omguru.co