Archive for June, 2012

2606.12

5 Areas You MUST Consider Before Starting a New Project

Posted by Lisa in News

So you are about to embark on a brand new project. A new project means a new vision, new ideas and a whole different ball game when it comes to your client as; after all, everybody is different. Remember that quote ‘one size fits all’? Well ignore it! When it comes to business, this is rarely the case.

The key to the success of any project (a website-related project in our case) is to plan, plan and oh yes, plan. By planning you stay motivated, you identify your goals, you know your limits and you know your focus, making it easier to stay on track.

The following provides five areas which you should consider before starting a new project.

  • Define your goals. Make sure you have identified a big visionary goal for your company (also known as a Big Hairy Audacious Goal – BHAG). This goal is one which may be considered audacious to those outside of the company, but is believed to be achievable by those working within the company.

For example, Apple’s BHAG is to “to democratize technology by providing products everyone will want to use.”

  • Know your clients. Look at your typical clients. Who are they?  What type of person are they? What is their typical spend? Where are they coming from? Finding out this information will enable you to target the type of clients you want to attract to your company. The more information you can obtain on a client, the easier it will be to identify what product or service they require.

For example, ideal clients for Apple iPod could be music enthusiasts and fans aged between 12-35 years.

  • Identify your differentiators. What makes you different from your competitors?  This could be something about your team, the service or product you offer, or even the way you approach business.

What makes Apple different from its competitors is its use of design, imagination and innovation.

  • How will you achieve your goals? Make a list of ways in which you can achieve your goals so that you know how you are going to reach that main target. You can use the information you have gathered about your ideal client and your differentiators to work out the key messages, functionality and information you want to include in the final outcome of the project.

When developing the iPod, Apple may have decided that one of the ways in which they were going to achieve their goal was by giving out clear messages relating to their differentiators.

  • What will you not do? By defining a list of what you are NOT going to do throughout the project, you will give yourself a set of ground rules that will enable you to avoid going off-track, making mistakes and wasting time.

For example Apple may have decided they would not take the same approach as their competitors.

Next steps!

Once you’ve completed the exercise above, make sure you record the information on one side of A4 paper (if possible). Then print the document and put it somewhere SAFE on or near your desk. It is important to go back to this on a regular basis and ask ‘Does this satisfy or help achieve my goals?’ to keep you on-track with your project.

Do your current projects satisfy the goals you initially set out for them? Do you find planning helps your project flow better? Please share your thoughts below; we’d love to hear from you.

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Posted in News | 1 Comment »

1806.12

Press Release: Shearings, The UK’s Leading Specialist Tour Operator, To Embrace Social Media

Posted by Lisa in News, Social Media

Optix Solutions today announced that they are working with the UK’s leading specialist tour operator, Shearings, to help them use Social Media to attract and retain customers.

Shearings already has traditional and highly effective methods of advertising in place, but after attending a presentation from Optix Solutions on the power of Social Media, the forward-thinking team at Shearings acknowledged the huge potential social media had to offer them.  With a staggering  2.8 billion social media profiles in existence,  there is not only a massive opportunity to reach out to a much wider audience, but a chance to use social media as a channel by which they could interact with their existing customers.

The two companies will work with each other to develop and implement a social media strategy that will initially focus on the Coast and Country Hotel brand, and subsequently the Bay Hotel brand, which reside under the Shearing’s group of companies. Working closely with the team at Shearing’s, Optix Solutions will plan and manage the integration of Social Media into their marketing mix and provide Shearing’s staff with full training on how to effectively use key Social Media networks, empowering them to manage their own presence.

Optix Solutions Co-Founder Alastair Banks said “Shearings are renowned for the supreme loyalty of their customers and Social Media presents a fantastic opportunity for them to continuously engage with their audience and closely monitor all activity. We are very much looking forward to working with them to help them understand how they can use Social Media to not only gain new customers, but engage with current customers too.”

It’s not only Shearings that are leading the way with such an innovative move; they are among 69% of companies that are planning to increase their marketing budget for third party social media such as Facebook and Twitter, and 66% that are planning to increase budgets for on-site social media activity such as blogs and reviews. (UK Social Media Statistics, Econsultancy May 2012)

Vince Flower, Managing Director of Shearings said “Shearings are delighted to be working with Optix Solutions. We are very keen to embrace all the opportunities that the Social Media technologies now provide us with, using them to engage and listen more to our customers.

Having a proper, well thought out Social Media strategy in place is essential in today’s world and we see this as key to future success. We already know that our customers love to tell us what they think about our products and services and hopefully with their help and some expert guidance from Optix Solutions we can build an even better business in the future.”

For more information call Lisa Watson, Marketing & Communications Co-ordinator on 01392 667766.

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Posted in News, Social Media | No Comments »

0106.12

RIP Google Product Search: Hello Google Shopping

Posted by Dan Cave in News, Online Marketing, SEO

Google has recently announced that from Fall 2012 businesses will need to pay the search giant to have their products included in Google Shopping (originally known as Froogle). Since first launching the service it has been completely free and relatively easy for businesses to add their products, allowing the “small guys” to compete on a level playing field based on price, customer reviews and delivery costs.

Hello Google Shopping

More recently, Google introduced PPC ‘product ads’ as a way for advertisers to achieve better click-through rates and greater visibility. The move also allowed Google to earn money on the search results and provide searchers with the ability to find the item they are looking for as quickly and easily as possible.

product ads

Google shopping are changing the way it works to be overtly ‘sponsored’ as opposed to the free model which caused them problems with anti-trust laws.

Following is an example of what these ‘paid inclusion’ product listings could look like in the future:

Going Forward

In the end, Google is shifting to what’s been the industry standard when it comes to shopping search, to have a paid inclusion program. The curious can take a look here at SingleFeed for a rundown on who offers paid plans. Most shopping search engines do. Even Bing, which is listed as being free, also does paid inclusion through a partnership with Shopping.com, saying that doing this will increase visibility.

For searchers, Google’s trying to find the balance between having incredibly comprehensive results and the noise that can harm relevancy when there’s too much junk and not enough signal, it seems. As I said, it remains to see if they’ll get that balance right.

…will Google eventually decide that Google Shopping should make the next logical step and provide transactions, the way that Amazon does? At some point, Google the search engine that is supposed to point to destinations may turn into too much of a destination itself.

http://searchengineland.com/google-product-search-to-become-google-shopping-use-pay-to-play-model-122959

Golden Opportunity or Dead-End for e-commerce?

No doubt when the switchover happens there will be winners and losers, the trick is ensuring that you are among the first to adapt when competition is likely to be down as the majority of website owners and managers scramble to react to the changes you have already prepared for.

If you do decide to get on board the advertising train in this fashion then analysis and tracking will be key for you and making sure Google shopping pulls its weight compared to the rest of the mix will be more important than ever.

Keep an eye on the blog for further updates from myself and the rest of the Online Marketing team here at Optix Solutions. Have a question? Get in touch. We are here to help.

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