Aloha Media Group

Being at the top of Google and still loosing

2008-06-23T00:43:00.000-07:00

Recently we consulted with a large resort chain who is in the top 4 for most of their keywords in Google. I was a little surprised pulling their statistics before our meeting, wondering why in the world they wanted to talk until......I pulled up their website. Then I knew exactly what sort of meeting we were going to have.
Turns out, the site is generating dismal bookings and they don't know why. I told them immediately I thought their bounce ratio had to be very high.
A bounce ratio is the number of people who logon to the home page and then hit the back browser or another way out, exiting the home page in less than 10 seconds. Quickly identifying the urgency of this, the client frantically ran and grabbed the login information for Google Analytics which has fortunately been set up. They just didn't know how to read it. Turns out the bounce ratio was near 60%! I need not explain that a resort can't afford to have that much of their traffic bouncing off the home page and never digging to an interior page.
This is the perfect example of how you can be at the top of Google and still loose. SEO is important, and we do our fair share of it with good success. But we never, ever do that until we have something that is worth putting the SEO efforts behind.
The first look at their home page gave me a headache, the page was far too busy and offered far too many options for the user. By changing the home page with a more clean design and allowing focus on specials or promo's, we are confident the bounce ratio will drop.
There could have been many reasons for the high bounce ratio, not the least of which could be attracting the wrong traffic. Without a thorough analysis of the traffic, numbers and history we would have been taking a shot in the dark. But knowing that most of their traffic was coming from the Google keywords they were after, we had our smoking gun.
We love solving problems for people on the web, and web analytics in Hawaii is no easy task. We have a very diverse market from around the world, and other variables. If you'd like a free consultation, follow the link at Web Analytics Hawaii.

Interactive Agency Services

2008-05-23T20:34:00.000-07:00

Why an interactive agency in Hawiai? There's a lot to consider when your doing an online marketing campaign. Most clients we visit with try a pay-per-click campaign and don't know of anything else they can do. And often, they spend a lot of money for very little results. What they don't know, unfortunately, is that there are many other options that could yield them far better results for far less.
Take a client we are working with right now who had an extensive pay per click campaign and had even stepped out so far as to do online banners with his local newspaper. Still, the results were dismal. Consulting, we discovered a new avenue for him, and last month he made nearly $3000 off of this banner which saved him a lot of expense and increased his ROI in a major way.
There is a lot of science to online marketing. We've been doing it for nearly 13 years and pioneered banner advertising when few knew what to do with it. We've seen a lot of successes and failures along the way. And we've seen a lot of wasted money at bad SEO companies, poor online marketing opportunities, and overdone pay-per-click campaigns. All of these options can be good considering the circumstances are right. An online agency can help make a decision that could really boost your business in tough ecomonic times.
Drop us a line and tell us what your needs are, and we'll set up a consultation to help meet your needs. Online marketing can be really beneficial with the right tools and resources. It's a very different world from traditional marketing, and we love helping clients make the most of it.

The Power of Web Analytics

2008-03-06T14:24:00.000-08:00

Understanding the traffic on your site is probably the greatest goldmine you have for your business. It's full of all sorts of rich information, that if you know how to harness and utilize, can generate tremendous growth and productivity off of your site.
Knowing all sorts of things like where users are coming from, what pages they visited, and how long they spent on your site can give you valuable information.
I'll give a great example from a webmaster friend who understands the importance of this. Looking at his clients traffic numbers and statistics every day, he noticed an individual from London had come onto the site two days in a row and browsed multiple properties. He told the realtors in the office to keep their eyes open for a call from London. Sure enough, 4 days later, he called and they were ready for him. The knew what properties he had browsed and were fully knowledgeable about what he was wanting. They were able to provide great service.
There are a lot of ways to utilize traffic data. It's important to know what your bounce ratio is - that is the percentage of users who have left the site in less than 10 seconds. This will vary from industry to industry but you should aim to keep it as low as possible. Another factor is how much time users have spent on the site. There is a direct correlation between how much time they spend on the site to how productive your results are from the website. There are a number of variables. Knowing Web Analytics from many years in the field, we can always help review your numbers and give an analysis of your site and what you can do to improve it.
Feel free to contact us for more information.

Keyword Advertising and Trademarks

2008-02-27T12:42:00.001-08:00

Earlier this month, there was an intriguing legal case between 1-800Contacts and a competitor, Lensworld. The fight started when Lensworld bought keyword targets ads (such as Google Adsense and the ads that show on the right side of a search result) for 1-800Contacts, 1800Contacts and 1 800 Contacts. It's a common practise, but 1-800Contacts filed a trademark infringement lawsuit. It's not the first time, and I'm sure it won't be the last.
The problem is, the ad networks are set up to allow you to do that. You can purchase any keyword you want, even a trademark name. The opinion is wide and far on whether or not its ethical. Some contend that if you own a trademark and have spent the thousands of dollars to establish that name and brand, no one else should be able to benefit from it. Valid point! I don't want my competitors showing up when someone searches for Aloha Media Group. Their looking for me. But it's a common practise. Searching for brand names in google will easily show, a lot of people don't have ethical questions about purchasing ads for a keyword that is a trademark. And what about the search engines and portals? Where is Google on all this? Silent for the most part. They have built the infrastructure and have not put any restraint in for straining out trademarked keywords. And can you imagine the technological/legal hurdles to accomplish that? It's very thought provoking, and sure makes for great blog material. If you have an opinion about this. Post it now, we'd love to hear.

"Microsoft.....get out of MySpace!"

2008-02-15T10:46:00.001-08:00

The Yahoo soap opera is getting very interesting from the news reports today. The deal is from News Corp's Fox Interactive Media and it's a very interesting merger. They have valued the merger at an estimated $50 billion, a little bit more than the Microsoft offer.
Most of us have little knowledge of who Fox Interactive is and why on earth this deal would be taking place. But with one domain name, you'll get a better idea: http://www.myspace.com/. Yes, they own the infamous and top traffic site of My Space. The major benefit of this potential merger is an advertising powerhouse that would have an astounding 35% market share of online advertising.
This is also a great way to stave off Microsoft. And that is important to Yahoo, as they recently communicated in letter to their shareholders. They implemented a new strategy last year (which has seemed like a great move in my interactions with Yahoo), and they fear the Microsoft bid would destroy their positive direction.
Personally, I'm much in favor of the Fox Interactive merger. I think it allows Yahoo to continue their direction to do something different by continuing their diversity with more online advertising. Many people in the media field are agreeing.
I think it is a brilliant step by Jerry Yang to not only avoid the Microsoft dilemna all together, but also to continue taking his company in the right direction.

Technorati

2008-02-06T15:53:00.003-08:00

Joining technorati is a blast - you get to paste this code to verify you own the blog.
Technorati Profile

Google Even Makes Mistakes

2008-02-03T21:25:00.000-08:00

Straight from Webpronews.com http://www.webpronews.com/topnews/2008/01/29/a-position-6-penalty:
It could be said pretty fairly that webmasters and SEOers, if dropped a rank or two, automatically assume they've been penalized. A recent development, involving the "position 6" penalty, proved to be a reality.
It's not clear why it was a reality, other than a Google glitch.
Webmasters reported worries about sites that historically had ranked in the top two results for certain keywords had dropped to the sixth position. Dropping to below the top five, or below the fold (below where a person may have to scroll), could mean sudden death in the exposure game.
Though it sounded kind of silly that Google would invoke a four or five-place penalty (for what, a broken link and saying something mean about Sergey maybe?), the number of webmasters reporting the problem added a bit of an urban myth weight to it.
Search Engine Roundtable is reporting that Matt Cutts confirmed a glitch with Google, and that the database is in the process of resetting everything to normal.
There wasn't much explanation other than that. Guess even Google sometimes makes mistakes

Microsoft makes historic bid to buy Yahoo!

2008-02-01T16:15:00.000-08:00

Fresh off the press, it has been verified that Microsoft has made a $44.6 billion bid to buy Yahoo. The specifics still linger, and time will only tell what becomes of this. The story is that Microsoft offered Jerry Yang at Yahoo quietly and he said no. Then, Microsoft harnessed the power of the press and went public with it. It could all be drama with Yahoo declining, but then it could be a very different story.
What does it mean to the rest of us who can't even fathom what $44 billion is like? Well its about more than search. It's probably more about combining resources for online paid advertising and other tools Yahoo has leverage of. Neither of them can really compete at this time with Google on organic search. Although, I will note that Yahoo has made some very positive and dramatic changes in 4th quarter of last year. The problem Yahoo has is getting people to go back to Yahoo. Once clients move away from a service or product, its much harder to get them back than it is to get new ones. Yahoo was once the giant we all used to some degree, and now few of us do. It's a valuable lesson for all of us about paying attention to our clients and users, and the price we can pay when we don't!
What does Microsoft stand to gain in this deal besides a little more of organic search marketshare and online paid advertising?
15.6% combined share of Internet visits (twice Google's)
28% of search (depending on who you ask)
Yahoo adds 35% of the Maps/Local sector (slightly competitive with Google)
10% of online shopping directories
87% of portal front pages
83% of web-based email services (still light years ahead of Gmails numbers)
12% of online news and media
39% of business information content
Flickr would give Microsoft 12% of the photo market
So there is benefit in this for sure for Microsoft. I'm not sure what this means for us but more consolidation in a field very dominated by very large companies. That may not be a bad thing since Google has grown out of control. This would create two mammoth companies who could more directly compete with each other. Whether that will be good or bad is anyones guess.
The problems inherent with search aren't likely to be fixed anytime soon by Yahoo, Microsoft or Google. What we need is more standardized platforming and more intuitive search tools. But what we would hope for is more R&D on organic search results, and more attention paid to users getting the results they are wanting. We have to be fair and say that neither Yahoo or Microsoft has a long history of the latter. We can learn a number of lessons from this. First, that Yahoo paid dire consequences for not paying proper attention to the users of their product. And secondly, a positive note. They diversified and made the best of a bad situation. That is what has kept them going until now.

Search Engine Shake-Up

2008-01-17T17:47:00.001-08:00

To say the last few weeks have been exciting, is an understatement. We've been on the edge of our seats here trying keep up on something we knew was going to affect every one of our clients. Another algorithm change by Google and Yahoo.
It all started when we submitted a new site map for a client we had done some changes for. A sitemap is something that makes the search engines like you a lot - because you make it easy for them to find what you want. Google and Yahoo both LOVE sitemaps - imagine a big dog wagging its tail when it wants something really bad and you have the idea. When we submitted our site map, it was seen and indexed in 23 minutes - a process that normally takes several days. We knew something was up. And then, we submitted a new client site and it was indexed in 24 hours. Again, that is a process we have waited months for, so this was really stimulating. We couldn't help but wonder what was going on. Then all of our SEO connections, blogs and newsletters were all talking about the same things - something big is up.
Well, that something turns out to be a very good thing for us. But we watched a lot of sites change, but nearly all of ours went up. One site, we know was using illegal link farms, just disappeared from Google all together. Sad to see it happen, since we know them, but it was always frustrating to be doing things carefully and correctly and see others jumping in ranking through banned methods. Lesson is - you can acheive great short term results with illegal links, but if you plan on staying around you had better play it safe.
And all that leads us to this - the reason we're in this business is that we LOVE what we do. (I'll spare another reference to the dog wagging its tail) And so we are constantly reading, practising and perfecting SEO methods. Sure, there is always a way to do it cheaper and faster. But as we just witnessed last week, the client who wanted to do it himself and seemed to be having great results, paid a heavy price. That hurts his bottom line, and that doesn't make us happy.
But what did make us happy is to see a number of our clients move up in the rankings. In our own rankings, we moved from nearly no where to #3 and #4 for ad agency Hawaii in Yahoo.
We're watching things real close. Guess Yahoo has filed for some patents on search engine algorithms and is ready to take on Google in a new way. We've not been fans of Yahoo for many years, but the changes they implemented recently were very good, and have caught our attention. I'm using Yahoo now to find information and getting more of what I want than I was in Google. I would have never guessed that a month ago!
Stay tuned, and we'll have more info on this SEO shake-up soon. And if you need search engine optimization, contact us today!

The Power of Links

2007-11-26T14:23:00.000-08:00

There was a time, seemingly a lifetime ago, when you could launch a decent site and have a fair amount of instant traffic with little work. We still run into business owners who were part of those days back in the mid 90's. They just launched a site, and were #1 or #2 in Yahoo (back when Google hadn't even been conceived). But things have changed a lot since then. Now it is an enormous amount of work for most business owners to get the kind of traffic or search engine results they want.
Of course, there are multiple strategies. First, you can net fish for traffic. Just toss out the nets wide enough and you're likely to snag something. But that really isn't harnessing the power of the internet. Finding customers or clients on the internet is the most sophisticated form of fishing you've ever heard of. Imagine knowing exactly where the sort of fish you want are located at any given time of the day or hour. But then imagine being able to just drop the right pole and the right line and start pulling up exactly what you were wanting, one right after the other.
It may be fantasy with the sport of fishing, the stuff dreams are made of. But its very real in its application to the internet. The internet is a highly sophisticated fishing tool with very sophisticated tracking tools and data. So at any time you can know where your potential clients are and direct them to your website. And one of the best ways is using the bait of links! The right links in the right places are the best bait you can have. And it's probably one of the most overlooked resources for getting highly targeted traffic to your site.
Example: You have a site that sells womens shoes. Who are your potential clients? Obviously its largely the female population, so you get out your bait (links) and you place your bait right where you know they are going. In this case, lets use some fictional examples like a blog that 20,000 women read every day on female issues (there are lots of these in reality), or a female clothing store (that doesn't sell shoes). Want to target more to local women? Then put the bait in the local sites or local newspapers.
Linking also has added benefit - search engines love it! In particular, Google. But there are bad links or links that are wasting bait. Think through who you want linking to your site. If you are a womens shoe store, a local carpenter linking to your site is just wasting bait. And hiring a link farm (black market for links) can get you in trouble with Google.
Another positive option could be Pay Per Click. You can run ads for searches in Google or Yahoo that will link back to your site. And those can be highly targeted. 'womens shoes' or 'lace stilletos' (do they make such a thing?)
Aloha Media Group has the right connections to help you with proper linking and pay per click campaigns. If you are ready to start increasing the traffic to your website, and want some expert help, we would love to talk with you. Feel free to email us at info@alohamediagroup.com for more information.

Virtual Momentum

2007-11-09T00:47:00.000-08:00

There is a theory in physics about physical mass gaining momentum and with each progression in the direction it is heading, it finds less and less resistance. Just such a thing is happening right now in the virtual world. Many things that have presented particular resistance to web development and useage and now dwindling. The impact is being felt worldwide.
Take for instance the news. I had the privilege of working for a print newspaper in the mid 90's in the interactive department. There was a lot of fear about this new medium, and funny as it may sound now, things weren't very hospitable for us in the interactive department. We were strategically located in a separate building across the street for good reasons. Many of those across the street feared for their jobs, and we were the physical representation of why they did. But the newspapers online have held their grip fairly well, until recently. With the revolution of Web 2.0 and user controlled content, blogs, and content mangement websites, more and more people are publishing information and content than ever before. From video casts on youtube.com to blogs like this, more and more people are having input on the content we all read.
And there is wikimedia with their wikinews solutions. Anyone can start a news site with their free software. And many already have. Things are gaining momentum, and AP is very rapidly loosing their marketshare.
In the book Wikinomics, the authors talk about the chaning revolution of user controlled content and mass collaberation. Where are we going next? It is local people controlling local content. People have had enough of reading about news across the world, but not being able to find out simple news items locally. Or being forced to read about things that they aren't interested in. On the Big Island here, the problem is very acute. Recently we had large fires in Puako and hundreds of people were evacuated. I watched the Honolulu news stations to hear about it, and the next morning my local paper had nothing to say about it. When I went online to the Honolulu Advertiser, the subject was covered in detail. Why is Honolulu covering our local content, but our 'local' paper owned by a company on the mainland inattentive? Those are just the sort of things that are making the web gain more and more momentum and user controlled content King.
If you want to be ahead of the next big internet bubble, think about how you can generate user controlled content that has local appeal. How can you provide rich, valuable content to your target audience? And how can you make it interactive, and let others collaborate? Give your users a way to have a voice, and you have just created loyalty in an entirely affordable and memorable way. Don't just think about what you have to communicate to your target audience, think about what they might want to communicate to you.

Generous Google

2007-10-12T15:36:00.000-07:00

We come across a lot of information in our world, and perhaps the greatest challenge is sorting through it all and finding the real gems. But we're sure we found one this week. At http://www.google.com/grants/ your non-profit can apply for free adwords listings in Google. For those who aren't familiar with what this means, Adwords are *paid* search engine listings in Google. We use Adwords weekly for various client campaigns, and the cost can be anywhere from $30 a month to $200 a month. So, this is a tremendous value to say the least. Now, they say they may take up to 6 months to process the applications, and we have a few in the process. We'll keep you posted on what the real time processing ends up as. In the meantime, follow the link and get your application in! This could be one of the better moves you make for driving traffic to your website!

Analysing Analytics with Google

2007-10-08T19:48:00.000-07:00

I remember fumbling around with beginning analytics software programs in the mid 90's. It was like using caveman tools, in a high tech environment. No matter how hard we tried, the software still left us taking 'educated guesses' as to what was really going on. But all that changed when Google Analytics entered the market. Not only is their program *free* (which we had paid enormous amounts of money for programs that still did not work) but it really works!
It's a fact I really don't want my friends to know, but I love statistical analysis! And if you do, you should beware of Google Analytics. It has so much information, you may find yourself digging around in there till the wee hours of the morning.
There are a few things we really recommend our clients to pay attention to. There is a lot of rich information, but there are some basics that take priority. The first is to find out where your visitors are coming from. I don't mean, necessarily, Denmark or Japan. I'm referring to 'referrering sites'. That is what sites referred them to your site. Such as Google, or a link from a positive blog article about your company. Or better yet, reciprocal links. Those are links others in your field are putting on their sites to yours, which hopefully you have returned the favor and posted their links on your site.
The next thing we ask clients to pay attention to is bounce rate. Your website isn't a playhouse, and no one should be bouncing out the door. In laymens terms, this is like someone walking into your store but then turning around and walking right back out. What you want is a low bounce rate and high 'stickiness' factor. The length of time someone spends on your site can be highly volatile depending on the depth of content you have. But, we like to see a minimum of 4-5 minutes of time on a clients site. And we LOVE to see 8-10 minutes! This means people are really spending time on the site and that is what makes our hearts beat a little faster.
I won't pretend to be the worlds expert on Google Anayltics, but I will tell you where to go. Download a copy of the new e-book Google Analytics Shortcut at http://www.gashortcut.com/. It's an investment that is well worthwhile.

September tips of the month

2007-09-20T15:31:00.001-07:00

With the ever evolving field of Search Engine Optimization (SEO), there are some amazing new tools that are making the science a little more manageable. One of those tools is www.keywordranking.com which is a great place to research and explore keywords that affect your ranking and visibility. It's a hefty to price to pay for the yearly membership, but it's one we wouldn't think about eliminating! Our hat is off to them for a great research tool.
The newest tool in our arsenal is http://www.touchgraph.com/TGGoogleBrowser.html with an interactive java tool that allows you to get a good overhead glimpse of the links that are driving the SEO process for any particular domain. Building links is one of the single most important pieces to the success of an SEO campaign. We are real excited to have found this tool.
We're always striving to provide the best service in the industry. If you have a tip you'd love to share, let us know at info@alohamediagroup.com
Finally, our last plug is for the book Wikinomics. Although we are in this industry and largely aware of the collaberative nature of the new global economy, this book knocked our socks off. With rich details and stories, we grew immensely from this and are really looking forward to implementing some of the ideas we gained from the book. For more info, go to www.wikinomics.com and read a little more. It's certainly one of the top business books we've had the pleasure of reading in the past decade!
We'll be posting more info soon, subscribe post atom below if you want notification of when an update has been made. Mahalo!