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WebiMax Blog

Digital marketing tips and advice.

Ryan Buddenhagen

Ryan Buddenhagen:

August 7, 2012

Advertising online has been growing with a significant pace for years and is accelerating across the globe. This is a positive indicator for economic outlooks as agencies and businesses are spending money to reach their customers. Secondly, this is a positive indicator for the health of online marketing and advertising on the platform. Many top tier SEO firms also engage in paid search management and coordinate their offerings together in order to bring the greatest return for customers. As a result, growth figures of current and predictive levels of spending are valuable pieces of information.

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August 1, 2012

As reported extensively last week when Facebook’s quarterly earnings were made public, they are actively looking for additional ways to increase their revenue from all corners of their business. Our CEO, Ken Wisnefski talked with Bloomberg TV about Facebook, their latest earnings, and the direction of the company going forward. Check out the video here, and the follow-up blog post that discusses some of Ken’s additional ideas. All eyes are on Facebook to determine if they will be able to initiate winning programs and added revenue streams. A primary aspect of this process is finding new, viable ways to advertise on the platform. In this vein a promising offering is Facebook Exchange, their new Real-Time Bidding (RTB) service.

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July 27, 2012

Google continues to roll out new offerings with their primary product: search. Moving into the mobile market, the social space, and other areas, Google has constantly been trying their hand at new functions, growing their reach and relevance, and for their sake, an ever-increasing user-base that enjoys what they offer.

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July 26, 2012

Amid the controversy of Facebook’s IPO several months ago, there has been considerable debate on not just the viability of advertising on Facebook, but doing so across social media platforms. The potential was always there, but its sustainability for generating revenue over the long-term has yet to be fully proven.

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July 23, 2012

Marissa Mayer has been a larger player at Google through her 13 years there. She was the 20th employee and has held different positions on her way to the top, from designer and engineer to product manager and VP of various projects. She has a focus on end-user design for various products and platforms, and that is being touted as her best strength and leading benefit for Yahoo in bringing her in to lead the company. There is growing sentiment that Mayer might just be the right person to not only navigate a struggling Yahoo but bring the right vision and guidance that could position Yahoo well within the changing landscape of the web, social, and mobile sectors.

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July 20, 2012

Customer satisfaction has always been important regardless of product or service type, and even industry. We all instinctively know this, experience it as consumers ourselves, and try to deliver it for our own customers if applicable in your line of work. Now, it is a unique exercise in addressing customer satisfaction for social networking platforms because they are still very fresh and evolving in relation to what their purpose is and how consumers actually used them.

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July 19, 2012

Twitter is instantaneous, it is engaging, it is fun…and organizations across sectors continue to find new and interesting ways to use it for all different kinds of purposes. From promotion to personal customer engagement, Twitter has become an essential tool, and we have written to great length about this development here on the blog.

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July 17, 2012

Since the launch of Google Search Plus Your World back in January, there have been continuous shifts and developments in the world of search and how social accounts, profiles, and posts appear in the SERPs of major search engines. Google indicated Google+ would be profiled more in the search results for logged-in users and Bing announced several months ago that social media, with a particular focus on Facebook, would be in integrated into their algorithm and show in their SERPs to offer a social dimension to web queries.

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July 16, 2012

Online shopping has been rolling along in Europe like in the US and much of the rest of the world, both in emerging and developed markets. This is a trend that is showing no signs of slowing down despite still a shaky economic state around the globe and especially in Europe. A consistent bright spot though has been the growth of ecommerce and now with predictions out from Forrester, mobile commerce (or mCommerce) looks to be headed for steady growth as part of that sector as well.

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July 12, 2012

E-Commerce continues to surge, even in an economy that although showing signs of a return has not accelerated and people remain concerned about their spending. The viability of e-commerce globally over the past two years especially in the US and across Europe though, two regions that have been hit hard by the recession, shows its value and promise for the future.

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June 21, 2012

We touch on censoring a good amount on this blog, and I have written specifically in relation to different actions taken by various national governments around the globe. Covering these incidences, you could say that censoring has picked up around the world, but it is hard to track exactly to what degree. Enter the Google Transparency Report which details the requests it receives, among other sources, from governments around the world to remove content that exists in their search engine results.

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June 12, 2012

Mobile search engine optimization and advertising is clearly on the rise, and this is no surprise if you have been following our writings or keeping an eye on the trending relevance of mobile marketing. New numbers are out now and they are telling as to how big the industry is. As indicated in the title of this post, total spend around the world is well over 5 billion, and of that, mobile search ad spend was $3.3 billion, this according to IAB Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence, HIS Screen Digest, and IAB Europe. Looking at the numbers can tell those in the industry where users are consuming ad at higher rate and giving reason to marketers for the spend increases, giving an indication of which markets are currently the hottest in terms of advertising on the mobile platform.

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June 4, 2012

Twitter continues to assert its importance and as a result, it receives a great deal of attention from SEO agencies, social media experts across the board, and us here at WebiMax. All social platforms are evolving and responding to what customers want, but Facebook and Twitter seem to trying to stay ahead of the curve constantly pushing their offerings and what can be done on their platforms. Case in point - Twitter’s new partnership with Pepsi whereby the social platform is the medium for connecting customers to Pepsi’s “Live for Now” global music campaign.

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June 1, 2012

As I wrote about yesterday, the amount of web users and connected devices will greatly increase in the years to come, even just in the next four years. This will be experienced all over the globe only furthering the potential for marketing and increasing brand exposure to a new and increasing customer base. But another fold of the data is the connection speed predictions. Higher average connection speeds will bring about a more enjoyable experience for web users, but it will result in more being available in terms of what users can do online. Namely – video. And a lot of it. By 2016, video will make up 71% of all data that is used across the globe.

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May 31, 2012

The internet continues to grow and the world is becoming more interconnected throughout developing and developed markets. This has been clear to both individuals and businesses for some time in terms of how we are likely to individually and collectively increase web usage in the years to come. Cisco’s fifth annual assessment and accompanying prediction of global broadband growth on both wireless, managed, and fixed networks was released yesterday. In a sentence, the internet is going to be bigger and faster in the years to come – surprised?

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May 30, 2012

The internet is expansive and it reaches all corners of the globe, and thus most languages in use have found their way online to some degree. As such, it is a popular thought that businesses marketing both their presence and product online want to have language-specific sites in order to cater to specific audiences offering content that they can readily consume. This remains entirely true, however, the behavior of web users in relation to their language use and web searching looks a bit different than previously expected now, considering recent research by UK marketing firm Greenlight.

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May 29, 2012

Baidu, China’s homegrown and dominant search engine, delivers users results to their search queries based largely on the context and the semantic inferences that can be drawn from the keywords and keyword phrases used. This semantic search functionality has been a part of Baidu’s offering for some time and it now is the main driver in the search engine’s “box computing” approach that they have put forward. This approach looks to directly address the type of information that searchers are looking for by breaking information into three categories (content, data, and applications) using the semantic mechanism in the algo to determine which is most relevant.

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May 25, 2012

When brands are built up effectively over time and used purposefully, they can have a tremendous impact on the company and deliver considerable financial gain, supplementing the primary revenue generation from the sale of their actual products. Ford, one of the biggest and most recognizable name brands in the country and world, is a shining example of this. The Ford brand is worth billions and the company is a leader in the process of licensing out the various elements of the brand. Their activity provides lessons for other companies both large and small in how they can leverage the equity they have built in their brand for financial gain and valuable exposure.

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May 24, 2012

There is news from Google every day. There is news regarding their search, advances in their other offerings, or rulings in their pending legal matters. Regardless of the type of content, there is a constant stream of information and for those tracking these developments on a daily basis like we do here; it is simply a lot about one company. But, there is some news here that I'll touch on today that shows a different side of the dominant global search engine - the charitable corporate social responsibility side.

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May 23, 2012

I have written a considerable amount before about how technology and the search industry is challenging the existing legal frameworks that are present around the world in new ways. This is due to the constant evolution of the industries involved as they change and adapt very quickly, but also it is largely all new. In many cases, never before have the existing laws, whether antitrust or other, been applied in these ways and thus, new interpretations of the laws need to be made. This does not impact the search marketing industry as much as it does the tech sector, but when dealing with Google, their activity and any changes to their operations, greatly impact the internet marketing and optimization for improved search results.

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May 22, 2012

Consumers are heading online to do their shopping more and more and this has been shown in all the surveys and sales reports that are released by retailers and research firms alike. There is no argument being made for e-commerce to outright replace traditional in-store shopping, however, the future is clearly looking like one where shoppers do a large portion of their shopping online and this may be seen in some sectors or product categories over others.

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May 21, 2012

Branding is sometimes hard to separate from advertising and marketing. Although it is all under the same umbrella of external communications, some differentiation can and should be made between them so you can strategically put them to work for your business. Branding deals most closely with the image of a company and how it is being portrayed to the audience and various publics the company has. There are three simple facets to branding that a company wants to make sure they concentrate on in all their messaging for branding goals: (a) name/who they are, (b) what they do/product category, (c) core message (tag line/motto) what separates them from the competition. These are elements that surely are integrated into other forms of communication that the company engages in, however, together they are the essentials in this process.

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May 18, 2012

We share on this blog, in many ways, but especially among those generating content here, offering each other thoughts and connecting our posts to one another. If you've read Anthony's work, you know he's a fervid reader of all things, but especially the NY Times, and he uncovered this interesting look at internet prices in various countries which started the wheels turning for me on the subject. Gracias Anthony and let's dive in.

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May 17, 2012

Social media has tremendous potential to brands, we know this. But gaining increased exposure for a brand through purposeful engagement with their audience is a skill requiring a number of elements, among them a viable strategy, and is worth a closer look through the actions of a large social player, the NBA. The league has a powerful social media presence as it is with 260 million Facebook likes and Twitter followers spread around all the player, team, and league accounts - and they have significantly ramped it up for this year's playoffs and their efforts provide a great global example.

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May 16, 2012

In yesterday's post, I looked at emerging markets which I have discussed before, but with inspiration from a piece by Christian Arno (Search Engine Watch) this time I addressed them in terms of particular groupings of countries that are expected to experience exceptional growth in the near future. The BRIC countries have been the champions of this realm for some time, but now it is the CIVETS countries (Colombia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Turkey, and South Africa) that are being recognized for their potential as being the next wave of emerging economies. Especially intriguing for those in the tech and internet industries is the fact that much of the opportunity that will become apparent in these countries will exist for these industries as characteristics such as the age of the population will greatly influence how the increases in money will be spent and the behaviors that will be engaged in.  Let's dive in deeper.

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May 15, 2012

Technology and the internet have driven wide growth and innovation around the world, but this has been most widely felt in developed countries where more people have been able to take advantage of these innovations and the opportunities they create. Now, looking ahead, many economists and business analysts are looking to emerging markets as the scenes of extraordinary growth in the next 10-20 years. As such, the BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China) have shown the greatest immediate promise for emerging markets as they are the next to essentially come-of-age economically and have seen great deals of attention and investment as a result.

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May 14, 2012

The push is coming, or has it already begun? The push from Microsoft and Yahoo (but considering Yahoo's recent issues, let's concentrate on Microsoft and it's Bing search engine) to stand up to Google and offer formidable competition has been in the works for some time. Now, Microsoft is not backing from the challenge, instead fully pressing on continuing to invest in their online services division, that which guides its search platform Bing, and trying to differentiate themselves from other search engines, namely Google.

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May 11, 2012

Borrowing a business idea or model, tweaking it, and applying it to a different context is a well-practiced strategy and one that has new life now in the age of tech companies and internet businesses. Sound business models are certainly not the only element that is needed for success in business, but it is indeed essential and usually one of the first things that need to be in place. They are frameworks that translate the idea for product or service creation into a feasible, revenue-generating enterprise. Some are better than others and the best ones are those that are the tightest in terms of input, overhead, and ROI, in very simple terms. Often, borrowing a proven and successful business plan but adapting it to a new context or market is the route that is taken. Spartoo, the French e-commerce site, has done that with Zappos and they are worth taking a close look at as their case offers lessons for other businesses borrowing to help out their cause, especially when trying their hand in new markets.

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May 10, 2012

In yesterday's post, I opened the discussion on reframing and described what it is and the background of why it is important. Today, let's look at the tactics used and how it is relevant both at home and internationally.

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May 9, 2012

Reframing has a few different definitions but in terms of PR and branding, it is considered as keeping the conversation being had with audiences (on both the macro and micro scale) on point by bringing it overtly or softly back on message. Reframing has its roots in psychology and communication relating to reframing an idea…seeing it in a different light which can translate to a new and improved approach to the idea or mood surrounding it. As an example, I wrote about this practice in the first of two pieces on the subject before on the blog back in March discussing reframing the challenge of culture when a company expands into a new country as an opportunity to excel. Here's an excerpt:

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Need an Expert Contributor?

Ken Wisnefski is a seasoned web entrepreneur and a frequent contributor to news outlets and business publications. Ken’s vast knowledge of how to make online businesses succeed has made him a sought after consultant from businesses wishing to improve their online initiatives. Contact pr@webimax.com to collaborate!

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