Social Media Marketing Overload? Some Tips for Startups

While new businesses should certainly take advantage of social networking, here are a few tips to help avoid social media overload:

via readwriteweb.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google Launches New AdWords Tools And Certification Program For Ad Agencies

New AdWords Certification program

Google is retiring its Google Advertising Professionals (GAP) program, originally launched in November 2004, and replacing it with a new Google AdWords Certification program for agencies managing AdWords accounts on behalf of advertisers.

via techcrunch.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Wildfire Raises $4 Million For Social Media Marketing Platform - Social Media Marketing Tools & Consultant

Wildfire’s platform makes it relatively easy for marketers to create attractive, branded social media marketing campaigns (e.g. sweepstakes, contests, coupons, giveaways, quizzes, virtual gift campaigns and more) and to simultaneously publish them on Facebook fan pages, on company websites (integrated with Facebook Connect) and on Twitter.

via techcrunch.com

Need help with your social media marketing campaign? Contact social media marketing consultant Brent Purves today at http://www.BrentPurves.com or email brent [at] stirgroup.com http://www.11Marketing.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

3 Steps To Getting Started With InContext Editing: Business Catalyst Partner Company Stir

As previously announced, we've recently launched a beta version of our new InContext Editing feature for you and your clients to take for a test drive.

Over the past week, we've received some great feedback from Partners via the Community Forums and would like to address any questions you might have regarding this exciting new feature.

In this post, we'll run through three easy steps to getting started with InContext Editing, pointing you in the right direction with links to the relevant articles and resources.

via businesscatalyst.com

It's good to see ongoing updates and improvements in Business Catalyst now that Adobe owns it. The Business Catalyst InContext Editing is a great improvement. Contact http://www.StirSuite.com an approved Business Catalyst Partner company for all of your Adobe Business catalyst website design, programming, CMS, CRM, Email Marketing, templates and consulting needs. Need to speak with someone about your Business Catalyst needs today? Got a client site you need to outsource right away? Contact Brent Purves at brent [at] stirgroup.com or http://BrentPurves.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Twitter Webapp Social Media Marketing - UnTweeps - Unfollow Twitter users who don't tweet often enough.

via untweeps.com

Spring Clean your Twitter account - get rid of low/no posting Twitter accounts from your too-big list of people you're following at http://www.UnTweeps.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

UPDATE 1-Kijiji begone: EBay rebranding U.S. classified site | Reuters

EBay Inc (EBAY.O) is rebranding its Kijiji classifieds business in the United States as eBayClassifieds.com, as it strives to replace Craigslist.com as the dominant player in the world's largest classified advertising market.

"It's game-on between Craigslist and eBay,"

via reuters.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

HOW TO: Add Blogger Outreach to Your PR Plan - Blog Marketing Consultant

With so many different marketing, advertising and PR channels out there, it’s hard to be heard above the din. One relatively new approach is blogger outreach. The opinions of bloggers are heard and respected by thousands, but many companies still ignore their reach. It’s new, unknown, and they don’t understand how to track ROI. Essentially, it’s not like “old school” marketing, so they don’t like it.

via mashable.com

Need help maximizing your blog's effectiveness? Contact Brent Purves, Internet marketing (and blog marketing) expert at http://www.BrentPurves.com today for a free consultation. http://www.StirGroup.com Vancouver Blog Marketing

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Measuring The Value Of Social Media Advertising - Facebook Advertising

Nielsen found that the first type of ads on average generated a 10% increase in ad recall, a 4% increase in brand awareness and a 2% increase in purchase intent among users who saw them compared with a control group with similar demographics or characteristics who didn’t.

According to Nielsen, that increase in advertising recall jumped to 16% when ads included mentions of friends who were ‘fans’, and 30% when the ads coincided with a similar mention in users’ newsfeeds.

via techcrunch.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Twitter Buys a Text Messaging Company - Bits Blog - NYTimes.com

Today, though, most people in the United States think about Twitter as a Web tool, and they access it either online or using smartphone apps.

But Twitter has not forgotten about all the people in the world who do not have fancy phones. On Friday, the company announced that it has acquired Cloudhopper, a Seattle text-messaging start-up.

via bits.blogs.nytimes.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Privacy issues? Google engineers leaving Facebook in droves - Facebook Deactivation

The main issue is that there are concerns that Facebook, by default, now opts you in to allowing third party sites like Yelp to ‘personalise’ your experience, and there are questions about how much information is given away.

The result is that lots of geeks are considering leaving Facebook, and perhaps even more interestingly, veritable droves of Google software engineers are among them.

via eu.techcrunch.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google LatLong: The Google Maps search box just got smarter

The Suggest feature for Google Maps helps you find what you want faster and more accurately by showing search suggestions for the most relevant places, businesses and points of interest as you type.

via google-latlong.blogspot.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Measure the success of your AdWords campaigns

With AdWords, you can see how successful your advertising is by monitoring the statistics in your account. Understanding these statistics allows you to assess your results and further tweak your campaigns for even better performance.

Take a look at this video to learn how to track and understand your AdWords results in order to fine tune your advertising.

(click to view video)

via adwords.blogspot.com

Need assistance with your Google PPC marketing campaign? Trying to figure out howt to get the most out of Google Adwords. Contact Google Adwords marketing consultant Brent Purves http://www.BrentPurves.com at Stir Communications Group http://www.StirGroup.com today for a free project consultation. http://www.AdwordMarketing.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google LatLong: What’s that barcode in your Google Places account?

If you manage a Google Places account for your business in the U.S., you’ll now find a two-dimensional barcode - known as a QR code - on the right side of your business’ dashboard page. If you have just one business listing, this is the page you’re automatically taken to when you log in. If you have multiple listings, click “View report” to get to this page.

Your QR code is unique to your business, and it allows people with certain mobile Android-powered devices and iPhones to scan it and be taken directly to the mobile version of your Place Page.

via google-latlong.blogspot.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Bing Makes Gains In Search Advertising Share: Report

Echoing recent stats that show Bing slowly growing its search engine market share, a new report says Bing is also increasing its share of search ad spending and clicks.

via searchengineland.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

7 Stupid Reasons to Hire a PR Agency - Business Public Relations - Entrepreneur.com

Brand awareness

, thought leadership, increased executive visibility, crisis communications preparedness . . . the laundry list of reasons companies should hire PR representation goes on and on, and a capable agency should provide all this and more. The decision to hire an agency should not be taken lightly and there are some common are pitfalls that should be avoided to ensure success. From unscrupulous agencies to recognizing your own misguided preconceptions; here are seven reasons you should not hire a PR agency.

via entrepreneur.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Facebook May Not Be Skynet, but It Is Getting Smarter, and That's Bad for Google - Facebook Marketing Strategies

This is all a very big deal if it's successful. Bigger than you think. And It makes Facebook a direct competitor to Google. Facebook has managed to succeed where Google has failed -- turning your social behavior into actionable intelligence. Google's major attempts at insights into web-wide consumer behavior (Orkut, FriendConnect, Checkout, Buzz) have not had anything close to the success that the Facebook platform has had.

via adage.com

Need help developing and implementing facebook marketing campaign including Facebook marketing strategy, Facebook page development, custom Facebook landing pages, facebook video, facebook app design or facebook pay per click or cpm ad campaigns? Contact Brent Purves at Stir Communications Group today at brent [at] stirgroup.com http://www.BrentPurves.com http://www.StirGroup.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Gmail Drag and drop attachments onto messages - Official Gmail Blog

I used to have to click "Attach a file," find the photos, click them, etc. Starting today, if I'm using Google Chrome or Mozilla Firefox 3.6, I can just drag and drop the files to attach them

via gmailblog.blogspot.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Apple Reveals iPhone Software with In-Built Advertising - iads

The company's new mobile advertising platform, called iAds, is built into the operating system--application developers will be able to use it to sell ads and will get 60 percent of the revenue.

Mobile advertising is seen as a potential goldmine because, at least in theory, advertisements can be tailored to a person's precise location and activity.

The announcement will intensify competition between Apple and Google

via technologyreview.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Is Foursquare's growth boxed in? Foursquare marketing for business growth

But beyond that, if Foursquare is going to be the next Facebook or Twitter, the basics of the service will have to change to meet the social-media desires of an audience that's dropping off kids at school rather than dropping into 2-for-1 happy hour, or hunting for tips to find the best place in town to get that 21st slice of pizza.

via news.cnet.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Social Gaming Execs Discuss Growth, Monetization, And The Future Of Facebook Games

Today at the Inside Social Apps conference in San Francisco, a panel of top social gaming executives met to discuss the future of gaming on Facebook. The conversation touched on quite a few issues, including the evolution of social gaming mechanics, monetization, and whether or not the industry would be able to continue its incredible growth over the next few years. One bold prediction: Playdom CEO John Pleasants says that the reach of social games will double in the next 18 months.

via techcrunch.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

5 New Paradigms For Link Building Success

In 2001 the adage was, “if you build it, they will come.” In 2010 it is, “if you build it, they might not care.” Valuable, unique, even remarkable items will not magically garner links on their own merit. They need a shepherd, an advocate, a promoter, a platform, or a bankroll to push them into the spotlight. Sometimes they need to age, to spread slowly and naturally. Sometimes they need to be pushed heavily and quickly. Different types of content will require different tactics.

In this new age of the web, I am proposing the following five paradigms as a framework for conceptualizing link building:

via searchengineland.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

AOL to Launch New Campaign Management Platform AdDesk

AOL has unveiled Advertising.com Ad Desk, a new campaign management platform aimed at midsized agencies and advertisers.

The new Ad Desk will allow display advertisers to take a more active role in their online ad campaigns. They’ll be able to access information on AOL’s various properties, such as demographics and audience sizes, and make decisions on how and when campaigns should run—without having to go through AOL’s own sales force.

via mediaweek.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Twitter's Advertising Scheme is Delightfully Boring - Just As It Should Be. Twitter Keyword Marketing

Twitter announced tonight it's got a plan for advertisements. You can breathe a sigh of relief; the plan is downright boring, just as it should be.

Advertisements will begin in search, with keywords being bid on and a single advertisement appearing with frequency dependent on its performance. Then the ads will be extended to 3rd party applications like TweetDeck and others. It's unclear who will use it, Tweetie got bought by Twitter last week and Twitterific has its own ads, but other apps will come and go, hopefully given the option (not the requirement) to show Twitter ads to their users.

Finally, ads will begin to appear on Twitter.com

via readwriteweb.com

For Twitter Marketing & Advertising visit Twitter Marketing Agency http://www.TwitterMarketingAgency.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

7 Stupid Reasons to Hire a PR Agency - Business Public Relations - Entrepreneur.com

Brand awareness

, thought leadership, increased executive visibility, crisis communications preparedness . . . the laundry list of reasons companies should hire PR representation goes on and on, and a capable agency should provide all this and more. The decision to hire an agency should not be taken lightly and there are some common are pitfalls that should be avoided to ensure success. From unscrupulous agencies to recognizing your own misguided preconceptions; here are seven reasons you should not hire a PR agency.

via entrepreneur.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

EveryTrail - iPhone Application

via everytrail.com

Playing with the EveryTrail iphone app free version

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

MarketingExperiments Blog: Research-driven optimization, testing, and marketing ideas

Most experienced marketers tend to think of anything Internet-marketing related as new, cutting edge, and/or unproven. But a funny thing happened on the way to Google’s $180 billion market capitalization – search has become a commodity.

via marketingexperiments.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google Adds Buzz to Mobile Gmail, Sort of

Google is integrating its social networking service Buzz into the Web-based version of Gmail for the iPhone and Android phones, but there's no word on an official dedicated Buzz app for either of the popular mobile platforms.

via pcworld.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

News Sites Rethink Anonymous Online Comments

When news sites, after years of hanging back, embraced the idea of allowing readers to post comments, the near-universal assumption was that anyone could weigh in and remain anonymous. But now, that idea is under attack from several directions, and journalists, more than ever, are questioning whether anonymity should be a given on news sites.

via nytimes.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Real Estate Association focuses on services amid MLS dispute

CREA members voted to relax their own rules, allowing users to pay an agent a flat fee to list on the MLS. Agents must also now give a seller's phone number directly to an interested buyer, if asked.

The Bureau said the changes didn't go far enough, and now both parties will present their case at a Competition Tribunal.

The new campaign, featuring the TV spot "Breath" by CREA agency partner Zig,

via marketingmag.ca

campaign includes tv, radio & online media driving to howrealtorshelp.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

TweetUp : Twitter Marketplace - showcasing the world's best tweeters -- but only from USA?

TweetUp, Inc., announced today a new Twitter marketplace designed to showcase the world's best tweeters and enable them to grow a highly targeted following. TweetUp is a new patent-pending platform that combines the popularity, relevance and influence of tweets and tweeters with a bid-based marketplace. Major partners, including leading Twitter search clients and top web sites, will display the results, enabling users to easily find the best tweets and tweeters in the world.

via tweetup.com

Tried signing up but it's only accepting Twitter users from USA...not Canada.

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Seeking Mobile Magic as Search Engine Use Shrinks

Microsoft's attempt to grab a hold of the search market is paying off, as Bing has gone up for the tenth month in succession, by 0.2%. The other two, Yahoo and Ask, were up 0.1% each, but with Google's share at 65.1%, there is little hope of its rivals besting that.

So, back to the leveling out of search engine use. Annual growth rates, according to comScore qSearch, aredown, from 33.1% in March 2009, to 7.6% this year.

via fastcompany.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Is Flash Finally Banned from iPhones? - PCWorld

Apple has revised its iPhone Developer Program License Agreement changing the terms and conditions to insist iPhone applications are written in native code.

An "intermediary translation or compatibility layer or tool" is now prohibited, which means iPhone developers will no longer be able to use Adobe's iPhone compiler software to help build applications.

via pcworld.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Is Flash Finally Banned from iPhones? - PCWorld

Apple has revised its iPhone Developer Program License Agreement changing the terms and conditions to insist iPhone applications are written in native code.

An "intermediary translation or compatibility layer or tool" is now prohibited, which means iPhone developers will no longer be able to use Adobe's iPhone compiler software to help build applications.

via pcworld.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Pro tips: Gmail Message Sneak Peek helps control clutter

Today Google pushed live a Gmail functionality called Message Sneak Peek, which lets you sift through incoming email messages – even long email chains – without actually opening up the messages. Yeah, sure – it sounds like a triviality. Until you actually use the thing. We've logged a couple hours on Sneak Peek, and we're willing to bet that it will become an instant favorite among heavy users of Gmail.

via csmonitor.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Shaw adding mobile phone service in western Canada

The battle of the bundle is coming to Western Canada.

Shaw Communications Inc. (SJR.B-T19.850.180.92%) plans to launch cellphone service in late 2011, promising to ratchet up competition in Canada's increasingly crowded wireless industry. The Calgary-based cable company said it plans to spend hundreds of millions of dollars over the next few years building a wireless network, initially in Western Canada.

via theglobeandmail.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Square - iPhone Credit Card Payments

via youtube.com

Can't buy this iPhone App in Canadian iTunes store yet.

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

How To Create High-Converting Landing Pages

In this post I present some intermediate level landing page optimization tactics. I toss in a couple of real-world scenarios and we will work from some basic assumptions. This article is targeted for Google AdWords advertisers with direct marketing goals in mind, although the same principles apply to other search engines just as well.

Landing page optimization has two main goals:

• Increase conversions for clicks that get to the page
• Increase Quality Score (Google only) so that you can lower your CPC for the same clicks

via searchengineland.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

PayPal Makes a Major Splash on iPhone

In just three weeks, the new PayPal Mobile iPhone app has been downloaded more than one million times.

PayPal Mobile 2.0 [iTunes link] appeared in the App Store () on March 15 with an array of new features, including the ability to “bump” money to friends. PayPal worked with the developers from Bump Technologies, the company that makes the Bump iPhone app, to make the process of sending money faster and more fun.

via mashable.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Twitter spreads its wings in India - DigitalMedia

With an estimated two million users, Twitter in India now has the third highest number of active users after the US and Germany.

The potential for Twitter in India is huge. In October last year it struck a partnership with Bharti Airtel, the largest mobile operator in India, which has 110 million subscribers. The telco’s subscribers can now send tweets at standard rates and receive tweets for free. As the mobile services pick up, Twitter could garner an even larger number of users.

via media.asia

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

AOL's Bebo on Its Last Legs?

AOL is evaluating strategic alternatives for Bebo, including a sale or shutdown of the social networking site this year. A decision is expected by the end of next month.

In early 2008, AOL, then part of Time Warner, acquired U.K.-headquartered Bebo for $850 million at a time when media giants were looking at digital media targets, particularly in the networking space. But the price target was considered very high, and TW and AOL executives later started hinting at a potential sale.

via mediaweek.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Twitter spreads its wings in India - DigitalMedia

With an estimated two million users, Twitter in India now has the third highest number of active users after the US and Germany.

The potential for Twitter in India is huge. In October last year it struck a partnership with Bharti Airtel, the largest mobile operator in India, which has 110 million subscribers. The telco’s subscribers can now send tweets at standard rates and receive tweets for free. As the mobile services pick up, Twitter could garner an even larger number of users.

via media.asia

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Retailers jump on social media bandwagon with Facebook, Twitter - Social Media Marketing

To spread the word about a new skin-care salon in West Seattle, owner Karen Jahn got her social-media act together and hired a publicist to reach out to several hundred customers on Facebook and Twitter.

Through teaser messages, fans of Jahn's Wax Bar in Ballard were told about the cross-town opening and given a chance to win weekly prizes.

"I don't know if we got many new clients out of it," said Jahn, who spent more than $800 on the monthlong promotion. "But we got more people to follow us, and now more people are aware of the Wax Bar."

via seattletimes.nwsource.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Social Media Marketing in Four Steps

Topic: Social Media Marketing in Four Steps: A methodology to move from sporadic to strategic use based on research with 2,317 B2B and B2C marketers

Social media marketing has been a blazingly hot topic for marketers in every industry this year. But since this technology is so new, there is still a daunting knowledge gap.

via marketingexperiments.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Is Trust In Social Media Dying? Are You Skeptical of Peer Reviews?

Social media has exploded in recent years in its use to gauge customers’ likes and dislikes and to identify consumer buying trends. Users have migrated from trusting traditional media for reviews, ratings, and recommendations to trusting what their peers have to say in social media. The new age of digital and social media is upon us, and apparently, already dying in some areas. New data shows consumers are rebelling against all the “noise.”

via searchengineland.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Could Apple Actually Beat Google in Mobile Advertising? Iphone & Admob Mobile Advertising

So does Apple, whose specialty isn’t advertising, stand a chance in a duel to the death with the Google juggernaut? The answer is a surprising “yes”, depending on what shape iAd takes and how the iPhone vs. Android () battle plays out. It’s fighting a more experienced competitor, though.

via mashable.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google To Buzz Users: Are You Sure You’re Not Oversharing?

When Google announced its big jump into the social stream with the launch of Google Buzz back in February, the company thought it was doing everyone a favor by having users auto-follow the people they emailed and chatted the most with. That was a mistake, and the heat was turned on quickly by the broad press, vocal users and privacy pundits.

via techcrunch.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google Launches iPad-Optimized Gmail Web App

Google has just announced on its mobile blog that it has created a web-based version of Gmail that’s optimized for the iPad. The HTML5-based site, which is automatically activated when you visit Gmail.com from device, features a slick looking two-column view, with a list of messages in the left column and message content on the right.

via techcrunch.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Could Apple Actually Beat Google in Mobile Advertising? Iphone & Admob Mobile Advertising

So does Apple, whose specialty isn’t advertising, stand a chance in a duel to the death with the Google juggernaut? The answer is a surprising “yes”, depending on what shape iAd takes and how the iPhone vs. Android () battle plays out. It’s fighting a more experienced competitor, though.

via mashable.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

2010: The Year for Tech Startup Recovery?

Even as private equity investments languish, venture capital — including funds for startups — is seeing a boom in business from last year to now, according to data collected by Dow Jones. Will these funds trickle down to web startups?

Throughout 2009, funds for early-stage companies and multi-stage funds saw significant growth — optimistic signs heralding the return of venture capital. Funds fluctuated from quarter to quarter last year, but the year still ended strongly and Q1 2010 is robust compared to the beginning of last year.

via mashable.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Official Gmail Blog: Confirm your Buzz settings

Shortly after launching Google Buzz, we quickly realized we didn't get everything right and moved as fast as possible to improve the Buzz experience. We made a number of changes to the getting started experience based on your feedback, the most significant of which was replacing auto-following with suggestions for people to follow.

via gmailblog.blogspot.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

PaperG | Local Online Advertising & Marketing

PaperGSM local online advertising solutions

Flyerboard is a virtual corkboard that can automatically convert any image (print ad, insert, etc.) into an interactive online ad with built-in community features. Publishers are using Flyerboard to increase online ad revenue from local businesses. Learn more >>

PlaceLocal is a smart technology that allows online publishers to automate local ad creation, sales, and management. All you have to do is type in any local business, and PlaceLocal will automatically build a stunning, customized online ad. Learn more >>

via paperg.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

From Addiction to Apathy: The Five Stages of Foursquare (and Gowalla) Use

Foursquare, the smartphone app that gives you points and badges for "checking in" at clubs and convenience stores, is about to reach the one-million-user mark. That's a big deal. But it's also a reminder that, try as we might to cover its every move, most of you haven't tried Foursquare yet. (Or you're using its scrappy archrival, Gowalla.) Here's what to expect when you do:

via fastcompany.com

----

It doesn't take long to get to stage five on Foursquare or Gowalla without an active network of friends using the same social application. Even then, with just getting virtual stamps, mayorships and virtual goodies it might get boring quick. What's next to keep people checking in? Find real money or songs or tv shows or movies or movie tickets or coupons instead of virtual goods? Become the real mayor of a town for a day after 250 check ins at city hall? Move to Rally Up http://www.getupandrally.com to cut down on the stalking and frequent home break-ins when you broadcast to the world you're out of town?

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Technology Review: Spammers Turn to Social Networks

A group led by George Petre at BitDefender, an antivirus software company based in Bucharest, Romania, performed an experiment to test the effectiveness of spamming techniques geared toward a social networking site. They found it surprisingly easy to entice Facebook users to "friend" people they didn't know; they also found that many users were willing to click on links without knowing who sent them or where they led.

via technologyreview.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

From Addiction to Apathy: The Five Stages of Foursquare (and Gowalla) Use

Foursquare, the smartphone app that gives you points and badges for "checking in" at clubs and convenience stores, is about to reach the one-million-user mark. That's a big deal. But it's also a reminder that, try as we might to cover its every move, most of you haven't tried Foursquare yet. (Or you're using its scrappy archrival, Gowalla.) Here's what to expect when you do:

via fastcompany.com

It doesn't take long to get to stage five on Foursquare or Gowalla without an active network of friends using the same social application. Even then, with just getting virtual stamps, mayorships and virtual goodies it will get thin quick. What's next to keep people checking in? Find real money or coupons instead of virtual goods? Become the real mayor of a town for a day after 250 check ins at city hall? Move to Rally Up http://www.getupandrally.com to cut down on the stalking and frequent home break-ins when you broadcast to the world you're out of town?

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Why You Shouldn't Buy an iPad (Yet)

Apple's iPad arrives in stores tomorrow and reviewers agree that it's a magic revolutionary new class of computer. But you shouldn't buy one. Not yet, anyway.

Let's break this down.

First-generation Apple products are for suckers. Only lemmings with no self-control and excessive disposable income buy first generation Apple products, especially in a new gadget category. When they do, they pay the double the price for immature hardware and software.

via fastcompany.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

SS+K Nabs Buick, GMC Social Roster Spots - Social Media Marketing Agency

With social media looming larger for brands, more are willing to carve out spots on their agency rosters for social specialists.

  General Motors is doing so by adding SS+K. The auto giant has tasked the New York-based shop with developing big social ideas that can take root and grow online and offline for its Buick and GMC brands.

  On those nameplates, independent SS+K joins existing GM agencies Leo Burnett, Starcom and Digitas, all from Publicis Groupe, and Martin Retail Group, part of Interpublic Group.

via brandweek.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Yahoo Buzz Marketers Set Up Shop

Yahoo has undergone a rough patch lately, but some of the latest members of its executive exodus hope to tap into a bright spot of its heritage: innovative marketing.

  The team behind its nontraditional marketing efforts, like setting up a yodel studio in Times Square, has left the Internet company to create its own agency, Manifold.

  Based in San Francisco, Manifold is a five-person buzz marketing shop. It brings together longtime Yahoo marketing executives, including former director of buzz marketing Sean Florio, who wrapped up work at Yahoo yesterday.

via brandweek.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google Acquires Online Video Platform Episodic

Google is definitely on a buying spree this year. The company's latest acquisition is Episodic, an online video platform that Google will probably integrate into YouTube is some form. Neither Episodic nor Google shared any financial details about this acquisition. Episodic plans to keep its current service up and running for the time being.

via readwriteweb.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

YouTube Makeover Designed To Keep You Watching

Two months after entering beta, YouTube's video page redesign is ready for its close up. Google's video-sharing site first unveiled the makeover in late January, and today the streamlined interface goes live to all users.

via pcworld.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Startups Aim to Reinvent Local Advertising - PlaceLocal PaperG

Advertising has been a killer Internet business model, making billions of dollars for Google and others. But a number of startup companies think there's a huge untapped market in providing automatically tailored display advertising to thousands of local businesses.

Ad slot: PlaceLocal automatically generates ads for local businesses by crawling the Web. Credit: PaperG

Yelp, which aggregates customer reviews of local businesses, has tried to provide targeted local advertising with varied success. Now a new crop of startups are hatching plans to provide more effective advertising services to local businesses. The aim is to ease small businesses into online advertising through familiar channels such as newspaper sites, and to help these locally focused websites increase revenues by making it easier for them to service small accounts.

via technologyreview.com

 

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

50 Ad Agency New Business Tips Fueling Ad Agency New Business Through Social Media

The definition of insanity is, “repeating the same behavior expecting different results.”

If you are struggling for new business ideas, hopefully this list of  fifty  agency new business tips will provide some help. 

via fuelingnewbusiness.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Vancouver business climate on an upswing

Vancouver's competitive advantage over the major cities of the United States has jumped significantly in the last two years, according to a report by international consultants KPMG.

Vancouver ranks fifth -- up from 21st two years ago -- among 41 major international cities in terms of business competitiveness, says the report.

Montreal ranks third and Toronto sixth. Vancouver's nearest geographical competitor, Seattle, ranks No. 29

via vancouversun.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

China's Social Gaming Landscape: What's Coming Next

It's no longer a secret that China's online gaming industry is booming, and growth is set to continue with companies such as Shanda Games, Netease and The9 leading the way. In 2009, China's online gaming industry earned nearly $4 billion, growing 39.5% from 2008.

 

Each day, millions of high school students trying to forget the pressures of college entrance exams and young adults discontent with their jobs flock to Internet cafes to play online role-playing games. They're part of China's 384 million netizens, and they sit in front of rows of computers in dimly lighted smoke-filled rooms for upwards of eight hours at a time, living in virtual worlds to escape the pressures of contemporary Chinese life.

via readwriteweb.com

 

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Rally Up is a Location-Based Network For People Who Like Privacy

A new geolocation app for the iPhone was released today called Rally Up. What differentiates Rally Up from the likes of Foursquare and Gowalla is that it has a strong focus on privacy and content sharing. Rally Up bills itself as “a social network for real friends,” letting users share messages and photos with the people they trust.

To this end, Rally Up takes a very different approach to friends lists and friends management from other social applications. For instance, Rally Up doesn’t integrate with Twitter (). What?! I hear you gasp. As the saying goes, “It’s not a flaw, it’s a feature.”

via mashable.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Vancouver Internet Marketing - Upcoming Events w/ IIMA

Upcoming Events

F5 Expo

Wednesday, Apr 07th 2010

8:00am - 8:00pm

Vancouver Convention Centre EAST WING

  Why Attend? Attending F5 will be an essential part of developing next year’s business plan.…

Event Details

19 Guerrilla Social Media Marketing Secrets

Wednesday, Apr 14th 2010

6:00pm - 8:00pm

YWCA (4th Floor)

Guerrilla marketers achieve conventional goals using unconventional tools and strategies. Instead of…

Event Details

Sociable Luncheon

Wednesday, Apr 21st 2010

11:30am - 1:30pm

Abbotsford Banquet and Conference Centre

Speakers: Stephen Jagger and Shane Gibson, social media experts and co-authors of Sociable! How social…

Event Details

via iimaonline.org

Great opportunities to network in the Vancouver Internet marketing industry

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Blogging to Drive Business » Vancouver Blog Miss 604

Along with my co-author, the talented Eric Butow, I wrote Blogging to Drive Business, which is now on sale in bookstores and online.

Available online:
Amazon
Chapters
Barnes & Noble

Blogging can help you deepen customer loyalty, reach new customers, gain indispensable feedback, and drive more sales.

This no-nonsense guide shows how to craft a business blog that does all that, and more–building your business and increasing your profits.

Top e-marketers and business bloggers Eric Butow and Rebecca Bollwitt help you define clear goals, generate the right content with the right tools, attract visitors, build communities, and avoid costly mistakes…

I recently wrote a blog post about our book as well, featuring a review by Gillian Shaw of the Vancouver Sun (which was in print Saturday January 23, 2010).

via miss604.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Yellow Media buys rival Canpages - Yellow Pages Alternative - Local Online Search Marketing

Montreal-based Yellow Media Inc. - which owns Yellow Pages Group and the Trader Corp. classified advertising business - announced yesterday that it will buy Vancouver-based Canpages in a $225-million deal.

Yellow Pages prints directories that already enjoy a more than 90-per-cent market share in most places in Canada. Canpages sought to grab a slice of that business, and to get ahead of the print giant in the online directory space.

via theglobeandmail.com

Need an alternative to Yellow Pages or CanPages advertising for your business? Contact us today about custom small and medium sized online marketing solutions so you can target local customers online when they are searching for your product or services in Google, Yahoo, Bing, Facebook, Twitter and other leading destinations. If you're spending too much money on your Yellow Pages or newspaper advertsing we can help you use some of your advertising dollars more effectively with custom local internet marketing solutions. Contact local business online marketing consultant Brent Purves http://www.BrentPurves.com at Stir Communications Group http://www.StirGroup.com today for a free consultation.

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Vancouver ad agency to open Toronto Office - Vancouver - Toronto Advertising Agencies

Independent Vancouver advertising agency Rethink Communications is moving into the big leagues, opening its first office in Toronto in a bid to capture more business.

The award-winning firm, whose ads for A&W and Mr. Lube have been a hit with viewers, says it was time to move up.

"We've grown as far as we can in Vancouver," agency co-founder Chris Staples said in an interview Tuesday.

"There's a ton of opportunity in Toronto. About 90 per cent of the marketing business in Canada is there."

via thestar.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

New search options call for new search strategies | SEO Search Engine Marketing

The world wide web is dead. Long live the world wide web.

In his closing keynote at Marketing's Search Engine Tune Up conference in Toronto Wednesday, Mike Grehan, vice-president and global content director with New York-based Incisive Media, spoke about how the world wide web wasn't built to handle the types of technology used on it today, much less for the needs of the future.

As it applies to search, that means even Google can't track every web page and, increasingly, people will be using other platforms such as mobile applications for the advantage of real-time search. "When it comes to real-time search, the world wide web is bust," said Grehan, whose company includes Search Engine Watch, ClickZ, and Search Engine Strategies.

via marketingmag.ca

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Facebook vs. Google: The Billion Dollar Battle to Be Your Default Social Profile

“What’s next in social media?” It’s among the most popular questions out there. But while most folks currently answer with “location-based services” (i.e. Foursquare (), Gowalla ()) or “group purchasing” (i.e. Groupon, Twongo, Living Social), the real battle may be between Facebook () and Google ().

The fight between these two Internet giants to become your default social profile has been brewing for a long time, and the prize is an enormous potential revenue stream. Let’s take a closer look.

via mashable.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Yahoo's Display Ad Target: Neighborhoods - Local Search Marketing

Yahoo wants to remain the top display ad seller. Its strategy is to go local.

National advertisers spend more than $120 billion on advertising in local markets and Yahoo wants it.

This year the Sunnyvale, Calif., company's sales reps are going after big companies with outlets that advertise in local newspapers and on regional radio stations and Web sites. These marketers include Dunkin' Donuts, Burger King, Pizza Hut, State Farm Insurance and Home Depot. The list goes on and Yahoo intends to call every advertiser on it, offering them the opportunity to target regionally and reach millions of people online.

via forbes.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Politician Makes Foursquare Even More Annoying Than Twitter

If the Bravo advertisements and MTV resident New Jerseyan DJ Pauly D didn't tip you off, Foursquare has gone mainstream. The latest addition to Club Waldo Envy? Politicians.

According to CNN producer Eric Kuhn, 27-year-old aspiring congressman Patrick Kennedy is crowing about being the first congressional candidate to use the service. "I have always been attracted to new, budding technologies," Kennedy told CNN.

via blogs.forbes.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Provoking Google And Yahoo - Forbes.com

Tim Cadogan, chief executive officer of Pasadena open-source ad server OpenX, is aiming to shake up the advertising war between Google and Yahoo by taking the fight off their turf.

Cadogan is teaming up with Orange-France Telecom ( FTE - news - people ) Group to create a new OpenX-powered advertising exchange to serve all of Europe. The ad exchange, rolling out this summer, will be similar to Wall Street's electronic trading system. Marketers will have the power to bid on ad space available through Orange, a telecommunications company that doubles as an advertising network, and reach Orange's 340 million monthly unique users in 32 European countries.

via forbes.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Why Yahoo Just Killed Its AdSense Clone (YHOO)

Yahoo is shutting down its Publisher Ad Network effective April 30.

(The Publisher Ad Network is Yahoo's Google AdSense competitor. It tries to serve display and text ads based on the page's content.)

Here's what you need to know about the news, straight from a source familiar with Yahoo's (YHOO) strategy:

"They're surrendering the war [against Google Ad Sense] long after all the troops have been pulled off the battlefield. It'd always been a crappy business. It's totally consistent with [Yahoo's decision to not] focus on small publishers. Not a big deal. not material in any way."

via sfgate.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Facebook freebies can build a strong customer base | VentureBeat

By now, you’ve probably heard from so many social media evangelists that you roll your eyes when the topic comes up. Can’t blame you.

The thing is: Social media can beneficial for startups – but the different between being a slight help and a real game changer comes down to a few things.

Here are 5 steps I’ve learned over the years that your sales and marketing team needs to follow to see a real boost from Facebook and Twitter.

via entrepreneur.venturebeat.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

iPhone App Marketing Tactics for Vancouver Developers | HootSuite blog - Social Media Dashboard

Attention Vancouver iPhone Developers

No, this isn’t an April Fool’s joke, it’s true that HootSuite CEO Ryan Holmes will share knowledge with mobile developers and aspiring entrepreneurs in Vancouver when he speaks at the iPhone and Social Media meetup on April 1 at the Guinness Tower in Vancouver.

via blog.hootsuite.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves

Google Launches Ad Innovations Lab

Google has announced a new lab-type area called Google Ad Innovations, which is where it’ll “show you some of our latest ideas around advertising technologies and get your feedback.” Think of it as Google Labs for Ads.

via searchengineland.com

Posted via web from Vancouver Internet Marketing Consultant - Brent Purves