Marketing Pilgrim Published: “Now Check In With Google Latitude” plus 4 more |  |
- Now Check In With Google Latitude
- Google Holds Its Breath and Bing Stamps Its Feet and the World Yawns
- Old Fashioned Message Boards Still Get the Job Done
- Facebook Clicks Fade as CPC Rises
- Search Gets Center Stage With Google Claiming Bing Copies Results
| Now Check In With Google Latitude Posted: 02 Feb 2011 01:16 AM PST
It looks like Google may be trying to change that as it has introduced a check in feature for Latitude that ties in many of the various parts of Google's location options like Maps and Places. From the Google Mobile blog
As per usual, Google has put together a video to explain the service so here it is Google has made many awkward starts and stops trying to get to some semblance of a social offering. This latest move somewhat bridges the gap between the Place Page push and location based options. Interestingly enough, however, there is no mention of Hotpot in the blog post or the video. It's the silo-ing of these different pieces that seem to want to fit together that makes it hard for users to truly adopt the whole package. If only Google would take the time to truly 'productize' Places, Hotpot and Latitude in a way that would make sense to the average end user they might have more success in breaking the social barrier. Do you see this combination of different elements serving to move Google out of the social media doghouse? Or will this be another effort that runs out of steam like Buzz and others? What’s your take?
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| Google Holds Its Breath and Bing Stamps Its Feet and the World Yawns Posted: 01 Feb 2011 09:59 PM PST Wow, this is ridiculous. Whether it was planned or timed by Google to say Bing copied Google’s search results or even if Bing is actually copying Google search results has become almost irrelevant. Here’s what Andy Beal thinks about the whole thing.
So this is what happens when multi-billion companies have issues with each other? Puh-leeze. Call me crazy but wouldn't it make more sense if each company were sent to their neutral corners (or more appropriately their rooms) until they both cool their jets? I know when I my kids get too testy with each other they just need to have some 'alone time' and the silliness usually subsides. In the meantime, the real world, the world of people who use the engines, is moving on as if nothing ever happened because in their eyes, nothing did. At first, I thought this would be a good thing because of the exposure it would bring to search and some of the real shortcomings of the current ways that both engines work. Instead there is likely to be more name-calling and mud slinging than progress. You know who the real winner will be in this deal? The one company that shuts up and innovates. The one company that makes search better. The one company that steps away from the table and admits it was wrong. The one company that acts like an adult. I don't have any prediction as to who will call a truce but let's hope that this turns into something constructive and not a real life business reality series gone terribly wrong. Join the Marketing Pilgrim Facebook Community
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| Old Fashioned Message Boards Still Get the Job Done Posted: 01 Feb 2011 08:48 PM PST
The survey was conducted by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Center for Marketing Research and was presented on eMarketer earlier today. Perfect timing, since I recently put up a piece about the declining click rates of Facebook ads and the high incidence of ad burnout. According to the survey, 85% of respondents said they had success with Facebook over a measly 54% from last year. That’s pretty good, right? But there were three other kinds of social media marketing that topped Facebook for results. Blogging squeaked ahead at 86% but is actually on the decline from last year and that feels like a trend that’s going to continue. Podcasting also dropped considerably over last year. On the top? Online video and message boards. Video isn’t surprising at all, but message boards? Bulletin Boards are the original form of social media, dating back to the early 70′s, though they really took off in the mid-90′s. From Fidonet and Usenet to VBulletin, these have always been a place for like-minded people to gather and chat. They may seem old fashioned compared to Facebook, but you shouldn’t be counting these websites out. As more people grow tired of Facebook’s privacy issues and the noise to signal ratio of Twitter, it’s conceivable that they’ll move back to the tightly monitored, closed-door safety of the message board. From a marketing standpoint, message boards can be a real gold mine of already qualified users. The only downside is that they’re harder to crack as they have a low tolerance for spam. Are you still including message boards in your marketing program? I’d like to hear your thoughts on the effectiveness and how you’ve made it work.
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| Facebook Clicks Fade as CPC Rises Posted: 01 Feb 2011 01:59 PM PST 1,500 Advertising Campaigns 11,200 Individual Ads 2.2 Million Clicks 0 Happy Marketers "Facebook Advertising Performance Benchmarks & Insights" is the latest whitepaper from Webtrends and it brings some sobering news. In short, Facebook ads aren’t turning out to be the gift to marketing we’d hoped and maybe Eric Schmidt was right, Google has nothing to worry about. The most telling piece of information is contained in this chart. Basically, it shows that clicks have declined and prices have risen.
Facebook’s one saving grace is the addition of the friended ad. Ads that have been “liked” by a friend received more clicks and they lasted three times longer before burning out. The problem with this is obvious, as a marketer, you have no control over who “likes” your ad. The best you can do is present a product or ad that is engaging enough to grab the audience — but isn’t that always the goal? What categories of ads perform best on Facebook? Webtrends has a chart for that and it shows that media, entertainment, tabloids and blogs get the most bang for their buck. Travel and cars also fared well. On the downside, healthcare, financial services and oddly internet and software suppliers would have been better off taking their business elsewhere. The takeaway from all of this is that Facebook isn’t the miracle marketing vehicle many were hoping for. For those in the entertainment arena, who have compelling ads that people like, it could be more profitable than the same dollars spent on Google. It seems to me that comparing Facebook to Google ads is something we shouldn’t even be doing. Facebook is a completely different animal, so shouldn’t they have a completely different way of handling advertising? By allowing folks to “like” an ad, they’re on their way to putting the social in social marketing but they still have a ways to go. The future has to hold something more than alphabet soup (CPM, CPC, CPA, CTR, ABC and OMG). What do you think?
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| Search Gets Center Stage With Google Claiming Bing Copies Results Posted: 01 Feb 2011 08:49 AM PST
Danny Sullivan has completed an extensive investigative look at a claim by Google that Bing is actually copying search results from the search leader. Rather than spend the time here rehashing the exhaustive job that Sullivan did I highly recommend that you read it and draw your own conclusions. What is interesting is that this 'revelation' comes right before an event that is being sponsored by Bing and BigThink called Farsight 2011: Beyond the Search Box. The invitation was extended to us here at Marketing Pilgrim to attend but being on opposite coasts creates a bit of an issue. Don't fret though because it can be seen in a live stream from 10 am to 2 pm PST today. The invite read
Further on we learn that not only will Bing be represented (naturally) but there will be Google representation as well.
So let's put the pieces together.
After I have done the simple math on this one I say that coincidence is certainly possible but, well…….. Of course, far be it from companies that are looking to bring attention to themselves to help the media stir the pot but once again well……. Danny does his usual great job of looking at every detail and examines this whole chain of events that came together around all of this as well. His conclusion:
In the end, I have to agree with Sullivan that if this results in better search results that weeds out the craptent in the SERPs (regardless of the engine) then this is a good thing. So I am going to put my "PR conspiracy theory" bias aside and let this one play out because honestly, talking about Facebook and Twitter all the time is getting old especially when search is still so important to the entire Internet ecosystem. All of this is to say that search is still very much alive and well in the age of social media. In fact, it may be more important than ever since most social media players can't even figure out how to index and search their own stuff effectively (wink, wink Twitter). Honestly, I could care less if this was planned because it is probably a conversation that has been a long time coming. Your thoughts?
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