The beauty of site optimisation

Source : Click here

Not something likely to inconvenience me enormously, as its beauty products are aimed predominantly at the discerning ladies of Notting Hill.

It did, however, get me thinking about the cost of redesigning a retail outlet and inevitably, considering my line of work, how that compares to the online retailers I talk to day to day.

Although online stores never actually have to close to relaunch, historically they have faced exactly the same issues as the high street when they finally throw the doors open on the brand new site. Will my customers like it? Will I sell more products?

But not anymore - with the latest website optimisation techniques, it is quite possible to thoroughly test multiple variations of the design, feel and navigation of the new site prior to launch so that you know for a fact that the new design works better than the old.

It's the equivalent of bringing in all of Space NK's existing Notting Hill customers and designing the new store exactly to their specification.

Better than that, while you can only create one store design in bricks and mortar, the online store can serve up bespoke to the personal design and product preferences of thousands of individual customers.

Once you have a new look for your online store and are weighing up the layout options, experience shows us that the page you expect to work best is not necessarily the one that will perform best in testing.

In that sense the process of arriving at the optimal layout and content is quite counter-intuitive – it can't be second guessed.

Happily, multi-variable testing has arrived to take the guess work out of it.

The position and design of the elements making up a web page – graphics, buttons, text and layout - can be tested in all possible combinations to arrive at the combination your customers will react to most favourably.

A recent example is the 1,560 permutations of one key landing page we tested for Gamestation.

The result was an uplift of 13.09% reaching the 'Thank you' page and a 13.29% increase in average order value.

That's the equivalent of testing 1,560 combinations of beauty products on one display table in Space NK.

Of course, for the high street, that level of testing is not yet practical and there will always be an element of risk in a high street redesign.

Project Gatineau Web Analytics

Source : Click here

Project Gatineau, Microsoft's new, free web analytics service, is ready for beta testing and the first invitations are now being sent to customers.

To manage Project Gatineau's growth and give customers the best web analytics service possible, the beta is by invitation for US advertisers only for the moment.

All advertisers can request an invitation here: http://advertising.microsoft.com/microsoft-adcenter-gatineau

Project Gatineau's web analytics are useful to sites of all sizes – from smaller sites that can't afford an expensive web analytics solution to larger sites looking for a boost in their web analytics capabilities.

With the Gatineau beta, you can learn more about where your visitors come from and easily measure your marketing campaigns across any medium and from any traffic source.

Features include:

• Click and visitor tracking reports
• Marketing campaign reporting and conversion tracking
• Unique demographic and geographic information from your site visitors

Of course, Project Gatineau is a beta service so we are still adding features and working hard to improve.

AOL Launches Indian Language Portal

Source : Click here


AOL takes a giant step towards its expansion goal with the launch of a local language version of its web search portal in India. Coming into the Indian web market are a slew of AOL web services spearheaded by AOL's video search portal Truveo. Truveo is launching its international editions in eight major countries today as well.

Ron Grant, President and COO of AOL believes that India is an important market for AOL and the launch of the AOL India portal highlights the company's commitment to serving online consumers with a robust portal an video search tools. "These are also important steps in our ongoing efforts to make AOL a truly global company, we started this year with three international portals in Europe, and we will end 2008 with a presence in 30 countries around the world," says Grant.

India's online audience is continuously growing with internet users in urban India increasing by 28% in the past year. Sixty percent of these active Indian internet users prefer to read web content in their local Indian languages. Hence, AOL's India portal which will be available in Hindi and Tamil will enhance the web experience of the Indian online community.

Two  announcements regarding global expansion plus a previous announcement on its mobile portal enhancement, looks like AOL is on a rampage to leverage its current standing in the global search market. Whatever happened to Ask.com by the way?

Debt Consolidation Advice: Sign for Better Things to Come

In very rare cases it is seen that sometimes a debtor cannot get rid of the debt or debt despite making regular payments and the debts remain without the least change of improvement. If you are one such person and seeking for a rational way to consolidate and get rid of debt permanently, then here is debt consolidation advice. It is equipped with rational policies that very effectively disperse and wipe debts. The suggestions and advice are witness of the hardship and seriousness to serve the wishes of debtors.
  
Prominence are given to all types of debts, be it a single or multiple. The debt consolidation advice can be procures to handle and consolidate the numerous debts in a single manner. It is a like a having the correct answer for the question. The debt consolidation like a specialist diagnoses the disease and then prescribes the effectual medication in the form of advice. This advice is adopted after mush survey and assumptions and very deeply eradicates the roots of debt from your credit history.
  
The debt consolidation advice can be subscribed in an easy and straightforward manner because with the intention of promoting the service it is catered under different names. For instance you ca obtain same service under the names as debt management advice, instant debt consolidation, online debt consolidation, debt management services and as well. All the tags concentrate and carry the same objective it is like the old idiom all roads lead to Rome.
  
Debt consolidation advice is also a rational deal if you are currently paying higher rate of interest against your debts. Moreover, you can also avail loans with the aid of such services at low and cheap interest rates. The best way of getting is through the online application method because you need not have to travel the long distance to collect information from lender's office. So, you can consolidate your debts just by clicking the debt consolidation advice.

Website Hacking Prevention Measures

Source : Click here

Website creation is a very popular activity on the internet. As more and more people discover the many possibilities of having their own website, more of these pages are being created on the internet. It is essential that a website is created in more than just a way that is attractive to visitors. It should also be protected in such a way that there is a higher level of security. There are many individuals who actually spend a majority of their time hacking various websites online. In this article, you will learn about the importance of website hacking prevention measures.

Website hackers use numerous kinds of computer programming languages in order to break down the security on websites on the internet. The most popular computer programming language that can be invaded is that which uses XXS. This is a cross scripting type of computer language that is often used to cross websites. When creating your online website, it is essential that you ensure that all fields and other areas of the website are properly protected from the potential hacker.

Many website owners have a special area on their website where they attempt to gather personal information from the visitors. This may include gathering an email address, an address, and other types of information. It is important that this part of the website is properly protected from hackers. Not only can this type of hacking jeopardize your website, but it can also jeopardize the personal information that your visitors enter on the website. It is important for you to make sure that this part of your website is properly encrypted by HTML.

Many website hackers engage in a practice that is commonly referred to as "Google Hacking". Individuals who use this type of hacking often attempt to discover information about a particular website that is listed on Google by searching for information that is normally considered to be unauthorized. They will attempt to retrieve information that pertains to the tracking tools that are often used by website owners. This information, when in the wrong hands, can actually jeopardize your website.

Individuals who gain access to information on a website through Google hacking techniques may get access to the following information:
- The cache of the website
- Various types of files that are listed on the website
- The link that is used to promote the website
- The intitle and the inurl may also be accessed

Many website owners create their website in such a way that they can access the information across many platforms. However, this can prove to be a danger when it comes to website hackers. By using Google hacking techniques, the pages that are on the website can be easily hacked because the pages are often available for editing purposes. If there is a query made into the search engine, these pages can easily be accessed. If a hacker accesses this information, they can do virtually anything to your website pages. This can prove to cause you financial loss. This is especially true if the hacker places information on your website that can hurt your reputation.

Luckily, there are many techniques that website owners can use to prevent the possibility of hacking. First, the data that you use to compile your website pages should never be allowed to sit on a server. This information should be saved locally. This means that it should be saved to your computer. In turn, you should make sure that the computer is protected by a password that contains alphanumeric characters. This way, if someone attempts to access your computer system remotely, they will be unable to do so.

You should also ensure that the password that you use to make changes to your website is also secure. When saving the documents that are part of your website, it is important that you create them in such a way that others are unable to access this information. Many tips for this include integrating a "disallow" function on the website and attached to all the documents. By taking these steps, and being aware of what the dangers are when you do not, you are sure to prevent the possibility of hackers.

Techniques For The Affiliate Marketer

Source : Click here

 

Many individuals dream of the day that they can say good bye to their boss and create a home based business. Many of us want to be our own bosses for one reason or another. It may be that we like the idea of not having to answer to another person. We may like the idea of having a flexible schedule. However, many of us simply enjoy the fact that, with a home based business; we can shape and control our success. Unfortunately, many individuals do not succeed in this endeavor.

There are two components to succeeding at a home based business. The first component is the ability to take risks and understanding the potential in doing so. The second is the fact that, as with any home based business, it is necessary to make an initial investment. Many people simply cannot handle the risk in taking risks, and cannot afford the initial investment that is required to succeed. However, if you want to be your own boss and reap the rewards of your success, these two elements are very necessary. This is if the business is one that you create in a physical form.

There are many business opportunities available on the internet. The most popular kind is that which involves affiliate marketing. With affiliate marketing, every type of individual has the opportunity to succeed as their own boss. This is because when an individual is an affiliate marketer, the issues of having to be comfortable with risks and coming up with an initial investment are not necessary. An affiliate marketer actually works for another business, but is responsible for their performance. You focus on promoting the goods and services that the company provides, and then benefit from rewards based on your performance.

While the issues of risk and cost are not common situations that you will need to concern yourself with as an affiliate marketer, you will be required to understand that this type of work can prove to be extremely challenging. However, if you prepare and work in an appropriate manner, you are quite likely to reap the benefits of a job well done. Individuals that do not properly handle their business affairs in an affiliate marketing program will not experience the same success as those that put a lot of work into their home based business.

There are many different kinds of affiliate marketing programs that an individual may take part in. When you are serious about succeeding at a home based business, it is imperative that you select an opportunity that you are relatively familiar with. It is better to use this affiliate marketing technique rather than to just jump into any opportunity that presents itself. The first step to succeeding in affiliate marketing is to have a high level of confidence in the products and/or services that you are attempting to promote. Without this confidence, you are quite likely to fail in your home based business endeavors.

Many individuals make the mistake of trying to jump into an affiliate marketing program that promotes a very popular product and/or service without truly knowing anything about the company, the products, and the service. As a result, many of these individuals fail in their endeavors. This is why it is important to select an affiliate marketing program that you have full confidence that you can handle. The products and services may not lead to an instant full wallet, but you will be confident in your ability to effectively promote the products. As a result, you will achieve more success over time.

The next affiliate marketing technique that is generally pretty effective as far as success is concerned is advertising appropriately. As with any business, it is important to get the word out about the products and services that the company you work for specializes in. This not only brands your company, but it also helps you to achieve the financial success that you are looking to achieve. In the end, advertising will make or break you. Breaks only come from advertising that is mediocre or completely nonexistent.

You can achieve the personal and financial success that you have always dreamed of by participating in an online affiliate marketing program. These programs do not have the same amount of risk and financial investment that is required with other types of small businesses. By using the advice listed in this article, you are sure to achieve the success that you have always dreamed of.

MediaSniper : Media File Downloader. Free software written in Java.

Brief Description

MediaSniper is a simple downloader for media files from popular websites. Just provide the webpage URL and MediaSniper will automatically identify the media files for downloading. Supports YouTube (including playlists, favorites, profile videos, and search results), and Google Video. Runs on any OS with the Java Runtime Environment (JRE 6+). MediaSniper is free software written in Java and released under the GNU GPL license (version 3).

Main Features

• Single-File Deployment: MediaSniper is contained in just a single executable JAR file
• Zero Installation: Just double-click on MediaSniper.jar to run
• No Traces Left Behind: MediaSniper does not generate logs or modify system files; it only creates the files you choose to download
• Convenient Options: Always on top, minimize to tray
• Easy Updates: The latest release of MediaSniper is only a mouse-click away

Screenshots

MediaSniper parsing a YouTube webpage (profile videos) for candidate media file downloads, while downloading other previously selected files.

System Requirements

A Java Runtime Environment (JRE 6+) is required. The latest version of the JRE can be downloaded from http://java.sun.com/j2se.

License

MediaSniper is released with source code under the GNU General Public License (version 3).

Files

The MediaSniper utility is downloaded as a single Zip file with the following contents:

• MediaSniper.jar – MediaSniper executable JAR file
• readme.txt – Release notes
• license.txt – License document (GNU GPLv3)
• src/ – Source files

Source Code

• src/mediasniper/MediaSniper.java
• src/mediasniper/WebpageParser.java
• src/mediasniper/AboutDialog.java
• src/mediasniper/FileDownload.java
• src/mediasniper/WebGet.java
• src/mediasniper/LocalFilenameManager.java
• src/mediasniper/SwingManipulator.java
• src/mediasniper/HtmlManipulator.java
• src/mediasniper/parsers/YouTubeParser.java
• src/mediasniper/parsers/GoogleVideoParser.java

Social Networkers Profiled; Social Networking Primed to Go Mobile

Source : Click here

 

US And International Social networkers are significantly more likely to own technology, consume more digital entertainment, and own more mobile devices, according to an Ipsos Insight study that profiles social networkers and identifies differences in behavior and digital media consumption between them and others.

The study, "PROFILE: Social Networker" (pdf), examines the impact of social networking on technology ownership, mobile phone features, digital media consumption, and online/mobile behavior in the US and abroad.

"We can look to the international social networker," who has access to more feature-rich handsets, "for a preview of where the US market will go - and it's going to be all about mobile social networking," concludes Brian Cruikshank, EVP and managing director of Ipsos Insight's Technology and Communications practice.

Some findings of the study follow.

Mobile & Social Networking

• Over half US social networkers have used their mobile device to send/receive SMS text and emails, browse the internet for news and info, and receive digital images.
• International social networkers exhibit similar behavior, but their mobile devices are more feature-rich. For example, they are significantly more likely to have MP3s on their mobile devices than those in the US.

Technology Ownership

• The US social networkers own significantly more technology than their International counterparts, with the exception of MP3 players and Mobile GPS.
• In other categories - DVD players, digital cameras, cable TV and game consoles - US social networkers are clearly ahead.
• Not surprisingly, both sets of networkers own more technology than those who have never visited a social networking site, Ipsos found.

Digital Entertainment

• By a significant margin, social networkers in the US and internationally are more likely to engage in online music, video, and gaming activities.
• Over half of all US social networkers have watched TV shows or video streams online.
• US social networkers are significantly more likely to download TV programs, burn/copy a movie or TV show, and download a feature-length film.

About the study: The Social Networking Profile was created from The Face of the Web report, data for which were collected in November and December 2006.  Respondents were asked if they ever visited a social-networking website. Those who answered "yes" are classified as social networkers and are compared against those who answered "no." The US Social Networker is based on a weighted sample of 237 and those who answered "no" is based on a weighted sample of 559. The International Social Networker is based on a weighted sample of 761 and those who answered "no" is based on a weighted sample of 2,084. Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Japan, Mexico, Russia, South Korea and the UK constitute the "international" segment.

Loans Online: Fast Financial Provisioning All the Time

Money is a facilitator which solves financial complexities in its best possible manner. Loans are only required when no other option left. The provisions pervade is importance and require instant so as to quash the financial deadlock. Equipping money market with better facility for instant required provision, the lending authority has come up with loans online.

Time is running as in its usual speed, which has shorten the distance of processing – the processing of any proceeding whether it may your official work or loan provision. In this era so since and technology, internet has given the acceleration to the pace of working condition and has speeded up its process.

Just in some use of your tender finger and fact and files of your required provisions gets opened before you. So do the processing of loans online, entire of its processing from information gaining to loan securing worked out right online and borrowers have only go out for banking in which the lending authority deposits the required sum into you accounts.

Same as other loans, Loans online too are used in for home improvement, children's high education, marriage purposes, holiday celebration, business establishment, or above all, debt elimination. These loans find its way as you wish to.

As for the interest rates of loans online are concerned, these rates vary person to person and of course lender to lender. Person to person in the sense that, if you choose secured form of loans online, you have very good chance of getting an easy deal, whereas the scenario is quite different at unsecured forms of loans online.

For all that, there are many lenders available online and offline, to fast processing no doubt, online accessing is the best applying tool. However, there is a money market which is best suited to smart borrowers like you. Select some of lenders go through their terms and conditions. Compare them altogether, and conclude you loan plan pragmatically.

Is Blogging For Profit The Way To Go?

Source : Click here

 

This is an interesting question that many people will ask at internet marketing seminars for the simple reason that people are really interested in this idea. There are various different blogs that are popping up all over the internet nowadays that it really has gotten to a point where people that are interested in starting something from scratch and hopefully building that something up into something worthwhile have really gotten behind the idea of a blog.

A blog is simply a specialized content management system that you can use to make it easier for people to follow your thoughts as they appear in your head and are put down on paper. It is an excellent way to communicate ideas with others. What blogging has shown us however is that there are a lot of different people that are interested in the idea of being able to not only write on a particular topic, but also engage discussion with other blog owners on the exact same topic. That give and take that you see in the blogosphere on various different topics is quite overwhelming and it is this idea that makes it such a profitable experience.

If you are able to build up a loyal readership to your website, what you are going to eventually see is that the blogging for profit is going to be extremely profitable, because monetizing blogs is very easy to do. It does not take much extra time and may provide you with a very nice return. If you combine a text link campaign, a square link picture campaign, a pay-per-click campaign and a number of affiliate campaigns, you could easily be looking at an income of about $5,000 per every 100,000 page views that you are able to get. That's an effective CPM of $50, so it is definitely something worth looking into.

Here's another way of looking at it; blogs are the new content sites. When Google initially came out, the best way of doing things was to create content websites in order to make a lot of money from Google AdSense. As time moved on however and the interest in CPC waned, blogs became the natural way of doing things because of how easy they were to monetize from multiple sources of revenue. Blogs are going to be the way of doing business for a long time to come now and if you want to make money writing about something that you love to talk about, then blogging is definitely the best way to do it.

You start by getting a blog set up; either through a free service or by purchasing a domain and subscribing to a hosting service. Then, you can move on to promoting your blog and doing a whole lot more in addition to that and eventually you should see your page views starting to climb up out of the cellar. From that point on, it's smooth sailing. Blogging is not the easiest way to make money, but if you are willing to put in the effort it is arguably the most reliable.

Learn Affiliate Marketing - Earn Extra Profits Using PPC in Affiliate Business

Affiliate programs usually pays their affiliate when a sale is made from someone who referred by them. By integrating PPC into your affiliate program, you will make more profit and traffic in a short time.

I will explain to you how the PPC works.

Pay per Click advertising (PPC) is the most effective and fastest ways to generate targeted traffic. Right now, PPC advertising accounts 2 billion dollars a year and will keep increasing for every year.

The advertiser will bid a keyword or phrase to make their site listed when people search for certain keywords in the search engine. The highest bidder will get the first place in the search engine results, followed by the second and third highest bidder. You ads appear based on how many you want to pay for a click through to your site.

When you integrate PPC into your affiliate program, you can profit from visitor who are not interested in your products or services. You give them commission to promote your site, when someone clicks on their affiliate links. Using this method, the money you spend for each people come to your site is worth it. You can build your site's recognition fast because every people that come to your site will tell everybody to see your site too, and they will receive commission for that.

This is the most effective ways to convert your visitors to affiliate since they won't lose anything just to promote your site to their friends. You can give them ready-to-use affiliate tools that can be integrated in your affiliate resource page. Give them search boxes, banners, text links, etc.

The key benefits by using this strategy are to get more traffic and an army of affiliates who spread your site voluntary because they will receive easy money when people click on their affiliate link. If you don't integrate PPC to your site then you miss out a great opportunity to earn more.

Do you want to learn more about how I do it? I have just completed (yesterday) my brand new guide to affiliate marketing success, 'Internet Marketing Success'.

Download it free here (limited-time) : Magic of Wealth

Top 10 Exposer

 

    Source : Click here

EXACTSEEK'S FEATURED LISTING PROGRAM can't be matched in value or performance. Why pay for ads in Google, Yahoo! or other pay-per-click engines that experience a 20% - 35% click-fraud rate and cost you more in one day than an ad with us costs in months. The choice is simple. ExactSeek and the ISEDN (Independent Search Engine & Directory Network), are able to provide a flat rate keyword program that offers webmasters & siteowners Top 10 Exposure across a rapidly growing network of search engines and web directories at low, one-tïme, flat fee rates. We provide the only alternative to PPC that delivers solid value and true benefits:

When Link Building Requests Result in Sales

Source : Click here

 

Kelvin Newman at Site Visibility has an interesting account of how when he was sending out educational link request mails for a client's product, the site owners he was contacting were mailing him back, asking how to purchase the product.

What I hadn't anticipated that a lot of the people I was contacting would reply asking how to subscribe to the magazine in question. It reminded me that with a bit of luck the link building process can actually do quite a good job to help you sell.

In this case, the after effect of a link building campaign was enhanced sales. Kelvin describes his experience and tips on how to get the most bang for your buck from link building requests.

• Sell yourself – don't be scared in your link request to talk about what makes you better than your competitors or why nobody else like you exists.
• Encourage Feedback – the best PPC adverts & landing pages feature a call to action with a clear desired outcome.
• Don't Seem Cookie Cutter – whether you are trying sell in your link request or not, you've got to avoid seeming cookie cutter at all costs.
• Respond to them – if they've taken the time to read your link request, look at your site and then email them back you owe them some of your time.

Yahoo Internet Cafes Launch in Vietnam

Source : Click here

 

When you cannot bring the Internet to the people, bring the people to the Internet.

Yahoo Vietnam's Yahoo! powered Internet Cafes are opening around Vietnam's Hanoi and Ho Chi Mihn City in an effort to bring Internet to people and effectively brand Yahoo services. The Yahoo Internet cafes are sponsored by Yahoo and exclusively offer Yahoo services such as Yahoo Search & Yahoo! Questions and Answers (Yahoo Answers for Vietnam).

This is a smart and highly respected move by the Yahoo company to further expand their brand to a growing population of Internet users, by setting up storefront cafes in cities.

Sponsoring Internet cafes or Lan Houses can be a solid move in emerging Internet markets and is a bit different and more realistic than the $100 Laptop Movement which Google is sponsoring.

Cafes can pop up in poorer neighborhoods where broadband access is unheard of and representatives of the search engines can educate users with tips on how to search, check email and avoid phishing and scams, while developing a strong relationship with these new users.

If government and tax funded school systems can let search companies influence the way they teach our children to research information, why can't they make the same effort outside of the scholastic sphere? Yahoo Vietnam is doing just that.

Nacho Hernandez is a strong advocate for search sponsored Internet Cafes and composed a Google Cafe Proposal last year outlining his thoughts on the subject. I highly suggest reading through his presentation.

Mothercare launches social network

Source : Click here

 

Mothercare has launched an online community for parents in a bid to boost its online sales.

Gurgle.com, as it is called, is a joint venture between the retailer and MediaBurn, a digital marketing company focusing on social networking sites.

It offers baby-related articles, tutorial videos, an online ovulation calendar and a baby-naming search engine, as well as enabling parents to contact other mums and dads that live near them or whose children are at a similar stage of development.

It will compete with the likes of Mumsnet and netmums, as well as a number of other parent-oriented sites.

The move is another clear sign of social media's growing importance for retailers – Hitwise said yesterday that the amount of traffic they received from social networks rose by 153% in the first nine months of this year.

Ben Gordon, Mothercare's chief executive, said:

"Mothercare already has a well-established web presence and Gurgle.com is a natural extension, leveraging the expertise and authority of our brand combined with innovative online marketing opportunities, to reach and help a broader spectrum of customers.

"As the site will link to Mothercare.com, it also offers us the opportunity to engage with our existing loyal customers via a new forum as well as reach parents who otherwise would not be exposed to Mothercare."

Email ROI still impressive, but falling

Source : Click here

 

Figures released by the US Direct Marketing Association show email marketing is still delivering impressive ROI despite falls over the past two years.

According to the data, marketers will have spent around $500m (£244m) on email marketing to drive $23bn (£11.2bn) in sales by the end of 2007. That equates to $48.56 (£23.60) for every dollar spent.

This ROI, though impressive, has fallen significantly from previous years:

• Email returned $57.25 (£27.91) for every dollar in 2005, and $51.58 (£25.14) for every dollar spent in 2006.
  
  
• The DMA forecasts that ROI will continue to fall next year, with marketers predicted to spend $600m to drive $27bn in sales in 2008. This equates to $45.65 (£22.26) for every dollar spent.

Email ROI still compares favourably to other marketing channels though, with non-email online marketing expected to return $20.67 (£10.07) for every dollar spent this year.

In our recent Email Marketing Industry Census, a surprising 47% of respondents did not know what their company's ROI from email marketing was.

Of those that did know, 55% said that ROI was three times or more, while 32% said it was five times or more.