Continuity Is Dead. Long Live Continuity.
Before the rise of flogs and the hundreds of millions of dollars generated by the performance marketing ecosysytem, a handful of companies had carved out rather successful health and beauty continuity...
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The Week in Review
Headlines from the industry.
To receive daily updates please visit the Digital Moses fan page
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Facebook, Google, Bank of America, Realtor.com Lead the Way
According to the latest figures from Experian Hitwise, Facebook and Google dominated the Web for the week ending Saturday, Aug. 7, while some familiar names led the travel, banking and real estate categories.
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Getting to Market
You don't have to love infomercials to have a love of selling products direct to the consumer. If you work in te performance marketing space long enough, especially at a network...
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The Dominance of the .com TLD
Quick: what's the most popular top-level domain?
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The Week in Review
Headlines from the industry.
To receive daily updates please visit the Digital Moses fan page
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It's The Economy Stupid
Setting aside some of the financial blow back that has happened due to certain large continuity advertisers not upholding their end of the performance marketing contract, our industry as a...
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Slap Proof
Odds are that if you do online marketing long enough you've been slapped around.
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The Week in Review
Headlines from the industry.
To receive daily updates please visit the Digital Moses fan page
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Featured Product
If you live in a major city or just visit one, invariably you find yourself being approached by someone of indeterminate age selling candy, generally, in order to raise money for their high...
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Company Profile: LeadFlash
LeadFlash is a significant player in the cash advance/payday loan space, and was featured in the 2009 Inc.
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Apple Age
For a big group of performance-marketers, a trip to the Moscone Center in San Francisco automatically conjures up associations related to April and ad:tech. For another group of patrons, the Moscone Center means something else...
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PC Market is Hot, Acer Closing in On HP
The global PC market has never been more explosive, according to market research company iSuppli Corp. While Hewlett-Packard remains the top dog, Acer and Dell are quickly catching up.
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E-Commerce Grows 10% in the First Quarter
According to the latest figures from comScore, retail e-commerce sales in the U.S. grew 10 percent in the first quarter of 2010 from the same period last year, thanks mostly to upper-income consumers.
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Click Fraud Rises for Fourth Consecutive Quarter
Click fraud on cost-per-click (CPC) sites has risen steadily each quarter for the past year, according to Click Forensics’ latest Click Fraud Index.
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Online Ad Spending to Grow 11%, Branded Campaigns Still Going Strong
This will be a good year for online ad spending, according to eMarketer, which expects 11 percent growth this year. Video will see the biggest growth of all formats, according to the company.
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Old School vs. New School
Not long ago, AOL, now aol, turned 25 years old. The company is now older than a large number of people working in the performance-based industry. There are mini-moguls of our space who wouldn't...
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Week in Review
Week in Review. Headlines for the week. Get Daily headlines from our facebook fan page (digital moses)
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Week in Review
Headlines from the week
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Firefox Reaches Plateau, Mozilla Needs to Find the Next Step
Mozilla's Firefox browser is doing just fine but it's feeling a growing flame underneath it from Google's Chrome browser, which continues to grow at a fast pace. So, what's next for Mozilla?
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Distasteful Ads Will Cause Consumers to Avoid Your Brand
More than one-third of Americans say they’ve chosen to not purchase a specific brand because of distasteful ads, according to a new Adweek Media/Harris Poll.
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Top 5 Most Important Things About Taking Call Transfers
Have you thought about accepting call transfer leads? Have you been pitched them recently but are unsure how to best accept them in and organized fashion?
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Online Media Used by Nearly All Local Shoppers
According to a recent study conducted by BIA/Kelsey and ConStat, almost all Internet users in the U.S. use online media when researching local products and services.
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US Users Watched 32 Billion Videos in January
According to comScore, 32.4 billion videos were watched by 173.4 million unique U.S. Internet viewers in January, with the usual suspects leading the way.
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Headlines from the Industry
A review of headlines from the industry.
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Oscar Buzz:: 'Avatar,' Jeff Bridges, Sandra Bullock Lead the Way
If online buzz determined the Academy Awards, "Avatar" would have no trouble winning for Best Picture, according to Nielsen.
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Amazon is the Most Trusted Brand
According to Millward Brown, a market research firm, Amazon.com was the most trusted and recommended brand in the U.S. during 2009.
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Your Wallet Please
Part of me wants to believe in a quasi-Utopian view of spending money, the rational view, that people spend money wisely, on things they need, some on things they want, not spending it on things they...
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The problem with online continuity
The problem with online continuity rests not confused consumers who don't understand how to read, but rather with the horde of marketers tripping over themselves to push the next guy out of business by doing things that invite trouble for everyone.
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Facebook, Google Popular in 2009, Online Video, Mobile Ads Will Rise in 2010
Among all of the 2009 lists out there, Experian Hitwise released their version of the top 10 most-searched terms of the year and the results were far from surprising.
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$27 Billion Spent During 2009 Holiday Season
According to recent figures released by comScore, the 2009 holiday season saw more money spent on e-commerce purchases compared with 2008 totals.
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Semi-Bold 2010 Media Predictions and Observations
2009 was a fascinating year for online media, and 2010 proves to be even more interesting. Much as already been said about 2009, so I’ll pick up from here and give you my super duper prognostications and predictions for 2010
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Battle of The Brands
Those in our industry seem to fall along two camps with respect to media consumption, those who consume primarily, if only exclusively, demand based content, e.g., online-delivered content. And the old school, often older...
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Online Ad Spending to Decline for First Time Since 2002
According to eMarketer, U.S. online advertising spending is expected to drop this year for the first time since 2002. The good news is that an upswing is expected early in 2010.
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Nearly $20 Billion in E-Commerce Spending, ‘Green Monday’ Expected to be Huge
According to recent figures released by comScore, nearly $20 billion in e-commerce spending was recorded during the first 41 days of the November to December 2009 holiday season, with Monday expected to be a record-breaking spending day.
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32% of Americans Might be OK with Behaviorally-Targeted Ads
Market research company Synovate recently published the findings of a recent global advertising study and found that nearly a third of Americans are at least open to the idea of behaviorally-targeted advertising.
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Internet Ad Revenues Creep Up in Q3 2009
The latest report released by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC) show that Internet advertising revenues increased in the third quarter compared to the second quarter, a "hopeful" sign.
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Black Friday Online Sales, Searches Up, Average Spending Down
Despite the lingering cloud of economic turmoil covering most of the U.S., the realm of e-commerce seems to be doing just fine, thank you. According to comScore, Black Friday saw a big boost compared to the same day last year.
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Ad Impressions Rise 21% in October
Overall ad impressions in the U.S. rose 21 percent in October, with financial services, travel and retail leading the way, according to Nielsen Online.
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F R E E That Spells Money
You have to hand it to the marketing team at Experian Interactive's FreeCreditReport.com division. Perhaps it is simply the amount of traditional media that I consume that makes me this way, but when I see that name, I...
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Small Businesses Shifting More Toward Social Media, E-Mail, Search
Less than half of small businesses are expecting higher revenues by the end of the year, according to a report conducted by Hurwitz & Associates and sponsored by Campaigner.
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Microsoft Takes Up a Lot of Time
In September, Microsoft Sites took up almost 15 percent of the time spent online around the globe, according to comScore's World Metrix service.
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Internet is Top Source for Sports News and Information
According to a recent survey conducted by Burst Media, the Internet is the top source for sports news and information for both men and women.
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Five Years of Firefox
Mozilla's very own baby, Firefox, turned five years old this week - just five and already a war veteran.
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Online Retail Sales Set to Grow 8%, But US Consumers Plan on Spending Less Overall
The holiday shopping season looks to be a mixed bag, as Forrester Research expects online retail sales to grow and the National Retail Federation (NRF) forecasts a decline in U.S. consumer spending.
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Retailers Meet Consumers in Social Realm, Holiday Spending Buzz is Down
Online retailers are flocking to the place on the Internet where a lot of attractive consumers already are: social networks and shopping sites.
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Online Marketing Works Well in the UK
According to the AT Internet Institute, more than half of the visits to Web sites in the U.K. using online marketing campaigns come from these very campaigns.
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10% of Online Display Ads Are Locally Targeted
Of all display ads in four major U.S. markets (Atlanta, Chicago, San Francisco and Washington D.C.), 10 percent are locally targeted, according to a recent study conducted by comScore.
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IE Loses Global Ground, Firefox, Safari, Chrome, Opera Gain
According to the latest figures released by Net Applications, Microsoft’s Internet Explorer is continuing to lose ground as its four main competitors are increasing their respective market shares.
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First Half of 2009: $10.9 Billion in Online Ad Revenues, Down 5.3%
According to a recent report released by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP (PwC), Internet advertising revenues in the U.S. during the first half of 2009 were $10.9 billion, reflecting a 5.3 percent decline from the same time span last year.
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Signs of Security Boost Sales Conversions
According to a recent white paper published by security firm McAfee, sales conversions see significant increases when a visible indication of security is seen.
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Swimming With The Sharks - Part 2
Calling the world of trademark infringing fake blogs marketing fraud might sound to some a little severe. If we look at the advertiser's point of view, one that has worked on bringing a continuity product to market from scratch...
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Swimming With The Sharks - Part 1
When talking about the fake blog landscape we almost always focus on those driving the traffic, the publisher/affiliate. It's the most visible and controversial piece of the equation, but without an actual product to promote...
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US Advertising Fell 15% in First Half of 2009
The Nielsen Company reported earlier this week that ad spending in the U.S. dropped 15.4 percent in the first half of 2009 compared to the first half of 2008, with Cable Television the only media category to see an increase.
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Humans Still Wanted in Online Shopping Experiences
Though “human” is not typically a word associated with online purchases, a recent survey conducted by Harris Interactive for IMshopping seems to indicate that maybe it should be.
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The Value of Display Ads is Found Without Clicks
Click-through rates, shmick-through rates - who cares about click-through rates?
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Green, Auto Sites See Big Growth in July
According to the latest figures released by comScore, Green and Auto Manufacturer Web sites saw big gains in July, thanks to the government’s “Cash for Clunkers” program.
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Floating Ads Have Big Dwell Rates
Click-through rates just got some competition - dwell rates are the new kids on the block and they appear to be packing some enticing stuff.
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Market ahead of the pack
Finding new marketing strategies, ideas and offers will allow you stay ahead of the competition, grab your consumers attention, and in the end, give you a much bigger ROI.
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Economy Dampens Back-to-School Spending
The National Retail Federation’s most recent back-to-school shopping survey, “2009 Back to School Consumer Intentions and Actions Survey,” shows that the economy will put some downward pressure on back-to-school and back-to-college spending this year.
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Career Sites Grow in Recession
According to recent figures released by comScore, career services and development Web sites saw their audience grow 10 percent in June compared to the same month last year.
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The Presence of Kids Online
According to a recent report released by Nielsen, the active online universe included 16 million children between the ages of 2 to 11 in May, which accounts for 9.5 percent of the total.
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Let the Holidays Work for You
What does a holiday weekend mean to most working people? Well, for most it means time off of work, however, not for affiliate marketers. If planned correctly, holidays can be some of the most profitable times for affiliate marketers.
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I Spent Millions And All I Got Was This Lousy Logo
There are certain things in life that move us. They drive us to act and express our opinions passionately. Some of those things make sense and can align for social good. Those who want to give their time helping the less fortunate...
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Retail Ads Up, Software Ads Down
According to recent figures released by Nielsen Online, total ad impressions dropped 5 percent in May compared to April, with retail goods and services seeing the largest increase and software seeing the largest decline.
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Recovery in Global Advertising Near?
GroupM, a unit of WPP, recently forecast a decline in global advertising spending in 2009, followed by a modest recovery in 2010.
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What Can You Do to Prevent a Rogue Employee from Destroying Your Business?
By Sticking Together. Help the Internet Marketing Industry Police Itself.
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Marketing for Father's Day
Along with the arrival of Father's Day weekend comes the anticipation of the first day of summer, family barbecues, and vacation planning.
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Grocery Purchases Most Influenced by Product Placement
According to recent figures released by Myers Publishing, product placement is among the few advertising channels to see growth in the U.S. this year.
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Most Industries See Decline in Total Ad Impressions in April
According to data from Nielsen Online, total ad impressions in April declined 11 percent from the previous month.
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Interactive Marketing Has Increasing Support of Marketers
The fact that marketers have placed a bigger emphasis on ROI during the recession is nothing new, but new data published by PROMO magazine offers a unique peek into this trend.
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World of Free - In Situ
In Part 1 of the World of Free, the emphasis was on doing what we like to do because we're not as smart as you. Perhaps it's because we never went to business school and are still trying to make up for it. Regardless, we find it...
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UK Internet Audience Makes a Comeback
According to Nielsen Online, of the 10 countries it tracks, the U.K. experienced the biggest month-to-month boost in its Internet audience in March, while Australia experienced the only decline.
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E-Commerce Satisfaction Drops
According to a recent report released by ForeSee Results and FGI Research, consumer satisfaction with the top 100 e-commerce sites declined 2.7 percent in Spring 2009 compared to Spring 2008.
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Ad Spending Dropped 9.2% in 4Q 2008
According to a report released earlier this week by TNS Media Intelligence, total advertising spending dropped 4.1 percent in 2008 to $141.7 billion compared to the prior year.
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Bride of Flogenstein
Some what out of necessity, the fake blogs have started to grow-up. While still a confusing mess, two types of players seem strongest - those attempting to buy on slightly more premium inventory, i.e. non-self service...
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Flog 2.0
When reviewing our list of flogs, we found some not expected surprises - several of the ones we found before no longer exist, e.g., Jeff's Grant Blog and Jake Cutler, whereas some have turned into parking pages, e.g...
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Mobile Access to News and Information Doubles in Popularity
According to figures released earlier this week by comScore, nearly 22.4 million U.S. mobile phone users accessed news and information (excluding social networking) on a daily basis in January, reflecting a huge boost from last year.
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Internet = Productivity?
This is a sample of the popular online destinations that many would consider distracting -- especially during the workday.
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Any Way You Cut it, Google Owned February
Google continued its dominating ways in February as it grew its market share year-over-year, according to comScore, Nielsen Online and Hitwise.
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Ad Spending in 2008 Down 2.6%
According to The Nielsen Company, total advertising spending in the U.S. dropped 2.6 percent in 2008, with just two out of 19 categories seeing increases from 2007.
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Affiliates Are from Mars. Arbitragers Are from Venus.
Here's a tough question to answer truthfully. If you met an advertiser, especially a newer advertiser (it could be one with items for sale or who is collecting leads), and you didn't stand to earn money off them, would you...
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Switzerland, US Lose Active Internet Home Users in December
Nielsen Online recently released its monthly report of worldwide active Internet home users in December and revealed that only Switzerland and the U.S. saw their Internet user count shrink.
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Direct Mail Declines for the First Time
According to recent data released by the Winterberry Group and Mintel Compermedia, direct mail spending and volume declined for the first time in 2008 since it was first tracked in 1945.
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Notes - Ad Economy
Nobody likes to be the bearer of bad news. Shocking news, yes, but bad news no. While it might be true, bad news causes anyone to come away feeling hopeless. They feel lost in a system and problem greater than...
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Get 'er Done
In less than a week, we set off to Vegas once again, this time for the second installment of online lead generation trade show, LeadsCon. Last year, in its inaugural year, the planners hoped that they would attract 350...
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The Battle Over Display
A reader commenting on our, or at least my, non-stop obsession with flogs, quipped that we should change the name from DMConfidential to FlogConfidential. It's true. Q1 2009 has ushered in the year of the flogs...
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Yahoo Squashes RSS Ads
After more than three years in beta mode, Yahoo!'s Ads in RSS program was shut down on Monday, "to focus on other more broadly used ad products for our publishing partners, such as Sponsored Search and Content Match," according to an e-mail sent to publishers.
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Internet Explorer Continues its Descent
According to recent figures from Net Applications, Microsoft's Internet Explorer continued its habit of losing market share, finishing January 2009 with a still-strong 67.55 percent. Meanwhile, Mozilla's Firefox, Apple's Safari and Google's Chrome all continued their uphill climb.
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comScore on 2008 and 2009
On Monday, comScore released its "The comScore 2008 Digital Year in Review" report, which highlighted important online marketing trends in the U.S. and gave some general expectations for 2009.
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The (Still) Super Bowl
There is a line from the upcoming movie, "He's Just Not That Into You," where Drew Berrymore's character laments how she gets rejected by seven different technologies, saying dating today is very exhausting. While not involving a...
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Display Ad Prices Plummet: Huge Opportunity To Buy!
Remnant display prices for a long time have just been totally out of hand. Fortunately the recession has brought these prices down back to more of a realistic level, half of what it was in Q4 of 2007 compared to what it is was in Q4 2008.
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The Continuity Conundrum
Without a doubt, the flog qualifies as the unexpected eighth wonder of the advertising world - a slightly refreshed take on the classic MLM page of rambling text in the first person promising claims that people doubt but...
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The Future of the Flog
When we came back from Affiliate Summit, we found ourselves fixated on one of the takeaways that we wrote about upon our return - this notion that part of performance marketing has entered into a race to the bottom.
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China > US
There are now more than 1 billion users in the worldwide Internet audience, according to comScore’s latest World Metrix report.
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Google Reaches 78 Percent of Americans
The most recent numbers released by comScore Media Metrix show that Google reaches 78 percent of Americans using the Internet and that online retail sites saw growth despite poor holiday sales.
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Americans Spend 30 Percent of Leisure Time Online
Internet users in the U.S. spent about 30 percent of their leisure time online in 2008, according to a study conducted by TNS Global.
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Lessons Learned From The Frontlines of eCommerce
It is hard to escape the platitudes and suggestions that accompany a New Year. The tendency is to look back and try and learn from what has occurred in the past and apply that wisdom towards creating a more fulfilling future.
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Best Ad Ever?
Those that saw our "You Give Leads A Bad Name" presentation will know that one of our favorite topics to cover outside of (the lengthier and more time consuming) strategy / analysis pieces are more observational in nature.
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Google Jumps The Shark
In writing our review of the current state and future potential of Facebook's self-service advertising platform, we found ourselves incredibly bullish on its potential, not the least of which stems from all of the various levers...
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US Web Users Are Confident
Americans have always carried themselves with a particular dignity - one that sometimes errs on the side of arrogance.
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Diversify Today
The old saying: “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket” may be a cliché but has withstood the test of time for good reason. Risk management techniques of diversification are an important strategy for savvy business people to implement in any industry.
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Performance Marketing in 2009
Every few weeks, especially in the bout of more poor general economic news, an article comes out with even more dire news for the online advertising ecosystem, always taking the same shape. So and so has...
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Christmas Comes Around Once a Year - Even in A Recession
The holidays have arrived! There's that crisp chill in the air, the fresh smell of Christmas trees, the burning candles of the menorah, and of course the snowmen and hot cocoa.
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Online Sales Shrinking
According to comScore, e-commerce sales have been sliding down a steep hill this year. While growth is still happening, figures are declining closer and closer to no growth at all.
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Even the Rich Are Watching Their Spending
According to recent surveys released by Unity Marketing and Ipsos Mendelsohn, affluent households are spending less of their money on luxuries and are choosing instead to focus on improving their homes.
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To Click or Not to Click
When it comes to display ads, every creative requires a call-to-action. As user awareness of banner ads decrease, techniques must evolve to increase Click Thru Rates (CTR’s).
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Obama Campaign Geeks Out
Sen. Barack Obama has broke a new barrier last week: he became the first presidential candidate to place campaign ads in online video games.
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Your Trade Show Survival Guide
The industry is buzzing with meeting requests, party invites and last minute travel plans. Yes, it’s that time of year again for Ad:Tech NY. While it’s easy to get swept away with the excitement of the show, it's important to establish a plan to make the most out of each and every trade show.
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Fear Decreases Illegal Downloading in the UK
In what might be seen as a sign of encouragement to those concerned with the issue in the U.S., illegal downloads have declined in the U.K. because of fears that connections to the Internet might be cut off.
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Escapism and Todays Economy
Now is about the time of year when we are all making sure we have those holiday campaigns lined up. You know the ones -- the Halloween costumes, turkey fryers and stocking stuffers that some ad reps dread landing because they know they will only make a few quick bucks.
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Offers that Make the Web Go 'Round
In thinking about our topic from last week, the Ringtone Ecosystem, it brings up an interesting point with the ringtone space, that mobile subscription marketing isn't mobile marketing. The multibillion dollar...
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Conversion Mastery: How Professionals Get Top Conversions
Testing is the mantra of our industry. Most people recognize its importance in creating more conversions.
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Rich Households Disappear
In the midst of a dreadful year for financial markets, it comes as no surprise that TNS, a market research company, is claiming in a recent report that the number of wealthy households is on the decline.
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Regular Text Ads: A Good Bet
A recent report released by analytics firm iPerceptions Inc. notes that good old text ads are most likely to attract clicks, followed by display ads.
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Charlie Rose Knows
While he may not be the youngest journalist on the block, Charlie Rose, 66, along with his staff, are showing an understanding of the power that can be harnessed on the Web.
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The Economic Sky is Falling
With the shocking performance of Wall Street on Monday that jolted the world of so many Americans, it is easy to begin to feel like Chicken Little with images of the sky falling.
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TV Looks Shaky
According to the Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB), total spot television advertising revenue to drop off between 2-5% in 2009 from 2008 figures. Online ad revenues for local TV stations, however, are expected to increase 25-35%.
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The Coming eRevolution in Online Marketing
Change is something we all seek to better understand.
In the marketplace, thousands of minute innovations occur daily.
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Internet Advertising MBA
When you just start out in any space, it is easy to feel out of place, and when you've worked in a space for a long time, it's just as easy to spot those who haven't. If you are the newbie, you might understand the...
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People versus Partners
In this decade, we have witnessed two of the most major collapses in the history of the US economy, rivaling in scope to the Great Depression but luckily not rivaling the Depression's impact on the employment index and...
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What Makes Customers Buy?
One of the amazing fascinations of consultants is the age old Question, "What is it that makes customers buy?"
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Obama Trumps McCain in Online Buzz
Recent figures released by Nielsen Online showed that despite all the recent buzz surrounding Republican vice-presidential candidate Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska, the online buzz was still focused largely on the presidential candidates: Senators Barack Obama and John McCain.
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Common Denominator
The concept of common denominators is something we all learned about in elementary school, and like many elementary school lessons - cursive handwriting, long division by hand and finger painting - some of us may require a quick refresher course.
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Advertisers Discover a New, Innovative Key to Reaching the Masses
So try to picture this - you are creating an ad campaign for a new product or service and you want to reach a mass audience.
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The Biggest Misconception about Marketing Online!
There is a great story I recently heard that reminded me about what it takes to be successful in marketing your business.
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TESTING: The Golden Formula for True SUCCESS
How many people or companies do you know that get it right the very first time?
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Firefox Users vs. Internet Explorer Users
So, what’s the main difference between Firefox users and Internet Explorer Users? Many people would point to the tech savviness of their respective users, and they might be right.
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Traffic Generation Alternatives
The language of the internet is slowly moving to audio and video. Will you resist the change or embrace it?
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CPAEmpire to rebrand Affiliate.com
If you had visited affiliate.com in the past couple of months, you would have noticed a standard domain parking page, in this case powered by Smartname.com.
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Where does my company go from here? Part 2 of 4
It is time to run your business as a business rather than a hobby. You are making money, and have the merchants who trust you and are giving you the payouts that you deserve for traffic you send to them.
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In the Time of a Recession, is Branding Really Enough?
In a downward market, does a positive correlation between brand awareness and customer acquisition still exist?
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Why People Hate Us
A few years ago, I remember having a conversation with the folks at Reprise Media. It was at a trade show in New York, but a smaller one as opposed to the shoulder to shoulder affair of ad:tech. At this particular...
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Spam Comments, Cybersquatting Remain Big Problems
A live "Spam Zeitgeist" meter on Akismet.com shows that a whopping 89% of all blog comments are spam.
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Online Banking Users: Older, Richer
Ever wonder what the typical online banking user looks like? If you envision an older female with an income in the six-digit range, then you've pretty much hit the mark.
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ABC.com Edges Out NBC.com, CBS.com
During the 2007-08 broadcast television season, ABC.com attracted the most visits in the U.S., barely beating NBC.com, according to Hitwise.
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Winners & Losers
In the fashion world, things change in a relatively predictable cycle, with designers handing out their new style mandates that world of print and other trend noting mediums translate into the season's do's and dont's...
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BlackBerry, Not iPhone Tops 1Q08
A recent International Data Corporation (IDC) report indicated that Research in Motion sold the most smartphones in the U.S. during the first quarter of 2008.
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Online Satisfaction Increases
The most recent annual report released by ForeSee Results shows that online consumer satisfaction has increased over the past year, despite the weakening economy.
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Nielsen and Hitwise Agree on the Obvious
According to the latest figures released by both Nielsen Online and Hitwise, Google held on to its spot atop the search mountain.
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Competitive Intelligence and Online Marketing
There are many tools online readily available that can be easily utilized for competitive intelligence gathering.
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Click Fraud is Down, and Up
The latest numbers released by Click Forensics, a traffic quality management company, indicate that while click fraud during the first quarter of 2008 is down compared to the fourth quarter of 2007, it is up compared to the same quarter last year.
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The Path to Profit
The ad network is dead. Long live the ad network. Depending on whom you ask, things are doing very well or not quite well enough. The same of course holds true for Internet advertising as a whole. On the one hand...
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China > U.S.
While China’s economy is experiencing some form of a slowdown, it does not seem to be slowing down the growth of the country’s Internet population, which was declared to have surpassed the size of the online population in the U.S.
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Can Display Catch Search?
While the not quite drama of Microsoft-Yahoo continues, the ensuing attention paid to the former's potential acquisition of the latter has at least started to focus the broader dialog on future possibilities of Internet...
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After Wikipedia
It should come as no surprise that the majority of Wikipedia’s traffic comes from Google, followed far behind by Yahoo!. This might beg the question: where do these users go afterwards?
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Active Internet Users Disappear in February
Are people not using the Internet anymore?
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The Moment of Truth
In case you want to know, the title of this week's article does indeed refer to the television show of the same name. Based on last weeks data from Nielsen Media Research, we can assume that more than ten million...
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When Are Unsolicited Mobile Messages Considered Spam?
The best and simplest answer to the title is actually quite obvious: when the recipient has no interest in the offer at hand.
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The Mystery of Display
Last week, almost two weeks after word spread that Microsoft had an interest in Yahoo, MarketWatch.com published an article titled, "Microsoft's play for display," with the subtitle, "Buying Yahoo a major bet...
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More People File Taxes Online, But Hurdles Remain
The Consumer Internet Barometer, produced by The Conference Board, recently surveyed 10,000 households (with about 70% responding) and found that 40% of respondents plan to file their taxes online this year, compared to 34% three years ago.
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Taxes and Politics Attract Attention in January
According to recent data released by comScore Media Metrix, it seems that (as expected), last month saw Web users turning their attention to two of the sexiest online categories available: taxes and politics.
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Online Purchases Reduce Offline Purchases
The majority of online buyers in the U.S. indicate that their online spending reduces their offline spending, according to a recent study conducted by the USC Annenberg Center for the Digital Future.
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Get 'er Done
What separates the person who always gets something done from the one who seems to leave things unfinished? Is it organization skills, work ethic, motivation, or perhaps just genetics. When it comes to organization...
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Top Online Advertisers in October
TNS Media Intelligence recently released its list of the top 50 Internet advertisers for the month of October 2007.
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The FTC Puts the Heat on Payday Loans and Consumer Finance Advertising Online
Recent legal community buzz involves talk of a new direction for FTC prosecutions of online marketers. Apparently, the FTC has decided that it’s time to get seriously involved in the protection of consumers responding to ads...
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Financial Services Dominate Online Ad Spending (For Now)
A December 2007 report released by Nielsen Online AdRelevance shows that financial service firms spent more than a quarter of a million dollars on online display advertising, or 29% of all money spent on online ad spending.
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Business Cycles
Taking a break from the economy for a minute, let's think about something else typically on people's minds this time of year, getting in shape. As it's the start of the New Year, most people have walked by the mirror, looked...
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The Eyes Still Have It
Whenever there’s an old standard, there are always new ones that try to take its place. The same can be said about marketing and the old standard of reach. The up-and-coming concept of “engagement” has been gaining speed, but it appears that the number of eyeballs that a campaign will reach still trumps every other draw when it comes to alluring media buyers.
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Cyber Monday Was Best Yet
Cyber Monday, the moniker fondly given to the Monday after Thanksgiving, saw its best year yet in 2007. Online shoppers in the U.S. spent $733 million on Cyber Monday, according to comScore. This marks a 21% increase from last years figure.
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Amway enters Affiliate Space
Two weeks ago we shared our interest and enthusiasm for Facebook's new ad platforms, not so much because of the targeting capabilities but because it had the chance to usher in a new era of performance...
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Out With the Old, In With the New?
Starbucks has relied upon the tried-and-true marketing method called word-of-mouth marketing, and until recently it seemed that that was all the coffee giant needed.
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Online Ad Spending in Canada Plays Catch Up
Superior currency strength is not Canada’s only boasting point when it comes to comparing themselves with the U.S
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Healthy Black Friday for Online Retailers
According to recent comScore figures, consumers spent $531 million on online non-travel purchases on Black Friday, a 22% increase from last year’s figure.
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Rainbows Are Freer For Americans
Radiohead released its latest album, “In Rainbows,” to a great deal of buzz. It was made available online for download at whatever price the consumer desired, including “0.”
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Online Comparison Shopping Grows in Popularity
Traffic to online comparison shopping Web sites increased during the week ending November 3, 2007, compared to the week ending November 4, 2006, according to Hitwise.
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Online Advertising to Reach $42 Billion
According to a recent report released by eMarketer, online advertising spending in the U.S. is expected to grow at a rapid pace, reaching an expected $42.0 billion by 2011, which would be equivalent to 13.3% of total media advertising spending.
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Amazon Offers Customer Video Reviews
Amazon.com recently unveiled customer video reviews on its site, which allows customers to post their reviews of products in WMV, MPEG, Quicktime, or AVI formats.
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Old Media Spends Big Money Online
Though print media is far from dead, there is no doubt that the Internet has taken away a good portion of its thunder.
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NBC Dumps YouTube
During a lull, on my Monday afternoon at work, I decided to check out the latest goodies posted on YouTube by NBC. To my surprise, NBC’s YouTube channel was nowhere to be found.
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Online Ad Spend Passes $5 Billion in Q2
The most recent data from the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers shows that online ad spending stormed ahead to reach $5.1 billion for the second quarter alone, a 25.4% increase from the same quarter last year.
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Word of Mouth is Valued
Yes, the title of this article is obvious, but it is the focus of a recent Nielsen study. The main finding from the study was that 78% of Web users around the globe think that consumer opinions are the most effective mode of advertising.
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Microsoft, FullTiltPoker.com Top Brands in August
Nielsen//NetRatings recently released the top brands in terms of unique visitors and time spent on the sites. Microsoft topped the list of parent companies in terms of total unique visitors in August, while FullTiltPoker.com topped the list of stickiest brands for the month.
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Ringtone Shakeup - Part 2
If you read Part 1, you see the makings for an industry ripe for change. It's a market that relies heavily on affiliates to drive new sign-ups and has little to low barrier to entry. Few offers have the breadth of reach, the run of...
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Ringtone Shakeup - Part 1
If asked what an unknown article in the DMConfidential might cover, longtime readers as well as significant others to writers of this publication might guess any of the following - a) Google, b) search arbitrage, or c) the ringtone...
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Local Online Advertising to Grow
A recent report released by eMarketer titled “Local Online Advertising: Measuring the Market” shows that while only a small portion of total local advertising spending is being sent towards online efforts today, there is likely...
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Web Users are Promiscuous
Are Web users faithful to the sites they use? This is the question that Nielsen//NetRatings offers an answer to in their most recent month-over-month data for search, career development, and travel Web sites. The leaders...
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iLegal - Weight-Loss Patch Manufacturer Banned from Selling Weight-Loss Patches, Will Pay $180,000
There are a lot of outrageous claims made by advertisers on the Internet, and as an affiliate, one needs to be careful not to get caught knowingly passing along bogus claims. This week the FTC announced that it has stopped a...
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The Fault Lines of Direct Response
It’s a great time to be in online marketing. Spending is booming, old and new firms are innovating, and just about everyone is making money. But despite the good vibes and rosy analyst projections, the CPA and affiliate industry faces...
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News, the Broken Variety: I'm Going To Hell, Are You?
This episode of Broken News is brought to you by our trusted industry insider, Cauldron Larynx. Cauldron utilizes deep knowledge, deeper skills and deepest relationships to make up the most breaking and relevant news in the Affiliate Marketing sector.
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Strangers Are More Trustworthy Than Religious Leaders
Advertisers are trusted less than anybody besides telemarketers, so it is imperative that they find others to spread the good news about their products and services for them. This is where word-of-mouth kicks in. According to...
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Google and CPA
News surfaced a little more than a year ago about the beginnings of a Google CPA network. In June of 2006, word started to break about a product called Content Referral where, for the first time, advertisers could...
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Online Marketing Will Blossom in Europe
Forrester Research’s report titled "European Online Marketing Tops Eur16 Billion in 2012" expects online marketing spending in Europe to more than double its 2006 figure ($9.45 billion) by 2012 ($20.16 billion). E-mail, search...
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The State of Mobile Marketing
Our industry is an interesting one; it's a complex marketplace of intent, monetization, and relative performance. Those in the direct marketing space either have traffic, e.g. via their website or email list or they have the...
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The Way Men Would Do It
Maxim Magazine is hardly a revered source of statistics and information for online marketers, but that didn't stop them from commissioning a study analyzing men's media tendencies. Hall & Partners conducted the study...
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U.S. Online Ad Spend Nearly $17 Billion
According to the most recent "Internet Advertising Revenue Report" released by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), U.S. online advertising spending in 2006 reached $16.9 billion, setting a new...
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Spotlight On... Daniel Starr Of Blockbuster
Blockbuster has leveraged their offline presence to expand their online store and vice-versa. I recently met with Daniel Starr, the Senior Director of Marketing for Blockbuster. Excerpts below.
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Google Is The Number One Brand
In another display of their worldwide domination, and in yet another Microsoft upset, Google has been found to be the most valuable brand in terms of dollar value for 2007 by research firm Millard Brown and the Financial Times. It...
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Beware of Offers from “Outer Space”
Last week I received a rather bizarre request. According to the sales department at our company, we had a new client, and I was needed to review the contract and the creative. This is normal protocol in the company, but the...
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Television Ads Do Well Online
According to recent findings released by marketing research firm Millard Brown, advertisements made for television carry over very well, if not better in some respects, online.
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Google Heads into the Tube
The time has finally come for Google to fulfill all the buzz about its entrance into the television advertising game. According to sources, the search king has been testing out trial ads with a few partners and advertisers in Concord...
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March Marketing Madness
The annual NCAA men’s college basketball tournament known affectionately as March Madness has long been based solely on the television platform for both viewers and advertisers. However, with the undeniable advent of online...
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Third World Countries Most Keen to Mobile Content
As strange as it sounds, a new report released by the Forum to Advance the Mobile Experience (FAME), and sponsored by Palm, indicates that mobile device users in developing countries are more eager to access content and...
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Niche Podvertising Medium to Reach $400M by 2011
Online video might be taking most of the online advertising buzz these days, but podcast advertising (affectionately nicknamed “podvertising”) is expected to take some of the spotlight, too.
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Jessica Simpson Sold Me a Pizza
It’s true. Jessica Simpson sold me a pizza. She didn’t deliver it, unfortunately, but the gorgeous and occasionally photogenic star got me thinking about Pizza Hut’s Cheesy Bites Pizza - you know, the one with the “pull-apart outer crust...
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Super Bowl Influences Online Behavior
A recent survey conducted by comScore Networks concerning this year’s Super Bowl found that 10% of respondents said that they intended to visit Web sites of Super Bowl advertisers on game day, while 11% said that they would...
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Mobile Marketing Sees Increased Participation
Consumers, and younger people in particular, are increasing their interest and participation in mobile marketing campaigns, according to the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA).
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Google Looking to Invade Video Games
Google has a stranglehold on the search engine realm, and consequently dominates Internet advertising, but the company is not satisfied with that. In recent times, Google has been making progress in its print, radio, and even...
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A Look into the World of Payday Loans
You might remember the tiny remote controlled car ads that every emailer ran several years ago. If you wanted one of those cars though, or to buy the non-remote controlled kind, you need one thing - money. December revolves...
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Attention Media Salespeople: Don’t Forget 2007
This quote from the brilliant movie about the salesmen and the hardships they endure, fully explains the importance in understanding media planning, which is true for both the buying and selling departments. It is easy for companies to...
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Captured: Inventory Extension
Sites such as YouTube illustrate the challenges of ad matching well. Some incredible technologies have been developed that help tremendously, behavioral targeting being one. I have always liked what behavioral targeting...
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Online Marketing Jobs: What You Can Earn, What You Can Learn
Folio, a B-to-B review about the magazine industry, held its annual conference in New York City last week. Among the workshops offered at the well-attended conference was, “Search-Engine Optimization as a Marketing Tool”, and the...
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The Unmonetizable
Almost ten months ago, I made some predictions for what might happen before the close of 2006. Similar to our Trends piece on the un-network ad networks, this particular prediction involves an issue that leaves many ad...
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The Un-network Ad Networks
Last week’s Trends Report “Thinking outside the Banner” focused on the new type of ad network, one whose inventory wasn’t limited to IAB formats. And, in a break with traditional web site based networks, many of these companies...
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Out-of-Context the Way to Go for Ads?
A recent study conducted by BL Labs, the research arm of ad network BlueLithium, revealed some surprising information regarding behavioral ads and their performances in context and out of context.
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Microsoft, Ingenio to Deliver Pay-Per-Call Ads
The mobile advertising game got more interesting on Monday when Microsoft and Ingenio, a San Francisco-based company that specializes in delivering pay-per-call ads to mobile device users, announced a deal.
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Microsoft’s New Umbrella
On Monday, Microsoft announced that they would be converging their various advertising products and outlets under an umbrella brand called Microsoft Digital Advertising Solutions.
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Google TV Ads Coming Soon
It appears that Google has set its covetous eyes on yet another advertising realm: television. With recent comments by Google CEO Eric Schmidt, the registration of some new domains by Google last week, and with some...
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SPOTLIGHT ON… Jason McClain from PrimeQ
- Find out how he got his start in the industry - 10 years ago
- Learn about the first international lead generation platform.
- Find out how zip offers affected his business
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Ad Marketplaces
Google’s almost billion dollar pact with Murdoch’s News Corp and AOL’s accidentally opening of the keyword kimono stole thunder, and in case of the first perhaps intentionally, from one of the most potentially disruptive trends in...
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Google Eyeing Radio Ads
It seems that Google’s futile meddling in print advertising hasn’t perturbed their desire to expand AdWords into areas outside of the Internet. Now Google appears set to make a run at the radio advertising market...
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EBay Testing Contextual Ads
At its annual Developers Conference in Las Vegas eBay announced that it will begin beta testing a new contextual advertisement system that will place contextual ads for eBay auctions on their affiliates’ sites in exchange for a...
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Much To Do About Video
Keeping on top of the latest technology takes effort. Everyone should be so lucky to have at least one friend, that no matter what the technology, can help make sense of the situation and enable you to become proficient with it. For me, this was the case when trying to understand the relationship between...
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Upsetting The Status Quo
Competition can sneak up on a company when they don’t expect it and from a direction they would not have seen coming. One example, which may only illustrate my appreciation for Revenue Science, as opposed to point being...
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40% of Adults in U.S. Play Electronic Games
According to the findings of an AP-AOL Games poll, 40% of adults in the U.S. play electronic games on a computer or console. As expected, men, younger adults, and minorities are more likely to play video games than...
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SPOTLIGHT ON… Jennine from Rextopia
RexDirectNet is a full service Internet marketing company specializing in Affiliate Marketing (Rextopia) and Lead Generation Services (Rextrack). That’s been our focus for the last four and a half years and going...
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FCC Changes Fax Advertisement Rules
Last week, the Federal Communications Commission adopted rules in order to employ the conditions of the Junk Fax Prevention Act of 2005. The FCC said that so long as businesses have an established business relationship with...
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Google Wi-Fi Ads Patent in the Works
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office published a patent application filed by three of Google’s employees back in September of 2004. Google engineers Wesley Chan, Shioupyn Shen, and Georges Harik are trying to get a patent on...
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"Starbucks-China" Blend: A Slam Dunk Grande
Admittedly, there are few genuine “can’t miss” propositions. But I’ve got one for you, Starbucks in China. Giant corporations being granted carte blanche in a totalitarian environment are reminiscent of an age when kings granted...
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WOM marketing
I’ve read a lot of articles lately on Word-Of-Mouth marketing. In fact, on Valentine’s Day there was an article in Media Post’s Online Media Daily that spoke about the company BzzAgent, who sells access to a “hive of
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Super Bowl of Ads - Convergence
It took a little while, but the Internet has fundamentally changed offline advertising. Perhaps no other event highlights those changes as much as the Super Bowl. Companies have for years included their web sites in their TV...
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Super Bowl of Ads - Strategies
Aside from the Presidential Election, it’s not often that almost 91 million people in the US alone congregate for a single event. The Super Bowl is the highest rated television show of the year and arguably the best day in all of advertising...
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Ads on Rooftops Aimed at Google Maps?
If you have ever taken a flight from or to busy airports such as O’Hare in Chicago or LaGuardia in New York City, you may have noticed the big red bull’s-eyes on the rooftops of Target stores nearby. These rooftop ads are...
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Marketing Budgets Shifting From Above to Below-the-Line
A new study conducted by Winterberry Group indicates that marketing efforts are shifting from above-the-line (ATL) to below-the-line (BTL) efforts. In other words, marketing campaigns are moving away from...
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Microsoft Reveals adLab in Beijing, Video Hyperlink Ads
Microsoft recently opened an advertising laboratory called adLab in Beijing, China, where it has reportedly hired 50 researchers to work on about 40 different technologies that will facilitate advertising through video, television...
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A Tulip by Any Other Name
Students of history will remember the Dutch Tulip Mania that swept the country from 1634 through the beginning of 1637. At one point in time, a single tulip bulb went for the equivalent of 1000 pounds of cheese or even four tons of wheat. The rise of...
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Extraordinary Is A Good Word
Extraordinary is a good word. It’s a word that you call great people. I hardly ever call anyone something as special as “extraordinary”. The person must speak in person or through the phone with integrity, honesty, fun and professional enough...
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Broadband Video Ad Spending to Triple by 2007
Online video advertising spending in the US will nearly triple to $640 million in 2007, surging way past this year’s $225 million mark, according to a report by market research firm, eMarketer. By 2009, video ad spending is expected to reach...
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India: A Laboratory For Mobile Marketing
With one of the fastest growing mobile telephone markets and an installed base of the most current infrastructure technology, India is in a powerful position to develop innovative mobile marketing strategies and practices. Currently other...
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Path to Maturity
Since I have literally “grown up” working in the online ad industry, I know how important it is to work hard to become a well-rounded and mature sales person, media buyer, account manager or boss. Unfortunately, there are some people in this industry...
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The (Crowded) Battle Field: Lead Generation
Behind the scenes of the online lead generation industry, there is a battle going on. Some may even say it is a battle of good and evil. I say it is a battle for survival.
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Digital Thoughts - A Crash Course in the Vendor Landscape - Part 2
The first half of the newsletter version of “A Crash Course in the Vendor Landscape” covered the display ad network space and three areas that overlapped with it - ad serving, contextual / behavioral ad providers, and adware. We also covered ad rep firms...
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Digital Thoughts - A Crash Course in the Vendor Landscape - Part 1
This past Monday, Cliff Kurtzman, from Online-Ads, and I gave a presentation during Ad:Tech Chicago 2005 called, “A Crash Course on the Digital Marketing Vendor Landscape,” a talk that tried to untangle what some of those even in our space...
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Digital Thoughts - Keeping Up With The End User
Sometimes a seemingly random occurrence can lead to one’s viewing the world differently. That experience happened recently when observing a seven year-old girl skip through commercials with the help of a digital video recorder (DVR). Until that moment...
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The Theory of Poker
"Every time you play a hand differently from the way you would have played it if you could see all your opponents' cards, they gain; and every time you play your hand the same way you would have played it if you could see all their cards, they lose."
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Digital Thoughts - The Machine
Working in the direct response lead generation and incentive promotion space can skew one’s perspective on life. The way we evaluate businesses differs from the average person. We look at the world in terms of traffic flow and monetization. We look for...
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Trends Report - Internet Arbitrage: A Short History
The top five companies in our area account for north of $500 million in annual revenues. Almost as remarkable, these companies make the vast majority of their revenues from advertisers paying them only for the actions they generate. Hundreds of millions of...
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Digital Thoughts - Acquisition and Retention
Sometimes, certain acts in the “real” world unfold in a way that lead a person in our line of work to wonder how those same events would have transpired were the equivalent levels of measurability and accountability used to run our business also used by others.
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