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The Promotion World InformerIssue #46 November 2, 1998Contents Of This Issue:
Editor's NotesSorry for the lateness of this issue, we've been having a few technical difficulties... I think they have all been resolved now, though! This week I am proud to announce yet another feature writer who is joining the ranks. Ryan Adams will be writing a short article each week on the subject of affiliate programs. These programs are the latest rage, and so I thought I should find someone who would be willing to write on a regular basis on the subject. And Ryan is very well qualified to write on the subject! He manages a popular website on the subject of Affliliate Programs and Banner Networks. You may visit his site at http://www.clickquick.com. I have another special announcement this week. I have launched a new section of Promotion World that only contains online tools to help you in your site promotion efforts. They are all simple and should only take you a few minutes to use. I have started off the section with a really cool site submission program that will submit your site to the top eighteen search engines. It is similar to the other mass submission programs out there, however the search engines will view your submission as a manual submission! This is the right way to do it. Oh, by the way, it is free for anyone to use. I will be adding some more really nifty programs in the next few weeks! You can access the site submitter online at http://www.promotionworld.com/tools/submit/ Remember also to stop by our discussion boards. There are some conversations and debates getting going, and some of them sound like they will be quite interesting. I recommend you all head over there and join in. http://www.promotionworld.com/discus/ We respect your privacy! The Informer is only sent to those who subscribe to it. We will never give our subscriber list to anyone. If you don't remember signing up, let me jog your memory. You probably signed up on my site, found at http://www.promotionworld.com. If you don't want to receive this newsletter anymore then just follow the simple unsubscribe instructions at the end of this newsletter.
Cool Quotes
People are continually emailing me asking if I could send them all the quotes that have ever appeared in the Informer. Well, guess what. I have decided to oblige you all! You can download the entire quote file from http://www.promotionworld.com/quotes.html or by sending any message to our autoresponder at mailto:quotes@promotionworld.com. Enjoy!
Feature Article
Hit Counters versus Log Analysis
This two-part article discusses... Part 1 - I will discuss the following topics: why you need log analysis, hit counters versus log analysis and just what are hits...
||| OVERVIEW |||
||| Why You Need Log Analysis ||| Performing log analysis is fundamental to truly understanding the effects of your online marketing program. Hit Counters just tell you the number of "hits," while log analysis can tell you where they come from (geographically, by provider, from what links), when they came (best days, time of day), how long they stayed on each page (if people are leaving your site after 10-15 seconds you need to re-work that page) where the went (top entry pages, most accessed pages). This information is not only essential for large companies, but anyone who is attempting to conduct e-commerce. (YES! This means you and me!!) And it's not that expensive, especially compared to how expensive it is not to have this information. Lastly, most people think of logs as a retrospective view, but used correctly, you can use logs prospectively to "tweak" your site to provide EXACTLY what your visitors are looking for.
||| Hit Counters Versus Log Analysis |||
||| Just What are Hits? ||| Two other methods of counting are "unique page views" and "unique visitors" Unique page views are the of distinct web pages viewed by a visitor, regardless of the number of inserts or graphic pictures you have. One page, one visit-keeps it simple. Unique visitors are the number of single visitors that come to your site. A visitor can come to one page, or visit 50 pages at your site, and he counts as one visitor. Log analysis is a method for determining 10-30 variables about each of your visitors, allowing you to understand your ACTUAL visitor, not your ANTICIPATED visitor. You will be surprised at how different these two visitors really are, AND how this can lead to even more visitors to your site. OK, back to our story...
||| Hits as a Trophy ||| While the number of hits, unique visitors, unique page views, hits, repeat visitors et al is important and interesting, I have found that by looking at specific log traffic information (i.e. how and why people got to my Internet sites via the search engines etc.) to be as valuable, if not far more valuable than the body count of the number of hits. Under log analysis, the number of visitors is a post-effort analysis and a by-product of how your page is designed. Using "how and why people got to your Internet site" as feedback allows you to structure your site according to how users are searching for your site, and also provides insight into what people are really looking for by the way they structure their keyword searches. I have seen the latest generation of "hit counters" on web sites that still fall short of what you need. They are like having a super-fancy, high tech, 318 dials/sliding bars/switches stereo receiver, but with out push-buttons to select your favorite memorized station. Some of the "hit counters" attempting to act as mini logs, give you everything you will ever need, number of visitors, time of day, EXCEPT for the item that you will probably NEED the most. The problem with "hit counters" is that when you begin to look for what I feel is the most important report (ok - equal to the most important report) it just isn't there. By using this one report, I have added at least 5,000+ unique page views a month to my site. "Hit counters" don't have this report. For the past 10 months, I have reviewed my logs manually (it was easy when I was at 200 visits per month - most of them me, just checking to see if my site was there). I became fascinated with how people found my site. As my first Internet site -- http://www.net-savings.net -- grew (Nov - 200; Dec - 1,000; Jan - 5,200; Feb - 16,300 (got in Yahoo); March - 23,900, April - 32,100, May - 35,200, June 38,000+) I also began to search for software that could do what I had been doing manually, by examining each line of my log. (I searched the net and found software programs that will analyze your logs for you. Now note, these are programs for analyzing the stats, not recording the stats, that is different software.) Many log programs allow a demonstration, try it on your site and analyze your logs. In Part 2, we will discuss what is the most important report you can use, how to find diamonds in the garbage, how to use logs to tweak your site, how logs tell you if you really do have content and we will share a secret tip with you. Copyright 1998 HowToInternet.com
At your service, After reading this article, you may have a comment, question or even a differing opinion. I would encourage you to make it known! Use the appropriate forum in our discussion board. http://www.promotionworld.com/discus/
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Searching With Hayden_______________ This Weeks Question For Hayden ________________
Hi! I have a quick question. I submitted my site using the mass submission to
the top 7 search engines. After reading [Joshua's] article
on submitting sites, I think the hand submission is better.
Should I go ahead and submit to the sites
individually or just wait and count on the mass submission? Will it cause
problems if I do mass and hand submission to the same search engine? Most of the program submitting programs on the market today do a good job submitting to the major engines. Still, If you submit the big 8 search engines by hand, you know for sure the page was accepted because you see the confirmation page. If a page is really important, I use hand submit to the major engines so I am sure and I log the date I made the submission so I can check for results when the appropriate amount of time has passed. Hayden Mitchell
======================================================================= "Life is good at the Top" - Search Engine placement and much more! For details send email to Autoresponder mailto:webhitman@infofree.com Web Themes - http://www.webthemes.com ph. 805-270-1607 Send in your question for Hayden! It might be answered in an upcoming issue. mailto:webmaster@promotionworld.com
What's New At Promotion World
Promotion World now offers a news page which features only the best Internet
and Web Design news headlines from ClickZ, ZDNet, BizReport, BUILDER.COM and
more. Updated daily!
I have been receiving so many wonderful comments about Promotion World
lately from our visitors that we decided to update our Fan Mail Page with
some of their letters so that you all can have a look at them!
A number of new sites have been added to our Promotion Resources Directory.
Expert Interviews: Joe Haedrich
Sponsor MessageTop ten things to do with Webcards:
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Ins and Outs of Affiliate Programs
The Power of 'Free' One complaint that some webmasters have had with affiliate programs is that if they send the affiliate vendor a lot of traffic, but few of the visitors actually purchase anything (at least on that first visit), they will earn little compensation in return. The vendor ends up receiving traffic, and potentially revenue for free (since many visitors may bookmark the site and later come back). Recent improvements to some affiliate programs have tried to eliminate this potential problem. Some use cookies to track visitors and give credit for sales made even months later. Others pay a certain amount per click-through (usually $0.05-$0.10) in addition to commissions on sales the affiliates refer. Another recent trend has been to offer affiliate hosts the opportunity to earn commissions without the visitors needing to make any type of purchase. This can be best described as a pay-per-lead model, in which affiliates earn commissions for referring potential customers to the vendor. Usually the commission is earned when the visitor requests a free trial or sample of the product. Others pay for visitors to complete an opinion survey or for referring email addresses for a free newsletter. The main advantage of these types of programs should be obvious. Since visitors aren't required to actually purchase anything, you will see a much higher conversion rate. People are much more inclined to request a free trial or sample of a product on their first visit to a new web site then they are to shell out hard earned cash. After all, what do they have to lose? Especially if their privacy is assured. Another advantage of these types of programs is that you can easily add value to your web site. For example, one of my current favorite pay-per-lead programs is TransAct! They offer a variety of brand name, blue-chip sponsors (such as Money magazine) which you can promote on your site and earn commissions for doing so. So, if you ran an investment or finance related site, you could sign up to sponsor Money magazine, and offer a free trial issue to your visitors. You are offering your visitors something they may be interested in for free and it is possible they might not even realize you are being paid for it! I have compiled some of the current leaders in this category of affiliate programs at my site. Feel free to stop on by and browse these programs to find one (or more) that may best match your site. Also, if you are interested in learning more about these types of opportunities, look for a more detailed article on pay-per-lead affiliate programs in the next issue of the ClickQuick Files email newsletter ( mailto:subscribe@clickquick.com )
Ryan Adams After reading this article, you may have a comment, question or even a differing opinion. I would encourage you to make it known! Use the appropriate forum in our discussion board. http://www.promotionworld.com/discus/
Bits And Pieces
The Awards Jungle has recently redone their website and moved to a new
server. Now they claim to submit your site to over 160 awards for free.
Sounds like a pretty good deal, you may as well try it out!
http://www.awardsjungle.com When I join a new affiliate program, I always watch my statistics closely, as I am sure most of you do. I always give each program a reasonable chance, and if it isn't earning me much (or any) money, out it goes. My general test for an affiliate program is to give its banner, button or newsletter ad about 10,000 impressions. If it isn't working after that, I throw it. You see, I know how much all the other affiliate programs make me per CPM (thousand displays). It would probably be better to get rid of it to put more emphasis on associate programs that actually pay. I have compiled the CPMs of a number of affiliate programs and banner networks I am involved in. I also emailed some of my webmaster friends and asked them about CPM rates on some programs. They are just to give you a few examples of the wide disparities in the amounts you can earn. All dollar amounts are per CPM.
Eads: $0.10
ArtToday: $0.25
Webcards $5.00-$6.00
GifWizard : $0.05
ValueClick: $2.00
The Ultimate Promotion: $0.00
BurstNet $1.50-$3.00 Of course, all of these statistics will vary depending on the banners or text you use, and the prominence which you give to these companies' ads. It also depends on the type of site you have. However, they should give you a rough idea of how some of the different affiliate programs perform. I always calculate my ads back to the CPM. There is great benefit in doing this! For example, I know that I can deliver a such and such amount of ads per month, and then I can reasonably accurately calculate how much I will be able to earn each month. It can be a very revealing and rewarding exercise, and I recommend you all try it!
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Website Usability
How to Listen to Your Users Unfortunately, you probably don't know enough your users as much as you'd like. Or, maybe you think you have a pretty good handle on them. You might even talk to them face to face once in a while. Yet, I'd be willing to bet that you probably don't listen to your users well enough. Listening effectively greatly improves your chances of understanding your users. I'm going to throw some tips your way and hopefully you'll be able to boost your listening abilities so that you can better know your users. If you want a great Web site, you simply must listen to your users. The first step is to drop your other activities and concentrate on your users' activities. That is, you simply must stop being self-centered. There's no need to be selfless, but the reason you have your site is probably to please other folks or to get them to buy your goods and services. Your users are your lifeblood; your users give you a reason to have a Web site. To listen effectively, you must be user-centric not ego-centric. Now, let's take a look at the three global things you must do: (1) understand your users' goals and needs, (2) listen dynamically, and (3) help your users speak to you. How can you better understand your users' goals and needs? As I already mentioned, you need to focus on them. You need to know how your users see the world. For example, you should try to understand their population stereotypes. Pay attention to their language and manner of speaking and writing. Are they organized or disorganized? Do they know their own goals? Do they know what they want? (Helping clients who know what they want is different than helping those that do not.) Are they asking for your help or are they looking for a strategic partnership with you? And so forth. Moving beyond these business-like issues, you can ask your Web patron (and yourself) other questions too. For example:
What information do you need from my site? What would make your visit to my site better? Obviously there are many, many other goal oriented questions. There are other ways to evoke goals from users. You can mirror their behavior. People actually like it when you are like them. It makes them comfortable. This goes for person-to-person contact as well as email correspondence. For example, if your users write their email in a formal manner, you might do the same. This helps to establish a rapport. However, be sure not to fake this -- people smell a rat in no time, so be genuine. Your users will communicate better with you, and vice versa. I've already given you some indication of the second global thing to consider. If you want to effectively listen, and communicate, you must decide what you need to hear. That is, you must filter out the jargon, your ego, and your biases. Filter everything out before you even start talking. Know what you need to hear and what you need to talk about before you make that first call or write that first email. What will count as a 'win'; what are your communication success factors? Collect all kinds of information. Listening to your users goes beyond talking and email. You must dig deeper and seek data. Visit your users' Web sites, understand their products and services, read their .sigs, and talk to other folks about your users. Then, when you are done collecting the information, ask your users about what you have gathered. Give them input and they'll know you listen and that you care. Ask them questions that help them understand you know their concerns. The third global thing you need to do is help your users speak to you. Get them started, get them talking to you. Ask them about their work, their families, their jobs. People love to talk about themselves. You can be business-like or informal, whatever fits the person and the occasion. Be cheerful, pleasant, and helpful. Be efficient and courteous. These things foster trust in users. Since in most conversations, and with Web sites, you are dealing with people one-to-one, you will find these tips to be important to grease the wheels. Some people need help talking -- so, being fast and helpful is the way to go with those users. Ask questions that they can easily answer at first, then get to the details as the conversation (cheerfully) moves on. Be dynamic and positive in your listening. Your users don't have time for anything else. Above all, seek to know your users. Know everything you can about them. Ask questions and accept questions. Finally, if all these things seem to fail, you should fall back on this simple advice: shut up, ask a good question, or finish the conversation.
========================================================================= After reading this article, you may have a comment, question or even a differing opinion. I would encourage you to make it known! Use the appropriate forum in our discussion board. http://www.promotionworld.com/discus/
Misc. InformationThis newsletter is now proofread each week by ProofPerfect. If you want them to proofread your website or newsletter you should visit their site at http://www.proofperfect.com. To comment on the issues covered in this week's newsletter, use the appropriate forum on our Discussion Boards. http://www.promotionworld.com/discus/ If you are looking for some good advertising deals, you might like to consider Promotion World and the Informer as places to advertise. You can see our media kit at http://www.promotionworld.com/sponsor.html To subscribe put SUBSCRIBE in the BODY of an email to mailto:informer@oaknetpub.com To unsubscribe put REMOVE in the BODY of an email to mailto:informer@oaknetpub.com I appreciate all your mail with your comments and suggestions! mailto:webmaster@promotionworld.com Newsletter Credits:
Joshua Reimer, Editor |