Web Work

I've been working on converting my company's website over to a new template and format using Macromedia's UltraDev/Dreamweaver. This is taking a lot longer than I thought. I started in May while I was busy with the GVSU ecommerce program. I have been perpetually "2 weeks away" from getting done. I keep finding problems to fix. Today I am home working on it and found a couple of errors/problems I wouldn't have seen at work. So I haven't really gotten much farther than I had been already.

I am happy with Dreamweaver, as opposed to FrontPage. It has real page templates instead of FP's themes. I am also implementing Cascade Style Sheets (CSS). These steps should make it much easier to change the look and style of the site if I need to. Because I will be using a POP menu (which FP's themes wouldn't support), I only have to change a few templates and all my pages will be updated with the new menu. If I was really a geek, I would have gone to "active" pages, but I wasn't ready to jump off that cliff yet. I guess I like tweaking my pages.

Hopefully I am done in a few weeks (yes, I will be done), then I might show you. I'm going to blow-away the competition!!!!

A study in www.MarketingNuggets.com aka www.kimble-kennedy.com "Make Money Fast" products website(s)

I found about 30 other sites selling the same MMF materials. Some sound very useful, others are vague MMF content. The consultant's success guide sounded promising, if I was going into that business.

Just for fun, I looked at the META keywords used at one of these pages:
META NAME="keywords" CONTENT="Dan Kennedy, Kimble and Kennedy Publishing, Internet marketing, direct marketing, sales copywriting techniques, Internet advertising, direct advertising"

Interesting that they didn't modify the META tags for each page, which they really should do if they want the search engines to pick up the pages better.

Next, I tried doing a Google search on one of these keyword phrases (since that is what they are trying to target): Internet marketing which leads to 3,690,000 results. How does someone selling their tapes/materials rise to the top for such a broad term?

Of course I don't know if they are going to rely on search engines to get business. This is just my first run of how I would analyize if I were selling Kimble/Kennedy materials as a syndicate on the web.

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As a contrast, my blog gets hits from searches on Google for "b2b marketing". This term has 581,000 results, but I land on the first page. Still, I am getting just a couple hits a day for this term. So it is not just the keyword phrase you target, but also the number of times it is searched and the attraction of your page title and description.

Just so no one thinks this blog is unloved, I am taking the week off of work. Since this is a work-related blog, there is no reason to post. Will post frantically next week.

The supplier responds

Got an email from someone who obviously works for GlobalSpec. Here is his email and my comments in blue.

One issue I see that you have not addressed is how an engineer or technical buyer searches for products today. Have you done research on this for your company and do you have data points on user search habits?

*** No I haven't done this research. Interesting idea to do.



From my research users are very time cautious and want to be able to find their required products as fast as possible to meet their project deadlines.
They dont have the time to flip through catalogs or read the myriad pdfs found on the web but want to quickly spec out a product with user friendly search forms. And, they want to be able to find all their different product needs at one site, which saves more time.

*** Depends on what they need to "spec out". I am selling capital equipment which is not something just added to a bill-of-material. It is expensive, high profile equipment that they are staking their reputation on. They will search until they are satisfied with their choice. This is not a commodity purchase like a motor or a valve!



What do you gain from buying keywords from google or overture when a user clicks through to your web views some product info and leaves. How do you capture the user contact information for further contact ? How do you justify the cost ? I would be looking for channels that can supply you personal contact information in real time.

*** Will engineers use a service that they know is actively tracking their behavior, possibly resulting in calls from salesmen without their request? Many web users have a fear of cookies already. Finding out a site is passing out their information is risky to the site and the vendor.



In fact how does a keyword lead compare with a specification lead ? A keyword lead means your sales force will be working overtime trying to figure out what the user's needs are. You may have to send a catalog, email some pdf's and follow up a week later. A specification lead means the user needs have been met and the sales force can sell on the spot. The timeliness of the buy is maintained. Ths sales cycle is decreased. Revenue increased faster.

*** The specification lead is only good if the data is useful. For our product line, a search on GlobalSpec can result in over 150 models that match. Now the client doesn't have any better idea of a fit, and neither does the vendor. I've found that an effective website allows the client to automatically filter out products that don't meet their needs (without involving a salesperson).



How many clicks does it take for a user to find product specs that meet their needs on your web site ? I dont think you know because you dont ask the user up front what specs they are looking for. Studies have shown 50% of users opt out everytime an extra click is needed.

*** I'd love to have a "bot" that walked the customer thru a product selection. But I feel my site is effective because the products are arranged in with clear descriptions and/or "buckets". Some of my competitors offer their products lines by proper names and unclear titles. Yes, the aggregate experience of shopping thru many poor websites can make a service like GlobalSpec look more enticing to an engineer...until he is faced with 150 matches to his search without any clear way to filter them further.



You seem to be following the standard road most companies use as they try to leverage the web. Buy some keywords, put up some pdfs and hope the users find their ways to your products. Savvy Marketeers can see through the fluff. Good luck.

*** Yes, you are right. But look to the previous case I mentioned about Envirotronics in this blog. They used "Industrial Quick Search" to leverage search engines to get more traffic to their website. Which dumps them into a band-width hogging website. Net result is a waste of money. What Vincent Flanders says is true--you don't want to have foreplay with a visitor to your site. You need to give them what they are looking for right away. It becomes part of the integrated marketing process. And for me, ultimately the most critical.



I should do the research you suggest, but my assumption for now is that for a "high involvement decision" product like mine, the client is going to use multiple avenues to try to find what fits (willing to expend "high search cost"). My guess is that Google will be the first tool they use, and that's why keyword ads there could be of much higher value than anywhere else. This also reinforces the importance of my website (both in ranking on Google and in content).

Make a favicon for your site

See a lot of requests for "favicon.ico" on the log files of your site? That means people are bookmarking your site with IE. IE then requests your site icon to use in their favorites list. Make your site stand out with icon instead of the standard rectangle with a lowercase 'e'.

Most software to do this on download.com is $20 or more. Seems like a lot to make a 16x16 graphic! Here is a freeware program to create icon files. Can convert from BMP and PNG files, too.
Icon Sushi

On fridays I like to post a cool or especially useful link. This time, I'll just tell you to go to yesterday's post. Seth Godin says "style is free". Which leaves me feeling a little insecure about my blog. That and the fact that both GlobalSpec and IndustrialQuickSearch have visited here. I need a new identity for my blog and maybe a new home.

So today I will start playing with the style of this blog. Like Hershey Park, the content is fine (or so I feel), but I need to improve the execution. But is using pink a step in the right direction?

Seth Godin doesn't post often to his blog, but he makes it worth coming back. His post for August 6 is great for any marketer to read. The point is you need to aim at making your style remarkable and that the basic price to do this is free!
Seth's Blog

Now, where do I start, Seth?

You'd think I was researching this stuff, with two articles in two days, but actually have been in "maintenance mode" for a while. Anyway, here is a good review of running ads with Google and Overture from Search Engine Watch. You should definitely should be subscribing to their newsletter, too.
Compare & Contrast: Ad Guidelines At Overture & Google

Here is another good one on creating effective subject lines for your B2B email campaign. I'll assume readers already know the difference between spam and legitimate campaigns. Crafting an Effective B2B Subject Line

Using Google Ad Words? You should be. As SherpaBlog points out, their activity is starting to rival Overture, which I can personally attest to. Here is a guide on making the most of your Google Ad. How To Write Little Tiny AdWords Ads That Bring Giant-Sized Profits

BTW: Google has been putting my ad across the top of the page sometimes, apparently if there are no big dollar spenders for the targeted keyword. (The ads across the top are only for those with large spending with Google, like $5,000 a quarter.)