The East Midlands eBusiness Programme FREE one-day conference about doing business online will be taking place at the East Midlands Conference Centre, Nottingham on Thursday 3 December.

I’ll be speaking about Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses, and Ian Lockwood will be providing an update on Search Engine Optimisation.

Places are limited, so probably sensible to book your place soon.

The blurb from the recent e-shot let’s you know more:

If you want to keep up to date with the latest developments in Search Marketing and Social Media marketing, then this is the conference for you. Delegates who have previously attended any of the eBusiness Programme’s extensive range of workshops will discover brand new content with practical steps you can take to promote your business effectively on the Internet.

The conference will teach you how to effectively market your business online by bringing you all the latest in the rapidly changing world of Internet marketing. Attendance will benefit any business that uses search engines as part of their online marketing and those experimenting with social media marketing.

Registration for the conference opens at 09:00 am, and the presentations will begin at 10:00 am. The presentations will end at approximately 16:00 pm giving you the opportunity to network with conference delegates.

The Conference Programme in detail:

What’s New in Search? – Presenter: Ian Lockwood

The world of search engines is ever-evolving and businesses need to be up to speed with the latest developments. During the morning we will introduce you to the new business developments, changes to search engine algorithms, updates to pay per click engines and additional features added by the search engines that you could be using to increase your exposure, particularly on Google.

Social Media Marketing for Small Businesses – Presenter: Susan Hallam

Social media is hot, it’s trendy, and ever so sexy. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Blogging. But are they genuinely useful for small businesses? Do they give good value as a return in return for the investment of your time and effort? And what are the best ways to get started using these new marketing techniques?

The afternoon session will provide practical examples of how small businesses can use social media to deliver communication, collaboration, or online visibility objectives in support of your business Internet marketing strategy.

Booking Now: For more information or to register your place, click here to book your place, or  email events@businesslinkem.co.uk or contact the eBusiness Programme team on 0845 603 8370.

This blog posting is a reprint of my article in the October 2009 issue of JAM: The Journal of Arts Marketing published by the Arts Marketing Association.  The issue is devoted to the topic of Mobile Marketing, and you can read the entire Mobile Marketing issue here. (PDF)

Mobile Marketing Research Round Up

Mobile phones aren’t just for talking on:  the UK’s burgeoning love affair with the mobile Internet means lots of new opportunities for arts marketing professionals.  Most handsets are now Internet enabled, mobile phone companies are offering “unlimited” Internet data tariffs, and 90% of UK residents live in postcode districts offering 3G mobile services with increased capacity for delivering high speed data and voice.[i]

But the love affair is still in its early stages, and adoption of the mobile Internet has plenty of potential for continued growth.   According to The Nielsen Company, over 8 million people in the UK, or 16% of adults, used their mobile phone to gain access to the Internet in the first quarter of 2009. And Nielsen also report that the number of people accessing the Internet via their mobile is growing more rapidly than those going online using their computer.

But do our audiences use mobile?  Is this mobile activity the sole preserve of geeks, and the younger generation? Orange’s Exposure 2 Research reports the average age of mobile media users as a surprisingly mature 36.  Men are twice as likely as women to access the Internet via their mobile phone , 15% and 8% of mobile phone users respectively, and the most popular activity for all users is sending or uploading of photographs or video clips.[ii]

Where do they use their mobile?  Exposure 2 reports the answer may be at home, with 67% of mobile users reading their email at home, and 56% engaged in mobile Internet browsing.  If they’re on public transport, they’re likely to be engaged with entertainment, and when about and about they’re looking for local information to help facilitate moving about.  This probably means more of your audience are looking at your content via mobile than you realised.  I may read your emails whilst at home, but there’s a good chance I won’t be reading them on my PC, but rather on my Blackberry.  How good do your emails look on a mobile phone?  How easy is it to interact with your website on a mobile phone if I want to see what’s on?

One surprising demographic that may challenge your assumptions, however, may be that teens browse the mobile Internet less than half as much as the typical user.  Today’s teens, or “Digital Natives,” are less likely than working adults to have all-day access to broadband connections, with 77% of teens saying they are not permitted to use their phone in class.[iii]

Apple iPhone users in particular are phenomenally busy on the Internet: comScore reports 79% of iPhone users accessed news or information via their mobile browser, four times the rate for all mobile phone users.  Keep in mind that only 2% of UK mobile phones are iPhones, and 75% of iPhone users are male, mostly between the ages of 18 to 44.[iv]

iPhone users personalise their mobile to suit their own preferences, and have downloaded more than a billion applications, or apps, in the first 9 months of the iPhone launch.  The all time most popular application is Facebook, but applications like “Artsnear Pro”[v] helps users to discover museums and galleries by city or by proximity, and includes calendars of events and openings.    The “Broadway in Chicago”[vi] app helps you to find what’s on stage, performance times, preview video, and purchase tickets. And here in the UK, Queen Theatrical Productions launched “We Will Rock You” in September 2009, professing to be the first UK theatrical iPhone game application.

This boom in mobile user activity leads inevitably to advertiser growth.  Advertisers spent £28.6 million on mobile advertising in 2008, and the Mobile Marketing Association predicts mobile will grow by 26% this year, despite the economic turn down, and despite the decline in traditional media advertising.[vii]

Developing a strategy for mobile marketing starts with understanding how, and why, your audiences interact with the technology.  Orange[viii] breaks the mobile users’ universe down into 3 groups correlating to age: Mainstream, Selective, and Tentative.  “Mainstream” users are under 25, accessing web based as well as mobile Internet sites, and for whom mobile entertainment is a key driver.  The 25-44 year olds are “Selective,” using the Internet to keep up to date, with email as their key driver, and wanting brief, to the point mobile information.  And finally, “Tentative” users are over 45, are aware there is a lot available on their mobile but not exactly sure what, and are using mobile to access sports scores or news.

There are specific mobile marketing opportunities for arts organisations, and one of the most significant is the mobile use of social networking sites.  The IAB reports (2009) that 25% of all social networkers use their mobile to check or update their pages.   44% of 16 to 24 year olds say they make updates via their mobile, with a further 17% of over 55’s also using mobile social networking. [ix] Facebook and Twitter have set up dedicated sites, formatted for the mobile screen. For lovers of social networking, mobile is now mainstream.

Mobile offers marketers a whole basket of new marketing opportunities.  Text messaging is a well established mobile application that integrates well with offline ads, and research from M-Metrics indicates 75% of mobile subscribers have sent text messages in reply to an offline ad.  Outbound SMS is already in use in a number of arts organisations around the UK including the Ambassadors Theatre who are developing strategies for outbound SMS messages to existing customers.

But mobile marketing isn’t just about text messages.  Other forms of mobile marketing will overtake SMS text ad spend in 2009[x] with growth  in mobile advertising in search engine advertising, display adverts and classified ads leading the way.

Mobile ticketing, which offers users the ability to store a ticket on their mobile phone for later redemption, is predicted to experience exceptionally high growth, with over 410 million users worldwide receiving and redeeming tickets by 2013.[xi] Benefits of mobile ticketing include reduced costs, reduced carbon footprint by reducing paper, and better security.

New forms of advertising will also show exceptionally growth, in particular “Idle Screen” advertising, which doesn’t interrupt a user’s activities.  Likewise, users are very interested in Location based advertising, which can be well targeted and the precision means relevant and engaging advertising.

So, how important should mobile be in your marketing mix? Is your audience using mobile technologies? Are there ways of using mobile services that fit your budget? And are you ready to experiment with some innovative marketing techniques?

References:

[i] Emily Keaney:  “The digital world: a review of the evidence” Arts Council England, May 2009

[ii] Exposure 2 Research Orange Home UK plc, March 2009

[iii] How Teens Use Media: A Nielsen report on the myths and realities of teen media trends. The Nielsen Company, June 2009 p.9

[iv] comScore releases First Data on iPhone Users in the UK. comScore Inc, March 2009

[v] Download at http://iphoneapps.oreilly.com/2009/07/artnear-pro.html

[vi] Download at http://www.broadwayinchicago.com/iphone.php

[vii] Mobile Marketing Buyers Guide eConsultancy, August 2009, pp 4-5

[viii] Exposure Research Orange Home UK plc, November 2007

[ix] Ten things you need to know about mobile advertising The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) May 2009 http://www.iabuk.net/en/1/10thingsyouneedtoknowaboutmobile270509.mxs

[x] Advertising – the future’s bright, the future’s mobile, a white paper in Mobile Advertising: Delivery Channels, Business Models & Forecasts 2009 -2014 Juniper Research, June 2009. http://www.juniperresearch.com/shop/products/whitepaper/pdf/JRL_Advertising%20White%20Paper..pdf

[xi] Mobile – Just The Ticket a white paper in Mobile Ticketing: Transport, Entertainment and Events 2008 – 2013 Juniper Research, October 2008, p6 http://www.juniperresearch.com/shop/products/whitepaper/pdf/Mobile%20~%20Just%20the%20Ticket.pdf

It is always difficult to find appropriate data to help you measure just how well your email marketing campaigns are going as compared to other companies.

You want data from British companies, from companies in a similar sector, and it needs to be data from other small businesses rather than big international corporate companies.

Sign Up To, an email marketing service provider, has produced some benchmarking data based more than 200 million emails sent over the last 12 months, sent by small and medium sized (SME) businesses in the UK.

There are always some difficulties in measuring email campaigns, and you need to take this data with a pinch of salt.  Nevertheless, it  gives you a yard stick to start measuring with.

Some quick findings:

• There are wide variations in Open Rates of emails.  If you are in a profession like accounting or legal practice, property, or sports and leisure then you might experience an Open Rate of just 13%

• I’ve always said an Open Rate of 30% is very good, and indeed there are only two sectors achieving that level of success: Government, and New Media.  Strange bedfellows, and hard to figure out what kind of synergy they might have.

• There appears to problems with the email lists being used by Manufacturing/Industrial companies, with a Bounce rate of bad email addresses as high as 13%

• Emails from the government are well received: the highest open rate, the highest click through rate, and very low number of bad addresses.

I recommend you read through the report to understand how the data was collected, and the method of analysing the recipients’ behaviour.

See the full benchmarking report here.

A hands-on workshop for businesses wanting to make things happen now

Do you want to learn some great new Internet marketing ideas, and then straight away make it happen for your business?

Do you have lots of good ideas for your website, but lack the time or skills to put your ideas into practice?

Then this is the training day for you.

This is not an awareness raising day.  You are not going to sit and watch PowerPoint slides.

This training day is different.  You are going to have your own computer, and you are going to get things done.  It’s going to be a small group training session, with other interesting business owners like yours.  And you’ll have Susan Hallam right at your side to show you how and to help you over those little stumbling blocks that slow you down or stop you in your tracks.

You will get to choose from 50 new ideas:

• 10 ways to get found in Google
• 10 ways to get more links to your website
• 10 ways to advertise your website for free
• 10 ways to improve your website
• 10 new ways to communicate on the Internet: Twitter, LinkedIn, blogging…

Book Your Place Now

You can pay either by credit card using our secure PayPal service, or book your place via email. Either way, we will send you a VAT invoice.

Who is this course for?

You will be responsible for the marketing of your business, and will be using the Internet as part of your day to day working. You want to learn how you can use the web  to drive your business forward.  And you will know that the Internet is essential to your business success.

You do not need to be a geek;  the workshop has been designed for real business owners who need practical information quickly and in bite-sized chunks.

Dates

Friday, 1 May 2009

Time

09:00- 09:30    Registration
09:30 – 16:00   Course
16:00 – 16:30   Informal Q&A

Venue

PDW Meetings & Training Venue
Colwick Quays Business Park
Nottingham NG4 2JY

Fee

£225 + VAT (payable by credit card or cheque).

Includes use of the classroom computer (you are also welcome to bring along your own laptop), comprehensive course notes, delicious lunch, teas and coffee.

Book your place now

You can pay either by credit card using our secure PayPal service, or book your place via email and we will send you an invoice.

The Workshop Leader

Susan Hallam is Managing Director of Hallam Communications, an Internet marketing training and consultancy company. Susan specialises in making complex topics clear and easy to  understand, and has been delivering search engine optimisation training for more years than she cares to admit.

She is a regular speaker at Internet conferences, including Search Engine Strategies, Search Marketing Expo, Internet World, and the eBusiness Club.

• Could the use of Internet Marketing transform your business performance?
• Do you want grant assistance to help to pay for training, consultancy, or equipment?
• Are you looking to develop new markets, implement online marketing technologies, or improve your overall business efficiency?

Click here for Update July 2009:  Grants available to businesses in the East Midlands

Business Link are offering the Business Transformation Grant which is available to small businesses across the East Midlands region. The grant can provide 50% funding for both consultancy and capital projects up to a value of £10,000. The capital grant will usually be in conjunction with mentoring, training, or consultancy.

Of course the grant funding isn’t limited to Internet marketing. But this is my company marketing blog, after all. And as a Business Link Quality Assured supplier, you may be able to get grant funding for my consultancy and training services.

The process involves meeting with a Business Link Business Support Adviser. After an initial review, if your business is likely to qualify, then you will carry out an in-depth diagnostic which results in an Action Plan. Appropriate elements of your Action Plan can generally be funded on a 50/50 basis.

Get in touch if you want to discuss your project with me.

You can contact Business Link East Midlands:

phone: 0845 058 6644
web: www.businesslink.gov.uk/eastmidlands

I’m pleased to be involved in the Women 4 Women programme, offering women-owned businesses in the East Midlands free mentoring and subsidised marketing support. The programme aims to boost women’s enterprise for start ups, new businesses, or women seeking to further develop their business.

To be eligible you must be located in an Objective 2 area and you can check your postcode eligibility here. The business must be at least 50% woman owned, and fit the usual SME requirements.

I’ll be mentoring women in the Lincolnshire area, but my Internet marketing training and support is eligible for support across the entire East Midlands Objective 2 region.

Get in touch if you’d like to know more.

Successful email marketing depends on building trust with your audience; abuse that trust and your email transforms into spam.

I was involved in a situation this week where it was suggested that email marketing addresses had been shared between organisations. Sharing data is bad practice, and potentially a breach of the Data Protection Act.

Fortunately, we had clear records to show that no sharing had taken place. Nerves were jangled and tempers were fraying, but in the end we were on safe ground.

So, remember to keep a clear audit trail of the permissions you receive from your email readers.

On my own website, subscribers to my email newsletter Double Opt-In (meaning they get a confirmation email message asking them to click just one more time to finally confirm their subscription.) The email marketing service I use keeps the proof of that Opt-in.

I’d also recommend using a customer relationship management system that keeps track of how you met people and why you added their email address to your database.

If you want to read more about email marketing, then take a look at my email marketing resources.

Email subscribers to my blog will see a change this week; I’ve decided to convert my blog into a weekly e-newsletter, complete with branding and formatting. Feel free to send me comments and suggestions.

We already know blogging is a very powerful Internet marketing tool. A well designed blog:

• delivers rich content that can rank highly in the search engines. For example, see how my blog postings ranks well in Google for the new statutory requirements for business websites.
• provides fresh updates on your website which search engine spiders love
• establishes you as an authority on your subject
• keeps you in touch with your clients and prospective clients.

But another benefit of blogging is re-usability. By that I mean “write once, publish many.”

I’ve decided to “re-use” my blog as my email marketing newsletter. I’ve been using the FeedBlitz service to maintain email subscribers, and from today I’m using Feedblitz compile and broadcast my blog postings on a weekly basis.

The benefits?

• I won’t annoy my readers with an individual message every time I write a blog posting, instead they’ll get a weekly round up. If I’m in the mood one morning to write 3 postings then no worries about deluging my clients with messages.
• The e-newsletter has all the Hallam branding and logos
• It gets sent out automatically on the day of my choice (Thursday) even if I’m busy doing something else

The best Internet marketing is always a case of “Test — Learn — Test” and so I’ll keep you posted of tweaks that I make to deliver better blogging.

A number of new resources have been added to our Internet marketing library:

• Email marketing checklist: avoiding those email marketing disasters
• Tackling email marketing: Summary of Susan’s email marketing presentation at SfEP 2006
• Google eyed: Just how do you get your company name on the first page of the search engines?
• Hallam appointed by ArtsDerbyshire.org.uk to develop Internet marketing strategy

There’s a new publicity photo of Susan Hallam