www.dpingram.com

I was recently taking a look at which data is mandatory and which is optional when people sign up to some common social networking and file sharing websites.

The attached table summarises what I found.

We all sense that a website should collect only the data it needs, and that the more data it tries to collect the more it may turn off potential users (concerns of privacy, etc). But as business people we also have to balance this with the need to add value to user signups (i.e. more data to help us profile users and deliver to them info and offers that are relevant).

It seems like the amount of mandatory data varies between 2 and 6 items (from simple email and password, to things like zip code, town, gender, country, DOB, occupational status).

The marketeers want as much data as possible, the technicians and user advocates want less. One would think that well-known sites are probably able to ask for more data and people will still not be put off, but younger sites who do not yet have repuation may need a more softly softly approach to data collection. Perhaps one way to satisfy both user and business needs is to take only minimal (eg email and password) at signup, but then incentivise the user to add more info, not with monetary reward but perhaps by unlocking site features.

Figures released by eMarketer show that growth in online advertising will slow, but there’s no need to panic. According to the report, online advertising growth will slow in 2008 to…wait for it…only 29% and worse still by 2012 online advertising will only grow by 12% compared to 2010.

Now I’ve got the sarcasm out of the way the figures are quite remarkable, particularly at a time where many economists are predicting the United States may well slip into recession, unprecedented Government intervention aside.

The numbers look great for Google, with paid search advertising expected to hover at around 40% of the total online ad spend through to 2012, increasing as a whole from $8.6 billion in 2007 to $16.59 billion in 2012, a 92.9% increase over 5 years.

The are some lower figures, for example the two expected white knights in new media advertising won’t grow to levels many were hoping for, with advertising on social networking sites only expected to be 6% of the overall online ad spend in 2012, and rich media/ video rising to 13.1%; all in all it sounds like an internet in 5 years time that isn’t that much different to now, only with more money in the pot to go around.

According to the NY Times, online advertising will rise from 9.3% of the total ad spend in the United States now to 13.3 percent in 2011.

via Techcrunch here

I blogged about OpenID before. Its a single signon solution thats starting to get traction in the web2.0 world. The latest news is that Google and Microsoft will start to roll out support for it.

Here is the article from techcrunch that discussed Googles test adoption on blogger.

Google’s “Blogger in Draft” program that tests functionality for Google’s popular Blogger blogging platform has rolled out OpenID support for comments.

The new service will allow anyone with an OpenID account, including LiveJournal and TypeKey services to log in and validate a comment on blogs running under the Blogger in Draft service. Google notes that the feature is a test and that they will seek user feedback, but all things being equal this will end up being provided on Blogger itself.

The bigger news, particularly for rabid OpenID advocates is a suggestion from Google that they are “working on functionality to let Blogger’s URLs (both Blog*Spot and custom domains) be used for commenting elsewhere on the web,” which sounds a lot like code for Google is looking at turning Blogger logins into OpenID log ins in a similar way that AOL did with its user base.

It doesn’t take Sherlock Holmes to know who is driving this, and Google even drops a hint in the example link: “http://brad.livejournal.com/”; LiveJournal founder and former SixApart employee Brad Fitzpatrick joined Google in August and is credited as the founder of OpenID.

OpenID advocates are passionate about the potential of the idea, but despite the noise and companies such as Digg, Yahoo and even to some extent Microsoft adopting OpenID it has failed to capture the broader public’s imagination. If the 1000 pound Gorilla in the room decides to adopt OpenID across its range of products, presumably with Blogger being only the first step of a broader rollout, OpenID may finally take off outside of the first adopter and tech communities.

Techcrunch here

Developers of online video converter Movavi just released Engine SDK for Flash Video, that enables you to build video sharing web-site with 30 lines of code and it’ll be more stable than a mountain. Now you able to allow users of your site to upload any video and share it with others in flv format and it’ll cost you just $300!

via digg here

Bebo has indicated that it won’t be making user profiles available for marketing purposes, which is a tactic Facebook has recently adopted, to the dismay of some.

There is certainly a recognition that doing things that exploit users is not advantageous. In the past it was possible for companies (in all markets, not just websites) to exploit their users because of the lack of consumer choice (competitors with laregly similar offerings), but today when competitors spring from nothing to come to the fore you can’t piss of your users or they will flee. What companies need to always do is focus on what value they can give or share with their users. When users are getting value they are happy for the host to make money.

Top Video and Movie Sites, Viewers and Advertisers. A deeper look at most popular video and movie sites, exploring viewer demographics as well as advertisers and types of ads.
Some great stats and table are here.

This article was sent to me by my frieds Jolyon Hart, it originates from Jere Doyle on Performance Insider which also have a heap of other interesting stuff. I’ve reproduced it here in its entirety…

We’ve talked before about how the Internet has dramatically changed the way in which brand marketers acquire customers. Nearly 50 % of adults now have broadband Internet access, according to the Pew Internet & American Life Project, using the Internet for a wide range of activities — health information research, product research, gaming, travel research and reservations and more.

It’s past time for brand marketers to embrace the online world as a channel to reach prospects and create deep relationships with customers. From “Everyday Moms,” millions of whom use the Internet to manage finances, plan travel and do household shopping, to professional women who welcome targeted email newsletters with relevant information, to health-conscious consumers researching symptoms and cures, the Internet is a powerful presence in everyday life. As part of a multichannel strategy to promote a brand, it’s indispensable.

Two groups that bookend the typical Internet browser/shopper demographic wield a great deal of clout. We’ll look at these groups — teens and boomers — and provide some suggestions for brand marketers who may still be on the fence when considering the Internet as a channel to reach and convince these consumers.

Tweens, Teens, Boomers and disposable income
It’s not a surprise to learn that teens have emerged as a powerful force online for brand marketers. After all, an estimated 89 % have email addresses they check regularly. As a group they are more willing to share information about themselves online. For this group, surfing, IM, email and social networking sites are prime destinations online — 55% of teens age 12-17 visit them regularly. Yet it may not be clear to brand managers how this group can be reached and motivated with marketing messages.

For another prime age group, retirees, the path is more direct. Today’s typical retiree is a tech-savvy baby boomer who relies on the Internet for a range of informational and commercial purposes. These retirees, nearly 30 % of who made a purchase on the Internet in 2006, represent an immediate opportunity for brand managers.

Demographic trends such as those published in a recent The Media Audit report can help brand marketers develop targeted customer acquisition campaigns for the teen and retiree demographic groups. Building these brand relationships online with trusted, valuable information is a sound brand strategy.

Let’s look at the teen and retiree online audiences and explore approaches that brand marketers can employ to attract their attention, inform and educate, and add them to the growing community of satisfied online customers.

Tweens/Teens
Tweens (12-14) and teens control a growing chunk of the family discretionary budget. According to a recent report from consumer intelligence expert Mintel, the estimated spending power of teens age 12 -17 in 2006 approached $190 billion. At just under 10% of the US population, teens work and tend to spend their earnings on themselves, with teen boys pushing a surprising $2 billion plus in the health and beauty category in 2006 alone. (Alloy Media + Marketing ).

Although teens exert significant influence over family spending — estimates suggest they will influence $150 billion of purchases in 2007 — reaching them with advertising is increasingly difficult. Studies suggest that teens skip as many as 70 % of TV ads; those who watch are likely to be multitasking, chatting with friends via IM or playing online games. As the costs of ad spots increase and viewership declines, marketers are well advised to look to new, online media channels to reach these budding consumers.

Online targeting strategies to reach cash-flush teens include:
Don’t ignore tweens, the 12- to 14-year-olds who frequent social networking sites like Club Penguin and Whyville. Although Club Penguin doesn’t accept advertising, other sites allow corporate sponsorships with “virtual” product placement opportunities.

Teens are open to receiving informative emails that include relevant, timely information - on a sale, or mail that includes a coupon — so don’t neglect them in your lead generation/customer acquisition campaigns.

Look beyond MySpace and Facebook for targeted, niche sites that appeal to teen interests.

Encourage teens to interact with your marketing outreach, and invite them to include their friends. Teens are strong influencers of their peers.

Boomer/Retirees
Health, fitness, travel and finances lead the topics that draw retirees to Web sites when searching for information online. As the ranks of affluent retirees swell, online purchasing activity grows, with nearly 30% buying online at least once, and 15% making five or more online purchases annually (The Media Audit).

The opportunity for brand managers here is huge; retirees are more brand-loyal and more likely to seek information from online sources than are other age groups.

One touch point for retirees is health. Prospectiv’s 2007 Pharmaceutical Marketing Consumer Preference Index (CPI) poll indicates that 75% of consumers begin the search for health-related information online, rather than turning to magazines or broadcast media. There are tried-and-true online methods to reach these boomer information seekers:

Microsites that focus on health-specific issues, such as Healthier.com and WebMD give brand marketers a platform to disseminate health news, tips and recipes, paired with relevant offers for fitness, pharmaceutical or beauty offers.

Use interactive calculators, quizzes and polls that test a retiree’s knowledge — what exercise burns the most calories, which foods are higher in fat, how to calculate optimal weight through a Body Mass Index — and you’ll also be able to reach your audience with relevant offers while building trust.

Use travel microsites to combine information on destinations with offers, promotions and valuable travel tips of interest to this demographic.

Choose your method to reach prospects, but don’t neglect the Internet, where increasingly members of all demographics turn for first-line information about health, travel, cooking, finance and more. Brand marketers who are savvy about the Internet will reduce customer acquisition costs, strengthen the brand relationship and boost conversion rates, while gathering valuable information about prospects.

Pew Internet & American Life Project’s survey of US teenagers confirms that more than half (57%) of online teens are what the project calls “content creators”. That amounts to half of all teens aged 12 to 17, or about 12m youth in the US alone, and this number looks set to grow year after year. These content creators report having engaged in myriad activities, including creating blog or personal web page; sharing original content such as artwork, photos, stories, or videos; or remixing content found online into a new creation.

The current generation of young people has grown and is growing up collaborating online, and they are habitually bringing a new ethic of openness, participation, and interraction to workplaces, communities, and markets. They are the demographic generation of collaboration and they are the reason why this behavior is not a flash in the pan but a persistent trend that will gather force as they mature.

This group was born between 1977 and 1996 inclusive, and there are over 2 billion of them - the first generation to grow up in the digital age.

For the older generation (and at 38 I must unfortunately count myself in that definition) it can be hard to really appreciate the difference in behavior, habits, and outlook from our own. Yet appreciate them we must. The trend of internet users increasingly creating, sharing, collaboration, building, commenting, authenticating, scrutinizing, organizing, and questionning is unstoppable. There will come a time when 90% or more of all internet users will be creators - its a natural behavior that will be accelerated by more, better, and easier to use software and augmented by more, better, easier to use, and more accessible technology devices.

I credit Don Tapscot’s brilliant book Wikinomics for some of the info and phrases used in this post.

I was fortunate enough to meet with Isabelle Ratinaud, MD Europe of Qype, at London OCC a few weeks back. She explained how Qype was putting the power back into the hands of consumers with its local review website. Qype takes word of mouth to new levels and magnifies the sorts of conversations that previously only took place in pubs to a new level - a worldwide level.

In the ‘old days’ you’d hear about good or bad service in discussions you had with people you met. In the days of email, IM, social media and sites like Qype this word of mouth power is not just limited to the five people you meet in the pub, but expanded to the millions of people online.

Qype, which is Europe’s largest local review service, currently has around 40,000 registered users and more than 60,000 reviews, prompting Red Herring to cite it as one of the 100 sites to watch for 2007.

What I particularly liked about Qype is the way that users are encouraged to participate by earning ‘points’ and achieving a Qype ranking. Its a simple system, but one that does recognize users’ involvement and stimulate them to take action.

Of course there are also the expected social networking aspects, in that each user can create a profile of themselves, complete with tags that denote their interests, a record of all their reviews, even upload photos of themselves - a nice tip-of-the-hat to Maslow and his hierarchy of needs. Registered users can also add others as friends (contacts), and send person to person messages. It has a nice community feel which all goes towards establishing a great feeling of trust in the service.

Do you want to keep in touch with your users by email. Here is a roundup of 30+ email newsletter tools to help you create professional looking newsletters.

http://mashable.com/2007/08/10/email-newsletters/