BizReport : September 2007 Archive

September 2007 Archive

Research | September 28, 2007

Pew: Broadband gap will be hard to close

More users in the US are signing on to get broadband Internet every day. But according to recent research from the Pew Internet & American Life Project, the gap of those who have broadband access now and those who do not have broadband access will be hard to close over the coming years. >>

Research | September 28, 2007

Are shoppers leaving comparison sites behind?

A recent survey from UK-based Quidco indicates that shoppers are changing they way they shop online. One in three UK users have stopped using the sites altogether. Does that mean shopping comparison sites will soon be gone from the web? >>

Research | September 28, 2007

Should marketers go "green" to win consumers?

There have been many advertising campaigns launched in recent months that have focused on the environmental benefits of products. But a recent study from Ipsos Reid indicates that these "green" campaigns aren't winning consumers over. Is this a wasted effort? >>

Research | September 27, 2007

Internet popular with hobbyists

A telephone survey conducted earlier this year, as part of the Pew Internet and American Life Project research, found that a large percentage of Internet users look for information on their hobbies online. >>

Search Marketing | September 27, 2007

Changes ahead for MSN Live Search

Beginning this week, and for the next month or so, Microsoft is rolling out changes to the way Live Search makes queries and how results are displayed, in a bid to snatch some of Google’s share of the search market. >>

Social Marketing | September 27, 2007

Bud.tv flat but it won't be scrapped

Bud.tv is barely treading water with visitor numbers dwindling, but Anheuser-Busch doesn't intend giving up on its online video site just yet. >>

Advertising | September 27, 2007

Exponential offers advanced targeting

Creating a great ad is the first step but without proper targeting, those ads will not reach the right consumer. Exponential is hoping to help marking with an advanced targeting mechanism offered through ad network Tribal Fusion. >>

Search Marketing | September 27, 2007

comScore launches qSearch for France, UK

Online marketers may soon be getting more from one analytics firm. Following the launch of comScore's qSearch in the US, the metrics firm has launched similar platforms in both the UK and in France. >>

Trends & Ideas | September 27, 2007

Digitas: Widgets are better than mobile

Don't forget about mobile, but concentrate on widgets. That is the thought behind a recent report about interactive agency Digitas. According to the company widgets are catching on much faster with advertisers while mobile platforms are still marginalized. >>

Research | September 26, 2007

Online television to rise in popularity in the U.K.

The British are slowly switching demand from traditional television, satellite and cable to more on-demand solutions, according to entertainment market analysts Screen Digest. >>

Domain Names | September 26, 2007

Premium .mobi domain names go under the hammer

After the initial rush for .mobi domain names, some of the most desirable .mobi domain names are being sold off by dotMobi. >>

E-commerce | September 26, 2007

U.S. e-tailers failing in key areas of customer service

A mystery shopping exercise, conducted across one hundred of the U.S.’s top online retailers, revealed that there is much room for improvement in customer service departments. >>

Advertising | September 26, 2007

comScore offers segmentation metrix for UK

comScore has launched a second segmentation tool for marketers. The new tool will focus on U.K. surfers, enabling marketers better targeting capabilities for online campaigns. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 26, 2007

MySpace launches mobile platform

The Internet's top social network is launching a new, mobile space. The move could solidify MySpace's place in the social realm, much like Google has been crowned the king of the search realm. >>

Advertising | September 26, 2007

New metrix shows where ads are viewed online

A new measurement application from comScore promises to tell advertisers where and how some ads are viewed online. The Ad Metrix Publisher is said to tell marketers where display ads are viewed and give a profile of the users who view the ads. >>

Research | September 25, 2007

Online shoppers in the U.S. on the rise

A 2005 survey into U.S. online shopping has been updated, and the findings show a marked increase in the number of online shoppers. >>

Social Marketing | September 25, 2007

Facebook takes top spot in the U.K.

Facebook has risen from the U.K.’s third most popular social networking site in June, 2007, to take the top spot in August, according to Nielsen//NetRatings. >>

Search Marketing | September 25, 2007

New tool and update from Google

A new tool has been launched by Google AdWords that will automate the process of monitoring and adjusting cost-per-click (CPC) bids to enable advertisers to achieve more conversions for a lower cost. >>

Research | September 25, 2007

Targeted surveys impact sales

Simply cold calling users who logged on to a website or requested information is not the way to go. According to a recent report from Marketing Sherpa, integrating online surveys to the mix will impact advertisers ROI. >>

Advertising | September 25, 2007

Survey: economy will push more ad dollars online

With more and more advertisers looking for a better return on their investments, many are considering online platforms to get it. According to a recent study for MediaPost, the current economy will push even more advertising dollars into the online space as we move into 2008. >>

Research | September 25, 2007

Survey: women own more gaming consoles

Don't forget women when it comes to targeting gamers. According to a recent survey from JWT, women actually own more gaming consoles than men. >>

Research | September 24, 2007

Quarter of U.S. adults visit local TV websites

Around one in four U.S. adults have visited a local television website in the past month, according to a new study, and that figure is expected to rise over the next year. >>

Research | September 24, 2007

Influence of Internet on movie-goers

In June this year, Google and Nielsen joined forces to study the impact of the Internet on the movie-going public's decision making in the U.S. >>

Search Marketing | September 24, 2007

AdWords moves landing page quality goalposts

Certain types of websites are unlikely to be able to achieve high scores for the quality of their landing pages after Google recently announced some AdWords changes. >>

Research | September 24, 2007

eMarketer: Pharmaceutical spend will reach $2.2 billion

Pharmaceutical marketers should pay more attention to the Internet. That, according to a recent eMarketer forecast, which speculates that by 2011 pharmaceutical ads will bring in about $2.2 billion. >>

Advertising | September 24, 2007

Nielsen: overall ad spending declines

It isn't a large decline, but according to the latest information from The Nielsen Company, overall ad spending dropped about half of a percentage point for the first half of 2007. According to the report, there were some large gains - in categories like Internet advertising - and some large declines - in categories like newspaper advertising. >>

Research | September 24, 2007

Report: Internet is perfect for gadget-crazed consumers

Whether they are researching or actually purchasing, the vast majority of American consumers turn to the Internet to fill their gadget habit. According to a recent eMarketer report, American consumers are spending about $1,200 each year on new gadget purchases or upgrading past purchases. >>

Research | September 21, 2007

Canadians get their news online

The online readership of newspapers in Canada is growing faster than for print versions, according to recent figures announced by the Newspaper Audience Databank Inc. >>

E-commerce | September 21, 2007

British e-commerce websites lack contact and delivery information

British online retailers lack comprehensive contact details and a limited choice of delivery options, according to new research by web monitoring company, NetExtract. >>

Social Marketing | September 21, 2007

Teens who visit MySpace and Facebook return more often

The most recent report from online metrics firm Nielsen//Netratings indicates that marketers may have more luck targeting users who visit more than one social networking hub. >>

Email Marketing | September 21, 2007

Remarketing emails may impact etailing revenue

With shopping carts being abandoned at an alarming rate, many etailers are wondering how to stem the tide. A new case study from ExactTarget indicates that remarketing the items via email could be the answer for which etailers have been looking. >>

Research | September 21, 2007

Marketers may benefit from one-stop ad shop

Digital advertising just got simpler for some marketers. Digital Grit, Temel and Relevant Noise have joined together under the Adverb Media umbrella to create a one-stop-shop for online marketers. >>

Email Marketing | September 20, 2007

Email marketers improving customer experience

Email marketers are, on the whole, improving their customers’ experience, according to research by Silverpop. However, there’s room for improvement. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 20, 2007

Google, Microsoft take the search war mobile

In the past week, Google has offered AdWords and AdSense to mobile advertisers. Now comes word that MSN and Sprint have developed two new search applications for mobile marketers that could change the way ads are viewed. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 20, 2007

Study: Boomers aren't far behind the Mobile curve

You've probably seen the commercial by now - a grandmother is texting a friend, using the family's mobile minutes and speaking in code just like her young granddaughter. That ad isn't far from the truth according to a recent study from InsightExpress. >>

Search Marketing | September 20, 2007

Google continues to lead in the search wars

Competitors continue to inch closer to search giant Google, but the online monster isn't giving much ground. According to the latest reports from both Nielsen//Netratings and Hitwise, Google is leading the online search category by a margin of more than 25%. >>

Research | September 20, 2007

Surfers sacrifice social life to spend time online

A recent poll, conducted in the U.S. by advertising agency JWT, found that the use of the Internet and cell phones was an essential part of life for nearly half of all respondents. However, this time spent engaged with technology is eating away at people’s social lives. >>

Advertising | September 20, 2007

Google gets gadgets

Google is to provide advertisers and agencies with a more dynamic and imaginative way to interact with consumers. >>

Social Marketing | September 19, 2007

Social networkers fake profile information

In light of recent moves toward enabling advertisers to target social networkers using personal information found in their profiles, a new survey questioning the authenticity of those profiles makes interesting reading. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 19, 2007

Google offers AdSense to mobile advertisers

It started with AdWords, now online giant Google is offering AdSense to mobile marketers. AdSense contextually targets ads to users based on mobile website content. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 19, 2007

GoFresh to launch new mobile ad platform

The world's first mobile - social advertising network is set to be launched in just a few days by GoFresh's itsmy.com mobile network. The platform offers advertisers the ability to target several different types of ads to mobile consumers. >>

Advertising | September 19, 2007

Acxiom acquisition to improve targeting capabilities

Online marketers interested in better targeting options will likely be interested in a new development. Acxiom, an interactive marketing company, has purchased EchoTarget, an online targeting organization. With the merge, Acxiom's advertiser base will have more options in targeting ad campaigns. >>

Research | September 19, 2007

Online retailers spruce up their websites

Online retailers are reacting to increasing discrimination toward website functionality and customer service by giving their online presence a major facelift. >>

Social Marketing | September 18, 2007

MySpace profiles analyzed for ad targeting

Is it MySpace or TheirSpace? This may well be the question on many MySpace users’ keyboards as the social networking giant discloses plans for highly targeted ads in member profiles. >>

E-commerce | September 18, 2007

Online travel industry adapts to consumer wants

With more consumers turning to online resources to plan vacations and daytrips, it is no wonder that travel websites are among the early adopters of features that consumers really want. According to a recent report from Tealeaf, online travel sales will reach $142 billion this year. >>

Research | September 18, 2007

Transaction problems cause consumers to abandon website

Bad customer service and problems during online transactions are causing customers to go directly to the competition, according to a recent study conducted by Harris Interactive for Tealeaf Technology Inc. >>

Research | September 18, 2007

GodTube.com U.S.'s fastest growing website

Christian-oriented websites are cropping up all the time, but recently strives have been made by religious websites to move in to the online social and video space. >>

Research | September 18, 2007

Study: Boomers increasingly turn to PC, phone

Advertisers who are sticking with traditional media in the hopes of turning more Boomer consumers into buyers could be making a fundamental mistake. According to a recent study, instead of turning to television or newspapers, Boomers are increasingly turning to their computers and phones to find product information. >>

Research | September 18, 2007

Research Advisory Board tapped by IAC

In their efforts to make the online ad space more user friendly - for advertisers and for consumers - the Interactive Advertising Bureau has created a new board to help create audience measurement guidelines. >>

Advertising | September 18, 2007

AOL introduces Platform A, new ad network

On Monday this week, AOL announced the launch of a new global advertising platform that brings together many of its recent acquisitions. >>

Advertising | September 17, 2007

Yellow Book USA trials online video advertising

A live advertiser video trial has been launched by Yellow Book USA. The national U.S yellow pages and online local search business will trial the service via Yellowbook.com. >>

E-commerce | September 17, 2007

New Coremetrics system allows richer consumer profiles

Reports are out that Coremetrics is releasing a new digital marketing suite called "Coremetrics 2008", aimed at tracking consumer behavior to build a rich profile. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 17, 2007

Google enables AdWords for mobile search

Google has opened up AdWords to Google Mobile Search, but if you don’t want to take advantage of this new opportunity you need to opt out. >>

Law & Regulation | September 17, 2007

New ruling on meaning behind "continue" button

Simply providing a link to your website’s terms and conditions, and positioning it above the “continue” button, has been ruled as a satisfactory practice by the U.S. Court of Appeal. >>

Trends & Ideas | September 17, 2007

Platform could explain how campaigns are doing

Do you ever wonder if your ad campaign is performing at it's peak? Do you want to know how to make a campaign perform better online? A new offering from Organic, a digital communications agency, could hold the answers in a new platform that offers an assessment of online ad campaigns. >>

Advertising | September 17, 2007

Real estate publisher to target affluent consumer base with ad network

Real estate publishing giant Network Communications and Godengo, an online advertising network, are collaborating a new ad network that will target affluent consumers interested in the housing market. >>

Social Marketing | September 17, 2007

Social network allows for user validation

As more users - and advertisers - sign on with social networking websites, many wonder just who they are talking to online. Is it really Tom from down the street or Joe with a favored product? A new validation platform will make it easier to know just who is trolling the social networking wires. >>

Advertising | September 14, 2007

Rich media perfect for entertainment ads

A new report from PointRoll says rich media advertising is a perfect fit for entertainment advertisers and drives increased interest from consumers. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 14, 2007

Forecast: Search to drive mobile past $1.4 billion

Mobile search may be the final frontier for marketers and a new forecast from the Kelsey Group indicates that mobile search will show tremendous growth over the next five years. Mobile search is expected to grow from $33 million in 2007 to $1.4 billion by 2012. >>

Blogs & Content | September 14, 2007

comScore: Blog readers engage with food, clothing ads

Not all blog advertising is created - or watched - equally. According to a recent comScore report, blog readers are more likely to read and be affected by ads related to specific products like clothes and food. >>

Social Marketing | September 14, 2007

MySpace is still the top dog in social networking

It is no wonder that many social network marketers seem to be focusing on MySpace. According to a recent Nielsen//Netratings report, the social giant logged more than 60 million unique users in August, an increase of 23% year-over-year (YoY). >>

Blogs & Content | September 13, 2007

comScore introduces Conversational Media Report

Building a brand starts with, and continues to utilize, conversation. Now, comScore has introduced a way for marketers to measure the audience that conversational media attracts. >>

E-commerce | September 13, 2007

U.K. ecommerce solutions market grows 22%

It’s been estimated that the U.K. ecommerce solutions market will be worth around $800 million in 2007, up from $540 million in 2006. >>

Research | September 13, 2007

Behavioral advertising attracts more consumer attention

Behavioral targeting is more effective than contextual advertising, according to new study by Revenue Science. >>

Research | September 13, 2007

Study: Marketers should take culture into consideration when targeting

Online marketers should not consider simply age or sex when setting up the targeting for future online campaigns. The latest Simultaneous Media Survey from BIGresearch indicates that culture is just as important. >>

Advertising | September 13, 2007

TNS: Online display ads increase 17%

The latest findings from TNS Media Intelligence indicate that online advertising is growing faster than other ad mediums. The online display ad spend increased by about 17% in the first six months of 2007. The overall ad spending is actually down about 0.3%. >>

Trends & Ideas | September 13, 2007

US users consumed 3 hours of online video in July

The timing has never been better for online video advertising. That is because, according to a new report from comScore, US viewers watched about 3 hours of online video in July. >>

E-commerce | September 12, 2007

Abandon rates high for online finance application forms

A joint email survey and analysis of global consumer behavior has led comScore and Forrester Research to some interesting insights in to why financial product shoppers abandon online product applications. >>

Advertising | September 12, 2007

Yahoo signs advertising deal with Bebo

Yahoo bags itself a social networking website as it strives to build the biggest and most comprehensive online advertising network >>

Research | September 12, 2007

Why do users generate content?

What is it that motivates Internet users to create and display content for a website that doesn’t belong to them and for which they get no financial reward? >>

Viral Marketing | September 12, 2007

College students have a huge online video habit

The general population may just now be venturing into online video, but a recent report from SurveyU indicates that college students are consuming far more than the general population. A fact that marketers may want to capitalize on now - rather than later. >>

Research | September 12, 2007

Deloitte: half of viewers watch while the other half listen

A recent study indicates that marketers may only need to worry about 50% of the population. That is because only about half of Internet viewers are watching - video, ads or other content - and the other half is simply listening to what they have to say. >>

E-commerce | September 12, 2007

The right content could boost ecommerce revenue

Online retailers who are stuck in the picture/price/description rut may be missing out on a larger slice of the online shopping pie. A recent study from the etailing group indicates that the right content - not just a picture, description and price of an item - has a direct impact on the bottom line. >>

Social Marketing | September 11, 2007

Facebook takes number one spot on hot list

AdweekMedia has released its third annual Digital Hot List. The top ten lists those web properties that have grabbed the attention of marketers, consumers, press and pop culture during 2007. >>

Search Marketing | September 11, 2007

What are they searching for in the U.K.?

The online search habits of Internet users in the U.K. have been scrutinized in a recently released study from Nielsen//NetRatings. >>

Research | September 11, 2007

U.S. small business online spend continues to grow

The amount spent online by U.S. small businesses is set to soar in the next few years as online retailers compete for their business. >>

Research | September 10, 2007

Gamers turn to online peers for vehicle buying advice

Along with researching automobile purchases online, many online gamers approach their online peers and acquaintances to garner advice on various makes and models. >>

Advertising | September 10, 2007

Marketing execs lack online video strategy knowledge

Over half of executives responding to a survey by PermissionTV admitted they had no comprehensive online video strategy in place. For some, this was due to lack of content and for others, lack of knowledge. >>

Social Marketing | September 10, 2007

Luxury retailer celebrates centenary on YouTube

What is it about YouTube that convinced luxury retailer, Neiman Marcus Group Inc., to celebrate its centenary by placing a video ad on the user-generated video website’s homepage? >>

Research | September 07, 2007

OPA re-designs and re-launches website

The Online Publishers Association has re-designed its website to expand the content and enhance the usability. >>

E-commerce | September 07, 2007

Men enjoy shopping experience more than women

Men and women have very different attitudes towards the retail experience, according to research in the U.K. by instant feedback company Fizzback. >>

Research | September 07, 2007

Email overtakes telephone in workplace

It appears that the telephone is no longer the preferred communication tool in the workplace. Email has overtaken oral communication, according to the results of a recently released Datamonitor report. >>

Research | September 06, 2007

European management lacks Web 2.0 understanding

According to a Europe-wide survey, most businesses have yet to invest in Web 2.0 technologies, mainly due to a general lack of understanding. >>

Research | September 06, 2007

Five ways to improve your travel website

With the winter holidays just around the corner it’s time that businesses looked at optimizing their websites to minimize site abandonment. A recent e-consultancy report looked at how travel websites can better themselves. >>

Research | September 06, 2007

How to targets users at home, work and play

Advertisers who think they can only target users in one place - at home, at work or in a social setting - should think again. SeeSaw Networks has created a workshop series that will teach marketers how to target users at any point during their day. >>

Mobile Marketing | September 06, 2007

Two platforms could tame mobile video advertising

Creating and sharing video ads just got a lot simpler for mobile users. Both Yellowbook and IQZone have rolled out new platforms that allow marketers and consumers to create ads, upload them and then blast the ads to a mobile user base. >>

Viral Marketing | September 06, 2007

Viral campaigns aren't living up to the hype

Viral marketing may have a lot of hype and interest from marketers but a recent report from Jupiter Research indicates that consumers aren't as affected by the campaigns. In fact, only about 15% of viral campaigns caused consumers to actually buy a product. >>

Research | September 05, 2007

Sports fans could be the most engaged consumer

A recent study from Solutions Research Group indicates that marketers should perhaps spend more time cultivating a relationship with sports fans. That is because, according to their research, sports fans are great multi-taskers. >>

Trends & Ideas | September 05, 2007

Yahoo to purchase high ranking ad network

The wheeling and dealing continues as Yahoo becomes the latest Internet giant to purchase an advertising network. >>

Advertising | September 05, 2007

Consumers don't need to react to remember

While the primary goal in online advertising is to elicit a measurable consumer response of some type, a new study has found that even consumers that don't interact with ads retain some level of detail. >>

Research | September 05, 2007

Heavily formatted content dismissed as ads

The U.S. Census Bureau’s website was recently used to demonstrate that areas of a webpage that are heavily formatted are often overlooked by visitors. >>

Advertising | September 05, 2007

Local online ad spend to reach $2.8 billion

A recent forecast from eMarketer has the local online advertising spend reaching $2.8 billion in 2007. That is about 13% of the total US online ad spend, up only about 1% from 2006 levels. Local websites - both traditional media and user-generated content sites - are driving these local sales. >>

Email Marketing | September 05, 2007

Email marketers may benefit from segmentation

Sales are up but the time between a consumer becoming interested in a product and actually purchasing it is much longer than ever before. The bulk of the lag time is because users are comparing products and pricing, a good thing for them. Not such a great thing for marketers. How can you compete? >>

Loyalty Marketing | September 04, 2007

Send them like Beckham

What on earth has caused the U.S. major league soccer website to attract over twice as many unique visitors this July as they did last year? >>

Research | September 04, 2007

British regional newspapers embrace online

More and more regional newspapers in the U.K. are going online with their own websites, according to a survey by the Newspaper Society. >>

Research | September 04, 2007

Online newspaper ad spend continues to rise

Spending on newspaper print advertising has fallen in Q2 2007, but online newspaper advertising has risen, according to new figures released by the Newspaper Association of America. >>

Research | September 04, 2007

Entertainment leads European surfers online

The height of summertime fun led Europeans to look for relaxation online. According to new research from comScore, surfers from the UK, France and Germany were led online to shop, research travel destinations and decide on a movie. >>

Social Marketing | September 04, 2007

News content is the most watched

Forget about movie trailers, funny home videos or favorite music clips. According to a recent Advertising.com study, news clips are the most watched streaming video form. >>

Advertising | September 04, 2007

Insurers are moving more ad dollars online

A new study from eMarketer indicates that the financial services industry - insurers, banks and credit companies - will begin moving more dollars online in the coming year. US insurers are expected to spend about $980 million this year (38% increase) and $1.38 billion (41% increase) in 2008. >>

Search Marketing | September 03, 2007

Audience overlap among major search engines

June and July saw the leading search engines all experience healthy retention rates, although audience overlap rates also remained high. >>

Research | September 03, 2007

Traditional advertising tactics fail on social networks

New research suggests that most marketers continue to use traditional marketing tactics on social networking sites, and it’s affecting their return on investment. >>

Trends & Ideas | September 03, 2007

Fifth Network launches page view time metric

“Attention targeting” is the newest metric by which to sell advertising and it is particularly aimed at marketers looking for brand exposure. >>