Online Workshops to be taught by top SEO/SEM consultants, authors and recognized leaders.

Scotts Valley, CA April 16, 2008 — Internet marketing training provider Market Motive has teamed with Search Engine Strategies to provide online classes for training in search marketing, web analytics, and web conversion techniques.

The workshops are live and interactive, delivered via video screen sharing and live telephone conference. Limited class sizes ensure attendees have time to ask for clarification or deeper explanations. Tuition for each class is $395 and registration opens today at www.marketmotive.com/online-workshops

“Search Engine Strategies has always delivered first-rate conferences and workshops,” said Market Motive CEO Michael Stebbins, “Market Motive leads in online instruction, with many of the same speakers, so this combination brings high quality training to a larger audience.”

Internet marketing expert Andy Beal recently reviewed Market Motive online training. “Market Motive’s media-consulting combination is effective and teaches online marketing in a way that works for the beginner or the experienced practitioner,” said Beal, “I’m impressed, and the guys behind this are the best in the business.”

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Internet marketing specialist Brandon Cornett has recently completed a new book that teaches small business owners how to use the Internet as an “equalizer” to level the playing field with larger competitors.

Austin, TX February 21, 2008 — Internet marketer Brandon Cornett would like to share with you the knowledge he wishes he had ten years ago. In fact, he has gathered all of the lessons learned from his Internet marketing experiences over the years and put them into an e-book that you can read online or download for free. Read more…

Todd Miechiels offers clients efficient way to capture and nurture leads through Internet marketing automation

Atlanta, GA January 29, 2008 — Atlanta-based Internet marketing consultant Todd Miechiels now provides marketing automation solutions to B2B companies through Pardot, an industry-leading provider of on-demand marketing automation solutions. Miechiels’ marketing automation services include strategy, implementation, and ongoing counseling and management.

“For years I’ve been wishing my clients had more efficient and accountable ways to handle the leads our programs generate for them,” explains Todd. “Pardot provides a cost-effective solution that marketing and sales can put to use from the moment they sign on. Since offering this service, it has really changed the way my clients and I think about Internet marketing. It puts much more emphasis on how leads are handled and it makes everyone’s jobs more rewarding as we’re better able to track new leads, all the way through to closed sales.”

One of the most common complaints and challenges among B2B companies is that marketing leads often find their way into an abyss once the marketing team hands them off to the sales team. According to Miechiels, about 78% of B2B leads are mishandled and not followed up on a timely basis. Even worse, close to 90% of those leads end up buying from a competitor within six months. By implementing an automated marketing solution, such as Pardot, sales teams can become more proactive in lead management, minimize dropped leads and maximize their close rates.

Through Pardot’s Prospect Insight tool, sales and marketing teams can score, grade, route, and automatically follow up with new and old leads. The on-demand web marketing automation suite maximizes efficiency for companies with multi-touch sales cycles by showing sales teams exactly where to spend their time and automatically nurturing existing leads. Companies can track all prospect interaction, score prospects based on parameters, prioritize sales reps’ time, send automated drip emails to prospects according to rules, and automatically notify sales reps of online prospect activity.

Since becoming a certified consulting partner with Pardot, Miechiels has brought the solution to several existing and new clients. He is making it a major part of a holistic approach to online lead generation in 2008.
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DeSilva+Phillips, Media Investment Bankers, releases its tenth annual Report on the Media M&A Marketplace, which assesses and analyzes the near-record year of 2007 and predicting trends for 2008. 2007 was the year that the long dormant consumer magazine sector exploded with acquisitions and the long-awaited storming of digital media properties by traditional media companies finally took place. There were 135 transactions in the sector, down slightly from 2006 but more than any other year in the past ten, and deal value was $9.6 billion – less than half of 2006. DeSilva+Phillips is cautiously optimistic for media deals in 2008.

New York, NY January 29, 2008 — DeSilva+Phillips, Media Investment Bankers, releases its tenth annual Report on the Media M&A Marketplace, which assesses and analyzes the near-record year of 2007 and predicting trends for 2008. Here are the highlights.

• 135 transactions – down from the 2006 number but more than any other year in the past ten, with dramatic loss of momentum in the 4th quarter.
• Deal volume: $9.6 billion – less than half of the 2006 total.
• Strategics did 33% of the top 15 deals but 62% of dollar volume.

The Advertising Market
• The ad market lagged the economy, delivering only 0.2% growth.
• An historic event: the consumer magazine sector may overtake the newspaper sector to become the second-largest media sector, after TV.

Public Media Companies
• DeSilva+Phillips’s basket of 11 public companies declined 2.3% – the first time this century publics moved in the opposite direction to the markets.
• 3 of the basket’s companies have disappeared from the public markets.

The Top 15 Deals
• Consumer deals dominated, with 10, including the 2 biggest, Gemstar-TV Guide and Primedia’s Enthusiast Group. Consumer deals were 72% of the $8.06 billion total value of the list.
• Top B2B deals were the sales of Advanstar and ALM. 3rd biggest: Dolan Media’s IPO, 4th best performing out of 90 NYSE IPOs.

Traditional Media Using M&A to Converge with Digital
• Traditional media built digital capability on a big scale.
• Niche rather than platform acquisitions prevailed.
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Since its launch in 2003, the annual “Thumbnail Media Planner” has filled a void in making key marketing and media information available, including ad media rates for all major national and local media, to those who need it fast. The updated 2008 edition of the “Thumbnail Media Planner” boasts more content, a pocket book size convenient for the pocket or purse, and can be ordered online in hard copy or download formats.

Detroit, MI January 21, 2008 — The new Thumbnail Media Planner has filled a void in the advertising and media planning business by synthesizing the most important marketing and media facts and costs into a great pocket sized reference.

We interviewed the publisher, Ron Geskey, CEO of 2020:Marketing Communications LLC, to gain his insights into this unique publication.

Q: What exactly is the Thumbnail Media Planner?

A: The Thumbnail Media Planner is a 104-page pocket sized marketing-media reference focused on thousands of the most important facts about market and media trends, media availabilities, media reach, the 2008 media market/cost outlook, 2008 media pricing forecasts. It also includes demographics and major media costs for each of the top 100 markets, non traditional media, and even a different analysis of media effectiveness. The Planner even includes reach and frequency tables and a glossary.

Q: For whom is the Planner published?

A: The Thumbnail Media Planner is published for anyone involved with planning or approving advertising and media campaigns — ad agencies, advertisers, media, consultants, entrepreneurs, students and professors. The Planner is especially helpful to agency presidents, account and media people (many of whom order copies for their staffs) in the largest as well as smaller agencies and design firms.

Q: How can the Planner help “a planner”?

A. There are many ways this Planner can help individuals and their companies improve quality, productivity, and client perceptions. One is that a Thumbnail Media Planner is a really great reference tool in meetings. When a client asks you, “How much would it cost to run this newspaper ad in the top 50 markets?” Or, “How many markets could we add?” now you can say, “Just a minute, Ill give you a rough estimate… “instead of ‘Let me get back to you…then having somebody spend hours answering a question that could have been eliminated in 30 seconds…’ It’s ideal for quick media research and estimating the cost of advertising media plans. Anyone needing fast access to media data and costs for network or spot television, magazines, radio, newspapers, the internet — or even many non traditional media– would find the Planner invaluable.
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Small business search marketing pioneer ineedhits has achieved Google Adwords Qualified Company status in recognition of their outstanding Google Advertising management efforts.

Perth, Western Australia January 21, 2008 — Committed to providing the most effective and affordable search engine marketing solutions for small to medium sized businesses, ineedhits (www.ineedhits.com/) has further asserted itself as a search engine advertising leader by becoming a Google Adwords Qualified Company.

Google’s paid search (pay per click) platform awards Qualified Company status to firms that meet specific requirements. These include managing a Google AdWords advertising spend of at least $100,000 per quarter, or more for a US search engine marketing company. Additionally, multiple employees must pass the Google AdWords Qualified Professional exam, which demonstrates a thorough understanding of the AdWords system.

Engaging a Google AdWords Qualified Company provides search advertisers with the peace of mind that their campaigns are being managed by a highly trained team with the experience necessary to provide businesses with maximum online exposure, website traffic and marketing ROI.

Rene LeMerle, ineedhits Marketing Manager, explains further:

“We are thrilled to have been recognized as a Google AdWords Qualified Company. 18 months ago we embarked on a quest to find a way to deliver scalable small business Google Advertising solutions globally. The challenge being that a $100 campaign can cost as much as a $1000 campaign to manage. With over 11 years experience in creating scalable SEO offerings, we were confident with the right systems and processes we could do it.

It is therefore an exciting milestone to reach the Qualified Company status and our thanks must go to the hundreds of small businesses who have supported us as we developed and refined the “Easy Search Advertising” packages we offer today. Thanks also to Google Australia who have helped us along the way.”
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Sales Grow 40 Percent at Online Stores, Inc. in 2007, Aided by Increased Productivity Using Stone Edge Order Manager Software

Annual sales grew from $13m in 2006 to over $18m in 2007. By using Stone Edge, Online Stores has become more efficient in processing and managing orders. The company now ships over 2,000 orders per day at peak times.

New Stanton, PA (PRWEB) January 18, 2008 — Online Stores, Inc. announced today that since implementing the Stone Edge Order Manager for order processing and purchase orders in 2006, its annual sales increased from $13 million to over $18 million in 2007. This $5 million jump can be partially attributed to the increased employee productivity the Stone Edge software has enabled.

Online Stores began using Stone Edge as a means of inventory control in 2004, and by 2006 the accounting and wholesale departments were using Stone Edge for order processing and purchase orders. It became necessary to implement Stone Edge in the customer service department in 2007 when the company’s Yahoo websites went down unexpectedly and orders couldn’t be placed online. By using Stone Edge, Online Stores was able to save hundreds of orders that would have otherwise been lost.

Since Stone Edge is customizable, and all company data is stored in a central location, Online Stores is able to create customized reports to find sales figures, inventory levels, backorder lists and hundreds of other reports. “We have the Stone Edge software fully integrated with all of our other systems, including our multiple web sites, our shipping system, and our accounting system,” said Randy Henderson, IS Manager at Online Stores. “It tracks our inventory, purchase orders, invoices and shipments to customers, and helps us manage all aspects of our business.”

Because Stone Edge reports and data are available at the click of a mouse, Online Stores’ employees have become more productive, shipment times have become faster and out of stock and backordered items have been significantly reduced. With faster shipping times and fewer backorders, customer satisfaction has increased, and returning customers now account for over 50% of sales. Online Stores plans to continue to use Stone Edge Order Manager as the core of its IT systems. “The software was very affordable and has paid for itself many times over,” said Henderson. “Stone Edge helped us grow from a home based business to a top 500 online retailer.”
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clickfind™ was launched late 2007 and besides it being a good search engine and business directory, it also incorporates “State of the Art” Search Engine Optimisation (S.E.O.) functionality and technology.

Brisbane, Queensland January 17, 2008 — clickfind™ was launched late 2007 and besides it being a good search engine and business directory, it also incorporates “State of the Art” Search Engine Optimisation (S.E.O.) functionality and technology.

Here are some of the features that set this search engine apart both in Australia and overseas:
• With the push of a button a user can have their business listing uploaded to Google Maps
• Google Ads will automatically be published with the client’s business name as a keyword phrase as a part of their monthly fee
• All products and services on clickfind (owned by the user) are allowed to be exported to RSS, which allows them to syndicate their products easily
• Professional copywriters may be hired at a small investment to help clients write their listings, making sure they get quality listings, but at the same time have a listing that works with SEO
• Anchor text is allowed on their listing description and is encouraged, as it has long been recognized a strong factor in ranking well with search engines
• Members can publish their listing directly from clickfind to Google base (once Google Base is available in Australia)
• As well as listing business info, members can list up to 500 products and services, which dramatically increases SEO performance

A powerful business directory
clickfind™ business listings are far more useful than those in other directories and search engines. As well as essential info like business name, description and contact details, clickfind™ listings can include full details of products and services. We’re not just talking about a simple list — a business can add a separate page with description for up to 500 products or services.

This approach is extremely useful for customers, but it also has great value for business owners. Adding product and service information dramatically increases the chance of a business being found when a customer is looking for a relevant product or service, either on clickfind™ or elsewhere. It also means a business can treat their clickfind™ listing as a self-contained website, or use it to drive traffic to their existing website.

Useful and fair search results
The search engine has been carefully developed to ensure results match what people search for. When a user searches for “apples” we’ll make sure they find apples and not lemons, unlike some of the other search engines. Results are also targeted geographically, so people can find businesses near them.

We do not sell advertising spots or sponsored listings. The order of business listings is based on relevancy. This means we keep things fair for businesses and produce meaningful results for people searching for products or services. Whether a business was listed a year ago or today, it doesn’t matter — geographic location and keyword relevancy is all that counts.
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With Google Analytics and Google Website Optimizer, it is no longer necessary to rely on creative hunches when seeking to improve website performance. On February 5th, 2008, VKI Studios will host a free WebEx seminar for the AMA. They will demonstrate how to use these powerful Google products to boost conversion rates.

Vancouver, BC January 17, 2008 — In a free WebEx seminar to be held by the American Marketing Association (AMA) on February 5, 2008, VKI Studios and Google Inc will demonstrate how it’s no longer necessary to rely on creative hunches when optimizing landing pages.

The seminar, entitled “Landing Page Optimization: A Process Using Google Analytics and Google Website Optimizer” will show that, using a combination of Google Analytics and Google Website Optimizer, it’s now easy to run A/B and Multivariate tests on web pages.
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Pepperjam, a two-time Inc. Magazine fastest growing company and industry leading full-service internet marketing agency, today announced the launch of Pepperjam Network, a proprietary next generation affiliate marketing network.

Wilkes-Barre, PA January 15, 2008 — Pepperjam, a two-time Inc. Magazine fastest growing company and industry leading full-service internet marketing agency, today announced the launch of Pepperjam Network, a proprietary next generation affiliate marketing network.

If you are an advertiser or affiliate and would like to sign-up for Pepperjam Network please visit www.pepperjamnetwork.com.

“Pepperjam Network represents an evolution in affiliate marketing. The creation of Pepperjam Network represents eight years of research and development and the combined ideas, feedback, and intelligence of hundreds of affiliate marketers and advertisers. Pepperjam Network will forever change the face of affiliate marketing by putting power back in the hands of affiliates and advertisers to build long-term, profitable partnerships through better communication tools and transparency,” said Kristopher B. Jones, President & CEO of Pepperjam.
Among a variety of affiliate marketing enhancements, Pepperjam Network addresses the two primary shortcomings of other existing affiliate networks, namely (1) poor, unreliable communication tools and (2) lack of affiliate transparency. With Pepperjam Network, affiliates and advertisers can communicate in real-time via Pepperjam Chat™, thereby providing a reliable communication system to build stronger, more profitable partnerships. Pepperjam Network also provides advertisers with an unprecedented measure of affiliate transparency, which helps to establish trust, protect brand integrity, and lays the groundwork for open, long-term, profitable relationships. Pepperjam Network also introduces pepperjamADS, which is a first-ever affiliate marketing widget that affiliates can use to serve customized contextual ads from multiple Pepperjam Network advertisers at the same time.

Pepperjam Network was designed to make the experience of affiliate marketing profitable and educational, with the goal of allowing affiliates and advertisers to truly understand and maximize the critical affiliate marketing channel. Unlike the traditional networks, Pepperjam Network uses Web 2.0 technology to provide affiliates and advertisers with an easy-to-use, cutting-edge interface designed to facilitate and optimize the affiliate marketing process. For instance, Pepperjam Network offers industry leading source-level tracking and reporting – this robust technology is especially beneficial to search marketing and sophisticated super affiliates that want to take advantage of the most up-to-date technology available to track commissions at the keyword level.
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