Musings and Memes

I was over on Tech Republic today doing some research and while filling out their mortgage application, I mean, online registration, the ZIP code field was not marked as required.. and I had unchecked the "send me emails from our partners" checkbox.

I clicked submit and it came back now telling me that ZIP is required, and the 'partners' checkbox is now, again, checked

I think most folks, myself included, would miss this and correct the error. I know this wasn't done purposely, as the ZIP field is really only required when USA is selected for the country. Yet, with all those whitepapers up there, you'd think there'd be one or two about Quality Assurance?

But wait, there's more. After I logged in to check my profile, I see there's checkbox (checked) for receiving partner offers via postal mail. Whoa, where did that come from?

Remember, look both ways before clicking Submit.

Posted by Eric Gockel at 04:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

... or at least try. As we're considering white-labeling the Campaign Monitor system, I was curious as to what competition there is out there for "email marketing software".

Well, Campaign Monitor themselves only come up on page four of the Google search results, so I figured we had a lot of SEO work ahead of us. Who's first? Well, EliteEmail, that's who.

So, first I did a search to see who all's linking to EliteEmail, and that's where it gets interesting.

First, there's EliteAnswers (see link in footer "Email Marketing Software"), a 1,700 page site, part of the Elite network. And, if you don't see your site listed, you can add it via Elite Web .. get Express Submission for only $39! And, of course, there's a link for "email marketing" in the footer.

Then there's Elite Lottery Results. Again, with "email marketing software" link in the footer.

Why, even Z Bear Diapers is giving them link juice via a link their newsletter tool signup box (lower left corner)

Did I mention there's an Elite Scheduler? Only $25/mo .. an, oh, a link to "email marketing" in the footer.

So really the trick is to have a network of sites and services. Like I mentioned to my wife, I may not have a million-dollar idea, but I think a have a million one-dollar ideas now. Does that count?

Posted by Eric Gockel at 10:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

We often work with online marketers who need help deciphering parameters passed in URL query strings. Matt Cutts of Google provides this nice guide to parts of a URL.

Posted by Eric Gockel at 12:14 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

That's right, stats fans. Apparently he'll still be in the "online marketing space". I had interviewed him a couple years back after meeting him here in Chicago, it's posted on my business website for those of you interested.

Good luck John!

Posted by Eric Gockel at 09:34 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Are you a small or medium-sized business thinking about getting a web presence? If you're not selling products online (e-commerce) you may want to explore what local online listings you get get for free. It doesn't hurt to have your own website with a few simple pages listing your service offerings and contact information, but you really don't need to spend that much.

Continue reading "Marketing your Small/Medium Business (SMB) Online" »

Posted by Eric Gockel at 10:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)