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Women Play Games

Saturday, July 15th, 2006 at 6:15 pm by Jeffrey Perren, AC Magazine

Ever hear that expression before? (If you’re over six you probably have, more than once.) It’s usually said by some bitter guy to a sympathetic listener. (Usually another guy.) But that’s not my area of expertise, so I’m going to pass on commenting about any of that. There is, however, a more literal interpretation.

Guys, often younger guys, are the stereotypical computer game players. Movies and TV abound with images of some scruffy male teen at home on Saturday night whizzing some virtual bazooka around the screen. But more and more, women are becoming the dominant gender in the game playing arena.

The games they like are often more cerebral, less action oriented. (Though, not always.) But they play as often or more than males.

Nearly a third downloaded 21 games in the past year. Two-thirds read game reviews. Of those, nearly half purchased as a result.

Think about that.

Written content about an audio-visual game caused a large group of website visitors to purchase a game they read about.

Over two-thirds purchased a game after a free trial — and watched a video ad while waiting for it to download. (Data based on Macrovision study reported by eMarketer, here.)

Read written review, watch video ad, get free trial, buy game. Hmmm… maybe there’s a marketing strategy in here somewhere.

Go get ‘em, tigress.

Video is King and I’m Jealous!

Friday, July 14th, 2006 at 11:06 am by Anik Singal

Recently, I’ve become a bigger and bigger fan of videos (I know I am quite late on this craze). But, as I’ve begun testing videos, my promotional results have been going through the roof!

This is funny, but even if I make a screen capture video and I never move off of a page, but just talk the whole time - I STILL get better results than a regular promotion.

I think it pretty much makes sense, not only is it *new* but TV has proven that we rather just sit there and watch something than read or even listen to it (I know that’s true with me).

On that note, lately, at the AC blog, we’ve had a lot of “case study” posts and other posts regarding videos. Well, the CEO of 10SpeedMedia.com noticed that and hunted me down at the Affiliate Summit.

All I can say is that they are doing some very cool things there, not sure yet if it will catch any wind, but DEFINITELY a great idea (which is what I am jealous of :)

They are creating an affiliate network all based on video promotions (and last I heard they’re even helping their clients create the video ad!).

I just thought everyone should be aware of this, given YouTube.com, Google videos and the many other video sites being released, we should keep an eye on 10SpeeedMedia.com.

Chris Knudsen (the CEO) showed me a live example at his blog - Check it out…

BT: Retargeting — An Experiment

Thursday, July 13th, 2006 at 5:40 pm by Jeffrey Perren, AC Magazine

Sometimes advertisers act a little too much like used car salesmen: Get the sale now. Don’t let the prospect walk away with a promise to return later. 99 times out of a 100 they won’t come back and you’ll lose any chance at the sale.

However that may be in the realm of car sales, it shouldn’t unduly influence an affiliate marketer’s website design. Often ads are placed with the idea that it’s buy now or forever lose that particular customer. Nothing wrong with that, per se. But it’s not the only way to encourage buyers.

Behavioral targeting, at least in one of its forms, looks at visitor actions over time. One specific kind is called “retargeting”. Lots of users won’t fill out registration forms, nor make a purchase on the spot. Nevertheless, their visit is recorded. Spotting them next time they do, then serving an appropriate ad is what retargeting is all about.

In one test, retargeted ads showed an almost 200% increase in clickthrough rate and 167% increase in conversions versus non-targeted ads. Those are impressive numbers.

Advertisers should remember they are often a lot like their audience. Visitors sometimes need time to think about a purchase and may have to become comfortable with a product or merchant. Repeated exposure and research is one the way that happens.

Take the long view and make your site attractive for repeat visitors. One good way is to offer fresh content frequently. In the upcoming “The Art of the Article” issue of Affiliate Classroom magazine we give you some ideas about how to do that.

Then when they come back, display some content based on the knowledge that they have come back. Not necessarily in an obvious way. “Hi, welcome back” is both too bland and — to some — a little creepy. No one likes to think they’re being watched as they shop. Just a subtle change in graphic or text that nudges that shopper a little closer to a sale the second or third time around.

After all, didn’t you go back to the lot more than once to pick out just the right snazzy vehicle?

Back From The Affiliate Summit…

Wednesday, July 12th, 2006 at 10:51 pm by Anik Singal

Well, I just landed hours ago, got home and of course the addict that I am, got on my computer and started working!

So, how was the Affiliate Summit, you ask?

Continues to get BETTER and BETTER every time, although I gotta say, I enjoy the show in Vegas more (clears throat, you hear that Mr. Shawn?)…

But other than that, the show was excellent. Lots of great networking, new companies doing amazing things and yet again more solid proof of how fast the industry is growing as a whole.

I ran into all sorts of industry experts (and now friends) and had a great time, here’s just a short list of a few of them :D

- Shawn Collins (I guess he kind of “had” to be there :)
- Jim Lillig
- Rachel Honoway
- Rosalind Gardner
- Brian Littleton (CEO of ShareASale) - even went to a special party he threw…
- Jeff Molander
- Jim Kukral
- Asif Malik (I have never seen someone with the energy he has :)
- and so many more…

Affiliate Summit truly is becoming THE place to go if you want to seriously be involved in the affiliate marketing industry.

The next one will be in January and back at Vegas! Plan on it now, I expect to see you all there.

BT: More Than You Bargained For

Monday, July 10th, 2006 at 7:06 pm by Jeffrey Perren, AC Magazine

Sometimes the campaign results you get are entirely different from what you expected. Sometimes different means better.

A recent JupiterResearch report, as reported on ClickZ by columnist Anna Papadopoulos:

“[A]dvertisers who have used behavioral targeting in the past 12 months are 17 percent more satisfied than advertisers who have not used it, despite campaign objectives.”

[emphasis mine]

Note that last phrase. Even though they started out with certain goals and expectations, which may or may not have been fulfilled, they were happier using Behavioral Targeting than not.

That doesn’t happen often, that we’re more pleased with the results than we intended to be. As realistic idealists (in which category I place almost all affiliate marketers… otherwise they’d be in a different economic endeavor…), we generally hope for the best and settle for what we get.

If Behavioral Targeting can accomplish that, it’s probably something special. But what is it?

As with any marketing term or strategy the definition isn’t as tightly constrained as, say, that of “Eurobond”. Search as you may, you’ll rarely find an expert that even offers a definition, much less the same one most others are using.

So, I’ll skip any technical discussion and shoot straight for common sense. “Behavioral targeting is simply using the behavior of the website visitor to target the message you deliver to them.”

But what behavior is that? Surfers do lots of things, after all. Russell Shaw in a now-aging, but still relevant, column on iMedia uses this example.

“For example, repeat visits to a Web page with reviews of sport utility vehicles, coupled with a cruise to the automotive section of classified ads on a site, clearly indicate at least a curiosity about SUVs.

Now, let us suppose that same visitor is also going to pages where she clicks through to an online book seller to a book about how to help your child adjust to kindergarten. Behavioral targeting specialists may look at this data and start to conclude that the site visitor is looking for an SUV to fit the transportation needs of her growing brood.”

I could have made up my own example, but this one is excellent. The surfer is clearly looking for something and by monitoring that user’s behavior — by observing what they click on not once but repeatedly, and where they came from and where they go to — a pattern emerges over time.

Behavioral targeting requires using navigation data over time to analyze what your potential customer wants.

Does that mean it has to represent a time-consuming analysis project for an already over-burdened schedule? Not necessarily. Tune in next time…

Video Ad Options

Friday, July 7th, 2006 at 4:20 pm by Jeffrey Perren, AC Magazine

Rounding out the last (for now) of our posts on video ads, we’ll cover two basic alternatives every marketer faces in that area: In-Page or In-Stream. I.e. where to place the ad.

To quote Jason Glickman from a recent MediaPost column:

“[I]n-stream video refers to video ads that are inserted in the stream of online video content (pre-roll, mid-roll or post-roll, within the player).”

and

“[I]n-page video refers to video ads within a graphical unit (banner ad) on the Web page.”

Which to use and when depends on a lot on your goals and what you know about your audience. As with any form of advertising it’s useful to use behavioral targeting techniques to help you decide.

When your audience is engaged, eager to hear your message, in-stream ads are preferred. You get an accurate estimate of impressions to play. You get an audience that is likely to view the entire video. And you have a TV-commercial-like format which the audience is used to.

As the definition suggests, you can use pre-roll (before the main content) or post-roll (after) or even mid-way. Each has its advantages and disadvantages, but my money is on pre-roll most of the time.

Theaters learned long-ago that previews of upcoming films generally work best when shown before the main film. Otherwise, the audience is usually on the way out. (In the 1940s they were often after the film, with “shorts” at the beginning.) Mid-way is usually the worst. Many people get up from the couch or use fast-foward when TV commercials start.

Hollywood producers and theater owners are savvy marketers. Learn from them.

In-page ads can be effective, but they’re sometimes ignored as banner ads in general are. But they do offer a lot of flexibility in capturing the audience’s attention. Use sparingly.

Whichever you choose, you need video content and some form of packaging it. One of our readers suggested StreamerNet. Affiliate Classroom hasn’t formally reviewed the product, but the site looks well designed and the video ad was compelling. Interested readers can check it out here. Let us know what you think.

Joel Comm - The $500/Day Adsense Guy…

Thursday, July 6th, 2006 at 8:33 am by Anik Singal

Quick note:

Joel Comm has released an amazing package with over 100 templates you can just COPY AND PASTE from him to start earning an excellent adsense income!

It’s very limited and nearly 60% sold out already (in just over a day!)

Please don’t wait on this - “Click Here” to learn more…

Declare Your Independence

Tuesday, July 4th, 2006 at 11:08 am by Jeffrey Perren, AC Magazine

While most of our readers outside the U.S. may not be celebrating this holiday, we wish them well and hope their day is just as exciting and rewarding.

It’s often said that the 4th of July is a uniquely American holiday, but everyone the world over can declare his or her independence. It’s self-evident that you can pledge your sacred honor to achieving your fortune. Seek out your goals in 2006 — the year affiliates are staged to launch the rockets of their dreams.

Affiliate Classroom signs its John Hancock to be your ally in the struggle to reach the land of financial freedom.

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