Read a good article this morning from iMediaConnection which reiterates some best practices in eMail marketing such as including social media links/icons; sending emails that includes test (not just images); put the Call To Action above the fold, etc.

I am constantly amazed how many companies do NOT conduct subject line testing nor have any method to their send/drop dates!  And when I ask if they look at the analytics of their dates/times sent, subject lines used, Call To Action, button color, etc., etc. they look at me like I am from outerspace….enough said!!

Enjoy the article from iMedia Connection

For the past 12+ years we have worked with Digital Waterworx for our audio and Message On-Hold needs….Dave and his team are simply the best!   It doesn’t matter if we need a script created, a jingle, audio for the web or a video…Digital Waterworx delivers!!

This week I came across a great, inexpensive, resource for voice over talent – VoiceJockeys.com ….as you may know we are working on the launch of the official Michael Jackson bobblehead and creating a TV spot with Creative Taco….Digital Waterworx is doing some work and we also tested out VoiceJockeys.com, their pricing is extremely reasonable check them out….we were very happy with the :15 second voice over we paid $45 for!

@AndrewHazen

A report came out this week from Chitika Research on just how much a Google Top Spot is Worth……

According to Chitikia, “we looked at a sample of traffic coming into our advertising network from Google and broke it down by Google results placement.  The top spot drove 34.35% of all traffic in the sample, almost as much as the numbers 2 through 5 slots combined, and more than the numbers 5 through 20 (the end of page 2) put together.”

Obviously, everyone knows that the #1 spot on Google is where you want to be (and that’s why they hire Prime Visibility because we achieve page 1 organic search rankings)

The biggest jump, percentage-wise, that the Report revealed is from the top of page 2 to the bottom of page 1.  Going from the 11^th spot to 10^th sees a 143% jump in traffic.  However, the base number is very low – that 143% jump is from 1.11% of all Google traffic to 2.71%.  As you go up the top page, the raw jumps get bigger and bigger, culminating in that desired top position.

- @AndrewHazen

As reported today 5/26/10 in Newsday

Google’s not just a search engine. Its also claims to help hundreds of businesses in every U.S. state to grow. Across the U.S., Google’s search and advertising tools generated $54 billion of economic activity in 2009.  See the entire report here

Apart from the value to everyday users in finding things in an instant, Google also added $6.3 billion to New York State’s economy last year, according to a new report based in part on calculations by Google’s chief economist.

That reflects $6.2 billion in economic activity for 114,400 businesses and website publishers using Google AdWords and AdSense, as well as the commerce that comes through the organic nonpaid search function.

Add to that the $24.6 million in free advertising provided through Google’s grants program to 650 New York State nonprofits.

That averages out to $321 per person in the state, Eileen Naughton, Google director of media operations, said Tuesday at a media briefing. “It’s not trivial.”

The breakdown is part of a state-by-state analysis, which estimates Google’s national economic impact at $54 billion.

Google based its calculations on the assumption that advertisers get a $2 return on every dollar spent, which is conservative, Naughton said. The methodology is based on a sample of advertisers’ “cost-per-click activity” detailed in the May 2009 issue of the American Economic Review. Google also estimated that clicks done as a result of an organic search, apart from sponsored links, represented a 70-cent value to businesses and website publishers.

Not figured in to the calculations were values brought by other products, such as Google Maps and YouTube, as well as the impact of jobs and the company’s presence in Manhattan.

Andrew Hazen, founder and chief executive of Prime Visibility, a Melville Internet marketing company, said the results are not surprising, but still, he sees considerable variation in the value of AdWords among his clients. One, a makeup manufacturer, can see a $10 return on each advertising dollar spent, he said, while the return for a client selling plasma televisions is far less.

Certainly Google represents “a win-win for everyone. They offer an incredible service,” said Peter Goldsmith, chairman of the Long Island Software & Technology Network, a Melville group that supports and promotes the area’s technology community. “Who doesn’t use Google? Who doesn’t use AdWords and AdSense?”

Still, he said, he would like to see the company become more actively involved in the Long Island technology scene.

- @AndrewHazen

Google announced today on it Inside AdSense blog that in the spirit of greater transparency with AdSense publishers, Google is sharing the revenue shares for our two main AdSense products — AdSense for content and AdSense for search….WOW!  Domainers prayers have finally been answered!

Google published the following:

“AdSense for content publishers, who make up the vast majority of our AdSense publishers, earn a 68% revenue share worldwide. This means we pay 68% of the revenue that we collect from advertisers for AdSense for content ads that appear on your sites. The remaining portion that we keep reflects Google’s costs for our continued investment in AdSense — including the development of new technologies, products and features that help maximize the earnings you generate from these ads. It also reflects the costs we incur in building products and features that enable our AdWords advertisers to serve ads on our AdSense partner sites. Since launching AdSense for content in 2003, this revenue share has never changed.

We pay our AdSense for search partners a 51% revenue share, worldwide, for the search ads that appear through their implementations. As with AdSense for content, the proportion of revenue that we keep reflects our costs, including the significant expense, research and development involved in building and enhancing our core search and AdWords technologies. The AdSense for search revenue share has remained the same since 2005, when we increased it.”

You can read the entire AdSense post here

Google wants to turn televisions into giant monitors for Web surfing so it can make more money selling ads. The company generated nearly $24 billion in revenue mostly from Internet ads displayed on computer screens…The Internet-equipped televisions are expected to be made by Sony and be powered by an Intel computer chip. Google is expected to provide the software, including its Android operating system and Chrome Web browser.

I think this is wonderful for Internet Marketers as well as domainers; think about sitting on your couch and wanting pizza – just go to Pizza.com on your TV….or if you want a product sample, just go to Sample.com…want to learn about living sugar free – go to SugarFree.com; the examples go on and on.

From an internet marketing perspective, wouldn’t it be great to see a product/service advertised and then with a Picture-In-Picture window bring the website right up on your TV display!

I think the upside here is extraordinary!

@AndrewHazen

For the past two months, my Internet Marketing Company has been diligently working on the design, development and search engine optimization (SEO) of the Trump Las Vegas Condo Hotel website.

I am extremely proud of the work our Prime Visibility team did and think the site looks fabulous….thanks team!

The domain name we decided/strategized to use for this project is TrumpVegasCondos.com – to me this is a great SEO-friendly domain….we also have TrumpVegas.com pointing to the site, which is easier to remember for branding and can also be used to track other marketing efforts….

Working with the Trump Organization has been everything I dreamed it would be and then some…very, very shrewd group!

I am also proud to say that I made in and out of “the Boardroom” in Trump Towers without getting “Fired”….

Check out these gorgeous Las Vegas Condominiums and “If You Love It, Own It!

@AndrewHazen

There was a very interesting article recently published in the Long Island Business News on Geo Domain Names.

The takeaway from the article is that while conventional Long Island real estate may be stuck in a slump, sales of virtual turf of Internet Domain Names are Booming!

Please read the entire article here: City Clickers: Geo Domain Names Are The Hottest Real Estate Deals Going

@AndrewHazen

Having been inspired by Elliot’s Blog, Fusible and Morgan who posted traffic and revenue for some of their mini sites… I thought I would do the same.  As a SEO guy, I thought it would also be interesting to see how my mini sites perform to others (mainly domainers) as I do all my own SEO.  Admittedly, I haven’t done a lot of affiliate offers….but I’d like to…. You may also know that one my personal hobbies is growing my Coupon Network . . . it is from here I will share some data:

FoodCouponsDirect.com
Domain Cost – $9
Development Costs: $500
Q1 Pageviews: 58,000+
Q1 PPC Revenue: $1,700+
Affiliate Revenue: $1,000+

AllPrintableCoupons.com
Domain Cost – $9
Development Costs: $500
Q1 Pageviews: 94,000
Q1 PPC Revenue: $1,600+
Affiliate Revenue: $1,500+

AllCerealCoupons.com
Domain Cost – $9
Development Costs: $400
Q1 Pageviews: 42,788
Q1 PPC Revenue: $1,500+
Affiliate Revenue: n/a

I believe the lesson to be learned here is that while category killer domain names absolutely ROCK, you can still have fun and make some decent revenues with hand registered domain names for $9 (GRIN)….enjoy the beautiful day!

@AndrewHazen

If you are in the Long Island area and have some flexible time today (3/23/10) from 11 – 2, come check out the AITP presentation on Social Media at The Huntington Hilton on Long Island.

I’ll be presenting social media tools for business with @DCPinkowitz  

Here’s the roster:

Pre-Session 11:00 am – 12:00 noon (wine and cheese included):

“Pros and Cons of the Social Media Tools for Small and Large Businesses”

Andrew Hazen, Founder & CEO, Prime Visibility and

David Pinkowitz, Founder, DCP Marketing Services

Luncheon Panel 12:00 – 2:00pm:

Bill Taub, VP, Global IT Security, CA

Presenting “Security Implications of Social Media Networks”

Vincent Raguseo, VP Ecommerce Marketing and Merchandising, 1-800-Flowers

Presenting “E-Commerce utilizing Social Media Networks”

Prof. Jonathan I. Ezor, Asst. Prof. of Law and Technology, Touro Law College

Presenting “Legal Implications of Social Media Networks”

Brian E. Boyd Sr., CEO, TrakVu, LLC –

Presenting “SMB Development utilizing Social Media Networks”

Hope to see you there….have a great day!