Is someone finally going to give Apple a run for its money? Amazon’s latest effect to grab a bigger slice on the digital pile rolled out last week, the Kindle Fire. While the e–tailer’s gigantic size of loan makes the Kindle Fire news worthy, it appears that Amazon has created a product that can compete in its own ride, even with the iPad. In a space cradle with mid two tablets, the Kindle Fire is quickly distinguishing itself as a serious contender that leverages Amazon’s network to deliver a ton of exclusive content. They’ve already linked an exclusive deal with Disney, abc to grab shows like Lost, Grey’s anatomy, and Blood Brothers. According to Cnet, the Kindle Fire has already claimed the number 2 spot behind the iPad in the holiday tablet wish list. Having had only a couple of days to play around with the Kindle Fire, it’s getting great reviews round at office. For $79 a year, users get tons of streaming online movies and TV, free 2–day shipping, and a bunch of other Amazon perks. The Kindle Fire is an absolute content machine. Its small size doesn’t require both hands. It’s only $199. While all these features are great, they are not the most compelling reason marketers should take the Kindle Fire seriously. The reason (actually there are nine of them) is that the Kindle Fire is simply a delivery device designed to increase consumption in Amazon’s massive ecosystem. The Kindle Fire helps get more people in the door, making Amazon an even more valuable place for marketing like an online wall mart, only bigger. We recently came across this awesome infographic by Jason on FRUGALDAD.COM that makes it a pretty compelling case. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bv3KQNEsiXU
DigitalMarketer it’s just smarter Google Strikes Back With One Day Shipping? Posted on December 2, 2011 It seems like a real world puts on the ground–type adventure for such an online–centric company. But it would appear that Google is eyeing the shipping business. According to the Wall Street Journal, Google is reportedly talking to the Macy’s, OfficeMax, and the Gap about a new plan to offer a 24–hour shipping. Apparently, Google would oversee the 1–day shipping action coordinating with the retailer’s dark room to ensure that the delivery action is possible with the given product. You have to wonder though, is Google really going to turn a profit as a modern day poly express? There’s a better than average chance that Google is working on this feature for this specific purpose of competing with Amazon, the new AmazonPrime feature in particular. For $79 a year, Amazon users can enjoy a 2–day shipping in addition to a bunch of other perks. With its 1 day shipping scheme, Google seems to be treating Amazon less like a partner and more like a rival. It’s important to note that Macy’s, OfficeMax, and The Gap already accept Google wallet payments. They’re in the inner circle. If the 1 day shipping feature gets the green light, you’ll probably see a lot more if easy place on the product list feature. Would that be enough to rival Amazon? No, not anytime soon anyway. If you haven’t spent any time on product search, we suggest you take it for a test drive. Search for your products. Search for your competitors products. You may be surprised of what you find. For more great information, strategies, and marketing insights, then please subscribe to our RSS feed or like us on facebook to join our community. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BsYn2dEvtw
DigitalMarketer It’s just smarter Tablets Are the (Near) Future of Publishing Posted on December 1, 2011 Have you retooled for the tabletification of publishing? It seems safe to say that 2011 was the year of the tablet. The only thing is we don’t see this trend slowing down any time soon. The Kindle Fire is flying out of amazon’s mammoth distribution centers, iPad2 sales are strong as ever, and eBook sales are forecast to reach $10 billion by 2016. The kindle bookstore has nearly 1 million titles right now. Do you think that those are all literary classics? Heck no! These titles run the gamut in terms of topics, word counts, etc. In other words, eBooks aren’t necessarily “books” the way we traditionally think of them. They can be travel brochures, gift guides, pamphlets, etc. Publishing is no longer a tedious and lofty practice dominated by bookworms in university professors. Tools like createspace and pressbooks make it easy to publish a Kindle–friendly eBook in just a few clicks. Unlike the physical books that most people avoid like the “Plague”, eBooks don’t have the same stigma. Here are just a few ideas to help your publishing tablet friendly: First, load it up with graphics. Shoot for 15 to 20 images for every 1000 words. Remember, there’s no formula for eBooks. They can be super short. Bookify your content whatever it is. And remember, interactivity isn’t necessary for eBook success. For more great information, strategies, and marketing insights, then please subscribe to our RSS feed or like us on facebook to join our community. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhMC-cjiHXU
DigitalMarketer It’s just smarter 3 Reasons to Mobilize Your Site now Posted on November 29, 2011 Chances are, you’ve been meaning to relaunch a more mobile–friendly version of your site for quite a while now. Well, we’ve pulled together three super compelling reasons to mobilize your content. One of them, ironically enough, actually has to do with a very popular tablet device with an even hotter name. 1) At least 33% of smartphone users have made a purchase on their device. By the end of the holiday season, this number will be much higher. 2) Mobile traffic is projected to make up 7% of all US commerce by 2016, according to this awesome infographic from Mashable. That’s a cool $31, 000, 000, 000 folks. Not only that, but tablet users convert 33 to 66% better than those who visit on a PC. 3) Smartphone and tablet sales are only gaining momentum. Smartphones now make up 59% of all US handset sales, up 13% from last year. By early 2012, 58 million Americans will own a tablet device. Most of these will be iPads, although the Kindle Fire has been the best selling product on Amazon for over 8 weeks. DM lab members, check out our raw training “Mobilize Your Content: How To Tap Into What is One of The Most Misunderstood Sources of Traffic Today” taught by mobile expert Laura Betterly. For more great information, strategies, and marketing insights, then please subscribe to our RSS feed or like us on facebook to join our community. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILjD_mvVZ5k
Think getting into bed with a daily deal site is always a big WIN–WIN? Think again. It’s obvious that the media loves subscriber deal sites right now. We’re constantly seeing positive coverage about GROUPON IPO or the fact that livingsocial is raising $200M. The truth is that not every business that hooks up with this company is going to benefit. In fact, many lose and lose BIG. That’s not because these GROUPON sites are trying to scam you or anything like that, it’s just because merchants are suffering from massively overinflated expectations, even a sense that there is little or no risk to these deals. Part of this is created by the positive Media Attention and part of this is the sense that this GROUPON offers are something new and magical. They’re not. Just like within the other promotion or discount offer, merchants need to beware. According to consultant Rocky Agrawal, the typical deal site breakdown looks like this: customer pay 50% off the regular price, the deal company gets 50% of the discounted price, and the merchant keeps remaining 50% of the discounted price. Not too many merchants can sustain a 75% discount for long. Their rationale is that even though you won’t make money on the offer, you’ll acquire a bunch more customers and your business will flourish. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SfpUTZk8VsY
DigitalMarketer It’s just smarter
Getting From Likes to Leads with Facebook.
Posted on November 15, 2011.
There's a great post on hubspot right now about how businesses can use their facebook page to generate leads. That is the ultimate goal of a business in facebook after all, right? The most important thing that this post highlights is focus i.e. focusing your social media campaigns and not just facebook around the all important code of action. For example, when we go to our facebook page to promote this post, we’ll make sure and tell our fans what it is we want them to do, something like “like us” or “tell us what you think about using facebook to get leads.” After all, your business’s social media efforts should all be working to build more relationships, engage more fans, and help you make more money. The main thing to remember is EVERYTHING YOU PUT ON FACEBOOK SHOULD WORK TO GRAB MORE FANS. Do this with great information and great offers. Don’t appear old baric by using too many automatic feed updates. Lab members we have an awesome facebook contest video in our raw to any sections. This video walks you through exactly how to set up a facebook contest that not only brings you leads but does so while staying within facebook’s guidelines.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f9g3thIbtTU