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How to survive the recession - February 2009
With the current economic outlook seeming so bleak many businesses are left wondering how best to weather the storm. What may be the best strategy for one could well spell disaster for another and determining which is best can seem like a gamble. However there are a number of truths which run consistently with those businesses that have seen this all before and emerged not just unscathed from economic turmoil, but actually in a stronger. more healthy position as a result.
To bury one's head in the sand can often be the death nail to any company, and especially those small to medium sized businesses that rely on generating new custom and who cannot rely on tied in partnerships or long running contracts. It is a sad fact that just when advertising and marketing can truly work for you, they are often the areas in which cut backs are made. When everyone, from the individual on the street to global corporations are looking to reduce their expenditures where possible it becomes more important than ever to be able to appeal to both current and prospective clients. To do this it is vital to put your company "out there," in the market place for all to see and attract new customers while reminding existing ones that you are still there and still working hard.
Which type of advertising and marketing strategy will best suite you is often a case of trial and error, and has a lot to do with the type of customer you are looking to target. TV and radio campaigns are popular but expensive and require a great deal of focus as the time constraints rarely allow for much in the way of product placement or services rendered. Paper advertising was seen for a long time as the preferred method of exposure for those small to medium sized businesses who were looking to attract local custom, although this medium also has the constraints of brevity of space (most people would shy away from the expense of a double spread in The Times).
Now however, thanks to the internet and its meteoric rise, there is the most adaptable, affordable and expressive medium with which to promote your company. With comparably little expense you have a market place measured in the billions and a global reach the likes of which were unimaginable just a few years ago. If you have goods to sell or services to offer it is now more important than ever that customers can find you and stay with you. The shear amount of information that can be placed within a website means that your whole company can have its identity replicated online for the whole world to see. That, coupled with a focused advertising and marketing campaign can result in massive increases in revenue at a time when many of your competitors will be hiding in their shells.
Shopping habits during a recession - January 2009
Why the internet is becoming increasingly popular as
customers look for convenience and value for money.
The first new media age online shopping survey has revealed consumers' spending plans for 2009 as the UK economy teeters on a recession. Conducted by Lightspeed Research, it revealed cost-conscious users intend to shop more online this year, dealing a further blow to the beleaguered high street.
The survey of 1,957 people found 36% plan to do more shopping online and less on the high street this year. This figure rose to 45% of 18-24-year-olds and 44% of the big-spending 25-34-year-old market. With recession here, online consumers are more price conscious and intend to use the internet to hunt for savings — 34% plan to use price-comparison sites more, while 22% will increase their use of value supermarket and auction sites.
The research is supported by Nielsen figures which reveal a 64% year-on-year increase in unique visits to the site of value supermarket Aldi. In line with the growth, the cut-price chain is expanding its web presence with the launch of a travel website, with a flowers site due to launch soon after.
Rival low-cost supermarket Asda is also seeing growth online. Digital marketing manger Chris Dalrymple said, "There are considerable opportunities with our online and catalogue platform. Asda Direct is going from strength to strength and home shopping has seen 70% growth year on year, meaning we have the second-largest market share."
Mark Elwig, head of sales at Shopping.com, the number-one price-comparison site according to Nielsen, said it had also seen an increase in users over the Christmas quarter. "Where it used to be about the range and selection — having the widest range of products from the biggest number of retailers and a wide range of reviews — it's now all about price and having the best products at the best price," he said.
Neil Mason, head of UK retail research at Mintel, said, "Price-comparison and product review sites have enabled consumers to become more knowledgeable and seek out the best value, which is particularly important in a downturn. This will increase in the next year and value for money will be key during 2009."
The majority of respondents to the new media age survey (89%) believe better prices can be found online, while 68% said shopping online is cheaper than visiting the high street due to the rising costs of parking, petrol and transport. The online consumer also believes the internet offers a wider range of products (81%), lower prices (89%), ease of finding items (84%) and ease of comparing prices (95%).
The survey also highlighted areas where online could improve, with the high street preferred for customer service (70%) and the lack of waiting time to receive a product (74%).
The research comes as well-known high street stores such as Adams, MFI, Whittards of Chelsea, Woolworths and Zavvi fell into administration. Robin Goad, director of research at Hitwise UK, said, "All the companies that have collapsed over the last months didn't have a good web presence. Zavvi unfortunately had to shut down its website, which had a significant impact. Retailers with no site backup will be in serious trouble."
Pure-play sites, however, are already reporting successful Christmas trading. Entertainment retailer Play.com last week reported that sales in its Christmas trading period were up 24% compared with the previous year. Simon Peree, MD of Play.com, said, "We're in a fortunate position as entertainment products are relatively cheap and do well in a downturn. This year we plan to expand ranges within our categories, such as clothing and entertainment, and will also add new categories."
The new media age survey found CDs and DVDs were regarded the cheapest buys online, followed by video games, personal electronics, books and large electrical items.
Justin Moodie, head of online at HMV, said, "Some consumers are now more comfortable with the idea of shopping online, considering it more convenient and cheaper, especially when you consider the costs of visiting and shopping in high-street locations. However, a significant number of consumers are still very happy to shop on the high street or, as we're finding at HMV, to mix and match from both channels according to their requirements."
David Smith, director of the IMRG, the industry body for retailing, said, "Consumers are more empowered. They're researching online and buying offline, and vice versa. Brands have to have a multi-channel approach."
As new media age went to press, Christmas trading results from high street fashion retailer Next showed its stores had seen a like-for-like decrease in sales of 7%, while the Next Directory, which accounts for 60% of the brand's online sales, saw a 1.1% increase since last year. Debenhams also saw a decrease in sales over Christmas of 3.3%, while Marks & Spencer is expected to report a fall in its sales.
Figures compiled by e-retailing trade organization IMRG, show that although high street sales have fallen by 4.2% since February, e-retail has grown three-fold, from 13.4% to 30%. Twenty two million UK consumers spent a total of £1.4b online during April.
The company expects online shopping to grow by a further 320% by 2010. Currently 7% of all retail takes place online - IMRG expects this to increase to 20% by 2010. This would mean that 36 million Britons would spend up to £60bn a year online.
E-business performance firm, Keynote Systems, has conducted a study into eight major UK e-commerce sites. It found that cost was the most important factor motivating people to shop online. Consumers expect websites to undercut High Street store prices.
The study asked over 500 shoppers to use the sites of Amazon, eBay, John Lewis, Marks & Spencer, Argos, Boots, Dixons and Comet. Amazon was best for overall performance, including customer satisfaction, price satisfaction, purchase processes and perceived site performance. Comet was placed second, mainly due to its good search capabilities and ability to compare products and prices.
The survey also identified a number of factors which deterred people from shopping online. Over a quarter of the people surveyed, were annoyed by being asked to register before they could make a purchase, 19% found inadequate customer ratings or reviews a problem and 20% wanted it to be easier to compare items for sale.
Does your website need a facelift ? - December 2008
Have you got a website but feel it’s in need of a spring clean ?
- a fresh website can breathe new life into your e-commerce business.
So, you have a website and you were very happy with it when it was first created all those years ago. However it’s been a while now and just like everything else, web tastes and your company have both moved on. It may be time to breathe new life into that old site that perhaps has a few broken links, a few out of date images or prices. Have you developed new products and services and have yet to update your site to reflect these important changes ?
If the answer is yes then it sounds as if you’re in need of an electronic spring clean. It’s a fact that a site that appears outdated or unkept is unlikely to attract the attentions of an increasingly sophisticated web browsing population.
In fact, if your site meets any of these criteria its time to look for an upgrade.
Designed 3-5 years ago (or older)Gone more than 6 months without updating content (text)
Doesn't appear in the first 2-3 pages of major search engine listings (Google, Yahoo)
Why Consider an Upgrade ?
Customers feel more comfortable with a company that stays up to date.
Updated sites take advantage of new design technology – easier interface, more effective search engine optimization (SEO).
Updated sites are better prepared to sustain customer relationships through communication tools like autoresponders and newsletters.
In the past 5 years, nearly every part of website development has changed. Navigation menus, coding standards, search engine optimization, even the fonts we use! Websites that don’t upgrade get left in the dust by a newer, faster competitor. Obviously, there are lots of reasons why you should get a website facelift. But what can you expect in terms of results? What will it do your website, and for your company? Here’s a list of the major sections of a website, and what a facelift will do for them :
LAYOUT/DESIGN. New layout standards convey a more modern look and feel, and grab more visitors’ attention. A cleaner interface makes it easy for visitors to stay longer, and eventually become buyers.
NEW/UPDATED CONTENT. You can’t overvalue fresh, relevant content updates. Keeping up a regular flow stokes your audience’s interest, leading to more responses and eventually higher sales.
Upgrades can be as simple as adding some new text, or as expansive as an entirely new design. Even basic company sites can benefit, building up a bigger audience from simple, regular content updates.
If you keep an eye out, you’ll see many popular websites changing their look now and then, adding content all the time. They’re staying popular by staying updated. This is considered a “best practice” for websites. You can employ this same strategy for your website.
