New York Times reports today’s Internet is “flatter” and “more densely connected” than ever before.

The newspaper notes there are only 30 large companies like Google, Facebook, Microsoft and YouTube that account for a disproportionate 30% of all Internet traffic.

Consolidation is not the only trend revealed by the new findings. There’s also an abrupt decline in peer-to-peer traffic, which only two years prior peaked at 40% of all traffic worldwide. Today, peer-to-peer traffic has dropped down to 18%.

Why the change? NY Times explains: “For the most part, the file-sharing that took place on networks like Limewire and Napster back in the late 90s and early 2000s, has now been largely replaced by streaming video thanks to sites like YouTube, Hulu, and Netflix.

“Given easier and less technical ways of accessing media, consumers have begun to shift away from the headache of P2P to these new and often free or ad-supported sites.”

Read the entire article: Google Accounts for 6% of All Internet Traffic.

Having critiqued several poorly written websites recently, it’s amazing how many copywriters continually fail to emphasize benefits. Benefits engage. They get people to act. Meanwhile, copywriters remain prone to pushing features.

As part of the web copywriting process, copywriters should list all the features of the company and its products or services, and then take the time to revert them into benefits for the customer.

A simple method that our website copywriters employ: look at each feature and ask yourself, “So what?”

Copywriters need to put themselves into the customers’ shoes. Why should I care about this feature? What will it do for me?

Don’t just state your product is durable (a feature). Explain to visitors it will last twice as long and keep them safe (benefits).

For more on web copywriting, check out: Web Writing: The Good, Bad and Ugly.

Anchor Intelligence identified a click fraud ring being run out of China, which involved 200,000 different IP addresses and racked up more than $3 million worth of fraudulent clicks across 2,000 advertisers in a two-week period.

Click fraud occurs when someone sets up a website, signs up with an ad network, and then clicks on the ads to generate ad revenues with false clicks. DormRing1 operated the same way, except it easily involved more than 1,000 people who set up more than 10,000 Websites to spread out the fraud.

Read the full Tech Cruch article: Massive Chinese Operation DormRing1 Uncovered.

White papers offer an effective way to generate new leads for business, especially for service providers.

A professionally written white paper can demonstrate your know-how in a way that provides value to your prospects. It puts forth your point of view, addresses issues your prospects face, and serves solutions.

A white paper that contains useful, practical information builds trust and rapport with prospects, and can help grow your client base.

Is there a common pain in your industry you could address with a white paper? If so, you could be sitting on a productive lead generation and relationship building tool.

You want to grow your business. Raising its profile in the community or industry can be an effective way to get more visitors to your website. But, if you launch a public relations campaign prematurely you could be doing more harm to your business than good.

Before you start pitching to media outlets and bloggers, there are a few things you need to consider.

Read: Using PR to Drive Traffic to Your Website

Adding a blog to your website is a simple and affordable way to enhance your online marketing efforts. By following a few guidelines, you can create a blog that helps strengthen your connection with both current and potential clients, while improving your search engine rankings.

Add personality to your brand. A regularly updated blog introduces your website visitors to the real people behind your business. Since blogs are often written in a casual, conversational style, you can let your personality shine through. Don’t be afraid to express your professional opinion on new developments in your industry, offer useful tips, or share something entertaining in your blog posts.

Demonstrate your knowledge. Blogging can also help you establish yourself as a source for information on current developments in your industry. If your blog content is relevant and well researched, your visitors will view you as an authority and keep coming back for more. They might even share links to your blog with their social networks, increasing your visibility among potential clients.

Continue reading →

You want to grow your business, and raising its profile in the community seems like the perfect strategy to get more visitors to your website. But, be warned, if you launch a public relations campaign prematurely you could be doing more harm to your business than good.

Before you start pitching to media outlets and bloggers, there are a few things you need to consider:

First Impressions Matter

Studies show you have just a few seconds to make a positive first impression on the Web. Your website must have engaging web copy a friendly, pleasing design. Anything less and you’ll lose potential visitors. Installing a user tracking system like Google Analytics will help you determine your visitors’ behavior. Heed the results. Pay attention to how long people are staying on your website. If your current visitors aren’t engaging with your website, why would media outlets and bloggers bother to stick around?

Continue reading →

When you get professional web copy on a website, you can also leverage it in other places in a bid to:

• Reinforce your brand identity
• Establish consistent messaging
• Increase customer recognition

To get the best possible ROI from your online marketing investment, here are 10 ways to repurpose your web copy so it works overtime for your company, online and offline.

Read: 10 Ways to Repurpose Your Website Copy

When it comes to the Web, web content writers do audiences a favour by getting right to the point. Spend too much time trying to set up an atmosphere and you’ll lose them.

Why? When people arrive to a business website, they’re looking for information to solve a problem. As a result, they promptly:

1. Scan web copy to locate areas of interest

2. Scan subheads or kickers to identify topics

3. Skim the main web copy body for keywords and phrases

4. Input and process details of interest

5. Click to see more web copy, leave the site, or take the desired action

So get to the point. Don’t get wrapped up in being cute or clever. Let your readers get what they need quickly and easily complete the desired task—whatever it may be.

The best web content copywriters understand keywords, which are the foundation to a successful website.

Keywords drive desired traffic to websites, and can help engage and convert visitors into customers. Unfortunately, when businesses hire uninformed web content copywriters, many opportunities are missed.

There are basically three types of keywords a business can target:

1. Keywords for browsing
These are generic terms that people often use when they start the search process. While it’s difficult to attain top 10 positions on search engines for terms such as web design, it can gain a business broad exposure on an international scope. But don’t expect high conversion rates, as most of these people have just started their search, and might just be looking for free tips and ideas.

2. Keywords for comparing
Now the person searching has some insight and is starting to look at particular products or services. For instance, a person might type in website designer and start browsing portfolios, rates, specialties, processes, and so on. They’re likely at least semi-serious prospects.

3.  Keywords for buying
At this stage, the person has a good idea of what he wants to purchase, so he might type in web designer New York, or ecommerce web designer, or even ecommerce web designer in New York. He’s specific, and more than likely ready to invest.

But, remember, while keywords can bring prospects to your website, you have to deliver your message with impact. Otherwise visitors will be quick to leave your site, and find your competition.