I came across a great post today by Danny Demichele, an Internet Marketing Consultant, who puts together a good argument how troubled times could actually have a positive impact on an online business. Here are 10 factors that you need to look out for:

• Gas - The cost of travel mean more people shop online
• Price Comparisons - The Internet makes comparison easier leading to more online purchases
• Advertising Efficiency - As marketing budgets get squeezed more money is pumped online into trackable advertising
• Less Big Brand Advertisers - As big brand advertisers shrink they budgets, smaller organisations get more space
• Previous Brand Reluctance - Manufacturers will allow more retailers to sell their products
• TV Shows - More TV shows will move online opening up advertising possibilities
• Investment Dollars - As more people move online, more money is pumped into the Internet
• Lower Overhead - Online businesses are typically cheaper to run that traditional models
• Less Taxes - Avoiding local taxes by shopping online
• Virtual Services - Helping customers reduce their costs

Danny is an SEO Consultant who focuses on internet marketing consulting and has a pretty rich background in Internet-based organisations. His website also has weekly tips to help businesses success, so look out for them after you read the post.

I was thinking about technology on my way back from work this evening (it’s short enough to walk, but long enough to get a few minutes to myself). I was thinking about the first PC I ever got which was an 8086 (with a Turbo button to boost the speed from 4.77 MHz all the way to 10 MHz), CGA graphics and 2 x 5 1/4 disk drives. Oh, and it also had 640k. Now that’s a far cry from the sort of hardware you can buy today.

Organisational computer has changed too. Back in the day it was all about shared mainframes, punched cards and monolithic computer systems. How the landscape has changed. Even hearing about new technologies, like large scale server provisioning or websites where you can by anything from acorns to snowmobile parts makes you marvel about how we got from there to here.

The question is .. what will the landscape look like in 10 years?

Take Stratavia for example, a company that provides a data center automation offering. Their website offers a cohesive message around what the company does and reinforces that by promoting different ideas to improve credibility; a list of awards they have achieved, different news and quotes from their customer. All this helps sustain the image they are trying to project and strengthens their online presence.

So I gave them a call and they agreed to match the price which I thought was an excellent example of customer service. We got the apartment we wanted at the price we were ready to pay, and as a result EdAparments.com (who specialise exclusively in Edinburgh Apartments) filled a vacancy which may have otherwise stayed empty. They also have a pretty mature offering, both the website and the reminder emails I received contained links to ancillary services that would have interested someone visiting Edinburgh.

I’ll be quite honest, we were blown away by the apartment. It was directly on the Royal Mile, 2 minutes walk away from the castle and packed with all the amenities you could need. There was a large TV with DVD, a fully equipped kitchen and a massive bath in the bathroom. There were even a couple of books to keep you busy in case you have nothing to read. The only downside (in my opinion) was the absence of an Internet connection; but then, I’m perfectly aware that my needs are slightly different to the norm, not many people feel the need to have high speed satellite internet when they’re on holiday.

I’ve bookmarked EdAparments.com for the future. Next time I’m off to Edinburgh (and we’ve already decided we have to visit again); they’re the first company I’ll call on to sort out my accommodation.

The company is described as “LinkedIn meets eBay” which is an interesting concept. Companies bid for the services of sales professionals who are independent agents, not employed by Salesconx.

It’s great seeing these new marketplaces emerge and providing a platform for synergy between a service industry and clients that could exist all around the country. It helps individuals and organisations focus on their core strengths and obtain additional services at competitive rates from a pool of available resource.

One to watch .. and maybe test out the trial.

Image by culture.culte via Flickr

Some jobs are easier than others, even if they are pretty similar. Take for example working on the sales team of a company that has a monopoly in a certain product. Marketing in this case is rather easy as it involves maintaining the image of the company and persuading people that the company is really serving them the best they can.

On the other hand there are the really tricky marketing roles. For example, take Pepsi, basking forever in Coca-cola’s limelight. Now that’s a hard job. Or selling diet pills on the Internet, which is a really competitive market. Alternatively, try selling polaris suspension parts in a country that doesn’t really practice off-road racing. The secret is always to focus on your product’s strengths and making sure you understand the competitive environment you need to operate in.

A poorly planned campaign can have just as damaging an effect and companies need to make sure they don’t end up under the spotlight for the wrong reason. It’s important to gauge the climate an advert will be launched into and take into consideration political, economic and social factors. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not saying you need to thread on eggshells. But one needs to be aware that any advertising campaign is not released into a vacuum but into a rich environment where supporters will rally behind a product and competitors will try and use your efforts against you.

Interesting topic huh?

Image via Wikipedia

We’re off to Edinburgh next week as my graduation date has finally arrived. I’ve been looking through the Heriot Watt website to get more information about the event and now have all the flights, accommodation and gown booked for the big day. My parents are coming too, so really looking forward to it.

We’re spending an extra couple of days in Edinburgh to catch the sites and have a look around. None of us has really spent any tourist time there, so I’m looking forward to it. The thing about exploring a town like that we really want to stay on the touristic route rather than end up in the more commercialised side of the town. I don’t really want to be looking in shop windows and finding adverts for IT automation or cerebral palsy lawyers! I much prefer being able to visit the parks and spend some time at Edinburgh castle, but I don’t really know what sights there are to see.

Have you ever been to Edinburgh? Where would you recommend we visit?

I suppose it does depend on what sort of product or service you’re selling, but personally I would prefer to be pushing a product that people need .. than a service that no one really wants.

If you live in the UK you might have heard of Faster Payments, an initiative the banks are putting in place to speed up inter-bank transfers. Previously bank transfers used to take 3-4 days and using Faster Payments a transfer can be done in a couple of hours. Not all banks are taking part in this yet, so a useful resource to know about is one where you can check if a bank is participating in the scheme. Just type in the Sort Code into the Faster Payments Sort Code Checker and you can find out if you can use it or not.

It works pretty well; and you can use it whether you’re paying for Moen faucets or even for your online hosting. Definitely a step in the right direction.