Why would you jump in front of a train?

Well, to throw the switch that deflects that train (a massive traffic surge) into your switchyard (your website).

So, if we extend the metaphor - how do we know a train is coming?
You listen to the telegraph.

And since that feature isn't on anyone's iPhone - what we're really talking about here is listening acutely to the media.

Television, radio, web news outlets - these are all conduits for massive amounts of public (or business) attention.
Attention means traffic.

There is an opportunity to bend public attention to your benefit - but it requires nimbleness - a good reaction time.

For example; a financial planning client is offering a service related to investments.

Careful monitoring of the news reveals topics that are not quite on the public 'radar' (a new program proposed in a government budget, for instance). However, if you were to put out some feelers (perhaps a very low-bid paid search campaign) - you would be monitoring in near-real-time what search traffic is searching for.

When search heats up on any of these terms you have staked out - you can then respond by creating a more robust response by beefing up content on the site, having a specific landing page with relevant actions.

These strategies are persuasive arguments for;
1) employing a long-tail approach to keywords in your paid search efforts
2) quick turnaround on producing content, and
3) frequently reviewing website analytics

So next time that train is a-comin', you get some heads up - and are even awake at that switch.

Blogs are websites

The old-school way of thinking is that blogs are mickey-mouse versions of 'real' websites.
No more, and not in the future.

Blogs are displacing the classic website for a variety of compelling reasons.

The full-sized functionality of blog software, and the enormous uptake of the Open Source software movement opportunity, have made blogs directly compete with CMS - Content Management Software.

We've been using CMS to make easy-to-edit 'websites' for our clients. And guess what? Blogs ARE CMSes! They have many of the same features, and a lot of the underlying robustness required.

ContentRobot has some nice resources on this:
http://www.contentrobot.com/category/blogging/business-blogging

Mobility is one of the great technology themes of our time. Think about it - cellphones, laptops, the internets ... device location independence. Blogs equal mobility/independence of the authoring resource - it goes with you no matter where you are. A web browser, no proprietary software. Any time, any place.

Mobility - and democracy of use - are what will make blogs the indispensable replacement for the static web. Now your blog does what your business requires - not what the IT department has time for.

Case Study: Traffic Segments

Use of Web Analytics to qualify traffic

Specialty clothing retailer

Challenged by our initial campaign results, the client was able to test, and then adjust their assumptions about ‘who’ the primary customers of their products were.

Mounting our web analytics on their existing website, we were able to demonstrate the sources of their most profitable traffic. By showing the relationship of keywords, search engines, and referrals, we were able to not only demonstrate where to focus resources, but identify previously unsuspected characteristics of a large segment of their visitors that 'converted' from visitors to customers.

The insight was that people that bought the specialty clothing were not, in fact, the people that used it. Who the purchase decider was - was in fact the caregiver or institution.

These new insights allowed them to re-deploy their marketing in a way that not only dramatically boosted their website inquiries and sales, but also meant they were able to eliminate wasteful spending.

Case Study: Traffic

International ticket vendor

Achieved immediate profile: was instantly featured in selected worldwide online publications, blogs and networks, and generated new customers in markets previously unknown to them.

Careful allocation of resources kept their return on investment at 2000%.

The Drill-down #2: What? / Why? (Analysis)

2) Site Traffic Analysis:

Which way to downtown?

Measurement is critical – do you want only visitors from Bay Street? Do you want visitors who patronize financial publications, but only those who have a higher historical probability of interest in investments?

What traffic is relevant? Measure it. Test it. Modify it in real time.