Added for You - Internet and Businesses Online

Simple Steps to Skyrocket Website Sales
If You're Selling ANYTHING On The Internet, Here's How To Instantly Start Making A Lot More Money With Very Little Effort!Today I want to share with you an easy way to instantly make a whole lot more money from your business. And it's so simple, you can start using it to quickly quadruple your profits or more.Now if you're planning to make money on the Internet, you have to be selling something. And the fact of the matter is, the hardest part of selling on the Internet is making your first sale with a new customer.What I'm saying is that trying to get someone to buy from you will be hardest at first. But once they have bought from you, they're much easier to sell to each additional time.So most of the money being made on the Internet is done by getting new customers and then selling to them over and over again. And an easy way to do this is by setting up an autoresponder for all new customers so you can "broadcast" sales messages out to them every time you want to make some additional money.Now this customer database is extremely important because you've always gained the customers trust by selling to them once. That's the hard part. Now the easy part is offering them additional items that compliment what you sold them in the first place.So what do you sell to them?Two

increased “personalization”) the PPC gravy train is going to pause. SEO will become more effective at getting the right kinds of traffic yet today most tools pay lip service to the measurement of the results of SEO efforts, all you can do is measure organic traffic and if it goes up (that is hardly a measure of SEO). I hope Gatineau can at least tap into the MSN data and providing efficient reporting for atleast MSN SEO efforts.

Ok maybe I will ask for a reporting feature. I hope that all the reports will show one extra time period by default. For example show eight days in a “weekly” trend and thirteen months in a “yearly” trend. Seems like a small thing but most web analytics tools are not great at giving context, and context is king. If you look at a eight day trend you could compare this Monday to last Monday and get a feeling for if you are doing better or worse this Monday, with most tools you don’t see last Monday. Ditto for this month vs. same month last year. It gives context to your past performance and is a “internal benchmark” that can frame current performance. Might not scream answers at you but will get you to ask the right “why” and “what” questions.

There is nothing uniquely Microsoft Gatineau about the above three requests, though if they are really starting with a open mind it might be easier for the

Creating a Work Environment That Works
Whether you are working at home, in the office, or in your car -- your ability to produce results with the least amount of stress, is directly affected by your physical environment. A functional desk that is ugly can be as much of a deterrent to productivity as a beautiful desk that is not functional. I have spent over twenty years with people working in their homes, offices and cars. One thing has become vehemently clear. Your desk can be your greatest enemy or your best friend.Take a good look at your desk. How does it make you feel? Are you comfortable there? Can you do what you need to do there easily? How does it look to other people? Does it reflect the message you want to give to the world about your work and your values?Analyze the kinds of activities you need or want to do at your desk. If you use a computer, an L-shape desk is usually the best option. Use the short end of the “L” for your computer, and the long end for desk accessories, your telephone, and spreading out papers while you are working.One of the major detractors to an effective and attractive desk are those pesky scraps of paper, which seem to proliferate in your absence and sometimes in your presence! In my experience, an important component of any desk is space for files. I prefer two file drawers in my desk – one for current project

Sonicko President Jeff Lawrence recently sat down with Avinash Kaushik, author of the popular web analytics blog Occam's Razor about his views on web analytics, what he hopes to see from Microsoft's upcoming web analytics application, and Web 2.0 technologies. Avinash has also authored an upcoming book Web Analytics: An Hour A Day which you can preorder on Amazon.

1. You've been in the field of web analytics for quite some time, did you just wake up one day and think to yourself that this is something that you wanted to do, or were you thrown into the role and simply adapted to it?

At my last job with DirecTV, Sr. Manager for Enterprise Analytics, I had small amounts of exposure to Web Analytics (someone supplied log file parsed numbers into the dashboard). When I interviewed for the job at Intuit (Manager for Web Analytics) I was quite excited about the possibility of taking all my experience in Decision Support and apply it to a 100% exclusive web environment.

There is something so beautiful and scary and challenging and fun about data on the web. It was too hard to pass up. But it would be fair to say that when I took the job at Intuit I had no idea what “web analytics” was, I had not yet had the fortune to have used any web analytics application. Blaire Hansen, my hiring manager, certainly made a huuuge leap of faith in hiring me.

It has been a amazing ride and yes to answer your question I have simply adapted to it, but since my post MBA experience has been almost solely focused on Decision Support Systems I think I have brought all the learnings from traditional data warehousing and business intelligence and applied it to my current role.

2. What problems if any do you foresee with the implementation of Web 2.0 technologies such as AJAX and the explosion of tab based browsing? Are you concerned about problems of people keeping tabs open when they are not actively browsing the site?

I have blogged about the fact that slowly but surely the page paradigm is dying. That is not saying that the big problem is that the page view metric is going to be crap. It is more that currently almost all web analytics applications are constructed, from an architecture perspective, on the fact that a page view has to happen and all things go from there.

The challenge with AJAX or Flash or RIA’s is that the page view model does not work (remember this is more from a data capture and data analysis perspective). I have blogged about (http://snipurl.com/1al4p) moving to an “event” based data capture and analysis model. The challenge for the web analytics vendors is to change their underlying architectures to accommodate for a event based model and not just try to stuff events into page views because that won’t work in the long term.

There is a bigger challenge from Ajax / RIA’s for business users. We are used to slapping a tag on the page and expecting most data we need to show up. With web 2.0 we are going to have to think way up front exactly what we want to measure, what is success and then instrument these new experience in Ajax or RIA’s to give us the data we need. Most companies and practitioners are not yet prepared for this mental shift.

In terms of tabbed browsing, this simply exposes one more limitation of clickstream data to ultimate actionable insight. Even with tabbed browsing it is hard to make sense of clickstream data. My personal point of view with tabbed browsing the order in which a visitor sees something and follows a “path” is fairly messed up. Depending on how your sessions are initiated in terms of your analytics apps this could also screw up other reports such as referring urls etc.

But it is important to note that if you have a tab open and as long as you are not auto-reloading it, the web analytics application will terminate your session after 30 mins of inactivity and that is not a biggie. Tabbed browsing, and its related impact on clickstream data, is yet another reminder that each website owner should have a mechanism to collect qualitative data (http://snipurl.com/1al54) and to have a Trinity mindset (http://snipurl.com/1al53). Without that they will not truly be able to get actionable insights from their data.

3. What tools, features, and reports would you like to see in the upcoming Microsoft Gatineau product?

Hmm…. I don’t think my friend Ian Thomas has quite the luxury to build whatever I want, but let’s assume he does. J

I hope that with Gatineau Microsoft figures out exactly who their target audience is and then delivers a tool exactly and specifically just for that audience. Being all things to all people means being nothing to anyone. I guess I am saying I hope their tool does not have a billion standard reports out of the box, just the six that their target audience needs. Atleast initially.

Efficient segmentation. In four clicks (see I am generous!) anyone should be able to segment out traffic from the search engines or from a top referring url /’s or visitors who see x number of pages or come on a particular campaign (whose id is in the url or cookie). It is very hard to dumb down the ability to do intelligent segmentation, yet that is the key to finding actionable insights.

Some useful reporting for Search Engine Optimization. I love free traffic and with all the changes (especially at Google, such as increased “personalization”) the PPC gravy train is going to pause. SEO will become more effective at getting the right kinds of traffic yet today most tools pay lip service to the measurement of the results of SEO efforts, all you can do is measure organic traffic and if it goes up (that is hardly a measure of SEO). I hope Gatineau can at least tap into the MSN data and providing efficient reporting for atleast MSN SEO efforts.

There is nothing uniquely Microsoft Gatineau about the above three requests, though if they are really starting with a open mind it might be easier for them

Master Reprint Rights
Owning the Master Reprint Rights to some quality business information products is one of the most proven business opportunities I know of making serious money in your own business online or off.The Difference Between Master Reprint Rights and Reprint Rights1. Master Reprint Rights: When you own the master reprint rights to a product you can sell both the product itself and the reprint rights to the product.2. Reprint Rights: When you own the reprint rights to a product, you can sell the product but you cannot sell the reprint rights to others.Master Reprint Rights - An Opportunity to Make Serious MoneyI own the master reprint rights to several different products. I have also created a wide range of products and sell the master rights to them.One product that I bought the master rights to resells as a hard copy report for $167 (costs about $22 to get printed and bound) and I sell the reprint rights for $1,997.This means my clients need only make 12 sales and they have made their money back.And obviously in my case, making a $1,997 sale is heaps of fun.Owning Master Reprint Rights - Much less Than the Average Franchise Fee!A couple of years ago, one of my marketing clients opened a new restaurant in Sydney, Australia.He had to

f faith in hiring me.

3. What tools, features, and reports would you like to see in the upcoming Microsoft Gatineau product?

Hmm…. I don’t think my friend Ian Thomas has quite the luxury to build whatever I want, but let’s assume he does. J

There is nothing uniquely Microsoft Gatineau about the above three requests, though if they are really starting with a open mind it might be easier for the

How To Parlay Any Online Business Into A Million Dollars
Do you dream of establishing your own online business someday? Or are you already maintaining one? How would you like to transform that online business into a money-making machine?Do you think it's impossible to do so because you're establishing or maintaining only a small business? Of course not! In fact, many of those well-known and flourishing online businesses started small.Would you believe that Jeff Bezos, the founder and CEO of Amazon.com, laid the foundation of his now multibillion dollar business in his very own garage? Starting out with improvised gadgets and furniture and with just himself and his wife as the first employees of his company, Amazon.com is now one of the leading companies in the industry of online retailing. Bezos was even recognized as the "cybercommerce king."Your online business can follow the footsteps of Amazon.com and you can be like another Bezos. Whatever field you wish to venture into, you can always turn it into a money-spinner. You just need to be familiar with and follow certain steps and then you will learn how to parlay any online business into a million dollars --- even more!It is said that the one essential key to Bezos' astounding success is the fact that he dared. He had a courageous heart and he was determined to succeed. Would you also dare to achieve success in your

ed model and not just try to stuff events into page views because that won’t work in the long term.

3. What tools, features, and reports would you like to see in the upcoming Microsoft Gatineau product?

Hmm…. I don’t think my friend Ian Thomas has quite the luxury to build whatever I want, but let’s assume he does. J

There is nothing uniquely Microsoft Gatineau about the above three requests, though if they are really starting with a open mind it might be easier for the

The BEST Way to Face Up To Change (2)
The old days look better because we cannot cope with the new, especially when there are no consistent rules to guide us, when we do not feel included in its message and the seemingly secure boundaries we are enjoying are gradually being stripped away. The past always looks better when we lack confidence because it allows us to dismiss anything remotely uncomfortable while we remain deliberately blind to what we do not wish to see. But this merely increases our sense of insecurity and keeps us on the periphery, isolated and ignored.When we rely too much upon past solutions to resolve current dilemmas it is an indirect admission of our inability to control our own destiny. To feel more secure, we hark back to tried and tested methods of dead men that were ideal in a bygone era but is of less relevance, and limited use, in the present revolutionary age with its vastly different mores and expectations.For instance, we can understand and sympathise with people who lived before the 16th century and did not travel too far afield because they genuinely believed that the earth was flat and were afraid of falling off the edge. With nothing else to dispute their belief their caution made sense. Since then, numerous exploration and discoveries have proved that thought to be totally wrong. Man's natural curiosity and ingenuity have ensure

sm to collect qualitative data (http://snipurl.com/1al54) and to have a Trinity mindset (http://snipurl.com/1al53). Without that they will not truly be able to get actionable insights from their data.

3. What tools, features, and reports would you like to see in the upcoming Microsoft Gatineau product?

Hmm…. I don’t think my friend Ian Thomas has quite the luxury to build whatever I want, but let’s assume he does. J

There is nothing uniquely Microsoft Gatineau about the above three requests, though if they are really starting with a open mind it might be easier for the

Feel the Fear and Do it Anyway
Just like the successful self-help book written by Susan Jeffers, feeling the fear and doing it anyway is one of the secrets to achieving success in business. In fact, it is one of the key secrets to succeeding in almost anything you ever want to do in Life.In case you weren’t aware of it, you a salesperson. Before you deny this fact till you are blue in the face, let me explain. You are a salesperson if you: * Promote your own business to others * Promote the business you work for to others * Promote yourself to othersEverybody, at any point in time, fits into one of these categories. You are either drumming up sales for your business or one you work for through direct sales or convincing others that the company you work for is a good company. Or you are convincing others about a point of view you might have toward a subject. So, everyday we are all trying to persuade another human in one area of our lives or another.What does this have to do with fear?Let’s take the act of persuading somebody to make a purchase from you or your company. This can also include trying to get them to agree to a meeting where you have the opportunity to show a new product to them. For the experts – those of us that do this everyday – this may seem like a walk in the park. But for the rest of us, this can be very inti

There is nothing uniquely Microsoft Gatineau about the above three requests, though if they are really starting with a open mind it might be easier for them to consider requests from random bloggers such as myself.

4. Do you foresee a decline in the major players in the web analytics field such as Omniture and WebSideStory based upon free web analytics packages, or do you believe that they fulfill a niche and will remain?

It is important to realize that I am a practitioner. I am not a vendor, I not a consultant, I am not a analyst from Forrester or Jupiter or any other esteemed organizations. In as much I probably have no idea what I am talking about when I answer this question.

One overall fact to consider is that the web analytics space is growing by leaps and bounds, driven by the fact that the web in general becoming a medium that is increasing been monetized (to huge amounts). At the moment anyone in the field can do great because web analytics is a baby and the there are way too many people who are falling in love with this cute baby. Near term there is hardly a worry on the horizon.

Longer term both Google and Microsoft will prove to be excellent disruptors. If they provide solutions that are value add (rather than being YATR - Yet Another Tsunami of Reports) and keep improving, as their deep pockets would enable them to, then they should own the small to mid sized clients. There is really no need for you to pay for clickstream reporting and some of the always required analysis.

That leaves some of the mid-market and the “high end”. These will continue to be with the paid-vendors for some time for a whole host of reasons, for the next couple years at the minimum. After that the paid-vendors that and provide more than clickstream analysis (or indeed web analytics) will thrive (those that enable what I call the Trinity Strategy - http://snipurl.com/1al53). Others will feel perhaps more than bearable pressure from the for free vendors and get squeezed.

In a few years it will be hard to find vendors who will just do traditional web analytics and will be paid for those services. There I have gone out on a limb!

5. We know that you've become quite a football fan, but what else do you do to unwind after a long day besides blogging and answering questions?

By the time I am done with the blogging, and answering atleast twenty fairly detailed emails from the blog readers, it is usually around 0100 hrs and that is rather late! So I unwind by going to sleep. J

With a full time job, the blog, emails from blog readers, the book, speaking engagements and seminars, two small kids and travel required by business it is really tough to find time. No tv for the last year, the super bowl game was the only game I saw all year long (and boy was it nice).

I suppose for me unwinding is writing my blog. It is way more work than I ever imagined (approximately twenty hours a week at least). But when I write I am fully absorbed in writing, I get an absolute thrill when I get comments, it makes me happy beyond reason when I get emails from readers who appreciate the small amount of wisdom that is one the blog. There is no monetization tied to the blog for me (just lots of work!) but it is great feeling that in my own small tiny way I can help someone in Sweden or Iran or Australia or Brazil or Russia or South Africa or Canada or many other places.

I suppose few things are this much work just to “unwind” and few have such delightful rewards.

Avinash is the author of the upcoming book Web Analytics: An Hour A Day http://www.webanalyticshour.com and also the highly rated Web Analytics blog Occam's Razor http://www.kaushik.net/avinash

By day he is the Director of Web Research & Analytics at Intuit Inc where he is responsible for the business, technical and strategic elements of the web decision making platform supporting 60 plus Intuit websites.

His professional career has been focused on Decision Support Systems at Fortune 500 companies such as Silicon Graphics, DirecTV Broadband, Intuit and DHL in Asia, Middle East and the US.

HTTP = HTML link (for blogs, profiles,phorums):
<a href="http://www.added4u.com/article/65936/added4u-Interview-With-Avinash-Kaushik-Author-of-Occams-Razor.html">Interview With Avinash Kaushik, Author of Occam's Razor</a>

BB link (for phorums):
[url=http://www.added4u.com/article/65936/added4u-Interview-With-Avinash-Kaushik-Author-of-Occams-Razor.html]Interview With Avinash Kaushik, Author of Occam's Razor[/url]

Are you stuck in the Middle? Are you working in one job and feeling dissatisfied but are unsure if you should “stay or go” or if you left, where would you go “to?”

One of the great things about being an employee and working for someone else is that when the clock hits five you are basically done for the day and you jump in your car and you are gone. You do not have to worry about anything until the next day when work starts again. Your mind is free and you own it.

The love-hate relationship with the Blogging Universe, and what leads many to Blog. A humorous account of what brought one web professional into the Blogger community despite all the best efforts to keep sane and stay away.

Tags

Links

Added for You - Interview With Avinash Kaushik, Author of Occam's Razor

Related Articles: