Landing Post Improvements

In order to make the Amazon purple boot site more effective, users should be able to sort by a boot with either a flat or a heel. If the user wants a heel, they should be able to select how many inches they prefer said heel. On another note altogether...

In order to see what will improve the page, I would need to look at the metrics, key performance indicators, and bounce rates. It will also be important to look at the number of times someone visits the site, how often they visit, how long they spend on the site, commenting and downloading, all of these tasks will allow me to measure customer engagement.

In order to improve the site, it is really important to know what users are coming to see. Knowing what people want to see, will allow us to know the appropriate changes to make.

Southwest Airlines Case Study

Why are press releases important to Southwest's business strategy?

Press releases at Southwest Airlines are widely read due to the SEO tactics employed by their people.

How does Southwest track sales directly attributable to their press releases?

February 2004 to April 2005, Southwest Airlines was able to directly track more than $2.5 million in online ticket sales to optimized press releases,

Why are search keywords important to press release campaigns?

Keywords are important because you need to know what people are searching for when they find you. Knowing the words people use to locate you is important to segment your marketing efforts.

How did Southwest optimize their press releases for search engines?

Southwest did not just do the standard metatag that a lot of company’s do, they effectively optimized headlines and body copy subtly for news search engines (LTU)

How did Southwest measure the success of their PR campaigns?

Southwest embedded unique URLs in their press releases that offered further information or linked consumers to the point-of-sale. This link provided a means for tracking sales directly attributable to the press releases. Southwest monitored the PR campaign efforts for 15 months (LTU).

How can PR campaigns influence or be influenced by other events involving the company?  Give an example outside of the Southwest case.

JC Penney totally revamped their marketing strategy this year and their sales plummeted. In order to get customers back into their stores, the company offered free back to school haircuts this fall. I am looking forward to the results of the holiday season to see how much the back to school haircut offer impacts business.

Works Cited

LTU. (n.d.). Retrieved September 23, 2012, from myltu.edu: https://my.ltu.edu/bbcswebdav/pid-408624-dt-content-rid-1710049_1/courses/2213-201310_MKT3053_OL/2213-201310_MKT3053_OL_ImportedContent_20120830112045/MOdules/SWA_GoldenRuler.pdf

Choosing a Vendor

What is the difference between your tool/solution and free tools from Yahoo! And Google?

Clicky is available for less than $100 per month ad offers information in real time. You can see what users are looking at, while they are looking at it. You can post a new banner or contest offer and witness immediately if people are clicking on it (Skute). 

Are you 100% ASP, or do you offer a software version? Are you planning a software version?

Clicky does not, and does not seem to have plans to offer a software version.

What data capture mechanisms do you use?

This is not divulged.

Can you calculate the total cost of ownership for your tool?

The site indicates the cost of their tool at $159.99 per year for their Pro-Platinum pack, which allows users to track up to 30 different sites. Clicky also has a free version of their software available (Clicky).

What kind of support do you offer? What do you include for free and what costs more? Is it free 24/7?

Clicky is a small company and takes user questions via email only, so it is free, but not available 24/7. (Clicky).

What features in your tool allow me to segment the data?

Clicky has a filtering option that allows users to segment data (clicky.com)

What options do I have for exporting data from your system into our company.’

The Clicky site does not have any information is regards to being able to export data from them.

Clicky’s free version may be worth trying, just to see what it is all about, but I would not purchase it. I do not like the idea that you cannot export the data and there is no customer service number that you can call if you are having issues. When I have an issue, I prefer to talk to a person.

 

Works Cited

Clicky. (n.d.). Retrieved September 23, 2012, from getclicky.com: http://getclicky.com/help/api#/help/technical

Skute, I. (n.d.). About Analytics. Retrieved September 23, 2012, from aboutanalytics.com: http://www.aboutanalytics.com/roxr-software/clicky

Guidelines for measuring relationships in PR

How does the organization maintain good relationships with its audience?

Amazon maintains good relationships with their audience by offering reasonable prices, fast shipping, and outstanding customer service (they were ranked #1 in an msn customer service survey (Aho, 2012).

How might it measure those efforts to maintain its relationships?

Why is it important to measure those relationships?

Amazon may address customer relationship management by tracking the number of repeat customers they have and seeing what common factors exist among them.

It is important for Amazon to measure these relationships so they can adjust their strategy accordingly. The results may indicate that their target audience is much different than they had originally thought.

What is the value of those good relationships to the organization?

The value of good relationships can be measured in repeat business, multiple referrals, and brand loyalty. Consumers want to do business with companies they feel they can trust.

What might be the organizations appropriate goals? Explain why they would be appropriate goals.

An appropriate goal for Amazon would be to increase their revenues. Increasing revenues is an achievable goal because of their positive reputation, fair shipping rates, and low prices.

What might be the outcomes of these successful relationships and how might they be measured?

The outcome of successful relationships can be measured by both increased revenue and repeat customers. Increasing revenue results in happy investors.

Works Cited

Aho, K. (2012). MSN. Retrieved September 23, 2012, from msn.com: http://money.msn.com/investing/2012-customer-service-hall-of-fame-1

h012/q2-si_26.aspx

Content Analysis

How does the public currently perceive your company?

The company that I am choosing to highlight for this post is Macy’s. Macy’s reputation is as an upscale department store that has a famous Thanksgiving Parade every year.

What messages are being conveyed?

Going to the Macy’s website (www.macys.com) the message the user receives is that there is an upcoming Saturday sale and free shipping on orders over $99.

Are these in line with what is being sent from the company itself?

As a frequent Macy’s shopper, I can confirm that the website message is consistent with the email and print advertising they have recently sent out.

Do you think the PR & marketing is effective? Why or why not?

I know that Macy’s marketing is effective on me, and judging that their sales are up as of the second quarter, I am not the only one (Macys).

Macy’s is really good about sending loyal cardholders special coupons on a regular basis. The coupons in addition to the sales prices make for a much more affordable trip than their regular prices do.

Works Cited

Macys. (n.d.). Retrieved September 23, 2012, from macys.com: http://www.macysinc.com/for-investors/financial-information/quarterly-results/2012/q2-si_26.aspx