joi, 8 octombrie 2015

Mish's Global Economic Trend Analysis

What's the #1 Predictor of Success in Love?
Chicago Suburbs $1 Million+ Home Sales "Not Totally Dead" Yet; Rush for the Exit
Apple's Balance Sheet Math: Does Apple Really Have $203 Billion in Usable Cash on Hand as Widely Reported?
China's Forex Reserves Drop Most On Record: What Does It Mean? Inflation Tsunami?

What's the #1 Predictor of Success in Love?

Posted: 08 Oct 2015 07:28 PM PDT

Here's an interesting article that just came my way from the Washington Post. It's about success in love. Please consider The One Number that's Eerily Good at Predicting Success in Love.

When people are looking for a significant other, they often try to find someone whose values, education, earnings, hobbies and even height match their own. But new research suggests there's one promising measure for finding a committed partner that most daters overlook -- credit scores.

A new working paper from the Federal Reserve Board that looks at what role credit scores play in committed relationships suggests that daters might want to start using the metric as well.

The paper analyzed a large proprietary data set of 12 million randomly selected U.S. consumers from the credit reporting agency Equifax over a period of about 15 years. Researchers used an algorithm to find a swathe of committed couples, including some who live together and are not legally married.

They found that people with higher (i.e. better) credit scores are more likely to form a committed relationship, as the chart below shows. This was true even after controlling for other differences between partners, like education level, race or income.

The researchers also found that having higher credit scores when they started the relationship meant that couples were less likely to separate over the next few years, as the chart below shows. In fact, for every extra 100 points in the couple's average credit score when beginning the relationship, their odds of splitting in the second year fell by around 30 percent.

Couples in general are more likely than two randomly selected people to have similar credit scores. Over time, the credit scores of couples actually tend to converge, the study found, from about 55 points to about 22 points over the first four years of the relationship. But if the gap between the individual credit scores was wider at the beginning of their relationship, the couple was more likely to break up as time went on, the researchers found.

Trust But Verify

"What's your sign?" is so 60ish passé. Today, you need to ask "What's your credit score?" in some sort of polite manner, of course.

You could also get right to the nitty-gritty and pay for a credit search.

Practical Tip

In the "trust but verify" category I offer this tip on what not to say: "Sweetie, what's your social security number? I need it to do a credit check on you."

Mike "Mish" Shedlock

Chicago Suburbs $1 Million+ Home Sales "Not Totally Dead" Yet; Rush for the Exit

Posted: 08 Oct 2015 12:38 PM PDT

"Not Totally Dead" Yet

In the Chicago suburbs of Burr Ridge, Naperville, and Hinsdale, sales of high-end real estate hit a huge slump this summer that still continues.

For example, Crain's Chicago reports the city of Burr Ridge, has 100 homes on the market for at least $1 million, but only 14 have sold at that price in the past six months.

Crain's Chicago has the details in This suburb has too many $1 million-plus homes for sale (emphasis mine).

"It's been disquietingly slow, brutally slow getting these sold," said Linda Feinstein, the broker owner of ReMax Signature Homes in neighboring Hinsdale. "It feels like the brakes have been on for months."

Sales slowed down all over the Chicago area this summer, and sometimes potential sellers don't get the message soon enough, which creates an over-stock of inventory.

"It's not as busy as we'd all like it to be, but it's not totally dead," said Dave Ricordati, a Coldwell Banker agent with three $1 million-plus listings, the newest of which has been on the market since July. "I mean, it's not 2009 or 2010," when the real estate market was at a virtual standstill.

Another factor in the backlog, said Linda Saracco, a ReMax Signature agent who's been working Burr Ridge for over 30 years, is that "a lot of our sellers are baby boomers who bought in the '80s or '90s, built up a lot of equity in their homes and are ready to cash it in."

When the market doesn't deliver a buyer who's willing to pay the price they want, "they're not taking it. They'll wait and see if they can get their number."

Her prediction: They won't.

Ready to Cash In But No Buyers

I have to commend ReMax agent Linda Saracco for her accurate, honest assessment "They won't [get their price]".

This is precisely what happens when everyone heads for the exit door at the same time.

Case-Shiller Chicago Update

The Crain's report got me thinking about the most recent Case-Shiller Home Price Update.

Let's put a spotlight on Chicago where things are also "not totally dead" .... yet.

Chicago Year-Over-Year-Price Changes

Chicago Home Price Index

Chicago had a huge boom followed by a huge bust that never quite recovered.

Economic Rot vs. Home Price Rot

Unlike overall economic weakness that starts at the periphery and spreads to the core, real estate rot frequently starts at the high end as buyers balk.

Each drop in high-end prices progressively hits the next lower home price group level.

Illinois Rush

A rush for the exit in Illinois is underway. And why shouldn't there be one? Who can really afford such prices anyway?

Certainly not millennials with a mountain of student debt or those stuck in low-wage jobs.

A major part of the problem is the overall set of asset bubbles thanks to loosey-goosey policies at the Fed.

But why a rush to the exit in Illinois and not everywhere?

In Illinois, we have a second problem: State of Illinois policies.

Oh Come Oh Come Emanuel

No, I won't do a musical tribute with that title (accepting your thanks in advance). But Mayor Rahm Emanuel is crazy if he thinks tax hikes are the way out of Chicago's fiscal mess.

Yet, on September 23, I noted Chicago Tax Collector Hath Arrived With Massive Tax Hike: Emanuel Says "No Stone Unturned"

Worse yet, Emanuel says he's "Not Done Yet [hiking taxes]" and he will leave "no stone unturned" in the search for revenues.

Bet Your Bottom Dollar

You can bet your last dollar on this: When politicians promise to raise your taxes, they will, and by more than they say.

Emanuel will raise property taxes by the most in Chicago history. And that's not going to affect property values or the desire to cash out? What Fantasyland is Emanuel living in?

It's not just Chicago. Illinois has a litany of problems that make people want to leave. Citizens want to leave. And they will.

But not at the property prices they expect.

Mish Proposal

On May 4, in Beware, the Tax Man Has Eyes on YouI wrote ...

To spare the citizens of Illinois massive tax hikes, the only reasonable course of actions are as follows:

Halt defined benefit pension plans for new employees
Eliminate collective bargaining of public unions
Scrap Davis Bacon and all prevailing wage laws so that cities do not have to overpay for services
Enact right-to-work legislation
Pass bankruptcy legislation allowing cities, municipalities, and other taxing bodies the right to declare bankruptcy

Had options 1-4 been done a decade ago, Illinois would not be as bad off as it is today. Now, even those measures cannot and will not fix the problems.

Advice Not Accepted

The tax man did not listen. He never does.

Related Articles

On March 2, I noted Illinois Pension Plans 39% Funded; Taxpayers On the Hook for $105 Billion in Liabilities; It Will Get Worse!

On April 1, I noted the Shockingly Bad Fiscal Health of Chicago (and the Financial Engineering Chicago Uses to Hide that Fact).

On September 29, Illinois Policy Institute Vice President Michael Lucci noted Food Stamp Growth Outpaces Illinois Job Creation 5-4 During Recovery.

Get Me the Hell Out of Here

Finally, please consider my August 13 article Get Me the Hell Out of Here.

Policies in Illinois are to hugely blame for this "rush to the exit" by businesses and ordinary taxpayers alike.

The net business flight and high-end wealth flight from Illinois to other states will now accelerate thanks to policies in the city of Chicago and the state of Illinois in general.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock

Apple's Balance Sheet Math: Does Apple Really Have $203 Billion in Usable Cash on Hand as Widely Reported?

Posted: 08 Oct 2015 10:56 AM PDT

Apple's latest 10-Q quarterly filing shows that it has nearly $203 billion in cash or cash-equivalents.

10-Q Page 31

Current Assets

Diving into a more colorful Nasdaq Summation I made the following clips (highlights in yellow are mine).

Totaling actual cash, short-term investments, and over $168 billion in long-term investments, we arrive at the $202.848 billion number on the 10-Q.

Current Liabilities

Cash Much Smaller Than You Think

I don't often dive into balance sheets, but did so after reading a Market-Watch opinion by Brett Arends.

Arends writes Apple's real cash pile is 99% smaller than you think.

Actually I can quibble with that number a bit, but right off the top one can easily subtract liabilities to get a better picture of what Apple really has.

Subtract all the liabilities and you are at $55.374 billion.

That's a very good number, but a far cry from media hype. For example CNN Money points out Apple has $203 billion in cash.

The title is "technically" accurate, but CNN Money ignores the debt while making the claims "It's fair to wonder why Apple needs all this cash. It's one thing to save for a rainy day. But Apple seems to be acting like Noah and preparing for a 40-day flood. Apple may face even more pressure to do something productive with its $200 billion war chest instead of letting it collect dust in Ireland and other tax havens."

Tax Haven Math

Returning to the 10-Q we see this note: "As of June 27, 2015 and September 27, 2014, the Company's cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities held by foreign subsidiaries were $181.1 billion and $137.1 billion, respectively, and are generally based in U.S. dollar-denominated holdings. Amounts held by foreign subsidiaries are generally subject to U.S. income taxation on repatriation to the U.S."

Arends points out the tax liability on that $181.1 billion held offshore is $59.2 billion.

Maybe there is another tax repatriation holiday, but maybe not. And if not, there is another $59.2 billion liability to deal with.

In short, Apple could not spend its alleged cash-on-hand without going deeper in debt.

Some of the numbers I took from Nasdaq do not precisely match Arends'. For example, he notes $31.5 billion in "off-balance-sheet" liabilities. That's a number suspiciously close to $31.296 billion in "other liabilities" as noted in my clips.

If "off-balance-sheet" is not included in my totals, then subtract another $31.5 billion.

Distortions of Reality

The key point is that all of these glowing "cash-on-hand" reports that you read are distortions of reality.

The primary distortion is reported cash positions ignore debt. I have gone through this exercise before, and after subtracting liabilities, US corporations actually have negative net cash in aggregate.

The secondary distortion, as Arends points out, but I had not done so previously, is reported cash positions fail to take in tax liabilities.

The last time I conducted my analysis was in 2013, so perhaps it's time for an update. A small handful of companies actually have positive net cash. Apple was one of them then, and is one of them now.

Yes, companies in general could spend their reported cash numbers, but to do so would further leverage their balance sheets with debt.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock

China's Forex Reserves Drop Most On Record: What Does It Mean? Inflation Tsunami?

Posted: 08 Oct 2015 12:29 AM PDT

Bloomberg reports China's Foreign Reserves Post Record Quarterly Drop on Yuan.

China's foreign-exchange reserves fell by a record in the third quarter as the central bank sold dollars to support the yuan after a surprise Aug. 11 devaluation sparked the currency's steepest slide in two decades.

The stockpile plunged by $180 billion in the three months through September to $3.51 trillion, according to Bloomberg calculations based on data released by the People's Bank of China on Wednesday.

China's Forex Reserves

Note that China's Forex reserves are down about $500 billion from the 2014 peak. So what's it mean?

"Bombshell Event of the Year"

Peter Schiff predicted a Bombshell Event in November of 2013.

Bombshell Quotes

The following "bombshell" quotes are from The Schiff Report (11/22/2013).

"If the Fed were to pull back, if it was to taper and eventually stop buying bonds, it's not only the absence of Fed buying that would crush the market, private buyers, particularly the leveraged speculators, why would anybody buy a 10-year treasury yielding what, 2.8%, or even a 30-year treasury at 3.9%, why would you do that?"

"But here's the biggest bombshell of the week, maybe of the year. While everybody was focusing their attention on what the Fed didn't even say, they were pretending the Fed said they were going to taper ... nobody paid attention to what China actually did say. Because China announced the mother of all tapering. China finally came out and admitted that a further expansion of their foreign currency reserves is no longer in China's interest."

"Now what does that mean? If China isn't going to expand its balance sheet anymore, that means it has to stop buying treasuries. .... [very long winded and incorrect analysis] ... The truth is, if China means what it says, the Fed is going to have to back up the truck. Not just not taper, but they are going to have to significantly increase the amount of monthly QE that they do, in order to pick up China's slack. That's what's going to happen in 2014. If Janet Yellen surprises me and tapers, she's going to be untapering quick, because she is going to have to pick up missing demand that the Chinese no longer supply."

"When China stops expanding its balance sheet, that also means that the Chinese currency is going to appreciate, and China said it will allow that appreciation to happen. ... US is going to get hit with a tsunami of inflation. ... I think we have broken the short-term downtrend in oil ... Consumers not only will have to deal with higher interest rates, they will also have higher fuel bills."

Remarkable Set of Wrong Predictions In One Video

Fed would not taper (Tapering finished)
No one would buy 10-year treasuries at 2.8% (yield is now 2.04%)
Fed would have to pick up slack when China stopped accumulating treasuries (Nope)
Downturn in oil over (Nope - clearly not then - perhaps now)
Higher fuel bills (Nope - clearly not then - perhaps now )
US consumers will see higher interest rates (Nope - But is the Fed going to hike now? Peter care to predict?)
Tsunami of inflation (Clearly laughable)
Yuan will appreciate when China stops buying treasuries (Nope - China had to prop up the yuan)

Painful Analysis

I believe we have a perfect 8-8, all from a single video.

That said, I agree with Schiff's view that QE was unwarranted. The reason is not that it would unleash a "tsunami of inflation" but rather QE helped spawn bubbles that will pop.

I also agree with Schiff on other things like free markets.

But, another round of asset deflation is coming (I believe Schiff would agree), and in such an environment there is no reason to expect treasury yields to soar.

China actually had to devalue the yuan because of market pressures. In August, Bloomberg phrased it this way "China Sells U.S. Treasuries to Support Yuan"

Capital flight in China is a huge problem, precisely where Schiff never would have thought.

And here's a final bit of icing that China bulls need to ponder: The yuan overtook Japan's yen to become the fourth most-used currency for global payments in August, rising to its highest ranking ever and boosting its claim for reserve status at the International Monetary Fund.

Drumroll ....

The proportion of transactions denominated in yuan climbed to a record 2.79 percent in August, from 2.34 percent in July, according to a Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunications statement on October 6, 2015.

Predictions

It is not easy to make predictions (especially about the future) to paraphrase Yogi Berra. I have made a number of questionable calls myself.

In 2013 I sided with the ECRI on a recession, but at least we had a slowdown. I have another US recession call in now. It may or may not happen, but I did call a Canadian recession right on the nose this year.

I called a top on the S&P 500 about 500 points ago. Oops. Painfully awful.

I failed to see how another round of QE would ignite the markets. In retrospect, it think much of what we see has more to do with ECB president Mario Draghi's "whatever it takes" speech than anything the Fed did. Regardless, I missed it.

I believe another asset bubble bust is around the bend. And if that is true, I fail to see how high inflation comes from it.

I did call the 2007 top within a few percent. And I remained steadfast throughout that hyperinflation or even high inflation was an absurdity. Yet, I liked gold, and still do (but without ever putting any price targets on it).

Beauty and accuracy is in the eyes of the beholder, but I point out my own mistakes or someone will do it for me.

As hard as it is to get everything right, it is equally difficult to get everything wrong. But there it is, in video form.

Bernanke is not the only one who needs to self-assess (see Ben Bernanke: Superman or Fool?). So do I, Peter Schiff, and everyone else in the industry, continually.

Inflation Tsunami?

Someday, one of these inflation tsunami calls will be correct, but I think we see another deflationary asset bubble burst first.

Given monstrous levels of debt at the consumer and corporate levels, given the US is not Brazil, and given poor demographic characteristics, I am waiting for an explanation as to how we get an asset bubble burst that results in an inflation tsunami. I did not understand in 2004, 2008, 2012, 2014, and I still don't know now.

Mike "Mish" Shedlock

Campaign Tracking Without Going Crazy: Keeping Order in AdWords Optimization - Moz Blog

Campaign Tracking Without Going Crazy: Keeping Order in AdWords Optimization

Posted by anthonycoraggio

Pay-per-click advertising generates vast amounts of data, which presents us with tremendous potential for optimization and success. However, this formidable sword cuts both ways—even skilled managers can quickly find themselves adrift if tests and changes are not carefully tracked. Here's a quick, actionable guide to keeping order in your AdWords account with a simple and professional activity log.

The philosophy of orderly management

Good Adwords management is an exacting science—every tweak and change made should be for a specific reason, with a particular goal in mind. Think in terms of the scientific method: we're always moving forward from hypothesis, to test, to result, and back again.

When it comes time to evaluate the results of these changes and iterate to the next step, it's very important to know exactly what changes were made (and when). Likewise, when the numbers break unexpectedly, it's vital to be able to eliminate as many variables as possible as quickly as possible in our analysis. Many of us operate in collaborative environments, so this information needs to be readily accessible.

To be able to do that, we need a system that defines when and where these changes happened, and clearly explains the nature of the change. Beyond that, we also need to keep it user-friendly for two very important reasons. First, many of us operate in collaborative environments, so this information needs to be readily accessible to teammates, supervisors, and clients that may need it. Second, it's vital to remember that the most elaborate, brilliantly-detailed tracking plan is going to be useless if you don't actually use it consistently. To get started building a good system, let's take a look at the tools we have at hand.

Tools of the trade

AdWords changelog

The first and most obvious tool that might come to mind is the Adwords native changelog, but this should be viewed as a tool of last resort in most cases. Anyone that has had to dig through that information line-by-line trying to diagnose an issue will tell you that it's less than optimal, even with the improved filtering options Google has provided. The crux of the issue here is that there is no indicator of intent—why was the change made? Was it a considered part of a test? What other changes were a part of the same move made?

That said, the changelog can be a handy feature when it comes to quick refreshers on a former budget cap or tracing a trend in bids—especially when downloaded to Excel. Just don't rely on it for everything!

Google Analytics annotations

This is our second UI option, and a key one. Obviously this isn't in AdWords itself (though that would be a lovely feature), but if you spend even half your time in online marketing, chances are you've got GA open in a second tab or window already! If you commit the effort to nothing else, do it for this. Placing annotations for major changes or tests doesn't only help you—it provides a touchpoint for anyone else that might need to look into traffic ups and downs, and can save hours of time in the future.. Note that I said "major"—remember that this is a shared system, and you can easily swamp it if you get too granular.

Spreadsheets

This is where most of my logs go, as proper coding and some simple filtering makes it a breeze to find the information you need quickly. I'll get into more detail on practical usage below, but basically this is where the when/where/why goes for future reference. My preference here is usually to use Google Sheets for the simple collaboration features, but you can do just as well with a shared Excel file on OneDrive.

Project management tools

Keeping your test tracking connected to and aligned with your project management tools is always wise. There are myriad project management software tools out there, but I favor agile PM for SEM applications—Trello, Jira, Mingle, Basecamp, and more are all useful. The key here is really that your activity and test logs are easily available wherever you keep project resources, and linked to from whatever cards or items are associated to a particular test. For example, if you have a task card titled "Client-128: A/B Ad Test For {Campaign>Ad Group}", note "per task Client-128" in your activity log and link directly to that card if your tool permits it. You can also link to the activity log from the card or a project resource file if you're using a cloud sheet, as in Google Docs Sheets.

Creating a system & putting it all together

Now you know all the tools—here's how to put them together. To get you started, there are two primary areas you'll want to address with your activity log: ongoing changes/optimizations, and major planned tests.

Tracking ongoing changes: the standard activity log

The standard activity log is your rock. It's the one point where the hundreds of changes and thoughts the human brain could never hope to perfectly recall will always be, ready to answer any question you (or your client, or your boss) might come up with down the line. An activity log should, at minimum, tell us the following:

What happened?
When did it happen?
Who was involved?
Why did it happen?

If I notice an inflection point on a particular graph starting on 9/28 and need more information, I should be able to go back and see that User X paused out Campaign Y that morning, because they had spoken with the client and learned that budget was to be shifted out to Campaign Z. Instant context, and major time saved! If I want to know more, I know who to ask and how to ask the right question for a quick and productive conversation.

Ongoing optimizations and relatively small changes can stack up very quickly over time, so we also want to be sure that it's an easy system to sort through. This is part of why I prefer to use a spreadsheet, and recommend including a couple columns for simple filtering and searching. Placing a unique sequential ID on every item gives you a reliable point of return if you muddle up the order or dates, and a note indicating the type and magnitude of the change makes searching for the highlights far easier.

Anything you can do with your chosen tool to simplify and speed up the process is fair game, as long as you can reasonably expect others to understand what you've put in there. Timestamp hotkeys and coded categories (e.g. "nkw" denoting a negative keyword expansion) in particular can save headaches and encourage compliance. Finally, always keep your logs open. It's easy to forget early on, and dragging your cursor through just a few extra clicks to open them back up when you're in the zone can be a bigger obstacle than you might expect!

Formal test tracking

When you're conducting formal A/B or multivariate tests in your account, a higher standard of documentation is a good idea. Even if you're not presenting this to a client formally, put together a quick line of data detailing the following for every major test you plan and execute:

Purpose. Every test should have a reason behind it. Documenting this is a good exercise in holding yourself to account on smart testing in general, but this is most important for future analysis and test iterations—it's what sets up the "why."
Hypothesis. Marketers have a reputation for playing fast and loose with statistical methods, but remember that for results you can trust, you should have a falsifiable hypothesis. Again, get this down so you can say what exactly your results do and do not prove.
Procedure. Exactly what it sounds like—what did you do in implementing this test? You need to record what the controlled and experimental variables were, so you can appropriately account for what might have influenced your results and what might be worth trying again differently in the future.
Results. Again, easy—what was the outcome? Don't be stingy with the details here; confidence level, effect size, and the actual ad copy or landing page that was tested should be recorded for posterity and later reference.

I like putting at least the hypothesis and results in a combined test results spreadsheet for quick future reference. Over time, as people shift through roles, what was tested a year ago can quickly fade from organizational memory. When planning your next test, you need to be able to quickly go back and see if it's been done before, and whether it's worth trying again. I've seen a lot of wasted duplication of effort in companies I've consulted for this exact reason—don't let that be you!

I also recommend plugging in a quick line in my standard activity log for each action on a test (i.e. launched, finalized, paused), since these are often pretty high-impact changes and it's helpful to have this information in your go-to spot.

Make it work

I'll close with a brief reiteration of what I believe is the most important part of activity logging and test tracking: actually doing it. Internal adoption of any new tool or process is almost always the toughest hurdle (ask anyone who's ever overseen a CRM implementation). As with any habit, there are a few simple behaviors that can help you make good tracking practices a reliable part of your routine:

Start small. It won't hurt to start by logging just the biggest, most important activities. You'll have an easier time remembering to do it, and you'll soon start doing it for more and more tweaks automatically.
Be accountable. Even if you're the only one touching the account, tell someone else what you're doing and ask them to check in on you. There's nothing like social accountability to reinforce a behavior!
Have a goal in mind. If you don't feel a sense of purpose in what you're doing, you're probably just not going to do it. Make a pact with yourself or your team that you'll review your activity logging one week from when you start and share thoughts and ideas on improving it. You've then got a clear and present point of reference for success and moving forward.

Do you have any favorite tricks or tactics for keeping good track of your SEM campaigns? Share them with us in the comments!

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How E-commerce Sites Make Their Content Work

Posted: 06 Oct 2015 02:00 AM PDT

Over the last year content marketing has really taken off for e-commerce sites. More businesses are wanting to relish the benefits of producing creative content.

I'm not just referring to the product descriptions, but other more exciting forms of content like product tutorials and user-generated content. It's this type of content that helps you to differentiate your brand from your competitors. Price is of course a big factor in a shopper’s decision-making process but there are other factors that help to influence a user’s decision.

In this blog post I have looked at how a number of successful e-commerce brands have used the power of content to their advantage. Read on to find out about some of the techniques used by AO, Decathlon and others…

Product tutorials

AO

Videos are a great way to demonstrate how your product works; AO have published their own range that feature on their product pages. They have a mixture of product specific videos for each individual product but they also have a set of standard videos that feature on product categories. For example, for their washing machine product pages they have generic videos like 'what is a sports cycle?' to help explain the key features of the machines they sell.

Top tips: When producing videos, think about what common questions you are asked by consumers and conduct some basic keyword research into what your shoppers are searching for. Whilst the videos can feature on product pages it might be worth also including this content in the form of a blog post to attract long tail traffic. With so much choice available online, e-commerce shoppers tend to conduct a fair amount of research before they buy a product.

Remember: Google isn't able to crawl video content so it's important that you include transcripts of your videos so that Google is able to crawl the content; also your videos should be optimised with unique titles and descriptions.

User generated content

Oasis

User-generated content is becoming increasingly popular. Companies are now encouraging shoppers to become part of their brands content marketing story. Online retailers like Oasis are taking full advantage of their customers’ love for good clothes and their willingness to share their experiences and trends. Shoppers want to see that real people like them are buying the products.

Oasis frequently run competitions where they ask their customers to share a photo of themselves sporting their latest purchase for a chance to win a prize. This creates a more visual way for shoppers to review their purchases.

Snazaroo

Another great example is from Snazaroo who have created an online community to help inspire their customers. They encourage their customers to share their experiences with their face paints in order to inspire other shoppers. In turn this naturally helps to promote their products and enhances their brand perception.

Want to take advantage of user generated content? Check out Hubspot’s blog post which has a wealth of examples of user generated content to inspire you!

Customer Images

Decathlon

Everyone loves great photography but sometimes we want to see what the product looks like in the flesh without all its airs and graces edited out. A great example of this in practice is from Decathlon. They supplement the standard professional pictures of their products with authentic images that have been sent in by their customers. This is not only a great way to increase the number of images you have of a product but to also to help their customers make an informed decision.

Product reviews

Freederm

90% of customers are influenced by online reviews, so it's clear to see why product reviews are so important. We know why they are important but do we know the best way to present them? Whilst it's great to have the standard star rating and the reviews that people can leave, retailers don't have control of how people view these testimonials.

What if these reviews were hand picked and had more context to them? Freederm have created a visual aid to help display one of their customer's reviews. This helps visitors feel more comfortable with their decision because they can see what it has worked for others.

Guides

Mothercare

Sometimes the content on your product pages just isn't enough for those further down in the purchase cycle. These shoppers often require more information to help aid their decision. Some shoppers need a little more information to help solve their problem before they know exactly what product is right for them. Guides are a great way to aid the decision making process and equip visitors with enough information that will inspire them to make a decision.

Mothercare have a section dedicated to guides on their product ranges like car seats and pushchairs. They have identified that shoppers need this information and have provided helpful information to help them make informed decisions.

Top tip: When creating guides make them as informative and as engaging as possible. No one wants to read blocks of content so it's wise to split the guide into important sections and include visual aids like graphics and images.

Remember: Although Google can crawl PDF documents you ideally don't want these pages to be indexed. From a user perspective, when you land on a PDF there is no option for the visitor to continue their journey back to your site. You should have a dedicated landing page that hosts your PDFS so visitors can open the PDF documents without having to leave your site. Alternatively you should do what Mothercare have done and host the guides on a page.

Navigation

Fitbit

Content within your main navigation must be useful but it doesn't have to be boring. I am starting to see a number of online retailers use icons or even images within their main navigation to make it easy for visitors to find what they are looking for.

Visual presentations are perfect ways to help your visitors find what they want. A perfect example of this is demonstrated by Fitbit. This is perfect for those who have seen a Fitbit and know what it looks like but aren't aware of the model.

Educational content

Fitbit

To help shoppers make informed buying decisions it's important that you have content that helps to not only sell the product but help them buy into your company. It's also a great way for shoppers to get to know your brand and start a relationship with you. A great example of this is by Fitbit, they have created an educational centre that creates a hub for those that have a Fitbit. Not only will this help to attract new customers it helps to retain existing customers and gives them a reason to come back to your site.

Top tip: The majority of products people purchase fit into their lifestyle and are chosen for a reason. Creating content that assists with their lifestyles means you can foster a longer relationship with these shoppers.

Editorial content

Asos

Just because you're an e-commerce business it doesn't mean shoppers won't be interested in learning more about your products, your business and any other relevant information. In order to get this content noticed it needs to be presented in the right way.

Asos is a great example of how to present this type of content. They promote content that will be relevant to their shoppers like the latest trends and other relevant information that will keep shoppers coming back. This helps to make your marketing effective in the long term because you're constantly trying to grab your shopper's attention and help to answer their questions.

Creating valuable content is more than writing a unique product description. Shoppers want more than just your products, they want your expertise and advice. Creating exciting pieces of content like my hand selected examples have done, will help you attract first time customers and retain existing ones.

Do you have any good examples of how e-commerce sites are taking advantage of the power of content? If so, please leave me a comment below with your recommendations.

The post How E-commerce Sites Make Their Content Work appeared first on White.net.

Seth's Blog : Going to the edges

Going to the edges

The best restaurant in Omaha doesn't serve steak. And it's not a chain.

The Kitchen Table is run by two people who care. Colin and Jessica aren't trying to copy what's come before and they're not trying to please everyone.

When they first opened, people wanted to know why everything wasn't $5. (You can get a large dinner for two for $30 here). Instead of dumbing down the menu and averaging down on quality, they went the other way. There might be other restaurants in Nebraska that serve homemade dukkah on their salads and homemade sourdough bread with their sandwiches, but I don't know of any. And I think homemade watermelon rind pickles are scarce even in New York.

It helps that the rent is (really) cheap on the big city rent scale. It helps that the two people behind the restaurant live upstairs and are willing to put their hearts into it.

Now, the place is jammed most days for lunch, and dinner is almost as busy. Now, it's an 'of course', not a crazy scheme. It's a restaurant for people like us.

The reason that this is possible now, though, is that the 'us' in "people like us do things like this," can now more easily communicate with each other. A few clicks on the magical phone in your pocket and you can find this place... if you're looking for it.

And that's the secret to thriving on the edges: Build something that people will look for, something that people will talk about, something we would miss if it were gone.

Not for everyone.

For us.

• Email to a friend •

miercuri, 7 octombrie 2015

Damn Cool Pics

This Is What First Class Looked Like In The 50s
The Beginners Guide To Eating Vietnamese Food
Mount Everest Is Truly A Magical Place

This Is What First Class Looked Like In The 50s

Posted: 07 Oct 2015 01:13 PM PDT

Nowadays first class isn't much to write home about. Sure, you get extra leg room but is it really worth all that extra money? Back in the 50s it wasn't uncommon for first class sections to look like they were hosting a party in the sky.

The Beginners Guide To Eating Vietnamese Food

Posted: 07 Oct 2015 12:07 PM PDT

Vietnamese food offers a lot of excellent dishes if you know what you're looking for. Take a second to educate yourself on Vietnamese food so that you can enjoy the finer things in life when the time comes.

Mount Everest Is Truly A Magical Place

Posted: 07 Oct 2015 11:53 AM PDT

Mt. Everest is a mountain that only the brave can climb. Standing at over 29,000 feet the mountain has claimed the lives of many, but it offers rich and rewarding views to anyone who has what it takes to make it to the top.