Biznology

I’ve thoroughly enjoyed participating in the Web Globalization conference, happening today and tomorrow here in Boston. Several companies with multinational Web sites have presented case studies and many of the same issues seem to crop up. Content management is critical, but even more important is understanding your customers in each country, and developing good relationships with your Web team in every market.
One of the most interesting discussions revolved around how some people consider themselves both marketing and technical—a rarity a few years ago when I started feeling that way about myself. My opinion is that the influence of direct marketing on the Web is making marketers more analytical, and the Web is making technical people more customer-oriented, both of which bring marketers and technologists together.
I’m slated to give a presentation on how the Web is changing marketing, so click that link to get the slides.

You’ve all heard of Craig’s List, which allows most classified ads to be run for free, and is 25% owned by eBay. And you know about Google Base, a beta offering from Google that some have termed an “eBay killer,” because it allows sellers to post items for free. Now comes a new version of classified ads from Denmark, coming from a surprising source—a leading Danish newspaper publisher. And it’s free, too.

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I spent a great day in Copenhagen today at the Search Marketing Strategies conference from the Danish e-Business Association (FDIH). A slate of excellent speakers, headed by Andreas Weigend (former Chief Scientist at Amazon), and Phillip Schindler (Director at Google).
I gave two different presentations to the 200 attendees, Search Marketing Growth and Search Marketing Master Class, There were a few knowing smiles in the audience when I told them that the direct marketers have the edge over brand marketers on the Web.
But I had the most fun sharing the panel session with Andreas and Phillip. Several questions centered around how large companies can make the changes required for Internet marketing, and each of us gave similar advice. I told them, of course, to Do It Wrong Quickly, but Andreas and Phillip provided similar advice on taking a guess and fixing it later (Andreas called it “launch and learn), which was great. Andreas commented to me privately that it’s great to see what people agree on—we all were preaching the same approach and explaining how Amazon, Google, and IBM have succeeded with it.

Last night, I had the pleasure of speaking to the New Jersey Chapter of the American Marketing Association. It was great to visit with people who are confronting the changes in marketing brought by the Internet and working out the impact in their businesses. I fielded lots of good questions on how to get started, especially with small businesses.

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If you live in the New York or northern New Jersey area, there’s still time to sign up for two events next week. On November 7, I’ll be speaking at a dinner given by the American Marketing Association in Bridgewater, New Jersey, on the subject of The New Internet Marketing. Learn how blogs, wikis, podcasts, and more can jump-start your Internet marketing efforts. Non-members are welcome.
The very next evening, November 8, I’ll be teaching an inexpensive search marketing course for the Learning Annex in New York City, called Search Engine Secrets.
I’d love to meet you, so come out if you are in the area.