Latest News From Rake Mark Solutions

Tickets for Staffordshire Festival Sell Out in Record Time

08 March 2010

Organisers for this year V Festival at Weston Park near Stafford, Staffordshire have announced that the tickets sold out within one and half hours.

<h2>Essex and Staffordshire</h2>

The festival is held annually at two venues, Chelmsford in Essex and Weston Park near Stafford in Staffordshire, on the same weekend and the acts play alternate days at each venue. This year Kasabian and Kings of Leon are headlining the festival.

Bad Website Design Can Cost £5.65 Billion

05 March 2010

Poorly performing websites are costing retailers as much as £5.65 billion per year in online sales according to a joint press release from by Hostway and Zeus Technology where they detail research they have commissioned. The research reveals ongoing user frustrations with slow loading multimedia website content

The survey used the abandon rate, which is where a customer starts to make a purchase but then fails to complete it, to calculate the £5.65 billion figure of online loss. The 2,033 consumers revealed an average abandon rate of 5.5 online transactions per person surveyed over the last 12 months. Recent sales figures have which showed UK consumers spending an average £30 per transaction and UK online sales increasing over 12% for 2009.

Website Traffic To Continue Growing

“Online traffic will continue to grow, so it’s important that retailers ensure that their websites are scalable enough to cope with large visitor numbers and large amounts of multimedia content. The latest traffic management solutions can help ensure that retailers are able to provide the best possible online experience, even allowing them to inspect and route traffic based on visitor type and profile. All of which can improve the speed and responsiveness of their websites,” commented Graham Moore, e-retail specialist at Zeus Technology.

Although the £5.65 billion is probably higher than the actual figure lost through abandoned transactions the survey brought up some interesting statistics regarding the use of large video and image files as part of the website design. 70% of the people surveyed said they were frustrated by how long it takes many websites to load images, and by the start stop nature of multimedia web content. When asked what was the biggest user frustration when visiting websites, ‘web pages taking too long to load’ (46%) was cited at the biggest complaint. This was followed by ‘online advertising’ (24%), ‘poor website navigation’ (16%) and ‘bad web links’ (13%).

The research also revealed that a massive 82% of consumers said that if a business’ website performed badly it would dissuade them from buying goods from that organisation on the web or even in store. This clearly demonstrates the importance of having a good online perception and the need for retailers to ensure their online customer experience is a positive one.

Finally a cost for bad webite design

As we have discussed in a recent blog article about making websites more effective, substance over style should not be considered good website design. This research seems to not only support this view but puts a multi billion pound price tag on good design.

The online survey of 2,033 British consumers was commissioned by Hostway and Zeus Technology and was conducted by independent research company TNS.

Britons Wasting Billions on Gadgets

03 March 2010

A national survey of 3,000 people has shown that the British public is wasting £52 billion every year on gadgets that they don't know how to work. The study by Stuff Magazine reports the average annual spend on electronic devices is £3,065, but as much as half of the functionality is left unused.

Unbelievably, almost half of those surveyed didn't realise that a HD TV needs to be connected to an HD set top box to see the benefits with 2 in 100 thinking you needed HD ready eyesight. If this was on April fools day, you wouldn't believe it.

Stuff magazine's editor, Fraser Macdonald, said:
"It's amazing how much money people are wasting by not using things to their full potential.

"An HD TV is an essential purchase, for example, but it'll be so much better if you hook it up to a decent HD set-top box, such as a Sky+ HD box, a Blu-ray player and a surround sound speaker set-up."

Divided Nation

Glaswegians only managed to use 47% of their functions available on their gadgets with Staffordshire city Wolverhampton coming top, using 80%. The old gender divide was also evident with 63% of women reading the instructions but only 54% of men. Men were also only half as likely to seek help if their technology failed.

Think Marketing Not Advertising

24 February 2010

Advertising often fails to deliver for companies with low marketing budgets, but small businesses keep asking about sources of cheap advertising. Advertising can be a useful tool but small business with a low or micro budget need to think in terms of free or low cost, effort based marketing. Marketing that doesn't need much money but does require effort.

Ultra Low Cost Effort Marketing Tools

1. Press Releases
There are free press release websites that you can load press releases to and you can contact your local newspaper with items of interest. If you have been going 10 years, tell them. New product lines, send out a release. Keep it interesting and to the point.

2. Blogging
You’re on the web so set up a free account at blogger.com and start writing about the things you do. Make it personal and interesting.

3. Twitter
So if you are blogging then try micro blogging. Set up a free account. Follow a few people who are interested in your business (search twitter for those users) and then try to write a few tweets of your own. Be upbeat and amusing. Tweet a few times per day if you can. People will start to follow you.

4. Facebook
Again, it’s free. Set up an account and start a fan page. You can upload photos or your products or designs and get feedback on them.

5. Personal Representation
This is not for the faint hearted but can pay real dividends. Try to put yourself in front of as many people as possible. Try contacting local organisations either on the phone or in person. All you have to do is stick out your hand, introduce yourself and explain why you're there.

Read the full Article

Cyber War Declared on Penguin News Website

22 February 2010

Numerous news sources are reporting that the Penguin News Website has a new design. The website was attacked by Argentinian hackers who put a new website design of the Argentinian flag on the home page with their national anthem playing. The Faulkland Island newspaper has a circulation of about 1500 so would seem to be pretty easy prey and wouldn't normally raise more than an ironic smirk from the Argantians or an eyebrow from the British. But with tensions rising over oil rights in the region and The Sun Newspaper raising a lather this is bound to become more than a one day story.

The content has now been removed and the original website design has been restored. Will this be the end of it or will this froth up into sabre rattling or worse?

Reward Offered to Catch Fly Tippers at Cannock Chase Beauty Spot

10 February 2010

Selfish fly tippers are ruining an area of natural beauty at Cannock Chase in Staffordshire. The situation is so bad that a reward is being offered to help catch those responsible after water tanks and other plumbing materials where being dumped by the side of the road for the fourth time in six weeks in Norton Lane, between Cannock and Norton Canes.

Many people from Stafford and Cannock and the surrounding area of Staffordshire enjoy the beautiful country side and this is being put in jeopardy. Covert surveillance is now being used in an attempt to catch the culprits but the public’s help is needed. Councillor Tony Williams has said “Cannock Chase Council has a zero tolerance attitude in the battle against fly tippers and we will always prosecute where there is sufficient evidence.”
Fly tipping can be reported with time and date of the incident, location, description of waste, vehicle registration, and a description of the fly tippers on 01543 462621 or visit http://www.cannockchasedc.gov.uk/site/index.php A reward of £100 is on offer for information which then leads to successful prosecution.

Rake Mark Launch Business Facebook Page

03 February 2010

In line with our Social Media blogging focus for 2010, Rake Mark have launched a New Business Facebook Page. This will be used to keep you updated on company activities, new articles (both news and blogs), new products and information that will help guide you through the process of the change in your marketing mix.

From here you can participate in discussions, comment on posts and we are also inviting you to ask questions (which we will happlily answer for you online)

To follow our business pages please Become a fan here

Joined Up Marketing Will Pay Dividends

03 August 2009

A new study by iProspect has demonstrated just how effective using offline marketing to influence your online presence can be. The study states that 40% of online searchers make a purchase after being influenced by an offline channel? 'Offline marketing effects online sales', is npt an attention grabbing headline, but 40% is a newsworthy figure.

While other studies and news articles around at the moment all seem to be targeting online marketing, the study by iProspect demonstrates how a joined up marketing mix pays dividends. Pay per click, blogging and social media are all grabbing marketing headlines, taking up the bloggers interest and generally doing the rounds. Like the tech bubble of the late 90s is this report showing us that online marketing is starting to froth into a bubble and its time to rethink?

The iProspect study asked users what prompted them to search online for a particular company, product, service or slogan. The results were:

Television advertisement: 44%
Word of Mouth: 41%
Magazine/Newspaper Advertisement: 35%
Radio: 23%
Billboard: 13%

One commentator said "These figures provide a signpost to digital marketers. They show the importance of knowing the strengths and compatibilities of all channels..."

One thing is now clear, regardless of how popular or important your online marketing becomes, offline needs to a considered part of your marketing mix.

Twitter and Facebook Big Winners in New Report

15 July 2009

A new study from ComScore has shown that there are winners and losers in the world of social media. Facebook again recorded the lion’s share of visitors with 23.8 million visitors, an increase of 57%. Twitter showed a modest 2.7 million visitors, but the exciting part of this is that Twitter showed an increase of over 3000%.

Bebo, MySpace and Friends Reunited all showed a loss of visitors and it is becoming clearer to marketers where to concentrate their efforts when promoting their products in the social networking arena.

Top 10 Social Networking SitesRanked by Total U.K. Unique Visitors (000)* May 2009 vs. May 2008 Total U.K., Age 15+ - Home & Work Locations Source: comScore World Metrix
Property	May-08	May-09	% Change
Total U.K. Internet Audience	34,489	36,855	7
Social Networking	27,118	29,444	9
Facebook.com	15,195	23,860	57
Bebo	11,895	8,546	-28
Windows Live Profile	N/A	6,891	N/A
MySpace Sites	8,335	6,531	-22
Twitter.com	80	2,670	3,226
Digg.com	1,311	1,759	34
Friends Reunited Group	3,271	1,629	-50
Tagged.com	669	1,625	143
Deviantart.com	900	1,453	61
Buzznet	939	1,370	46

*Excludes Internet activity from public computers such as Internet cafes or access from mobile phones or PDAs.

Survey Suggests that 9 Out of 10 Internet Users Visit Social Networking Site

07 July 2009

If you were wondering how important Twitter and Facebook are in your online marketing mix, a recent study by ComScore suggests that it could be a vital. With social networking becoming a mainstream online activity for all age groups, this is an opportunity to generate publicity for your product and engage with your customers like never before.

Although the opportunity to engage using social media has been around for while, and in itself is nothing new, the ComScore study is surprising in just how mainstream social networking has become. The study shows that social networking sites like MySpace, Facebook and Twitter are no longer the domain of the teenagers and the under 25s age group but found that more than two thirds of over 55s who are online visited a social networking site during the study in May. This increase in reach in all age groups shows that social networking is fast becoming a primary online platform to promote your business.

Reach Increases across the Board

Although the reach of 2 thirds was surprising the report contained other welcome news. 86% of 15 to 24 year olds and 89% 25 to 34 year olds visited a social networking site in May, each spending an average of 5.4 hours during the month.

The average reach was 80% with 4.6 hours spent for the reporting period. To put that into figures it represents 29.4 million (yep, million) people visiting social media sites in May and that is just in the UK. This shows an increase of 9% on the previous year.

Easter Bank Holiday Break

06 April 2009

The Rake Mark Offices will be closed on Good Friday and Easter Monday. Business as Usual Tuesday 14th April 9am.

Our support for existing clients will of course remain through-out this period for urgent matters.

Thank you
The Rake Mark Team

Rake Mark Announce Local Business Support for 2009

09 January 2009

We would like to wish you all a happy new year for 2009.

While the media reports are doom and gloom, we are looking to inject something positive into the local economy.

Our focus for 2009 is on helping Local Businesses increase their marketing effectively and profitability.

We have started the year as we mean to continue with a 50% off marketing offer for local businesses.

If you are interested in any of our services then please feel free to contact us, we are always happy to discuss your needs and ideas.

The Rake Mark Team

Opening Hours over the Christmas Break

14 December 2008

The Rake Mark office will close for business on Tuesday 23rd December 2008 for our Christmas break and then re-open on Monday 5th January 2009.
Our support for existing clients will of course remain through-out this period for urgent matters.

Thank you and Happy Christmas
The Rake Mark Team