Internet marketing will take another swift turn this year, with the rise in popularity of voice activated Apple app Siri.
Siri, which is a new app on the iPhone 4S, is set to quickly gain momentum this year as users discover the convenience of an app that acts entirely on voice command.
The great thing about Siri is you talk to it just like you would a normal person. So, you might say ‘please phone John and tell him I am running late’, or ‘where is the nearest petrol station?’ The phone then answers the request the way a personal assistant would.
Because Siri searches the web using location services to give users information and the best options based on the request and location, I feel that an app like Siri rising in popularity has the potential to remould internet marketing and the way businesses use it today.
My instinct is that businesses will need to ensure they are correctly listed on location services and on review sites such as Yelp, as these are the sources that Siri will be searching for the responses to user commands.
Siri also utilises online ‘answer-engine’ Wolfram Alpha that answers factual queries directly by computing the answer from structured data, rather than providing a list of documents or web pages that might contain the answer as a search engine might.
This indicates to me that businesses who have been putting a lot of energy into SEO and Google AdWords over the past few years may need to look at these other sources that Siri uses so they don’t miss out on potential clients who may find them in this manner.
2012 is also likely to be the year that mobile websites become standard.
Most businesses don’t have one because they don’t realise that mobile websites may well be their most important marketing tool, due to their extremely high conversion rate. When people search for information on a business on their mobile, they are likely to be out of their home or office and in a position to do business immediately, rather than just browsing.
Mobile websites are simplified versions of a website that contain the necessary information in a format suitable for a mobile phone, eliminating the need for scrolling to get a complete page view.
JAN
About the Author
Cool Ben Bradshaw Facts: Started his first business at 14. Created his second business at 17 – Offering Car Detailing & Car Body Kit Services. Became the number 1 sales person in the country for largest flooring company in Australia by the age of 19 selling over 1.5 million dollars per year, he achieved this within his first year. Left his sales career to pursue a career as a Corporate Comedy Magician and Speaker. He was able to quickly turn this into a extremely successful business and became one of the busiest and most successful magicians in Australia within 2 years. Ben has won 2 Guinness World Records For Magic. Ben has won over 10 Business Achiever Awards. Currently CEO & Founder of one of the largest internet marketing agencies in Australia. Ben regularly consults with Google regarding the future of online advertising. Ben will present a brand new internet marketing seminar at the Googleplex Sydney along side Key speakers from Google later this year Ben Bradshaw and his Online Marketing Magic! Ben Bradshaw is one of Australia’s online marketing and Google Adwords pioneers. He is the Director of Australia’s largest Australian owned AdWords Management Company, and one of Australia’s most sought after speakers and trainers on the subject. Ben started to host magic shows at the tender age of ten, and currently holds the Guinness World Record for the fastest escape from a straight jacket. His interest and ability in online marketing began as a magician in his early twenties, trying to get more bookings as a corporate magician. Traditional advertising simply wasn’t working and after trying many different advertising methods, Ben experienced remarkable success for his business following months of research and self education on Google AdWords and how to make it work for his magic business. Through trial and error Ben was able to figure out how to best increase his web traffic and maintain this steady stream of bookings, which meant enormous growth for his business. After witnessing his success with AdWords and the benefit it gave to his business, Bens’ friends, who were all entrepreneurs, started to ask for his assistance in fuelling online traffic and growth for their own businesses. Ben would set-up their Google AdWords accounts and then share his various tips and tricks on how to effectively maintain the accounts. When their businesses started to experience measurable success as a result of online marketing, Ben decided that the next logical step for him was to hang his straight jacket up and start a business dedicated to offering other businesses Google AdWords Management services; thus his online marketing empire was born. Ben’s agency SponsoredLinX has been operational for many years now, located in Brisbane and with a national client base, and has quickly taken over its competitors in the industry as the place for businesses to go if they seek high quality Google AdWords Management. Bens’ ability for AdWords Management was soon noticed by various industry leaders and SponsoredLinX was approached to become one of only a very select few authorised Google resellers, shortly after its inception. Since then Ben has been able to grow his business by a staggering 300%, and it is now Australia’s largest Australian owned AdWords Management Company. Keeping the theme of magic alive, Ben has been able to quickly and seamlessly create and nurture a powerful team of professionals around him, all committed to maintaining the impeccable detail that Ben puts into each account he looks after. This commitment to detail has meant that SponsoredLinX has been able to successfully exceed its clients’ individual needs. During his years in this evolving industry, Ben has received of a number of accolades and awards, including The BRW 2010 Fast Starter Award and The Smart Company Awards Winner 2010. Ben has presented at the Googleplex in Sydney about his involvement and experience with Google AdWords, and this year will release the very first DIY business book dedicated to the subject of online marketing. Without a doubt, this milestone will keep the accolades coming and the magic of Ben Bradshaw alive and kicking.