Non-Invasive Interview: Don Nicholas

TH: I enjoyed your presentation at the conference back in June. Thanks for doing it.

DN: Thanks! Always our pleasure.

TH: What are you working on right now? What’s the next big thing on your plate?

DN: The Mequoda Research Team is attempting to document how a specialized information publisher should operate their online business... we've focused on seven specific strategies that we've detailed in Seven Online Publishing Secrets... which is now in its third edition...

http://www.online-publishing-secrets.com/

The challenge is that this process and the best practices are evolving at break neck speed... it’s like trying to write a book about an event as it’s happening.

To keep up we have the following programs in process...

- 3 posts per week at Mequoda Daily that update some aspect of the system

- a monthly webinar that documents our current thinking on one of the seven strategies

- 2 annual conferences (Boston in the Fall and Napa Valley in the Spring) where 60 to 70

Mequoda operators gather to discuss the current thinking on all seven strategies. (http://www.summit.mequoda.com/)

- plus 2 or 3 private workshops per month that we lead to help individual publishers sort thru all the options for their online marketing and publishing programs

- and the consulting we do with the 18 publishers that are either running or building a Mequoda (or Mequoda-like) Online Marketing & Publishing System.

A few weeks ago, I spent one day with the American Quarter Horse Association and another with the folks at Harvard Law School... in both cases we spent the day defining the business processes (content sources, contact frequency, product mix, reporting requirements, keyword universe and so on) that will define their online marketing and publishing program.

These are all very smart people that know their audience and content backwards and forwards... my job is to help them define their online business processes with the same level of measurable specifics that we would use to define the steps in executing a direct mail campaign or producing an annual conference or publishing a monthly newsletter.

The version control alone really keeps us hoping, as operators invent new best practices and we move to validate them with other operators and then document them for the group.

TH: I'd like to think the benefits from our national meeting which takes place in June, continues to pay dividends for participants. Did you make new contacts there?

DN: Yes, lots. The SIPA conferences are one of our favorites for networking. Everyone is extremely candid and open about the challenges and opportunities they face on a daily basis. The culture of openness really helps all the members grow and learn from each other.

TH: Other than yourself, was there a speaker who really stood out for you?

DN: This shouldn’t be a big surprise: we really enjoyed Fred Marckini’s speech. Aside from the fact that his talk was articulate, well-presented and informative, anytime anyone other than us attempts to convince SIPA members of how important organic search engine optimization is, we smile. We feed proud. And happy.

TH: What would you say are the biggest new opportunities specialized information publishers have today that they didn’t have 10 years ago? What about challenges?

DN: One of the biggest opportunities, we think, is for specialized information publishers to reclaim their position as leading authorities on their topics online. Because some (ok, most) publishers have been asleep at the wheel, they allowed “pure-play” websites, those media organizations that didn’t originate in print, to completely dominate their niches online. The good news is that once specialized information publishers with strong brands figure out their online strategy and start becoming visible in Google, they can sometimes bypass, or at least legitimately compete with, their “pure-play” counterparts pretty quickly.

On the magazine side, a good case study we like to point to is People.com - 18 months ago their brand was subjugated to AOL and they were generating roughly 300K visitors a month. Time, Inc.’s Ann Moore stood up at the American Magazine Conference in 2006 and said that they were no longer going to fear the cannibalization of print. They were going to put their best and brightest in charge of their online properties and now, roughly 18 months later, People.com is seeing over 10 million unique visitors a month, according to compete.com.

TH: Where do you think all this Web 2.0 stuff is going? Web 3.0? Web 4.0?

DN: Trouble is, many publishers get caught up in the rush to figure out Web 2.0 without ever mastering Web 1.0. We’d be happy to see more specialized information publishers becoming much more visible in Google, becoming much better at converting traffic once it arrives on their sites and much better at monetizing that traffic through email newsletters, etc.

Assuming we mean UGC (User Generated Content), the web is an interactive medium by nature... encouraging users to comment, ask question and help each other must be part of your long-term online strategy. At the same time, users still want experts, authors and editors to lad their online communities. And publishers need to have a business strategy that integrates UCG into their overall online marketing and publishing business model.

TH: Any words of advice to niche publishers trying to compete with free content? Will it all be free one day?

DN: Define your media pyramid with free content as the foundation... most content will ultimately appear as free words on a search engine optimized web page at some point in its life cycle. And when it does it is creating value by attracting search engine and other traffic from other websites. It is every bit as valuable when it becomes part of your audience development program as the lists we rent to drive a successful direct mail campaign. Free content, correctly deployed, is the key to building a robust online audience.

It’s important to remember too, that as humans, we still value something called ownership. So even though we can access lots of content online for free, we still like to own magazines and newsletters. If a user needs a quick answer to something, the web is perfect. It’s a great reference tool. However if a user wants to become truly proficient in something, if they really want to master a subject, they subscribe to a newsletter or magazine. Differnet mediums, different modalities.

TH: Care to share your biggest professional challenge right now? Do you have a hero? A mentor? An antagonist? Forget that. What was your first pet’s name and the name of the street you grew up on? Is this what you wanted to be when you grew up? What can you tell us about yourself that other people wouldn't guess? (example: you are a champion bowler)

DN: I was a nuclear engineer by day and rock radio DJ at night on the USS Enterprise back in the 70s. When I left the Navy in 1978, I applied to PG&E to be a power plant operator and to CSUS to get a degree in journalism. After some coaching from my Dad, I dropped the engineering thing and went with the ambiguity of a career in media. It was a good choice. :)

The Wall Between Editorial & Marketing: You Have To Be Kidding!

I just received this email from SIPA member and speaker Scott Jacobs:

"One thing that struck me in Washington this year - - once again - - was that marketing and editorial types still have problems working together in some shops. We're sitting here in 2008 and I am hearing the same things I heard when I attended my first newsletter conferences in 1989. "We hate them, they hate us." One expert marketer who I hold in high regard has even had to create her own Oliver North operation with her own launch editor for fear she would not get the cooperation (she really doesn't) from her veteran editorial colleagues who aren't "into" doing new things. I mean, what the heck is that about? But fascinating discussions like that made the bean soup go down a lot easier during second lunch. And what's with the paltry servings of bean soup anyway? A guy needs his fiber."

Can this still be the case? Increasingly I am seeing a complete convergence of product and marketing teams given the need for quick positioning on the open Web that doesn't doesn't allow for delays presented by epic professional differences.

Scott is currently a free agent after many years as a product planner and news editor for LexisNexis, Mealey's and various newspapers. He also operates under the impression that everyone is interested in his dietary intake.

Two Weeks Ago I Didn't Even Know What a "Rapid Conversion Landing Page" Was and Now I Can't Live Until I Get One

Kim Mateus from Mequoda added some useful comments to my "coverage" of her and Don Nicholas' presentation at the annual conference. Since there was too much substance in her post to leave it buried there -- and because she invited me to "re-blog" it (possibly inventing a new word?) -- I am doing just that. Here you go:


Hi Tom,

Thanks for the coverage!

To clarify on some of the points… when Don says that sites with effective conversion architecture see a 6-8% conversion rate, he is referring to visitors converting to email subscribers. Some of the ways to improve site-wide conversion rates is to use Text Links, OFIEs (Order Forms in Editorial), OFINs (Order Forms in Navigation), Floaters and Rapid Conversion Landing Pages, all asking for an email address in exchange for a free special report.

In terms of the rapid conversion landing page (RCLP), you’re absolutely right – publishers should pay lots of attention to this opportunity and use RCLPs as email acquisition goldmines.

The process is to:

Do some keyword research to know what your potential audience is searching for in Google that you have content to support.

Pick one term that you think you can get ranked on (decent search volume with not much competition) and title your free special report accordingly.

Write the report and a rapid conversion landing page and optimize it for that term:

• Include keyword phrase (report name) in meta title of page


• Include keyword phrase in URL string


• Include keyword phrase in meta description


• Write a tip about the new report letting your existing email subscribers know it is available – this encourages pass-along. Of course, optimize the tip and have it point to the RCLP, making sure to link the actual keyword phrase, not “click here”.


• Add a text ad to all of the related content on your site that points to the RCLP (again making sure to link the actual keyword phrase).


• Write a press release announcing the free report and include in the release a link to the RCLP, again making sure to link the actual keyword phrase.


• Let it cook, monitor the position, repeat and reinforce as required until the desired SERP (search engine results page) position is achieved for that particular term. (Blogger's note: this seems a lot like shampoo.)

As you may have guessed, we’ve done this process ourselves at the Mequoda Daily. We have a free special report titled 12 Landing Page Templates, which describes each of the templates and provides examples.

Here is our RCLP, optimized for the term “landing page templates”: http://daily.mequoda.com/gla-8-master-landing-page-templates.html

And go do a Google search for Landing Page Templates – you’ll see us in the number 1 postion!

(Tip: don’t put numbers in the URL string. They won’t help with SEO and if you ever decide to update the report, as we did from 8 LP templates to 12 LP templates, you’re stuck with the old number in the URL!)

And the newest RCLP we just built for Fuelnet.com, optimized for the term “customer relationship marketing”: http://www.fuelnet.com/free-reports/10-secrets-for-successful-customer-relationship-marketing/

Thanks again for your coverage!

Should You Tube Too?

Last year I became a fan of some funny videos on MySpace. My story is that I was there to learn about social networking "for work." I am sticking to it. The video that made me LOL, if I may, was part of a series involving twins: one German female named Liesel Sprague and one Austrian male named Klaus Sprague. Their mother gave birth on a plane. The twins' relationship is strained by Klaus' inferiority complex and Leisle's superiority complex. This manifests in Leisle's trouncing of Klaus in racquet sports. Anyway, I wrote to Jay to say I liked the videos. Shockingly, he wrote back. I have parents who don't do that. (Not my real parents. My made-up comedy parents, the ones who don't write to me.)

It turns out the guy is part of a two-human team comprising, well, him, Jay Grandin, and Leah Nelson. Leah is an award-winning documentary filmmaker, and Jay is an industrial designer. This Vancouver-based pair recently founded GiantAntMedia.com, a creative video team-for-hire, making ads, films, product launches, social media campaigns, video blogs, music and training videos.

I asked Jay and Leah for some insights on the internet video world. Like their videos, I can't tell which is responsible for what. If they weren't Canadian I'd say they were cleverly trying to dodge blame for any offense their comments may cause.

TH: You list clients like Steelcase, MySpace, Watch for Change, Creative B'Stro, hadtosay.com, Metacafe. Oh, and Business Valuation Resources (I know because I wrote the script!) And you have all of your comical or poignent videos. How many total views have you had so far?

JG/LN: 31,250,000.

TH: That's a few. What would you say are the most effective uses of videos for companies?

JG/LN: One of the things that people often forget is that online video is entirely permission-based marketing; unlike a captive television audience, an online media consumer needs to make a conscious choice whether to watch your video or not, and many of those views are going to be solely based on peer recommendation.That said, if companies can step out of the box of traditional message deliveries in favor of something creative, innovative or funny, the brand-building potential is immense. People will pass on something that they think is interesting.

TH: Are companies actually making money from video?

JG/LN: If you're talking about media companies such as YouTube, yes! For companies that are creating video content in the social media space, the barrier to entry is so low (lower production quality needed, no huge media buy) that a well placed video can provide enormous ROI. Bud is a great example of a company that has created a huge presence in the online space with their bud.tv campaigns. I don't drink Bud Light, but I definitely think of them as having an engaging brand.

TH: Are there good examples of incorporating video into marketing?

JG/LN: Apple has been very successful.Net 10 very recently released a 'caught on tape' style video that links to an auxiliary site, http://www.no-evil.net/ that talks all about the evils of wireless service providers. Great campaign.Geiko has done a fantastic job of making a brand around something completely banal (insurance) into something engaging. Their commercials get passed all over the internet. Axe is another good example.

TH: Videos are supposed to help with SEO, right?

JG/LN: Apparently.

TH: What about niche information video?

JG/LN: The YouTube generation has enabled all kinds of "citizen journalism" and out of it, dozens of successful video channels are emerging. Wallstrip, a video blog/show about Wall Street happenings is hugely successful. That's pretty niche. As people become more accustomed to getting their media from online sources, micro-audiences for almost any type of content are popping up (the current buzzword is 'micro-tubing'), so it's a great opportunity for any of those, provided they're executed in an interesting way.

TH: You shoot a lot of stuff on location. Ever have a problem with that?

JG/LN: People are wary of video cameras these days, mostly because so many people use them now and carry them on their person in the form of digital still cameras and cell phones, and they know how easy it is to put something online and have it forever floating in cyberspace. People who own or manage businesses get very nervous about having something undesirable associated with their company or brand, OR don't want to give space away for free. We've been turned down many times by companies or establishments that don't want anything to do with a video shoot, or have rental rates and liability requirements geared toward film/television that just aren't realistic for a small outfit like us.

TH: You are heavily involved in social networking. Has that led to business for you?

JG/LN: Yes! That is our business! It's completely essential to connect with people (fans) through social networks. It's how people find content and where they are recommended by friends to watch videos or read articles/blogs etc, so if we put our content there, where we already know they're going, we can be sure they will watch our videos. It all goes back to permission marketing; if we have 300 friends who join our Facebook group, we can almost guarantee 300 views immediately. That seems like a small number, but when nurture the relationship with those 300 viewers, that number will only go up as they recommend you to others. It's like having 300 lazy PR reps working for you at all times! When you add 4500 YouTube subscribers, and 11000 MySpace friends, it makes it much easier to spread a message.

TH: Can you share a couple of your videos with us to show business applications?

JG/LN: Hadtosay.com is a website that was started as a way to pass an anonymous message through the web. They were looking for a way to boost their traffic and to get bloggers to notice. After we did a video for them, it provided a good piece of "link bait" to then approach bloggers again with. The video quickly got 10,000 views and traffic to the site spiked. www.youtube.com/hadtosay

TH: You two hitchhiked across Europe, staying with your MySpace friends, and uploaded a video of your trip there. Are you crazy?

JG/LN: No, just fiscally challenged. The Europe trip would not have been possible without the generous help of our "Friends" and lonely truck drivers.

Non-Invasive Interview #1: Meg Hargreaves

[Blogger's Note: I thought I'd rip off everything I've ever enjoyed about magazines, radio and television and start an interview series where interesting people in our specialized info community submit to questions, the answers to which may teach you something, foster our network, or make you cry. This is my first attempt, but I am not making any promises. In a moment of courage and perhaps lack of will, Meg Hargreaves of Pike & Fischer, consented to be my first victim. I would have said guinea pig, but that brought back bad memories for Meg. I feel the same when when I hear the word raccoon. Don't ask. -- Tom Hagy]

TH: You took part in an informative panel on email and Web marketing at the annual conference. Thanks for that. What are you working on right now?

MH: Like other attendees of this week's terrific SIPA conference I'm trying to juggle spinning lots of plates while trying to implement all of the best practice tips and hints I gathered at the Mayflower. I run 4 business units here at IOMA, including 3 Pike & Fischer units. My teams cover (at last count) 10 diverse markets so every day is different, challenging and interesting. I gathered terrific ideas at this years SIPA conference that I can implement across all of my focus areas. Right now I'm focused on final logistics for our 4th annual Broadband Policy Summit here in Washington next week. (Ed Coburn, I feel your pain!)

TH: What were the three things you learned from the conference that you can actually apply to your business?

MH: No. 1. Google Alerts -- I hadn't heard of this new feature from Google. My team is already putting this tool into practice to track where our products and services are being mentioned across the Web. I was also reminded of how long I've been in this business (22 years and counting!) because it hearkened me way back to days when I used to rely on one of the original electronic press clipping services -- LexisNexis Eclipse [Blogger'sNote: the name was an early use of putting "e" in front of something to suggest electronic. Most people forgot that or just didn't realize it. It could just as easily been called eClips because it was electronic clipping. Kind of like a light bulb is an eCandle. Anyway, Eclipse was recently changed to Lexis Alerts. Is anyone awake now?].

No. 2. At Sunday's Leadership Dinner at Morton's I had the pleasure to be seated between two publishing veterans who have made tremendous contributions to SIPA over the years - most notably as past Presidents -- David Foster, who now runs BVR and founded IOMA, and Mike Mealey -- founder, of course, of Mealey Publications [acquired by LexisNexis eight years ago]. In addition to getting to spend quality networking time with these knowledgeable SIPA members, Mike gave me a crash course on his experiences in newsletter publishing and a brief history of SIPA . . . and some fun stories to boot. While it wasn't news to me, it really reinforced how valuable an organization SIPA is. It's a wonderful community.

No. 3. Right after that, I learned that Morton's valet closes at 11 pm on Sunday night and the resulting cab fare to Great Falls is $45. Ouch.

TH: I once lost my car in a lake, but enough about me. Is there anything that surprised you at the conference?

MH: See No. 3 above.

TH: Did any of the speakers stand out for you?

MH: Well, I've been a Dave Barry fan for 20 years, so that was a highlight. I also thought that the sessions on Microsites and Blogs & Beyond were terrific. These are both areas where I'll be placing more focus in the months to come -- so the nuts and bolts info I gathered was great.

TH: The most shocking thing about Dave Barry is that he's 60 years old! Clearly I need to start exfoliating. What would you say to someone who didn't attend?

MH: That they missed 1) a great opportunity to gather actionable insight to advance their publishing efforts today AND 2) a chance to meet and great and learn from their peers in the industry.

TH: Did anything funny or unusual or odd happen that you'd like to share?

MH: No comment!

TH: What can you tell us about yourself that other people wouldn't guess?

MH: In 1980 I was ranked 10th in singles and 6th in doubles in competitive badminton by the U.S. Badminton Association. I also summited Kilimanjaro in 2002. As a result I only have one good knee left. As Dave Barry would say, I am not making this up.

TH: We have a lot in common. I once drove a badminton net stake into my hand, requiring, but not getting, several stitches. I onced climbed the lighthouse in Barnegat Light, New Jersey. So we're practically twins. Thanks, Meg.

MH: You're welcome.

Baby, You're a Niche Man (that only makes sense if you pronounce it "nitch," which apparently is wrong.)

My impression from this week's annual SIPA conference (I know, who asked me) is that niche publishers like us are in a perfect position in the world of microsites, blogging and SEO. Each of these things has to do with deep subject area expertise, the ability to make sense of what's going on, and to talk about it in an articulate and speedy way. You need to look no further than this blog as an example of what I am not talking about.

When newsletters came along, they were the fast, unaffiliated, irreverent, and cheap alternative press. Now bloggers have that same feel. Bloggers are the new newsletter publishers, and newsletter publishers don't need to make nearly as a dramatic retrofit as many in the media in today's Web environment when it comes to content. We operate in the niches. That's where we excel. And when we write, we don't think about it but we spew key words like baseballs in a batting cage. (What does that even mean?) And who better to oversee a microsite than a niche publisher? We're built for this!

We have a great deal to learn from the technology and Web experts -- the real experts on the cutting edge -- but we have all the raw materials we need. Our challenge, and I think we can handle it, is to be very open minded about our business models. Given their experience with advertising, that's where broad market publishers have an edge. The willingness to take chances and experiment is paying huge dividends from the stories I heard at the Mayflower. Even the ones I heard about niche publishing.

Finally, a big thanks to Ed Coburn of Harvard Health Publications, Patti Wysocki, consultant, Janine Hergesell, Kati Fritz, Harry Baisden and all the SIPA volunteers for their hard work on another stellar event. Feel free to use this blog to add what you learned or what you feel about the event.

Dave Barry Gives Us Face Cramps

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- I counted about 1200 facial cheeks on the brink of spasm as humorist Dave Barry shared all that he knew about specialized information publishing to an audience of SIPA members at the Mayflower yesterday.

Recipient of the Pulitzer Prize in 98, Barry told us about how he moved to Miami from the United States, and takes umbrage when all people talk about is the violence there. He said those people just make him want to kill them. Continuing his insights on niche publishing, he recounted a story about a man who drove his car onto an airport runway, right up to a plane on the tarmac. "I can't get within ten feet of a plane with a bottle of shampoo, but this guy pulls up with a Chevy Cobalt," Barry said.

In a lesson for learning your lesson, Barry shared the story of his dog Ernest and his backup replacement dog Zippy, who knew very well to wait at the screen door of his screened-in porch before romping out into the backyard. The pair always waited patiently for Barry at the screen door, then exited. Wait, open, exit. But when Hurricane Andrew blew the screened-in porch away, everything but the screen door, the dogs STILL waited at the screen door. He could not get them to exit any other way. Somehow there is a lesson in there for traditional niche publishers who insist on clinging to old business models, but it just wouldn't be funny.

Going on with more wisdom about niche publishing, Barry told us about his witty conversation starters with former First Lady Barbara Bush ("Jeb is very tall."), about how America is the leader in the manufacture of Oscar Meyer Weiner Car technology (and how he understands Iran is developing similar capability), and how the drivers in Florida bring a unique blend of creativity and aggression to their driving ("They will pass you in a car wash.")

Dave was the keynote speaker for the Specialized Information Publishers Foundation editorial and marketing awards, and a welcome addition to our conference!