The Internet's big three for 2007

Jonathan Bowers, December 20th 2006, 10:39AM

As this is one of my last posts for 2006, I think it's worth projecting forward to next year, considering what the biggest areas of Internet advancement will be and what businesses need to think about in order to maximise.

I'd like to pinpoint three things that we should be looking at.

The first is RSS. 2007 will mark a split between people who browse for content and those who choose content to be delivered to them. Every business needs to offer an RSS feed. Newsletters, press releases, special offers, industry news, company news, free giveaways should all be available for people who desire to receive them. Providing feeds not only makes the visitor feel in control but it reduces your workload on building mailing lists. Businesses need to take them as seriously as News sites do.

The second big thing is video on the Net. We're beginning to see mobile tv and IPTV. Video on demand is a priority for telecoms and media companies. Channel 4 has made less money on advertising this year in the UK than Google. We all know where the consumer's eyes are going. So what are the best ways to keep our products in front of our audiences? And does the video wave offer us new ways to present our offerings on our own websites and other people's?

I think Second Life will be the YouTube of 2007. There's already a huge amount of money and enthusiasm being pumped into the virtual world and businesses, from retailers to radio stations have stamped their brand on this environ. One Chinese entrepreneur has already made a million dollars by buying, developing and selling virtual land. How can you build your profile and convert virtual cash into real revenue next year?

One thing is for sure. The Internet has to be placed closer to the heart of every UK business if they want to grow in 2007.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on what the major Internet trends will be in the coming year. Maybe you disagree about the impact of RSS or the importance of Second Life for businesses? Let me know.

Tags: iptv, rss, second life
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Any Brits in the Alexa 100?

Jonathan Bowers, December 19th 2006, 9:57AM

Not as many as we'd like is the answer.

Lets take the top 50 sites ranked by Alexa for traffic in the UK. There's only one British company in the top 10 and that's the BBC. In fact only one third of the top 50 are native UK businesses.

You can get an indication of what Brits look for online by breaking down the list. Of the 17 companies, 5 are Media, 5 are directories/listings, 4 are Internet retail and the other 3 are Royal Mail, HSBC and Streetmap.co.uk.

So, of the top 50 there are only 4 British businesses selling a tangible e-commerce product. Two of these happen to be High Street giants - Argos and Tesco. The other two are original e-tailers - play.com and ebuyer.com.

It's not easy to get there for an retail entrepreneur, but as you can see, it's not impossible either.

Tags: alexa, e-commerce
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Convergence and diversifying your traffic

Jonathan Bowers, December 18th 2006, 10:47AM

It seems that writing about convergence these days always brings one pre-requisite with it: Google.

Following talks with Orange the search leader is preparing to deliver a new generation of mobile phone content in what is described as a multi-billion dollar partnership.

Just yesterday a colleague and I were discussing the time it takes to access the net on a mobile phone and the quality of information available. I joked that we should download Google Earth. And now, the two superbrands are looking to make this a reality by 2008.

I wouldn't be surprised if Orange followed this up with the acquisition of Tiscali's UK division, which is on the plate for around £600m right now. However, Orange is reportedly up against BT, BSkyB, NTL and Carphone Warehouse amongst others.

The online landscape is changing quickly and deals being done now are likely to have major influences on the state of the net in the years to come.

Tags: convergence, google, orange, telecommunications
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Domain name or RSS which will matter most?

Jonathan Bowers, December 15th 2006, 9:45AM

With the announcement that vodka.com is being sold for £1.5m it's clear that emphasis on the right web name is still hugely important. However, with RSS becoming more mainstream, how much does the name of the site really matter?

I think this view may change depending on whether you're a marketeer, a salesman, a content provider but ultimately I think it depends on what your sites main objective is.

I can see RSS causing a split online between sites that provide information and sites that aim to drive sales. The consumer market will doubtless remain within the domain name camp, while news sites are more likely to champion the RSS route.

What are your thoughts on this?

Tags: domain_names, rss
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Credit and Credit terms - fair business

Ron Mackie, December 12th 2006, 11:59AM

Hi, I'm a new poster on the UKFastblog. I have worked in accounting departments for many years and as you might imagine I've experienced plenty when it comes to credit control. I wanted to ask one question here though.

Why do some people expect immediate service yet abuse their agreed credit terms?

I’ve been at UKFast for a year now and I’ve only just come across a case of a client abusing their terms of payment. However, in the past, I've worked for companies that have constantly had on their ledgers customers whose debt is 90 days and over. And when payment is asked, these companies are rewarded with prevarication.

So, why should companies who provide instant and continual service, have to subsidise companies who pay late?

Would you go into a restaurant, order and eat food, yet when the bill comes say 'I know we agreed I would pay now, but just give me another 30 days or so will you?'

I think it’s down to UKFast’s flexible credit terms that we manage to avoid what seems to be rife in the service industry. There’s a psychology involved, when you deal in non tangible goods and as a service provider it’s important to be able to manage this in a way that improves the client/business relationship.

I'd like to know people's thoughts

Tags: credit
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