Web Ad.vantage Internet Marketing Blog

The Problem With Online Media Measurement Tools
Nov 10, 2008 - In late February 2008, Google's stock dropped 4 percent in one day after comScore released data suggesting the search giant's click-through rate on paid search ads was decelerating. comScore claimed that Google's growth rate had dropped from 37 percent in October '07 to 0.3 percent in January '08. Soon after, comScore spoke up, pointing out the drop off wasn't a sign of weakening, but instead due to Google's click quality programs. When Google released its 2008 first quarter earnings, it blew away all talk of weakening. Google reported strong click growth of 20 percent year-over-year and revenues of $5.2 billion, up 42 percent year-over-year. (...)

Online Plagiarism: Not the Highest Form of Flattery
Nov 06, 2008 - One of the biggest and perhaps most frustrating issues facing Web site owners is online plagiarism, which unfortunately runs rampant on the Web in the age of blogs and RSS feeds. Due to the sheer volume of information available on the Internet, and the speed and relative ease to produce it, it can be very difficult to keep track of your site’s content and how it’s being used (or abused) across the Web. For many Web authors, particularly (...)

Observations: College Students & Social Media
Oct 29, 2008 - Last night I sat on a panel at Towson University with five other Baltimore-area Internet entrepreneurs, all of us highly engaged in social media, speaking to a college audience of about 100+ attendees about using social media for business. Between what my fellow panelists shared and what we gleaned, I thought it would be worth noting my observations: Most of us panelists rely daily on Twitter, Facebook and RSS readers with LinkedIn and del.icio.us bringing up the rear. (...)

Questions for U.S. Women & The Internet, Part 3
Oct 28, 2008 - I am seeking input for Part 3 of my ClickZ series, U.S. Women & The Internet. This input would be anonymous and qualitative, not quantitative. If you have answers to all or any of the below questions to share, please email them to me directly: hollis@webadvantage.net. If you need to know more about who I am, please check out my bio. Feel free to introduce yourself at the same time -- I'm always interested in making helpful connections! :-) (...)

Boomers and Beyond: Targeting the 50-Plus Audience Online
Oct 28, 2008 - Before I begin this week's column, I'd like to bid a very fond farewell to ClickZ's long-time captain of the ship, Rebecca Lieb, a role model, mentor, and friend for many years. Rebecca, it's important I publicly wish you the very best! Speaking of moving on, there's plenty of talk these days about the aging of American's population and the impact the retiring Baby Boomer generation will have on us as a country (so long, Social Security!). (...)