This is a really clever idea to promote themselves whilst possibly making life long customers. Although I doubt the websites would have the same quality and support of a Clickbooth affiliate network program design, for a business that does not have a strong online presence it’s a good starting point.
Submitted by AliceWonderland42 on Thu, 11/19/2009 - 10:34.Google, STI offer free websites to 200 MSMEs in RP
By David Dizon, abs-cbnNEWS.com | 11/03/2009 8:12 PM
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MANILA - Google and STI Colleges on Tuesday offered to build for free websites for 200 micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) as well as give P2,000 worth of free credits on Google AdWords.
Derek Callow, head of marketing for Google Southeast Asia, said the one-time offer is meant to boost the online presence of local firms and help them harness the power of the Web to grow their business. He said the first 200 businesses who sign up at www.google.com.ph/stimulus between now and December 15, 2009 will have their company websites developed by STI College for free.
He added that subsequent participants need only pay a one-time fee of P3,000 to STI College for the website development work.
"Any Philippine company that has a product to sell and a valid business permit can apply for the package," he said in a presentation in Makati City.
Since the websites are hosted on Blogger.com, which is owned by Google, there would be no hosting fees charged to the business.
Callow said the business stimulus package, which was done in partnership with the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT), Go Negosyo and STI Colleges, is "unique to this region." He added that the package enables local businesses to harness the cost-effectiveness and reach of the Internet to access a wider market and increase sales.
"We had to take a step back and show businesses how to build a website first. It's the first step in communicating with your buyers in a cost-effective way and promoting your products on the Web," he said.
CICT Cyberservices group head Monchito Ibrahim said the government fully supports the project, which aims to develop an ICT-enabled economy.
Philippine Marketing Association president Mylene Abiva said building a website is an important first step for local businesses to conduct "niche marketing" on the Web.
"Online advertising allows you to see how many hits (clicks) you get, whether your ad is effective or not. Because of the high cost of advertising, say P350,000 for a 30-second TV spot or P48,000 for a 1/4th page newspaper ad, this online advertising is one way for entrepreneurs to show to the world their products," she said.
Callow cited a study that showed that many consumers in the Philippines and Southeast Asia do research online and then purchase offline (ROPO). He noted, however, that businesses who have no online presence lose their edge to competitors who use the Web to sell their services or products.
Keywords for $0.01 per click
Callow said local marketers should consider launching their own Google AdWords campaign especially since many local businesses have yet to tap this tool. He said business owners could pay as low as $0.01 per click for keywords, which are phrases typed in by consumers on Google.
In a separate presentation, Callow showed business executives how to create a Google AdWords campaign. After going to the Google AdWords website, business owners can create ads and choose keywords, which are words or phrases related to their business.
Everytime a Google user types in that phrase, the Google AdWord campaign automatically appears on the righthand side of the search results.
Callow said business owners can set an average daily budget for their campaign. Once the number of clicks reaches the total daily budget for the day, the ad is automatically turned off. "This is one cost-effective way of ensuring that you don't go overbudget. At the same time, you can turn off online campaigns if no one is actually searching for those keywords," he said.
He added that many foreign companies register thousands of keywords in the hopes of getting online business through searches.
Callow said the ranking of Google Ads on the right hand side of the search results is a combination of cost per click (how much the advertiser is willing to pay Google everytime someone clicks on the ad) and quality score, which rewards good copy and relevance of the ad. "Over time, the system rewards you for the quality of your ad. If you write a misleading ad, we will penalize you for not offering good user experience," he said.
At least one local business has good words to say about Google AdWords. According to Janette Resurreccion, export manager and IT head of V.Y. Domingo Jewellers Inc., Google AdWords now generates 70 percent of their sales.
"We found that online advertising expanded our customer base to individuals, schools, and business all over the world interested in buying from us, or becoming our distributors. Ninety-nine percent of our visits [in the site] come from other countries, which we could not have reached had it not been for Google AdWords," she said. David Dizon, abs-cbnNEWS.com
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