Whether you’re an e-commerce site or an online coupon provider, your consumers want to be engaged with deals and specials the moment they occur.  The spark that initiates consumer engagement can come from various sources: a display ad, a text ad, or even an email.  The problem with these is that they are passive and often overlooked – they don’t inspire a strong sense of urgency or action.  In other words, their spark doesn’t often lead to a fire. 

So imagine engaging a consumer the moment you launch a special on shipping, the moment a brand new gadget arrives, or the moment the price drops from $50 to $40 on a product that a consumer has been drooling over.  VibeFire can reach your consumers and ignite a spark with more power than passive advertising.  By delivering a post from a feed you control, VibeFire displays your message on the user’s desktop. This message links directly back to your site where immediate action can be taken.

As display ad revenues take a dive in 2009, stronger connections to your consumers are needed to sustain your revenue flow.  W3i’s VibeFire is your answer to extending your reach beyond the web browser and into the forefront of your consumers’ minds – on the desktop.  Contact W3i today to learn how VibeFire can help you maximize consumer engagement and spark immediate action.

Eric Montag, Product Manager, W3i Holdings, LLC
Eric uses his experience in graphic design, mobile, and internet marketing to lead the charge in product research, planning, and execution, from both a consumer and business standpoint.

Every time your keyword matches a search query, a quality score is given to your landing page.  Why is this important?  Because according to Google, “the higher your quality score, the lower your costs and the better your ad position.”  Here are four easy ways to quickly improve this score.

Give Users What They Want
What does “relevant content” really mean?  It means that your content matches the keywords you are buying for – whether it is a software download or an informational article.  Load up on descriptive copy of your offer, but also make sure your keywords match your landing page descriptions.   Ultimately, give people what they are after.  Content is king – even if it is additional content beyond just the offering.   This, of course, does not have to be as prominent as the downloadable content.  Another thing to keep in mind is to avoid having redundant copy with different landing pages or affiliate pages.  Google considers this to be less original.

Add Navigation
The navigation piece is twofold: it must be quick and easy for the user to access the content promised in your ad, but not so simple that the landing page becomes a trap.  If your landing page is too basic, then Google considers this a removal of choice and consent.  Solution – send users directly to the page where they can download the content, but build in additional navigation. This allows the users to look around if they are interested.  The navigation could be as simple as linking to similar products or offerings on your site. In order to reduce conversion rate loss, try using less prominent buttons, tabs, or text links.

Briefly Explain Your Business Model
This applies to the whole concept of trust, or as Google refers to it, “transparency”.  In some form or another, explain what you are up to, even if it is a small paragraph at the bottom of your page.  Give a brief description of your offer and overall business model.  Give users an idea of what is in store for them.  For instance, if you have an ad-supported model, explain to users why it is that way and highlight the benefits of it (it is free!).  Also, if you insist on collecting user’s personal information on your landing page, clearly explain how you intend to use it.  Your best bet with personal information is to just not collect it.

Add Legal Documentation
This is a very basic one and supports your landing page’s “transparency” level.  Simply add links to your Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy at the bottom of your landing page.  Easy access to these documents not only makes your page appear more reputable to users, but also increases your quality score.

Now go forth, and increase your quality score!

If you have in-demand downloads and are in need of additional cash, contact W3i.  By using the W3i Download Network you can increase distribution, revenue, or traffic using our proven software marketing solutions.  In no time there will be a positive impact to your bottom line. To learn more, click here.

Peter Novotny, Manager of Marketing, W3i, LLC
Peter Novotny uses his years of experience in Media Buying and Search Engine Marketing to lead the B2C user acquisition efforts for W3i’s web properties.

Minneapolis, MN – On February 6th, several hundred high tech entrepreneurs connected at an event called MinneDemo. The conference provided a chance for high tech start-ups from the Twin Cities and the broader state of Minnesota to network and to show off their cool new technology.  Great job to everyone involved in organizing and sponsoring this event!

Click here to listen to Rob Weber’s podcast interview by Graeme Thickins at MinneDemo(http://minnov8.com/2009/02/07/m8-gang-episode-24/, featured at 11:00 mins)

Rob Weber, Vice President of Business Development and Co-Founder, W3i
Rob is an Internet marketing pioneer with over nine, profitable years building proven business models that increase revenue and distribution for downloads.

St. Cloud, Minnesota, February 13, 2009 – The freemium business model can increase your bottom line.  In 1865 when King Gillette started giving his safety razor away for free, creating demand for his high-margin, disposable blades, the freemium business model was born.  Without using the freemium business model, Gillette would not have built his empire, and it is now a commonly used business model especially in the marketing of digital content. 

The freemium business model has many names—try-before-you-buy, shareware, tiered service, trial—to name a few.  Basically, it means giving something of value away for free, supported by revenue earned from the sale of an upgrade or complimentary product.  This is a very common business model in the software industry.  Software marketers promote a free version of their software supported by the premium, paid version.  The trick is to create the right mix of features, offering enough utility to the free user to create credibility, and promoting highly attractive features that will persuade the free user to become a paid subscriber.  

To create profit, the financial model looks like this:  the lifetime value of paying customers must be greater than the cost of acquiring and supporting both free and paying customers.  Reported conversion rates to the premium version vary by product, but range from .05 and 5%; the average being 2%.

There are several reasons why you should consider a freemium business model.  Here are some of them:

1. When done right, quality trials build loyalty and trust.
2. Reduces risk by giving the user a chance to experience the value of the software.
3. Expedites a large customer base, increasing network effects and efficiencies resulting in:
   • more brand awareness
   • collective intelligence
   • faster product adoption
   • a more defensible business model, and
   • more efficient marketing, as costs are spread out over a larger base.
4. The cost of distribution and the support of digital content are never lower, allowing this model to increase in popularity.

There are also several reasons why this model has its limitations:

1. People value what they pay for and will make more effort to discover how it will benefit them.
2. It is difficult to cover the acquisition and support costs if only 2% of those installing your software are actually paying for the product.

There are other “free” models that you might consider:

1. Give a “desired” product away for free when a customer commits to a long-term subscription with you.  The mobile business uses this extensively when they give a cell phone away for free if a user signs up for a long-term contract.
2. Ad-supported free – Many magazines are free or highly discounted because of the revenue-generated from their ads.
3. Giving a product away for free while charging for a complimentary, high-margin product.  King Gillette had this down to a science.  Also consider that every time you go into a theater the cost of the ticket is subsidized by the profit the theater makes when you purchase popcorn and other high-margin snack items.

Whichever business model you choose to pursue, W3i can piggyback with your offer to layer on an additional revenue or distribution stream.  Through W3i’s Download Network you have the ability to increase distribution and revenue for your downloadable content.  By using W3i’s proprietary Windows Installation System, Install IQ, you can increase distribution for your download by being one of the value-added software offered during the installation process.  Or you can increase your revenue by using the demand for your download to be combined with other value-added software offers during the installation; and you are monetized when the user selects your software as well as the additional software.  You can then earn money on 98% of users that would otherwise get away.  Software offered through Install IQ converted by as much as 60%.  Contact W3i to learn more. 

Josh Fiedler is the Business Development Lead at W3i Holdings.  As a leader in innovative ways to increase revenue and traffic for downloads, he focuses mainly on downloadable games and utility software.

About W3i:
W3i delivers proven, integrated desktop and browser marketing solutions.  With solutions tested and optimized on over 200 million installs–currently 4.2 million installs monthly, W3i can increase revenue and traffic for downloadable software, applications and digital content or provide a receptive consumer base for customized, targeted distribution programs.  W3i’s solutions utilize Install IQ, a proprietary Windows installation system and download manager developed by W3i.  Install IQ is the first installation system to be certified in the TRUSTe Trusted Download Program.  To learn more about W3i, visit www.W3i.com. 

Press Contact:
Deborah Manthei
W3i Holdings, LLC
deborah.manthei@W3i.com
320-257-7571

Malware, badware, adware, spyware… These labels are used constructively at times but frequently as a stereotype given to software that does not live up to a user’s expectations.

The risk in using these as stereotypes is that by our very nature we all have different expectations of software.

A user can prefer:

Sophistication or simplicity

Casual use or heavy use

Ad-supported or fee-based

Pre-roll ad or embedded ad

W3i is committed to uncovering the facts about a software publisher’s ability to satisfy the user.  Our hope is that the facts will allow users to make better decisions on whether a software is worth downloading and give software developers ideas on how they can improve their software.  The facts will help software providers determine what the optimal business model is while maintaining a focus on user satisfaction.

To understand software marketing best practices, it took input from top Internet leaders like Yahoo!, Google, and AOL; trade groups like the IAB, and TRUSTe; and security players like McAfee SiteAdvisor and StopBadWare. Along the way, we became somewhat of an expert; for example, a member of the IAB committee, that was drafting their Lead Generation Best Practices, asked W3i’s General Counsel, Hayden Creque, to write the section on software marketing. Nearly all software marketers I talk to don’t even know that IAB has any such best practices on software marketing. With the knowledge of all of these competing best practices, we are able to ensure that our software marketing solutions comply with all of these standards to help our clients avoid any reputational pitfalls.  Read an overview of our policies here. 

In these difficult economic times, business models will require innovation for user’s to continue to get high quality service while supporting the software publisher’s funding needs.  I think this was well documented by one of my favorite authors, Chris Anderson (author of “The Long Tail”), in his article published in the Wall Street Journal called “The Economic’s Of Giving It Away” (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123335678420235003.html?mod=dist_smartbrief).  

Contact us if you would like to explore W3i’s services for improving your visibility of user’s satisfaction and their reception to advertising as a part of your software offering.  Get the facts so you can make your own decision as to whether this business model is right for you.

Ryan Weber, Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Co-Founder, W3i Holdings, LLC
Entrepreneur and pioneer of Internet marketing focusing on increasing revenue and distribution for digital downloads.

In a recent article in the Wall Street Journal entitled, “The Economics of Giving It Away,” Chris Anderson, editor in chief of Wired magazine, states that “Free may be the best price, but it can’t be the only one.” 

Twitter, Pandora, Pogo, Facebook, and YouTube have all built an enormous user base using the free or freemium model.  Now they are all working on the problem of how to raise enough cash to cover their overhead.

South Park even had a show about this issue.  Have you ever heard of the Underpants Gnomes? Their business plan is – Phase 1:  Collect Underpants; Phase 2:  ???; Phase 3:  PROFIT!  In other words, collect a lot of users and hope to make a profit, but having no idea where the profit is going to come from. 

W3i can fill in the Phase 2 of the Underpants Gnomes business model.  Give your downloads away for free by joining W3i’s Download Network.  Since 2000, W3i has installed over 200 million downloads for free, supported by its Download Network, generating cash for software companies.  Several companies with free software models have partnered with W3i to increase their revenue—Digsby, Anchor Free, and startup, Bewiki.

This is how it works.  Companies join W3i’s Download Network for two reasons:  to increase revenue or to increase distribution.  Companies with demand for their downloads use W3i’s proprietary Windows Installer, Install IQ, to offer their users valued-added software from companies like Yahoo!, AWS Convergence Technologies (WeatherBug), and Winferno, who have revenue-generating business models and are looking for distribution.  The user downloads your software, as well as the value-added software that they select, creating revenue to support your acquisition or operational costs. 

So go ahead and give away your free software, but be smart about it and join W3i’s Download Network.  To learn more, contact W3i.

Rob Weber, Vice President of Business Development and Co-Founder, W3i
Rob is an Internet marketing pioneer with over nine, profitable years building proven business models that increase revenue and distribution for downloads.