Author(s) :

Don’t associate color with feedback
The color-blind visitors might not make the instant association of color, such as red with danger, suggesting you need to integrate some additional method of warning, or praise.

Associate the website with the colorblind web page filter
For a designer who doesn’t know color blind person, a handful of accessibility simulators exists to give a way for colorblind which is Colorblind Web Page Filter.
Another simulator for previewing what a color-blind audience would see is Vischeck.

We can conclude that web accessibility joined ergonomics owing to aims also to improve the usability of a computer, the surf all that for disabled people.
Furthermore, there are many methods very easy to implement one website. Disable person represent a big market.
It is more important owing to usability will benefit all users of your website not only disable person.

There is still work to do, but the step is hard to climb…

–    Aurélie Bernad (2010), Accessibilité web, Enjeux et Bonnes pratiques

–    Wikipedia (2012), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Usability
 

Author(s) : Pierre Barthélemy

Author(s) : Stephanie Challener

Author(s) : i-on interactive, inc.

Introduction : what is that document about ?

This document is a guide about QR code landing pages. It provides clarification about the QR code, which can be seen as a weird code at first sight. It also explains how to read a QR code, why its invention will help to improve marketing in another way, and many other questions.

What is a QR code and where can it be seen ?

The QR code appeared for the first time on packaging products, marketing brochures, shelters, etc… At first, the majority of people totally ignored this code. It was unknown and only seen without interest. People didn’t really know the meaning of this picture made of pixels in black and white. It is like a traditional barcode but square shaped. The document states that QR code scanning increased more and more between 2010 and 2011. Nowadays, this number keeps growing and QR code is totally part of everyday life.
 

This is what a QR code looks like on a product packaging for instance

How to read a QR code ?

QR code can be decrypted thanks to any mobile phone or tablet equipped with a camera and  a special application which can scan QR code. It is very easy to read it : simply point your mobile phone to the code, click to scan and that’s it !
 

QR code is being scanned

Why QR code has been created ?

The QR code is a direct link between online marketing and offline marketing. Indeed, it acts as a gateway that enables offline marketing to become an online marketing by redirection. In fact, the person is redirected on online media to learn more about the brand or the product. QR code can display text, contact information, a web page, etc… (Reminder : online marketing is a marketing using Internet tools, unlike the offline marketing denotes the set of marketing techniques used outside the Internet).
Here are another reasons : QR codes are easy to create and easy to scan. Moreover, they can be scanned anywhere, there’s no limit to where they can be placed. People can also easily bookmark a page from a QR code and return later. The marketing team has to make it easy for them to remember the landing page. For instance, a very short “contact me’’ form, an “email me more” link, or a “bookmark me” button incorporated into your page is efficient.

Right things to do and secrets to successfully using QR codes

Here are some rules to follow for a successfully QR code :
–    If someone scan your QR code, it means that something about your ad or product sparked enough interest that someone wanted to learn more about that specific thing. So it must be up to his expectations and give a rich content, otherwise he will be disappointed. QR codes set up big expectations. They’re new and cool, so people expect that of a landing page. Furthermore, a QR code visitor doesn’t have the same expectations of a landing page than a visitor from an e-mail. The marketing team must be creative and imaginative to make the user experience a truly unique experience.

–    Of course, the landing page should be optimized for mobile phones and tablets, otherwise the user will not see all the contents clearly. This is called the responsive design.

Smartphones today

–    It is important to show consistency between the advertising of the QR code and the landing page. In fact, the landing page’s language, offer, and visual imagery should match the QR code ad. Doing this reassures people that they are in the right place.

–    Obviously, stating the offer very clearly before they scan and then giving them what they want after the scan should not be overlooked. The ad has to inform people if they will find customer reviews, a discount, etc… after the scan.

–    The landing page must load quickly. Most people who stop and scan the QR code are stepping away from what they were already doing. They don’t want to spend five minutes waiting for the landing page; they want to get there now.
 

Loading…

–    One of the main aim is to focus the communication around its target and place the QR code at strategic locations to affect them.

Conclusion

QR landing pages make it possible to turn an offline experience into an online experience. Companies must take advantage of it, creating fun, interactive, memorable landing pages for the users.

Bibliographie :

i-on interactive, inc., From scan to conversion : A guide to QR code landing page

Author(s) : Cindy Chiu, Chris Ip and Ari Silverman

Most famous social media don’t have access to China (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube …), nevertheless China has developed its own social media because it’s very important and it’s the second biggest economy in the world. Despite they’re not using the same social media than occidentals; they are doing the same thing on it. (Preparing journey  …)
First of all we are going to emphasize the importance of Social media in China.
 
Not only that, China have the world’s biggest internet user base (513 million, twice more than the United States) they also have the world’s most attractive environment for social media with 300 million more users than other people in the world. Not only they use them a lot but they also have multiple social media accounts. China’s online users spend 40% of their time on them, and more and more people are using their phone to access to them. The most famous social network is weibo. Weibo is a Chinese micro blogging website (corresponding to Facebook or twitter)                                                                
 
Social networking allows a lot of companies to develop themselves (they could embed multimedia content 18 months before Twitter). First in 1994, there were only forums and communities then, instant messaging, blogs and to finish social networks.
We can notice that the Chinese appreciate a lot the fact that they can say their opinion about anything on the web. And thanks to an independent survey we notice that 66% of Chinese relied on their recommendations from friends or family. (Instead of 38% in the USA).But they are skeptical of authority.
The fact that Chinese share their opinions about anything and everything increase the completion in China. Indeed a lot of companies hire people to write positive things about their products and discredit their competitors. Companies try to do deals with them and try to identify the writers but it’s not easy, because of the possible risk to draw the wrong conclusion about the customer’s opinion.
For exemple, thanks to the social media some companies tried to promote their product by producing a drama series dedicated on their web site. People lived it and share it with everyone single person they new
China’s social media sector owns a lot of platforms. Each one has at least two major local players. According to marketers, this fragmentation requires a lot of skills and resources, which allows managing the complexity of social media. Indeed a lot of companies have to adapt ads to Chinese customers (like Dove or Estee Lauder.)
Thanks to the development of social media, people expect individuals’ answers right now.
 

Conclusion:

 

 

To come to the conclusion, even if China doesn’t use Facebook, Twitter or YouTube, China is the biggest social media market in the world with a lot of users who own a lot of account on different social networks. Plus they spend a lot of time on it. More than other people in the world. For many people social media have become the only source of news (social arrest, natural disasters, and protest even if China ‘government tries to avoid it.). We can wonder on means that the government is going to set up to controller that. And using social media is one of the key to reach customers (brands, reach new customers, lunch products …).
If China’s social media (weibo…) are those attractive maybes we can wonder if they will work at the international ladder.
 

Authors:

 

 

 McKinsey Quarterly is a business journal of McKinsey & Company. They aim at offer new ways of thinking about management in the private, public, and nonprofit sectors.  And to help business people run their organizations more productively, more competitively, and more creatively.
Quarterly articles, written by McKinsey consultants, offer practical ideas based on the Firm’s experience with the world’s largest companies and on proprietary research and close ties to academic institutions.

Author(s) : Andrew Lipsman. Graham Mudd.Mike Rich. Sean Bruich.

 

 Optimize Facebook individual’s homepage rather than the page of Facebook 

 

Author(s) : IAB France

Mobile internet evolving

In our time, Mobile internet is boosted by smartphones which offer a tons of attractive use: stay in touch with his family or friends, get some information, listen to music, take pictures, watch videos, play and of course surf on the internet.

In only 3 years, the number of mobinaute increased from 10,7 to 18,3 millions persons and a tier one of them connect to the internet everyday from their mobile.

Mobile Advertising

Mobile advertising is very effective and especially in field of branding.  According to the experts of MillwardBrown US, they suggest 3 main reasons for this phoenomene:
– Mobile advertising occupies a large part of the screen which maximizes  the attention and the impact
– The size of the screen plays a major role because it forces companies to focus on key message, which it benefits  the clarity and comprehension
– opportunities targeting and interaction are important which reinforces the relevance of the message

Conclusion

Mobile advertising is a real opportunity for companies and especially those will be able to adopt their messages. And with the consantly evolving of smartphone, it will be more than useful and effective in a near future.

Author(s) :

Author(s) : Réseau Femmes et Développement Durable (FDD)

Crédit Agricole has launched a project to integrate students with disabilities easier in companies. The goal is to find new ways of collaboration with disabilities and learn to work together, to improve communication for the generations coming. Social networks appear as the most effective and viral communication tool.

Crédit Agricole has proposed a challenge to 50 students by asking them to imagine a strategy of integration for the disabled people. The results showed that social networks are fundamental; it allows multiple sources of inspirations and sharing.(example of a tutorial about social networks and sustainable development. Please see the Youtube link)

There is another example with WiserEarth, a vertical network serving the collective intelligence. There are many associations, communities or organizations dedicated to sustainable development in the world. We must come together to achieve objectives more easily and quickly. It also can help to promote partnerships. Once again, social networks appear to be the ideal solution to get there! Its model is similar than Wikipedia, the internet user can propose its own content, becoming an activist and participating to the changes of communication tools.  The new trend is to be connected, to gather, to collaborate and to grow! It then come an obvious change of the society through the use of new communication tools. This phenomenon is called “connectivism”.

 

2. Social networks are changing the behavior of society.

 

As shown by the phenomenon of “retweet”. We are becoming a zapping generation, because everything is and must be shortened (Example: Twitter and its tweet about 140 characters like a SMS). It is obvious that the information knows an incomparable speed. However, we can wonder about the content’s quality.

Nowadays, what seems to be more important isn’t the accuracy but the quickness of the exchange. The media “Down to the Earth” from Danone can be an example to understand the issues of professional social networks. This social link was created by Danone and operates on four themes (Nature, Nutrition, and Social Business Ecosystem) on the reputation of the company, in order to be more credible to its consumers. The aim is to have influence thanks to the users’ interaction and to make the platform a reference on the issues covered.

3. Benefits and risks of using social networks

Advantages: Using social networks also allows professionals to develop their reputation, and to support or develop expertise on a subject, and to manage their after-sales service (Example: a customer who complains via Twitter is visible by everyone). In addition, a social network can also help to federate its employees and for recruitment. These networks can create new modes of communication such as carpooling, as it facilitates exchanges and also to develop new services. Sustainable development also encourages users to choose virtuous communication. There is the phenomenon of “crowd sourcing”, the content creators have the power to influence business companies (Example: restaurants’ rating, 70% of Internet users rely on it while they don’t know each other). These new means of communication show that the consumer first!

Risks: There are still some risks associated with this communication. Company credibility cannot be defined by the number of followers or subscribers. The company must continue to listen and accept conversation whatever happens. That is to say, to be reactive and to should remain humble. In addition, it is important to be “transparent” and to accept every comment. It is not recommended to use fake profiles because it is very badly received.

 A facebook page static and “non-living”, for example, can be seen as a company non reactive, with a lack of dynamism.

To conclude, the use of social networks is very beneficial for sustainable development and to improve the image of a company. However, it is necessary to know the advantages and the risks, to define communication objectives, and to manage its presence on selected media.

Using social networks as an amplifier is a very difficult art but is becoming essential in an era when Internet, “that’s our world”.

In short, companies who want to use social networks should:

 – Be transparent

 – Accept the conversation / critics

 – To be humble

 – Create content relevant, innovative and authentic

Author(s) : StrongMail Systems

StrongMail is a platform which proposes e-mail marketing solutions of personalized according to the advertising campaign and to the message to be delivered. It is used to increase the interactivity with the subscribers. According to a leading study, the use of StrongMail increases the participation of the subscriber by 52 %, and improves the segmentation and the targeting by 49 %.

 

 

I)    The interest of StrongMail

In 2011, increasing of the number of subscribers is an absolute priority for e-mail marketing. By integrating StrongMail into your system you will be capable of defining AND MEASURING the commitment of your subscribers. Then to develop the contents of your offers to DRIVE AN interaction with your subscribers and to motivate the subscriber to supply relevant information. And in the end to have a creative design of the offer to attract attention.

Then customers can use these studies to maximize the efficiency of their email campaigns of and finally to make a better marketing. Of From this experts’ department, you could reduce the cost of your marketing program of, and better target your customers. And thus of increase your income. StrongMail allows understanding the numerous factors which influence the performance of your e-mails.

II)    The solutions of e-mail marketing

This white book describes several methods advised to increase the efficiency of advertising campaigns by e-mail. You will find thanks for the subscribers with promotional lotteries a special offer to share with his friends, to insert links towards the social networks so that the subscribers remain constantly informed of the offers. But also rewards for the customers who express their opinions, e-mails so that the customers confirm their subscription, titles with concentrated but clear messages, a visual performance with dynamic messages.

To hire your addressees, it is necessary to supply a relevant e-mail which incites an interaction. The subscribers want to be understood and to feel unique. This is why it is necessary to personalize the e-mail, to be creative and to attract attention. It is also necessary to adopt a relevant segmentation so that the e-mail campaign is effective.