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Holiday Shopping & Holiday Wishes From Leadpile

Natasha Aronov — Wed, 23 Dec 2009 22:58:30 +0000

Holiday shopping has entered into “crunch time” as Christmas is just hours away. Many stores this season have offered exceptional discounts and incentives for shopping with them and it hasn’t stopped yet!
Stores such as most Walgreens locations will be open until midnight Christmas Eve with a large percentage of them staying open all night, and even staying open on Christmas with hours of 9am-6pm. Walgreens, as well as stores like 7-Eleven, Borders, Toy R US, Target and CVS will be open extended hours with selections of items such as iTunes gift cards, prepaid cell phones and online game gift cards.
According to yahoo! even Christmas Day is not too late to send gifts via email! Stores such as Victoria’s Secret says you can order a gift certificate online until 3pm that day and it will be delivered via email by the end of the day. Macys.com also offers the option to purchase e-gift cards until 1pm on December 24th and guarantees delivery.
It’s hard to believe that it’s already Christmas time once again! Hopefully you have all of your holiday shopping done and will not have to “take advantage” of the late holiday shopping hours tonight!
Happy Holidays from the whole Leadpile Team!!

What 2010 Means For Consumers And Retailers

Natasha Aronov — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 05:28:29 +0000

Many think of the new year as a time to start fresh and put the past behind you. This way of thinking may work in some circumstances, but in real life issues that is not always the case. Why you ask? Right when Americans think that the economy has hit rock bottom, it seems as if trends are going to dip down even further into quarter one of 2010. Homes are still expected to foreclose, banks are still going to hesitant about lending, and bailouts have still not personally touched consumers. With America still being on the downtrend, it is not a surprising that many consumers are still saving and spending less (either by choice or necessity).
It seems as if consumers are no longer embarassed, or think they are too good for using coupons, considering the redemption rate of manufacturer coupons were up 26% in the first three quarters of 2009. That is one of the many methods that consumers are utilizing to save a little money, along with not buying as many non-food items, going out for meals, and buying store brand products. Also, consumers have made changes like eating more chicken than beef because it tends to be less expensive.
With all consumer price cutting and shoppers being more aware of their purchases, are there any companies on the rise? Of course there are! As stated above, store brands are bringing in more revenue and are making sure that their shelves are stocked with their items. In some cases a store band product may be several dollars less expensive. Other types of companies that are doing well right now are the super stores (Costco, Sam’s Club, BJ’s, ect), dollar stores, and some online retailers.
Even though there are a lot of companies still in a down turn, it is nice to see that other companies and brands that may not be as popular, are now having THEIR time to shine.

What’s Better – Shopping Online Or In Stores?

Natasha Aronov — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 16:08:58 +0000

For many of you, it still might be a little early to do your holiday shopping. When you do start your shopping many people may ask which is better; to shop online or to go to stores? In several cases it can really depend on numerous factors. Many people think of Black Friday as a kick off to the holiday shopping season. Consumers will wake up at four in the morning (myself included) to go and get the incredible deals that are being offered. Many of them even have a certain route that they will go to hit up the stores in a certain order to make sure they can get the best deals before everyone else.
But what about everyone who wants to get the great deals, but can not justify getting up at four in the morning to save a few bucks – just hop out of bed and shop online. More times than not, a consumer will be able to get the same deals that they would online as they would when going to the store. According to adweek.com“…buying online saves on trips to the store and gas expenses (53 percent) and makes it easier to compare prices between retailers online than in the store (51 percent), the other top-cited reasons all came back to convenience. The No. 1 reason for shopping online (69 percent) was that “when I buy online I can shop whenever I’d like,” while 57 percent of respondents said it “allows me to avoid the holiday shopping crowds at stores.”
Even though the convenience factor of shopping online is huge, it can make it a little more difficult as well. Since most of the holiday season is spent shopping for other people, consumers want to make sure that the products they are buying are the right size, ensure quality, and ask questions about the product to a sales associate. At the end of the day it all comes down to the consumer and which method of shopping they like better. I know that I usually do a combo of the two. Hard to find items I will purchase online, but toys I will go to the store. Below are some useful tips for when you go shopping this season:
1. Do your research before buying – Compare prices online to make sure you are getting the best deal out there
2. Look for the holiday specials – everywhere is having discounts so paying for full price should not be an option
3. When ordering online, always check for free shipping
4. Use coupons/coupon codes – If you are going to be buying a certain item there is no reason not to get percentage off. A lot of product coupon code can be found online just by doing a simple search
5. Know the return policy of the store/items just in case your item is not a hit
6. Make a list and stick to it – this will help prevent going over budget and buying unnecessary items

I hope that you find these few tips helpful and save you some money. Have a wonderful shopping season!

Is CTR Just a Crock?

Natasha Aronov — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 04:06:17 +0000

It is not a surprise to anyone in the online advertising business that the CTR (click through rate) of your campaign does not always determine how strong or well your campaign is doing. If you are like most people you will just ignore the banner ads, or even more the annoying pop up ads while you are serving the net. Maybe only clicking on one, by accident when you are trying to close out of the page, won’t hurt.
So why do advertisers even bother with display advertising? Even though CTR may not be the best way to measure your success rate (but sure seems to be one one of the easiest) it still drives traffic to the advertisers site. According to adage.com, “Consumers exposed to a display ad were 65% more likely to visit the advertiser’s site than users who never saw the ad.” Personally, I think that advertisers should be focusing more on conversions rather than CTR. Having a high CTR is great, but you need a low CPA (cost per action), and high ROI (return on investment) to maintain/increase revenue.
Even with display advertising becoming more advanced over the past few years with expandable, floaters, and even interstitial, it still does not seem to cut it. Display advertising is great if you are just trying to get your name out there, but if you are looking increase and revenue there are defiantly many other better options to look into.

LeadPile Announces 61 Lead Verticals Served in past 30 Days

Eugen I. — Tue, 30 Jun 2009 18:36:25 +0000

*Phoenix June 30th, 2009* — LeadPile, The World’s Largest Online Exclusive Lead Exchange announced today record results for its [MicroClick Form](http://www.microclick.com) in June, 2009. LeadPile reports a record number of Lead Verticals being served by its MicroClick Form with Lead Sellers producing leads in 61 different verticals in the month of June. This makes the LeadPile MicroClick Form the most widely used Multi Vertical Lead Generation Form in the lead Marketplace and Lead Exchange Industry.

LeadPile’s Centralized Online Exclusive Lead Marketplace supports thousands of affiliates that use the exchange to sell to suitable lead buyers. By using the LeadPile MicroClick Form, Affiliates can focus on driving traffic to their pages and not on managing lead buyer relationships. Over 90% of LeadPile’s active affiliates are currently using the MicroClick form, offloading the responsibility for lead collection, management, technology infrastructure, and quality control to LeadPile.

Astoundingly, LeadPile’s MicroClick form has been used to produce leads as diversified as Tax Debt Relief, Home Improvements, Business Loans, Health Insurance, Equipment Leasing, Credit Card Processing, Cash For Gold and more.

Andrew Jacob, CEO of LeadPile says, “The LeadPile MicroClick Form allows us to handle leads across multiple verticals, including payday, starter credit, debt consolidation, credit repair, bankruptcy, auto financing, and homeowner. While the majority of leads currently being exchanged in the Marketplace are in the Financial sector, the fact that Lead Sellers are using the MicroClick form to produce leads in over 60 verticals is very rewarding for our team.

Jacob adds, “I would like to personally thank our existing Lead Buyers and Leads Sellers for their business, and it is our promise to everything we possible can to help them in their efforts by continuing to provide the type of technology infrastructure and transparency that they have come to both expect, and deserve, from LeadPile.

About LeadPile:

LeadPile (”LeadPile” or the “Company”) is the premier Lead Exchange, providing a central marketplace for the buying and selling of targeted consumers or “leads.” The Company’s system sits between lead buyers and sellers allowing them to conduct business in an efficient, exchange-driven environment providing value to both parties. The Company’s MicroClick form allows high traffic affiliates to merely place LeadPile-generated code on their pages in order to immediately produce leads. These leads are directly routed to the exchange for sale, thus the system allows affiliates to generate leads without creating a backend management system or managing lead buyer relationships. To read more, please visit http://www.LeadPile.com

Phoenix June 30th, 2009 — LeadPile, The World’s Largest Online Exclusive Lead Exchange announced today record results for its MicroClick Form (http://www.microclick.com) in June, 2009. LeadPile reports a record number of Lead Verticals being served by its MicroClick Form with Lead Sellers producing leads in 61 different verticals in the month of June. This makes the LeadPile MicroClick Form the most widely used Multi Vertical Lead Generation Form in the lead Marketplace and Lead Exchange Industry.

To read more, please visit http://www.LeadPile.com/

OTC Drug Companies Looking At Going Online

Mari Holt — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 03:21:19 +0000

Over the counter drug companies (OTC) are big at advertising on television during our favorite shows. OTC drugs are medicines such as the allergy, cold/flu and headache medicines we purchase from our local grocery stores. However, advertising budgets are getting smaller, and companies are looking at using these advertising dollars in a more viable sort of way— online. According to DMNEWS, advertisers are looking at using more online advertising because it is a way to measure their ROI (return on investment) much easier. Online marketing allows companies to grow a database and track their data. “I think that the trend towards online marketing is continuing because it’s easier to target a specific market for a product,” says Larry Mickelberg, EVP of strategy and new business at Digitas Health.”

Companies can use the information from the consumers, that are opting in for information, for future offers that allows them to monetize the data again. These OTC companies are only looking to do opt in advertising online, because not being able to use the consumers data AGAIN does reduce the company’s ROI. Online lead generation seems to be the way to go with a lot of these companies that have not necessarily looked at it as a viable option. Leadpile Lead Exchange understands that companies that are not necessarily doing online lead generation, might want to take a look at it. It is a great way to increase your ROI.

Lawmakers Possibly Stepping In With Online Firms

Mari Holt — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 14:48:29 +0000

Everything too good to be true.. probably is. Now all those that were looking to jump in on the online lead generation business, might have someone up above to face. According to internetnews.com, “A top U.S. lawmaker in the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday said he is working to develop a bill to impose mandatory guidelines on Internet companies to protect user privacy, because the current voluntary approach is falling short. ” Privacy advocates are worried that online activity is potentially jeopardizing consumers private information, and there are no regulations to govern it.
Leadpile Lead Exchange believes in only doing the right thing and not jeopardizing consumers information in ANY way. There are a lot of people out there trying to make a quick buck on hot topics in the news, and unfortunately consumers are not always as guarded with their personal information as they should be. Lawmakers stepping in on this industry could lead to some of those not being able to take advantage of consumers, however them stepping in could also create a lot more “red tape” for those doing the right thing. Thoughts?

Online Ad Spending Could Possibly See Its First Decline Since 2001

Mari Holt — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 14:23:42 +0000

According to internetnews.com, “A new forecast from research group IDC is projecting that in the first quarter of 2009, online ad spending will see its first real decline since the dotcom implosion in 2001. ” In addition, the fourth quarter e-commerce spending had declined, compared to 2007 e-commerce spending. Consumers spending less could certainly have an impact on the overall online ad spending, however it appears paid search has been the best performing. This article also points out the correlation between the US economy (recession some call it) and the overall online advertising being down. Companies don’t have as much money to spend on this aspect of their business, compared to when sales are up they can afford to spend more on things such as advertising.

Leadpile Lead Exchange deals with all sorts of online activity. Paid search is a very common way of driving traffic to our lead generation websites, however there is also a lot of others that seem to be performing well too. I am not sure I really see the decline in ad spending, but time will tell.

13 Shopping Days Till Christmas!

Mari Holt — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 15:53:18 +0000

Everyone is still scrambling to get their shopping done, and Black Friday/Cyber Monday is officially over. These days, more and more people are looking to shop online to find the best deals, save time and energy. To help with this cause, I researched some top retail websites listed by Hitwise. This information is based on total internet usage through the end of last month. Maybe these are where the deals are at and we should ALL take a look.

5. www.circuitcity.com

10. www.overstock.com

According to Hitwise, there is a lot of traffic being driven to these popular retail sites through email marketing. Searching for the best deals is becoming a lot more convenient for customers because you don’t have to go physically store to store buying each store’s best deals. While looking at these various sites myself, I will say that it looks like all of them have major deals going on and FREE shipping. My prediction is Cyber Monday is going to eventually become more and more popular than Black Friday.
I am sure companies that also work with Leadpile Lead Exchange, are currently working with online retailers to capitalize on this demand for increased traffic. This is a perfect example of how beneficial affiliate marketing can be to online companies!

Amazon.com Turning To It’s Clients For Feedback

Mari Holt — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 14:12:26 +0000

In recent news Amazon.com rolled out that they will be using customer feedback to help market products on their website. According to DMNews, “The company announced this week it has formed a “Holiday Customer Review Team,” comprised of six of its top customer reviewers.” These reviewers are going to provide helpful tools to fellow Amazon.com customers. This is something that caught my eye because you don’t normally see companies utilizing the very same people that are also customers. Customers listen to other customers, so this could be a good thing for Amazon.
Today will officially start the Cyber Monday, which refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday, the kick-off of the holiday online shopping season in the United States between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Hopefully, with the kickoff of the shopping season, we will see more customer feedback being used to help guide customers on shopping “smarter”.
Besides shopping websites, sites such as Leadpile Lead Exchange use things such as testimonials to help provide feedback. Testimonials, customer feedback and other forms of “product review” are great ways for companies to know what’s working and what’s not working in their company. Nobody knows a company better than the people actually using it!