Web searches to kill window-shopping?
Europe’s high streets could eventually be devoid of banks, travel agents and mobile phone shops as consumers turn to the web for research, according to ACNielsen.
A study by the analyst group found consumers used window-shopping less than the net when choosing their purchases, except when it came to clothing and accessories.
Study: ‘social local search’ catching on
Hitwise research director LeeAnn Prescott has released some data showing traffic to local directories employing user generated content (UGC) is growing faster than traditional 'yellow pages' (directory) sites.
Should Web 2.0 startups seek venture capital?
Web 2.0 startups shouldn’t bother seeking VC money, according to Neil Sequeira of General Catalyst Partners, because “there have not yet been these type of exits that generated venture capital type returns”.
Neil is a VC who made these comments at the AjaxWorld Expo in California, but I’m not sure he’s entirely correct in his observations.
Wal-Mart dumps social networking site
Wal-Mart’s brief fling with online networking appears to have come to an end, with several blogs saying the retailer has closed its teen-oriented social networking site - called ‘ The Hub ’, among other things.
The site, temporarily launched this summer as a promotion for the start of the school year, aimed to copy Myspace et al by encouraging ‘hubsters’ to set up their own personalised web pages.
Classified ads rise in popularity
Traffic to the largest classified advertising websites has grown by almost 50% in the last year, according to new research.
UK online spending to double by 2010
UK web shoppers will spend £6.25 billion on groceries a year by 2010, an increase of 235% over last year, according to a study by Paypal.
Research by the payment firm suggests British online spending will double to £39 billion, with the grocery sector taking the lion’s share of the market.
Netvibes gets new cash injection
In another indication of growing interest among VCs in Web 2.0 outfits, Netvibes has raised US$15 million in a round of financing led by existing backer Index Ventures.
The Paris and London-based start-up, which claims to have recruited five million users of its customisable Ajax home page, plans to use the funding to help it take on rivals such as Microsoft's Live.com and Pageflakes.
Myspace to sell Fox video content
Twentieth Century Fox is planning to use Myspace and other News Corporation websites to sell its movies and TV shows.
The move will see Fox Interactive Media, a division of News Corporation, marketing its content on the gaming download site Direct2Drive from October.
Can the community create cash flow?
We’re all aware of how important cash flow is to any business, especially start-up tech businesses where cash flow equals food on the table… So how do the new raft of user generated content offerings plan to make their cash flow sustainable?
The 12 fundamentals of e-commerce
We are often asked about the fundamentals of e-commerce: how do you build an online retail store, what do customers need to see, what does Google look for, how can you increase conversion rates?
I have compiled a list of the 12 fundamentals that you can put in place to enhance an existing online store or plan a new one...
Social media: the best and worst of 2009
Email marketing: six steps to improving customer engagement in 2010
Web 2.0
Graham Charlton
Strategy & Planning
