The news update points out that, before the internet, word of mouth was impossible to predict and hard to manage, whereas social networks mean it can now be followed much more easily.

Figures from an Altimeter Group study, cited by the BHA report, suggest that high levels of social media engagement lead to an 18% increase in revenues.

“Proactivity is, it seems, key to making sure customers are happier and, even when they are not, that they feel they are being listened to,” the BHA adds.

Further figures in the report bolster the argument for the benefits of social media marketing Manchester companies may have been missing out on up until now.

In response to negative comments posted online, for instance, the BHA cites a Retail Consumer Report that found 33% of people would alter their comments to post a positive review if proactively contacted by the relevant company to rectify the source of their frustrations.

A similar proportion – 34% of consumers – erased the negative comments, while 18% were turned into loyal customers due to their satisfaction with the way they were treated via social media.

The statistics are compelling evidence, once again, of the power of social networking, and how it may be harnessed for business purposes.

From 26 May 2012 your website must comply, by law, to The Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) (Amendment) Regulations 2011. This Directive relates to website users’ consent of Cookies by your website. For detailed information on the Directive please click here

The Directive states that your website’s users must knowingly give consent to the use of Cookies on their computers. This will involve an addition/amendment to your website’s Privacy Policy in relation to Cookies and a prominent notification on your website pertaining to the use of Cookies. In some cases this may also involve some reworking of Cookies used by your website.

We are happy to advise you of the best course of action to ensure your site meets requirements. Please get in touch by emailing cookies@firstinternet.co.uk or by calling our office number on 0161 941 5330.

In some cases the work will be covered by your hosting and support fee although in other cases, particularly where reworking the use of Cookies is required, standard fees may apply.

These changes are required by law so please get in touch as soon as you can.

Big brands from all over the country will be in attendance, putting Manchester at the heart of the UK’s eCommerce industry for the exposition.

Ahead of the event, the organisers point out the potential market to be found online, where 79% of all internet users made a purchase last year.

Our clients are no strangers to this potential – we offer many of the services for website design Manchester’s eCommerce firms need in order to find success.

In addition to carrying out the kinds of web development Manchester clients need, we can also offer the social media marketing Manchester firms should be investing in, in order to capitalise on local customer support and real-world footfall to bricks-and-mortar offices and shops.

The eCommerce Expo 2012 is the perfect excuse to revise existing online marketing campaigns, making May the perfect month to take a fresh look at your web development plans.

So it’s always useful to hear of the latest research into one area of SEO Manchester webmasters might not have considered – how to get your app discovered by more people.

ABI Research have just released their Mobile Application Tracker Database, along with a handy case study that takes a look at independent app developer Michael Quach.

Mr Quach uses a careful combination of common search engine optimisation techniques to make sure his apps sell well.

For instance, although many of his apps are simply list-based or collections of trivia, he places them in categories other than ‘reference’ and ‘entertainment’, which are already crowded.

A medical-related list goes under ‘medical’, a literature-based trivia collection under ‘books’, and so on, helping him to reach more viewers in less competitive topic listings.

Combine this with a bright, eye-catching app logo, a catchy name and more conventional SEO methods in the description, and you’re on to a winner.

In Mr Quach’s case, in February of this year, he averaged 40 titles in the top 5,250 apps per country, based on the 250 highest-ranked titles in each of the 21 main category listings.

Aapo Markkanen, senior analyst at ABI Research, says the apps are “dirt-cheap to produce but appeal easily to spontaneous app browsers’ curiosity”.

Together, the strategy is one that can be applied equally well elsewhere, through website logos and ‘favicons’ to on-page text, to help your website, blog – or apps – to rank as highly as possible.

Google has been rolling out search updates for a few months under the name “Panda”, but what exactly do they mean for you and your site.  We’ve put together a few summary points to help you make sense of it all:

• Content is king.  Google want to produce the best quality results possible.  Meaning content and design/usability will impact search results.
• Spelling mistakes, poor quality information, poor design and usability will affect ranking.
• Less emphasis on links and unnatural SEO techniques like keyword stuffing.
• Onsite SEO (Meta tags, keyword, titles etc) MUST be in order.
• Social media links have even greater importance as they literally tell Google that visitors like the content of your site.
• Features such as FAQs, helpful hints, news and other helpful info pages will be viewed favourably by Google.

If you’d like us to review your website to make sure it’s up to scratch in terms of Google’s latest update then just give Julie a call on 0161 941 5330, jabbott@firstinternet.co.uk

The analyst explains that some markets are nearing saturation, where all potential customers are already engaged in some way with eCommerce, although even mature markets are still seeing rapid expansion at present.

When saturation occurs, a shift in strategy may be needed – and that is likely to have a significant effect on the types of web development Manchester website owners carry out.

“Retailers will be required to build a two-pronged strategy – internationalisation and improving conversion rates by focusing on the online customer experience,” says IDC Retail Insights’ EMEA research manager Christine Bardwell.

At First Internet we keep a close eye on conditions in eCommerce and other online industries to make sure we deliver the types of web design Manchester clients need to capitalise on business opportunities.

In addition to this work to ensure the customer experience is to the required standard, we are also among the foremost providers of search engine optimisation Manchester’s thriving eCommerce sector has at its disposal, for a full-service approach to promoting your site and your services alike.