August 2021 - Bay of Plenty Business News

22 BAY OF PLENTY BUSINESS NEWS August 2021
The power of 600 words
Adrift in the vast sea of information available online, you might
think a single web page would have little hope of being noticed.
It’s but a drop in the ocean, up against a torrent of competing
content all vying for readers’ eyes.
Estimates suggest there
are now more than 1.87
billion websites on the
internet, but the good news is
that not all of them are created
equal. Thanks to the wonders
of modern search algorithms,
truly helpful content can still
rise to the top of potential customers’
search results.
I was reminded of this fact
recently while working on a
project for a sports gear company
in Wellington.
This business has created
a new product that can save
money and make life easier for
people organising sports and
recreation leagues and events.
There’s nothing else like it
What has really blown me away is that
with nothing more than a 600-word
product overview page, this business has
been able to generate leads and sales all
over the world.”
on the market and the problem
it overcomes has been a longstanding
pain point for people
running sports events indoors.
Strong starting point
Admittedly, developing a
globally unique product that
solves a longstanding problem
is a strong starting point.
However, what has really
blown me away is that with
nothing more than a 600-word
product overview page, this
business has been able to generate
leads and sales all over
the world.
In the two months since the
product page went live, there
have already been dozens of
enquiries from universities in
Australia and leisure centres in
Europe.
Sales have been made to an
up-market school in California
and a sports gear distributor in
Florida.
There’s even been a purchase
of the product by a
community leisure facility in
Porirua – just down the road
from my Wellington client’s
head office.
This is all happening before
the product has been officially
launched.
Sales will rise rapidly once
marketing activities begin, but
this story clearly demonstrates
that 600 words – well written
THE LAST WORD
> BY JAMES HEFFIELD
Director of Bay of Plenty marketing and PR consultancy Last
Word. To find out more visit lastwordmedia.co.nz or email
james@lastwordmedia.co.nz.
and pitched – can still have a
truly global reach.
I’ve been giving this case
some thought and I believe the
recipe for success is threefold.
First, the product itself is
unique and solves a longstanding
problem that – for whatever
reason – has not been
solved before.
Second, the 600 words on
the web page clearly articulate
the need for the product and
how it is going to save time
and money for organisers of
sports competitions.
And thirdly, the content
includes the key words being
used by prospective customers
when they are searching on
Google, ensuring the page is
easy for them to find.
Mix those ingredients
together with an online store
that makes enquiring, purchasing
and organising shipping
easy and it adds up to a winning
dish.
It’s worth keeping in mind
when cooking up content for
your own website; clearly
describe the problem your
product solves and how it
will solve it, present it all in a
believable and relatable way,
and make sure to harness the
power of storytelling in all
your way.
TV is not
what it
used to be
Musings on luxury and leisure,
post annus horribilis
Our collective
consciousness was
once focused daily by
the six o’clock news,
which was … well …
‘news’.”
In the beginning there was
one channel, and it went to
sleep before midnight.
We all watched the same
programmes [sic], because we
didn’t have any choice. Monday
morning watercooler conversations
(actually then they
were more “tap water” conversations)
were self-adjudicating
– we were all watching
the same coverage of the same
event on the same TV channel
the night before – though even
then we could still disagree on
the referee’s impartiality, or
lack thereof.
Then it was colour and our
lives were truly enriched.
TV persisted later into the
evening – though still no ads
on Sunday – oh well.
Then there were three channels.
We were living the life.
When TV watching
began to unravel
And we get to today, and that’s
where it started to unravel for
me. I accept that when my
TV takes too long to warm up
now, I probably need to toss
it into the inorganic collection
pile and not call the Tisco
man to come and replace some
valves.
But nothing else about TV
seems easy anymore. A simple
question, “What channel is it
on?”, no longer has a simple
answer.
The answer I recently
received to that very question
still has me scratching my
head: “If you subscribe to the
platform, you can stream it on
any device, though you can get
a weekend pass which may be
cheaper – it’s not a pay-perview
but there are no ads in the
premium subscription model
which is way better than the
free-to-air coverage.”
W-H-A-T-? I just wanted to
know what channel it was on.
This lexicon of media jargon
may explain why there is
a whole bunch of new buttons
on the remote that don’t get
used. Does anyone know what
they’re all for?
It’s a good thing that my TV
is now internet-enabled and
globally connected – the internet
of things is truly a wonder
to behold. But do I feel more
LUXURY & LIFESTYLE
> BY ALAN NEBEN
Alan Neben is a Mount Maunganui local and experienced New Zealand
publisher. He has never openly aspired to be a TV newsreader.
alan@bopbusinessnews.co.nz
connected, or more disconnected?
The jury is still out.
Our collective consciousness
was once focused daily
by the six o’clock news, which
was … well … ‘news’.
Now my daily stream of
minute-by-minute notifications
and alerts have relegated
the 6 o’clock news to
an assortment of “old news”
lifestyle magazine sections
– first the news headlines
(which I’ve already seen), then
the quirky personality piece
(which I don’t need), then the
weather (which confirms my
notifications), then the sport
(ditto), then the warm fuzzy
feelgood ending (OK, I like
that bit).
Although YouTube is not
my “TV” channel of choice,
my demographic is a shrinking
one. TikTok, whilst dangerously
addictive, will never be
my “6 o’clock” news-of-old.
If TV really is the opiate
of the people, it appears the
people have now moved on to
harder drugs.