I have been following the free content debate for a while and have previously discussed the issues with it here.  I am particularly struck with the idea of new business models.  A lot of the discussion was how the internet ‘levels’ the playing field.  While I think in theory this may be true, in practice it isn’t.  A better way of saying this would be: the internet could level the playing field.  Here’s where the challenge lies:

1. People only buy ‘popular’ media online.

I think the idea of the Long Tail has promise.  In fact I have it in my lectures.  You could argue that the internet is another culture with it’s own ideas on what the mainstream is, what the 80-20 rule constitutes and what they like.  The mainstream internet, things that grow to popularity on the internet, should be considered in context as being part of internet culture.   You can’t compare what becomes popular on the internet to what is considered popular on television for one very good reason.  They are two completely different mediums.  This becomes obvious when you look at how poorly the transition to the internet fiction has had.  It’s still stagnant, backwater or very very obscure.  That is internet culture. A question for artists, business people and the like is: how do internet cultures buy and sell?  How do I tell a story on the internet and support myself as an artist without losing heart?  The long tail explains the possibilities but doesn’t give us the pragmatics.

And this is my biggest problem with the ideas of internet business models.  It’s still geared towards the mainstream, just a different one: internet culture mainstream.  We have heard the mantra connect with fans and give them a reason to buy yet how do we find fans with no money?  What if you are selling something that’s unappealing to internet culture?  Then what?  This is what we need to learn.  And I am not saying that there is no long tail effect there is, my point: How much of that is simply because the internet contains so many interlocking cultures?  Can you compare the apples (TV) with oranges (internet)?  Probably but the shape, tastes and sizes of markets are completely different.   We need to look at it differently.

2. The internet could level the playing field but you have to realise it’s another field altogether

My second and final point is that the internet creates the potential for disintermediated content to become popular because it’s the internet.  Something that’s popular on television may or may not become popular on the internet.  We really need to spend more time looking at internet trends and usage before we can make the claim that it levels out the playing field.

We need new business concepts not just models

I think a way forward for internet business ideas is good quality research.  In the days of e-commerce all we had was Michael Porter on the internet.  What we need is better thinking.   I am personally hoping for this but seeing precious little more than the free culture versus copyright debate.  New ideas not the same old crap.

*Note: I am not sure this makes sense.  I am absent of mind at the moment.  Feel free to comment (constructively).

Cory Doctorow recently said that the internet is like an obnoxious six year old jumping up and down demanding attention (or something like that… I actually lost the link). There is so much violent anger on the internet in parts (i.e. youtube comments and so forth) it got me thinking why is there so much anger?

Not a day passes by where I don’t get a nasty comment or somebody spits venom at someone else on the web. What’s with that? I remember the days of chat rooms (yes I am OLD) when you would be moderated out of the room for being 1/10 as nasty as people seem to be today. It’s no wonder that you have some bloggers questioning the value of comments.

A friend of mine has the concept of people hiding behind the screen which I think explains it nicely.  It’s so easy to be the person you want to be on the internet because you’re invisible.  Nobody cares.   Yes I have had nasty comments.  I deal with each one in context and treat them on their merits.  If somebody doesn’t like what I have to say and have offered something constructive they get to comment.  On the other hand the people that refer to me as (and I quote), “a bow legged fat f***”, or “f***tard”… will not get a rise out of me.  My policy is and has always been “delete” to the senseless, unintelligent, non-constructive comments left by the trekking digger.  I find these kinds of comments a real shame because I really do enjoy a good debate… when I am not arguing the same point as the person I am arguing with!

So why are people so angry?   What do you think?

In my obsessive compulsion statistics viewing I was reading through the five most popular posts I have had since opening this blog back in late August. These numbers are quite paltry when comparing them to likes of Yaro or other ‘big time‘ bloggers. These include:

1. The problems of life article: (720 views) my overview of my upcoming e-book on life problems. Oh, did I say that out loud? Stay tuned.

2. The synergy institutes learn to think different challenge. (700 views) This post was stumbled leading to me receiving 500 people at once. Some of you are still reading I am sure. Thanks!

3. The wiki way of thinking: (620 views) What I learned from running tiki wiki in two university courses.

4. What I have learned about success: (548 views) I went from deadbeat to doctor (almost) as my wife says. I have learned a lot of things along my way I have.

5. How to recognise underlying emotions part 1 (478 views) I don’t like sequels either): How to know and accept your underlying emotions.

So what I am doing here grandstanding? Far from it. I have invented a phrase called ‘Keyword Conniption‘. Why? Below you will see a list of the organic search keywords I have coming to me on a regular basis. Hat tip to Footsteps in the mirror for inspiration. I used phrases because I think it more accurately proves my point. See below:

1. Luke Houghton

2. how to think strategically

3. think strategically

4. making the right decisions

5. life problems

6. thinks strategically

7. logic box problems

8. the golden rules of presentation

9. ways to see emotions

10. computers internet blog (?)

So makes sense right I am doing something. WRONG! This is the list as of now. Go back last week and my top result was dartboard! I was receiving 150 hits a day for the phrase ‘dartboard’. I was like, ‘what the… this blog is not about darts!’. I tried to work out was going on then it hit me. I wrote a post a while back called the dartboard approach to life problems. I put a picture of a dartboard in the post right next to the title. I tracked down the traffic as coming from Google images. If I had an affiliate program for dartboards I would have sold a few by now! The problem is: this blog is ‘life problems’ NOT dartboards. What did I do wrong? Well as I learned from reading search engine watch, I had put the keywords for my post in the wrong place. In essence creating a keyword conniption. Don’t do this! Simple SEO can make a difference. Now, people are looking for me and the subjects of the site. Not, dartboards. Has my traffic improved as a result. A little bit. Am I getting more targeted traffic? Absolutely. I have since learned that relevance is a lot more important than I previously gave it credit for.

How to avoid keyword conniption

The thinks you can do is make sure every post you write is something people want to read. Put your best idea in the first two or three words. For example, I should have put: Life problems solved through a dartboard approach. This puts the keywords I desire in the front of the article instead of towards the back. I have since learned about keyword tools like SEObook.com keyword tool, Wordtracker and Google trends. All of which helped me to find a bigger and better audience for my blog. My advice is to write down what you think you want to say and then combine these tools and common sense in how you want to say it. Otherwise you may fall victim to keyword conniption!