Widget Strategy and Execution Lawrence Coburn Founder, RateItAll Author, Sexy Widget

Agenda Widgets: A Brief Timeline The Business Case for Widgets Distributed Business Strategy: The Four Pillars Widget Market Sizing Building Widgets: 5 Principles Widget Distribution Widget Monetization Widgets and SEO Tools and Resources

Widgets: A Brief Timeline

The Business Case for Widgets

Distributed Business Strategy: The Four Pillars

Widget Market Sizing

Building Widgets: 5 Principles

Widget Distribution

Widget Monetization

Widgets and SEO

Tools and Resources

Widget Timeline 12/05 NBA Launches Widgets First widget appears on MySpace MyBlogLog Hits 1M Widget Impressions 11/05 12/06 YouTube Launches Widget 10/06 4/07 5/07 MySpace Blocks Photobucket Facebook Platform Launches 6/07 Comscore Begins Tracking Widgets Clearspring Serves 3Bth Widget 1/07 MyBlogLog Acquired Google Gadgets Launches 2007 Named Year of the Widget 9/06 Sexy Widget Launches YouTube Acquired Photobucket Acquired 6/06 Widgetbox Funded 7/07 Bay Facebook App Fund Social Media .com Launches Google Gadgets Ventures

A Business Case for Widgets Conclusion: You Need to Deliver Your Web Service to Consumers where THEY are

Why Widgets? Proven method for getting your web service to go viral It’s another distribution channel Gives your users the tools to promote your business Increasingly difficult to build critical mass for a destination site Organic back links If you have a Web site, you should have a widget strategy

Proven method for getting your web service to go viral

It’s another distribution channel

Gives your users the tools to promote your business

Increasingly difficult to build critical mass for a destination site

Organic back links

If you have a Web site, you should have a widget strategy

The Four Pillars of a Distributed Web Strategy Widgets Examples: Photobucket, MyBlogLog Toolbars / Extensions Examples: Google, StumbleUpon, Adaptive Blue Facebook Apps Examples: iLike, RockYou, HotOrNot API Examples: Yahoo! Maps

Widgets

Examples: Photobucket, MyBlogLog

Toolbars / Extensions

Examples: Google, StumbleUpon, Adaptive Blue

Facebook Apps

Examples: iLike, RockYou, HotOrNot

API

Examples: Yahoo! Maps

Widget Market Sizing 15M Active Blogs (Technorati) 30M+ Active Facebook Profiles 75% have added at least one App 70M+ MySpace Profiles 239M Widgets Used in August (San Francisco Chronicle / Comscore)

15M Active Blogs (Technorati)

30M+ Active Facebook Profiles

75% have added at least one App

70M+ MySpace Profiles

239M Widgets Used in August (San Francisco Chronicle / Comscore)

Building Widgets: Things to Consider Content / Experience How compelling is your widget? What’s in it for the publisher? Customization One style will not fit all when it comes to profiles and blogs Branding What if YouTube hadn’t branded their video player? Accessibility Targeting a blog’s sidebar? Make sure it works in a blog sidebar. Sharing Remove all obstacles to a widget’s propagation

Content / Experience

How compelling is your widget? What’s in it for the publisher?

Customization

One style will not fit all when it comes to profiles and blogs

Branding

What if YouTube hadn’t branded their video player?

Accessibility

Targeting a blog’s sidebar? Make sure it works in a blog sidebar.

Sharing

Remove all obstacles to a widget’s propagation

Widget Distribution “In the Wild” / Widget to Widget Don’t Put Obstacles Grab embed code from widget One click add (Check out Clearspring, Widgetbox, Gigya!!) Early adopter blogs critical Destination Site Widget Galleries Widgetbox Widgipedia Snipperoo Cross promotion (RockYou, Social Media) Your Own Blog Brute Force BizDev

“In the Wild” / Widget to Widget

Don’t Put Obstacles

Grab embed code from widget

One click add (Check out Clearspring, Widgetbox, Gigya!!)

Early adopter blogs critical

Destination Site

Widget Galleries

Widgetbox

Widgipedia

Snipperoo

Cross promotion (RockYou, Social Media)

Your Own Blog

Brute Force

BizDev

Widget Monetization – Hub & Spoke Hub & Spoke Model Widget Hosts Get: Functionality Content Traffic Widget Publisher Gets: Leads Content Organic, Inbound Links Monetization happens at home base via existing ads / affiliates / subscriptions / etc.

Hub & Spoke Model

Widget Hosts Get:

Functionality

Content

Traffic

Widget Publisher Gets:

Leads

Content

Organic, Inbound Links

Monetization happens at home base via existing ads / affiliates / subscriptions / etc.

Widget Monetization – Affiliates / Ads / Sponsorships Widget footprint is leveraged to serve ads / affiliate links. Challenges: MySpace doesn’t allow ads Google AdSense doesn’t allow you to insert add code in widgets Widget real estate is precious Low click through

Widget footprint is leveraged to serve ads / affiliate links.

Challenges:

MySpace doesn’t allow ads

Google AdSense doesn’t allow you

to insert add code in widgets

Widget real estate is precious

Low click through

Widgets and SEO Widgets provide an unmatched opportunity to generate large numbers of organic, targeted, one way, inbound links Link must be crawlable HTML Experiment with your anchor text Don’t forget about deep links

Widgets provide an unmatched opportunity to generate large numbers of organic, targeted, one way, inbound links

Link must be crawlable HTML

Experiment with your anchor text

Don’t forget about deep links

Resources Blogs SexyWidget.com Widgify.com Blog.snipperoo.com Stickiwidgets.com Widgetslab.com Service Providers Gigya (distribution) Clearspring (distribution, analytics) Widgetbox (distribution, analytics) Snipperoo (distribution, monetization) Musestorm (distribution, analytics) Social Media (distribution, monetization)

Blogs

SexyWidget.com

Widgify.com

Blog.snipperoo.com

Stickiwidgets.com

Widgetslab.com

Service Providers

Gigya (distribution)

Clearspring (distribution, analytics)

Widgetbox (distribution, analytics)

Snipperoo (distribution, monetization)

Musestorm (distribution, analytics)

Social Media (distribution, monetization)

Lawrence Coburn Founder, RateItAll Author, SexyWidget.com [email_address] rateitall.com/widgets