I’ve written previously about the need to re-evaluate search marketing by attending to how users encounter your BRAND through search as opposed to the dated approach of focusing on where your URL appears. This week a study emerged from a the search marketing agency Slingshot, showing that the click-through-rates (CTRs) on search result pages (SERPs) are diversifying dramatically such that only 52% of Google users and 26% of Bing users are clicking on anything on page 1. People use search in multi-faceted ways so we have to stop believing in the old alchemy of the number 1 slot and where our URL ranks. It’s the total experience of the brand that matters and those who make this transition quickest stand to gain the most from their search marketing efforts.

As social media content continues to find its way into search engine result pages (SERPs), interesting new data reveals just how much traffic is referred to our s facebook pages from search. The folks at the very useful Facebook analytics engine PageLever published their analysis of over 1000 fan pages with 10,000 fans or more and found that 33.98% of the referring traffic to these pages came from one of the three major search engines.

Since the widespread adoption of the tablet as the content consumption platform of choice, the industry has been eagerly anticipating the rise of the Internet TV as the next disruptive platform to change the way we thing about digital content consumption. Is it happening? Sort of, but not as quickly or with as much innovation as we had hoped. With the drop in price of the Logitech Google TV set-top box and the announcement by Viewsonic that it is deep-sixing it’s plans to build a Boxee powered TV, there is growing evidence that the marketing for this technology is softening. Or is it just that the right forces have not yet come together to make this technology take off?

We are moving rapidly toward a version of the internet in which a large portion of the user experiences exist outside the web browser. A recent article by EMarketer cites research by the Boston Consulting Group suggesting we are on the edge of a big leap forward in tablet purchases. Most interestingly is that the impetus driving this consumer lust for tablets is its emergence as the platform of choice for consumers when it comes to accessing digital content in all its forms.

Social media is a major force not only amongst marketers and their peers who find the topic fascinating but amongst our actual audiences too. Nielsen’s Q1 2010 Consumer Confidence Survey, Q1 2010 @Plan reports and Audience Measurement tools are citing some striking facts that paint an even more dramatic picture of our immersion into social media than we might have thought. I was particularly surprised by stats such as 21% of U.S. adults own or publish a blog or that 2/3 of global consumers refer to online product reviews when making a purchasing decision.

I have often written that your social media marketing has to focus on the needs of the audience first. However this recent article by Clay MacDaniel cites research by Razorfish and She’sConnected.com are indicating that a primary reason for consumers to fan your company or brand is to receive promotions and discounts. Let’s take a look at some ways that you can find a balance between social media marketing that attracts the attentions of your audience and social media marketing that pushes sales messages to them.

The number of U.S. Internet users aged 65 and older increased more than 55 percent between November 2004 and November 2009, according to data from Nielsen. The measurement firm estimates that 17.5 million seniors are now online, compared with 11.3 million five years ago.

I enjoy the research published by the Pew Internet and American Life Project because it is not motivated by any particular agenda. So it came as a surprise to me to learn that they are reporting that 19% of those recently surveyed use Twitter or “some other form of status update service (not quite sure what they mean by this). This is up from 11% only 1 year ago. I know that Twitter is fast-growing but since Pew generally reports more conservative numbers than other surveys this is impressive. Additionall, the same survey is showing that the median age for Facebook users is rising: Up to 33 from 26 only 1 year ago–big jump!

The EVoter Institute has recently released a report entitles “Persuading and Motivating Voters: What Will It Take in 2010?” that drives home the importance of the Internet and the changing dynamics in the ways we all consumer news and information. The study is well worth the read no matter what industry you are in primarily because it illustrates the increasing ways that social media content is being used by consumers.

This year’s Nielsen Global Online Consumer Survey of 25,000 Internet consumers from 50 companies has brought to light that reviews and recommendations from friends are by far the most trusted forms of information that consumers receive. 90% of those surveyed said that they trusted reviews and recommendations from friends while a surprising 70% said that they trust reviews that they find online from people they do not know.