You’ve heard that content is king when it comes to improving traffic to your website and generating leads or ‘converting’ visitors to paying customers. Relevant content will bring more people to your site through Google searches, and by engaging them they’re more likely to become customers. That’s great, how do life science companies find the time and material to add to their websites? As we’ve discussed before, life science companies have been generating great content for years, but it’s not always web-friendly. In this post, we list five great ways to add lead-generating content to your life science website. Having a blog is a great ‘catch all’ for this content, but you may find a way to work some of these items into your website without one.

1. Webinars. As we’ve discussed, webinars are a great way to give leads useful information while at the same time introducing them to your capabilities. While you don’t want to give away the secrets to your success, your company has expertise that can be shared, resulting in a useful presentation which may lead some viewers to buy your products or hire you for services.
2. Publication reviews. Many researchers are getting squeezed in different ways these days, two of the biggest are time and money. Reviewing an important publication in your field saves them both of these precious resources, and also shows them that you know the field well. Also, the reviews will be full of words relevant to your products and customer needs, improving search engine optimization (SEO) and bringing new leads to your website.
3. Application notes. These are nothing new to life science companies, application notes show an example of a product being used in an experiment. Here’s an example from GE Healthcare, and note it’s in PDF form, resulting in another step to download it. Think of the researcher looking for information on their smart phone in the cold room–will they take the time to download and view? Make application notes more accessible by converting them to html, and benefit from better SEO, as html is indexed by search engines more readily than PDFs.
4. FAQs. Think about the questions your technical service team answers over and over again, and how many people are also typing the same query into Google. Kill two birds with one stone by putting these online—you’ll answer your customers’ questions as well as bring new leads to your site. A quick Google search shows GE Healthcare’s on top of this as well.
5. Researcher profiles. Looking at independent science blogs can provide ideas for company blogs, and here’s a nice example of a researcher profile from the Protein Wrangler, a biochemist in Texas who we met on Twitter. The podcast he’s created might not be as friendly for SEO and generating leads, but a text transcript could be added. It’s a great way to show your connection to research thought leaders and to help the scientists out as well by highlighting their work.

While we’ve listed what we think are ‘easy’ ways to add content to your life science website, it will still require effort. However, the benefits of improved SEO and lead generation are worth it. When updating your website, make sure that you’ve integrated methods to capture the leads wherever possible, but don’t force people to sign up before they can view the content. Additionally, by making your website more informative and web-friendly, you’ll find your sales, technical service, and other teams will appreciate and utilize it as well.

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We’re gearing up to attend ScienceOnline 2012 (#scio12) in North Carolina next week, a place where bloggers, educators, and anyone interested in science communication online meet. The conference is growing due to many factors, including the way the fantastic organizers structure the event and increasing importance of science online for the public, scientists, and companies.

We see great synergies between bloggers and life science companies, something we covered after we attended the conference last year. Bloggers are digital influencers, reaching life scientists with great content and even becoming an important source of news for the area they cover. They require financial support to keep their blogs running and expand. This need represents an opportunity for life science companies, who are often looking for ways to promote their research tools online other than using a banner ad on a crowded news website. We’d like to make connections between bloggers and life science companies as we have broad networks in both areas. We’re meeting with as many bloggers as possible at #scio12, fill out one of the forms below so we can start making connections.

Blogger form
Company form

Also, join the #ls_chat Friday January 13th at 10 a.m. PT to discuss #scio12 and bridging companies and bloggers.

Note: The image is in reference to the Science Ink book and related tattoo parlor tour that will take place at #scio12. We’ll take part (and Mary may come home inked…) and have a fun contest at #scio12, stay tuned!

What’s the news from the biggest healthcare investment conference, JP Morgan, happening this week in San Francisco? We’ve created a Tweet cloud of almost 1800 Twitter status updates tagged with #jpm12. Each word is linked to a Twitter search, and you can also see an archive here. How well do you think the Tweets reflect the news and sentiment at the conference? If you’d like a more in depth analysis, contact us.

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Probably like many people in biotech, I’ve had a mixed history with computers, starting with Macs in academia, then moving to PCs at a company. I now find myself gravitating to Mac devices as the phone and tablet options appear to suit my needs better. Moving straight from a PC to an iPad has left me feeling as though I’m missing something, like there are tricks that Mac users have that I don’t know about. After testing different applications, I’ve been able to ‘catch up,’ to some extent, so I’m offering my iPad tips for PC users below. I would greatly appreciate any suggestions you have as well, please leave them in the comments below.

1. Learn how to cut and paste. Just like in kindergarten, this is an important skill to learn on the iPad, and something that will drive you crazy when you first get it. The copying and pasting feature is done solely using the touchscreen and sometimes requires some finesse, I’ll point you to this video to show you the details. One thing that frustrates me to no end is that when I copy passwords from a document a space is sometimes added at the end, and needs to be removed before pasting. I have yet to find a good password solution across different devices other than password protected documents.
2. Let go of the desktop. This ‘feature’ frustrated me to no end at first—there is no file system on the iPad, every file is associated with a program. Is this supposed to simplify our lives, like Apple’s 1-button mouse which they won’t give up? As a result, there is no ‘desktop’ or way to search for or open files without first opening the application. Moreover, if you open a file using different applications, more than one version of it will exist! The only way I know of to get around this is to use cloud-based applications such as Dropbox, and luckily many of the applications sync with it (Note to self: invest in Dropbox). Using Dropbox obviates irritating activities such as file syncing via iTunes, something that takes ages for me. On a minor note, don’t try emailing yourself files from your PC–this rarely works for me, for some reason. One non-desktop problem you won’t get around is that you can’t download or upload files using browser-based apps. So, I was thwarted in my attempt to do Craigslist posting on my iPad, something I thought would be easy, because I couldn’t upload a photo. It is hard to know whether Apple will want us to use individual apps for each of these tasks, or develop a filesystem or workaround.
3. Learn some housekeeping. As a windows user, the ‘ctrl-alt-delete’ keystroke is part of your DNA, or at least your epigenetics. What do you do with no keyboard, HALP! I’m sure even Mac users have been frustrated from time to time. Below are descriptions of how to perform some housekeeping tasks which will hopefully simplify your iPad experience.
   • Kill an application. Double-click the round ‘home’ button, and the running applications will appear at the bottom of the screen. Hold your finger over the application until it begins to waver and has a red circle with a minus sign in the top right corner. Touch this red circle to kill the application.
   • Delete an application. On the home screen, touch the application until it begins to waver and has a black circle with an ‘X’ on the top left. Touch this black circle to delete the application.
   • Reboot the iPad. Press and hold the sleep/wake button (on the side) for a few seconds until the ‘slide to power off’ option appears. If this does not work, press and hold the sleep/wake button and the home button simultaneously for 10 seconds.
   • Find file sizes. I recently filled up my iPad and wanted to delete files. Due to lack of a desktop and the inability to find files (grrr!) I had to go to each application to see their associated file sizes. To find sizes for applications, go to the app store, select ‘purchased’ and choose the application, and the size will be shown on the left.
   • Take a screenshot. Press and hold the home and the sleep/wake button at the same time. You’ll hear a click, then find the file in your photos (linked from an icon at the bottom of the home screen).
   • Group applications on the home screen. Drag one application on top of another and it will become a group. The iPad will choose a name for you, but you can change it if you’d like.
4. Test MS Office apps or emulators and use what suits you. There are many instances in which you need to use Microsoft Office products, and there is no substitute. I’ve heard complaints about the Mac office apps (Numbers, Keynote, etc.) and have yet to have a business colleague expect me to use anything but MS Office. Unfortunately Google Docs may leave you cold, both the mobile and desktop versions leave out important functions and can be laborious to use on the iPad. I’ve tried the Office apps and provide some pros and cons in the table below, and likely you’ll need to try them yourself to see if they meet your needs. Note that I tested the apps with an external keyboard (here’s the one I’m using, I’m happy with it), and you may want to consider getting one to do ‘serious’ business applications, as the on-screen keyboard will be intrusive for many tasks. If you’re going on a business trip, be sure to try the programs beforehand, with and without an internet connection.
   

   Microsoft Office Applications for the iPad

   MS Office Application	Price	Pros	Cons
   QuickOffice	$20	More fully featured than DocsToGo	•Cannot read password protected files •Cannot edit powerpoint 2007 files
   DocsToGo	$10-17	Many features, simple interface	•Powerpoint: can only edit slide text •Not as fully featured as QuickOffice
   CloudOn	?? (currently in beta)	MS Office apps appear fully functional, see screenshot	•Requires internet connection •Initial release–crashes often •Full availability, pricing not known
   GoToMyPC (Portal, not freestanding)	$10/month	Almost completely native control of your computer, access to files	•Requires internet connection and PC to be online •Navigation can be tedious, slow

   
   

5. Keep looking, asking, and testing. Unlike established platforms like the PC, there are no monopolies and application prices are low. However, this means you do need to look around and find apps which will suit your needs. I’ve realized that you get out of the iPad what you put into it. I have a few power Mac users which I consult (@modernscientist and @thecancergeek) and you can also just browse the app store or do Google searches for what you need. For example, I recently switched from the default Safari browser to the Atomic browser and I find it much better–don’t take any crap from your apps, shop around! We’ve also started a Twitter hashtag #scipad to discuss apps and tricks that those in academia or industry have found, whether they be science-related or not, as many of us have to do similar tasks. If you’re looking for life science iPad apps, check out this summary.

Note: My inspiration for this post is my Dad, as he just got an iPad for my Mom and himself. He started me on my first Texas Instruments computer when I was around twelve years old. He is a classic lifelong learner and I hope to be just like him when I grow up!

Image courtesy of Photobucket user Tsevis.

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