Category: Digital Marketing Resources

At the heart of your online strategy is great content (if it’s not then we probably need to talk!). From your website to SEO strategies to social media, content is king. If you aren’t putting a concerted effort into creating GREAT content, you’re not maximizing your potential on the web.

Here are five ways for you to improve your content overnight:

1 – Provide Your Readers With Value

First and foremost, you must provide your readers with value. Simply creating content for the sake of creating content is not enough. In order to keep your audience engaged, you have to create content that provides real and actionable value. Give your readers useful information that they can apply themselves. By positioning yourself as a resource, eventually, you’ll reap the benefits.

2 – Write for Both Types of Readers

Everyone processes information a little bit differently. Some will skim your content and others will read every single word. The key here is to provide subheadings for your skimmers and detail in the paragraphs for those who need more information.

3 – Write Copy That Your Audience Needs and Understands

A good place to start when drafting your content strategy is with your FAQs from customers. What questions are you getting a lot? Create content that answers those questions and put it out, “on the line!” Doing so positions you as the expert and will make clients more likely to call you when they have a need.

4 – Add Images

You should always be including an image with your posts. Especially in the case of social media, a great image can mean the difference in getting the click or not.

5 – Include Relevant Keywords

Search engines are ranking the content on your website to determine its relevancy based on the search query. Including the appropriate keywords in your copy will help with search engine optimization.

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

Navigating the digital world is undoubtedly complex and with new social platforms and technology emerging every day, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. An overall strategy takes time and resources to implement (which is why we’re here!), but in the meantime, here are some things you can be doing right now:

1 – CREATE A SNAPCHAT ACCOUNT AND USE IT

Video platforms are among the fastest growing social media sites. Specifically, Snapchat outpaced competitors last year by a landslide—in case you are looking for a stat here—over 400 million snaps are sent every single day! Selling a product is about selling an experience. There’s no better way to capture emotion and showcase people having fun with your brand or product than through video. Utilizing SnapChat will allow you to get into the phones of your current customers’ friends. Finally, you should create geofilters for your customers to use while they are at your place of business.

2 – CREATE BLOG CONTENT—A LOT OF IT

What content makes sense for you? Tell your audience what makes you unique, give them insight into your process, and make them feel like a part of it. Then, take the blog content and scale it for other social media platforms. Turn it into video, Tweets, Facebook posts, etc. to serve multiple audiences. Engage your people. The people that craft the experience are what make your story sell, USE THEM!

3 – BE THE NEWS

Having killer content that resonates with your current buyers creates a ripple effect that generates new business. The added bonus? When companies, especially locally owned companies, are making waves in the market, it is newsworthy. Social media can and should include a lofty PR strategy.

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

Business start-ups, even existing ones, take on so many tasks, that the creation of a logo is commonly overlooked. But defining your business with branding has to start somewhere, or it could be lost in the bottom of the attraction-food-pyramid.

1. LOGOS—the cornerstone of every company’s branding. When your company first launched, it may not have been a priority for whatever reason. You may feel that when a prospective customer approaches you for services or a product, your brand is not their priority. So chances are you put together something for yourself or even had a friend or family member help out with the design. But, once you’ve settled into your industry, reconsider using real designers. Sick patients don’t go to fake doctors. They go to the pros.

2. SO YOU HAVE A LOGO, BUT IS IT CURRENT? Regardless of your industry, we live in a very fast-paced society that is very critical of presentation. Does your logo speak to the world? Take time to survey your brand. Is there confusion about what you do? Go outside of your inner circle. Sometimes those near and dear to you don’t want to offend your existing brand. A great logo design should speak about the nature of your business, product, or service. So if your existing logo is out of step with your message and customers, it’s time to revamp.

3. EVERY BUSINESS CHANGES. And so should its branding. The evolution should marry with the trends of society. Consider always the future of your business and your future customers. A company with a revamped logo recognizes the importance of its legacy in the marketplace.

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

With the announcement that the National Weather Service (NWS) will now be able to use mixed-case lettering due to updated equipment, there has been a spark in the importance of typography treatment. In their April press release, the NWS explained the transition from the teleprinter which only accepted ALL CAPS to an advanced weather system which accepts mixed-case lettering. You’re probably asking, “why is this important and what does it have to do with marketing?!”

ALL CAPS has turned into the shouting joke! WHEN YOU READ IN ALL CAPS YOUR INSIDE VOICE IS PROBABLY SHOUTING RIGHT NOW!!

Typography treatment can be summed up with the example above. ALL CAPS is meant to be read with a sense of importance while mixed-case lettering is the accepted conversational tone.

Typography is the Key

When creating a website, one of the most important aspects of your brand, it’s important to understand how typography plays a role in the user experience. Viewers are more likely to click through and read content when it’s easy to find. There are a variety of typography treatment options to use to call attention to certain pieces of content. The treatment can range from bold letters, ALL CAPS, underlining, or even changing the color. If your menu features one of these treatments, it makes it easier to find it among the rest of the content on your website.

A visual hierarchy is created when the text on your website is treated differently and calls important links and menus to the user’s attention. Without varying typography treatments, everything looks the same and is hard to follow.

When thinking about your website’s content, keep in mind the most important aspects. You want them to stand out so your clients can easily navigate your content.

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

As a business owner, your bottom line is likely at the top of your priority list! Staying in the black is your key to longevity in the marketplace. Here are a few tidbits to help you understand the value of digital marketing as it pertains to your cost to acquire a new customer.

YOUR CUSTOMERS RARELY KNOW WHERE THEY FOUND YOU

There are a million ways to advertise your business—television, radio, billboard, yellow pages, newspaper, direct mail, and the list goes on, and on, and on! How can you possibly know which one is most cost effective? *Hint: asking your customers where they found you is one of the worst ways to learn. Frankly, if you are running a good mix of media, people can’t remember the first place they saw you and they feel pressured to answer the question so they just guess! They may say, “I found you on Google.” When in reality, they heard your name on TV, saw a billboard, and then searched for you on Google.

COST PER ACQUISITION (CPA) IS A DIRECT FUNCTION OF COST PER THOUSAND (CPM)

Cost per thousand (CPM) is a fancy advertising acronym that is exactly what it sounds like—the cost to reach 1,000 people. I always encourage business owners to compare the CPM of different mediums as a baseline for understanding which medium will be the most cost efficient.Your CPM directly correlates to your CPA—are you following me here? If you lower your cost to reach 1,000 prospects you will automatically lower your cost to acquire a new customer. So how do you do that? Simple. You ask your rep or your agency to provide the information. If you need to calculate it yourself, here’s a quick link that explains how to calculate this number for various mediums: http://www.srds.com/frontMatter/sup_serv/calculator/cpm/.

DIGITAL IS MORE COST EFFECTIVE AND HIGHLY TARGETED

You will find that 99.9% of the time, online marketing solutions, around an $8-$12, CPM (retargeting, IP targeting, digital display, geo-targeting, etc.) are far more cost efficient than traditional media. In addition, the online demographic targeting capabilities are far greater than mass media so you are getting a higher qualified audience at a much lower cost.

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

In today’s world, we all have a mobile smart phone giving us the ability to search for anything we want at any time we want. Did the car break down? You can search for a towing service. Looking for somewhere to eat? You can search for nearby restaurants. My point is, if you are running a business, you need to be there when potential customers are searching their phones. Wondering how to get “there”? There are two proven ways: Pay-Per-Click (PPC) campaigns and Search Engine Optimization (SEO) campaigns.

Above The Fold

A PPC campaign is a great start to getting your website in front of potential customers when they search Google. On the search results page, the PPC ads are always the first four listings on the page. On mobile, due to the screen size, those first four listings are the only listings a user can see without scrolling down. Your website is being shown “above the fold,” which is an old newspaper term that literally means, above the fold! This is why a PPC campaign is important on mobile—you are presenting your website to potential customers before they have to scroll. You are at the top!

Double Your Visibility

Even though PPC dominates the top of the search results page, not all users click on those listings. This is why you need to run an SEO campaign simultaneously. Once users scroll past those first four listings, they start seeing organic listings. If you’re only running a PPC campaign, you’re going to miss out on the users that scroll. As with any advertising, it’s always best to have as much visibility as possible. By running a PPC and SEO campaign at the same time, you’re doubling or maybe even tripling your visibility on just one page.

Mobile Friendly

Okay, so now you’re running both an SEO and PPC campaign and the user clicks on your website. The user gets to your website and immediately leaves. You did all this work to bring a potential customer to your site but they leave right when they get there. Why did this happen? More than likely they left because your site isn’t mobile-friendly. This is why you must ensure that your site is responsive and can adapt to different screen sizes. Phones come in different shapes and sizes. So if your website isn’t mobile-friendly, you’re probably missing out on potential customers.

I’m going to leave you with this one stat before I go; Google says there are trillions of searches that happen every year, and more than half of those searches are on mobile. Make sure your website is mobile-friendly in this mobile first world!

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

Let’s start with the stats. Entrepreneur Magazine recently published the following statistics: 93% of purchasing judgments are made on visual perceptions; 84.7% of consumers cite color as their main reason for buying a particular product; and 80% think color increases brand recognition.

The Importance of Color

Color is the most important element of your brand. It speaks to your customers emotional side subconsciously. Plus, it helps evoke your message. The best brands put thought into their logo. Color relates a feeling. A good example is Home Depot’s use of the color orange. Their target audience is primarily those in the construction industry who tend to be around hazard signs that are usually orange. Simple and smart. They related their brand color to the color their target audience identifies with.

Food For Thought

So what’s the takeaway? Consider your target audience and clients. What do they think of your brand’s color? Do they remember it? And ultimately, do their opinions translate into more business for you?

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

First, I think it’s important to touch on why TV and radio stations are even selling digital solutions. Think about your TV watching habits for a second….are you DVR’ing everything except news and live sports? Most people are, which means these big media conglomerates have had to adapt their business model to survive and stay relevant. People are spending more time online than they ever have.

I spent about seven years of my career as a television/radio/digital rep for various affiliates in the Midwest; I think that qualifies me to write this piece! I’m here to tell you why you should refrain from buying any digital marketing from your TV or radio rep. I get it, you’ve likely been working with that rep for some time and have built a solid, trusting relationship. Here’s the side you may not know about:

1. THEIR “STRATEGIES” ARE QUOTA BASED

Here’s what you don’t see….every “solution” they call you with is coming from a place of needing to hit a digital quota. They’re calling you because they know you trust them and will likely buy anything they put in front of you. Are your best interests really at the center of their quota driven world? I’m in no way bashing the work that these wonderful people do—after all, I was one of them for the better part of my career! What I’m saying is that they get put on probation, or even worse, lose their jobs if they don’t meet their quotas.

2. OUTSOURCING DOESN’T ALWAYS SERVE YOU

Much of the work they are doing from a digital perspective is outsourced to a third-party provider. That means, if you need an ad modified or pulled down quickly it really can’t happen immediately. They have to put in a request and it could take 24-36 hours to make a change. This isn’t the end of the world, but it is an inconvenience!

3. THEY SPECIALIZE IN ANOTHER MEDIUM

They don’t specialize in digital marketing, they specialize in television and/or radio. (See point 2, they have to outsource it because they don’t fully understand the digital world.) They understand just enough to be able to sell you on it. Wouldn’t you rather work with a partner that specializes in digital marketing?

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

 

Searching for the right digital marketing agency to partner with can be a daunting task. There are so many options, and generally, no rule of thumb to guide businesses in making the right selection. Traditional advertising agencies are becoming digital agencies or else face extinction, while digital agencies dabble in traditional advertising to keep clients happy. If the agencies are confused, you can be sure the businesses that work with them are too.

So, here are four primary considerations to help guide you when selecting the right digital marketing partner.

Do you like their work?

What type of services do you need? If your company wants a website redesign, you should review agencies’ portfolios to determine that they, first, offer website design, and second, are good at it. If you don’t like the websites in an agency’s portfolio, chances are you won’t like the one they design for you either. If you’re in need of search or social marketing, request that the agency provides you with evidence of past performance successes in the form of case studies, testimonials, and metrics.

Do they specialize?

Does the agency have any specializations? This can be good and bad. An agency that specializes in one or two things may be excellent at those specific things, but not good at anything else. This is great if you’re looking for an agency to only do that one thing, but many companies look for a digital marketing partner who can provide them with a portfolio of services to address their various needs and objectives. This avoids the hassle of having to manage multiple providers.

How much experience do they have?

There are a few questions one should ask when gauging an agency’s experience.

• How long has the agency been in business?
• How many clients have they worked with?
• How many projects and campaigns have they successfully completed?
• What industries have they served?

If an agency has been around a while, worked in your industry, successfully completed objectives similar to yours, and has a good reputation, they should be a good fit.

What is their price point?

Price is relative. Prices range from agency to agency and fluctuate depending on the service. Hourly rates are a terrible gauge because the total cost is the same when an agency that charges $100/hr takes twice as much time to accomplish the same objective as an agency that charges $200/hr.

What really matters is your budget. You wouldn’t shop for a car or house without a budget, and you shouldn’t shop for a digital marketing agency without one either. Know in advance what your budget is and ask the agencies you’re considering if they can achieve your objectives within it. Go with the one that says “yes.” If they all say “no” then your budget is most likely too small!

Leverage our expertise. Work with us.

 

 

Whether you’re a new or established business, listen up! Your longevity in the marketplace has little to do with this topic.

I’ll say this now (and probably again later!), if you aren’t making a conscious effort to connect your online and offline marketing, you are missing the boat on potential customers. Here’s the scenario….potential customer Johnny is driving home from work and hears your radio ad. It piques his interest. He can’t remember the name of your company when he gets home so he turns to Google and starts searching. Are you there? If not, you’ve just paid a pretty penny (for that radio ad) to help your competitors, who are already visible on Google, get business. That’s right, your ad just drove your customer straight into the hands of your competitor. So what can you do?

BE THERE WHEN IT MATTERS

Do everything in your power to appear at the top of page one in the search results. There are multiple ways to achieve this. First, if you haven’t optimized your website for search engine visibility, do it now. Second, start buying Google AdWords. Third, when you are in flight (on TV and radio), you need to up your AdWords bids to ensure that you are appearing. Remember, traditional media fuels search, and if you aren’t there, you’re missing the boat on potential customers and possibly fueling your competitors who are out marketing you on digital.

WRITE AD COPY THAT CONVERTS

Showing up is half the game. So you’re there, now you need to convert. (I could write an entire blog on this but that’s not the purpose of today!) Write ad copy that matches the search conducted and drive those searchers to a landing page that provides them with the information they are looking for. There’s nothing more irritating to a potential customer than clicking on an ad only to be taken to the homepage of your website. The homepage isn’t what they were looking for—give them what they want!

For the third time, if you aren’t making a conscious effort to connect your online and offline marketing, you are missing the boat on potential customers!

For more information or to schedule a consultation, please call us today at (866) 611-6267 or submit our contact request form.