Tag Archives: internet

Digital Marketing Tips

Standard
Digital Marketing Tips

The world of digital marketing is vast and, honestly, can be a bit overwhelming! Creating a healthy and successful online presence whether it be for your business or yourself takes time and work. It also takes trial and error because every online presence is different. What works for your best friend’s brand might not work for you. Thankfully, some constants in digital marketing remain despite an ever changing online world. Let’s take a look at what you can focus on in this moment to take your brand to the next level:

We all know that what we put out online whether that be through social media or your own website has the potential to go viral. Of course, going viral is an excellent goal to strive for – imagine breaking the internet with one single piece of content! Is this achievable? Sure! Many people have done it. However, your page may not be as healthy as others if you are simply focusing on a viral status. Rather than a “do it quick” mentality, take the time to truly cultivate your page and allow it to grow naturally through your content and interactions. Viral status can be short lived but a stable platform with true fans, followers, and customers lasts forever. Don’t forget the importance of that, even if it is taking longer than you would like to see growth. Good things take time!

Creating meaningful content is the name of the game and if you are a business owner, you might not have the time or staffing to commit to this crucial aspect of marketing. If this is the case for you, patiently waiting for when you can squeeze in a few posts or run a handful of ads is not a virtue! Until you have the resources to handle your marketing in house, you might benefit from a digital marketing agency NZ (or your local area) to help you get started on the right foot. The team you choose will work with you to help bring your visions to life so you can focus on the priorities of your business.

Let’s take a moment and think about all of the different websites and social media pages that exist. It’s too many to even put a number on! Knowing that, you must develop a marketing plan that showcases yourself and your vision. Out of all of the places on the internet, people are on your page so what makes it unique? When you can pinpoint that special something, the magic happens and your marketing can revolve around it. This could be with clever social media campaigns, a total website overhaul, or allowing your niche to branch out and cover more topics centered around your key interest. Regardless of what route you take, make one hundred percent sure you are happy with what you are putting out. What people see is their first impression of you even if they live halfway across the world and you want that impression to be a good one.

If you are creating amazing content but find that your website is lacking visual appeal, you might want to get help with its design. The appearance of your page is a direct reflection of your content and you will want it to look as high quality as what you are creating. Consider the help of Pacific IQ Shopify Marketing Services to assist with the design of your page. You will be amazed at the difference a fresh, beautifully designed layout can make!

As your pages develop, you will be able to have a much clearer picture of where your viewers are coming from as well as their age demographic. This. Is. Huge! With this information, you can better curate your strategies to improve the experience for your current audience as well as have the insight to expand the demographic even more. For example, if your primary audience is senior citizens, the chances are high that they are only on Facebook for social media. They also might prefer email marketing like alerts and newsletters. Younger viewers are all about that in app experience with short and sweet video content, bold graphics, and eye catching statements. Your digital marketing should be all encompassing no matter the age or location of your audience so find ways to tap into each demographic with strategies that can be accessed in a variety of ways.

Feeling lost when it comes to SEO? Not sure where to start with building a website? This might be the perfect opportunity to explore how a marketing agency can support your efforts. The key is finding an agency that specializes in your industry – after all, a fashion website has completely different needs than a car dealership site. For instance, if you work in insurance, you could benefit from services tailored specifically to insurance broker seo. Partnering with specialists can fast-track your progress and give you the confidence to tackle more ambitious marketing goals as your business grows.

When you consult with a digital marketing agency like Dragonfly Digital Marketing, your goals for your website will be front and center. It’s a good idea to have some milestones you are hoping to achieve in mind before a consultation so the experts can put together a plan to help you meet them. Working with a marketing agency could be just what your page needs to expand your audience even further.

Digital marketing is strategic, yes, but it should be fun too. This is your chance to put your big idea front and center so develop a comprehensive plan, seek help as needed, and have a blast creating!

3 Signs Your Business Website Needs A Makeover

Standard
3 Signs Your Business Website Needs A Makeover

If you’re a business owner, you will understand the importance of your website. This is your virtual storefront where new and existing customers can find out what you’re offering. If it looks good and provides all of the right information, you will make an excellent first impression.

But if your website falls down in any way… That first impression might not be a very good one! It might even get in the way of your chances of business success. Sometimes, your page might just need routine website updates to keep things looking fresh and modern. In other cases, your website might need a full overhaul to reach its optimum potential.

In this post, we will list a few signs that indicate it’s time to give your website a makeover. Be it through your own efforts or the efforts of website designers and other professionals, you may make your business dreams come true. Let’s get to it:

Your images are low-quality:

By low-quality, we are talking about the photos you may have taken yourself. If you don’t have a good eye for composition, it might be that your photos aren’t showing your products in the best light (literally in some cases). Because of this, your website and products will lose the wow factor that is needed to attract customer attention.

Issues might also arise if you use a lot of stock images. If they do little to make your website stand out or if they are have been overused on other sites, they could be doing you no favors.

The answer? Well, invest in better photography. You could take a photography course and learn more about backlight photography, object framing, perspectives, and other useful photo skills. Or you could hire a professional to take photos for you. Whichever route you take, you will improve your website if you have better quality photos.

Your website doesn’t rank highly on Google:

When you type words related to your business on Google, your website will hopefully show up. Ideally, it will be on page one or two. When your website ranks highly, you will have a better chance of beating your nearest business rivals, as customers will see your website first. But if your website doesn’t appear on the first couple of pages, it’s probably because it hasn’t been optimized for SEO (search engine optimization). This means your competitors will have the upper hand, as potential new customers will get to see what they have to offer first.

You can improve matters by making a few tweaks to your website content and design. Check out this beginner’s guide to SEO for a lot of useful information and do what you can to make changes yourself. Of course, if it all feels overly complicated, there are people who can help. Look online for marketing professionals and web designers who are well versed in SEO and invest in their services. A post on social media looking for help or services of web design in Bristol can also be helpful. There may be an expense but once your site starts ranking higher on Google, you will profit your business through more customers. 

If you still feel like you don’t even know where to begin, that’s okay! Before you stress yourself out, remember that there are SEO experts for almost every type of business imaginable. Do you own a dentistry practice? There is a Dental SEO agency for that! Look for professionals specific to your field and you will surely find several agencies that will be happy to assist. And, of course, always shop around until you find the best fit. As you decide between agencies, you might find package deals like those offered by ScaleUp SEO. This can be most helpful in forming a fully cohesive plan that can take your website to a new level.

^^^ Unsplash Image

It’s clearly broken:

We aren’t saying that your website crashes after loading (although it might) but there could be other issues that indicate there are serious faults. These faults will deter your customers from using your business because they might associate your products with your rickety old website!

So, what are the signs that your website is broken? If web pages take a long time to load, it is clear that there is something wrong somewhere. If your links no longer lead your customers to the right pages (or to any page), then you will confuse and frustrate them. And if your website doesn’t display pages properly on mobile devices, then you are going to alienate most of your potential customers.

If such problems exist on your website, you will affect your SEO. Going back to our last point, this means it won’t show up highly on Google. Your website will suffer from a high bounce rate too, as potential customers won’t stay for very long. This will also affect your SEO.

The answer? Do what you can to fix any issues yourself. There are lots of helpful articles online, including this one on fixing broken links. Alternatively, call in a professional web designer as they will fix any problems for you. If you lack the skills or need issues resolved quickly, this is the best route to take as it eliminates any guesswork. To find the right professional for your website, simply enter a search for “Web Design Bedford” (or your local area) to assist with any necessary changes. When your website has been improved, you should get more people using your business.

These aren’t the only reasons why your website might need a makeover. If it no longer reflects the colors and design styles you use for your brand, you should make changes for the sake of consistency. And if the information on your website is outdated, you clearly need to update your content. Look at other websites for examples of good practice and then consider the other changes you might need to make.

Featured Image By: Unsplash

6 Tools To Create Visual Marketing Materials

Standard
6 Tools To Create Visual Marketing Materials

Digital marketing comes in many different forms, from SEO to video marketing and social media. To promote your company online, it’s useful to use plenty of visual marketing materials. You might not have great graphic design skills or a huge budget, but with the help of these tools, you can create some excellent marketing materials:

iTonic:

iTonic Digital Marketing Agency helps create effective digital marketing campaigns for your business. This can include SEO, social media, as well as ads on other websites. iTonic does the hard work for you so your content can reach a larger audience. This is a great service to use to save you time and boost your sales.

Infogram:

Infogram is a great tool for marketers and entrepreneurs. The app allows you to create engaging visuals, using your data. The tool includes design templates, icons and images, and interactive charts. There’s also a drag and a drop interface, hundreds of maps, and reports. With the help of Infogram, you can create stunning infographics to use as marketing materials. You can use the software to publish content, customize the theme, import data, and export code.

Design Wizard:

Design Wizard is a type of image and video editing software, the app features plenty of pre-made templates, to make life easier. You can use Design Wizard to make blog images, marketing videos, or social media posts. With the help of Design Wizard, you can upload logos, fonts, and make customized color palettes. The app features a huge library of graphics, illustrations, and videos to choose from. Whether you’re looking to make content for YouTube or printed marketing materials, there are a lot of options.

Behance:

Behance is an online library where you can access illustrations and graphic designs. You can use the search function to find whichever types of images you need. Photography is great for many types of marketing materials, but if you want to shake things up a bit, illustrated images are perfect. Remember, you’ll want to stand out from the crowd. Some niche and cool-looking illustrations are the way to go!

Canva:

Canva is a fantastic design platform where you can create beautiful designs with zero experience. The app provides millions of fonts, photographs, and graphics, which you can use for marketing materials. You can use Canva to create social media posts, blog images, and more. Once you get into the swing of using Canva you’ll wonder how you lived without it!

Visme:

Visme is a tool to help you create social media posts, short videos, infographics, and more. As well as content generation features there are tools to help you publish your content. It’s simple to share Visme content on websites and social platforms. With so many options to create beautiful visuals, you’ll soon improve your marketing materials.

Depending on the type of business you run, you’ll need different visual marketing materials to suit your needs. Real estate companies might use floor plans to present properties to prospective tenants. Restaurants might use creative Instagram posts to draw in new customers. Whichever kind of business you run it’s important to establish your objectives and set marketing goals to further improve your online presence.

Featured Image By: Pexels

Short Supply: Staying Ever-Ready For Essential Shortages

Standard
Short Supply: Staying Ever-Ready For Essential Shortages

If the last year has taught people anything, it’s that it really doesn’t take much for the wider population to panic about supplies. The recent Covid-19 outbreaks have caused people across the globe to panic buy items, with things like toilet paper being very hard to find in some places. Of course, while this may have been a little silly, the threat of shortages is something that it can be worth being prepared for. There are several key products that need to be considered with this, but this article will be going through them to show you how you can overcome shortages without having to empty the shelves at your local stores:

Power/Heat:

The ability to power and heat your home is something that many people take for granted. While it has only been the last 100 years or so that have standardized the environmental control many people have inside their homes, it’s hard for most people to imagine what life would be like without it. Looking for residential propane companies near me and other suppliers offering fuel is a good way to prepare yourself for the event that the mains are no longer usable.

Having a store of affordable fuels will put you in a good place should you need to rely on energy off the grid, employing the services of an expert in energy solutions such as Sunshine Fuels or similar local to you can not only provide you with a supply of cheap fuel but also the opportunity to invest in the installation of a generator which uses such fuels as your property, this way you have a backup source of power should you ever need it. Alternatively, you could switch to powering your home with a standalone generator and use affordable propane gas or heating oil as opposed to being reliant on a large energy provider to heat your home, as they will likely be the first ones to hike their prices during a future shortage.

Water:

Water is essential to all life on Earth, but many countries around the world are facing shortages of this vital compound. In South Africa, for example, people often have to queue to get access to drinking water that is rationed by the government. Having your own water source can be a good way to overcome issues like this, with wells, rain collection, and even natural springs providing excellent ways to get your hands on the water you need to survive.

Essential Foods:

Food shortages are one of the scariest prospects for many people, especially when they have children to look after. Keeping a stock of essential foods like flour, rice, and dried meat can help to ensure that you are able to feed your loved ones if the shops ever close. Thankfully, most superstores have extremely robust supply networks, and this means that they are able to keep their shelves stocked in even the trickiest of situations.

Internet:

Much like the ability to power your home, most people take internet access for granted. This resource enables you to communicate with people from across the globe, while also giving you access to almost unlimited information. Mobile networks are very well-built in most places, and this makes them less likely to fail than the network that is wired into your home. Having mobile data plans or even a few hot spots can help give you peace of mind.

It can be easy to assume that the world will always keep turning, but it also pays to be prepared in case anything happens that makes life hard for you and those you care about.

Featured Image By: Unsplash

Bored At Home? Try InboxDollars!

Standard
Bored At Home? Try InboxDollars!

Hey! I don’t know about any of you, but there was a point in my life when I would do online surveys like it was my job. I tried a multitude of different websites but when I found InboxDollars, I stuck with it and have been using it for years. In fact, I just got myself a thirty dollar Amazon gift card from my earnings and was able to purchase all of my skin care for the next few months for a song.

If you are bored at home and looking to make an extra buck, then I can’t recommend InboxDollars enough. The best part about this website is that it isn’t just endless surveys. You can answer trivia questions, open paid emails, play games, clip coupons, online shop, and watch videos to get you closer to your ten dollar cash out goal. Once you have enough earnings, you can collect cash or gift cards to restaurants and online retailers.

InboxDollars is a great way to kill some time and I go on it once daily to at least open some paid emails and answer their daily trivia question. You can spend as little or as much time on it as you’d like and not only is it an easy site to maneuver but it’s fun, too! If you are interested in signing up for InboxDollars, please use my referral code and I can help show you the ropes. 🙂

https://www.inboxdollars.com?rb=78080190&ref_src=link

Which online survey sites do you use? What are your thoughts on InboxDollars if you have used it? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

The Ultimate Guide To Help You Understand Telecommuting

Standard
The Ultimate Guide To Help You Understand Telecommuting

We live in a digital world and the concepts of a daily commute or corporate cubicles can be a thing of the past for people who telecommute. What is telecommuting? It’s when an employee of a company can do their work from home.

This can be full-time at-home work or part-time, but the key is the ability to do almost all of one’s daily work activities from home. There is no need to visit the office or even have an office. While telecommuting is more popular than ever, it’s not as easy as it seems.

In today’s post, we’ll explain some of the best practices for telecommuting and how you can be more efficient:

What Is Telecommuting and Is it for Me?

There are some jobs that are more suited for telecommuting than others. Jobs that require the use of computers can be done anywhere. If your job requires hands-on labor or to use assets only available at the office, then telecommuting would be difficult.

The digital world of today is suited for telecommuting because cloud storage, Internet use at home, and reasonably priced computers have made it possible for people to have everything they need without leaving their homes.

Telecommuters can connect with company assets and data via their Internet connection, password protected online servers, and company websites. There are also high speed connectivity solutions that can be utilized so you can have reliable, fast internet no matter your location. Types of jobs that allow for telecommuting include sales and marketing, healthcare, education, customer service, and information technology.

If this sounds like your job or a type of living you want, then telecommuting might be right for you.

Reasons Businesses Offer Telecommuting:

With telecommuting jobs on the rise, companies understand the benefits of offering it to their employees, but not all companies. If you’re a business owner, then consider allowing your employees to work from home at least part-time.

How much money do you spend to rent or buy office space every year? Has your company grown, and you need to expand your office to accommodate new employees? Telecommuting decreases these costs substantially. You don’t need an office at all or you can have a small office to meet with clients, etc. and never worry about expanding. Since most of your employees work from home, you can hire new ones without expanding your office space.

Studies show employees will work for less money if telecommuting is an option for their job. You can also hire employees from anywhere in the world and not worry about them moving to the area. They can stay wherever they are, so your pool for potential employees grows.

Telecommuting and Efficiency:

If you’re planning on telecommuting, then you need to have a good work ethic and be efficient. One of the biggest motivators for in-office employment is the ability for the manager to make sure the work is done on time. You can’t procrastinate if there is a manager hanging over you that wants daily meetings. When you work from home, it’s more difficult to focus and work because you’re surrounded by the familiar.

Before telecommuting, the home was a place of leisure. It’s where you could forget about work and enjoy your family and the comforts of home. It can be difficult to shake that feeling when you need to work from home.

Don’t work in your pajamas or from your bed. Treat the telecommuting day as you would any other. Wake up, get dressed in work-appropriate clothes, and work from an at-home office area. This will help you focus on work time and not home time. If you can’t be efficient from home, then your company may not offer the option.

Working from home is great because it offers you flexibility, lower stress, and an atmosphere that you control. It also requires focus and discipline to get the necessary work done and not be distracted by the comforts of home.

Keeping Telecommuting Secure:

The biggest worry an employer has about their data is security. Your servers house everything about your company and customers and it needs to be secure, but how can you do that with telecommuting employees? We’ve seen countless stories about data breaches in the news and you don’t want that to happen to you. You can provide your employees with computers that have security programs or provide them access to the security programs for at-home computers.

Keeping data secure 2021 is so important because our whole lives tend to be on our devices. Whether working from home or on vacation, always do checks for viruses or unusual activity frequently to prevent from getting hacked and having sensitive information stolen.

Beating the Telecommuting Blues:

At first, telecommuting seems amazing for employees. They don’t have to commute and still get paid without dealing with an office. After a while, the employees begin to miss having coworkers and may get cabin fever because they never seem to leave the house. Work friends and human interaction are important, and telecommuting removes that.

If you want to beat the telecommuting blues, then you need to continue having work relationships despite working from home. Video chat meetings via Zoom or other programs allows people to see their co-workers and chat about not only work but life as well.

Schedule time to leave the house during the week for fun activities with your friends. Have a drink after work or go see a movie. It’s important to maintain relationships when telecommuting or else it can be lonely.

Keep Employees in the Loop:

When dealing with telecommuting employees, the manager must remember to keep them in the loop. This involves not only ensuring they have the appropriate help like managed IT  support at home, but also the necessary data and information required to do their jobs. In offices where the employees are a mix of in-office and at-home, managers may forget to loop virtual workers in on meetings or changes to projects.

This not only hurts the business but also makes the telecommuting employees feel less important than those working in the office. You must maintain communication with telecommuters and provide the same feedback for projects, success, etc. that you would for those working in the office.

If you are considering working from home or letting your employees telecommute, use the tips above for the best success!

Taking Advantage Of The Internet In Self-Isolation

Standard
Taking Advantage Of The Internet In Self-Isolation

Hello! Thank god for the internet while we’re all hunkered down at home, amiright? Personally, I would be going crazy without my access to social media and all of the entertainment streaming services that Johnny and I have. The internet is a wonderful tool to help fight the boredom blues and, amidst the stay at home orders, it is now being used for a lot more than aimlessly scrolling through Facebook. Bored? Try some of the following:

Take A Class:

Right now, there are so many free courses being offered online from reputable colleges to teachers hosting Zoom lectures. I have even seen that Yale is offering free admission to their course entitled “Happiness” or something of the like. I, myself, have been participating in an online American Sign Language class being taught via Zoom and have been having a blast. It feels great to learn something new and you can’t beat free!

Streaming:

Amazon, Netflix, YouTube, and iTunes provide endless new shows, short films, and movies that you can watch from the comfort of your home. Lying on the couch, in bed, or relaxing on your patio requires entertainment; therefore, a good internet connection is necessary. Making the internet as effective as possible in your home can go a long way toward relieving your boredom. Take advantage of the cox internet with a high speed, and you may not buffer even when you connect different devices.

Tour A Museum:

In the mood to travel? How about taking a virtual trip to one of the many museums offering tours online. Play some classical music, enjoy a glass of wine, and get a taste of the finer things as you admire art from around the world. Take a look and get inspired and then, who knows? Maybe you’ll be creating your own masterpieces afterwards.

Watch A Play:

Many theaters and opera houses are offering online streaming of their shows. I have seen advertising from everything from theaters in New York City to the Paris Opera House virtually opening their doors to the bored general public. I would love to watch a few operas in my free time and I am interested in checking out a viewing of the Phantom Of The Opera which I have seen advertised all over Facebook. So cool!

Connect With Friends:

Who says getting online has to be all about learning? Of course, connecting with friends is a given on social media. But, how about scheduling a chat over Zoom? You could play trivia, watch a show all together, have a paint night, or participate in a happy hour drink. Yes, it’s fun to catch up but actually doing an activity together will be a nice reminder of old times and could be a new weekly tradition to look forward to until real life meetings can happen.

Start A Club:

If you are trying to connect with like minded individuals, try hosting a virtual club. You could form a group based around anything from books and writing to movies and art. Schedule a weekly Zoom meeting to discuss the latest few chapters or the cliffhanger in the TV series you’re watching together. Intelligent conversations always perk me up when being plopped in front of the TV is the norm and everyone can benefit from that!

So many resources have made the internet even better than it already is during the coronavirus panic and these ideas are sure to entertain during those times when it feels like there is “nothing to do”. Enjoy!

Have you been doing anything similar to the tips above? How have you been using the internet to your advantage right now? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Let’s Be Friends!

Standard
Let’s Be Friends!

Hello!! Now, I know a lot of my fellow blogging friends have multiple social media pages but that is just not for Lil Red. I have a slide up LG phone and I like to keep things pretty old school. This means no Twitter, Instagram, or SnapChat because when I’m on the go, I don’t have internet access unless I can connect to it with my iPod touch (Which is primarily used for my music and picture taking purposes).

HOWEVER, I do have a Facebook that I am pretty active on and I encourage all of you to friend me on there at: Sarah Mushenheim. You guys will get sneak previews of photo shoots and pics before it becomes an OOTD post on here and memes… lots and lots of memes! Shoot me a friend request and make sure you send me a message so I know that you are one of my blog readers and enjoy the ridiculousness that is my FB profile!

What is your favorite form of social media? How do you stay relevant on the social media sphere? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Basic Traffic Boosting Strategies For Startups

Standard
Basic Traffic Boosting Strategies For Startups

In the past, we’ve talked about merging traditional marketing with digital technology to boost your business’ online presence. While SEO is one of the most effective ways to get people to your site, it’s not the only way. In fact, there are other ways of boosting organic traffic, you just have to know what to do! Here, we list some basic Traffic Boosting strategies that aren’t too difficult to pull off:

Long-Tail Keywords:

With almost 50% of search engine queries coming from voice search, Google is starting to shift its focus towards long-tail keywords. Simply put, long-tail keywords are more like key phrases: they contain more words than traditional keywords and are usually much more specific.

For example, instead of typing down “best BBQ Texas”, users will more likely use their voice search and ask, in plain English, “What’s the best BBQ restaurant in Texas”. Because of advances in voice-recognition software over the past couple of years, Google and other search engines will be prioritizing the use of full sentences rather than chunky keywords.

This is good news for everybody: online companies will have to write more organic sounding content (which is always better than contrived pieces), and search engines are able to provide more accurate, more localized results (and even improve their Machine Learning algorithms in the process!).

boost1

Wokandapix on Pixabay

Internal Links:

Basically, internal links are when you create content that has links to a different webpage within your webpage. Why is this important? Well, it all boils down to two things: bounce rate and page rank.

Bounce rate refers to the percentage of website visitors who navigate away from the website they’re visiting. A high bounce rate is bad news; it means your website is boring, it doesn’t add value to your readers, or it’s confusing, among other things. A low bounce rate, on the other hand, is good news: it means your website is interesting, easy to use, adds value, and a lot of other things that people will want to stay for.

Page rank is pretty self-explanatory: it’s the rank your website occupies in the search results of Google. The higher the rank, the higher the chances of your website garnering traffic, the higher your chances of converting leads. There are dozens of data signals Google uses to determine page rank, and one of them is, you guessed it, bounce rate.

So what do they have to do with internal links? Well, internal links drastically reduces your bounce rate, especially if the links you provide go to a page in your site that offers even more information (or value) to your visitors. This creates a positive feedback loop that reduces your bounce rate and increases the time people spend on your website which, in turn, gets you higher up the page ranks which, in turn again, drives traffic to your website.

If you are feeling overwhelmed at this point in the post, it is okay! There are a lot of information and skills that come with traffic boosting strategy and you might feel like you have no idea where to begin or lack the time to do so on your own. If this is the case for you, enlisting the help of Cold Digital Agency (or a similar company) can get your websites started on the right foot. This can allow you to fully focus on other aspects of your startup while leaving something you might not be as skilled at to the pros.

boost2

Edho Pratama on Unsplash

Involving the Community:

Now that you have your internal links and keywords sorted out, it’s time to start reaching out to your community. Social media management is an important aspect of traffic-driving and, if done right, can mean a drastic uptick in website visits.

Managing a social media community is all about engagement, transparency, and prompt addressing of issues. This means talking to your customers through social media, whether it’s by commenting on their posts, replying to tags, or through instant messenger. For the latter, bots exist to address the most common concerns, but it’s always good to be on hand for any questions that you might not have programmed your chatbots to answer. Should you not have anyone on your staff that is up for handling social media, fear not. Social media management is a service offered through almost any Digital Marketing Agency and will have the skills to take your pages to the next level.

But, don’t limit yourself to social media! Find out which online forums your community hangs out in and start cultivating a positive image of yourself by posting value-adding content that isn’t spammy or kitschy. Just stick to forum guidelines and you should be okay.

Don’t forget to include not just the online community, but your local community too. For example, if you run an online crafting business, set a booth up at a vendor fair. Do you specialize in music? Find a professional in poster printing london (or your local area) and put them up around the city. There is something to be said for good old fashioned word of mouth marketing!

boost3

William Iven on Unsplash

Build Those Links:

Speaking of community, it’s a good idea to start link building. Basically, link building is getting an external website (usually blogs) to host your content on their site with a hyperlink that can direct visitors back to your website. Simple, right? Well, yes and no.

Link building is a very effective way of driving traffic, if you do it properly. What is proper link building? It’s creating great, organic content that other website owners will have no problem hosting. What’s important is that this happens naturally, with no exchange of any kind of resources, whether monetary, favors, or even the website owner’s links. This is because Google hates it when you try to manipulate your page ranks in a non-organic way.

But not to worry: there are plenty of legitimate link building service providers who can help you build your links in a natural way for maximum traffic driving.

boost4

DiggityMarketing on Pixabay

Remember This:

If every strategy above has gone way over your head, that’s okay! Plenty of business owners have no experience or know how when it comes to boosting organic website traffic. If this is the case for you, it is really worth thinking about outsourcing this task. When you enter a search for “Castle Rock Web Developer” (or your local area), you will be able to look into a developer that has the skills you need to help your website thrive. This can include SEO, digital marketing, updated content, and website maintenance. Take the time to research your options for the best fit for yourself and business needs.

Boost your traffic with the tips above and watch your website begin to blossom!

Featured Image By: Carlos Muza at Unsplash

Giving Your Customers Faith In Your Online Business

Standard
Giving Your Customers Faith In Your Online Business

What’s a business worth if it’s not trusted by its customers? Nothing!

These days, online businesses are everywhere and you’ll find everything being sold. From crazy unique clothing pieces to hand-crafted wooden miniatures, you can purchase virtually anything from the internet and there are so many small businesses that you probably won’t be able to remember all of them. Because of this, it’s actually very difficult to build a brand that customers will come back to time and time again. This doesn’t mean it’s impossible though, through reading helpful resources online such as this article you’ll find that expertise in this sector can be quite instrumental in improving the perception of your business online. With an expert in business reputation on your side, there are a couple of solid strategies that can help you improve your reputation and build your customer’s faith in your business.

Make sure your website meets all the security regulations and standards:

Online security is a huge issue now, especially with hackers running rampant and leaking everything from credit card information to selling private celebrity photographs on the dark web. As a result, it’s vital that you get protection for your business from Jumio and other specialist firms that can help you design a safe and secured online website. In addition, you should always rely on eCommerce platforms with a good reputation so that if you ever come across a fraudulent transaction, you can deal with it immediately and effectively so that it doesn’t ruin your business or cause it to collapse.

As long as you follow all of the relevant regulations and standards, you’ll find that your customers will trust you more because you’ve gone the extra mile to ensure that they can feel safe when giving you their bank card information to make purchases.

Focus on offering good customer support to each and every customer without exception:

We’ve probably all experienced the “joys” of poor customer support. Whether it’s outsourced to another country or if we get put in touch with a clueless operative on the other end, it’s never a pleasant experience to be subjected to terrible customer support. Every business should focus on having a solid customer support structure so that they can better serve their customers. Make sure you have several points of contact such as social media handles, emails, and phone numbers, and make sure they’re manned so that if your customers do want to get in touch, they can. Services like Gong Competitors can also help if this is an area you struggle in with additional support like call recording and AI driven insights.

Great customer support can elevate your customer’s experience. It can create repeat customers and could also keep you from losing customers should they be unsatisfied with a product or service. Not to mention that they have the potential to give your business a shout out in reviews and recommend it to friends to highlight their positive interaction. Every customer should feel important and outsourced customer support might be the way to go for your business to achieve that. Negative reviews and experiences could lead to a business’s downfall so every call or interaction should be focused on resolving problems and customer satisfaction.

Be truthful about any errors or problems that you encounter:

Although your customers expect you to deliver their products and services on time, there’s undoubtedly going to be a couple of situations in which you can’t deliver on your promises. During situations like this, it’s vital that you speak to your customers and tell them the truth so that you don’t lie to them and create suspicion that you could be abusing their trust in you. If you have a customer who complains about damaged items in shipping for example, apologize and see what your business can do better. You might need more durable shipping gear – Packaging Chimp is a great resource to get your products from Point A to B safely.

Aim to deal with the situation as quickly as possible. It could be a late delivery because you forgot to post an item or it could be a problem caused by miscommunication by one of your sales representatives. Whatever the situation is, be truthful about it to the customer if they ask and do whatever you can to compensate them.

Running an online business requires the smarts and customer service skills, combine the two and your customers will always have faith in your enterprise.