4 Website Trends to Watch Out for in 2018

4 Website Trends to Watch Out for in 2018

by | Dec 1, 2017 | Web Design

Website Trends to Watch Out for in 2018

Businesses should have New Year?s resolutions just like individuals do. The new year is a great opportunity to implement fresh ideas that can help your business to grow, or perhaps 2018 will be the year you finally put your entrepreneurial hat on and start that business you?ve always dreamed about. Either way, you need a website, or you need to refurb your website for a fresh and optimized new start to the year. Here are 4 trends to watch out for in 2018.Mobile Friendly Each year, more people are turning to their smartphones when surfing the internet. Rather than switch on their laptops or use their desktop, mobile phones are proving more convenient. By having a website that is optimized to be mobile friendly, you can improve traffic, which, in turn, improves your sales and your bottom line. In 2018, it is even more important to get mobile-friendly, however, as this is the year that Google is planning to roll out its Mobile First Index, which will place more importance on websites that have a mobile-optimized site, showing them first in rankings. It?s not just about SEO anymore, and that is important to remember.Use of GridsAs years go by, the trend in aesthetics changes. Whereas in the 70s it was de rigueur to have busy brown wallpaper in the kitchen, in the 21st century we prefer (generally) a more classic, clean approach. The same is true of websites. Things change, and what was considered appealing a decade ago is no longer what is required to make your website somewhere people want to visit. In 2018, the look of your website may be going to change again, this time to incorporate an irregular grid layout. If that sounds like a foreign language, don?t worry ? that?s what website designers are for. Speak to a professional about redoing your website to incorporate this trend, and get ahead of the curve. Remember, an expert web designer will be able to help you whether you need with HVAC websites, or if you?re a retail e-commerce business, etc.?Bright Colors Once you have your modern design set up by your web designer, you?ll want to start thinking about the overall look of the website. Again, this is something that the professionals can help with once you have an idea of what you want. The trend for 2018 is for bright, bold colors that really pop from the page and catch the attention. No more minimalistic white spaces and black fonts ? it?s time to change things up and use some wacky and wild colors. It?s good to look at what your competitors are doing and try to choose different colors from them if you can; you need to show how different you are.AppsApps are hugely popular and take up a large amount of time when it comes to people using their smartphones and tablets. For 2018, the idea is that apps will be used on websites as well, bringing the portable feeling of a mobile device to the entirety of the internet. These apps won?t be quite the same as those found on a smartphone (the technology is different in many cases) but will be a hybrid of those apps we know and love and the web itself. They will be called progressive web apps, and throughout 2018 you will start to see them popping up on websites across all sectors.
Why Email Marketing is a Must for Ecommerce Businesses

Why Email Marketing is a Must for Ecommerce Businesses

by | Nov 30, 2017 | Business, E-commerce

E-commerce is a spectacularly competitive industry and it takes a lot of a new online store to build a name for itself. With millions of online stores vying for customers? attention, making enough sales to stay afloat can be a challenge in itself. This is why e-commerce business owners have to be smart about their marketing and invest in strategies and tactics that will yield results. One practice that has definitely been shown to yield amazing results is email marketing.

Email Marketing Statistics

In order to best understand the value of email marketing for e-commerce companies, you do not have to look further than the cold, hard numbers.For one, almost everyone (91% of people to be exact), open their inboxes every day. If we were to compare this to daily users of Facebook or Twitter, where daily use rates are around 75% and 42% respectively, it becomes obvious that a promotional email is far more likely to be opened the same day.Perhaps even more importantly, email is actually the preferred channel of communication for e-commerce customers. In fact, when they are asked to choose a channel through which they would most like to communicate with online businesses (not just e-commerce stores), nearly 75% of people say email. Another number that should paint a picture is the fact that two-thirds of online consumers say they made a purchase because of an email they received at some point in time.When we are talking from a simple investment standpoint, email fares far better than pretty much any other marketing tactic for e-commerce companies. Namely, Digital Marketing Association recently came forward with data that the average ROI for email marketing is 3,800% for e-commerce companies. Put differently, for a single dollar invested in email marketing, an e-commerce business can expect a return of $38. On average.

Endless Possibilities

It is important to point out, however, that it is not just about the numbers with email marketing in e-commerce. It is also about the innumerable possibilities of this type of marketing. It may not seem that way to someone who has never done email marketing before, but it is actually a fantastically versatile type of marketing.Purely promotional emails are probably the first thing that comes to people?s minds. These are emails which inform customers and potential customers about ongoing or upcoming deals that they shouldn?t miss out on. These emails also inform recipients about new products that became available at the store or about time-limited offers that are just ?too good to miss out on?.And while these promotional emails are the most direct way to use email marketing to boost one?s e-commerce business, they are definitely not the only possibility.For one, there are the transactional emails that do not contain overtly promotional material but instead serve a different function. For instance, you will set up welcome emails for people who subscribe to your email list or who become members of your website. You will send emails informing people of their purchase and letting them know what they can expect in terms of delivery. If you want to convert your email campaign successfully, you will leverage these transactional emails to tell a brand story, to make customers feel special and to provide a unique experience that will turn them into repeat business.When you throw in cart abandonment emails, retargeting emails, and a few other types, it becomes quite clear that a smart email marketing practice can do more things for your e-commerce store than any other form of marketing.

Doing it Right

Of course, in order for you to be successful in email marketing, you need to know how to do it right. In an article like this, we can only cover the basics, unfortunately.For one, you have to start building your email marketing list as soon as possible. Namely, the law prohibits you from spamming random people and you can only send your e-commerce emails to people who have opted-in. In other words, you have to entice people to subscribe to your mailing list, usually by offering special deals and loyalty awards.You will also want to ensure that you have segmented your email list properly, categorizing people according to a number of metrics that will help you send more precisely targeted emails that have a greater chance of converting.It goes without saying that you will also want to learn about and experiment with the actual emails that you will be sending to your customers. This will involve quite a bit of A/B testing and serious data crunching, but it will be worth it. The good news is there is no shortage of email marketing tools that can help you with the more demanding parts of this.Of course, when deciding on the incentives that will stimulate potential customers, you have to factor in your margins. In other words, a 70%-off offer will definitely bring you customers, but if you are losing money on such a deal, it will be counterproductive.

Closing Words

Email marketing is, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the best ways to market an e-commerce business. That being said, you have to invest time and money in it if you wish to do it right.In the end, however, it will pay off.AUTHOR: James D. Burbank is the editor-in-chief of BizzMarkBlog. He has years of experience in advising e-commerce businesses on marketing and brand promotion in general.
How to Exceed Client Expectations

How to Exceed Client Expectations

by | Nov 29, 2017 | Business

Clients are the heart of every agency. Every working day will provide another opportunity to enhance satisfaction with your services. It is therefore important to adopt the right strategies to improve the client experience, boost your reputation and maximise your profits. To do so, learn how to exceed client expectations successfully.

Make the Right First Impression

Your website will often provide a prospective client with the first impression of your business. It is, therefore, your agency?s opportunity to stand out from the crowd and convince them to enlist your help. For example, if you run a recruitment agency, you will want to convince businesses in various industries that you have the knowledge, skills, and experience to find the best candidates for a role. You must, therefore, display your professionalism and attention to detail with a stunning recruitment website design, which should be easy to navigate with a fast load time.

Cultivate Partnerships

Don?t allow a lack of expertise to stand in the way of client satisfaction. If you lack a skillset, system, or experience, improve your services by cultivating partnerships outside of the agency. This will not only ensure you meet your clients? needs, but it will also allow you to embrace new capabilities into the agency, which could help you to gain an industry advantage.

Train Your Staff

Even the most experienced member of staff can expand on his or her skill set. Always strive to provide your staff with the training they need to grow professionally, so you can always satisfy your clients? needs. So, invest in informative courses, provide staff with industry textbooks, and encourage employees to learn both inside and outside the workplace to enjoy a rewarding career with your company. Also, ask your staff if there is anything you can do to help expand their skillset so that you can boost employee morale while delivering exceptional services to every client.

Avoid Cattle Calls

Many agencies make the big mistake of making cattle calls to hook in any client. Yet, this is a big mistake. Separate yourself from your competitors by only promoting your services to businesses you passionately believe you can help. Focus your attention on developing and delivering effective pitches, which will prove to prospective clients that you have the passion and experience to improve their services. To do so, aim to anticipate what a client will want before they realize they need an agency?s help.

Gain Client Feedback

It is important to learn where your agency is going right or wrong so that you can improve your services year after year. View negative feedback as constructive, and ensure you follow up on their insights so you can enhance your services for both the client and future customers. Also, if a client is disappointed, you can identify where you went wrong and make a pledge on how you will improve your services ? which could help you to retain their loyalty. However, you must deliver on your promise if you want them to hire your services repeatedly.

Ideas For Sprucing Up Your Company Website

Ideas For Sprucing Up Your Company Website

by | Nov 26, 2017 | Business, Web Design

One way to draw your customers is to catch their attention online with a company website. After all, your website is your most powerful marketing tool, and can greatly improve your online visibility and successes. A website is a must these days, and you probably won?t have much luck being found or noticed without one. The key is not to build a webpage up in a matter of minutes and expect people to want to learn more. You have to be patient, take your time and have a desire to do it right. You want to be proud of your company site and all it represents. People are watching and will have opinions about what they encounter when they come across you. See ideas for sprucing up your company website. Speed it upOne way to experience better search results and gain more traffic is to speed up your website and improve its performance. Choose a trusted IT solutions company who you feel is going to help you achieve the best results. They?re out there and ready to inch you closer to your goals. They?ll help you become more dynamic, productive, secure and innovative through professional IT solutions for business.Refresh the DesignMaybe all your website needs is a refresh and redesign. Either hire a professional or learn the techniques yourself. A new look will instantly spruce up your webpage and attract new visitors. Your current users will also be impressed and love the fact that you take such pride in your website and company. Do a lot of testing to make sure the colors, fonts, and structure are appropriate and will go over well once it goes live. Add A BlogNow?s the time to add a blog and boost the visibility of your company even more. Publish relevant and interesting content to gain readership and show that you?re an expert and thought the leader in your industry. Post articles that are interesting and teach your readers new information. Manage a calendar of topics, so you?re consistent about posting and don?t repeat yourself. Invite guest bloggers to share their knowledge and allow them to take some of the work off of your hands. Having a current blog is a great way to secure repeat visitors and new interest in your company. ?Include more Details & ImagesBeef up your current pages and add more for a better user experience. Make it worthwhile for someone to take the time to visit your page. Include detailed information about your products and services and a page about your business and staff. If you add more text, be sure to also include more images, so your pages don?t get boring and heavy with a lot of written material. It?s all about having a nice balance, and nowadays people are more inclined to read small blocks of text with headings.ConclusionA well-designed website is an excellent way to offer more value to your audience. Figure out where you want to focus on implementing changes and use your skills to make it a reality. These are ideas for sprucing up your company website.
5 Ways to Considerably Reduce Employee Turnover

5 Ways to Considerably Reduce Employee Turnover

by | Nov 25, 2017 | Business

A company?s turnover is determined by the work environment. If people are fleeing your business for a new role, you must review your workplace to retain your most talented employees. Read the five ways you can considerably reduce employee turnover.
  • The Right Office Environment
The first thing you need to review is the office environment, as this could be encouraging people to walk out the door. If you provide your staff with a mundane, restricting workspace, you cannot expect them to stay in the business for long, as they may use your company as a stepping stone until they find a job at a more forward-thinking organization.Take a walk around your office environment. Would you be happy to work at their desk? If the answer is no, you could be long overdue an office refurbishment. Turn to the professionals, such as STOiCA Office, to transform your workplace for the better. You might be surprised by the difference it will make to employee morale, business productivity and, in turn, employee retention.
  • A Competitive Benefits Package
Lock in your employees by providing them with a competitive benefits package, which your direct and indirect competitors would struggle to compete with. For example, you could provide your team with flexible working hours, life insurance, medical insurance, disability insurance, or a 401(k) match. The better the benefits, the less likely your employees will leave the business, as they?ll know they?d struggle to find better elsewhere.
  • Respect Your Staff
A little bit of respect can be all it takes to retain your employees. Prove to your staff that you respect them by listening to their opinions, ideas or concerns, and never ridicule their efforts. Take an interest in their personal lives to prove you are a caring employer, reward them for their hard work with a bottle of beer at the end of the working week, and congratulate them for a job well done.
  • Provide Feedback
Most employees will want to know where they are going right or wrong, so they can build upon their strengths or improve their weakness. If you fail to provide feedback, they will be unsure where they fit into the company and if there is potential for advancement within the business. As a result, they might be tempted to seek employment elsewhere. So, reduce employee turnover while improving productivity by offering regular performance feedback, which will allow them to understand how their work is making a difference.
  • A Work-Life Balance
Many team members might struggle to juggle demanding working hours with their personal commitments. As a result, they could leave for a company that offers a better work-life balance. It might be beneficial to provide more flexibility in the workplace. For example, you could introduce flexible working hours, which allows parents to take their children to school each morning. You could also allow members of staff to telecommute a few days a week, so they can focus on work without compromising on their home-life.