How to Bring Your Website into the 21st Century
When it comes to having a modern, up-to-date and, therefore, successful website, many businesses are lacking. Businesses believe that all you have to do is be online, have your products or services available, and customers will be flocking to your website. This is incorrect. To get click-through rates, you cannot simply rely on ?just being there.? You must transition into the digital era and make use of the internet and all the separate avenues available to you. This is how to bring your website into the 21st century. Update Your LayoutIf your website follows an obvious, quite static template, you need to swap it out for one which is user-friendly and more aesthetically pleasing. Modern and minimalist designs are popular, and a ?less is more? approach makes navigating through your website less stressful and more appealing. Have a select few of pages and tabs available, include images, and keep everything simple. Wow them with quality over quantity. Lucid Digital LLC and similar web design companies can offer your user-friendly web design that?ll optimize your sales and revenue.Additionally, you will need to remove any ?spammy? ads, as Google is likely penalized your site and lower your ranking. Websites solely based on ads and generating revenue are being heavily targeted by Google?s latest update, Fred.Mobile FriendlyNowadays, people are more likely to access the internet via their smartphones than their desktop or laptop. This is because people live busier lives, and smartphones can be easier to access and can also run smooth enough for optimal web surfing. Your website need to be available across multiple devices, otherwise it will lead to frustrations and people won?t click through (or they?ll abandon ship when they can?t get to or buy what they want). Social MediaHave your website linked to your social media accounts, and have your social media profiles link back to your website. Doing so allows you to fully utilize your social media marketing; you can post images of your product on Instagram, for example, and have it link back to the relevant page so people can purchase it easily. If you show your social media accounts on your website, people can easily ?like? your Facebook page or follow your Twitter and Instagram, making it easier for them to see you company updates or promotions. Onsite SEOBetter your onsite SEO by improving your website?s content. You want relevant and useful keywords, and there?s nothing more jarring than seeing a website talking about outdated or irrelevant products/services. Plus, if you were prone to keyword stuffing or posting empty content, then removing them and starting afresh will better your Google ranking.Offsite SEOIf your website isn?t easily found or crawling up Google ranking?s, you will need to consider offsite SEO as a means of becoming more noticeable. Competition is fierce, so you need optimal online visibility to become successful. You can implement SEO with content marketing, useful meta descriptions and hiring reputable SEO professionals who understand the digital marketing practice.
Top 3 Topics to Learn to Be More Hireable
Job hunting is stressful enough. Being rejected is completely disheartening, and being repeatedly rejected can even make you feel like you aren?t worth it. Not only are there simple things that you can fix that?ll hopefully make you more appealing to potential employers, but there are also topics that you should learn and familiarize yourself that will wow them. Being hired is about selling yourself. Knowing these three topics can give you an edge over your competition because it shows that you know the basics of how the world today works.
Social Media
Social media is a topic that is both very easy to learn, and something that becomes increasingly complicated. You can know how to use social media, but the fact is, most people only know how to use it for their personal life. It is how to use it for businesses that can make you instantly more hireable. You don?t have to be an expert, but you learn the best practices.
Know how to increase engagement, how advertising on the social mediums works, and, most importantly, know its limitations. A great way to both practice social media marketing and have an example to show your employers is to start your own blog that you market. Think of it as your guinea pig where you can use trial and error to find the best strategies that work for you.
Search engine optimization is a digital marketing technique many people have heard about, but at the same time, know very little about when it comes to applying it to their business. Being knowledgeable in SEO strategies that increase page ranking is an incredible selling point for future employers. You can know everything there is about SEO, however, simply learning the basics and proving your knowledge can be enough. Once you are hired, speak to your company about improving their SEO ? lead them to companies such as Click Intelligence, who will help you with your apply SEO and link building into your business?s marketing strategy.
SEO increases page ranking. It means that people can find you when they use a search engine. The guidelines constantly change, so you need to make sure that stay on top of today?s best practices or hire a company to do it for you.
WordPress
WordPress is the most popular CMS with over 28.4% of websites using it. It is a versatile tool that most websites are built from, so knowing how to use WordPress is a critical skill to learn. If you want to be even more hireable, know how to use the other top content management systems like Blogger too. Be flexible. Be knowledgeable. Be hired. Knowing the basics of HTML and the other building blocks of the Internet like CSS is a bonus.
Whether you complete a course and get a diploma in them, or simply read up on the topics, they are great to know. Each one of these topics is crucial to any company, the second it goes online. Knowing the stakes and how the online portion of the business works can make you a more effective employee because it means that you can optimize your work for online from the get-go. It shows that you know more about the business than your competition. It will make you more hireable.
8 Easy Ways To Boost Your Business Twitter Reach
Social media is one of, if not the most important aspects of marketing in today?s world. Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and many other platforms can make-or-break a company, determining their ability to thrive on the world wide web. On the surface, Twitter seems like the simplest social media platform of all. Its condensed messages don?t tell the whole tale, however. The entire business world is competing for followers, likes and retweets, and if you don?t know what you?re doing, you?re practically guaranteed to fail. Don?t fear! There are some simple and easy ways to boost any business?s reach via Twitter, as we?re documenting today. Let?s take a look!Media Is KingIncorporating some form of media into your tweets is almost always preferable. Social media users are more likely to engage with a picture, GIF or video than a wall of text, and media?s potential to go viral is much more substantial too. It?s up to you how you do this - factual infographics, how-to videos and even your latest iPhone snap can result in fantastic levels of engagement. Just make sure it?s relevant. Start Using HashtagsTwitter?s hashtags are used to categorize tweets by a specific keyword. This helps businesses to extend their reach to those who are either tweeting or searching based around that keyword. You don?t have to use an existing hashtag either. By developing your own tag, you can encourage existing clients to spread the message in a unique and interesting way. Paid PromotionJust like Facebook, Twitter offers the ability to promote tweets to a wider range of users with the aid of payment. Tweets are configured to display to users whose interests are relevant to the topic and business, eliminating wastefulness in the process. You?ll want to pick a suitable tweet to promote though, so something advertising a competition, website or brand-new product are just a few advisable ideas. Share Content, Build RelationshipsIt?s a common mistake for business owners to treat social media as a promotional tool and nothing else. The social aspect often gets lost, but in Twitter?s case, it?s more important than ever. Don?t be afraid to share interesting content and comment on other company?s posts. By doing so, you?ll start to build relationships, and before long, they?ll start sharing your content as well. Tell People About It! Expanding our Twitter reach isn?t just about the actions we take on the platform itself. We need others to know of its existence, and particularly those aren?t such regular users on the social media front. It?s easy to add social media buttons to our websites these days, while incorporating our Twitter handle on a range of physical marketing material is a two-second job. Engage With AnalyticsWe all know the importance of analytics, and Twitter?s no different. The company?s own analytical tools can provide excellent insights as to how certain tweets are performing compared to others. Additionally, there are a host of free and paid analytics services for Twitter across the web, including Sprout Social and Hootsuite. Take the time to find what works for you. Time Your TweetsAnother feature of these analytical suites is the ability to optimize your tweets? timings. This is very much a time-sensitive platform, to the extent that the same tweet could generate hundreds of additional shares if posted at the optimal time of day. If you don?t want to be huddled around your tablet or smartphone 24/7, many of these services can automatically schedule your tweets for a certain time. Competitions & GiveawaysEveryone wants something for nothing! If you?re going to run a competition, you need to make sure both Facebook and Twitter are involved. By incorporating requirements that entries must include follows, likes and retweets, you?ll begin to increase your reach far beyond its current limitations. And while the costs involved might prove extensive, it?ll hopefully lead to further profits down the line.
Facebook vs Instagram Marketing: What to Choose?
When it comes to social media marketing, it is really easy to get lost in this bottomless ocean of shares, likes, tweets, and news feeds. It seems like opportunities are everywhere, and young entrepreneurs try to get the most out of every single one of them. Facebook and Instagram are the first and the second most popular social network in the United States as of November 2016 (according to Statista). So, it's no wonder almost every brand plunges headlong into this Facebook/Instagram marketing battle for customers.However, what is the difference between these two social networks and which one should you use for your business?- User base
Facebook is clearly a winner here. It can boast almost 2 billion active users of any gender, age, and nationality, and it looks like this number is only going to grow with time. This is why chances are high that you already have a Facebook business page and are actively using it to promote your brand. This is, definitely, not a mistake. Whether you sell socks or provide accounting services, Facebook won't let you down when it comes to exposure. Instagram, on the other hand, is being used by 600 million users monthly, and its demographics is not so diverse.- Demographics
This makes Instagram a perfect place to market fashion, design, travel, entertainment, and other things that make up ?Instagram lifestyle?.- Engagement
- Purpose
Facebook or Instagram?
Facebook and Instagram are two social media giants that are currently being owned by Mark Zuckerberg. They both allow targeting specific groups of people (e.g people of specific language or gender) and offer paid ads that can help to promote your business.However, remember that if your customers would prefer?to see your product, not read about it, Instagram will do a better job getting your message across. Fashion, style, travel?and hospitality are industries that would definitely benefit from Instagram marketing.If you target older audiences, however, or have very specific products and services that a picture cannot explain, then Facebook is your guy. It is also better for marketing more expensive products (since, again, the audience is more mature and solvent).Author bio:Jenna Brandon is a blogger, copywriter, and digital marketer at Writology.com.When she?s not busy writing articles and studying modern marketing trends, she cooks pizza or goes hiking with her friends. Jenna is also an avid traveler, and she is secretly Italian at heart.
How To Market Yourself At A Convention
Trade conventions are great marketing opportunities, allowing you to network with other businesses and promote your services to those who may be interested in your area of trade. But how do you stand out amongst all the other companies and stalls present? Failing to advertise yourself properly could make it a wasted trip. Here are some ways to make the most out of a convention.Check competitionBefore going to the event, you should receive some information detailing where your stall will be and which other businesses will be attending and located around your area. Research these businesses before going to a? convention. If their trade is similar to yours, they are your main competition! Find out what it is that makes your service stand out from theirs and make that your selling point at the convention public speaking tips. For example, if you're a health and fitness convention and the gym equipment your company sells is cheaper than your competition's? market your stall as? budget gym equipment that everyone can buy? or something along those lines. If your services are more expensive, market yourself as? luxury? or ?professional?.Creative signageDon't let your stall blend in with others. A great way to do this make?sure your signage creative. Invest in cardboard cutouts, creatively-shaped signs, and big colorful banners. And of course, your signage doesn't have to be static. Did you know that you can hire pedicabs for convention marketing? These mini vehicles are sure to stand out. Other ideas involve wearing branded t-shirts, hiring a mascot-like figure to carry a sign around and offering branded bags.Make a speechAll conventions will have an area for talks, whether it be a business convention or a trade convention. Talks can be educational, motivational, promotional or a blend of all three. Communicate with the organizers in advance about the opportunity of giving a speech. Public speaking can be daunting, but it?s the best way to stand out at a convention. Instead of having to give the same lengthy spiel to every passer-by, you can save it all for your talk and tell anyone that visits your stall in brief that you will be on at a certain time. Whilst you may want to shout about you and your business, the best talks commonly aren?t wholly promotional. Use it as a chance to inform people of your area of expertise, or to give advice to fellow businesses, on top of promoting.Tweet regularlyMany people at the convention will be using social media, whether they?re other businesses or members of public. Let people know of your presence by taking to Twitter. If you?re giving a talk, tell people what time it will be one. Take a picture of your stall so people know what it looks like. Shout about the convention well in advance so that people who follow you on Twitter already can come visit your stall. Keep on top of convention news and what things are trending and link your business in with this. Best Shared Web Hosting
