How Your Web Page Speed Effects Your SEO and Google Ads Performance

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For companies that already advertise to prospective customers on mobile devices, or who have organic search presence, there are numerous elements of their online presence that need to be checked, tested, and, where appropriate, changed. Implementing a robust SEO strategy is crucial to ensure visibility and competitiveness in the digital landscape. Knowing how to optimize your mobile site for speed will make all the difference to your search engine rankings.

The Importance of Testing Site Speed

The changes are going to make knowing the speed of a mobile site essential. Many tools permit site owners to determine their page speed to see whether enhancements are needed. Most of the tools that are available to test speeds are free and do not require administrator access to the website in question. That means that companies can check their competitors’ sites as well as their own.

Adjusting Mobile SEO Strategy for Google’s Speed Update

One such change that companies should consider is switching to Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP). An AMP works by altering the source code of the website, thus directing the standard HTML page to a minimalist version of itself, the hosted AMP page. As AMPs are still so rare, they load exceptionally quickly. In initial Google testing, AMPs reduced load time up to 85%.
Local search should not be ignored, either. A Google Mobile Moments Study revealed that 40% of mobile searches have local intent. Companies also need to be aware that mobile search engine users enter queries differently than desktop search engine users; mobile queries tend to be much shorter.

Leveraging Search Console is a fantastic way to check in on a site’s usability. Using the following options under “Crawl Errors” can make a significant difference to usability:

  • Smartphone tab – It allows users to recognize any crawl errors that might be burdening their mobile pages
  • Fetch on Google – It allows users to to see how crawlers view the site and adjust accordingly for better indexing and ranking in search results.
  • Mobile Usability report –  It precisely informs users about pages with mobile usability issues, along with detailing the nature of these issues.

How Will Google’s Speed Update Impact Your Google Ads Account?

The Quality Score algorithm, the algorithm that determines how much users pay per click to serve an ad on the Search Network, is heavily influenced by landing page experience. If a company’s site does not load quickly and does not convey beneficial information, the company will either end up paying a premium or realize that they are unable to serve an ad at all.

The Google Ads documentation recommends five ways to affect positive change regarding a site’s landing page experience:

  • Include relevant, compelling content
  • Be recognized as trustworthy
  • Make navigation simple and effective
  • Reduce load time
  • Make the website faster

In Conclusion

Google Ad users need to ensure they optimize for load time and landing page speed, and not just in terms of relevance. Companies should also contemplate making a move to AMP, ensure that their intent is on point, and make the most of the power of Search Console and page speed insights.

30 Greatest Lead Generation Tips

visual storytelling

Visual Storytelling Techniques That Will Take You To The Next Level

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Not only has video content become incredibly easy to consume due to the quality of smartphones and tablets, but it’s become much easier — and affordable — to produce as well. Considering the fact that 72 percent of consumers would prefer to learn about products or services via video and that the average consumer watches around 1.5 hours of video a day, your marketing campaign needs to have a video content marketing strategy.

However, your video content will only be effective if it’s of high quality. The following are ten visual storytelling techniques and promotion tips that you should keep in mind:

Top 10 Visual Storytelling Techniques

5 Storytelling Techniques You Should Use For Your Marketing Efforts.

  1. Maintain a single POV

    Make sure that your video focuses on a single idea or message and that you don’t stray off topic or else you’ll lose the attention of your viewers.

  2. Be human

    Use emotion to connect with your audience. A video full of dry facts with no personal point of view isn’t going to be very engaging. Additionally, showcase actual people in your videos so that your viewers have someone to relate to.

  3. Be memorable

    If there’s nothing memorable about your video, then it will fail to impress. Viewers are less likely to share video content that hasn’t made much of an impact on them as well, so strive to make content that is memorable in some way.

  4. Be more visual than verbal

    Video is a visual medium, so instead of just showing a talking head explaining your message, tell your message in a visual manner. Remember, a picture is worth a thousand words.

  5. Start with what’s real

    It can be easy to get wrapped up in the visual style of your content, but substance will always trump style. Begin with what’s real and use that as the foundation for your video. The video’s style should be the unique way in which you convey that message to your viewers.

  6. Make it compelling

    Remember who your target audience is in order to create video content that they will find relevant and interesting. If you aren’t targeting the right audience, your video content won’t end up being compelling, no matter how well produced it is.

  7. Optimize your videos

    Don’t forget to optimize your videos by using strong keywords and links in your titles and descriptions.

  8. Use strong CTAs

    Just like written content, video content should have calls-to-action at the end to encourage your viewers to do what you want them to do.

    Also Read: 3 Helpful Tips To Improve Your CTAs To Generate More Leads

  9. Use YouTube

    YouTube has over 1.8 billion monthly users. You can’t ignore an audience that big, so be sure to post your videos on YouTube.

  10. Share your videos

    Promote your videos by sharing them on all of your social channels to help attract more viewers.

Using visual storytelling techniques will help audiences connect with your video content and make them more likely to engage. Just remember that all the visual storytelling techniques in the world won’t work if your videos aren’t being watched, which is why promoting your video content is important as well.

30 Greatest Lead Generation Tips

Factors That Influence Consumer Purchasing Decisions: Rethinking the Marketing Funnel

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In order to continue attracting your target audience, it’s crucial to firstly understand “what is a consumer need?” Then, must keep up with the wants and needs of customers. Consumer behavior is influenced by many things, such as price, product features, brand image, and recommendations from friends or family. These all playing a vital role in what people decide to purchase. This can be a real challenge if you don’t understand the factors that influence consumer purchasing decisions. Those factors are a lot different than what they used to be. This means that the customer journey has changed a lot as well. This updated journey is referred to by many as the consumer decision journey (CDJ). What makes the CDJ so different than traditional marketing funnels is that each consumer’s CDJ is unique. Keeping that in mind, the following are three of the biggest factors that influence consumer purchasing decisions in today’s digital age:

Factors That Influence Consumer Purchasing Decisions

Product/Service Reviews

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Very few consumers are going to blindly buy a product or service based on the content they’ve come across on your website. It doesn’t matter how effective you say it is, how clear your demonstration videos are, or what kind of accolades you’ve received. Customers are going to look up reviews first. Many consumers aren’t going to feel comfortable buying a product or service unless it has good reviews. Fortunately, online reviews are easy to find.

There are tons of different websites where customers leave reviews. In fact, a company having reviews on their website has now become so commonplace that not having the option to leave or see reviews can leave a bad taste in consumers’ mouths. Reviews are not always only about one specific product or service. Angi, Yelp, and Amazon all allow customers to leave feedback on products and services, as well as overall customer experiences. Reviews come in many forms. Gone are the days of a simple, written review. Now, many companies give consumers the option to upload pictures and even videos with their review.

In addition to consumer reviews, consumers also seek out professional reviews. For example, Consumer Reports provides professional reviews of certain products. They offer comparisons between different products as well.

Encouraging customers, as well as professionals, to review your products and services can be hugely beneficial. Doing so (as long as the reviews are mostly positive) can help improve your reputation and build trust with consumers who are in the evaluation stage of their journey.

Download Our White Paper Guide To Learn How To Perfect Buyer Personas For Your Business

Peer Recommendations

More often than not, consumers will initially become aware of brands or their products and services through peer recommendations. They may ask someone in person for a recommendation or ask online, via social media, online chat, or email. It’s one of the reasons why it’s so important to continue targeting existing customers. The journey doesn’t end when someone makes a purchase. You want to continue marketing to those customers to turn them into repeat customers. This allows you to build brand loyalty, which will turn them into brand ambassadors. Brand ambassadors will recommend your products or services to their peers.

two people looking at a smartphone and smiling

Social Media

Having a social media presence is incredibly important because so many consumers will turn to social media as a way to do research. They’ll look up brands, ask them direct questions, and ask their social groups about their thoughts on your products or services. They also look at your social interactions in general. This means that they will look at how you engage with your followers, as well as with users in general, to get a sense of how you carry yourself. They also do this to see if they can relate to you. A brand with no social presence is not going to make as good of an impression on consumers. Nor will one that doesn’t regularly engage with the community.

It’s important not to become over-reliant on the traditional marketing funnel. Consumers have so much power when it comes to doing their own research about different brands and their products and services, that it’s important to understand how unique the CDJ is. These are three very important factors that influence consumer purchasing decisions in this day and age that you need to make sure you address.

25 Website Must Haves For Driving Traffic, Leads & Sales
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How to Have a Successful Blog (Expert Tips)

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Blogging has become a great way for companies to write about content that relates to what they do. This can include tips and advice on anything the company is an authority on. Topics for blogging can range from “What a Good Landing Page Looks Like” to “How to Start Your Own Business in 10 Easy Steps.” Blogs can also strengthen online marketing efforts.

You might be wondering, how can my company have a successful blog? Here are 7 expert tips to help you out.

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Tips for creating a successful blog

1. Choose a Topic People Care About

The first step to having a successful blog is to write about a topic that people want to read about. Make the topic interesting, and something worth reading. Once you choose a topic, research it to make sure you are providing reliable information to your readers. Then you can begin writing your blog.

2. Make the Formatting Easy To Read

When formatting your blog, it is better to have many short paragraphs rather than a few long paragraphs. A blog is something that people want to be able to read easily. Short paragraphs are more easily digestible than long paragraphs. An additional benefit of shorter paragraphs is a visually appealing layout. Long blocks of text may scare readers off, but shorter paragraphs break it up, making your blog look more approachable.

3. Have an Attention Grabbing Title

As you are reviewing your blog, go back to the title. The title is important and needs to be clear and specific. It has to tell readers the topic of your blog article. Most importantly, the title needs to be attention grabbing. Titles should be between 50 and 60 characters. If it goes over 60, the end of the title will be cut off in the search engine results. Speaking of search engines, remember to enhance the potential for search engine optimization by using keywords that are relevant to your blog’s topic.

4. Pictures Are Fun to Look At

A blog without pictures can be boring. Add a picture or two to your blog to make it more visually appealing. Adding pictures to your blog will also break up the text, which makes the content easier to read. These pictures can be relevant to your topic, and they can also just be a part of your blog as long as they fit. For example, if your blog is directed towards an audience of readers who are business people, you could include a picture of someone wearing a suit. Adding pictures to your blog is a great way to make it more visually appealing and break up text, therefore enhancing readability. Do not forget to cite the pictures you use if they are not yours.

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There are many reasons a successful blog includes links to other relevant articles. One of these reasons is that it boosts search engine optimization. Successful blogs also include a CTA (call-to-action). Your CTA tells readers what action to take. This can be downloading a resource like an ebook, checklist, or template. Whatever it is, your CTA should be related to the topic of your blog post.

Also Read: 50 Most Powerful Call-to-Action Phrases

6. Share on Social Media

Once you have written your blog, you must ensure that it reaches a wide audience. Effectively sharing your blog is crucial to maximizing its visibility. You can share your blog through social media platforms like LinkedIn and Facebook. You can also send out emails to showcase blog articles.

7. Be Consistent and Frequent

The most important things to remember are consistency and frequency. Consistency establishes reliability and trust with your audience. It also shows your audience that they can expect regular blog updates, making them more likely to return and engage with your blog content. Frequent blog posting ensures that your blog stays relevant, and increases the chances of your blog being found by new readers. Remember, blogging is more than one post. Instead, it is multiple consistent posts over time. When you are in charge of blogging for your company, it is best to post a minimum of two blogs a week.

Blogging can be fun. Follow the 7 tips listed above to create a successful blog for your company.

Integrating Social Media & SEO Efforts For Enhanced Search Engine Results

What’s Trending in Marketing of April 2024

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Step right into our April 2024 edition of “What’s Trending in Marketing,” your portal to the freshest marketing trends and insights. Stay ahead of the curve with our collection of marketing trends and reports for the 2024 year.

Additions in AI Advertisements

Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, is making it easier for brands to reach consumers with AI-powered tools. They’re introducing new features to personalize advertising campaigns, like creating multiple versions of ads tailored to individual users. Additionally, they’re offering personalized product recommendations based on what users have browsed and liked. These tools are available on both Facebook and Instagram, aiming to make shopping experiences more seamless and impactful. Read more here. 

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Brands Values and Their Customers

To keep your customers happy, it’s important for your brand to reflect their values. Most shoppers want brands to share their beliefs. Many have stopped buying from companies whose values clash with their own. To stay connected with customers, brands will focus on showing what they stand for. A survey found that nearly half of marketers plan to invest more in creating content that highlights their brand’s values. Only a small minority will decrease their investment. This shows the increasing importance of authenticity and alignment in fostering lasting relationships with customers. Read more here. 

The Rise of Podcasts

Given the surging popularity of podcasts and online audio, marketers are increasingly recognizing the value and potential of these platforms for reaching and engaging with audiences. In a survey conducted on marketing trends for 2024, 82% of marketers expressed their intentions to either increase or maintain their investment in podcasts and audio content. This signifies a strategic shift in marketing strategies. More emphasis is placed on leveraging the power of audio to connect with consumers in meaningful ways. Overall, the continued growth of podcasts and audio content presents an opportunity for marketers to expand their reach and build brand awareness. It also allows them to foster deeper connections with their target audience in the evolving digital landscape. Read more here.

Learning Marketing Trends and Ideas

Interactive Email Marketing Trends

In today’s competitive online marketing scene, you have to stand out. To do this, businesses are turning to interactive email strategies. These interactive emails go beyond traditional text and attachments. They offer engaging features like animated GIFs, navigational menus, integrated forms, rotational banners, and sliders. Not only do these elements add visual appeal, but they also improve the overall user experience. This encourages active engagement and interaction with the brand’s message. Google’s enhanced compatibility ensures seamless viewing across devices, while emerging trends like key frame animation and cinema-graphs add even more excitement. Interactive emails not only catch customers’ attention but also streamline user experience, making them a vital tool in modern marketing strategies. Read more here.

Innovative Video Strategies to Transform Your Senior Living Marketing

Digital technology has revolutionized marketing for senior living communities, offering unprecedented opportunities to engage potential residents and their families. Video content, in particular, is a powerful tool for showcasing the amenities, values, and lifestyle senior living communities offer. As seniors increasingly embrace digital platforms, mastering video marketing is crucial. Videos can tell authentic stories, educate viewers, and provide virtual tours, all of which are essential for attracting and informing prospective residents. Leveraging digital strategies like SEO optimization and YouTube presence enhances the reach and impact of video marketing efforts, allowing communities to connect meaningfully with their audience and foster trust in the decision-making process. Read more here.

How Brands Market To the Different Generations

Generational marketing targets different age groups in order to better meet their unique needs and preferences. Each generation has distinct characteristics that influence their consumer behavior and how they interact with marketing efforts. Baby boomers, for instance, value quality and respond well to email and TV ads, while Generation X prioritizes convenience and brand loyalty, engaging with social media and video content. Millennials seek authenticity and personal connection, favoring social media and influencer marketing, while Generation Z, the youngest segment of consumers, prefers an omnichannel approach and values brand ethics and authenticity. Understanding each generation’s characteristics is crucial for creating marketing strategies tailored to their behaviors and preferences, which allows you to effectively reach and engage with them. Read more here.

30 Lead Generation Tips & Tricks  Download our FREE guide to attract those leads!  

Nano- or Micro-Influencer Marketing

More brands are leaning towards collaborating with nano- and micro-influencers instead of celebrities or big social media stars because they charge lower rates and still generate high engagement. Reports show that marketers prefer working with small-scale influencers, with nano-influencers charging between $5 to $25 for a TikTok post and micro-influencers asking for $25 to $125. These smaller influencers also boast higher engagement rates, meaning their followers are more likely to take action based on their recommendations. To ensure a positive return on investment, it’s crucial to collaborate with influencers whose followers match your target audience. Read more here.

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Companies in Partnership Marketing

More brands are teaming up with others in their industry because it helps both parties achieve their goals. This collaboration can involve co-producing webinars, appearing on each other’s podcasts, or sharing each other’s social media content. For instance, Videowise partnered with other brands to promote their ebook. Partnership marketing allows brands to reach more potential customers by tapping into each other’s audience, connect with industry leaders for insights and assistance, and gain access to valuable resources like customer insights and industry data to enhance marketing campaigns. Read more here.

User-Generated Video Content

We’re likely to see more user-generated video content because potential customers trust it more than highly-produced brand videos. These videos, created by real customers who have used the product or service, carry authenticity that resonates with audiences and increases the likelihood of conversion. To encourage customers to share their experiences, brands can ask for honest reviews, host giveaway contests for video testimonials, or collaborate with creators who can provide genuine opinions in exchange for a fee. This approach saves time, money, and effort compared to creating highly-produced videos from scratch. By leveraging user-generated content, brands capitalize on the credibility and relatability that real customer experiences offer. This fosters stronger connections with their audience and drives engagement across digital platforms. Read more here.

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Artificial Intelligence Pros and Cons

Considering The Pros and Cons of Using Artificial Intelligence In Marketing

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Artificial Intelligence (AI) is becoming more and more prominent across all industries. The uses of AI range from manufacturing incredibly complex microchips, to driving unmanned vehicles. However, it’s also used in a more behind-the-scenes capacity. For example, businesses use AI tools to help collect and analyze customer data as well as to engage with customers and prospects on their website and social media channels. It’s important to understand that there are artificial intelligence pros and cons. The following are a few of the artificial intelligence pros and cons that you should keep in mind:

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The Pros Of Artificial Intelligence

These are just a few of the benefits of using AI:

  • Personalize interactions – AI tools can collect user information and behaviors of a customer or lead to execute specific actions. For example, if a customer buys a product, AI can automatically send them an email not only thanking them for their purchase but recommending a similar product. A good example of this is Netflix. Netflix uses a complex algorithm to personalize their user experience by recommending movies and shows based on their watch history. You can also use AI to send leads dynamic content that’s based on their specific behavior and information.
  • Improve marketing efficiency – The use of AI can help eliminate mundane and time-consuming tasks. Delegating repetitive tasks like data entry, basic customer inquiries, and preliminary lead qualification to AI frees up time for your marketing and sales teams. The teams can then use this time to focus on more important matters. Additionally, AI tools allow you to collect vast amounts of data that you would never be able to manually sort and analyze. This means that by using AI, you can make faster and better decisions based on accurate, real-time information.
  • Reduce costs – Not only does saving time help reduce costs, but it can also save money on staffing. For example, the use of chatbots means that you don’t need as many customer representatives on standby. The use of AI can also help eliminate errors. Humans are more likely to make mistakes that can be costly when performing repetitive tasks due to boredom. AI tools eliminate the risk of potentially expensive errors in tasks such as these.

Also Read: Empowering and Transforming Digital Marketing with AI

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The Cons Of Artificial Intelligence

The following are some of the current drawbacks of AI:

  • Many customers still prefer human interaction – Chatbots can help provide people with answers to basic questions. You can even personalize the interactions to some extent. No customer is going to mistake a chatbot for an actual human, though. Many customers will prefer to speak to an actual human instead of speaking to a chatbot.
  • Fewer jobs – Because you may not need as big of a staff due to the use of AI, it means you won’t be employing as many people as you would have otherwise. Just keep in mind that even though AI has cost people some jobs, in the long term, it has and will create more jobs as well.
  • AI can only make logic-based decisions – There have been cases where companies have performed actions that seemed callous as a result of AI. For example, Uber operates on an AI tool that determines how much rates will be based on supply and demand. When there’s a big demand, rates go up. When a shooting and hostage situation occurred in Sydney, Australia, a few years back, people in the area tried to leave via Ubers. Uber’s rates went up automatically, which made them seem cold-hearted. Uber received bad press because of the incident.

These are a few artificial intelligence pros and cons to keep in mind. As you can see, the use of AI can greatly benefit your marketing strategy; however, it’s important not to over-rely on your AI tools as there are still some limitations as well.

 

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Interactive Email Marketing Trends

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With increasing competition in the online marketing world, it is becoming essential for businesses to innovate creative ways to appeal to customers via email. Learn some of the newest interactive email marketing trends to take advantage of.

As opposed to traditional emails that would only contain plain text and occasional attachments, interactive emails are packed with exciting add-ons to appeal to their customers. Below are characteristics as well as advantages of using interactive email marketing trends for your business.

Interactive Email Marketing Trends

Let’s have a look at how we should create interactive email which is in trend:

Increased Compatibility with Google

Google announced compatibility with the media query for their email clients across all devices. This compatibility now allows email developers to include complex email designs without having to sacrifice certain components in order to ensure compatibility.

With the all-new support for media query, developers are now unlimited in their ability to incorporate complex media into emails. Google has also optimized email layouts for viewing between mobile devices and desktop computers.

Animated GIFs

An animated GIF is a combination of static images, containing multiple frames in succession, to create an animated image. It achieves video effect while occupying only slightly more space than a regular image.

These interesting animations can be designed to convey important information about your business. They can also convey information like sales discounts, new product launches, etc.

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Providing a framework for menu options within emails can allow your customers to quickly navigate through various products or service categories right within the email. This allows you to conveniently present your customers with several options to choose from before they can begin to load new web pages to get to your site.

If you are providing news, customers can quickly scroll through various news categories and see what interests them before they can read further. Travel companies can also offer various packages right within the email for their customers to sieve through.

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Integrated Forms

Integrated forms are a highly effective tool for businesses who want to streamline the process of gathering valuable customer information. You should embed the form within the email rather than having the reader link to a new page. Whether it be in the form of a survey or a questionnaire, integrated forms offer a seamless experience within the email itself.

This allows customers to answer questions or make their selections right within the body of the email. There are templates that integrate check-boxes, text boxes for open-ended questions and radio buttons for closed-ended questions.

6 Email Marketing Tips

Rotational Banners

Emails that contain a lot of information can present it in a clean and catchy manner by using rotational banners. These interactive elements allow consumers to flip through multiple images, each with a separate message embedded within.

Rotating banners are perfect for tour and travel companies that are showcasing various packages. Financial institutions like banks that are advertising credit card options or different types of bank accounts can also use this feature. News snippets of various trending stories can also be laid out in rotating banners by news and media outlets.

rotational banner toyota.png

 

Sliders

Sliders can be used to display multiple products within the email at the same time. This allows customers to make comparisons. It also allows customers to access information on multiple products without having to click on their inbox.

Sliders are perfect for companies that launch different variations of the same product and would like information on the various versions to be readily available to the customer. They are also helpful for those sellers who would wish to include a combination of pictures, product specifications and product reviews right within the email.

There are also brand new interactive email designs that are slowly growing in popularity but still pretty new to most email users. These include key frame animation (smoother animations and frame changes than GIFS, with effects such as linear and parallel movement, and hover effects), cinemagraph (using GIFS to create cinematic video-like effects), and compatibility with 2k and 4k resolutions (which includes lack of width limitation and a resolution of higher than 600 pixels).

In conclusion, interactive emails are the future of email marketing. It is important for businesses to stay up to speed with new email marketing trends that they can incorporate into their future marketing strategies. The numerous advantages of interactive emails, as discussed here, continue to make them an online marketing necessity.

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Digital Communication Tools to Help Build a Human Brand

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The success of your brand depends on much more than just convincing a potential customer to try your product. In the past, the customer experience has been based solely around the product being offered. These days, you need to look at the big picture. It’s not just about the customer experience in regards to your product. Instead, it’s about the emotional connection that customers are able to form with your brand.

Customers don’t just want a product, they want a relationship with the brand that is selling them that product. You need to focus on fostering an emotional connection with them instead of just trying to build awareness for a certain product. Fortunately, building an emotional connection with your audience is easier than ever before with the number of digital communication tools that are at your disposal.

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The Importance Of An Emotional Connection

Customers are more than just transactions or data points. They are human beings with hopes, dreams, and feelings. In a world where their product choices are practically limitless, they will want much more out of a brand. They do not want to engage with a corporation. Customers want to engage with a brand that relates to them on a personal level. Their desire to have a connection with a brand in a world with product options that are virtually limitless is not surprising. A brand that is able to touch their customers emotionally is going to make their customers more engaged.

There are many ways that you can achieve this, like reinforcing the beliefs or perspective of your audience, supporting the goals or perspective of your audience, or challenging your audience to do greater things.

5 Marketing Tactics You Should Be Using in 2019

How Digital Communication Tools Can Help Foster An Emotional Connection

Engaging on an emotional level with your audience is easier than it’s ever been, as long as you make the effort to do so. The following are just a few ways that digital communication tools can help you to connect with your audience emotionally and to build meaningful relationships with them:

  • person looking at digital communication

    Video content

    When it comes to content, few other forms are able to engage audiences on an emotional level like video content. There are numerous reasons for this. Firstly, people consume visual content much more easily than written content. They also consume visual content much more quickly than written content. Secondly, you can use actors or even real figures that audiences can relate to on a personal level. This will create a sense of empathy and connection. Thirdly, you can emphasize certain emotions much more effectively through video. The color grading, visual style, and cinematography of the video all help set the emotional tone. The sound effects and music used in the video further enhance its emotional impact. They can also be used to create atmospheres that evoke certain feelings. YouTube is the most popular platform for sharing video content.

  • Segmentation

    Segmenting your leads and customers based on the data you’ve collected (via opt-in forms, surveys, and more) will provide you with valuable insight into who your audience is. This will tell you how you can connect with them. Once you have segmented your leads, you can create content that speaks to each group’s needs and interests. Effectively personalizing your content will allow you to catch your audience’s attention. It will also make it easier to drive engagement.

  • Social interaction

    The use of social channels makes it easy to engage with your audience in a personal and direct manner. You can promptly answer their questions, respond to their comments, and address their concerns. Customers appreciate brands that listen and respond to their needs. You’ll have a bigger emotional impact on those who witness the interactions on social media as well. Remember, personal and direct interactions make it easier to build meaningful relationships with your audience.

Building a human brand will help you build long-term relationships with your audience based on real emotional connections. Use digital communication tools available to you, like video content, segmentation, and social interaction, to emphasize emotion in your marketing efforts. Doing so will help your audience relate to you on a more personal level, thereby driving engagement with your brand.

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How to Conduct a Thorough Website Audit for Improved Performance

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Conducting a website audit is an essential task if you’re looking to enhance your online presence. A comprehensive audit helps you understand key areas of improvement and optimization across various aspects of your website. From user experience (UX) and search engine optimization (SEO) to conversion rate optimization (CRO), each element plays a significant role in how effective your website is in achieving your business goals. In this article, we’ll explore how to audit a website effectively by focusing on these major components.

website audit laptop

UX: Enhancing User Friendliness

User experience (UX) is critical because it determines how easily visitors can interact with your site. A positive UX increases engagement, reduces bounce rates, and improves overall satisfaction. Here are key metrics to evaluate:

  • Navigation Ease: How quickly can users find what they need? Assessing navigation involves examining site structure and menu layouts to ensure information is logical and easily accessible, which helps in reducing user frustration and increasing retention.
  • Page Load Time: Faster pages provide a better experience. Quick loading times are essential for keeping user interest. Optimize images, streamline code, and leverage browser caching to enhance speed and prevent potential visitors from leaving in annoyance.
  • Mobile Responsiveness: Is your site easy to use on all devices? A mobile-responsive website automatically adjusts to the screen size and orientation of the device it is being viewed on, providing a seamless experience for smartphone and tablet users.
  • Visual Appeal: Does your design attract and keep attention? Effective visual design not only draws visitors in but also plays a crucial role in creating a positive first impression. Ensure your site uses compelling layouts, appropriate colors, and readable fonts to enhance user engagement.

Assessing these areas will help you understand how user-friendly your site is, which is the first step in learning how to audit a website.

SEO: Boosting Visibility

Search engine optimization (SEO) is about increasing your site’s visibility and driving the right kind of traffic to your website. Key aspects to focus on include:

  • Keyword Optimization: Are you using the right keywords that your target audience is searching for? Proper keyword optimization ensures your content appears in relevant searches, boosting visibility and driving targeted traffic to your website.
  • Content Quality: Is your content relevant, useful, and well-written? High-quality content is crucial for engaging readers and encouraging them to interact with your site. It should be informative, easy to read, and directly address the needs of your visitors.
  • Meta Tags and Descriptions: Do they effectively describe and promote your content? Meta tags and descriptions play a key role in search engine ranking and user click-through rates. They should be concise, include targeted keywords, and accurately summarize the page content.
  • Link Health: Are your links functional and do they contribute to your authority? Maintaining healthy links is essential for SEO. Ensure all internal and external links are functional, relevant, and use proper anchor text to boost your site’s credibility and authority.

Improving these areas will help ensure that the right users find your site, a crucial component of how to audit a website.

search engine optimization chart rocket ship

CRO: Converting Visitors into Customers

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) focuses on what users do once they visit your site. The goal here is to maximize the percentage of visitors who complete desired actions, whether it’s subscribing to a newsletter or making a purchase. Evaluate these elements:

  • Call to Action (CTA): Are your CTAs clear and compelling? Effective CTAs guide users towards desired actions with clear, urgent language. Ensure they stand out visually and are placed strategically across your site to maximize engagement as well as conversion rates.
  • User Pathways: Is it easy for users to convert? Simplify the user journey to enhance conversions. Analyze the flow from initial contact to final action to identify and remove obstacles, ensuring a smooth, straightforward path that facilitates user progression in addition to increasing the likelihood of conversion.
  • A/B Testing: Are you continually testing and optimizing user pathways? Implement regular A/B testing to compare different versions of your site elements, from headlines to CTAs, to determine which variations perform the best, thereby continuously refining user experience and increasing conversion efficiency.
  • Checkout Process: Is it streamlined and secure for users? A streamlined checkout process reduces cart abandonment and enhances user trust. Ensure the process is quick, requires minimal steps, and employs robust security measures like SSL encryption to protect user data.

By focusing on these points, you can ensure that your site not only attracts visitors but also encourages them to take action.

Integrating Advanced Tools and Strategies

To effectively audit and enhance your website, employing advanced tools and strategies is pivotal. Utilizing a website redesign analytics tool can provide insights into how changes to your site can influence user behavior and SEO performance. Additionally, understanding why a content audit is important will guide you in refining your content strategy to meet the expectations of your audience. Moreover, implementing essential website updates for senior living communities can significantly enhance user engagement and satisfaction in targeted demographics such as seniors.

Steps to a Successful Audit

Here are some practical steps to follow when auditing your website:

  • Initial Review: Start with an overall review to understand the site’s current state.
  • Detailed Analysis: Dive deep into UX, SEO, and CRO elements.
  • Tool Integration: Utilize specialized tools to gather data and insights.
  • Action Plan Development: Based on your findings, develop a strategy to address weaknesses and capitalize on strengths.
  • Implementation and Monitoring: Apply changes and closely monitor impacts to ensure desired improvements are achieved.

Enhancing Your Website’s Effectiveness

Understanding how to audit a website involves a detailed examination of its UX, SEO, and CRO elements. By assessing these areas thoroughly and integrating strategic tools, you can significantly enhance your site’s effectiveness, ultimately leading to better user engagement, improved search engine rankings, and increased conversions. Remember, a successful website audit is not a one-time activity but a continuous improvement process to keep your site performing at its best.

 

Innovative Video Strategies to Transform Your Senior Living Marketing

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When determining how to market senior living communities, you should be aware that the advent of digital technology has offered unprecedented opportunities to connect with potential residents and their families in meaningful ways. Video content is a particularly potent tool. It offers a dynamic and engaging way to showcase your community’s amenities, lifestyle, and values. With seniors increasingly embracing digital platforms, using video strategies to market senior living communities effectively is more crucial than ever.

three people talking video strategies

The Power of Video in Senior Living Marketing

Video content has the unique ability to convey messages in a more engaging and memorable manner than text alone. For senior living communities, this means the opportunity to truly showcase what makes your community stand out. Creating video content is just the beginning. To truly optimize these efforts and ensure they reach your target audience, strategic planning and execution are essential.

Engagement Through Authentic Stories

Leveraging the power of storytelling, videos that capture real-life experiences and testimonials from current residents can significantly impact potential residents and their families. By showcasing these authentic stories, your community can forge a deeper emotional connection, making it feel more inviting and relatable. These stories can highlight the day-to-day joys, sense of belonging, and supportive environment your community offers, providing a genuine glimpse into the quality of life that awaits future residents. This kind of content engages viewers. It also builds trust and confidence in your community as a place where their loved ones can thrive.

Educational Content

In the decision-making process for senior living options, seniors and their families often have numerous questions and concerns. These can range from financial planning and health care services to lifestyle and activity offerings. By creating and providing educational video content that addresses these topics, your community can position itself as a knowledgeable and trusted resource. This approach not only informs viewers but also alleviates concerns, making the transition to senior living seem less daunting. Informative videos can cover a wide range of subjects, including the benefits of senior living, how to prepare for the move, and what new residents can expect. This empowers families with the knowledge they need to make informed decisions.

Virtual Tours

In today’s digital age, the initial exploration of senior living options often takes place online. This makes virtual tours a critical component of your marketing strategy. Virtual tours offer potential residents and their families the ability to explore your facilities, amenities, and living spaces from the comfort of their homes. They provide a convenient and comprehensive view of what your community has to offer. These tours can highlight the unique features of your community, such as dining options, fitness centers, outdoor spaces, and social areas. This allows viewers to visualize themselves or their loved ones living there. By providing a virtual walkthrough, you can engage interested individuals early in their search process. This will make your community a frontrunner in their selection process.

man watching video

Leveraging Key Digital Strategies in Video Marketing

To ensure your video content reaches and resonates with your intended audience, consider incorporating the following digital strategies:

  • Optimize for SEO: Including relevant keywords, such as “how to market senior living communities,” in your video titles and descriptions can enhance your content’s visibility on search engines and platforms like YouTube.
  • Utilize Platforms like YouTube: YouTube for senior marketing is an invaluable channel for reaching potential residents and their families. It has a vast audience and offers a platform for your videos to be easily found and shared.
  • Update Your Website: Integrating video content into your website not only makes it more engaging but also helps with SEO. Ensuring your site incorporates essential website updates for senior living can improve user experience and support your marketing efforts.

Five Video Ideas to Enhance Your Senior Living Marketing

To help you get started, here are five video ideas that can effectively communicate your community’s unique offerings and values:

  • Virtual Tours: Virtual tours offer an immersive experience, allowing potential residents and their families to explore your community from anywhere. These tours showcase your facilities and highlight amenities. They also give viewers a taste of the daily social activities, making your community an attractive option.
  • Resident Testimonials: Videos featuring resident testimonials provide a personal look at the quality of life within your community. Hearing directly from residents about their experiences fosters trust and showcases the strong sense of community you offer.
  • Staff Introductions: Introducing your staff through video humanizes your community. Highlighting their expertise, dedication, and compassionate approach to care reassures families that their loved ones will be in good hands.
  • FAQs Answered: A video series that answers frequently asked questions helps demystify the process of moving to and living in a senior community. It addresses common concerns about senior living options, financial planning, and lifestyle changes.
  • Lifestyle Highlights: Share videos of social events, hobbies, and activities available within your community. They will demonstrate the vibrant, engaging lifestyle that residents enjoy. It invites potential residents to imagine being part of your active community.

For more inspiration and guidance on creating engaging video content, exploring video marketing ideas can offer valuable insights and strategies tailored to the senior living market.

Embracing the Digital Age in Senior Living Marketing

Digital platforms are becoming increasingly integral to our daily lives. Therefore, senior living communities must adapt and innovate to meet their audiences where they are. You should effectively utilize video content, optimized for both search engines and user engagement. This will allow you to significantly enhance your marketing efforts, reaching potential residents and their families in a way that is both informative and touching.

Ready to take your senior living marketing to the next level with optimized video content? Contact Us for a free consultation. Let’s explore how we can help you connect with your audience and showcase the best of what your community has to offer.

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