It’s a new year, which means that it’s also a good time to do a website refresh! Every month, I take time to review my website metrics to figure out what’s working, what’s not working and how I can improve the overall “health” of my website. For someone who may not be as digitally-savvy, this may seem extremely daunting and even confusing.
However, it doesn’t have to be. Check out my previous post where I walk you through 5 metrics that I track (and that you should be track). After reviewing, be sure to check out these SEO plug-ins that will help you improve your content, organic rankings and overall site architecture. Ps. These are free!
This is one of my favorite tools because I do most of my writing for the business. Also, I am a small business and honestly don’t have the funds to hire an editor or additional copywriters. That’s why I rave over tools like Grammarly.
Think of Grammarly as your free writing assistant. The tool acts just like a word doc where it underlines your grammar, spelling, or punctuation errors for you to correct them. It also offers recommendations for synonyms and antonyms, which I think is very important as I tend to use some of the same words in my writing. Variety helps to keep readers in engaged.
2. SEOQuake
Is one of your goals to increase your organic rankings AND drive traffic to your website? If so, you have to figure out first where you are currently so that you can make a healthy assessment of where you want to be. This is where tools, like SEOQuake, can help. SEOQuake (created by one of my favorite websites, SEMRush) provides marketers with user-friendly access to important SEO metrics and insights of a particular page, SERP (Search Engine Results Page) analysis and keyword analysis with just a single click.
You can also do some analysis related to backlinks, URLs and domains, which is very important if you are planning to improve your content strategy.
3. BuiltWith
Have you ever visited a well-designed website and wondered what type of tools they used to build/manage it? Well, BuiltWith can help you discover just that! I remember when I first built my website. There was a website I stumbled upon that had a really great landing page pop-up and I wanted one just like that. So I did some research and found this tool.
Thanks to BuiltWith, I’ve been able to find and discover the tools above and more. The goal is to help marketers, developers, researchers and designers (like me) discover tools that will help you decide on what’s worth implementing.
Ps. The plugin tracks:
Have you used any of these tools? If so, which one(s) did you like? Comment below!
When is the last time you’ve proudly been ahead of a trend? For me, it happened today!
If you aren’t aware, Twitter recently introduced the idea of a Twitter poll, which is basically a way for individuals and companies to collect the opinions of their followers anonymously (meaning, if you participate, your personal identifiable information (PII) remains anonymous).
I just want to reiterate that, for security reasons, all votes are private. You won’t see any PII but the poll data will continue to be public via Twitter until the poll is removed by you. Each poll can be live from 24 hours to 7 days and votes can only occur during that time. The only thing that will show are the percentages of each answer (I.e. 79% of voters like answer A and 21% like answer B). For example, if someone participates in a poll, you won’t see their Twitter name or anything associated with it. It’s completely anonymous.
The Twitter topics can vary from award nominations to potential pet names. In fact, I’ve been able to gain traction for my company as well as our clients – which means, it works for businesses, too!
Before I recommended this to my client, I decided to do a few test trials from my company’s Twitter account. Here’s a screenshot of one of our polls:
Being that I also manage our social media strategy, I figured this would be a great opportunity to help set a content strategy. Needless to say, it not only helped me but it also helped others!
drum roll please
Our Twitter poll was featured on Twitter’s Business blog! Read the full article here.
Have you participated in or created a Twitter poll? What best practices have you created?
In a world where everything has become “social”, it’s refreshing to find that email marketing still thrives in the world of online communications. Sometimes the analytics/reports don’t prove it, which is why I always reference this infographic as a starting point:
If you aren’t familiar, I suggest checking out Wolfgang Jaegel’s website. He has a great post on How to Optimize your Marketing Emails. What are some of your best practices for email marketing? Comment below!
Work for me has been extremely busy yet fulfilling. However, the overarching goal of increasing our marketing efforts has never, and probably will never, leave my to-do list.
I came across an insightful article on Integrated Marketing. The term Integrated Marketing has been coined quite often in the last few years even though I feel like it’s been happening for quite some time.
Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) combines all modes of communication (mediums) in a uniform way to broadcast a brand/company/organization’s core message. If done right, it will positively affect all areas of marketing communication such as advertising, sales promotion, public relations, direct marketing, digital marketing and social media.
In short, your social media messages should match your print messages; and your print messages should be reflective of whatever event is in the works. Everything should flow. Everything should promote your brand/company/organization in a similar way. It’s imperative that everything is uniform or the issue of mixed messaging will appear. Mixed messaging will not only confuse the consumer, but it will also affect the overall identity of the brand/company/organization.
The article goes on to distinguish the integrated marketing approach of two soft-drink kings: Coca-Cola and Pepsi. The roadmap helps to define the different paths that each brand took toward Integrated Marketing.
Check it out here. What are your thoughts on the subject?
I came across a great social media posting guide for non-profit organizations. Click here to view. Feel free to share any other strategies that you use daily below!
I am so excited about a new pro-bono client opportunity that just came my way! Philanthropy has always been very dear to my heart.
I came across a great article that highlights six reasons why non-profit marketing messages may not be connecting with their audience. A lot of these tips can easily be applied to the for-profit sector as well.
The Inward vs. Outward approach really stood out to me. This approach basically states that many organizations tend to focus their marketing messages on themselves; when it reality it should be used to connect with their target audience which include the donors, volunteers, participants involved, employees etc. of that organization.
Read more about this here.
Ever wonder how corporations like Proctor & Gamble and Disney managed to enter into the social scene and thrive? Well, they learned to embrace the art of content marketing.
A big part of my job involves content marketing. Perhaps, I should add that to my resume, I know it will receive major brownie points on my current employment search. I’ve always been a writer, and a creative soul…so in a sense, the task came…dare I say it…naturally.
However, I am aware that everyone is not a writer. Nor is everyone a creative person…and that’s where I come in!
By the end of this post, you will have a better idea of what content marketing is, as well as what it is NOT.
So, what is content marketing?
Wikipedia defines it as the creation and sharing of content – social media, blogs, white papers, case studies etc. – in order to attract, acquire and engage clearly defined and understood current and potential consumer bases with the objective of driving profitable customer action.
Simply stated, content marketing is mastering the art of connecting and communicating with current and potential consumers without selling to them. Instead of pitching your products or services, strive instead to deliver information that makes your buyer more intelligent. The essence of this content strategy is the belief that if businesses deliver consistent, ongoing valuable information to buyers, they ultimately reward them with their business and loyalty.
Of course, content marketing requires a great deal of research, strategy and planning on the companies’ end. One thing that has helped me in the process was the creation of a content calendar. Not only have they helped me to keep our brand voice consistent, but it also helps me to get our messages across in a timely, entertaining yet knowledgable fashion.
The goal should be to get your audience to like you. If they like you, they are more likely to share your content (hello, brand ambassadors!) as well as become buyers of your product or service.
To effectively engage in content marketing, be sure that you are:
1. Creating relevant, quality content
2. Using the right language
3. Connecting with your target audience (as they say, everything is not for everybody)
4. Engaging in the right content platforms (blogs, facebook, twitter etc.)
Consumers are shying away from traditional advertising & marketing. However, you can still engage with your buyers by mastering the art of content marketing.
Below is an infographic that attests to the continued growth of content marketing.
What strategies do you incorporate into your content marketing strategy?
Rebranding is something that every company has or will have to go through at some point.
Holiday Inn is one of my favorite brands that recently went through a rebranding process. The hotel underwent a billion dollar rebranding process with the help of the InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG). The re-launch included a new logo, remodeled bedrooms and a revamped welcome experience starting in the lobby area.
Now, Holiday Inn is a well-known hotel brand, but statistics reported that they hadn’t underwent a change since 1982! That is a long time, especially with so many competitors on the horizon, this process was necessary.
If you are thinking about rebranding your business, I recommend rebranding the whole business, not just a facelift…ie. a new logo. Think about revamping the whole customer experience.
Below are 5 crucial steps to an effective rebranding process:
1. Research. Everything, everything must begin with research. Take time to find out what went wrong by conducting focus groups, surveys or simply conversing your your regular clientele. If sales are declining, take the time to find out why. Could it be the product’s performance, formula or general reputation? A consumer poll through a marketing and research team might be in order as a way to figure out what could be wrong with your brand.
2. Keep the importance of your brand identity in mind. Don’t lose sight of what your company mission and goals are. Holiday Inn was known as an affordable option for hotel stay. Even though they went through a rebranding process, they’ve always been able to celebrate the fact that they are trusted, well-known brand that was loved by money-conscious travelers.
3. Get all teams involved in the process. Don’t rely solely on the marketing team as they may not know what is going on the finance or operations department. Involving all teams will ensure that internal processes and procedures are appropriate given the new brand messaging, or determine that they need to be altered in some way. Additionally, this will garner a sense of excitement in the employees who are tasked with representing the brand.
4. Deliver on the new promises. Don’t let the excitement die down after a new logo or a interior design. Show customers that the process was thorough and consistenly ask for feedback to ensure that they are happy.
5. Introduce something new. Social & digital media, for example, has continued to flourish. Find out what competitors are doing online and determine if it’s worth the investment. Also, think about the new environmentally-friendly initiatives that have gained popularity lately.
5. Pace yourself. Rebranding cannot be successfully accomplished overnight.
6. Revisit your rebranding strategy every few months or years to ensure that it is consistent and truly working for the greater good.
Has your company underwent a rebranding strategy? What strategies did you implement? If not, name one of your favorite brands that went through a rebranding strategy?
The Power of a Thank You is often ignored, but often holds great power. Leaders understand this. Check out this article about the essential traits of great leaders!
http://www.inc.com/damian-bazadona/great-leaders-essential-traits.html
Who do you consider a leader?
That is the million dollar question. However, before we can answer that, we have to answer the obvious question: what is branding and how can it effectively help your product and/or service?
The American Marketing Association (AMA) defines a brand as a “name, term, sign, symbol or design, or a combination of them intended to identify the goods and services of one seller or group of sellers and to differentiate them from those of other sellers.”
Therefore it is safe to say that branding is not about getting your target market to choose you over the competition, but it is about positioning your company to prospects as the “go-to” source for providing a solution to their problem.
A strong, trusted and identifiable brand can not only help you sell your product and/or service, but it can also open the doors for future community and business partnerships. People want to work with (and buy from!) established brands that have positioned themselves as leaders in such a saturated world.
With that said, I think it’s impossible to answer the question: what makes a good brand. Rather, a strong brand can help to deliver a message clearly. That message could range from new product developments in the marketplace to the benefits of a purchasing cell phone plan from Verizon over AT&T.
A strong brand can also motivate the buyer. This is where the importance of knowing your target market comes into play. If you know the attributes, behaviors and circumstances that motivate your buyer, then you can apply these into your branding strategy.
Furthermore, a strong brand builds customer loyalty. Effective businesses view their brands as tools that allow their messaging to cut through the noise of an overcrowded marketplace. They also position themselves as trusted brands based on the fact that their product and/or service has delivered on its’ promises in the past.
“The lack of a solid foundation for a brand will ultimately undermine its future success. This foundation goes beyond the logo and brand fascia and provides the underpinnings of legitimacy and ability to deliver real value.”
If you are new to the branding world and working on creating a branding strategy, ask yourself this one question: What is my brand value and how can I use it to keep consumers coming back? That answer can vary depending on the scope of your business.
Joshlyn Ross 