Many businesses were forced to learn aspects of customer behavior. They had to overcome the barriers to work at a remote distance from consumers. Most companies had to face several obstacles in the process and those who were able to adapt to the new ways survived and grew. The content marketing basics are one of those aspects that went through extreme modification. These are some of the takeaways that can be useful for a business's content marketing strategy.

Say No to the Old Ways

Humans are always slow to abandon old beliefs and adopt new ways of doing things. However, the old ways were not useful for more industries during the pandemic. That is because a large part of marketing strategies involved face-to-face interactions. But during the lockdown, most customer's shifted to the virtual stores, and brick and mortar stores were rendered useless. With that in mind, you have to make sure that your content is created and directed appropriately to appeal to your target audience.

That means you might have to abandon the old technologies of creating content and adopt completely new ones. Earlier your content marketing team might have had to focus on several sides of sales. But in recent times, it is necessary to divert their focus mostly towards eCommerce sales. Therefore they should create content that can direct your audience towards your virtual store. Your team must also dig into the data gathered with information technology and formulate the content marketing strategies differently. A way to achieve it would be to sort your old methods and decide if they should be continued, modified, or stopped. That way, you might save time that was getting wasted on unnecessary content creation.

Pay Attention to Empathy

Empathy had become much more than a buzzword now. Don't forget that your content is also a means of enhancing the customer experience with your brand. You can utilize information technology like brand monitoring tools to listen and understand what your customer has to say about your brand. You will be able to modulate your content based on the data that you receive. Don't wait for customers to react to your content before you formulate your marketing strategy. Instead, gather data through focus groups and surveys on social media. Gather feedback from the comments and responses of your target audience after your content gets published.

Charity begins at home. Similarly, keep your employees in mind while creating content that promotes empathy. A customer experience that starts with the voice of your employee in your content for marketing can fetch marvelous results. It will also ensure that your employees are supportive of your newly formed content strategy and put maximum effort to achieve results.

The Human Element of Technology

People built different forms of information technology, such as machine learning, search engines, and artificial intelligence. What that implies is that these technologies often react and respond similarly to humans. That is why you can compare and match the outcome of these technologies with those generated by humans. It also implies that you can train artificial intelligence and other technologies to anticipate and detect biases or weaknesses in your content. To determine these weak spots, you can use word-cloud software to determine the terms or phrases that do not resonate with your target audience.

Adjusting your content while using these biases to your advantage will ensure a higher ranking in search engines since they always prioritize websites that feature pleasant content. An effective way to gather feedback before you create content to roll out a product or service is to gather feedback and suggestions from your employees. Your workforce is an effective tool available to you at all times. These suggestions can prove useful to create high-quality content.

Social distancing means people miss having conversations in social gatherings and expressing their opinions. Therefore their focus has turned significantly towards social media and online content. Remember that creating content through the use of technology cannot fulfill your goals if you do not adjust them to resonate with the changes in market behavior and current trends.

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Many people view them as an extra investment, completely ignoring the fact that these very digital marketing trends pave bundles of opportunities to their online business.

Why To Go For PPC?

So, if we consider the facts laid down about PPC wisely, we can conclude that it offers countless opportunities to extend your business, vasten your audience, and provide easy access to your target audience. A PPC is a quick way to create business awareness sheerly through technical support, target a wide range of audiences which was incidentally not possible any other way, help you set foot in the realm of digital marketing business and expand your market reach. You can get along with a renowned London PPC Agency in order to figure out whether this approach is best suited for your business or not.

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So after these few instances, it must be loudly clear that a PPC company is the foundation of your online market's future, and hence is to be dealt with cautiously and judiciously. PPC is a valuable gem in the world of digital media, and here are the reasons why:

PPCs Bring In Revenue

Whether you run an online commercial website or an app that sells merchandise, your primary objective would surely include expansion of audience and augmentation of revenues. And when it comes to persistent business expectations, there is nothing more apt than PPC service. A PPC service would very cleverly pop up your merchandise ads in front of potential buyers as soon as they search for any relevant product. These pop-ups would definitely convince them to pursue these ads to extract information regarding their desired products, and they might end up purchasing through your website. And all these subtle marketing strategies are only possible through a series of cogent PPC analysis.

An Investment That Curtails Business Costs

It is a proper business agenda to expect high revenues out of meager investments. And it is not wrong, anyone in the business market yearns to cut down major expenses and secure significant payments. So, when it comes to severe cost-cutting, businesspersons tend to spike up product costs and invest less in PPCs, which is a massive mistake from their side. PPCs might charge you money, more extensive plans could even charge more, but the undeniable fact is that these are sensible investments as they live up to their costs by generating audience and revenues subsiding the expenses they create.

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PPC Enhances Your Grip Over Customers

The regime of online digital marketing is cutthroat with severe competitive risks and sources. Therefore, in such cases of sensitive business positions, companies need to be entirely universal, which is a tough task to accomplish. However, this might come as an advantage to you.

If any of your rival companies goes offline due to technical glitches, they will collapse online, and the ads they used to cover will need an understudy. Therefore, through a series of targeted PPCs, you can control the positions they use to hold at that time, thereby saving the day by attending some unattended customers who could potentially turn out great assets for you in the near future.

The post How Can A PPC Agency Assist Your Business? appeared first on RELEVANCE.

However, according to LEWIS, a boutique PPC agency, many business owners don’t reap the benefits of PPC simply because they don’t understand what they’re doing. In other cases, they fall victim to common misconceptions that prevent them from launching a PPC campaign or building an effective one. With that in mind, here are a few of the biggest PPC myths:

1. Use As Many Keywords as Possible

The rationale behind putting as many keywords as possible into your PPC campaign is that you’ll reach more people. And while you may certainly get more traffic, you run the risk of getting plenty of unqualified traffic. Your keywords should be relevant and useful; otherwise, you’ll end up spending a lot of money on clicks that aren’t converting.

2. The #1 Spot is the Most Profitable

Number one seems like a great position to be in. After all, who doesn’t want to be in the number one spot on Google? However, being number one doesn’t equate to profit. In fact, in order to score that coveted position, you might spend more money than you actually generate. Additionally, many users who click on the first ad are still in the early research phases of browsing. It’s important to experiment with and pay attention to how different positioning alters your cost vs. value.

3. Set It & Forget It

Next on our PPC myth lists is set it and forget it. This couldn’t be further from the truth. While your campaign is running, you should be consistently looking for new optimization opportunities. If you want to make the most out of the cash you’re spending, pay attention to the untapped potential. It’s important that you monitor and test regularly to get the most positive results.

4. Stick to Long-Tail Keywords

Long-tail keywords refer to keywords that are specifically related to your business, product, or service. Think of long-tail keywords as the “niche” of the PPC world. Although there is a smaller audience for it, the keywords are much more targeted and therefore may be likely to convert.

While long-tail keywords should certainly be a part of your strategy, you don’t want to focus solely on long-tail keywords simply because they are less competitive and cost less. General keywords help you get in front of your target audience and build brand awareness; even if they don’t click on your ad, they’ll see your brand name in their initial search efforts.

5. Only Run PPC on Google

While it’s clear that Google has the majority market share in search engines, this doesn’t mean it’s the only engine you should invest in. Both Yahoo and Bing can offer lucrative benefits (and in some cases, you may achieve better results with less popular engines). The route you choose depends on your demographic and key traffic sources.

6. You Don’t Need a PPC Agency

Unless you’re knowledgeable in PPC (or are a fast, technology-driven learner with plenty of time), chances are you could benefit from working with a PPC agency. These agencies focus solely on PPC and have the know-how to help you make the best of your campaign.

A good agency will optimize your PPC landing pages, make recommendations for your website design, test your campaigns, use data to make improvements, and much more. This is especially important for business owners and marketers who don’t have the time to invest in as big a venture as PPC.

7. PPC = Instant Results

Last on the PPC myths list is that PPC means instant results. Some campaigns will generate leads quickly, while others can take weeks before you see any results. Just as with search engine optimization, there are no guaranteed results when it comes to paying per click. Although your ads are put to work instantly, understand that they could take some time to mature.

The post 7 Biggest PPC Myths to Avoid appeared first on RELEVANCE.

“The Coronavirus is impacting consumer mobility, shifts in media consumption habits, supply chains, such as shortages of and concerns over goods manufactured in China and economic volatility,” Kathy Bachmann, GM at Analytic Partners Inc. explained in A Forbes article. “With this dynamic situation, companies need to plan their next marketing moves wisely to either mitigate downside risk or capture all the upside that’s possible.”

Having strong marketing and powerful marketing collateral management in place moving forward is essential to online growth for every business. Regardless of your business is needing to overhaul marketing plans, or if your business is ready for next-level digital strategies, the following best practices can prove valuable. Let’s dive in!

1. Invest In A Strong Brand Identity

Consumers want to know who they are buying from. The one-off purchase is no longer a thing because consumers want to build personalized relationships with the brands they love. This means that you will need a strong brand identity.

This digital marketing best practice allows your business to communicate what your business does, and why, as well as share a story with consumers online. Your target audience needs to identify with your brand if you want unlimited online growth. Name, logo, mission, values, philanthropy, and more are all essential to a strong brand.

2. Google My Business (GMB) Is A Must

Google My Business, also called GMB, is effective for building your consumer base in today’s digital age. GMB is especially important for local businesses since business listings are often what pop up when keywords are Googled. Local results are commonly shown first.

What does this look like? Let’s say your business sells flowers. If someone near your business searches for “flowers” via Google, the local flower shops and garden centers will be shown via Google Maps. If your flower business has GMB, it will be included on that map list.

3. Make Search Engine Optimization (SEO) A Priority

Search engine optimization (SEO) is nothing new. SEO has been and continues to be an asset for businesses, both large and small. However, in the midst of the pandemic and more online users, your business needs to make SEO a priority.

Why? Optimizing your website, blogs, landing pages, product pages, and more, can drive unlimited traffic to your business. This also increases your business's online visibility. And in times of financial uncertainty, you can utilize SEO to grow traffic without spending money on search engine-sponsored ads.

4. Become An Authority In Your Industry

This top digital marketing best practice for unlimited online growth shifts the focus from your business to you. Why would you want to do that? Well, consumers are pretty savvy, and they don’t want to be sold over and over again by a brand.

By shifting focus to you as an authority in your industry, you are showcasing your business, products, and/or services without selling.

Let’s say you are a plumber and you want to drum up more business. Instead of posting sales pitches from your business blog and social media channels, you can write articles and shoot videos sharing how-to advice. This can be a very effective way to get unlimited online growth.

5. Employ The Power Of Video Content Marketing

Digital marketing is more than just text. Today’s consumers want to text, but they crave video content. Video content marketing is a must-do digital marketing best practice, especially during the current coronavirus pandemic.

People are consuming more video content than ever before. Why? They are stuck at home. It is certainly no accident that YouTube is the second largest search engine behind Google. Consumers simply love watching videos.

To employ the power of video content marketing, you don’t need much. In fact, you can shoot your videos using your smartphone. You do need a simple video editing tool, like iMovie or Lightworks. To win at video content marketing, be sure to make videos that have some type of actionable value for the viewer. Teach and share knowledge.

Are You Leveraging Digital Marketing Best Practices For Your Business?

The above top five digital marketing best practices for unlimited growth are valuable for every business. The pandemic has shifted how online users find, consume, and share content about brands and people they connect with. Is your business leveraging these best practices?

The post 5 Digital Marketing Best Practices For Online Growth appeared first on RELEVANCE.

According to HubSpot, businesses can earn $38 on average for every $1 spent on an email marketing campaign. That’s 3,800 percent ROI for your business. Of course, if you don’t have the email marketing experience and know-how, ROI may not be as impressive.

This means having best practices in place, such as not coming across as a phishing scam, or not purchasing email lists. To help your business master the art of email marketing, we compiled a few best email marketing practices to follow for maximum conversions and increased sales. Let’s take a deeper look!

1. Avoid Emails Looking Like Phishing Scams

This is maybe one of the most important best practices. Even if you have a top-notch lead list (that you didn’t buy), and a strong offering, a phishing email will result in zero clicks and zero sales. This makes for an ROI negative situation.

Instead of being spammy and coming across phishing in your email marketing, simply make email marketing human. Sounds pretty easy right? Sadly, many businesses don’t do this. And it is not their fault. Businesses just get caught up in their offering and may have old strategies they use.

Being human when it comes to email marketing means coming across like a human. No intrusive sales pitches or corny calls to action are needed. Be personable, get to the point, have a strong offering, and act as if you are talking to the email recipient face-to-face.

2. Never Purchase Email Contact Lists

You probably get emails from companies you don’t know, and businesses you never opted in to an email list for. How did they get your email? They bought it. This is intrusive and can result in poor email marketing results since it is essentially a cold call, but possibly worse.

There is also an issue with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Don’t break the rules, because you may find yourself in big-time trouble.

The fact of the matter is that email lists should be of people that opted in to hear more from your business. You can set up email capture on your website, and use social media to reach your audience for more emails too. Getting maximum ROI is about reaching those who want to hear from you via email. Not random people. It's also a good idea to use an email verifier to check your list for invalid or abandoned email addresses, this improves the deliverability and effectiveness of your campaign as a whole.

3. Above The Fold Message Is Critical To Email Marketing Success

Your primary message and the offering, also known as the call-to-action (CTA), need to be above the fold on the email. It is important to remember that people tend not to read emails all the way through. In most cases, they read above the fold and scan the rest quickly.

In fact, nearly 70 percent of people won’t see your CTA if it is buried below the fold. This means you need to put your primary message and CTA above the fold. CTA should also be mentioned at least three times throughout the email, and in some visual form if possible. This can increase site traffic as well.

4. Get Personal In Your Email Marketing

Personalized content is what consumers want, and your audience is most likely no different. The first place to start is your email greeting. Any emails with greetings like, “Hello Valued Customer” or “Dear Subscriber” will probably go straight to the trash.

Instead, get personal with recipients by having a greeting with their name. But be sure to keep it simple and less spam sounding. “Dear Mark Johnson” may not be as good as just “Hey Mark.” This is because people scan the greeting before opening.

Getting personal also means using trigger words like “you” and “your.” For example, a good personal email could mention an interest they entered into the email capture.

5. A Compelling Subject Line Is A Must-Have

Compelling subject lines can maximize conversions and increase sales because they boost open rates. Recipients often scan the greeting and subject line before deciding if they want to open an email or not. Thus adding importance to having a compelling and very concise subject line.

A strong subject line will be 30 to 40 characters long with spaces. This is important because many mobile devices will cut off anything after 40 characters. But again, don’t be spammy. Simply describe what to expect after opening the email with a little bit of urgency.

6. Employ Opt-In Auto Responders To Keep Your Brand Fresh In Consumers’ Minds

Recipients of emails will generally not open an email from brands they don’t remember, or brands they don’t remember opting in to receive emails from. To keep your business fresh in the minds of potential customers, send an auto responder email after someone opts in via your website or other lead capture.

The opt-in auto-responder email is an email marketer's best friend since it reminds the recipient that he or she opted in to receive emails from your business. So when recipients get the first branded email, they remember the brand and open the email.

Opt-in autoresponders should be sent out no later than five days after opt-in. The opt-in can also have separate CTAs to help maximize conversions and increase sales right away.

In Conclusion

The above email best practices are only the tip of the iceberg for email marketing success. Research more tips and tricks to reach full potential, and increase conversions and sales. What email marketing strategy do you use? We want to hear from you.

The post 6 Email Marketing Best Practices For Maximum Conversions appeared first on RELEVANCE.

Throw a bait

Your aim while writing a newsletter email is to get as many conversions as possible. However, there must be some sort of benefit provided to get people to do what you want. Hence, throw a bait in your email. For example, you can offer monetary discount coupons to the people who sign up for your newsletter.

Remember your goal

The most common mistake that people make while creating their email newsletter is forgetting their purpose. Here are some of the things you might be looking forward to achieving with your newsletter -

• Boosting sales
• Enhance appeal
• Invite the audience
• Promotion
• Offer downloads

So, whatever your goal is, stick to it throughout so that you don't get lost.

Have your emails read

The whole purpose of creating a top-notch email newsletter is defeated when it fails to speak to your prospects. Hence, you must remember to add a personal touch to get people to read it. The most common free email newsletter templates have real person names in the "to" and "from" lines. This assures the receiver of the mail that it is from an authentic source and is directed towards him/her.

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Go for a catchy subject line

Your subject line is going to be the first part of the content that your prospect will be reading. If it is dull, he/she will lose interest and stop reading. So, you must put some effort and use power words like -

• Mind-blowing
• Fantastic
• Delightful
• Groundbreaking

These power words are sure to keep your reader interested. Similarly, you can use these time-sensitive words to create urgency -

• Alert
• Breaking News
• Urgent
• Important

Create an impactful opening

Did you know that your prospects can see the first line of your newsletter in their email browser, without even opening it? Well, now, you do. You will also be shocked that most readers make their decision of whether they will open that mail or not, from that first look itself. So, always keep your opening line very impactful.

Write in a consistent quality

This is for when your prospects sign up for your newsletter finally - don't forget to write in a consistent quality if you don't want to bore your contacts.

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Throw in some visuals to attract

The human mind grasps visuals more than text. You can take advantage of this fact and add pictures and charts to create an impact on your clients. They might not be able to read your newsletter email. So, if you add a relevant visual, they'll be able to get an idea without wasting their time reading.

Keep track of the results

You must take your time to measure the results you are getting from your newsletter emails. Check for the following aspects -

• Bounce rates
• Unsubscribes
• Open rates
• Forwards
• Click-through rates

If you know the results, you'll be able to get an idea of what is working for your prospects and what is not. That's one way to improve your newsletter email writing skills.

Demand quick action

There is an excellent chance that your prospects won't sign up for your newsletter, even if you did an excellent job writing it. This is why you must demand quick action from them.

The post Your Complete Guide To Crafting An Excellent Newsletter appeared first on RELEVANCE.

Are you a small business owner? Or, are you perhaps the C-suite manager of a large multinational organization? Or, you might even be a freelancer or self-employed consultant.

The salient point of this discussion is that every individual or company that is in the business of earning an income needs to have a website that is designed to drive sales, increase company growth metrics, and increase the ROI (Return on Investment) ratio against the cost of the website development. Learn more about why every business needs a website.

The world we live in has changed irrevocably. The global population is now facing what is considered “the new normal.” And, every company that can pivot their business operations online is now doing so. This is because of the global pandemic that is sweeping the globe. One of the best ways, if not the only way of slowing down the spread of the virus, is social distancing. Therefore, everyone who can work remotely from home is doing so. What is also vital to note is that this scenario is set to continue for the foreseeable future.

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What is website hosting?

Before we consider a definition of website hosting, let’s look at a concise description of a website and a domain. For, without content to store on the hosting platform, there is no need for hosting.

Technopedia defines a website as a “collection of publicly accessible, interlinked web pages that share a single domain name.”

Furthermore, a domain is an “identification string that defines a realm of administrative autonomy, authority, or control within the Internet.” Succinctly stated, a domain is an address that visitors to your site use to find and access your site on the World Wide Web.

Now that we understand what a website and a domain are, let’s consider what web hosting is:

In summary, a web host is a computer server that stores a physical copy of your website and makes it available for consumption via its domain name. In order to view a website, you need a computer or mobile device and an Internet connection. In fact, the World Wide Web consists of many computer servers situated across the world and all linked together.

By way of expanding on these definitions, let’s consider a straightforward case study or example. Let’s assume you are in the process of starting a new eCommerce business, HotFrog Originals, selling homemade products. The unique selling point for your business is that it provides a platform for individuals who manufacture products from home and do not have Internet access or the know-how to create an online platform to sell their goods. You plan to provide an online space for them to offer their products for sale to a broader market than they would usually have.

Thus, before you can offer your services to your brand’s target audience, you need to register a domain and develop an eCommerce site that will allow manufacturers to upload their products for sale.

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Web hosting server models

There are different types of web hosting server models, with the most common model being the client-server model.

Succinctly stated, the client-server model “describes how a server provides resources and services to one or more clients.” Typical examples of the client-server infrastructure include mail servers, web servers, and FTP (File Transfer Protocol) servers. This architecture essentially functions as follows:

A client must request a connection to a web server. This server has to decide whether to accept or to deny the client's request. If the server accepts the client's request, the client can browse all public-facing documentation and websites on the server. This is an abbreviated description of this model. Should you wish to know more about this architecture, additional useful information can be found on this page. InterServer hosting service offers everything from shared hosting to reseller plans, VPS, and dedicated servers. All four of its data centers are located in the US.

Web hosting and website development: Reasons why it is an essential part of the successful website

Website development is defined as the work that goes into the design and creation of a website. There are different types of websites available for consumption on the World Wide Web, including single-page static sites, blogs, multi-page eCommerce sites, and social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter.

The value of fast reliable web hosting for a completed site that is available on the Internet for its target audience to browse is fairly obvious. If a website load time is slow and the server times out, the site's visitor will navigate away from the site and onto one of the brand’s competitor’s sites. Load speeds and bounce rates are vital metrics to consider when reviewing the role that the website plays in the brand’s overall sales figures. However, an in-depth discussion about these metrics and why they matter is not part of this discussion.

The question that must be asked and answered is what role does fast, reliable web hosting play in the website development process? Find more information on the checklist about website development requirements.

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Here you can find additional information about web hosting importance in website development:

Reduces development time

Websites are usually developed on web servers. The development server might not be the deployment server, but it should be a replica of the deployment server. If a development server is slow and unreliable, the site's development time will increase exponentially. The delay in the site's completion will cost money and push back the site's release date, which in turn will create all sorts of problems for the site's owner.

Website load times and bounce rates

As noted above, the live site’s load time and overall speed is a vital metric when determining the value that the website adds to the business. A slow site turns people away and will negatively impact the site’s ability to convert visitors into returning customers. Read more here about website speed importance.

Bounce rate is defined as the time that a visitor spends on a website. And it directly impacts a brand’s sales figures. The less time a consumer spends on a particular site, the higher the bounce rate, and the greater the chance that the visitor will not convert into a returning customer. And, there is no way of accurately measuring the time it takes for a website to fully load if the site is developed on a slow, unreliable web server.

Final Thoughts

As the quotation mentioned above by Ganesh Bommanaveni notes, reliable web hosting is the backbone of any website development process. Without robust web hosting, neither can the website development company thrive, nor will its clients be able to leverage the online space to generate an income.

The post What Is The Role Of A Reliable Web Hosting In The Website Development Process? appeared first on RELEVANCE.

“SEO... [digital marketing] ...is an investment just like a tree that needs effort, patience, and time to grow before you can see the result.” - Dr. Chris Dayagdag

Are you an entrepreneur, a freelancer, the owner of an SME (Small Medium Enterprise)? Or, are you perhaps a senior or C-Suite (executive level) manager? If so, do you, or does your company have a clearly defined, well-thought-out growth marketing strategy?

Digital marketing and the digital marketing strategy: A comprehensive definition

Before we answer this question, let’s consider the definitions of both “digital marketing” and a “digital marketing strategy.” For, it is by knowledge and understanding that we are able to design and execute a successful Internet marketing campaign.

Wikipedia.com defines digital marketing as the "component of marketing that utilizes the internet and online-based digital technologies such as desktop computers, mobile phones, and other digital media and platforms to promote products and services."

Simply stated, digital marketing is fundamentally the same as traditional marketing. All the well-defined methodologies and best practices of the overall marketing model also apply to digital marketing. However, the defining element between the two is that digital marketing’s core focus is Internet- or online-based.

And, suffice to say, it is reasonable to assume that a digital marketing strategy is the result of the development of a strategic marketing plan. This concept is elucidated by Cleverism in their definition of strategic marketing as the “process of planning, developing, and implementing maneuvers to obtain a competitive edge in your chosen niche.”

The Cleverism site goes onto state that to construct a digital marketing strategy that fulfils its core function, it is vital to “outline and simplify a direct map of the company’s objectives and how to achieve them.”

Therefore, when planning an online marketing strategy, it's a good idea to consider talking to a digital PR agency consulting professional who understands the quintessential nature of the digital revolution.

As we shall see below, not only does a successful Internet marketing strategy contain all the aspects of a standard marketing strategy, it has to take the specifics of the digital world into account to be equally, if not more successful.

The three cornerstones or core elements of a digital marketing strategy

Thus, to develop and execute a successful online marketing plan, let's consider the fundamental components that make up the strategy that highlights the brand to its target audience, drives traffic to the brand's online presence, and converts visitors into returning customers.

Website design

One of the imperatives of the successful marking strategy is a website that is designed by a professional website design company that understands the significance of emphasizing UX (Usability) and UI (User Interface) best-practice methodologies during the website design phase.

Why?

Primarily, the majority of digital marketing tactics are designed to drive traffic to the brand’s website with the sole aim of answering the site’s Call-To-Action (CTA). And, if the website is not intuitive and easy to use, the marketing efforts are wasted. Therefore, it is safe to say that the company or brand website is a cornerstone of the digital marketing strategy.

Search Engine Optimization (SEO)

Searchengineland.com defines SEO as the “process of getting traffic from the free, organic, editorial, or natural search results on search engines.”

The fundamental difference between SEO and paid search adverts is that SEO does not involve any money changing hands while the concept of paid adverts does.

At the outset of this section, it's vital to note that, according to the SearchEngineLand article quoted above, each digital marketing or SEO element will not guarantee search engine rankings. It is the combination of all these factors that will rank the brand's website in the top three-pack on the Search Engine Results Page (SERP).

Furthermore, SEO forms another one of the digital marketing cornerstones. And, it consists of two primary aspects: On-page SEO and off-page SEO.

Succinctly stated, on-page SEO covers the practice of optimizing the brand’s website help the search engines like Google or Bing find and index the site. It includes adding a site map to the website design, adding relevant keywords and key phrases to the web copy, and implementing UX and UI best practices. It is also important to note that Google take the website load time into account when deciding where to rank it.

Content marketing

The contentmarketinginstitute.com defines content marketing as a “strategic… approach focused on creating and distributing valuable, relevant, and consistent content to attract and retain a clearly defined audience - and… to drive profitable customer action.”

Content marketing is the third and equally important cornerstone of a successful digital marketing strategy. And, it forms the essence of all off-page SEO. Succinctly stated, off-page SEO includes all marketing plans that are not directly involved with website design and development.

The age-old adage, “content is king,” rings true in this regard. For without content, search engines like Google will not index and rank your website. However, it is vital to reiterate that it is not just any content that will drive traffic to your brand. Instead, specific content with the following characteristics that will form the foundation on which all other SEO and marketing efforts will thrive.

High-quality content

Quality is a significant aspect of content that drives brand growth and increases SERP ranking metrics. In other words, is the content well-written, based on solid grammar? Is the content relevant to the brand? Is it informative? And, is it able to hold readers’ attention for more than a few seconds?

If your content answers yes to all of these questions, then it will play the required role to drive traffic to the brand’s website and help rank the site in the top three-pack on the SERP.

Contain focus keywords

Content that plays a valuable role in the overall digital marketing strategy must be based on the focus keywords that describe the brand and are linked to the brand. In other words, when a potential customer types in a search phrase that is based on the brand’s keyword strategy, the brand’s website will rank in the top results returned by the search engine on the SERP.

Final thoughts

In conclusion, it is worth highlighting the quotation mentioned above by Dr. Chris Dayagdag. You can have the perfect digital marketing strategy with impeccable design and execution. However, without the addition of time into the overall strategy, it will appear as though the plan has failed.

If you would like to connect with an SEO strategist to speak more about implementing innovative strategies, contact one here!

The post The Three Cornerstones of a Successful Digital Marketing Strategy appeared first on RELEVANCE.

Perhaps you aren’t using off-page SEO properly or not at all? If you’ve never heard of off-page search engine optimization, then you are not alone.

What Is Off-page Search Engine Optimization?

Most people either don’t know that off-page is vital to improving Google rankings or doesn’t know how to execute it.

Off-page SEO Examples

• Guest posting
• Leaving comments on other blogs
• Social media engagement
• Posting on forums
• Using videos from YouTube, Instagram, Twitter, etc.

Essentially, off-page SEO is background brand marketing behavior and activity that drives users to your site. On-page SEO involves what you do on your website.

On-page SEO Examples

• Writing engaging quality content
• Internal link building
• Metadata (title, description tags, keywords, etc.)
• Keyword research
• Page loading time
• Header selection

On-page SEO and off-page SEO determine Google rankings. If you and a competitor have even on-page rankings, then Google looks at off-page components.

Let’s dive deeper into the off-page SEO techniques you can use to market your brand in 2020.

1. Offer a Superior Service or Product

If you offer the best product or service then:

• Your brand, service and product reputation is positive
• Your site will gain more visits than your competitors
• Other sites will link to your website
• People will give you positive reviews

2. Customer Service

You should not neglect customer service because having an excellent product is irrelevant if your clients’ demands and concerns aren't addressed. If you don’t teach people who you are, then others will do it for you.

3. Focused Search Intent

An important aspect of off-page SEO is engaging your audience to create and share content that adds value. You can’t get positive social media engagement, sponsorships, reviews, or post partnerships without knowing why your audience seeks you out. Use AnswerthePublic.com or Google Autosuggest to discover how search intent attracts off-page SEO opportunities.

4. Engagement

Engage with your audience by commenting on blogs, forums, and discussion boards within your niche. Leave comments that are helpful and thoughtful to bring attention to your expertise. This will create brand recognition and provoke influencers, bloggers, editors to link to your site.

5. Be Active on Social Media

Monitor your social media accounts, respond promptly to questions, and give feedback. Fair and rational responses, even outside of your niche, will make you a valuable resource and increase brand awareness.

6. Create Influencer Partnerships

Social media is an excellent way for brands to get traffic, supporters, and customers. Gaining and nurturing relationships with high-profile influencers will open doors and deliver more site traffic and incoming links.

7. Build Relationships with Guest Posts

Off-page SEO partnerships are a valuable way to build relationships with publishers, editors, major brands, and influencers. Build your reputation as someone who delivers quality information and experiences, and approach guest post opportunities with a mutually beneficial mindset.

Implementing off-page SEO in addition to on-page SEO practices isn’t overwhelming if you add one method at a time. Master one technique then chose another, and eventually, you will reap the rewards of proper SEO strategies.

The post 7 Effective SEO Marketing Techniques to Use In 2020 appeared first on RELEVANCE.

Implement a Time Limit

The ticking clock is a marketing and sales professional’s best friend. Putting a time limit on a sale is a great way to motivate undecided consumers into making a decision. No one wants to miss out on a great deal because of indecisiveness. (FOMO is real.) Creating a short advertising campaign with a 24 or 48 hour sale will inspire consumers to take the plunge.

Answer the Question, Why Now?

Everyone procrastinates. They put off work assignments, reschedule social obligations, and decide to make purchases later. It’s a marketer’s job to ensure that they don’t wait another moment before they decide to buy a product or service. With every piece you write, make sure to answer the question: “why now?” Otherwise, your audience is unlikely to feel engaged. There’s a reason why people wait until the last minute to buy things they need. After all, no one purchases a winter coat in the middle of July! Give your consumer base a good reason to make a purchase today. What’s more, follow through on your premise. If you’re trying to get someone to visit a medical clinic, for example, then include a link in your ad that allows them to make same day appointments. The easier you make it for leads to convert, the more success you’ll have.

Be Positive

It’s naive to suggest that people don’t respond to negative advertising. In other words, fear is a tool that many marketers have used to great effect in the past. For instance, consider any home-security commercial or video marketing ad. The implication is clear: if you don’t buy a home-security system, you’ll have no protection from criminals. Fortunately, marketers don’t have to take this negative tactic to generate a sense of urgency. Rather, they can stress the opportunity that their product presents. Don’t focus on what your consumers will miss out on without your product. Instead, show them why they’ll benefit.

Tell the Truth

As we established above, consumers often trust their emotions when buying things. However, this doesn’t mean that they divorce themselves from reality when they make purchase decisions. As such, it doesn’t make much sense to try and aggrandize products or services that don’t merit it. After all, no one is going to inordinately suffer if they don’t buy a vacuum cleaner or a new set of paper clips. Consumers can tell when marketers are being genuine, so be truthful in your efforts. Doing so will ensure that your customer base is sufficiently motivated to act when you encourage them.

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