All posts by admin

20
Mar

Marketing tactics that don’t work

by admin | in Content Marketing , Email marketing , Internet Marketing , Marketing , SEO

We often share hints and tips on SEO and internet marketing tactics that reap great results. We thought it would be helpful to also share some of the marketing faux pas that we see regularly, but that simply do not work. Buying likes and followers – This is regarded as cheating, and a black hat technique. And yet, there are still many companies that pay to have their following or likes on social media increased. It is not illegal for a company to offer services like this, but the customer could easily be realised if found out. And in our opinion, the risk to the good name of the brand is a price that is far too high to pay. Question any marketing service which offers you this type of service as a way to succeed online. They are not marketing professionals and do not understand how true SEO works. Continue reading →
19
Mar

Working with your SEO team

by admin | in SEO

SEO is most successful when everyone works together. If you work with SEO professionals you may already know how important two-way communication is to the entire process. For business owners who have not outsourced their SEO work before, or for companies who have internal SEO professionals, here are some tips to help you work well with your SEO team. Work on a plan together – The SEO plan should reflect the company brand and compliment the marketing plan of the company. The best way to do this is to develop the plan together. Even if your SEO team is in another country, it will be possible to jointly develop the plan. This is important for two reasons. First, it is the best way to ensure the correct SEO tactics are developed and used. The SEO team has the expertise in this area and will know exactly what will work for your company. Secondly, you know your business better than anyone, you will be able to add the in-depth knowledge, objectives, and brand identity to every aspect of the plan. Be clear - The majority of problems arise when companies are not clear with their SEO teams. Problems like this a rare because the best teams will know exactly what questions to ask their clients, to get the information they need. This is particularly important if your team is helping you with reputation management services. It is worth remembering that being clear about what you want to achieve, and what you are looking for, will help the entire process. Ambiguity and uncertainty can create misunderstandings. Continue reading →
12
Mar

Black Hat techniques to avoid

by admin | in Content Creation , Content Marketing , Internet Marketing , Reputation management , SEO

You will have heard of Black Hat techniques. They are the less than honest ways some companies attempt to boost their rankings on the search engines. Here is a list of some of the most widely used and widely noticed black hat tactics you should always avoid. Unrelated keywords are a no-no. Using unrelated keywords to gather more hits is regarded as a black hat technique. Using celebrity names and brand names in a way that has no relevance to your content will only serve to diminish the perception of your company and the content you share. Keywords should only be chosen when they are relevant to your company and are what potential customers are searching for. Stuffing and stacking keywords is just another form of spamming. This is when keywords a repeated many times within the content in an unnatural way. Being repetitive with different combinations of the same words is also seen as stuffing. Don’t do it. The Google bots will spot it and your readers will not appreciate it. In the long run, it will not have the positive effect you were hoping for. Your content should have logical structure with proper paragraphs and sentences. Continue reading →
11
Mar

Making the most of LinkedIn’s latest developments

by admin | in Content Creation , LinkedIn , Reputation management , SEO

LinkedIn has changed a lot recently. We thought it was worth sharing some tactics you can use to give your profile a boost on the site, and influence SEO. Making the most of LinkedIn will be good for your business, career, and your rankings. Use Pulse to follow the right people and influencers – in addition to accessing the latest news and information in your industry, following the right people and influencers on LinkedIn is another way to be seen in the right crowd. The influencers you follow will appear on your profile letting potential connections see your interests, passions, and motivations. You immediately look proactive and interested in what is going on in your world. Valid and intelligent comments have often turned into new connections and business opportunities on LinkedIn. The site has over 500 influencers to choose from and learn from so there is someone there for every industry. Share content! LinkedIn lets you share content now and there is no reason that you should be keeping quiet. Recently announced statistics revealed that there are still a large percentage of users who rarely use their accounts and only check them occasionally. LinkedIn is a business network that should be accessed and used regularly. Continue reading →
10
Mar

Article marketing for SEO

by admin | in Content Creation , Content Marketing , SEO

Article marketing forms the foundation for any long-term link building strategy. Writing quality articles and sharing them on a regular basis builds up the level of content you are sharing, and the number of back-links being created. The better the quality of articles, the more chances you will have that they will be read and shared, increasing the exposure and spreading the content and back-links. Have we convinced you about the importance of article marketing? Here are some tips to help you make your articles of the highest quality, so they stand out, are read, and shared. Continue reading →
07
Mar

Video advertising is for everyone.

by admin | in Content Creation , Content Marketing , Video , Vine , YouTube

How many video adverts have you seen? We guess you have seen countless video adverts! The growth in popularity of services like YouTube, Vimeo and Vine have made the concept of video advertising something that everyone considers normal. And yet, we have noticed there are still a great number of companies that are not using this form of internet marketing to promote their products and services. Video advertising, once the realm of the large well-known brands, is not accessible to anyone. High quality videos can even be shot form our phones these days, and simple editing software can be purchased and used for very little outlay. We’re not saying that just about anybody could come up with a winning viral video advert. But we are saying that it is within the financial and practical reach of any business that is operating online. Here are the top reasons why we think video advertising is for everyone! Continue reading →
06
Mar

Do you need to optimize for mobile?

by admin | in Internet Marketing , Mobile internet , SEO , web development

Yes! The way we use the internet has changed since smart phones became popular. Millions of people use their phones to access the internet every day. In fact, for many, tablets and mobile phones form the primary tool of accessing the internet. And people of all ages are using these devices. If your website has not been optimised for mobile internet, we strongly advice that you consider it and make plans to have this work done. It will not involve a great deal of expense but the investment you put into it will give you a return in terms of the additional users that will be able to access and use your site. Websites that are not mobile optimised can be difficult to read and in many cases, the links do not work. If you have a mobile device, try surfing some sites on it now. It won’t take you long to find a website that has not been optimised for the internet! Continue reading →
05
Mar

Are blogs old hat?

by admin | in Blogging tips , Content Creation , Content Marketing , SEO

We’ve been noticing an increase in the number of articles discussing blogs and their future on the internet. Some of these articles are claiming that the age of the blog is over, and that blogs are no longer useful, attractive, or even read. We disagree! They are useful, and read, by millions of people on a daily basis. Admittedly, the way blogs are used has changed, and reader behaviour has changed too, but there is no doubt that blogs still play a very important role in content creation and SEO. Here are some of our thoughts on why we believe blogs are still important. Continue reading →
28
Feb

Does your website contain buried treasure?

by admin | in Content Creation , Content Marketing , E-commerce , Google

We’re being serious! When a new visitor arrives on your website, to what lengths do they need to go, to find your products, your services, and the place they need to be to become your customer? We did an in-house study recently, simply by looking at a sample of different commercial websites online. We discovered that a large percentage of them were not creating a visible and easily followed path for customers to follow leading straight to the check-out. This situation must be affecting their levels of sales revenue. You see, sometimes, it’s not about attracting even more people to your website, sometimes boosting sales, is about making sure they can find what they are looking for when they arrive. Have a look at your bounce-rate on Google analytics. Trace it and follow it over a couple of weeks, and look back at the last few months figures. If you have a consistently high bounce rate, your problem may not be in attracting visitors, but keeping them. Continue reading →
27
Feb

E-commerce improvements for SEO improvements

by admin | in E-commerce , SEO

Are you an online retailer, selling to the public via e-commerce? That is, can your customers choose what they want to buy from your website, pay for it, and then have it delivered direct? If the answer is YES, read on. We have some great insights into SEO for e-commerce businesses. First, let’s help you get started by doing a quick self-test. Answer the following questions with either a Yes or No.
  1. Do you include an image for each individual product for sale on your website?
  2. Is there a brief description for each individual product for sale on your website?
  3. Do you provide a search facility to enable customers to find any product?
  4. Do you use indexing to help customers see where they are and know where to go?
  5. Do you store purchase information in order to learn about your customers buying behaviour?
  6. Do your customers have to register and login before they can purchase from you? Continue reading →