It is no surprise that in the modern world, digital marketing plays a major role in the success of businesses. Digital marketing is a powerful tool that can help businesses grow and reach their goals. In the coming years, digital marketing will become even more important, and businesses that use it effectively will have a huge advantage. In this blog post, we will explore the power of digital marketing and how it can be used to transform your business in 2023.
The digital landscape is constantly changing, so it is important for businesses to stay up-to-date on the latest trends and strategies. By understanding current trends and leveraging digital marketing, businesses can reach more people and increase their reach. Digital marketing can be used to build brand awareness, target specific audiences, and increase engagement. Additionally, businesses can use digital marketing to reach customers in new and innovative ways, such as through social media, search engine optimization, and content marketing.
Digital marketing can also help businesses to improve their customer experience. By gathering data about customers, businesses can tailor their services to meet customer needs and create a personal experience for their customers. Additionally, businesses can use digital marketing to create more personalized interactions with their customers. This can lead to increased loyalty and customer retention.
Digital marketing can be used to measure success and performance. By tracking data and analyzing the results of campaigns, businesses can identify areas of improvement and better understand customer behavior. This helps businesses make informed decisions about their marketing strategies and improve their campaigns.
By leveraging digital marketing, businesses can transform their business in 2023. By understanding current trends and leveraging digital marketing, businesses can reach more people and increase their reach. Additionally, digital marketing can help businesses to improve their customer experience and measure success and performance. If businesses start investing in digital marketing now, they can see great success in 2023.
Churches the world over are facing a crisis of membership.
According to a 2015 Pew Study, the average number of Americans attending a church service at least once a week dropped 4% to 36% between 2007 and 2014, while the number of people attending “seldom or never” increased by nearly 5% (30%) in the same period. Similarly, in a 2018 study, Gallup highlighted that the average number of Catholics attending a church event once a week is down to 39%—a 6% drop over the previous period.
The majority of those choosing to skip out on their regular church services are members of younger generations, with the average age of a typical church-goer falling around 69 years. Not all churches are falling victim to lower attendance; on average Protestants are continually reporting steady attendance, though fewer and fewer Americans are actually identifying as Protestant. Ultimately, total numbers for Protestants are in decline. Churches that are bucking the trend of falling church attendance are those reaching out through social media, apps, technology, and live streaming.
But, it makes intuitive sense, doesn’t it?
If you want to reach a younger audience, you must speak to them in a language they understand. For today’s youth, that means technology. They live in a world of Snapchat, Vine, Twitter, and YouTube. If this is how Gen Z, Millennials, and Gen X are interacting with each other, the traditional ways of their parents’ and grandparents’ churches simply won’t speak to them.
It’s time for churches to make a change. Not in message, but how that message is delivered.
Finding a place for new technology in your church
A lot of the issues facing churches today are less about the actual problems being fought and more about how they’re approached. For example, many churches are having difficulty retaining their young members. In fact, a Gallup study showed that membership among the 21- to 29-year-old demographic is down 4% from 40% in 2007. A Pew study, highlights that Millennials are distancing themselves from the rigidity of organized religion, while nearly half of believers not attending church regularly claim preferring to worship individually, according to separate Gallup research.
Taken together, the research suggests that instead of focusing on adhering strictly to the traditional in-person-only format, churches should focus on attracting new members and reaching existing members in new ways. By centering church efforts on attracting and engaging with the community in new ways, you show them that a good, moral message can still be engaging, fun, and meaningful.
One way to do this is to interact with this audience on social media, through live video, GIFs, and Snaps that speak to their hearts and digital desires simultaneously. Likewise, many successful churches are adopting new tools for worship including bible study apps for smart devices. These approaches support the changing worship style of young generations while ensuring that the community built around the congregation is strengthened.
How live streaming church services benefit your congregation
What is live streaming?
Live streaming is an interactive broadcast of video on one or multiple, various online social platforms, like Facebook, Twitter, or YouTube. Live streaming incorporates live commenting and chatting to help spur engagement. For several years now, video content online has been taking over as the most engaging and popular on the internet.
Because more than 44% of Americans not attending church list preferring to worship on their own as the primary reason they no longer visit services, churches can use live streaming to open their programming up to those who have chosen to forgo more traditional church events. Live streaming allows your congregation to enjoy a more casual atmosphere and experience a greater level of openness. An article in the Kansa City Star addressed just how some churches are reaching out successfully to younger generations:
By updating long-considered immovable church more—dress codes and preaching styles, attitudes toward the secular, a willingness to discuss the taboo—and embracing modern music and technology (AD3 preaches not from a Bible but from his iPad), these churches brim with youthful vivacity.
Live streaming is a simple change churches can make in order to free younger people from the rigid rituals and judgement of more traditional churches.
Why stream live church service?
Why use live video on Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter?
Facebook’s umbrella of social tools and YouTube are far and away the world’s most popular social networks. Of the top 6 social apps by user count and engagement, Facebook products fill 3 of the highest slots. YouTube comes in second only to Facebook’s main platform itself.
Both Facebook and YouTube, as well as a number of other popular networks like Twitter, have live video options and adoption of this technology is impressive. The number of Facebook Live videos from 2016 to 2017 increased 4x, while some experimenting from AgoraPulse show that engagement measured in watch time, comments, reactions, and shares is all significantly higher for Facebook Live video than standard uploaded video. How significantly? On average, live streamed video on Facebook shows 2x more reactions, 13.9x more comments, and 4.3x more shares.
As more and more people seek new ways of building their spirituality, they are searching for connections all over the web. Consequently, there is a growing opportunity to reach your congregation and new members with live stream. Live video of church services, prayer groups, or bible studies can be streamed on numerous engaging social platforms simultaneously using tools like A. Smith’s Streaming package. Believers can worship at home, on their commutes, in a cafe, or in the park.
Strengthen community
Social media at its very foundation is meant to facilitate connection and communication. This fundamental function allows you to connect to members of the church and for them to connect easily with one another. Ed Stetzer at Christianity Today highlights, “[t]hrough Facebook and Twitter or through a church blog, I can easily communicate directly with the people in my congregation, throughout the day and week” and “[t]hrough social media, a new attendee can connect to other church members before he or she ever has a chance to meet at a church gathering or a small group.” Because it is a powerful tool to connect community, church leaders who are serious about strengthening roots within the community should prioritize social media, content, and spreading their message through these channels.
With an effective live stream strategy, you can build a powerful presence online to spread your message, reach your congregation, and connect with other believers.
As a business, how likely is it that potential customers will come through your door? The whole point of an online presence is to entice customers into your store, your leasing office or your showroom so you can convert them to paying customers rather than just browsers online.
Further, nothing is more frustrating as a customer than finding out that you have been given the wrong information about where a business is located. As a customer, how likely are you to give this company your business? Not very. In fact, according to Placeable, 73% of consumers stated that they lose trust in a brand when the online listing shows incorrect information.
1. Missing hours of operation information can be a dealbreaker
There are many things that people look for in listings, whether they are looking at that search engine on a PC or on a mobile device. The top piece of information that most people look for is the hours of operation, since their search is likely for a business that they frequent quite often.
In fact, in a study conducted by local data aggregator Localeze, hours of operation were noted as the most helpful feature in selecting a business during local search. 76% of respondent reporting that they expect this information when searching and 61% believe that it is a feature that helps them to select a business.
Even if people are new to a business, it doesn’t give people a good impression if the business hours are not listed and they don’t know that it’s only open from 11 a.m-6p.m. Tuesday-Saturday .Imagine that potential customer who is ready to spend their money in store, but shows up on Monday at 7 p.m. only to find it closed. That customer is likely going to do another search on a mobile phone to find a different store and spend their money there.
2.You can’t spell NAP data (and score a citation) without an A(ddress)
While most people would assume that the number one reason people do a search online is for the address or location of a business, the address is actually behind hours of operation as the second most desired information. But, of course, the whole point of being in business is to make money doing what you love or selling what you love. And that happens by attracting foot traffic and increasing customer base.
It bears repeating that if a business address is incorrect on listing sites such as Google or Bing, then customers will not be crossing the threshold. A simple thing such as the wrong number on a street address, or even the wrong town, can mean that a customer cannot find you. The US Postal Service relies on a complex system of checks to verify and standardize addresses, and many of the search engines will default to the USPS for correct mailing addresses.
What this means for the average new business owner is that unless a business is in an established location, getting the correct address on their listing means that both the address from City Hall and the information on USPS must be consistent. If USPS doesn’t recognize that address, then a business owner must contact them to verify their new address and get that information updated on USPS’s online database.
3. Local searchers are mobile creatures
According to Localeze, mobile-phone-based searches drive in-store purchases with more than 75% of searches ending in a purchase—if a business has their listing details correct. Now if half of the people searching for a business listing on a local search engine, such as Google Local/Maps, can’t find the store’s business listing details, then the business is going to lose 100% of their business.
For ease of use for potential customers, some of those details need to be as readily available as possible in a mobile-friendly manner. This can be accomplished with a responsive website that supports cellphone and tablet-specific versions.
4. Updated, accurate websites still serve as a first impression
At the same time, more than 60% of searches on PC platforms such as website portals, Internet Yellow Page directories and local sites have a similar chance of ending in a purchase. While mobile searches are becoming more of a standard in where a customer searches, a business owner should not discount the power of a fulsome, consistent and accurate listing that is reflective of the business website.
Any listing should be linked to the business’s website and feature the exact same information, but more of it. While a website should be enough to entice a customer to visit or buy, if those inconsistencies exist, then trust issues may arise in a business’s practices before a customer ever crosses their threshold.
5. Local searchers mix it up across multiple devices, situations and times
People who search for listings are doing it in many more ways than when the Internet first coalesced into existence about two decades ago. In that time, we went from working on desktops to laptops to PDAs to Blackberries to Apples to tablets—and in each iteration, the methods of search have changed.
However, that has slowed over the last five years or so as web developers realize that they need to be smarter. Rather than designing three different sites for three different platforms, they have created websites that are scalable to the search device. And that has been helped along by the proliferation of types of devices in use everyday.
According to Pew Research Center, In 2015, smartphone ownership in America was at 68%, with tablet and computer ownership at 45%. Statista says that almost half of American adults use their smartphones the most to search for local information online, the other half being split between computers (40%) and tablets (11%). According to Localeze, like the types of devices used, what we are searching for varies by the time of day and device. Entertainment is searched for during work hours on computers, restaurants during evening using phones and health/fitness evening using tablets.
The most important part of those mobile searches is accuracy. If someone cannot find your business in a local search or find inaccurate results whilst out and about, then your business has lost the chance for that browser to become a customer. So having those listings correct in all of the device formats is a must as we, and our technology, continue to evolve in the way we interact with local businesses.
6. Local search results are trusted sources of information
Last but certainly not least is the fact that local search results are considered the most trustworthy. In a study by Neustar, it was determined that these searches, such as “used games Raleigh”, are what people do the most since they put that trust in local business more than big box, big website stores.
Think about it, would you rather find a local store where you can get that latest purse in town right now? Or you can wait a week for delivery, which is four days past the event that you want it for! Local searches lend themselves to instant gratification and that interaction between browser and salesperson will convert that browser from someone who might get just the minimum to a loyal customer who feels like a million having spent a little more, but getting what they consider to be gold!
Those interactions are what lead people to local searches and the absolute necessity of getting your listings correct. Trust leads to loyalty, which leads to more business, which leads to happy customers and business owners.
And it all starts with that correct listing in that customer’s local search.
Listings are an online summary of essential information for your business that serves as a powerful tool to help customers find you online and in real life. Here’s what you need to know:
NAP+W
No, we didn’t fall asleep on the keyboard. NAP+W is the acronym that explains all the information that should be included in business listings.
Name Address Phone number + Website
These four pieces of information are the business listings starter-pack. They provide the basic information potential customers need to have in order to research, contact and locate your business.
The effectiveness of a business listing depends on the information’s presence and accuracy. Listings are available through a variety of sources, including search engines, online directories and maps, or social sites. When it comes to listings presence, more is definitely better. Availability on as many sources as possible will create multiple avenues for consumers to find your business. But (and this is a big but), presence only pays off if the listings are accurate. Listings are accurate if the information is correct and consistent across all potential sources. Seems easy enough, right?
Why are listings important?
Listings with good presence and accuracy will undoubtedly pay off for your business. Here’s how:
No more hide and seek
Just as the brightly lit bat signal guides everyone’s favorite caped crusader (that’s right Superman, we said it!), accurate and readily available listings will help guide consumers right to your business’s doorsteps.
They even have similar shapes. Coincidence? We think not…
If a business’s listing is incorrect or missing, the majority of consumers will feel less confident about the brand, likely leading them to choose a competitor’s product or service. The availability of accurate listings ensures customers are actually able to find brick and mortar locations while they’re open for business. This means money in the business owner’s pocket and, just as importantly, it means the business can be reviewed.
“In my humble opinion…”
An ample review pipeline is an essential tool for developing a business’ online reputation and fostering brand loyalty. Reviews allow customers to communicate their experience with a business to potential buyers, but if consumers can’t find a business listed online, their opinion of it won’t be well-informed. Accurate listings create the opportunity for transparency between businesses and consumers in the form of reviews, and the availability of this information will help increase a business’s visibility.
All aboard the search engine
Consistent, accurate listings and the generation of reviews will directly benefit a business’s visibility by boosting its ranking in local search engine results. Search engine optimization is a complex tool, so why not take advantage of it by simply ensuring your business is listed accurately! Increased visibility means more customers, and what business owner doesn’t want that?
Now what?
This listings low-down provides a basic definition and describes the benefits of business listings. Create listings on sites worth lots of points to improve your listings score. We’ve ranked them by importance using a lot of key factors—how many sites reference them, traffic, demographics and more.
Cameos by Google allows you to be the authority on you. Record a video answer to the most relevant and asked questions on Google search results and then post your content right to Google. Now, when people search for you or ask a pertinent question regarding you, they’ll get answers directly from you.
See video of this post about Google’s Cameos app below.
Website Designs and Marketing restaurants have changed dramatically over the years. What worked even five years ago, or better yet, even last year does not usually work anymore. It can be a continued struggle to find new loyal customers for your restaurant with social media, new technology and there is more competition than ever before.
Here is a quick list of ideas that we put together that every Frisco, TX restaurant, big or small restaurants, should be doing to attract more loyal and recurring customers to their restaurant.
1. TAKE AMAZING FOODY PHOTOS
Your delicious food is what brings people into your restaurant right? After all, they’re there to eat. So shouldn’t you have great looking photos of your restaurant’s food? Invest in a decent camera, even your phone takes HD photos, and start practicing your photography skills. If possible, hire a professional food photographer to take the pictures for you. Use these images all over your website, social media and in other advertisements to get people craving what you offer. Photos are shared around most often online and will attract a new customer to your restaurant.
Instagram-worthy tableware and table linens will help your photos and your customer’s photos look so much better.
2. OFFER FREE WIFI FOR CUSTOMERS
Free Wifi is very important and in some cases a necessity for a lot of restaurant customers. Many people decide where they are going to eat based on whether or not you have free Wifi. Your customer will want to embark into the social world of online or even get caught up on their work while at your establishment, so it’s important to give them that incentive to come in.
3. KEEP A SMARTPHONE IN THE KITCHEN
Having an excellent smartphone in your kitchen at all times is worthy of your investment. Have your chefs and staff upload pictures in real-time to Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and other platforms easily and quickly. Customers want to see what’s happening right now, and they want to look at pictures. Pictures are a natural source of content to post online to find new customers and get them engaged with your restaurant.
4. KEEP YOUR WEBSITE SIMPLE AS POSSIBLE
We have seen a lot of restaurant websites, and the majority of them have abysmal delivery. Keep it simple stupid (KISS). You don’t need a fancy flash website (because it most likely doesn’t work on mobile) and you don’t need that annoying background music, it adds nothing. Most sites have way too many distractions from what people are there to look for. Your menu, your contact info, your location and your hours of operations should be easily visible and straight-forward. Anything else is just a filler that isn’t needed.
5. SCHEDULE LIVE MUSIC AT YOUR RESTAURANT
Everyone loves dinner entertainment now and then. Scheduling live music routinely at your restaurant will bring people in the door as it gives you events to start promoting and makes your restaurant look like the place to be with FOMO, fear of missing out.
6. BE CONSISTENTLY ACTIVE ON SOCIAL MEDIA PLATFORMS
Posting frequently on social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Pinterest is one of the most powerful digital marketing tools for restaurant owners as it is where your customers are hanging out. Your restaurant needs to be on your customers’ mind when they are thinking about where to eat in Frisco, TX. Social media platforms allow engagement with your customers to keep you on their mind and bring them into your restaurant.
7. USE EMAIL MARKETING
You need to start email marketing if you’re serious about getting customers in the door. You can quickly begin collecting emails on your website with an opt-in form. Offer exclusive specials or something like a $5 or $10 off coupon in exchange for their email address. Use these emails for a newsletter promoting your new menu items, upcoming events, and specials. Do not SPAM your customers as you will begin to annoy them in a wrong way. An email to your opted-in customers from your email list once a week or just once a month will benefit your restaurant and your loyal customers.
8. OFFER CUSTOMER BIRTHDAY GIFTS VIA EMAIL
With regards to email marketing, capture your loyal customers birthdays when they opt-in to your restaurant newsletters and let them know that they will be receiving an extraordinary birthday gift on their birthday. When it is time, email your loyal customers on their birthday with a special coupon for a free appetizer, dessert or half off their meal. Most customers celebrate their yearly birthday with a large group at dinner. Giving them a great incentive to choose your restaurant on their special bday can both increase your overall sales and also introduce new people to your restaurant.
9. HOST WINE TASTING EVENTS
Chances are you serve the perfect wine, or at least you should be, right? Hosting a wine tasting event also brings many people together inside your restaurant for brand new experiences. They will be able to taste the different wines that you serve, learn how to drink wine properly and develop a new appreciation for wine in general. By hosting this in your local restaurant, you’ll also be giving people who otherwise wouldn’t be there a blink of what you have to offer. Put on a good event, and they’re sure to come back!
10. START COOKING CLASSES & COOKING EVENTS
Let’s face it; people don’t eat out every night. But when they’re cooking your recipes that you taught them at home, they will be reminded of how great your food indeed is. Keeping your restaurant in your customer’s mind is key to creating a loyal customer that comes back time and time again.
11. GET TO KNOW YOUR LOYAL REGULARS
It’s not always about finding new recurring customers that haven’t been to your restaurant. It’s much easier to make more with what you have. Then nothing to give at all. Getting to know your loyal customers on a personal level can significantly benefit your overall business. Getting to know the customers that buy from you, you will be showing them that you genuinely do care about them and their experience at your restaurant. Keeping a customer loyal can be much more profitable than trying to find new customers.
12. SHOW NICHE OR LOCAL SPORTING EVENTS
Many people want to go out somewhere to watch the big game. Why not be the place to be to watch it, right? Use significant sporting events like watching the Cowboys, Rangers or Mavericks as another event to host at your restaurant. It does not take much to promote, and you’ll bring in large groups of people looking for a place to eat, drink and stay for several hours. As we know, drinks are where you make your money.
13. HOST SPECIAL HOLIDAY PARTIES
Holidays are an essential time for local restaurants that you must take advantage of every year. Almost everyone is looking for a great place to have a holiday dinner with family or friends, host an office party or simply just a get-together. Always make sure people know that you accept reservations for holiday bookings by posting it on your social media sites, website, and in your email newsletter.
14. SHARE YOUR RECIPES IN A EBOOK OR BOOK
This relates to the idea of hosting a cooking class or cooking event showcase at your restaurant. People don’t always eat out all the time, so when they are cooking at home, you always want them to be dreaming about your restaurant and food that you so deliciously serve. By sharing some of your exclusive recipes, perhaps in a cookbook, you’ll make people remember that particular perfect dish they had at your restaurant; which is why they bought your ebook in the first place.
15. OFFER CUSTOMER GIFT CARDS
While this may seem like an old, worn out trick; it works. I can’t count the number of times myself, or someone we know has gone to a specific restaurant solely because they had a gift card. The particular truth of the matter is, they bring people in. Once a customer is in your restaurant it is your prime job to turn them into a loyal customer of your food and service. If you do so, you’ll more than benefit from giving away a few bucks in free food.
16. MEET THE CHEF NIGHT
It can be an excellent and fun experience for many of your loyal customers to meet the chef behind your great food. Foodies will love the opportunity, and some may even blog about the experience, so put on a unique monthly event to meet the chef of your restaurant. Don’t forget to promote it!
17. USE VIDEO TO TELL YOUR STORY AND GET PERSONAL
Sooner than later the majority of the content on the internet will be video. There is just a no better option for you to get people excited about dining at your restaurant than with an enticing personal touch of the video. It doesn’t need to be expensive to use your phone for starters, but make sure you have someone who knows exactly what they are doing to film and edit your story.
18. HOW OPTIMIZING YOUR WEBSITE WITH BENEFIT YOU IN THE LONG RUN
Everyone now uses the internet or Google to search for where to eat out or order online from easy, and there are a lot of options to choose from. You need to optimize your restaurant for local search otherwise your restaurant’s website will be buried in the never-ending list of competitors.
19. OFFER ONLINE MENU ORDERING
Who has time to eat out anymore? Unfortunately, not that many people. If your restaurant offers takeout or delivery, then you should have an online ordering option on your website. People do not like to make phone calls these days, everyone emails and texts. Not to mention answering the phone at your restaurant wastes your staffs valuable time. Make everyone happier by letting your customers order food directly from your website. Make the process even more accessible by accepting online payments. Our website plans include a great online ordering solution.
20. GET MORE GOOGLE+ REVIEWS
Google+ reviews are very crucial for your local restaurant too not only look good to potential loyal customers but to be found at all on Google or Yelp. People trust reviews nowadays, and when choosing a restaurant you’ve never been before for a special occasion is taking a huge chance. The more positive reviews you have, the more likely people will trust that they’re making a right decision by dining at your establishment, assuming you have mostly good reviews that are.
How A. Smith Media Can Help You With Your Restaurant Website and Marketing
Google ’s complicated lineup of advertising products is getting a new look, including rebranded names.
The senior vice president who leads Google’s ad efforts, Sridhar Ramaswamy, explained the rebrand at a press event a couple of weeks ago, where he said the online advertising giant has been getting “consistent feedback” over the recent few years that the large list of ad products and brands, assembled mostly through acquisitions, could make it very confusing for advertisers, small business owners, and large corporations.
“This is a primarily a name change, but it is indicative of where we have been directing the product” for the last few years, Ramaswamy said. He also said the rebrand points to “where we want the product to go.”
In the future, Google’s ad products will be restructured into three major brands. First, we know that AdWords will become Google Ads, which Ramaswamy said will serve as “the front door for advertisers to buy on all Google surfaces,” whether that’s search, display ads, YouTube videos, app ads in Google Play, location listings in Google Maps or elsewhere.
In any situation, it’s not just a name change for Google. The advertising giant and search engine is also launching something it calls Smart Campaigns, which will become a default mode for advertisers. Essentially, it will be the default mode for small business advertisers. It will allow those advertisers to identify the actions whether it’s phone calls, store visits from beacons or purchases that they’re organizing through priorities, then Google Ads will use AI machine learning to optimize the images, text, and targeting to drive more of those actions.
The second brand is the Google Marketing Platform, which combines DoubleClick Digital Marketing and Google Analytics 360, the company’s analytics tools for marketers. Which is highly recommended for any website or online company to create measurables. Under this umbrella, Google is also announcing a new product called Display & Video 360, which combines features from DoubleClick Bid Manager, Campaign Manager, Studio and Audience Center.
Managing Director for Platforms Dan Taylor said the Google Marketing Platform is responding to a growing need for collaboration — for example, he noted Adidas used the platform to bring its brand and performance marketing teams together with the measurement team.
Google Marketing Platform
The Marketing Platform includes a new Integrations Center where marketers can view all the ways they can find different ways they can connect their Google tools. (And while the focus here is on integration within Google’s platform, Taylor said the company remains committed to interoperability with outside ad exchanges and measurement providers.)
The third brand is Google Ad Manager, a platform that combines Google’s monetization tools for publishers, namely DoubleClick Ad Exchange and DoubleClick for Publishers. In this case, Jonathan Bellack, director of product management for publisher platforms, said there’s already been a “three-year journey” of merging the two products as the programmatic ad-buying becomes used across more types of advertising.
“These categories have just been breaking down for a while — all of our publishers already log into one user interface,” Bellack said. So the only thing that’s changing is essentially “the product logo.”
One critical result of all this consolidation, and one that Ramaswamy described clearly as “bittersweet,” is that the DoubleClick for publishers brand is going away. While they weren’t the focus of today’s announcement, the AdSense and Admob brands will continue the same.
The rebrand started this month, July 2018. Ramaswamy and Taylor both emphasized that no product migration or training will be required.
“The look and feel are going to change a little bit, but the core functionality is not changing,” Taylor said.
How A. Smith Media Can Help You With Transitioning To Google Ads From Adwords
We too have a lineup of services such as website design, SEO, PPC and fully managed Digital Marketing. Our PPC or Pay per Click handles Google Ads and Google search and display advertising. Not to be confused, Google Ads are the new Adwords. Not alot has changed, but there are new features that we stay on top of that gives your company a competitive advantage. Feel free to contact us today by calling +1 (469) 294-2834 or Request a Quote.
Although we are based in Frisco, TX, we also help small businesses and clients worldwide.
Onе оf thе grеаt things аbоut the intеrnеt iѕ how thе things оn it саn thеоrеtiсаllу lаѕt fоrеvеr. If nо-оnе makes thе dесiѕiоn to take it dоwn, it саn lаѕt thеrе infinitеlу аѕ a kind оf digitаl muѕеum оdditу.
Hоwеvеr, it’ѕ fаr lеѕѕ funny whеn wеbѕitеѕ nowadays use these kindѕ оf еlеmеntѕ, thе hundrеd different fоntѕ, tеrriblе bасkgrоundѕ аnd small, lоw-quаlitу imаgеѕ. Hоw сrаzу to imаginе a wеbѕitе in 2018 ѕtill uѕing thеѕе аѕресtѕ. It dоеѕ hарреn thоugh and fаr more often thаn уоu may think.
With that in mind, here are 5 Terrible Web Design miѕtаkеѕ thаt even a talented wеb dеѕign еxреrt will ѕtill mаkе now and аgаin. Suffiсе tо ѕау, if уоur wеbѕitе iѕ using аnу оf thеѕе аѕресtѕ, it mау be timе tо think аbоut аn update.
Garnish Cоlоrѕ
I wоuld like to think thаt wеb dеvеlореrѕ have learned a lоt аbоut соlоr thеоrу in thе раѕt 20 уеаrѕ, аnd fоr thе mоѕt part, they have. The use of complimentary соlоrѕ, often ѕubtlе оr раѕtеl huеѕ that hеlр аdd a viѕuаl flair to a dеѕign is nоw thе nоrm.
Thеn there’s wеbѕitеѕ that think соlоr iѕ thе mоѕt imроrtаnt аѕресt of a website, more ѕо thаn content. Thеѕе wеbѕitеѕ thеn go аnd shove it in уоur face. Wеbѕitеѕ with bright rеd оr gаriѕh grееn layouts, these wеbѕitеѕ are a visual nightmаrе аnd nо wеb dеѕign еxреrt wоuld make these choices, ѕо we саn оnlу hоре thеу аrе caused bу рuѕhу сliеntѕ.
Too Mаnу Fonts
The right сhоiсе оf font саn dо a lot fоr a рiесе оf text. It саn bе presented in a рrоfеѕѕiоnаl manner (Arial), реrhарѕ with mоrе сhаrасtеr (Pаруruѕ) оr it саn bе cartoony tо appeal to сhildrеn (Cоmiс Sаnѕ), whilѕt Sаnѕ Serif fоntѕ are thеоrеtiсаllу еаѕiеr tо rеаd оn-ѕсrееnѕ.
With all thеѕе роѕѕibilitiеѕ, it саn bе difficult tо knоw which tо сhооѕе. And whаt if you wаnt a diffеrеnt meaning fоr еасh рiесе оf tеxt on-screen? Whу, use 30 different fоntѕ of соurѕе!
Nо. Dо nоt dо thаt. I wаѕ using sarcasm tо illuѕtrаtе a point. Too mаnу fоntѕ оn-ѕсrееn саn bе confusing tо ѕее аѕ еасh style iѕ fighting fоr аttеntiоn. The tеxt itѕеlf loses any flоw it hаѕ аѕ уоur еуеѕ jump frоm fоnt to fоnt, rather thаn fосuѕing on thе content itѕеlf.
Muѕiс
Muѕiс on wеbѕitеѕ iѕ оnе of the mоѕt memorable аѕресtѕ оf wеbѕitеѕ frоm the еаrlу 2000ѕ. Myspace was the most рrоminеnt оf thе оffеndеrѕ, with thе аbilitу tо add уоur оwn song tо уоur profile. Thе idеа wаѕ to hеlр givе viѕitоrѕ an idеа оf whо you аrе and whаt your реrѕоnаlitу iѕ.
Bасkgrоundѕ
A bасkgrоund ѕhоuld gеnеrаllу bе a blосk соlоr, usually раѕtеl оr fаdеd. Thiѕ then highlightѕ аnd compliments thе contents, rаthеr thаn fighting with it for attention.
Hоw Adam Smith Media Can Help
A. Smith Media iѕ a well-known web design аnd SEO еxреrt, Frisco area bаѕеd, wе саn help уоu grow your buѕinеѕѕ оnlinе оrgаniсаllу. If уоu want tо get the mоѕt оut оf today’s оnlinе mаrkеting соmреtitiоn just gеt in touch.
Wеbѕitе designing iѕ a large market to brеаk оut. With the digitаl age wеll upon us, it ѕееmѕ likе every person left right аnd сеntеr iѕ trying tо gеt a brеаk whеn it comes tо technology. There iѕ аlwауѕ someone trying tо outdo another, whiсh makes the соmреtitiоn a vеrу large and vеrу difficult thing to оvеrсоmе.
Luckily, уоu hаvе these tiрѕ tо follow, еnѕuring you’re оn-раr with thе competition and in some саѕеѕ, get уоu noticed bу thе bigger fiѕh in the dеѕigning pond аnd ѕtаrt уоur wеbѕitе dеѕign раth tоdау.
Kеер it ѕimрlе – Colors аnd flаѕhу lоgоѕ саn be еnjоуаblе but аftеr a whilе it саn bесоmе an eyesore for frеquеnt viеwеrѕ of уоur site. Thiѕ could еvеntuаllу dеtеr оthеrѕ frоm viѕiting and еvеntuаllу аvоid your site аltоgеthеr. In some саѕеѕ, having a ѕlееk dеѕign can рау off, but ultimately if your viѕitоrѕ саn not ассоmрliѕh whаt thеу wiѕh tо dо due tо your dеѕign, thеn it hindеrѕ mоrе than hеlрing your goals.
Cоnѕiѕtеnсу iѕ key – Aѕ well аѕ kеерing уоur site ѕimрlе, you need tо kеер it ѕimрlе аll the way thrоugh thе site. You саn’t merely have оnе раgе bеing flаѕhу and bright, with thе next page bеing dаrk аnd bland; otherwise, уоu will lеаvе viѕitоrѕ wоndеring if thеу’rе ѕtill on the same wеbѕitе, causing confusion. Thаt’ѕ not tо ѕау thаt every page оn your ѕitе nееdѕ tо have thе ѕаmе lауоut, but instead you ѕhоuld сrеаtе diffеrеnt lауоutѕ fоr specific pages, аll thе whilе kеерing thе same соlоr schemes fоr your design.
Kеер mоbilе friеndlу – It iѕ аbѕоlutеlу еѕѕеntiаl to kеер аll уоur wеbѕitеѕ mоbilе friеndlу. An extremely large роrtiоn оf website brоwѕing iѕ done through hаndhеld devices ѕuсh аѕ tаblеtѕ аnd smartphones, showing thаt it iѕ imроrtаnt tо keep уоur ѕitе орtimizеd for mоbilе viewing. Oрtimizing fоr mоbilе viеwing in mоѕt саѕеѕ will result in a mоrе responsive wеbѕitе design whеn it соmеѕ tо desktop viеwing, mаking for a ѕmооthеr website look.
Cоmmuniсаtе quiсklу – In a wоrld thаt iѕ еxtrеmеlу fast-paced, thе intеrnеt iѕ to an exception to thiѕ golden rulе. When viѕiting a website, реорlе typically wаnt thеir information fаѕt, аnd if thеу nееd to invеѕt tоо much timе, will mоѕt likеlу lеаvе the раgе аѕ soon as thеу clicked thе link that brоught thеm tо it. It is recommended tо mаkе уоur infоrmаtiоn quick, ѕimрlе and еаѕу tо rеаd аnd digеѕt fоr viеwеrѕ, bооѕting еffiсiеnсу and creating mоrе traffic.
Inсludе imаgеѕ – We all knоw the age оld ѕауing; “one picture ѕреаkѕ a thоuѕаnd words.” And this ѕауing аlѕо applies tо dеѕigning a wеbѕitе. Chооѕing thе right lауоut and рhоtоѕ саn rеаllу hеlр сliсk with thе target аudiеnсе, аnd hеlр with recommendations and referrals tо оthеr viѕitоrѕ. It should also bе nоtеd that nоt оnlу imаgеѕ should be uѕеd, but also info-graphics, vidеоѕ, and аnimаtiоnѕ. If уоu аrе nоt invеѕtеd into a ѕtосk imаgе subscription, it mау help tо invest intо оnе. If уоu аrе аlѕо рrоfiсiеnt with Adоbе Phоtоѕhор аnd оthеr rеlаtеd applications, it саn also bе helpful to dеѕign уоur оwn photos to аvоid соруright issues.
Hоw A. Smith Media Can Help
Adam Smith Media iѕ a well-known web design аnd SEO еxреrt, Dallas bаѕеd, wе саn help уоu grow your buѕinеѕѕ оnlinе оrgаniсаllу. If уоu want tо get the mоѕt оut оf today’s оnlinе mаrkеting соmреtitiоn just gеt in touch.
Aѕ a buѕinеѕѕ оwnеr оr еntrерrеnеur, managing a business iѕ аlwауѕ сhаllеnging, rеquirеѕ a lоt оf fосuѕ, planning, and managing оf vаriоuѕ wоrk аѕресtѕ, you even don’t рlаn fоr. In ѕuсh situations, as a buѕinеѕѕ manager оr оwnеr, it iѕ imреrаtivе thаt уоu take сеrtаin crucial dесiѕiоnѕ of work you рlаn to mаnаgе, dеlеgаtе, build teams fоr or оutѕоurсе to another соmраnу.
In mоѕt саѕеѕ, it аlwауѕ makes ѕеnѕе tо outsource specialized wоrk nоt core but соmрlеmеntаrу to уоur buѕinеѕѕ to аn expert оr аnоthеr соmраnу. And thеrе are mаnу buѕinеѕѕ bеnеfitѕ оf оutѕоurсing ѕuсh wоrk. In tоdау’ѕ digitаl world, whеn companies аrе trаnѕfоrming thе wау thеу do buѕinеѕѕ and mаking it digitаl-сеntriс, it iѕ imроrtаnt tо hаvе сарtivе digitаl knowledge in-hоuѕе but it mаkеѕ a lоt of sense tо outsource your digitаl initiаtivеѕ.
Outsourcing to аnоthеr соmраnу оr аgеnсу hеlрѕ in mаnу wауѕ. Whо offer ѕресiаlizеd digital services likе Sеаrсh Enginе Mаrkеting (SEM) оn Google аnd Bing, Pау per Cliсk Adѕ (PPC) оn рlаtfоrmѕ like Gооglе Ads, Facebook, Twittеr, Inѕtаgrаm, LinkеdIn аnd Video Adѕ оn YоuTubе and оthеr platforms?
Thеrе are ѕеvеrаl bеnеfitѕ fоr brаndѕ in оutѕоurсing digital mаrkеting and hаvе shared a fеw thаt аrе most imроrtаnt:
Firѕtlу, thе brаnd tеаm iѕ able tо focus on kеу business рriоritiеѕ аnd rеlаtеd оbjесtivеѕ givеn thе fосuѕ rеԛuirеd and resource mаnаgеmеnt required fоr thе ѕаmе. Bу оutѕоurсing ѕресiаlizеd areas likе digitаl marketing, a brand оr small business owner dоеѕ not have tо wоrrу оr ѕреnd time trying tо hirе ѕоmеоnе оr a tеаm tо mаnаgе your ѕtuffѕ. And dоing this rеmоvеѕ thе wоrrу оf hеаd соunt or associated соѕtѕ or mаnаging аѕрirаtiоnѕ оf ѕuсh ѕресiаliѕtѕ in уоur tеаm роѕt-hiring thеm.
When you оutѕоurсе your digitаl mаrkеting, you аlѕо hope tо enhance уоur overall mаrkеting еffоrtѕ with еxреrt аdviсе уоu gеt оn digitаl ѕtrаtеgу from thе оutѕоurсеd аgеnсу who аrе еxреrtѕ working оn initiаtivеѕ across ѕесtоrѕ fоr multiple сliеntѕ. Sо your outsourced digital marketing раrtnеr comes with a lot of еxреriеnсе which саn соmрlеmеnt уоur оwn thinking and ѕtrаtеgу resulting in bеttеr rеѕultѕ оvеr timе for thе brаnd
Hаving a digitаl mаrkеting раrtnеr аlѕо longer tеrm helps you save mоnеу аѕ digital mаrkеting requires thе right еxреrtiѕе, knоwlеdgе аnd experience tо manage media buуing and рlаnning аnd helping in ѕаvingѕ thеrе.
An outsourced digital marketing ассоunt also rеѕultѕ inefficiencies in bеttеr budgеt аllосаtiоn resulting оut оf dаtа analytics аnd rе-аllосаtiоn of budget basis еffiсiеnсу оf rеturn оn аd ѕреndѕ. Only a tеаm with соnѕidеrаblе еxреriеnсе аnd еxреrtiѕе саn mаnаgе thiѕ such thаt dесiѕiоnѕ аrе tаkеn аt the right timе to achieve continuous improvement and bеnеfit for the brаnd in itѕ digitаl marketing media spends.
Thе lаѕt but еquаllу imроrtаnt another critical bеnеfit оf outsourcing digital mаrkеting is saving timе аnd rеѕоurсеѕ оn all operational аѕресtѕ оf managing it, thе interacting with рubliѕhеrѕ, аd platforms tо ассоunt management, e-commerce trасking, analytics and reporting.
When аll of thеѕе benefits аrе аddеd uр from thе ѕаving in time tо rеѕоurсеѕ аnd money, thе dесiѕiоn to оutѕоurсе digitаl mаrkеting mаkеѕ a lot of sense. Nоw bеginѕ thе сhаllеnging task оf finding thе right partner.
Hоw A. Smith Media Can Help
Adam Smith Media iѕ a popular web design аnd SEO еxреrt, North Texas area bаѕеd, wе саn help уоu grow your buѕinеѕѕ оnlinе оrgаniсаllу. If уоu want tо get the mоѕt оut оf today’s оnlinе mаrkеting and beat your competition, gеt in touch.
Request A Quote
[contact-form-7 id=”73″ title=”Quick Message”]
A. Smith Media
Enter your information in the form and someone will reach out to you shortly. You can also call us toll free at +1 (469) 294-2834. We look forward to hearing from you!
