Lead forms are essential to any online business that wants to generate leads and boost conversions. They are a simple yet effective way to capture valuable customer information, such as name, email, and phone number. According to a survey by HubSpot, optimizing lead generation forms can increase conversion rates by up to 25%.
However, not all lead forms are created equal. To maximize their effectiveness, it is crucial to optimize them for conversions.
In this blog post, we will discuss 7 key steps to help you optimize your lead forms and increase your conversion rates. Join us as we uncover the secrets behind creating high-converting forms and start generating high quality leads like never before!
Keep It Simple
When it comes to lead forms, simplicity is key. A cluttered and complicated form can overwhelm users, lowering conversion rates. Here are some best tips to help you keep your lead forms simple and effective:
Keeping your lead forms simple reduces friction and makes it easier for users to fill out your form.
Only ask for essential information, since additional fields can cause users to lose interest or trust in your brand, leading to lower conversions.
Distracting elements like ads, pop-ups, or complex layouts can harm conversions. Simplify your lead form’s design and layout by using white space, clear labeling, and simple formatting.
Optimize Your Headline
Your headline is the first thing users will see when they land on your lead form. It’s crucial to make it clear and compelling to grab their attention and encourage them to complete the form. Here are some tips to help you optimize your headline:
Your headline is crucial! It creates a strong first impression, sets expectations, and convey the value of filling out the form.
Write a clear and concise headline that communicates the benefit of filling out the form, such as using active voice, focusing on the user, and avoiding jargon or technical terms.
Using power words like “free,” “instant,” or “limited-time offer” can create a sense of urgency and increase conversions. Also, specific numbers and statistics can help build trust and credibility.
Use Compelling Copy and Design
In addition to a strong headline, the copy and design of your lead form can also impact its effectiveness. Using compelling copy and attention-grabbing design elements, you can create a lead form that engages users and encourages them to act. Here are some tips to help you optimize your copy and design:
Convincing copy and design help create an emotional connection, highlight the benefits of filling out the form and guides users toward the CTA.
Write clear and concise copy that communicates the value to your audience, such as using bullet points, addressing common objections, and providing social proof.
Attention-grabbing visuals, such as images or videos, can help create a more engaging and persuasive lead form.
Don’t Force Users to sign up
Instead of pressuring visitors to sign up, try to make the sign-up process as easy and non-intrusive as possible. Offer incentives or benefits for signing up but avoid being pushy or overly aggressive. Ultimately, you want to create a positive experience for your visitors, increasing the likelihood of them becoming quality leads. Here are some reasons why:
If you pressure visitors to sign up, they may feel uncomfortable or irritated. This can lead to a negative perception of your brand and potentially harm your reputation.
If your visitors feel pressured to sign up, they may simply leave your website altogether, resulting in a lower conversion rate.
Quality leads come from people genuinely interested in what you offer. By pressuring visitors to sign up, you may attract people who aren’t actually interested in your product or service, resulting in low-quality leads.
Optimize for Mobile Devices
Optimizing your lead form for mobile devices is important, with significant web traffic coming from mobile users. By doing it, you can ensure users have a positive experience, regardless of their device. Here are some tips to help you optimize your lead form for mobile devices:
Use a simple layout that is easy to navigate and understand on smaller screens.
Minimize distractions such as ads, pop-ups, or complex design elements that may take away from the lead form or cause the page to load slowly.
Use large and legible fonts to ensure that the form is readable on smaller screens.
Make sure the form is optimized for mobile devices, such as using touch-friendly buttons and drop-down menus.
Keep the form as short as possible to reduce friction and improve the user experience.
Use mobile-responsive design that adjusts to different screen sizes and orientations to ensure that the form is always easy to use and navigate on any device.
A/B Test Your Forms
A/B testing is an effective strategy that can help you optimize your lead form by testing different designs, copies, or other elements. Doing so lets you identify which changes lead to the best conversion rates and make data-driven decisions to improve your lead form. Here are some tips to help you A/B test your lead form:
Before you begin testing, identify a hypothesis you want to test. This will help you stay focused and ensure that your testing is aligned with your goals.
To get accurate results, you should only test one variable at a time. This will help you isolate the effect of each variable and determine which ones have the most significant impact on your conversions.
To get reliable results, you should use a large enough sample size. This will make sure that your results are statistically significant and not just due to chance.
You should also test over a sufficient period to account for variations in traffic and user behavior to ensure accuracy. Depending on your traffic levels, this may be anywhere from a few days to several weeks.
While testing, monitor your results regularly to ensure that you are on track to achieving your goals. This will help you catch any issues early and make any necessary adjustments.
Use a testing tool like Google Optimize, Optimizely, or VWO to set up and run your A/B tests. These tools will make it easier to manage your tests and measure your results accurately.
Follow Up Quickly
Following up quickly with leads can be critical in turning them into customers. By doing so, you can show them that you value their business and provide them with the information they need to purchase. Here are some tips to help you with leads optimization tips:
Following up quickly is important, such as reducing the likelihood of losing the lead’s interest, demonstrating your responsiveness, and increasing the chance of closing the sale.
Send personalized and timely responses. Try addressing the lead by name, acknowledging their interest in your product or service, and providing them with relevant information.Use automated lead nurturing campaigns to follow up with leads at scale. You can set up automated emails or SMS messages to provide helpful information, answer common questions, or offer promotions.
Lead Form Optimization Tips & Best Practices
Optimizing your lead form for conversions is crucial in generating leads and driving sales for your business. By following the seven steps outlined in this post, you can create a lead form that is simple, engaging, and effective in capturing leads and turning them into customers. Let’s recap:
Keep it simple
Optimize your headline
Use compelling copy and design
Don’t force users to sign up
Optimize for mobile devices
A/B testing
Follow up quickly
By implementing these steps, you can improve your lead form’s conversion rates and generate more business for your company. Remember to continuously monitor and analyze your lead form’s performance and adjust based on the data.
Unlock the Power of Lead Magnets with Agency Partner Interactive
You can effectively capture potential customers and grow your business by implementing a smart, simple, and streamlined lead capture form on your landing page.
At Agency Partner Interactive, the best web design agency in Dallas, we provide cutting-edge digital marketing solutions that help businesses optimize their lead generation efforts. Our team of experts understands the importance of capturing quality leads through smart and streamlined lead forms, conversion optimization, and web development services, which is how we’ve helped hundreds of clients succeed.
Our clients have seen an average 33% increase in lead conversions after implementing our lead form optimization strategies. We create an engaging user experience that encourages visitors to convert into quality leads. As your trusted digital marketing agency partner, we’re committed to helping you achieve your business goals through effective lead-generation tactics.
Having a well-designed website is crucial for conversion optimization. Your website is frequently the first impression potential customers will have of your business, which can make or break their choice to purchase from you. This post will explore tips to help you design your website for optimal conversion rates.
We’ll cover the importance of knowing your target audience, optimizing your website design, improving your website’s user experience, optimizing your website’s content, and using analytics to track your progress. By implementing these tips, you’ll be well on your way to creating a website that effectively converts visitors into customers.
Know Your Target Audience
Understanding your target audience is essential for designing a website that converts visitors into customers. Here are some tips for researching your audience and creating user personas:
Conduct surveys
One of the most successful ways to learn about your target audience is to conduct surveys. You can use online survey tools like SurveyMonkey or Google Forms to gather information about your customers’ demographics, preferences, and pain points.
Analyze website analytics
Another way to understand your audience is to analyze your website analytics. You can use Google Analytics to track audience attitudes, such as how long they spend on your site, what pages they visit, and what keywords they use to find your website.
Use social media
Social media can also provide valuable insights into your target audience. You can monitor social media conversations to understand what your customers are talking about and what they care about.
Create user personas
Once you have gathered information about your audience, it’s time to create user personas. An audience persona is an imaginary character that represents a typical customer. By creating personas, you can better understand your customers’ needs, preferences, and pain points and design your website to meet their needs.
Remember that creating user personas is an ongoing process. As your business grows and develops, so will your target audience. Make sure to regularly update your user personas to ensure that they accurately reflect your customers’ needs and preferences.
Optimize Your Website Design
A visually appealing website design is essential for converting visitors into customers. Here are some tips for optimizing your website’s design:
Keep it simple
A clean and simple website design can make it better for visitors to navigate your site and find the necessary information. Use a clear and easy-to-read font and ensure your website’s layout is intuitive and easy to use.
Highlight the most important elements
Use design elements like color, contrast, and whitespace to draw attention to the most important features on your site, such as your products or calls to action. Ensure your website’s design is consistent across all pages to create a cohesive look and feel.
Use high-quality images
High-quality images showcase your products and make your website more visually appealing. Use professional product photography or stock images to ensure that your images are clear and crisp.
Maintain a consistent color scheme
A consistent color scheme can create a cohesive and professional look for your website. Choose a color that matches your brand and use it consistently throughout your website.
Improve Your Website’s User Experience
Creating a seamless user experience is crucial for converting visitors into customers. Here are some tips for improving your website’s user experience:
Creating a simple and intuitive navigation menu makes it effortless for visitors to find what they want. Use clear and descriptive labels for each menu item, and ensure your menu is easily accessible from every page on your site.
Use clear and compelling calls-to-action (CTAs) to encourage visitors to take action on your site, such as ensuring a purchase or subscribing to a newsletter. Use contrasting colors and ensure your CTAs are prominently displayed on your site.
Ensure your checkout process is simple and only asks for essential information. A complicated process can lead to cart abandonment. Use progress indicators to show customers how many steps are left in the checkout process.
More people are using mobile devices to access the internet, so creating a website optimized for mobile is important. Use responsive design to make sure that your site fits all screen sizes and make sure that your website’s navigation is easy to use on a phone or tablet.
Optimize Your Website’s Content:
Creating engaging and informative content is essential for converting visitors into customers. Here are some tips for optimizing your website’s content:
Your website’s headlines should be clear, concise, and compelling. Use powerful words and emotional language to grab visitors’ attention and draw them in.
Your product descriptions should be comprehensive, informative, and persuasive. Use comprehensive language to help visitors visualize the product and highlight the product’s unique features and benefits.
Customer reviews and testimonials can build trust and credibility with potential customers. Use reviews and testimonials to highlight the positive experiences that other customers have had with your products or services.
Use high-quality images, videos, and infographics to enhance your website’s content and make it more engaging. Visuals can convey complex information in an easily digestible format.
Use Analytics to Track Your Progress
Using website analytics is crucial for tracking your website’s performance and identifying areas for improvement. Here are some tips for using website analytics to optimize your website for conversion:
Set up website analytics
Use a tool like Google Analytics to track important metrics like pageviews, bounce, and conversion rates. Set conversion measuring to monitor the effectiveness of your calls-to-action and other conversion-focused elements.
Analyze your data
Use your website analytics to identify areas where visitors drop off, such as high bounce rates on certain pages. Use this information to change your website’s design and content to improve user engagement and encourage conversions.
Test and refine
Continuously refine your website’s design and content to improve conversion rates. Use A/B testing to compare different versions of your website and determine which version performs best.
Key Takeaways: Optimizing Your Website for Conversions
Designing your website for conversion optimization is essential for business success. Use user personas to guide your design and content choices, and constantly test and refine your website for optimal conversion rates. By implementing these tips, you can create a website that converts visitors into customers.
Designing a website for conversion optimization is an ongoing process. Continuously monitor your website’s analytics and gather customer feedback to identify improvement areas. By prioritizing your customers’ needs and creating a seamless user experience, you can create a website that drives clicks and sales and builds customer trust.
Get a Conversion Driving Website with Agency Partner Interactive
Your website is one of the most crucial assets for your brand. It’s a powerful revenue-generating tool that can increase your business reach, bring in high-quality traffic, and drive reliable, long-term sales for your bottom line.
At Agency Partner Interactive, we understand the importance of website conversion optimization. We use proven strategies and tactics to help you turn your website visitors into paying customers.
Whether you need a custom WordPress web design or a new web development project from scratch, our expert web design team can create a fast, responsive, and conversion-driven site to help you stay ahead of your competitors. We deeply understand user experience, from intuitive infrastructure to pain points and challenges. It’s what informs our meticulous design process and how we’ve achieved award-winning status with over 1800+ successful web projects. Ready to get a revenue-driving website that works as hard as you? Get your free personalized proposal today!
Social Media News: Is Facebook Trying to Copy TikTok’s Feed?
Agency Partner’s co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer Adam Rizzieri joins Fox 5 Las Vegas to talk about the latest social media news. If you’ve been paying attention to recent social media news, you may have heard that Meta is updating Facebook to be more like TikTok. Is this really a good idea? Bad idea? What is the goal here…?
Tune in to the conversation below.
For a more in-depth analysis on this major social media update, click here for the whole story.
Can Agency Partner Interactive Help With Your Social Media Marketing Challenges?
Of course! As Dallas’ top digital marketing agency, we optimize social media marketing investments in real-time with our digital marketing and social media management services. Agency Partner’s internet marketing experts can adjust and optimize your marketing campaigns up to 48 times over 24 hours. We try to make improvements in real-time to provide you with the fastest, most impactful return on investment.
Our digital marketing experts will help you attract valuable customers, drive sales, increase your leads, build brand awareness, and more. Ready to optimize your business with an award-winning PPC Agency? Maybe you just have some basic questions? Contact us today to get started!
Social Media News: Is Facebook Trying to Copy TikTok’s Feed?
If you’ve been paying attention to recent social media news, you have likely heard that Meta is updating Facebook to be more like TikTok.
The heart of the app update will be focused on your Facebook feed. This is typically where users find content from friends and family… Well, this week we’re seeing a change to that as Meta is now able to utilize its new “Discovery Engine” to show you more recommended content, with a strong tilt for all video formatted content, above audio and text.
With a new discovery algorithm powering all of this, the Facebook User Interface, which is basically what you see on your app screen, will now be split into a “Home” feed and a “Feeds” tab. The Home Feed will present you with content that is designed to keep you entertained, similar to your typical TikTok experience. Meanwhile, the Feeds tab is where you’ll find the latest posts from Friends, Groups, and your you basic social media favorites.
This is a Move from Social Network to Online Content Sharing Platform
There is no doubt that this is a big change for Facebook. It is a move away from its roots as a social network among friends and family, and towards a TikTok style “entertainment app” that highlights content creators and online commerce.
Think of the TikTok “For You” feed. This is a feed that shares seemingly endless short form videos from strangers and friends alike. Of TikTok’s 1 billion users, more than 55% of them are creating highly shareable short form videos that are not restricted to an audience of first, second, and third-degree connections.
What is Behind this Change to the Facebook Feed?
If you ask 10 people, you may get three to five different answers. Here is what the Zuck himself has to say about it:
“One of the most requested features for Facebook is to make sure people don’t miss friends’ posts. So today we’re launching a Feeds tab where you can see posts from your friends, groups, Pages and more separately in chronological order. The app will still open to a personalized feed on the Home tab, where our discovery engine will recommend the content we think you’ll care most about. But the Feeds tab will give you a way to customize and control your experience further.”
Does the Zuck stop here?
We don’t think so… We think Meta is anxious that TikTok is now surpassing 1 Billion active users. We know Meta is taking note of the fact that Bytedance’s cash cow, TikTok, is poised to grow from $4 to $12 Billion in 2022.
So here we are…. TikTok is at its first billion users and it is dominating the attention of Gen Z. Consider this: the average TikTok user spends 29 hours per month scrolling through the app. This compares to 16 hours for Facebook users and just 8 hours per month for Instagram users.
That difference in time spent on the app is huge… Meta is feeling left out because no doubt, they are not the cool kid in school anymore.
Is Facebook About to Alienate the Legacy App’s Loyal Users?
This move to appeal to a younger demographic could totally blow up in Meta’s face.
Your typical Facebook app user presents much different demographic data than your daily TikTok user. Meta’s Facebook has mostly Millennials on up to Baby Boomers, and really doesn’t have many Gen Z gamer kids on the platform.
Meta has to ask itself: “Can we have it all and if we cannot, is it worth alienating a loyal legacy user to try and attract the favor of a younger demographic?”
At best, the younger demographic is spending time reposting TikTok videos to Instagram Reels….
Why, you might ask? Well, social media users tend to prefer the video editing tools that TikTok offers in its app so most often a video will be created and posted to TikTok before eventually being shared on Instagram Reels.
But I digress. Baby boomers and older millennials are likely engaging in none of this content duplication and posting behavior. They’re on Facebook to share updates with the family across the country or keeping up with old friends from school. If they’re keeping their content consumption closer to home, it’s likely that they’re hanging strong in Facebook Groups.
Are Companies Changing Their Social Media Behavior?
Yes and no. In some ways, a good social media marketer is always changing things up. Similarly, the social media engagement algorithms are constantly in flux to cater to a combination of a better user experience and specific business goals. Yes, business goals. These social media companies are NOT non-profit organizations. In some ways, they may even be a little bit evil, emphasizing that small businesses and individuals are largely at the mercy of the big tech.
News organizations, for sure, will have to change how their content is disseminated online.
More than 70% of US adults are accustomed to consuming news content in a digital, in-app social media format and Facebook has been a leading supplier of this type of information. This Facebook-TikTok update will highlight user generated content (think of the TikTok challenges and trendy dance moves) and move away from syndicating real and “fake” news. Given the heat that Zuckerberg and Co. have been facing from US lawmakers and states attorneys general, this may help mitigate the companies annual legal expenses.
As always, in times of change, opportunity presents along with challenge. There will be some companies that find new ways to engage their customers among the 3 billion Meta users worldwide.
How Should I Respond to this Facebook/TikTok Social Media Update?
It depends!
If you’re a social media user, pay close attention to the type of content of you see in the Facebook Home tab, and take note of how it differs from the stuff that is presented to you in that Feeds tab. If this change happens to be a win for Meta, and Facebook starts to measure more app activity between Facebook, Instagram, and Insta Reels in particular, then expect this to stick around. Remember, Facebook is a for-profit business and it really only cares about promoting user growth and selling advertisements to businesses. Meta cares about Meta.
If your business happens to be a news and information publisher that relies on Facebook to syndicate content, you should contact a social media marketing agency today. This will be a difficult time for your company.
If you run a product or service company that gets new product sales, phone calls, appointments, and form submissions from social media marketing, then this could be an interesting new world for you.
In fact, it could be a lot of fun if you’re able to invest in shareable, video content that is designed explicitly for social sharing. Brands have been using TikTok to go viral and put themselves front and center in front of gamer kids, Gen Z’s, and younger Millennials.
Now, that same style of content can be used to get your brand in front of a more mature social media user. Depending on what you sell and who your customer is, this may or may not work, which is why always recommend that you consult with a digital marketer first. With that said, every new internet marketing campaign is a test and should be conducted using the scientific method.
Can Agency Partner Interactive Help Me With This?
As Dallas’ top digital marketing agency, we optimize marketing investments in real-time with our digital marketing and social media management services. Our internet marketing experts can optimize your marketing campaigns up to 48 times over 24 hours. We try to make improvements in real-time to provide you with the fastest, most impactful return on investment.
Our digital marketing experts will help you attract valuable customers, drive sales, increase your leads, build brand awareness, and more. Ready to optimize your business with an award-winning PPC Agency? Maybe you just have some basic questions?
One thing we hear all the time is: How much does SEO cost? How much should I budget for SEO Marketing Services?
As digital marketers, we hear that question and our brains start to think about SEO strategy and everything that goes into getting more organic searches for business owners. Immediately, our SEO specialists consider everything from potential website performance needs, competitor research, on-page SEO optimization, link-building strategies, local SEO, and more as it relates to your goals.
Oh, and let’s not leave out considerations for the fact that there are different SEO pricing models, depending on whether you are looking for a one-time optimization or if you’re truly looking to play the long game and dominate your industry. Depending on what you need, you will likely consider fixed pricing versus monthly retainers that support technical SEO efforts, the cost of content marketing that helps you rank on Page 1 for new keywords, and routine analytics meetings with your SEO consultant.
Those are just a few things we think about. Other questions may include:
How long has your web domain been around? What about other websites that compete for the same keywords?
How much organic traffic are we currently seeing in Google Analytics and what are the referral sources?
Is the site ranking just for branded keywords, or are more competitive keywords resulting in impressions and clicks?
What does the Google Search Console say of impressions and clicks to your website over time? Is growth stagnant?
Is your website currently holding a first page rank for any relevant search terms either locally or nationally?
How healthy is your backlink profile relative to the top ranked sites?
Are we competing with big brands, local businesses, or personalities?
How often do your biggest competitors publish blogs, news articles, and/or new web pages?
Can the business support a SEO campaign right now? …or do immediate needs require that this budget be allocated toward a more immediate, albeit less permanent marketing tactic?
In Google Analytics, what does the website’s bounce rate look like relative to keywords resulting in clicks to the site?
While these questions are fairly common, the answers to them will vary significantly from one business website to another. Competitiveness and your desire to dominate will factor into what your monthly SEO budget should look like. To generalize, most SEO experts will charge a monthly recurring investment of $2,000 to $10,000+ per month. Yes, that’s a big range!
How Much Does SEO Cost? Learn from Texas’ top SEO marketing agency.
A national or international SEO budget in a competitive online market should never be less than $5000 per month. For SEO that seeks to attract local buyers in a not so competitive market, it is possible to kick-off a local SEO campaign in the $500 to $2500 range. Again, depending on competitiveness, your budget will vary significantly.
To learn more about where that money goes, some things to watch out for when selecting a SEO partner, and when you can expect some ROI from SEO, keep on reading!
What to Expect From An Appropriate SEO Budget
Notably, the value from search engine optimization compounds over time… So unlike PPC on Google Ads, SEO is not how you make a quick buck. SEO is how you build wealth through a business website.
SEO is also kind of like caring for a plant. It requires consistent attention over time and when you stop, your SEO value slowly begins to diminish relative to other competing sites on the web. This is because Google’s search algorithm changes constantly. So as you consider your SEO budget, be mindful of the fact that an adequate SEO effort is something that should be a monthly recurring undertaking for the life of your business or website.
SEO, when content driven, ensures that whenever someone is searching for answers to any question that is relevant to your business, your brand is front and center every time. Businesses love SEO because of how the economics of it play out relative to other sales and marketing activities. If you consider an investment over 12 months, notice how the monthly expense stays mostly flat in the graph below. Also take note of what the additional revenue line is doing… strongrevenue growth.
In this example, we are looking at a Texas based, B2B medical supplies company with a monthly SEO budget of $8,500. At the 7th month of this campaign, things started to get exciting because this company’s website began to rank on Page 1 of Google for some its most commercially valuable keywords. At the close of the year and following a 12 month SEO investment of $102,000, this family business counted just under $1 million in additional revenue and a massive ROI. The break-down is as follows:
Total SEO Budget: $102,000
Total New Revenue: $992,742
12 month SEO ROI: $890,742
Unlike this company’s SEO campaign, if you look at their Google Ads marketing performance, new revenue is positively correlated to their monthly ad budget. So as logic would have it, more budget equates to more revenue just as less budget equates to less sales. In this case, the client was competing in a market with a fairly expensive cost per click and PPC was never their most desired source of new business. PPC helped them serve some immediate needs while they worked to establish their SEO game.
To reiterate, this is a big reason that business owners love the economics of an expertly crafted SEO campaign versus other marketing channels. SEO is part of a long-term, industry-dominating digital marketing strategy. A basic SEO campaign typically takes anywhere from 8 to 16 months before a mostly static, consistent monthly investment begins to generate a noticeable ROI. For some industries and markets, like SEO for family law, return on investment may feel exponential once your average page rank starts to hold search engine positions 1 through 3.
Ways to Allocate Your SEO Marketing Budget
There are different ways to allocate your SEO budget and get the work done. You may consider augmenting your existing marketing team to fill any gaps in expertise, hiring an outside agency that happens to be an expert, or you may try the DIY route. Generally speaking, these are the various ways to allocate your SEO marketing dollars:
Hiring a team of SEO freelancers with a budget of $70 to $190 per hour, per person
Hiring an in-house marketing manager or marketing project manager that can manage a team of SEO freelancers.
Depending on experience, expect to budget anywhere from $50,000 to $125,000 per year for this person. You get what you pay for!
Don’t forget to add the cost of your freelancers to this. They will most likely charge a price per word or a flat monthly fee for a set amount of deliverables.
Hiring a SEO agency at $90 to $250 per hour depending on the agency’s bill rate
Small consultancies and startups may easily feel overwhelmed by all of this and most will never have a starting SEO budget of $8500 per month…. but the fact is that there is a way to start small and grow your SEO strength in an effective, strategic way.
Many small to medium sized companies, including law firms and health practices, tend to hire marketing agencies because they are able to gain access to certified, experienced experts that would otherwise be out of reach. Most agencies will offer a full suite, white glove service that functions much like an outside marketing and technology department. Enterprises will almost always utilize their in-house teams for SEO however it is common for them to hire agencies for occasional marketing tests or simply to get some fresh ideas on the whiteboard.
Across all budgets, the common key to success is a commitment to consistent, scheduled content production over an indefinite period of time.
Why $100 Per Month Is NOT The Real Cost of Cheap SEO
Affordable SEO does exist, however there is such a thing as “cheap” or bad SEO… Bad SEO is exactly what it sounds like. It’s wholly inadequate and far too many companies fall into this trap. A lot of this stems down to the fact that less than half of small businesses have a SEO budget of any kind. Of the businesses that do have a SEO budget, a survey indicates that 71% of small businesses budget for only $1 to $99 per month for their SEO. I mean… you get what pay for. $99 is literally nothing and you will almost certainly measure some negative ROI from this.
Most often, this is due to a lack of education wherein business owners are sold by the agency with the cheapest proposal rather than the one with the highest value. This happens ALL the time. Don’t be a sucker.
Unfortunately, SEO spammers know that most business owners have no idea how SEO works.
This is why they exploit businesses every day by sending spam email with promises that you can get on Page One of Google for only $99. Because most business owners assume that SEO is a basic commodity, similar to getting gas at the pump, many opt to invest in the cheapest option. After several months, they may realize that there is “no strategy” and/or no ROI and will opt to end the campaign to either find another vendor or do nothing at all.
The way this often plays out is like this:
Company contacts 2 to 4 agencies for SEO quotes
Some agencies respond with general, templates proposals, almost immediately. Others may ask some basic business questions.
Company considers several proposals. Often, these are reviewed by several stakeholders that really do not understand what SEO is.
Company may reach out to the final 1-2 agencies with follow up questions.
Company opts for the cheapest or second to cheapest SEO marketing proposal.
Company cancels SEO arrangement after several months.
Either immediately or several months later, Company may opt to work with a different SEO Agency or does not invest in any SEO.
This scenario plays out daily. In the end, a lot of time has been wasted, a little money has been burned, and the business hasn’t really achieved its goals. But worse can happen….
Some of the collateral damage from cheap SEO may far outweigh any money that may have been (under) invested to begin with.
There are a ton of LinkedIn and Facebook groups for digital marketers. In some of these forums, you’ll observe extremely elementary questions from people posing as experts. Some of these questions may be so basic as: “I just scored a SEO client and he wants to rank for ‘keyword X’ so how do I do that?”
There are also a ton of online resources that provide free or low cost SEO tools for rookies that want to pose as SEO experts. In most cases, rookie marketers will rely on their personality and salesmanship to “score a client” and then figure out the SEO part after the sale. This is something to fear as the effects of black hat SEO may be permanent in some cases and in others, they may be very difficult to bounce back from. Things to watch out for include:
Utilization of link schemes such a private blog networks (PBNs)
Unnatural, purchased backlinks that may or may not be relevant to your industry
Keyword stuffing and hidden text on your web pages.
Zero requests for a content calendar and weekly recurring blog posts
The single most damaging thing a SEO rookie may lead you toward is a Google penalty. The effects of a penalty from Google can be absolutely devastating and you should expect a huge loss of organic search visibility, clicks to your website, and revenue. There are ways to bounce back from this, but it takes a lot of investment to do so.
DIY Stuff: Start Your SEO Budget By Collecting Some Basic Information
To truly understand where you need to go, it is important that you fully understand where your LLC or corporation is today. There are a few ways to do this and the most simple is to ensure that your technology team has been instructed to check your website for some technical best practices. Once you have ensured that some foundational things have been fully accounted for, you also will want to glance at your competitors and see what things look like on their side of the fence. We have found that some of the most powerful SEO strategies start with a basic SWOT analysis.
Compare Your Website’s SEO Grade versus Your Competitor’s
Use comparative data to create your roadmap for success.
This is something that your in-house digital marketer should be doing already: Take 90 seconds and get your Competitive SEO Report Card score to see where you stand. When doing so, be sure to enter the domain of your single biggest competitor, and enter a super common, non-branded word that a customer would search for when looking for the product/services you sell.
Competitive SEO Report Card (scroll down to “Begin Your Free SEO Analysis”)
Ensure That These 3 Fundamental Elements are In Place
Does your site adequately address demands around Mobile Friendliness and Site Speed?
As a best practice, your marketing team should be demanding a routine weekly or monthly audit of your website’s mobile friendliness and site speed. Because a majority of web searches start with a mobile browser, Google wants to ensure a fantastic mobile experience in its search results. So know where you stand and ensure that your site is up to the mark by leveraging these two free tools.
Make certain that your site is defaulting to HTTPS when opening pages.
Google has adopted a strict position on information security. Whether or not a website leverages HTTP versus HTTPS is a Google ranking signal. This means that Google will view a domain that opens in HTTPS more favorably than one that opens in HTTP. To open your website securely you must have an active SSL certificate associated with your web host. To see whether or not your site has an active SSL certificate in place, simply open your website and see what the browser bar tells you. Do you see HTTP or HTTPS next to your web address?
By leveraging HTTPS, you are telling your visitors that you value their privacy and taking a step to help prevent third parties from eavesdropping on a conversation between your website and your web visitor. This is especially important for any web forms that may ask for personal, financial, or other information. If you choose not to have your website default to loading secured HTTPS sessions, Chrome and other browsers will go so far as to inform users that your site may be compromised and unsafe to access.
So before any actual SEO work begins, consult with your technology team and ensure that you have your bases covered as things pertain to Speed, Mobile Friendliness, and Site Security.
If you are starting from scratch and have never optimized your site for speed, security, and mobility, expect to pay anywhere from $300 to $3000 for the first effort.
Once you have covered those three essentials, you are almost ready to call in your SEO experts. Be sure to discuss maintenance of these items with your technology team and inquire about a monthly and annual budget for this routine work effort. Once you get past the first big optimization, your monthly maintenance budget should be fairly minuscule. If you have any questions about that, please feel free to contact us directly by clicking here: Ask Us About Speed, Security, or Mobile Friendliness.
Have a Clear Understanding of Your Business Goals
Now that we have accounted for the basic technological leg work that goes into creating a solid SEO foundation, we can start building. But just what exactly are we needing to build? To answer this question, start by writing down what your business goals and objectives are.
On paper, define what sort of ROI you expect and need from your SEO campaign. Is it leads, sales, retention?
Discuss your goals with other stakeholders and create a realistic, “rigidly flexible” SEO budget as a conversation starter.
Put On Your “Spy vs. Spy” Hat
In a nutshell, it is time to compare your website against your industry’s top ranking sites. This helps you understand what tactics your biggest competitors are employing. In many ways, it should be your goal to match, and then one up whatever it is they are doing. To put this as simply as possible, do the following:
Compare your blog versus their’s — how regularly do they publish new content?
Does their content add value?
What is the approximate word count of their average post?
Does your competitor seem to leverage press releases?
Are there any special sections on their site like FAQs or location specific landing pages?
Does their site have a landing page that is uniquely tailored to each product/service line?
Take note of your findings and be prepared to discuss all of this information with your internal stakeholders. Also, be ready to share this with your agency partner and know that the more candid you are, the more able your SEO expert will be to devise a competition crushing strategy.
Sum It All Up And Share Your New SEO Budget
By now, you know that you need to allocate some of your marketing budget to the following, tangible deliverables:
Site Speed Optimization performed by your web team
Mobile Friendliness update performed by your web team
SSL certificate performed by your web team
At a range of $300 to $3000 for this first overhaul, these are fairly inexpensive optimizations. Once you’re past the first optimization, you should make a plan to revisit these items at least once a month.
With the foundational tech needs accounted for, you also know that you need to allocate part of your monthly SEO budget toward:
On-page optimization performed by your digital marketing team
Off-page optimization performed by your digital marketing team
Expect to pay your in-house team or agency partner anywhere from $1500 to $2500 per month for really good, US based SEO optimization. This should include the cost of monthly analytics and reporting, keyword targeting, strategy, and updates to your meta-titles, tags, and descriptions. Also, know that this alone is not enough to help you grow and dominate your market.
The next big variable, and often the most costly, is the key ingredient that actually helps you retain your favorable position and rank for new, relevant keywords:
Weekly, recurring SEO Content production performed by your digital marketing team
To determine what your content needs are, this is where you refer back to your marketing intelligence. If your competitor is posting a new blog every day at 500 words each, at a bare minimum you should be doing that as well. It is best to curate a writer that is a subject matter expert on your topic or at least familiar with your industry.
To help you do the math on this one, assume that your content will cost anywhere from $0.15 to $1.50 per word. The range is fairly expansive because some writers are much more valuable than others. There are a lot of people that will claim to be content writers but there is a huge difference in style, expertise, and process. Super cheap writing tends to be spun content and it is not suitable for 99% of business websites. If your subject matter requires unique expertise, it is possible to pay as much as $1 to $2 per word.
If it’s super specialized content that you’re after, well… yes, you guessed it: that price per word just keeps going up. Remember, you get what you pay for!
Know that the perfect SEO strategy may or may not conform to your early budget expectations but even a small SEO scope can prove to be valuable… so start with Local SEO and the basics of on-page SEO services! If in fact your site requires a lot more investment than anticipated, discuss what can be done to stretch every investment dollar and whether or not some tactics may be phased into your SEO campaign over time.
As a Leader, Educate Yourself and Make an Informed Decision
Combined with our own data, this information has been aggregated by surveying top SEO agencies and world renowned SEO authorities. If you’re looking to firmly control your market and aggressively grow your market share, a content driven, expertly crafted SEO strategy may be for you. As long as you understand that this is not about making a quick buck, with some patience and equal commitment to a full campaign, SEO can be one of your most reliable performers when it comes to lead generation.
Additionally, the best SEO tends to positively impact your other marketing channels so don’t take this budget decision lightly. For example, if you are running a Google Ads campaign, it will lower your cost per click by improving your Google relevancy score. This means that for the same PPC budget, your new business ends up winning more clicks and impressions.
Also, effective SEO allows you to build a valuable content library that will establish your brand as a thought leader. This content helps your customers make purchase decisions and it gives your sales team a more valuable reason for reaching out to sales prospects. No one likes the “check-in” or “follow-up” email so lead with value and share a new blog with your prospect.
By now, hopefully you understand that search engine optimization is a process of improving the visibility and ranking of a website on search engines. Proper SEO can help a website attract more organic traffic, which can lead to increased sales and brand awareness. While there is no set cost for SEO services, most businesses should expect to budget between $500 and $5,000 per month for SEO. The actual SEO cost will depend on factors such as the size of the business, the competitiveness of the industry, and the desired results. Businesses that commit to a long-term SEO strategy and invest in the full suite of SEO services are more likely to see a return on their investment. For this reason, it is important to partner with an experienced SEO company that can develop a custom SEO plan for your business.
Chances are that you’re seriously looking to improve your SEO game. That’s great, we’re here for it!
To get your search engine optimization game on track, contact our digital marketing experts today. Click the button below and tee up a free, no obligation 1 hour strategy session.
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It’s no secret that Facebook has one of the largest captive audiences in the world. With billions of users worldwide, Facebook is an ideal destination for advertisers wanting to spread their message.
Fortunately, Facebook’s advertising platform makes it possible to create brilliant Facebook ads and promote them to wide audiences. It takes a specialized approach to drive your Lead Generation efforts through Facebook’s advertising platform and in 2020 we’re able to reduce advertising costs by leveraging AI to Create Facebook Ads that convert.
Accordingly, below are some Digital Marketing tips you can use to boost your revenue with AI-enhanced Facebook ads.
Eliminate Poor Performing Ads
Many marketers will point out that “You have to spend more to make more.” While this is true to a certain extent, it can cloud your judgment into giving poorly performing ads a long rope.
With AI, you can determine which ads aren’t worth the time of day and eliminate them altogether. This can lead to lower costs and higher ad quality score. You don’t want to spend money on bad ads. AI makes it possible to only spend money on ads worth experimenting on.
View Real-Time Results
With AI Technology, you can view the results of your ad campaigns in real-time. This will allow you to see what’s broken in your campaign so you can make real-time adjustments.
In addition, you can also optimize your campaigns to become more efficient to improve your bottom line and achieve more product sales. In the end, knowing the results of your ad campaign at all times is beneficial from a marketing and financial perspective.
Use Split-Testing
Split testing, or A/B testing, is an essential aspect of any Digital Marketing Strategy. Ideally, you’ll want to see which ads perform the best in your campaign.
Often, this determination will come down to a few small factors. Is your ad copy too generic? Do leads prefer to see one specific brand image over the other? Is the phrasing on your landing page too salesly?
These are all questions split testing can answer. With AI, split testing can become more granular, which is great for getting down to the smallest detail of your campaign’s performance.
Get Creative
No matter how successful an ad campaign is, it won’t last forever. Let’s face it – only a few percentage of your target audience will convert. If you keep showing the same ads to customers who already converted and hopeful leads, your audience will soon get bored and tune you out.
AI can predict when your ads are becoming redundant and automatically replace them. Some AI software will even replace your ad with another one automatically.
In the end, your target audience will be re-targeted with a fresh new ad that may be more successful. It’s important to never get complacent in your campaign.
If you are experiencing underwhelming results from your Facebook or Instagram ad campaign, then you need to try a new alternative. At Agency Partner Interactive, we can develop a Facebook Ad Campaign to drive more business for your company.
Do you want to learn more? If so, contact Agency Partner Interactive to speak to a member of our brilliant marketing agency.
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LinkedIn Lead Generation: 6 Tips for More B2B Leads
Tips From Digital Marketing Experts
More than 255 million adults are living in the United States. Of those, 163 million have a Profile on LinkedIn. Worldwide, professionals join the platform at a rate of two per second for a total of 645 million members in 200 countries and regions. In addition to personal member profiles, there are 30 million companies represented on the platform.
The big question is: “Do LinkedIn members use the platform for buying decisions?” The answer is a resounding “yes!” A LinkedIn survey showed that up to 63% of B2B Buyers used LinkedIn to support their Purchase process in the past year, and 80% B2B Leads are Generated through LinkedIn. If you have a business, it is imperative to have a LinkedIn lead generation strategy. This article will explain the best practices for using your personal and company LinkedIn profiles to capture more leads.
Start with all the Facts
Before you can begin finding LinkedIn leads, it’s important to build a strong foundation – that’s your personal profile. Take the time to completely fill out your profile with employment history, skills, accolades, and education.
This step is so vital, yet it is the most often overlooked. LinkedIn members with complete profiles are 40 Times more likely to Receive an Opportunity through LinkedIn than members with an incomplete profile.
Just like Google, LinkedIn utilizes keywords to show your profile to relevant individuals. Optimize your profile by researching appropriate and specific phrases – for example, a search for “accountant” yields over 6 million results.
Conversely, using the phrase “Certified Public Accountant in the non-profit industry in Dallas, TX” yields only 89 results. Be as specific as possible to get found by the right leads.
Ask for Endorsements and Recommendations
Once you have a complete profile, ask current and past colleagues and clients for their endorsements and recommendations. Before you connect with potential leads, you’ll want to show that you are trusted and competent in your field of expertise.
Build a Company Page
While some LinkedIn lead generation strategies must be completed through personal pages, others require a free company profile through LinkedIn Pages.
Once you have a page for your organization, you can share your employees’ posts and client posts about your company as well as using customize-able call-to-action buttons to encourage participation in specific campaigns.
Be sure to share your company page with employees and current clients through newsletters and other social media platforms to spark the initial growth of your page.
Join LinkedIn Groups
LinkedIn groups are a gold mine for building connections and finding leads. At this time, though, only individuals can participate in groups. (That’s why your completed personal profile with links to your company page is so essential.)
Get creative when joining groups. Join local industry groups, but also research where potential clients are spending their time online and join those groups too. While it’s imperative to join the conversation and position yourself as a thought-leader within the community, it’s also important to refrain from overly self-promotional posts. You may even consider founding a group to position your company as an authority in your industry and capture even more B2B leads.
Set up Laser-Focused Ads
Are you ready to make some connections with prospective leads who aren’t in shared groups or your current network? Utilize LinkedIn’s powerful advertising platform to reach targeted leads through your company page.
Text Ads
Text Ads offer a budget-friendly solution with Pay Per Click (PPC) and cost per impression (CPM) pricing options with no contracts or commitments. With this kind of advertising, you’re only paying for the ads that work. Text ads appear on the right-hand sidebar of the desktop version of LinkedIn to prospects in your niche. Fine-tune your audience by utilizing LinkedIn’s targeting options.
Sponsored Content
Sponsored content and direct sponsored content are native ads which employ single image ads, video ads, and carousel ads which appear directly in a prospect’s news-feed. The difference between sponsored content and direct sponsored content is that sponsored content promotes an update that’s been previously posted on your company page – giving it reach beyond your current audience. Any new campaigns must start in your company news feed. Direct sponsored content is an ad created for a specific target group. The creative can be produced and modified without cluttering your company news-feed.
Whether you’re using text ads or sponsored content, track your conversions in LinkedIn’s analytics, or Integrate their Tracking with your own Website.
Use InMail for LinkedIn Lead Generation
InMail is LinkedIn’s messaging service. With their free account, you can only message people with whom you are currently connected. However, for as little as $47.99 per Month, you can utilize InMail to message prospective leads through a robust targeting system. There’s a cap on the number of Sponsored InMail a member can receive, so leads are more likely to be receptive to this type of targeted InMail – especially if you’re offering a product or service that’s relevant to them. When crafting your InMail, be sure to avoid sales-heavy verbiage and offer something of value to the lead.
InMail allows you to personalize pitches, offer a clickable call-to-action, and only delivers when members are active – so you’re more likely to reach LinkedIn leads that will actually see your advertisement.
Do you want to tap into the incredible power and potential of LinkedIn? Agency Partner Interactive can help! Let us assist you in building a loyal following of targeted, potential clients. Learn more about our LinkedIn Lead Generation Service and set up a time to talk through your business needs today.
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At our web design agency, we would like to believe that nothing happens by accident. Legendary doesn’t happen by birth and great doesn’t just come from good. Sure, some things happen by chance, but great web design is a very intentional, considerate effort. It requires a mixture of experience, artistry, a business case, and a really strong, tested web design process.
From web design to website development, the unveiling of a new website is almost always a moment for congratulations and celebration — but the weeks leading up to that event are methodical and fairly linear.
Similar to a basketball player such as the late Kobe Bryant, leading up to the big game, a great deal of planning and practice goes into being ready for showtime. Without adequate preparation, there is no way to know if the site is ready for high volumes of traffic, form submissions, calls from customers, and more.
To get to the point where a website can be deemed a brilliant, new piece of coded architecture, a coordinated effort among a project team of web designers, business analysts, and website developers is a must.
As a full service web design and development agency, we have been refining the full website design process for over 10 years. In that time, we have completed over 1800 digital projects, and from real-world experience we know that a successful website comes from a combination of excellent team players, trustworthy business data, considerate business analysis, and a touch of digital artistry.
So how does success become a reality? Measure twice, cut once… preparation. Great decision-making. Working with an experienced team that has a vision. There is so much that goes into this, but we’ll try and keep this as high level as possible. Keep reading as we dig deeper in the things that go into the website design process.
The Web Design Process is An Intentional, Linear Process
Unsure of where to start? No problem. Contact our award-winning team today and we’ll walk you through the process.
The steps of the website design and development process are:
Project Discovery Session
Project Planning
Design Phase
Development Phase
User Acceptance Testing and Launch
Website Maintenance (routine)
Step 1: Information Gathering and Discovery
The first part of the web design process is arguably the most important. A friend of ours is famous for saying “measure twice, cut once.” In the web discovery phase, this is where you work to ensure alignment among all stakeholders. The stakeholders for your website project may include the technical project team, business users, customers, and others that count on your website to be a successful, functional business tool.
Whether you are building a custom site, a WordPress site, or a Magento or e-commerce site, make sure to include your digital marketer in this planning effort. A website is a huge part of digital marketing. Without considering the needs and expectations of customers, your market, and even the competition, there is no context for your site.
Without context, your site lacks focus and purpose.
Step 2: Planning Your Website Project
Understanding the objectives of the new website is key. Following your project discovery phase, the project team is able to identify and plan for specific resources that will need to be called upon to address your website’s unique requirements.
By working with you to fully analyze the business goals, objectives, and considerations that were previously discussed, you are now able to set a project timeline. At a high level, this timeline will set expectations for how the project will advance moving forward. This should include a full understanding of milestones, deliverables, and a reiteration of payment schedules.
Step 3: Web Design – A Pixel Perfect User Interface (UI)
This design phase is a fun one because this is where you get to see your great ideas come to life in a more tangible way. In Step 3 your web design will work to create an impactful User Interface that is focused on facilitating a high quality, frictionless User Experience.
So while things are still light and without any code, you have an opportunity to focus on creating a fantastic web experience that is most likely to result in high conversions. Depending on your site’s purpose, your marketing team may tend to measure conversions as form submissions, product purchases, or phone calls.
Some things that come to play in this process are graphic design, user experience (UX), user interface (UI) design, sitemaps, page layouts, and wireframes.
Here is where the fun of throwing creativity into the ring happens — a knockout between Pablo Picasso and Jackson Pollock, in terms of concept, color, and web design process. Once the ideas have settled and the business logic takes over, style tiles prove to be a great method of ensuring consistency throughout the site. To wrap up the design phase, your project team will look to you for final approval before advancing to the development stage.
Step 4: Web Development and Integrations
This is where things get real. The nuts and bolts of CSS (Cascading Style Sheets) and HTML (HyperText Markup Language) coding mesh together here, raising the site from being just a static design to being a functional web page.
In this process, code is written to bring your design concepts and mock-ups to life. This is where you see the power of your color palettes, visuals and content come into play as a marketing tool. During the development phase, your marketing team should have ample time to focus on content creation and a full on-page SEO (Search Engine Optimization) strategy for the new site.
As a note of advice, you should ensure that there is a road map for onward travel. After all, this site should not be considered a static project and a true website should always be a work in progress; to maintain your site’s health, it will need constant updates and adjustments to meet ongoing browser, device, security, and user needs. Similar to the latest software update that your smartphone mandated, your website requires at least that same frequency of attention (at a bare minimum).
Finally, once your software developers have finished programming your site, it is time to seek final approval before moving on to testing, delivery, and upload.
Step 5: Testing and Delivery
This is the final dress rehearsal before your site launches. All of the pieces of the coding will need a run-through, any link issues ironed out, and final tweaks made so that it is pixel perfect, and ready for the opening night. In this effort, make certain that every button clicks and functions as expected. Also be sure that the site is tested on mobile devices, desktop computers, and even big screens. In 2020, your site should be mobile optimized and responsive.
‘Creating a buzz’ might seem counter-intuitive for a website but consider fine-tuning your up-to-the-minute keyword and SEO strategy to be exactly this. Make certain to conduct a thorough and competitive keyword research before writing and placing your meta titles, meta tags, and meta descriptions on each webpage. Ongoing SEO costs can vary tremendously, and whether you are seeking local SEO visibility or you require a more national or global online presence, this step is crucial to ensuring that search engines are able to crawl and understand the subject matter of your site. Also, consider placing a Google Analytics tracking code so that you have a basic understanding of site traffic and user behavior. If your website is your company’s primary source of revenue, you might also consider adding some sort of heat mapping analytics tool and leveraging insights that come from Google Search Console.
Once your site has been fully tested, make sure everyone who is involved in the web design process understands how the whole site runs. And then you are ready… give your software developer or project manager a final approval and then your site is as good as live!
Step 6: Web Maintenance
Another essential part of this process is understanding that it will never be finished. As time moves on there will be a million little ways to tweak the setup, ensuring that it continues to be a market-leading website, rather than an old hat that has fallen off the shelf. Routine site speed optimizations are necessary and recurring site updates should be performed to be viewed favorably by search engines and your site’s users.
In order to keep the site fresh and enticing, keep on top of content, global color and image trends, as well as developments in your field. Most companies will create a monthly budget for website maintenance in order to keep overhead investments predictable and under control. Think of this as a visit to the Web Mechanic – a regular checkup to keep things running smoothly and routine adjustments will help avoid a major accident and drastic overhaul in the future.
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Between the brackets, there is a whole new world that, once uncovered, will unlock many doors for marketers with a basic knowledge of HTML. You can use your coding knowledge to create a variety of headings, format paragraphs, line breaks, lists, and to set up your photos for SEO detection. So prepare to dip into the seemingly secretive world of coded meanings and symbols as we present some basic HTML tips for Internet Marketers.
HTML for Internet Marketers
Any owner of a website or blog will profess that working with a developer is helpful when getting your content live, yet having a basic knowledge of HTML will save you from always having to dial 911 for assistance. Learning this skill is a liberating and empowering move in the tech-intensive world of today. Tip: When using HTML commands, most “opening” tags have a corresponding “closing” tag that nearly matches. The difference is that the closing tag is always preceded by a slash. This tells the computer where to start a command, and where to end the command. Pay close attention to the examples below.
Hyperlinks
Hyperlinks are transporters, one click on a hyperlinked image, word, or sentence and you’re taken to a different document section, an entirely new website, or to begin a download of a PDF or ebook. Hyperlinks shown in blue underlined text, called anchor text. The essential key is an opening <a tag and the hypertext reference (href), as shown here: <a href=”https://www.destinationURL.com”>click this link”</a> The result: Click this Link Arguably, the most important hyperlink is the one that takes your customers to your website so you’ll want to memorize this: <a href=”https://www.agenypartner.com”>agencypartner</a> The result: Agency Partner Interactive. Now, simply replace the anchor text with your URL.
Paragraphs and Spacing
The popular paragraph <p> tag is placed at the beginning of, you guessed it, a paragraph. Its closer is the </p> tag. This tells the computer where the paragraph starts and where it ends so it can format it accordingly: <p>Place your paragraph content between these tags.</p> You may find times when you want to reformat elements within the paragraph. <p>To shorten a line of text, enter a line break like this.<br> The content will continue on the next line.</p> To increase the space between lines, say to double-spacing, change the opening paragraph marker to include a line-height command: <p style=”line-height: 2;”>This will double-space all the lines within your paragraph. You can set this to 1.5 for less space, to 3 for more, etc. Note that this HTML command will only work on the specified paragraph. If you want to use it for multiple paragraphs, you will need to use the line-height tag on each.</p>
Headings
These eye-catchers are reasonably easy to code and are very important in catching the attention of search engines. They begin at <h1> and move inversely: as the numbers increase, the headings decrease in size:
<h1>Big, Bold and Beautiful!</h1>
<h2>Resize your headings with ease</h2>
<h3>Discover the How-To</h3>
Lists
While they utilize the same format and are both flanked by list-item tags: <li>. Bulleted and numbered lists have additional tags used at the start and finish of each list: <ul> will give you bullets while <ol> is used for numbered lists:
Bulleted
<ul> <li>bullet 1</li> <li>bullet 2</li> <ul>
Numbered
<ol> <li>number 1</li> <li>number 2</li> <ol>
Images
Often, picture sizing and image resolution can be troublesome. A good tip is to resize your pictures before uploading. This also maintains proper proportions. Labeled images containing keywords have a better chance of being noticed in search results. And, in the off chance that a picture doesn’t load at all, the “alt” text at least provides the user with a better description than “jpeg10678”. <img>src=”https://agencypartner.com”alt=”place alternative image description here”> These tools and basic HTML knowledge are resource savers. A solution that would have taken you hours to discover, are now be easily visible and the glitch resolved with these simple, must-know coding tags. Consider your virtual toolbox upgraded!
For new websites and web redesign projects alike, the website kickoff meeting is the crux of the working relationship between a client and the website design agency.
Essential to the web design process, this kickoff meeting is the ideal opportunity to identify the high-level scope of the web project and discuss the needs of its stakeholders. To keep everyone focused on the goal and unified in purpose, adequate preparation is crucial. For the most part, the following eight questions are a great foundation for building the website kickoff meeting agenda. By all means, these don’t cover everything, but they help share the basics!
Not sure how to begin? Contact our award-winning team today and we’ll walk you through the process.
If it isn’t already clear, let’s just reiterate that this website discovery meeting is the time to explore the tactical roadmap and determine any limitations that may affect the project.
To avoid any future surprises, be sure to invite all the right people — not only the top tier management but everyone who has a stake in the project. If there is anything that you want to include in the meeting agenda, ensure that your project manager has it well ahead of time, and the topic will be integrated into the agenda of the meeting.
So let’s get to it. Here are eight questions you may be asked during the course of your website kickoff — complete answers to these will maximize the value of everyone’s time and ensure a productive, long-term partnership.
Common Website Discovery Questions
Website redesigns: “What on your site is currently working?”
Most businesses redesign their website once every two to three years, so periodic website redesigns are very normal. Before jumping into this type of project, there is a great deal of benefit to assessing what has been working about your site, and what you would like to see it do differently or better in the future. Asking this will elicit what isn’t working as a matter of course but this question will start the process on a positive note. If any existing user data, such as Google Analytics engagement metrics are available, the team should see that! In the not so distant future, we expect to see high volume websites change their design, dynamically, using artificial intelligence!
Website redesigns: “What do you most want to change about your site?”
Think: “what do I need more of from my website?” Whether you need to boost more sales to your eCommerce site or you’re looking for more phone calls or form submissions, use this as an opportunity to dream big for a couple of minutes. The free flow of ideas should paint a picture of the overall vision, company direction, and tone and style of the target goal for phase 1 of the project. Save the practical issues for later. This is just about establishing a vision and honing in on what the immediate and long-term return on investment should be.
All Web Design Projects: “Who is your site’s target audience?”
We want to align with all, not part of the website’s target demographic — sidelining anyone is a missed opportunity from the outset. Understanding the needs of the client and how to improve their customers’ experience is the heart of the project, essential to client satisfaction and positive outcomes.
All Web Design Projects: “What is your business goal?”
This is probably the most important question for any website development plan. Are you trying to sell something? Create a sticky site? Or generate leads through an email or newsletter? Find out what the client wants each visitor to do. Knowing the answer will determine the best way to engage customers and spearhead the web design process.
All Web Design Projects: “How would you describe your company?”
These answers will help to establish tone and voice and allow you to build a site in conjunction with the client’s brand. Answers such as, “fun” and “corporate” will determine what the website presentation should be–bright and lighthearted, or serious and direct.
All Web Design Projects: “What is your most important benefit?”
Remember, customers are interested in benefits— they don’t care much about the features save for how it solves their “problem.” Try to get the client to answer this question in less than three seconds. This will tell you what deep impressions they have about the company (service or product). Exploiting the customer benefits (and indirectly, the product features), the website should grab the site visitor’s attention.
All Web Design Projects: “How do you fit into your market?”
Who is the competition? Do you have any alliances? Understanding the successes and failures the competition will provide a wealth of knowledge about the market. Likewise, you may be able to build on the strengths of alliances that stretch the reach of your initial audience. Together, the perspective from these sources will help you discover gaps or identify new opportunities.
All Website Projects: “Within your market, what is your favorite and least favorite site, and why?”
This is a really quick way to discover what inspires your clients. How do their favorite sites look and feel? What is the user experience like? With a little research, you can determine what compels users to return to these sites–what’s engaging and what’s not.
This may also be a good time to address your clients’ expectations so knowing what they like personally and professionally will ensure you deliver a project that they truly feel comfortable with and that does what it needs to do.
Project Gold
The website kickoff meeting is the opportunity for you to show that you know your stuff. It’s the time to educate the team, develop a cohesive plan, and inspire a: “We Got This Covered” attitude. It’s a process that will pay dividends in the quality of the web design process, the working relationship, and, ultimately, the work produced.
Now that you know what to ask in a website kickoff meeting, you can use these questions to guide your client to a definitive plan. Are you building your own site? These questions will help you solidify your goals.
Still need some guidance?
Contact our professionals at Agency Partner Interactive today to see how we can help you realize your dream website. For no obligation and at no cost to you, we’ll lead you through a 1 hour brainstorming session. Click below to get started now.
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When you are trying to make sure your website is SEO friendly, it’s imperative that you’re on the ball from day one.
Due to the competitive nature of ecommerce, SEO is the critical component needed to raise your website from mediocrity to meticulous. Why? Because the keywords identified by search engines will drive customers to your website. Being a heavy hitter with your SEO means that search engines will place you near the top of the search engine results page (SERP), thus increasing your website’s sales rate.
Maintaining high-quality ecommerce SEO also means that targeted, organic users will easily find your website amidst the plethora of choices. If your ecommerce site SEO is up to scratch, you will appear on the very first page of Google searches. But if you really want to step up your game, you should be aiming for the top three results. At Agency Partner Interactive, we have compiled a list of techniques to whip your website into shape!
Let’s Get this Ball Rolling
Transforming your ecommerce site into a front-runner starts with keyword optimization. These highly targeted keywords need to pay homage to your niche. A good starting point includes using Moz’s Keyword Tool or Google Adwords to research words commonly used in online searches.
Researching your competitors is beneficial for several reasons too. You might feel they are out of your league at the moment, but it’s certain they are using tried-and-tested SEO techniques. There is no shame in borrowing from the best. Also, they may be your competitors, but a strategic collaboration can help you to generate more interest in your website so bear this in mind–a few shared links can go a long way.
When optimizing your own keyword roster, be careful not to be too general, as your website will undoubtedly rank lower. Creating Long-Tail Keywords will almost definitely improve your SEO rating.
Raise the Bar on eCommerce SEO Descriptions
You need to optimize your meta description–the short description shown directly below your page title in the SERPs. Although Google itself doesn’t read this, your customers will. This information is all they have on your site, barring the title and URL, before they decide whether or not you have what they need–so make it concise, clear, and relevant. Your product descriptions will also benefit from a second wind, so research similar products and use them as a guide, but be creative and make yours unique.
Mobile Optimization is a Slam Dunk
As most people use their smartphones to access the internet today, it’s crucial that you swing for the fence here. Make sure your ecommerce site is mobile friendly and you will likely see a boost in your SEO ratings. Before going live, test and retest every page on your website with various smartphone brands. Most importantly, ensure the checkout experience is as convenient as possible.
The Ball is in Your Court
The aforementioned tips are based on years of experience that we have gathered here at Agency Partner. They represent some of the most common tactics used on the web today. You may come across some sticky tricks but some quality research and perseverance will pay off in the long run. However, should you feel the need to chat with an expert, ecommerce SEO is an Agency Partner specialty and we are more than happy to help.
Not big on reading? That’s okay. Watch “Why eCommerce SEO Matters” instead.
Using the power of Artificial Intelligence, we turned this blog into a video for you. Check it out below!
Web design should be classified as an art form in its own right. Just like any other creative work, a website conveys a brand message, communicates with an audience, and on occasion, provokes thoughts deeper than the Mariana Trench.
In the ocean of consumerism, it is vital that your customers experience smooth sailing from the second they embark on your ship. Not only do you need to captain your website like a fish to water, but additionally, you need to be aware of the web design mistakes to avoid.
Bugs naturally occur in website development and too many of these rogue waves could result in a permanent wave goodbye from your customer base. However, if there are any vessels you need to keep at bay, it’s web design mistakes that can harm your Search Engine Optimization (SEO). So if you want to have a whale of a time online, try to adhere to the following tips to avoid rocking the boat!
Is Your Navigation Completely Off The Map?
Ahoy there matey! If you want to really make waves in your industry, you need to make sure that your navigation is simple and straightforward. Reusing tried-and-proven attributes, like the placement of common navigation buttons, is the easiest way to keep things simple.
Running a tight ship here is one of the first things you should consider when building your website. People expect things in an instant, so if it takes too long to find something on your website, your customers are likely to abandon ship. But navigation is just the tip of the iceberg!
Make Sure Your Pages Aren’t Packed Like Sardines
Take a look at all the big fish in your sector and you will quickly realize they are averaging around 300 words per page. Another web design mistake to avoid is too much content. There is a lot of power in whitespace. Pictures and videos can add variety to your website, but use these sparingly. Too much will take longer to load and may even confuse visitors. Keeping your Web Design Responsive and ship-shape will help to Increase your SEO in the long-run.
Stem the Tide With a Good Call To Action
A call to action, or CTA, is simply prompting the user to do something–sign up for an email newsletter or take a simple quiz. From these actions, you’ll gather information about your users. These are your leads.
Without a good call to action, your revenue is going to be a drop in the ocean compared to what it should be. An effective call to action will ensure your conversion rate remains high and creating one is like shooting fish in a barrel. Keep it concise and make sure it tells your customers exactly what to do.
Note These Web Design Mistakes to Avoid Because There Are Plenty More Fish In The Sea
If your SEO is currently drowning under a Tsunami of bigger fish, then it may be time to rethink your Web Design Strategy. As far as the customer is concerned, there are plenty more fish in the sea, so your SEO rating has to be a Great White. You don’t need to find any port in the storm, just implement the suggestions that we at Agency Partner Interactive have made and watch your website splash its way to surf heaven. The world really is your oyster!
Not big on reading? That’s okay. Watch “Web Design Mistakes That Can Harm Your SEO” instead.
Using the power of Artificial Intelligence, we turned this blog into a video for you. Check it out below!
It doesn’t matter if you’re an industry leader or fresh out of college, making those all important web design changes can determine your business’s future.
Your online presence and popularity are highly dependent on a small number of crucial factors, one being your marketing dexterity. What is this exactly? Your ability to connect and communicate with your target market is essential, and the occasional free sample won’t do you any harm.
But what if we said that website design is the most vital factor when thinking about conversion rates? Imagine walking into a shop and choosing not to purchase something because you dislike their wallpaper. With an average attention span of around eight seconds nowadays, people make their decisions very quickly. As your website design is the very first thing people will notice, it’s paramount that it stands out for all the right reasons.
All Roads Lead to Home…
…at least they should, anyway. Ensuring that your website design features simple navigation is one of the first steps you can take toward boosting your conversion rates. The fundamental rule is to make navigation from one part of the website to another as quick, simple, and painless as possible. Ideally, this should never be more than a single click regardless of where on the site you currently are. This makes it easy for your visitors to take favorable actions.
Pages overflowing with instructions are going to appear monotonous, so a minimalist design with plenty of white space and snippets of text will come across as elegant and professional – novelties that will surely entice your audience.
Don’t Fall Off the Bandwagon
As it stands, projections suggest that by 2020 nearly 3 billion people around the world will be using their smartphones to access a website. That is well over one-third of the global population – a huge piece of the pie indeed!
Therefore, it seems favorable to optimize your web design to account for such a proportional figure. Stuffing every detail of each page into such a small space might be impossible, so it is essential that you prioritize. A call-to-action at the top of each mobile page will be a terrific start, and footing these pages with contact information will provide a solid foundation. The rest of each page can be toyed with at your leisure. Just remember that customers don’t want to be scrolling until the end of the week.
Further Expertise on Web Design Changes
There are dozens, if not hundreds of websites out there that can aid in web design changes. However, and without trying to blow our own trumpet too much, we are among the best at what we do – our online portfolio is a testament to this.
If you want your conversion rates to compete with some of the most successful online brands, start thinking seriously about web design changes you can make right now. Here at Accunity, we are passionate about taking your website into the 2020s with some of the most creative tools and minds available. So what are you waiting for? Even web design changes are just a click away!
Summing It Up
At Agency Partner Interactive, we can help you navigate the tides of change. In addition to Website Design and content creation, we offer social media marketing, LinkedIn lead generation, Brand Strategist, and Business Consulting.
Contact us to talk to an experienced professional who can help set your business onto the right trajectory.
Reach out today and let’s talk about how we can help make you successful.
Not big on reading? That’s okay. Watch “Website Design Changes That Will Impact Your Conversion Rate” instead.
Using the power of Artificial Intelligence, we turned this blog into a video for you. Check it out below!
There’s nothing like throwing a party for all your friends, only for the atmosphere to drain and the whole thing eventually implodes like a high-rise on demo day. This same chain of events can be used to analogize the unfortunate fate of many a website. People come, have a quick look around, get bored, and then inevitably, get out! The result: nothing but walls, windows and a general feeling of emptiness. So, how can you turn your house into a home?
Start With the Right Welcome Mat
Your home page will make or break your website’s page views and session rates, so make sure it is nothing less than impeccable. A video is a sure fire way of keeping visitors engaged from the get-go. Wyzowl claims that 72 percent of people, in fact, prefer this compared to a text-based welcome. Make sure that all content on the home page is relevant and, above all, direct. Anything tentative could cause the less patient of visitors to look for windows of opportunity elsewhere.
Don’t Lounge Around, Interact!
Lazyboys are yesterday’s news. According to the Content Marketing Institute, 2019 is only going to push forward in terms of interactivity. Making your guests feel welcome and sociable is the key to throwing a good party, so get those conversational juices flowing while the atmosphere is still fresh. Surveys, polls, and quizzes are some of the best tools to collect website leads. Interact and Qzzr will get you started.
Be a Spectacular Host with Live Chat
Whether it’s a conversation about your cookies or concerns about a mailing address, it helps to be in the room–around the clock if possible. Live chat is an excellent way of turning visitors into conversions. Digital may be the future, but people still want a fast answer from a real person, so consider implementing this into your website optimization strategy.
Be a King in the Kitchen
Lead magnets will always add terrific value to your content effectiveness, so get cooking. It’s all well and good feeding people with solutions after they’ve coughed up their credit card information, but who can say no to a freebie? Think of it as a doggy bag. If your guests can try free samples of digital products like ebooks, they’ll remember you for all the right reasons.
The Party is Almost Over
Urgency and scarcity are two tried and tested marketing tactics. People hate FOMO (fear of missing out) on something, especially if it is discounted or merits a freebie. Consider using an egg-timer in one corner of your website or strategically timed pop-ups.
Now You Should Know How to Collect Website Leads
Hopefully, your party will be in full swing now, and your website optimization will be on its way to competing with the best out there. Use one of the methods we have published, or use them all. Alternatively, if you prefer the shortcut process, work with Agency Partner. We already have proven methods and practices that guarantee results. We have worked with publicly-traded enterprises to mom-and-pop shops. We understand the lead generation strategies and how they can impact businesses. Contact us for a free quote and see how our digital marketing solutions can help with your lead generation.
Summing It Up
At Agency Partner, we can help you navigate the tides of change. In addition to website design and content creation, we offer social media marketing, brand strategizing, and business consulting. Contact us to talk to an experienced professional who can help set your business onto the right trajectory. Reach out today and let’s talk about how we can help make you successful.
Not big on reading? That’s okay. Watch “How to Collect Website Leads Like a Pro” instead.
Using the power of Artificial Intelligence, we turned this blog into a video for you. Check it out below!
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